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Book
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COPYRIGHT DEPOSIT
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HoMR School
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CVIBKACIXG
THE GROWTH AND ACHIEVEMENTS 01' OUR COUNTRY FROM THE
EARLIEST DAYS OP DISCOVERY AND SETTLEMENT
TO THE URESENT EVENTFUL YEAR
SHOWING now fUOM THIHTEEX COLONIES WITH A SCATTERED rOFCLATION AlOXC THE
ATLANTIC COAST A GREAT HEfLDLIC HAS 15KEN FORMED. EMBRACING
FORTY-FIVE STATES WITH 75.000.000 INHABITANTS AND VAST
COLONIAL POSSESSIONS IN TWO HEMISFHERES
Bv CHAKLES iMORRIS, LL. D.
Author of "Decisive Events in American History," "Half Hours with the Best American Authors.'
' An Historical Review of Civilization." Etc.. Etc.
Embellished With Over IMJO New Eiujniviiuis
ILLUSTRATING ALL THAT IS INTERESTING AND INSPIRING IN OIR HISTORY
C. F. BEEZLEY & CO.
CHICAGO, ILL.
4105;^
Library or Conurava
■"wo Confs RfciivEO
AUG 31 1900
CofyrifM Mry
S£C('ND COfV.
OROCd (XVISION,
SEP 6 1900
Entered according to Act of Congress in the year 1899, ^^
W. E. SCULL,.
in the office of the Librarian of Congress, at Washington.
t^M"=f='11^lA-
T
74273
■*> "^i
oggpopggg o ooo
PUBLISHERS' INTRODUCTION.
The late war with Spain murks a iiKiinciifoiis cihicIi in the progress of our
country, whose history, stretcliing through tlie centuries of discovery, explora-
tion, settlement, the struggle tor independence, foreign and domestic war, lofty
achievement in all departments of knowledge and progress, is the most interest-
ing in human annals. It is a record full of instruction and incitement to
endeavor, which must fill every Amei'ican with pi'ide in his l)irllirighf, and
with gratitmli' to Him wlio holds the earth and llie sea in the liollow of J lis
hand.
The following j)ages contain a com|)lete, accurate, and griipliic history of onr
conntry from the first visit of the Northmen, a thousand ycnrs ago, to the ojien-
ing of its new destiny, through the late strnggh', resulting in the ficeing of
Cuh.i, the wresting of the Philippines, Porto Kico, and the I/idrones from
the tyranny of the most cruel of modern nations, and the addition of Hawaii
to our domain. The Greater United States, at one hound, assumes its jdace
in the van of nations, and hecomes the foremost agent in civilizing and
christianizing the world.
The task, long committed to England, Germany, France, Russia, and later
to Japan, must henceforth he shared with us, whose glowing future gives promise
of the crowning achievement of the ages. With a fervent trust in a guiding
Providence, and an ahiiling confidence in our ahility, we enter upon the new
(•5)
6 FUJJLISHERS" INTRODUCTION.
and grander career, as in obedience to the divine beliest tluit the Latin race must
decrease and the Anglo-Saxon increase, and that the latter, in a luiinan sense,
nnist be the regenerator of all who are groping in the night ol" ignorance and
barbarism.
It is a wonderful story tliat is traced in the pnges that follow. A compre-
hension of the present and of the promise of the_ future necessitates an under-
standing of the ]»ist. The history of the Greater United States, therefore, is
complete, from the first glimpse, in the early morning of October V2, 141(2, of
San Salvador by Cohuubus, through the settlement of the colonies, their sti-uggles
for existence, the colonial wars, the supreme contest between England and
France for miistei'y in the New World, the long gloom of the Eevolution that
brought inde]iendence, the founding of tlie Rejmblic, in 1787, the growth and
expansion of the nation, the mighty War for the Union tliat united the divided
house and j)lanted it upon a rock, and the later "war for humanity," when the
perishing islands, stretching their hands to us in helpless anguish, were
gathered under the flag of freedom, there to remain througli all time to come.
There have been many leaders in this great work. Not the story of the
deeds alone, but of those who performed them is told. History, biography, and
all that is interesting and jirofitable to know are here truthfully set forth, for
their lesson is one whose value is bej'ond measurement.
In addition to the history of that which was simply the United States, a
complete account is given of our new colonial possessions, Hawaii, Porto Kico,
the Philippines, tlie Ladrones, and of C'uba, the child of our adoption. Their
geogi'a])hy, their soil, climate, productions, inhabitants, and capabilities are set
forth with fullness and accuracy.
In conclusion, the publishers confidently claim that "The Greater Ixepub-
lic " is i the fullest, most interesting, reliable, and instructive work of the kind
ever offered the public.
'*l AM READY FOR ANY SERVICE THAT I CAN GIVE MY COUNTRY"
1p i7ij8 our Government was about to declare war against France. Congress appointed Washington commaiuler-in-chie(
u( the American Army. The Secretary of War carried the commission in person to Mt. Vernon, 1 he old
hero, silting on his horse in the harvest field, at tepted in the above patriotic words
TABLE OF CONTENTS
CIIAETER I.
DISCOVKRY AND K>CRT^ORAXION.
The Visits .,f lli(> Northmen to the New World— Tlie Tn»/t:/(. AV/e Embargo and the N„n-lutercou,-.c Acts-I^ival of the Latter Against En,^
land-The LMe Belt -.md the /W./--.<-l'opalatK,n oi the Un .ted btates ,n IM)- Battle ot
Tippecanoe-Declaration of War A«ai„st En.land-ComparaUve Strength ot the iwo NaUons
on the Ocean-Unpopularity of the War in New England-Preparat.ons Made by the Uovern-
ment-Cowardly Surrender of l>etroit-l>re«idential EleeUon of lS12-Adm^s>on of Lou,«,ana
and Indiana-New National Ba.,k Chartered-Seeond Attempt to Inva^le Canada-Batt e ot
Oueenstown Hei,hts-Ineffieienoy of the Ameriean Forees in 181 2-Bnlhant Work of the
t^yXe Co,M;on and the tf^n-n'^.e-The W..p and the Frohc^^he Un,teJ St.tes.,^
the Macedonian-n,e Constitution and the ./«.a-Reorganizat.on and Strengthening of the
Army-Operations in the West-Gallant Defe,.se of Fort Stephenson-AmerK=an Inva^on o
Ohio and Victory of the Thames-Indian Massacre at Fort Mimms-tVture ot \ork (foronto)
-Defeat of the Enemy at Sackett's Harbor-Failure of the American Invasion of <- ana. a- ho
EornH and P.^cm-A-Capture of the Chesapealcc-- \)ont Give Up the Ship -Captain
Deeatur Blockaded at New London-Capture of the Arg.s by the Enemy-Crnise of the &ex
-The Glorious Victory of Commodore I'erry on Lake Erie-Suecess of the Anierican Arms
in Canada-Battle of the Chippewa-Of Lundy's Lane-Dec.sive Defeat of the Enemy s
Attack on Plattsburg-l'unishment of the Creek Indians for the Massacre at I'ort M.mms-
Vigorous Action by the National Government-Burning of Washington by the British- ^^^
The Hartford Convention
CHAPTER X.
ADMINISTRATIONS OF JAMES MONROE AND
JOHN QUINCY ADAM:S, 1817-1829.
James Monroe-The "Era of Good Feeling "-The Seminole War-Vigorous Measures of
General Jackson-Admission of Mississippi, Illinois, Alabama, Maine, and Missouri-rhe
Missouri Compromise-The Monroe Doctrine-Visit of Lafayette-Introduction of the Use of
Gas-Completion of the Erie Canal-The First " Hard Times'-Extinct.on of the West Indian
Pirates-Presidential Election of 1824-John Quincy Adams-Prosperity of the Country-In-
troduction of the Railway Locomotive-Trouble witli the Cherokee^ in Georgui-Deatn ot
Adams and Jefferson-Congressional Action on the Tariff-Presidential Election of lf>28 . . J)5
CHAPTER XL
ADMINISTRATIONS OP- JACKSON, VAN BUREN,
W. H. HARRISON, AND TYLER, 1829-1845.
Andrew Jackson-" To the Victors Belong the Spoils "-The President's Fight with the Unit..!
States Bank-Presidential Election of lS28-Distribution of the Surplus m the United btates
Treasury Among the Various Statcs-The Black Hawk War-The Nullification Exc.tement-
The Seminole War- Introduction of the Steam Locomotive-Anthracite Coal, McCormick s
Reaper, and Friction Matches-Great Fire in New York-Population of the United States in
1830-Admission of Arkansas and Michigan-Abolitionism-France and Portugal Compelled
to Pay their Debts to the United States-Thc Specie Circular, John Caldwell Camoun Henry
Clay, and Daniel Webster-Presidential Election of 1836-Martin Van Buren-The 1 an.c ot
1 837-llebellion in Canada-Population of the United States in 1840-Presidential Election of 1 840
-William Henry Harrison-His Death-John Tyler-His Unpopular Course-1 he ^A ebstor-
Ashburton Treaty-Civil War in Rhode ^sland-The Anti-rent War in New \ ork-A Shock-
10 CONTENTS.
ing Accident — Admission of Florida — Revolt of Texas Against Mexican Rule
■ San Jacinto — Tiie Question of the Amicxation of Texas — The State Admitted — Tiie Coi)iK'r
Mines of Mieiiigan — Presidential Klectioii of 1S44 — Tiie Electro-magnetic Telegraph — Professor
Morse — His 1/abors in Bringing the Invention to Perfection :jl5
CHAPTER XII.
FAMOUS PKKSIOKN'i lAL CANII^AIGNS F'RKVIOUS
IX) 1840.
The Origin of the " Caucus"' — The Election of 17',t2 — The First Stormy Eleition — The Constitution
Amended — Improvement of the Method of Nominating Presidential Candidates — The F"irst
Presidential Conveniion — Convention in Haltimore in 1S32 — Exciting Scenes — The Presidential
Campaign of 1S2U — "Old Hickory" — Andrew Jackson's Popularity — Jackson Nominated —
"Old Hickory" Defeated — 'file " Log Cabin " and " Hard-Cider" Campaign of 1S40 — " Tippe-
canoe and Tyler Too " — Peculiar Feature of the Harrison Campaign ...... 239
CHAPTER XIII.
AOMINISTKATION OF FOT^Iv. 1S45-1849.
James K. Polk — Thc.War with Mexico — The First Conflict — Battle ofResaca de la Palina — Vigorous
Action of the United States Government — General Scott's Plan of Campaign — Capture of
Monterey — An Armistice — Capture of Saltillo — Of Victoria — Of Tampico — (Jeneral Kearny's
Capture of Santa Fo — Conquest of California — Wonderful March of Colonel Donijihan — Battle
of Buena Vista — Gener.al Scott's March Toward the City of Mexico — Capture of Vera Cruz —
American Victory at Ccrro Gordo — Five American Victories in One Day — Santa Anna — Con-
quest of Mexico Completed— Terms of the Treaty of Peace— The New Territory Gained — The
Slavery Dispute — 'fhe Wilinot Proviso — "Fifty-Four Forty or Fight" — Adjustment of the
Oregon Boundary — Admission of Iowa and Wisconsin — The Smithsonian Institute — Discovery
of Gold in California — The Mormons — The I'residential Election of 1848 ..... 251
CHAPTER XIV.
ADPvlINISTRATIONS OK TAYLOR, KILIvMORE,
PIHRCK, ANO BUCHANAN, 1849-1857.
Zachary Taylor — The "Irrepressible Conflict" in Congress — ^Thc Omnibus Bill — Death of President
Taylor— Millard Fillmore— Death of the Old Leaders and Debut of the New— The Census of
1850 — Surveys for a Railway to the Pacific — Presidential Election of 1S52 — Franklin I'ierce—
Death of Vice-President King — A Comnierical Treaty Made with Japan — Filibustering Ex-
peditions — The Ostend Manifesto — The "Know Nothing" T'arty — The Kansas-Nebraska Bill
and Repeal of the Missouri Compromise ... ....... 2ri9
CHAPTER XV.
ADNIINISXRATION OK LINCOLN, 1861-1865
THE WAR KOR THE UNION, 1861.
Abraham Lincoln — Major Anderson's Trying Position — Jefferson Davis — Inauguration of Presi-
dent Lincoln — Bombardment of Fort Sumter — War Preparations North and South — Attack on
Union Troops in Baltimore — Situation of the Border States — Unfriendliness of England and
France — Friend.ship of Russia — The States that Composed the Southern Confederacy — Union
Disaster at Big Bethel — Success of the Union Campaign in Western Virginia — General (Jeorge
CONTENTS. 11
PAGE
B. McC'lcllaii— First Buttle of Bull Run— General McCleilan Called to the Cominaiid of the
Armj' of the IVtomae — Union J»isaster at IJall's Bluff — Military Oi)eratioiis in Missouri — Battle
of Wilson's Creek — Defeat of Colonel Mulligan at Lexington, Wo. — Supersedure of Fremont —
Operations on the Coast — The Trent Affair — Summary of the Year's Operations . . . 285
CHAPTER XVI.
ADMINISTRATION OK LINCOLN (CONTINUKD),
liSGl-1865.
WAR KOR THE UNION (CONTINUED), 1862.
Capture of Forts Henry and Donclson — Change in the Confederate Bine of Defense — Capture of
Island No. 1(1 — Battle of Pittsburg Landing or Shiloh — Capture of Corinth — Narrow Escape of
Louisville — Battle of I'erryville — Battle of Murfreesboro' or Stone River — Battle of Pea Ridge
— Naval Battle Between the Monitor and Mtirlmac — Fate of the Two Vessels — Capture of New
Orleans — The Advance Against Ricliniund — McClellan's Peninsula Campaign — The First Con-
federate Iimnsion of the North — Jloltle of Antieliim or ShorpsliKru — I)ishone — Railway Strikes — Elevated Railroads — War with the Nez Perce
Indians — Remonetization of Silver — Resumiition of Specie Payments — A Strange Fishery Award
— The Yellow Fever Scourge — Presidential F;lection of 1S7S — James A. Garfield — Civil Service
Reform — Assassination of President Garfield — Chester A. Arthur — The Star Route Frauds —
The Brooklyn Bridge — ^The Ciiinese Question — The Mormons — Alaska Exploration — The York-
town Centennial — Attempts to Reach the North Polo by Americans — History of the Oreely Ex-
pedition 427
CHAPTER XXI.
ADMINISTRATION OK CLEVELAND (KIRST) AND
OK HARRISON, 1885-1803.
Grover Cleveland — Completion of the Washington Monument — The Bartholdi Statue — Death of
General Grant—Death of Vice-President Hendricks — The First Vice-President to Die in Office
— George Clinton — Elbridge Gerry — William R. King — Henry Wilson — Death of General
McClellan — Of General Hancock — His Career — The Dispute Between Capital and Labor —
Arbitration^The Anarchistic Outbreak in Chicago — The Charleston Earthquake^Conqucst of
the Apaches — Presidential Election of 1RS8 — Benjamin Harrison — The Johnstown Disaster —
Threatened War with Chili — The Indian Uprising of 1S9U-91 — Admission of New States —
Presidential Election of 1892 459
CONTENTS. 13
CHAPTER XXII.
ADIVIINISTRATION OP" CLKVKLAND (SECOND),
1S03-1.S07.
TACE
Repeal of the Purchase Clause of the Sherman Bill — The World's (Johiiiibian Kxpositiun at Ciiica.^o
- — Tlie Hawaiian Imbroglio — The Great Railroad Strike of 1S'J4 — Coxey's Commonweal Army
— Admission of Utah — Harnessing of Niagara — Dispute with England Over Venezuela's Bound-
ary—Presidential Eleetion of IS'.IC) 487
CHAPTER XXIII.
ADMINISTRATION OF CLEVELAND (SECOND,
CONCLUDED), l.^yy-l«!)7.
Settling tlie Northwest — The Face of the Country Transformed— Clearing Away the Forests and
its Effects — Tree-planting on the Prairies — Pioneer Life in tiie Seventies — -The Granary of the
World — The Northwestern Fanner — Transportation atid Other Industries — Business Cities and
Centres — United Public Action and its Influence — Tiie Indian Question — Other Elements of
Population — Society and General Culture 511
CHAPTER XXIV.
ADMINISTRATION OE N4oKINLEY, 1S97-1001.
William McKiidey — Organization of "Greater New York" — Removal of (ieneral Grant's Remains
to Morningside Park — The Klondike Golil Excitement — Spain's Misrule in Cuba — Pieliminary.
Events of the Spanish-American War 527
CHAPTER XXV.
ADMINISTRATION OE MoKINLEY (CONTINUED),
18t)7-lU01.
THE SEANISH-AMEKICAN WAR.
Opening Incidents— Bombardment of Matanz.as- Dewey's Wonderful Victory at Manila- Disaster
to the It //(.s7(/i at Cardenas Bay — The First American Loss of Life — Bombardmenl of San
Juan, Porto Rico — 'I'lie Elusive Spanish Fleet — Bottlcd-up in Santiago Harbor — Lieutenant
Hobson's Daring Ex])loit— Second Bombardment of Santiago and Arrival of the Army — Gallant
Work of the Rough Riders and the Regulars — Battles of San Juan and El Cancy — Destruc-
tion of (Jervera's Fleet — General Shafter Reinforced in Front of Santiago — Surrender of the
City — General Miles in Porto Rico— An Easy Conquest— Conquest of the Philippines — Peace
Negotiations and Signing of the Protocol — Its Terms — Members (jf the National Peace Com-
mission — Return of the Troops from (!uba and Porto llico — The Peace Commission in Paris —
Conclusion of its Work — Terms of the Treaty — Ratified by the Senate 547
14
CONTENTS.
CHAPTER XXVI.
ADK^INISTRATION OK McKINLEY (CONTINUED),
1807-1901
OUR NEW POSSESSIONS.
PAGE
The Islands of Hawaii — Their Inhabitants and Products — City of Honolulu — History of Cuba — The
Ten Years' War — The Insurrection of 1895-9S — Geography and Productions of Cuba— Its Cli-
mate — History of Porto Ilico — Its People and Productions — San Juan and Ponce — Location,
Discovery, and History of the Philippines — Insurrections of the Filipinos — City of Manila —
Commerce — I'hilippine Productions — Climate and Volcanoes — Dewey at Manila — The Ladrone
Islands — Conclusion 587
List of Illustrations.
Amerigo Vespucci,
Meeting Between llie Nurlliuieii iiinl Nalive
Sebastian Cabot,
Cobinibus and the Egg,
An Indian (Council of War, ....
" 'I'he IJroiling of Fi.sh Over tlio Fire,"
Indian ^'illago Enclosed with Talisades,
Sir Walter Raleigli
Seal of the Virginia Company, ...
Armor Worn by the Pilgrims in 1020,
Landing of Myles Standisli,
Roger Williams in I'liiiislinierit, ...
Primitive Mode of (J rinding Corn,
Friends' Meeting- House, Iturlington, N. J.,
Moravian Easter Service, Bethlehem, I'a.,
Colonial I'low— ITOC),
Ancient IIor.seshiies,
A Colonial Flax- wheel,
Silk -winding,
A Comfortier, or Chaliiig l>isli,
F^aiiy l>ays in New Fngland, ....
Places of Worship in New York in 1742,
Attack on Rioters, Springfield, Ma.ss., in 17^0
Young Washington Riding a Colt,
Rraddock's Defeat,
Martello Tower on the Heights of Abraham,
A Dutch Ilousehcild as Seen in the F]arly
Days in New York,
Memorial Hall, Harvard College, . . . .
Bible Brought Over in the M
127
129
134
137
143
147
149
l.'')2
153
154
155
157
159
16
LIST OF ILLUSTRATTONS.
PAGE
Franklin's Grave, 160
Chief Justice John Jay, 168
Washington's ]?edrooui in which lie Died, . 165
Mother of Washington Kecoiving Lafayette, 166
John Adams, 168
The Cotton Gin, Invented in 1793, . . . 169
Thomas Jefferson, . 171
Development of Steam Navigation, . . . 177
Robert Fulton, 178
James Madison, 182
The Arts of Peace and the Art of War, . 187
Mrs. James Madison, 191
Burning of Washington, 197
Weathersford and General Jackson, . . . 201
First Train of Cars in America, .... 205
James Monroe 205
An Indian's Declaration of War, .... 207
John Quincy Adams, 21 1
"Johnny Bull," or No, 1, 213
Andrew Jackson 216
Samuel Houston, 218
Oseola's Indignation, 221
Western Railroad in Earlier Days, . . . 222
John C. Calhoun, 223
Henry Clay, 224
Daniel Webster, 225
Martin Van Buren, 227
William Henry Harrison, 239
John Tyler, 231
Where the First Morse Instrument was Ccm-
structed, 235
Speedwell Iron Works, Morristown, N. J., . 236
Old Gates at St. Augustine, IHorida, . . . 239
A Typical Virginia Court-IIouse, .... 241
The White House at Washington, D. C, . 243
Old Spanish House, New (Jrleans, . . . 247
The Marigny House, New Orleans, . . . 248
James K. Polk, 251
Robert Vj. liCe in the Mexican War, . . , 253
General Winfield Scott, 257
Battle of Cerro (uirdo, 259
The Smithsonian Institute, 263
Gold Washing— The Sluice 264
Gold Wa.sbing— The Cradle, 265
Great Salt Lake City, Utah 267
Zacliary Taylor, 269
Millard Fillmore 271
PAGE
Franklin Pierce, 273
Lucretia Mott, 275
Henry Ward Beecher, 276
James Buchanan, 278
Lucretia Mott Protecting DangerflelJ, . . 279
Harper's Ferry, 281
Abraham Lincoln, 285
From Log-Cabin to the White House, . . 286
Jefferson Davis 287
Fort Moultrie, Charleston, S. C, . . . . 289
A Skirmisher 291
General George B. McClellan, 293
Statue of McClellan, Philadelphia, Pa., . . 295
Fortifying Richmond, 297
Breech-loading Mortar, or Howil/.er, . . . 302
A Railroad Battery, 305
Sec. Stanton's Opinion about the i\fcrn'miir, 309
John Ericsson, 312
Libby Prison in 1865, 315
Libby Prison in 1884, 316
Moist Weather at the Front, 319
Antietam Bridge 325
Model of Galling Gun 329
U. S. Military Telegraph Wagon, .... 331
Admiral Porter, 334
David G. Farragut, 335
Grant After the Battle of Belmont, . . .337
(teneral (leorge H. Thomas, 341
General Thomas J. ("Stonewall") Jaiksin, 345
House in which Stonewall Jackson Died, . 346
General Robert E. Lee, 349
General George G. Meade, 351
Cushing's Last Shot 354
Entrance to Gettysburg Cemetry, .... 357
The Swamp Angel Battery, 363
Bailey's Dams on the Red River 371
Monument of Farragut at Washington, . . 373
Bird's-eye View of Andersonville i'rison, . 383
Death of (jleneral Polk 385
General William T. Sherman, 389
General Lee Leading the Te.xans' Charge, . 393
General IMiilip II. Sheridan, 395
Lincoln Entering Kiclimond, 398
The Desperate Extremity of the Confederates, 403
Horace Greeley, 405
Lincoln's Grave, Si)ringfield, 111. 406
Andrew Johnson, 407
LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS.
17
PAGE
Log-cabin Church at Juneau, Alaska, . . .411
Southern Legislature Under Carpet bag Rule, 413
Ulysses Simpson Grant, 415
Mrs. Julia Dent Grant, 415
The Burning of Chicago, 1871, . . . .417
Section of Chicago Stockyards, .... 418
Monument to General Ia'C, Uichniund, Va., 422
General George Crouk, 423
Memorial Hall of 187G, 425
Samuel J. Tilden, 426
Rutherford B. Hayes, 427
Grant at Windsor Castle, 431
Grant in Japan, 433
The Boy James Garfield and his .Mother, . 434
James .\. Garfield, 435
The Aged Mother of I'resident (Jarfield, . 436
Assassination of Pie.sidcnt GarlielJ. . . . 437
Memorial Tablet to I'resident Garfield, . . 438
Chester Alan Arthur, 439
The Brooklyn Bridge 440
Scene in Chinatown, San Francis 'O, . . . 441
A Funeral in the Arctic Region.s, . . . 449
Grover Cleveland, 459
Tomb of (ieneral U. S. Grant, New York, . 4G4
City Hall, Philadelphia 467
Old Haymarket Plaza, Chi ago 471
General Crook's Apache (iuide, .... 475
An Inilian Warrior, 477
Benjamin Harrison, 479
Indian Mother and Infant, ...... 481
Indian Agency, 484
Henry Moore Teller, .... ... 487
Model of U. S. Man-of-War 488
Machinery Hall, World's Fair, Chicago, 1893, 490
Horticultural Building, World's Fair, 1893, . 491
Agricultural Building, World's Fair, 1893, . 491
Woman's Building, Woild's Fair, 1893, . . 492
Thomas A. Edi.son, 493
The Viking Ship, World's Fair, Chicago, 1893, 495
Art Palace, World's Fair, Chicago, 1893, . 496
Goveriunent Building, World's Fair, 1893, . 496
James G. Blaine, 499
A Scene of the Chicago Strike of 1894, . 501
A Gold Prospecting Party, British Guiana, . 505
Tiie Venezuelan Commission, 507
William Jennings Bryan, 508
Albert Shaw, 511
PAGK
A Dispute Over a Brand 513
Sluicegate, 517
Between the Mills, 518
Barrel-hoist and Tunnel, Washburn Mill, . 518
Mossbrre, 520
Section of Chicago Stock-yards, . . . .521
The Falls of St. Anthony, 1885, . . . . 523
Lakeshiue Drive, Chicago, 525
Wm. McKiidey, 527
The Obelisk, Central Park, New York, . . 529
John Sherman, 531
Thomas B. Keed, 533
Tomb of U. S. Grant, New York, .... 534
Review of the Navy and Merchant iSlarine
on the Hudson, Ajuil 27, 1897, . . . 535
Map of Alaska, 536
Ready for the Trail, 537
General Cali.xto Garcia, 539
General Ma,\imo Gomez, 541
Jose Marti, 543
General Antonio Maceo, 544
The U. S. Battleship Mi>!nr and her Officers, 545
Adiuiral George Dewey, 551
Camp Scene at Chickamauga 555
Jlichmond P. Hobson, 557
Major-General Fitzhugh Leo, 559
Rear-Admiral William T. Sampson, . . . 560
Gov. Theodore Roosevelt, 561
Rear-Admiral Winfield S, Schley, .... 565
Rear-Admiral J(]hn C. Watson, .... 567
Major-General William R. Shafter, . . . 570
Major-Genera! Nelson A. Miles, . . . .571
Major-General Joseph Wheeler, .... 573
Major-General Wesley Merritt, .... 577
M.ijor-General Klwell S. Otis 584
Admiral Dewey's Flagship the Olijinpia, . 585
Native Grass House, Hawaii, ..... 587
Royal Palace, Hawaii 589
Raising of the American Flag, Honolulu, . 589
Hula Dancing Girls, Hawaii 590
Church in Honolulu, Hawaiian Island.s, . . 592
Sugar Cane Plantation, Hawaiian Islands, . 594
Tombof Christopher(!olunibus, Havana, Cuba, 595
Indian Statue in the Pra
384
'.97
400
427
453
(V.))
20
LIST OF FULL-PAGE HALF-TONE ILLUSTRATIONS.
The Washington Monument
Arbitration ....
The Hero of the Strike, Coal Creek, Tenii.
The Viking Ship at the World's Colurabi;in Exposition
Congressional Library, Washington, I). C.
Cathedral Spires in the Garden of the Gods
Greater New York
President McKinley and the War Cabinet
City of Havana, Cuba
The U. S. Battleship " Maine "
Map of Cuba .
The Battle of Manila, May 1, 1898
Americans Storming San Juan Hill
U. S. Battleship " Oregon "
The Surrender of Santiago, July 17, 1898
In the War-room at Washington
The United States Peace Commissioners of the
Popular Commanders in the Filipino War
Prominent Spaniards in 1898 .
San Juan, Porto Rico .
The Escolta, City of Manila .
The Beautiful Luneta, Manila's Fashionable P
The Shipyard and Arsenal at Cavite, Philippine Islands
Raising the Flag on Fort San Antonio de Abad, Malate
Scenes from the Philippine Islands
The Mouth of the Pasis River
at Chicago, 181
Spanish War
omenade and Drive
PAGE
opp. 4lJ0
" 469
" 486
" 495
" 51(1
" 515
" 528
" 547
" 519
" 550
" 553
" 554
" 560
" 565
" 570
" 576
" 580
•' 58g
" 595
" 610
" 619
" 620
" 629
" 630
" 639
" 640
Authors Introduction.
The annals of the worltl contain no more impressive exam[)ie of the hirth
and growth of a nation than may be seen in tlie ease of that wliich has been
aptly termed the Greater Republic, whose story from its feeble childhood to its
grand maturity it is the purpose of this work to set forth. Three hundred years
is a brief interval in the long epoch of human history, yet within that short
period the United States has ileveloped from a luuidful of hardy men and women,
thinly scattered along our Athmtic coast, into a vast and mighty country^
peopled by not less than seventy-five millions of human beings, the freest, richest,
most industi'ious, and most enterprising of any people upon the face of the
earth. It began as a dwarf; it has grown into a giant. It was despised by the
proud nations of Europe ; it has become feared and respected by the proudest
of tliese nations. For a long time they have chiimed the riglit to settle among
themselves the affairs of the world; they have now to deal with the United
States in this self-imposed duty. And it is significant of the high moral atti-
tude occupied by this country, that one of the first enterprises in which it is
asked to join these ancient nations has for its end to do away with the horrors
of war, and substitute for the drawn sword in the settlement of national dis])utes
a great Supreme Court of arbitration.
This is but one of the lessons to be drawn from the history of the great
republic of the West. It has long been claimed that this history lacks interest,
that it is devoid of the romance which we find in that of the Eastern world, has
nothing in it of the striking and dramatic, and is too young and new to be
worth men's attention when compared with that of the ancient nations, which has
come down from the mists of prehistoric time. Yet we think that those who read
the following pages will not be ready to admit this claim. Tiiey will find in the
history of the United States an abundance of the elements of romance. It has,
besides, the merit of being a complete and fully rounded history. We can
trace it from its birth, and put upon record the entire story of the evolution of a
nation, a fact which it would be difficult to affirm of any of the older nations
of the world.
If we go back to the origin of our country, it is to find it made up of a
singular mixture of the best people of Europe. The word best is used here in
(21)
22 AVTHOTVS INTRODUCTION.
a special sense. The settlers in this country were not the rich ami titled. The^i
came not from that proud nobility which claims to possess bluer blood than the
common herd, but from the [)lain people of Europe, from the workers, not the
idlers, and this rare distinction they have kept up until the present day. But
of this class of the world's workers, they were the bes' and noblest. They
■were men who thou;^'ht for themselves, and refused to be bound in the trammeks
of a (State reli^inn ; men who wcic ready lo daie the 2)erils of the sea and the
hardships of a, liancn sliore for the bK'ssini;s of liberty and free-tliou_<;lit ; men
of sturdy thrift, unllinciiing eneri;y, darim;- enterprise, the true stidf out of
which alone a nation like ours could be built.
Such was the character of the Pilgrims and the Puritans, the hardy empire-
builders of New England, of the Quakers of New Jei-sey and Pennsylvania,
the Catholics of Maryland, the Huguenots of the South, the Moravians and
other German Protestants, the sturdy Scotch-Irish, and the othei'S who sought
this country as a haven of refuge for iree-thoiight. We cannot say the same
for the llollandei's of New Anistei'dam, the Swedes of Delawaic, and the
English of Virginia, so far as their purpose is concerned, yet they too proved
hardy and industrious settlers, and (he Cavaliers whom the ti'oubles in England
drove to Virginia, showed theii' good blood by the j)rominent part which their
descendants played in the winning of our indejK'udence and the making of our
government. Wliile the various peoples named took part in the settlement of
the colonies, the bulk of the settlers were of iMiglish birth, and Anglo-Sa.xon
thrift and energy became the foundation stones upon which our nation has been
built. Of the others, nearly the whole of them weie of Teutonic origin, while
the Huguenots, whom oppression drove from Fiance, were of the very bone and
sinew of that despot-ridden land. It may fairly be saiil, then, that the founders
of our nation came from the cream of the populations of Europe, born of sturdy
Teutonic stock, and comprising thrift, energy, endurance, love of liberty, and
freedom of thought to a degree never ecjualed in the makers of any other nation
upon the earth. They wei'e of solid oak in mind and iVame, and the edifice
they built had for its foundation the natui'al rights of man, and for its super-
structure that spirit of liberty which has ever since throbbed warmly in the
American heart.
It was well for the colonies that this umlerlying unity' of aim existed, for
aside from this they were strikingly distinct in character and aspirations-
Sjiarsely settled, strung at intervals along the far-extended Atlantic coast,
silhouetted against a stern background of wilderness and mountain range, their
sole bond of brotherhood was their common aspii-ation for liberty, while in all
other respects they were unlike in aims and purposes. The spirit of political
liberty was strongest in the New England colonies, and these held their own
AUTUOIVS INTllOinJCTlON. 23
again.sl eveiy t'fioit to rob tlioin of their riglits with uii unflinching l)ohhiess
which is worthy of the highest ]u-uise, and wliich set a noble example for the
remaining colonists. Next to them in bold opposition to tyranny were the
peoi)le of the Carolinas, who sturdily resisted an effort to make them the
enslaved subjects of a land-lioiding nobility. In Pennsylvania and Maryland
political riglils were granted I>y higii-minded pidprietors, and in these colonies
no struggle for sflf-govciiuiu'nt was necessary. Only in Virginia and New
York was ;uitocratic rule established, and in both of these it gradually yielded
to llif steady demand for self-government.
On the other hand, New England, while politically the freest, was religi-
ously the most autocratic. The Puritans, who had crossed the ocean in search
of freedom of thought, refused to grant a similar freedom to those who came
later, and sought to founil a system as intolerant as that from which they had
fled. A natural revulsion from their oj)pressive measures gave rise in Khode
Island to the lirst govi'rnni(ii( on the face of the earth in whicli absolute religious
lil)crty was establisiietl. Among the more southern colonies, a similar freet nearly all the power to themselves, and each acted almost as if
it were an independent nation, while the Congress of the Confederation was left
without money and almost without autliority.
This state of aff'airs soon grew intolerable. "We are," said Washington,
"one nation to-day, and thirteen to-morrow." Such a union it was impossible
to maintain. It was evident that the compact must give way; that there must
be one strong government or thirteen weak ones. This last alternative fright-
ened the States. None of them was strong enough to hold its own against
foreign governments. They must form a strong union or leave themselves at
the mercy of ambitious foes. It was this state of affairs that led to the Consti-
tutional Convention of 1787, by whose wisdom the National Union which has
provetl so solid a bond was oi-ganized. The Constitution made by this body
gave rise to the Republic of the United States. A subsequent act, which in
1898 added a number of distant island possessions to our Union, and vastly
widened its interests and its importance in the world's councils, made of it a
"Greater Republic," a mighty dominion whose possessions extended half round
the globe.
While the changes here briefly outlined were taking place, the countrv Was
growing with plKnutnieiial lapidity. From all parts of northern and western
AUTHOR'S INTRODUCTION. 25
Europe, and above all from Great Britain, new .settlers were crowding to our
shores, while the descendants of the original settlers were increasing in numbers.
How many people there were here is in doubt, but it is thoiiglit that in 1700
there were more than 200,000, in 1750 about 1,100,(X)0, and in 1776 about
2,500,000. The first census, taken in 17U0, just after the Federal Union was
formed, gave a population of nearly 4,000,000.
A people growing at this rate could uot be long confined to the nai'row
ocean border of the early settlements. A rich and fertile country lay back,
extending how far no one knew, and soon there was a movement to the West,
which carried the people over the mountains and into the broad plains beyond.
A war was fought with France for the possession of the Ohio counti'v. Boone
and other bold pioneers led hardy settlers into Kentucky anil Tennessee, and
George Rogers Clark descended the Ohio and drove the British troo]is from the
northwest territory, gaining that vast I'egion for the new Union.
After the War for Inde[)endence the movement westward went on with
rapidity. The first settlement in Ohio was made at Marietta in 178iS; Cincin-
nati was founded in 17U0; in 1803 St. Louis was a little village of log-cal)ins;
and in 1831 the site of Chicago was occupied by a dozen settlers gathered round
Fort Dearboi'n. But while the cities were thus slow in starting, the country
between them was rapidly filling up, the Indians giving way step by step as the
vanguard of the great march pressed upon them; here down the Ohio in bullet-
proof boats, there across the mountains on foot or in wagons. A great national
road stretched westward from Cumberland, Maryland, which in time reached
the Mississippi, and over whose broad and solid surface a steady stream of
emigrant wagons poured into the great West. At the same time steamboats
were beginning to run on the Eastern waters, and soon these were carrying the
increasing mnltitude down the Ohio and the Mississippi into the vast Western
realm. Later came the railroad to complete this phase of our history, and
provide a means of transportation by whose aid millions could travel with ease
where a bare handful had made their way with jieril and hardshiji of old.
Up to 1803 our national domain was bounded on the west by the Missis-
si j)pi, but in that year the vast territory of Louisiana was purchased from France
and the United States was extended to the summit of the Rocky Mountains, its
territory being more than doubled in area. Here was a mighty domain for
future settlement, across which two daring travelers, Lewis and Clai'k, joui iieyed
through tribes of Indians never before heard of, not ending their long route
until they had passed down the broad Columbia to the waters of the Pacific.
From time to time new domains were added to the great republic. In 1819
Florida was purchased from Sjiain. In 1845 Texas was added to the Union.
In 1846 the Oregon country was made part of the United States, In 1848, as
2(i AUTHOR'S INTRODUCTION.
;i ivsull of the ISIcxicau Wui', un immense tract extending from Texas to the
racilic was acquired, and the land of gold became part of the repuldic. In
1850 another tract was jmrcliased from Mexico, and tlie domain (jf tlie United
States, as it existed at tlie beginning of tlie Civil War, was com])leted. It
constituted a great section of the North American continent, extending across
it from the Atlantic to the I'acilic, and north and south from tlie Great Lakes
to the Gulf of Mexico, a icrtile, well-watered, and jnoliiic land, capable of
becoming the nurst'ry of one of the greatt'st nations on the earth. Beginning,
at the close of the Kevolution, with an area of SL'7,oston eighteen
thousand. Charleston and IJallimoi'c were still smaller, and Savannah was
(|uite small. There were only five cities with over ten thousand poj)ulation.
Of inland towns, Lancaster, Pennsylvania, with something over six thousand
population, was the largest. In ISIK), one hundred j'cars afterwards. New Yoilc
and Phihulelphia had ovei- one million each, and Chicago,, a city not sixty years
old, shared with them this honor. As for t-ities surpassing those of a centuiy
liefore, they were hundreds in number. A similar great growth lias taken place
in the States. From the original thirteen, hugging closely the Atlantic coast,
we now possess forty-tive, crossing the continent from ocean to ocean, and liave
besiiles a va.st territorial ai-ea.
The thirteen original States, sparsely ])eopled, poor and struggling for
existence, have expanded into a great galaxy of States, rich, poweiful, and
prospei'ous, with grand cities, flourishing rural communities, measureless
resources, and an enterprise which no diiliculty can battle and no hardship can
AUTlIOirS INriiODUCTlON. 27
check. Our territory could support luuidrcds ot" inillious of populatiou, and
still be uuich less crowded tluui some of the countries of Europe. Its products
include those of every zone • hundreds of thousands of S(j[uare miles of its soil
are of virgin richness ; its mineral wealth is so great that its precious nu'tals have
affected the monetary standards of tlu; world, and its vast mineral and agricultural
wealth is as yet only partly develojicd. Vast as has lieen the production of gold
in Calil'ornia, its annual output is of less value lliaii that of wheat. In
wheat, coin, and cotton, indeed, the product of this country is simply stupendous;
while, in addition to its gold and silver, it is a mighty storehouse of coal, iron,
copper, lead, petroleum, and many other products of nature that are of high
value to nuinkind.
In its progress towards its presi'iitcondition, our country has lieen mai'kedly
successful in two grt'at fields of human I'fforl, in war and in peace. A brief
[U'cliininary statement of its success in tli(! first of these, and of the causes of its
several wars, may be ilesirable here, as iiiti(Hliictory to their more extended
consideration in the body of the work. The early colonists had three enemies
to contend with: the original inhahitants of the land, the Spanish settlers in the
South, and thi^ Fi-endi in the North and West. Its dealings with the aborigines
has been one continuous series of conflicts, the vvd man being driven back ste|)
by sti'|i until to-day \\v. holds imt a small I'ractioii of his once greats territory.
Yet the Indians are probal)ly as uiinierniis to-day as they were originally, and
are certainly bi'tter olf in their present peaceCnl and jiartly civilized condition
than they were in their former savage and waiTiktt state.
'i'he Spaniards were never numerous in this country, and were forcei"omises held them to
their work, and on Friday, October 12, 1492, land was sighted. He was rowed
ashore and took possession of the new country in the name of Ferdinand and
Isabella. While it is not known with certainty where he landed, it was prob-
ably Watling Island, one of the Bahamas. He named it San Salvador, and, be-
lieving it to be a part of India, called the natives Indians, by which name they
will always be known. He afterward visited Cuba and Haiti, and returned to
PaidS on the loth of March, 1493.
Columbus was receivetl with the highest honors, and, as the news of his great
discovery spread, it caused a profound sensation throughout Europe. He made
three other voyages, but did not add greatly to his discoveries. He died, neglected
and in poverty, May 20, 1506, without suspecting the grandeur of his work,
which marked an era in tiie historv of the world.
OTHER DISCOVERERS.
Another famous Italian navigator and friend of Co-
luml)us was Amerigo Vespucci, who, fired hj the success
of the great navigator, made several voyages westward. He
claimed to have seen South America in May, 1497, which,
if true, made him the first man to look ution tlie American
, T , . .... .1.1 ^1 i T7 • SEBASTIAN CABOT.
contnient. Late nivestigations tend to show that Vespucci
was correct in his claim. At any rate, his was the honor of having the country
named for him.
Jolm Cabot, also an Italian, but sailing under the flag of England, discov-
ered the continent of North America, in the spring of 1497. A year later,
Sebastian, son of John, explored the coast from Nova Scotia as far south as
Cape Hatteras. It was the work of the elder Cabot that gave England a valid
claim to the northern continent.
From what has been stated, it will be seen that Spain, now decrepit and de-
cayed, was one of the most powerful of all nations four hundred years ago.
Other leading powers were England, France, and Holland, and all of them soon
began a scramble for new lands on the other side of the Atlantic. Spain, hav-
ing been the first, had a great advantage, and she was wise enough to use all the
means at her command. We will first trace the explorations made by that
nation.
In 1513, Vasco Nuiiez de Balboa, a lawless rogue, hitl himself in a cask on
36
DISCOVERY AND EXPLORATION.
board of a vessel in order to escape his creditors, and was not discovered by the
angry captain until so far from land that he could not be taken back again.
As it turned out, this was a fortunate thing for the captain and crew, for Balboa
was a good sailor, and when the ship was wrecked on the coast of Darien he led
the men through many dangers to an Indian village, where they were saved from
starvation. Balboa had been in the country before and acquired a knowledge
of it, which now proved helpful.
The story of fcjpain in America is one long, frightful record of massacre,
cruelty, greed, and rapine. Ferocious by nature, lier explorers had not sufficient
sense to see that it was to their interest to treat the Indians justly. These people,
although armed only with bows and arrows, atwhichthe Spaniards laughed, still
outnumbered tliem a thousandfold and could crush them by the simple force of
numbei's. Besides, they were always provided with
food, which they were eager to give to their pale-faced
brothers, who were often unable to obtain it, but
whose vicious nature would not j^ermit them to be
' iiKiuly and just.
Moreover, the S2:)aniards were crazy after gold,
which they believed existed in many places in pro-
digious quantities. The sight of the yellow orna-
ments worn by the natives fired their cupidity, and
they inquired eagerly in the sign language where the
precious metal could be found. One of the Indians
replied that six days' travel westward would bring
them to the shores of a great sea, where gold was as
plentiful as the pebbles on the beach.
CAHAVELS OF CHRISTO-
PHER COLUMBUS.
(After an engraving imlilislicd in 15S4.)
DISCOVERY OF THE PACIFIC.
This information, as may be believed, set the
Spaniards wild, and, engaging a number of the natives as guides, they jjlunged
into the hot, steaming forests, and pressed on until one day they came to the base
of a mountain, from the top of which the guides said the great sea could be seen.
Balboa made his men stay where they were while he climbed to the crest of the
mountain alone. This was on the 26th of September, 1513, and, as Balboa
looked off to the westward, his eyes rested upon the Pacific Ocean, the mightiest
body of water on the globe.
He had made a grand discovery, and one which led to the conquest of
Mexico and Peru and the colonization of the western coast of our country.
Spain sent her armed expeditions thither, and in time they overran the sections
named, their footprints marked everywhere by fire and blood. Many remains
FIRST CIRCUMNAVIGATION OF THE GLOBE.
37
exist to-day in the Southwest of the early visits of those rapacious adventurers,
during the first half of the sixteenth century. In Santa Fe, New Mexico, is a
building made of adobe or sun-dried clay which was built in 1582.
THE FIRST CIRCUMNAVIGATION OF THE GLUBE.
In 1519 Ferdinand Magellan coasted South America to the strait named
in his honor, and, passing through it, entered upon the vast body of water dis-
covcretl six years Ijclbre by Balboa. Magellan gave it the name of Pacillr
COLUMBUS AND THE EGG.
At a dinner the Spanish courtiers, jealous of Colinnb\is, said anyone could discover the Indies, When, at rnlinnbiis' request
they failed to make an egg stand on its end. he showed them how to do it by flattening the end of it. "Anyone could do that,"
remarked a courtier. " So anyone can discover the Indies, after I have shown the way."
Ocean, and, sailing westward, discovered the Philippine Islands, which hnve
lately acquired such importance in our history. There Magellan died. Several
of his ships were lost, but one of them succeeded in reaching Spain after an
absence of two years. This was the first circumnavigation of the globe and
demonstrated the grandeur of the discovery made by Columbus.
One of the companions of Columbus on his second voyage was Ponce de
Leon. He was well on in years, and became deej^ly interested in a story told
38 DISCOVERY AND EXPLORATION.
by the Indiaus of a wonderful laud to the uorth of Cuba, where there was a
marvelous spring, which would bring back youth to any who drank from its
waters. De Leon set out to hunt for the land and discovered it in Florida on
Easter Sunday, in 1513. He drank to repletion again and again from the springs
he found, but without restoring his youth, and he was killed by Indians in 1521,
while trying to form a settlement on the coast.
De Narvaez visited Florida, in 1528, in charge of a large expedition, with
the intention of marching into the interior, but the Sjjaniards were so brutal to
the Indians that they fought them step by step, until only four Avretched beings
were left alive. They lived a long time with the natives, but gradually worked
their way across the continent to California, where they found some of their
countrymen, who took care of them.
DISCOVERY OF THE MISSISSIPPI.
One of the best-equipped expeditions ever sent out was that of Hernando de
Soto, which landed at Tampa Bay in May, 1539. Although the intention was
to penetrate far into the interior, the Spaniards had no sooner set foot on land
than they began their outrages against the Indians, who, as in the case of De
Narvaez, turned uj^on them and slew large numbers. The explorers, however,
pushed on and passed over a large section of country, though the precise course
taken is not known. In the summer of 1541 they crossed the present State of
Mississippi and thus discovered the Father of Waters. Three years were spent
in wandering through the South, during which one-third of the number were
killed or died and all the ]u-operty destroyed. Losing heart at last, De Soto
turned about, in May, 1542, and started for the sea with the intention of re-
turning home. He was worn and weakened from fever, and he expired on the
21st of the month. Fearful that the news of his death would incite the Indians
to attack them, liis survivors wrapped the body in blankets, weighted it with
stones, and at midnight rowed stealthily out into the river and let it sink from
sight. There was something fitting in the fact that the Mississijjpi should prove
the last resting-place of its discoverer.
Pedro Menendez was one of the most execrable miscreants that ever lived.
He arrived oflP the coast of Florida with a large expedition and at the mouth
of the St. John's saw a number of ships flying the flag of France. He furiously
attacked them and drove them to sea. Then he returned to a fine harbor which
he had discovered and began the town of St. Augustine. This was in 1565,
and St. Augustine is, therefore, the oldest settlement within the present limits
of the United States, excluding those founded in some of our colonial pos-
sessions.
Let us now turn attention to the French explorations. France in those
SEARCH FOR THE FOUNTil"! CF YOUTH BY PONCE DE LEON. 39
40 DISCOVEEY AND EXPLORATION.
days was a spirited rival of Spain, and, in 1524, slie sent out a fleet of four
vessels under the command of Verrazzani, who, strange as it may seem, was al.so
an Italian. Two months later, with only a single ship remaining, he sighted
the mainland of Amei'ica, it is believed near North Carolina, from which point
he coasted northward along New England. He gave the name of New France
to all the countries he visited, but his account of his explorations is so vague
that it is uncertain what lands he saw. Verrazzani, however, seems to have been
the first navigator who formed a correct idea of the size of the globe.
In 1534 Jacques Cartier, with two ships, entered tlie mouth of the St.
Lawrence. He was so impressed by the desolation, of the shores of Newfound-
land that he declared his belief that it was the land to wiiich God had banished
Cain. Nevertheless, he took possession of the country in the name of France
and then returned home.
Cartier visited the country the following year with a larger expedition and
sailed up the St. Lawrence to the sites of Quebec and Montreal. He was not
successful in his attempts to found colonies, but his discovery gave France a title
to the immense region which she held with a firm grasp for more than a hun-
dred years.
Failing to establish colonies in the North, France now directed her efforts
to the south. The Huguenots suffered so much persecution in tlie Old World
that they sought a home in the Ne\<. Captain John Ribault, sailing from Havre
with two ships, sighted Florida on the last day of April, 1562. The Indians
were friendly and the explorers wei'e charmed with the countiy. Ribault took
possession of it in the name of France and gave French names to various places.
Finally he dro]>ped anchor in the harbor of Port Royal and began founding a
settlement.
All were in good spirits and wished to remain, but Ribault sailed for France,
leaving thirty men behind. After a time they quarreled and rigged up a
worthless boat with which they set sail for home. All would have perished,
had they not been picked up by an English vessel, which humanely landed the
feeblest on the coast of France, while the strong men were taken to England as
prisoners of Avar.
It was the intention of Ribault to return to America, but civil war was
raging in France, and for a time he was prevented. In April, 1564, three more
ships set sail to repeat the attempt at colonization. They were under the com-
mand of Captain Laudonniere, who had been a member of the former expe-
ilition. He began a settlement at what is now known as St. John's Bluff. The
friendly Indians helped and all promised well, but unfortunately the colonists
became dissatisfied and rebelled against the strict rule of Laudonniere. Some
of the men stole two small vessels and set sail for the West Indies on a piratical
THE FRENCH EXPLORERS.
41
expedition. Laudouniere hurriedly prepared two larger vessels to pursue them.
When they were ready, the malcontents stole them and followed their comrades.
Three of the buccaneers were captured by the Sj^anish, while the pilot of the
fourth, who had been pressed into service, steered the vessel back to the colony
before the rogues suspected what he was ^ss^?^^-*^ j
doing. Laudouniere made tliem ims- - • - -^'•"
oners and hanged the ringleaders.
At the time when utter ruin im-
pended, Eibault ai rived with seven shiiis
AN INDIAN COUNCIL OF WAK.
and plenty of supplie«!. It
was at this juncture, vvhen
everj'thing promised well,
that Menendez, the Sjianish
miscreant, as already stated, appeared with his powerful fleet and attacked the
French ships. Three were up the river, and the four, being no match for the
Spaniards, escaped by putting to sea. Menendez landed men and supplies further
42 DISCOVERY AND EXPLORATION.
south, learning which Ribault prepared to attack them. Before he could do so, a
violent teuijiest scattered his ships. By a laborious march through swamps and
thickets, amid a ilriving storm, Menendez descended like acyclone upon the unpro-
tected French and massacred them all, including the women and children. Another
force of French, under solemn promise of protection, surrendered, but they, too,
were put to death. They were afterwards avenged by an expedition from France.
Samuel de Champlain proved himself one of the greatest of French
explorers. He left the banks of the St. Lawrence at the beginning of the
seventeenth century, and discovered the lake which bears his name. His
numerous excellent maj^s added much to the knowledge of the country. Join-
ing De Monts, another exjilorer, he founded the colony of Po^t Royal in Nova
Scotia in 1605. This settlement, afterward named Annapolis, was the first
l^ermanent French colony j^lanted in America. Quebec was founded by Cham-
plain in 1608.
The greatest French explorer, however, was Sieur de la Salle, who was
hardly twenty-three years old when he first visited Canada in 1666. Leading
an expedition westward, he fell ill while in the country of the Seneca Indians
and was forced to part with his companions near the head of Lake Ontario.
When he regained his strength he pressed on to the Ohio River, down which
he descended to the falls opposite the present city of Louisville. Returning to
France, he was made a nobleman and ajspointed governor of the country around
Fort Frontenac, which he had planted on the shore of Lake Ontario. He
demolished the fort and erected a much stronger one, built four small vessels,
and established a thriving trade with the Indians.
In August, 1679, La Salle launched a vessel at the jjort of Niagara, with
which he sailed the length of Lake Erie, across Lakes St. Clair, Huron, and
Michigan to Green Bay. He then sent back his vessel for supplies and crossed
the lake in canoes to the mouth of the St, Joseph, where he built a fort. He
visited the Indian tribes in the neighborhood and made treaties with the
chiefs.
On the present site of Peoria, he erected a fort in 1680. Then, sending Father
Hennepin to explore the country to the northward. La Salle made the entire
journey of several hundred miles, alone and on foot, to Fort Frontenac, where
he learned that the vessel he had sent back for sujiplies was lost.
With a new party he made his way to the fort planted on the Illinois
River, but found it had been broken up and all the white men were gone.
Thence La Salle went down the Mississijipi to its mouth, where he set up a
column with the French arms and proclaimed the country the possession of the
king of France. He was welcomed back to his native land, and when he pro-
posed to his ruler to conquer the fine mining country in the Southwest, the ofler
ENGLISH EXPLORERS.
43
was promptly accepted and he was made commaudant. He set out with four
ships ami about 800 j)erson.s.
But the good fortune that had marked the career of La Salle uji to this
point now set the other way, and disaster and ruin overtook him. His men
were mostly adventurers and vagabonds, and the oftieer in command of the ships
was an enemy of the explorer. The two quarreled and the vessels had gone
some distance beyond the mouth of the Mississippi before La Salle discovered
the blunder. He appealed to the captain to return, but he refused and anchored
off Matagorda Bay. Then the captain decided that it was necessary to go home
for supplies, and sailing away he left La Salle with only one small vessel which
had been presented to him by the king.
The undaunted explorer erected a fort and began cultivating the soil. The
Indians, who had not forgotten the cruelty of the Spaniards, were hostile and
continually annoyed the settlei's, several of ^
whom were killed. Disease carried away
others until only forty were left. Selecting
a few. La Salle started for the Illinois
country, but had not gone far when he was
treacherously shot by one of his men. The
Spaniards who had entered the country
to drive out the French made prisoners of
those that remained.
WW.
■ h%if f'^f^'x^^jr^^ffi^.
By permi&siuu ol the British Museum )
THE ENGLISH EXPLORERS.
Next in order is an account of the
English explorations. Going back to May, (From i
1553, we find that Sir Hugh Willoughby
sailed from London in that month with three ships. At that time, and for many
years afterward, the belief was general that by sailing to the northwest a shorter
route to India could be found, and such was the errand that led the English
navigator upon his eventful voyage.
For two years not the slightest news was heard of Sir Hugh Willoughl)y.
Then some Russian fishermen, who were in one of the harbors of Lapland,
observed two ships drifting helplessly in the ice. They rowed out to the wrecks,
and climbing aboard of one entered the cabin where they came upon an impres-
sive sight. Seated at a table was Sir Hugh Willoughby, with his journal open
and his pen in hand, as if he had just ceased writing. He had been frozen to
death months before. Here and there about him were stretched the bodies of
his crews, all of whom had succumbed to the awful temperature of the far North.
The third ship was nowhere in sight, and it was believed that she had been
44
DISCOVERY AND EXPLORATION.
crushed in the ice and sunk, but news eventually arrived that she had succeeded
in reaching Archangel, whence the crew made their way overland to Moscow.
A result of this involuntary journey was that it opened a new channel for
profitable trade.
Still the ignis fatuus of a shorter route to India tantalized the early navi-
gators. The belief was general that the coveted route lay north of our conti-
nent. In 1576 Martin Frobisher started on the vain hunt with three small
vessels. He bumped helplessly about in the ice, but repeated the effort twice,
and on one of his voyages entered the strait that bears his name. The region
visited by him is valueless to the
world, and his exjjlorations, there-
fore, were of no practical benefit to
anyone.
Sir Humphrey Gilbert, in
June, 1583, sailed for America
with an important expedition
which gave every promise of suc-
cess. In his case, however, dis-
aster overtook him earlier than
others. He was hardly out of
sight of land when his most impor-
tant vessel deserted and went back
to port. The men were a sorry
lot, and at Newfoundland he sent
another ship home with the sick
and the mutineers. Of the three
vessels remaining, the largest was
wrecked and all but fifteen drowned.
Sir Humphrey was on the smallest
boat on his way home, when one dai-k night it foundered, carrying down all
on board.
The famous Sir Walter Raleigh, a half-brother of Gilbert, and a great
favorite at the court of Queen Elizabeth, was deeply interested in the plans of
his relative, and in April, 1584, sent out two well-equipped vessels for the
purpose of colonization. They brought back a glowing report and Raleigh
was knighted by the pleased queen, who gave him the privilege of naming
the new country. He called it Virginia, in honor of the virgin Queen Eliza-
beth. ^
A large expedition sailed for the new country in the spring of 1585 and a
fort was built on Roanoke Island. But the Englishmen were as greedy for gold
as the Spaniards, and, instead of cultivating the land, they spent their time grop-
INDIAI\ \
(From the uiit
I \LLObED WITH PALISADES
lig lu ilif liriiisli Museum, made by John
White in loS5.)
THE LOST COLONY. 45
ing for the precious metal. This was suicidal, because the Indians were violently
hostile, and would not bring forward any food for the invaders. All must have
perished miserably but for the arrival of Sir Francis Drake, who carried the
sui'vivors back to England.
It is worth recording that this stay in America resulted in the Englishmen
learning the use of tobacco, which they introduced into their own country. Sir
Walter Raleigh became a great smoker, and the incident is familiar of his ser-
vant, who, seeing his master smoking a pipe, was terrified at the belief that he
was on fire and dashed a nnig of ale over him to put out the flames.
Much more usei'ul knowledge was that gained of maize or Indian corn, the
jjotato, and sassafras. They attractetl favorable attention in England, and were
gradually introduced to other countries in Europe, where the amount raised is
very large.
THE LOST COLONY.
A Strange and romantic interest attaches to the colony which Sir "Walter
Raleigh sent out in 1587. It numbered 300 men and
women and was in charge of John AVhite. While resting
at Roanoke, the daughter of Governor White, the wife of
Ananias Dare, had a daughter born to her. She was
given the name of " Virginia," and was the first child of
English parentage born within the present limits of the
United States.
These settlers were as quarrelsome as many of their
predecessors and got on ill together. Governoi- White
sailed for En2;land for more immigrants and supjdies, but
1 1 ^ ^ n A^ i 1 x- 1 ,.1 • i 1 i 11 SIK WALTER RALEIGH.
when lie reached that country he found the internal troubles
so serious that he was kept aw^y from America for three years. When finally
he returned to Virginia, he was unable to find a member of the colony. On one
of the trees was the word " CROATAN " cut in the bark, which seemed to
indicate that the settlers had removed to a settlement of that name ; but, though
long and continuous search was made and many of the articles belonging to
the settlers were recognized, not a person could be discovered. Sir Walter
Raleigh sent several expeditions with orders to use every effort to clear up the
mystery, but it was never solved. The story of the " Lost Colony" has led to
a great deal of investigation and surmise. Two theories have supporters. The
most jirobable is that all the settlers were massacred by Indians. Another is that
they were adopted by the red men and intermarried among them. In support
of this supposition is the fact that a long time afterward many members of the
adjoining tribes show^ed unmistakable signs of mixed blood. There were so-
called Indians with blonde hair, blue eyes, and light complexion — characteristics
never seen amono; those beloniiinir to the genuine American race.
46 DISCOVERY AND EXPLORATION.
Holland's explorations in America were less important than those of any
of her rivals. The thrifty Dutchmen were more anxious to secure trade than to
find new countries, and seemed' content to allow others to spend wealth and pre-
cious lives in penetrating to the interior of the New World and in planting set-
tlements, which almost invariably succumbed to disaster.
Early in the seventeenth century a company of English merchants sent out
a skillful navigator named Henry Hudson to hunt for the elusive northwest pas-
sage. He took with him only eleven men, one of whom was his son. He made
a brave effort to succeed, ploughing his way through the frozen regions until he
passed the 80th degree of latitude, which was the furthest point then attained by
man. But, within less than ten degrees of the pole, he was forced by the ice to
turn back.
THE DISCOVERY OF THE HUDSON EIVER.
Hudson's reputation as a skillful navigator led the wealthy corporation
known as the Dutch East India Company to seek his services. He was placed
in command of a small vessel called the Half 3Ioon and ordered to sail to the
northeast instead of the northwest. He tlid as directed, but his experience was
similar to his previous one, and, being compelled to withdraw, he headed west-
ward. Sighting Cape Cod, he named it New Holland, unaware that it had al-
ready been named by Champlain. He continued southward to Chesapeake Bay,
where he learned that the English had planted a settlement. Turning north-
ward, he entered Delaware Bay, but was displeased with the shallow water and
sailed again northward. On September 3, IGOO, he dropped anchor opposite
Sandy Hook.
Hudson now began ascending the magnificent river which bears his name.
At the end of ten days he had reached a ]>oint opposite the present site of Al-
bany. The Indians were friendly and curious. Many of them put out in their
canoes and were made welcome on board the little Dutch vessel, which was a
source of constant wonderment to them, for they had never seen anything of the
kind before.
Descending the stream, Hudson made his way to Dartmouth, England, from
which point he sent an account of his discovery to Hollaml. That country lost
no time in claiming sovereignty over the new territory, the claim being so valid
that no other nation could legitimately dispute it.
Hudson's achievement added to his fame, and he was once more sent in search
of the northwest passage. He entered the bay and strait which bear his name,
and 2>assed a winter in that terrible region. In the folloAving spring his crew
mutinied, and, placing the navigator, his son, and several members in an open
boat, set them adrift, and none of them was ever heard of again.
CHAPTEE II.
SETTLEMENT OE THE THIRTEEN ORIGINAL
STATES.
1-Vt//„/„. — Fouiidiiis of Jamestown— C.iptain John Smith— Introduction of African Slavery— Indiair
\Vai-,-Bacon's Rebellion— Forms of Government— Prosperity— Education— iVcw Ei,!/l,ii„!—\'\y-
muuth— -Massachusetts Bay Culoiiy— Union of the Colonies— Religious Persecution— King Philip's
War— The Witchcraft Delusion— A'fiO Hampshire —The Connecticut Colony— The New Haven
Cohmii—iinwn of the Colonies— Indian Wars— The Charter Oak— i^/We /s/tfH(Z,—Different Forms-
of Government— A'cioI'Vic/r, —The Dutch and English Settlers— .Vao Jersetz—Dehiwarc—Rnnsi/l-
i-aain.— Mail/land,— Mason and Dixon's Line— 77(6 Caroliaas— Georgia.
At tlie opening of the seventeenth century there was not a single English
settlement on this side of the Atlantic. It has been shown that the French
succeeded in planting colonies in Canada, that of De Monts, in 1605, in Acndia
(the French name of Xova Scotia), proving successful, while Chamiilain founded
Quebec three years later. St. Augustine, Florida, was founded by the Spanish
in 1565, but it has 'played an insignificant part in our history. England wa*
the mother of the colonies, from which the original thirteen States sprang, and
we are vastly more indebted to her than to all other nations combineil.
THE FIRST ENGLISH SETTLEMENT.
In the year 1606, when James I. was king of England, he gave a charter
or patent to a number of gentlemen, which made them the ownei's of all that
part of America lying between the thirty-fourth and thirty-eighth degrees of
north latitude. The men who received this gift associated themselves together
under the name of the London Company, and in the same year sent out thrse-
vessels, carrying 105 men, but no women or children. A storm drove them
out of their course, and, in the month of Mav, tliey entered the mouth of a
(47)
48 SETTLEMENT OF THE THIRTEEN ORIGINAL STATES
broad river, which they named the James in lionor of tlieir king. They sailed
up stream for fifty miles, and, on the loth of May, 1(d07, began the settlement of
Jamestown, which was the first English colony successfully planted in America.
Everything looked promising, but the trouble Avas that the men did not
wish to work, and, instead of cultivating the soil, spent their time in hunting
for gold which did not exist any where near them. They were careless in their
manner of living and a great many fell ill and died. They must have perished
before long had they not been wise enough to elect Cajitain John Smith presi-
dent or ruler of the colony.
CAPTAIN JOHN SMITH AND HIS ADVENTURES.
This man is one of tlie most interesting characters in the early history of our
■country. He was a great boaster, and most of his associates did not like him.
He had been a wanderer in many paits of the world, and had any numbei- of
stories to tell of his wonderful adventures. Probably some of those stories were
true and many fiction. Be that as it may, he was an energetic and brave man,
and the very one to save the perishing settlers. He made every man Avork, and
none wrought harder than himself. As a consequence matters begiin to mend at
once.
Obeying his orders in London, Captain Smith, when it seemed prudent to
do so, spent much of his time in exploring the streams that fiowed into the
James. It must not be forgotten that it was still believed in Europe that
America formed a part of Asia, and that no one needed to penetrate far into the
interior to reach that country.
On one of these voyages Captain Smith was taken prisoner by the Indians,
who led him before their chief Powhatan. The chief decided that he must
be put to death, and, with his hands tied togethei", he was placed on the ground,
witli his head resting on two big stones. Then one of the warriors stepped for-
ward to dash out his brains with a club. At that moment Pocahontas, the young
daughter of the chief, ran forward, and, throwing her arms around the head of
Smith, begged her father to spare his life. The chief consented, and the prisoner
was set free and returned to Jamestown. Such is the story which Captain Smith
told after the death of Pocahontas in England, which she had visited with her
husband, an Englishman named Rolfe, and it can never be known whether the
incident was true or not. Some years later Smith was so badly injured by the
-explosion of gunpowder that he had to return to England for treatment. There
he died in 1631. His invaluable services in this country have led historians to
regard him as the saviour of the Virginia colony.
The most woeful blow that was struck the American colonies was in August,
1619, when a Dutch ship sailed up the James and sold twenty negroes, kidnapped
THE MARRIAGE Of POCHAHONTAS
BACON'S REBELLION. 51
in Africa, to the colonists as slaves. It was thus that African slavery was intro-
duced into this country, bringing in its train more sorrow, suffering, desolation,
and death than pen can describe or imagination conceive. The institution be-
came legal in all the colonies, and the ships of New England, as well as those
of old England, were actively engaged for many years in the slave trade.
WARS WITH THE INDIANS.
The marriage of Pocahontas to one of the settlers made her father a firm
friend of the whites as long as he lived. At his death, his brother Opechan-
kano succeeded him. He hated intensely the invaders of the hunting grounds,
and began plotting to exterminate them. On the 22d of March, 1622, he made
such a sudden and furious assault upon the plantations, as the farms were called,
along the James that 400 people were killed in one day. The settlers rallied,
slew many of the Indians and drove the remainder far back in the woods, but
by the time this was accomplished half of the 4,000 settlers were dead and the
eighty ^alantations were reduced to eight.
Opechankano was not crushed, and for more than twenty years he busied
himself in perfecting his plans for a greater and more frightful massacre. It was-
in April, 1644, that he struck his second blow, killing between three and four
hundred of the settlers. Once more the Virginians renewed the war of extermi-
nation, and pressed it mercilessly until the Indians sued for peace, gave a larse
tract of land to their conquerors, and retired still further into the wilderness. It
is worth noting that at the time of this last massacre Opechankano was nearly a
hundred years old.
bacon's rebellion.
Sir William Berkeley was the most bigoted ruler Virginia ever had. In
one of his messages, he thanked God that there were no free schools or printing
in his province. He was very tyrannous, and, having friends in the assembly,
they prevented the election of any new members from 1666 to 1676. The taxes
became intolerable, and trade fell into the hands of a few individuals. Not only
that, but the governor disbanded the troops which had gathered for protection
against the Indians, who renewed their attacks on the exposed plantations.
This was more than the people could stand, and they rose in rebellion
under the leadership of Nathaniel Bacon, a popular young planter, who had
lost several members of his family through the attacks of the Indians. Berkeley
was cowed for a time, but the arrival of some ships from England enabled him
to take the field against Bacon. During the civil war, Jamestown was burned
to the ground and never rebuilt. Bacon pressed his resistance so vigorously
that his success seemed certain, when unfortunately he fell ill and died. Left
without a leader, the rebellion crumbled to pieces. The exultant Berkeley pun-
52
SETTLEMENT OF THE THIRTEEN ORIGINAL STATES.
ished the leading rebels without mercy. He hanged twenty-two, and was so
ferocious that the king lost patience and ordered him to return to England.
" The old fool ! " he exclaimed ; " he has taken away more lives in that naked
country than I did for the murder of my father."
PROSPERITY OF THE COLONY.
Colonial Virginia underwent several changes in its form of government.
A "Great Charter" was
/ '' ^'' , i granted to it in 1613 by the
London Comjjany. This
permitted the settlers to
make their own laws. The
House of Burgesses, which
was called together at James-
town by Governor Yeardley,
July 30, 1619, was the first
legislative body that ever
met in this country. King
James was dissatisfied with
tlie tendency of things, and
in 1624 he took away the
charter and granted a new
one, which allowed the col-
ony to elect the members of
the House of Burgesses,
while the king appointed
the council and their gov-
ernor. This made Virginia
a royal province, which she
remained until the Revolu-
tion.
Virginia became very
prosperous. Immense quan-
tities of tobacco were raised
and sent to England and
Holland, where it became widely popular. Its cultivation was so profitable in
the colony that for a time little else was cultivated. It was planted even along
the streets of Jamestown and became the money of the province. Everything
was paid for in so many pounds of tobacco. The population steadily increased,
and in 1715 was 95,000, which was the same as that of Massachusetts. A half-
AKMOR WOBN BY THE PIL.GKIM3 IN 1620.
THE PILGRIMS AT PLYMOUTH. 53
century later, Virginia was tlie richest and most imjiortant of the thirteen colo-
nies. The people lived mostly on large plantations, for land was plentiful and
the Intlians gave no further trouble. j\Iost of the inhabitants were members of
the Church of England, and their assemblies passed severe laws against the
entrance of people of other religious beliefs into the colony. It required the
furnace blasts of the Revolution to purify Virginia and some other provinces
of this spirit of intolerance.
Education was neglected or confined to the rich who could send their chil-
dren to England to be educated. Some of the early schools were destroyetl by
Indians, but William and Mary College, founded in 1692, was the second col-
lege in the United States. It was never a very strong institution.
THE " OLD DOMINION."
It is worth ]-ecording how Virginia received the name of the " OKI Do-
minion." She remained loyal to Charles I. throughout the civil war in Enghuul
which ended in the beheading of the king. She was true also to Charles II.
when he was a fugitive and declared an outlaw. While in exile, he sent
Governor Berkeley his commission as Governor of Virginia, and that ruler was
immensely pleased. The king, to show his appreciation of the loyalty of his
colony, made public declaration that Virginia added a fifth country to his king-
dom, making it consist of England, Scotland, France, Ireland, and Virginia,
and he devised as an addition to the motto of the English coat of arms, '^En dat
Virginia quintam'" ("Lo! Virginia gives the fifth"). While Cromwell was
turning things topsy-turvy in Eugland, a great many of the best families among
the Royalists emigrated to Virginia, where they were received with open arms
by Governor Berkeley and the owners of the plantations. From this arose the
name " Old Dominion," which is often applied to Virginia.
THE PILGRIMS AT PLYMOUTH.
During the early days of Virginia there was bitter persecution in England
of those whose religious views differed from the Church of England. This
cruelty drove many people to other countries, and because of their wanderings
they were called " Pilgrims." Those who remained members of the English
church and used their efforts to purify it of what they believed to be loose and
jiernicious doctrines were nicknamed " Puritans." Tho.se who withdrew from
the membership of the church were termed "Separatists" or "Independents."
This distinction is often confounded by writers and readers.
One hundred and two Pilgrims, all Separatists, who had fled to Holland,
did not like the country, and decided to make their homes in the New World,
where they could worship God as their consciences dictated. Tliev sailed in
54
SETTLEMENT OF THE THIRTEEN ORIGINAL STATES.
the Mayflower, and, after a long and stormy passage, landed at Plymouth,
Massachusetts, December 21, 1620, in the midst of a blinding snowstorm.
The Pilgrims were hardy, industrious, and God-fearing, and were jirepared
to fece every kind of danger and sufiering without murmur. They were
severely austere in their morals and conduct, and, when writhing in the pangs
of starvation, maintained their faith unshaken in the wisdom and goodness of
their Heavenly Father. All these admirable qualities were needed during the
awful winter, which was one of the severest ever known in New England.
They built log-houses, using oiled paper instead of glass for the windows, and in
the spring were able to buy corn of the Indians, who pitied their sufferings, for
LANDING OF MYLES STANDISH.
in the space of a few weeks one-half of the Pilgrims had died. At one time
there were but seven well persons in the colony. Among those who passed
away was John Carver, the first governor.
The survivors held their ground with grim heroism, and by-and-bv other
immigrants arrived, and the growth and prosperity, though slow, was certain.
It had no charter, but was governed by an agreement which had been drawn uji
and signed in the cabin of the Mayflower, about the time the bleak coast of
New England was sighted. For sixty years after the settlement of Plymouth,
its history was uneventful. It was never very large, but the real work which
MASSACHUSETTS BAY COLONY. 55
it accomplished was in bi'inging thousands of other colonists to follow it to New
England, who were opponents of the Established Church, and who gave to that
section of our country a distinctive character of its own.
MYLES STANDISH.
It is an interesting coincidence that while Yii-ginia had her Captain John
Smith, Plymouth possessed a character quite similar in the person of Captain
Myles Standish. He was the military leader of the colony, with a courage that
was absolutely fearless. He has been described as a very small man, with a
"long, yellow beard," and a temper as inflammable as gunpowder. Nothing
would rouse his anger sooner than to hear any slur upon his stature. A big,
hulking Indian, belonging to a party much larger than Standish's, once looked
down upon the diminutive Euglishman, and, with a curl of his lip, referred to
him as too small to fight. The next day, in a fight that arose with the chiefs,
Standish killed the insulting Indian with his own knife. All readers are famil-
iar with the beautiful poem of Longfellow, which tells how Standish employed
John Alden to woo Priscilla, the " loveliest maid of Plymouth," for him, and
he did it with such success that Alden won her for himself.
MASSACHUSETTS BAY COLONY.
The Massachusetts Bay Colony included the part of the present State of
Massachusetts from the neighborhood of Boston northward. It was foundeu
by Puritans, who, it will be remembered, had not separated wholly from the
Church of England, but opposed many of its ceremonies. In the civil war
with England they sided with the Parliament and were subjected to the same
persecution as the Separatists. In 1628 a number of wealthy Puritans bought
the territory from the Council of Plymouth, and, receiving a charter the follow-
ing year from Charles I., sent small colonies across the Atlantic. Then the
company itself followed, taking with it the charter and officers, thus gaining a
colony in America that was wholly independent of England. Salem and some
other small settlements had previously been made.
The colony was one of the most important that ever settled in this country.
Its leaders wei-e not only of the best character, but were wealthy, wise, and far-
seeing. A large number arrived in 1630, and founded Boston, Cambridge,
Lynn, and other towns. Although they suffered many privations, they were not
so harsh as those of Plymouth, and the colony prospered. During the ten years
succeeding 1630, 20,000 people settled in Massachusetts, and m 1692 the two
colonies united under the name of Massachusetts.
It would seem that since these people had fled to America to escape religious
persecution, they would have been tolerant of the views of those among them,
KING PHILIP'S WAR DEATH OF THE KING.
RELICrlO US PERSECUTION.
57
but such unhappily was not the case. The most important part of their work
was the buikling of churches and the establislimeut of religious instruction. The
ministei' was the most important man in the colony, and no one was allowed to
vote unless a member of the church. A rejiroof in church was considered the
most disgraceful penalty that could be visited upon a wrong-doer. The sermons
were two, three, and sometimes four hours long, and the business of one of the
oilicers was to watch those overcome by drowsiness and wake them ujt, sometimes
(piite sharply.
RELIGIOUS PERSECUTION.
Roger AA'illiams, a Baptist preacher, told the Puritans, as the people came
generally to be called, that
they did wrong to take the ^~\ ^^'^ ^-^<^S^
land from the Indians with-
out paying for it, and that a
person was answerable to God
alone for his belief These
t'hargi's were answered by
the banishment of Williams
from the colony. All the
Baptists were expelled in
1G3.3. Shortly afterward,
Anne Hutchinson boldly
preached the doctrine of J^
Antinomianism, which de-
chires that a man is not
saved by the help of good
works, but by divine grace
alone. In other words, no
matter how wickedly he lives,
his salvation is wholly inde-
]iendent of it. She went to
Rhode Island and afterward
to New Netherland, where
she was killed in one of the attacks of the Indians njion the Dutch settlements.
The Quakers greatly annoyed the New England colonists. They persisted
in rising in the Puritan meetings and disputing with ministers. INIany were
fined, whipped, imprisoned, and banished, but in the face of warnings they
returned. As a consequence, four were put to death. Then a reaction set in
and the persecution ceased.
The most formidable war in which the earlv colonies of New England
EOGEH WILLIAMS IN BANISHMENT.
58 SETTLEMENT OF THE THIRTEEN ORIGINAL STATES.
were involved was Avith King Philip, who was the son of Massasoit, a firm
friend of the settlers until his death. Philij) was one of the great Indians of
history. Like many of his peoj^le he saw with anger the growth of the white
men, who in time would drive him and his warriors from their hunting grounds.
Realizing the magnitude of the work of exterminating all the settlers, he visited
the different tribes and used every effort to unite them in a war against the
invaders. He was partly successful, and, with the allies secured, King Philip
began the war by attacking a jmrty of settlers at Swansea, on Sunday, June 24,
1675, while they were on their way to church. Several whites were killed,
when the Indians hurried off to the Connecticut Valley to continue their dread-
ful work.
All understood their peril, and flew to arms. Every man carried his musket
to church, and they were stacked outside the door, while a sentinel paced up
and down. More than once the long sermon was interrupted by the crack of
the red men's guns and their wild whoops, as they swarmed out of the woods.
Springing down from the pulpit, the minister was among the foremost in beat-
ing the heathen back, and, when quiet was restored, probably he resumed and
finished his sermon.
The war was prosecuted furiously on both sides. In the depth of winter,
when the snow lay several feet on the ground, John Winslow led 1,500 men
against the Narragansett stronghold, which was in the heart of a great swamp,
and was one of the most powerful fortifications ever erected by the red men on
this continent. In the terrible fight, 200 white men and nearly 1,000 Indians
were killed. Finally, Philip was run down in a swamp near his old home on
Mount Hope, not far from the present city of Bristol, Rhode Island. While
stealing out of his hiding-place, he was confronted by a white soldier and a
friendly Indian. The gun of the former missed fire, whereupon the Indian
leveled his musket and shot the Wampanoag leader dead. The war ended a
few months later. During its continuance, six hundred Avhite men were killed
and many more wounded ; thirteen towns were destroyed and five hundred build-
ings burned, but the Indian power in southern New England was shattered
forever.
THE WITCHCRAFT DELUSIO.V.
One of the most fearful delusions recorded in history is that of the general
belief in witchcraft which prevailed in Europe down to the seventeenth cen-
tury. Its baleful shadow all too soon fell upon New England. Massachusetts
and Connecticut made laws against witchci'aft and hanged a number of persons
on the charge of being witches. In 1692 the town of Salem went crazy over
the belief that the diabolical spirits were at work among them. Two little girls,
who were simpletons that ought to have been spanked and put to bed, declared
GALLUP'S RECAPTURE OF OLDHAM'S BOAT
Which had been li.ken by Ibe Iiidi:iiis from the Piiritan exiles in 1636. "Steer straight f»r the vess,
: opened fire on the Indians. Every time his gun flashed some one v
was the beginning of the Pequot War,
elf at the boM
THE CONNECTICUT COLONY. 59
witli bulging eyes that different persons had taken the form of a black cat and
jiinched, scratched, and bitten them. The people, including the great preacher
Cotton Mather, believed this stufl", and the supjwsed wizards and witches were
punished with fearful severity. Susjucion in many cases meant death ; evil men
disposed of their creditors and enemies by charging them with witchcraft; fami-
lies were divided and the gentlest and most irreproachable of women suffered
disgraceful death. Everybody, including ministers and judges, lost their wits.
The magistrates crowded the jails, until twenty had been ])ut to death and fifty-
tive tortured before the craze subsided. Then it becanie clear that no one, no
matter what his station, was safe, and the delusion, which forms one of the black-
est pages in New England, passed away.
SETTLEMENT OF MAIXE AND NEW' HAMPSHIRE.
New Hampshire was the name of John Mason's share of a territory granted
to him and Sir Fernando Gorges by the C'ouncil of Plymouth in 1622. This
grant included all the land between the Merrimac and Kennebec Rivers. The
first settlement was made in 1623, at New and at Little Harbor, neai' Ports-
mouth. In 1629 the proi>rietors divided their grants, the country west of the
Piscataqua being taken by Mason, who named it New Hampshire, while Gorges,
who owned the eastern section, called it Maine.
The settlements were weak and their growth tardy. In 1641 New Hamp-
shire j^laced itself under the jirotection of Massachusetts, but the king separated
them in 1679, and made New Hampshire a royal colony. In 1688 it again
joined Massachusetts, and three years later was set off once more by the king,
after which it remained a royal colony until the Revolution.
THE CONNECTICUT COLONY.
The Connecticut colony included all of the jiresent State of Connecticut,
excepting a few townshij^s on the shore of Long Island Sound. It came into the
possession of the Earl of Warwick in 1630, and the following year he transferred
it to Lords Say, Brooke, and others. The Dutch claimed the territory and erected
a fort on the Connecticut River to keep out the English. The latter, however, paid
no attention to them, and a number of Massachusetts traders settled at Windsor in
1633. Saybrook, at the mouth of the Connecticut, was settled in 1635. A great
many emigrants came from j\Iassacliusetts in 1636, the princii)al leader being
Thomas Hooker. They founded Weathersfield, Windsor, and Hartford, and in
1639 adopted the name of the Connecticut colony and drew up a written consti-
tution, the first ever framed by a body of men for their own government. Other
settlements were made and Saybrook united with them.
The most eventful incideut in the historv of Connecticut was the war with
60
SETTLEMENT OF THE THIRTEEN ORIGINAL STATES.
the Pequot Indians, who were a powerful tribe in the eastern part of the State.
They tried to persuade the Narragansetts to join tlieiu, but Roger Williams, who
lived among them, persuaded Canonicus, their chief, to refuse. Then the Pequots
committed the fatal mistake of going to war alone. The settlers, fully roused to
their danger, assailed the Pequot stronghold with fury, one summer morning in
1637, and killed all their enemies, sj^aring neither women nor children. Thus
a leadijig tribe of Indians were blotted out in one day.
THE NEW HAVEN COLONY.
The New Haven colony comprised the townships already referred to as lying
PRIMITIVE MODE OF GRINDING CORN.
on Long Island Sound. It was settled in 1638 by a company of English immi-
grants, who were sufficiently wise and just to buy the lands of the Indians.
Other towns were settled, and in 1639 the group took the name of the New
Haven colony. Neither of the colonies had a charter, and there was much
rivalry in the efforts to absorb the towns as they were settled. The majority
preferred to join the Connecticut colony, for the other, like Massachusetts, would
permit no one not a member of church to vote or hold office.
THE COLONY OF CONNECTICUT.
What is known in the history of England as the Commonwealth, established
THE CHARTER OAK. 6 J
by Cromwell, came to an end in 1660. Charles II. ascended the throne, and
Wiuthrop, governor of the Connecticut colony, which had now grown to be the
stronger of the two, went to England to secure a charter. It was granted
to him in 1662, and covered the territory occupied by both colonies, who were
])ermitted to elect their assembly, their govei-nor, and to rule themselves. New
Haven, after deliberating over the question, reluctantly accepted the charter, and
in 1665 the two were united under the name of the Colony of Connecticut.
Everything was going along smoothly, when, in 1687, Governor Andres
came down with a comj)any of soldiers from Boston and ordered the people to
surrender their charter. He was acting under the orders of the king, who did
not fancy the independence with which the colony was conducting matters.
Andros confronted the assembly, which were called together in Hartford. They
begged that he would not enfoi'ce his demands. He consented to listen to their
arguments, though there was not the slightest jirobability of it producing any
effect upon him.
THE CHARTER OAK.
The talk continued until dark, when the candles were lighted. Suddenly,
at a signal, all were blown out. When they were re-lighted, the charter, which
had been lying on the table in plain sight, was nowhere to be found. Caj)tain
Wadsworth had slipped out during the interval of darkness and hidden the
]iaper in the hollow of an oak. Then he i-eturned and took his place among
the members, looking the most innocent of all. Andros fumed and raved and
informed the assembly that their trick would avail them nothing, since their
charter government was at an end. He went back to Boston, to be turned out
of office two years later, when the precious charter was brought from its hiding-
place.
No effiirt was spared to preserve the historical " Charter Oak," that had
thus been made famous. It was supported and propped in every part that
showed signs of weakness, and held up its liead until 1856, when a terrific
storm brought it to the ground, shattered to fragments, all of which were care-
fully gathered and preserved by those fortunate enough to obtain tliem.
The early division of the colonies was long marked by the fact that Hart-
ford and New Haven served as the two capitals of the State until 1873, when
Hartford became the sole capital.
SETTLEMENT OF RHODE ISLAND.
It has been stated that when Roger Williams was banished from Massa-
chusetts he took refuge among the Narragansett Indians, who occupied the
country at the head of Narragansett Bay. Canonicus, the chief, held the good
man in high esteem, and presented him with a large tract of land, which the
62 SETTLEMENT OF THE THIRTEEN ORIGINAL STATES.
devout Williams nametl " Providence " in remembrance of the manner in which
he believed God had directed him thither. Settlers from Massachusetts fol-
lowed him, and all were hospitably received and kindly treated. The fullest
religious liberty was allowed, and even when Anne Hutchinson visited Wil-
liams, he treated her like a sister. Williams obtained a charter iu 1644 from
the Parliament and it was confirmed in 1654. The new one granted by Charles
II. in 1063 united all the colonies into one, under the name Rhode Island and
Providence Plantations. This is still the legal name of the State, which retains
its two capitals. Providence and Newport, the Legislature meeting alternately in
each. The charter of Charles II. suited the people so well that it remained in
force until 1842, when Thomas Dorr headed a rebellion, as related hereafter,
which resulted in the establishment of a new charter.
The existence of Ehode Island was threatened by the claim of Connecticut
to all the land on the west to the shore of Narragansett Bay, while Plymouth
insisted that the land on the east to the shore of the same bay belonged to her.
Rhode Island stoutly resisted, and succeeded in 1741 and 1752 in fixing her
boundaries as they are to-day, which make her the smallest State in the Union.
SETTLEMENT OF NEW YORK.
It has been shown that Holland was more anxious to secure trade than
territory. Soon after the discovery of the Hudson, by Captain Henry Hudson,
the Dutch traders sent vessels to Manhattan Island, now constituting the city of
New York, and began bartering with the Indians. In 1621 Holland granted
the territory from Delaware Bay to the Connecticut River to the Dutch West
India Company. The name given to the territory was New Netherland, while
the settlement, which grew in time into the metropolis of America, was called
New Amsterdam. The whole island was bought from the Indians for sixty
guilders, equal to about twenty-four dollars, a price which is considerably less
than would be demanded to-day for the site of Greater New York.
New Netherland was governed successively by Peter Minuet, Walter Van
Twiller, William Kieft, and Peter Stuyvesant, who were sent out by the Dutch
West India Company, and whose rule extended from 1626 to 1664. Of these,
Stuyvesant was by far the ablest, and he made a strong impression on the social
and political life of New Netherland. He was severe and stubborn, however,
and many of the Dutchmen found his rule so onerous that they were rather
pleased than otherwise, when the English, in 1664, claimed the territory by
right of discovery and sent out a fleet which compelled Stuyvesant to surrender
the town. The doughty old governor stamped about New Amsterdam with his
wooden leg, calling upon his countrymen to rally and drive back the rascals,
but little or no heed was paid to his appeals.
WILLIA3I KIDD, THE PIRATE. 63
Charles II. had grauted the territory to his brother the Duke of York, who
soon after ascended the throne, thus making the colony, which included that of
New Jersey, a royal one. The Connecticut people had settled a large part of
Rhode Island, which they claimed, but the duke was too powerful to be resisted,
and Long Island became a part of New Yurk, as the city and province were
named.
In 1673, while at war with England, Holland sent a fleet which recaptured
New York, but it was given back to England, upon the signing of a treaty in
1674. The manner in which New Netherland was settled by the Dutch was
quite different from that of New England. Wealthy men, termed "jiatroons,"
were gi-anted immense tracts of land and brought over settlers, whose situation
ivas nuich like that of the serfs of Russia. Traces of the patroon system
remained long after the Revolution, and, in 1846, caused the "Anti-Rent
War," which resulted in the death of a number of people.
The province of New York suffered greatly from misrule. The people
were not permitted to elect their own assembly until 1683, and two years later,
when the Duke of York became king, he took away the privilege. William
and Mary, however, restored it in 1691, aiul it remained to the Revolution.
As a proof of the bad governorship of New York, it may be said that there
is good reason to believe that one of its rulers was interested with the pirates
who infested the coast, while another, who refused to sign the death-warrant of
two persons who had committed no serious crime, was made drunk and then
persuaded to sign the fatal paper. When he became sober, he was horrified to
find that both had been executed.
WILLIAM KIDD, THE PIRATE.
riie piracy alluded to became such a scandalous blight that strenuous meas-
ures were taken to crush it. In 1697 Captain William Kidd, a New York ship-
master and a brave and skillful navigator, was sent to assist in the work. After
he had cruised for a while in distant waters, he turned pirate himself. He had
the eflTrontery to return home three years later, believing his friends would pro-
tect him ; but, though they would have been willing enough to do so, they dared
not. He was arrested, tried in England, convicted, and hanged. Piracy was
finally driven from the American waters in 1720.
In 1740 New York was thrown into a panic by the report that the negroes
had formed a plot to burn the town. It is scarcely possible that any such plot
existed, but before the scare had passed away four whites and eighteen negroes
were hanged, and, dreadful as it may sound, fourteen negroes were burned at the
stake. In addition, nearly a hundred were driven out of the colony.
The fine harbor and noble river emj^tying into it gave New York such ad-
64
SETTLEMENT OF THE THIRTEEN ORIGINAL STATES.
vantages that, by 1750, it had become one of the most important cities on the
coast, though its population was less than that of Philadelphia. At the time
named, its inhabitants numbered about 12,000, which was less than that of Phil-
adelphia. The province itself contained 90,000 inhabitants. The chief towns
were New York, Albany, and Kingston. Brooklyn, which attained vast pro-
portions within the following century, was merely a ferry station.
SETTLEMENT OF NEW JERSEY.
New Jersey, as has been stated, was originally a part of New Netherland.
As early as 1618, the Dutch erected a trading post at Bergen. All now included
in the State was granted, in 1664, by the Duke of York to Lord John Berkeley
and Sir George Carteret. Carteret was once governor of the island of Jersey
in the English Chanuel, and gave the name to the new province. In the year
mentioned, the first English settlement was made at Elizabethtown, now known
as Elizabeth.
In 1674, the province was
divided into East and West
] Jersey, a distinction which is
})reserved to some extent to the
present day. Berkeley, who
owned West Jersey, sold it to a
number of Quakers, some of
whom settled near Burlington.
Carteret sold his part to William
'•% Penn and eleven other Quakers.
The various changes of owner-
ship caused much trouble with the
land titles. In 1702, all the proprietors surrendered their rights to the crown
and New Jersey became a royal colony. The same governor ruled New York
and New Jersey, though those in the latter elected their own assembly. A com-
plete separation from New York took place in 1738, and New Jersey remained
a royal province until the Eevolution. Its location averted all troubles with
the Indians. Newark, the principal city, was settled in 1666, by emigrants from
Connecticut. Burlington, founded in 1677, was one of the capitals and Perth
Amboy the other.
EARLY SETTLEMENTS ON THE DELAWARE.
In 1638, a number of Swedes formed the settlement of Christina on the
Delaware, near Wilmington. They bought the land from the Indians and
named it New Sweden. A second settlement, that of Chester, was made just be-
low the site of Philadelphia in 1643, and was the first in the present State of
THE I'lRfel J I 1 1 ^
BUKIjIAUIOA
^ \ir I 1 1 \
WILLIAM PENN.THE GOOD AND WISt RULER.
NOTABLE AUDIENCE IN MARYLAND TO HEAR GEORGE FOX, THE FOUNDER OF THE
66 "SOCIETY OF FRIENDS' OR QUAKERS.
PENNSYLVANIA AND DELAWARE. 67
Pennsylvania. The fiery Governor Stuyvesant of New Netherland looked ujaon
these attempts as impudent invasions of his territory, and, filled with anger, hur-
ried down to Delaware and captured both. It was a matter of no moment to the
thrifty Swedes, who kept on the even tenor of their way and throve under the
new government as well as under the old. A further account of the settlement
of Delaware will be given in our history of that of Pennsylvania.
SETTLEMENT OF PENNSYLVANIA AND DELAWARE.
The peace-loving Quakers were among those who suffered persecution in
England for conscience sake. William Penn was the son of Admiral Penn, who
disliked the Quakers and had been a valiant officer for the English government.
When he died, the crown owed him a large sum of money, which William offered
to liquidate in return for a grant of the land now known as the State of Penn-
sylvania. The king willingly agreed to this, and the Duke of York, who had
a strong liking for Penn, added the present State of Delaware to the grant, in
which, as has been stated, the Swedes had made a number of settlements.
William Penn was one of the best and wisest rulers that had to do with the
settlement of our country. The king, more as a piece of pleasantry than other-
wise, insisted upon naming the province " Pennsylvania," in honor of the pro-
prietor, much to the good man's dismay. He offered the royal secretary a liberal
fee to omit the first part of the name from the charter, but it was not done. No
rule could have been more kindly. Absolute freedom of conscience was permitted ;
in all trials by jury of an Indian, one-half of the jury were to be composed of
Indians, and, although Penn was induced to permit the punishment of death for
treason and murder, to be provided for in the code, no man was ever executed
while Penn had anything to do with the province.
His first act, after his arrival in 1682, was characteristic. He called the
Indian chiefs together, under a great spreading elm at Shackamaxon, and paid
them for the land that was already his by royal grant. In addition, he made
the red men many presents and signed a treaty, which neither party broke for
sixty years. It has been truly said that this was the only treaty not sworn to
which was kept inviolate by both parties.
Penn himself laid out the city of Philadelphia in 1683. A year later, it
had a population of 7,000, and in three years more its pojiulation increased
faster than tliat of New York in half a century. Delaware, then called the
"Three Lower Counties," was given a separate government at the request of the
people in 1703. They wei'e allowed their own deputy governor, but Pennsyl-
vania and Delaware continued substantially under one government until the
Revolution.
The good ruler met with many misfortunes. In 1692, the province was
68
SETTLEMENT OF THE THIRTEEN ORIGINAL STATES.
taken from him, because of his friendship to James II., but restored soon after-
ward. In 1699, wlien he made his second visit, he found the j^eojile had in a
great measure grown away from him, and were unwilling that he should exercise
his former supervision. While absent, a dishonest stewartl robbed him of nearly
all his property in England; and, failing in health and mind, he died in 171iS.
His sons became 2:)roprietors, but the people grew more and more discontented
with the payment of rents. To end the disputes and quarrels, the State abolished
the rents during the Revolution, paying the proprietors the sum of $650,000 I'or
the extinouishment of their riohts.
PHILADELPHIA.
Philadelphia was prosper-
ous from the first. New York
City did not catch up to it unti
after the year 1810. It was early
noted, as it has been since, for
its cleanliness, fine buildings,
and the attention it gave to
education. It had a printing
MORAVIAN EASTER SERVICE, BETHLEHEM, PENNSYLVANIA.
press in 1686, and three years later a public high school. In the year 1749, the
pi-esent University of Pennsylvania was founded as a school, becoming a college
in 1755, and a university in 1779. Many of the names of streets, such as Wal-
nut, Chestnut, Pine, Mulberry, and others, were given to it when the city was
laid out.
The settlement of the province was confined for a long time to the eastern
section. No population was more varied. The Scotch and Irish were mainly
in the central portion, the Dutch and Germans in the east and northeast, and
the English in the southeastern part of the colony. There are hundreds of
peoj^jle to-day in Pennsylvania, whose ancestors for several generations have been
born there, who are unable to speak or understand a word of English.
Maryland is the next colony in order of settlement. The Roman Catholics
SETTLEMENT OF MARYLAND. 69
were among those who suffered persecution in England, and Maryland was
founded as a place of refuge for them. Among the most j^rorainent of the
English Catholics was Sir George Calvert, known as Lord Baltimore. His first
attempt to found a colony was in Newfoundland, but the rigorous climate com-
pelled him to give it up. He decided that the most favorable place was that
portion of Virginia lying east of the Potomac. Virginia had its eye already
upon the section, and was preparing to settle it, when Charles I., without con-
sulting her, granted the territory to Lord Baltimore. Before he could use the
patent, he died, and the charter was made to his son, Cecil Calvert, in 1632. He
named it Maryland in compliment to the queen, Henrietta Maria.
Leonard Calvert, a brother of Lord Baltimore, began the settlement of
JMaryland at St. Mary's, near the mouth of the Potomac. He took with him
200 immigrants and made friends with the Indians, whom he treated with
justice and kindness. Annapolis was founded in 1683 and Baltimore in 1729.
Despite the wisdom and liberality of Calvert's rule, the colony met with
much trouble, because of Virginia's claim to the territory occupied by the new-
comers. William Clayborne of Virginia had established a trading post in
Maryland and refused to leave, but he was driven out, whereupon he appealed
to the king, insisting that the Catholics were intruders upon domain to which
they had no right. The king decided in favor of Lord Baltimore. Clayborne
however, would not assent, and, returning to Maryland in 1645, he incited a
rebellion which was pressed so vigorously that Calvert was forced to flee. He
gathered enough followers to drive Clayborne out in turn. The Catholics then
established a liberal government and passed the famous " Toleration Act," which
allowed everybody to worship God as he saw fit. Many jiersons in the other
colonies, who were suffering persecution, made their homes in Maryland.
After a time, the Protestants gained a majority in the assembly and made
laws which were very oppressive to the Catholics. The strife degenerated into
civil war, which lasted for a number of years. The jiroprietor in 1691 was a
supporter of James II., because of which the new king, William, took away his
colony and appointed the governors himself. The proprietor's rights were
restored in 1716 to the fourth Lord Baltimore. The Calverts became extinct
in 1771, and the people of Maryland assumed proprietorship five years later.
Comparative tranquillity reigned until the breaking out of the Revolution.
An interesting occurrence during this tranquil period was the arrival from
England of George Fox, the founder of the Society of Friends or Quakers. In
the assemblage which gathered on the shores of the Chesapeake to listen to his
preaching were members of the Legislature, the leading men of the province,
Indian sachems and their families, with their great chief at their head.
The disputed boundary between Maryland and Pennsylvania was fixed in
70 SETTLEMENT OF THE THIRTEEN ORIGINAL STATES.
1767, by two surveyors named Mason and Dixon. This boundary became
famous in after years as the dividing line between the free and slave tStates.
Charles II., in 1663 and 1665, granted the land between Florida and
Virginia to eight proprietoi's. The country had been named Carolina in honor
of their king, Charles IX. (Latin, Carolus), and since Charles II. was King
of England the name was retained, though he was not the ruler meant thus
to be honored. The country was comparatively uninhabited after the failure of
the French colony, except by a few Virginians, who made a settlement on the
northern shore of Albemarle Sound.
THE CAROLINAS. "
For twenty years the proprietors tried to establish upon American soil one
of the most absurd forms of government ever conceived. The land was to be
granteil to nobles, known as barons, landgraves, and caziques, while the rest of
the people were not to be allowed to hold any land, but were to be bought and
sold with the soil, like so many cattle. The settlers ridiculed and defied the
fantastical scheme, which had to be abandoned. It was the work of John
Locke, the famous philosopher, who at one time was secretary of Lord Cooper,
one of the proprietors.
The first settlement of the Carteret colony was made in 1670, on the banks
of the Ashley, but in 1680 it was removed to the present site of Charleston.
The colonies remained united for about seventy years, when it became apparent
that the territory was too large to be well governed by one assembly and a single
governor. In 1729, the present division was made, and the rights of government
and seven-eighths of the land were returned to the crown.
The soil and climate were so favorable that thousands of immigrants were
attracted thither. Among them were numerous Huguenots or French Protest-
ants, whose intelligence, thrift, and morality jDlaced them among the very best
settlers found anywhere in our country. Newbern was settled by a colony of
Swiss in 1711, and there was a large influx of Scotch after their rebellion of
1740, England giving them permission to leave Scotland. Scotch immigrants
settled Fayetteville in 1746.
There were occasional troubles with the Indians, the most important of
which was the war with the Tuscaroras, in 1711. This tribe was utterly defeated
and driven northward into New York, where they joined the Iroquois or Five
Nations. The union of the Tuscaroras caused the Iroquois to be known after-
ward as the Six Nations.
The Carolinas were afflicted with some of the worst governors conceivable,
interspersed now and then with excellent ones. Often there was sturdy resist-
ance, and in 1677 one of the governors, who attempted to enforce the Naviga-
GEORGIA. 71
tioii Act, was deposed and imprisoned. In 1688, another was driven out of the
colony. The population was widely scattered, but the people themselves were
as a whole the best kind of citizens. They would not jjermit religious perse-
cution, and defeated the effort to make the Church of England the colony
church. As a consequence, the Carolinas became, like Maryland and Pennsylva-
nia, a refuge for thousands of those who were persecuted in the name of religion.
GEORGIA.
Georgia was the last of the thirteen original colonies to be settled, and,
though it long remained the weakest of them all, its history is very interesting.
It, too, was a country of refuge for those suffering persecution, but their affliction
was different in its nature from those of whom we have made record.
One of the remarkable facts connected with the government of nations
claiming the highest civilization, hardly more than a century ago, was the
brutality of their laws. Many crimes,
comparatively trifling in their nature,
were punishable with death. One of
the most cruel of these oppressive laws
was that which permitted a man to
throw into prison a neighbor who was
unable to pay the money he owed. If a
poor tenant fell ill, and could not pay
his landlord, the latter could have him
flung into jail and kept there until the colonial plow with wooden
debt was paid. Since the debtor was un- mould-board. ivoe
^ ... (State Agricultural Museum, Albany, N. Y.)
able to earn a penny while in prison,
and probably his wife and children were equally helpless, the landlord thus de-
jirived himself of all 2:)0ssibility of getting his money, while the wretched debtor
literally "rotted" in prison. Thousands died in dreadful misery, merely because
they were \)00y.
This system of allowing imprisonment for debt prevailed in our own
country until within the memory of men still living. It makes one's cheeks
tingle with shame and indignation to i-ecall that Robert Morris, who devoted all
his wealth and energies to raising money for the patriots during the Revolution,
who furnished Washington with thousands of dollars, and Init for whose help
the war must have failed, became poor after independence was gained and was
imprisoned for debt.
The system caused such horrible suffering in England that the ])ity of all
good men was stirred. Among these was James Edward Oglethorpe, one of the
most admirable characters in modern history. He was a brave and skillful
72
SETTLEMENT OF THE THIRTEEN ORIGINAL STATES.
soldier, eminently just, of the higliest social position and a member of Parlia-
ment. He determined to do something practical for the
perishing debtors in English jails. He, therefore, asked
George II. to give him a grant of land in America to
which the imprisoned debtors could be sent, and the
king, -whose heart also seemed to be touched, promj^tly
did so. It was said of Oglethorpe that the universal
respect felt for him made certain that any favor he
asked of his own associates or friends would be willingly
granted.
The king not only presented him with valuable
equipments, but Parliament granted him a liberal sum,
to which wealthy citizens added. He had the best wishes
of his entire country when he sailed for America with
one hundred and fourteen jiersons. He named the new
colony Georgia in honor of the king, and began the set-
tlement of Savannah in 1733, Darieu and Augusta being
founded three years later. It need hardly be said of
•^uch a man, that, like Penn and Baltimore, he bought
the lands anew of the Indians and retained their friend
ship from the start. On one of his visits to England
he took a party of I'cd men with him, entertained them at
his country place and presented them at court.
The Spaniards claimed Georgia as their own teri-i-
tory, and raised a large force with which
to expel Oglethorpe, whose colony had
been increased by the arrival of other
immigrant-:, but the English officer handled
his men with such extraordinary skill that
the Spaniards were utterly routed.
It would be supposed that Georgia
would have been one of the most successful
of the original colonies, since seemingly it
possessed every advantage, but such was far
from the fact. One cause for this was the
" coddling " the pioneers received. They
were harmed by too much kindness. Had
they been compelled to hew their own way,
like their neighbors, they would have done
They were like children spoiletl by being granted too many favors.
ANCIENT HOHSE-
SHOES PLOWTED UP IN
SCHENECTADY CO.,
N. y.
(In Ihe New York state Aaricultu-
lal Museum.)
A COLONIAIi FLAX-WHEEL.
better.
HIAWATHA, FOUNDER OF THE IROQUOIS LEAGUE
■ was cnnipomd <,r llie Mohawk. Oneida. Onondaga. Cayuga, Seneca and Tus
i wilderness a barbaric republic, with bonds of union that might ;
GROWTH OF THE AMERICAN COLONIES.
73
blljK-WINDING.
(Fac-simile ul a picture in Edward Williams' " Virginia Truly Valued." ICSfi)
Another cause was the poor laws by which tlie peopk' were ruled. Slavery
at first was forbitldeu within
its borders, though it was tol-
erated all about them. Then,
in 1747, the trustees yielded
to the general demand and ad-
mitted slavery. Other rules
caused discontent, and many
settlers moved away. Popula-
tion apjieared to be at a stand-
still, and finally the trustees in
1752 surrendered their rights
to the crown. More liberal
laws followed and the prosper-
ity increased.
Of General Oglethorpe, it
may be added that he lived to reach his ninety-eighth year. It was said of him
that he was the handsomest old man in London, and people often stopped on the
streets to look at and admire him. He always had a warm regard for the
American colonies. Indeed, it was this marked fi'ieiidship for them which pre-
vented his appointment as commander-in-chief of the British forces during the
Revolution.
GROWTH OF THE AMERICAN COLONIES.
It will thus be seen that, beginning with Virginia, in 1607, the American
colonies had grown in a little more than a century and a quarter to thirteen.
These were strung along the Atlantic coast from Maine to Florida, and in 1750
their population was about 1,260,000. This was vigorous growth. All the
colonists, although born on this side of the Atlantic, considered themselves Eng-
lishmen, and were proud of their king, three thousand miles away across the
ocean. With such loyal subjects, the English
crown had the best opportunity in the world to
become the most powerful of all the nations.
But Great Britain was not free from mis-
giving over the rapid growth of her American
colonies. Nothing looked more jirobable than
that before many years they would unite in one
A coMFOHTiER, OR CHAFING- oovemmeut of their own and declare their inde-
DISH. '^
(New Yorit State Cabinet of Natural HiBtory, peudeuce of the British crowu. Thcu was the
'^"'""'■' time for the display of wise statesmanship, but
unhappily for England and happily for the colonies, such wise statesmanship
74
SETTLEMENT OF THE THIRTEEN ORIGINAL STATES.
proved to be lacking on the other side of the water. Tlie colonies displayed
great industry. They grew tobacco, rice, indigo, and many other products
which were eagerly welcomed by the British merchants, who exported their
own manufactures in exchange for them. The inevitable result was that
England and the American colonies increased their wealth by this means.
Not only that, but the colonies voted ships, men, and money to help the
mother country in the wars in which she was often involved.
As early as 1651, Parliament passed the first of the oppressive Navigation
Acts, which forbade the colonies to trade with any other countrj- than England,
or to receive foreign ships into their ports. This act was so harsh and unjust
that it was never generally enforced, until the attempt, more than a century
later, when it became one of the leading causes of the American Revolution.
EARLY DAYS IN NKW ENGJjAND.
PLACES OF WORSHIP IN NEW YORK IN 1742.
1. Lutheran. 2. French. 3. Trinity. 4. New Dutch. 5. Old Dutch 6. Presbyterian. 7. Baptist. 8. Quaker. 9. Synagogue.
CHAPTEK III.
THE INTERCOLONIAL WARS AND THE FRENCH
AND INDIAN WAR.
King William's War— Queen Anne's War — King George's War — Tlie French and Indian U'ar — Eng-
land and France Rivals in ihe Old World and the New — 'J'he Early French Settlements — The
Disputed Territory — France's Fatal Weakness — Washington's Journey Through the Wilderness—
The First Fight of the War— The War Wholly American for Two Years— The Braddock Mas-
sacre—The Great Change Wrought by William Pitt— Fall of Quebec— Momentous Consequences
of the Great English Victorj' — The Growth and Progress of the Colonies and Their Home Life.
KING WILLIAM S WAR.
If anything were needed to jirove the utter uselessness and horrible bar-
barity of wai-, it is found in a history of the strife in which the American
colonies were involved through the quarrels of their rulers, thousands of miles
away on the other side of the Atlantic. Men lived for years in America as
neighbors, meeting and exchanging visits on the most friendly terms, and with
no thought of enmity, until the arrival of some ship with news that their respec-
tive governments in Eui'ope had gone to war. Straightway, the neighbors be-
came enemies, and, catching up their guns, did their best to kill one another.
Untold misery and hundi-eds of lives were lost, merely because two ambitious
men had gotten into a wrangle. The result of such a dispute possessed no earthly
intei'est to the people in the depths of the American wilderness, but loyalty to
their sovereigns demanded that they should plunge into strife.
As time passed, Spain and Holland declined in power, and England and
France became formidable rivals in the New World as well as in the OM. In
1689, when William III. was on the throne of England, war broke out between
that country and France and lasted until 1097. The French, having settled in
Canada, were wise enough to cultivate the friendship of the Indians, who helped
them in their savage manner in desolating the English settlements. Dover, New
(75)
76 INTERCOLONIAL WARS— FRENCH AND INDIAN WAR.
Hampshire, was attacked by the French and Indians, who killed more than a
score of persons and carried away a number of captives. In other j^laces, settlers
were surprised in the helds and shot down. Early in 1690, another party came
down from Canada, and, when the snow lay deep on the ground and the people
were sleeping in their beds, made a furious attack upon Schenectady. The town
was burned and sixty persons tomahawked, while the survivors, half-clad,
struggled through the snow to Albany, sixteen miles distant.
The Americans in retaliation attempted to invade Canada, but the result
was a disastrous failure. The war continued in a desultory way, with great
cruelties on both sides, until 1697, when a treaty signed at Ryswick, Holland,
settled the quarrel between King William and James II., by deciding that the
former was the rightful king of England. The suffering and deaths that had
been inflicted on this side of the Atlantic produced not the slightest effect upon
the quarrel between the two claimants to the throne.
QUEEN ANNE's WAR.
In 1702, England got into a wrangle with France and Spain. This time
the Iroquois Indians took no part, because of their treaty with France, although
in the previous war they fought on the side of the English. In the depth of
winter in 1703-4, Deerfield, Massachusetts, was attacked and destroyed. Forty-
seven of the people were tomahawked and more than a hundred carried into
captivity. Their sufferings were so dreadful on the long tramp through the
snow to Canada that nearly all sank down and died. Maine and New Hamp-
shire were devastated by the hordes, who showed no mercy to women and chil-
dren. Another English invasion of Canada was attempted, but failed like its
predecessor. The aimless, cruel war continued until 1713, when a treaty of
peace was signed at Utrecht in Holland, by which England secured control of
the fisheries of Newfoundland, while Labrador, Hudson Bay, and Acadia or
Nova Scotia were ceded to Great Britain. The result in both instances would
have been the same had the English and French settlers and the Indians con-
tinued on amicable terms.
KING George's war.
In 1740, the War for the Austrian Succession broke out ni Europe and
soon involved most of the European nations. Because George II. was on the
throne of England, the struggle is known in this country as King George's War.
A notable event in America was the cajsture of the fortress of Louisburg,
one of the strongest fortifications in the world, mainly by New England troops.
It was a grand achievement which thrilled this country and England, and
caused consternation in France. A treaty of peace was signed in 1744 at Aix-
la-Chapelle, a town in western Germany. New England was enraged to find
THE FRENCH AND INDIAN WAR.
77
that by the terms of this treaty Louisburg was t;i\('n
her valor, sacritice, and suffer- ^^,.«. rf^
iuff went for uauiilit.
•k to France, ami all
THE FkENCU and INDIAN
WAR.
It has already been shown
that England and France,
who had long been rivals in
the Old World, had become
-^
equally bitter rivals
on this side of the
Atlantic. On the
west, the thirteen
English colonies were
walled in by the Al-
leghany Mountains,
beyond which none
of the settlers had advanced.
All the country lying be-
tween these mountains and
the Mississippi was claimed
by France, who was pushing
southward through it, and
had given it the name of New
France or Louisiana. The
first French settlement within
the northwestern part of our
country was the mission of St. INIary. near Sault Ste. Marie, now in the State of
THE ATTACK ON HlOli HS AT SPRINGFIELD, MASS
IN 1786.
78 INTERCOLONIAL WARS— FRENCH AND INDIAN WAR.
Michigau, it having been established iu 16G8. Several others of minor import-
ance were planted at different points.
England did not oppose the acquirement of Canada by the French early
in the seventeenth century, but no serious attempt was made by that people to
colonize the territory within the United States until 1699, when D'Iberville
crossed the Gulf of Mexico iu quest of the mouth of the Mississippi. When he
found it, he planted a settlement at Biloxi, now in Mississippi, but removed it
in 1702 to Mobile. The Mississippi Company, a French organization, obtained
in 1716 a grant of Louisiana, and in 1718 sent out a colony that began the
settlement of New Orleans.
It will thus be seen that by 1750 the French had acquired large posses-
sions in North America. They were determined to hold them, and, to do so,
established a chain of sixty forts reaching from Montreal to the Gulf of Mexico.
These forts were the foundations of many important cities of to-day, such as
New Orleans, Natchez, Detroit, Vincennes, Toledo, Fort Wayne, Ogdensburg,
and Montreal. To the rear of the main chain of forts were others like Mack-
inaw, Peoria, and Kaskaskia.
Extensive as was the territory thus taken possession of by the French,
they were fatally weak because of their scant population, amounting to less than
150,000 souls, while the English colonies had grown to 1,500,000. The French
traders were just about strong enough to hold the Indians in check, but no
more.
Thus with the French on the west and the English on the east of the
Alleghanies, the two rival forces were slowly creeping toward each other, and
were bound soon to meet, when the supreme struggle for possession of the
North American continent would open. By-and-by, the French hunters and
traders, as they climbed the western slope of the mountains, met the English
trappers moving in their direction. Being the advance skirmishers of their
respective armies, they often exchanged shots, and then fell back to report what
they had seen and done to their countrymen.
The fertile lands of the Great West had long attracted attention, and
many efforts had been made to buy them at a cheap price to sell again to
settlers. In 1749, the Ohio Company was formed by a number of London
merchants and several prominent Virginians. The lands they bought lay in
western Pennsylvania, which Virginia claimed as part of her territory. This
company proved its earnestness by sending out surveyors, opening roads, and
offering tempting inducements to settlers.
Tlie French were equally prompt and took possession of the country
between the Alleghanies and their main chain of forts. They built a fort at
Presq' Isle, on, the site of the present city of Erie, and began erecting a new
WASHINGTON'S JOURNEY.
79
chain of forts southward toward the Ohio. Governor Dinwiddie of Virginia
saw the danger of permitting this encroachment, and he wrote a letter of remon-
strance to the French commander, which was placed in the hands of George
Washington, to be carried live hundred miles through wilderness, across moun-
tains and dangerous rivers, to the point in western Pennsylvania where the
French officer was building his forts upon disputed ground.
YOUNG WASHINGTON HIDING A COLT.
One summer morning, young George, with three or four boys, was in the field looliiiig at a vuli, given him ity liis niullier,
and when the boys said that it could never be tamed, George said : " You help me get on its back, and I'll tame it."
The journey was a long and perilous one, but Washington, who was a
magnificent specimen of vigorous young manhood, jierfoi'med it in safety and
brought back the reply of the French commander, which notified Governor
Dinwiddie that he not only refused to vacate the territory, but would drive out
every Englishman he found within it.
This meant war, and Virginia made her preparations. She raised about
400 men and placed them under the command of Lieutenant-Colonel Washing-
80 INTERCOLONIAL WARS— FRENCH AND INDIAN WAR.
ton, who was more familiar with the country than anyone else. The Ohio
Company at that time were putting up a fort on the present site of Pittaburg,
and Washington hurried forward to j)rotect it. The Frenchmen understood
the value of a post at the junction of the Alleghany and Monongahela Rivers,
and also started on a race for it. They arrived first, captured the fort, strength-
ened it, and gave it the name of Fort Duquesne. That done, they set out to
meet Washington, who was descending the Monongahela.
OPENING OF THE WAR.
The meeting between these forces brought on the first fight of the French
and Indian War. It was the advance party of each which met, and it is said
that the first musket was fired by Washington himself. The French had en-
listed a number of Indians, but Washington killed or captured nearly all of
them as well as the whites. The main body oi" the French, however, was so
much more powerful than his own, that Washington moved back a few miles
and built a fortification which he named Fort Necessity. There, after a brisk
fight, he was compelled to surrender, July 4, 1754, on the promise that he and
his men should be allowed to return to Virginia. That province was so well
pleased with his. work that he acted as its leading officer throughout the re-
mainder of the war.
A peculiai'ity of tlic French and Indian War must be noted. For two
years it was entirely an American war, not extending to Europe until 175G.
For the first time the English colonies acted together. They saw the value of
the territory' in dispute and were ready to make common cause for its jiossession.
England was inclined to let them do the best they could without help from
her. She advised that they form some plan for united action. In accordance
with this suggestion, a meeting was held at Albany in 1754, com^iosed of dele-
gates from Maryland, Pennsylvania, New York, and the New England colonies.
Benjamin Franklin, the great philosopher, projiosod the " Albany jilan of
Union," which was agreed upon.
When this was submitted to the king, he saw too nn.ich of American inde-
]iendence in it, and promptly rejected it, while the colonies did the same on
the ground that it gave the king too much power. There was much significance
in this action.
EXPULSION OF THE CANADIANS.
It was now so evident that war must soon come that England ana France
began sending troops to America. At the same time, the respective govern-
ments continued to profess — diplomatically — their strong friendship for each
other. In June, 1755, a force consisting of British regulars and colonial troops
sailed from Boston and captured tlie few remaining French forts in Nova
BRADDOCK'S MASSACRE. 81
Scotia. The inhabitants were gatliered togetlier in their churches, jjlaced on
ships, and then distributed southward among the English colonies. This act
has been often denounced as one unworthy of the British people.
BRADDOCK S MASSACRE.
Anions; the Eno-lish officers who arrived in 1755 was General Edward
/
,\r\-
Braddock. ,
He was brave
and skillful, but [
conceited and stub- (
born. When Washing-
ton, who was one of his _/
aides, explained to liiui J
the character of the
treacherous foes whom
he would have to fight
and advised him to adopt
similar tactics, the English
officer insultingly answered
that when he felt the need
of advice from a young Virginian, he would ask for it. He marched toward
Fort Duquesne and was within a few miles of the post, when he ran into an am-
bush and was assailed so vehemently by a force of French and Indians that
half his men were killed, the rest put to flight, and himself mortally wounded.
Washington and his Virginians, by adopting the Indian style of fighting,
checked the pursuit and saved the remainder of the men.
In the spring of 1750, England and Fi-ance declared war against each
BRADDOCK'S DEFEAT.
82
INTERCOLONIAL WARS— FRENCH AND INDIAN WAR.
other and the struggle now involved those two countries. For two year.s the
English, despite their preponderance of forces in America, lost rather than
gained ground. Their officers sent across the ocean were a sorry lot, while the
French were commanded by Montcalm, a brilliant leader. He concentrated his
forces and delivered many effective blows, capturing the forts on the northern
border of New York and winning all the Indians to his support. The English
fought in detached bodies and were continually defeated.
ENGLISH SUCCESSES.
But a change came in 1758, when William Pitt, one of the greatest Eng-
lishmen in history, was called to the head of the government. He weeded out
inefficient officers, replaced them with skillful ones, who, concentrating their
^ troops, assailed the French at three import-
ant points. Louisburg, on Cape Breton
Island, which had been captured more than
a hundred yeai's before, dui'ing King
George's War, was again taken by a naval
expedition in the summer of 1758. In the
autumn, Fort Duquesne was captured with-
out resistance and named Fort Pitt, in honor
of the illustrioixs prime minister. The single
~ defeat administered to the English was at
Ticonderoga, where Montcalm commanded
in person. This was a severe repulse, in
which the English lost in the neighborhood
HEIGHTS of 1,000 men. It was offset by the expul-
sion of the French from northwestern New
York and the capture of Fort Frontenac,
on the present site of Kingston in Canada.
One wnse step of Pitt was in winning the cordial support of the provincials,
as the colonists v/ere called, to the British regulars. Our ancestors thus gained
a most valuable military training which served them well in the great struggle
for independence a few years later.
MARTELLO TOWER ON THE
OF ABRAHAM, WHERE W^OLFE
WAS KILLED.
WOLFE S GREAT VICTORY.
The year 1759 brought decisive success to the English. Knowing that
they intended to attack Quebec, Montcalm drew in his troops to defend that
city. It therefore was an easy matter for the English to capture Ticonderoga,
Crown Point, and Fort Niagara. General Wolfe, one of the very ablest of
English leaders, left Louisburg with a Heet and sailed up the St. Lawrence.
WOLFE'S GREAT VICTORY.
83
He found the fortifications of Quebec at so great an elevation that he could make
no impression upon them. Three months passed in idle waiting and the
besiegers were almost disheartened. Wolfe himself was so distressed by anxiety
1 that he fell ill. The saga-
cious Montcalm could not be
induced to come out and give
A DUTCH HOUSEHOLD.
5 seen m the early days in New York.
liattle, and there seemed no
way of reaching him.
But the lion-hearted
Wolfe would not be denied. He found a path leading uj) to the Heights of
Abraham, as the plain above was called, and, selecting a mild night in September,
Ills troops floated down the river in their boats and landed at the foot of the cliff".
All night long the English soldiers were clambering up the steep path, dragging
a few guns with them, and, when the morning sun rose, it shone on the flashing
bayonets of the whole army drawn up in battle array before the walls of Quebec.
84 INTERCOLONIAL WARS—FRENCH AND INDIAN WAR.
The astonished Montcalm, instead of remaining within the city, marched
his army out and gave battle. In the fight both Wolfe and Montcalm were
fatally wounded. Wolfe lived long enough to learn that the French were flee-
ing before his victorious troops. " Now, I can die hajjjiy," he said, and shortly
after expired. When Montcalm was told he must die, he mournfully replied :
" So much the better ; I shall not live to see the surrender of Quebec."
MOMENTOUS RESULTS OF THE WAR.
This battle was one of the decisive ones of the world, for, as will be seen,
its results were of momentous importance to mankind. The conquest of Canada
followed in 17G0, and the other French forts fairly tumbled into the possession
of the English. Pontiac, Chief of the Ottawas, was so angered at the turn of
events that he refused to be bound by the terms of the surrender. He brought
a number of tribes into an alliance, captured several British posts in the West,
and laid siege to Detroit for more than a year, but in the end he was defeated,
his confederacy scattered, and Pontiac himself, like Philip, was killed by one
of his own race.
The war was over, so far as America was concerned, but England and
France kept it \\\> for nearly three years, fighting on the ocean and elsewhere.
In 1762, Spain joined France, but received a telling blow in the same year,
when an English expedition captured the city of Havana. In this important
event, the provincials gave valuable aid to the British regulars. The colonies
also sent out a number of privateers which captured many rich j^rizes from the
Spaniards.
By 1763, Great Britain had completely conquered France and Spain, and a
treaty of peace was signed at Paris. France and Spain agreed to give nj) all of
North America east of the Mississipi")!, and England ceded Cuba to Spain in cx-
diange for Florida, exchanging Florida in. 1783 /or the Bahama Islands. The
former was a victory for Spanish diplomacy, since Florida was i:)ractical]y worth-
less to Spain, while Havana, the capital of Cuba, was an enormously wealthy
city, and the island possessed marvelous fertility and almost boundless resources.
France, after her wholesale yielding to England, paid Spain her ally by
ceding to her all her possessions west of the Mississippi, including the city of
New Orleans. This enormous territory, then known as Louisiana, compre-
hended everything between the Rocky Mountains and the Mississippi River, from
British America to the Gulf of Mexico. In extent it was an empire from which
many of the most important States of the Union have been carved. When it
is remembered that these changes were the result of a war in which the capture
of Quebec was the decisive conflict, it will be admitted that there was ample
warrant for pronouncing it one of the great battles of the world.
MOMENTOUS RESULTS OF THE WAR.
85
The thirteen original colonies were now "full grown." Their population
had increased to 2,000,000 and was fast growing. Their men hatl proven their
bravery and generalship in the Fi-ench and Indian War. Many of them liad
develojjed into fine ofHcers, and all compared favorably with the British regu-
lars. Their loyalty to England was proven by the 30,000 lives that had been
given that she might conquer her ti'aditional rival and enemy.
The adventurous spirit of the colonists was shown by the fact that many
began crossing the Alleghanies into the fertile district beyond, where they were
in continual danger from the fierce Indians. James Robertson led a party of
MEMORIAL HALL, HARVARD COLLEGE.
emigrants who made the first settlement in Tennessee in 1768, and the famous
Daniel Boone and a company of immigrants were the pioneers in Kentucky in
1769. No effort was made to settle tlie country north of the Ohio until after
the Revolution.
The intellectual )n-ogress of the colonies was remarkable. The first print-
ing press was set up at Cambridge in 1639, and newspapers and books were in
general circulation. Harvard College was founded in Massachusetts in 1638;
William and Mary, in Virginia, in 1692; Yale, in Connecticut, in 1700; the
College of New Jersey (now Princeton Univei-sity), in 1746 ; the University of
Pennsylvania, in 1749; and King's College (now Columbia), in New York, in
86
INTERCOLONIAL WARS— FRENCH AND INDIAN WAR.
1754. Much attention was given to education, commerce was greatly extended,
the oppressive Navigation Act being generally disregarded, and thousands of
citizens were in prosperous circumstances.
More significant than all else was the growth of the sentiment of unity
among the diflerent colonies. Although properly known as jJrovincials, to dis-
tinguish them from the British, they now, instead of speaking of themselves as
New Englanders or Virginians or Englishmen, often substituted the name
" Americans." The different colonies were looked upon as members of the
same great family, ready to make connnon cause against a danger threatening
any one of them. Some of the bolder ones began to express the thought that it
would be a fine thing if they were all independent of the mother country,
though for years the sentiment assumed no impoi'tance.
Now was the time for England to display wisdom, justice, and statesman-
ii'i.iiii^ ;;„,,,inii;in.„ii,,.:,, ,111,1 , i ^jjjp fQwurd licr subjects in America.
ji; Had she treated them as she now treats
Hi , ' Canada and Australia and her other col-
onies, there never would have been a
Revolution. No doubt in time we should
have separated fi'om her, l)ut the sepa-
ration would have been peaceable.
But while Great Britain has always
l)een immeasurably above Spain in her
treatment of her American subjects, she
was almost as foolish, because she
chilled the loyalty that had been proven
in too many instances to be doubted.
The mother country was laboring under
the weight of burdensome taxes, and,
since the colonies had always been prompt in voting money and supjilies as well
as men to assist England, Parliament thought she saw a way of shouldering a
large part of this burden upon the Americans. Her attempts to do so and the
results therefrom properly belong to the succeeding chapter.
BIBLE BROUGHT OVEK IN THE "MAY-
FLOWER," IN PILGRIM HALL,
NEW PLYMOUTH.
HOME LIFE OF THE COLONISTS.
A few facts will assist in understanding the events that follow. Slavery,
as has been stated, was legal and existed in all the colonies, but climatic con-
ditions caused it to flourish in the South and decline in the North. All the
colonies were Protestant, though religious liberty was permitted everywhere.
The laws were amazingly strict and would never be submitted to in these
times. To illustrate : a watchman in Hartford rana; a bell everv mornnio: as
HOME LIFE OF THE COLONISTS.
87
notice to all adults to rise from their beds. Massachusetts had fourteen and
Virginia seventeen offenses that were punishable with death. Some of the
minor punishments were unique. If a woman became a common scold, she
was jjlaced near her own door, with a gag fastened in her mouth, that all might
see and beware of her example. For other offenses, a man was ducked in water
or put in the stocks. A stock was a strong framework, through which the feet
or both feet and hands were thrust and held fast, while the pillory was a frame-
work through which the head and hands of a criminal were imprisoned. Be-
sides the disgrace attending such punishment, it was very trying. The whipping-
post was quite common long after the Revolution, and it is still occasionally used
in Delaware.
AMERICAN STAGE-COACH OP 1795, FROM ""WELD'S TRAVELS."
(Probably similar in form to those of the later colonial period )
jNIen and lioys dressed much alike, and the fashions for women and girls
were similar. TJie breeches of the men suggested the present style of knicker-
bockei-s, the rich making quite a display of silver buckles and buttons. The
breeches of the poorer people were made of coarse cloth, deerskin, or leather, the
object being to obtain all the wear possible. The wealthy used velvet, and the
men and women were as fond of display as their descendants.
In the earliest days, all the houses were made of logs, and oiled j^aper took
the place of glass for windows. Carpets were an unknown luxury. Often the
floor was the smooth, hard ground. The cooking was done in the big fireplace,
88 INTERCOLONIAL WAR— FRENCH AND INDIAN WAR.
where an irou arm called a crane was swung over the fire and sustained the
pots and kettles. Coal and matches were unknown, a fire being started by
means of a piece of steel and flint or with the help of a sun glass.
Coffee and tea were great luxuries, but nearly every family made its own
beer. Rum and hard cider were drunk by church people as well as others, the
only fault being when one drank too much. The important cities and towns
wei-e connected by stages, but most of the traveling was done on foot or horse-
back. Since most of the settlements were near the sea or on large rivers, long
journeys were made by means of coasting sloops. When a line of stages in
1766 made the trip between New York and Philadelphia in two days, it was
considered so wonderful that the vehicles were called "flying machines."
Regarding the state of religion in the colonies, Prof George F. Holmes
says :
" The state of religion among the jieople differed greatly in the different
provinces. The Church of England was the established religion in New York,
Virginia, and the Carolinas. In Maryland, the population I'emained largely
Roman Catholic. In New England the original Puritanism was dominant, but
its rigor had become much softened. A solemn and somewhat gloomy piety,
however, still prevailed. The Presbyterians were numerous, influential, and
earnest in New Jersey. There, but especially in Pennsylviinia, were the quiet
and gentle Quakers. In Carolina and Georgia, ^Moravians and other German
Protestants were settled, and Huguenot families were frequent in AHi-ginia and
South Carolina.
" Every wliere, however, was found an intermixture of creeds, and conse-
quentlv the need of toleration had been experienced. Laxity of moi-als and of
conduct was alleged against the communities of the Anglican Church. In the
middle of the eighteenth century a low tone of religious sentiment was general.
The revival of fervor, which was incited then by the Wesleys, was widely spread
by Whitefield in America, and Methodism was making itself felt throughout the
countrv. The Baptists were spreading in different colonies and were ncquiring
influence by theii- earnest simplicity. They favored liberty in all forms and be-
came warm partisans of the revolutionary movement."
CHAPTEE IV,
THE REVOLUTION— THE WAR IN NEW
ENOLAND.
Causes of the Revolution — The Stamp Act — The Boston Tea Party — Engkind's Unbearable Measures —
The First Continental Congress — The Boston 3Iassacre— Lexington and Concord — The Second Con-
tinental Congress — Battle of Bunker Hill — Assumption of Command by Washington — British
Evacuation of Boston — Disastrous Invasion of Canada.
CAUSES OF THE REVOLUTION.
England was never guilty of greater folly than in the treatment of her
American colonies after the close of the French and Indian War. As has been
said, she was oppressed by burdensome taxation and began seeking excuse for
shifting a large portion of it upou the shoulders of her prosperous subjects
across the sea, who had always been ready to vote money and give their sons to
help in the wars which were almost solely for the benefit of the mother country.
It has been shown that the intercolonial conflicts were of no advantage to the
colonies which were dragged into them and suffered greatly therefrom. Since
the surrounding territory would soon be necessary for the expansion of the
Americans, they had much to gain by the defeat of the French and their expul-
sion from America; but they had done their full share, and it was unjust to de-
mand further sacrifices from them.
PASSAGE OF THE STAMP ACT.
Hardly had peace been declared, when, in 1764, the British government
asserted that it had the i-ight to tax her colonies. The latter ])aid little atten-
tion to the declaration, but were rudely awakened in 1765 by the passage of
the Stam]i Act, which was to go into effect' in November of that year. It de-
creed that thenceforward no newspapers or pamphlets could be printed, no mar-
riage-certificate given, and no documents used in lawsuits, unless stamps were
attached, and these could be bought only from British agents.
It was ordered further that the oppressive Navigation Acts, which had
been evaded for a hundred years, should be rigidly enforced, while soldiers were
to be sent to America to see that the orders were carried out. Since these
troops were to be paid from the money received for the stamps, it will be seen
(89)
90 THE REYOLrTION—THE WAR IX NEW ENGLAND.
that the Americans woukl be obliged to bear the expense of tlie soldiers quar-
tered upon them.
Now we use revenue stam])s to-day and no one olyccts, but the difference
in the two eases is that we tax ourselves for our oAvn expenses, and our repre-
sentatives grade the taxes so as to suit the peojile. If we do not think the taxes
equitable, we can elect other representatives, pledged to change them. But it
must be remembered that we never had a representative in the British Parlia-
ment, whose English members did just as they pleased. That was " taxation
without representation."
The news of the action of the Bi'itish government threw the colonies into
an angry mood and they vehemently declared their intention to resist the Stamp
Act. They did not content themselves with words, but mobbed the stamp
agents, compelled others to resign, and, when the date arrived for the act to go
into effect, they refused to buy a single obnoxious stamp.
REPEAL OF THE STAMP ACT.
The Stamp Act Congress, as it was called, met in New York City, October
7, 1765. There were representatives from all the colonies except four, but they
supported the others. Lacking the authority to make any laws, it issued a bold
declaration of rights and sent petitions to the king and Parliament, setting forth
the American grievances. The sturdy resistance of the colonies alarmed Eng-
land. They had many friends in Parliament, including the illustrious Pitt,
and, at the beginning of 1766, the act was repealed. The Americans were so
delighted that they almost forgot that England in repealing the act still asserted
her right to tax them.
Several years now followed in which the colonies quietly resisted the efforts
of England to tax them. This was done by a general agreement not to buy
any of the articles upon which taxes were laid. The men who did this and
opposed the mother country were known as Whigs, while those who stood by
England were called Tories.
DEFIANT ACTS BY THE AMERICANS.
But violence was sure to follow where the indignation was so intense and
widespread. There were continual broils between the British soldiers and citi-
zens, the most serious of which occurred in Boston on March 5, 1770, when the
soldiers fired upon the citizens who had attacked them, killed three and wounded
several. This incident, known in history as the " Boston Massaci'e," added to
the mutual anger. In North Carolina, William Tryon, the Tory Governor, had
a battle with the patriots at Alamance in 1771, killed a large number, and
treated others so brutally that many fled across the mountains and helped to
ENGLAND'S UNBEARABLE MEASURES
91
settle Tennessee. In 1772, a British vessel, the Gaspe, which was active in col-
lecting duties from Providence, was captured and burned by a number of Rhode
Island people. England offereil a reward for the capture of the " rebels," but,
though they were well known, no one would have dared, if so disposed, to arrest
them.
THE BOSTON TEA PARTY.
The British Parliament was impatient with the colonies, and threatened all
sorts of retaliatory measures. In 1770, Parliament took the tax off of all articles
except tea, ujjon which it was made
so light that the luxury was cheaper
in America with the tax than in Eng-
land without it. The Americans,
however, were contending for a prin-
ciple, and contemptuously rejected the
offer. When the tea ships reached
Charleston, the cargoes were stored
in damp cellars, where they soon mold-
ed and spoiled. At New York, Phil-
adelphia, and other points they would
not allow the ships to land their car-
goes, and they sailed back to Eng-
land. A similar reception having
been given the vessels in Boston, the
British officers refused to leave the
harbor. Late at night, December 16,
1773, a party of citizens, painted and
disguised as Indians, boarded the ships
and emptied 342 chests — all on boaid
^ THE OLD SOUTH CHURCH, BOSTON,
into ine naiOOl. ah immense assemblage gathered here on the evening of Dec.
The " Boston Tea Partv " thrilled ^*' ^^"^' ^""^ stirring addresses were made by Josiah Quincy and
^ Samuel Adams. The " Boston Tea Party " followed.
the colonies and exhausted the pa-
tience of England, who felt that the time for stern measures had come. Her
dallying course had only encouraged the rebels, and as in the story, having tried
in vain the throwing of grass, she now determined to see what virtue there was
in using stones.
England's unbearable measures.
The measures which she passed and which were unbearable were : 1. The
Boston Port Bill, which forbade all vessels to leave or enter Boston harbor.
This was a death-blow to Boston commerce and was meant as a punishment of
those who were leaders in the revolt against the mother country. 2. The Mas-
92 THE REVOLUTION— THE WAR IN NEW ENGLAND.
saclmsetts Bill, which was anothei" destructive blow at the colony, since it
changed its charter hy taking away the right of self-government and placing it
in the hands of the agents of the king. 3. The Transportation Bill, which
ordered that all soldiers charged with the crime of murder should be taken
to England for trial. 4. The Quebec Act, which made the country east of the
Mississippi and north of the Ohio a part of Canada. These acts were to be
enforced by the sending of troops to America.
THE FIKST CONTINENTAL CONGRESS.
The result of the j^assage of these harsh measures was to unite all the colo-
nies in a determination to -resist them to the last. The necessity for consulta-
tion among the leaders was so apparent that, in response to a general call, the
First Continental Congress met in Philadelphia, September 5, 1774, all the colo-
nies being represented except Georgia, which favored the action.
This Congress adopted a deciai-ation of rights, asserting that they alone
were empowei-ed to tax themselves, and it named a number of acts of Parliament
that were a direct invasion of such rights. An address was sent to the king
and to the people of Great Britain, but none to Parliament, which had deeply
nftended the Americans. The agreement known as the Articles of Association
pledged our ancestors not to buy goods or sell them to Great Britain until the
obnoxious acts were repealed by Parliament. It declared further that, if force
was used against Massachusetts by England, all the other colonies would help
her in resistiug it. Before adjournment, a new Congress was called to meet in
tlie following May.
The language of the First Continental Congress sounds bold, but the people
themselves were bolder. Companies of armed men began drilling everywhere,
and the Americans were eager for a conflict with the detested " red coats." The
excitement was more intense in Massachusetts than anywhere else, and it was
jdain that the opening gun of the impending Revolution would be fired upon
her soil. The affairs of the colony were directed by a provincial congress,
which collected a quantity of guns and ammunition, and ordered the enrollment
of 20,000 " minute men," who were to hold themselves ready to answer any call
at a minute's notice.
General Gage was the British commander in Boston, and he was so alarmed
by the aggressive acts of the Americans that he began to tlirow up fortifications
on the neck of land connecting the town with the mainland. His alert spies
notified him that the Americans had collected a quantity of military supplies
wliich were stored at Concord, some twenty miles from Boston. Gage ordered
800 troops to march secretly to Concord and destroy them.
Guarded as were the movements of tlie British, the Americans were equally
BATTLE OF BUNKER HILL.
93
watchful and discovered them. Paul Revere dashed out of the town on a swift
horse and spread the news throughout the country. In the gray light of the
early morning, A()ril 19, 1775, as tlie soldiers marched into Lexington, on the
way to Concord beyond, they saw some fifty minute men gathered on the village
green. Major Pitcairn ordered them to tlisperse, and tliey refusing to do so, a
volley was fired. Eight Americans were killed and a large number wounded,
the others fleeing before the overwhelming force. Thus was the shot fired that
"was heard round the world."
The British advanced to Concord, destroyed the stores there, and then began
their return to Boston. All the church bells were ringing and the minute men
were swarming around the troops from every direction. They kept up a con-
tinuous fire upon the soldiers from behind barns,
houses, hedges, fences, bushes, and from the open
fields. The soldiers broke into a run, but every
one would have been shot ilown had not Gage sent
reinforcements, which protected the exhausted fu-
gitives until they reached a point where they were
under the guns of the men-of-war. In this first
real conflict of the war, the Americans lost 88 and
the British 273 in killed, wounded, and missing.
General Gage was now besieged in Boston by the
ardent minute men, who in the flush of their patri-
otism were eager for the regulars to come out and
give them a chance for a battle. Men mounted on
swift horses rode at headlong speed through the
colonies, spreading the stirring news, and hundi-eds
of patriots hurried to Boston that they might take jiart in the war for their
rights. Elsewhere, the fullest preparations were made for the struggle for inde-
pendence which all felt had opened.
As agreed upon, the Second Continental Congress assembled in Philadel-
phia, May 10, 1775. It included some of the ablest men in America, such as
George Washington, Thomas Jefferson, Patrick Henry, Richard Henry Lee,
and Peyton Randolph, of Virginia ; Benjamin Franklin and Robert Morris, of
Pennsylvania; John Adams, Samuel Adams, and John Hancock, of Massachu-
setts ; John Jay, of New York ; and Roger Sherman and Oliver Ellsworth, of
Connecticut. The former Congress had talked ; the present acted. By general
consent it was accepted as the governing body of the colonies. The forces
around Boston were declared to be a Continental army, money was voted to
support it, and Washington was appointed its commander.
Meanwhile, British reinforcements under Howe, Clinton, and Burgoyne
PATBICK HEKKY,
America's greatest orator: member of the
Second Continental Congress.
94
THE REVOLUTION— THE WAR IN NEW ENGLAND.
arrivfel in Boston, swelling Gage's army to 10,UUO men. Tliey occupied the
town, on the peninsula which covers the middle of the harbor, while around
them on the hills of the mainland was a larger force of Americans, without uni-
forms, i^oorly clothed, badly armed and undisciplined, but overflowing with
patriotism.
A little to the north of Boston
the harbor. It has several eleva
the patriots determined to seize
a thousand men set out one dark
lieving Breed's Hill more de
he set his men to work upon that,
euphonious than "Breed's," and [
by the former name. Upon it has l'
ment.)
Although close to the
ricans toiled thi'ough the
When the sun rose June
Boston were astonished to
ments extending across the
Americans still
tinned without interruption ff
ish were seen coming across
were the regulars, finely _
ed nearly 3,000, who, land ^
formed in fine order and ^
against the 1,500 patriots,
behind their intrench
It was about the middle
working ^'
a second peninsula extended into
tions, one of which, Bunker Hill,
and fortify. Colonel Prescott with
night to perform the task, but, be-
sirable, since it was nearer Boston,
(The name "Bunker" is more
the latter is now generally known
been built the Bunker Hill Monu-
THE MONUMENT ON
BUNKER HILL.
.^ British sentinels, the Ame-
=,£3^ night without discovery.
^^^ 17, 1775, the enemy in
see a line of intrench-
hill above them, with the
like beavers. They con-
until noon, when the Brit-
the harbor in boats. They
disciplined, and number-
ing near Charlestown,
advanced with precision
. agerly waiting for them
ments.
of the afternoon that the
to the attack, covered by
lowitzers, Howe himself
wing. The steejjles and
with people, breathlessly
sight. Charlestown had
dred of its houses laid in
British columns marched ^^pj^
a heavy fire of cannon and ^^S~ii.
commanding the right
roofs of Boston swarmed
watching the thrilling
been fired and four hun
ashes.
The Americans behind their breastworks were impatient to open fire, but
Prescott restrained them until they could " see the whites of the eyes " of their
enemies. Then in a loud, clear voice he shouted "Fircf There was an
outflame of musketry along the front of the intrenchments, and scores of troops
in the first rank fell. Tlie others hesitated a moment, and then turned and fled
BATTLE OF BUNKER HILL. 95
down the slope. There their officers formed them into line, and once more they
advanced up the slope. The delay gave the Americans time to reload, and they
received the troops with the same withering fire as before, sending them scurry-
ing to the bottom of the hill, where with great difficulty the daring officers
formed them into line for a third advance. The British cannon had been
brought to bear, and the ships and batteries maintained a furious cannonade.
The patriots were compelled to withdraw from the breastwork outside the fort,
and the redoubt was attacked at the same moment from three sides. The spec-
tators were confident of seeing the invaders hurled back again, but saw to their
dismay a slackening of the fire of the Americans, while the troops, rushing over
the iutrenchments, fought with clubbed nuiskets.
At the very moment victory was within the grasp of the patriots, their
recklessly fired ammunition gave out, ami they began sullenly retreating, fighting
with clubbed weapons. As it was, their retreat would have been cut off", had
not a company of provincials checked the British until the main body of Ameri-
cans had fallen back. The battle of Bunker Hill was over and ended with the
defeat of the patriots, who had lost 150 killed, 270 wounded, and 30 taken pris-
oners. General Gage gave his loss as 22-4 killed and 830 wounded. Among the
killed was Major Pitcairn, the leader of the English troops who fired upon the
minute men at Lexington. The American Colonel Prescott had his clothing
torn to shreds by bayonet thrusts, but was not hurt. A British officer, recog-
nizing the brilliant Warren, snatched a nuisket from the hands of a soldier and
shot him dead.
Prescott and Putnam conducted the retreat by way of Charlestowu Neck
to Prospect Hill, where new iutrenchments commanding Boston were thrown
up. The British fortified the crest of Breed's Hill. General Gage, in report-
ing the affiiir to his government, used the following impressive language :
"The success, which was very necessary in our present condition, cost us
dear. The number of killed and wounded is greater than our forces can afford
to lose. We have lost some extremely good officers. The trials we have had
show the rebels are not the despicable rabble too many have supposed them to
be, and I find it owing to a military spirit encouraged among them for a few
years past, joined with uncommon zeal and enthusiasm. Thev intrench and
raise batteries ; they have engineers. They have fortified all the heights and
passes around the town, which it is not impossible for them to occupy. The
conquest of this country is not easy ; you have to cope with vast numbers. In
all their wars against the French, they never showed so nnich conduct, atten-
tion, and perseverance as they do now. I think it my duty to let you know
the situation of aflTairs."
General Washington, accompanied by his aide, Miftlin, Joseph Reed, his
96
THE REVOLUTIOS—THE WAR IS XEW EXGLAXD.
military secretary, and General Lee, arrivevi at Cambridge, Julv 2, 177.5. He
was joyfully welcomed, and he and his companions i-eiuained for a few davs the
guests of President Langdon of Harvard
College, On the oih of July, Wash-
ington's commission was i\i\d to a parr
of the army and to the provincial c^mi-
gress of Massachusetts, and he assumtrv.
command ui
1 the Contiueu-
lal forces.
A prodig-
ious task CC'U-
frouted him.
The • undisci-
plined ana
wretchedly
dad swarm
came and went
as they chose,
none having
enlisted for
more than a
brief term.
About 2,000
were sick or
J absent on fur-
lough, out of a
I total of 1(1.771
soldiers. Sev-
eral thousand
more were
needed to re-
sist the attack
that it was l>e-
lieved the ene-
my would so»">n
make. But the British had receiveil sn severe treatment that it required weeks
for them to recover, and the summer became oppressively hot. England recallerl
Giige. who sailed for home in October, and was succeeded by Howe. TTashing-
ton cK>sely besiege*! the enemy in Boston. Throwing up intreuchments, lit
^^^a*
^ "-.
.^^
ITOMINATION OF WASHIXGTOX AS GOMMAlfDEK-IX-CHI£F Oi"
THE COifTIXEKTAIj ARMV.
BRITISH EVACUATIOX OF BOSTOX.
97
steadily approached the citv, and day by day and week by week the situation
of Howe became more cxirieiil. ^\^len winter arrived, Wasliington formed the
plan of crossing Charles River on the ice, but at a council of war the majority of
officers declared the sclieme too hazardous.
Washington now decided to fonify and occupy Dorchester Heights, which
would command the dty and in a large degree the harbor. General Elnox
brought a number of cannon from Tieonderoga, that were dragged over the
Green Mountains on sleds. Their arrival did much to cheer the spirits of the
patriots, who numbej?ed about 14,C>Ch.\ The commander ealleti upon Massaehu-
SMts to furnish him with
6,000 militia, which was
partly done.
With a view of con-
cealing his real purpose.
Washington kept up a
bopjbar'ini.rnt of the British
FAAJsJOi-L HA
'•q-g CSAXIIiE OP LTBEB-i.
lines throughout the nights of March 2, 3, and 4, 1776. On the night last
named. General Thomas moved with 1,200 men from Eoxbury and took poss^-
don und^ieraed of the higher hill which commanded Nook's Hill, nearer the
citv. Gkaieral Howe was amij^ed the next morning when he saw what had been
done, for his position had become untenable. Preparations were made to em-
bark men in boats and aixack the Americans, but a violent storm prevented,
Then it was agreed that but one thing could be done, and that was to evacuate
Boston.
The evacuation toot pla.ee March 17ih. The British desiroye>i a great deal
98 THE REVOLUTION— THE M^AR IN NEW ENGLAND.
of property, but left many supplies behind which fell into the hands of the
Americans. Washington entered the city on the 19th, the main body of troojjs
following the next day. The street through which he rode still beai-s his name.
The Massachusetts Legislature voted their thanks to the great man, and Congress
ordered a commemorative medal in gold and bronze to be struck. This medal
is now in the j^ossession of the Massachusetts Historical Society.
When Howe sailed away, he took with him more tlian a thousand Tories,
who dared not remain behind and meet their indignant countrymen. Instead
of going to New York, as he originally intended, the British commander went
to Halifax, where he waited for reinforcements and gave his thoughts to forming
campaigns for the conquest of the colonies.
DISASTROUS INVASION OF CANADA.
While the siege of Boston was in progress, the Americans fixed upon a
plan foi' the invasion of Canada. The mistake, which has been rej^eated more
than once, was in believing that the Canadians, if given the ojiportunity, would
make common cause against Great Britain. General Philip Schuyler was placed
in command of the expedition, but fell ill, and Richard Montgomery, the second
in command, took charge. He was a valiant Irishman, who had done brilliant
service in the British army, and was full of ardor for the American cause.
In several unimportant skirmishes, his men were so insubordinate and
cowardly that lie was disgusted, and expressed his regret that he had ever taken
command of such a lot of troops. Nevertheless, he pressed on from Ticon-
deroga, while Schuyler at Albany used every effort to forward him supplies.
St. John was invested, and the impetuous Ethan Allen, one of his officers,
hastened to Chambly to raise a force of Canadians. He recruited nearly a
hundred, and, being joined by a few Americans, set out to capture Montreal.
The promised reinforcements did not reach him, and, being attacked by a pow-
erful force, he made the best defense he could, but was finally compelled to
surrender, with all of his men who had not escaped. Allen was sent to England,
where he was held a prisoner for a long time.
The British fort at Chambly was besieged, and surrendered October 18th.
With its capture, the Americans secured six tons of j^owder and seventeen
cannon. The fort of St. John was captured November 3d. By that time. Carle-
ton, the British commander, was so alarmed that he abandoned Montreal, which
surrendered on the 20th. Taking possession, Montgomery issued a j^i'oclama-
tion, urging the Canadians to unite with the colonies in the war for independ-
ence, and to elect representatives to the Continental Congress.
Benedict Arnold, at the head of eleven hundred men, had withdrawn from
the camp before Boston, September 13th, and was pressing forward to join Mont-
DISASTROUS INVASION OF CANADA. 99
gomery. His course was up tlie Kennebec, through the gloomy wiklerness to
the Chaudiere, down which he passed to Point Levi. Tlie journey was of the
most trying nature. Tlie weather became bitterly cold, and the stream was too
swift at times for them to make headway against it, except by wading the chilly
current and slowly dragging the boats against it. At other places, even this
v.-as imjiossible, and the heavy boats had to be laboriously carried around the
falls and rapids.
Finally the time came to leave the river and jilunge into the snowy forests,
where all would have been lost, had not a small party, sent in advance, "blazed"
the ti-ees. There was plenty of ice in the swamps, but none was strong enough
to bear their weight, and they sank through to their knees in the half-frozen
ooze. Toiling doggedly forward, a month 2")assed before they reached Duck
River, by which time they were in a starving condition. Their provisions gave
out, and they ate dogs and candles. Some, in their extremity, chewed boiled
moccasins for the infinitesimal nourishment to be extracted from them. Roots
and the bark of saplings were devoured, and the wonderful courage of Arnold
was all that jirevented the men from throwing themselves on the ground and
giving up. So many fell ill and died that Colonel Enos, in command of the
rear division, turned about with his men and returned to Cambridge.
Nothing, however, could shake the dauntless courage of Arnold. He
pushed on, and, obtaining a few cattle, was able to give his men temi^orary relief.
Winter was closing in, the weather was growing colder every day, many men
were barefoot, and without any protection against the icy rain except the branches,
of the leafless trees. The wonder is that the whole band did not perish.
Finally on the 4th of November, the famishing band caught sight of the
first house they had seen in weeks. Traveling now became better, and about a
week later they reached Point Levi, ojiposite Quebec. There they had to wait
several days to procure canoes, with which the seven hundred men, resembling
so many shivering tramps, crossed the St. Lawrence and huddled together under
the Heights of Abraham.
What earthly hope could such a body of men, without cannon, with injured
muskets and powder, and cartridges partly spoiled, have in attacking the walled
town of Quebec ? None, unless the Canadians made common cause with them.
Following the steep path up which AVolfe and his brave men had climbed seven-
teen years before, the gaunt Americans struggled after their intrepid leader.
The next act in the grim comedy was to send forward a flag of truce with
a demand for the surrender of Quebec. General Carleton must have smiled at
the grotesqueness of the proceeding, when lie .«ent back a refusal. A few shots
followed, when Arnold, finding he had not half a dozen rounds of ammunition
apiece for his men, and was in danger of being attacked himself, retreated to a
100 THE REVOLUTION— THE WAR IN NEW ENGLAND.
point twenty miles below Quebec, where Montgomery joined him on the 1st of
December and assumed command.
The Americans now numbered 3,000, and had six fieldpieces and five light
mortars. They set out for Quebec, in front of which they encamped four days
later.
Of all the series of disastrous invasions of Canada, none was more dismal
and pathetic than that of Montgomery and Arnold. The winter was unusually
severe for a region which is noted for its intensely cold weather. The ground
froze to the hardness of a rock, and, unable to make any impression in it with
shovel and pick, the besiegers threw up walls of ice, which the cannon of the
defenders sent flying into thousands of fragments. The men grew mutinous,
and, realizing the desperate situation, Montgomery ordered an assault to be
made on the last day of the year.
The plan was for the first division under Montgomery to move down the
river and attack the lower town near the citadel, while the second division under
Arnold was to pass around the city to the north, assault by way of the St.
Charles, and unite with Montgomery in his attack upon the Prescott gate. The
other two divisions were to remain in the rear of the upper town and divert the
garrison by feint attacks.
A blinding snowstorm was raging and the men could hardly distinguish
one another. Success depended upon surprise, but the defenders had learned of
the intended attack, and Montgomery had hardly started when the battery
delivered a fire which instantly killed him and both his aides. Their deaths
threw his men into a panic, and they fled in such haste that they escaped the
fate of their leaders.
Meanwhile, Arnold had moved, as agreed upon, with his division along
the St. Charles, the men bending their heads to the icy blast and protecting
their muskets under their coats. As soon as the garrison caught sight of the
dim figures they opened fire, but the Americans pressed on and carried the first
barricade. Arnold, however, received a severe wound in the leg, and, sufiering
great pain, was carried to the rear. Daniel Morgan, one of the bravest ofiicers
of the Eevolution, succeeded to the command, and, with his riflemen at his heels,
was the first to climb the ladders placed against the barricade. Two musket-
balls grazed the leader's face, whicli was scorched by the flash, and he was
knocked down ; but he instantly sprang to his feet and called upon his men to
follow him. They did so with such dash that the enemy took refuge in the
houses on both sides of the street.
But for the disaster that had overtaken Montgomery, Quebec probably
would have been captured, but Morgan's command was in darkness, the driving
snow interfered with firing, and they knew nothing of the town. Only a few
DISASTROUS INVA.SION OF CANADA.
101
of the troops found the next barricade, and, when they climbed the ladders,
were confronted by leveled nuiskets whose tire was vei'y destructive. Not only
ST. PAUL'S CHURCH, NEW YORK, WHERE MONTGOMERY WAS BURIED.
that, but the British, who had taken refuge in the houses in the streets, kept up
their firing.
The Anaericaus fought for a long time with the greatest heroism, but after
102 THE REVOLUTION— THE WAR IX XEW ENGLAND.
tlie loss of sixty, the reiiiuiuder, with the exception of" a few that had fled, were
obliged to surrender. The fragments of the helpless army fell again under the
command of the wounded Arnold, who, despite the hopelessness of the attempt,
still pressed the siege of Quebec. He had sent an urgent message to Schuyler
for reinforcements. They straggled through the wintry forests to his aid, some
3,000 arriving in the course of the winter. Carleton, who was too wise to ven-
ture out on the plain as Montcalm had done, felt secure behind the walls, and
gave little heed to the ragged swarm huddled together in front of the town.
General Wooster brought fresh troops in March and assumed command.
He lacked military skill, and two months later was succeeded by General
Thomas. The latter saw that he had no more than a thousand effective troops
under his control, and decided to withdraw the ill-starred expedition. Carle-
ton, who had received large reinforcements, attacked him on his retreat and
captured a hundred prisoners and nearly all the stores. The sufferings of the
Americans were now aggravated by smallpox, which broke out among them
and caused many deaths. General Thomas being one of the victims. General
Sullivan succeeded him in command. He lost a number of prisoners and re-
treated to Ticonderoga and Crown Point, thus bringing the disastrous expedition
to a close in the month of June, 1776.
It is proper that tribute should be given to the humanity of Carleton, the
British commander. He caused search to be made in the snow for the body of
Montgomery, and, when it was found, it was brought into the city and buried
with the honors of war. Other parties scoured the woods for the suffering
Americans, who were placed in the hospital and received tender care. Those
wlio voluntarily came in were allowed to go as soon as they were strong enough
to travel, and to the needy ones Carleton furnished money. A half-century
later the remains of Montgomery were brought to New York and deposited
beneath the monument in St. Paul's churchyard.
CHAI'TER V.
THE REVOLUTION (CONTINUEOi.— THE WAR IN
THE MIDDLE STATES AND ON THE SEA.
Declanition of Independence — The American Flag — Battle uf Long Island — Washington's Retreat Through
the Jerseys — Trenton and Princeton — In Winter Quarters — Lafayette — Brandywine and Gernuintown
— At Valley Forge — Burgoyne's Campaign — Fort Schuyler and Bennington — Bemis Heights and
Stillwater — The Conway Cabal — Aid from France — Battle of Monmouth — Molly Pitcher — Failure of
French Aid — Massacre at Wyoming — Continental Money — Stony Point — Treason of Arnold — Paul
Jones' Great Victory.
DIFFERENT THEATKES OF WAR.
The Revolution, beginning in New England, gradually moved southward.
After the first few conflicts it passed into the Mitldle States, which for nearly
three years bectune the theatre of the war. Tiien it shifted to the South, which
witnessed its triumphant close.
It lias been shown that, despite this change of scene, the colonies were
ardently united from the beginning in the struggle for independence. It should
be remembered, however, that, for a considerable time after the beginning of
actual fighting, the Americans were not struggling so much to gain their liberty
as to com2:)el England to do them justice. But for the stubboi'uness of George
III., who at times was insane, the reasonable prayers of the patriots would have
been granted, and our ancestors would have been retained as subjects of the
crown.
But the most far-seeing of Americans comprehended the inevitable end,
which must be subjection to tyranny or independence. The trend of events so
(103)
104
WAE IN THE MIDDLE STATES AND ON SEA.
clearly indicated this that steps were taken looking toward the utter and final
separation ot" the colonies from the mother country.
Congress was still in session in Philadelphia, and early in June the ques-
tion of declaring American independence was brought forward by Richard
Henry Lee, of Virginia, who
seconded by John Adams, of -
the colonies free and indepen
was of so momentous impor
long and earnestly by the
there was no doubt that definite
place, a committee was appointed
tion of Independence. The mem
ferson, John Adams, Benjamin
man, and R. R. Livingston. The
the work of Thomas Jefierson,
members being so slight that it
introduced a resolution,
Massachusetts, declaring
dent States. The matter
tance that it was debated
able members, but since
action ^\(>ulll soon take
to draw up tlie Declara-
beis -weie Tlioma'^ Jef-
Fianklin, Roger Sher-
immoital document was
the assistance of the other
is not woi th mention.
ilvDKttiNDKINiCB HALL, PHILADELPHIA.
(Wasliinglou's statue in front.)
The debate over the Declaration, after it was read to Congress, was earnest,
and considerable difierence of opinion developed, but on the 4th of July it was
adopted and signed by every member present, excepting one, while the absent
delegates afterward attached their signatures. Thornton, the member from New
THE AMERICAN FLAG.
105
Hampshire, signed it precisely four months after its adoption. John Hancock,
being President of the Congress, placed his name first in his large, bold hand,
and it appropriately stands by itself.
As soon as the Declaration was adopted, it was ordered that copies of it
should be sent to the various assemblies, conventions, and committees or councils
of safety, to the commanding officers of the Continental troops, and that it
should be proclaimed in each of the United States and at the head of the army.
It was received everywhere with delight. Bells were rung, bonfires kin-
dled, and eloquent addresses
made. The old Liberty
Bell, still carefully preserved
in Independence Hall, sent
out its note over the city and
across the Delaware. How
appropriate is the inscription
on the bell, cast many years
before anyone dreamed of
the American Revolution:
"Proclaim liberty through-
out all the land unto all the
inhabitants thereof"
THE AMERICAN FLAG.
No\v that the nation was
born, it required a flag under
which to fight for its inde-
pendence. Various patterns
had been used. The one
first raised over the Ameri-
can troops at Boston con-
tained thirteen stripes, as at
present, but, in place of
white stars in a blue field,
it displayed a union of the crosses of St. Andrew and St. George. Numerous
designs were submitted to Congress, but the first recognized Continental standard
was that raised by AVashington, January 2, 1776. By resolution of Congress,
June 14, 1777, this was replaced by the jiattern as it is to-day, excejjting in the
number of stars. The rule is that whenever a new State is admitted to the
Union its representative star shall appear in the blue field of the banner on
the 4th of July following its admission.
THE LIBERTY BELL, AS EXHIBITED AT THE NEW
OKLEANS EXPOSITION.
106 WAR IN THE .MIDDLE STATES AND ON SEA.
Despite the entliusiasin with which the Declaration of Inde2:)endence was
received everywhere, the affairs of tlie titates (as they must now be called) were
by no means encouraging. Montgomery and Arnold were engaged upon their
disastrous invasion of Canada, and the city of New York was in grave peril
from the enemy. Moreover, England was not to be frightened by the Declara-
tion of Independence. The angered king and Paidiament put forth more
strenuous efforts than before to conquer their rebellious subjects.
GENERAL LEE IX NEW YORK.
Wlien Washington entered Boston after the British evacuation, he immedi-
ately sent six of his best regiments to New York, which he was convinced would
soon be attacked. General Charles Lee had been placed in command there and
Washington intended to follow. The people in New York were alive to their
danger and Lee did his utmost to strengthen the defenses. An intrenched
camp was laid out on Columbia Heights, on the Brooklyn side, to guard the
town against an attack from the sea, and another intrenched camjj was erected
on the New York side, between Fulton and Wall Streets. This was named Fort
Stirling and was an important position, since it permitted the batteries to sweep
the channel, or, in case of the occu{)ation of the city by an enemy, they could be
bombarded. A foi't was built opjwsite Hell Gate to defend an approach by way
of the Sound, while works were placed below Canal Street to cover the river.
There were no fortifications, however, on the Jersey shore.
Lee ruled with a high hand in New York, showing no consideration to the
Tories and making himself highly popular with the revolutionary party. Hav-
ing lieen placed in command of the southern department, he left New Yoik, and
Lord Stirling (an American who inherited his title) succeeded him. He put
forth every effort to make the city impregnable, following the advice and orders
of Washington, who knew the necessity of such rigorous measures.
BRAVE DEFENSE OF CHARLESTON.
The British plan of campaign was to capture the city of New York, over-
run the State, push the war in the South, and invade the Northern States from
Canada. The South Carolinans, as soon as they heard the news of Lexington,
began fortifying the harbor of Charleston. These included the barricading of
the streets, in case of the capture of the harbor defenses. General Lee, as soon
as he arrived, inspected the defenses and gave it as his opinion that they were
not strong enough to resist the British fleet and the forts would be knocked mto
ruins.
"Then," said Colonel Moultrie, "we'll fight h(']iinfires and sentinels in plain sight. The situation of the
American army could not have been more critical. Behind it was the Delaware
filled with floating ice and in front the superior army of Cornwallis, confident
of capturing Washington and his forces on the morrow.
But when the raw wintry morning dawned, Cornwallis was astounded to
hear the booming of cannon in the direction of Princeton, ten miles behind him.
Washington had withdrawn his entire force, and, reaching the college town by
a roundabout course, was driving tiie British troops before him. The chagrined
BATTLE OF PRINCETOy.
115
and angered Cornwallis hurried tu Princeton in order to avert the threatened
disaster.
BATTLE OF PKIXCETOX.
But Washington had already won a victory, scattering the British forces
rio-ht and left. Although he lost a number of brave officers and men, he killed
||^^.^i^^^
-^^
m
\
I
VI
" -ixty of the enemy
^^^ and crl/te \klu£/
thereof Cw GoldorSilver
/o^cgivenin. exchange at
'Yvea.&Mry oiVlRGIT^IA,
Pursuant to A. C T oj
ASSEMBXiY
C>e
^^^.
'^^^
THE CONTINENTAL
OUERENCY.
One of the "sinews
of war " is money. It is
impossible for any nation
to carry on a war long
without funds. The
Americans were poor,
but they issued paper
promises to pay, which were known as Continental money. As the war pro-
gressed, and more money was needed, it was issued. In 1778, it took eight
paper dollars to equal one of gold or silver. More was necessary and more was
issued. Besides this, the paper and printing were of such poor quality that the
British in New York made a great many counterfeits that were exchanged with
the farmers in the vicinity. The value of the currency decreased until the time
came when it was absolutely worthless.
When Clinton occupied New York and Washington was encamped on the
Hudson above, there were many forays against each other. The design of the
British commander was to force his way to the Highlands, seize the passes and
gain full command of the Hudson. He had already secured Stony Point, and
Washington formed a ;^lan for retaking it, which was intrusted to the brilliant
Anthony AVayne.
In the middle of July, Wayne took command of four regiments of infantry,
T24 WAR IN THE MIDDLE STATES AND ON SEA.
whicli marched twelve miles through the insufferably hot night, when they
reached a point about a mile from the fort. Wayne went forward while his
men were resting and made a careful reconnoissance. Rejoining his troops, he
divided them into two columns, and, to prevent any mistake as to their identity,
a piece of white paper was pinned to each hat. All the superfluous clothing
was flung aside. He impressed ujwn his men that the bayonet alone was to be
used, and, to prevent the dischai-ge of a gun by some nervous soldier, he ordered
his ofiicers to cut down the first man who took his musket from his shoulder
without the order to do so.
The two divisions approaching from opposite sides were to attack the fort
at the same moment. Before it was i-eached, the pickets discovered them and
opened fire. The garrison was aroused, and, hurrj'ing to their jwsts, cried out
tauntingly :
" Come on, you rebels ! we're waiting for you ! "
" We'll be there," was the reply ; and the patriots kept their word, carrying
matters with such a rush that the flag was speedily lowered. While leading his
men, Wayne was struck in the forehead by a musket-ball and fell to the ground.
Believing himself mortally wounded, he asked to be carried forward that he
might die within the fort. While his men were assisting him, it was found that
he had only been stunned. He recovered a moment later and was among the
first to enter the defenses.
The American loss was slight, and they secured nearly six hundred prisoners,
with a lot of valuable stores. The fort was destroyed before they left, the ruins
being occupied some days later by a British force.
THE INFANT AMERICAN NAVY.
Thus far we have had nothing to tell about the infant American navy.
At the beginning of the war, in 1775, AVashington sent several privateers to
cruise along the New England coast, and Congress established a naval depart-
ment. Thirteen ships were fitted out and two battalions of seamen enlisted.
The opportunity of capturing j)rizes from the enemy was very alluring to the
skillful American seamen, and so many dashing privateers started forth in quest
of them that in the course of three years fully five hundred ships, sailing under
the English flag, were captured. Some of the daring cruisers did not hesitate
to enter British waters in search of the enemy.
GREAT NAVAL VICTORY OF PAUL JONES.
No braver man than John Paul Jones ever trod the quarter-deck. On the
first chance he displayed so much courage and skill that he was made a captain.
He was cruising off'Solway Firth near his birthplace one night, when he rowed
GREAT NAVAL VICTORY OF PAUL JONES. 125
ashore ou the coast of Cumberland, with only thirty-one volunteers, and burned
three vessels in the harbor of Whitehaven and s^^iked a number of cannon in
the guard-room of the fort. England was alarmed, declared him a pirate, and
put forth every effort to cajiture him.
In 1779, Paul Jones, as he is more generally known, put to sea in com-
mand of the Bon Homme Richard, and accompanied by two consorts, the
Alliance and the Pallas. The Richard was an old East Indiaman, given him
by the king of France and
named in compliment to
Franklin, who had published
" Poor Richard's Almanac "
for so many years that he was
often identified with the publi-
cation.
When Jones was off Bear-
borough, he sighted the Baltic
fleet of merchantmen home-
ward bound, and escorted by
the frigates Countess of Scar-
borough and the Serapis. The
latter carried fifty guns and the
former twenty-two, while Jones
had forty-four guns and three
hundred and seventy-five men,
two-thirds of whom were pris-
oners of war, since he luul
greatly weakened his crew in
order to send home the many
prizes captured.
The moment Jones iden-
tified the enemy, he signaled paul jones.
to his consorts to join him in 2">ursuit. Night had closed in and the moon was
shining, when the captain of the Serapis hailed Jones, who answered by opening
fire. The enemy was equally prompt, and thus one of the most famous fights
in naval history began. It is almost past comprehension how Jones fought so
terrifically when the disadvantages under which he labored are known. Firing
had scarcely begun when one of the guns on the lower deck exploded, killing
several men. The survivors ran above, and the piece was not used again during
the fight.
Jones tried to close with the Serapis, but, finding he could not bring his
126
'AR JN THE .MIDDLE STATES AND ON SEA.
guns to bear, he allowed hi.s 8hij) to tall off. The prisoners, who outnumbered
his crew, were kejjt busy extinguishing the fires that continually broke out, by
being told that it was the only way to save themselves from death by burning.
In the midst of the terrific fighting, when the Iiichard seemed doomed, Captain
Pearson of the ISerapis shouted :
" Have you struck ? "
"Struck ! " replied Jones; "I am just beginning to fight."
While the ships
were lurching, one
of the enemy's
anchors caught the
quarter of the Iiich-
ard antl the two
held fast, thence-
forward fighting
side by side. They
were so close indeed
that the Serajiis
could not open her
starboard ports, and
the cannon were
fired through the
port-lids, which
were blown ofl'; but
the main deck of
the Richard was so
high that the broad-
sides of the enemy
injured no one,
though they did
great damage to the
vessel. Thistremen-
FIGHT BETWEEN BON HOMME KICHAKD AND SEKAPIS. iloUS battle laStcd
for two liours, the muzzles of the guns scra]iing one another, and the cannon being
discharged as fast as they could be loaded. The Richard was soon shattered
to that extent that she began sinking. Fire broke out repeatedly on both vessels,
and finally Jones was able to work only three of his guns. At this crisis, he
found that his consort, the Alliance, Captain Landais, was firing into him as
well as the Scrapi.'<: l)ut not heeding liini, he continued his battle with the
Serapis, whose snilors fought as bravely as his own.
GREAT NAVAL VICTORY OF PAUL JONES.
127
The fearful struggle was decided by a sailor in the rigghig of the Richard,
who was engaged in throwing hand-grenades on the deck of the Serapis. One
of these dropped into the hatchway and exploded a mass of eighteen-pound
cartridges, which killed twenty and wounded twice as many more. Captain
Pearson placed himself at the head of his boarders and made a rush for the
deck of the Richard. Jones, leading his own men, drove them back. The
explosion of the
grenades silenced
the main battery
of the Serapis, and
Caj)tain Pearson
himself hauled
down his colors,
both crews in the
awful confusion
believing for some
minutes that it
was the Richard
, that had surren-
^ dered.
When day
dawned, the rid-
dled Richard was
settling fast, and
Jones had barely
time to remove his
crew to the Serapis
when his own ves-
sel went down.
Four-fifths of his
>_„ iv men had been
killed or wounded.
BRITISH CAPTAIN SUEKEWDERIKG HIS SVl^OKD TO PAUL JONES. investigation
of the conduct of
Cajitain Landais in firing into the Richard led to the conclusion that he was
insane, and he was deprived of his command. Jones did no more si)ecial service
for the Americans. For his unsurpassable achievement he received the thanks
of Congress, and the king of France presented him with a gold sword. After
the war he became a rear-admiial in the Russian navy, and died in Paris in
1792.
128 WAR IN THE MIDDLE STATES AND ON SEA.
One of the saddest and most shocking events of the Revolution was the
treason of Benedict Arnold, who had won a brilliant reputation for his bravery
and generalship. He was quick-temj^ered, treacherous, and extravagant, and dis-
liked by most of his men, despite his extraordinary daring. His first resent-
ment against Congress was the failure of that body to make him one of the first
five major-generals, in the face, too, of Washington's urgent recommendation
for such promotion, which was made after Arnold's splendid services at
Saratoga.
He was placed in command at Philadelphia, while recovering from the
wounds received at Saratoga. He married a Tory lady, and his misconduct
caused his trial by court-martial, which sentenced him to be reprimanded by the
commander-in-chief. Washington performed the unpleasant duty with delicacy,
but its memory rankled and was increased by his anger against Congress for its
refusal to allow his claims for expenses in the Canadian expedition. Influenced
also, no doubt, by the Tory 'sentiments of his wife, he determined to take the
step which has covered his name with everlasting infamy.
On the plea that his wounds were not yet healed, he induced Washington
to place him in command at West Point, the most important post in the country
and the principal dep)ot of supplies. He opened a correspondence with Sir
Henry Clinton at New York, and agreed for a stated sum of money and an
appointment in the British army to surrender the post to a force which Clinton
was to send against it. When a point in the negotiations was reached where it
was necessary to send a trusted agent to meet Arnold, Clinton dispatched Major
John Andre, who went up the Hudson in a sloop, and, September 22, 1780, met
Arnold at the foot of Long Clove Mountain. Everything being agreed upon,
Andre started to return to the sloop, but found that, owing to its having been
fired upon by a party of Americans, it had dropped down stream. Obliged to
make his way to New York by land, he assumed the dress of a civilian, and,
furnished with a pass by Arnold, he set out on horseback.
When near Tarrytown, he was stopped by three Americans, Isaac Van
Wart, John Paulding, and David Williams, who demanded his identity and
business. One of the three happened to be wearing a British coat, which he
had exchanged for one of his own while a prisoner of war, and the fact led
Andre to think they were friends. Before he discovered his mistake, he had
made known that he was a British officer, and he was ordered to dismount and
submit to a search. The fatal papers were found on him, and, seeing his busi-
ness was known, he offered everything he had, besides the promise of a large
sum of money from Sir Henry Clinton, to be allowed to go. His captors re-
fused and conducted him to North Castle, where he was given up to Lieutenant-
Colonel Jameson. That officer had the proof before him in the papers that
THE CAPTURE OF MAJOR ANDRE
Much svmpalTiy was felt in America for Andre, but the justice of his being hung as a spy was never que^.tioned. Hi:
three captors, Paulding. Van Wart and Williams, were honnred wilh medals and 5200.00 a year each for life,
and monuments were erected to their memories by our GovernmenL
THE TREASON OF BENEDICT ARNOLD.
12!)
Arnold was the unsjieakable traitor, but witli a stupidity difficult to understand,
lie sent a letter to Arnold acquainting him with the ca|)ture of Andre.
Arnold was eating breakfast
at his house near the Hudson, when
the note was brought to him by the ■:^«^|''
messenger. Knowing what it meant,
he called his wife to him, told her
of his danger,
kissed his
"if
V 1
EfaCAPF or BESjFDICT ARNOLD
sleeping bo\ in the ciadlc, i.in
out of the liou-e, mounted hi^
horse and tjallopod at headlong
speed for the river. Tliere he s|,i.ing into a boat and ord(i(d the men to low
130 WAR IN THE MIDDLE STATES AND ON SEA.
with all haste to the sloop, still at anchor a short distance down stream and
waiting for Andre. Since these men had no suspicion of the truth they obeyed
orders, and Arnold, by waving a white handkerchief over his head, prevented
the Americans on the sliore from firing at him. He reached the sloop in safety
and was carried to New York.
The fact that Andre was wearing a civilian suit at the time of his captul-e
made him a spy, according to the laws of war, and the court-martial before
which he was called sentenced him to be hanged. Clinton was greatly distressed
by the impending fate of his favorite officer and did his utmost to secure his
release by Washington. It was intimated to Clinton that Washington might be
induced to exchange Andre for Arnold, but such an act by the Britis^h com-
mander would have covered his name with infamy, and he was too honorable
even to consider it.
Andre accepted his fate bravely, only asking that he might be shot instead
of hanged, but even that boon was denied him. General Greene, who presided
at the court-martial, insisted that such leniency would have been an admission
of a doubt of the justice of his sentence. Andre was hanged October 2, 1780.
King George III. caused a mural tablet to be erected to his memory, and his re-
mains were removed to England in 1821 and placed in Westminster Abbey. A
pension was conferred upon his mother and his brother was created a baronet.
Sad as was the fate of Andre, and general as was the sympathy felt for him in
this country, there can be no question of the justice of his sentence. He was a
spy, and, had he succeeded in his mission, might have caused the failure of the
war for independence.
Arnold received more than $30,000 as a reward for his treason. He was
disliked by the British officers, and Cornwallis did not hesitate to show his con-
tempt for him. He engaged in several raids against his countrymen, but since
he always fought "with a rope around his neck," he was never trusted with any
important command.
He removed to England with his family after the war, and his sons received
commissions in the British army. It is worth noting that all did creditable ser-
vice, and their descendants became worthy members of the community, a fact
which no one can regret, since they could be held in no way responsible for the
horrifying crime of their ancestor, who, despised by all around him, died in
London in 1801.
CHAPTER VI.
THE REVOLUTION IN THE SOUTH (CONCLUDED).
Capture of Savannah — Biidsh Conquest of Georgia — Fall of Charleston — Bitter Warfare in South Caro-
lina — Battle of Camden — Of King's Mountain — Of the Cowpens — Battle of Guilford Court-House —
Movements of Cornwallis — The Final Campaign — Peace and Independence.
CONQUEST OF GEORGIA.
The wave of war continued to roll southward. The British had met with
such meagre success in the Northern and Middle States that they turned their
efforts toward the conquest of the South. In the latter part of December, 1778,
an expedition from New York compelled the small garrison at Savannah to sur-
render. British troops from Florida then reinforced the exjiedition, Augusta
and other towns were captured, and the whole State was brought under British
control. General Benjamin Lincoln, the American commander, had too few
troops to offer successful resistance, and the Tories gave much trouble.
In September, 1779, Lincoln crossed into Georgia and, with the aid of the
French fleet under D'Estaing, made an attempt to recapture Savannah. The
attack was made with the greatest bravery by the allies, but they suffered a dis-
astrous repulse, and D'Estaing again sailed for the West Indies. Georgia was
brought so completely under British control that a royal governor and officers
were installed. The Wiiigs were treated with great cruelty, and for two years
the struggle in the Carolinas assumed a ferocious character. It was civil war in
its most frightful form. Neighbor was arrayed against neighbor. Every man
was compelled to be a Whig or Tory, and when one party captured another, it
generally executed the prisoners as traitors. There were many instances in
which those of the same family fought one another with the utmost fury, and the
horrors of war were displayed in all their dreadful colors.
For a long time the British kept a strong force at Newport, but they were
withdrawn, and a strong expedition was sent South to capture Charleston.
BRITISH CAPTURE OF CHARLESTON.
General Lincoln had a garrison of 3,000, his forts, and a number of vessels,
with wliich he was confident of making a successful defense of the city. The
ships, however, were so inferior to those of the enemy that Commodore Whipple
(131)
132 THE REVOLUTION IN THE SOUTH.
sank all except one at the mouth of Cooper River to block the channel, and
added his men and guns to the defenses of Charleston.
Clinton's force was about double that of Lincoln, and he made his
approaches with care and skill. By April 10th he was within a half-mile of the
city, and, Lincoln having refused the demand for surrender, the enemy opened
fire. Lieutenant-Colonel Tarleton, the best cavalry leader the British had in the
country, scattered the patriot cavalry at the rear of the city, which was fully in-
vested. Reinforcements arrived from New York, and the siege was pushed
vigorously. The garrison made a sortie which accomplished nothing. Tarleton
continually defeated the American cavalry at the rear, many guns were dis-
mounted, food and supplies were exhausted until all hope was gone, and on the
12th of May, 1780, Lincoln surrendered his army and the city.
This was one of the severest blows of the war. Clinton secured the city
and more than 400 pieces of artillery. He treated his prisoners kindly, but lost
no time in following up his success. Tarleton destroyed the command of Col-
onel Abraham Buford, numbering 400 men, and thus effectually quenched all
organized resistance for a time in South Carolina.
Clinton would have completed the conquest of the South by advancing into
North Carolina, had he not learned that a French fleet Tas expected on the
coast. This led him to return to New York with the main army, while Corn-
wallis was left behind with 4,000 men to complete the unfinished work as best
he cotild.
Li the spring of 1780, Washington sent reinforcements to the South, with
a regiment of artillery under Baron DeKalb, a German veteran who had come
to America with Lafayette. Although one of the finest of officers, he could
scarcely speak a word of English, and General Gates, on June 13, 1780, was
ordered by Congress to assume command of the southern department. He
proved unequal to the difficult task, for not only were the troops few and miser-
ably disciplined and armed, but they were in a starving condition. The summer
was one of the hottest ever known, and, although reinforcements were expected.
Gates decided not to wait before putting his forces in motion. Reinforcements
reaching him after a time, he marched against Cornwallis, who was eager to
meet him.
AMERICAN DEFEAT AT CAMDEN.
The battle was fought at Camden, and was conducted with such skill by
Cornwallis that the raw and untried patriots were utterly routed. The centre
and left wings were swept from the field, but the right under De Kalb fought
with splendid heroism, and it required the whole army of Cornwallis to drive it
from the field. In the fight De Kalb received eleven wounds, and died the next
AN INTERESTING ANECDOTE. 133
The battle of Camden marked the complete destruction of Gates' army.
The militia scattered to their homes, convinced that it was useless to figlit longer,
while Gates with a few adherents continued his flight for nearly two hundred
miles. Two days later, Colonel Sumter with eight hundred men was attacked
on the Wateree by Tarleton, who killed half his force and recaptured his
prisoners and booty.
PATRIOT PARTISANS.
Confident that the comj^lete conquest of the South was close at hand, Corn-
wallis gave every energy to the work. This was rendered difficult by the ac-
tivity of Francis Marion, Thomas Sumter, Andrew Pickens, and other partisan
leaders, who were acquainted with every mile of the country, and on their
horses made swift marches, struck effective blows, and were off again before pur-
suit could be made. The wonderful work of Marion in this respect caused him
to be known as the " Swamp Fox of the Carolinas." Many of Tarleton's
troo23ers fell before the fire of these daring rangers, who occasionally were
strong enough to capture important posts. It is worthy of mention in this place
that to Sumter was the distinction of attaining the greatest age of any officer of
the Revolution. At his death, in 1832, he was in his ninety-ninth year.
AN INTERESTING ANECDOTE.
As illustrative of the spirit of the Southern colonists, we may be pardoned
for the digression of the following anecdote. The fighting of Marion and his
men was much like that of the wild Apaches of the southwest. When hotly
pursued by the enemy his command would break up into small parties, and these
as they were hard pressed would subdivide, until nearly every patriot was fleeing
alone. There could be no successful pursuit, therefore, since the subdivision of
the pursuing party weakened it too much.
" We will give fifty pounds to get within reach of the scamp that galloped
by here, just ahead of us," exclaimed a lieutenant of Tarleton's cavalry, as he
and three other troopers drew up before a farmer, who was hoeing in the field
by the roadside.
The farmer looked up, leaned on his hoe, took off his old hat, and, mopping
his forehead with his handkerchief, looked at the angry soldier and said :
" Fifty pounds is a big lot of money."
" So it is in these times, but we'll give it to you in gold, if you'll show us
where we can get a chance at the rebel ; did you see him ? "
" He was all alone, was he ? And he was mounted on a black horse with a
white star in his forehead, and he was going like a streak of lightning, wasn't he?"
" That's the fellow ! " exclaimed the questioners, hoping they were about to
get the knowledge they wanted.
134
THE REVOLUTION IN THE SOUTH.
" It looked to me like Jack Davis, though he went by so fast that I couldn't
get a square look at his face, but he was one of Marion's men, and if I ain't
greatly mistaken it
was Jack Davis him- - ...es
self:"
Then looking
up at the
four British
TAKLETON'S LIEUTENANT AND THE FAHMEB (JACK DAVIS).
horsemen, the farmer added, with a quizzical expression :
"I reckon that ere Jack Davis has lilt you chaps pretty hard, ain't he?"
PATRIOT VICTORY AT KING'S MOUNTAIN. 135
" Never mind about that," replied the lieutenant; " what we want to know
is where we can get a chance at him for just about five minutes."
The farmer put his cotton handkerchief into his hat, which he now slowly
replaced, and shook his head: " I don't think he's hiding round here," he said;
" when he shot by Jack was going so fast that it didn't look as if he could stop
under four or five miles. Strangers, I'd like powerful well to earn that fifty
jDOunds, but I don't think you'll get a chance to squander it on me."
After some further questioning, the lieutenant and his men wheeled their
horses and trotted back toward the main body of Tarleton's cavalry. The
farmer plied his hoe for several minutes, gradually working his way toward the
stretch of woods some fifty yards from the roadside, where he stepped in among the
trees and disappeared. You understand, of course, that the farmer that leaned
on liis hoe by the roadside and talked to Tarleton's lieutenant about Jack Davis
and his exploits was Jack Davis himself
One day a British officer visited Marion under a flag of truce. When the
business was finished Marion urged him to stay to dinner, and the officer ac-
cepted the invitation. The meal consisted of only baked sweet potatoes. Noting
the surprise of his guest, Marion explained that the fare was the regular food of
himself and soldiers, but, in honor of the guest, the allowance had been increased
that day. This anecdote, which seems to be authentic, was supplemented by
the officer's return to Charleston, where he resigned his commission, declaring
that it was useless to try to conquer such men. Marion led a spotless life, held
in higli esteem by friend and enemy, and his name will always be revered
throughout this country, especially in the South.
PATRIOT VICTORY AT KING'S 'MOUNTAIN.
The next battle took place at King's Mountain, October 8, 1780. Corn-
wallis had sent Colonel Ferguson with about 1,100 men to rouse the Tories in
North Carolina. He met with slight success, and fortified himself on King's
Mountain, between the Broad and Catawba Rivers, and on the border between
North and South Carolina. Aware of his danger, he sent messengers to Corn-
wallis urging him to forward reinforcements without delay. The Americans
captured every one of the messengers, and of course no reinforcements arrived.
The patriots consisted mainly of North Carolina and Kentucky riflemen,
numbering 1,500, all excellent marksmen. They attacked in three separate
columns, each of which was repulsed by Ferguson's men, who fought with cool-
ness and bravery. Then the Americans united and attacked again. Ferguson
was mortally wounded, and his successor was so hard pressed that he surrendered.
Four hundred of his men fled, three hundred were killed, and eight hundred
laid down their arms, while the loss of the Americans was no more than twenty.
136 THE REVOLUTION IN THE SOUTH.
King's Mountaia was a brilliant victory for the Americans and caused
Cornwallis to retreat into North Carolina. His men suffered greatly, and the
commander himself falling ill, the command was turned over to Lord Rawdon,
then a young man and famous afterward in India as the Marquis of Hastings.
GENERAL GREENE's SUCCESS IN THE SOUTH.
The failure of Gates led Congress to send the Quaker General Greene to
the South. Next to Washington, he was the most skillful leader of the Revolution,
and, despite his discouragements and difficulties, he speedily demonstrated the
wisdom of the stejs that 2:ilaced him where he was so much needed.
DEFEAT OF TARLETON.
Greene sent Daniel Morgan, the famous commander of the Virginia rifle-
men, into South Carolina with a thousand men to gather recruits. Cornwallis
dispatched Tarleton with the same number after him. The forces met at the
Cowpens, near Spartanburg, in January, 1781. This time the terrible Tarleton
found that he had met his master. Morgan utterly routed him, as was proven
by the fact that Tarleton lost a hundred men killed, besides ten commissioned
officers. A large number were wounded, and six hundred prisoners, his two
guns, his colors, eight hundred nmskets, a hundred horses, and most of his bag-
gage train were captured. Of the Americans only twelve were killed and
about fifty wounded. Tarleton himself had a narrow escape, but got away with
a handful of men.
Greene's skillful retreat.
Determined to punish the audacious Morgan, Cornwallis started after him
with his entire army. Greene and Morgan, having united, fell back, for their
troops were too few to risk a battle. Their retreat across North Carolina into
Virginia has never been surpassed in this country. Three times the British
army were at the heels of the A^nericans, who avoided them through the for-
tunate rise of the rivers, immediately after they had crossed. Cornwallis main-
tained the pursuit until the Dan was reached, when he gave up and returned to
Hillboro.
BATTLE OF GUILFORD COURT-HOUSE.
Having obtained a number of recruits, Greene turned back into North
Carolina, and the two armies encountered at Guilford Court-House (now Greens-
boro), in March, 1781. Some o the American militia gave way, but the rest
bravely held their ground, and, when compelled at last to retreat, did so in good
order. Cornwallis had been handled so roughly that he did not venture to
pursue the Americans.
Cornwallis now withdrew to WilininL:; n. while Greene moved across North
DARING DtSERTION OF JOHN CAMPE
. Ihe English ranks, for the purpose of associalini; himself with the 1,
him and jjellin;; him alive into the hands of the Americans
2WVEMEMS OF CORNWALLIS.
137
Carolina after the British forces under Lord Rawdon. Several engagements
took place, the principal one being at Hobkirk's Hill, near Camden. Greene
inflicted severe losses upon
the enemy, but was com-
I^elled to retreat, and spent
the summer among the hills
of the Santee, in the neigh-
borhood of Camden. Ad-
vancing toward the coast,
he fought the last battle in
the State, at Eutaw Sj^rings,
near Charleston, September
8, 1781. The advantage
was with the British, but
the victory was one of those
that are as disastrous as de-
feat. Their loss was so
heavy that they retreated
during the night and took
shelter in Charleston.
Greene had completed his
work with admirable effect-
iveness. Without winning
victories he luul, by his cau-
tion, skill, celerity of move-
ment, and generalship, al-
most cleared the South of
the enemy, for the only
points held by them were
Charleston and Savannah,
where they were closely
hemmed in for the rest of
the war.
MOVEMENTS OF CORNWALLIS.
Meanwhile Cornwallis
was at Wilmington, where
he learned of Greene's move-
ments too late to intercept him. He was confident, however, that Rawdon was
strong enough to overthrow Greene, and he moved northward into Virgini.^
138 THE REVOLUTION IN THE SOUTH.
to join the forces already there, and complete the conquest of the State. No seri-
ous opposition was encountered by him, and Tarleton plundered the country as
he passed through it. Entering Virginia, Coruwallis found himself opposed by
Lafayette, with 4,000 troops, which was hardly one-half the force under his own
command. Orders came from Clinton in New York for Cornwallis to seize
upon some suitable place near the coast, easily reached by the British vessels.
Cornwallis selected Yorktown, on the peninsula between the James and York
Rivers, where he fixed the headquarters of the army, and began throwing up
fortifications.
OUR FRENCH ALLIES.
The time had come when the friendship of France for America was to
accomplish something. In the summer of 1780 Rochambeau landed at Newport
with 6,000 troops, and later they were marched to Washington's camp, near
Peekskill and Morristown. Confident that he now had an army that could
achieve important results, Washington made preparations to attack Clinton in
New York. Rochambeau gave him every help, the allies working together
with the utmost cordiality and enthusiasm.
THE YORKTOWN CAMPAIGN.
Clinton was in a constant state of apprehension, for he had good cause to
fear the result of the attack that impended. Washington's plan, however, was
changed, in the summer of 1781, by the news that a French fleet and a strong force
would soon arrive in Chesapeake Bay and shut off Cornwallis from all assistance
from Clinton. Washington decided to march southward and capture Yorktown
and Cornwallis, meanwhile keeping Clinton under the belief that he meant to
attack him. So well was the secret kept that Clinton's suspicions were not
aroused until several days after the departure of the allied armies.
De Grasse, the commander of the French fleet, arrived in Chesapeake Bay
August 30th. Thus Cornwallis was blocked off" from the sea, and enough soldiers
were landed to prevent the British commander's escape by land. On the same
day Washington and Rochambeau, after making a feint toward Staten Island,
began a rapid march through New Jersey to Philadelphia, and thence to Elkton,
Maryland. Officers and men were in high spirits, for they knew they were on
the eve of great events. The citizens of Philadelphia shared the feeling, and
cheered the men as they marched through the streets. On the way southward
Washington made a hurried visit to Mount Vernon, which he had not seen
since the opening of the war.
Aware of the grave danger threatening Cornwallis, a British fleet made an
effort to relieve him, but the more powerful French fleet easily beat it off". The
fi
^
j/^.
y/.
2^
,'
A*
\ \
THE SURRENDER AT YORKTOWN
THE SURRENDER. 139
allied armies boarded the waiting ships at Elkton, and, sailing down the Chesa-
peake to James River, joined Lafayette's force in front of Yorktown.
The historical siege of Yorktown opened September 30, 1781. The French
and American armies were ranged in a half-circle in front of Yorktown. Corn-
wallis was indignant at the apparent desertion by Clinton, and wrote to him in
the middle of September : " This place is in no state of defense. If you cannot
relieve me very soon, you must expect to hear the worst." Word came from
Clinton that a fleet of twenty -three ships and more than 5,000 troops would sail
to his relief about the 5th of October.
The French soldiers in their gay uniforms and the Continentals in their
rags maintained an ardent but friendly rivalry in pressing the siege. Wash-
ington aimed and applied the match to the first gun that was fired into Yorktown.
Governor Nelson, being asked to direct the bombardment, selected the house
which he believed to be the headquarters of Cornwallis, and calmly saw it bat-
tered to ruins. It was his own home.
The condition of the defenders hourly grew worse. The lack of forage
compelled them to kill most of their horses, whose bodies drifted down the river.
As is generally the case at such times, sickness broke out among the British
troops, and 2,000 of the 7,000 were in the hospital. The allies steadily worked
their way forward by means of parallels, and finally the guns along the entire
front of Cornwallis were dismounted and his shells expended.
His situation had become so desperate that no one could have condemned
him for surrendering, but, before doing so, he resolved to make a determined
effort to extricate himself from the trap in which he was caught. His plan was
to abandon his sick, baggage, and all incumbrances, cross the river in the dark-
ness to Gloucester, attack and scatter the French force stationed there, and then
hasten northward through Pennsylvania and New Jersey to New York.
This attempt would have been made, but, after a part of the army had
crossed, a violent storm scattered the boats and compelled their return. The
result quenched the last spark of hope in the breast of Cornwallis. He opened
negotiations with Washington, and the terms of surrender were signed
October 18th.
THE SURRENDER.
At two o'clock the next afternoon, the British troops marched slowly out
of Yorktown, drums beating, muskets shouldered, and colors cased. The
American line was drawn up on the right of the road and the French on the
left, its extent being fully a mile. Washington allowed no idle spectators present,
and repressed every sign of exultation on the part of the captors.
General O'Hara, riding at the head of the troops, saluted when he came
opposite Washington, and apologized for the absence of Cornwallis, who was
140 THE REVOLl'TIOX IX TllK SOrVH.
surtering from illness. AVhen O'ilara's sword was otlored to Washington, he
replied that General Lincoln had been designated to receive it. There was
poetical justice in this, since it was Lincoln who had been obliged to surnMulor
Charleston to Clinton the previous year.
The prisouei"s numbered 7,247 English and Hessian soldiers and 840
sailors. Seventy-five brass and thirty-one iron guns were also secured, including
the accoutrements of the army. Clinton with the promised relief arrived oft" the
Chesapeake on the l24th. and learned to his consternation that every British sol-
dier in Virginia was a prisoner of war. AVith indescribable sadness he sailed
back to Xew York, feeling, as did everyone else, that English rule in America
was ended and American independence won.
"Washington dispatched a courier with the glorious news to Philadelphia.
Riding at headlong speed and changing his hoi-se frequently, he reached the
national capital on the evening of the 2od. In those days the city was provided
with watchmen, who made the tour of the streets crying the hour. That night
the cry rang out —
" PAST TWO o'clock AND COEXWAl.LIS IS TAKEN."
AVindows tlew up, lights twinkled from every house, men rushed out half-
clothed, cheering. Hinging their hats in air and embracing one another in their joy.
All the bells were set ringing, and the whole city gave itself over to rejoicing.
It was stirred to its profoundest depths by the thrilling tidings, for even the
dullest knew it meant the independence for which the patriots had struggled
throughout more than six suffering years.
Congress assembled at an early hour and marched to the Dutch Lutheran
Church, where all luiited in giving thanks to God for His great mercy and blessing.
The aged doorkeeper of Congress was so overcome with joy that he dropjied
dead. Washington directed that divine service be held at the heads of the
regiments, in gratitude for the " particular interposition of Providence in their
behalf."
Tin: NKWS IX KNIU.AND.
It would be difficult to describe the dismay caused in England when the
news crossed the ocean. Lord North strode up and down his room, flinging
his arms above his head and moaning, " My God! it is all over! " While othei-s
were equally stricken by the tidings, America had many friends in that country
who had opposed from the beginning the attempt to subjugate the colonies.
Even those who voted for the war measures were now loud in insisting that no
more blood and treasure should be wasted in continuing hostilities. They de-
manded the removal of tlie ministers who advised the contrary, and the House
of Commons declared by vote that anyone who favored the continuance of the
war was a public enemy.
TREATY OF PEACE AND ITS TERMS. 141
Wliile the surrender at Yorktown virtually ended the struggle, Washington
was too wise to disband the army. No more battles took place, but the country
remained in an unsettled condition for a long time, and the embers of" hate often
broke into flame. It is claimed that the last blood shed in the Kevolution was
that of Captain Wilmot, shot in a skirmish in September, 1782, at Stone Ferry.
TREATY OF PEACE AXD ITS TEEMS.
It had been agreed by both parties that liostilities should stop, and com-
missioners were appointed to arrange the terms of peace. The preliminary
articles were signed at Versailles, November 30, 1782, Vjut the final treaty wa.s
not executed until September 3d of the following year. On April 19, 1783,
the eighth anniversary of Lexington, Washington at the headquarters of the
army officially declared the war at an end.
By the final treaty, England acknowledged the United States to be free
and independent, with Canada as a boundary on the north, the Mississippi
River on the we.st, and Florida, extending westward to the jMississipju, on the
.south. Spain, which still owned Louisiana west of the Mississippi, now received
Florida from Great Britain.
The American army was disbanded, and officers and men went to their
homes dissatisfied because they had not been paid for years. Washington pre-
sented himself before Congress at Annapolis and resigned his commission. The
British evacuated Savannah in July, 1782, Charleston in December, and New
York City, their last post, November 25, 1783. The forts north of the Ohio,
however, were held by English garrisons for ;ibout twelve years longer.
CHAPTER VII.
ORGANIZATION OF THE UNITED STATES.
The Method of Government During the Revolution — Impending Anarchy — The State Boundaries —
State Cessions of Land — Shays' Rebellioti — .\doption of the Constitution — Its Leading Feature.s —
The Ordinance of 1787 — Formation of Parties — Election of the First President and Vice-President.
War is not only a blight to mankind,
V)nt it inflicts wounds that can never heal
and brings a train of woe and suffering
which lasts for years. The social system
is disorganized, industry checked, i'e.sources
exhausted, and a debt entailed whose
burden is felt for generations. The United
.States had won the priceless boon of in-
dependence, l)ut the States were exhausted
and in the lowest depths of poverty. They
were like those who, having lost every-
thing, are compelled to begin life anew.
WEAKNESS OF THE GOVERNMENT.
While the war was under way, the
States were held together by the one com-
mon danger, and the Continental Con-
gress managed the affairs of the Union,
l)ut the body was wnthout any authority
to govern, and whatever it did in that di-
iftction was only what the people permit-
ted. The State governments were tangible,
j for State constitutions^ had been formed
and the Legislatures received direct au-
A PLANTATION GATEWAY. i • /• i
(Entrance U, the Estate of WUliam liyrd, at Westover, Va ) thority f rOm the pCOpIe. W llCn they
chose to disobey Congress they did so,
and no ])enalty could be visited u|ion them. As the end of the war approached,
the authority of the respective States increased and that of Congress dwindled
until it was but a mere name and shadow.
'143)
144 ORGANIZATION OF THE UNITED STATES.
The Articles of Confederation were agreed upon by Congress in 1777.
They defined the respective powers of Congress and were not to go into effect
until a majority of the States should agree to them. Within the following two
years all yielded their assent except Maryland, which did so March 1, 1781.
DISPUTE OVER STATE BOUXDAEIES.
The cause of this prolonged delay was the dispute over western territory.
Few persons suspect the extent of the wrangling over the respective boundaries
of the States. When the charters were granted by England, the western bound-
aries of New Hampshire, Rhode Island, New Jersey, Pennsylvania, Delaware,
and Maryland were defined, and consequently they could not ask for an exten-
sion of them. New York insisted that she had no western boundary. The
remaining six States had their western boundaries named as the Pacific Ocean,
which was at a distance that no one dreamed of at the time. They asserted
that the transfer of Louisiana to Spain fixed the Mississippi River as the limit
in that direction.
Among these claims none was so remarkable as that of Virginia. The
most that her sister States asked was that their northern and southern bound-
aries should run parallel to the westward, but Virginia insisted that her northern
boundary extended northwest, which, if allowed, would have given her all of the
present States of Kentucky, Ohio, Indiana, Illinois, ]\Iichigan, and Wisconsin.
Her claim was crossed by those of Massachusetts and Connecticut.
The States whose western boundaries had been settled were indignant over
the injustice of the claims of the others, for, since the whole thirteen assisted in
wresting the territory from Great Britain, they asserted that all should share it.
Some of the States sold lands in the west, whose ownership was disputed by
other States, and INIaryland, as intimated, refused her assent to the Articles of
Confederation until assured that these western claims would be abandoned.
HOW THE DISPUTE WAS SETTLED.
It was evident that the only way out of the confusion was by the surrender
of these claims, and New York set the example in 1780. In response to the
earnest request of Congress, Virginia did the same in 1784, Massachusetts in
1785, Connecticut in 1786, South Carolina in 1787, North Carolina in 1790,
and Georgia in 1802. The result was that the western boundaries of the States
named were fixed as they are to-day, and the United States came into the pos-
session of a large territory. Connecticut held fast to a large strip of land in
northeastern Ohio, which is still known as the Western Reserve. The same
State, which had settled Wyoming in Pennsylvania, claimed it for a time, but
finally gave it uj).
SHAYS' INSURRECTION. 145
It took but a short time to demonstrate the utter worthlessness of the Ar-
ticles of Confederation. Congress, the central governing power, had uo author-
ity to hiy tuxes, j^unish crimes, or reguhite foreign or domestic commerce. Its
whole function was to give advice to the respective States, which, as might be
supposed, i)aid little or no heed to it. Furthermore, the stronger States made
laws inimical to the smaller ones, and Congress was powerless to remedy it.
Naturally Great Britain oppressed American commerce, and there was no way
of checking it.
The prosperity which most of the .j^eople expected to follow peace did not
appear. The Continental currency was not worth the paper it was printed on.
Even at this late day, when a man uses the ex])ression that an article is "not
worth a Continental," it is understood to mean that it has no value at all.
Washington's patriotism.
The condition of no one was more ^^itiful than that of the heroes who had
fought through the Revolution and won our independence. They went to their
poverty-smitten homes in rags. While Washington was at his headquarters at
Newburgh, in 1783, an anonymous paper was distributed among the troops
calling ujjon them to overthrow the civil governments and obtain their rights
by force. They even dared to ask Washington to become their king, but that
great man sjjurned the offer in a manner that prevented it ever being repeated.
But his sympathy was aroused, and he finally secured five years' full pay for
the officers, and thus averted the danger.
At that time the Northern and Middle States contained about a million and
a half of people and the Southern a million. Virginia had 400,000 inhaltit-
ants, and was the most populous, with Pennsylvania and Massachusetts next,
each having 350,000. The present Empire State of New York was one of the
weak States, the city containing about 14,000, Boston 20,000, and Philadelphia
40,000. It was estimated that the debt of the respective States was $20,000,000
and of the country $42,000,000.
shays' INStJRRECTION.
Rioting and disorder are always sure to follow so deplorable a condition of
afifairs. Daniel Shays, formerly a captain in the Continental army, headed a mob
of 2,000 men in Massachusetts, wdio demanded the stoppage of the collection of
taxes and the issuance of a large amount of paper money for general use. When
they had dispersed the Supreme Court, sitting at Springfield, General Lincoln
was sent with 4,000 troops to put down the rebellion. Lincoln placed the
judges in their seats, and then, when the rioters were about to attack him, he
10
1-16 ORGANIZATION OF THE UNITED STATES.
gave them a volley. The rioters scattered and the rebellion ended. Fourteen
of the ringleaders were afterward sentenced to death, but were rejsrieved and
finally pardoned.
THE MEETING AT ANNAPOLIS.
Shays' rebellion was one of the best things that could have haj^pened, for it
showed the country more clearly than before that it was on the verge of anarchy,
and that the remedy must not be delayed. Long before this, Washington com-
])rehended the serious j)eril of the country, and he was in continual consultation
with men whose worth and counsel he valued. The result was that a meeting of
commissioners from Maryland, Delaware, Pennsylvania, New Jersey, and New
York met at Annapolis in September, 1786. They held an earnest discussion,
but as only a minority of the States were represented, nothing positive could be
done, and an adjournment was liad with a recommendation that each State should
send delegates to meet in Philadelphia in May, 1787. The prestige of Wash-
ington's name gave so much weight to the recommendation that at the appointed
date all the States were represented except Rhode Island.
The wisdom of Washington was again manifest in a letter which he wrote
some mouths before tlie meeting of the Constitutional Convention, and which
contained the following:
" We have errors to correct. We have j^robably had too good an opinion
of human nature in forming our confederation. Experience has taught us that
without the intervention of a coercive power, men will not adopt and carry into
execution measures best calculated for their own good. I do not conceive we can
exist long as a nation without having lodged somewhere a jiower that will per-
vade the v/hole Union in as energetic a manner as the authority of the State
governments extend over the several States. ... I am told that even respect-
able characters speak of a monarchical form of government without horror.
From thinking proceeds speaking ; thence acting is but a single step. But how
irrevocable and tremendous ! What a triumph for our enemies to verify their
predictions ! What a triumph for the advocates of despotism to find that we
are incapable of governing ourselves, and that systems founded on the basis of
equal liberty are merely ideal and fallacious! "
When the news reached Washington of the disorders in New England, he
was greatly troubled. " What stronger evidence can be given," he asked, ' of
the want of energy in our government than these disorders'? If there is not a
power in it to check them, what security has a man for his life, liberty, or prop-
erty ? The consequences of a bad or inefficient government are too obvious to
be dwelt upon. Thirteen sovereigns j)ulling against one another, and all tugging
at the federal liead, will soon bring ruin on the whole; whereas, a liberal and
energetic constitution, well checked and well watched to prevent encroach-
THE CONSTITUTIONAL CONVENTION OF 1787
147
ments, might restore us to that degree of respectability aud consequence to which
we had the fairest prospect of attaining."
THE CONSTITUTIONAL CONVENTION OF 1787.
Washington was placed at the head of the delegation from Virginia. Al-
though he hojied that he would be permitted to spend the rest of his days in the
domestic quiet of Mount Vernon, his patriotism would not permit him to decline,
even though he saw the certainty that the action would bring him forward once
SENATE CHAMBER.
more into public affairs. Only a part of the delegates met in Philadelphia,
May 14, 1787, and an adjournment was had from day to day until the 25th,
when, a majority being present, the convention organized and unanimously chose
Washington as chairman. For four months it sat with closed doors, meeting; in
the same room in Independence Hall where the Declaration of Independence
was signed, and where the chair is still preserved in which Washington sat.
What an assemblage of great and noble men, all of wh(5se names have be-
come historical ! With the peerless Washington at the head, there were James
148 ORGANIZATION OF THE UNITED STATES.
Madison, afterward President of the United States ; Benjamin Franklin, Alex-
ander Hamilton, Benjamin West, Edmund Bandolpli, Kobert Morris, Gouv-
erneur Morris, Sherman, Clymer, Read, and Dickinson. It may well be
imagined that among those men the discussions, which were continued several
hours daily, were of the most interesting nature. Inevitably there was a diversity
of views, and the arguments at times grew warm, but with such an aggregation
of statesmanship and wisdom, the best results were certain. Steadily the
wonderful Constitution was moulded into shape, and on the 17th of September
was signed by all the delegates except Randolph and Mason, of Virginia, and
Gerry, of Massachusetts. It was then submitted to Congress, which forwarded
it to the respective States for acceptance or rejection — the assent of nine being
necessary to make it operative.
So important a document was sure to elicit earnest discussion and many able
men opposed its adoption. At that early day appeared the germs of the pres-
ent political parties. The problem was as to the right division of power between
the national or central government and the respective States. Those who
favored the widest latitude to the States were called Republicans, while their
opponents were given the name of Federalists. The views of the latter pre-
dominated in the main, though the Constitution was really a compromise
between its supporters and opponents.
The beneficent features of the instrument were so manifest that its adop-
tion soon followed. On June 21, 1788, New Hamj^shire ratified it, and,
being the ninth State, its provisions became operative throughout the Union.
North Carolina and Rhode Island did not assent, and the Constitution went
into effect without their vote. These two States had issued a good deal of paper
money, and disliked the Constitution because it forbade such action. The oppo-
sition of the other States was caused by the fear that too much power was con-
ferred upon the central government. To remove this not wholly unreasonable
objection, the first ten amendments were adopted and ratified in 1791.
FEATURES OF THE CONSTITUTION.
The Constitution supplied the great requirement without which the gov-
ernment itself would have been a nullity : the power to act supplanted the
power simply to advise. The government consists of three departments : a leg-
islative or Congress, which makes the laws ; an executive department, consisting
of the President and his officers, to execute the laws made by Congress ; and a
judiciary department (the Federal courts), which decides disputed questions
under the laws. The Constitution is our supreme law and must be obeyed by
the general government, the State governments, and the people ; if not, the gen-
eral government punishes the offender.
FEATURES OF THE CONSTITUTIOX.
149
Congress, or the legislative department, consists of two branches, the Sen-
ate and House of Rej^resentatives. Each State, no matter what its population,
is entitled to two Senators, who serve for six years and are elected by the respec-
tive State Legislatures ; the Representatives are apportioned according to the
population, are voted for directly by the people, and serve for two years. In
this admirable manner, each State is protected by its Senators against any
encroachment upon its rights, while the populous States receive the recognition
to which they are entitled through the House of Representatives.
Congress, the two branches acting together, lay taxes, borrow money, regu-
HOUSE OP EEPEESENTATIVES.
late commerce, coin money, establish postoffices, declare war, raise and support
armies and navies, and employ militia to suppress insurrections. All States are
forbidden to do any of these things, except to impose their own taxes, borrow
for themselves, and employ their own militia. A majority of each house is
enough to pass any bill, unless the President within ten days thereafter vetoes
the act (that is, objects to it), when a two-thirds vote of each brancli is necessary
to make it a law. Treaties made by the President do not go into effect until
approved by a two-thirds vote of the Senate.
The executive department is vested in the President, chosen every four
years by electors, who are voted for by the people. The President is com-
mander-in-chief of the army and navy and appoints the majority of officers, it
150 ORGANIZATION OF THE UNITED STATES.
being necessary that most of tlie appointments shall be confirmed by the Senate.
In c;ise of misconduct, the President is to be impeached (charged with miscon-
duct) by the House of Representatives and tried by the Senate. If convicted
and removed, or if he should die or resign or be unable to perform the duties
of his office, the Vice-President takes his place and becomes President. With
this exception, the Vice-President presides over the Senate, with no power to
vote except in case of a tie. No provision was made for a successor in the
event of the death of the Vice-President, but in 1886 the Presidential Succes-
sion Law was j^iassed, which provides that, in case of the death or disability of
the President and Vice-President, the order of succession shall be the secretaries
of State, of the treasury, of war, the attorney-general, the postmaster-general,
and the secretaries of the navy and of the interior.
The judiciary department, or power to decide upon the constitutionality of
laws, was given to one supreme court and such inferior courts as Congress should
establish. The judges are appointed by the President and Senate and hold
office during life or good behavior. The State courts have the power of appeal
to the supreme court of the United States, whose decision is final, the questions
being necessarily based upon offi?nses against any law of Congress, or upon the
doubtful meaning of a law, or the doubt of the constitutional power of Congress
to j3tiss a law.
At the time of the adoption of the Constitution, three-fifths of the slaves
were to be counted in calculating the population for the Representatives.
Fugitive slaves were to be arrested in the States to which they had fled. New
Territories were to be governed by Congress, which body admits the new States
as they are formed. Each State is guaranteed a republican form of government,
and the vote* of three-fourths of the States can change the Constitution through
the means of amendments. The provisions i-egarding slavery, as a matter of
course, lost their effi^ct upon the abolishment of the institution at the close of the
Civil War.
THE ORDINANCE OF 1787.
Congress remained in session in New York, while the Philadelphia conven-
tion was at work upon the Constitution, and during that period organized a ter-
ritorial government for the immense region northwest of the Ohio, which belonged
to tlie United States. The enterprising nature of the American people asserted
itself, and hundreds of emigrants began making their way into that fertile sec-
tion, where the best of land could be had for the asking. But the Indians were
fierce and warred continually against the settlers. Most of these had been
soldiers in the Revolution, niid they generally united for mutual protection.
The Ohio Company was formed in 1787, aiul, in order to assist it, Congress
passed the Ordinance of 1787, of which mention has been made.
THE FIRST PRESIDENTIAL ELECTION. 151
iSlavery was forever t'orbiddeu iu the Territory northwest of the Ohio, and
the iuliabitants were guaranteed full religious freedom, trial by jury, and et^ual
political and civil privileges. Tlie governors of the Territory were to be
appointed by Congress until the population was sufficient to j^ermit the organi-
zation of five separate States, which States should be the equal in every respect
of the original thirteen. From the Territory named the powerful and prosper-
ous States of Ohio, Indiana, Michigan, Illinois, and Wisconsin were afterward
formed.
SETTLEMEXT OF THE WEST.
The Indian titles to 17,000,000 acres of land in the Territory had been ex-
tinguished by treaties with the leading tribes, despite which the red men con-
tested the advancing settlers with untiring ferocity. Flatboats were attacked on
their way down the Ohio, and the families massacred ; block-honses were
assailed, and the smoke of the settlers' burning cabins lit the skies at night. The
pioneer path to the fertile region was crimsoned by the blood of those who hewed
their way through the western wilderness.
Until formed into States, the region was known as The Northwestern Ter-
ritory. In 17H8, Rufus Putnam, of Massachusetts, at the head of forty pioneers,
founded the settlement of Marietta, and within the same year 20,000 people
erected their homes in the region that had been visited by Daniel Boone and
others nearly twenty years before.
No sooner liad the ninth State ratified the Constitution than the Congress of
the Confederation named March 4, 1789, as the day on which, in the city of
New York, the new government should go into effect.
The time had come for the selection of the first President of the United
States, and it need not be said that the name of only one man — Washington —
was in people's thoughts. So overmastering was the personality of that great
man that he was the only one mentioned, and what is most significant of all, not
a politician or leader in the country had the effrontery to hint that he had
placed himself "in the hands of his friends" in the race for the presidency.
Had he done so, he would have been buffeted into eternal obscurity.
Whatever may be said of the ingratitude of republics, it can never be
charged that the United States was ungrateful to Washington. The people ap-
I)re(:iated his worth from the first, and there was no honoi' they would not have
gladly paid him.
THE FIRST PRESIDENTIAL ELECTION.
The date of the 4th of March was fixed without special reason for launcliing
the new government, and it has been the rule ever since, though it often falls
upon tlie most stormy and unpleas;int day of the whole yenr. Some of the
States were so slow in sending their representatives to New York, that more than
152
ORGANIZATION OF THE UNITED STATES.
a month passed before a quorum of both houses appeared. When the electoral
vote for the President was counted, it was found that every one of the sixty -nine
had been cast for Washington. The law was that the person receiving the next
highest number became Vice-President. This vote was: John Adams, of Mas-
sacliusetts, o4; John Jay, of New York, 9; R. H. Harrison, of Maryland, 6;
John Rutledge, of South Carolina, 6; John Hancock, of Massachusetts, 4;
George Clinton, of New York, 3 ; Samuel Huntington, of Connecticut, 2 ; John
Milton, of Georgia, 2; James Armstrong, of Georgia, Benjamin Lincoln, of
Massachusetts, and Edward Telfair, of Georgia, 1 vote each. Vacancies (votes
not cast).
John Adams, of Massachusetts, therefore, became the first Vice-President.
b^
AN OLD INDIAN FAHM-HOUSE,
CHAPTER VIII.
ADIVIINISTRATIONS OK W ASHINOTOiSr, JOHN
ADAMS, AND JEKKERSOX— 1789-1809.
Washington — His Inauguration as First President of the United States — Alexander Hamilton — His Suc-
cess at the Head of the Treasury Department — The Obduracy of Khode Island — Establishment
of the United States Bank — Passage of a Tariff Bill — E^itablishment of a Mint — The Plan of a
Federal Judiciar}- — Admission of Vermont, Kentucky, and Tennessee — Benjamin Franklin — Troubles
with the Western Indians — Their Defeat by General Wayne — Removal of the National Capital Pro-
vided for — The Whiskey Insurrection — The Course of "Citizen Genet" — Jays Treaty — Ke-election
of Washington — Resignation of Jefferson and Hamilton — Washington's Farewell Address — Estab-
lishment of the United States Military Academy at West Point — The Presidential Election of 1796 —
John Adams — Prosperity of the Country — Population of the Country in 1790 — Invention of the
Cotton Gin — Troubles with France — War on the Ocean — Washington Appointed Commander-in-
Chief — Peace Secured — The Alien and Sedition Laws — The Census of ISOO — The Presidential Elec-
tion of 18U0 — The Twelfth Amendment to the Constitution — Tliomas Jefferson — Admission of Ohio
— The Indiana Territory — The Purchase of Louisiana — Its Immense Area — Abolishment of the
Slave Trade — War with Tripoli — The Lewis and Clark Expedition — Alexander Hamilton Killed in a
Duel by Aaron Burr — The First Steamboat on the Hudson — The First Steamer to Cross the Atlantic
— England's Oppressive Course Toward the United States — Outrage by the British Ship Lennder —
The Affair of the Leopard and CAftsapeate— Passage of the Embargo Act — The Presidential Elec-
tion of 1 808.
WASHINGTON.
The name of Washington will always
stand peerless and unapproachable on the
pages of human history. In great crises,
Heaven raises up men for its appointed
work. As soldier, statesman, -and patriot,
he combined in his own personnlity the full
requirements of the prodigious task than
which no greater was ever laid upon the
shoulders of man. Through trials, suifer-
intjs, discouragements, disappointments,
MARY BALL, AFTERWARD THE ,' . , '^ . . ^ , .
MOTHER OF GEORGE WASHINGTON, abu.se, ill treatment, opposition, and misun-
(153)
154
WASHINGTON, ADAMS, AND JEFFERSON.
derstandings, he never lost heart ; his lofty patriotism wiis never quenched ; his
sublime faith in God and the destiny of his country never wavered, and, seeing
with the eye of uudimmed faith the end from the beginning, he advanced with
serene majesty and unconquerable resolve to the conclusion and perfection of his
mighty work.
It has been said of Washington that he embodied within himself the genius
of sanity and the sanity of genius. We can conceive of Lincoln, Grant, or any
other great man losing his mind, but like the snowy crest of a mountain, rising
far above the plain, he stood by himself, and it is impossible to think of him as
losing even in the slightest degree
the magnificent attributes of his
personality. As has been stated, his
was the single example in our his-
tory in which the fate of our coun-
try rested with one man. Had he
fallen in battle at any time between
Lexington and Yorktown, the Revo-
lution would have stopped and inde-
]tendence been postponed indefinite-
ly. But when Heaven selects its
tigent, it shields him in impenetrable
armor, and, though Washington was
exposed to innumerable personal
perils in the wilderness and in battle,
wlien his comrades were smitten with
death around him, he never received
tlu' slightest wound, and lived to see
his work finished, when, in the quiet
of his own home at Mount Vernon,
he lay down, folded his arms, and
passed to his reward.
George Washington was born in Westmorelanil County, Yiiginia, Febru-
ary 22, 1732. There is a general misunderstanding as to his family. He had
three half-brothers, one half-sister, and three brothers and two sisters. His half-
brothers and sister, children of Augustine AVashington and Jane Butler, were :
Butler (died in infancy), Lawrence, Augustine, and Jane. His brothers and
sisters, children of Augustine Washington and Mary Ball, were : Betty,
Samuel, John Augustine, Charles, and Mildred (died in infancy).
Washington's father died when the son was eleven years old, and his train-
ing devolved upon his mother, a woman of rare force of character. He re-
GEORGE WASHINGTON.
(173'J-17il9.) Two terms, 17NI-1797.
WASHINGTON.
155
ceived a common, school education, but never became learned in books. He
early showed a liking lor military matters, was fond of the sport-s of boyhood,
and was manly, truthful, and so eminently fair in everything, that his playmates
generally selected him as umpire and cheerfully accepted his decisions. He
became an expert surveyor, and, at the age of sixteen, was employed by Lord
Fairfax to survey his immense estate. The work, which continued for three
years and was of the most difficult nature, attended by much hardship and
dwllLli"' "■'- ]".-r,,rni,.,l t,, til,, t'lill satisfllCtidll llf his fUlpluycl-.
INAUGUHATION OF VFABHINGTON.
Washington grew to be a magnificent specimen of physicnl manhood. He
was six feet two inches tall, witli a large frame and a strength surpassing tliatof
two ordinary men. No one in tlie neighborhood was his equal in horseman-
ship, running, ]oa])ing, throwing, swimming, and all manner of athletic sports.
He was of the highest social rank, wealthy, and a vestryman and member of
tlie Episcopal Church. He was rather fond of [lomp and ceremony, somewhat
reserved in manner, and ai times seemed cold and distant, but with a character
that was without flaw or stain. It has already been said that he served through-
156 WASHINGTON, ADA3IS, AND JEFFERSON.
out the Kevolution without accepting a penny for his services. He kept an
account of all he received from the government, but sometimes forgot to note
what he paid out. In such cases he balanced his books by paying the deficit
from his own pocket, so that it may be truthfully said he not only won inde-
pendence for his country, but paid for the 2)rivilege of doing so.
Washington from his first services in the French and Indian War was
so identified with the history of his country that the account of one includes
that of the other. Having told of his election to the presidency, it, therefore,
remains to give the principal incidents of his administration.
Washington's inaugukation.
A special messenger reached Mount Vernon with news of Washington's
election on the 14th of April, and two days later he set out for New York.
The journey was one continual ovation, sj^ecial honors being shown him at Bal-
timore, Philadelphia, Trenton, and New York, where they attained their cul-
mination. He arrived on the 23d of Api-il, and the inauguration took place a
week later. Amid impressive ceremonies, the oath was administered by Robert
R. Livingston, the chancellor of the State of New York, in Federal Hall, on
the present site of the suh-treasury building. Washington stood in a balcony
of the senate chamber, in full view of the gi-eat multitude on the outside. He
showed considerable embarrassment, but was cheered to the echo and was greatly
touched by the manifestations of the love of his fellow-countrymen.
At the opening of his administration, Washington became ill and no im-
portant business was done until September. On the 10th of that month, Con-
gress created a department of foreign affairs, a treasury department, and a
department of war. Thomas Jefferson was nominated to the first, Alexander
Hamilton to the second, and General Henry Knox to the third. All were admi-
rable appointments.
ALEXANDER HAMILTON.
Hamilton, the secretary of the treasury, was one of the most remai-kable
men identified with the history of our country. He was born in the West
Indies in 1757, and, while a child, displayed extraordinary ability. When
fifteen years old, he was sent to New York City and entered King's (now Colum-
bia) College. A patriotic speech made when he was only seventeen years old
held his hearers spellbound by its eloquence. At twenty, he organized a com-
pany of cavalry and performed excellent service on Long Island and at White
Plains. Washington was so impressed by his brilliancy that he placed him on
his staff and made him his military secretary. Many of the best papers of the
commander-in-chief received their finishing touches from the master hand of
Hamilton. He was in Congress in 1782-1783, and helped to frame the Consti-
HAMILTON'S WISE MANAGEMENT OF THE FINANCES.
157
tution. Wlien the New York Conveiitioii assembled to ratify the new Consti-
tution, three-foui-ths of its members were strongly opposed to it, but Hamilton
by the sheer force of his eloquent logic won them over and secured the assent
of the State to the adoption of the Constitution. He was one of our most
brilliant statesmen and the foremost Federalist of his time.
HAMILTON S WISE MANAGEMENT OF THE FINANCES.
The greatest problem which confronted the country was that of finance,
and Hamilton grasped it with the skill of a master. Hardly had he received
his commission, when Congress called
upon him for a plan to provide for
the public debt and to revive the
dead« national credit. Hamilton's
tirst answer was that the country
would begin by being honest, and
that every dollar of the confedera-
tion, then amounting almost to $80,-
000,000, should be paid, the United
States assuming all debts due to
American citizens, as well as the '
war debt of each State. This bold
and creditable ground greatly im-
proved public credit, before any pro-
vision was made for the payment of
the vast debt.
Hamilton's plan was to fund
the entire debt and issue new certiti-
cates. It was vehemently opposed,
especially the ])rovision that the
State debts should be assumed by the ' '
1 ^1x111 ALBXANDEH HAMILTON.
general goverinneat; but solely by (hst-isw).
his wonderful ability he carried the measure through Congress. The debate
sharpened the lines between the Federalists and Anti-Federalists or Republi-
cans.
It will be remembered that at that time neither North Carolina nor Ehode
Island had adopted the Constitution. The former called a convention, ami, on
the 13th of November, 1789, ratified it, but Rhode Island continued to sulk until
Providence and Newport withdrew from the State, and Massachu.setts and Con-
necticut made ready to parcel the State between them. This frightened her,
and, on May 29, 1790, she joined her sisters.
158 WASHINGTON, ADAMS, AND JEFFERSON.
The following year Hamilton gave another proof of his power by carrying
through Congress, in the face of the strongest 0])position, a measure for the
relief of the financial straits of the government. The only banks in the
country were one each in Philadelphia, New York, and Boston, all of which
were State institutions. He advocated the establishment of a bank in which the
government should be one-fifth owner of the caj)ital stock of $10,000,000 and a
preferred borrower to the same amount. It was to be under private manage-
ment. In the face of the strong o])position, the act creating it was j)assed, and
it was chartered for twenty years. The subscriptions required that one-fourth
should be paid in specie and the rest in six per cent, certificates of the bank.
Within two hours after the subscription books were opened the entire amount of
stock was subscribed. The United States Bank was destined to play an im-
portant part in national afli'airs in after years. .
PASSAGE OF A TARIFF BILL.
Having provided the means for funding the debt and for borrowing money,
it yet remained to find some way of earning the money. The method was so
apparent that Congress lost no time in passing u tariff' bill. A law placed a duty
on imported and domestic sjiirits, and, in Februai-y, 1792, a protective tariff' bill
was enacted. This provided that the materi;ds from which goods are manufac-
tured should not be taxed, while articles competing witli those made in this
country were prohibited. A mint was also established in Philadelphia for coin-
ing money.
THE FEDERAL JUDICIARY ORGANIZED.
The plan for the Federal judiciary was perfected on the lines jiroposed by
Ellsworth, of Connecticut. The national judiciary consisted of a suj)renie court,
having a chief justice and five associate justices, who were to hold two sessions
annually at the seat of the Federal government. Specified jurisdiction was given
to the circuit and district courts, and each State was made a district ; the Terri-
tories of Maine and Kentucky were jirovided for in the same manner, and the
remaining Territories were groujied into three circuits. When the matter in dis-
pute amounted to $2,000, an appeal could be taken from the lower courts to the
supreme court. The President was to appoint a marshal in each district,
possessing the general powers of a sheriff", and the interests of the government
were placed in the hands of a district attorney.
The first cliief justice of the United States was John Jay, of New York,
while Edmund Randolph, of Virginia, was made attorney-general. The asso-
ciate judges w(n-e John Rutledge, of South Carolina; James Wilson, of Penn-
sylvania; William Cushing, of Massachusetts; Robert H. Harrison, of Mary-
land; and John Blair, of Virginia.
BENJAMIN FRANKLIN.
lo9
Vermont was admitted to tlie Union on March 4, 1791 ; Kentucls
that they gave no moi-e trouble for a long time. A year later, 1,100 chiefs ajid
warriors met the United States commissioners at Fort Greenville and signed a
treaty of peace, by which they ceded to the government an immense tract of
162 WASHiyOTON, ADAMS, AND JEFFERSON.
land lying in the present States of Michigan and Indiana. An impetus was
given to western emigration, which suflered no interruption lur nuiny years.
THE WHISKEY INSUURECTION IX PENNSYLVANIA.
One of the acts of Congress was to declare that Philadelphia was to be the
national capital for ten years, from 1790, when it was to be removed to a point
on the Potomac River, where the city of Washington now stands. One meas-
ure which Hamilton induced Congress to pass caused trouble. It doubled the
duty on imj^orted spirits and taxed those distilled in this country. So much
dissatisfaction appeared in North Carolina and Pennsylvania that the law was
modified, but it did not end the discontent. The officers sent to Pennsylvania
to collect the taxes were resisted and the militia sympathized with the rioters,,
whose numbers swelled to 7,000 under arms. When they began to talk of ap-
pealing to England, Washington lost patience and sent a large body of Virginia,
Maryland, Pennsylvania, and New Jersey militia to the section. They were
under the command of General Henry Lee, governor of Virginia, and arrived
on the scene in October, 1794. Order was soon restored, and the ringleaders,
expressing sorrow for their acts, were not punished. This seems to be the rule
in our country, except that repentance on the part of criminals is not required.
"citizen genet."
The action of "Citizen Genet" caused a flurry during Washington's presi-
dency. The "Reign of Terror" had begun in France, where the most apjialling
revolution in history had taken place. The tyranny of the rulers had driven
the people to frenzied desperation, and, overthrowing the government, their
massacres were not checked until literally hundreds of thousands of people were
killed. Since their rebellion was begun against tyranny, and France had
helped us in our war for independence, thei'c w^as general sympathy for the
people in our own country, though everyone was shocked by the deeds that
soon horrified the civilized world.
Having established a government, the revolutionists sent Edward Charles
Genet to this country as its representative. He was warmly welcomed at Charles-
ton, where he landed in April, 1793. He was too discourteous to go to Phila-
delphia to jiresent his credentials, and began enlisting recruits for France and
intriguing for an alliance with us. Since France was fighting England, Aus-
tria, Prussia, Sardinia, and Holland, it can be understood how desirable such an
alliance would have been to her.
Washington was too wise to be misled, and he issued a proclamation of
neutrality, forbidding citizens of the United States to equip vessels to carry on
hostilities against the belligerent powers. Genet paid no attention to this, but
JAY'S TREATY.
16.3
kept on enlisting men and fitting out cruisers in American waters. His course
became so intolerable that Washington tlemandeil his recall. This demand was
comjjlied with, and he was ordered to return home. No one know better than
he that if he showed himself in France he would lose his head. ;So he stayed
in this country until his death in 1834.
JAY S TRKATY.
The course of England became so unjust toward the commerce, because of
her war with France, that Chief Justice John Jay, in May, 1794, was sent as
envoy extraordinary to that country
to demand redress. A treaty was
agreed upon and ratified by the Sen-
ate in June, 1795, which provided
that the British garrisons should be
withdrawn from the western jjosts
by June 1, 179G; free inland navi-
gation upon lakes and rivers was
guaranteed to both nations, except
that the United States was excluded
from the territory of the Hudson
Bay Company ; British vessels were
admitted to the rivers and harbors
on our sea-coast, but our shipping
was shut out from the rivers and
harbors of the British provinces, with
the exception of small vessels trading
between Montreal and Quebec; our
northeastern boundary Avas to be
fixed by a commission ; the payments
of debts incurred before the war were
guaranteed to British creditors, if such
debts were collectible by an American creditor ; Great Britain was to jiay for losses
resulting from irregular captures by her cruisers; citizens of either country were
allowed to hold landed possessions in the territory of the other; private property
was not to be confiscated in time of war; trade between the United States and
the West Indies was free to the vessels of both nations, but American vessels
were forbidden to carry West Indian products from the islands or from the
States to any other part of the world. The last clause was to be in force only
two years, when further negotiation was to take place. In addition, the two
years' limit was applicable to the right of American vessels to trade between the
CHIEF JUSTICE JOHN JAY,
164 WASHINGTON, ADA3IS, AND JEFFERSON.
East Indies and the United States, but in time of war tliej were not to take
tliither any rice or military stores ; tree commerce was established between the
Britisli dominions in Europe and the United States; tlie regulation of duties was
provided for, as well as the appointment of consuls and the rules of blockade ;
privateering was regulated; what was contraband of war was defined, and it was
agreed that piracy should be punished ; ships of war could enter the ports of
either counti-y ; criminals escaping from one country to the other were to be sur-
rendered ; and, in the event of war between the two countries, citizens in
hostile territory were not to be molested.
Although this treaty jjossessed many good points, and was the best obtain-
able by our envoy, it gave so many advantages to Great Britain that it roused
bitter enmity in this country. Public meetings were held in the leading cities,
where it was denounced as cowardly and made for the express purpose of avoid-
ing a war with England. The feeling rose so high that Jay was burned in
effigy, Hamilton was assaulted at a public meeting, the British minister in-
sulted, and even Washington himself treated with disrespect. Better judgment
prevailed, when the passions cooled, and it is now admitted that Jay's treaty,
when all the circumstances are considered, was a commendable one.
SECOND ELECTION OV WASHINGTON.
It w^as Washington's wish to retire to private life on conclusion of his first
term, but he could not disregard the demand from all quarters. No competitor
appeared in the field against him, and for a second time he was unanimously
elected. His vote was 132; that cast for the candidates for the minor office
being, John Adams, Federalist, 77; George Clinton, of New York, Eepublican,
50; Thomas Jefferson, of Virginia, Republican, 4; Aaron Burr, of New York,
Republican, 1 ; vacancies, 3. This vote made John Adams again Vice-Presi-
dent.
Since Jefferson was the leader of the Republicans (or as now called the
Democrats), and Hamilton of the Federalists (afterward the Wliigs), and the
two, as members of Washington's cabinet, were able and aggressive, they were
continually disputing. Sometimes they sorely tried Washington's patience, who,
appreciating the ability of both, often had liard work to prevent an open rup-
ture. On the last day in 1793, Jefferson resigned his office as secretary of
foreign affairs and retired to private life at Monticello, Virginia. A year later
Hamilton resigned as minister of finance. Through his efforts public credit had
been restored, and industry and trade had revived. He well deserved the
eloquent tribute of Daniel Webster : " He smote the rock of the national
resources, and abundant streams of revenues burst forth. He touched the dead
cori3se of public credit, and it sprung upon its feet."
RETIREMENT OF WASHINGTON.
165
.--7J*f
As WcVsliiugton's secund term thew to a close, u universal deiuaiid was
made that lie should serve again. l)es})ite tiie I'act that the two great political
j)arties were fairly organized, anil each contained many able men, uo one would have
had the temerity to ofi'er himself as a competitor ; but he was growing old, his
strength had been worn out in the service of his country, and the rest he
yearned for could no longer be denied him. He, therefore, issued his immortal
Farewell Address to his countrymen and withdi-ew to Mount Vernon, where he
23eacefully passed away December 14, IT'J'J, mourned by the whole country and
revered by the civilized woi'ld.
The Farewell Address contains counsel that can never lose its value to
America. After thanking his fellow-countrymen for the conildence they had
always shown in
him, and the sup-
port he had re-
ceived from them,
he said that the
love of liberty was
so interwoven with
every ligament of
their hearts that
no recommendation
of his was necessary
to fortify that at-
tachment. The
unity of govern-
ment, by which
they were made one
peojile, had also become very dear to them.
"It is justly so," he said, "for it is a main pillar in the edifice of your real
independence — the support of your tranquillity at home, your peace abroad ; of
your safety, of your prosperity ; of that very liberty which you so highly prize.
But, as it is easy to foresee that, from different causes and from different quar-
ters, much pains will be taken, many artifices be employed to weaken in your
minds the conviction of this truth — as this is the point in your political fortress
against which the batteries of internal and external enemies will be most con-
stantly and actively (though often covertly and insidiously) directed — it is of
infinite moment that you should jn-operly estimate the immense value of your
national union to your collective and individual happiness; that you should
cherish a cordial, habitual, and immovable attachment to it; accustoming your-
selves to think and speak of it as the palladium of your jDolitical safety and
AVASHINGTON'S BEDROOM, MT. VERNON, IN WHICH HE DIED.
166
WASHINGTON, ADA3IS, AND JEFFERSON.
prosperity; watching for its i)reservatioii with jealous anxiety; discountenancing
whatever may suggest even u suspicion that it can in any event be abandoned,
and indignantly frowning upon the first dawning of every attempt to alienate
any portion of our countiy from the rest, or to enfeeble the sacred ties which
now link together the various parts. For this you have every inducement of
sy m pa thy
and mteiest
Citizen^, by
birth 1
choice, of
a common
counti},thS07 he was tried at
Richmond, Viri;inia, on the charge of
treason, but acijuitted. He spent some
vcars in wandering over Euro[)e, and then
returned to resume the practice of hiw in
New Yorlv. He died in obscurity and {lov-
erty on Staten Island in 1836.
A notable event of Jefferson's ad-
ministrations was the first voyage of a
sloamboat up the Hudson. This was the Cler-
iitont, tlie invention of Robert Fidton, who
was born in Lancaster County, Pennsylvania,
in 1765. This boat was slightly oyer one hun-
dred feet in length and about twenty feet
broad, with side paddle-wheels and a sheet-iron
boiler brouglit from England. There was general
ridicule of the idea of moving boats by steam against
. -^ a current, and the craft was called "Fulton's Folly."
The crowd which gatliered on the wharf in New York,
August 1, 1807, indulged in jests wdnch were not
DEVELOPMENT OP STEAM liuslied uutil tlio Craft movcd slowlv but smoothly up
NAVIGATION FOLLOWING ^ TI T ■ ^ tl i 1 1 " il ^
FULTONs DISCOVERY. Stream. Headnig against tlie current, slie made the
12
fultoN the
178
WASHINGTON, ADAMS, AND JEFFERSON.
voyage to Albany in thirty-two hours. She met with some mishaps, but
after a time made regular trijas between that city and New York, at the rate of
five mik'.s an huur.
OCEAN STEAMERS.
This incident marked an ejjoch in the history of the West, where the first
steamboat was built in 1811. Within a few years, they were plying on all the
important rivers, greatly assisting emigration and the development of the
country. The first steamer to cross the Atlantic was the Savannali in 1819.
The screw projaeller was introduced by the great Swedish inventor, John Erics-
sun, in 183G. Really successful ocean navigation began in 1838, when the
Sirius and Oreat Western made the
voyage from England to the United
States.
OPPRESSIVE COURSE OF ENGLAND.
The devastating war raging be-
tween England and France was de-
structive to American commerce and
interests. The star of the wonder-
Cul Napoleon Bonaparte was rapidly
ill the ascendant, and his marvelous
military genius seemed to threaten the
" equilibrium of the world." England
had no love for the United States and
played havoc with our shipping.
Her privateers infested our coasts, like
swarms of locusts. Because of her
immense naval superiority, she pes-
tered us almost beyond bearing. She
stopped our vessels oif-shore, followed
them into rivers and harbors, overhauled the crews, and in many cases took
sailors away under the plea that they were English deserters. Her claim Avas
that "once a British subject, always a British subject;" no sworn allegiance
to any other government could release the claim of England upon him.
bur vessels were prohibited from carrying imports from the West Indies
to France, but evaded the law by bringing imports to this country and then
reshipping them to France. England jieremptorily ordered the practice to stop
and declared that all vessels thus engaged should be lawful prizes to her ships.
This action caused general indignation in this country and thousands of citizens
clamored for war.
ROBERT I'UIjTON.
THE AFFAIR OF THE LEOPARD AXD OHE>*glaxd's overwhelming naval strength.
England had been fighting so continuously with her neighbors that her
strength on the ocean was overwhelming when compared with ouis. She had
1,036 vessels, of which 254 were ships-of-the-line, not one of which carried less
than seventy-four guns. This immense navy was manned by 144,000 men.
The American navy numbered 12 vessels, besides a few gunboats of little value.
Indeed, the relative strength of the warring nations was so disproportionate
that the intention of the United States at first was not to attemjit a conflict on
the ocean. Captains Bainbridge and Stewart, however, persuaded the govern-
ment to allow our little navy to try its hand.
Despite the seeming hopelessness of such a struggle, it had some advantages
for the Americans. In the first place, it was easier for them to find the enemy
than for the latter to find them, because of the disproportion between the num-
ber of their vessels. More important, however, than all was the fact that our
navy contained no politicians. The men were brave sailors, and marvelously
skillful in handling guns. With these conditions they were sure to win glory
on the ocean.
Still another fiict must be mentionetl, for it will explain niiiiiy of the inci-
dents recorded in the following pages. England had been triumphant so long
on the ocean that she had become unduly confident and careless. She held the
surrounding nations in light esteem, and had good warrant for doing so.
Naturally this led her greatly to underestimate the insignificant American navy.
When such a mistake is made the consequences are sure to be disastrous to the
one committing the blunder.
Truth compels the statement that in every war in which our country has
been engaged since the Revolution, the disasters have been niainlv dn:> to the
politicians. They have the "pull," as it is called, with the government, and
J 84 ADMIXISTRATIOXS OF MADISON.
secure the appointment of men as leaders who are totally laekiiii;- in military skill.
When defeat has followed defeat, with exasperating regularity, tho government
gradually awakes to the fact that the most criminal thing it can do is to place a
jwlitician in charge of a body of brave men, or to aj)poiiit a callow youth to the
same position, merely because his father was a good .soldier and has become a
politician.
THE WAR UM'Ol'ULAR IN SOMK SKCTIOXS.
Moreover, it must be remembered that our country was by no means a unit
in favoring the second war with England. It was pojailar in most of the Middle
States and the South, but bitterly opposed in New England. AVhcn the news
reached Boston of the declaration of war, the shipping hung their flags at half-
mast. Massachusetts, Connecticut, and New Jersey, through their Legislatures,
protested against it, but, as in the Revoluiion, the genciai ciiiluisiasm swept
away all opposition.
An increase of the regular army was ordered to 25,000 men, in addition to
the call for 50,000 volunteers, while the States were asked to summon 100,000
militia, to be used in defense of the coast and harbors. The government
authorized a loan of $11,000,000, and Henry Dearborn, of Massachusetts, was
made the first major-general and connnander-in-chief of the army, while the
principal brigadiers were James Wilkinson, William Hull, Joseph Bloomfield^
and Wade Hampton, the last being father of the general of the same name
who became famous as a Confederate leader in the AVar for the Union.
A SIlAMf.FUL SURRENDER.
The opening battle of the war Avas one of the most sliamefid affairs that
ever befell the American arms. General William Hull, who had made a
creditable record in the Revolution, was governor of Michigan Territory. He
was ordered to cross the river from Detroit, which was his home, and invade
Canada. He showed great timidity, and learning that a British force, under
General Brock, was advancing against him, he recrossed the river and returned
to Detroit, before which General Brock ajipeared, on the 12th of August, at the
head of 700 British soldiers and 600 Indians. In demanding the surrender of
the post, he frightened Hull, whose daughter and her children were with him,
by telling him he would be unaV..3 to restrain the ferocity of his Indians, if the
Americans made a defense.
The soldiers were brave and eager to fight, but, to their inexpressible dis-
gust, the siege had been pressed but a short time when Hull ran up a white
flag and surrendered, August ICth. With the submission of Detroit went the
whole territory northwest of Ohio.
The country was angered and humiliated by the act. Twenty-five men were-
BATTLE OF (^(JEKXSTOWN TfEfd IfTS. 18r>
given in excliaiige for Hull, and he was placed ou trial, charged with treason,
cowardice, and conduct unbecoming an oilicer. He was convicted on the last
two cliai'ges and sentenced to lie sliol. In recognition of his services in the
llevohition, however, tiie President [)ardoned liini, and he died, without ever
having gained the respect of his countrymen, in 1825.
PKKSIDIOKTIAL KLKCTIOX OF ISlli.
Bcfoi'e proceeding witii the history of the war, a few incidents not con-
nected with it should be recorded. In the presidential election of 1812, the
electoi-al vote was : for President, James Madison, lie[)ublican, 128; i)e Witt
Clinton, of New York, Federalist, 81J. For Vice-President, Elbi'idge Gerry, of
]\Iassachusetts, Republican, 131 ; Jared Ingersoll, of Peimsylvania, Federalist,
8(5. Vacancy, 1. Thus ]\[ad;son and Gen-y were elected.
Louisiana was admitted as a State in 1812, l)eing a part of the immcuise
territory of that name pun-hascd from France in 180;). Indiniia was admitted
in 18HI, and was th(! second of the live States carvetl out of iIh- old Northwest
Tcrritoiy. It will be iccallc(l that the United States \'>Auk was chartered in
1791 for twenty years. Its charter, therefore, expireil in 1811. In 181G,
Congress chartered a new ban'c, on the same ])lan and for the same length of
tinu;. The public money was to be deposited in it or its branches, except when
the, secretary of the treasury choose to order its deposit elsewhere.
BATTIJ': f)P QUEENSTOWX HEIGHTS.
Ileliirniiig to the history of the war, it has (o be said that the second
attempt to invade Cknada was more disastrous if possiljle than the lirst, and
mor(3 disgraceful to American arms. The ti'oops on th(( Niagara, frontier were
mainly New Yoik militia, with a few I'cgulars and recruits frniii other States, all
under ihe eommand of Stephen Van Rensselaer. Resolved to capture the
Heights of (^iieenstown, he sent two columns across tlie liver on the morning
(tf ()ct(jber \o, 1812. They were led by Colonel Solomon Van Rensselaer,
cousin of the genei'al and a brave officer. The engagement was a l)risk one,
the colonel being wounded early in t\\('. fight, but liis troops gallantly charged
the Heights and captured tlie fortress. General Brock was rc'inforced and
attacked the Americans, but was repulsed. Brock being killed. The fierceness
of the l)attl(! is shown by that fact that the three connnandeis who succeeded
l>rock w(M'e either killed or severely wounded.
Under the attack of superior forces, the Americans had managed to hold
their ground and they now began to intrench. Meanwhile, the; 1,200 New
York militia on the other side of the river had become frightened by the
sounds of battle, and when called u])on to cr(;ss refused to do so, on the cowardly
186 ADMINISTRATIONS OF MADISON.
plea that they had enlisted to defend only their State. Lieutenant-Colonel Winfield
Scott had taken command of the brigade and was engaged in intrenching, when
the enemy, again reinforced, drove his troops, after two attacks, to the river,
where they were hemmed in and compelled to surrender. The American loss
in killed and wounded was fully a thousand. General Van Rensselaer was so
disgusted with the conduct of his militia that he resigned his command, and
was succeeded by General Alexander Smyth, of Virginia, whose conduct led to
the general conviction that he was mentally about as near to being an idiot as
it is jDossible for a man to be and still retain a little ground for being thought
otherwise.
The first thing General Smyth did was to issue a jiroclamation of so bom-
bastic a character that his friends were humiliated. He made several starts
toward Canada, but in each instance recalled his troojDS, and acted so inexplic-
ably that the militia were on the point of revolting, when he was deprived of his
command. This closed the military operations for the year 1812, and the story
is enough to crimson the cheek of every American with shame.
BRILLIANT WORK OF THE AMERICAN NAVY.
On the ocean, however, the record was brilliant and as astonishing to
friends as to enemies. Hardly had the news of the declaration of war reached
New York, when Commodore John Rodgers put to sea in the President, the
same vessel that had taught the Little Belt her severe lesson. Some time later
Rodgers sighted the frigate Belvidera and gave chase. He killed a number
of the crew, but the vessel managed to escape. Continuing his cruise, he cap-
tured a number of merchantmen and retook an American prize. The Inckiest
s[iip in the American navy was said to be the Constitution, afterward popu-
larly known as "Old Ironsides." Under command of Captain Isaac Hull,
nepliew of the disgi-aced general of Detroit, she engaged the sloop-of-war Guer-
riere off the coast of Massachusetts. The battle was a desperate one, but
extraordinary markmanship prevailed, and the enemy were compelled to strike
their flag after a loss of 79 killed and wounded, while that of the Americans
was 7 killed and 7 wounded.
The victory caused deep chagi-in in England and corresponding rejoicing
in the United States. Congress gave Captain Hull a gold medal and distributed
$50,000 among his crew.
In October, the sloop-of-war M'asp, Captain Jacob Jones, met the British
brig Frolic off Cape Hatteras. Since the vessels were of precisely the same
strength, the contest could not have been a more perfect test of the bravery and
efficiency of the ships of England and our own country. As respects bravery,
it w^as equal, for the men on both sides fought with a courage that could not btwe
BRILLIAXT WORK OF THE AMERICAN NAVY.
187
been surp;i?se>l. When the cu u ot the
Wasp boarded the Frolic, the} tound no
one on deck except the man at the^^h(Ll
and two wounded officers. The ^(->^eK^\LU
so damaged that on the same day tht
British ship Poicters captured both
During the same month (Octo-
ber 2oth), Commodore Stephen De-
catur, in command of the fri^j, ite
United States, encountered
the British frigate Macedo-
nian off the Island of Madeira,
tured her after a battle of two
which he lost twelve men,
of the enemy was
a hundred. The
Kin w \^ <^o shattered
\\\\\\ the j;ic itc^t
A\ i-^ slit t)iou^hr
THE AETS OF PEACE AND THE ART OF WAR.
( 1P-
U1-, in
\\ lidc tliat
moie than
Mn cedon-
tliat only
difficuhy
into ^(-'^^ J^ondon
1 li( f oin-
m ind ot the Con-
-ylitutwn ^\as now
t u r n e d over to
Bainbridge, w h o
sighted the frigate
Java oif the coast
of Brazil, December 29th.
In the terrific battle that
followed he lost 34 men,
but killed 120 of the enemy,
tore out every mast, and
burst her hull with round
shot. The Java was blown
u]^, and the prisoners and
wounded were taken to
Boston, where Bainbridge
received a right royal wel-
come.
This ends the history
of the first half-vear of the
188 ADMINmTRATJONS OF 3IADIS0N.
■war of 1812. AVliile everything -went wrong on land, the ocean showed only
a succession of brilliant victories. England, chagrined and humiliated, declared
that her flag had been disgraced "by a piece af striped bunting flying at the
mast-heads of a few flr-built frigates, manned by a handful of outlaws."
KEOEGANIZATION OF THE AKMT.
Congress took measures for strengthening and reorganizing the army.
The pay and bounty of the soldiers were increased; the President was em-
}iowered to raise twenty additional regiments of infantry, to borrow money,
and to issue treasury i.otes, and provisions were made for adding four ships-of-
the-line, six frigates, and as many vessels of war on the Great Lakes as might be
needed. The aimy was organized into three divisions: the Army of the North,
under General Wade Hampton, to act in the country about Lake Ch;un plain;
the Army of the Centre, under the commander-in-chief, General Henry Dear-
born, to act on the Niagara frontier and Lake Ontario; and the Army of the
East, nnder General Winchester, who soon after was superseded by General
William Henry Harrison.
IN THE WEST.
The last-named officer did his utmost to drive the British out of Detroit.
His trooi^s were volunteers, brave but undisciplined, and displayed their most
eflective work in scattered fighting and against the Indians; liut their success
was not decisive. When the swamps and lakes of the Northwest were suffi-
ciently frozen to bear their weight, Harrison repeated his attempts to expel the
British from Detroit. His advance, under General Winchester, was attacked
on the Kiver Raisin by the British, letl by General Proctor. Winchester was
as prompt as General Hull in surrendering. Pi'octor allowed his Indians to
massacre the wounded prisoners, niDst of wliom were Kentuckians. Thereafter,
when the Kentucky troops rushed into battle they raised the war-cry, "Ee-
member the Baisin ! "
The disaster to AVinch ester caused Harrison to fall back to Fort Meigs,
which stood near the site of the present town of Defiance. There, in the spring
of 1813, he was besieged by Proctor. A force of Kentuckians relieved him,
after severe loss, and Proctor retreated. Pome months later he again advanced
against Fort Meigs, but was repulsed, and marched to Fort Stephenson, where
Fremont now stands.
The besiegers consisted of 3,000 British and Indians, while the garrison
numbered only IGO, under the command of Major George Croghan, only twenty
years of age. When Proctor ordered the youth to surrender he threatened
that, in case of resistance, every prisoner would be tomahawked. INIajor
Croghan replied that when the surrender took place there would not be a single
CAPTURE OF TORONTO (YORK). 189
man left to tomahawk. Although Croghuii had but a single cannon, he made
so gallant a defense that his assailants were repulsed, and Proctor, fearing the
approach of Harrison, withdrew from the neighborhood.
BATTLE OF THE THAMES.
Perry's great victory on Lake Erie in September, 1813, as related further
on, gave the Americans command of that body of water. Harrison's troops
were ])laced on board of Perry's vessels and carried across from Ohio to Canada.
They landed near Maiden and Proctor fell back to Sandwich, with the Ameri-
cans following. He continuetl his retreat to the Thames, where, with the help
of Tecumseh, he selected a good battle-ground and awaited the Americans, who
attacked him on the oth of October. Proctor fled early in the battle, but his
regulars fought bravely. The 1,500 Indians, under the lead of Tecumseh,
displayed unusual heroism, but, when the great Tecumseh fell, they fled in a
panic. The American victory was overwhelming and complete.
Tecumseh's irresistible eloquence had roused the Creeks to take the war-
path in the South. The danger became so imminent that 500 of the inhabitants
took refuge in a stockade known as Fort Mimms, Alabama, thirty-five miles
above Mobile. The sentinels, believing there was no danger, were careless, and
on August 21, 1813, nearly a thousand Creeks attacked the place, which was
surprised and captured after feeble resistance. More than 200 were tomahawked,
the negroes being spared to become slaves of the Indians.
CAPTURE OF TORONTO (tOKK).
In April of this year, General Dearborn crossed Lake Ontario from
Sackett's Harbor to Toronto (then known as York), which was the capital of
Upper Canada and the chief depot for the supply of the western garrisons.
Under a sharp fire, General Zebulon Pike drove the enemy from the works.
The explosion of a magazine in tlie fort caused the death of General Pike in
the moment of victory.
The operations left Sackett's Harbor almost unprotected, and led to an
attack by the British admiral. Sir James Yeo, and General Prevost. The com-
mander of the garrison appealed to General Jacob Brown, a militia oflicer of
the neighborhood, who hurriedly gathered a small force and added it to the
defenders. In the attack which followed Brown showed gi'eat skill, and
Genei-al Prevost, believing his retreat was about to be cut off, iled in a panic,
leaving 300 dead and wounded. In the engagements in that section during the
remainder of the year. General Brown was about the only oflicer who displayed
any military ability, his skill eventually placing him at the head of the United
States armv.
190 ADMIMSTHATIOXS OF .UADISOX.
'J'lie lighting iluu Iblloweil was mainly m tavor ot" tlie British, who rooap-
tnreil York. Eight luindred Americans were niaile i)risoners at Beaver Dams,
and, as the autumn approaelieil, the enemy louiul themselves in ecimmantl of a
jiowert'iil squadron.
IKCOMl'KTENT COMMANDERS.
There was mueli dissatisfaction witli General Dearborn, the head of the
army. He was in ill-health, never led his troops in person, and missed a good
opportunity of eapturing Montreal. He was relieved in June and sueceedeil by
General \\ ilkinson, who arrived at ii^aekett's Harbor in Augu;?t. He began
preparations for invading Canada, but was so laggard in his movemenis that tlie
enemy had abundance of time in whieh to make readv. The St. Lawrence
seemed to be fortified at evi'ry jioint, bm Cieneral Ihown, by biave lighting,
opened the way for the flotilla.
General Wilkinson reached St. Kcgi^, November lllh, at wliit'b point
General Wade Hampton was to co-t)pcrate with him. lUn that olliccr. owing lo
a lack of provisions, had tlillcn back to Plattslmrg, hoping to ki-cp open his
comnumications with the St. Lawrence. This obliged Gciirral M'ilkinson to
retreat, and AVilkinson, Hampton, and other oHicers (piarri'lcd like so many
children.
Disaster ami disgi-ace seemed to follow the American laml forces during the
first two years of the war, but the fault lay wholly with the oHicers, who were
incomjietent, and many times hu-king in patriotism. The soldiers were brave^
but were comparatively ]H)wer]ess with such poor commanders.
Once again the American navy performeil brilliant work, though, unfor-
tunately, the record was marred by a sad disaster. On February -4th, Oaptain
James Lawrence, who had made several minor captures from the enemy, riddled
the English brig-of-war Fcacock, while in command of the Hornet, and, in a
fierce engagement of fifteen minutes, compelltMl her to surrender and hoist a
signal of distress. She went down so quickly that several of the Homei's crew,
who were giving aid, sank with her, besides thirteen of the enemy. Ca]>tain
Lawrence treated his prisoners .so kindly that, upon reaching Kew York, they
gave him a letter of thanks.
C.\PTURI-: Ol^ TIIK CHES.^rEAKi:: i;V THE StIANNON.
Captain Lawrence's line work caused him to be ]>romoted to the command
of the Chesapeake, then reliiting at Boston. Captain Broke (al'terward Sir
Philip, B. v.), commander of the S/ta)nwii, erui.sing oil' Boston, challengeil
Lawrence to come out and light him. The American jmnnplly accepted the chal-
lenge. It Avas a ]iiece of unwarrantable i-ecklessness, for the Clicsapeakc was
not yet ready for the sea, and his crew was undisciplined ami in a surly mood.
( '. I I'TA IN l)K( 'A Tl I! ( 'Jliy 'KIJ).
191
bcc-aii.se HOiue |)r(jiiii^c(l )»iiy.(; iiioiicy iiail iidI liccii )iajbnilders were so busy that from
about a dozen vessels on either side they increased the number to more than a
hundred each by the close of the war.
perry's great victory.
One of the grandest of all ti-iumphs was gained by the American navy in
the early autumn of 1813. Captain Oliver Hazard Perry was sent to Lake
Erie to build a navy. Perry at that time was not thirty years old and had
never seen a naval battle. By August, he had a squadron of two large and
seven small vessels, carrying 54 guns and 41G men, with which he set out to
find Commodore Barclay, who had two large and four small vessels, with 63
guns and 440 men.
The two squadrons met at the western end of Lake Erie on the 10th of
September. Barclay centred such a furious fire upon the Lawrence, Perry's
flagship, that in two hours she was in a sinking condition. Perry entered a
small boat, and, exposed to a sharp fire, was rowed to the Niagara, on which
he hoisted his flag. The battle was renewed, and, while the enemy was trying
to form a new line of battle. Perry ran the Niagara directly through the fleet,
delivering broadsides right and left. The other vessels were prompt in following
her, and poured such a raking fire into the enemy that fifteen minutes later
Barclay surrendered. The British commander had but one arm when the
battle opened, and, before it ended, his remaining arm was shot off". He lost
200 killed and wounded and 600 prisoners, while the Americans had 27 killed
and UG wounded.
It has already been shown that this victory was of the utmost importance,
for Proctor was waiting to invade Ohio, if it went his way, wliile General
Harrison was also waiting to invade Canada, in the event of an American
triumph. In sending news of his victory to General Harrison, Perry, in his
hastily written dispatch, used the words which have lieen quoted thousands of
times: "We have met the enemy and they are ours." It will be recalled that
Harrison immediately embarked his troops on Perry's ships, and, crossing the
lake, pursued Proctor to the Thames, where he decisively defeated him and
ended all danger of an invasion of Ohio by the enemy.
The American government now began to heed the benefit of the severe
lessons of defeat. The woithless generals were weeded out, and the army in
western New York reorganized so effectually that tlie country was cheered by a
number of victories — proof that the rank and file were of the best ipiality and
that their previous defeats were due to their leaders.
194 ADMIXlSTJiATIOXS OF MADlsOX.
On July 3, 1814, Gens. 8ontt, Ripley, aiul Ihxiwii rmssed the Niagara from
Black Rock to Erie with 3,000 men. Ilrown's ability had become so manifest
that by this time he Avas a major-general. AMieu he appeared iu front of Fort Erie,
it surrendered without resistance. Brown pursued a British corps of observa-
tion down the river until it crossed Chippewa Creek and joined the main body.
Brown withdrew and united also with the principal forces of the Americans, wha
attacked the British on the 5th of July, in their strong intrenchments behind
the Chijipewa. They were completely defeated, routed out of their defenses, and
driven up the shore of Lake Ontario. Their Indian allies were so disgusted
with the defeat of the British antl the furious fighting of the Americans that all
deserted the British commandei-.
BATTLE OF LUNDAY's LANE.
The British army received reinforcements and turned back to meet the
Americans who were pursuing them. The armies met, July 2oth, at Lundy's
Lane, within sight of Niagara Falls, where the fiercely contesteil battle, begin-
ning at sunset, lasted until midnight. The British commander was wounded
and captured and the enemy driven back. The loss of the Americans was
serious. Scott was so badly wounded that he could take no fui'ther part in the
war, Brown was less severely injured, and Ripley withdrew with the army to
Foit Erie.
An exploit of Colonel James Miller deserves notice. At a critical point in
the battle, General Brown saw that victory depended upon the silencing of a
battery of seven guns stationed on a hill, that was pouring a destructive fire
into the Americans.
" Colonel," said he, " can you capture that battery ? "
" I can try," was the modest reply, and a few minutes later Colonel Miller
was in motion with his regiment. The darkness enabled the men to conceal them-
selves under the shadow of a fence, along which they silently crept until they
could peep between the rails and see the gunners standing with lighted matches
awaiting the order to fii'e. Thrusting the muzzles of their guns through the
openings, they shot down every gunner, and, leaping over the fence, captured
the battery in the face of a hot infantry fire. The enemy made three attempts
to recapture the battery, but were repulsed each time. When General Ripley
retreated, he left the guns behind, so that they again fell into the hands of the
British from whom they had been so brilliantly won.
The enemy soon received reinforcements and besieged the Americans in
Fort Erie. Brown, although still suftering from his wound, resumed command
and drove his besiegers once more beyond the Chippewa. The Americans
evacuated Fort Erie on the 5th of November, and recrossing the Niagara went
PUNISH3IENT OF THE CREEK IXDIAXS. 195
into winter quarters at Black Eock and Ontario. Tliere were no more military
o^jerations durnig tlie war between Lakes Erie and Ontario.
THE AKMY OF THE NORTH.
General Wilkinson was so inefficient with the Army of the North that he
was superseded by General Izard, who advanced with his force to the aid of
General Brown at Fort Erie. This left Plattsbui-g uncovered, and the British
decided to attack it by land, and to destroy at the same time the American
flotilla on Lake Champlain.
Sir George Prevost, at the head of an army of 14,000 men, entered Ameri-
can territory on the 3d of September, and three days later reached Plattsburg.
The garrison withdrew to the south side of the Saranac, and prepared to dispute
the passage of the stream. Commodore Downie appeared off the harbor of
Plattsburg, with the British squadron, Sejitendjer 11th. The American scpiad-
ron, under Commodore Macdonough, was in the harbor, and consisted of two
less barges than the enemy, 86 guns, and 820 men, while the r]nglish com-
mander had 95 guns and more than a thoasand men.
During the battle which followed the British land forces made , repeated
attempts to cross the Saranac, but were defeated in every instance. The l)attle
on the water lasted less than three hours, during which (Vjmmodore Downie was
killed, his vessel sunk, and the remainder sunk or captured. The destruction
of the British squadron was complete, and the land forces withdrew during the
night. England was so dissatisfied with the action of Sir George Prevost that
he was dismissed from command. No more serious fighting took place in that
section during the war.
PUNISHMENT OF THE CREEK INDIANS.
Mention has been made of the massacre at Fort Mimms in Alabama by
the Creeks, August 30, 1813. Tennessee acted with jirompt vigor. General
Jackson at the head of 5,000 men marched into the Creek country and pun-
ished the Indians with merciless rigor. After repeated defeats, the Creeks made
a stand at the Great Horseshoe Bend of the Tallapoosa River. There a thousand
warriors gathered, with their wives and children, prepared to fight to the last.
The desperate battle was fought March 27, 1814, and at its close 600 Indians
were killed and the remainder scattered. The spirit of the Creeks was crushed,
and General Jackson's exploit made him the most popular military leader in
the Southwest.
^Matters looked gloomy for the Americans at the beginning of 1814. Enn--
land sent a formidable force of veterans to Canada, and another to capture
Washington, while the main body expected to take New Orleans, with the
196 ADillNISTEATIONS 01 MADISON
iiitentiou of retaining tlie city and jwoviuce of Louisiana upon the conclusion
of peace.
PREPARING FOR THE FINAL STRUGGLE.
The American government gathered uj) her loins for the great strusmle.
The President was authorized to borrow i^25,000,0UU, and to issue ti-easury
notes to the amount of $5,000,000. Such sums are but bagatelles in these davs,
but in 1814 the ci-edit of the government was so poor that the notes depreciated
•one-fifth of their face value. One hundred and twenty -four dollars were offered
as a bounty for every I'ecruit, while the pay, rations, and clothing were placed
upon a generous scale. An order was issued increasing the regular anuv to
•66,000 men, and an embargo laid with the aim of stoj^ping trade under British
licenses was repealed in April.
The British cruisers kept the Atlantic coast in continual alarm. Entering
Delaware Bay they burned every merchant vessel in sight. When the jieojile
of Lewiston refused to sell food to them, they bombarded their homes. In
Chesapeake Bay Admiral Cockburn plundered private dwellings. Among
the places sacked and burned were Lewes, Havre de Grace, Fredericktown,
and Georgetown. More leniency was shown the New England coast because
of her opposition to the war. Another inexcusable proceeding on the jiart of
the invaders was that of jiersuading many slaves to leave their masters and join
the enemy. This business compelled England, after the close of the war, to pay
the United States one million and a quarter dollars, on the award of the Em-
peror of Russia, to whom the question was submitted.
CAPTURE AND BURNING OF WASHINGTON.
But this year saw the crowning disgrace to the American arms. The mis-
management of affairs left our national capital defenseless. In August, 1814,
Sir Alexander Cochrane carried a British army up the Chesapeake on board his
squadron. Commodore Barney with his few ships had taken shelter in the
Patuxent. Paying no attention to him, Eoss landed his 5,000 veterans within
40 miles of Washington and advanced against the city. The government had
awakened to the threatened peril a short time before, and placed 500 regulars
and 2,000 undisciplined militia under the command of General William H.
Winder.
Winder took a strong position at Bladensburg and awaited Ross and Coch-
rane. The British army met with no opposition, and, upon reaching Marl-
borough, found that Commodore Barney, acting under the orders of the secretary
of war, had burned his fleet and hurried to Washington. The English com-
mander arrived in sight of Washington on the 24th of August. His approach
to Bladensburg was over a bridge defended by artillery from Barney's flotilla,
CAPTURE AND BURNING OF WASHINGTON.
197
which were handled l)y Barney and liis sailors. They fought with the utmost
heroism, rej)elling the British again and
again ; but the militia fled, and, when
Barney was wounded and his commanil
helpless, he surrendered. General Ross
complimented him for his bravery and im-
mediately paroled him.
This was the only check encountered
ilM^J^.,^^^^4
BUHUING OF WASHINGTON.
by the British in their ad-
vance upon Washington,
rjeneral Winder had learned"
enouiih of his militia to
know that no dependence
'•ould be placed upon them,
and he fled to Georgetown.
The President, heads of
departments, and most of
the citizens joined in the
stampede, and the advance
guard of General Ross entered the city that evening.
The British commander ofiered to spare the city for a large sum of money, ^
198 ADMINISTRATIONS OF MADISON.
but no one was within reach with authority to comply with liis demand. Ross
claimed that his flag of truce had been fired on, and he ordered the city to be
burned. In the conflagration that followed, the President's house, the depart-
ment offices, numerous private dwellings, the libraries and public archives, many
works of art in the public buildings, the navy yard and its contents, a frigate
on the stocks, and several small vessels were destroyed. The patent ofiice and
jail were the only public j)roperty spared. The burning of Washington was an
outrage which was generally condemned in England.
After a rest and the reception of reinforcements, Ross marched against
Baltimore, which he declared should be his winter quarters. While on the
road he was mortally wounded by an American sharpshooter in a tree. Such a
brave defense was made by Forts McHenry and Covington, guarding the narrow
passage from the Patapsco into the harbor of Baltimore, that the British fleet
and the land forces were repelled. The success of this defense inspired Francis
S. Key to write our famous national song, The Star-Spangled Banner.
THE HARTFORD CONVENTION.
The war became intensely unpopular in New England. Its shipping suf-
fered severely, and the demands for peace grew more claiiaorous. On the loth
of December, 1814, a convention of delegates, appointed by the Legislatures of
Massachusetts, Connecticut, Rhode Island, New Hampshire, and Vermont, met in
Hartford and held secret sessions for three weeks. An address was agreed upon
charging the national government with carrying on a policy injurious to New
England. Amendments were proposed to the Constitution, and a committee
was selected to confer with the government at Washington and to propose that the
revenues of New England should be applied to her own defense. An agree-
ment was made that if their proposed action failed, and peace was not soon
made, the convention should meet again in the following June. There was
open talk of a withdrawal from the Union, and doubtless gi-ave results would
have followed had the war gone on. The Hartford Convention and the "Blue
Lights" of Connecticut gave the final death-blow to the Federal party.
A TREATY OF PEACE SIGNED.
Despite the progress of the war, peace negotiations had been going on for
a long time. Russia, whose system of government has always been the exact
opposite of ours, has shown us marked friendship in many instances. As
early as 1813 she offered to mediate between Great Britain and the United
States. The President appointed five commissioners, John Quincy Adams,
James A. Bayard, Henry Clay, Jonathan Russell, and Albert Gallatin, who
were sent to Ghent, Belgium, where they were met by Lord Gambler, Henry
GREAT VICTORY AT NEW ORLEANS. 199
-Goiilbiirn, aud William Adams, the commissioners for Great Britain. Atter
long negotiations, the commissioners reached an agreement on the 24th of
December, 1814. The treaty did not contain a word abont the search of
American vessels for alleged deserters, which was the real cause of the war, nor
was any reference made to the wrongs done our commerce, and the rights of
neutral nations were not defined. The Orders of Council, however, died* of
themselves, Great Britain never again attempting to enforce them. It was
agreed that all places captured by either side during the progress of the war or
afterward should be surrendered, and provisions were made for lixing the boun-
dai'y between the United States and Canada.
In those days, when the ocean telegraph was not thought of and there
were no swift-going steamers, news traveled slowly, and it did not reach Wash-
ington until February 4, 181.3. Meanwhile, the most important battle of the
war liad taken place and several captures Avere made on the ocean.
The Creek Indians had been so crushed by General Jackson that they
ceded a large part of their lands to the Americans. They were sullen, and
when a British squadron entered the Gulf of Mexico they eagerly did all they
could to help the enemy. The squadron, by permission of the Spanish author-
ities took possession of the forts of Pensacola, and fitted out an expedition
iigainst Fort Bower a'^ the entrance to Mobile Bay. They attacked the foi-t,
September loth, by sea and land, but were repulsed. Among the land assailants
were several hundred Creek warriors, who thus received another lesson of the
bravery of American soldiers.
General Jackson, in command of the southern military district, was enraged
by the course of the Spanish authorities. He marched from ^lobile at the head
of 2,000 Tennessee militia and a number of Choctaws, stormed PensMcola,
November 7th, drove the British from the harbor, and compelled the Spanish
governor to surrender the town.
GENERAL JACKSOX's GKEAT VICTORY AT NEW ORLEANS.
Having completed his work in this summary fashion, he returned to
Mobile, where he found an urgent call for him to go to tlie defense of New
Orleans, which was threatened by a powerful force of the enemy. The invasion,
to which we have referred in another phice, was a formidable one and had been
.arranged a long time before. General Jackson reached New Orleans, Decem-
ber 2d, and began vigorous preparations. He enlisted almost everybody capable
■of bearing arms, including negroes and convicts. One of the most famous
freebooters that ever ravaged the Gulf of IMexico was Lafitte, to whom the
British made an extravagant offer for his help, but he refused, and gave his ser-
vices to Jackson.
200 ADMINISTRATIONS OF MADISON.
Jackson's vigor filled the city with confidence, but he was so strict that
dissatisfaction was expressed, whereupon he declared martial law ; in other
words, he took the city government into his own hands and ruled as he thought
best. He neglected no precaution. Fort St. Philip, guarding the passage of the
Mississippi at Detour la Plaquemine, was made stronger by new works, and a
line of fortifications was built four miles below the city, on the left of the river,
and extended eastward to an impassable cypress swamp. It was a disputed
question for a time whether Jackson used cotton bales in the defenses of New
Orleans, but it is established that he j^laced them on the tojDs of the intrench-
ments. Cannon were also mounted at different points. The militia under
General Morgan, and the crews and guns of a part of the squadron of Commo-
dore Patterson, held the west bank of the rivei'. These precrutions enabled the
defenders to enfilade the approaching enemy. A detachment guarded the pass
of Bayou St. John, above the city, and a number of gunboats awaited to dis-
jiute the passage of the river between Lake Pontchartrain and Lake Borgne.
The British fleet appeared at the entrance to this channel, December 14th,
and was immediately assailed by the American flotilla, which was destroyed
before it could inflict serious damage. Left free to select the point of attack,
the British sent a force in flat-bottomed boats to the extremity of the lake,
where they landed in a swamp. They repelled an attack by Jackson, who fell
back toward the city. On the 28th of December the British were within half
a mile of the American lines. They began a fire of shells, but were repulsed
by Jackson's artillery.
The defenders numbered some 3,000 militia, who were stationed in a line
of intrenchments a mile long and four miles from the town. This line was
protected by a ditch in front, flanked by batteries on the other side of the river,
and, in addition, eight other batteries were in position.
The British worked slowly forward until on the first day of the year they
were within less than a quarter of a mile of New Orleans. As the best material
at hand from which to erect breastworks they used hogsheads of sugar and
molasses, which were sent flying in fragments by the American cannon. Several
attacks upon the defenders were repulsed and the final assault delayed for a
number of days.
Sir Edward Pakenham, a veteran of the Peninsular wars, and a brother-
in-law of Wellington, the conqueror of Napoleon, was in command of the
reinforcements. While the advance went on slowly, 3,000 militia joined Jackson.
They were composed mainly of Kentucky and Tennessee riflemen, the finest
marksmen in the world. They were men, too, who did not lose their heads in
battle, but, kneeling behind their intrenchments, coolly took aim and rarely
threw away a shot.
GREAT VICTORY AT NEW ORLEANS.
201
On the morning of Jan. 8, 1815, the English army advanced against the
American intrenchnients. They nnmbered nearly 8,000 veterans, antl England
never placed a finer body of men in the field. The American rifiemen, with
shotted cannon and
calmly await
nicind to open
mo; host.
leveled rifles,
ed the c o m -
on the advanc-
They were
WEATHEESFORD AND GENERAL JACKSON.
formed in two lines, those at the rear loading for those in front, who were thus
enabled to keep up an almost continuous fire.
Before the outburst of flame the British dissolved like snow in the sun,
but the survivors with unsurpassable heroism persisted until it was apparent that
202 AD^IINItSTUATIONH OF ilADIlSON.
not a luaii would be left alive if they maintained their ground. Then thev fell
back to decide upon some other method of attack.
Angered by his repulse, Pakenham ran to the head of a regiment bearing
scaling ladders and called upon his men to follow him. Only a few succeeded
in piercing the American lines. Pakenham fell, mojtally wounded ; his suc-
cessor was killed, and the third in command was so badly injured that he could
give no orders. "All that were left of them " retreated. From the opening to
the close of the battle was less than half an hour, during which the British lost
2,500 in killed, wounded, and prisoners, one-third being killed. On the Amer-
ican side eight were killed and thirteen wounded. A few days later the British
withdrew to their ships antl sailed for the West Indies, where they learned of
the signing of the treaty of peace.
WORK OF THE AMERICAN NAVY.
It will be noticed that as the war 2:>rogressed the principal fighting changed
from the ocean to the land. Several encounters took place on the sea, but they
■were mostly unimportant, and did not always result favorably for us. In Sep-
tember, 1814, Captain Samuel C. Reid, in command of the privateer Armstrong,
while lying in the harbor of Fayal, one of the Azores, was attacked by a fleet
of boats from three British frigates. He fought all through the night, and,
although outnumbered twenty to one, made one of the most remarkable defenses
in naval annals.
On the 16th of January following, the President was captured by the British
ship Eiidijmion. On the 20th of Februai-y, while Captain Charles Stewart was
cruising off Cape St. Vincent, in the Constitution, with no thought that ]ieace
ihad been declared, he fell in with two British brigs, the Cyane and the Levant.
It was a bright moonlight night, and, after a brief engagement, in which Stewart
■displayed consummate seamanship, he captured both vessels.
But peace had come and was joyfully welcomed everywhere. The war had
-cost us heavilv in men, "^hips, and property ; the New England factories were
idle, commerce at a standstill, and the whole country in a deplorable state. But
■everything now seemed to spring into life under the glad tidings. The shipping
in New England was decked with bunting, and, within twenty-four hours after
the news arrived, the dockyards rang witli the sound of saw and hammer.
WAR WITH ALGIERS.
The Barbary States did not forget their rough treatment at the hands of
the United States a few years before. During the war they allowed the British
to capture American vessels in their harbors, and sometimes captured them on
their own account. In 1812 the Dey of Algiers compelled the American consul
PRESIDENTIAL ELECTION OF 1816. 203
to pay laim a large sum of money to save himself, family, and a few friends from
being carried off into slavery. We were too busily occupied elsewhere to give
this barbarian attention, but in March, 1815, war was declared against Algiers,
and Commodores Decatur and Bainbridge were sent to the Mediterranean with
two squadrons to conduct operations.
They did it to perfection. After capturing several frigates, they apjiroached
the city of Algiers and demanded the immediate surrender of every American
prisoner, full indemnity for all proi)erty destroyed, and the disavowal of all
future claims to tribute. The terrified Dey eagerly signed the treaty placed
before him on the quarter-deck of Decatur's ship. The Pasha of Tunis was com-
pelled to pay a round sum on account of the American vessels he had allowed
the British to capture in his harbor during the war. When he had done this,
the Pasha of Tripoli was called upon and forced to make a similar contribution
to the United States treasury.
FOUNDING OF THE NATIONAL COLONIZATION SOCIETY.
The negro had long been a disturbing factor in politics, and, in 1816,
the National Colonization Society was formed in Princeton, N. J., and imme-
diately reorganized in Washington. Its object was to encourage the emancipa-
tion of slaves by obtaining a place for them outside the United States, whither
they might emigrate. It was hoped also that by this means the South would be
relieved of its free black population. The scheme was so po^^ular that branches
•of the society were established in almost every State. At first free negroes were
sent to Sierra Leone, on the western coast of Africa, under the equator. Later,
for a short time, they were taken to Sherbrooke Island, but in 1821 a jiermanent
location was purchased at Cape Mesurado, where, in 1847, the colony declared
itself an independent republic under the name of Liberia. Its capital, Monrovia,
was named in honor of the President of the United States. The republic still
exists, but its functions were destroyed by the war for the Union, which abolished
slavery on this continent, and Liberia has never been looked upon with great
favor by the colored people of this country.
PRESIDENTIAL ELECTION OF 1810.
It has already been shown that the course of the Federal party in the War
of 1812 ruined it. The Federal nominee for the presidency was Rufus King,
of New York. He was a native of Maine, a graduate of Harvard College, and
had served as a delegate to the Continental Congress. It was he who in 1785
moved the provision against slavery in the Northwest Tei'ritory, and he was an
active member of the Constitutional Convention of 1787, afterward returning
to Massachusetts and givino; all his eners-ies to brinoino- about the ratification of
204 ADMINISTRATIONS OF MADISON
the Constitution. He was United States senator from New York in 1789-
1796; was minister to London, 1796-1803; and again a United States senator,
1813-1825.
Jolin Eager Howard, the candidate for the vice-presidency, had hardly a
less claim upon the recognition of his countrymen, for he joined the patriot
army at the outbreak of the Revolution, and fought with marked gallantry at
White Plains, Germantown, Monmouth, and Camden, and won sj^ecial honor
at the Cowpens in 1781. He was afterward governor of Maryland, declined
the portfolio of war in Washington's cabinet, and was United States senator
from 1796 to 1803.
These facts are given to show the character and standing of the candidates
of the Federalists in the presidential election of 1816, The following was the re-
sult: For President, James Monroe, of Virginia, Republican, 133; Rufus King, of
New York, Federalist, 34. For Vice-President, Daniel D. Tompkins, of New
York, Republican, 183 ; John Eager Howard, of ^Maryland, Federalist, 22 ;
James Ross, of Pennsylvania, 5; John Marshall, of Virginia, 4; Robert G.
Harper, of INIaryland, 3. Vacancies, 4. Thus Monroe became President and
Tompkins A^ice-President.
i'lKST TBAIW OF CAiCS IN AMiiiKICA.
CHAPTER X.
AD.VIINISTRATIONS OK JJVNIES MONROE AND
JOHN OUINCY AIDAIVIS, 1817-1S29.
James Monroe — The "Era of Good Feeling" — The Seminole War — Vigorous Measures of General
Jackson — Admission of Mississippi, Illinois, Alabama, Maine, and Missouri — The Missouri Com-
promise — The Monroe Doctrine — Visit of Lafayette — Introduction of the Use of Gas — Completion
of the Erie Canal — The First " Hard Times " — Extinction of the West Indian Pirates — Presidential
Election of 1S24 — John Quincy Adams — Prosperity of the Country- -Introduction of the Railway
Locomotive — Trouble with the Cherokees in Georgia — Death of Adams and Jefferson — Congressional
Action on the Tariff — Presidential Election of 1 828.
JAMES
James Monroe, the fifth Presi-
dent of the United States, was born
at Monroe's Creek, Westraorehiud
County, Virginia, April 28, 1758,
and died July 4, 1831. It will be
noticed that four out of the first five
Presidents were natives of Virginia,
and in course of time three others
followed. It will be admitted, there-
fore, that the State has well earned
the title of the " Mother of Presi-
dents."
Monroe received his education
at William and Mary College, and
was a soldier under Washington.
He was not nineteen years old when,
as lieutenant at the battle of Tren-
ton, he led a squad of men who cap-
tured a Hessian battery as it was
about to open fire. He studied law
under Jefferson, was elected to the
Virginia House of Burgesses, and,
when twenty-five years old, was a delegate to the Continental Congress.
(205)
JAMES MONROE.
■58-1831.) Two terms, 1817-1825.
He
206 ADMINISTRATIONS OF MONROE AND ADAMS.
was minister plenipotentiary to France in 17'J4, but his course displeased the
administration and he was recalled. From 1799 to 1802 he was governor of
Virginia, and, in the latter year, was sent to France by President Jefferson
to negotiate the purchase of Louisiana. In 1811 he was again governor
of Virginia, and shortly afterward appointed secretary of State by Madison.
He also served as secretary of war at the same time, and, as the treasury was
empty, pledged his private means for the defense of New Orleans. Monroe
was of plain, simple manners, of excellent judgment and of the highest integrity.
While his career did not stamjj him as a man of genius, yet it proved him to be
that which in his situation is better — an absolutely "safe" man to trust with the
highest office in the gift of the American people. Under Monroe the United
States made greater advancement than during any jirevious decade.
Everything united to make his administration successful. The Federal
party having disappeared, its members either stopped voting or joined the Re-
publicans. Since, therefore, everybody seemed to be agreed in his political
views, the period is often referred to as " the era of good feeling," a condition
altogether too ideal to continue long.
TARIFF LEGISLATION.
Shortly after Monroe's inauguration he made a tour through the country,
visiting the principal cities, and contributing by his pleasing manner greatly to
his popularity. The manufactures of the country were in a low state because of
the cheapness of labor in Great Britain, which enabled the manufacturers there
to send and sell goods for less prices than the cost of their manufacture in this
country. Congress met the difficulty by imposing a tax upon manufactured
goods brought hither, and thereby gave our people a chance to make and sell
the same at a profit. The controversy between the advocates of free trade and
protection has been one of the leading questions almost from the first, and there
has never been and probably never will be full accord upon it.
THE SEMINOLE WAR.
Perhaps the most important event in the early part of Monroe's adminis-
tration was the Seminole war. Those Indians occupied Florida, and could hide
themselves in the swampy everglades and defy pursuit. Many runaway slaves
found safe refuge there, intermarried with the Seminoles, and made their homes
among them. They were not always fairly treated by the whites, and committed
many outrages on the settlers in Georgia and Alabama. When the Creeks, who
insisted they had been cheated out of their lands, joined them, General Gaines
was sent to subdue the savages. He failed, and was caught in such a dangerous
situation that General Jackson hastily raised a force and marched to his assistance
THE SEMINOLE }VAR.
207
Since Florida belonged to Spain, Jackson was instructed by our government
not to enter the country except in pursuit of the enemy. "Old Hickory" was
not the man to allow himself to be hampered by such onlers, and, enteiing
Florida in March, 1818, he took possession the following month of the Spanisli
post of St. Mark's, at the head of Appalachee Bay. Several Seminoles were
captured, and, proof being obtained that they were the leaders in a massacre of
some settlers a short time before, Jackson hanged every one of tiiem.
Advancing into the in
terior, he captured two British
subjects, Robert C. Ambristei,
an Englishman, and Alexan-
der Arbuthnot, a Scotchman.
There seemed to be no doubt
that the latter had been guilty
of inciting the Indians to com-
mit their outrages, and both
were tried by court-martial,
which sentenced Arbuthnot to
be hanged and Ambrister to
receive fifty lashes and un-
dergo a year's imprisonment
Jackson set aside the verdict,
and shot the Englishman and
hanged the Scotchman. He
then marched against Pen^a-
cola, the capital of the prov-
ince, drove out the Spanish
authorities, captured B a i -
rancas, whose troops and offi-
cials were sent to Havana.
Jackson carried things
with such a high hand that
Spain protested, and Congress had to order an investigation. Tlie report
censured Jackson ; l)ut Congress passed a resolution acquitting liini of idl blame,
and he became more popular than ever.
Spain was not strong enough to expel the Americans, and she agreed to a,
treaty, in October, 1820, by which East and West Florida were ceded to the
United States, the latter paying Spain |o,000,000. The Sabine River, instead
of the Rio Grande, was made the dividing line between the territories of the
respective governments west of the Mississippi. Jackson was the first governor
AN t^DIANfa DECLARATION Oi WAT..
208 ADMINISTRATIONS OF MONEOE AND ADAMS.
of Florida, aiul, as uiay be supposed, he had a stormy time, but he straio-ht-
eued out matters with tlie sauie iron resokitiou that marked everything he did.
STATES ADMITTED — THE MISSOURI COMPKOMISE.
A uumber of States were admitted to the Union wliile Monroe was Presi-
dent. The first was Mississippi, in 1817. The territory was claimed by
Georgia, which gave it to the United States in 1802. Illinois was admitted in
1818, being the third of the five States formed from the old Northwest Terri-
tory. Alabama became a State in 1819, and had been a part of the territory
claimed by Georgia. Maine was admitted in 1820, and, as has been shown,
was for a long time a part of Massachusetts, and Missouri became a State in 1821.
The strife over the admission of the last-named State was so angry that
moi'e than one person saw the shadow of the tremendous civil war that was to
darken the country and deluge it in blood forty years later. The invention of
the cotton gin in 1793 had made cotton the leading industry of the South and
given an enormous importance to slavei-y. The soil and the climate and econo-
mic conditions caused it to flourish in the South, and the lack of such conditions
made it languish and die out in the Korth.
Missouri applied for admission in March, 1818, but it was so late in the
session that Congress took no action. At the following session a bill was intro-
duced containing a provision that forbade slavery in the proposed new State.
The debate was bitter and prolonged, accompanied by threats of disunion, but a
compromise was reached on the 28tli of February, 1821, when the agreement
was made that slavery was to be permitted in Missouri, but forever prohibited
in all other parts of the Union, north and west of the northern limits of Ar-
kansas, 36° 30', which is the southern boundary of Missouri. The State was
admitted August 21st, increasing the number to twenty-four. The census
showed that in 1820 the popuktion of the United States was 9,633,822. The
State of New York contained the most people (1,372,111) ; Virginia next
(1,065,116) ; and Pennsylvania almost as many (1,047,507).
PRESIDENTIAL ELECTIOX OF 1820.
It was in the autumn of 1820, during the excitement over the admission
of Missouri, that the presidential election occurred. The result is not likely
ever to be repeated in the history of our country. Thei-e was no candidate
against Monroe, who would have received every electoral vote, liut for the action
of one member, who declared that no man had the right to share that honor
with Washington. He therefore cast his single vote for Adams of Massachu-
setts. For Vice-President, Daniel D. Tompkins, Republican, received 218 ;
Richard Stockton, of New Jersey, 8 ; Daniel Rodney, of Delaw'are, 4; Robert
COMPLETION OF THE ERIE CANAL. '209
G. Harjjer, of Maryland, and Richard Rush, of Pennsylvania, 1 vote each.
Monroe and Tomi^kins were therefore re-elected.
THE MONROE DOCTKINE.
South America has long been the land of revolutions. In 1821, there was
a general revolt against Spain in favor of independence. Great sympathy was
felt for them in this country, and, in March, 1822, Congress passed a bill recog-
nizing the embryo republics as sovereign nations. In the following year Presi-
dent Mon]-oe sent a message to Congress in which he declared that for the future
the American continent was not to be considered as territory for colonization by
any foreign power. This consecration of the whole Western Hemisphere to
free institutions constitutes the Monroe Doctrine, one of the most precious
and jealously guarded rights of the American nation. The memorable docu-
ment which bears the President's name was written by John Quincy Adams,
his secretary of State.
America could never forget Lafayette, who had given his services without
pay in our struggle for independence, who shed his blood for us, and who was
tlie intimate and trusted friend of Washington. He was now an old m;in, and,
anxious to visit the country he loved so well, he crossed the ocean and landed
in New York, in August, 1824. He had no thought that his coming would
cause any stir, and was overwhelmed by the honors shown him everywhei'e.
Fort Lafayette saluted him as he sailed up New York Bay, and processions,
parades, addresses, feastings, and every possible attention were given to him
throughout his year's visit, during which he was emphatically the " nation's
guest." Nor did the counti-y confine itself to mere honors. He had been treated
badly in France and was })oor. Congress made him a j^resent of $200,000 in
money, and sent him home in the frigate Brandyivine, named in his honor, for
it was at the battle of the Brandywine that Lafayette was severely wounded.
An important invention introduced into this country from England in
1822 was lighting by gas, which soon became universal, to be succeeded in later
years by electricity. Steamboat navigation was common and travel by that
means easy. On land we were still confined to horseback and stages, but there
was great improvement in the roads, through the aid of Congress and the differ-
ent States.
completion of the ERIE CANAL.
The Erie Canal, connecting Buffalo and Albany, was begun on the 4th of
July, 1817, its most persistent advocate being Governor De Witt Clinton. It
was costly, and the majority believed it would never pay expenses. They
.dubbed it " De Witt Clinton's Ditch," and ridiculed the possibility that it would
prove of public benefit. In October, 1825, it was ojiened for public traffic. It
210 ADJIINISTBATIOXS OF MONROE AND ADAJTS.
is 363 miles long, having tlie greatest extent of any canal in the world. It
passes throngh a wonderfully fertile region, which at that time was little more
than a wilderness. Immediately towns and villages sprang into existence along
its banks. Merchandise could now be carried cheaply from the teeming West,
through the Great Lakes, the Erie Canal, and the Hudson River, to New York
City and the Atlantic. Its original cost was $7,600,000, and its earnings were
so enormous that in many single years they amounted to half that sum. It is
now operated by the State without charge to those using it.
No combination of statesmen are wise enough to prevent the occasional
recurrence of " hard times." Nearly everyone has a cure for the blight, and
the intervals between them are irregular, but they still descend upon us, when
most unexpected and when it seems we are least prepared to bear them. No
one needs a long memory to recall one or two afflictions of that nature.
THE FIRST " HARD TIMES."
The first financial stringency visited the country in 1819. The establish-
ment in 1817 of the Bank of the United States had so imjiroved credit and in-
creased the facilities for trade that a great deal of wild speculation followed. The
officers of the branch bank in Baltimore were dishonest and loaned more than
$2,000,000 beyond its securities. The President stopped the extravagant loans,
exposed the rogues, and greatly aided in bringing back the country to a sound
financial basis, although the Bank of the United States narrowly escaped bank-
ruptcy — a calamity that would have caused distress beyond estimate.
Amid the stirring political times our commerce suffered from the pirates
who infested the West Indies. Their depredations became so annoying that in
1819 Commodore Perry, of Lake Erie fame, was sent out with a small squadron
to rid the seas of the pests Before he could accomplish anything, he was
stricken with yellow fever and died. Other squadrons were disjjatched to
southern waters, and in 1822 more than twenty piratical vessels were destroyed
in the neighborhood of Cuba. Commodore Porter followed up the work so
effectively that the intolerable nuisance was permanently abated.
PRESIDENTIAL ELECTION OF 1824.
There were plenty of presidential candidates in 1824. Everybody now was
a Republican, and the choice, therefore, lay between the men of that political
faith. The vote was as follows : Andrew Jackson, of Tennessee, 99 ; John Quincy
Adams, of Massachusetts, 84 ; Henry Clay, of Kentucky, 37 ; William H. Craw-
ford, of Georgia, 41. For Vice-President : John C. Calhoun, of South Carolina,
182 ; Nathan Sandford, of New York, 30 ; Nathaniel Macon, of North Carolina,
24 ; Andrew Jackson, 13 ; Martin Van Buren, of New York, 9; Henry Clay, 2.
JOHN QUINCY ALAMS.
211
This vote showed that iio candidate was elected, and tlie election, there-
fore, was thrown into the House of Re^jresentatives. Although Jackson was
far in the lead on the popular and electoi'al vote, the friends of Clay united
with the sujiporters of Adams, who became President, with Calhoun Vice-
President. The peculiar character of this election led to its being called the
"scrub race for the presidency."
JOHN QUINCY ADAJIS.
John Quincy Adams, the sixth President, was born at Braintree, Massa-
chusetts, July 11, 17(')7, and was
the son of the second President.
He was given every educational ad-
vantage in his youth, and when
eleven years old accompanied his
father to France and was placed in
a school in Paris. Two years later
he entered the University of Ley-
den, afterward made a tour through
the principal countries of Euro]")e,
and, returning home, entered the
junior class at Harvard, from which
he graduated in 1788. Washington
appreciated his ability, and made
him minister to The Hague and
afterward to Portugal. When his
father became President he trans-
ferred him to Berlin. The Federal-
ists elected him to the United States
Senate in 1803, and in 1809 he
was ajjpointed minister to Russia.
He negotiated important commer-
cial treaties with Prussia, Sweden, and Great Britain, and, it will be remem-
bered, he was leading commissioner in the treaty of Ghent, which brought the
War of 1812 to a close. He was a man of remarkable attainments, but he pos-
sessed little magnetism or attractiveness of manner, and l)y his indifference
failed to draw warm friends and supjiorters around him. Adams was re-
elected to Congress repeatedly after serving out his term as President. He was
seized with apoplexy while on the point of rising from his desk in the Plouse
of Representatives, and died February 23, 1S4S.
The country was highly prosperous (hiring the presidency of the younger
JOHN QUINCY ADAMS.
(1767-1S48.) One term, lS2u-18L1i.
212 ADMINISTRATIOXS OF MONROE AND ADAMS.
Adams. The public debt, to which the War of 1812 added $80,000,000, began
to show a marked decrease, money was more plentiful, and most important of
all was the introduction of the steam locomotive from England. Experiments
had been made in that country for a score of years, but it was not until 1829
that George Stephenson, the famous engineer, exhibited his "Rocket," which
ran at the rate of nearly twenty miles an hour.
INTRODUCTION OF THE STEAM LOCOMOTIVE.
The first clumsy attempts on this side were made in 1827, when two short
lines of rails were laid at Quincy, near Boston, but the cars were drawn by horses,
and, when shortly after, the Baltimore and Ohio Railroad was chartered, the
intention was to use the same motor. In 1829, a steam locomotive was used on the
Delaware and Hudson Canal Railroad, followed by a similar introduction on the
Baltimore and Ohio Road. The first railroad chartered exjiressly for steam was
granted in South Carolina for a line to run from Charleston to Hamburg. The
first locomotive made by Stephenson was brought across the ocean in 1831.
The Americans set to work to make their own engines, and were successful in
1833. It will be noted that these events occurred after the administration of
Adams.
THE CHEROKEES IN GEORGIA.
Most of the country east of the Mississippi was being rapidly settled.
Immense areas of land were sold by the Indian tribes to the government and
they removed west of the river. The Cherokees, however, refused to sell their
lands in Georgia and Alabama. They were fully civilized, had schools, churches,
and newspapers, and insisted on staying ujwn the lands that were clearly their own.
Georgia was equally determined to force them out of the State, and her govern-
ment was so high-handed that President Adams interfered for their protection.
The governor declared that the Indians must leave, and he defied the national
government to prevent him from driving them out. The situation of the Chero-
kees finally became so uncomfortable that, in 1835, they sold their lands and
joined the other tribes in the Indian Territory, west of the Mississippi.
AN IMPRESSIVE OCCURRENCE.
One of the most impressive incidents in our history occurred on the 4th of
July, when John Adams and Thomas Jefferson died. It was just half a
century after the signing of the Declaration of Independence, of which Jeffer-
son was the author and whose adoption Adams secured.
Adams attained the greatest age of any of our Presidents, being nearly
ninety-one years old when he died. He retained the brightness of his mind,
his death being due to the feebleness of old age. When he was asked if he knew
AN IMPRESSIVE OCCURRENCE.
21;
tlie meaning of the joyous bells that were ringing outside, his wan face lighted
up, and he replied : " It is the 4th of July; God bless it ! " His last words,
uttered a few minutes later : " Jefferson still survives."
It was a ^^ natural error on
the imrt of Adams, ^^^^"''^ "'^'-^^ but Jeherson had
JOHNNY BTTLI,," OH NO. 1.
(The first locomotive used.)
quietly, surrounded by friends, with his mind full of the inspiring associations
connected with the day. His last words were : " I resign my soul to God,
and my daughter to my country."
214 ADMINISTRATIONS OF MONROE AND ADAMS.
An important issue of the younger Adams' administration was the tariff.
Naturally the iSouth were opposed to a jjrotective tarift', because they had no
manufactures, and were, therefoi'e, comi^elled to pay higher prices for goods than
if admitted free of duty. A national convention was held at Harrishurg,
Pennsylvania, in the summer of 1827, to discuss the question of the protection
of native industry. Only four of the slave-holding States were rejjresented, but
the members memorialized Congress for an increase of duties on a number of
articles made in this country. In the session of 1827-28, Congress, in defer-
ence to the general sentiment, jsassed a law which increased the duties on fabrics
made of wool, cotton, linen, and on articles made from lead, iron, etc. The
Legislatures of the Southern States protested against this action as unjust and
unconstitutional, and in the presidential election of that year the entire electoral
vote of the South was cast against Adams.
The " Era of good feeling " was gone and politics became rampant. The
policy of a protective tariff became known as the American System, and Henry
Clay was its foremost champion. Their followers began to call themselves
National Republicans, while their opponents soon assumed the name of Demo-
crats, which has clung to them ever since, though the National Republicans
changed their title a few years later to Whigs.
PRESIDENTIAL ELECTION OF 1828.
The presidential election of 1828 resulted as follows: Andrew Jackson,
Democrat, 178; John Quincy Adams, National Republican, 83. For A^ice-
President, John C. Calhoun, Democrat, 171 ; Richard Rush, of Pennsylvania,
National Republican, 49 ; William Smith, of South Carolina, Democrat, 7.
Jackson and Calhoun therefore Avere elected.
CHAPTER XI.
ADIVlINISTRATIONS OK JACKSON, VAN BUREN,
W. H. HARRISON, AND TYLER. 1829-1S45.
Andrew Jackson— "To the Victors Belong the Spoils" — The President's Fight with the United States
Bank— Presidential Election of J82S— Distribution of the Surplus in the United States Treasury
Among the Various States — The Black Hawk War — The Nullification Excitement — The Seminole
War — Introduction of the Steam Locomotive — Anthracite Coal, McCormick's Reaper, and Friction
Matches — Great Fire in New York — Population of the United States in 1830 — Admission of Ar-
kansas and Michigan — Abolitionism — France and Portugal Compelled to Paj' their Debts to the
United States — The Specie Circular, John Caldwell Calhoun, Henry Clay, and Daniel Webster —
Presidential Election of 1836^Martin Van Buren — Tlie Panic of 1837 — Rebellion in Canada — Po|)U-
lation of the United States in 1840— Presidential Election of 1840— William Henry Harrison— His
Deatli— John Tyler — His Unpopular (.Vurse — The Webster-Ashburton Treaty— Civil War in
Rhode Island — The Anti-rent War in New York — A Shocking Accident — Admission of Florida^
Revolt of Texas Against Mexican Rule — The Alamo — San Jacinto — The Question of the Annexa-
tion of Texas— The State Admitted — The Copper Klines of Michigan — Presidential Election of 1844
^Tlie Electro-magnetic Telegraph — Professor Morse — His Labors in Bringing the Invention to
Perfection.
ANDREW JACKSON.
Andrew Jackson, seventh President, ranks among the greatest of those who
have been honored witli the highest gift their countrymen can confer upon
them. He was born of Scotch-Irish parents, at Waxhaw Settlement, on the
line between North and South Carolina, March 15, 1767. His parents were
wretchedly poor and he received only a meagre education. His fatlier died just
before the birth of his son, who enlisted in the patriot army when but thirteen
years old, and was captured at the battle of Hanging Rock. When a British
officer ordered the boy to clean his boots, he refused. He was brutally beaten
for his stubbornness ; he told the officer that he might kill him, but he could
never make a servant of him.
Shortly afterward he was seized with smallpox and was abandoned to die,
but his mother secured his release and nursed him back to health. She died
soon afterward, and, while still a boy, Andrew was left without a single near
relative. At the close of the Revolution, he took up the study of law, pursuing
it in a desultory way, until his removal to Nashville, at the age of twenty-one
years. He threw his law books aside when the Indians began their outrages, and
we have told of his striking services as a soldier and military leader, culmina-
ting with his great victory tit New Orleans, the anniverssiry of which is still
Avideiv celebrated. Jackson became the idol of his countrymen, and he pos-
(215)
216
JACKSON, VAN BVREN, HARRISON, AND TYLER.
sessed many admirable qualities. Never, under any circumstances, did lie betray
j)ersonal fear. He was ready to attack one man, ten men, a hundred, or a thou-
sand, if he deemed it his duty to do so. He was honest to the core, intensely
patriotic, and he either loved or hated a man. He would stand by a friend to
the death, unless he became convinced of his unworthiness, when he instantly
became his unrelenting enemy.
He fought numerous duels, and stood up without a tremor in front of one
of the most famous of duelists.
When his opponent's bullet tore a
dreadful wound in his breast, he
resolutely repressed all evidence of
pain until he had killed his antag-
onist, in order that the latter should
not have the pleasure of knowing
he had hurt Jackson.
While carrying one arm in a
sling from this wound, he led a
strong force into the Creek country.
When the men were close upon star-
vation, they mutinied. Jackson
rode in front of them, pistol in hand,
and declared he would shoot the
first one who refused to obey his or-
ders. Not a man rebelled. At the
same time he divided all the food he
had among them, which consisted
solely of acorns. Nevertheless, he
pressed on and utterly destroyed
the Indian confederation.
Added to these fine qualities was his chivalrous devotion to his wife, the
unvarying respect he showed to the other sex, and the purity of his own character.
Such a man cannot fail to exercise a powerful influence upon those with whom
he comes in contact. In Jackson's estimation, the only living person whose
views were right uj^on every question was himself. He was intolerant of opposi-
tion, and merciless in his enmity of a personal opponent. He made mistakes,
as was inevitable, and some of them wrought great injury ; but even his oppo-
nents respected while they feared him, and the qualities which we have indi-
cated gave him a warm place not only in the affection of his own generation but
in the generations that came after him.
When his tempestuous career came to a close, Jackson retired to his home.
ANDKEW JACK.SON.
(1767-1845.) Two terms, 18291837,
PRESIDENTIAL ELECTION OF 1832. 217
known as the Hermitage, in Tennessee, where he jjassed his declining years in
quiet and peace. He became a devout Christian, and died of consumption, June
8, 1845.
" TO THE VICTORS BELONG THE SPOILS."
It need hardly be said that when Jackson became President he shared his
authority with no one. He made w^ his cabinet of his personal friends, and, on
the principle of " To the victors belong the spoils," that an administration to be
successful must be composed of those of the same political faith with its head, he
began a system of removals from office. The total number of such removals
made by his predecessors was seventy-four, some of which were for cause. A
year after his inauguration, Jackson had turned 2,000 office-holders out, and,
since their successors were obliged in many instances to remove subordinates, in
jnirsuance of the same policy, it will be seen that the President adopted no half-
way measures.
He regarded the members of his cabinet as simply clerks, and, when he
wished to consult with trusted friends, called together a certain number of boon
associates, who became known as his " Kitchen Cabinet."
Jackson's fight with the united states bank.
One of the President's unbearable aversions was the United States Bank.
He believed that its strength had been exerted against him, and in his first
message to Congress, in December, 1829, he charged that it had failed to establish
a uniform and sound currency and that its existence was contrary to the
spirit of the Constitution. Its charter would expire in 1836, and Congress
passed an act renewing it for fifteen years. Jackson vetoed the measure, and the
two-thirds majoi'ity necessary to pass it again could not be obtained.
By law the deposits of the bank were subject to the secretary of the treasury,
who could not remove them without giving Congress his reasons for the step.
Jackson ordered his secretary to remove the deposits, and when he very properly
refused, the President removed him. He made Roger B. Taney, afterward
chief justice of the United States, his new secretary of the treasury, and that
pliable official promptly transferred the deposits to certain banks that had been
selected.
PRESIDENTIAL ELECTION OF 1832.
Although the fight caused much excitement, and the action of Jackson was
bitterly denounced, it added to his popularity, as was proven in the presidential
election of 1832, when the following electoral vote was cast : Andi-ew Jackson,
219 ; Henry Clay, of Kentucky, National Republican, 49 ; John Floyd, of
Georgia, Independent, 11 ; William Wirt, of Maryland, Anti-Masonic, 7. For
Vice-President, Martin Van Buren, Democrat, of New York, received 189
218 JACKSON, VAN BUREN, HARRISON, AND TYLER.
votes; Joliu Sergeant, of Pennsylvania, National Kepublican, 49; Henry Lee,
of Massachusetts, Independent, 11 ; Amos Elhnaker, of Pennsylvania, Anti-
Masonic, 7; William Wilkins, of Pennsylvania, Democrat, 30. On the popular
vote, Jackson had more tlian a hundred thousand in excess of all the others in
a total of one million and a quarter. It was a great triumph for "Old Hickory."
It rarely happens in the history of any country that the government finds
itself in the possession of more
money than it wants. It became
clear, however, that not only would
the public debt soon be jiaid, but a
surplus would accrue. In view of
this certainty, Henry Clay secured
the jiassage of a bill in 1832, which
reduced the taritt', except where
such reduction came in conflict with
home labor. Several years later,
the surplus, amounting to $28,000,-
000, was divided among the States.
BLACK HAWK WAR.
In the year named occurred
the Black Hawk War. The tribes
known as the Sacs, Foxes, and Win-
nebagoes lived in the Territory of
AVisconsin. The Sacs and Foxes
made a treaty with the United
States in 1830, by which they ceded
OneofOldUickorys" volni.lecrs, afterward famous in the Texan all their lauds iu lUiuois tO the gOV-
War for Independence. ttti i i , • • ^
(1793-1863). ernment. When the time arrived
for them to leave, they refused, and the governor called out a military force to
-comjiel them to remove beyond the Mississippi. Black Hawk, a famous chieftain
of the Sacs, left, but returned at the head of a thousand warriors, gathered from
the ti-ibes named, and began a savage attack upon the settlements. The peril
was so grave that the government sent troops under Generals Scott and Atkinson
10 Rock Island. On the way thither, cholera, which had never before appeared
in this country, broke out among the troops and raged so violently that opera-
tions for a time were brought to a standstill.
When Atkinson was able to do so, he pushed on, defeated the Indians, and
■captured Black Hawk. He was taken to Washington, where he had a long
+Jilk with President Jackson, who gave him good advice, and induced him to
SAMUEL HOUSTON.
SECOND SEMINOLE WAR. 219
sign a new treaty j^i'Oviding for the removal of his peojile to the Indian Terri-
tory. Then Black Hawk was carried on a tour through the country, and was
so impressed by its greatness that, when he returned to his people, he gave no
more trouble. It is worth remembering that both Jeftersou Davis and Abi'ahaiu
Lincoln served in the Black Hawk War.
NULLIFICATION MEASURES IN SOUTH CAROLINA.
South Carolina had long been soured over the tariff measures, which, while
they helped the prosperity of other sections of the Union, were oppressive to her,
because there were no manufactures carried on within her borders. When
Congress, in the spring of 1832, imposed additional duties, she was so angered
that she called a convention in November, at which her governor presided.
The new tariff was declared unconstitutional, and therefore null and void, and
notice was given that any attempt to collect the duties would be resisted by South
Carolina, which, unless her demands were granted, would withdraw from the
Union and establish herself as an independent government. Other States
endorsed her action and the situation became serious.
Preoident Jackson hated the tariff as much as South Carolina, but his love
for the Union was unquenchable, and, having sworn to enforce the laws, he was
determined to do it in the face of any and all opposition. Because Vice-Presi-
dent Calhoun sided with his native State, Jackson threatened to arrest him.
Calhoun resigned, went home, and was elected United States senator.
President Jackson issued a warning j^i'oclamation on the 10th of December,
but South Carolina continued her wai- preparations, and the President sent
General Scott, with the sloop-of-war Natchez, to Charleston, with orders to
strengthen the garrison in the harbor. Scott displayed great discretion, and
won the good-will of the citizens by his forbearance and courtesy. The other
Southern States condemned the rash course of South Carolina, within which
gradually appeared quite a number of supporters of the Union. Then Clay
introduced a bill in Congress, which became law, pi'oviding for a gradual
reduction of duties until the 30th of June, 1842, when they were to reach a
general level of twenty per cent. Calhoun, now a member of the Senate, sup-
ported the compromise, and the threatened civil war passed away for the time.
SECOND SEMINOLE WAR.
Trouble once more broke out with the Seminoles of Florida. The aggra-
vation, already referred to, continued. Runaway slaves found safe refuge in the
swamps of the State and intei-married with the Indians. A treaty, known as
that of Payne's Landing, was signed in May, 1832, by which a number of
chiefs visited the country assigned to the Creeks, it being agreed that, if they
220 JACKSON, VAN BUREN, HARRISON, AND TYLER.
found it satisfactory, the Seniinoles should remove thither. They rejiorted in
its favor, but the other leaders, incensed at their action, killed several of them>
and declared, probably with truth, tluit they did not rejjresent the sentiment of
their people, and doubtless had been intluenced by the whites to make their
report. The famous Osceola expressed his opinion of the treaty by driving his
hunting-knife through it and the top of the table on which it lav.
It being clear that the Seniinoles had no intention of going west. President
Jackson sent General Wiley Thompson to Florida with a military force to drive
them out. The Indians secured a delay until the spring of 1835, under the
promise to leave at that time ; but when the date arrived, they refused to a man.
Osceola was so defiant in an interview with General Thompson that the latter
put him in irons and held him prisoner for a couple of days. Then the chief
promised to comply with the terms of the treaty and was released. He had not
the slightest intention, however, of keeping his promise, but was resolved to be
revenged upon Thompson for the indignity he had put upon him.
In the month of December, 1835, while Thomjison and a party of friends
were dining near Fort King, with the windows raised, because of the mildness of
the day, Osceola and a party of his warriors stole up and fired a volley through
the windows, which killed Thompson and four of his comjianions. Before the
garrison of the fort could do anything, the Seniinoles had fied.
dade's massacre.
On the same day of this tragical occurrence. Major Francis L. Dade set
out with 140 mounted men to the relief of General Clinch, stationed at Fort
Drane, in the interior of Florida, where he was threatened with massacre.
Dade advanced from Fort Brooke at the head of Tampa Bay, and was not far
on the road when he was fired upon by the Indians from ambush. Half the
men were killed, including Major Dade. The remainder hastily fortified
themselves, but were attacked in such overwhelming numbers that every man
was shot down. Two wounded soldiers crawled into the woods, but afterward
died. "Dade's Massacre" caused as "profound a sensation throughout the
country as did that of Custer and his command forty years later.
The Seminole War dragged on for years. General Scott commanded for a
time in 1836, and vigorously pressed a campaign in the autumn of that year;
but when he turned over the command, in the spring of 1837, to General
Zachary Taylor, the conquest of the Seniinoles seemingly was as far off as ever.
Taylor attempted to use a number of Cuban bloodhounds for tracking the mon-
grels into the swamjis, but the dogs refused to take the trail of the red men, and
the experiment (widely denounced in the North) was a failure.
In October, while Osceola and a number of warriors were holding a con-
GREAT IMPR0VE3IENTS IN THE COMFORTS OF LIFE.
221
ference with General Jessup under the protection of a flag of tiuce, all were
made j^i'isoners, and Osceola was sent to Charleston, and died in Fort Moultrie
in 1838. The war dragged on until 1842, when General Worth, after it had
cost $40,000,000 and many lives, brought it to an end by destroying the crops
of the Seminoles and leaving to them the choice between starvation and sub-
mission.
GEEAT IMPROVEMEXTS IX THE COMFORTS OF LIFE.
The steam locomotive, of which we have given a brief history, came into
OSCEOLA'S INDIGNATION.
general use during the presidency of General Jackson. When he left office
1,500 miles of railway had been built, and many more were being laid in dif-
ferent parts of the country. It wrought a social revolution by bringing all parts
of the country into close communication, making settlement easy and the cost
of moving crops slight. Anthracite coal was tested in 1837, and, because of its
great advantages, was soon widely used. McCormick's reaper was j^atented in
1834, and gave an enormous impetus to the cultivation of western lands. In
the early days fire was obtained by the use of flint and steel or the sun-glass.
222 JACKSON, VAN BUREN, HARRISON, AND TYLER.
Friction matclies appeared in 1836, and quickly supplanted the clumsy method
that had been employed for centuries.
On the night of December 16, 1835, New York City was visited by the
most destructive fire in its history. The weather was so cold that the volunteer
fire department could do little to check the confiagration, which destroyed 648>
builings, covering seventeen blocks and thirteen acres of ground. The value of
the property lost was $20,000,000.
THE COUNTRY IN 1830.
The population of the United States in 1830 was 12,866,020, and the post-
ofiices, which in 1790 numbered only 75, had grown to 8,450. The sales of the
' ^' -^ western lands had increased from $100,000
to $25,000,000 a year, a fact which ex-
]ilains the raj^id extinguishment of the
public debt.
Two States were admitted to the
Union, Arkansas in 1836 and Michi-
i;an in 1837. The former was a part
of the Louisiana purchase, and was
originally settled b}' the French at
Arkansas Post, in 1635. INIichigan
was the fourth State formed from the
^ *^- Northwest Territory, and was first
'^in''eaSlier'day^° se^f^^fl ^y tl^e French at Detroit in
1701.
olitioiU'-in assumed definite form in 1831, when Wil-
liam Llo}d CauLrOn, in his Boston paper, The Liberator,
demanded the immediate abolition of slavery. Anti-slavery
societies were organized in different parts of the country and the
members became known as abolitionists. The South was incensed by the agi-
tation, which reached its culmination in the great Civil War of 1861-65.
FRANCE AND PORTUGAL FORCED TO TERMS.
President Jackson impressed his personality upon everything with wliicli
he came in contact. We had been pressing a suit against France for the in-
juries she inflicted upon our commerce during the flurrj'- of 1798, but that
country was so laggard in paying that the President recommended to Congress
that enough French vessels should be captured to pay the bill. France flared
up and tlireatened war unless Jackson apologized. A dozen wars would not
have moved him to recall his words. England, however, mediated, and France
JOHN a CALHOUN.
223
paid the debt. Portugal took the liiiit and lost no time in settling a similar
account with us.
President Jackson, imitating Washington, issued a farewell address to his
countrymen. It Avas Avell written and jjatriotic; but his last official act, which
w!is characteristic of him, displeased many of his friends. The speculation ia
western lands had assumed such proportions that the treasury department, in
July, 183G, sent out a circular ordering the collectors of the public revenues to
receive only gold and silver in payment. Tills circular caused so nuich con-
fusion and trouble that, at the beginning of 1837, Congress modified it so that it
would have given great relief. Jack- p
son held the bill in his jwssession '
until the adjournment of Congress,
and thus prevented its becoming a
Jaw.
Tlie stormy years of Jackson's
presidency brought into prominence
three of the greatest of Americans.
All, at different times, were mem-
bers of the United States Senate,
where their genius overshadowed
those who under other circumstances
would have attracted national at-
tention. These men were John Cald-
well Calhoun, Henry Clay, and
Daniel "Webster.
JOHN C. CALHOTJX.
The first named was born near
Abbeville, South Carolina, March 18,
1782, and, graduating at Yale, studied
law and early developed fine qualities
JOHW C. CALHOaW.
(nB'i-isou).
of statesmanship. He was elected to the House of Representatives in 1811, and
became at once the leader of the younger element of the Democratic pnrty. He
was a vehement advocate of the war with Great Britain, ;ind, In 1817, was ap-
pointed secretary of war under Monroe, serving to the close of his presidency.
It has been shown that he was elected Vice-President with Adams. Elected
again with Jackson, the two became uncompromising opponents, and he re-
signed in 1832, immediately entering the Senate, where he was accepted as the
leader of the " State rights" men.
His services as senator were interrupted fir a short time when, in 1844-45,
22-4
JACK>'SOX, VAN BUREN, HARRISON, AND TYLER.
he acted as secretary of State iu Tylers adiniuistration. He was determined to
secure the admission of Texas and by his vigor did so, iu the face of a strong
opposition in tlie North. He re-eutered the iSeuate and resumed his leadership
of the extreme southern wing of the Democratic i^arty. He died in Washing-
ton, March ol, I80O, while Clay's compromise measures were pending.
Calhoun ranks among the foremost of American statesmen, and as the
champion of the South his place is far above any who api^eared before or who
have come after him. As a speaker, he was logical, clear, and always deeply in
earnest. Daniel Webster said of him : " He had the indisputable basis of all
high character — unspotted integrity
: and honor unimpeached. Nothing
i groveling, low, or meanly selfish
came near his head or his heart."
HENRY CLAY.
Henry Clay was born April
12, 1777, in the "Slashes," Virginia.
He studied law, and at the age of
twenty removed to Kentucky, which
is proud to claim the honor of hav-
ing been his home and in reality
his State. His great ability and win-
ning manners made him popular
everywhere. He served in the Ken-
tucky Legislature, and, before he was
thirty years old, was elected to the
United States Senate, of which he
was a member from 1806 to 1807.
He soon became recognized as the
foremost chamj^ion of the cause of
internal improvements and of the
tariff measures, known as the "American System." His speakership of the
Kentucky Assembly, his term as United States senator again, 1809-11, and
as a member of the House of Eepresentatives in 1811, followed rapidly.
Against precedent, being a newcomer, he was chosen Speaker, and served until
his resignation in 1814. He was as strenuous an advocate of the war with
Great Britain as Calhoun, and it has been stated that he was one of the com-
missioners who negotiated the treaty of Ghent in 1814. The following year
he was again elected to the House of Eepresentatives, and acted without a
break as Speaker until 1821. He was the most powerful advocate of the recog-
HENRY CLAY.
(1777-1S5-J).
DANIEL WEBSTER.
225
nition of the Spanish- American States in revolt, and but for Clay the Missouri
Compromise would not have been prepared and adopted.
Absent but a brief time from Congress, he again acted as Speaker in
1823-25. President Adams appointed him his secretary of State, and he
retired from office in 1829, but two years later entered the Senate from Ken-
tucky. For the following twenty years he was the leader of the Whig party,
opposed Jackson in the bank controversy, and secured the tariff" compromise of
1833 and the settlement with France in 1835. He retired from the Senate in
1843, his nomination for the presidency following a year later. Once more he
entered the Senate, in 1849, and
brought about the great compromise i
of 1850. He died June 29, 1852. i
Clay's vain struggle for the
presidency is told in the succeeding !
chapter. It seems strange that
while he was indisputably the most
popular man in the United States,
he was not able to secure the great
prize. The American Congress
never knew a more brilliant debater, ;
nor did the public ever listen to a
more magnetic orator. His various
compromise measures in the interest
of the Union were beyond the at-
tainment of any other man. His
fame rests above that which any
office can confer. His friends idol-
ized and his opponents respected
him. A strong political enemy once !
refused an introduction to him on
the ground that he could not with-
stand the magnetism of a pei-sonal acquaintance which had won "other good
haters" to his side. John C. Breckinridge, his political adversary, in his
funeral oration, said: "If I were to write his epitaph, I would inscribe as the
highest eulogy on the stone which shall mark his resting-place, 'Here lies a
man who was in tlie public service for fifty j^ears and never attemjjted to deceive
his countrymen.'"
DANIEL WEBSTER.
Daniel Webster was born January 18, 1782, at Salisbury, New Hampshire,
and died October 24, 1852. He was educated at Exeter Academy and graduated
DANIEL WEBSTER.
UTSii-lso;;).
22(5 JACKSON, VAN BUREN, HARRISON, AND TYLER.
fi'om Dartmouth College in 1801. After teacliing school a short time in Maine,
he studied law, was admitted to the bar in 1805, and began jjractice at Boscawen,
in his native 8tate. Two years afterward, he removed to Portsmouth, where he
speedily became a leader at the bar and served in Congress from 1813 to 1817.
At that time he was a moderate Federalist. He settled in Boston in 1818,
and assumed a front rank among lawyers by his argument before the United
iStates Supreme Court in the celebrated " Dartmouth College Case," which
involved the obligation of contracts and the powers of the national government.
He was congressman from Massachusetts from 1823 to 1827, was chairman of
the judiciary committee, and attracted great attention by his speeches on Greece,
then struggling for indeijendence, and his pleas in favor of free trade.
Webster's fame as an eloquent orator was already established. As such, he
was the greatest that America ever produced, and many claim that he surj^assed
any who spoke the English tongue. Among his masterpieces were his speeches
at Plymouth, 1820, on the bi-centennial ; at the laying of the corner-stone of
the Bunker Hill monument, 1825 ; and his eulogy on Adams and Jefferson,
1826.
When he entered the United States Senate in 1827, he immediately took
rank beside the giants, Calhoun and Clay. He was an advocate of the protec-
tive tariff of 1823, and in 1830 reached the highest j^oint of thrilling and
eloquent logic in his reply to Eobert Young Hayne, of South Carolina, who
asserted that any State had the right to disobey such laws of Congress as
she deemed unconstitutional. Webster's speech is a classic, never surpassed in
its way, and the debate won for him the 2:>roud title of " Expounder of the
Constitution."
Naturally Webster opposed nullification, and he and Calhoun had many
earnest contests worthy of two such masters of logic. W. H. Harrison appointed
him his secretary of State, and he remained with Tyler until 1843. In 1845,
he was again sent to the United States Senate, but in 1850 he alienated many
of his former supporters by his speech in favor of Clay's compromise measures.
He was secretary of State in 1850-52, and his death called out more addresses
and testimonials than any other since that of Washington.
PRESIDENTIAL ELECTION OF 1836.
The following was the electoral vote cast in 1836 : Martin Van Buren, of
New York, Democrat, 170 ; William Henry Harrison, of Ohio, Whig, 73 ; Hugh
L. White, of Tennessee, AVhi;r, 26 ; Daniel Webster, of Massachusetts, AVhig,
14; Willie P. Mangum, of North Carolina, Whig, 11. For Vice-President,
Richard M. Johnson, of Kentucky, Democi-at, 147 ; Francis Granger, of New
York, Whig, 77 ; John Tyler, of Virginia, Whig, 47 ; William Smith, of Ala-
MARTIN VAN BUREN.
227
bama, Democrat, 23. The vote tor Johnson as Vice-President was not .sufficient
to elect him, but he was chosen by the House of Representatives.
MARTIN VAN BUREN.
Martin Van Buren, eightli President, was born December 5, 1782, at
Kinderhook, N. Y., and died July 24, 18G2. He became eminent as a lawyer,
and his skill as a Democratic politician caused him to be known as the "Little
Magician." He held a number of public offices, being State senator. United
States senator, 1821-28 ; governor of New York, 1828-29 ; and secretary of
State under Jackson, 1829-31, when
Jackson appointed him minister to
England, but his political opponents
secured his defeat in the Senate.
Becoming Vice-President under
Jackson, he presided in the Senate
from 1833 to 1837. Jackson was
so pleased with Van Buren that he
chose him as his successor. He
was the Free Soil candidate for the
presidency in 1848, and thereliy
brought about the defeat of Cass b\-
Taylor.
The administration of Van Bu-
ren was one of the most unpopulai'
we have ever had, and through no
fault of his. A great deal of the
prosperity of Jackson's term was
superficial. He had been despotic,
as shown in his removal of the
United States Bank deposits and the
issue of the specie circular of 1836.
Confusion ensued in business, and an era of wild speculation followed a distribu-
tion of the surplus in the treasury among the States. The credit system took the
place of the cash system, banks sprang up like mushrooms, and an immense
amount of irredeemable money was put in circulation.
These institutions were known as " wild-cat banks," and their method of
defrauding tlie public was as follows : They bought several hundred thousands
of cheap bills which, having cost them practically nothing, they used in offering
higher prices for public lands than others could pay in gold and silver. They
trusted to chance that their bills would not soon come back for redemption, but
MARTIN VAN BUBEN.
(1782-1S02.) One term, 1837-18-11.
228 JACKSON, VAN BUREN, HARRISON, AND TYLER.
if they did so, the banks " failed " and the hoklers of the notes lost every
dollar.
The fraud was a deliberate one, but the establishment of the national bank-
ing law since then renders a repetition of the swindle impossible.
THE PANIC OF 1837.
Van Buren w'as hardly inaugurated when the jmnic of 1837 burst upon the
country. The banks were forced to suspend specie jDayment, many failed, and
mercantile houses that had weathered other financial storms toppled over like ten-
pins. In two months the failures in New York and New Orleans amounted to
$150,000,000. Early in May, a deputation of New York merchants and bankers
called upon the President and asked him to put off the collection of duties on
imported goods, to rescind the sjiecie circular, and convene Congress in the hope
of devising measures for relief. All that the President consented to do was to
defer the collection of duties. Immediately the banks in New York suspended
specie j^ayments, and their example was followed by others throughout the
country. The New York Legislature then authorized the susjiension of specie
payments for a year. This left the national government without the means of
paying its own obligations (since no banks would return its deposits in specie)
except by using the third installment of the surplus revenue that had been
promised to the States.
The country was threatened with financial ruin, and Congress convened in
September. The President in his message ])roposed the establishment of an
independent treasury for the custody of the public funds, and their total separa-
tion from banking institutions. Such a bill fixiled, but it became a law in 1840.
Congress, however, obtained temporary relief by authorizing the issue of
$10,000,000 in treasury notes.
The fact remained, however, that the country was rich, and though much
distress prevailed, the financial stress began to lessen as more healthy methods
of business were adopted. In 1838 most of the banks resumed specie payments,
but the effect of the panic was felt for years. Since the distress occurred while
Van Buren was President, the blame was placed liy many upon the adminis-
tration.
At that time the present Dominion of Canada was divided into two prov-
inces, known as Upper and Lower Canada. Dissatisfaction with some of the feat-
ures of Great Britain's rule caused a rebellion in Lower Canada in 1837. JMuch
sympathy was felt for them in this country, and especially in New York, from
which a force of 700 men seized and fortified Navy Island, in Niagara River.
There were plenty of loyalists in Canada, who made an attempt to capture the
place, but failed. On the night of December 29, 1837, they impetuously
WILLIAM HEMIY HARBISON.
229
attacked the supply steamer Caroline, killed twelve of the defenders, set the
boat on fire, and sent it over Niagara Falls.
President Van Buren issued a proclamation forbidding all interference in
the affairs of Canada, and General Wool was sent to the frontier with a military
force strong enough to compel obedience. He obliged the insurgents on Navy
Island to surrender and pledge themselves to refrain from all unlawful acts.
These vigorous measures soon brought quiet to the border, and England's wise
policy toward the disaffected provinces has niiule Canada one of her most loval
provinces. '
The population of the United
States in 1840 was 17,649,453,
further evidence of the real pros-
perity of the country. Railroad
building went on vigorously, there
being fully 4,000 miles in operation
at the close of Van Buren's term.
PRESIDENTIAL ELECTION OF 1840.
The following was the presiden-
tial vote of 1840: William Henry
Harrison, of Ohio, Whig, 234;
Martin Van Buren, 70. For Vice-
President, John Tyler, 234 ; R. M.
Johnson, 48 ; L. W. Tazewell, of
Virginia, Democrat, 11 ; James K.
Polk, of Tennessee, Democrat, 1.
WILLIAM HENRY HARRISON.
William Henry Harrison, ninth
President, was born February 9, 1773,
in Virginia, and was the son of Benjamin Harrison, a signer of the Declaration of
Independence, and afterward governor of Virginia. The son graduated from
Hampden-Sidney College, and took up the study of medicine, but was fond of
military matters, and, entering the army of St. Clair, he displayed great bravery
and skill. He helped General Wayne win his victory over the Indians in
1794, and was rapidly promoted. He became secretary of the Northwest Teri'i-
tory in 1798, and the following year was made delegate to Congress. In 1800,
he was appointed governor of Indiana Territory, and was acting as such when
he won his decisive victory at Tippecanoe, in the autumn of 1811. An account
has been given of his brilliant services in the W;ir of 1S12.
WILLIAM HENHY HAKHiauJM.
(i77:i-IS41) One month, ISIl.
230 JACK^OX, VAX BUREN, HARRISOX, AXD TYLER.
He attained the rank of major-general in the regular array, but resigned in
1814. He was congressman from 1816 to 1819, United States senator from
1825 to 1828, and United States minister to the United States of Columbia,
1828-29.
President Harrison wore no hat or overcoat while delivering his inaugural.
Although accustomed to the hardshijxs of the frontier, and naturally one of the
most rugged of men, he was now old and weak in body. His imprudence,
added to the annoyance from the clamorous office-seekers, drove him frantic.
He succumbed to pneumonia and died on the 4th of April, just one month
after his inauguration. He was the first President to die in office, and an im-
mense concourse attended his funeral, his remains being interred near North
Bend, Ohio.
JOHN TYLER.
As provided by the Constitution, the Vice-President, John Tyler, was
immediately sworn into office as his successor. Like many of his prede-
cessors, John Tyler was a native of Virginia, where he was born March 29,
1790. He jiossessed great natural ability and was a practicing lawyer at the
age of nineteen, and a member of the State Legislature at twenty-one. When
thirty-five, he was chosen governor of Virginia, and was a United States sena-
tor from 1827 to 183G.
Since he was the first President not elected to the office, there was con-
siderable discussion among the politicians as to his precise status. It was con-
tended by some that he was chief executive " in trust," and was therefore bound
to carry out the policy of his immediate ^predecessor. Tyler insisted that he
was as much the President, in every respect, as if he had been elected by the
people to that office, and in this insistence he was unquestionably right.
Tyler quickly involved himself in trouble with the Whigs. They passed
an act to re-establish the United States Bank, whose charter expired in 1836,
though it had continued in operation under the authority of the State of Penn-
sylvania. President Tyler vetoed the bill. He suggested some modifications,
and it was passed again, but to the indignant amazement of his party he vetoed
it a .second time. He was declared a traitor and widely denounced. All his
cabinet resigned, with the exception of Daniel Webster, who, as stated else-
where, remained until 1843, in order to comi^lete an important treaty with
England then under negotiation.
THE WEBSTER-ASHBTJRTOISr TREATY.
This was known as the AYebster-Ashburton Treaty. Our northeastern
boundary was loosely defined by the treaty of 1783, and it was finally agreed
by Great Britain and the United States to refer the questions in dispute to three
THE ANTI-RENT WAR IN NEW YORK.
231
commissions to be jointly constituted by the two countries. The first of these
awarded the islands in Passamaquoddy Bay to the United States ; the third
established the boundary line from the intersection of the forty-fifth parallel
with the St. Lawrence to the western point of Lake Huron. It remained
for the second commission to determine the boundary from the Atlantic to the
St. Lawrence. The question was a bone of contention for many years, and at
last was referred to Daniel AVebster and Lord Ashburtou. The.-~e two gentle-
men met in a spirit of fairness, calmly discussed the matter, and without the
slightest friction reached an agreement, which was signed August U, 1<542, and
confirmed by the Senate.
CIVIL WAR IN RHODE ISLAXD.
Rhode Island had been gov-
erned down to 1842 by the charter
received from Charles II., in 1663.
This charter jaermitted only the
owners of a certain amount of j^rop-
erty to vote. Dissatisfaction gradu-
ally grew until 1842, when two
l^olitical parties were formed in the
little State, one favoring a new con-
stitution and the other clinging to
the old. The former carried the
Legislature, after adopting a State
constitution, and elected Thomas AV.
Dorr governor. Their opponents
elected Samuel AV. King, and both
placed armed forces in the field.
AA'hen civil war was imminent, the
national government interfered and
Dorr's forces were disj^ersed without
JOHN TYLER.
(irgo-lSfii) One partial term. 1841-1S45.
bloodshed. Dorr was arrested, and on his trial found guilty of treason. He
was sentenced to imprisonment for life, but offered liberty on condition of tak-
ing the oath of allegiance. He refused, and, in June, 1845, was unconditionally
released. Meanwhile, the general dissatistactiou with the colonial charter led
to the calling of a convention, which adopted a new constitution, that went
into effect in Mav, 1843.
THE AXTI-REXT WAR IX XEW YORK.
It has been shown that when the Diuch were the owners ot* Xew York
232 JACKSON, VAN BUREN, HARRISON, AND TYLER.
State many of them took possession of immense tracts of lands, over wliicli tliey
ruled like the feudal lords in ancient England. These grants and privileges
were inherited by their descendants and were not affected by the Revolution.
Among the wealthiest patroons wei-e the Van Rensselaers, whose estates included
most of Albany and Rensselaer Counties. Stej^hen Van Rensselaer was easy-
going and so wealthy that he did not take the trouble to collect the rents due
from his numerous tenants, who, at his death, in 1840, owed him nearly a quarter
of a million of dollars. His heii's determined to collect this amount and set
vigorous measures on foot to do so. The tenants resisted, furious fights took
place, and the military were called out, but the tenants remained resolute in re-
fusing to pay rent. The disturbances continued and were known as "The Anti-
Rent War." The eastern towns of Rensselaer County and the Livingston manor
of Columbia County were soon in a state of insurrection, and many outrages
were committed. In Delaware County, while a deputy-sheriff was trying to
perform his duty he Avas killed. The civil authorities were jiowerless to sup-
press the revolt, and, in 184(5, the governor declared the County of Delaware
in a state of insurrection, and called out the military. They arrested the ring-
leaders, and the murderers of the deputy-sheriff were sentenced to imprisonment
for life. Conciliatory measures followed, most of the patroon lands were sold
to the tenants, and the great estates gradually passed out of existence.
A SHOCKING ACCIDENT.
A shocking accident occurred on the 28th of February, 1844. Mr.
Upshur, secretary of State, Mr. Gilmer, secretary of the navy, and a number of
distinguished ladies and gentlemen were taken on an excursion down the
Potomac, by Commodore Stockton, on the steamer Princeton. For the enter-
tainment of his guests, the commodore ordered the firing of an immense new
gun that had been jjlaced on board a short time before. It had been discharged
several times, and, upon what was intended and indeed proved to be the last dis-
charge, it exploded, killing Mr. Upshur, Mr. Gilmer, Commodore Kennon,
Virgil Maxey, lately minister to The Hague, and several of the visitors, besides
wounding seventeen sailors, some of whom died. Although Commodore
Stockton lived many years afterward, he never fully recovered from the shock.
The accident cast a gloom throughout the whole country.
ADMISSION OF FLORIDA.
One State, Florida, was admitted to the Union during Tyler's adminis-
tration. Its early history has been given, it having been bought from Spain in
1819. It was made a State in 1845.
Texas now became a subject of national interest. Although the United
ABJIISSION OF TEXAS. 233
States made claim to it as a part of the Louisiana j^urchase, the claim was
abaiidoued iu 1819, when Florida came iuto our possession. In 1821, a colony
of Americans formed a settlement in Mexican territory, encouraged to do so
by the home government. Others emigrated thither, among whom were many
restless adventurers and desperate men. By-and-by they began talking of
wresting Texas from Mexico and transferring it to the United States. There
is little doubt that in this design they received encouragement from many men
holding high places in the United States.
THE TEXAS KEVOLUTION.
The ferment in Texas increased, and, on the 2d of March, 1836, a con-
vention declared Texas independent. Santa Anna, president of the Mexican
Republic, crossed the Rio Grande with a large force and advanced to San
Antonio, where less than 200 Texans had taken refuge in a mission-house
known as the Alamo, with their flag, consisting of a single star, floating defiantly
above it. In this body of fearless men were the eccentric Davy Crockett,
formerly congressman from Tennessee ; the Bowie brothers, one of whom was
the inventor of the Bowie knife ; Colonel Travis, and others as dauntless
as they. They had several rifles apiece, and maintained a spirited defense,
night and day, for ten days, under the incessant attacks of the Mexicans.
Finally, when the brave band was reduced to less than a dozen, they surrenderd
under the promise that their lives would be spared. Santa Anna caused the
massacre of every one.
"Remember the Alamo! " became the war-cry of the Texans, and, in the
following month, under the command of Sam Houston, they virtually destroyed
the Mexican array and took Santa Anna prisoner. Houston was more merciful
to him than he had been to the Alamo prisoners, and protected him from the
vengeance of the soldiers. He was very glad to sign a treaty acknowledging the
independence of Texas.
The Mexican government, however, repudiated the action of its president,
and a guerrilla warfare was waged by both sides for several years without any
progress being made in the conquest of the province. Texas organized itself
into an indej^endent rejiublic, elected Sam Houston president, and secured recog-
nition from the United States, England, and several European governments.
While making no organized effort to conquer Texas, Mexico insisted that the
province was her ov,'n.
ADMISSION OF TEXAS.
One of the first steps of Texas, after declaring her independence , was to
apply for admission into the Union. There was great opposition in the North
because its admission would add an enormous slave area to our country. For the
234 JACKSON, VAN BUREN, HARRISON, AND TYLER.
same reason the South clamored that it shoukl be made a State. Calhoun, who
succeeded Upshur as secretary of State, in March, 1844, \)\\.t forth every effort
to bring Texas into the Union. Clay's opposition lost him the support of the
South in his presidential aspirations. President Tyler, who favored its admis-
sion, made an annexation treaty with Texas, but the Senate refused to ratify it.
Then a joint resolution was introduced, and, after a hot discussion, was passed
with the jjroviso that the incoming President might act, if he preferred, by
treaty. The resolution was adopted March 1, 1845, by the Senate, three days
before the close of President Tyler's term. Calhoun instantly dispatched a
messenger to Texas with orders to travel with the utmost haste that the new
State might be brought in under the resolution. President Tyler immediately
signed the bill, and the "Lone-Star" State became a member of the Union.
On the last day but one of the close of his term he signed the bills for the
admission of Florida and Iowa, but the latter was not formally admitted until
the following year.
THE COPPER MINES OF MICHIGAN.
There were many events of a non-political nature, but of the highest
importance, that occurred during Tyler's administration. Copper took its place
as one of the great mineral productions of the United States in 1844. The
Indians at last abandoned their claims to the country near Lake Superior, in
northern Michigan, and the explorations that followed proved that the copper
mines there are the richest in the world. Numerous companies were formed
and copper-mining became the leading industry of that section. An interesting
discovery was that many of the mines had been worked hundreds of years
before by the Indians.
The wonderful richness of the gold deposits in California, the vast mineral
resources of Missouri and Tennessee, and the untold wealth of the petroleum
bed under the surface of Pennsylvania were unsuspected.
THE PRESIDENTIAL CONTEST OF 1844.
The presidential election of 1844 hinged on the question of the proposed
annexation of Texas. It has been stated that the Whigs nominated Henry Clay,
who opposed annexation. Van Buren lost the Democratic renomination through
his opposition to annexation, and the Southern Democrats secured the candidacy
of James K. Polk. The Abolitionists did not think Clay's opposition to annex-
ation quite as earnest as it sliould be, and they placed William Birney in nomi-
nation. As a result Clay lost the State of New York, and through that his
election to the presidency. The electoral vote was as follows :
James K. Polk, of Tennessee, Democrat, 170 ; Henry Clay, of Kentucky,
Whig, 105. For Vice-President, George M. Dallas, of Pennsylvania, Democrat,
THE MAGNETIC TELEGRAPH.
235
170 ; Theodore Frelinghuysen, of New Jersey, Whig, 105. This secured the
election of Polk and Dallas. James G. Birney and Thomas Morris, candidates
of the Liberty party for President and Vice-President, received no electoral
vote,- but, as stated, caused the loss of the State of New York to Clay, thereby
throwing enough electoral votes to Polk and Dallas to give them success.
THE MAGNETIC TELEGRAPH.
The convention which placed Polk in nomination was held in the city of
Baltimore. A niilway train was waiting to carry the news to Washington, and,
as soon as the passengers could hurry on board,
^ ^" ir ^-tcamf d at the highest '^pccd to the national
t.ipitjl AVlu n the people lett the cars an
oui latt 1 the} found, to
their i n -
expressible
'i%Mrig^^ amazement,
newspaper
"^ extras for sale
-Jl containing
the news of
Polk's nomi-
11 ition. I n
1 n s w e r to
tlieir ques-
tions they
^\ (ire told that
it had been
leeeivedfrom
Baltimoi-e by
TELEGRAPH.
This Avas
on the 29th of May, 1844, and was the first pul)lic message sent by magnetic
telegraph. It marked an era in the history of civilization.
Investigation seems to establish that Professor Joseph Henry, of the Smith-
sonian Institute, was the real inventor of the electro-magnetic telegraph, though
that honor has been given and will continue to be given by most people to Pro-
fessor Samuel F. B. Morse, whose relation to the telegraph Avas nuich the same
as that of Fulton to the steamboat. He added to the ideas of those before him
and first brought them into practical use.
Professor JNIorse deserves all the credit he has received as one of the greatest
^ .
SHOP IN VFHICH THE FIRST MORSE INSTRUMENT WAS CONSTRUCTED
FOB EXHIBITION BEFORE CONGRESS
236
JACKSON, VAN BUREN, HARRISON, AND TYLER.
of inventors. He studied painting when young and became an artist of consid-
erable skill. As early us 1832 he conceived the idea of an electro-magnetic
telegrajjh and began his experiments. The project absorbed all his energies
until he became what is called in these days a " crank," which is often the name
of one who gives all his thoughts and efforts to the development of a single
project. He th-ifted away from his relatives, who looked ujkju him as a visionary
dreamer, and wlien his ragged clothes and craving stomach demanded attention,
he gave instruction in drawing to a few students who clung to him.
Light gradually dawned upon Morse, and he continued his labors under
discouragements that would have overcome almost any other man. He secured
help from Alfred Vail, of Morristown, N. J., who invented the alphabetical
characters and many es-
sential features of the sys-
tem, besides furnishing
Morse with funds, with-
out which his labors
would have come to a
standstill. There was not
enough capital at com-
mand to construct a line
of telegraph, and INIorse
and his few friends
haunted Congress with
their j)lea for an appro-
priation. Ezra Cornell,
founder of Cornell Uni-
versity, gave assistance,
and, finally, in the very closing days of the session of Congress in 1844, an ap-
propriation of $30,000 was made to defray the expenses of a line between Bal-
timore and Washington.
The invention, like most others of an important nature, was subjected to
merciless ridicule. A wag hung a pair of muddy boots out of a window in
Washington, with a placard announcing that they belonged to a man who had just
arrived by telegraph ; another placed a package on the wires, and called to his
friends to see it whisked away by lightning ; while many opposed the apparent
experimenting with the electric fluid, which they believed would work all sorts
of mischief Nevertheless, the patient toilers kept at work, often stopped by
accident, and in the face of all manner of opposition. The first line was laid
underground, and, as has been shown, carried the news of Polk's nomination
for the presidency to Washington.
THE SPEEDWELL IRON WOEKS, MOEHISTOWW, N. J.
Here was forged the shaft for the Savannah, the first steamship which crossed the
Atlantic. Here was mauiifactured the tires, axles and cranks of the first American
locomotive. Shop in which Vail and Baxter constrncted tlie first telegraph appa-
ratus, invented by Morse, for exhibition before Congress.
THE FIRST TELEGRAM. 237
Professor Morse was in Washington, and the first message was dictated by
Annie Ellsworth, Marcli 28, 1844, and received by Alfred Vail, forty miles away
in Baltimore. It consisted of the words, " What hath God wrought?" and the
telegram is now in the jiossession of the Connecticut Historical Society. It may
be said that since then the earth has been girdled by telegraph lines, numbers
of wliich pass under the ocean, uniting all nations and the uttermost extremities
of the world.
In the preceding pages we liave done little more than give the results of the
various presidential campaigns. The two leading jiolitical parties were the
Whigs and the Democrats, and many of the elections were of absorbing interest,
not only to the jxirticipants, but to the country at large. Several were distin-
guished by features worthy of permanent recoi'd, since they throw valuable
light upon the times, now forgotten, and were attended in many instances by far-
reaching results.
It seems proper, therefore, that a chapter should be devoted to the most
important presidential campaigns preceding and including one of the most mem-
orable — that of 1840 — often referred to as the "hard cider campaign."
OLD GATES AT BT. AUGUaTIJNiE, lEOXllUA.
CHAPTER XII.
FAVIOUS PRESIDKNTIAL CAIS/IPAIGNS PREVIOUS
TO 18-40.
Tlie Origin of the " Caucus "—The Election of 1702— The First Stormy Election— The Constitution
Amended — Improvement of the Method of Nominating Presidential Candidates — The First Presiden-
tial Convention — Convention in Baltimore in 1832 — Esciting Scenes — The Presidential Campaign of
1S20 — " Old Hickory " — Andrew Jackson's Popularity — Jackson Nominated — " Old Hickory " De-
feated—The "Log-Cabin " and " Hard-Cider " Campaign of 1840— " Tippecanoe and Tyler Too " —
Peculiar Feature of the Harrison Campaign.
The presidential nominating convention is a modern institution. In the
early days of the Republic a very different method was pursued in order to
place the candidates for the highest office in the land before the people.
THE ORIGIN OF THE " CAUCUS."
In the first place, as to the origin of the " caucus." In the early part of
the eighteenth century a number of caulkers connected with the shipping busi-
ness in the North End of Boston held a meeting for consultation. That meet-
ing was the germ of the political caucuses whicli have formed so prominent a
feature of our government ever since its organization.
The Constitution of our country was framed and signed in the month of
September, 1787, by the convention sitting in Philadelphia, and then sent to
the various Legislatures for their action. It could not become binding until
ratified by nine States. On the 2d of July, 1788, Congress was notified that
the necessary nine States had approved, and on the 13th of the following Sep-
(•239)
240 FAMOUS PRESIDENTIAL CAMPAIGNS PREVIOUS TO 18Jfi.
tember a day was ap2)ointeil for the choice of electors for President. Tlie day
selected was the first Wednesday of January, 1789. The date for the begin-
ning of proceedings under the new Constitution was postponed to the first Wed-
nesday in March, which happened to fall on the 4th. In that way the 4th of
March became fixed as the date of the inauguration of each President, except
when the date is on Sunday, when it becomes the 5th.
Congress met at that time in the city of New York. It was not until the
1st of April that a quorum for business a2:ipeared in the House of Representa-
tives, and the Senate was organized on the 6th of that month. The electors
who were to choose the President were selected by the various State Legislatures,
each elector being entitled to cast two votes. The rule was that the candidate
receiving the highest number became President, while the next highest vote
elected the Vice-President. The objection to this method was that the two
might belong to different political parties, which very condition of things came
about at the election of the second President, when John Adams was chosen to
the highest office and Thomas Jefferson to the second. The former was a Fed-
eralist, while Jefferson was a Republican, or, as he would have been called later,
a Democrat. Had Adams died while in office, the policy of his administration
would have been changed.
There could be no doubt as to the first choice. While Washington lived
and was willing thus to serve his country, what other name could be considered ?
So, when the electoral vote was counted on the 6tli of April, 1789, every vote
of the ten States which took part in the election was cast for him. He received
69 (all) ; John Adams, 34 ; John Jay, 9 ; R. H. Harrison, 6 ; John Rutledge,
6 ; John Hancock, 4 ; George Clinton, 3 ; Samuel Huntingdon, 2 ; John Mil-
ton, 2; James Armstrong, Benjamin Lincoln, and Edward Telfair, 1 each.
THE ELECTION OF 1792.
At the next election, in 1792, the result was : Washington, 132 (all) votes ;
John Adams, 77 ; George Clinton, 50 ; Thomas Jefferson, 4 ; Aaron Burr, 1 ;
vacancies, 3. It would have been the same at the third election had the illus-
trious Father of his Country consented to be a candidate ; but he was growing
feeble, and had already sacrificed so much for his country, that his yearning for
the quiet, restful life at Mount Vernon could not be denied him. So he retired,
and, less than three years later, j^assed from earth.
THE FIRST STOKMY ELECTION.
What may be looked upon as the first stormy election of a President toot
place in 1800. When the electoral votes came to be counted, they were found
to be distributed as follows : Thomas Jefferson, 73 ; Aaron Burr, 73 ; John
THE FIRST STORMY ELECTION.
241
Adams, Qb ; Charles C. Piiickuey, 64 ; John Jay, 1. Jeffersou and Burr being
tied, tiie election was thrown into the House of Kejsresentatives, where the con-
test became a memorable one. The House met on the 11th of February, 1801,
to decide the question. On the first ballot, Jefterson had eight States and Uurr
six, while ^Maryland and Vermont were equally divided. Here was another
tie.
Meanwhile, one of the most terrific snowstorms ever known swept over
^r^-^
"Washington. Mr. Nicholson, of Maryland, w^as seriously ill in bed, and yet, if
he did not vote, his State would be given to Burr, who would be elected Presi-
dent. Nicholson showed that he had the " courage of his convictions " by allow-
ing himself to be bundled up and carried through the blizzard to one of the
committee rooms, where his wife stayed by his side day and night. On each
ballot the box was brought to his bedside, and he did not miss one. The House
remained in continuous session until thirty-five ballots had been cast without
any change.
It was clear by that time that Burr could not be elected, for the columns
of Jefferson were as immovable as a stone wall. The break, when it came, must
16
242 FAMOUS PRESIDENTIAL CAMPAIGNS PREVIOUS TO ISW-
be ill the ranks of Burr. On the thirty-sixth ballot, the Federalists of Mary-
land, Delaware, and South Carolina voted blank, and the Federalist of Vermont
stayed away. This gave the friends of Jefferson their opportunity, and, for-
tunately for the country, Thomas Jefferson was elected instead of the miscreant
Burr.
THE CONSTITUTION AMENDED.
As a result of this noted contest, the Constitution was so amended that each
elector voted for a President and a Vice-President, instead of for two candidates
for President. It was a needed improvement, since it insured that both should
belong to the same political party.
During the first term of Washington, the country was divided into two
powerful political parties. j\Ien who, like Washington, Hamilton, and others,
believed in a strong central government, with only such political power as was
absolutely necessary distributed among the various States, were Federalists.
Those who insisted upon the greatest possible power for the States, yielding
nothing to Congress beyond what was distinctly specified in the Constitution,
were Republicans, of whom Thomas Jefferson was the foremost leader. Other
points of difference developed as the years passed, but the main distinction w^as
as given. After the election of John Adams, the Federalist party gradually
dwindled, and in the war of 1812 its unpatriotic course fatally weakened the
organization.
THE COUNTRY DIVIDED IN PARTIES.
The Republican party took the name of Democratic-Republican, which is
its official title to-day. During IMonroe's administration, when almost the last
vestige of Federalist vanished, their opponents gradually acquired the name of
Democrats, by which they are now known. After a time, the Federalists were
succeeded by the Whigs, who held well together until the quarrel over the
admission of Kansas and the question of slavery split the party into frag-
ments. From these, including Know Nothings, Abolitionists, Free Soilers, and
Northern Democrats, was builded, in 1856, the present Republican jjarty, whose
foundation stone was opposition to the extension of slavery. Many minor
parties have sprung into ephemeral life from time to time, but the Democrats
and Republicans will undoubtedly be the two great political organizations for
many years to come, as they have been for so many years past.
IMPROVEMENT OF THE METHOD OF NOMINATING PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATES.
It will be noted that the old-fashioned method of nominating presidential
candidates was clumsy and frequently unfair. Candidates sometimes announced
themselves for offices within the gift of the people; but if that practice had con-
tinued to modern times, the number of candidates thus appealing for the suffrages
THE FIRST PRESIDENTIAL CONVENTION.
243
of their fellow-citizens might have threatened to equal the number of voters
themselves. The more common plan was for the party leaders to hold private
or informal caucuses. The next method was for the legislative caucus to name
the man. The unfairness of this system was that it shut out from representation
thdse whose districts had none of the Ojiposite [)olitical party in the Legislature.
To adjust the matter, the caucus rule was so modified as to admit delegates spe-
cially sent up from the districts that were not represented in the Legislature.
This, it will be seen, was an important step in the direction of the jjresent system,
which makes a nominating convention consist of delegates from every part of a
State, chosen for the sole purpose of Tnaking nominations.
THE WHITE HOUSE AT WASHINGTON, D. C.
The perfected method appeared in New Jersey as early as 1812, in Penn-
sylvania in 1817, and in New York in 1825. There was no clearly defined plan
followed in making the presidential nominations for 1824, and four years later
the legislative caucus system was almost universally followed. After that, the
system which had been applied in various States was applied to national matters.
THE FIRST PRESIDENTIAL COXVEXTIOX.
In the year 1826, William Morgan, a worthless character, living in Bata-
via. New York, attempted to exjiose the secrets of the order of Free Masons, of
which he had become a member. While he was engaged in j^rinting his book,
244 FAiMOUS FllEtilDENTIAL CAMFAIGNii PREVIOUS TO 18^0.
lie disappeared and was never afterward seen. The Masons were accused of
making way with him, and a wave of 02:)position swept over the country which
closed many lodges and seemed for a time to threaten the extinction of the
order. An anti-Masonic party was formed and became strong enough to carry
the election in several States. Not only that, but in September, 1831, the anti-
Masons held a National nominating convention in Baltimore and put forward
William Wirt, former attorney-general of the United States, as their nominee
for the Presidency, with Amos EUmaker, candidate for the Vice-Presidency.
The ticket received seven electoral votes. The noteworthy fact about this
almost forgotten matter is that the convention was the first 2iresidential one held
in this country.
COXVENTION IN BALTIMORE IN 1832.
The system was now fairly launched, for in December of the same year
the National Republicans met in convention in Baltimore and nominated Henry
Clay, and in May, 1832, Martin Van Buren was nominated by a Democratic
convention. He was renominated at the same place and in the same manner in
1835, but the Whigs did not imitate theii- opjjonents. In 1840, however, the
system was adopted by both jiarties, and has been followed ever since.
Our whole country seethes with excitement from the hour when the first
candidate is hinted at until his nomination is made, followed by his election or
defeat a few months later. Some pei'sons see a grave peril in this periodic con-
vulsion, which shakes the United States like an earthquake, but it seems after
all to be a sort of j^olitical thunderstorm which purifies the air and clarifies the
ideas that otherwise would become sodden or morbid. It is essentially Ameri-
can, and our people's universal love of fair play leads them to accept the ver-
dict at the polls with philosophy and good nature.
And yet there have been many exciting scenes at the nominating conven-
tions of the past, as there doubtless will be in many that are yet to come. Com-
ing down to later times, how often has it proved that the most astute politicians
were all at sea in their calculations. The proverbial " dark horse " has become
a potent factor whom it is not safe to forget in making uj) political probabilities.
THE PRESIDENTIAL CAMPAIGN OF 1820.
Probably the most tranquil presidential campaign of the nineteenth cen-
tury was that of 1820, when James Monroe was elected for the second time.
He was virtually the only candidate before the country for the exalted office.
When the electoral college met, the astounding fact was revealed that he had
every vote — the first time such a thing had occurred since Washington's elec-
tion.
But there was one elector who had the couracje to do that which was never
ANDREW JACKSON'S POPULARITY. 245
done before and has never been done since: lie voted contrary to bis instruc-
tions and in opposition to the ticket on which he was elected. Blumer, of Nev/
Hampshire, explained that, as he viewed it, no President had the right to share
the honor of a unanimous election with Washington, and, though an ardent
friend of Monroe, he deliberately cast his one vote for Adams, in order to pre-
serve Wasliington's honor distinct. His motive was appreciated, and Blumer
was applauded for the act, Monroe himself being pleased with it.
" OLD HICKORY."
It is hardly necessary to repeat that this incident has not been duplicated
since that day. Andrew Jackson, " Old Hickory," was probably the most pop-
ular man in the country when the time came for naming the successor of Mon-
roe. It may sound strange, but it is a fact, that when the project of running
him for the presidency was first mentioned to Jackson, he was displeased. It
had never entered his head to covet that exalted office.
"Don't think of it," he said; "I haven't the first qualification; I am a
rough, plain man, fitted perhaps to lead soldiers and fight the enemies of our
country, but as for the presidency, the idea is too absurd to be held."
But what American cannot be convinced that he is pre-eminently fitted for
the office ? It did not take long for the ambition to be kindled in the breast
of the doughty hero. His friends flattered him into the conviction that he was
the man of all others to assume the duties, and the " bee buzzed " as loudly in
Jackson's bonnet as it ever has in that of any of his successors.
ANDREW Jackson's popularity.
It cannot be denied that " Old Hickory " was a great man, and though he
was deficient in education, lacking in statesmanship, and obstinate to the last
degree, he was the possessor of those rugged virtues which invariably command
respect. He was honest, clean in his private life, a stanch friend, an uni-e-
lenting enemy, and an intense patriot — one who was ready to risk nis life at
any hour for his country. In addition, he never knew the meaning of jier-
sonal fear. No braver person ever lived. When the sheriff in a court-i'oom
was afraid to attempt to arrest a notorious desperado, Jackson leaped over the
chairs, seized the ruffian by the throat, hurled him to the floor, and cowed him
into submission. When a piece of treachery was discovered on a Kentucky
racecourse, Jackson fticed a mob of a thousand infuriated men, ruled off the
dishonest official, and carried his point. He challenged the most noted duelist
of the southwest, because he dared to cast a slur upon Jackson's wife. It mat-
tered not that the scoundrel had never failed to kill his man, and that all of
Jackson's friends warned him that it was certain death to meet the def^d-shot.
246 FAMOUS PRESIDENTIAL CAMPAIGNS PREVIOUS TO mo.
At the exchange of shots, Jackson was frightfully wounded, but he stood as
rigid as iron, and sent a bullet through the body of his enemy, whom he did
not let know he was himself wounded until the other breathed his last.
Above all, had not "Old Hickory" won the battle of New Orleans, the most
brilliant victory of the War of 1812? Did not he and his unerring riflemen
from the backwoods of Tennessee and Kentucky spread consternation, death,
and defeat among the red-coated veterans of Waterloo? No wonder that the
anniversary of that glorious battle is still celebrated in every part of the
country, and no wonder, too, that the American people demanded that the hero
of all these achievements should be rewarded with the highest oflice in the gift
of his countrymen.
JACKSON NOMINATED.
Jackson, having "placed himself in the hands of his friends," threw
himself into the struggle with all the unquenchable ardor of his nature. On
July 22, 1822, the Legislature of Tennessee was first in the field by placing him
in nomination. On tlie 22d of February, 1824, a Federalist convention at Har-
risburg, Pa., nominated him, and on the 4th of ]\Iarch following a Eepubliean
convention did the same. It would seem that he was now fairly before the
country, but the regular Democratic nominee, that is, the one named by the
congressional caucus, was William H. Crawford, of Georgia. The remaining
candidates were John Quincy Adams and Henry Clay, and all of them belonged
to the Republican party, which had retained the presidency since 1800. Adams
and Clay were what was termed loose constructionists, while Jackson and Craw-
ford were strict constructionists.
"old hickory" defeated.
The canvass was a somewhat jumbled one, in which each candidate had his
ardent partisans and supporters. The contest was carried out with vigor and
the usual abuse, personalitieg, and vituperation until the polls were closed.
Then when the returns came to be made up it was found that Jackson had
received 99 electoral votes, Adams 84, Crawford 41, and Clay 37. "Old
Hickory" was well ahead, but his strength was not sufficient to make him Presi-
dent, even though on the popular vote he led Adams by more than 50,000.
Consequently the election went to the House of Representatives, where the
supporters of Clay combined with those of Adams and made him President.
Thus came the singular result that- the man who had the largest popular and
electoral vote was defeated.
It was a keen disappointment to Jackson and his friends. The great Sena-
tor Benton, of INIissouri, one of the warmest supporters of "Old Hickory,"
angrily declared that the House was deliberately defying the will of the people
THE "LOG-CABIN AND HARD-CIDER" CAMPAIGN.
247
by placing a miuority candidate in the cliair. The senator's position, however,
was untenable, and so it was that John Quincy Adams became the sixth Presi-
dent of our country.
Jackson's triumph.
But the triumph of " Old Hickory " was only postponed. His defeat was
looked upon by the majority of men as a deliberate piece of trickery, and they
" lay low " for the next opportunity to square matters. No fear of a second
chance being presented to their opponents. Jackson was launched into the can-
vass of 1828 like a cyclone, and when the returns were made up he had 178
electoral votes to 83 for Adams — a vote which lifted him safely over the edge of
a plurality and seated him firmly in the White House.
It is not our province to treat of the administration of Andrew Jackson, for
OLD SPANISH HOUSE ON BOUHBON STREET, NEW ORLEANS.
that belongs to history, but the hold which that remarkalile man maintained
upon the affections of the people was emphasized when, in 1832, he was re-
elected by an electoral vote of 219 to 49 for Clay, 11 for Floyd, and 7 for AVirt.
Despite the popular prejudice against a third term, there is little doubt that
Jackson would have been successful had he chosen again to be a candidate.
He proved his strength l:)y selecting his successor, Martin Van Buren.
THE " LOG-CABIX AND HARD-CIDER '' CAMPAIGN OF 1840.
The next notable presidential battle was the " log-cabin and hard-cider''
cam[)aign of 1840, the like of which was never before seen in this country.
General William Henry Harrison had been defeated by Van Buren in 1836,
but on the 4th of December, 18;)9, tlie National Whig Convention, which met
248 FA3I0US PRESIDENTIAL CAMPAIGNS PREVIOUS TO mO.
at Harrisburg to decide the claims of rival candidates, placed Harrison in
nomination, while the Democrats again nominated Van Bureu.
General Harrison lived at North Bend, Ohio, in a house which consisted
of a log-cabin, built many years before by a j^ioneer, and was afterward covered
with clapboards. The visitors to the house {)raised the republican simplicity of
the old soldier, the hero of Tippecanoe, and the principal campaign biography
said that his table, instead of being supplied with costly wines, was furnished
with an abundance of the best cider.
The canvass had hardly opened, when the Baltimore Republican slurred
General Harris(jn by remarking that, if some one would pension him with a
THE MARIGKTY HOUSE, NEW ORLEANS.
(WlKTf Louis Philippe stopped in 17'Js.)
few hundred dollars and give him a barrel of hard cider, he would sit down in
his log-cabin and be content for the rest of his life. That sneer furnished the
keynote of the campaign. Hard cider became almost the sole beverage of the
Whigs throughout the country. In every city, town and village, and at the
cross-roads, were erected log-cabins, while the amount of hard cider drank
would have floated the American navy. The nights were rent with the shouts
of " Tippecanoe and Tyler too," and scores of campaign songs were sung by
tens of thousands of exultant, even if not always musical, voices. We recall
that one of the most popular songs began :
" Oh, where, tell me where, was the log-cabin made?
'Twas made by the boys that wield the plough and the spade."
There was no end to the songs, which were set to the most popular airs and
PECULIAR FEATURE OF THE HARRISON CAMPAIGN. 249
sung over and over again. You would hear them in the middle of the night
on some distant mountain-top, where the twinkling camjo-fire showed that a
party of Whigs were drinking hard cider and whooping it up for Harrison;
some singer with a strong, pleasing voice would start one of the songs from the
platform, at the close of the orator's appeal, and hardly had his lips parted,
when the thousands of Whigs, old and young, and including wives and daughters,
would join in the words, while the enthusiasm quickly grew to a white heat.
The horsemen riding home late at night awoke the echoes among the woods
and hills with their musical praises of "Old Tippecanoe." The story is told that
in one of the backwoods districts of Ohio, after the preacher had announced
the hymn, the leader of the singing, a staid old deacon, struck in with a Har-
rison campaign song, in which tlie whole congregation, after the first moment's
shock, heartily joined, while the aghast preacher had all he could do to restrain
himself from "coming in on the chorus." There was some truth in the declara-
tion of a disgusted Democrat that, from the opening of the canvass, the whole
Whig population of the United States went upon a colossal spree on hard cider,
wiiich continued without intermission until Harrison was installed in the White
House.
And what did November tell ? The electoral vote cast for Martin Van
Buren, 60; for General Harrison, 234. No wonder that the supply of hard
cider was almost exhausted within the next three days.
PECULIAR FEATURE OF THE HARRISON CAMPAIGN.
As we have noted, the method of nominating presidential candidates by
means of j^ojiular conventions was fully established in 1840, and has continued
uninterruptedly ever since. One peculiar feature marked the Harrison cam-
paign of 1840. The convention which nominated Martin Van Buren met in
Baltimore in May of that year. On the same day, the young Whigs of the
country held a mass-meeting in Baltimore, at which fully twenty thousand
persons were present. They came from every part of the Union, Massachusetts
sending fully a thousand. When the adjournment took place, it was to meet
again in Washington at the inauguration of Harrison. The railway was then
coming into general use, and this greatly favored the assembling of mass-con-
ventions.
^^,
'"^^C*
CHAPTER XIII.
ADIVIINIS FRATION OK POLK, 18-45—1849.
James K. Po\k—T/ie War with Meu'cn— The First Conflict— Battle of Kesaca de la Palma— "Vigorous
Action of the United States Government — Ueneral Scott's Plan of Campaign — Capture of Monterey
— An Armistice — Captuie of Saltillo — Of Victoria — Of Tampico — (ieneral Kearny's Capture of
Santa Fe— Conquest of California — Wonderful March of Colonel Doniphan — Battle of Buena Vista
— General Scott's Jlarch Toward the City of Jlexico— Capture of Vera Cruz— American Victory at
Cerro Gordo— Five American Victories in One Day — Santa Anna — Conquest of Mexico Completed
—Terms of the Treaty of Peace— The New Territory Gained— The Slavery Dispute— The Wilmot
Proviso— " Fifty-Four Forty or Fight "—Adjustment of the Oregon Boundary— Admission of Iowa
and Wisconsin— The Smithsonian Institute— Discovery of Gold in California— The Mormons— The
Presidential Election of 184S.
JAMES K. POLK.
James K. Polk, eleventli Presi-
dent, was bora in Mecklenburg
County, North Carolina, November
2, 1795, and died June 15, 1849.
His father removed to Tennessee
when the son was quite young, and
he therefore became identified with
that State. He studied law, was a
leading politician, and was elected to
Congress in 1825, serving in that
body for fourteen years. He was
elected governor of Tennessee in
1839, his next advancement being to
the presidency of the United States.
The President made George
Bancroft, the distinguished historian,
his secretary of the navy. It was he
who laid the foundation of the United
States Naval Academy at Annapolis,
which was opened October 10, 1845.
It is under the immediate care and
supervision of the navy department
JAMES K. POLK.
(nuS-lsW) One tL-riii, INJ -isi'j
and corresponds to the Military Academy at West Point.
(251)
252 ADMIXISTRATIOX OF POLK.
Everybody knew that the admission of Texas meant war with Mexico, for
that country would never yiekl, until compelled to do so, the province that had
rebelled against her rule and whose independence she had persistently refused
to recognize. Texas was unable to withstand the Mexican army, and her au-
thorities urged tlie United States to semi a force for her protection. General
Zachary Taylor, who was in camp in western Louisiana, was ordered to advance
into and occujiy Texan territory.
Mexico had always insisted that the Nueces River was her western l)uun-
dary, wliile Texas maintained that the Rio Grande was the dividing line. The
dispute, therefore, was really over the tract of land between the two rivers. Our
countrv proposed to settle the question by arbitration, but Mexico would not
consent, claiming that tlie section (known as Coahnila) had never been in
revolt against her authority, wliile Texas declared that it was a part of itself,
and its Legislature so decided December 19, 1836.
General Taylor established a camp at Corpus Christi in the latter jiart of
1845, at the mouth of the Nueces. With nearly 5,000 troops, he marched, in
January, to the Rio Grande to meet the jNIexicans who were preparing to invade
the disputed territory. Taylor established a depot of provisions at Point Isabel
on the Gulf, and, upon reaching the Rio Grande, hastily built Fort Brown,
opposite the Mexican town of ^Matamoras.
Some time later the Mexican forces reached Matamoras, and General
Arista on the 26th of April notified Taylor that hostilities had begun. To
emphasize his declaration, Captain Thornton with a company of dragoons was
attacked the same day, and, after the loss of sixteen men in killed and wounded,
was compelled to surrender to a much sujierior force. This was the first engage-
ment of the war and was fought on ground claimed by both countries.
BATTLE OF PALO ALTO.
The Mexicans acted vigorously and soon placed Taylor's lines of communi-
cation in such danger that he hurried to Point Isabel to prevent its tailing
into the hands of the enemy. He left Major Brown with 300 men in charge
of Fort Brown. The Mexicans were exultant, believing Taylor had been
frightened out of the country. But that valiant officer paused at Point Isabel
only long enough to make its position secure, when he marched rapidly toward
Fort Brown. Reaching Palo Alto, on the road, he found the way disputed by
fully 6,000 Mexicans, who were three times as numerous as his own army.
Attacking the enemy with great spirit, he routed them with the loss of a hun-
dred men, his own loss being four killed and forty wounded.
Resuming his march toward Fort Brown, Taylor had reached a point
within three miles of it, when he was brought face to face with a much larger
WAIi DECLARED BY CONGRESS.
253
force at Resaca de la Pal ma. The Vjattle was a severe one, and for a long time
•was in doubt ; but the tide was turned by a dashing charge of Captain May
•with his dragoons. Despite a destructive fire of grapeshot, the horsemen gal-
loped over the Mexican batteries, cut down the gunners, and captured tlie com-
manding officer. Tavlor then pushed on to Fort Brown and found it safe,
1 ^
-,\* -■-■^■- ■ • ---lA
KOBEBT E. L.BE IN ONE OP THE BATTLES OF THE MEXICAN 'WAB.
"Ahvayt to be fonnd where the fig)itinx wa?. the fier«-st "
though it had been under an almost continuous bombardment, in which Major
Brown, the commandant, was killed.
WAR DECLARED BY COXGRKSS.
News of thase battles was carried north by carrier pigeons and telegraph.
254 ADMINISTRATION OF POLK.
and the war spirit of the country was i-oused. Congress on the lltlj of
May decUired that war existed by the act of the Mexican government, and
$10,000,000 was jiLiced at the disposal of the President, who was authorized
to accept 50,000 vohmteers. Tlie call for them was answered by 800,000,
who were eager to serve in the war.
GENERAL SCOTT's PLAN OF CAMPAIGN.
General Scott, as head of the army, formed a careful plan of campaign for
the conquest of Mexico. Of the three divisions. General Kearny, with the
army of the west, was to cross the Rocky Mountains and conquer the northern
Mexican provinces; General Scott himself, with the army of the centre, was to
advance from the coast into the interior of the country, making the city of
Mexico, the capital of the republic, his objective point; while General Taylor,
with the army of occupation, was to seize and hold the Rio Grande country.
The work of mustering in the troo2:)S was intrusted to General Wool, who, some
time later, established himself at San Antonio, and sent many soldiers to the
different commands.
CAPTURE OF MONTEREY.
"Within less than two weeks after his victory at Resaca de la Palma, Taylor
crossed over from Fort Brown and captured Matamoras. Then he turned up
the right bank of the Rio Grande and marched into the interior. The Mexi-
cans retreated to the fortified town of Monterey, where they were so powerful
that Taylor waited for reinforcements before attacking them. His forces
amounted to 6,600 by the latter part of August, and he then advanced against
Monterey, which was defended by a garrison of 10,000 men.
The city was invested on the 19th of September. Two days sufficed for
General AVorth to capture the fortified works in the rear of the town, and on
the next day the remaining defenses on that side were carried by storm. At
daylight, on the 23d, the city in front was captured by assault. The Mexicans
maintained a vicious defense from their adobe houses, but the Americans,
charging through the streets, battered in the doors, chased the defenders from
room to room and over the housetops until they flung down their arms and
shouted for mercy. The commander was allowed to evacuate the city, and fell
back toward the national capital.
OTHER VICTORIES.
Taylor w^as about to resume his advance when the enemy asked for an
armistice, saying the authorities wished to negotiate for peace. Taylor agreed
to an armistice of eight weeks, but the proposal was a trick of the enemy, who
spent every hour of the respite in making preparations to resist the Americans'
CONQUEST OF CALIFORNIA. 255
advance. Santa Anna, who was undergoing one of his periodical banishments,
was called back and given the presidency. When the armistice granted by-
Taylor exj^ired, the Mexicans had an army of 20,000 in the field, and, under
orders from Washington, the American commander moved forward. The first
town captured was Saltillo, seventy miles southwest of Monterey. It was taken
by General Worth, with the advance, on the loth of November, 1846. In the
following month Victoria, in the province of Tamaulipas, was captured by
General Butler, who, advancing from Monterey, united with Patterson at this
place. Their intention was to move upon Tampico, on the coast, but they
learned that it had surrendered to Captain Conner, commander of an American
squadron. Meanwhile, General Wool, marching from San Antonio, arrived
within supporting distance of Monterey. Such was the situation when General
Scott reached the army and took command.
GENERAL KEARNY's OPERATIONS.
General Kearny, in command of the army of the west, left Fort Leaven-
worth, in June, 1840, on the way to conquer New Mexico and California. He
had a long and laborious march before him, but he reached Santa Fe on the
18th of August, and it was easily cajjtured and garrisoned. New Mexico was
powerless, and the whole province surrendered. Then Kearny, at the head of
400 dragoons, set out for the Pacific coast, but he had not gotten far on the road
when he met a messenger who informed him that California had been conquered
by Colonel John C. Fremont, acting in conjunction with Commodores Sloat and
Stockton. Kearny sent most of his men back to Santa Fe and pushed for the
Pacific coast, with a hundred dragoons. He arrived in November, and joined
Fremont and Stockton.
CONQUEST OF CALIFORNIA.
Fremont acquired the name of the " Pathfinder " because of his exploring
expeditions in the far West. He explored a portion of the Kocky Mountains in
1842, and, in the following two years, conducted an expedition with much skill
and success through the regions of Utah, the basin of the Columbia, and the
passes of the Sierra Nevada. He was in charge of a third expetlition in 1846,
and was in California when the Mexican war broke out. He received the dis-
patches as if they were news to him, but there is good reason to believe that the
government had sent him thither, in order that he might be on the ground and
do the very work he did. He urged the pioneers to declare their independence.
They ardently did so, raised the " Black Bear Flag," and gathered around Fre-
mont, who continually defeated the superior forces of Mexicans.
The town of Monterey, eighty miles south of San Francisco, was captured
by Commodore Sloat with an American squadron, and San Diego was taken
256 ' ADMINISTRATION OF POLK.
soon afterward by Commodore Stockton, in command of the Pacific squadron ;
learning which, Fremont raised the American flag in the j^lace of that of Cali-
fornia, and, joining the naval commanders, advanced upon Los Angeles, which
submitted without resistance. In a short time the immense province of Cali-
fornia was conquered by what may be called a handful of Americans.
THE WONDERFUL MARCH OF COLONEL DONIPHAN.
Colonel Alexander W. Doniphan had been left at Santa Fe with his small
force of dragoons. At the head of 700 men, he j^erformed one of the most re-
markable exploits of the war. Riding directly through the enemy's country
for nearly a thousand miles, he reached the Rio Grande on Christmas day
and won a battle ; he then crossed the river and captured El Paso, and, head-
ing for Chihuahua, was met by a Mexican force on the banks of Sacramento
Creek. They outnumbered Doniphan's force four to one, and displayed the
black flag, as notice that no quarter would be given. The Americans lay flat
on the ground, and the first volleys ^lassed harmlessly over their heads. The
Mexicans made the mistake of believing they had been decimated by the dis-
charge, and charged upon what they supposed were the few survivors. They
were received with a withering volley, and assailed with such fierceness by the
Americans that they were utterly routed. Chihuahua thus fell into the pos-
session of Colonel Doniphan, but, since the term of the enlistment of his men
had expired, he could advance no further. He then conducted them to New
Orleans, where they were mustered out of service. They had marched a dis-
tance of 5,000 miles, won several victories, suffered not a single defeat, and
were back again in their homes all within a year.
General Scott had landed on the coast for the purpose of marching into
the interior to the national capital. In order to make his advance resistless, he
withdrew the larger part of Taylor's army and united it with his own. Taylor
felt he was used unjustly, for both he and Wool were threatened by Santa
Anna at the head of 20,000, men, but bluff " Old Rough and Ready " made
no protest and grimly prepared for the danger. The greatest number of troops
he could concentrate at Saltillo was about 6,000, and, after placing garrisons
there and at Monterey, he had only 4,800 remaining, but, undismayed, he
marched out to meet Santa Anna. Four miles away, he reached the favorable
battle ground of Buena Vista, posted his men, and awaited attack.
The Mexican commander was so confident of overwhelming the Americans
that, in his message to Taylor, he assured him he would see that he was person-
ally well treated after his surrender. General Taylor sent word that he declined
to obey the summons, and the messenger who carried the message to Santa
Anna added the significant words : " General Taylor never surrenders."
BATTLE OF RESACA DE LA PALMA
llie parapets, followed Ijy those of his men whose horses could do a like feat
11. sabering them right and left. General La Veaa and a hundred of his men
prisoners and borne back to the American lines
BATTLE OF BUENA VISTA.
257
The American army was placed at the upper end of a long and narrow
pass in the mountains. It was flanked on one side by high cliffs and on the
other by impassable ravines, which position compelled the enemy to attack him
in front.
BATTLE OF BUENA VISTA.
The battle opened early on the morning of February 23d, with the Mexi-
cans swarming through the gorges and over the hills from San Luis Potosi.
The first assault was against the American right, but it was beaten back by the
Illinois troops; the next was against the centic, but it was repelled liy C\i[)tain
Washington's artillery; and then the
left flank was vehemently assailed.
A mistaken order caused an Indiana
regiment to give way, and for a time
the whole army was in danger ; bul
the Mississippians and Kentuckians
gallantly flung themselves into the
breach, the Indiana and Illinois troops
rallied, and the Mexicans were driven
tunudtuously back. In this brilliaiii
exjiloit Colonel Jeiferson Davis, with
his Mississippi regiment, played ;i
prominent part.
"a little moee grape, captain
BRAGG."
The next charge was upon Cap-
tain Bragg's battery, but that officer,
in obedience to General Taylor's fa-
mous request, "A little more grape,
Captain Bragg," scattered the Mex-
ican lancers in every direction. The
success was followed up by a cavalry charge, which completed the discomfiture
of the enemy, who fled with the loss of 2,000 men.
Buena Vista was a superb victory for the Americans, l)ut it cost lliem dear.
The killed, wounded, and missing numbered nearly 800. Among the killed
was Colonel Henry Clay, son of the Kentucky orator and statesman. The
battle completed the Avork of General Taylor, who soon afterward returned to
the United States. The glory he had won made him President less than two
two years Inter.
Returning once more to General Scott, he entered u]ion the last campaign,
GENBKAL WINFIELD SCOTT.
258 ADMINlSTilATlON OF FOLK.
March 9, 1847. Old array officers of to-day contrast the admirable manner in
which he did his preliminary work with the mismanagement in the Spanish-
American War of 1898. Inipatience was exjjressed at his tardiness in getting
his troops ready on the transports at New York. To all such complaints, the
grim old soldier replied that he would embark when everything was ready and
not a single hour before. As a consequence, his men landed at Vera Cruz iu
tlie best condition, there was not the slightest accident, and every soldier when
he stepped ashore had three days' rations in his knapsack. Twelve thousand
men were landed, and in three days the investment of Vera Cruz was comj^lete/
Then a Mexican train was captured and the troops had provisions in abundance,
CAPTURE OF VERA CRUZ.
The city having refused to surrender, the bombardment opened on the
morning of March li2d. The water-side of Vera Cruz was defended by the
castle of San Juan d'Ulloa, built a century and a half before by Sjjain at enor-
mous cost. Commodore Conner assisted throughout the four days that the can-
nonade lasted. The success of the bombardment made the Americans confident
of capturing the castle by assault, and they were preparing to do so when the
authorities i^rojiosed satisfactory terms of surrender, which took place March
29th.
The direct march upon the capital now began, with General Twiggs in com-
mand of the advance. The road steadily rises from the coast and abounds in
passes and mountains, which offer the best kind of natural fortifications. When
Twiggs reached one of these passes, named Cerro Gordo, he found that Santa
Anna had taken jwssession of it with 15,000 troops. The whole American
army numbered only 9,000, and it looked as if they were halted in front of an
impregnable position, Init it must be captured or the whole campaign would
have to be abandoned.
BATTLE OF CERKO GORDO.
There was no hesitation on the part of our troops, who, under the lead of
the bravest and most skillful of officers, attacked with their usual energy and
daring. The Mexicans made the best defense possible, but within a few hours
they abandoned every position and were driven in headlong confusion from the
field. They lost 3,000 prisoners, among whom were five generals, while the
escape of Santa Anna was so narrow that he left his cork leg behind.
The American army pressed on to Jalapa, which made no resistance, and
furnished a large amount of supplies, and Puebla, a city of 80,000 inhabitants,
was occupied on the 15th of May. There the ground was high and the air cool
and salubrious. The men were exhausted from their arduous campaign, and
Scott decided to give them a good rest, so as to be fully jirejjared for the final
THE MARCH UPON THE CAPITAL.
259
struggle. Besides it was necessary to receive reinforcements before venturing
further. Santa Anna, realizing that the critical j^eriod of the struggle was at
hand, put forth every energy to collect an army to beat back the invaders.
BATTLE OF CEREO GOHDO.
"Captain Lee led the way, and showed the men just what to do. They lowered the cannons by ropes down the steep cliffs and
liauled them up on the opposite hill-side."
Early in August the American army had been increased to 11,000 men,
and, leaving a small garrison at Puebla, Scott set out for the beautiful city of
Mexico. No serious resistance offered until they reached Ayotla, fifteen liiilea
260 ADMIMSTRATION OF FOLK.
f'roni tlie capital. There it was found that the reguhir road Ijristled witli forts,
and, although there was no doubt that all could be carried, the American com-
mander wisely decided to move his army around to the south, where he could
advance over a comparatively undefeniled route. Without any difiiculty he
reached San Augustine, which Avas within ten miles of the cajjital.
Had the positions been changed, a force ten times as great as the Americans
could not have captured the city of Mexico, and yet it fell before a force only
one-third as numerous as the defenders.
A DAY OF VICTORIES.
The fighting began before sunrise, August 20, 1847, and when night came
five distinct victories had been won. The foi'tified camp of Contreras was cap-
tured in about fifteen minutes. Shortly after the fortified village of San Anto-
nio was taken by another division of the army. Almost at the same time, a
division stormed one of the fortified heights of Churubusco, while still another
captured the second height. Seeing the danger of his garrisons, Santa Anna
moved out of the city and attacked the Americans. The reserves immediately
assailed, drove him back, and chased him to the walls of the ca])ital, into which
the whole Mexican force crowded themselves at night.
It was in accordance with the nature of Santa Anna that he should set
2,000 convicts loose that night on the jiromise that they would fight against the
Americans. Then he stole out of the city, whose authorities sent a delegation
to Scott to treat for peace. This trick had been resorted to so many times by
the Mexicans, who never kept fiiith, that the American commander refused to
listen to them. An advance was made, and in a short time the city was com-
pletely in our jiossession.
SANTA ANNA.
At Puebla there were 2,000 Americans in the hospital under charge of a
small guard. Santa Anna attacked them, thinking that at last he had found a
foe whom he could beat ; l)ut he was mistaken, for reinforcements arrived in
time to drive him away. This terminated for a time the career of the treacher-
ous Santa Anna, with whom the Mexican people were thoroughly disgusted.
It is proper to state at this point that Santa Anna while in command of the
Mexican army made a direct offer to Genei'al Taylor to betray his cause for
a large sum of money, and he actually received an installment, but circumstances
prevented the completeness of the bargain. This miscreant was president and
dictator of Mexico in 1853-55, was banished and returned several times, and
was still plotting to recover his jjower when he died, in his eighty-second year.
The capture of the capital of Mexico completed the victorious campaign.
The entrance into the city was made September 14, 1847, the American flag
THE SLAVERY QUESTION. 261
raised over tlie palace, and General Scott, with a sweep of his sword over his
head, while his massive frame made a striking picture in front of the palace,
proclaimed the conquest of the country. All that remained was to arrange the
terms of peace.
TERMS OF PEACE.
In the following winter, American ambassadors met the Mexican congress in
session at Guadalupe Hidalgo, so named from the small town where it was situated.
There was a good deal of discussion over the terms, our ambassadors insisting
that Mexico should surrender the northern provinces, which included the present
States of California, Nevada, Utah, and the Territories of Arizona and New
Mexico and portions of Colorado and Wyoming, as indemnity for the war.
Mexico would not consent, and matters drifted along until the 2d of February,
1848, when the new Mexican government agreed to these terms. The treaty was
modified to a slight extent by the United States Senate, adopted on the 10th of
March, ratified by the Mexican congress sitting at Queretaro, May oOtli, and
jM'oclaimed by President Polk on the 4th of July. Thus ended our war with
^lexico.
By the terms of the treaty, the United States was to pay Mexico $15,000,-
000, and assume dfebts to the extent of $3,000,000 due to American citizens from
JMexioj. These sums were in payment for the immense territory ceded to us.
This cession, the annexation of Texas, and a purchase south of the Gila River in
1853, added almost a million square miles to our possessions, nearly equaling the
Louisiana purchase and exceeding the whole area of the United States in 1783.
It may sound strange, but it is a fact, that the governing of the new territory
caused so much trouble that more than once it was seriously proposed in Congi-ess
that Mexico should be asked to take it back again. General Sherman Wiie
credited with the declaration that if the identity of the man who caused the annexa-
tion of Texas could be established, he ought to be court-martialed and shot.
However, all this changed when the vast capabilities and immeasurable worth of
the new countries were understood. The section speedly developed a wealth,
enterprise, and industry of which no one had before dreamed.
THE SXAVERY QUESTION.
The real peril involved in the acquisition of so much territory lay in the-
certainty that it would revive the slavery quarrel that had been put to sleep by
the Missouri Compromise, nearly thirty years before. The North demanded that
slavery should be excluded from the new territory, because it was so excluded
by Mexican law, and to legalize it would keep out emigrants from the free
States. The South demanded the authorization of slavery, since Southern emi-
grants would not gt) thither without their slaves. Still others proposed to divide
262 ADMINISTRATION OF POLK.
the new territory by tlie Missouri Compromise line. This -would have cut
California in two near the middle, and made one part of the province slave and
the other free. Altogether, it will be seen that trouble was at hand.
Before the outbreak of the Mexican Wai-, Congressman David "Wilmot, of
Pennsylvania, introduced the Proviso known by his name. It was a projwsal
to purchase the territory from Mexico, provided slavery was excluded. The
introduction of the bill produced much discussion, and it was defeated by the
opposition of the South.
THE OREGON BOUNDARY DISPUTE.
Great Britain and the United States had jointly occupied Oregon for
twenty years, under the agreement that the occupancy could be ended by either
country under a year's notice to the other. Many angry debates took place in
Congress over the question whether such notice should be giveu. The United
States claimed a strip of territory reaching to Alaska, latitude 54° 40', while
Great Britain claimed the territory south of the line to the Columbia River.
Congress as usual had plenty of wordy patriots who raised the cry of " Fifty-
four forty or fight," and it was repeated throughout the country. Cooler and
wiser counsels prevailed, each party yielded a part of its claims, and made a
middle line the boundary. A minor dispute over the course of the boundary
line after it reached the Pacific islets was amicably adjusted by another treaty
in 1871.
STATES ADMITTED.
It has been stated that the bill for the admission of Iowa did not become
operative until 1846. It was the fourth State formed from the Louisiana pur-
clkase, and was first settled by the French at Dubuque ; but the post died, and no
further settlements were made until the close of the Black Hawk War of 1832,
after which the population increased with great rapidity.
Wisconsin was the last State formed from the old Northwest Territory. A
few weak settlements were made by the French as early as 16G8, but, as in the
case of Iowa, its real settlement began after the Black Hawk AVar.
THE SMITHSONIAN INSTITUTE,
James Smithson of England, when he died in 1829, bequeathed his large
estate for the purpose of founding the Smithsonian Institution at Washington
" for the increase and diffusion of knowledge among men." In 1838, his estate,
amounting to more than half a million dollars, was secured by a government
agent and deposited in the mint. John Quincy Adams prepared a plan of
organization, which was adopted.
The Smithsonian Institution, so named in honor of its fonnder, was placed
THE DISCOVERY OF GOLD IN CALIFORNIA.
263
under the immediate control of a board of regents, composed of the President,
Vice-President, judges of the su])reme court, and other principal officers of the
government. It was [)rovided tliat the entire sum, amounting with accrued
interest to $625,000, should be loaned forever to the United States guvernment
at six per cent.; that from the proceetls, together with congressional appnjpri-
adons and private gifts, i^roper buiUlings should be erected for containing a
museum of natural history, a cabinet of minerals, a chemical laboratory, a
galleiv of art, and a library. Tlie plan of organization was carried out. and
THE SMITHSONIAN INSTITUTION.
Professor Joseph Henry of Princeton College, the real inventor of the electro-
magnetic telegraph, was chosen secretary.
THE DISCOVERY OF GOLD IN CALIFORNIA.
For many years hardy hunters and trappers had penetrated the vast wil-
derness of the West and Northwest in their hunt for game and peltries. Some
of these were in the employ of the Hudson Bay Company, whose grounds
extended as hv toward the Arctic Circle as the rugged men and toughened
Indians could penetrate on their snowshoes.
At points hundreds of miles apart in the gloomy solitudes were erected
trading posts to which the red men bi-ought furs to exchange for trinkets, blank-
ets, firearms, and firewater, and whither the white trappers made their way, after
an absence of months in the dismal solitudes. Further south, among the rug2;ed
264
ADMINISTRATION OF POLK.
mountains and beside the almost unknown streams, other men set their traps for
the beaver, fox, and various fur-bearing animals. Passing the Rocky Moun-
tains and Cascade Range they pursued their perilous avocation along the head-
waters of the rivers flowing through California. They toiled amid the snows
and storms of the Sierras, facing perils from tlie Indians, savage beasts, and the
weather, for pay that often did not amount to the wages received by an ordinary
day laborer.
Little did those men suspect they were walking, sleeping, and toiling over a
treasure bed ; that instead of tramping thi'ough snow and over ice and facing
the arctic blasts
and vengeful red
men, if they had
dug into the
ground, they
would have found
wealth beyond
estimate.
The priests
lived in the adobe
haciendas that
the Spanish had
erected centuries
before, and, as
they counted their
beads and dozed
in calm ha|)pi-
ness, they became
rich in flocks and
the ti'ibutes re-
ceived from the simple-minded red men. Sometimes they wondered in a mild
way at the golden trinkets and ornaments brought in by the Indians and were
puzzled to know where they came from, but it seemed never to have occurred
to the good men that they could obtain the same precious metal by using the
pick and shovel. The years came and passed, and red men and white men con-
tinued to walk over California without dreaming of the immeasurable riches
that had been nestling for ages under their feet.
One day in February, 1848, James W. Marshall, who had come to Cali-
fornia from New Jersey some years before, and had been doing only moderately
well with such odd jol)s as he could pick up, was working with a companion at
building a saw-mill for Colonel John A. Sutter, who had immigrated to this
GOLD "WASHINU-THii) SLUICE.
DISCOVERY OF GOLD IN CALIFORNIA.
26.>
country from Bntlen in 1834. Going westwiircl, he founded a settlement on the
present site of Saeramento in 1841. He built Fort Sutter on the Sacramento,
where he was visited by Fremont on his exploring expedition in 1840.
Marshall and his companion were engaged in deepening the mill-race, the
former being just in front of the other. Happening to look around, he asked :
" What is that shining near your boot '! "
His friend reached his hand down into the clear water and picked up a
l)riglit, yellow fragment and held
it between his fingers.
"It is brass," he said; "Ihm
how liright it is ! ''
"It can't be brass," replied
Marshall, " for there isn't a piece
of l)rass within fifty miles of us."
The other turned it over again
and again in his linnd, put it in
his mouth and hit it, ;ind then
held it up once more to llic light.
Suddenly he exclaimed :
" I believe it's gold ! "
" I wonder if that's possible,'
said ^larshall, beginning to thin I.
his companion was right; "how
can we lind out ? "
"My wife can tell; she h;is
made some lye from wood-aslu^
and will test it."
'i'lie man took the fragment
to liis wife, who was busy washing ,
and, at his re(piest, she boiled it
lor several hours witii the lye. Had it been In-ass — the oidy oilier metal it pos-
silily could have been — it would have turned a greenish-black. When examined
again, however, its beautiful bright lustre was undiminished. There was scarcely
a doid)t that it was pure gold.
'i'hc two men returned to the mill-race with pans, and washed out ])ro1)ably
fifty dollars' worth of gold. Despite the certainty oi' his friend, ^Marshall was
Iroubied by a fear that the fragment was neither brass nor gold, but some
worthless metal of which he knew nothing. He carefully tied up all that haasin of Utah, they founded Great Salt Lake City,
which is one of the handsomest, l)est governed, and cleanest (in a ])liysical
sen.se) cities in the world.
W^hile referring to these peculiar people, we may as well complete their
history by anticipating events that followed.
In 1857, our government attempted to extend its judicial system over Utah
Territory. Brigham Young, the succe.s.sor of Joseph Smith, until ilun bad not
been disturbed, and lir did not mean to be interfered with bv anv goveniinent.
268 ADMIXISTBATION OF POLK
He insulted the Federal judges sent thither and drove them out of the Terri-
tory, his pretext being that the objectionable character of the judges justified
the step. Our government, which is always patient in such matters, could not
accept this explanation, and Alfred Gumming, superintendent of Indian aifairs
on the Upper jMissouri, was made governor of Utah and Judge Delano Eckels,
of Indiana, was appointed chief justice of the Territoiy. Knowing that he
would be resisted, Colonel Albert Sidney Johnston was sent thither to compel
obedience to the laws.
The United t^tates troops, numbering 2,500, entered the Territory in Oc-
tobei- and were attacked by the Mormons, who destroyed their supply train and
compelled the men to seek winter quarters near Fort Bridges. Aifairs were in
this critical state when a messenger from the President, in the spring of 1858,
carried a conciliatory letter to Bi-igham Young, which did much to soothe his
ruffled feelings. Then, by-and-by, Governor Powell of Kentucky and Major
McGulloch of Texas appeared with a proclamation of pardon to all who would
submit to Federal authority. The Mormons were satisfied, accepted the terms,
and in May, 1860, the United States troops were withdrawn from the Territory.
Since that time our government has had many difficulties in dealing with
the Mormons. Although polygamy is forbidden by the laws of the States and
Territories, the sect continued to practice it. In March, 1882, Gongress passed
what is known as the Edmunds Act, which excluded Mormons from local offices
which tliey had hitherto wholly controlled. Many persons were indicted and
punished for the jiractice of polygamy, while others abandoned it. Brigham
Young, who had become governor of Deseret in 1849, and two years later was
appointed governor of Utah, died in 1877, at which time he was president of
the Mormon church. The practice of polygamy was never fully eradicated,
and Utah, at this writing, is represented in the United States Senate by men who
make no attempt at concealing the feet that they are polygamists.
FRESIDExMIAL' ELECTION OF 1848.
Tlie former Democrats and Whigs who were friendly to the Wilmot
Proviso formed the Free Soil party in 1848, to which also the Abolitionists
naturally attached themselves. The regular Whigs and Democrats refused to
support the AVilmot Proviso, through fear of alienating the South. The Free
Soilers named as their nominees Martin Van Buren, for President, and Gharles
Francis Adams, of Massachusetts, for Vice-President ; the Democrats selected
Louis Gass, of Michigan, for President, and William O. Butler, of Kentucky, for
Vice-President ; the AVhig candidates were General Zachary Taylor, of Louis-
iana, for President, and Millard Fillmore, of New York, for Vice-President.
At the electoral vote Zachary Taylor was elected President and Millard Fill-
more Vice-President.
CHAPTER XIV.
AOMINISXRATIONS OK TAVLOR, FILI.MORE,
HIliRCt:, AXO BUCHAlXAN, 184&— 1SG7.
ZiadLitry Taylor — The "Irrepressible Conflict " in Conjrress — The Omnibus Bill — Dentil of President
Taylor — Millard Fillmore — Death oftlie Old Leaders and Debut of the New — The Census of 1H5U —
Surveys for a Railway to the Pacific — Presidential Election of 1852 — Franklin Pierce — Death of
Vice-President King — A Coujuiercial Treaty Made with Japan — Filibustering Expeditions — The
Ostend Manifesto — The '' Know Nothing ' Part\ — The Kansas Nebraska Hill and Repeal of the
Missouri Uomproiuise.
ZACHAKY TAYLOR.
Genkral Zachary Taylor, twelfth Pre.sidc^it of the United Stales, was Ijorn
at Orange Court-House, Virginia,
8ej)teinber 24, 1784, but, while an
infant, his parents removed to Ken-
lucky. His school education was
slight, but he posses.sed fine mili-
tary instincts and developed into
one of the best of soldiers. His
services in the war of 1812 and in
that Avitli Mexico have been told in
I heir proper place. His defense of
Fort Harrison, on the Wal)ash, diii--
ing the la.st war with England, wmi
him the title of major by brcvol,
that being the first time the honor
was conferred in the American
army.
Xo man could have lieen less a
politician than "Old Rough and
Ready," for he had not cast a vote
in forty years. Daniel Wel)ster char- ^_
acterized him as an " ignorant fron-
tier colonel," and did not conceal his
disgu.st over his nomination by the great jiarty of which the New England
orator was the leader. It was Taylor's brilliant services in Mexico that
made him popular above all others wilh the mtis.ses, who are the ones tliat
ZACHABY TAYLOH.
(17*1-1* U ) line imllial lerm. lKl'J-1. ■-.■>«.
270 TAYLOR, FILLMORE, PIERCE, AND BUCHANAN.
make and unmake presidents. Besides, a great many felt that Taylor had not
been generously treated by the government, and this sentiment had much to do
with his nomination and election.
THE IRREPRESSIBLE CONFLICT.
The " irrepressible conflict " between slavery and freedom could not be post-
poned, and when, on the 13th of February, 1850, the President sent to Con-
gress the petition of California for admission as a State, the quarrel broke out
afresh. The peculiar character of the problem has already been stated. A
part of California lay north and a part south of 36° 30', the dividing line be-
tween slavery and freedom as defined by the ]\Iissouri Compromise, thirty years
before. Congress, therefore, had not the power to exclude slavery, and the
question had to be decided by the peo2ile themselves. They had already done
so by inserting a clause in the Constitution which 2")rohibited slavery.
There were violent scenes on the floor of Congress. General Foote, of
Mississippi, was on the point of discharging a jjistol at Colonel Benton, of Mis-
souri, when bystanders seized his arm and prevented. Weapons were frequently
drawn, and nearly every member went about armed and ready for a deadly
affi-ay. The South threatened to secede from the Union, and we stood on the
brink of civil war.
THE COMPROMISE OF 1850.
It was at this fearful juncture that Henry Clay, now an old man, submitted
to the Senate his famous " Omnibus Bill," so called because of its many feat-
ures, which proposed a series of compromises as follows : the admission of Cali-
fornia as a State, with the Constitution adopted by her people (which prohibited
slavery) ; the establishment of territorial governments over all the other newly
acquired Territories, with no reference to slavery ; the abolishment of all traflfic
in slaves in the District of Columbia, but declaring it inexpedient to abolish
slavery there without the consent of the inhabitants and also of Maryland ; the
assumption of the debts of Texas ; while all fugitive slaves in the free States
should be liable to arrest and return to slavery.
John C. Calhoun, the Southern leader, was earnestly opposed to the com-
promise, but he was ill and within a few weeks of death, and his argument was
read in the Senate by Senator Mason. Daniel Webster supported the measure
with all his logic and eloquence, and it was his aid extended to Clay that
brought about the passage of the bill, all the sections becoming laws in Septem-
ber, 1850, and California, conquered from Mexico in 1846, took her place among
the sisterhood of States. Webster's support of the fugitive slave law lost him
many friends in the North, and, has been stated, rendered his election to the
presidency impossible.
MILLARD FILLMORE.
271
On the 4th of July, 1850, the remains from Kosciusko's tomb were depos-
ited in the monument in Waishington, and President T.iylor was present at the
ceremonies. Tlie heat was terrific and caiised him great distress. On his return
home he drank hirge quantities of ice-water and milk, though he was warned
against the danger of doing so. A fatal illness foUowetl, and he died on the 9th
of Julv. Vice-President Fillmore was sworn into office un the following day.
MILLARD FILL.M()I;E.
Millard Fillmore, the thirteenth President, was hum at Suninicr Ilillf
New York, February 7, 1800. He ^ ^
learned the fuller's trade, afterward
taught school, and, studying law,
was admitted to the bar in Buffalo,
where he attained marked success.
He was State compti'oller for one
term and served in Congress for four
terms. He died in Buffalo, March
7, 1874. Fillmore was a man of
good ability, but the inferior of many
of those who preceded him in the
exalted office. He was a believer in
the compromise measures of Clay,
and performed his duties conscien-
tiously and acceptably.
Fillmore's administration is no-
table for the fact that it saw the
j)assing away of the foremost lead-
ers. Clay, AVebster, and Calhoun,
with others of less prominence.
They were succeeded in Congress
liv the anti-slavery champions, Wil- i- -, ■
Ham H. Seward, of New York; Charles Sumner, of Massachusetts; and
Salmon P. Chase, of Ohio. From the South, too, came able men, in Jefferson
Davis, of Mississippi; John Y. Mason, of Louisiana; and others. The giants
had departed and their mantles fell upon shoulders that were not always able
to wear them as fittingly as their predecessors.
The slavery agitation produced its natural effect in driving many of the
Sonthern Whigs into the Democratic party, while a few Northern Democrat-s
united with the Whigs, who, however, were so disrupted that the organization
272 TAYLOR, FILLMORE, PIERCE, AND BUCHANAN.
crumbled to pieces after tlie presidential election of 1852, and, for a time, no
effective opposition to the Democratic i)arty seemed possible.
THE NEED OF A TRANS-CONTINENTAL RAILROAD.
The population of the United States in 1840 was 23,191,876. General
prosperity prevailed, but all felt the urgent need of a railroad connecting Mis-
souri and California. The Paciiic coast had become a leading part of tlie Union
and its importance was growing every year. But the building of such a rail-
way, through thousands of miles of wilderness, across lofty mountains and large
rivers, was an undertaking so gigantic and expensive as to be beyond the reach
of private parties, without congressional assistance. Still all felt that the road
must be built, and, in 1853, Congress ordered surveys to be made in order to
lind the best route. The building of the railway, however, did not begin until
the War for the Union was well under way.
PRESIDENTIAL ELECTION OF 1852.
AVhen the time arrived for jjresidential nominations, the Democratic con-
vention met in Baltimore, June 12, 1852. The most i)rominent candidates
were James Buchanan, Stephen A. Douglas, Lewis Cass, and William L. ]\Iarcy.
There was little variance in their strength for thirty-five ballots, and everybody
seemed to be at sea, when the Virginia delegation, on the next ballot, presented
the name of Franklin Pierce of New Hampshire.
" Who is Franklin Pierce ? " was the question that went round the hall,
but, on the forty-ninth ballot, he received 282 votes to 11 for all the others, and
the question was repeated throughout tlie United States. Pierce's opponent
was General Winfield Scott, the connnander-in-chief in the Mexican War,
who had done fine service in the War of 1812, and ranks among the foremost
military leaders of our country. But; personally, he was unpopular, overbear-
ing in his manners, a martinet, and without any personal magnetism. No
doubt he regarded it as an act of impertinence for Pierce, who had been his sub-
ordinate in Mexico, to presume to pit himself against him in the jjolitical field.
But the story told by the November election was an astounding one and i-ead
as follows :
Franklin Pierce, of New Hampshire, Democrat, 254 ; Winfield Scott, of
New Jersey, W^hig, 42; John P. Hale, of New Hampshire, Free Democrat, 0;
Daniel Webster, of Massachusetts, Whig, 0. For Vice-President : William R.
King, of Alabama, Democrat, 254; William A. Graham, of North Carolina,
AVhig, 42; George W. Julian, of Indiana, Free Democrat, 0.
The Whig convention which put Scott in nomination met also in Baltimore,
a few days after the Democratic convention. AVebster was confident of receiv-
FEAXKLIN PIERCE.
273
ing tlie nomination, and it was the disappointment of liis life tliut he failed.
Tlie " Free Democrats," who placeil candidates in nomination, represented those
who were dissatisfied with the various compromise measures that had been
adopted by Congress. The only States carried by Scott were Vermont, Massa-
chusetts, Kentucky, and Tennessee.
FRANKLIN TIERCE.
Franklin Pierce, the fourteenth President, was born at Hillsborough, New
Hampshire, November 2o, 1804. Upon his graduation from Bowdoin College,
he became a successful lawyer. He
id ways showed a fondness for mili-
tai-y matters, though not to the ex-
tent of neglecting 2'olitics and his
profession. He was elected to his
State Legislature and was a mem-
ber of Congress from 1833 to 1837,
and, entering the Senate in 1839, he
remained until 1842, afterward de-
clining a cabinet appointment from
Pi-esident Polk. He volunteered in
the Mexican War, connnanded a
brigade, and showed great gallantry
in several Ijattles. He died October
8, 18G9.
Mr. King, the Vice-President,
was in such feeble health that he
took the oath of office in Cid)a, and,
I'etnrning to his native State, died
A])ril 18, 1853, being the first vice-
president to die in office. One re-
markable fact should be stated re-
gariling the administration of Pierce: there was not a change in his cabinet
througiiout his whole term, tiie only instance of the kind thus far in our history.
FHANKLIN PIERCE.
(1801-1808,) One IcTiii, IS-'iJ-lSW.
A TREATY WITH JAPAN.
It seems strange that initil a few years, Japan was a closed nation to the
world. Its people refused to have anything to do with any other country, ainif
wished nothing from them except to l)e let alone. In 18")4, Commodore M. C
Perry visited Japan with an American fleet and induced the government \<),
make a commercial treaty with our own. This wits tlie beginning of the mar-
is
274 TAYLOR, FILLMORE, PIERCE, AND BUCHANAN.
velous j^rogress of that country in civilization and education, which forms one
of the most astonishing records in the history of mankind. Jajian's over-
whehning defeat of China, whose population is ten times as great as our own ;
her acceptance of the most advanced ideas of civilization, and the wisdom of
her rulers have carried her in a few years to a rank among the leading
powers and justified the appellation of the "Yankees of the East," which is
sometimes applied to her people.
FILIBUSTERING.
Pierce's administration was marked by a number of filibustering expeditions
against Spanish possessions in the West Indies. None of them succeeded, and
a number of the leaders were shot by the S^^anish authorities. The American
government offered to purchase Cuba of Sj^ain, but that country indignantly
replied that the mints of the world had not coined enough gold to buy it. Could
she have foreseen the events of 1898, no doubt she would have sold out for a
moderate price.
In August, 1854, President Pierce directed Mr. Buchanan, minister to Eng-
land, Mr. Mason, minister to France, and Mr. Soule, envoy to Spain, to meet at some
convenient place and discuss the question of obtaining possession of Cuba. These
distinguished gentlemen met at Ostend on the 9th of October, and adjourned
to Aix-la-Chapelle, from which jilace they issued, on the 18th of October, what
is known as the " Ostend Manifesto or Circular," in which thej^ recommended
the purchase of Cuba, declaring that, if Spain refused to sell, the United States
would be justified "by every law, human and divine," in wresting it from her.
This declaration, for which there was no justification whatever, caused angry
protest in Europe and in the free States of our country, but was ardently
applauded in the South. Nothing came of it, and the country soon became so
absorbed in the slavery agitation that it was forgotten.
THE "know nothings."
Patriotic men, who feared what was coming, did all in their power to avert
it. One of these attempts was the formation of the "Know Nothing" party,
which grew up like a mushroom and speedily acquired a power that enabled it
to carry many local elections in the various States. It was a secret organization,
the members of which were bound by oath to oppose tlie election of foreign-
born citizens to office. The salutation, when one member met another, was,
"Have you seen Sam?" If one of them was questioned about the order, his
reply was that he knew nothing, from which tJie name was given to what was
really the Native American party. It soon ran its course, but has been suc-
ceeded in its cardinal principles by the American Protective Association of the
present day.
THE MISSOURI COMPROMlsK
-Meanwhile, the shivery question was busy at its woi'k of disintegraliou.
Tiie Democratic party was heUl together for a time by the Compromise of 18-30,
to the effect that the inhabitants of the new Territories of New Mexico and
Utah should be left to decide for themselves the question of slavery. In a few
years the settlements in Nebraska and Kansas made it necessary to erect ten-i-
torial government-^ there, ami the question of slavery was thus brought befoie
Congress again. The Missouri Compromise forbade shivery forever in those sec-
tions, for both of them lie to the north parallel of 3G° 30'. Stephen A. Douglas,
however, and a number of other Detnoeraiic leaders in Congress claimed that
the Compromise of 1850 nullified tlii~
agreement, and that the same freedom oi'
choice should be given to the citizen>
of Kansas and Nebraska as was given
to those in Utah and New Mexico.
This policy was called "Squatter Sov-
ereignty."
THE .MISSOURI COMPROMISE.
The bill was bitterly fought in Con-
gress, but it passed the Senate by a vote
of thirty-seven to fourteen, and after
another fierce struggle was adopted in
the liouse by a vote of 113 to 100.
It received several amendments, and the
President signed it ]May 31, 1854.
Thus the Missouri Compromise was
repealed and the first note of civil wai-
sounded. The question of slavery wa>
opened anew, and could never be closeil
without the slieddiu"- of blood to an extent tli.il no one dreanuN
LUCBETIA MOTT.
Tlie advance Agent of emancipation.
(1703-1880.)
I'OKMATION OF THE REPUHLIC.VN I'AKTV.
The enforcement of the fugitive slave law was resisted in the North and
niunerous conflicts took place. During the attempted ai-rest of Anthony Burns
in Boston a deputy-sheriff was shot dead, and Federal troops from Ilhode Island
had to be summoned before Burns could be returned to shivery. Former political
opponents began uniting in both sections. In the North the opponents of
slavery, comprising Democrats, Free-Soilers, Know Nothings, Whigs, and Al)o-
litionists, joined in the formation of the "Anti-Nebraska Men," and under that
name they elected, in 1854, a majority of the House of Representatives for the
270
TAYLOR, FILLMORE, PIERCE, AND BUCHANAN.
next Congress. Soon after the election, the new organization took the name of
Rejjnblicans, by which they are known to-day. Its members, with a few ex-
ceptions among the Germans in Missouri and the Ohio settlers in western
Virginia, belonged wholly to the North.
CIVIL WAR IN KANSAS.
Kansas became for the time the battle-ground between slavery and freedom.
Societies in the North sent emigrants into Kansas, first furnishing them with
Bibles and rifles, while the jiro-slavei-y men swarmed thither from Missouri, and
the two parties fought each other like A2)aclie Indians. In the midst of the
civil war, a territorial legislature was formed, and in many instances the majority
of the candidates elected was double that of the voting population in the district.
Governor A. H. Reeder, of Pennsylvania, had
been appointed governor of the Territory, and,
finding himself powerless to check the anarchy,
went to Washington in Apiil, 1855, to consult
with the government. While there he was
nominated for Congress, and defeated by the
fraudulent votes of the pro-slavery men.
Meanwhile, two State governments had been
formed. The pro-slavery men met at Lecomjv
ton, in March, and adopted a Constitution per-
mitting slavery. Their opponents assembled in
Lawrence, August 15th, and elected delegates,
who came together in October and ratified the
Topeka Constitution, which forbade slavery.
In January, 1856, the people held an election
under this Constitution. In the same month
President Pierce sent a message to Congress, in which he declared the for-
mation of a free State government in Kansas an act of rebellion, while
that adopted at Lecompton was the valid government. Governor Reeder
was superseded by William Shannon. A committee sent by Congress into
the Territory to investigate and rej)ort could not agree, and nothing came
of it.
The civil war grew worse. A free State government, with General Joseph
Lane as its head and sujiported by a well-armed force, was formed at Lawrence.
The town was sacked and almost destroyed, May 20, 1856. On the 4th of July
following, the free State Legislature was dispersed by Federal troops, upon order
of the national government.
John W. Geary now tried his hand as governor. His first step was to call
HENHy ■WARD BEECHEB.
The Great Pulpit Orntnr and Anti-Slavery
Agitator.
JA3IES BUCIIAXAX. 277
upon both parties to disarm, and neither jiaid any attention to him. Finding he
couhl not liave the support of tlie I'resident in tlie vigorous pMiiry lie widhed lo
adopt, Governor Geary resigned ancl was succeeded by lioberl J. W'allcer of" Mis-
sissippi. He showed a disposition to be fair to all concerned, but, before he
could accomplish anything, he was turned out to make room for J. W. Denver.
He was soon disgusted and gave way to tSanuiel Medary. Before long, it be-
came evident that the influx of northern settlers must overcome the pro-slavery
men, and the struggle was given n[) by the latter. A constitntion prohibiting
slavery was ratified in 1859 and Charles Kobinson elected governor.
VIOLKXT SCEXKS IN C()N(;i;K.SS.
Nebraska lies so far north that it was not disturbed. Acts of disgraceful
violence took place in Congress, challenges to duels being exchanged, personal
collisions occurring on the floor, while most of the members went armed, not
knowing what minute they would be assaulted. In ^lay, 1850, Senator Charles
Sumner, of Massachnsetts, for utterances made in debate, was savagely assaulteil
by Preston S. Brooks, of South Carolina, and received injuries from which he
(lid not recover for several years. Brooks was lionized in the South for his
brutal act and re-elected to Congress by an overwhelming majority.
The Republican jjarty was growing rapidly in strength, and in ISotJ it
placed its candidates in the field and astonished the rest of the country by the
vote it rolled up, as shown in the following statistics :
James Buchanan, of Pennsylvania, Democrat, 1 74 ; John C. Fremont, of
California, Republican, 114; Millard Fillmore, of Xew York, Native Ameri-
can, 8. For Vice-President, John C. Breckinridge, of Kentucky, Democrat,
174; William L. Dayton, of Xew Jersey, Republican, 114 ; A. J. Donelson, of
Tenuessee. Native American, S
J \MKS BUCHAN.AN'.
James Buchanan, fifteentli President, was born in Mercersburg, Pennsvl-
vania, April 2:5, 1701, and graduated from Dickinson College in 1809. He be-
came a lawyer, was elected to the State Legislature and to Congress in 1821.
Thenceforward, he was almost continuously in office. President Jackson
appointed him minister to Russia in 1832, but, soon returning home, he wa.s
elected to the United States Senate in 1834. He left that body, in 1845, to
become Polk's secretary of State. In 185:}, he was appointe(i ministei' to
England, where he remained until his election to the presidency in 185(j. He
died at his home in Lancaster, June 1, 18(58. The many honors conferred upon
Buchanan prove his ability, though he has been often accused of showin<; timid-
278
TAYLOR, FILLMORE, PIERCE, AND BUCHANAN.
ity during his term of office, which was of the most trying nature. He was the
only bachelor among our Presidents.
STATES ADMITTED.
Minnesota was admitted to the Union in 1858. It was a part of the Lou-
isana i^urchase. Troubles over the Indian titles delayed its settlement until
1851, after which its growth was wonderfully rapid. Oregon was admitted in
1859. The streams of emigration to California overflowed into Oregon, where
some of the precious metal was found. It was learned, how'ever, in time that
Oregon's most valuable treasure
mine was in her wheat, which is ex-
ported to all parts of the world.
Kansas, of which we have given an
account in the preceding pages, was
quietly admitted, directly after the
seceding Senators abandoned their
; seats, their votes having kept it out
up to that time. The population of
the United States in 1860 was 31,-
443,321. Prosperity prevailed every-
where, and, but for the darkening
sliadows of civil war, the condition of
no people could have been more
happy and promising.
THE DEED SCOTT DECISION.
Dred Scott was the negro slave
of Dr. Emerson, of Missouri, a sur-
geon in the United States army. In
ihe discharge of his duty, his owner
took him to military posts in Illi-
JAMES BUCHANAN.
(17>J1-1SU5.) One term, 1S37-1S61.
nois and Minnesota. Scott mariied a negro woman in Minnesota, and both
were sold by Dr. Emerson upon his return to Missouri. The negro brought suit
for his freedom on the ground that he had been taken into territory where
slavery was forbidden. The case passed through the various State courts, and,
reaching the United States Su2ireme Court, that body made its decision in March,
1857.
This decision was to the effect that negro slaves were not citizens, and no
means existed by which they could become such; they were simply property^
like household goods and chattels, and their owner could take them into any
THE I) RED SCOTT DECISION.
279
State HI the Union without forfeiting his ownership in tlicm. It fbllowed also
from this important decision that the IMissonri Compromise of 1820 and tlie
Compromise of 1850 were null and void, since it was heyond the power
of the contracting parties to make such
agreements. Six of the justices con-
ciinv'i ill ilii- i!t'.i-i..ii ;ind two dissentec
LUCRE! I A
ECTING THE NEGRO DANGERFIELD i'ROM THE MOB IN
PHILADELPHIA.
When Daniel Dnngcrfield, a ftigilive sliive, was tried in I'liiladilpliiii, l.neretia Mott sat during all his trial by the side of the
prisoner. When the trial was cmlid Dangerfield was set at liberty, anil MrIo. — Supersedure of Fremont— Operations on the Coast — 'I'lie Trent Affair
— Summary of the Year's Operations.
Abraham Lincoln, sixteenth Presi(]ont, ranks anidnjr tlie greatest tliat
lias ever presided over the desti-
nies of our country. He was born
ii- Hardin (now Larue) County,
Kentucky, February 12, 1809, but
when seven years old his parents
i-cinoved to Lidiana, making their
home near the present town of Gen-
try vi lie.
His early life wa.s one of extreme
jioverty, and his whole schooling
did not amount to more than a
year; but, jio-ssessing a studious
mind, he improved every spare
hour in the study of instructive
books. At the age of sixteen the
tall, awkward, but jiowerful boy
was earning a living by managing
a ferry across the Ohio. He re-
mained for some time after reaching
manhood with his parents, who re-
moved to Illinois in 1830, and built
a log-cabin on the north fork of the
8angamon. He was able to give valuable hclji in dealing the ground and
ABRAHAM LlWCOLiN.
(ISu'J-lKO.i.) Twu tonus ^.lie FORT SUMTKU.
287
never questioned, won for him the name of " Honest Abe." He was one of the
most kind-hearted of men, and liis rule of life was " malice toward none and
charity for all. He grew with the demands of the tremendous responsibilities
placed upon him, and the re|nitation he won as patriot, statesman, and leader
has been surpassed by no previous I'resident and becomes great(>r with the passing
years.
MAJOR ANDEKSON AND FOKT SUMTER.
All eyes were turned toward Fort Sumter in Charleston harbor. It was
the strongest of the defenses. jNIajor Koliert Andenson, learning that the Con-
federates intended to take possession!
of it, secretly removed his garrison
from Fort Moultrie on the night of I
December 2G, 18G0. Anderson was
in a trying position, for the secretai-y
of war, Floyd, and the adjutant-
general of the ai'my. Cooper, lo I
whom he was obliged to report, wei
secessionists, and not only refused to I
give him help, but threw every ob-
stacle in his way. President Bu-
chanan was surrounded by secession-
ists, and most of the time was be-
wildered as to his course of duty,
He resented, however, the demand]
of Secretary Floyd for the removal |
of Anderson because of the change
he had made from Moultrie to Sum-
ter. Floyd resigned and was sm--!
ceeded by Joseph Holt, of Kentucky,
an uncompromising Unionist, who
did all he coidd to hold up the Presi-
dent in his tottering position of a friend of the Union. The latter grew
stronger as he noted the awakening sentiment of loyalty throughout the North.
An admirable act was the apjiointment of Edwin il. Stanton as attorney-general,
for he was a man of great abilitv and a relentless enemy of secession.
JEFFiiRbON DAVIS.
.TEFFERSOX DAVIS.
Jefferson Davis, who had l)een chosen President of tlie Southern Confederacy
that was formed at Montgomery, Alabama, early in February, was born in Ken-
tucky, June ;>, 1808. Thus he and President Lincoln were natives of the same
•288 ADMINISTRATION OF LINCOLN.
State, with less than a year's difference in their ages. Davis was graduated at
West Point in 1828, and served on the northwest frontier, in the Black Hawk
War. He was also a lieutenant of cavalry in the operations against the Co-
manches and Apaches. He resigned from the army and became a cotton-planter
in Mississippi, which State he represented in Congress in 1845-46, but resigned
to assume the colonelcy of the First Mississippi regiment.
Colonel Davis displayed great gallantry at the storming of Monterey and
at the battle at Buena Vista, and on his return home was immediately elected to
the United States Senate, in which he served 1847-51 and 1857-61. From 1853
to 1857 he was secretary of war under Pierce. He was one of the Southern
leaders, and had already been mentioned as a candidate for the presidency.
He resigned his seat in the United States Senate in January, 1861, upon the
secession of his State, and, being elected Provisional President of the Southern
Confederacy February 9th, was inaugurated February 18th. In the following
year he and Stephens were regularly elected President and Vice-President
respectively, and were inaugurated on the 18th of the month.
INAUGURATION OF PRESIDENT LINCOLN.
President-elect Lincoln left his home in Springfield, Illinois, on the 11th
of February for Washington. He stopped at various points on the route, and
addressed multitudes that had gathei-ed to see and hear him. A plot was
formed to assassinate him in Baltimore, l)ut it was defeated by the vigilance of
the officers attending Lincoln, who took him through the city on an earlier train
than was expected. General Scott had the capital so well protected by troops
that no disturbance took place during the inauguration.
BOMBARDMENT OF FORT SUMTER.
The Confederate government sent General Beauregard to assume charge of
the defenses in Charleston harbor. Finding the fort was being furnished with
supplies, he telegraphed to his govei'nment for instructions. He was ordered to
enforce the evacuation. Beauregard demanded the surrender of the fort, and,
being refused by Major Anderson, he opened fire, early on the morning of April
12tli, from nineteen batteries. Major Anderson had a garrison of 79 soldiers
and 30 laborers who helped serve the guns. He allowed the men to eat bi-eak-
fast before replying. In a few hours the supply of cartridges gave out, and
blankets and other matei-ial were used as substitutes. The garrison were kept
within the bomb-proof galleries, and did not serve the guns on the open para-
pets, two of which had been dismounted by the fire from the Confederate
batteries, which after a time set fire to the oflfioers' barracks. The flames were
extinguished, but broke out several times. The smoke became so smothering
UNION TEOOPS ATTACKED IN BALTIMORE.
289
that the men could breathe ouly by lying flat on their faces. Finally the posi-
tion became so untenable that Anderson ran up the white flag in token of
surrender. No one was killed on either side.
The news of the surrender created wild excitement North and South and
united both sections. While the free States rallied to the Union, almost as one
man, the Unionists in the South became ardent supporters of the cause of dis-
union. It was now a solid North against a solid South.
Three days after the surrender of Fort Sumter, President Lincoln called
FORT MOULTKIE, CHAELESTON, WITH FORT SUMTER IN THE DISTANCE.
for 75,000 volunteers to serve for three months, and Congress was summoned to
meet on the 4th of July. Few people comprehended the stupendous work that
would be required to crush the rel)ellion. While the South was hurrying its
.sons into the ranks, 300,000 answered the call of President Lincoln, who on the
19th of April issued another proclamation declaring a blockade of the Southern
ports.
UNION TROOPS ATTACKED IN BALTIMORE.
JMany of the Confederates demanded that an advance should bi'inade upon
19
290 ADMINISTRATION OF LINCOLN.
Washington, and, had it been done promptly, it could have been captured without
difficulty. Realizing its danger, the national governnient called upon the States
for troops and several regiments were hui-ried thither. While the Seventh
Pennsylvania and Sixth Massachusetts were passing through Baltimore, they
were savagely assailed by a mob. A portion of the Sixth Massachusetts were
hemmed in, and stoned and pelted with pistol-shots. They remained cool
until three of their number had been killed and eight wounded, when they let
fly with a volley which stretched nearly a dozen rioters on the ground, besides
wounding many others. This drove the mob back, although they kept up a
fusillade until the train drew out of the city wnth the troops aboard.
ACTIVITY OF THE CONFEDERATES.
The Confederates in Virginia continued active. They caj^tured Harper's
Ferry and the Norfolk Navy Yard, both of which proved very valuable to them.
Their government issued " letters of marque " which permitted private persons
to cajiture merchant vessels belonging to the United States, against which the
Confederate Congress declared war.
The border States wwe in perhajis the most trying situation of all, for,
while they wished to keep out of the war, they were forced to act the part of
buffer between the hostile States. The secessionists in Maryland, Kentucky,
and Missouri made determined efforts to bring about the secession of those
States, but the Union men were too strong. The armies on both sides received
many recruits from the States named, which in some cases suffered from guer-
rilla fighting between former friends and neighbors.
Kentucky, whose governor was a secessionist, thought she could hold a
neutral position, but the majority of the citizens were Union in their sentiments.
Besides, the situation of the State was such that it was soon invaded by armed
forces from both sides, and some of the severest battles of the war were fought
on its soil.
THE WAR AS VIEWED IN EUROPE.
The ]>rospect of the splitting apart of the United States was pleasing to all
the European powers, with the single exception of Russia. France was
especially urgent in favoring an armed intervention in favor of the Confederacy,
but England would not agree, nor would she recognize the Confederate States
as an independent nation, for, had she done so, the United States would immedi-
ately have declared war against her. In May, however, England declared the
Confederacy a belligerent power, thereby entitling it to make war and man war
vessels, which could take refuge in foreign ports. While this recognition was
of unquestionable help, it would not have amounted to a great deal had not
England permitted the building of swift and powerful cruisers, which were
THE MILITARY tliin'^ iviinding, while ( iciicr;d i!uell, witli tiie other
])ortion of the ITnion army, started for the same point hy land. Aware of this
■division of the Federal forces, (Jenend Albert Sidney Jolinst(Mi hastily concen-
trated liis own divisions with the iuit iilinii df crushing the two Union armies
before ihev could unite. When .lnhusidii iirrivcd in tlie vicinity of Pittsburg
Liinding on the '.'A ol" Api'il lie hiid lO.dOO iiicii, divided into three eorjis
and a reserve.
HATTLK OF I'lTTSliUiai LANDING.
IMttsburg Landing, or Shiloh, as it is called in the South, consists of a
high binlf. a half-mile in extent, where (Jeneral W. T. Sliernian had been
ordered to tiike position aiui prepar;' for tlie.srrival of 1(K),0(K) men. (jrant was
not prepared for the unexpected attack. r>iiell was some distance away with
40,0(X) troops, :iii(l the Union connnander had a somewhat less force on his side
of the Tennessee lliver. Only a few defenses had been thrown up, and the
men were scattered over the ground, when at daylight on Sunday morning,
A])ril (ith, the ( "d n fed i Males I'midusly assailed the outlying divisions of the Union
army and drove tlieni liaek updii the main l)ddy. They steadily gained ground,
and it looked as if nolhing could save the Union army from overwheliiung
disaster.
When the attack was made (ii-ant was du the o|)posite side of the river in
■con.sultatioii with Buell. Hurrying to the scene of the furious conllict, it looked
as if his army was on tlie edge of inevitai)le deslruclion, but he handled his
demoralized forces with such m:isicrly skill that tiie jianic was checked, and on
the river bank, over which they had been well-nigh driven, an (^tftM'tive stand
was made and the ( "onfederates were checked, the gunboats giving invaluable
assistance in saving the ai'my from defeat, 'i'hc night closed with all the
advantage on the side of the Confederates.
The darkness, however, was of inuneasurable value to tlie Fed on the np|)er jiart of the Tennessee, prepareil
to strike blows in any direction.
EV.\CUATION OF COIilNTH.
The witlidrawal of Beauregard to Corinth made that ])oint valuable to the
Unionists, because of the large nuudx-r of railroads which centre there. It was
20
306 ADMiyiSTRATION OF LINCOLN.
strongly fortified, and no one expected its capture without a severe battle.
General Halleck, who was high in favor with the government, assumed com-
mand of the Union armies and began an advance upon Corinth. He moved
slowly and with great caution, and did not reach the front of the place until
the close of May. While making preparations to attack, Beauregard withdrew
and retired still further southward. No further Union advance was made for
some time. The important result accomplished was in opening up the Missis-
sippi from Cairo to Memphis and extending the Union line so that it passed
along the southern boundary of Tennessee.
Beauregard resembled McClellan in many respects. He was excessively
cautious and disposed to dig trenches and throw up fortifications rather than
fight. Jefferson Davis always had a warm regard for General Braxton Bragg,
whom he now put in the place of Beauregard. By the opening of September,
Bragg had an army of 60,000 men. Kirby Smith's corps was at Knoxville and
Hardee and Polk were with Bragg at Chattanooga.
They were ordered to march through Kentucky to Louisville, threatening
Cincinnati on the way. Kirby Smith's approach threw that city into a panic,
but he turned off and joined Bragg at Frankfort.
A KACE FOR LOUISVILLE.
By this time the danger of Louisville was apparent, and Buell, who was
near Nashville, hastened to the defense of the more important city. Bragg ran
a race with him, but the burning of a bridge, spanning the river at Bardstown,
stopped him just long enough to allow Buell to reach Louisville first. This
Avas accomplished on the 2oth of Se])tember, and Buell's army was increased to
100,000 men.
BATTLE OF PERRYVILLE.
Disappointed in securing the main pi'ize, Bragg marched to Frankfort,
where he installed a provisional governor of Kentucky and issued a high-sound-
ing proclamation, to which few paid attention. Bragg had entered one of the
richest sections of the State, and he secured an enormous amount of supplies
in the shape of cattle, mules, bacon, and cloth. His })resence in the State
was intolerable to the Union forces, and Buell, finding a strong army under his
command, set out to attack him. Bragg started to retreat through the Cumber-
land Mountains on the 1st of Octobei-, with Buell in jDursuit. A severe but
indecisive battle was fought at Perryville, and the Confederates succeeded in
carrying away their immense booty to Chattanooga, while the LTnion army took
position at Nashville.
The government was dissatisfied with the sluggishne.'* of Buell and re-
placed him with General William S. Rosecrans. He jjosted a paii of his army
BATTLE OF PEA EIDGE. 307
at Nashville and the remainder along the line of the Cumberland Kiver.
Advancing against Bragg, he faced him in front of Murfreesboro', some forty-
miles from Nashville. On the oOth of December brisk firing took place
between the armies, and when they encamped for the night their lires were in
plain sight of each otlier.
BATTLE OF MUKFREESBORO' OR STONE RIVER.
The opposing forces were on both sides of Stone Kiver (this battle is gen-
erally referred to in the South by that name), a short distance to the northwest
of Miirfreesbor(y. By a curious coincidence, each of the respective commanders
formed the same plan of attack, it being to mass his forces on the left and
crush his enemy's right wing. A terrific engagement lasted all day, and night
closed without any decisive advantage to either side, though the Confederates
had succeeded in driving back the Union right upon the left and occupying a
considerable portion of the field formerly held by the Federals.
The exhaustion of the armies prevented anything more than skirmishing
on New Year's day, 1863, but on the afternoon of January 2d the furious
liattle was renewed. Rosecrans ordered an advance of the whole line, and the
Confederate right wing was broken and the flank so endangered that Bragg was
compelled to withdraw his entire ai-my. The only way for him to retain Ten-
nessee was to abandon Murfreesboro'. Accordingly, he retreated to a point
beyond Duck River, about fifty miles south of Murfreesboro', which was occu-
pied liy the Federals, January 5, 1863.
Otlier important events took place in the AVest. General Sterling Price
wintered in Springfield, Missouri, in the southern part of the State, and gained
a good many recruits and a large amount of needed supplies. He was attacked
l)y Sigel and Curtis on the 12th of February, and continued his retreat to the
Boston Alountains, where he was reinforced by McCulloeh, Van Dorn, and
Albert Pike, and felt himself strong enough to turn about and attack Curtis,
who was in the neighborhood of Pea Ridge.
BATTLE OF PEA RIDGE.
The Union right was commanded by General Sigel, the left by General
Carr, and tlie centre by General Jefferson C. Davis. Sigel was surprised and
came very near being cut off, but he was master of the art of i-etreating rather
than of advancing, and he extricated his Germans with astonishing skill and
joined the main army. General Curtis changed his front, and in the attack his
right wing was driven back, obliging him that night to take a new position a
mile to the rear. The fighting next day was at first in favor of the Confederates,
and for a time the Union army was in a. critical position ; l)Ut with great bravery
308 ADMINISTRATION OF LINCOLN.
and skill the enemy's left was turned, the centre broken, and their forces driven
in disorder from the field.
In this battle Albert Pike used 2,000 Indian allies. They belonged to the
*' civilized " tribes, and good service was expected from them ; but they were un-
accustomed to fighting in the open, could not be disciplined, and in the excite-
ment of the struggle it is alleged they so lost their heads that they scalped about
as many of the Confederates as Unionists. At any rate, the experiment was a
failure, and thereafter they cut no figure in the war.
INDECISIVE FIGHTING.
The enemy were so badly shaken that they retreated toward the North
to reorganize and reci-uit. Reinforcements from Kansas and Missouri also
joined Curtis, who advanced in the direction of Springfield, Missouri, upon
learning that Price was making for the same point. Nothing followed, and
Curtis returned to Arkansas. He had been at Batesville in that State a few
months when he found himself in serious peril. His supplies were nearly ex-
hausted, and it was impossible to renew them in the hostile country by which
he was surrounded. An expedition for his relief left Memphis in June, but
failed. Supplies from Missouri, however, reached him early in July.
Curtis marched to Jacksonport, and afterward established himself at Helena
on the Mississippi. In September he was appointed commander of the depart-
ment of Missouri, which included that State, Arkansas, and the Indian Terri-
tory. There were many minor engagements, and the Unionists succeeded in
keeping the Confederates from regaining their former foothold in Missouri and
north of Arkansas. It may be said that all the fighting in that section pro-
duced not the slightest effect on the war as a whole. The best military leaders
of the Confederacy advised President Davis to withdraw all his forces beyond
the Mississippi and concentrate them in the East, but he rejected their counsel,
and his stubbornness greatly weakened the Confederacy.
Having given an account of military operations in the West, it now remains
to tell of the much more important ones that occurred on the coast and in the
East, for they were decisive in their nature, and produced a distinct effect
upon the progress of the war for the Union.
CONSTRUCTION OF THE MERRIMAC.
It has been stated that early in the war the Norfolk navy yard was burned
to prevent its fiilling into the possession of the Confederates. Among the
vessels sunk was the frigate 3l€7'rimac, which went down before much injury
was done to her. She was a formidable craft of 3,500 tons, 300 feet in length,
and had mounted 40 guns. The Confederates succeeded in raising her, and
CONSTRUCTION OF THE MERRIMAC.
309
proceeded to work marvelous changes in her structure, by which she was turned
into the first real armor-clad ever constructed. She was protected by layers of
railroad iron, which sloped like the roof of a house, and was furnished with a
prow of cast iron which projected four feet in front. Pivot guns were so fixed
as to be used for bow and stern chasers, and the pilot-house was placed forward
of the smoke-stack and armored with four inches of iron. She carried ten
guns, one at the stern, one at the bow, and eight at the sides, and fired shells.
SECKETAEY STANTON'S OPINION ABOUT THE MERKIMAC.
'■ The whole character of the war will be changed."
Her iron armor sloped down at the sides, so that she looked like an enormous;
mansard-roof moving through the water. Her commanding officer was Com-
modore Franklin Buchanan, formerly of the United States navy, while under
him were Lieutenant Catesby R.. Jones, the executive officer, six other lieuten-
ants, six midshipmen, surgeons, engineers, and subordinate officers, in addition
to a crew of 300 men. She was rechristened the Virginia, but will always be
remembered as the llerrimac.
Of necessity this craft, being the pioneer of its kind, had many defects. She
310 AmilNISTEATION OF LINCOLN.
could move only very slowly, and her great length of oOO feet and j^oor steering
ajjparatus required a half-hour for her to make a complete turn, while her tUatt
of 22 feet conhned her to the narrow channel of the Koads. iStill she could go
hister than an ordinary sailing vessel, and her resistless momentum and iron
prow enabled her to crush any vessel afloat as if it were an egg-shell.
Great jiains were taken by the Cou federates to keep secret the jiarticulars of
her building ; but it was known in Washington that a strange craft was in
course of construction at Norfolk, with which it was expected to capture Wash-
ington and devastate the leading cities along the Atlantic seaboard. Ericsson,
the famous Swedish inventor, was engaged near New York in building a smaller
vessel upon the same principle, and he was pressed to make all jaossible haste in
finishing it ; for, though the government did not suspect the terrible efiective-
ness of the Jlerritnac, they meant to take all reasonable precautions against it.
AWFUL WORK OF THE MEEFaMAC.
There were lying at Hampton Roads at that time fi\-e Union vessels, which,
being so close to the dangerous craft, were on the alert day and night for her
appearance. About noon on March 8th a column of dark smoke in the direc-
tion of the Norfolk navy yai-d, followed by the forging into sight of the huge
hulk, left no doubt that the long-expected Merrimae was coming forth upon her
errand of death and destruction. In her company were three gunboats ready
to aid her in any wav possible. The steam frigate Min-nesota and Roanoke and
the sailing tVigates Congress, Cumberland, and St. Laurence immediately cleared
their decks for action.
The Minnesota and Roanoke moved out to meet the Ilerrimac, but both
got aground. In the case of the Minnesota this was due to the treachery of the
pilot, who was in the employ of the Confederates. The Cumberland swerved
so as to bring her lirnadsides to bear, and opened with her pivot guns, at the
distance of a mile. The aim was accurate, but the iron balls which struck the
massive hide of the 3Ierrimac bounded off like pebbles skipping over the water.
Then the Congress added her broadsides to those of the Cumberland, but the
leviathan shed them all as if they were tiny hailstones, and, slowly advancing in
grim silence, finally opened with her guns, quickly killing four marines and
five sailors on the Cumberland. Then followed her resistless broadsides, which
played awful havoc with officers and men. Swinging slowly around, the J?<;'?-;-/-
mac next steamed a mile up the James, and, turning again, came back under full
speed. Striking the Cumberland under the starboard bow, she smashed a hole
into her through which a horse might have entered. The ship keeled over
until her yardarms were close to the water. The terrific force broke off the
prow of the llerrimac, but her frightful shots riddled the Cumberland and set
THE MONITOR, 311
her on fire. The flames were extinguished, and the Cumberland delivered
broadside alter broadside, only to see the enormous missiles fly ofl' and spin
iiarmlessly hundreds of feet away.
Lieutenant George U. Morris, of the Cuinberlnnd, ran up the red flag
meaning " no surrender," and with a heroism never surpassetl maintained the
une(jnal fight, if fight it can be called where there was absolutely no ho])e for
him. Finally the Cumberland went down to her cross-trees, in fifty-four feet of
water. Lieutenant Morris succeeded in saving himself by swimming, but of
the crew of 37*5, ll31 lost their lives.
The Cunibcrlnnd being destroyed, the 3Icrriniac headed for the Congress,
which had run aground. She replied with her harmless broadsides, but the
Ilerriniac held her completely at her mei-cy, raking her fore and aft, and killing
100 of the crew, including the commander. It being evident that not a man
could escape, the white flag was run up in token of surrender. The hot firing
fi-om the shore preventing Commodore Buchanan from taking possession of the
Congress, whereupon he fired her with hot shot.
During the fighting, Commodore Buchanan fearlessly exposed himself on
the upper deck of the Merrimac, and was badly wounded in the thigh by a
Union sharpshooter, whereupon the command was assumed hy Lieutenant Jones.
By that time it was growing dark and the 3ferrimac steamed back to Sewall's
Point, intending to return the next morning and complete her appalling work
of destruction.
CONSTERNATION IN THE NORTH.
The news of what she had done caused consternation throughout the
North. President Lincoln called a special cabinet meeting, at which Secretary
Stanton declared, in great excitement, that nothing could prevent the monster
from steaming up the Potomac, destroying Washington, and laving the prin-
cipal northern cities under contribution. The alarm of the bluff* secretary was
natural, but there was no real ground fir it.
THE MONITOR.
The Swedish inventor, John Ericsson, had completed his Ifonilor, which
at that hour was steaming southward from New York. Although an ii'on-clad
like the Jlrrrimae, she was as different as can be conceived in construction.
She resembled a raft, the up\wr portion of which was 172 feet long and the
lower 124 feet. The sides of the former were made of oak, twenty-five inches
thick, and covered with five-inch iron armor.
The turret was protected by eight-inch plates of wrought iron, increasing
ill thickness to the port-holes, near which it was eleven inches thrnugh. It
was niiu^ feet high, with a diameter of twenty-one feet. Slie drew oidy ten feet
312
ADMINISTRATION OF LINCOLN.
of water, and was armored with two eleven-inch Dahlgreu guns, smooth bore,
firing solid shot weighing 180 pounds.
The pilot-house was made of nine-inch plates of forged iron, rose four
feet above the deck, and Avould hold three men by crowding. The Monitor was
one-fifth the size of the Merrimac, and her aj)pearance has been likened to that
of a cheese-box on a raft. She was in command of Lieutenant John L. Worden,
with Lieutenant S. Dana Green as executive ofiicer. Her crew consisted of
sixteen ofiicers and forty-two men, and she left New York on the morning of
March 6th, in tow of a tug-boat,
The greatest difficulty was en-
countered in managing her, the
men narrowly escaping being
smothered by gas, and, had not
the weather been unusually favor-
able, she would have foundered ;
but 23rovidentially she steamed
into Hampton Roads, undiscov-
ered by the enemy, and took her
position behind the Ilinnesotay
ready for the events of the mor-
row.
The Ilerrimac was promj^tly
on time the next morning, and
was accomj)anied by two gun-
boats; but while steaming toward
the remaining Union vessels the
Monitor darted out from behind
the Min7iesota and boldly advanced
to meet her terrible antagonist..
They silently approached each
other until within a hundred
yards, when the Blonitor filled a shot, to Avhich the Merrimac replied. The
firing was rapid for a time and then became slower, with the intervening^
space varying from fifty yards to four times that distance. A number of the
'3Ierrhnacs shots struck the Monitor'' s pilot-house and turret, the cra.sh doing "no-
harm excejDt almost to deafen the men within. Most of the shells, however,
missed or skipped over the low deck of the smaller boat.
The latter was able to dodge the rushes of the larger craft and play all
around her, but the terrible pounding worked damage to both, the 3Ionitor suf-
fering the most. The iron plate of the pilot-house was lifted by a shell, which
JOHN ERICSSON".
The famous constructor of the Monitor.
CAPTURE OF NEW ORLEANS. 315
blinded Lieutenant Worden, and so disabled him that he was forced to turn
over the command to Lieutenant Green. Worden, who lived to become an
admiral, never fully recovered from his injuries. The firing, dodging, ramming,
and fighting continued for four hours, but the 3Ierrimac was unable to disable
her nimble antagonist, and slowly steamed back to Norfolk, while the 3Ionitor
returned to her former position, and was carefully kept in reserve by the govern-
ment against future perils of a similar character.
FATE OF THE MERRIMAC AND MONITOR.
Neither of the vessels was permitted to do further service. Some months
later, upon the evacuation of Norfolk, the Merrimac was blown \x\) to jarevent
her falling into the hands of the Unionists, and the Ilonitor foundered off" Hat-
teras in December, 1862. The battle wrought a complete revolution in naval
warfare. The days of wooden shij^s ended, and all the navies of the world are
now made up mainly of ironclads.
More important work was done by the Union fleets during this year. The
government put forth every energy to build ships, with the result that hundreds
were added to the naval force, many of which were partial and others wholly
ironclad.
OTHER COAST OPERATIONS.
A month before the fight between the Ifonitor and Merrimac, a formidable
naval expedition under Commodore Goldsborough and General Ambrose E.
Burnside passed down the Atlantic coast and captured Roanoke Island. St.
Augustine and a number of other places in Florida were captured by troops from
Port Royal. Siege was laid to Fort Pulaski, at the mouth of the Savannah
River, and it surrendered April 11th. The advantage of these and similar cap-
tures was that it gave the blockading fleets control of the principal harbors, and
made it easier to enforce a rigid blockade. There were two ports, however,
which the Union vessels were never able to capture until the close of the war.
They were Charleston and Wilmington, North Carolina. The latter became
the chief port from which the Confederate blockade-runners dashed out or en-
tered and were enabled to bring the most-needed medical and other supplies to
the Confederacy, while at the same time the owners and officers of the ships
reaped fortunes for themselves.
CAPTURE OF NEW ORLEANS.
One of the primal purposes of the war was to oj^en the Mississipj^i, which
was locked by the enemy at Vicksburg and New Orleans. As a necessary step
in the opening of the great river, an expedition was fitted out for the capture
of New Orleans. Well aware of what was coming, the Confederates had done
314 ADMINISTRATION OF LINCOLN.
all they could to strengthen the defenses of the city. Thirty miles from the
mouth of the Mississippi were the powerful Forts Jackson and tSt. Philip, on op-
jiosite sides of the river. They mounted 100 heavy guns, and six powerful
chains were stretched across, supported by an immense raft of cyjaress logs.
Thus the river was closed and no fleet could approach New Orleans until these
obstructions were removed or overcome. When this should be done, it was still
seventy-five miles to New Orleans.
Above the bu(jm of hulks and logs was^ fleet of fifteen Confederate ves-
sels, including the ironclad ram 3Ianassas, and a partly completed floating bat-
tery armored with railroad iron, and known as the Louisiana. It has been
stated that the ironclads of those days were only partly protected by armor.
The naval and military exjwdition which sailed for New Orleans in the
spring of 18G2 consisted of six sloops of war, sixteen gunboats, five other ves-
sels, and twenty-one mortar-schooners, the last being under charge of Captain
David D. Porter, while Commodore David G. Farragut had command of the
fleet. The troops, mostly from New England, were commanded by General
B. F. Butler.
Farragut crossed the bar, Ajjril 8th, and spent several days in making his
j^reparations for bombarding Forts Jackson and St. Philip. The bombardment
began April 27th, 1,400 shells being thrown in one day. Farragut then called
his captains together and told them he had resolved to run by the forts. The
only question, therefore, was as to the best means of doing it. It was decided
to make the attempt at night. The darkness, however, was of little benefit,
since the enemy's huge bonfires on both shores lit up the river as if it were
noonday. Previous to this. Lieutenant C. H. B. Caldwell, in the gunboat Itasca,
had ascended the river undiscovered in the darkness and opened a way through
the boom foi- the fleet.
Farragut arranged the fleet in two columns, his own firing upon Fort Jack-
son, wliile the other jaonred its broadsides into Fort St. Philip. The flagship
Hartford led the way under cover of Porter's mortar-boats and the others fol-
lowed. There was a furious fight between the fleets, but every Confederate was
•either captured or destroyed.
Farragut steamed on to the city, silencing the batteries along the banks,
and, at noon, a messenger was sent ashore with a demand for the suri-ender of
the city. General Lovell was in command of 3,000 troops, intended for the
defense of New Orleans, but he fled. The mayor refusing to haul down the
secession flag, the Union troops took possession, raised the Union banner over
the mint, and placed the city in charge of General Butler. The citizens were in
■such a savage mood that Commodore Fai'ragut had to bring tliem to their senses
Jby a threat to bombard the city.
THE ADVANCE AGAINST RICHMOND.
315
General Butler ruled with great strictness, and virtually held New
Orleans under martial law. A Confederate won the applause of his friends by
climbing to the top of the mint, hauling down the flag, dragging it through the
mud, and then tearing it to shreds. Butler brought him to trial before a mUitary
commission, and, being found guilty of the unpartlonable insult to the flag, he
was hanged.
The fall of New Orleans, one of the leading cities, was a severe blow to the
Confederacy. The only points where the Mississippi was strongly held by the
enemy were at Vicksbiirg and Port Hudson, and attention was already turned
to them. Farragut having completed his work, lor the time took connnand in
the Gulf of Mexico.
The most momentous events of. the year occurred in the east and marked
LIBBY PRISON IN 1365
the struggle between the Army of the Potomac and the Confederate Army of
Nortlierii Virginia, as it came to be called.
THE ADVAXCE AGAINST RICHMOND.
McClelhui continued to drill and ti-ain his army through the fall of 1861,
and well into the following year. It numbered nearly 200,000 men and was
one of the finest organizations in the world. In re])ly to the expressions of
impatience, tlie commander invarial)ly i-eplied that a forward movement wouhl
soon be begun, liut the weeks and monrhs passed and the drilling went on, and
nothing was done. Finally, the government gave the commander to understand
that he must advance.
McClellan's jslan was to move against Richmond, from the lower part of
Chesapeake Bay, by way of Urbana on the Rappahannock. AVhile this had
316
ADMINISTRATION OF LINCOLN.
many advantages, its fatal objection in the eyes of the President was that it
would leave Washington unprotected. He issued an order on the 27th of Jan-
uary directing that on the 22d of February there should be a general land and
naval movement against the enemy's position on the Potomac, and that, after
providing for the defense of Washington, a force should seize and occupy a
jjoiut upon the railway to the southwest of Manassas Junction. McClellan was
offended by the act of the President and protested, but Mr. Lincoln clung in
the main to his plan, and, since the delay continued, he issued orders directing
the formation of the army into corps and naming the generals to command
them. Another order made arrangements for the intended advance, and it was
left to McClellan to carry them out.
LIBBY PUISOA' 11
iiiMOVAL TO CHICAGO.
Reliable information reached Washington that General Joseph E. John-
ston, commander of the Confederate forces at Manassas, was engaged in with-
drawing his lines with a view of taking a stronger position nearer Richmond.
General McClellan began a forward movement with the Army of the Potomac
on the 10th of March. The truth was that Confederate spies in Washington
had apprised Johnston of the intended advance of McClellan from the lower
Chesapeake, and his action was with a view of checkmating the Union com-
mander. Instead of carrying out this plan, McClellan marched to Centreville
and occupied the vacated intrenchments of the enemy. The general hope was
that Johnston would be forced to give battle, but the roads in Virginia, at that
THE ADVANCE AGAINST RICHMOND. 317
season, were one sea of mud, which made progress so slow that the Confederates
had time in which to withdraw at their leisure.
Crossing the Potomac into Virginia, with the main army, McClellan made
his first headquarters at Fairfax Court-House. About that time he received
news that he was relieved of the command of the other departments, his authority
being confined to the direction- of the Army of the Potomac. He was directed
by the President to garrison Manassas securely, see that Washington was pro-
tected, and, with the rest of his force, assume a new base at Fort Monroe, or
" anywhere between here and there," and, above all things, to pursue the enemy
" by some route."
McClellan's four corps commanders were Sumner, McDowell, Heintzel-
man, and Keyes, and they and he agreed upon a plan of campaign. The
difficulties of transporting nearly 100,000 men to Fort Monroe were so great
that two weeks were occupied in completing the transfer. In order to jarevent
the Confederates from getting in his rear, McClellan directed Banks to rebuild
the railroad from Washington to Manassas and Strasburg, thus keeping open
communication with the Shenandoah Valley, where the enemy were in force, a
fact which caused the government much uneasiness for the national capital.
Indeed, it was a part of the effective plan of Johnston to embarrass the cam-
paign against Richmond.
Banks occupied Winchester about the middle of March and sent a force
under Shields to Strasburg. He found Stonewall Jackson there with such a
strong force that he fell back to Winchester, where, after the withdrawal of the
main body by Banks, he was attacked by Jackson, who was repulsed.
In pursuance of the new plan of campaign, McClellan made Fort Monroe
bis first base of operations, using the route through Yorktown and West Point
for the advance to Richmond. He expected to fight a great battle on the way
thither, for the enemy could not fail to read the meaning of his movements.
McClellan reasoned that this battle would take place between West Point and
Richmond, and his intention was to advance without delay to the former posi-
tion and use it as his chief depot for supplies. His plan was to make a com-
bined naval and military attack on Yorktown, send a strong force up the York
River, aided by the gunboats, and thus establish his new base of operations
within twenty-five miles of the Confederate capital.
It was not long before he began calling for reinforcements, and the govern-
ment, instead of aiding him, took away piecemeal many of the troops upon
which the commander had counted to aid him in his campaign. He wanted
150,000 men and a large increase of cannon. The 10,000 men, composing
Blenker's division, were detached, as the President informed him, to supjiort
Fremont, but Mr. Lincoln promised to withdraw no more from the main army.
318 ADMINISTRATION OF LINCOLN.
McClellaii remained at liis headquarteis near Alexandria until most of his
forces were well on the road to the Yorktown peninsula. He left on the 1st of
April and the troops were landed thiee days later. Then a force of 56,000
men with 100 guns started for Yorktown.
But for the inherent timidity and distrust of McClellan, he might have
captured Richmond, by marching straight ahead to the city, for the Confederate
force opposed to him was but a fragment of his own, and could have been
trampled underfoot. The Confederate intrenchments were a dozen miles in
length, and were defended by Mugruder with a force that allowed less than a
thousand men for each mile.
Instead of pushing on, McClellan began a regular siege of Yorktown.
Immense siege guns were dragged through the muddy swamps, and the musket
was laid aside for the sj^ade and shovel, which the men applied week after week,
until worn out and with thousands prostrated by sickness. The delay, as a
matter of course, was improved by the Confederates in strengthening the
defenses of their capital. At the end of a month, the Union army advanced,
whereupon Magruder fell back to other fortifications nearer Richmond. The
whole month had been worse than thrown away by McClellan, for it had given
the enemy all the time they needed to complete their defenses.
The Confederate army was increased, and reinforcements were sent to
McClellan, whose forces were fully 20,000 in excess of those under Johnston,
but the Union leader magnified the strength of the enemy and continued to call
for more troops. It was this unvarying demand that brought the impatient
remark from Secretary of War Stanton :
"If I gave McClellan a million men, he would swear the rebels had two
millions, and sit down in the mud and refuse to move until he had three
millions."
The Confederates fell back to Williamsburg, at the narrowest part of the
peninsula, between the James and York Rivers, and began fortifying their posi-
tion. The Union gunboats ascended to Yorktown, where the Federal depots
were established. Longstreet, in command of the Confederate rear, halted and
gave battle with a view of protecting his trains.
The engagement took place on May oth. The Unionists were repulsed at
first, but regained and held their ground, the night closing without any decided
advantage to either army. Longstreet, however, had held the Federals in check
as long as was necessary, and when he resumed his retreat McClellan did not
attempt to pursue him.
The Confederates continued falling back, with IMcClellan cautiously follow-
ing. The delay secured by the enemy enabled them to send their baggage and
supply trains into Richmond, while the army stripped for the fray. They aban-
THE ADVANCE AGAINST RICHMOND.
319
(loued the Yorktowu peninsula altogether and evacuated Norfolk, which was
occupied by General Wool. It Avas this movement which caused the blowing
up of the Merrimac, referred to elsewhere.
From this it will be seen that both
shores of the James were in j)Ossession \^A^
of the Union forces. The Confederate
army withdrew within the defenses of
Richmond on the 10th
of May, and the Tt d-
eral gunboats, atm
steaming up the iivei
to within twehe nnle^^
of the city, weie c )m-
pelled to withdi i\\
before the plungmj,
shots of the battel les.,
r-^a
a "^v^ y
whuh stood on the
top-- of the lii<;h blufts.
l\)llo\\ inatriotism could not be doubted were disposed to show toward the
" peculiar institution." President Lincoln was one of the wisest men who ever
sat in the executive chair, and none read so unerringly the signs of the times as
he. The Aliolitiouists were impatient with his slowness, while many of the
^^^^O ^j />^t
UNITED STATES MILITARY TELEGHAPH 'WAGON.
doubting thought he went too fast. He waited until the right hour, and tlien
issued his Emancipation Proclamation.
This ai^i^eared soon after the battle of Antietam, and it is said was the ful-
fillment of the pledge President Lincoln had made to heaven that, if Lee's
invasion was turned back, he would issue the great jiaper, which, in effect, would
see free 4,000,000 bondsmen. In it he warned the seceding States that in every
one which failed to return to its allegiance by the first of January, 1863, he
would declare the slaves free. The warning was received with scorn, as was
332 ADMINISTRATION OF LINCOLN.
expected. From the date named, therefore, all the armed forces of the Union
treated the slaves as free wherever encountered. Before long colored men were
enlisted as soldiers and sailors, and they bore no inconsiderable part in the
prosecution of the war.
"greenbacks."
It will be understood that the revenue of the government was altogether
unequal to the vast demands upon it. Taxation was increased, and, in 1862,
the government began the issue of its own paper money. The backs of the
bills being printed in green ink, these bills were known as "greenbacks." They
Avere made a legal tender, desjiite considerable opposition to the measure. The
law gave any person owing a debt, no matter if contracted in gold and silver, the
right to pay the same with greenbacks. Since it is impossible to regulate the
value of money except by the law of supply and demand, the bills, as comjjared
with gold, depreciated a good deal in value.
The act of February 25, 1862, authorized the issue of $150,000,000, and
further issues were made on June 11, 1862, and March 3, 1863. The depre-
ciation of greenbacks was such that the price of gold averaged 2.20 through-
out 1864, and at one time reached 2.85. In other words, a greenback dollar was
worth only thirty-five cents. Another method of raising money was through
the sale of bonds, of which many millions were issued. To encourage their
sale, the National Banking System was established in 1863. This required all
banks that issued currency to deposit a slightly larger amount of bonds in
Washington. Thus the banks were compelled to help the government by
loanius; it monev.
CHAPTER XVII.
ADMINISTRATION OK LINCOLN (CONTINUED),
I86I-IS60.
WAR KOR THE UNION (CONTINUED), 1863.
The Military Situation in the West — Siege and Capture of Vicksburg — The Mississippi Opened — Battle of
Chickamauga — "The Rock of Chickamauga " — The Battle Above the Clouds — Siege of Knoxville —
General Hooker Appointed to the Command of the Army of the Potomac — His Plan of Campaign
Against Richmond — Stonewall Jackson's Stampede of the Eleventh Corps — (Jritical Situation of the
Union Army — Death of Jackson — Battle of Chancellorsville — Defeat of Hooker — The Second Con-
federate Invasion — Battle of Gettysburg — The Decisive Struggle of the War — Lee's Retreat — Sub-
sequent Movements of Lee and Meade — Confederate Privateering — Destruction of the Naxlu-ll/f —
Failure of the Attacks on Charleston — The Military Raids — Stuart's Narrow Escape — Stoneman's
Raid — Morgan's Raid in Indiana and Ohio.
There were now such immense armies in the field and military operations
were conducted on so vast a scale that the reader must carefully study the
situation in order to gain an intelligent idea of the progress of the momentous
events. We will give our attention first to operations in the West.
THE SITUATION IN THE WEST.
There were four Union armies in that section. The first was the one under
Rosecrans, which, on the opening days of the year, won the victory at
Murfreesboro' or Stone River, an account of which is given in the preceding
chapter. The second was near Holly Springs, under General Grant ; a third
was in New OrleaiLs, under General Banks, who had succeeded General Butler;
and the fourth was in Arkansas. The main ol)ject of all these armies was to
open the Mississippi. When that should be accomplished, the Confederacy
would be split in two. Hundreds of thousands of beeves were drawn from
Texas and the country beyond the Mississippi, and to shut off this supply
would be one of the most effective blows that could be struck against the
rebellion.
GRANT BEFORE VICKSBURG.
General Sherman had failed to capture Vicksburg, and General Grant
assumed command of the forces besieging it. He saw that the defenses facing
the Mississippi and the lower part of the Yazoo were too powerful to be taken
(333)
334
ADMINISTRATION OF LINCOLN
by storm. He decided as a consequence to turn the rear of the lines, and,
securing an entrance into the upper part of the Yazoo, reach* the rear of the
batteries at Haines' Bluff.
In this important work he received valuable help from the ironclads of
Admiral Porter. With one of them he opened communication with the
squadron in the lower part of the Mississippi and disabled a Confederate
steamer under the guns of Vicksburg. Two of the boats groped their way
through the swamps and wooded creeks, where nothing more than canoes and
dugouts had ventured before, obtained a great deal of cotton and burned much
more, disregarded the torpedoes and fought the rebels along the banks, explored
new routes, and in the end both were captured by the enemy.
Several ingenious plans were
tried to capture these formidable
fortifications. One was an attempt
t(i force a passage into the Upper
Yazoo. Another was to open a
new channel for the Mississij)pi.
Both were failures, but the levees
ro visions for barely
two months, from
which they had to
supply the inhabitants of the town. J(5 Johnston saw the peril and set to work
with such vigor to raise a force to send to the relief of Pemberton, that Grant
was hui-ried into making an assault on the reliel works. This took place before
daylight on the morning of May 19th. Though successful at first, the Federals
GRANT AFTER THE BATTLE OF BELMONT.
338 ADMINISTRATION OF LINCOLN.
were repulsed. A grand assault was undertaken three days later and pressei!
with the utmost bravery, but it resulted in another repulse, in which the loss of
the assailants was three times greater than that of the defenders. Porter tried
to help with his fleet, but his vessels were so baldy injured by the batteries that
they were compelled to withdraw from action.
This failure showed that it was useless to try to capture Vicksburg except
through a regular siege, which was pressed henceforth without intermission.
Shells were thrown into the doomed city night and day ; the people lived in
caves, on short rations, and underwent miseries and sufferings which it is hard
to comprehend in these days. All the time Grant was edging closer and closer.
Parallels and approaches were constructed ; mines sunk and countermining
done. Several attempts were made to relieve Vicksburg, but the bulldog-like
grip of Grant could not be loosened, and the condition of the garrison became
much like that of Cornwallis at Yorktown in 1781
FALL OF VICKSBUKG.
The defenders displayed the greatest bravery and endurance, and held out
until the time came when it was apparent that it was a choice between surrender
and starving to death. That man who prefers to starve rather than submit to
a magnanimous foe is a fool. Pemberton had 21,000 troops under his command,
but 6,000 were in the hospitals, while Grant had fully 60,000 soldiers waiting
and eager to make the assault. On the 3d of July, a flag of truce was displayed
in front of Vicksbui'g, and a message was sent to the Union commander, ask-
ing for an armistice with a view of arranging for the capitulation of Vicks-
burg. Grant's reply was his usual one, that the only terms he could accept
were unconditional sui-render, and he, therefore, declined to appoint commis-
sioners.
The commanders then met between the lines, and Grant agreed that the
garrison should be paroled and allowed to go to their homes, and that the city,
stores, arms, and supplies should belong to the conquerors. Although the Union
commander's terms "unconditional surrender" soiinded harsh, they always
proved of a generous nature. There was a good deal of criticism in the South
of Pemberton for selecting the 4th of July for making his submission, since the
Union people would be sure to make a greater ado over it. Pemberton's
explanation was that he believed Grant would be more disposed to give him
liberal terms on that date than on any other, and it would not be strange if he
was partly right.
IMPORTANCE OF THE CAPTURE.
The capture of Vicksburg was one of the most important Union successes
of the war. In his ofiicial report, Grant thus summarized the results of his
ROSECEANS' CAMPAIGN. 339
campaign : " The defeat of the enemy in five battles outside of Vicksburg ; the
occupation of Jackson, the capital of Mississippi ; and the capture of Vicksburg,
its garrison and munitions of war; a loss to the enemy of 37,000 prisoners, at
least 10,000 killed and wounded, and hundreds, perhaps thousands, who can
never be collected or reorganized. Arms and munitions of war for an army
of 60,000 men have fallen into our Jiands, beside a large amount of other public
jjropei'ty and much that was destroyed to prevent our capturing it."
Thus one of the great objects of tlie war was accomplished. The Mississippi
was opened throughout its entire length and the Confederacy cut in twain. That
President Davis felt the gravity of the blow (to which one still more decisive was
added about the same time) was proven by his proclamation calling into service
all persons in the Confederacy not legally exempt, who were between the ages
of eighteen and forty-five years. He also appointed the 21st of August as a
day of fasting, humiliation, and prayer.
Grant's magnificent success greatly increased his popularity in the North.
His praises were in every one's mouth; he was declared to be the ablest military
leader that had yet appeared, and more than one saw in him the coming saviour
of the Union.
Perhaps it is slightly premature to say that the Mississippi was opened
from the hour of the surrender of Vicksburg. Port Hudson held out, but its
fall was a corollary of that of the more important city. It had stoutly resisted
several attacks, but, realizing the liopelessness of his situation, the Confederate
commander surrendered on the 9th of July, and the opening of the Mississippi
was fully completed.
ROSECRANS' CAMPAIGN.
The reader will recall that the battle of ]\Iurfreeshoro' took place at the
very beginning of the year. Rosecrans, the Union commander, never repeated
the brilliant skill he had shown in fighting Bragg on Stone River. He seemed
to think that that repulse of the enemy was sufficient to last a good while, for
he remained idle throughout the several months that followed. There were a
number of brisk skirmishes and fights, but none was of importance. When
June arrived without anything of account having been accomplished, the
government suggested to Rosecrans that it was time he took steps to drive
Bragg into Georgia and thus secure Eastern Tennessee, where the sentiment
was strongly Union.
Rosecrans hesitated, but u^^on receiving a stronger intimation that he ought
to be up and doing, he began a series of movements, in the latter part of June,
which caused Bragg to withdraw to Chattanooga, where he intrenched himself.
Burnside then advanced from Ohio into Eastern Tennessee, but was so delayed
that Bragg was heavily reinforced from Virginia. To protect his comTiumi-
340 ADMINISTEATIOX OF LINCOLN.
cations, he fell back, however, upon the approach of the Federal army, which
occupied Ciiattanooga.
Unaware of the increased strength of the enemy, Rosecrans divided his
army into three columns, separated by wide spaces of mountains, and marched
in loose order against his foe, observing which Bragg determined to overwhelm
each of the columns in detail.
The tirst demonstration was against General George H. Thomas, who
commanded the Federal left, and was encamped at the foot of Lookout
Mountain. That splendid officer eluded the enemy launched against him,
and effected a junction with the other two corps.
At the same time the centre of the three columns was attacked, but the
assault was repulsed, and the reunited Union army on the 18th of September
stood on the western bank of the Chickamauga, which stream was well named,
for the Indian word means "the river of death." The position was twelve miles
from Chattanooga, and it was a perilous one, for, as has been stated, Bragg had
been heavily reinforced, and Longstreet with a powerful column of veterans
from Lee's Army of Northern Virginia was approaching. He, therefore,
decided to make an attempt to recover Chattanooga.
BATTLE OF CHICKAMAUGA.
The Confederates crossed the Chickamauga, and, on the morning of the
19th, Rosecrans opened the battle by attacking the enemy's right wing. The
entire armies were soon involved, and the fighting lasted until nightfall, with
the result in favor of the Confederates. Although forced from several positions,
they gained and held the road leading to Chattanooga, and the Union troops
were driven almost to the base of Missionary Ridge.
Late that night, Longstreet arrived with his fire-seasoned veterans. He
was one of Lee's best lieutenants, and it was arranged that the battle should be
renewed the next morning at daybreak, with Longstreet commanding the left
wing. From some cause, the Confederate attack was delayed until ten o'clock,
the delay giving the Federals time to throw up a number of breastworks.
Against these Bragg repeatedly charged with his right wing, but was repulsed
each time.
Thomas, in command of the Union left, also repelled a sharp attack, but
Longstreet routed Rosecrans, and, discerning a gap caused by the transfer ot
the Union centre to strengthen the left, Longstreet led his men impetuously
into the opening, thus splitting the Union army in two. Striking in both
directions, he threw the two divisions into such disorder and confusion that the
frightened Rosecrans galloped in hot haste to Chattanooga to secure his supply
train ;ind the ponton-bridges over the Tennessee. At the same time, he
SUPERSEDURE OF ROSECRAX'S BY THOMAS.
341
telegraphed the teri-ifviiig tidings to Washington that the whole Union army
had been beaten.
"the rock of chickamauga. "
At a crisis in the tremendous battle, General Hood, one of the Confederate
leaders, was wounded, and a halt was made until another officer could be
brought up to take his place. Short as was the delay, it gave the Unionists
time to rally and strengthen their endangered points. Despite this advantage,
the telegram of Rosecrans would have been verified and the magnificent army
destroyed except for one man. Hi' was (lemgc II. Tlmiiias, the lieioic
commander of the Union left. Long-
sti-eet launched his veterans against
him again and again, but he beat
them back in every instance. Never
did men fight more bravely than
those Americans, arrayed against
each other, and never was finer gen-
ei-alship displayed than by General
Thomas, whose wonderful defense
that day won for him the name by
wliich he will always be remeraben
— "The Rock of Chickamauga."
Holding his heroes well in hand,
Thomas was ready to renew the battle
the next day, but Bragg did not
molest him. The Confederates, how-
ever, had won a victory, for they
drove the Federals from the field and
retained possession of it. Thomas
fell slowly back toward Chattanooga,
jtresenting a firm front to the enemy.
Chickamauga ranks as one of
the great battles of the war. The Union losses were: killed, 1,656; wounded
9,749; missing, 4,774; total, 16,179. The Confederate losses were: killed
2,268; wounded, 13,613; captured and missing, 1,090; total, 16,971.
GEOK3E H. THOMAS.
■■The Rock of Cliickiiiiiaiiga."
SUPERSEDURE OF ROSECR.AXS BY TlIi)M.\.S.
Rosecran.s' conduct of this battle caused his supersedui-e by Thomas, while
several division commanders were suspended, pending an in(pui'y into their
course. President Davis removed General Leonidas Polk, wlio was thought to
have shown hesitancy of action at critical points. Biagg, however, was the
342 ADMINISTRATION OF LINCOLN.
most blamable, for, with the advantage overwhehuingly in his favor, he refused
to permit Longstreet to follow up his success. One of the peculiarities of the
Confederate President was his strong likes and dislikes. He was a personal
enemy of Jo Johnston, and more than once humiliated him, but he was also a
friend of Bragg, and, in the face of indignant protests, retained him in chief
command in the southwest.
As soon as the Union array reached Chattanooga intrenchments were
thrown up. Bragg appeared before the town on the 23d, and, finding the posi-
tion too strong to be carried by assault, he laid siege to it. The situation of the
army became so dangerous that great uneasiness was felt in Washington, where
the wise step was taken of sending General Grant thither, with his ajjpoint-
ment to the command of the entire West. Abundant reinforcements were hurried
to the imj^eriled point, the entire Eleventh and Twelfth Corps from the Army
of the Potomac forming the principal commands. The Federals became much
the stronger, but Bragg did not abandon his siege of Chattanooga.
Recalling the advance of Burnside from the Ohio to the relief of Rose-
crans, it should be stated that he did not arrive in time to take part in the battle
of Chickamauga, but occupied Knoxville on the 9th of September. Bragg sent
Longstreet with a strong force to attack Burnside, the Confederate commander
thereby weakening his army, which could ill stand it. Grant arrived at Chat-
tanooga on the night of October 20th, and telegraphed Burnside to hold Knox-
ville at all hazards, while he gave his attention to Bragg.
Sherman came up with his troops November 15th, and a week later Grant
had an army of 80,000 men on the ground, while the removal of Longstreet
left Bragg with only 50,000. His line, twelve miles long, embraced two eleva-
tions commanding a view of Chattanooga Valley. Lookout Mountain was on
the south, while Missionary Ridge on the east was not quite so high. The Con-
federate left wing rested on the former, and the right on Missionary Ridge, with
the Chattanooga flowing between. Bragg was justified in considering his posi-
tion impregnable.
THE BATTLE ABOVE THE CLOUDS.
Grant, however, held a different opinion. On the night of the 23d the
enemy's picket lines were forced back and an improved position secured. The
following morning. Hooker, having already crossed the river, was ordered to
attack the position on Lookout Mountain. His movements were hidden for a
time by a dense fog, and it was his intention to stop as soon as the enemy's rifle-
pits at the base were captured; but, when this was accomplished, the men were
carried away by their enthusiasm, noting which Hooker ordered them to charge
the Confederate position. Up the mountain the cheering, eager fellows swept
with irresistible valor. The Stars and Stripes was planted on the crest and
BUENSIDE SUPERSEDED BY HOOKER. 343
2,000 of the fleeing Confederates were made prisoners. The fog still lay heavy
in the valley below, a fact which has led to the battle being called the "Battle
above the Clouds."
DEFEAT OF THE CONFEDERATES.
The following morning was also foggy, but, when it lifted, Sherman's corps
was seen advancing against the Confederate right, close to Chickamauga station.
In the face of a heavy artillery fire the Federals pressed on, but at the end of
an hour they were compelled to retreat. By order of Grant the attack was
renewed, but another severe repulse followed. Next a general movement
against the left centre was ordered, and this was successful. The enemy was
driven in confusion toward Ringgold, to the southeast, while a large number of
prisoners and a vast amount of supplies were captured.
General Hooker pursued and drove the Confederates out of Ringgold, but
they assumed so strong a position at Taylor's Ridge that Grant ordered him not
to attack, but to remain and hold Ringgold, Sherman, in the meantime, march-
ing against Longstreet. Bragg had blundered so much in conducting this
disastrous campaign that President Davis was forced to replace him with
Hardee.
RAISING OF THE SIEGE OF KNOXVILLE.
Meanwhile, Longstreet was besieging Burnside at Knoxville, where the
15,000 Union trooj^s were threatened with starvation. The town was invested
November 17th, and the next day some of the outworks were carried. Well
aware that Grant, after his defeat of Bragg, would hurry to the relief of Knox-
ville, Longstreet attacked on the 29th, but suffered a bloody repulse. He stub-
bornly held his ground until he learned that Sherman was close upon him, when
he withdrew and started on his march to Virginia. The campaign soon ended in
Tennessee, which was virtually recovered to the Union.
The reader will note that we have described the leading events in the West
and Southwest from the opening of the year to its close. Once more it is neces-
sary to return to January, 1863, in order to give a history of the most important
campaign of all — that against Richmond, which was defended by the formidalile
Army of Northei'n Virginia, under the command of General Robert E. Lee.
BURNSIDE SUPERSEDED BY HOOKER.
Burnside's management of the attack on Fredericksburg in December,
1862, was so incomj^etent and disastrous that it was impossible for him to retain
the chief command. Knowing that several of his generals had severely criti-
cised him, Burnside sent a list of names to Washington, giving the government
the choice of removing them or accepting his resignation. Prominent on
344 ADMINISTRATION OF LINCOLN.
Burnside's "black list" was the name of Hooker. On the 26th of January
Burnside's resignation was accepted, and Hooker was made his successor.
The morale of the grand organization had been injured by its wretched
leadership, but the material itself could not have been finer. Hooker set
resolutely to work, and, by the 1st of May, the army was well trained and
disciplined, and numbered 130,000 men, of whom fully 12,000 were cavalry.
Lee had about half as many trooj^s.
Knowing it would not do to remain idle when the beautiful spring weather
came, Hooker had been carefully planning for another camjiaign against
Richmond. He had won a fine reputation for himself as a fighter and skillful
corps commander, and the hopes were high that he would lead his superb army
directly into the rebel capital. Everything seemed to be in his favor, and the
campaign opened j^romisingly.
THE NEW CAMPAIGN AGAIXST KICHMOND.
Hooker's plan was to assail Lee at two points. The Rappahannock and
Rapidan were to be crossed a short distance west of Fredericksburg, and the
left wing attacked. While this was going on, Hooker's own left wing was to
occupy the heights and secure possession of the Richmond Railroad. The
powerful Union cavalry Avere to ride ai'ound Lee's position and cut off his
retreat to Richmond. This involved the destruction of the railroads and
bridges over the North and South Anna Rivers.
This important movement was begun April 27th. The main portion of the
corps of Meade, Howard, and Slocum, numbering 36,000 men, marclied thirty
miles up the Rappahannock and crossed the stream without resistance. A force
then moved ten miles down the other side of the river, driving away several
Confederate detachments, and opened the way for Couch with 12,000 men to
cross and join the other three corps. Taking different routes, the 48,000
advanced toward Chancellorsville, which had been named as the rendezvous.
They were soon followed by Sickles with 18,000 men.
It was not until the Union movement had jjrogressed thusfiir that Lee read
its purpose. He hastily called in his divisions, and, on the forenoon of May 1st,
the Army of Northern Virginia Avas drawn up in battle-line in front of that
dense-wooded district known as the Wilderness.
Exultingly confident. Hooker ordered an advance that day from near
Chancellorsville toward Fredericksburg. Hardly had he started when he
learned that Lee was moving against him; he, therefore, j^aused and threw up
defenses. His aim was to flank Lee, and, to prevent it, the Confederate
commander took desperate chances. Keeping up a rattling demonstration in
front, he sent Stonewall Jackson with 30,000 men around the right of the Union
DEATH OF STONEWALL JACKSON. 345
array. Had Hooker known of this daring movement, he could easily have
crushed each division in detail.
STONEWALL JACKSOX's FL.\XK MOVE.AIEXT.
Jackson carried out his programme with fearful completeness. Without
his purpose being susjjected, he traveled lifteen miles, reaching the road leading
from Orange to Fredericksburg, on the southern side of the Rapidan. He was
thus within two miles of General Howard's Eleventh Corps. The men were
preparing supper with no thought of dangi-r. when the uii \\a- ~u
the Warrenton road.
" That means that Uncle Bob has sent us help!" was the gratified exclama-
tion of Stuart to his delighted friends ; " we must take a hand in this business."
The cavalry opened fire on the Union lines, which were thrown into some
confusion, during which Stuart limbered up his guns and quieklv rejoined
Ewell.
stoxeman's raid.
As has been stated. General Hooker at the opening of the battle of Cliau-
cellorsville was confident that he was going to defeat Lee. In order to cut off
his retreat, he sent General Stoneman, with 2,300 cavalry, on April 28th, to
the rear of the Confederate army. Stoneman crossed the Rappahannock at
Kelly's Ford, where his force was divided. One-half, led by General Averill,
headed for the Orange Railroad, a little way above Culpeper, then occupied by
Fitzhugh Lee, with a force of 500 men. He was attacked with such vigor that
he hurriedly retreated across the Rapidan, burning the bridges behind him.
Averill, instead of pursuing, turned about and made his way back to Hooker,
in time to accompany him in his retreat to the northern bank of the Rappa-
hannock.
Meanwhile, Stoneman crossed tlie Rapidan on the 1st of May, and galloped
to Louisa Station, on the Virginia Central Railroad, a dozen miles to the east
of Gordonsville. There he paused and sent out several detachments, which
wrought a great deal of mischief One of them advanced to Ashland, only fifteen
miles from Richmond, while another went still closer to the Confederate capital.
MORGAN'S RAID. 365
These bodies of troopers caused much alarm, and a general converging of the
enemy's cavalry caused Stoiieman to start on his return, May Gth. For a time
he was in great danger, but his men were excellently mounted, and, by hard
riding, they effected a safe escaj)e along the north bank of the Panumkey and
\ ork Rivers, and rejoined their friends at Gloucester.
grierson's raid.
During the siege of Vicksburg a daring raid was made in the rear of the
city by Colonel B. H. Grierson. In this instance his work was of great hel}) to
General Gi'ant, for he destroyed the Confederate lines of communication, antl
checked the gathering of reinforcements for Pemberton. Grierson, who con-
ceived the plan of the i-aid, left La Grange on the 17th of Ajiril with three
regiments of cavali'y. After crossing the Tallahatchie, he rode south to the
Macon and Corinth Railroad, where the rails were torn up, telegraph lines cut,
and bridges and other property destroyed. To do the work thoroughly detach-
ments were sent in diftei'eiit dii'PCtions, and they spared nothing.
Grierson now changed his course to the southwest, seized the bridge over
Pearl River, burned a large number of locomotives, and forced his way through
a wild country to Baton Rouge, which he found in the possession of Unionists.
He had been engaged for a fortnight on his raid, during which he destroyed an
immense amount of jiroperty, captured several towns, fouglit several sharp
skii-mishes, and carried off many prisoners.
John S. Mosby was the most daring Confederate raider in the East. Some
of his exploits and escapes were remarkable, and an account of them would fill
a volume with thrilling incidents. General Lee did not look with favor on such
irregular work, but accepted it as one of the accompaniments of war, and it
cannot be denied that ]\Iosby gave him valuable help in more than one instance.
morgan's raid.
John H. Morgan was famous in the southwest as a raider and guerrilla.
At the beginning of July, 1863, he seized Columbia, near Jamestown, Kentucky,
and advanced against Colonel Moore at Greenbrier Bridge. His reception was
so hot that he was obliged to retreat, whereupon he attacked Lebanon, where
there was considerable vicious fighting in the streets. One of Morgan's regi-
ments was commanded by his brother, who was killed. The incensed leader set
fire to the houses, and, although the defenders surrendered, the place was sacked.
Then the invaders retreated before the Union cavalry who were advancing
against them. Their course was through Northern Kentucky, where they
plundered right and left, and spread dismay on every hand.
Reckless and encouraged by their successes, they now swam their horses
866 ADMINISTRATION OF LINCOLN.
over the Ohio River, and, entering Indiana, gave that State its first experience
in war. The local militia were called out, but the experienced cavalry easily
brushed them aside. They knew, however, it would be different when they
met the regular Union cavalry who were riding hard after them. To escape
them, Morgan started for western Virginia. When he entered Ohio, the State
was terrified, and even Cincinnati trembled, but the raiders had no thought
of stopping until they reached western Virginia, where they would be safe.
The telegraph had carried the news of Morgan's movements everywhere,
and the determination was general that he should not be allowed to escape from
the entanglements in which he and his men had involved themselves. The
militia guarded all the fords of the Ohio ; gunboats steamed back and forth ; the
roads were blocked by felled trees, and everything possible was done to
obstruct the band, who were so laden with jilunder that their exhausted animals
had to proceed slowly.
It is stated by credible witnesses, who saw the formidable company riding
along the highway when hard pressed, that nearly every man in the saddle was
sound asleep. They dared not make any extended halt through fear of their
pursuers, and when they did pause it was because of their drooping animals.
Reaching the Ohio at last, Morgan planted his field guns near Bufiington
Island, with the view of protecting his men while they swam the river. Before
he could bring them into use, a gunboat knocked the pieces right and left like
so many tenpins. Abandoning the place, Morgan made the attempt to cross at
Belleville, but was again frustrated. It was now evident that the time had come
when each must lookout for himself Accordingly, the band broke up and
scattered. Their j^ursuers picked them uj) one by cjne, and Morgan himself and
a few of his men were surrounded near New Lisbon, Ohio, and comjselled to
surrender. He and his principal officers were sentenced to the Ohio penitentiary,
where they were kept in close confinement until November 27th, when through
the assistance of friends (some of whom were probably within the prison), he
and six officers effected their escape, and succeeded in reaching the Confederate
lines, where they were soon at their characteristic work again.
Morgan was a raider by natui-e, but, as is often the case, the "pitcher went
to the fountain once too often." While engaged upon one of his raids the follow-
ing year he was cornered by the Federal cavalry, and in the fight that followed
was shot dead.
Far below these men in moral character were such guerrillas as Quantrell,
who were simply plunderers, assassins, and murderers, who carried on their
execrable work through innate depravity, rather than from any wish to help the
side with which they identified themselves. Most of them soon ran their brief
course, and died, as they had lived, by violence.
CHAPTER XVIII.
ADMINISTRATION OK LINCOLN (CONCLUDED).
1861-1865.
WAR KOR THE UNION (CONCLUDED), 1864-1865.
The Work Remaining to be Done — General Grant Placed in Command of all the Union Armies — The
Grand Campaign — Banks' Disastrous Red River Expedition — How the Union Fleet was Saved
— Capture of Mobile by Admiral Parragut— The Confederate Cruisers — Destruction of the Alabama
by the Kearsargr. — Fate of the Other Confederate Cruisers— Destruction of the Albemarle by Lieu-
tenant William B. Cushing — Re-election of President Lincoln — Distress in the South and Prosperity
in the North — The Union Prisoners i.i the South — Admission of Nevada — The Confederate Raids
from Canada — Sherman's Adva;cj to Atlanta — Fall of Atlanta — Hood's Vain Attempt to Relieve
Georgia — Superb Success of General Thomas — "Marching Through Georgia" — Sherman's Christ-
mas Gifl to President Lincoln — Opening of Grant's Final Campaign — Battles in the Wilderness —
Wounding of General Longstreet and Deaths of General Stuart and Sedgwick — Grant's Flanking
Movements Against Lee — A Disastrous Repulse at Cold Harbor — Defeat of Sigel and Hunter in the
Shenandoah Valley — " Bottling-up " of Butler — Explosions of the Petersburg Mine — Earlj's Raids—
His Final Defeat by Sheridan — Grant's Campaign — Surrender of Lee — Assassination of President
Lincoln — Death of Booth and Punishment of the Conspirators — Surrender of .Jo Johnston and
Collapse of the Southern Confederacy — Capture of Jeiferson Davis — His Release and Death — Statis-
tics of the Civil War — A Characteristic Anecdote.
THE WORK TO BE DONE.
Two grand camimigns remained to be prosecuted to a successful conclusion
before the great Civil War could be ended and the Union restored. The first
and most important was that of General Grant against Richmond, or, more
properly, against Lee, who was still at the head of the unconquered Army of
Northern Virginia, and who must be overcome before the Confederate capital
could fall. The second was the campaign of General Sherman, through the
heart of the Southern Confederacy. Other interesting and decisive operations
were to be pressed, but all were contributory to the two great ones mentioned.
Several momentous truths had forced themselves upon the national govern-
ment. It had learned to comprehend the magnitude of the struggle before it.
Had the North and South possessed equal resources and the same number of
troops, the latter could not have been conquered any more than the North could
have been defeated had the situation been reversed. But the North possessed
men, wealth, and resources immensely beyond those of the South. The war
had made the South an armed camp, with privation and suffering everywhere,
(367)
368 AD3IINISTRATI0N OF LINCOLN.
while in tlie Xortli a person might have traveled for days and weeks without
suspecting that a domestic war was in jirogress. It was necessary to overwhelm
the South, and the North had not only the ability to do so, but was resolved that
it should be done. Its estimates were made on the basis of an army of a million
men. Lai-ge bounties were ofiered for soldiers, and, when these did not provide
all that was needed, drafting was resorted to. There had been rioting and
disorder in New York City and other places during the summer of 1863, when
there was a vicious revolt agaiust drafting, but the government persisted and
obtained the men it needed.
THE RIGHT LEADER.
Another proven fact was that the war could not be successfully prosecuted
by a bureau in Washington. This attempt at the beginning had brought
disaster ; but the excuse for this interference was that the right leaders had not
yet apjjeared. General after general was tried at the head of the armies, and
had either failed or come short of the expected success. The events of 1863,
however, indicated unerringly the right men to whom the destinies of the nation
could be safely intrusted. Foremost among these was General Ulysses S.
Grant. With that genius of common sense, which always actuated President
Lincoln, he nominated him to the rank of lieutenant-general, the grade of which
was revived by Congress in February, 1864, and the Senate confirmed the
appointment on the 2d of March. In obedience to a summons from Washing-
ton, Grant left Nashville on the 4tli of the month, arrived on the 9th, and
President Lincoln handed him his commission on the following day.
"I don't know what your plans are, general," said the President, "nor do
I ask to know them. You have demonstrated your ability to end this war, and
the country expects you to do it. Go ahead, and you may count upon my
unfaltering support."
Grant modestly accepted the tremendous responsibility, which placed him
in command of all the armies of the United States, and he established his head-
quarters with the Army of the Potomac at Culpeper, Ya., March 26, 1864.
THE GRAND CAMPAIGN.
The plan of campaign determined upon by Grant was to concentrate all
the national forces into a few distinct armies, which should advance on the same
day against the opposing Confederate armies, and, by fighting incessantly, prevent
any one of them from reinforcing the other. The armies of the enemy were
themselves to be the objective points, and they were to be given no time for rest.
Sherman was to advance from Atlanta against Johnston, who had an army
larger in numbers than that of Lee; Banks' army, as soon as it could be with-
drawn from the disastrous Red River expedition, was to act against Mobile;
BANKS' RED RIVFR EXPEDITION. 369
Sigel was to pass down the valley of Virginia and prevent the enemy from
making annoying raids from that quarter; Butler was to ascend the James and
threaten Kiehmond ; and, finally, the Army uf the Potomac, under the immediate
command of Meade, was to protect Washington, and essay the inost herculean
task of all — the conquest of Lee and his army.
Orders were issued by Grant for a general movement of all the national forces
ou the 4th of May. Since they were so lunnerous, and began nearly at the
same time, it is necessary to give the particulars of each in turn, reserving that
of the most important — Grant's own — for the last.
banks' red river expedition.
One of the most discreditable affairs of the war was what is known as
Banks' Red River Expedition. That officer was in command at New Orleans,
when it was decided to send a strong force np the Red River, iii quest of the
immense quantities of cotton stored in that region, though the ostensible object
was the capture of Shreveport, Louisiana, 8o0 miles above New Orleans, and
the cajjital of the State.
The plan was for the army to advance in three columns, supported by
Admiral Porter with a fleet, which was to force a passage up the Red River.
General A. J. Smith was to march from Vicksburg, with the first division of
the army, which numbered 10,000 men ; Banks was to lead the second from
New Orleans, and Steele the third from Little Rock.
General Ednuuid Kirby Smith was the Confederate commander of the
Trans-Mississippi Department. Although he had fewer men than the invaders,
he prepared for a vigorous resistance. He sent Generals Price and Marmaduke
to harass Steele, directed General Dick Taylor to obstruct the Red River as
much as he could, while he made ready to make the best fight possible.
Fifty miles above the mouth of the Red River stood Fort de Russy, which,
although considerably strengthened, was carried by assault, March loth. On
the 15th, Porter's twelve gunboats and thirty transports joined Franklin at
Alexandria. The Federal cavalry occupied Natchitoches, on the last day of
the month, and in the van of the army; they arrived at Mansfield on the 8th of
April, several days after Admiral Porter had reached Grand Ecliore on the
Red River.
Meanwhile, the Confederate General Dick Taylor kept fighting and falling
back before the Union advance, but he was continually reinforced, until he
felt strong enough to offer the Federals battle. This took place on the 8th, a
short distance from Mansfield. The assault was made with vehemence, and the
Union trooi)s, who were straggling along for miles, were taken by surprise and
driven into headlong panic, leaving their artillery behind, and not sto^jping
370 ADMINISTRATION OF LINCOLN.
their flight until under the protection of the guns of the Nineteentli Corps.
Tlien a stand was made, and Banks fell back to his old camping ground at
Pleasant Hill. His intention was to remain there, but his command was so
disorganized that he continued his flight. The Confederates had already-
chased them so long that they were worn out, while Banks continued retreating
until he reached Grand Echore, where he breathed freely for the first time, since
he had the protection of the gunboats.
Disgraceful as was the overthrow of the land forces, a still greater disaster
threatened the fleet. Porter had gone further up the river, but returned to
Grand Echore upon learning of the defeat of Banks. He had to sweep the
shores continually with grapeshot, to clear it of the Confederate sharpshooters,
who succeeded in capturing two of the transports and blowing up another with
a torpedo. The Red River was low, with the water falling hourly. The retreat-
ing army reached Alexandria on the 27th of April, but the fleet was stopped by
the shallowness of the water above the falls, and the officers despaired of saving
it. Tlie only possible recourse seemed to destroy all the vessels to prevent their
falling into the hands of the enemy.
HOW THE UNION FLEET WAS SAVED.
In this crisis. Colonel Joseph Bailey, of Wisconsin, submitted a plan for
a series of wing dams above the falls, believing they would raise the water high
enough to float all the vessels. The other engineers scoffed at the project, but
Porter placed 3,000 men and all that Bailey needed at his command.
The task was a prodigious one, for the falls, as they were termed, were a
mile in length and it was necessary to swell the current sufficiently to carry the
vessels past the rocks for the whole distance. The large force of men worked
incessantly for nearly two weeks, by which time the task was accomplished and
the fleet plunged through unharmed to the deeper water below the falls. The
genius of a single man had saved the Union fleet.
Banks, having retreated to Alexandria, paused only long enough to burn
the town, when he kept on to New Orleans, where some time later he was re-
lieved of his connnand. The Red River expedition was the crowning disgrace
of the year.
THE CAPTURE OF MOBILE.
After the fall of New Orleans, in April, 1862, Mobile was the leading port
of the Southern Confederacy. It was blockaded closely, but the Confederate
cruisers succeeded now and then in slipping in and out, while a number of iron-
clads were in process of building, and threatened to break the blockade.
Admiral Farragut, the greatest naval hero of modern times, after a careful i-econ-
noissance of the defenses, told the government that if it would provide him with
THE CAPTURE OF MOBILE.
371
a single ironclad, he would capture Mobile. He was promised a strong land
force under General Granger and several monitors, which were sent to him.
Farragut, fully ajjpreciating the task before him, made his preparations
with care and thoroughness. His fleet consisted of eighteen vessels, four of
which — the Tecumseli, Winnebago, Manhattan, and Chickasaw — were ironclads,
while the others were of wood. Admiral Buchanan (commander of the Mer-
rimac in her first day's fight with the Ilonitor) had less vessels, three gunboats,
and the formidable ram Tennessee. But he was assisted by three powerful forts.
BAILEY'S DAMS ON THE RED RIVER.
with large garrisons — Gaines, Morgan, and Powell — which commanded the en-
trance, while the Tennessee was regarded by the Confederates as able to sink the
whole Union fleet.
The wooden vessels were lashed in couples, so as to give mutual help, and
with the Brookhjii and Hartford (Farragut's flagship) in the lead, the proces-
sion entered Mobile Bay on the morning of August 5, 1864. As they came
opposite the forts they opened fire upon them, and in a few minutes the latter
began their thunderous reply. The battle was tremendous, and the smoke was
so dense that Farragut, who was closely watching and directing the action of the
372 ADMINISTRATION OF LINCOLN.
fleet, gradually climbed the rigging, so as to place himself above the obsti-ucting
vapor. His height was such that the captain of the vessel became anxious for
his safety, since if he was struck, as looked jirobable, he was sure to fall to the
deck or overboard. He, therefore, sent a man after him, with a rojie in hand.
Amid the gentle remonstrances of the admiral, this man lashed him fast to the
rigging. When the increasing smoke made it necessary to climb higher, Farra-
gut untied the fastenings, and, after lie had taken several upward steps, tied him-
self again.
The harbor bristled with torpedoes, to which, however, Farragut and his
officers paid little heed. The Tecumseh, Commander T. A. M. Craven, was hur-
rying to attack the ram Tennessee, when a gigantic torpedo exploded beneath
her, smashing in the bottom and causing her to sink so suddenly that nearly a
hundred men went down with hei'. The pilot and Craven were in the pilot
house, and, feeling the boat drojiping beneath them, both sjirang to the narrow
ladder leading out. They leaehed the foot together, when the commander
bowed and, pausing, said to the pilot : " You first, sir." He had barely time to
scramble out, when Caj^tain Craven and the rest went down.
The Union vessels ^^ressed forward with such vigor that, with the exception
of the loss of the Tecumseh, the forts were pa.ssed without the ships receiving
serious injury. When, however, the battle seemed won, the lennessee came out
from under the guns of Fort Powell and headed for the Union v&ssels. She
believed herself invulnerable in her massive iron hide, and selected the flagship
as her special target. The Hartford partly dodged her blow and rammed her
in return. The i-am was accompanied by three gunboats, which were soon
driven out of action, but the Tennessee plunged here and there like some enraged
monster driven at bay, but which the guns and attacks of her assailants could
not conquer.
Tons of metal wei-e hurled with inconceivable force against her mailed
sides, only to drop harmlessly into the water. She was butted and rammed, and
in each case it was like the rat gnawing a file : the injury fell upon the as.sailant.
She was so surrounded by her enemies that they got in one another's way and
caused mutual hurt.
But as continual dropping wears away stones, this incessant hammering
finally showed effect. Admiral Buchanan received a painful wound, and a num-
ber of his men were killed ; the steei-ing-chains were broken, the smokestack
was carried away, the port shuttei-s jammed, and finally the wallowing " sea-hog "
became unmanageable. Then the white flag was disjjlayed and the battle was
over. Farragut had won his most memorable battle, and the last important
seaport of the Confederacy was gone.
Two days later Fort Gaines was captured, and Fort Morgan surrendei-d
THE CONFEDERATE CRUISERS.
373
on the 23d of the same month. The land force rendered valuable assistance,
and the blockade became more rigid. The coast line, however, was so extensive
that it was impossible to seal every port, and the Confederacy obtained a good
deal of sorely neetled medical supplies tiirough the daring blockade-runners,
which often managed to elude the watchful fleets.
The Confederate cruisers were still roaming the ocean and creating immense
havoc among the Union shipping. Despite our protests to England, she helped
MONUMENT TO ADMIKAL FAERAGUT AT WASHINGTON.
to man these vessels, and laid up a fine bill for damages which «he was compelled
to pay after the close of the war.
THE COXFEDEEATE CKUISERS.
During the year 1864, several new cruisei's appeared on the ocean, one of
which, the Tallahassee, boldly steamed up and down off our northern coast, and,
in the space of ten days, destroyed thirty-three vessels. The most famous of
all these cruisers was the Alabama, which was built at Birkenhead, England,
and launched May 1 '>, 1862. She was a bark-rigged propeller of 1,01(5 tons
register, with a length over all of 220 feet. Her two horizontal engines were
374 ADMINISTRATION OF IINCOLN
of 300 horse-power each. When completed, she was sent on a pretended trial
trip. At the Azores she received her war material from a waiting transport,
while her commander, Captain Raphael Semmes, and his officers, who had gone
thither on a British steamer, went aboard. The Alabama carried 8 guns and a
crew of 149 men, most of whom were Englishmen. Thus fairly launched, she
started on her career of destruction, which continued uninterruptedly for
twenty-two months.
DESTRUCTION OF THE ALABAMA.
One of the many United States vessels that was engaged in a hunt for the
Alabama was the Kearsarge, Captain John Ancrum Winslow. She was of
l.OoO tons, carried 7 guns, and had a crew of 163 men, nearly all of whom were
Americans. On Sunday, July 12, 1864, while lying off the town of Flushing,
Holland, Captain Winslow received a dispatch from Minister W. L. Dayton, at
Paris, notifying him that the Alabama had arrived at Cherbourg, France.
Winslow lost no time in steaming thither, and reached Cherbourg on Tuesday,
where he saw the cruiser across the breakwater with the Confederate flag
defiantly flying.
Winslow did not dare enter the harbor, for, had he done so, he would have
been obliged, according to international law, to remain twenty-four hours after
the departure of the Alabama, which would thereby gain all the opportunity
she needed for escape. He, therefore, took station off the poit, intending to
wait until the cruiser came out.
This precaution, however, was unnecessary, for Semmes, grown bold by his
long career of destroying unarmed merchantmen, had resolved to offer the
Kearsarge battle. He sent a challenge to Captain Winslow, couched in
insulting language, and the Union officer promptly accepted it.
The news of tlie impending battle was telegraphed far and wide, and
excursion trains were run from Paris and other points to Cherbourg. On
Sunday, June 19th, fnlly 15,000 people lined the shores and wharves, and
among them all it may be doubted whether there were more than a hundred
whose sympathies were not keenly on the side of the Alabama. France
was intensely in favor of the Southern Confedeiacy, and nothing would have
pleased Louis Napoleon, the emperor, better than to see our country torn
apart. He did his utmost to persuade England to join him in intervening
against us.
With a fiiint haze resting on the town and sea, the Alabama steamed slowly
out of the harbor on Sunday morning, June 19th, and headed toward the
waiting Kearsarge. The latter began moving seaward, as if afraid to meet her
antagonist. The object of Captain Winslow, however, was to draw the Alabama
so far that no question aboIl^ neutral waters could arise, and in case the Alabama
DESTRUCTION OF THE ALABAMA. 375
should be disabled, he did not intend to give her the chance to take refuge in
Cherbourg.
Three miles was the neutral limit, but Captain Winslow continued to steam
out to sea until he had gone nearly seven miles from shore. Then he swung
around and made for the Alabama. As he did so, Captain Semmes delivered
three broadsides, with little effect. Then fearing a raking fire. Captain Winslow
sheered and fired a broadside at a distance of little more than half a mile, and
strove to pass under the Alabama's stern, but iSemmes also veered and
prevented it.
Since each vessel kept its starboard broadside toward the other, they began
moving in a circular direction, the current gradually carrying both westward,
while the circle narrowed until its diameter was about a fourth of a mile.
From the beginning the fire of the Kearsarge was much more accurate and
destructive than her antagonist's. Hardly had tlie battle opened when the gaff
and colors of the Alabama were shot away, but another ensign was quickly
hoisted at the mizzen. Captain Winslow instructed his gunners to make every
shot count. Tliis was wise, for its effects became sjjeedily apparent. The
Kearsarge fired 173 shots, nearly all of which landed, while of the 370 of the
Alabama, only 28 hit the Kearsarge. One of these, a 08-]iounder shell,
exploded on the quarter-deck, wounding three men, one mortally. Another
shell, bursting in the hammock nettings, stai'ted a fire, which was speedily
extinguished. A third buried itself in the sternpost, but fortunately did not
explode. The damage done by the remaining shots was trifling.
One of the Kearsarge's 11-inch shells entered the port of the Alabama's
8-inch gun, tore off a part of the piece, and killed several of the crew. A
second shell entered the same port, killed one man and wounded several, and
soon a third similar shot penetrated the same opening. Before the action closed,
it was necessary to re-form the crew of the after pivot gun four times. These
terrific missiles were aimed slightly below the water-line of the Alabama, with a
view of sinking her.
About an hour had passed and seven comj^lete revolutions luid l)een
described by the ships, and the eighth had just begun, when it became apparent
that the Alabama was sinking. She headed for neutral waters, now only two
miles distant, l)ut a few well-planted shots stopped her, and she displayed the
white flag. Her race was run, and Captain Winslow immediately ceased firing
and lowered his only two serviceable boats, which were hurried to the aid of
the drowning men. A few minutes later the bow of the Alabama rose high in
air, and then the noted cruiser plunged downward, stern foremost, and disap-
peared forever in the bottom of the ocean.
Cruising in the neigldjorhood of the fight was the English yacht Deer'
376 ADMINISTRATION OF LINCOLN.
hound, wliicli now joined in rescuing the crew of the Alabama at the request
of Captain Winslow. She was in duly bound to deliver the men she saved to
Winslow as prisoners of war, but, instead of doing so, she watched her chance,
and, under full steam, made for Southampton", carrying forty-two, among whom
were Cajjlain Semmes ant! fourteen officers. Semmes had flung his sword into
the sea and leaped overboard as the Alabama was going down. His vessel had
nine killeti, ten drowned, and twenty-one wounded, while on the Kearsarge of
the three wounded only one died. A demand was made upon the English
government for the surrender of the men carried away by the Deerhoumh but
it was refused.
FATE OF THE OTHER CRUISERS.
The Confederate cruiser Georgia took on the guise of a merchant vessel,
but was seized off the coast of Poi'tugal by the Niagara, and sent to this country
as a lawful prize. The Florida, while lying in the neutral port of Baliia,
Brazil, was attacked, October 7th, by the Wachusel, captured, and taken to
Hampton Roads. This action was illegal, being similar to the attack made upon
the Fssex in the harbor of Valparaiso in the War of 1812. While awaiting
decision as to the legality of her capture, she was run into by a steam transport
and sunk. It may be doubted whether this method of settling the dispute was
wholly accidental.
The Shenandoah did most of her destructive work in the far Pacific. As
a consequence she did not hear of the conclusion of the war until several
n[iontlis afterward, and she was, therefore, virtually a pirate fighting under a flag
that had no legal existence. Her captain, when the news reached him, steamed
for England, and turned over his vessel to the British government.
DESTRUCTION OF THE " ALBEMARLE" BY LIEUTENANT GUSHING.
Probably no more formidable ironclad was ever built by the Southern Con-
federacy than the Albemarle. She had been constructed under great difficulties,
work being begun early in 1863, when, it was said, her keel was laid in a
cornfield. When finished she was 122 feet over all, and was propelled by twin
screws with engines of 200 horse-power each. Her armament consisted of an
Armstrong gun of 100 pounds at the bow and a similar one at the stern.
The Albemarle demonstrated on the fii-st o])portunity the appalling power
she possessed. The Federals had captured Plymouth, North Carolina, which
was attacked by the Confederates, April 17th and 18th. They were repulsed
mainly thi'ough the assistance of two wooden gunboats, the 3Iiami and South-
field, but the Albemarle came down the river on the 19th and engaged them.
The shots of the gunboats did no more harm than those of the Cumberland and
Congress when fired against the Merrimac. The Southfield was crushed as.
DESTEUCTIOX OF THE ALBEMARLE. 377
so much pasteboard, and sent to the bottom of the river, while the mangled
Iliami limped off, accompanied by two tugboats. The next day Plymouth
surrendered to the Confederates. In a fight some weeks later with the Union
vessels, the Albemarle inflicted great injury, and withstood all the ramming
and broadsides that could be brought against her. She was a most dangerous
vessel indeed, and caused the government a great deal of uneasiness.
Several attempts were made to destroy her, but the Confederates were
watchful and vigilant. She was moored to the wharf, about eight miles u]) tlie
river, upon the shores of which a thousand men were encamped. They
patroled the banks and kept bright tires Inirniug all night. The crew of the
ram were alert, and a boom of cypress logs encircled the cratt some thirty feet
from the hull, to ward off the approach of torpedoes. It would seem that no
jiossible precaution was neglected.
Among the most daring men ever connected with the American navy was
William Barker Cushing. He was born in 1842, and educated at the Naval
Academy. He was of so wild a disposition that many of his friends saw little
hope of his success in life. But, entering the service at the beginning of the
war, he quickly gave proof of a jaersonal courage that no danger could affect.
He seemed to love peril for the sake of itself, and where death threatened he
eagerly went. He expressed confidence that he could destroy the Alhcinarle
and asked permission to make the attempt. His supei-ior oflfieei-s knew that if
its destruction was within the range of human possibility, he would accomplish
it, and the ram was so great a menace to the Union fleet that he was told to ti'v
his hand at the seeming impossible task.
Although Cushing was a young man of unsurpassable bravery, ready at all
times to take desperate chances, thei'e was what might be termed method in his
madness. He needed no one to tell him that in his attempt to destroy the
Albemarle, the slightest neglect in his preparations were likely to prove fatal.
He, therefore, took every precaution that ingenuity could devise. Two picket
l)oats were constructed with spar torpedoes attached, and with engines so formed
that by spreading tarpaulin over them all light and sound was obscured. When
traveling at a low rate of speed, they could pass within a few yards of a person
in the darkness without his being able to hear or see anything. A howitzer was
mounted at the bow, and the spar, with the torpedo attached, was fitted at the
starboard bow.
The boats, having been completed in New York, were sent to Norfolk by
way of the canals. One of them was lost in Chesapeake Bay, but the other
reached its destination. Several days were spent in preparation, and the night
of October 27th was selected for the venture. It could not have been more
favorable, for it was of impenetrable darkness and a fine, misty rain was falling.
378 ADMINISTRATION OF LINCOLN.
Cushing's companions in the picket boat were : Acting Ensign W. L. Howarth,
Acting Master's Mates T. S. Gay and John Woodman, Acting Assistant Pay-
master F. H. Swan, Acting Third Assistant Engineers C. L. Steever and W.
Stotesbury, and eiglit men whose names were as follows : S. Higgens, first-class
fireman ; R. Hamilton, coal heaver ; W. Smith, B. Harley, E. J. Houghton,
ordinary seamen ; L. Deming, H. Wilkes, and R. H. King, landsmen. He took
in tow a small cutter, with which to capture the guard that was in a schooner
anchored near the Southfield that had been raised, and whose duty it was to
send up an alarm rocket on the approach of any expedition against the Albe-
marle. It was intended to run ashore a little below the ram, board and capture
her by surprise, and take her down the river.
It was about midnight that the start was made. Several of the men were
familiar with the river, and the boat kept close to shore, where the gloom
was still more profound. No one spoke except when necessary and then in the
lowest tones, while all listened and peered into the drizzly night. The straining
ears could hear only the soft rippling of the water from the prow and the faint
muffled clanking of the engine. The speed was slackened as they approached
the schooner, whose outlines soon assumed form. No one whispered, but all
held themselves ready for the rush the moment the guard discovered them.
Sentinels, however, are not always alert, and on this dismal night the
guard detected nothing of the phantom craft which glided past like a shadow
with the cutter in tow. This was the first stroke of good fortune, and each man
felt a thrill of encouragement, for only a mile remained to be passed to reach the
Albemarle.
A little way further and the boats swept around a bend in the river, where,
had it been daylight, they could have seen the ram. Here was where the fires
had been kept blazing the night through, but the guards were as drowsy as
those below, for they had allowed them to sputter and die down to a few embers,
while the sentinels were doubtless trying to keep comfortable in the wet, dismal
night.
Still stealing noiselessly forward, the men in tlie boat soon saw the gloom
slowly take shape in front. The outlines revealed the massive ironclad lying
still and motionless against the wharf, with not a light or sign of life visible.
The nerves of each of the brave crew were strung to the highest tension, when
the stillness was broken by the barking of a dog. The canine, more vigilant
than his masters, gave the alarm, and instantly it seemed as if a hundred dogs
were making night hideous with their signals. Springing to their feet, the
sentinels on shore discerned the strange boat and challenged it. No reply was
o-iven ; a second challenge was made, and then a gun was fired. The guards
seemed to spring to life everywhere, more dogs barked, alarm rattles were sprung,
DESTRUCTION OF THE ALBE3IARLE. 379
wood was thrown on the fires which flamed up, soldiers seized their weapons and
rushed to their places under the sharp commands of their officers.
Gushing now called to the engineer to go ahead under full speed. At the
same moment, he cut the towline and ordei'ed the men on the cutter to return
and capture the guard near the Southfield: The launch was tearing through the
water straight for the ram, when, for the first time, Gushing became aware of
the boom of logs which inclosed it. His hope now was that these logs had
become so slimy from lying long in the water that it was possible for the launch
to slij) over them. With wonderful coolness, he veered off for a hundred yards,
so as to gain sufficient headway, and then circled around and headed for the
ram.
Standing erect at the bow, Gushing held himself ready to use the torpedo
the moment he could do so. A volley was fired, which riddled his coat and
tore off the heel of one of his shoes, but he did not falter. Then followed the
cris]) snapping of the juimers of the cannon, which showed the immense guns
had mis.sed fire. Had they been discharged, the boat and every man on it would
have been blown to fragments.
" Jump from the ram ! " shouted Gushing, as he rushed forward, with the
speed of a racehorse ; " we're going to blow you up ! "
The howitzer at the front of the launch was fired at that moment, and then
the boat slid over the logs, like a sleigh over the snow, carrying the men directly
in front of the gaping mouth of the 100-pounder Armstrong.
The critical moment liad come, and, crouching forward. Gushing shoved
the torpedo spar under the overhang, and waited till he felt it rise and bump
against the ship's bottom, wlien he jerked the trigger line. A nuiffled, cav-
ernous explosion was heard, tlie ram tilted partly over, and an immense geyser
spouted upward, filling the launch and swam2:)ing it. The enormous cannon
was discharged, but, aimed directly at the boat, the aim was deflected by the
careening of the ram, and the frightful charge passed harmlessly over the heads
of the men.
Gushing called to each one to lookout for himself, and leaped as fai' as he
could into the water. There he kicked off his shoes, and dropped his sword and
revolver. The incensed Gonfederates shouted to the Unionists to surrender, and
a number did so ; but others, including Gushing, continued swimming until in
the darkness they passed out of range.
It sui'2:)asses comprehension how Gushing escaped. Nearl}' half his crew
had been struck before the launch was submerged, and Paymaster Swan and
another man were shot at his side. Gushing, Woodman, and Houghton leaped
into the water at the same time and swam in different directions, no one know-
ing where he would come out. Houghton was a powerful swimmer, and, keep-
380 ADMiyiSTEATION OF LINCOLN.
ing cool and husbanding his strengtli, lie made shore a short distance below,
2:)assed through the enemy's line to the moutli of the river, and escaped un-
harmed.
Gushing continued swimming for nearly a mile, when hearing a splashing
near him he approached and found Woodman in the last stage of exhaustion.
Gushing gave him all the help he could, but he himself was worn out, and,
despite his eliurts, AVoodman slipped from his grasp and was drowned. When
about to give up Gushing's feet touched bottom and he struggled to shore,
where he sank in a collapse, unable to stir uvitil morning. By that time his
strength had sufficiently returned to enable him to stagger to a swamp where he
threw himself down near a ]iath. A few minutes later, two officers walked by
talking earnestly about the sinking of the Albemarle, but the listener could not
overhear enough of their conversation to learn whether or not the ram had been
destroyed.
Growing stronger, he pushed into the swamp, until he reached a negro's
hut. There he made himself known, and was received kindly. Gushing asked
the negro to go to Plymouth and find out whether the Albemarle had been
harmed. The African departed, and, when he returned at the end of several
hours, his arras were filled with food and his eyes j^rotruding.
" Suah as yo's born, marse ! " he gasped, " de Albemarle am at de bottom
ob de riber ! "
Such was the fact, for the exploding torpedo had gouged more than twenty
square feet out of the ram abreast of the port quarter, through which the torrent
rushed and carried it down in a few minutes. Gushing remained with his dusk)'
friend until night, when he tramped a long way through swamp and wood to
where an old skiff rested against the bank of a small stream. Paddling down
this to the river, he kept on until he reached the Union vessels, where he was
taken on board and welcomed as deserved the hero who had accomplished that
which was beyond the ability of the whole fleet.
Before proceeding with our account of the closing militai-y operations of
the war, it is proper to record several niinor, but imi^ortant, events.
THE PRESIDENTIAL ELECTION OF 1864.
The year 1864 was a presidential one. Although Hannibal Hamlin had
served acceptably as Vice-President throughout Lincoln's first term, jjolitical
wisdom suggested replacing him with a man more closely identified with the
struggle for the Union. Hamlin belonged to the State of Maine, where the
voice of disloyalty was never heard. Andrew Johnson, as we shall learn in the
next chapter, was what was termed a war Democrat, who had risked his life in
the defense of his principles. He was nominated for Vice-Pi'esident, while
PROSPERITY OF THE NORTH. 381
Lincoln, as was inevitable, was renominated for the presidency. The nominees
of tlie Democrats were General George B. McClellan, the unsuccessful Union
commander, and George H. Pendleton, of Ohio. McClellan acted very credit-
ably when, iinding that many believed him opposed to the war, he stated in
unequivocal language that he favored its jirosecution until the Union was fully
restored. His platform may be described as a criticism of the methods of the
administration. His position drove away many who would have supjJOrted a
candidate in favor of peace at any price, but he preserved his self-res2)ect,
although it helped to bring his decisive defeat.
In the November election the result was: Lincoln and Johnson each 212
electoral votes ; McClellan and Pendleton each 21. On the po])ular vote, the
Eepublican ticket received 2,216,067 and the Democratic 407,342 votes. Of
course, no vote was cast in the eleven seceding States. The result was
emphatic proof that the North was unalterably opposed to peace upon any terms
except the full restoration of the Union. The great successes, such as Gettys-
burg, Vicksburg, Mobile, and the destruction of the Confederate cruisers, as well
as the rapid exhaustion of the South, contributed very much to the success of
the Republican party.
DISTRESS IN THE SOUTH.
The distress in the South was intense and grew daily more so. The Con-
federate money had so depreciated in value that a paper dollar was not worth
more than a penny, and by-and-by it had absolutely no value at all. The farce
of such a currency caused many gi'im jests among the Confederates themselves.
Thus an officer gave his colored servant live thousand dollars to curry his horse,
antl another officer exchanged six months of his own pay for a paper dollar.
Li truth, the Southerners were fighting without pay, while their clothing and
food were of the poorest character. All the men being in some branch of the
service, the women had to look after the homes that were running to waste. The
conscription act was made so rigid that the drag-net gathered in the large boys
and men past middle life.
PROSPERITY OF THE NORTH.
It was far different in the North. The enormous demands of the govern-
ment for war supplies gave the couuti-y an unnatural prosperity. Although
prices were high, there was an abundance of money, which, while depreciating
to some extent, never did so to a degree to cause distress. The resources were
almost limitless, and the conviction was so general that the war was near its
conclusion, that the greenback currency and the national bonds began to rise in
value. The real dissatisfaction was in the continual dennind fcr more soldiers.
In the course of the year fully 1.200,000 men had been suraraoneJ to the ranks.
382 ADMISISTRATION OF LINCOLN.
Several drafts took place, and bounties were paid, which in many instances
were at the rate of a thousand dollars to a man. A good many jaeople began to
declare this demand exorbitant, and that, if the real necessity existed, the Union
was not worth such an appalling cost of human life.
wak's desolation.
Behind all this seeming prosperity were thousands of mourning households
and desolate hearthstones in the North as well as the South. Fathers, brothers,
and sons had fallen, and would nevermore return to their loved ones. The
shadow was everywhere. Sorrow, broken-hearts, and lamentation were in the
land, for war, the greatest curse of mankind, spares neither parent, child, nor
babe. The exchange of prisoners, carried on almost from the very opening of
the war, ceased, because the Confederate authorities refused to exchange negro
soldiers. As a consequence, multitudes of Union prisoners suffered indescribable
misery in many of the Southern prisons. This was especially the case in
Andersonville, Georgia, where a brute named Wirz, a Swiss, showed a fiendish
delight in adding to the tortures of those connnitted to his care. Tiiis miscreant
was afterward tried for his atrocities, found guilty, and hanged. He was the
only man executed for the part he took in the war. There was less suffering in
other places. The straits to which the Confederates themselves were driven
made it impossible in some instances to give the care they would have given to
their prisoners. In the early part of 1864, more than a hundred Unionists
confined in Libby Prison, Richmond, escaped by tunneling, but most of them
were recaptured and retui'ned to confinement.
Nevada was admitted to the Union in 1864. It formed part of the Mexican
cession of 1848, prior to which time no settlement had been made in the State.
In that year the Mormons settled in Carson and Washoe Valleys. In 1839,
silver was found to exist in vast quantities, and, in 1866, the area of the State
was increased by additions from Arizona and Utah.
CONFEDERATE RAIDERS FROM CANADA.
One of the most irritating annoyances resulted from the presence of Con-
federates in Canada, who continually plotted mischief against the North. In
October, 1864, a band of them rode into St. Albans, Vermont, which is only
fifteen miles from the border, robbed the bank of a large amount of money,
burned a hotel, fired into a crowd of citizens, committed other outrages, and
galloped back to Canada, where thirteen were arrested and thrown into prison.
The legal proceedings which followed resulted in the discharge of the prisoners
on technical grounds. General Dir. in command of the Eastern Department,
issued orders that in the future all such narauders were to be pursued and shot
GENERAL SHERMAN'S ADVANCE TO ATLANTA.
383
down or arrested, no matter where they took refuge. Had tliese measures been
carried out, there would have been war with England, which would never
permit such invasion of her territoiy. General Dix's action was disavowed by
our government, while the Canadian authorities took care to prevent any more
similar outrages.
It has been stated that General Grant planned a forward movement of the
m
BIRD'S-EYE VIEW OP THE NORTH END OF ANDERSONVILLE PRISON.
{Froiti a photograph.)
In the middle-ground midway of the swamp is the " Island " which was covered with shelters after the higher ground
had all been occupied.
Union forces early in May of this year, with the purpo.se of keeping the
Confederate armies so incessantly engaged that they would have no opportunity
of reinforcing one another.
GENERAL SHERMAN's ADVANCE TO ATLANTA.
General Sherman, the faithful lieutenant of Grant, was in command of the
three armies, respectively, of the Cumberhuid, of Tennessee, and of Ohio, led
384 ADMINISTRATION OF LINCOLN.
by Generals Thomas, McPliersoii, and Hcholiekl. General Jo Johnston was
Sherman's opponent, his commanders being Hardee, Hood, and Polk. The
ti'oops were less numerous than the Fedei'als, but they were the finest of soldiers
and were led by skillful officers.
Sherman nuule his preparations with care and thoroughness. Chattanooga
was his starting-point on his march through the South, and by the 1st of May
he had 254 guns, 100,000 men, and an immense amount of supplies at that
town. He begsui his famous march on the 7th of May. Johnston, who saw
his purpose, confronted him at Dalton, where an attack by Unionists was
lejjulsed; but Sherman resorted to Hanking tactics, and Johnston fell back,
crossing the river. May 15th, and taking a new position at Etowah, forty miles
to the south of Resaca.
The great risk assumed by Sherman will be understood. It was necessary
to preserve his communications, for he had but a single railroad line behind
him. To do this, he had to leave strong detachments at different points, thei-eby
weakening his army as he ads'aneed into Confederate territory. Johnston, being
among friends, was not obliged to do anything of that nature. He could ])re-
serve his forces intact and add slightly to them. By-and-by, the armies would
be nearly equal in nundjers, when Johnston proposed to give battle to the
invaders.
The Union army marched in three columns, their flanks guaided by
cavalry, and the columns always within supporting distance of one another.
The steady advance and retreat went on with occasional brisk fighting. On the
14th of June, during an exchange of shots, the head of General Leonidas Polk
was carried away by a cannon ball. Now and then Johnston attacked Sherman,
but invariably without gaining any imjjortant advantage.
At last Sherman grew tired of continually flanking his enemy, and made
the mistake of assaulting him. This was at Kenesaw Mountain on tlie 27th of
June. The attack was made with great gallantry, but the Unionists were
rejiulsed with the loss of 3,000 men.
Sherman returned to his flanking tactics, which were conducted with so
much skill that finally Johnston was forced into the defenses of Atlanta. It
was there he meant to make a stand and deliver battle on something aisproaching
equal terms. His geneials were dissatisfied witli his continual falling back and
protested. That Johnston was sagacious in what he did cannot be questioned;
but his old enemy. President Davis, took advantage of the opportunity to
remove him and place General Hood in chief command.
Hood had not half the ability of Johnston, but he believed in fighting.
He assumed Johnston's place on the 17tli of July. The news was pleasant to
Shei'man, for he rated Hood at his true value as compared with Johnston.
' Setting out at night they paddled cont.
SHERMAN'S THREE SCOUTS
ids and remained
GENERAL SHERMAN'S ADVANCE TO ATLANTA.
385
It liad been a long and difficult march from Chattanooga to Atlanta, and
yet it may be said that Sherman had only reached his true .starting-point. He
gave hi.s .soldiers a needed rest, and
waited for reinforcements. Tho.se
expected f r o m Corinth, %^^^S
Mississippi, were routed by ,^"~
Gcneial --^. ^■
Forrest,
but the
needed
men were obtained from
other quarters, and the
three columns converged
upon Atlanta, July 20th.
The defenses extended for
three miles about the city, but were
not quite completed. McPherson
.secured possession of a hill that gave
him a view of the city, observing which Hood made a furious assault upon him
on the night of the 22d. He came perilously near success, but, by hastening
reinforcements to the threatened point, Sherman was able to repel the attack.
DEATH OP GENERAL POLK.
386 ADMINISTRATION OF LINCOLN.
In the fighting General McPhersou, one of" the best of the Union generals, was
killed.
The plan of Sherman was to shut off Atlanta from the rest of the world.
By thus excluding its supplies, it would be starved into submission, as was the
case at Vicksburg. Accordingly, he began a series of works, intended to be
extended gradually around the city. This was difficult and dangerous, as was
proven when two columns of Union cavalry, failing to effect a junction, through
some misunderstanding, were separately attacked and routed. Among the many
prisoners taken was General Stoneman, and the cavalry arm of the service was
greatly weakened.
The impetuous Hood made a furious onslnught upon the Union army
July 28th, renewing it several times, but was defeated with heavy loss in each
instance. Sherman, through the failure of one of his generals to reach his
assigned position in time, narrowly missed bagging Hood and his whole army.
FALL OF ATLANTA.
But Sherman displayed masterly generalship by so manoeuvring as to
draw Hood away from the defenses and by thrusting his army between the
corps of Hardee and Atlanta. The only escape now for the Confederates was
to abandon the city, which was done on the 1st of September, many of the
citizens going with the retiring army. At nine o'clock the next morning
General Slocum, at the head of a strong reconnoitering column, rode into
Atlanta, and the mayor made a formal surrender of the place.
The news of the fall of Atlanta caused great rejoicing in the North, and
corresponding depression in the South. President Davis hurried to the neigh-
borhood to investigate for himself. He found matters so bad that they could
not be much worse. Hood, however, was as combative as ever, and proposed to
attack Sherman's lines of communication. It was a dangerous proceeding, but
Davis consented. On his way back to Richmond he stopped at Macon and
made a speech, in which he announced the plans of Hood. This speech was
23ublished in the Southern papers, reached the North, where it was republished,
and in due time these papers went to Sherman. It can well be understood that
Davis' speech proved "mighty interesting" reading to the Union commander.
FAILURE OF HOOD'S PLAN FOR THE RELIEF OF GEORGIA.
Hood's plan was simple. He proposed to march into Tennessee, and, by
threatening Sherman's communications, compel him to withdraw from Georgia.
But Sherman was not to be caught thus easily. He followed Hood to the north
of the Chattahoochee, and, then letting him go whither he chose, turned back to
Atlanta. Hood kept right on through northern Alabama, and advanced
SHERilAN'S 3IARCH FROM ATLANTA TO THE ISEA. 387
against Nashville. General Thomas had been sent by Sherman from Atlanta,
with the Army of the Cumberland, to look after Hood. General Schofield, in
command in the southern part of the State, fell back to Franklin, eighteen miles
south of Nashville, where he was attacked November 30th by Hood. It was a
savage battle, but the Confederates were held in check until night, when Schofield
retreated across the river, and took refuge in Nashville. There General Thomas
gathered all his troops, and threw uj) a line of intrenchments to the south of
the city. Hood appeared in front of them December 2d, and began building
works and counter batteries. He was certain of capturing the place and its
defenders by regular siege operations. Never did the genius of Thomas shine
more brilliantly than at the siege of Nashville. He industriously gathered
reinforcements, perfected his defenses, and refused to move until fully prepared.
The whole country became impatient; even General Grant sent him urgent
messages, and at one time issued an order for his removal. But Thomas could
not be shaken from his purpose. Not until December loth did he feel himself
ready to strike, and then he did it with the might of a descending avalanche.
He sallied forth, captured several redoubts, and drove back the Confederates for
a number of miles. He renewed the battle on the KJth, and utterly routed
Hood's army. The panic-stricken troops fled in confusion, drawing Forrest
and his cavalry into the disorganized flight, while Thomas vigorously pursued
until the fugitives scrambled over Duck River toward the Tennessee, which was
crossed on the 27th of December.
Hood's army was virtually desti'oyed. He lost more than 13,000 prisoners,
including several general officers, and many guns, while more than 2,000
deserters joined Thomas. The disgusted Hood asked to be relieved of his
command, and Dick Taylor, who had defeated Banks some months before in
Texas, assumed his place, but he really was left with no army to command.
The proud host which had promised so much existed no longer. The Rock
of Chickamauga had fallen upon it and grountl it to powder.
Sherman's march from Atlanta to the sea.
Sherman proved his confidence in Thomas by not waiting for him to com-
plete his wonderful task, before beginning his march from Atlanta to the sea,
800 miles distant. Since it wa.s impossible to maintain the long and increasing
slender line of communications behind him, Sherman made no effort to do so.
He "cut loose" entirely, proposing to live off the granary of the South, through
which his 60,000 veterans began their famous tramp. Weeks passed, during
which the national government heard not a word from Sherman, except such
as filtered through the Confederate lines, and which was always tinctured by
the hopes of the enemy. There were continual rumors of the Union army
388 ADMINISTRATION OF LINCOLN.
meeting "a lion in its path," and of its being overwhelmed by disaster, but
nothing of a positive nature was learned, and naturally there was considerable
uneasiness, though Grant knew Sherman too well to feel any distrust of his
success.
At the beginning of his march, Sherman aimed to deceive the enemy as
to his real destimrtion. The secret was shared only with his corps commanders
and General Kilpatrick, leader of the cavalry. Tlie advance was in two
columns, the right under General Howard and the left under General Slocum.
Atlanta was burned on the night of November loth, and Sherman himself rode
out from the city the next day with the left wing.
It was imjwssible for the Confederates to present any serious ojiposition to
the invaders. Frantic ajipeals were issued to the South to rise and crush the
enemy, but they accomplished nothing. The bands of militia were brushed
aside like so many children, and the march "From Atlanta to the Sea" was
simply a huge picnic for Sherman and his army. The opening of the
Mississippi had sliced off the left limb of the Southei'n Confederacy, and
Sherman was now boring his way through the heart.
Milledgeville, the capital of the State, was reached on the 21st, but before
the Federals arrived the Legislature adjourned precipitately and took to its
heels. Governor Brown and most of the members ran to Augusta, which was
surrendered two days later, plundered, and partly burned. Kiljmtrick made a
demonstration against Macon, and could easily have captured it, but his move-
ment was intended only as a feint. Rightly surmising by this time that the
seacoast was Sherman's destination. General Hardee did all he could to obstruct
the roads leading thither, but he was powerless to check the invaders. Thousands
of negroes followed the army, singing the "Day of Jubilee has Come," but
many of the poor people perished amid the dismal wastes and barrens of
Eastern Georgia.
Finally Sherman passed down the peninsula formed by the Ogeechee and
Savannah Rivers and approached Savannah. The enemy were easily driven from
their field-works, and by December 10th all the Confederates were forced into
their lines and the whole Union army was in front of Savannah. The 300
miles had been passed in twenty-five days and the listening ears could now hear
the faint boom of the distant Atlantic breakers.
But Hardee was in Savannah with 15,000 men, capable of oifering a strong
defense. To meet his heavy cannon, Sherman had only field artillery, and,
instead of making a direct attack, which would have involved considerable loss
of life, he decided to starve the garrison to terms. Admiral Dahlgren was lying
oflf the coast, but the mouth of the river was commanded by Fort McAllister,
and it was dangerous work to attempt to communicate with the Union fleet.
PRESIDENT LINCOLN'S UNIQUE CHRISTMAS GIFT. 389
Sherman sent off three sconts, who paddled cautiously down the river at night,
hiding in the rice-fields by day, until they finally succeeded in attracting the
notice of a gunboat which ran in antl picked them up. The glorious news was
carried to Admiral Dahlgren, who immediately dispatched it North, where, as
may be supposed, it caused unbounded rejoicing.
Fort McAllister, fifteen miles below the city, was such an obstacle to the
co-operation of the fleet that Sherman determined to capture it. It was taken
with a rush on the 13th of December, and the way opened for a supply of am-
munition and heavy guns from Hil- r —
ton Head. General Forster, the
Union commander of that depart-
ment, was ordered to occupy the rail-
road connecting Savannah and
Charleston. When that should be
done, Savannah would be completely
invested.
PRESIDENT Lincoln's unique
CHRISTMAS GIFT.
On the 17th, Sherman demand-
ed the surrender of the city. Hardee
refused and Sherman prepared to
bombard it. But the Confederates,
who still had control of Savannah
River, retreated across that stream
on the night of the 20th, and
tramped into South Carolina. Sher- i
man entered the city the next day ' —
and wrote at once to President Lin- william tecumseh shekman.
(1820-1S91.)
coin : 1 beg to present you, as a
Christmas gift, the city of Savannah, with 150 heavy guns and plenty of am-
munition ; also about 25,000 bales of cotton." It was a unique Christmas gift
indeed, and President Lincoln sent back the thanks of the government and
nation to the Union commander, his ofiicers and soldiers.
One pleasing feature of Sherman's entrance into Savannah wa.s the wide-
spread Union sentiment which manifested it.self among the citizens. They were
tired of the war and glad to see this evidence that its close was near. They did
not destroy their cotton or propei-ty, but were quite willing to turn it over to
tiieir conquerors. General Geary was appointed commandant and ruled with
tact and kindness. Here we will leave Siu^nnnn for a time, and give our atteu-
390 ADMINI81 RATION OF LINCOLN.
tion to the single remaining, but most important, campaign of all — that of
General Grant against Lee.
grant's advance against lee.
AVhen the Army of the Potomac was ready to move against Lee and Rich-
mond, it consisted of three instead of five corps. Hancock commanded tlie
Second, Warren the Fifth, and Sedgwick the Sixth. Beside this, the Ninth
Corps, which included many colored troops, was under command of Burnside,
and was left for a time to guard the communications with Washington. This
force numbered 140,000 men, and, as has been stated, was the largest number
ever assembled by the Unionists.
In addition to this stupendous host, 42,000 troops were in and about Wash-
ington, 31,000 in AVest Virginia, and 59,000 in the department of Virginia and
North Carolina. In South Carolina, Georgia, and at other points were 38,000.
General Lee luul less tlian 58,000 under his immediate command, and the whole
number of Confederates in the region threatened by Grant's 310,000 was about
125,000.
General Meade retained command of the Army of the Potomac, and the
cavalry corps was under General Philip H. Sheridan. Best of all, the veterans
were now inspired by a feeling of confidence to which they had long been
strangers. They felt that they had a commander at last who was competent to
lead them to victory.
Lee was acting on the defensive and held a powerful jjosition. Longstreet
was at Gordonsville, Ewell on the Rapidan, and A. P. Hill at Orange Court-
House. The Rapidan itself was held by small bodies of troops, whose lUity it
was to keep watch of the movements of the Union army.
Grant's plan was to advance directly to Richmond. He intended to cross
the Rapidan, attack Lee's right, cut his communications, and compel him to
fight. At the same time Butler was to ascend the James from Fort Monroe,
seize City Point, and, advancing along the south bank of the river, cut the Con-
federate communications south of the James, and, if possible, capture Peters-
burg.
If Grant succeeded in defeating Lee, he intended to follow him to Rich-
mond. If he failed, he meant to transfer his whole army to the southern side
of the James, using Butler's column to cover the movement, and attack from
that quarter. At the same time. General Sigel was to organize his army into
two expeditions, one under Genei-al Crook in the Kanawha Valley, and the
other commanded by himself in the Shenandoah Valley. The object of this
campaign was to cut the Central Railroad and the Virginia and Tennessee Road.
WOUNDING OF GENERAL LONGSTREET. 391
Since tlie bulk of Lee's supplies were received over these lines, the success of the
plan would inflict a mortal blow upon the Confederate array.
The Army of the Potomac began moving, May 3d, at midnight. The
advance was in two columns. The right, including Warren's and Sedgwick's
Corps, crossed the Rapidan at Germania Ford, and the left, Hancock's Cordis,
made the 2:)assage at Ely's Ford, six miles below. On the following night, the
bivouac was between the Rapidan and Chancellors ville.
THE BATTLES IN THE WILDERNESS.
Reading Grant's purpose, Lee determined to attack him in the dense,
wooded country known as the Wilderness, where it would be impossible for the
Union commander to use his artillery. Acting promptly, a furious assault was
made and the Confederates attained considerable success. The ground was
unfavorable for the Unionists, but Grant did not shrink. His line was five
miles long and mostly within the woods, where he could use neither cavalry
nor artillery with effect; but he made his attack with such vehemence that after
several hours of terrific fighting he drove the flying Confederates back almost
to the headquarters of Lee, where Longstreet saved the army from overthrow
and re-established the line.
WOUNDING OF GENERAL LONGSTREET.
Before noon the next day, Longstreet forcefd Hancock's left to the Brock
Road and determined to seize the latter. Had he done so, another disastrous
defeat would have been added to those suffered by the Army of the Potomac at
the hands of Lee. Longsti-eet was in high spirits and determined to lead the
movement in person. While riding forward, he met General Jenkins, who was
also exultant over what seemed certain success. The two stopped to shake hands,
and when doing so, they and their escorts were mistaken by a body of Confederate
troops for Union cavalry and fired upon. Longstreet w^aved his hand and
shouted to the men to stop firing. Tliey did so, but Jenkins had already been
killed and Longstreet himself was shot in the throat. He fell from his saddle
and lay beside the body of Jenkins. He was believed to be dead, but, showing
signs of life, was placed on a litter and carried to the rear, the soldiers cheer-
ing as he was borne past. The reader will recall the strange wounding of
Stonewall Jackson, under almost similar circumstances, by his own men.
Longstreet recovered in time to take a leading part in the closing incidents of
the war.
This occurrence caused a feeling akin to tlismay in the Confederate ranks,
and defeated the movement that was about to be undertaken. General Lee was
so disturbed that he placed himself at the head of a Texas brigade, with the
392 ADMINISTRATION OF LINCOLN.
resolve to lead it in a charge that should be decisive, but his men would not
permit, and compelled him to resume his place at the rear.
Grant's position was too strong to be carried and Lee was equally secure.
Meanwiiile Grant carefully hunted for a weak spot in his enemy's line, and
decided that Spottsylvania Court-House was the place, and thither he marched
his army on the night of May 7th.
While this movement was in progress, Sheridan and his cavalry made a
dash toward Richmond in the effort to cut Lee's communications. The vigilant
Stuart intercepted them at Yellow Tavern, within seven miles of the city, and
compelled Sheridan to return, but in the fighting Stuart received a wound
from which he died the next day.
When Grant's advance reached Spottsylvania Court-House, the Confederates
were in possession, and repulsed the attempt to drive them out. While the
preparations for renewing the battle were going on. General Sedgwick was
struck in the head by a Confederate sharpshooter and instantly killed.
grant's repulse at cold harbor.
A series of flank movements followed, with fierce fighting, in which the
Union loss was great. Reinforcements were sent to Grant, and nothing could
deter his resolution to drive Lee to the wall. At Cold Harbor, on June 3d^
however, the Union commander received one of the most bloody repulses of the
war, suffering a loss of ten thousand in the space of less than half an hour, and
his losses from the Rapidan to the Chickahominy — whither he moved his army
— equaled the whole number of men in Lee's army. The latter was within the-
defenses of Richmond, of which the centre was Cold Harbor. Having much
shorter lines, the Confederates were able to anticipate the movements of the
Army of the Potomac and present a defiant front at all times.
Meanwhile matters had gone wrong in the Shenandoah Valley. On the
loth of May, Sigel was utterly routed by Breckinridge. The Union officer
failed so badly that he was superseded by Hunter, who made just as wretched
a failure. The 15,000 troops under Breckinridge were sent to reinforce Lee,
when, had Sigel and Hunter done their duty, this force would have been
compelled to stay in the Shenandoah Valley.
Another movement that was meant to help Grant materially was that of
Butler, who was to threaten Richmond by water, while Grant and Meade were
assailing the city in front. But Butler was outgeneraled by Beaui-egard, who
succeeded in " bottling him up," as Grant expressed it, at Bermuda Hundred, a.
peninsula formed by the James, twenty miles below Richmond. There Butler
was held helpless, while Beauregard sent a small part of his meagre force tO'
reinforce Lee.
on ANTS REPULSE AT COLD HARBOR.
393
The terrible repulse which Grant received at Cold Harbor convinced him
that it was only throwing away lite to 2)ersist in the campaign against Kichmond
by the " overland " route. With characteristic decision, he decided to move his
army to the front of Petersburg and thus shut off Lee's communication with the
South. Holding his position in front of the Confederate leader until June 12th,
GENERAL LEE DASHES TO THE FRONT TO LEAD THE TEXANS" CHARGE.
Grant crossed the Chiekahominy and advanced to City Point. Passing the
James on ponton-bridges, he marched toward Petersburg, where the army
arrived on tlie loth. The next day the Army of the Potomac was south of the
James. Petersburg was immediately attacked, but the defenders repelled every
assault. The next day, Lee's whole army entered the breastworks of the town.
After repeated attacks by the Unionists, Grant saw the impossibility of captur-
394 ADMINISTRATION OF LINCOLN.
ing Petersburg by direct attack and he began its siege. Several times the Con-
federates made sallies against threatening movements and drove the Federals
from the positions that had been gained at no little loss of life.
Early in July, Grant consented to allow Lieutenant-Colonel Pleasant, of a
Pennsylvania regiment belonging to Burnside's corps, to run a mine under one
of the approaches to the enemy's intrenchments before Petersburg. It was
believed, apjjarently with reason, that the explosion would open a gap in the
line through which the Federals might make a dash and capture the town before
the defenders could rally from their confusion.
The mine was laid and four tons of powder were fired at daylight on the
morning of July 30th. A cavity was opened by the stupendous explosion, 200
feet long, GO feet wide, and 30 feet deep. Instantly, the Union batteries opened
on those of the enemy, silenced them, and the assaulting column charged. The
dreadful mistake was made by the men of halting in the cavity for shelter. The
troops sent to their help also stopped and huddled together, seeing Avhich the
terrified gunners ran back to their abandoned pieces and opened upon the dis-
organized mass in the pit. The slaughter continued until the Confederate offi-
cers sickened at the sight and ordered it stoj^ped. The horrible business resulted
in the loss of nearly 1,000 prisoners and 3,000 killed and wounded.
GENERAL EAELY's RAIDS.
Since the entire Army of the Potomac was in front of Petersburg, the Con-
federates took advantage of the opportunity to give Washington another scare,
in the hope, also, of compelling Grant to withdraw a considerable body of troops
from before Richmond. General Early was sent thither with 8,000 men by
General Lee, with orders to attack the Federals in the valley. Sigel, whose
great forte was that of retreating, fell back befoi'e the advance of Early, crossed
the Potomac, and took position on Maryland Heights. Early moved up the
Monocacy into Maryland, causing great alarm in Washington. The President
called upon Pennsylvania, New York, and Massachusetts for militia with which
to repel the invasion. They were placed under the command of General Lew
Wallace, who was defeated at Monocacy Junction, July 9th. Early attacked
Rockville, fourteen miles west of Washington, and Colonel Harry Gilmor, him-
self a citizen of Baltimore, cut the communications between that city and Phila-
delphia. He captured a railway train, and among his prisoners was General
Franklin, who was wounded and on his way north. The loose watch kept over
the captives allowed them to escaj^e.
Early was in high feather over his success, and his cavalry apj^eared in
front of Washington, July 11th, and exchanged shots with Fort Stevens; but
a spirited attack drove them off, and they crossed the Potomac at Edward's
SHERIDAN IX THE SHENANDOAH VALLEY
395
Ferry, and passed to the western side of the Slienandoah. Early made his head-
quarters at Winchester and I'epelled several assaults ujjun him.
The Confederate leader had been so successful that he soon made a second
raid. He crossed the Potomac, July 29th, and, entering Pennsylvania, reached
Chambersburg, from which a ransom of $200,000 in gold was demanded. It
not being forthcoming, the city was fired, and the invaders, after some hard
fighting, succeeded in getting back to the southern shore of the Potomac.
SHERIDAN' IN THE SHEXAXDOAH VALLEY.
These raids were so exasperat-
ing that Grant, who could not give
them his personal attention, deter-
mined to put an effectual stop to
them. The government united thei
departments of western Virginiii,
Washington, and the Susquehanna,
and placed them under the charge (if
General Sheridan, who had 40,000'
men at his disposal. Sheridan,
whose force was three times as nu-
merous as Early's, was anxious to
move against him, and Grant finally
gave his consent on the condition'
that he would desolate the Shenan-
doah Valley to that extent that noth-
ing would be left to invite invasion.
In the first encounter between
Sheridan and Early, near the Ope-
quan, a small tributary of the Poto-
mac, west of the Shenandoah, Early
was routed and sent flying toward
Winchester, with the loss of many prisoners and supplies. He was drive>
through the town, and his troops inti'enched themselves on Fisher's Hill, nea'
Strasburg. They were again attacked, on the 21st of September, and compelled
to retreat further up the valley. Early received a reinforcement, and secured
himself at Brown's Gap, in the Blue Ridge Mountains, Avhere for the first
time he was really safe.
This left Sheridan free to carry out the orders of Grant to devastate the
valley, and he made thorough work of it. Nothing was spared, and the burning
and destruction were so complete that his homely remark seemed justified when
GENERAL PHILIP H. SHEHIDAlS.
396 ADMINISTRATION OF LINCOLN.
he said that no crow would dare attempt to fly across the region without taking
his rations with him.
Feeling that the situation was secure, Sheridan now went to Washington
to consult with the government. On the lUth of October the Union camp at
Cedar Creek was surprised and routed by Early, who captured eighteen guns,
which were turned on the fugitives as they fled in the direction of Middletown.
Their commander, General Wright, finally succeeded in rallying them, njainly
because the Confederates were so overcome at sight of the food in the abandoned
camps that they gave up the pursuit to feast and gorge themselves.
" Sheridan's kide."
Sheridan had reached Winchester, " twenty miles away," on his return from
Washington, when the faint sounds of firing told him of the battle in progress.
Leaping into his saddle, he spurred at headlong speed down the highway,
rallied the panic-stricken troops, placed himself at their head, and, charging
headlong into the rebel mob at Cedar Creek, scattered them like so much chaff,
retook the camps, and routed Early so utterly that no more raids were attemjited
by him or any other Confederates during the remainder of the war. Indeed, it
may be said that this disgraceful overthrow ended the military career of Jubal
Early. When some months later General Lee was jilaced at the head of all the
military affairs of the Confederacy, he lost no time in doing tvro things: the
first was to restore General Jo Johnston to his old cunnnantl, and the second to
remove Early from his.
The stirring incident described furnished the theme for the well-known
poem of T. Buchanan Read, entitled "Sheridan's Ride."
Grant held fast to that which he won by terrific fighting. Petersburg lies
about twenty miles to the south of Richmond, and the strongly fortified Union
lines were nearly thirty miles in length, extending from a point close to the
Weldon Railroad, on Grant's left, across the James to the neighborhood of
Newmarket, on the right. Holding the inner part of this circle, Lee was able
for a long time to repel every assault.
The Confederate commander fought furiously to j^revent his enemy from
obtaining possession of the Weldon Road, but late in August a lodgment was
effected from which the Federals could not be driven. Other advantages were
gained, but the close of the year saw Lee still unconquered and defiant.
gr.a.nt's slow but resistless progress.
Early in February, 1865, Grant attempted to turn the Confederate right,
but was rejnilsed, though he gained several miles of additional territory. Sheri-
EVACUATION OF RICHMOND. 397
dan soon after destroyed the Richmond and Lynchburg Railroad and the
locks of the James River Canal, after which he joined the Army of the
James.
But Lee was beginning to feel the tremendous and continued pressure.
His army numbered barely 35,000 men. A. P. Hill commanded the right
wing, stretching from Petersburg to Hatcher's Run; General J. B. Gordon, the
centre, at Petersburg; and Longstreet, who had recovered from his wound, the
left wing, north and south of the James ; while the cavalry did what it could to
cover the iianks. This attenuated line was forty miles long. Realizing the
desperate straits, the Confederate authoiities early in 1865 placed the entire
military operations of the Confederacy in the hands of Lee.
The latter planned U) fall back toward Danville and unite with Johnston.
If successful this would have given him a formidable army; but Grant did not
intend to permit such a junction. Fighting went on almost continually, the
gain being with the Union army, because of its greatly superior numbers and
the skill with which they were handled by the master, Grant. April 1st a
cannonade opened along the whole Union line. Lee's right Aving had been
destroyed, but the others were unbroken. At daylight the next moi'ning an
advance was made against the Confederate works. Lee was forced back, and he
strengthened his lines by making them much shorter.
The Confederates steadily lost ground, many were killed and taken
prisoners, and in a charge upon the Union left General A. P. Hill lost his life.
At last the enemy's outer lines were hopelessly bi'oken, and Lee telegi-aphed the
startling fact to President Davis, who received it while sitting in church,
Sunday, April 2d. The Confederate President was told that Lee could hold
Petersburg but a few hours longer, and Davis was warned to have the authori-
ties ready to leave Richmond uidess a message was sent to the contrary. No
such longed-for message arrived.
EVACUATION OF RICHMOND.
The counsel of Lee was followed. Jefferson Davis, the members of his
cabinet, and a number of leading citizens left the capital that night for Char-
lotte, North Carolina. The whole city was thrown into the wildest confusion;
rioting and drunkenness filled the streets, buildings were fired, and jxindemo-
nium reigned. General Witzel, who occupied the Union works to the north of
Richmond, learned the astounding news, and the next morning rode into the
city without opposition. The tidings were telegraphed to Washington. The
following day President Lincoln arrived, and was quartered in the house
formerly occupied by Jefferson Davis. Martial law was proclaimed, and order
restored in the stricken citv.
398
ADMINISTRATION OF LINCOLN.
But General Lee had not yet surrendered. No men ever fought more
heroically than he and his soldiers. On the Sunday that he sent his message
to President Davis, the commander found the only line of retreat left to him
was that which led to the westward, and even that was threatened. Antici-
pating Lee's retreat. Grant used all possible energy to cut him off. On the
night of April 6th Lee crossed the Appomattox near Farmville. That night
his general officers held a consultation, and agreed that but one course was left
to them and that
was to surrender.
Their views were
communicated to
Lee, but he would
not yet consent to
that decisive stejD.
Grant was in
r irraville on the
"ill, and he sent
a letter to Lee, re-
minding him of
the uselessness of
further resistance
and asking for his
surrender. Lee
still declined, and
continued his
retreat. Then
Sheridan threw
his powerful di-
\ ision of cavalry
in front of the
Confederates, and
Lee decided to cut
his way through
the ring of bayo-
nets and sabres by which he was environed. This desperate task was assigned
to the indomitable Gordon. He made a resistless beginning, when he saw the im-
possibility of success. The news was sent to Lee, who realized at last that all
hope was gone. He forwarded a note to Grant, asking for a suspension of hos-
tilities with H view to surrender. The two generals met at the house of Major
McLean, in the hamlet of Appomattox Court-House, on the 9th of April, where
LINCOLN ENTERING RICHMOND.
ASSASSINATION OF PRESIDENT LINCOLN. 399'
Lee surrendered all that remained of the Confederate army, which for nearly
four years had beaten back every attempt to capture Richmond.
Grant's terms as usual were generous. He did not ask for Lee's sword, and
demanded only that he and his men should agree not to bear arms again against
the government of the United States. They were to surrender all public pro-
perty, but Grant told them to keep their horses, " as you will need them for your
s})ring ploughing." The soldiers who had fought each other so long and so fiercely
fraternized like brothers, exchanged grim jests over the terrible past, and pledged
future friendship. The reunion between the officers was equally striking. Most
of them were old acquaintances, and all rejoiced that tlie war was at last ended.
General Lee rode with his cavalry escort to his home in Richmond and rejoined
his family. He was treated with respect by the Union troops, who could not
restrain a feeling of sympathy for their fallen but magnanimous enemy.
ASSASSINATION OF PRESIDENT LINCOLN.
The bonfires in the North had hardly died out and the echoes of the glad
bells were still lingering in the air, when the whole country was startled by one
of the most horrifying events in all history. President Lincoln, on the night
of April 14th, was sitting in a box at Ford's Theatre in Washington, accom-
panied by his wife and another lady and gentleman, when, at a little past ten
o'clock, John Wilkes Booth, an actor, stealthily entered the box from the rear,
and, without any one suspecting his awful purpose, fired a pistol-bullet into
the President's brain. The latter's head sank, and he never recovered con-
sciousness.
Booth, after firing the shot, leaj^ed upon the stage from the box, brandished
a dagger, shouted "Sic semper tyrannis ! " and, before the dumfounded specta-
tors could comprehend what had been done, dashed out of a rear door, sprang
upon a waiting horse, and galloped off in the darkness.
No pen can describe the horror and rage which seized the spectators when
they understood what had taken place. The stricken President was carried
across the street to a house whei-e he died at twenty-two minutes past seven the
next morning.
About the time of his assassination, an attempt was made upon the life of
Secretary Seward, who was confined to his bed, suffering from a fall. A male
attendant prevented the miscreant from killing the secretary, though he was
badly cut. The best detective force of the country was set to work, and an
energetic pursuit of Booth was made. He had injured his ankle when leajiing
from the box upon the stage of the theatre, but he rode into Maryland, accom-
panied by another conspirator, named David E. Harrold. At the end of eleven
days they were run down by the pursuing cavalry, who brought them to bay on
■aHOBaaHiBai
THE CIVIL WAR PEACE CONFERENCE.
Three cofnmissioncrs (rom the ConfeJeracy susgcsting terms of peace to I'lesident Lincoln and Secretary Seward in Fori
Monroe. January 1S65.
PUNISHMENT OF THE CONSPIRATORS. 401
the 26tli of April. They had crossed from Maryland into Virginia and taken
refuge in a barn near Pet Royal, on the Kappahannock.
DEATH OF BOOTH.
The barn was surrounded and the two men were summoned to surrender.
Harrold went out and gave himself up. Booth refused and defied the troopers,
otfering to fight them single-handed. To drive him from his hiding-place, the
barn was set on fire. Booth, carbine in hand and leaning on his crutch, ap-
proached the door with the intention of shooting, when Sergeant Boston Corbett
fired through a crevice and hit Booth in the neck. The wound was a mortal
one, and Booth was brought out of the barn and laid on the ground, where he
died after several hours of intense suffering. The body was taken to Washing-
ton and secretly buried. There is good reason to believe that it was sunk at
night in the Potomac.
PUNISHMENT OF THE CONSPIRATOKS.
The country was in no mood to show leniency to any one concerned in the
taking off of the beloved President. Of the five conspirators tried, four were
hanged. They were : Payne, Harrold, G. A. Atzeroot, and Mrs. Mai-y A. Sur-
ratt, at whose house the conspiratoi-s held their meetings. Dr. S. A. Mudd, who
dressed Booth's wounded ankle, and was believed to be in sympathy with the
plottei's, was sentenced to the Dry Tortugas for a number of years. He showed
so much devotion dui'iug an outbreak of yellow fever there that he was 23ardoned
some time later. John Surratt, the assailant of Secretary Seward, fled to Italy,
where he was discovered by Archbishop Hughes, and the Italian government,
as an act of courtesy, delivered him to our government. On his first trial the
jury disagreed, and on the second he escaped through the plea of limitations.
The whole countiy mourned the death of President Lincoln. His great-
ness, his goodness, and his broad, tender charity were appreciated by every one.
The South knew that tliey had lost in him their best friend. Had he lived,
much of the strife of the succeeding few years would have been saved, and the
bitter cup that was pressed to the lips of the conquered South would have been
less bitter than it was made by others. The remains of the martyred President
were laid in their final resting-place at Springfield, Illinois, and the fame of
Lincoln grows and increases with the passing years.
Sherman's northward advances.
The army of General Jo Johnston did not surrender until after the death
of President Lincoln. Sherman, as will be remembered, made the city of Sa-
vannah a Christmas present to the President. Leaving a strong detachment in
402 ADMINISTRATION OF LINCOLN.
the city, Sherman moved northward with an army of 70,000 men, including
artillery, the start being made on the 1st of February. Charleston, where the
first ordinance of secession was passed and which had successfully defied every
movement against it, now found itself assailed in the rear. The garrison, after
destroying the government stores, the railway stations, blowing up the ironclads
in the harbor, bursting the guns on the ramparts of the forts, and setting the city
on fire, withdrew. This took place February 17th. The next day General
Gillmore entered Charleston and his troops extinguished the few buildings that
were still burning.
It has not been forgotten that Wilmington, North Carolina, had become
the great blockade-running port of the Southern Confederacy. The mouth of
Cape Fear River was defended by Fort Fisher, a very powerful fortification.
General Butler made an attempt to capture it in December, but failed. Another
effort followed January 15th, under General Alfred Terry, and was successful.
The defeated garrison joined Johnston to help him in disputing the northward
advance of Sherman.
There was severe fighting, especially at Goldsborough, but the Union army
was so much the superior that its progress could not be stayed. There
Schofield reinforced Sherman, who, feeling all danger was past, turned over the
command to his subordinate and went north to consult with Grant, reaching
his headquarters on the 27th of March. Soon after the surrender of Lee, the
whole Confederacy was in such a state of collapse that the Union cavalry
galloped back and forth through every portion at will.
Returning to his command, Sherman moved against Johnston, April 10th.
Four days later, Johnston admitted in a communication to the Union commander
that the surrender of Lee meant the end of the war, and he asked for a temporary
suspension of hostilities, with the view of making arrangements for the laying
down of the Confederate arms. Sherman consented, and these two commanders
met and discussed the situation.
SURRENDER OF JO JOHNSTON AND COLLAPSE OF THE SOUTHERN CONFEDERACY.
In the exchange of views which followed, the great soldier, Sherman, was
outwitted by Johnston and the Confederate president and cabinet, who were
behind him. They secured his agreement to a restoration, so far as he could
bring it about, of the respective State governments in the South as they were
before the war, with immunity for the secession leaders from punishment, and
other privileges, which, if granted, would have been throwing away most of the
fruits of the stupendous struggle. Sherman thus took upon himself the disposi-
tion of civil matters with which he had nothing to do. The more sagacious
Grant saw the mistake of his old friend, and, visiting his camp, April 24th, told
SURRENDER OF JO JOHNSTON.
403
him his memorandum was disajip roved, and notice was to be sent Johnston of the
resumption of hostilities. Two days later, Sherman and Johnston again met,
and the Confederate commander promptly agreed to surrender his army on the
same conditions that were given to Lee.
General J. H. Wilson and his cavalry captured Macon, Georgia, April
21st, and, on the 4th of May, General Dick Taylor surrendered the remainder
of the Confederate forces east of the Mississip^^i, at which time also Admiral
THE DESPERATE EXTREMITY OF THE CONFEDERATES AT THE END OF THE
CIVIL WAR.
Farrand surrendered to Admiral Thatcher all the naval forces of the Confederacy
that were blockaded in the Tombigbee River. At that time, Kirby Smith was
on the other side of the Mississippi, loudl}^ declaring that he would keej:) u]"* the
fight until independence or better terms were secured, but his followers did not
share his views, and deserted so fast that he, INIagruder, and others made their
way to Mexico, where, after remaining awhile, they returned to the United States
and became peaceful and law-abiding citizens. The troops left by them passed
404 ADMINISTRATION OF LINCOLN.
under the command of General Brent, who, on the 26th of May, surrendered to
General Canby, when it may be said the War for the Union was ended.
After the surrender of Johnston, Jefferson Davis and the members of his
cabinet became fugitives, under the escort of a few paroled soldiers. It was
feared they might join Kirby Smith and encourage him to continue his
resistance, while others believed he was striving to get beyond the jurisdiction
of the United States.
The party hurried through the dismal wastes of Georgia, in continual fear
that the Union cavalry would bui'st from cover upon them and make all
prisoners. In the early morning liglit of May 10th, Mr. Davis, while asleep
in his tent, near Irwinsville, Wilkinson County, Georgia, was aroused by the
alarming news that the camp was suri'ounded by Union cavalry. He leaped to
his feet and ran for his horse, but the animal was already in the possession of a
Federal trooper. His wife threw a shawl over his shoulders, and he attempted
to escape from the camp without being recognized, but he was identified and
made prisoner. He had been captured by a squad of General J. H. Wilson's
cavalry, under the command of Lieutenant-Colonel Pritchard of the Fourth
Michigan. His fellow-prisoners were his wife and children, his private secretary.
Burton Harrison, his aide-de-camp, and Postmaster-General Reagan, all of
whom were taken to Macon, and thence to Fort Monroe, Virginia.
It was a serious problem, now that the president of the defunct Confederacy
was captured, what should be done with him. He was kept in Fort Monroe
until his health was impaired, when he was released on bail; Horace Greeley, th-e
well-known editor of the Neiv York Tribune, being one of his bondsmen. He
had been indicted for treason in 1866, being released the following year, but his
trial was dropped on the 6th of February, 1869. He jmssed the remainder of
his life in Memphis, and later at Beauvoir, ]\Iississippi, dying in New Orleans,
December 6, 1889, in the eighty-second year of his age.
STATISTICS OF THE WAR.
The most carefully prepared statistics of the Civil War give the following
facts: Number of men in the Union army furnished by each State and Terri-
tory, from April 15, 1861, to close of war, 2,778,304, which, reduced to a three
years' standing, was 2,326,168. The number of casualties in the volunteer and
regular armies of the United States, according to a statement prepared by the
adjutant-general's office, was: Killed in battle, 67,058; died of wounds, 43,012;
died of disease, 199,720; other causes, such as accidents, murder. Confederate
prisons, etc., 40,154; total died, 349,944; total deserted, 199,105. Number of
soldiers in the Confederate service, who died of wounds or disease (partial state-
ment), 133,821. Deserted (partial statement), 104,428. Number of United
STATISTICS OF THE WAB.
405
States troops captured during the war, 212,508; Confederate troops captured,
476,169. Number of United States troops paroled on the fiekl, 16,431; Con-
federate troops paroled on the field, 248,599. Number of United States troops
who died while prisoners, 30,156; Confedei'ate troops who died while prisoners,
30,152. It is safe to say that the number of men killed and disabled on both
sides during the War for the Union was fully one million. The public debt of
the United States, July 1, 1866, was $2,773,236,173.69, which on the 1st of
November, 1897, liad been reduced to $1,808,777,643.40.
Mention has been made of the frightful brutalities of Captain Wirz, the
keeper of Andersonville prison. He richly merited the hanging wliic-h he
suffered on the 10th of November, 1865. As has been stated, he was the only
person executed for his part in the Civil War.
England, upon leceiviug news of the arrest
of Jefferson Davis, declared all ports, harbors, and
waters belonging to Great Britain closed against
every vessel bearing the Confederate flag. The
French government took the same action a few
days later.
More than a generation has jiassed since the
close of the great Civil War, which resulted in ihr
cementing of the Union so firmly that the bond-
can never again be bi'oken. Whatever resentment
may have been felt lasted but a brief while, and
the late war with Spain removed the last vestige.
A little incident may serve as one of the
thousand similar occurrences which prove how
perfectly the North and South fraternized long
ago. Tiie officer who did the most effective work for the Union in the South dur-
ing the closing months of the war was General James H. Wilson, a detachment
of whose cavalry captured- the fugitive Jefferson Davis. It was General Wilson,
who, on the 21st of April, 1865, rode into Macon, Georgia, and took possession
of the city. In the month of December, 1898, while on a visit to Macon, he
made an address to the citizens, from which the following; extract is 2;iven :
HORACE GREELEY.
(1811-1872.)
THIRTY-THREE TEARS LATER.
Fellow-Citizens : It is with infinite pleasure that I address myself in
words of peace to a Macon audience. [Cheers.] Thirty-odd years ago I came
into this town with 15,000 cavalry thundering at my heels. [Laughter and
shouts.] I was met with the roaring of cannon and the firing of musketry.
[Cheers.] I was greeted by the burning of warehouses and the destruction of
406
AD^IINISTRATION OF LINCOLN.
jiroperty, which I now profoundly regret. [Cheers.] The welcome that was
extended to me then was of tlie silent quality. [Laughter.] An illustrious
citizen, then your chief magistrate, the Hon. Joseph E. Brown, after a four-
hours' interview, speaking of me then, said to another gathering of illustrious
citizens, at the head of which was Howell Cobb : " He is a clever young man,
but, gentlemen, he takes the military view of the situation." [Laughter.] Tliat
was a fact then, but now I come among you and I receive a different welcome.
I was then a victor; to-day I am a captive. [Cheers.] I must say I am a
willing captive of your city. The fair women and the brave and excellent
gentlemen of your town have, by their open and generous hospitality,
imprisoned me deep down in their hearts, and I would be recreant to every
feeling of my own if I desired release from such pleasing bondage.
LINCOLN'S GRAVE, SPRINGFIELD, ILLINOIS.
CHAPTER XIX.
A.DN1INISTRATIONS OK JOHNSON AND ORANT
1865—1877.
Andrew Johnson — Reconstruction — Quiirrel Between the President and Congress — The Fenians — Exe.
eution of Maximilian — Admission of Nebrasija — Laying of the Atlantic Cable — Purchase of Alaska
— Impeachment and Acquittal of the President — Carpet-bag Rule in the South — Presidential Election
of 1868 — U. S. Grant — Settlement of the Alnhama Claims — Completion of the Overland Railway —
The Chicago Fire — Settlement of the Northwestern Boundary — Presidential Election of 1872 — The
Modoc Troubles — Civil War in Louisiana — Admission of Colorado — Panic of 1873— Notable Deaths —
Custer's Massacre — The Centennial — The Presidential Election of 1876 the Most Perilous in the
History of the Country.
THE SEVENTEENTH PRESIDENT.
As jirovidtHl by the Constitution, Andrew Johnson, Vice-President, took
^ ""'~ " ' the oath of office as President on the
day that Abraham Lincohi died. He
was born in Raleigh, North Caro-
lina, December 29, 1808, and his
parents were so poor that they did
not send him to school at all. When
only ten years old, he was apprenticed
to a tailor, and anyone who at that
time had prophesied that he would
some day become President of the
United States would have been set
down as an idiot or a lunatic.
Among the visitors to the tailor
shop was a kind-hearted old gentle-
man who was in the habit of reading
to the boys and men. Andrew be-
came interested in what he heard,
and, seeing how much better it
would be for him to be able to read
for himself, set to work and learned.
He removed to Greenville, Tennes-
see, in 1826, and there married a
(407)
ANDREW JOHNSON.
(1808-1875.) Oue partial term, 1866-1809.
408 ADMINmTRATIONS OF JOHNSON AND GRANT.
noble woman, who encouraged his ambition and helped him in his studies.
Nature had given him marked ability, and he became interested in local politics.
The citizens had confidence in him, for he was twice elected alderman, twice
mayor, was sent three times to tlie State Legislature, and in 1843 was elected to
Congress. He remained there for ten years, when he was chosen governor of
Tennessee, and, in 1857, became United States senator.
Johnson had always been a Democrat, and, when the political upheaval
came in 1860, he supported Breckinridge. While he favored slavery, he was
a Unionist in every fibre of his being, and declared that every man who raised
his hand against the fiag should be hanged as a traitor. Tennessee was torn by
the savage quarrel, and for a time the secessionists were rampant. When John-
son returned to his home in May, 1861, his train was stopped by a mob who
were determined to lynch him, but he met the angered men at the door with
a loaded revolver and cowed them.
It was such men as Johnson that President Lincoln ajjpreciated and deter-
mined to keep bound to him. He aiipointed him military governor of Tennes-
see in 1862, and it neeil hardly be said that Johnson made things lively for the
secessionists, and did not forget to give attention to those who had persecuted him.
His personal courage and honesty won the admiration of the North, and, as we
have shown, led to his being placed on the ticket with President Lincoln, when
he was renominated in 1864.
The reader will not forget that the surrender of Johnson and the capture,
imprisonment, and release of Jefferson Davis occurred while Johnson was
President.
THE PROBLEM OF RECONSTRUCTION.
Reconstruction Avas the grave problem that confronted the country at the
close of the war. The question was as to the status of the States lately in rebellion.
It would not do to restore them to their full rights, with the same old govern-
ments, for they might make better preparations and secede again. Nothing
was clearer than that slavery was the real cause of the war, and the safety of
the nation demanded that it should be extirpated forever. The Emancipation
Proclamation was a war measure and simply freed the slaves, but did not pre-
vent the re-establish ment of slavery. In December, 1865, therefore, the
Thirteenth Amendment, having been adopted by three-fourths of the States, was
declared a part of the Constitution. By it slavery was forever abolished, and
one of the gravest of all perils was removed.
President Johnson was a man of strong passions and prejudices. He had
been a "poor white" in the South, whose condition in some respect was worse
than that of slaves. He held a bitter ]iei-sonal hatred of the aristocratic
Southerners, who had brought on the war. His disposition at first was to hang
QUARREL BETWEEN CONGRESS AND THE PRESIDENT. 40&
the leaders, but after awhile he swung almost as far in the opposite direction.
At the same time, he was not particularly concerned for the welfare of the
freed slaves, who were called " freedmen."
THE president's POLICY.
President Johnson termed his plan " my policy," and briefly it was : To
appoint provisional or temporary governors for each of the States lately in
rebellion. These governors called conventions of delegates, who were elected by
the former white voters of the respective States. When the conventions met
they declared all the ordinances of secession void, pledged themselves never to
pay any debt of the Southern Confederacy, and ratified the Thirteenth Amend-
ment, as proposed by Congress early in 1865, and which abolished slavery.
Bef ire the close of tlie yeai' named, each of the exckuled States had been reor-
ganized in aecordauee with this plan. Virginia, Tennessee, and Arkansas took
the step while Lincoln was President.
The vexatious (piestion was as to the treatment of the freedmen. The South
hr.d no faith that they would work, except when compelled to do so by slave-
over-eers. The new governments passed laws, therefore, to compel them to
work, under the penalty of being declared vagrants and sent to jail, where they
would be forced to hard labor. This method was denounced in the North as a
re-establishment of slavery under a new name. The Republican majoi'ity in
December, 1865, refused for a time to admit any members from the States that
had been in rebellion.
QUARREL BETWEEN CONGRESS AND THE PRESIDENT.
Thus a quarrel arose between the President and Congress. The latter pro-
posed to keep the States on probation for a time, before giving them their full
rights, while the President strenuously insisted that they should be admitted at
once on the same status as those that had not been engaged in secession. To
keep out the eighty-five members who had been refused admission. Congress
imposed a test oath, which excluded all who had been connected in any way
with the Confederate government. The Republicans had a two-thirds vote in
Congress which enabled tiiera to pass any bill they chose over the President's
veto. While they had not formulated any clear policy, they were resolved to
protect the freedmen in all their rights. The reorganization of Tennessee being
satisfactory, her members were received by Congress in 1866.
The congressional elections of this year inti-enched the Republicans in Con-
gress, and they were sure of the power for the next two years to carry thi'ough
any policy upon which they might agree. By that time, too, they had fixed
upon their plan of reconstruction and prepared to enforce it.
410 ADJIINISTRATIOm OF JOHNSON AND GRANT.
This policy was to allow the freedmen to vote and to deprive the Confed-
erate leaders of the right to do so. To accomplish this, the plan was to place all
the seceding States under military governors, who should call new conventions
to form State governments. The negroes and not the leading Confederates had
the power to vote for these delegates. Provided the new governments allowed
the freedmen the right of suffrage, and ratified the Fourteenth Amendment
(which excluded the leading Confederates from office), then the Southern senators
and representatives would be admitted to Congress.
THE CIVIL RIGHTS BILL.
The "civil rights" bill, which jilaced the blacks and whites on the same
footing, was vetoed by the Pi-esident, March 27th. He pointed out the danger
of giving suffrage to 4,000,000 ignorant people, lately slaves, and said unscrup-
ulous men in the North would hasten South and take advantage of their igno-
rance. This was precisely what took place. Tlie South was overi'un by a set of
scoundrels known as " carj^et-baggers " (because they were supposed to carry
all their woiddly possessions when they reached the South in a carpet bag; in
many instances a score of trunks would not have sufficed to hold what they took
back), whose rule was worse than a pestilence, and forms one of the most shame-
ful episodes in our history. According to the old system, the negroes were
counted in making up the congi-essional representation of the South, and tiie
Hepublicans insisted that they were, therefore, entitled to vote. The bill was
passed April 9th, over the President's veto.
The story of the bitter quarrel between the President and Congress is
an unpleasant one. Words were uttered by him and by leading membei's of
Congress which it would be well to forget. The President became angrier as the
wrangle progressed, for, in the face of the hostile majority, he was powerless.
The fight continued through the years 1867 and 186S. In June of the latter
year, Alabama, Arkansas, Florida, Louisiana, North Carolina, and South Caro-
lina were re-athiiitted to Congress. The States that had seceded were divided
into five military districts, and President Johnson, much against his will, was
obliged to appoint the governors. As a result of all this, the negroes were
largely in the majority in the South, and the Republican vote in Congress was
greatly increased. But in the North, the fall elections went mostly Democratic,
though not enough so to overcome tlie opposing majority in Congress.
During these exciting times there were several occurrences of a different
nature which require notice. The Fenians are men of Irish birth who favor the
independence of their country from Great Britain. One of their favorite methods
is by the invasion of Canada. In 1866, about 1,500 of them entered Canada
from Buffalo, and some skirmishing occurred, but the movement was so clearly
ADMISSION OF NEBRASKA.
411
a violation of law that the President sent a military force to the fi-ontier and
jjroinptly stopped it.
EXECUTION' OF MAXIMILIAN.
France had taken advantage of oar Civil War to make an attempt to estab-
lish a monarchy in Mexico. French troops were landed, an empire proclaimed,
and Maximilian, an Austrian archduke, declared emperor. He went to Mexico in
1864, where he was compelled to fight the Mexicans who had risen against his
rule. With the help of the strong military force which Louis Napoleon placed
at his disposal, he was able to maintain himself for a time. With the conclusion
of the war, our governmpnt intimnted to Emperor Napoleon that it would be
J) 1 i t i c f r
him to with-
d r a w f r o 1 1 1
Mexico, al-
though we
were quite
willing to al-
low Maximil-
ian to remain
emperor if it
was the wish
of the Mexi-
cans. Napol-
eon acted oil
the warninii,
but the mis-
guided victim
chose to stay,
and was cap-
tured by the Mexicans in 18(37 and shot. That was the end of the attempt to
establish an empire in Mexico, which has long been a prosperous and well-
governed republic.
ADMISSION OF NEBRASKA.
Nebraska was admitted to the Union in 1867. It was a part of the Louis-
iana purchase and was made a Territory in 1854, by the Kansas-Nebraska act.
Being located much further north than Kansas, it escajied the strife and civil
war which desolated that Territory. It has proven to be a rich agricultural
region, though it suffers at times from grasshoppers, drought, and storms.
The attempts to lay an Atlantic telegrajjh cable resulted in tailures until
1866, when a cable was laid from Ireland to Newfoundland. Since then other
LOG-CABIN CIIUKCU AT JUAEAU, ALASKA.
412 AD3IINISTRATI0NS OF JOHNSON AND GRANT.
cables have been successfully stretched beneath the ocean until it may be said
the world is girdled by them.
PURCHASE OF ALASKA.
In 1867 our country purchased from Russia the large tract in the northwest
known as Russian America. The sum paid was ^7,200,000, a price which
many deemed so exorbitant that it was considered a mere pretext of Secretary
Seward, who strongly urged the measui'e, in order to give Russia a bonus for
her valuable friendship during the Civil War. Inclusive of the islands, the area
of Alaska is 577,390 square miles. The country was looked upon as a cold, dis-
mal land of fogs and storms, without any appreciable value, but its seal fisheries
and timber have been so productive of late years that it has repaid its original
cost tenfold and more.
WIDENING OF THE BREACH BETWEEN CONGRESS AND THE PRESIDENT.
One of the acts passed by Congress in ]March, 1867, forbade the President
to dismiss any members of his cabinet without the consent of the Senate. The
President insisted that the Constitution gave him the right to do this. Secretary
of War Stanton, who had resigned by his request, was succeeded by General
Grant, who gave wav to Stanton, when the latter was replaced by the Senate,
in January, 1868. On the ilst of Februai'y the President dismissed him and
appointed Adjutant-General Thomas secii-tary ad interim. Stanton refused to
yield, and remained at his office night and day, with a company of friends and
a military guard. Several demands fur the office were made by General
Thomas, but all wei-e refused. It was believed the President would send troops
to enforce his order, but he did not proceed to that extremity.
IMPEACHMENT AND ACQUITTAL OF THE PRESIDENT.
On the 24tli of February the House of Representatives passed a resolution
to impeach the President. This was simply to accuse or chai'ge him with the
commission of high crimes and misdemeanors. In such cases the trial must be
conducted by the Senate. A committee was appointed to ]irepare the articles of
impeachment, v.'hich, in the main, accused tlie executive of violating the civil
tenure act in his removal of Secretary Stanton, though other charges were
added.
When the President is impeached, the Constitution provides that his trial
shall take place before the Senate, sitting as a court. The trial occupied thirty-
two days, lasting until May 26th, with Chief Justice Chase presiding, on which
day a vote was taken on the eleventh article of impeachment. Thirty-five
senators voted for acquittal and nineteen for conviction. One more vote —
SAD CONDITION OF THE COUNTRY.
413
making the necessary two-tliirds — would have convictet dreadful scourges that our country
has suffered. It first appeared on this continent in 1780, when Boston was
ravaged in the summer of that year. It afterward appeared in Kew York and
Philadelphia, especially in 1798 and 1797, after which its visitations have been
mainly confined to the South, where the sanitation measures have been less
rigid than in the North. It has been proven that strict quarantine and abso-
lute cleanliness are safeguards against its entrance, though, after the frightful
])lague has once appeared in a place, it is impossible to stamp it out. It sub-
sides before the approach of frost and cold weather, and the cure for those
smitten is to carry them to cool elevations. Tims fai' science lias not been able
to discover the real nature of yellow fever, nor to provide a I'emedy. It has
been established, however, that it is due to bacilli or disease germs, as is the
case with cholera, consumption, and many other diseases, and there is reason to
believe a specific remedy will soon be brought to light.
One of the most destructive visitations of yellow fever was in the summer
and autumn of 1873. Memphis and New Orleans suffered the most, and at
one time those cities were abandoned by all who could leave them. Other poi-
tions of the country contributed every possible assistance in the way of medical
help, nurses, and money, but before the scourge was extirpated by cool weather
fully 15,000 persons had succumbed.
PRE.-^IDFNTIAL KI.ECTIOX OF 1878.
The Republican National Convention was held in Chicago at the opening
of June. As General Grant had returned from his memorable tour round the
world, having been received everywhere with the highest honors, a determined
effort was now made to renominate him for a third term. Roscoe Conkling,
United States senatoi- from New York, was the leader in the movement, and the
whole number of Grant's supporters was 306, who without a break cast their
vote for him thirty-six times in succession. They failed because of the wide-
spread opposition to any man holding the exalted office for a longer period than
Washington, the Father of his Country.
PRESIDENTIAL ELECTION OF 1S78.
iXi
The pi'incipal rivals of General Grant were James G. Blaine, of Maine, and
John Sliernian, of Ohio. There being a deadlock, the snpporters of these two
candidates united and thereby nominated James A. Garfield, of Ohio, witii
Chester A. Arthur, of New York, as the nominee for Vice-President.
GRANT IN JAPAN.
The Democratic Convention, which met in Cincinnati in the latter part of
June, placed in nomination General Winfield S. Hancock, of New York, and
William H. English, of Indiana. The prospect of Hancock's election was
28
434
HAYES, GARFIELD, AND ARTHUR.
excellent, but he destroyed it by one of tliose unfortunate expressions which more
than once have defeated candidates for high office. When questioned con-
cerning the tariff he expressed the 02)inion that it was a "local issue," a remark
which many accepted as displaying ignorance of the important subject, and
thev, therefore, voted against him. The result was as follows : James A.
Garfield and Chester A. Arthur, 214 electoral votes; W. S. Hancock and W. H.
English, 155; James B. Weaver and B. J Chambers, the Greenback candidates,
received 307,306 popular votes; Neal
!«?w«t-^5%S^^^ ~:5ees5«cp£':' l)ov> and H. A. Thompson, the
Piohibition, 10,305; and John W.
Phelps and S. C. Pomeroy, Ameri-
can, 707; but none of the three
secured an electoral vote.
James A. Garfield was
born at Orange, Cuyahoga
County, Ohio, November
19, 1831. While he was
cin inlant his father died
and he was left to the care
of his noble mother, to
whom he was devotedly-
attached.
Garfield spent his boy-
hood in the backwoods, and
at one time was the driver
of a canal-boat. He became
strong, rugged, and a fine
athlete, and at the same
time obtained the rudiments
of an English education.
At the age of seventeen he
attended the high school
at Chester, and by hard study acquired an excellent knowledge of Latin, Greek,
and algebra. He was a student at Hiram College, and became an instructor
in 1854. The same year he entered Williams College, from which he was
graduated with honor in 1856. He returned to Ohio, and was appointed a
professor in Hiram College. He indulged his taste for politics and law, and
served for a time in the State Senate, but was president of the college when
the war broke out. He at once volunteered, and was appointed lieutenant-colonel
and afterward colonel of the Forty-second Kegiment of Ohio Volunteers.
THE BOY JAMES GARFIELD BRINGING HIS FIRST
DAY'S EARNINGS TO HIS MOTHER.
CIVIL SERVICE REFORM.
435
Garfield displayed remarkable ability in the military service, and had he
remained would have won high distinction. As a brigadier-general he did tine
work in Kentucky and Tennessee. He was chief-of-staff to General Rosecraus,
and showed great gallantry in the tremendous battle of Chickamauga. He was
in the field when elected to Congress in 1862. His desire was to remain, but, at
the personal request of President Lincoln, he entered Congress, where it was felt
his helji was needed in the important legislation Ijefore the country. The estimate
in which he was held by his fellow-citizens is shown by the fact that he served
as a member of Congress for seventeen years. In 1S79 he was ch(jsen United
States senator, but did not take his ^~'
seat because of his nomination for
the presidency.
CIVIL SERVICE REFORM.
The question of "civil service
reform," as it is termed, assumed
j>rominence during the term of Hayes.
This, as all understand, means that
the public offices should be filled
not in accordance with jjolitics, but
be determined by fitness. The
cliarge has been made with reason
that, wdien public servants have be-
come skilled in the discharge of
their duties, they are turned out
to make room for the friends of the
new administration, where politics
are different. In that way public
service is injured.
The opponents of civil service re-
form maintain, on the other hand, that
tliere are thousands out of office who are just as capable as those in office, and that
the party ought to reward those that have helped it to success. "To the victor
belong the spoils" was the policy of Andrew Jackson, and it has been followed
in a greater or less degree ever since. The cry of civil service reform was long
a well-sounding motto with which to catch votes, but no serious effort was made
to enforce it. Hayes tried his hand, but the clamor for political rewards was sa
insistent that he gave it up, and matters dropped back into their old ruts. The
vexatious question was inherited by Garfield, and the hope was general that he
JAMES A. GARFIELD.
(ISil-liSl.) One partiiil term, is^l.
436
HAYES, GAEFIELD, AND ARTHUR.
would not only make a determined effort, l)ut would succeed in carrying out the
principles of real civil service reform.
The task soon proved beyond the capacity of himself or any human being.
It seemed as if nearly every man in the country had been the deciding fiictor in
the election of the President, while the "original Garfield man" would have
formed a full regiment. The executive threw up his hands, and decided to pass
over the plague to the next administration.
The quarrel produced a split in the Kepublican party itself, and two wings
were formed, known as " Half-breeds " and " Stalwarts." At the head of the
latter was the brilliant New York
senator, Roscoe Conkling, who had
been so persistent in his efforts to
I'enominate General Grant for a
t'.iird term. The leader of the
Half-breeds was James G. Blaine, as
brilliant as Conkling, while both
were strong personal opjsonents.
The Stalwarts claimed the right of
dividing the offices, as had been the
custom for a century, the senators
anil representatives apportioning the
plums among the horde of claim-
ants. The President was supported
by the Half-breeds in his claim that
it was his province to bestow these
gifts as he saw fit.
The collectorship of the port of
New York is one of the best offices
at the disposal of the administration.
The President nominated Judge
AVilliam Robertson. He was per-
sonally distasteful to Conkling, and, when he found himself unable to pre-
vent his confirmation by the Senate, he and Thomas C. Piatt, the junior sena-
tor from New York, resigned their seats. Both afterward sought and failed to
secure a re-election from the Legislature. Congress adjourned in June.
THE AGED MOTHER OF PRESIDENT
GARFIELD.
ASSASSINATION OF PRESIDENT GAKFIELD.
Relieved from the pressure of his duties, the President now made his
arrangements for placing his two sons in Williams College and joining his
invalid wife at the seashore. On the 2d of July, 1881, accompanied by Secre-
AS8ASSINATI0X OF PRKHIDENT GARFIELD.
437
tary Blaine and several frieiuls, he rode to llie Baltimore Railroad station to board
the cars. He had jnst entered the building and was chatting with his secretary,
when a miscreant named Charles Julias Guiteau stepped up behind him and shot
him with a 2)istol in the back. The wounded President sank to the floor and
was carried to the executive mansion, while the assassin was huri'ied to prison
before he could be lynched, as he assuredly would have been but tor such
ju'ompt action by the authorities.
The shock to the country was scnrely less than wlien AbiToham Lincoln
was shot in Ford's Theatre. Although the wound of the President was severe,
it was not be-
1 ieved to 1 )e
nece s s arily
fatal. He re-
c e i V e d the
best medica
attention, and
pi'ayers tor his
recovery were
sent u]) from
every quarter
of the land and
across the sea.
Daily bulletins
of his condition
Av e r e issued
and message-
o f sympatlix
v/ere receive
from many
crowned heads
on the other side of the Atlantic. The sufferer was removed on the 6th of Sep-
tember to Elberon, New Jersey, where it was hoped the invigorating sea-air would
bring back strength to his wasted frame. These hopes were vain, and, on the
19th of September, he quietly breatlied his last. It may be noted that this date
was the anniversary of the battle of Cliickamauga, where Genei-al Garfield per-
formed his most brilliant service in the war. Amid universal expressions of
sympathy the remains were boi'ne to Cleveland, where a line monument has
been erected to his memory.
Guiteau was a miserable "crank," who had long dogged the President for
an a])pointment, failing to obtain which he shot him. That his brain was partly
ASSASSINATION OF PKESIDENT GAKFIELD
438
HAYES, GARFIELD, AND ARTHUR.
awry, with jjerhajjs a taint of insanity, cannot be questioned, but, none the less,
it was shown that he clearly knew the difference between right and wrong and
was morally responsible for his unsjieakable crime. He was given a fair trial,
and, having been found guilty, was hanged on the oOth of June, 1882.
THE TWENTY-FIRST PRESIDENT.
Chester Alan Arthur, who was immediately sworn in as President, was
born in Vermont, October 5, 1830. He received his education at Union
■College, from which he was graduated in 1849. He taught school for a time
in his native State, and then removed to the City of New York, where he
studied law and was admitted to the bar. His ability speedily brought him
to the front and gave him a lucrative practice. He was quartermaster-general
of the State of New York during the war and
displayed fine executive ability. When the war
ended, he resumed the practice of law and was
made collector of customs for the port of New
York in 1871. Seven years later he was re-
moved by President Hayes, and shortly after he en-
tered the presidential canvass of 1880. He died
November 18, 1886.
Arthur took the oath of office in New York,
t _ ^ __:, J on the day succeeding the death of Garfield, and
left at once for Washington. Chief Justice Waite
administered the oath again to him in the vice-
TABLET IN THE WAITING- • i ,, a x1 x /"i
ROOM OF THE RAILWAY president s room. Among those present were Ijren-
wtsfso^'^^''^ GARFIELD gj.^! Qj-ant, General Sherman, Senator Sherman,
and ex-President Hayes.
While President Arthur showed slight disposition to change the policy of
the administration, he inherited many vexatious matters from his predecessor.
One of the worst of these was the " Star Route Frauds."
The rapid settlement of the West naturally created a demand for improved
mail facilities. In a number of places, fast mail routes had been organized by
the postofiice department, and these were designated on the official documents
by the figures of stars. The authorized expenditures of the postoffice depart-
ment were clearly defined, but a clause in the law permitted it to " expedite "
such routes as proved to be inefficient. This opened the door for fraud, and, as
is always the case, it lost no time in entering.
The contracts were let at the legal rates, and then, availing themselves of
the legal authority, the same routes were "expedited " at immense profits. The
money thus stolen — and it amounted to immense sums — was divided among the
1
' ii :
;
(j
■-- ^ i
w
)oC
THE CHINESE.
439
parties letting the contracts and the contractors. Stephen W. Dorsey, John W.
Dorsey, and Thomas J. Brady — formerly second-assistant postmaster-general —
were indicted for a conspiracy to defrautl the government and enrich themselves.
All were prominent politicians, and their trial attracted national attention. Al-
though the testimony seemed to establish the guilt of the parties accused, all
three escaped, the miscarriage of justice causing a qualm of disgust and indig-
nation among right-minded citizens.
One of the famous structui-es in the country is the Brooklyn Bridge, which
was completed and opened for ti-affic May 24, 1883. Operations on it were
begun January 3, 1870, and the
towers were finished six years later.
The first wire reaching from tower
to tower was strung August 14,
1876. Each of the four cables con-
tains 5,296 wires, untwisted, lying
straight, and held in place by othei-
wires coiled tightly around them.
The length of the main span is
1,505 J feet; the two land spans are
■930 feet each ; the masoniy aji-
proach on the New York side is
1,562 feet long, and that on the
Brooklyn side 971 feet. The total
distance, therefore, is about 6,000
feet, or more than a mile. The
middle of the main span is about
135 feet above the water in summei-,
and in winter, owing to the con-
traction caused l\y cold, it is three
feet more. The height is such that
nearly any ship can pass under the
bridge without lowering its top-mast. Twenty persons were killed during the
construction of the bridge. Although the day was inclenioi^t and unfavorable,
the opening of the structure to ti'avel was attended with many ceremonies, in-
■cluding civic and military processions, oratory, salutes by naval vessels, and
illuminations and fireworks in the evenins;.
CHESTER ALAN ARTHUR
(1S30-1856.) One partial terra, 1SS1-188S.
THE CHINESE.
The State of California, on account of its situation, received thousands of
Chinese immigrants every year f]-om across the Pacific, Tliese people live so
440
HAYES, GARFIELD, AND ARTHUR.
meanly that they coukl afford to work for wages upon which a white man would
starve. Consequently they crowded out other laborers and caused so much dis-
content that something in the nature of a revolt took 25lace against them. The
grievance of the Californians was so well-founded that Congress, while Hayes
was President, passed a bill which forbade the immigration of Chinese laborers to
this country, and requiring those already here to take out certilicates, if they left
the United States, so as to identify themselves before being allowed to return.
President Hayes vetoed the bill, but it was passed in 1882. The amazing.
THE BROOKLYN BRIDGE.
ingenuity of the Chinese has enabled them to evade the law in many instances,
but their immigration was substantially cheeked. Probably there is no more
degraded community on the face of the earth than the ]iart in San Francisco
known as "Chinatown." Most of tlie yellow celestials live underground, where
their unspeakable villainies are a flaming reproach to the authoiities 'that j^ermit
them.
THE MORMONS.
The Mormons proved a thorn in the side of the body politic. Their i^olyg-
amous practices led to the passage in 1882 of Senator Edmunds' bill which
EXPLORATION OF ALASKA.
441
excluded polj^garaists from holding office. A good many persons were convicted
and sentenced for violation of the law, which was upheld by the Supreme Coui-t,
While this legislation did much to abate the crime, it cannot be said that
it eifectually ended it, for, at this writing, one of the representatives from the
new State of Utah is the husband of several wives, and it is apparent that still
more severe legislation will be required to stamp out the evil.
EXPLORATION OF ALASKA.
Attention was so generally (lireftc(| ti>\vard Alaska, our recent purchase
SCENE IN CHINATOWN, SAN FKANCISCO.
from Russia, that an ex2")loring expedition visited that country in 1883, under
the command of Lieutenant Frederick Schwatka. It should be stated that the
jiarty, which was a small one, went thither without authority from the govern-
ment, its departure from Portland, Oregon, May 22d, being secret. It was gone
for several months, and brought back interesting and valuable information.
One bit of knowledge was new. The explorei's learned that the length of the
great river Yukon is 2,044 miles, which makes it the third in length in the
United States, the fourth in North America, the seventh in the western hemis-
442 HAYES, GARFIELD, AND ARTHUR.
phere, and the seventeenth in the workl. The area drained by this immense
stream is 200,000 sqnare miles.
THE YORKTOWX CENTENNIAL.
We have learned of the centennial celebration of the birth of our republic
in Philadelphia. Mauy other celebratious of iuiportant events were held in dif-
ferent parts of the country, the most important of which was the commemoration
of the great victory at Yorktown, which brought the Revolution to a close and
secured the independence of our country.
As was befitting, preparations were made on a grand scale for this celebra-
tion. Thousands journeyed thithei' days before the exercises opened. President
Arthur arrived at ten o'clock on the morning of October 18, 1881, in a govern-
ment steamer, his approach being announced by salute after salute, each of
twenty-one guns, from the difterent shi^is of the fleet.
The exercises were opened with prayer by E-ev. Robert Nelson, grandson
of Governor Nelson, who commanded the Virginia militia at Yorktown and
directed the fire so as to destroy his own home, in which Cornwallis had his
lieadquarters, after which Goveinor Holliday, of Virginia, made the address.
At its conclusion, the sword was held up to view which was presented to the
liorseman who rode at high speed to Philadelphia with the news of the sur-
render of Cornwallis. Another interesting fact was that W. W. Henry, the
grandson of Patrick Henry, was sitting at that moment on the platform.
The corner-stone of the monument was laid with Masonic ceremonies. The
chair in which the Grand Master for the occasion sat was one that had been
used by Washington when he was Grantl Master of the Virginia Masons. The
sash and apron were presented to him at Mount Vernon in 1784, and had been
worked by Mrs. Lafayette. The gavel was made from a portion of the quarter-
deck of the United States frigate Lawrence, flagshi]) of Commodore Perry, when
lie won his great victory on Lake Erie in Septembei-, 1813. Spiace cannot be
given to enumerate the notables who were present nor the eloquent addresses
that were made. Among the guests were descendants of Rochambeau, Steuben,
and many German and French friends. The centennial ode was written by
Paul H. Hayne, the Southern poet (who died in 188G), and the oration of the
day was by Robert C. Winthrop.
It was a graceful tribute to the friendly course of England, when Secretary
Blaine, at the reception which followed the ceremonies, read the following
order :
" In recognition of the friendly relations so long and so happily existing
between Great Britain and the United States, in the trust and confidence of
ATTEMPTS TO REACH THE NORTH POLE. 443
peace and good-will between the two countries for all centuries to come, and
e^peciiill y as a mark of the profound respect entertained by the American people
for the illustrious sovereign and gracious lady who sits upon the British throne,
it is liereby ordered that at the close of these services, commemorative of the
v;iloi' and success of our forefathers in their patriotic struggle for independence,
the British flag shall be saluted by the forces of the army and navy of the United
States now at Yorktown. The secretary of war and the secretary of the navy
will give orders accordingly.
" Chester A. Arthur.
" By the Presidext.
" James G. Blaixe, Secretary of State."
The final ceremonies of Yorktown occurred on the 20th of October, at
which time 9,000 sailors, regulars, and militia made an impressive spectacle.
They were under the command of General Hancock, and represented all of the
thirteen original States, including a number of others. They jiassed in review
before the President, both branches of Congress, governors of the States and
their staffs, and the French and German guests of the government.
ATTEMPTS to REACH THE NORTH POLE.
One of these days the North Pole will be reached, but no one can say
when. For hundreds of years the attempt has been made again and again, and
daring navigators have penetrated far into those icy regions, where the tempera-
ture for months at a time registers forty, fifty, and sixty degrees below zero, only
to perish or be turned back disappointed.
The first American expedition into the Ai'ctic regions was conducted by
Dr. Elisha Kent Kane. He sailed from New York in the steamer Advance,
May 30, 1853. He reached Smith Strait, as far as Cape George Russell, and
then returned to Van Rensselaer Harbor for the winter. A number of excur-
sions were made from that point, and 125 miles of coast were traced to the
north and east. Two of the men penetrated to AVashington Land in latitude
82° 27', and discovered an open channel, which they named Kennedy. Kane
came home in 1855, having been further north than any other explorer. He
was obliged to abandon his ship and proceed overland to the Danish settle-
ments in the south, where he was met by a relief party.
One of the members of this expedition was Dr. Isaac I. Hayes, who, in
1860, attained 81° 35' north latitude, when he was forced to return without
having accomplished anything of importance. Sir John Franklin, an English
navigator, had been lost in the Arctic regions a number of years before, and
several expeditions had been sent in search of him, but all failed to secure
444 HAYES, GARFIELD, AXD ARTHUR.
any definite information. In 1860, Dr. Charles F. Hall, of Connecticut, led an
expedition in quest of the lost explorer. He was unfortunate enough to lose
his boat and was obliged to return. The most interesting discoveries made by
Dr. Hall were a number of relics of Frobisher's expedition to those dismal
regions fully 300 years before. A second party, under Hall, found the same
year several relics of Franklin, and dissipated all possible hojie that he or any
of his men were still living.
Dr. Hall was an enthusiastic explorer of those inhospitable regions and
spent five years among the Eskemos. Coming home., he organized a third
party, for, cheerless and dismal as are those frozen solitudes, they seemed to hold
a resistless fascination to all who have visited them. This ex2:)edition reached
80° north latitude, where Hall died.
THE GEEELY EXPEDITION.
In 1880, the proposal was made by an international polar commission that
the leading countries should unite in establishing meteorological stations in the
polar region. This was with no intention of helping explorations toward the
North Pole, but to jiermit the study of weather phenomena and the actions of
the magnetic needle, respecting which much remains to be learned.
Congress appropriated funds with which to establish a scientific colony for
Americans, one at Point Barrow in Alaska and the other at Lady Franklin
Bay in Grinnell Land. These stations were to be occupied for periods varying
from one to three years.
The party designed for Lady Franklin Bay consisted of First Lieutenant
Adolphus W. Greely, U. S. A., Commander ; Lieutenants F. S. Kislingbury
and James B. Lockwood, U. S. A., as assistants ; and Dr. O. Pavy as surgeon
and naturalist. In addition, there were twenty-two sergeants, corporals, and
privates, all belonging to the army, and two Eskemos. All the other attempts to
establish circumpolar stations, numbering about a dozen, were successful.
The steamer Proteus conveyed the expedition to Lady Franklin Bay, the
start being made fro"m the harbor of St. John's, Newfoundland. It would seem
that every needed jjrecaution had been taken to avert disaster. Since the expedi-
tion had an attainable point fixed upon as its destination, it would seem that it had
only to establish a base, where the government would deposit abundant supplies,
to which Greely could return when he chose or when he found himself com-
pelled to retreat. Then he could carry forAvard supplies on his sleds and leave
them at different points along his route, so that he would be sure of finding
them on his return. This scheme is so simple that it would seem that there
was no possible, or at least probable, way of going wrong. Yet misfortune has
been the fate of most of the Arctic expeditions.
THE GREELY EXPEDITION. 445
It was arranged that two ships were to go to Lady Franklin Bay in the
summer of 1883 to bring back the explorers. These ships were to be the
steam whaler Proteus aud the United States gunboat Yantic, commanded by
Lieutenant E. A. Garlington ; but the Proteus, when near Cape Sabine and
before she had landed her supplies, was crushed by the ice and sunk. With
great difficulty, Garlington and his men escajied from the wreck in small boats
and made their way to Upernavik, where they had left the Yantic. The party
then returned to the United States, without having left an ounce of supplies at
Lady Franklin Bay, where Greely expected to find all he needed on his return.
Now let us follow the exploring party under Greely which left St. John's,
Newfoundland, July 7, 1881, in the P-oteus, that was afterward lost. Icebergs
were soon encountered, but seven hundred miles were passed without any land
appearing. The days had lengthened, light appearing shortly after midnight
and lasting until ten o'clock the succeeding night, but the fog was dense and all-
pervading. On July 16th, the Proteus was steaming cautiously through the
mist, when the icy coast of Disco Island, several hundred feet in height, loomed
up directly ahead.
The most interesting sight was a vast iceberg in two parts, joined by an
immense overhanging arch, under which it would have been easy for the ship
to sail. The captain was too wise to make any such attempt. He steamed to
one side of it, and, when some distance beyond, fired a signal gun for a pilot. The
report was followed by a thunderous rumbling, and, looking back, the crew saw
the vast arch, weighing thousands of tons, descend to the water with a crash
that caused the steamer to rock to and fro for several minutes. Had she been
caught beneath the mass, she would have been crnshed like a tiny insect.
A landing was made at the settlement of Disco. In this squalid town all
the dwellings were mere huts, with the exception of those of the inspector and
governor. It was a strange sight to find in one of these dwellings in the North
a piano, billiard table, carpets, and many of the luxuries of civilized life. The
visitors were treated with the utmost hospitality and took part in a dance in
progress.
Returning to the Proteus the party steamed through the fog to Upernavik,
which was reached on the 23d of July. They were never out of sight of ice-
bergs, but they caused no trouble, and were easily avoided. By means of the
steam launch, several men made a passage through inner waters to Proven, a
sparse settlement, where they procured some clothing suitable for the high
latitudes.
These settlements, far beyond the Arctic Circle, belong to Denmark, which
exercises a nominal control over them. One of the industries of Proven is the
furnishing of supplies to Arctic explorers. A liberal quantity of fresh food was
446 HAYES, GARFIELD, AND ARTHUR.
secured, beside two native guides and thirty-two Eskemo dogs. It was near
here that McClintock, the explorer, was frozen in for an entire year; but the
weather continued unusually mild. A mountainous iceberg while drifting
slowly with the current sloughed off so much from one side that its centre of
gravity was displaced and the mountain of ice turned a complete somersault
before it settled to rest.
There is hardly any limit to the time in which provisions can be preserved
in the j^olar regions. A cache was found among the Gary Islands which had
been leit by Sir George Nares years before, and nearly all was in as good condi-
tion as when jilaced there. One of the strange phenomena of the Arctic regions
is the red snow, mentioned by Sir John Ross, which was seen by the Greely
party. This color is found to be due to myriads of tiny plants deposited on the
crust. That most eminent botanist, Robert Brown, subjected it to careful
examination and pronounced it to be a unicellular plant of the order Algm, and
Di". Greville, of Edinburgh, gave it its name [Protococcus nivalis), by which
it is now knovtn to the scientific world.
The steamer halted at Littleton Island on the 2d of August. A number
of articles were found at " Life-Boat Gove," that had been left by the Polaris
expedition in 1873. A quantity of coal was unloaded here to be taken aboard
on the return.
Steaming up Kennedy Ghannel, a deposit of provisions was made near
Franklin Island and Garl Ritter Bay. A short distance north, an immense ice
pack stopped the ship which repeatedly tried in vain to butt its way through.
It was compelled to drift with the pack until the 11th of August, when an
opening appeared and the Proteus forced a passage to Bellot Island, at the
entrance to Discovery Hai'bor.
AT LADY FRANKLIN BAY.
The steamer had now reached Lady Franklin Bay, which was its destina-
tion, and near which Fort Gonger, a signal station, was to be established. The
ship was unloaded and a house built, the men living in tents the meanwhile,
and on the 19th of August the Proteus bade the explorers good-by and started
on her return to Newfoundland.
A numl)er of musk oxen were shot in the vicinity, and now and then a
ptarmigan was bagged. The men moved into the house in the latter pait of
August, and Lockwood directed the laying out of the observatory and the dig-
ging of the foundation pier for the transit. The earth was frozen so hard that
it was like chipping solid ice. The house gave the men comfortable quarters.
On the first Sunday all work was stopped and religious services held. The
ntention was to send an exploring exjjedition along the northern coast oi
INTOLERABLE LOXELINESS. 447
Greenland, and it was placed in charge of Lockwood. It -would have been
given to Kislingbui-y, the senior officer, but for the fact that he and Greely
were not on good terms.
Men were sent to examine St. Patrick's Bay to the northeast, for a site to
establish a dejiot on the channel of exploration. Such a place was found and
the exploring parties were continually active, some of them going a good many
miles from camp. Game was plentiful, but the wolves were fierce. Numbers
were poisoned by means of arsenic mixed with meat thrown in their way. li
being the beginning of their Arctic experience, the men enjoyed themselves to
an extent that would hardly be supposed. This was mainly because they were
kept busy and the novelty of their life had not yet worn off". One pleasant
custom was that of celebrating the birthdays of different members of the party,
which was done with a vigor that sometimes reached good-natured boisterous-
ness.
AVhen the sun sank far from sight on the 16th of October, every one knew
that it would not show itself again for four months. It will be admitted, too,
that the weather had become keen, for it registei'ed forty degrees below zero
most of the time and the moisture within the house was frozen to the depth of
an inch on the window-panes.
With the coming of the long, dismal night the wolves became fiercer, and
prowled so closely around the building that no one dared venture far from the
door without firearms in his hands, and the men generally went in company,
ready for an attack that was liable to be made at any minute.
INTOLERABLE LONELINE5.S.
Time always hangs heavy when one is forced to remain idle and the
dismal night stretches through a third or half of the year. On the 1st of
November, Lieutenant Lockwood, accompanied by seven men, left the dwelling
to try the passage of the straits, hoping to push his way to the place where
Captain Hall made his winter quarters. They dragged a heavily loaded sled
after them, upon which rested a boat, wliicli they expected to use in case they
reached o])en water. The men set out bravely and toiled liard, but were com-
pelled io turn back, finding it impossible to make any progress.
No one can describe the horrible loneliness of such a life as the party were
now compelled to lead. They played cards and games, told stories, and held
discussions until all such things palled on their taste. Then they grew weary
of one another's company, and hours would pass without a man speaking a
word. Dr. Hayes has related that, when thus placed, he has dashed out of the
dwelling in desperation and wandered for miles through the frozen solitudes, foi'
no other reason than that the company of his friends had becouie unbearable.
448 HA YES, GARFIELD, AND ARTHUR.
He stated further that a rooster on his ship deliberately flew overboard and
committed suicide out of sheer loneliness.
One means resorted to by the explorers for relieving the frightful
monotony was the publication of a paper called the Arctic Moon. The contents
were written and copies made by the hektograph process. Then Greely formed
a class in arithmetic, and Lockwood taught a class iu geography and grammar.
Matters were quite lively on Thanksgiving Day (the party being careful to note
the passage of the regular days), when foot-races were run and shooting matches
indulged in, Greely distributing the prizes.
One of the many curious facts regarding life in the Arctic regions is that
its rigors are often withstood better by the inexj^erienced than by the experi-
enced. The two Eskemo guides were the most depressed of the whole party, and
one of them wandered off in a dazed condition. When found miles away, he
was running as if in fear of his life, and it was with great difficulty he was per-
suaded to return. The second native would have run off had he not been closely
watched.
In the middle of February, the thermometer fell to sixty-five degrees below
zero, an intensity of cold which few living men have experienced. At such a
terrible temperature pure brandy and glycerine freeze hard, and a man, though
heavily clothed, will jierish in a few minutes. The Eskemo dogs by choice
slept in the snow outside rather than within the building.
THE GRAVE OF DR. HALL.
On the last day of February, Lieutenant Lockwood, accompanied by
Brainard, Jewell, Long;, the two Eskemos, and a couple of dog teams, started on
a journey to Thank God Harbor, seventy-five miles away. The journey was
made without accident and the observatory was found still standing, while near
at hand was the grave of the Arctic explorer, Captain C. F. Hall. The grave
was marked by a metallic headboard, put up by the English and the other by
Hall's comrades. On the British board are these words : " To Captain Hall,
■who sacrificed his life in the advancement of science, November 8, 187L This
tablet has been erected by the British Polar Expedition of 1875, which followed
in his footsteps and profited by his experience." The American inscription is
as follows :
IN MEMORY OF
CHARLES FRANCIS HALL,
LATE COMMANDER U. S. STEAMER POLARIS, NORTH POLE EXPEDITION.
DIED NOVEMBER 8, 187L
" I AM THE RESURRECTION AND THE LIFE ; HE THAT BELIEVETH IN ME,
THOUGH HE WERE DEAD, YET SHALL HE LIVE."
LOCKWOOD'S EXPEDITION.
449^
Tlie great ambition* of Lieutenant Lockwood was to lead an expedition
along the northern coast of Greenland, to which Arctic explorers hitherto had
paid comparatively slight attention. His intelligence, daring, and skill caused
Greely to give him his full confidence and to leave the entire arrangement of the
venture in his hands.
Lockwood's intention was to start about the 1st of April. Sergeant Brainard
was to go with the supporting parties in advance to Cape Sumner and leave
supplies. Then when Lockwood's party reached the same point, with all the
provisions they could carry with comfort, the explorers would be well sup{)lied.
LOCKWOOD S EXPEDITION TO THE FAR NORTH.
Amid the iiriug of pistols, waving of flags, and cheers, the stait was made
by Lockwood
on the 2d of
April. Three
days later, the
party drag-
ging a sled
laden with
p e m mica n
r e a c h e d a
s n w - h o u s e ,
where they
found Brain-
ard and his
friends return-
ing. There
were thirteen
in all, and they were crowded in their close quarters, but the fact gave them
additional warmth.
,It will be remembered that the long Arctic night was about ended. In the
misty light, a dark object was discerned on the top of a neighboring iceberg,
which being scrutinized was recognized as an eagle. It was accepted as a o;ood
omen by the men, who cheered the noble bird that vividly reminded them of
their distant home.
The direction was now to the northeast. They crossed the straits at Cape
Beechy, pushing to within a few miles of the eastern shore, whence they were
to i)roceed directly to Fort Sumner. In order to follow the course of the party
intelligently the i-eader needs to keep a reliable map of the Aix-tic regions
before him.
•29
A FUNERAL IN THE ARTIC REGIONS.
450 HAYES, GARFIELD, AND ARTHUR.
Fort Conger stood close to the intersection of sixt,y-fifth meridian and the
eighty-second parallel, being a little south of the latter and east of the former.
From this starting-point, the route of Lockwood was slightly south of northeast
to its termination. Almost from the beginning, the traveling was so difficult
that the bravest explorers could not have been blamed for turning back.
The ice was tumbled together in irregular masses many feet in thickness,
through which they often had to cut the way with axes for their sledges. The
wind rose to a hurricane, and was of piercing coldness, and so filled with fine par-
ticles that they cut the face like bird-shot. Most of the time they could not see
one another when separated by a few feet. Muffled to their eyes, the brave
explorers fought their way onward, often compelled to stop and turn their backs
to the gale, which almost swept them off their feet. Frequently they crouched
behind the piles of ice to regain their breath while the furious wind roared
above their heads.
Toughened, as were all the men, some of them succumbed under the fearful
work. These returned to camj), and the party was reduced to nine. This
occurred on the 10th of April, very near where the 82d parallel crosses the 60th
meridian. There Lieutenant Lockwood came to a halt, and turned back with
the dogs to Fort Conger. The round journey was a hundred miles, but it was
necessary to get supplies that could be obtained in no other way, and to secure
new runners for their sledges, which were battered by their rough usage.
Accompanied by the two Eskemos, Lockwood made a new start on the 14th
of April, and averaged two miles an hour until he reached his new camjv
From that point the nine men hud three sledges, which they dragged, and a
fourth that was drawn by the dogs. With indomitable pluck they struggled
onward, and all were thrilled on the 25th of the month by the knowledge that
they had reached a point further north than had ever been attained by an
American, and they hoped to surpass all others.
The heroic explorers had by no means finished their task. At regular
points they cached their provisions against the return. If the reader will locate
on his map the intersection of the 55th meridian with the parallel of 82° 20',
he will have a point close to Cape Bryant, where the supports of the party
withdrew and started on their return to camp. All who were now left were
Lieutenant Lockwood, Sergeant Brainard, and the Eskemo Frederick.
Lockwood apportioned rations for twenty-five days among the three.
Consequently the northward journey and the return must be made within that
time, since they believed it impossible to obtain food in that fearful region.
Shaking hands with their companions, who wished them good-speed, the little
party broke into two divisions, one tramping southward, while the other resumed
its laborious journey toward the northeast.
LOCKWOOD'8 EXPEDITION. 451
Before Lockwood left Cape Sabine, Lieutenant Greely gave it as his belief
that his brave assistant might succeed in reaching Cape Britannia, which lies
about 40° east and 82° 45' nortli. Tlie explorer Beaumont saw this cape, but
was unable to reach it. When Lockwood and Brainard arrived there, however,
they had no thought of stopping. A cairn was built, a written account of their
travels deposited, and live days' rations left. Then the heroes bent to their
herculean task again.
The Eskemo was left with the dogs, while the two white men, wrapped in
their furs, laboriously climbed an adjoining mountain, half a mile in height.
From the crest they scanned the snowy landscape, the very picture of desola-
tion. Twenty miles to the northeast, the direction they were traveling, they
made out a dark jiroraontory, terminating in a rocky headland and penetrating
the Polar Ocean, while between it and them a number of islands reared their
heads and were separated by fiords. Half of the remaining horizon was filled
with the dismal ice of the Frozen Sea.
They had no expectation of meeting with animal life in this world of deso-
lation, but they fired several times (and missed) at ptarmigan, and, having
wounded a rabbit, succeeded in running it down. It was a mystery to them
how this little animal found the means of sustaining life so near the Pole.
It may be wondered how far these three men would have gone had it been
possible to travel. They became accustomed lo the exhaustive work, but the
end of the journey was reached on the loth of May, when they paused on the
edge of an immense fissure in the ice, extending indefinitely to the right and left,
and too broad to be crossed. They searched for a long time, only to learn that
it was utterly out of their power to go a foot further. Nothing remained but to
learn their exact location.
While Lockwood was preparing to take an observation, the sun was ob-
scured by fog. All the next day so furious a storm raged that they could do
nothing but huddle in their tent and wait for it to jiass. Finally, the condi-
tions became favorable and Lockwood made his observations with the utmost
care. When they were completed the astounding truth was revealed that theii'
latitude was 84° 24*' north and 40° 40*' west from Greenwich. This surpassed
the achievement of the Nares expedition sent out by England, in 1875-76, for
the sole purpose of reaching the furthest northern point possible. Lockwood
and Brainard, therefore, had attained the highest point, which u]i to that time
had never been reached by man. On the 7th of April, IS'Jo, however, Dr.
Fridtjof Nansen, the Norwegian explorer, penetrated to 86° 15', which surpassed
that of Lockwood and Brainard by 200 miles and was within 225 miles of the
Pole itself.
The return journey was as exhausting and trying as the outward one, but
452 HAYES, GARFIELD, AND ARTHUR.
the little party never lost courage. Fort Conger was reached early in June,
and, as may be supposed, the explorers received a royal welconae from their
comrades. The three men were suffering from snow blindness, rheumatism,
and various ills brought on by their exposure and terrific labors, but all were
in high spirits, as they might well be, when they recalled the wonderful
acliieveineut they liad made.
WEAKY WAITING.
The brief summer was at hand. The snow melted during the middle of
the day and the first rain they had seen fell. On the 4th of July they had
shooting matches and engaged in a game of baseball. It can hardly be said,
however, that the American game has gained much of a foothold north of tlie
Arctic Circle.
All suffered from intense depression of spirits which could not be shaken off.
Again hours would pass without a man sjieaking a word. They seemed
mutually repellent and miserable. This sad conditiou resulted from purely
physical causes and no one could be blamed for it.
The company were now waiting for the Proteus which was due. Sevei-al
reports that she was in sight threw all into pleasurable excitement, but it need
not be said they were doomed to disappointment, since the relief ship was at the
bottom of the Arctic Ocean. The little steam launch had been repaired and
enabled the party to explore the neighboring coasts for a distance of several
hundred miles. A number of musk oxen were shot, but, excejit at certain sea-
sons, their flesh is so strongly impregnated with musk that it is unpalatable for
food.
As the weary days jiassed without bringing the wished-for steamer, hope
sank. Many were sure some accident had befallen the ship and she would
never be seen again. If so (and of course such was the fact), more months
must pass before the news could be carried to the United States and a new relief
expedition be sent. It was hard thus to be forgotten by their friends at home.
As a last resort the party could retreat in their boats, but all dreaded the almost
hopeless recourse. Gradnally the summer drew to a close and once more they
saw the low-sweejiing sun dip below the horizon not to appear again for months.
The long, horrible Arctic night again enveloped them in misery and gloom.
When the month of January came eveiy member of the party, including
Greely himself, were convinced that their country had abandoned them and
they must look out for themselves. He announced that if no relief appeared
they would start for home not later than the 8th of August.
Lieutenant Lockwood seems to have been about the only member of the
party who for a time kept up his high spirits. He was not satisfied with what
he had already done, and insisted upon another chance to push northward.
THE FARTHEST NORTH EJ^ACUJiU i:Y LIEUT. LOCKWOOD OK" THE UKKELV EX-
PEDITION".
4o3
454 HAYES, GARFIELD, AND ARTHUR.
He had fixed upon the eighty-fourth parallel as the point to reach, and he
urged the matter so strongly that Greely, who greatly admii-ed his courage,
gave his consent, though confident that he would find it impossible to do as well
as in the former instance.
A FAILURE.
Lockwood made his start on the morning of March 27, 1883, his com-
panions being the same as before. Two weeks later, as Greely was lying in his
tent, wondering how his friend was making out, Lockwood walked in with a
smile :
"Too much water," he said; "if it had only been ice, we could have man-
aged it, but we had no means of getting across the water. Better luck next
time."
The next time, however, never came. Greely, Lockwood, and Brainard
always remained on good terms, but it was not the case with some of the others.
Companionship, under such conditions, is a bore, and many a time the three
gentlemen named went off on explorations that occupied several days, with no
other object than to get away from those whose company was distasteful beyond
bearing.
THE START HOMEWARD.
Greely had given up all hope of receiving help from the United States and
■determined to start for home as soon as his surroundings would permit. His
plan was to proceed to Littleton Island, where it was possible they might find
a vessel that would take them to Newfoundland. The explorers, twenty-five in
all, made their start southward, August 9, 1883. Their boats were the steam
launch referred to, a whale boat, an English boat, and a smaller one, which it
was thought would prove useful in the event of an accident.
For a time the progress was encouraging. The water was quite open, but
ice soon appeared. They saved their boats from being nipped by drawing them
up on a floe. When open water again showed, they took to the boats and
reached Sun Bay without mishap. Then they made their way to Cape Lieber,
twenty miles south from Fort Conger, where they were almost overwhelmed in
a blinding snowstorm. There they landed and waited for the ice to move and
open the way for them along the western shore of the strait. A fog kept them
there several days, and when they started again it was in the midst of another
blinding snowstorm. One of the incidents of the struggle against ice and
tempest was the falling overboard of Lieutenant Greely and an accident to the
launch. Scoresby Bay was reached on the 22d of August, and found to be full
of floating ice. It was necessary again to save the boats by drawing them up
on the floe. By that time, too, the supjily of coal had become so low that Greely
held a consultation with his officers over their situation, which was not only
THE LAST EXTREMITY. 455
dangerous but rapidly becoming more yo. He proposed to abandon the launch
and use the other boats with which to push along the w'estern shore, but the
majority believed they had a chance of making Littleton Island. Ere long it
was found necessary to leave behind the smallest boat, and when that was done
most of the party believed all were doomed. The elements and even the tides
were against them.
The launch soon became useless and was abandoned. Resort was then had
to sledge travel, two carrying a boat between them, and all pulled by the men.
They had not gone far in this toilsome manner when another of the boats had
to be left behind, giving them only one. Even the courageous Lockwood now
expressed his belief that none of the party would escape alive. Still it was better
to die struggling than to sit down and fold their hands.
Misfortunes crowded upon them. The curicnt continued the wrong way
and the floe upon which they were drifting carried them toward Baffin Bay.
Sludge ice, the most troublesome of all, abounded, and their poor rations grew
scant. In the latter part of September enough of the floes came in contact to
permit the men to pass over them to solid land, some twelve miles from Cape
Sabine. A reconnoitering party in attempting to reach that point was turned
back by the open water. Another company, however, got through and brought
back important news. The Proteus had been wrecked and a couple of caches,
left by English ships, together with the stores brought from the wreck of the
Proteus, were discovered. As may be supposed, they formed a welcome addi-
tion to the meagre stock of food.
THE LAST EXTRKMITY.
It being inevitable that another winter must be passed in the land of deso-
lation, preparations were made for doing so. The sjwt selected was between
Cape Sabine and Cocked Hat Island. A hut was erected and the supplies
moved thither. Greely informed the men that he had decided to reduce the
rations so that they would last until the coming March. A cairn was built at
Cape Sabine in which was placed a record of what had been done by the
explorers.
All admitted the necessity of reducing the rations, but it was done to that
extent that the men suffered continually from hunger. They were glad to eat
mouldy potatoes, and, when, occasionally, a fox was shot, nothing was left but
the shining bones. If the preceding period was horrible it Avas now more so,
for all felt they had every reason for depression, gloom, and despair. The
meagre food made them more susceptible to cold, and, although Greely strove
to awaken an interest in different educational subjects, the conditions were so
woful that he accomplished little. It may seem strange, but it was natural that
the men's thoughts should dwell almost continually upon delicacies in the way
456 HAYES, GARFIELD, AND ARTHUR.
of eating. They talked about the choicest viands and smacked tlieir lijis over
tempting feasts which, alas ! existed only in imagination.
Every man uttered a prayer of thanks when the 21st of December arrived,
for it meant that the appalling polar night was half over, but how endless the
other half seemed to them !
In the following month the feet of Corporal Ellison were so badly frozen
that they sloughed off, as did several of his fingers. Soon afterward one of the
men died. The brave Lockwood felt himself growing so weak that he privately
requested Greely to leave him behind, if he should be alive, when the home-
ward start was made. Greely replied that under no conceivable circumstances
would he abandon any one if alive, provided he himself survived tlie period of
waiting.
An attempt was made in February to reach Littleton Island in the hope of
finding the relief ship or stores, but the open water compelled the men to turn
back. The same cause prevented their getting to the Greenland shore, which
could be seen when the weather was clear.
When the middle of March came all were placed on starvation rations.
None of the canned vegetables, coffee, or chocolate was left. The straits re-
mained open and shut them off from reaching Greenland, where they might
have found game. The bravest of the party lost heart and sank into the apathy
of despair. They felt themselves simply waiting for death. Lockwood wrote
in his diary : " I am glad that each day comes to an end. It brings us nearer
the end of this life, whatever that end may be."
Tiie fuel, which had been carefully husbanded, gave out in the latter part
of March. The famishing sufferers gathered their furs more tightly around
them and huddled together to secure the mutual warmth of their emaciated
bodies. The furs and shoes could be gnawed and eaten when the last extremity
arrived. Unexpectedly to f^ll. Sergeant Lynn and one of the Eskemos died at
the beginning of April. When there was a chance to shoot game the men were
too weak to hunt for it.
Lieutenant Lockwood, the hero of the wondeiful achievement narrated,
whose high spirits and exalted courage carried him through all manner of
perils, died early on the morning of Aj)ril 9th, his death being due to starvation.
When the brave fellow had passed away there had not been a mouthful of food
within reach for several days.
■ Before this, it became evident that some one was stealing from the scanty
store. Investigation disclosed the wretched thief to be a man named Henry.
Greely warned him, for he was imperiling the lives of all. He stole again,
whereupon, by orders of Greely, he was shot. W^hen the final extremity came
there is reason to believe that cannibalism was indulged in, though not to much
THE RESCUE. 457
extent. There is no certainty, however, on the matter, and the survivors denied
having seen it.
THE i;escue.
Though it may seem that tlie Gi-eely jiarty was forgotten at home, yet such
was not the fact. The loss of the Proteus caused the gravest fears for their
safety, and, in the spring of 1884, the navy department fitted out a new relief
expedition, consisting of the Thetis, the Bear, and the Alert, under Commander
Winliekl 8. Schley, who made such a brilliant record in our late war with
tS[)ain.
Commander Schley sailed from Brooklyn in Mav, and lost not an hour.
He left St. John's on the llith, meeting a great deal of ice in Baffin Bay and
Smith Sound, but he fought his way through, and sent a strong party ashore
June 22d to hunt for signs of the missing explorers. The steam launcli of the
Bear took the party to Brevoort Island, where Lieutenant Lockwood's letter
was fouuil, giving their location and stating that they were nearly out of
provisions. Since the letter was dated eight months before, the dismayed
commander and his officers believed it haiilly possible that any of the men
would be found alive.
The Bear was pushed on, and the launch started out again early the next
morning. Before sunset Greely's camp was discovered. Making all haste
forward, the relief pai'ty lifted the flap and breathlessly peered in.
They saw Greely on his knees, muttering the prayers for the dying over
one of his comrades. He lookeil uji, tlazed, bewildered, and unable to read the
fidl meaning of what met his eyes. Around him, in dift'erent postures, were
stretched his comrades, some dead and the others close to death. Those still
living were Greely, Brainard, Biederbeck, Fredericks, Long, Connell, and
Ellison. A few days' later arrival on the ])art of the Bear, and not one would
have been breathing. As it was their lives were still in great dangei-, and it
was necessary to nurse them with the utmost care. The remains of all wlio liad
died, with the exception of the Eskemo, were brought back to the United States.
During the halt in the harbor of Disco, to leave the body of the Eskemo,
Corporal Ellison, who had l)e(:'n so badly frozen, died. The relief expedition
reached St. John's on July 17th and New York on the 8th of August.
In 18SG the i)rize of the Iloyal (lOographical Society of Great Britain and
the back premium were awai'ded to Captain Adolphus W. Greely and Sergeant
David L. Brainard, for having attained the greatest results for the year in
adding to geographical knowledge by examinations or exploi'ations. Ko one
can deny that this recognition and honor Avere well won.
The Greely expedition {possesses so much interest that we have given con-
siderable space to the narration. Among the many exjilorations of the far
458 HAYB% GARFIELD, AND ARTHUR.
Kortli, few or none equal this, not onlj^ in heroic daring but in results accom-
plished. It may be said that the fote of the Sir John Franlclin party was made
clear in 1880, by Lieutenant Frederick Schwatka, of the United States army,
who discovered tlie skeletons of several of the unfortunate exjslorers, together
with various relics of the expedition.
PRESIDENTIAL ELECTION OF 1884.
In the presidential election of 1884 the Democratic candidates were Grover
Cleveland, of New York, and Thomas A. Hendricks, of Indiana. The Repub-
lican were James G. Blaine, of Maine, anil General John A. Logan, of Illinois.
Tlie chief issue with the Republicans w^is the tariff, while the Democrats put
forward that of civil service reform. Tiiere was much bitter discussiou, some
of the leading Republican papers refusing to support Blaine because of charges
affecting his personal integrity. On the other hand, Cleveland was attacked
with scarcely less bitterness. The quarrel between the leading parties caused
some of the weaker ones to put forward candidates, with a result as follows:
Grover Cleveland and T. A. Hendricks, 219; James G. Blaine and John A.
Logan, 182; John P. St. John and William Daniel, Prohibition, received
151,809 popular votes; and Benjamin F. Butler and A. M. West, People's
jnirty, 133,825.
CHAPTER XXI.
ADIVIINISTRATION OK CLKVELA.N U (KIRST) ^ND
OR HARRISON. lSiS5-180a.
Grover ClevehinJ — Completion of the Wasliiiii;toii Monument — Tlie Bartholdi Statue — l>e;itli of (Jeneral
Grant — Death of Viee-l-'resiJent Hendricks — Tlie L'irst A'iee-President to Die in Office — George
Clinton — Elbridge Gerrj- — WilHam K. King — Henry Wilson — Death of General McClellan — Of
General Hancock — His Career — The Dispute Between Capital and Labor — Arbitration — The Anarch-
istic Outbreak in Chicago — The Charleston Earthquake — Conquest of the Apaches — Presidential
Election of 1S8S — Benjamin Harrison — The Johnstown Disaster — Threatened War with (Jhili — The
Indian Uprising of 1890-91 — Admission of New States — Presidential Election of 1S9J.
THK TWEN'TY-SECOXD PRKSIDENT.
The city of Buffalo, N. Y., lias tlio distinction of he\us the only one in
United States which has furnished _ — — ■. . -— ,_
two presidents of the country. Mil-
lard Fillmore hailed from BufflUo
and Grover Cleveland went from
that city to occupy the highest office
in the gift of the American people.
His native place, however, was Cald-
well, New Jersey, where he was
born, March 18, 1837. He was the
son of a clergyman and received ;i
fair education in the public schools,
and became an instructor for a time
in an institution for the blind at
Clinton, N. Y. He removed to
Buffalo in 1855, and, having en-
gaged in the study of law, soon be-
came prominent at the bar. He was
appointed assistant district attorney
in 18G3, and in 1870 was elected
sheriff" of the county. His course
gained the confidence of the com-
numity and led to his election as
mayor of Buffalo, in 1881, though the city wa
in politics.
the
GROVER CLEVELAND.
(1S3T- .) Two terms, ISS-VISSO— 1S<13-1897
naturally strongly Republican
(459)
460 AD3IINISTRATI0N OF CLEVELAND.
Mr. Cleveland added to his popularity by liis able admiuistratioti and was
nominated for govei'nor of the State in the autumn of the following year. His
success by the unprecedented majority of 192,854 attracted national attention
and led the Democrats to believe he was their most available candidate for the
presidency. His course as governor commended itself to his friends, who were
so numerous that, when his name was presented at Chicago, he received 683
votes against 137 for all others.
It will be noted that Mr. Cleveland was the first Democratic President
since the ojjening of the war. He assumed his office with the best wishes of the
jieojjle, though it is worth noting in this place that the majority by which he
was elected was much less than a glance at the returns would suggest. At a
public recejition of Mr. Blaine, during the canvass, a clergyman referred to the
Democratic party as that of "Rum, Romanism, and Rebellion." This unfor-
tunate expression drove away a number of votes from Mr. Blaine, who was
defeated in New York by a few hundreds only ; but they were sufficient to turn
the thirty-six electoral votes to Mr. Cleveland and secure his election by the
majority already named.
COMPLETION OF TUE WASHINGTON MONUMENT.
For 3'ears preceding the Civil War, and for a long time afterward, the
Washington monument was a source of rejiroach and jest among the j^eople,
because so long a period was allowed to pass before its completion. The corner-
stone was laid July 4, 1848, at which time Robert C. W^inthrop, Speaker of the
House of Representatives, delivered the address. The occasion was made
notable by the presence of Daniel Webster, Henry Clay, John C. Calhoun, and
President Polk. The memorial to the greatest American orator that ever lived
was allowed to stand uncompleted for thirty-seven years, its formal dedication
taking place February 21st (the 22d fell on Sunday), 1885. The address of
the venerable W. W. Corcoran, first vice-president of the Washington Monu-
ment Society, formed in 1833, was read by Dr. J. C. AYelling, president of
Columbia University, and the ceremonies were of an interesting charactei-.
The Masonic services were conducted by the Grand Lodge of the District of
Columbia, which used the gavel that Washington had employed in laying the
corner-stone of the national capitol, September 18, 1793, while the Bible was the
one upon whicli he took his vows when made a Mason. A second Bible was
the one upon which he was sworn into office, April 30, 1789, when inaugurated
President of the United States. This i-elic is now the property of St. John
Lodge, No. 1, of New York City.
President Arthur's address was as follows:
THE WASHINGTON MONUMENT, WASHINGTON, D. C.
462 ADMINISTRATION OF CLEVELAND.
"Fellow-Countrymen : Before the dawn of the century whose eventful
years will soon have faded into the past — when death had but lately robbed the
republic of its most beloved and iUustrious citizen — the Congress of the United
States pledged the faith of the nation that in this city, bearing his honored name,
and then, as now, the seat of the general government, a monument should be
erected 'to coramemoriite the great events of his military and political life.'
"The stately column that sti'etches heavenward from the plain whereon
we stand bears witness to all who behold it that the covenant which our fathers
made their children have fulfilled. In the comi^letion of this great work of
patriotic endeavor there is abundant cause for national rejoicing; for while this
structure shall endure it shall be to all mankind a steadfast token of the affec-
tionate and reverent regard in which this people continue to hold the memory
of Washington. Well may he ever keep the foremost place in the hearts of his
countrymen; the faith that never faltered; the wisdom that was broader and
deeper than any learning taught in schools; the courage that shrank from no
peril and was dismayed by no defeat; the loyalty that kept all selfish purposes
subordinate to the demands of patriotism and honor; the sagacity that displayed
itself in camp and cabinet alike; and, above all, that harmonious union of moral
and intellectual qualities which has never found its parallel among men; these
are the attributes of character which the intelligent thought of this century
ascribes to the grandest figure of the last.
"But other and more eloquent lips than mine will to-day rehearse to you
the story of his noble life and its glorious achievements. To myself has been
assigned a simpler and more formal duty, in fulfillment of which I do now, as
President of the United States and in behalf of the peo])le, receive this monu-
ment from the hands of the builder, and declare it dedicated from this time
forth to the immortal name and memory of George Washington!"
The ceremonies at the monument being completed, those within the capitol
followed. General Sheridan was in charge of the military, and the oration of
Robert C. AVinthrop, who was kept away by illness, was read by Governor
Long. John AV. Daniel, a leading soldier on the side • of the Confederacy
during the Civil War and afterward a member of Congress from Virginia,
delivered a graphic sketch of AVashington, and closed with the eloquent
peroration :
"Long live the republic of AA'^ashington ! Respected by mankind, beloved
by all its sons, long may it be the asylum of the poor and oppressed of all lands
and religions — long may it be the citadel of that liberty which writes beneath
the eagle's folded wings : 'AA'^e will sell to no man, we will deny to no man right
and justice.'
THE BAUTHOLDI STATUE. 46S
" Long live the United States of America ! Filled with the free, magnani-
mous spirit, crowned by the wisdom, blessed by the moderation, hovered over by the
guardian angel of Washington's exam{)le, may they ever be worthy in all
things to be defended by the blood of the brave who knew the rights of man —
may they each be a column, and all together, under the Constitution, a j^er^ietual
temple of peace, unshadowed by a Caesar's palace, at whose altar may freely
commune all who seek the union of liberty and brotherhood.
"Long live our country! Oh, long through the undying ages may it
stand, far removed in fact, as in space, from the Old World's feuds and follies —
solitary and alone in its grandeur and glory — itself the immortal monument
of him whom Providence commissioned to teach man the power of truth, and
to prove to the nations that their Redeemer liveth."
It is worth noting that the Washington Monument with its 555 feet is the
highest in the world ; the Cathedral at Cologne, 511 feet, is next; while the
height of the Great Pyramid is 486 feet. The cap-stone was put in position
December 6, 1884, and the whole cost of the monument was $1,187,710, of
which Congress furnished $900,000. An iron stairway of 900 stejDS and an
elevator provide means for ascending the interior.
THE BAKTHOLDI STATUE.
When a person enters New York harbor on his visit or return to the New
World, the most striking object upon which his eyes rest is the Statue of Liberty.
This represents the idea of Liberty enlightening the world, as conceived by
Frederick Auguste Bartholdi, the eminent French sculptor. He began circula-
ting his subscriptions for the work through France in 1874. The pojiularity
of the scheme is attested by the fact that contributions were received from 180
cities, forty general councils, a large number of chambers of commerce and
of socities, and more than 10,000 subscribers. On the 22d of February, 1877,
Congress voted to accept the gift, and set ajiart Bedlow's Island for the site.
The statue was finished in 1883, and displayed to public view for some time in
Paris. Its official presentation to the minister of the LTnited States took jjlace
July 4, 1884.
The French transport Isere, with the Liberty statue on board, ai-i'ived at
New York, June 24, 1885, and was saluted and welcomed by a hundred
different vessels. The dedication ceremonies, October 28, 1886, were among the
most impressive ever witnessed in the metropolis of our country. Among those
on the reviewing stand, near the Worth Monument, were President Cleveland,
General Sheridan, the members of the Pi-esident's cabinet, M. Bartholdi, M. de
Lesseps, representative of the diplomatic coi-jjs at Washington, and many
distinguished American citizens.
464
ADMINISTRATION OF CLEVELAND.
The following facts will give an idea of the size of this great statue : the
forefinger is more than eight feet long ; the second joint is about five feet in
circumference; the finger-nail is a foot long, and the nose nearly four feet; the
head is fourteen and a half feet high, and can accommodate forty j^ersons, while
the hollow torch will hold twelve persons. The copper sheets which form the
outside of the statue weigh eighty-eight tons. From the base to the top of the
torch is slightly more than 150 feet, which is 305 feet above low-water mark.
DEATH OF GENERAL GRANT.
In no event of Cleveland's llivi ;i(lministration was the public more deeply
THE FUNERAL TRAIN OF GENERAL GRAK'i' I'ASSING \\ EST POINT.
concerned than in the death of General Grant, the foremost defender of the
Union. After his return from his triumphant journey around the world, he
engaged in business in the city of New York. The soul of honor himself, it
was hard for him to believe the dishonesty of others; but he became the victim
of unscrupulous persons, and lost not only all his own savings but those of mauy
of his friends. He did everything in his power to make good his losses, but
succeeded only to a slight extent. He was ruined financially, though a grateful
nation would never permit him to suffer want.
It was at this sad period that a cancer developed at the root of his tongue,
and, though he received the best medical attention in the country, the malignant
-excrescence soon made it evident that he was beyond human help. He devoted
OTHER VICE-PRESIDENTS WHO DIED IN OFFICE. 465
himself heroically to writing his memoirs, and, with the grim determination
which was so marked a feature of his character, he fought off" the last great
enemy until the valuable work was finished.
General Grant's last days were spent with his family at Mount INIcGregor
in New York State, where he quietly breathed his last on the evening of July
22, x885. The body was embalmed and removed to the City Hall in New
York, where it was viewed by mourning thousands before its i-emoval to the
last resting-place in Riverside Park. The final impressive scenes, when the re-
mains were deposited in the mausoleum on the banks of the Hudson, took i^lace
in 181)7.
DEATH OF VICE-PRESIDENT HENDKICKS.
Thomas A. Hendiicks, Vice-President of the United States, died November
25, 1885, at his home in Indianapolis, from paralysis of the heart. He was
born in Ohio in 1810, studied law, and was admitted to the bar in 1843. He was
elected to the Indiana Legislature in 1848, and three years later became Demo-
cratic member of Congress from the central district of Indiana. He was chosen
a United States senator in 18G8, and strongly opposed the imiieaciiment of
President Johnson. He was jtrominently named several times for the pi-esidency
of the United States. In Indianapolis, where he had long made his home, he
was universally resjiectetl by members of all parties.
OTHER VICE-PRESIDENTS WHO DIED IX OFFICE.
Since ]Mr. Hendricks was not the first Vice-President to die in office, it will
be interesting to com2:)lete the list. George Clinton served one term under Jef-
ferson, and had nearly ended another under Madison, when he died in 1812.
His career had been extraordinary. He was a soldier in the French and Indian
War, was a sailor on a j^rivateer, and became a bi-igadier-general in the Revolu-
tion, but was nnsnccessful in his defense of the Highland forts in 1777. At one
time he was a member of the Provincial Congi'ess and was the first governoi- of
New York, serving for eighteen years, from 1777 to 17'J5, and again 1801-04,
when he became Vice-President. His death occurred in Washington, and the
eight pall-bearers wei-e Revolutionary soldiers.
It was a cni'ions coincidence that the next A^ice-Presiilent to die in office was
the immediate successor of Clinton, Elbridge Gerry, who died November 2o,
1814. He was a native of Massachusetts, a member of its colonial House of
Representatives and a delegate to the Continental Congress. He signed the
Declaration of Independence and aided in framing the Constitution, though he
refused to sign it, on the ground that it conferred too much power on the national
government. He held a number of iiujiortant public offices and was governor
of Massachusetts in 1810 and 1811. In the latter year, the Republicans (modern
466 ADMIXJsTRATIOy OF CLL\±.i.aM).
Democrats) carried out a redistricting selieme by which tlie Essex district took
a form which many fancied bore a i-esemblance to a salamander. It was from
this incident that the word " gerrymander," so often heard in politics in these
days, took its name.
It will be recalled that when Franklin Pierce became President, the Vice-
President, William R. King, was an invalid in Cuba, where he took the oath of
office before the American consul. He was in the last stages of consumption
and died shortly after his return to his home in Alabama.
Henry Wilson, Vice-President with General Grant, died November 25,
1875, his death being hastened, it is believed, by the news of the death of his
intimate friend, Senator Ferry, of Connecticut.
The death of General McClellan has already been mentioned as taking
place on the 29th of October, 1885. A few- months later, February 9, 1886,
General Hancock died at his home on Governor's Island.
DEATH OF GENERAL HAXCOCK HIS CAREER.
General Winfield Scott Hancock was an ideal American soldier and officer,
brave, chivalrous, courteous to foe as well as friend, patriotic, a gentleman at all
times and under all circumstances, genial, remarkably handsome and prepos-
sessing in manner, who made friends everywhere. His conduct of political
affivirs in a section of the South during the troublous reconstruction days won
the commendation of his govei'nment and the respect of the South, Avho pro-
nounced him a "just man," for whom they formed a strong personal affection.
But for Hancock's unfortunate slip, he assuredly would have been elected Pi-esi-
dent of the United States in 1880.
The two peculiarities of Hancock's birth was that he was a twin and was
born on St. Valentine's day, February 14, 1824, in Montgomery County, Penn-
sylvania. Appointed to West Point, he found among his fellow-cadets U. S.
Grant, G. B. McClellan, Rosecrans, Longstreet, and Stonewall Jackson.
Hancock entered the Mexican W^ar as second lieutenant, taking part in
three engagements, receiving a wound and winning the brevet of first lieutenant.
He was appointed quartermaster in 1855, with the rank of captain. Three
years later he was a member of the expedition to Utah to bring the Mormons to
terms. When the Civil War broke out, lie was at Los Angeles, Southern
California, where considerable sympathy was shown for the Southern Con-
federacy. The tact of the United States forces in that section held the State
true, a patriotic speech of General Hancock contributing greatly to the same
end.
His patriotism would not allow him to remain idle, and, when he learned
of the grave condition of affiiirs in the East, he applied to be called thither.
DEATH OF GENERAL HANCOCK.
467
The request was granted, and he was so anxious to serve his country that he
did nut pause to call on his parents while on the way to Washington.
Hancock's first apjjointnient was as quarterniaster-general in (Jcneral
Robert Anderson's command in Kentucky; but McClellan, who knew his
worth, uukIc a personal request of President Lincoln to appoint him brigadier-
general. His commission was dated September 23, 1861. McClellan said of
him: "He was a man of the most chivalrous courage and of superb ])resence,
(•s|H'ciallv ill action : he had a W(indci-fnlly f|nick and correct eye ibr ground
"^
SirAir
m "^
f —
CITY HALIi, PHIIjADELPHIA.
and for handling troops ; his judgment was good, and it would be difficult to
find a better corps commander."
General Hancock gave invaluable help in moulding the Army of the
Potomac into the magnificent form it attained, and his brigade was conceded to
be the finest and most effective in the wdiole army at the time the landing was
made on the peninsula between Chesapeake Bay and the James River.
In the bloody battle of Williamsburg, his skill and personal courage were
of the highest order. Making a feint of retreating, he drew the enemy after
468 ADMINISTRATION OF CLEVELAND.
liim into the position he intended, when he turned and assailed them with a
furious musketry lire. It was his men who captured the first colors taken by
the Army of the Potomac, and it was on that occasion that Hancock used the
expression which has been often quoted. In the midst of the tunudt and swirl of
battle he shouted : " Now, gentlemen, we will give them the bayonet ! " Han-
cock received the personal thanks of McClellan for his fine work.
He was always loyal to his su})eriors, McClellan, Burnside, McClellan
again, Hooker, and Meade, rapidly rising in prominence until at the great battle
of Gettysburg he contributed perhaps more than any single man to the success
of the Union arms. Among the titles applied to him by his admiring country-
men were "The Superb " and " The Hero of Gettysburg."
The Confederates who came in contact with him expressed their admiration
of his dauntless courage and coolness. He was j^ainfully wounded, but, while
lying on a stretcher, he sent a message to General Meade that the Confederate
army was in retreat. Meade replied with his grateful thanks and sympathy,
and Congress also thanked him.
His ardent })atriotism placed him in the saddle before his wound had
liealed, and at one time during the battle of the Wilderness he was obliged to
give up his command. At Cliancellorsville he captured the whole division of
General Edward Johnson. When that officer was brought into Hancock's tent
the latter extended his hand to his old acquaintance, exclaiming heartily, " How
are you, Ned ? "
"I refuse to take your hand," replied the humiliated prisoner.
" All right," said Hancock, " I shouldn't have offered it to you under any
other circumstances."
Hancock was in command of the Second Army Corps for the last time at
the battle of Boydton. His remarkable skill in training soldiers caused Secretary
Stanton to assign to him the task of organizing the First Veteran Corps, com-
posed of soldiers, all of whom had been in service two years. He afterward
commanded the Army of the Shenandoah, and was in charge at AVashington at
the time of the assassination of Lincohi.
In 18G!), he was transferred from the command of the division of the
Atlantic and assigned to that of Dakota, where he remained until 1872, when
he I'esumed command of the division of the Atlantic. His last public ap])ear-
ance was when he commanded the military forces which assisted in the funeral
ceremonies of General Grant.
As a proof that General Hancock's skill with the pen was hardly less than
that with the sword, the following extract is given from an article by him on
the battle of Gettysburg :
" Cemetery Hill has since become consecrated ground. Tlie place where
CAPITAL AXD LABOR. 469
General Howard was superseded in command on the first day of the fight is
now covered witli tlie graves of thousands of gallant soldiers whose bones lie
buried at the base of the beautiful monumental column which commemorates
their fame. Two of the marble statues ornamenting the pedestal personify War
and History. War, symbolized by a soldier resting from the conflict, narrates
to History the story of the struggle and the deeds of the mai-tyr-heroes who fell
in that famous battle. In remembrance of these noble comrades who laid down
their lives for the general weal, it were simply sacrilege for any survivor to j^our
into the ears of History an incorrect account of the contest, still more to assume
to himself honors belonging 2ierhaps less to the living than to the dead.
" The historian of the future who essays to tell the tale of Gettysburg
undertakes an onerous task, a high responsibility, a sacred trust. Above all
things, justice and truth should dwell in his mind and heart. Then, dipping
his pen as it were in the crimson tide, the sunshine of heaven lighting his page,
giving 'honor to whom honor is due,' doing even justice to the sj^dendid valor
alike of friend and foe, he may tell the world how the I'ain descended in streams
of fire, and the floods came in the billows of rebellion, and the winds blew in
blasts of fraternal execration, and beat upon the fabric of the Federal Union, and
that it fell not, for, resting on the rights and liberties of the people, it was
founded upon a rock." General Hancock died February V, 188(5.
CAPITAL AND LABOR.
Perhaps the gravest problem which confronts our country is the eternal
strife between capital and labor. It is a problem which when solved will. prove
one of the most beneficent boons that ever blessed mankind. Disputes continu-
ally arise between employers and employes ; sti'ikes have occurred without
number, many of them attended by violence, the destruction of property and
lamentable loss of life. Arbitration is the best and most sensible cure for the
grave peril which at times lias seemed to threaten the safety of our institutions^
and when the employer and those dependent upon him for the support of them-
' selves and families meet in a friendly spirit and discuss their differences, they
are certain to reach an amicable agreement.
That men have the right to strike and combine against a lowering of their-
wages or for the purpose of increasing them is beyond all dispute. That they
have the right to destroy projierty or prevent other men from taking their
]ilaces is contended by no intelligent person, but, so long as human nature
remains as it is, they will do so, with the result that in almost every instance
it is the laborers themselves who are the greatest losers and sufferers.
One fact for which all ought to be grateful is that the muixlerous anarchists
who once plotted and struck with the venom of rattlesnakes have either disap-
peared or censed their evil work. They are scarcely heard of in these days, and
470 ADMINISTRATION OF CLEVELAND.
that it may ever remain tlius is the fervent wish of every patriotic and right-
minded citizen.
It is inevitable tliat so hing as the United States remains an asyhim for the
persecuted and oppressed of all nations, it must receive many of the miscreants
that have been compelled to flee from their own countries to escape tlie penalty
of their crimes. Despite the ravings of the anarchists, we have good-naturedly
let them alone, not believing they would ever dare to carry out any of the
threats which they were so fond of making. Thus they became emboldened
and finally ventui'ed to put their execrable j^rinciples into 2:)ractice.
Tliere were a good many strikes in different parts of the country in the
early months of 1886. A number were settled by arbitration, such as the
strike on the elevated railroads in New York City, but others were fought out
to the bitter end.
A strike occurred on the Missouri Pacific Railroad in the spring of 1886.
The strikers became violent, destroyed property, and a number of lives were lost.
The end came in May, and, as is generally the case, it was against the em-
ployes, many of whom were unable to regain the places that had been taken by
others.
ANARCHISTIC OUTBREAK IN CHICAGO.
The cry for eight hours, at the same rate of wages previously paid for ten,
was raised in New York and Chicago in May, 1886. Here and there a com-
jiromise of nine hours was agreed upon with a half of each Saturday for the em-
ployes, but in other cases the employers would not yield anything. This issue
led to the strike of 40,000 workmen in Chicago, who were chiefly lumbermen,
brickmakers, freight-handlers, iron-workers, and men employed in factories.
So many people were idle that business of all kinds suffered. Naturally there
were many parades and much speech-making. That "an idk^ mind is the
devil's workshop" was proven by the appearance of the communistic red flag
in some of the parades and by the savage utterances of their speech-makers.
The pork jiackers and brewers amicably adjusted the strikes of their men,
but the majority of the employers refused to concede anything. Sunday, the
2d of May, passed without incident, but the police knew the anarchists were
plotting and trouble was at hand. Probably 12,000 strikers gathered the next
day at the McCormick Reaper Works on Western Avenue, where they shattered
the windows with stones. At the moment an attack was about to be made upon
the buildings, a patrol wagon dashed up with twelve policemen, who sprang to
the ground. Drawing their revolvers they faced the mob and ordered them to
disperse. They were answered with a volley of stones. The policemen fired
twice over the heads of the rioters, thereby encouraging instead of intimidating
them. Seeing the folly of throwing away their shots, the policemen now fired
ANARCHISTIC OUTBREAK IN CHICAGO
471
directly at the rioters, who answered with pistol-shots, but they did not liit any
of the officers.
Other patrol wagons hurried up, and the officers did not wait until tliey
could leaj) out before opening fii'e. Their brave attaclc foix-ed back the mob,
and in the course of an hour the streets were cleai'ed. Tiie tei-rilied workuien
were escorted by the policemen to their homes. But for such protection they
would have been killed by tlie
infuriated rioters.
Tuesday was marked by
many affrays between the offi-
cers and law-breakers, but no
serious conflict occurred. Pla-
cards were distributed during
the day, calling upon the
•" workingmen " to meet that
evening at the old Haymarket
Place, and the organ of tlie
anarchists urged the men to
arm against the police. At the
meeting the most incendiai-y
speeches were made, and the
sj:)eakers had roused the several
thousand listeners to the high-
est pitch of excitement, when
Inspector Bonfield at the head
of a column of officers forced
his way to the stand, ordered
the speaker to stop, and eoni-
Tnanded the crowd to disperse.
He was answered with jeers
and a storm of missiles. While
the policemen were calmly
awaiting the orders of the in-
spector, some one in the crowd threw a sputtering dynamite bondj at the feet
of the officers.
A moment later it exploded, killing seven and crippling eleven for life.
The enraged survivors dashed into the mob, shooting and using their clubs with
fearful effect. Within five minutes the crowd was scattered, but many lay dead
and wounded on the ground. In the investigation that followed, it was shown
that the anarchists had planned to slay hundreds of innocent people and plunder
OLD HAYMABKET PLAZA, CHICAGO.
This niomniKMit shows the spot where on May 3, issti, a d.VTiamite bomb
was thrown by anarchists Into a group of policemen, killing seven, crip-
pling eleven for life, and injuring twelve others so they were unable to do
duty for a year.
472 ADMINISTRATION OF CLEVELAND.
the city. Their leaders were brought to trial, ably defended, and the most
prominent sentenced to death. One committed suicide, a number were hanged,
and others sentenced to long terms of imprisonment. All of the latter were
pardoned by Governor Altgeld when he assumed ofHce. Since that time, as
has been stated, the anarchists have given little trouble.
THE CHARLESTON EARTHQUAKE.
The year 1886 was marked by one of the most terrifying visitations that
can come to any country. Earthquake shocks have been felt in different places
in the United States, and the earth-tremors are so frequent in California that
they cause little alarm, for very few have inflicted any dam;ige to property or
life.
On the night of August 31st, the city of Richmond, Virginia, was throwa
into consternation by a series of earthquake shocks. The convicts in the peni-
tentiary became so panic-stricken that the militia had to be called out to control
them. The shock was felt still more violently in Columbia, South Carolina.,
Tlie buildings swayed as if rocked in a gale, and hundreds of citizens rushed
into the street in their night robes. The scenes were less startling in Mem^^his,.
Nashville, Raleigh, Chattanooga, Selma, Lynchburg, Norfolk, Mobile, St. Louis,
Cleveland, Indianapolis, Chicago, Pittsburg, while the tremor was felt as far
north as Albany, N. Y.
The most fearful visitation, however, was at Charleston, South Carolina.
Telegraphic communication was cut off with the rest of the world, and for hours
the horrifying belief prevailed that the city had been entirely destroyed. Such,
happily, was not the fact, though never in all the stormy history of Charleston
did she pass through so terrible an experience.
Late on the evening named, the inhabitants found themselves tossed about,,
with their houses tumbling into ruins. They ran in terror into the streets, many
not stopping until they reached the open country, while others flung themselves
on their knees and begged heaven to save them.
The shocks that night were ten in number, each less violent than its pre-
decessor. Fires started in several quarters, and twenty houses were burned be-
fore the firemen gained control. The next morning vibrations again shook the
city, all coming from the southeast and passing off in a northwesterly direction.
The first warning was a deep, subterraneous rumbling, then the earth quivered
and heaved, and in a few seconds the terrific wave had gone by. When night
came again, 50,000 people — men, women, and children — were in the streets, none
daring to enter their houses. They fled to the open squares to escape being-
crushed by the falling buildings. Many believed the day of judgment had come
and the negroes were frenzied with terror.
CONQUEST OF THE APACHES. 47S
Singular effects of the earthquake showed themselves. In some places,
the covers were hurled from the wells and were followed by geysers of mud and
water. Some wells were entirely emptied, but they soon refilled. The shocks
continued at varying intervals for several weeks, though none was as violent as
at first. In Charleston fully a hundred people were killed and two-thirds of the
city recjuired rebuiUling. While damnge was done at other 2:)oints, none equaled
that at Charleston.
The country was quick to respond to the needs of the smitten city. Con-
tributions were forwarded from eveiy point as freely as when Chicago was devas-
tated by fii'e. Tents, provisions, and many thousands of dollars were sent thither.
Even Queen Victoria telegraphed her sympathy to Pi-esident Cleveland. One
of the mitigations of such scourges is that they seem to draw humanity closer
into one general brotherhood.
CONQUEST OF THE APACHES.
An important work accomplished during the first administration of Cleve-
land was the conquest and subjection of the Apaches of the Southwest. These
Indians are the most terrible red men that ever lived anywhei-e. They are in-
credibly tough of frame, as merciless as tigers, and capable of undergoing hard-
ships and privations before which any other jieople would succumb. They will
travel for days without a mouthful of food, will go for hour after hour through
a climate that is like that of Sahara without a drop of moisture, will climb pi-e-
cipitous mountains as readily as a slight declivity, will lope across the burning-
deserts all day without fatigue, or, if riding one of their wiry ponies, will kill
and eat a portion of them when hunger must be attended to, and tl;en continue
their journey on foot.
If a party of Apache raiders are hard pressed by cavalry, they will break
up and continue their flight singly, meeting at some rendezvous many miles
away, after the discouraged troopers have abandoned pursuit. They seem as
impervious to the fiery heat of Arizona and New INIexico as salamanders. To-
night they may burn a ranchman's home, massacre him and all his family, and
to-morrow morning will repeat the crime fifty miles distant.
No men could have displayed more bravery and endurance in i-unning
down the Apaches than the United States cavalry. The metal-work of their
weapons grew so hot that it would blister the bare hands, and for days the
thermometer marked one hundred and twenty degi'ces.
Captain Bourke, who understands these frightful red men thoroughly, gives
the following description of the Apache :
" Physically, he is ]>erfect; he might be a trifle taller for artistic effect, but
his apparent 'squattiness' is due more to great girth of chest than to diminutive
474 ADMINISTRATION OF' CLEVELAND.
stature. His muscles are hard as bone, and I have seen one light a match on
the sole of his foot. When Crook first took the Apache in hand, he had few
wants and cared for no luxuries. War was his business, his life, and victory
his dream. To attack a Mexican caiuj) or isolated village, and run off a herd
of cattle, nudes, or sheep, he would gladly travel hundreds of miles, incurring
every risk and displaying a coimige which wcndd have been extolled in a
historical novel as having happened in a raitl by Highlanders upon Scotchmen ;
but wheji it was your stock, or your friend's stock, it became quite a different
matter. He wore no clothing whatever save a narrow piece of calico or buck-
skin about his loins, a helmet also of buckskin, plentifully crested with the
plumage of the wild turkey and eagle, and long-legged moccasins, held to the
waist by a string, and turned up at the toes in a shield which protected him
from stones and the 'cholla' cactus. If he felt thirsty, he drank from the
nearest brook ; if there was no brook near by he went without, and, putting a
stone or a twig in his mouth to induce a flow of saliva, journeyed on. When he
desired to communicate with friends at home, or to put himself in correspondence
with persons whose co-operation had been j)romised, he rubbed two sticks
together, and dense signal smoke rolled to the zenith, and was answered fi-om
jieaks twenty and thirty miles away. By nightfall, his bivouac was pitched at
a distance from water, generally on the flank of a rocky mountain, along which
no trail would be left, and up which no force of cavalry could hope to ascend
without making noise enough to wake the dead."
This graphic jiieture of the dusky scourge of the Southwest will explain
the dread in which he was held by all who were compelled to live away from
the towns. When practicable, the ranchmen combined against the Apaches,
but, from the necessities of the case, they were powerless to extirpate the pests.
Unsuccessful attempts were made by the military forces, but nothing definite
was accomplished until General George Crook took the work in hand.
Crook was an old Indian campaigner who thoroughly understood the nature
of the difficult task before him. His preparations being completed, he ordered his
different columns to converge, December 9, 1872, on Tonto Basin, which was
one of the principal strongholds of the Apaches in Arizona. The section is
inclosed by the Mogollen, the Mazatzal, and the Sierra Ancha Mountains, and
the timbei'ed region is so elevated that during the winter months it is covered
with snow. Crook himself took station at Camp Grant, one of the most unat-
tractive posts in the country.
This officer having started on his campaign pushed it with untiring energy.
He had selected the best Indian fighters to be found anywhere, and they pursued
and rounded up the bucks with amazing skill and persistency. As soon as they
corralled a party of hostiles, they impressed the best trailers and used them in
CONQUEST OF THE APACHES.
475
running down tlie others. The Indians were allowed no time to rest. When
they had fled many miles, and supposed their })ursuers were left far out of sight,
as had hitherto been the case, they discovered them at their heels. Plunging
into their fastnesses in the mountains did not avail, for the white and the red
trailers could follow and did follow them wherever they took refuge.
The pursuing detachments frequently crossed one another's trails, often
]net and kept within supporting distance. The danger which threatened the
Apaches was as present in the
>* r 1 +^ ^■' ,^711. •• '
Stevens in 1804, and the "John Bull," -^^T^^^^^^- =^^^X
used on the Camden and Araboy Rail-
road, and which, it is claimed, is the oldest locomotive in America.
The exhibit in the Mines and Mining Building were divided into 123
classes, including cement from Heidelberg, mosaics in Carlsbad stone, French
asphalt specimens, French work in gold, platinum, and aluminum, silver and
ores from nearly every part of the world, and ores from different sections of our
own country.
The Government Building was specially attractive, with its exhibits of the
several departments of the United States government. A case of humming
birds contained 133 varieties, and in another ca.se were represented 106 families
of American birds. There were stuffed fowls, flamingoes, nests. Rocky Mountain
goats and sheep, armadilloes from Texas, sea otters, American bisons, a Pacific
OFEMNG OF THE GROUNDS AND BUILDINGS.
491
walrus, 300 ci'ocodiles of the Nile, crocotlile birds, fishes and reptiles, and an
almost endless display of coins and metals.
The Department of Ethnolosry contained figures of Eskemos and specimens
of their industry,
Cimadian Indians,
Indian wigwam, an-
cient pottery, mod-
els of ruins found
in Arizona, a brass
lamp used at a feast
169 years before
Christ ; scrolls of
the law of Tarah,
made in the tenth
century in Asia;
silver spice-box of
the time of Christ;
phylacteries, used by the Jews at morning prayers, except on Satunlay; knife
used by priests in slaying animals for sacrifice.
In the State Department thousands of people gazed with awe upon what
was believed to be the original Declaration of Independence as it came from
the hand of Thomas
Jefferson. It was,
>, however, only a close
copy, since the gov-
ernment under no
circumstances will
permit the original
to leave the archives
; 1 1 ^Vash i n gton . But
;iniong the original
] )a pers were the ]ieti-
tion of the United
Colonies to George
III., presented by
Benjamin Franklin
in 1774; the original journal of the Continental Congress; Lincoln's Emanci-
pation Proclamation; an autograph letter of George III.; and various proc-
lamations issued by Presidents, with their autographs and lettei's, l)y Wash-
I
492
ADMINISTRATION OF CLEVELAND.
-'«'*>_
l^f
ington, Franklin, the Adamses, Jefferson, Madison, Polk, Van Buren, Monroe,
Lincoln, Grant, Arthur, and Hayes.
WONDERFUL HISTORIC RELICS.
The most interesting historic papers were letters penned by Napoleon,
Alexander of Russia, and other foreign potentates, the Webster-Ashburton
treaty signed by Queen Victoria, and a shark's tooth sent as a treaty by the
king of Samoa. Precious relics were AVashington's commission as commander-
in-chief of the colonial forces, his sword, his diary, and his account books and
army reports; the sash Avith which Lafayette bound up his wound at Brandy-
wine; the calumet pipe which Washington smoked when seventeen years old;
Benjamin Franklin's cane; the sword of General Jackson; a waistcoat em-
broidered by ]\Iarie
Antoinette ; wam-
pum made before
the discovery of
America; camp
service of pewter
used by Washing-
ton throughout the
Revolution ; Bible
brought over by
John Alden in the
3Iayflower ; and a
piece of torch car-
~ "^ ried by " Old Put"
(General Israel Putnam) into tlie den of the wolf which he killed.
A section of one of the big trees of California was 20 feet in diameter at
the top and 26 feet at the base.
The dreadful sufferings of persons imprisoned for debt in England, which
led to the founding of Georgia, were recalled by a warrant for the arrest and
imprisonment of one of the unfortunates, issued in 1721.
There also were to be seen a page from the Plymouth records of 1620 and
1621 ; a land patent of 1628 ; the royal commission creating the common pleas
court of Massachusetts in 1696 ; a page from the horrible witchcraft trials in
Salem in 1692; a door-knocker brought to this country in the Mayflower; and
portraits of many historical persons.
In the War Dejiartment were shown a six-pounder bronze gun presented
by Lafayette to the colonial forces ; the four-pounder gun that fired the first shot
in the Civil War; the rifled gun that tired the last shot; cannon used in the
EXHIBITS OF THE TREASURY AND POSTOFFICE.
493
Mexican War ; cast-iron cannon found in the Hudson River ; Chinese cannon
captured at Corea; cannon captured at Yorktown ; boot-legs from which the
starving members of the Greely Arctic expedition made soup ; relics of Sir
John Franklin ; a wagon used by General Sherman throughout all his marches;
the sacred shirt worn by Sitting Bull at the time of the massacre of Custer and
liis command on the Little Bis; Horn.
EXHIBITS OF THE TREASURY AND POSTOFFICE DEPARTMENTS.
In the Treasury Department was represented the United States Mint in
operation, besides historic medals,
ancient and modern coins, including
those of foreign countries, a ten-
thousand gold dollar certificate and
a silver certificate of the same de-
nomination.
The eyes of the philatelists
sparkled at the treasures in the
Postoffice Department, which in-
cluded all the issues of stamps from
1847 to 1893. Some of the single '
stam2:)s were worth thousands of dol-
lars, and it would have required a
fortune to purchase the whole col-
lection, had it been for sale. The
methods of carrying the mail were
illustrated by a representation of
dogs drawing a sled over the snow
and a Rocky Mountain stage-coach.
It would require volumes to convey
an intelligent idea of the display in
the Patent Office, Interior Depart-
ment, Geological Survey, Agricultural Department, and the United States
Commission.
Everybody knows that wonderful discoveries have been made in electricity,
and no doubt we are close upon still greater ones. The name of Edison is con-
nected with the marvelous achievements in this field, and there was much food
for thought and speculation in the exhibits of the Electricity Building. These,
while profoundly interesting, were mainly so in their hints of what are coming
in the near future.
Machinery Hall was a favorite with thousands of the visitors. The
THOMAS A. EDISOISr.
(1847- .)
494 ADMINISTRATION OF CLEVELAND.
exhibits were so numerous that they -were divided into eighty-six classes,
grouped into :
1. Motors and ap])aratus for the generation and transmission of power
hydraulic and jmeumatic apjiaratus.
2. Fire-engines, apparatus and appliances for extinguishing fire.
3. Machine tools and machines for working metals.
4. Machinery for the manufacture of textile fabrics and clothing.
5. Machines for working wood.
6. Machines and apparatus for type-setting, printing, stamping and em-
bossing, and for making books and paper making.
7. Lithography, zincography, and color ])ainting.
8. Photo-meclianical and other mechanical j^rocesses for illustrating, etc.
9. Miscellaneous hand-tools, machines and apparatus used in various arts.
10. Machines for working stones, clay, and other minerals.
11. Machinery used in the preparation of foods, etc.
OTHER NOTABLE EXHIBITS.
The cost of the model of the Convent of Santa Maria de la Rabida, where
the wearied Columbus stopped to crave food for himself and boy, was $50,000.
The relics of the great exjilorer were numerous and of vivid interest.
Hardly less interesting was the reproduction of the Viking ship unearthed
in a burial mound in Norway in 1880, the model being precisely that of the
vessels in which the hardy Norsemen navigators crossed the Atlantic a thousand
years ago. It was seventy-six feet in length, the bow ornamented with a large
and finely carved dragon's head and the stern with a dragon's tail. Rows of
embellished shields ran along the outside of the bulwarks, and all was open ex-
cept a small deck fore and aft, while two water-tight compartments gave protec-
tion to the men in stormy weather. The rigging consisted of one mast with a
single yard, that could be readily taken down, but there were places for immense
oars, whose handling must have required tremendous muscular power.
The Agricultural Building had an almost endless variety of articles, such
as cocoa, chocolate, and drugs from the Nethei'lands ; wood pulp from Sweden ;
odd-looking shoes and agricultural products from Denmark and from France,
the most striking of which was the Menier chocolate tower that weighed fifty
tons ; fertilizers and products from Uruguay ; an elephant tusk seven and a half
feet long ; woods, wools, and feathers from the Cape of Good Hope ; a Zulu six
feet and seven and a half inches tall ; a Canadian cheese weighing eleven tons,
with other exhibits from various countries, and specimens of what are grown in
most of our own States. The articles were so numerous that a list is too lengthy
to be inserted in these pages.
THE VIKING SHIP.
1. Appearance when discovered.
2. After restoration.
3. Rudder, shield, and dragon-head.
(495)
496
ADMINISTRATION OF CLEVELAND.
The Manufactures aud Liberal Arts Building was of such unprecedented
size that its ground area was more than thirty acres, and its gallery space forty-
four acres. Its roof structure surpassed any ever made, and it was the largest
building in the world. So vast indeed was it that it is worth our while to ini-
j^ress it upon our
,..-'^ ' - minds by several
comparisons. Any
church in Chicago,
which contains nu-
merous large ones,
can be placed in
the vestibule of St.
Peter's at Rome,
but the latter is only
one-third of the
size of the Manu-
factures and Lib-
eral Arts Building.
The Coliseum of ancient Rome would seat 80,000 persons, Ijut in the central
hall of the Chicago building, which is a single room without a supporting
•column, 75,000 people could be comfortably seated, while the building itself
would seat 300,000 . .
persons. The iron ' ■
and steel in tlie
roof would build
two Brooklyn
bridges, and it re-
quired eleven acres
of glass to 'provide
for the skylights.
In its construction
17,000,000 feet of
lumber, 13,000,000
pounds of steel, and
2,000,000 pounds
of iron were used, with a total cost of $1,700,000. The ground plan was twice
the size of the pyramid of Cheops.
We have recorded enough, liowever, to give some idea of the wealth of
treasures exhibited at Chicago in 1893, and which drew visitors from all parts
of the world. It is not worth while to refer at length to the display of the
THE GRAND WORK BY THE STATES.
497
foreign countries, for those who had the j^leasure of looking upon them will
always carry their pleasant memory, while those who were deprived of the privi-
lege can gain no adequate idea from the most extended description. The Mid-
way Plaisance was a unique featui-e, with its Hungarian Orpheum, Lapland
Village, Dahomey Village, the captive balloon, Chinese Village, Austrian Village,
Cyclorama of the volcano of Kilauea, the Algerian and Tunisian Village, the
Ferris Wheel, the never-to-be-forgotten street in Cairo, the numerous natives,
and other scenes that were not always on the highest jilane of morality.
THE GRAND WORK BY THE STATES.
We as Americans are prone to forget some of the important events in our
history. The memory of them fades too soon. A hundred years must pass
before our country will look upon another Columbian Exposition. That, in
the nature of things, will surpass the one in 1893, as far as that surpassed the
ordinary country fairs of our grandparents. When that great year — 1992 —
comes around, none of us will be here to look upon its wonders. It seems
proper, therefore, that, in dismissing the subject, we should place on record the
amount contributed by each State, without which the grand success of the
enterprise could never have been attained.
Alabama $38,
Arizona 30.
Arkansas 55,
California 550
Colorado. . . .
Connecticut .
Delaware . • .
Florida
Georgia
Idaho
Illinois
lei
] 0(),
1 00,
800,
Indiana 1 35
Iowa 1 30
Kansas 165,
Kentucky 1 75,
Louisiana 36
Elaine 57,
Maryland 60,
IMassachusetts 175
Michigan 275.
Minnesota 1 50
Jlississippi 25
Missouri 150,
Montana 100
000
000
,000
,000
,000
,000
,000
.000
000
OOo
000
,000
,000
000
000
,000
000
000
1100
000
,000
,000
000
000
Nebraska $85,000
Nevada 10,000
New Hampshire 25,000
New Jersey 130,000
New Mexico 35,000
New York 600,000
Nortli Carolina 45,000
North Dakota 7o,000
Ohio 200,000
Oklahoma 17, .500
Oregon 60,000
Pennsylvania 360,000
Rhode Island 57, 500
South Carolina 5O.000
South Dakota 85,000
Tennessee 25,000
Texas 40,000
Utah .50,600
Yermont 39,750
Virginia 75,000
Washington 100,000
West Virginia 40,000
Wisconsin 212,000
Wyoming. 30,000
Total $6,060,350
The islands composing the group known under the general name of
32
498 ADMINISTRATION OF CLEVELAND.
Hawaii have long been of interest to different nations, and especially to our
country. A treaty was made in 1849 between Hawaii and the United States,
which provided for commerce and the extradition of criminals, and in 1875 a
reciprocity treaty was concluded. This gave a marked impetus to the sugar
industry, which was almost wholly in the hands of foreigners. Furtlier treaty
rights were confirmed by Congress in 1891.
David Kalakaua became king of Hawaii in 1874. He had slight ability,
and was fonder of the pleasui-es of life than of measures for the good of his
country and subjects. He was displeased to see the hold gained by foreigners
in his country and their rapidly growing power. He joined with the native Leg-
islature in its cry of " Hawaii for the Hawaiians," and did all he could to check
the material progress of the islands. Progressive men, however, gained control,
and in 1887 Kalakaua was compelled to sign a new constitution which deprived
him of all but a shadow of authority. The white residents were granted the
right of suffrage and closer relations were established with the United States.
While engaged in negotiating a treaty with our country Kalakaua died, in
1891, in San Francisco, and his sister, Liliuokalani, succeeded him as queen.
She was much of the same mould as her brother, but of a more revengeful
nature. She was angered against the foreigners and the jirogressive party, and
alert for an opportunity to strike them a fatal blow. She thought the time had
come in January, 1893, when the leading party was bitterly divided over im-
portant measures. She summoned the Legislature and urged it to adopt a new
constitution, which took away the right of suffrage fi-om the white residents and
restored to the crown the many privileges that had been taken from it. She
was so radical in her policy that her friends induced her to modify it in several
respects. She was thoroughly distrusted by the white residents, who did not
doubt that she would break all her promises the moment the pretext offered.
Nor would they have been surprised if a general massacte of the white inhab-
itants were ordered.
So deep-seated was the alarm that the American residents appealed for
protection to the United States man-of-war Boston, which was lying in the
harbor of Honolulu. The commander landed a company of marines, against
the protest of the queen's minister of foreign affairs and the governor of the
island, although they were assured that no attempt would be made to interfere
with their rights. In the face of this assurance, a revolt took place, the
monarchy was declared at an end, and a provisional government was organized,
to continue until terms of union with the United States could be agreed upon.
More decided steps followed. On February 1, 1894, the government was
formally placed under the jirotectorate of the United States, and the Stars and
Strijies was hoisted over the government building by a party of marines. There
PRESIDENT CLEVELAND'S CHANGE OF POLICY.
499
^as a strong sentiment in favor of annexation, and the American minister was
highly pleased.
President Harrison was of the same mind, and authoiized the presence on
the island of troops that might be needed to protect the lives and property of
Americans there, bnt he disavowed the protectorate. No doubt, however, he
favored the movement, bnt thought it wise to "make haste slowly."
In a short time, a treaty was framed which was accej^table to the President.
It provided that the government of Hawaii should remain as it was, the supreme
flower to be vested in a commissioner of the United States, with the right to
veto any of the acts of the local
government. The public debt was
-^-%tv.
to be assumed \>y the United States,
while Liliuokalani was to be pen-
sioned at the rate of |20,000 a
yeaj-, and her daughter was to
receive $150,000. President Hai-ri-
son urged upon the Senate the rati-
fication of the treaty, fearing that
delay would induce some other pov/er
to step in and take the prize.
PRESIDENT Cleveland's change
OF POLICY.
Such was the status when Pi'esi-
dent Cleveland came into office on
the 4th of March, 1893. His views
Avere the very opposite of his prede-
cessor's, and he took steps to enforce
them. He maintained there would
have been no revolution in Hawaii
had not the force of marines landed
from the Boston. He withdrew
the proposed treaty from the Senate, and sent James H. Blount, of Georgia, to
Hawaii as special commissioner to make an investigation of all that had occurred,
and to act in harmony with the views of the President. On the 1st of Api-il,
Blount caused the American flag to be hauled down, and formally dissolved the
protectorate. Minister Stevens was recalled and succeeded by Mr. Blount as
minister plenipotentiary. Steps were taken to restore Liliuokalani, and her own
l)rutal stubbornness was all that prevented. She was determined to have the lives
of the leaders who had deposed her, and to banish their families. This could
JAMES G. BLAINE.
n(S:ll 1-1893.)
Secretary of Slate under Harrison's administration.
600 ADMINISTRATION OF GLEVELAND.
not be permitted, and the Dole government refused the request to yield its
authority to the queen.
The situation brought President Cleveland to a standstill, for he had first
to obtain the authority of Congress in order to use force, and that body was so
opposed to his course that it would never consent to aid him. The provisional
government grew stronger, and sjjeedily suppressed a rebellion that was set on
foot by the queen. It won the respect of its enemies by showing clemency to
the plotters, when it would have been legally justified in putting the leaders to
death. The queen was arrested, whereupon she solemnly renounced for herself
and heirs all claim to the throne, urged her subjects to do the same, and
declared her allegiance to the republic.
ANNEXATION OF HAWAII.
Let us anticipate a few events. In May, 1898, Representative Newlands
introduced into the House a resolution providing for the annexation of Hawaii.
Considerable opposition developed in the Senate, but the final vote was carried,
July 6th, by 42 to 21. The President appointed as members of the commission.
Senators Shelby M. Cullom, of Illinois; John T. Morgan, of Alabama; Repre-
sentative Robert R. Hitt, of Illinois; and President Dole and Chief Justice
Judd, of the Hawaiian Republic. All the congressmen named were members
of the Committee on Foreign Relations and Foreign Affairs.
The news of the admission of Hawaii to the Union was received in the
islands with great rejoicing. A salute of one hundred guns was fired on the
Executive Building grounds at Honolulu, and the formal transfer, August 12th,
was attended with appropriate ceremonies. A full description of these interesting
islands, their history and their products, will be found in Chapter XXVI. of
this volume.
THE GREAT RAILROAD STRIKE OF 1894.
One of the greatest railroad strikes in this country occurred in the sunnner
of 1894. Early in the spring of that year, the Pullman Car Company, whosa.
woi'ks are near Chicago, notified their employes that they had to choose between
accepting a reduction in their wages or having the works closed. They accepted
the cut, although the reduction was from twenty-five to fifty per cent, of what
they had been receiving.
When May came, the distressed workmen declared it impossible for them
and their families to live on their meagre pay. They demanded a restoration
of the old rates; but the company refused, affirming that they were running the
business at a loss and solely with a view of keeping the men at work. On the
11th of May, 3,000 workmen, a majority of the whole number, quit labor and
the company closed their works.
THE GREAT EAILBOAD STRIKE OF lS9i.
501
The American Railway Uniou assumed charge of the strike and ordered
a boycott of all Pullman cars. Eugene V. Debs was the president of the Union,
and his sweeping order foibade all engineers, brakemen, and switchmen to
handle the Pullman cars on every road that used them. This was far-reaching,
since the Pullman cars are used on almost every line in the country.
A demand was made upon the Pullman Company to submit the question
to arbitration, but the directors refused on the ground that there was nothing to
arbitrate, the question being whether or not they were to be permitted to operate
their own works for themselves. A Ijoycott was declared on all roads running
ON IHJi BALTIMORE AJ\D OHIO KAILWAY.
out of Chicago, beginning on the Illinois Central. Warning was given to every
road handling the Pullman cars that its employes would be called out, and, if
that did not prove effective, every trade in the country would be ordered to
strike.
The railroad companies were under heavy bonds to draw the Pullman cars,
and it would have cost large sums of money to break their contracts. They
refused to boycott, and, on June 26tli, President Debs declared a boycott on
twenty-two roads running out of Chicago, and ordered the committees repre-
senting the employes to call out the workmen without an hour's unnecessary
delay.
•502 ADMINISTRATION OF CLEVELAND.
The strike rapidly spread. Debs urged the employes to refrain from injur-
ing the property of their employers, but such advice is always thrown away.
Very soon rioting broke out, trains were derailed, and men who attempted to
take the strikers' places were savagely maltreated. There was such a general
block of freight that prices of the necessaries of life rose in Chicago and actual
suffering impended. So much property was destroyed that the companies called
on the city and county authorities for protection. The men sent to cope with
the strikers were too few, and when Governor Altgeld forwarded troops to the
scenes of the outbreaks, they also were too weak, and many of the militia
openly showed their sympathy with the mob.
Growing bolder, the strikers checked the mails and postal service and re-
sisted deputy marshals. This brought the national government into the quarrel,
since it is bound to provide for the safe transmission of the mails. On July 2d
a Federal writ was issued covering the judicial district of northern Illinois, for-
bidding all interference with the United States mails and with interstate railway
commerce. Several leaders of the strike were arrested, whereat the mob became
more threatening than ever. The government having been notified that Federal
troops were necessary to enforce the orders of the courts in Chicago, a strong-
force of cavalry, artillery, and infantry was sent thither. Governor Altgeld pro-
tested, and President Cleveland told him in effect to attend to his own business
and sent more troops to the Lake City.
There were several collisions between the mob and military, in which a
number of the former were killed. Buildings were fired, trains ditched, and tlie
violence increased, whereupon the President dispatched more troops thither, with
the warning that if necessary he would call out the whole United States army to
put down the lawbreakers.
The strike, which was pressed almost wholly by foreigners, was not confined
to Chicago. A strong antipathy is felt toward railroads in California, owing to
what some believe have been the wrongful means employed by such corporations
on the Pacific coast.
There were ugly outbreaks in Los Angeles, Oakland, and Sacramento, the
difficulty being intensified by the refusal of the militia to act against the strikers.
A force of regular soldiers, while hurrying over the railroad to the scene of the
disturbance, was ditched by the strikers and several killed and badly hurt. The
incensed soldiers were eager for a chance to reach the strikers, but they were
under fine discipline and their officers showed great self-restraint.
END OF THE STRIKE.
The course of all violent strikes is short. The savage acts repel whatever
sympathy may have been felt for the workingmen at first. Few of the nsal suf-
COXEY'S COMMONWEAL ARMY. 503
ferers took part in the turbulent acts. It was the foreigners and the desperate
men who used the grievances as a pretext for tlieir outlawry, in which they were
afraid to indulge at other times. Then, too, the stern, repressive measures of
President Cleveland had a salutary effect. Many labor organizations when
called upon to strike rej)lied with expressions of sympathy, but decided to keep
at work. President Debs, Vice-President Howard, and other prominent mem-
bers of the American Railway Union were arrested, July 10th, on the charge of
obstructing the United States mails and interfering with the execution of the
laws of the United States. A number — forty-three in all — was indicted by
the Federal grand jury, July 19th, and the bonds were fixed at $10,000 each.
Bail was offered, but they declined to accept it and went to jail. On December
14th, Debs was sentenced to six months' imprisonment for contempt, the terms
of the others being fixed at three months.
On August 5th, the general committee of strikers officially declared the
strike at an end in Chicago, and their action was speedily imitated elsewhere.
coxey's commonweal army.
One of the most remarkable ajjpeals made directly to the law-making
powers by the unemployed was that of Coxey's " Commonweal Army." De-
spite some of its grotesque features, it was deserving of more sym2)athy than it
received, for it represented a pitiful phase of human poverty and suffering.
The scheme was that of J. S. Coxey, of Massillon, Ohio, who left that town
on the 25th of March, 1894, with some seveiity-five men. They carried no
weapons, and believed they would gather enough recruits on the road to number
100,000 by the time they reached Washington, where their demands made
directly upon Congress would be so imposing that that body would not dare
refuse them. They intended to ask for the passage of two acts: the first to
provide for the issue of $500,000,000 in legal-tender notes, to be expended
under the direction of the secretary of war at the rate of $20,000,000 monthly,
in the construction of roads in different parts of the country; the second to
authorize any State, city, or village to deposit in the United States treasury non-
interest-bearing bonds, not exceeding in amount one-half the assessed valuation
of its property, on which the secretary of the treasury should issue legal-tender
notes.
This unique enterprise caused some misgiving, for it was feared that such
an immense aggregation of the unemployed would result in turbulence and
serious acts of violence. Few could restrain sympathy for the object of the
" army," while condemniug the means adopted to make its purpose effective.
The result, however, was a dismal fiasco. The trampers committed no
depredations, and when they approached a town and camped near it the authori-
504 ADMINISTRATION OF CLEVELAND.
ties and citizens were quite willing to supply their immediate wants in order to
get rid of them. But, while a good many recruits were added, fully as many
deserted. At no time did Coxey's army number more than 500 men, and
when it reached Washington on the 1st of May it included precisely 336
persons, who j^ai'aded through the streets. Upon attempting to enter the
Capitol gi'ounds they Avere excluded by the j)olice. Coxey and two of his
friends disregarded the commands, and were arrested and fined five dollars
apiece and sentenced to twenty days' imprisonment for violating the statute
against cari'ying a banner on the grounds and in not " keeping off the grass."
The army quickly dissolved and was heard of no more.
Similar organizations started from Oregon, Montana, Colorado, Wyoming,
and different points for Washington. In some instances disreputable characters
joined them and committed disorderly acts. In the State of Washington they
seized a railroad train, had a vicious fight with deputy marshals, and it was
necessary to call out the militia to subdue them. Trouble occurred in Kansas,
Illinois, and Pennsylvania. The total strength of the six industrial ai-niies
never reached 6,000.
ADMISSION OF UTAH.
On the 4th of January, 1896, Utah became the forty-fifth member of the
Federal Union. The symbolical star on the flag is at the extreme right of the
fourth row from the top. The size of the national flag was also changed from
6 by 5 feet to 5 feet 6 inches by 4 feet 4 inches.
Utah has been made chiefly famous tlirough the Mormons, who emigrated
thither before the discovery of gold in California. Its size is about double that
of the State of New York, and its chief resources are mineral and agricultural.
It forms a part of the Mexican cession of 1848, and its name is derived from
the Ute or Utah Indians. Salt Lake City was founded, and Utah asked for
admission into the Union in 1849, liut was refused. A territorial government
was organized in 1860, with Brigham Young as governor. It has been shown
elsewhere that in 1857 it was necessary to send Federal troops to Utah to
enforce obedience to the laws. Polygamy debarred its admission to the Union
for many years.
The constitution of the State allows women to vote, hold office, and sit on
juries, and a trial jury numbers eight instead of twelve persons, three-fourths
of whom may render a verdict in civil cases, but unanimity is required to con-
vict of crime. The constitution also forbids polygamy, and the Mormon
authorities maintain that it is not practiced excejit where plural marriages were
contracted before the passage of the United States law prohibiting such unions.
It has been said by scientists that the power which goes to waste at Niagara
Falls would, if proj^erly utilized, operate all the machinery in the world. The
NIA GA RA HA RNESSED.
505
discoveries made in electricity have turned attention to this inconceivable storage
ofjiower, with the result that Niagara has been practically "harnessed."
In 1886, the Niagara Falls Power Company was incorporated, followed
three years later by
that of the Cataract
Construction Com-
pany. Work began
in October, 1890,
a n d three more
years were required
to complete the tun-
n e 1 , the surface-
canal, and the pre-
liminary wheel-pits.
The first dis-
tribution of power
was made in August,
18U5, to the works
of the Pittsburg Re-
duction Company,
near the canal.
O t h e r companies
were added, and the
city of Buflflilo, in
December, 18 9 5,
granted a franchise
to the company to
supply power to that
city. The first
customer was the
Buffalo Railway
Company. Novem-
ber 15, 1896, at
midnight, the cur-
rent was transmitted
by a pole line, con-
sisting of three continuous cables of uninsulated copper, whose total length was
seventy-eight miles. Since that date, the street cars have been operated by
the same motor, with more industrial points continually added.
While our past histoiy shows that we have had only two wars with Great
A GOLD PKOSPECTING PAETY ON DEBATABLE LAND IN
BRITISH GUIANA.
506 ADMINISTRATION OF CLEVELAND.
Britain, yet it shows also that talk of war has been heard fully a score of times.
Long after 1812, we were extremely sensitive as regarded the nation that the
majority of Americans looked upon as our hereditary foe, and the calls for war
have been sounded in Congress and throughout the land far oftener than most
peojDle suspect. That such a calamity to mankind has been turned aside is due
mainly to the good sense and mutual forbearance of the majority of people in
both countries. England and the United States are the two great English-
speaking nations. Together they are stronger than all the world combined.
With the same language, the same literature, objects, aims, and religion, a war
between them would be the most awful catastrophe that could befall humanity.
The last flurry with the "mother country " occurred in the closing weeks
of 1895, and related to Venezuela, which had been at variance with England
for many years. Until 1810, the territory lying between the mouths of the
Orinoco and the Amazon was known as the Guianas. In the year named
Spain ceded a large part of the country to Venezuela, and in 1814 Holland
ceded another to Great Britain. The boundary between the Spanish and Dutch
possessions had never been fixed by treaty, and the dispute between England
and Venezuela lasted until 1887, when diplomatic relations were broken off
between the two countries.
Venezuela asked that the dispute might be submitted to arbitration, but
England would not agree, though the territory in question was greater in extent
than the State of New York. The United States was naturally interested, for
the "Monroe Doctrine" was involved, and in February, 1895, Congress passed
a joint T'esolution, approving the suggestion of the President that the question
should be submitted to arbitration, but England still refused. A lengthy
correspondence took place between Great Britain and this country, and, on
December 17, 1895, in submitting it to Congress, President Cleveland asked for
authority from that body to appoint a commission to determine the merits of the
boundary dispute, as a guide to the government in deciding its line of action,
insisting further that, if England maintained her unwarrantable course, the
United States should resist " by every means in its power, as a willful aggression
upon its rights and interests, the appropriation by Great Britain of any lands, or
the exercise of governmental jurisdiction over any territory, which after investi-
gation we have determined of right belongs to Venezuela."
There was no mistaking the warlike tone of these words. The country and
Congress instantly fired up and the land resounded with war talk. Congress
immediately appropriated the sum of $100,000 for the expense of the commission
of inquiry, and two days later the Senate passed the bill without a vote in
opposition. The committee was named on the 1st of the following Jaiuiary and
promptly began its work.
PUE^IDEXTIAL ELECTIOX OF 1S96.
507
But the sober second thouglit of wise men in Ixith countries soon made
itself felt. Without prolonging the story, it may be said that the dispute
finally went to arbitration, February 2, 1897, where it should have gone in the
first place, and it was settled to the full satisfaction of Great Britain, the United
States, and Venezuela. Another fact may as well be conceded, without any
refipction upon our patriotism : Had England acce'fited our challenge to war, for
which she was fully prepared with her invincible navy, and we were in a state
COUDERT.
WHITE.
ILVBY.
GILIIAIT.
BREWER.
VENEZUELAN COMMISSION.
Appointed by President Cleveland. .lanuary. 1896. to determine the true boundary between British Guiana and Venezuela.
of unreadiness, the United States would have been taught a lesson that she
would have remembered for centuries to come. Thank God, the trial was spared
to us and in truth can never come, while common sense reions.
THE PRESinENTIAL ELECTIOX OF 189G.
The presidential election in the fall of 1896 was a remarkable one. The
month of Se]itember had hardly opened when there were eight presidential
tickets in the field. Given in the order of their nominations they were:
508
ADMINISTRATION OF CLEVELAND.
Prohibition (May 27tli) — Joshua Levering, of Maryland; Hale Johnson,
of Illinois.
National Party, Free Silver, Woman-Suffrage offshoot of the regular Pro-
hibition (May 28th) — Charles E. Bentley, of Nebraska; James H. Southgate,
of North Carolina.
Republican (June 18th) — William McKinley, of Ohio; Garret A. Hobart,
of New Jersey.
Socialist-Labor (July 4th) — Charles H. Matchett, of New York; Matthew
Maguire, of New Jersey.
Democratic (July lOtli to 11th)
— William Jennings Bryan, of
Nebraska ; Arthur Sewall, of Maine.
People's Party (July 24th to
25th) — AVilliam Jennings Bryan, of
Nebraska; Thomas E. Watson, of
Georgia.
National Democi-atic Party
(September 8th) — John McAuley
Palmer, of Illinois; Simon Boliver
Buckner, of Kentucky.
As usual, the real contest was
[ between the Democrats and Republi-
cans. The platform of the former
I demanded the free coinage of silver,
which was opposed by the Rej^ubli-
I cans, who insisted upon preserving
the existing gold standard. This
I question caused a split in each of the
leading parties. When the Repub-
lican nominating convention inserted
the gold and silver plank in its platform. Senator Teller, of Colorado, led
thirty-two delegates in their formal withdrawal from the convention. A lai-ge
majority of those to the National Democratic Convention favored the free
coinage of silver in the face of an urgent appeal against it by President
Cleveland. They would accept no compromise, and, after "jamming" through
their platform and nominating Mr. Bryan, they made Arthur Sewall their
candidate for Vice-President, though he was president of a national bank and a
believer in the gold standard.
In consequence of this action, the Populists or Peo2>le's Party refused to
WM. JENNINGS BRYAN.
Democratic candidate for President. lS9t;.
PRESIDENTIAL ELECTION OF 189G. 509
accept the candidature of Mr. Sewall, and put in his pUice the name of Thomas
E. AVatson, who was an uncompromising Popuhst.
There was also a revolt among the "Sound Money Democrats," as they
were termed. Although they knew they had no earthly chance of winning,
they were determined to place themselves on record, and, after all the other
tickets were in the field, they put Palmer and Buckner in nomination. In their
platform they conilemned the platform adopted by the silver men and the tariff
policy of the Republicans. They favored tarifi' for revenue only, the single
gold standard, a l.)ank currency under govermental supervision, international
arbitration, and the maintenance of the independence and authority of the
Supreme Court.
Mr. Bryan threw all his energies into the canvass and displayed wonderful
industry and vigor. He made whirlwind tours through the country, speaking
several times a day and in the evening, and won many converts. Had the
election taken place a few weeks earlier than the regular date, it is quite probable
he would have won. Mr. McKinley made no speech-making tours, but talked
many times to the crowds who called upon him at his home in Canton, Ohio.
The official vote in November was as follows :
McKinley and Hobart, Republican, 7,101,401 popular votes; 271 electoral
votes.
Biy;in and Sewall, Democrat and Populist, 6,470,656 popular votes; 176
electoral votes.
Levering and Johnson, Prohibition, 132,007 popular votes.
Palmer and Buckner, National Democrat, 133,148 popular votes.
Matchett and Maguire, Socialist-Labor, 36,274 popular votes.
Bentley and Southgate, Free Silver Prohibition, 13,969 popular votes.
Despite the political upheavals that periodically occur throughout our
country, it steadily advances in prosperity, progress and growth. Its resources
were limitless, and the settlement of the vast fertile areas in the West and
Northwest went on at an extraordinary rate. In no section was this so strik-
ingly the fact as in the Northwest. So great indeed was the growth in that
respect that the subject warrants the special chapter that follows.
CORNER AT TOP OF STAIRWAY NEW CONGRESSIONAIi LIBRARY, WASHINGTON, DC.
(olO)
CHAPTER XXIII.
ADTVIINISTRATION OK CLKVELAND (SECOND-
CONCLUDED), 1S93-1897.
THE GREAT NORTHWEST.
BV ALBERT SHAW, I'H.D.,
Editor "Review of Reviews," formcdi/ editor of ■' Miiuieapolis Tribune'
Settling the Northwest— The Face of the Country Transformed— Clearing Away the Forests and its
Effects— Tree-planting on the Prairies— Pioneer Life in the Seventies— The Granary of the World—
The Northwestern Farmer— Transportation and Other Industries— Business Cities and Centres-
United Public Action and its Influence— The Indian Question— Other Elements of Population-
Society and General Culture.
"Northwest" is a shifting, uncertain designation. The term has been
used to cover the Avliole stretch of country from
Pittsburg to Puget Sound, north of the Ohio
River and the thirty-seventh j^arallel of latitude.
Popuhirly it signified the old Northwestern Terri-
tory — including Ohio, Indiana, Illinois, Michigan,
and Wisconsin — until about the time of the Civil
\Var. In the decade following the war, Illinois
and Iowa were largely in the minds of men who
spoke of the Northwest. From 1870 to 1880,
Iowa, Kansas, northern Missouri, and Nebraska
i-oiistituted the most stirring and favored I'egion —
the Northwest par excellence. But the past dec-
ade has witnessed a remarkable develojsment in
the Dakotas; and Minnesota, North and South
Dakota, and Montana, witli Iowa and Nebraska,
are perhaps the States most familiarly comprised in the idea of the Northwest.
These States are really in the heart of the continent — midway between oceans;
and perhaps by common consent the terra Northwest will, a decade hence,
have moved on and taken hrm possession of Oregon, Washington, Idaho,
and Wyoming, while ultimately Alaska may succeed to the designation.
But for the present the Northwest is the great arable wedge lying between
(511)
ALBERT fSllAW.
512 ADMINISTRATION OF CLEVELAND.
the Mississippi and Missouri Rivers, and l)etween the Missouri River and the
Rocky Mountains. It is a region that is pretty clearly defined upon a map
showing physical characteristics. For the most part, it is a region of great
natural fertility, of regular north-temperate climate, of moderate but sufficient
rainfall, of scant forests and great prairie expanses, and of high average alti-
tude without mountains. In a word, it is a region that was adapted by nature to
the cultivation of the cereals and leading crops of the temperate zone without
arduous and time-consuming processes for subduing the wilderness and redeem-
ing the soil.
SETTLING THE NORTHWEST.
This "New Northwest," in civilization and in all its significant character-
istics, is the creature of the vast impulse that the successful termination of the
war gave the nation. No other extensive area was ever settled under similar
conditions. The homestead laws, the new American system of railroad building,
and the unprecedented demand for staple food products in the industrial centres
at home and abroad, peopled the prairies as if by magic. Until 1870, fixing
the date very roughly, transportation facilities followed colonization. The rail-
roads were built to serve and stimulate a traffic that already existed. The
pioneers had done a generation's work before the iron road overtook them. In
the past two decades all has been changed. The railroads have been the
pioneers and colonizers. They have invaded the solitary wilderness, and the
population has followed. Much of the land has belonged to the roads, through
subsidy grants, but the greater part of the mileage has been laid without the
encouragement of land subsidies or other bonuses, by railway corporations that
were willing to look to the future for their reward.
It would be almost impossible to overestimate the significance of this
method of colonization. Within a few years it has transformed the buffiilo
ranges into the world's most extensive fields of wheat and corn. A region
comprising northern and western Minnesota and the two Dakotas, which con-
tributed practically nothing to the country's wheat supply twelve or fifteen
years ago, has, by this system of railroad colonization, reached an annual pro-
duction of 100,000,000 bushels of wheat alone — about one-fourth of the crop
of the entire country. In like manner, 2)arts of western Iowa, Nebraska, and
Kansas, that produced no corn before 1875 or 1880, are now the centre of corn-
raising, and yield many hundreds of millions of bushels annually. These
regions enter as totally new factors into the world's supply of foods and raw
materials. A great area of this new territory might be defined that was
inhabited in 1870 by less than a million people, in 1880 by more than three
millions, and in 1899 by from eight to ten millions.
Let us imasrine a man from the East who has visited the Northwestern
SETTLING THE NORTHWEST.
5ia
States and Territories at some time between the years 1870 and 1875, and wlio
retains a strong impression of wliat lie saw, but wlio lias not been west of
Chicago since that time, until, in the World's Fair year, he determines upon a
new exploration of Iowa, Nebraska, the Datokas, Minnesota, and Wisconsin.
However well informed he had tried to keep himself through written descrip-
tions and statistical records of Western progress, he would see what nothing
but the evidence of his own eyes could have made him believe to be possible.
Iowa in 1870 was already producing a large crop of cereals, and was inhabited
A DISPUTE OVEK A BRAND
by a thriving, though very new, farming population. But the aspect of the
country was bare and uninviting, except in the vicinity of the older com-
munities on the Mississippi River. As one advanced across the State the farm-
houses were very small, and looked like isolated dry-goods boxes; there were
few well-built barns or farm buildings; and the struggling young cotton wood
and soft-maple saplings planted in close groves about the tiny houses were so
slight an obstruction to the sweep of vision across the open prairie that they only
seemed to emphasize the monotonous stretches of fertile, but uninteresting,
plain. Now the landscape is wholly transformed. A railroad ride in June
514 ADMINISTRATION OF CLEVELAND.
through the best parts of Iowa reminds one of a ride through some of the
pleasantest farming districts of England. The primitive "claim slianties" of
thirty years ago have given place to commodious farm-houses flanked by gi-eat
barns and hay-ricks, and the well-appointed structures of a prosperous agricul-
ture. In the rich, deep meadows herds of fine-blooded cattle are grazing.
What was once a blank, dreary landscape is now garden-like and inviting. The
poor little saplings of the earlier days, which seemed to be apologizing to the
robust corn-stalks in the neigliboring fields, have grown on that deep soil into
great, spreading trees. One can easily imagine, as he looks off" in every direc-
tion and notes a wooded horizon, that he is — as in Ohio, Indiana, or Kentucky —
in a farming region which has been cleared out of primeval forests. Tliei'e are
many towns I might mention which twenty-five years ago, with their new, wooden
shanties scattered over the bare face of the prairie, seemed the hottest place on
earth as the summer sun beat upon their unshaded streets and roofs, and
seemed the coldest places on earth when the fierce blizzards of winter swept
unchecked across the prairie expanses. To-day the density of shade in those
towns is deemed of positive detriment to health, and for sevei'al years past
there has been a systematic thinning out and trimming up of the great, cluster-
ing elms. Trees of from six to ten feet in girth are found everywhere by the
hundreds of thousands. Each farm-house is sheltered from winter winds by its
own dense groves. Many of the formers are able from the surplus growth of
wood upon their estates to provide themselves with a large and regular supply
of fuel. If I have dwelt at some length upon this picture of the transformation
of the bleak, grain-producing Iowa prairies of thirty years ago into the dairy
and live-stock farms of to-day, with their fragrant meadows and amjile groves,
it is because the picture is one which reveals so much as to the nature and
meaning of Northwestern progress.
CLEARING AWAY THE FORESTS AND ITS EFFECTS.
Not a little has been written regarding the rapid destruction of the vast
white-pine forests with which nature has covered large districts of Michigan,
Wisconsin, and IMinnesota. It is true that this denudation has progressed at a
rate with which nothing of a like character in the history of the world is com-
parable. It is also true, doubtless, that the clearing away of dense forest areas
has been attended with some inconvenient climatic results, and particularly with,
some objectionable effects ujjon the even distribution of rainfall and the regu-
larity of the flow of rivers. But most persons who have been alarmed at the
rapidity of forest destruction in the white-pine belt have wholly overlooked the
great compensating fects. It happens that the white-pine region is not esjie-
cially fertile, and that for some time to come it is not likely to acquire a pros-
516 ADMINISTRATION OF CLEVELAND.
jDerous agriculture. But adjacent to it and beyond it there was a vast region of
country which, though utterly treeless, was endowed with a marvelous richness
of soil and with a climate fitted for all the staple productions of the temperate
zone. This region embraced parts of Illinois, almost the whole of Iowa, south-
ern Minnesota, Kansas, Nebraska, South Dakota, North Dakota, and parts of
Montana — a region of imperial extent. Now, it ha2ipens that for every aci'e
of pine land that has been denuded in Michigan, uortliern Wisconsin, and
northern Minnesota there are somewhere in the great treeless region further
south and west two or three new farm-houses. The railroads, pushing ahead
of settlement out into the open prairie, have carried the white-pine lumber from
the gigantic sawmills of the Upper Mississippi and its tributaries ; and thus
aiillions of acres of land have been brought under cultivation by farmers who
could not have been housed in comfort but for the proximity of the pine forests.
The rapid clearing away of timber areas in Wisconsin has simply meant the
rapid settlement of North and South Dakota, western Iowa, and Nebraska.
TREE PLANTING ON THE PRAIRIES.
The settlement of these treeless regions means the successful growth on
every farm of at least several hundred trees.' Without attempting to be statis-
tical or exact, we miglit say that an acre of northern Minnesota pine trees
makes it possible for a farmer in Dakota or Nebraska to have a house, farm
buildings, and fences, with a holding of at least one hundred and sixty acres
upon which he will successfully cultivate several acres of forest trees of different
kinds. Even if the denuded pine lands of the region south and west of Lake
Superior would not readily jjroduce a second growth of dense forest — which, it
should be said in passing, they certainly will — their loss would be far more than
made good by the universal cultivation of forest trees in the prairie States. It
is at least comforting to reflect, when the friends of scientific forestry warn us
against the ruthless destruction of standing timber, that thus far at least in our
Western history we have simply been cutting down trees in order to put a roof
over the head of the man who was invading treeless regions for the purpose of
planting and nurturing a hundred times as many trees as had been destroyed
for his benefit! There is something almost inspiring in the contemplation of
millions of families, all the way from Minnesota to Colorado and Texas, living
in the shelter of these new pine houses and transforming the plains into a
shaded and fruitful emj^ire.
PIONEER LIFE IN THE SEVENTIES.
The enormous expansion of our railway systems will soon Uave made it
quite impossible for any of the younger generation to realize wbat hardships
were attendant upon such limited colonization of treeless prairie regions as pre-
PIONEER LIFE IN THE SEVENTIES.
517
ceded the iron rails. In 1876 I spent the summer in a part of Dakota to which
a considerable number of hardy but poor farmers had found their way and taken
up claims. They could not easily procure wood for houses, no other ordinary
building material was accessible, and they were living in half-underground
''dug-outs," so-called. There was much more pleasure and romance in the
pioneer experiences of my own ancestors a hundred veai's atjo. who wpre living
places, and shooting
n the
.The pluck
p i oneers,
lien and
in comfortable log-hou^-e^ with hui^e fue
abundant sujajjlies of deer and am
deep woods of southern Ohio
and industry of these Dakota
most of whom were Ii I'^li
NorwegianSjWon my lieai t
iest sympathy and n-
spect. Poor as the\
were, they maintained
one public institution
in common — namely,
a school, with its place
of public assemblage
The building had no flooi
but the beaten earth, and
its thick walls were bloc
of matted prairie turf, it
roof also being of sods
supported upon some
poles brought from -^
the scanty timber- ,
o;rowth along the maiiiin ^
"^ . . . ^ "^
of a prairie river. To-day "^
these poor pioneers are enjo}inc; ^^ " ^ -
their reward. Their vctlley is %
traversed by several railroads; sLuicE-OATiii.
]irosperous villages have sprang
up; their lands are of considerable value; they all live in well-built farm->
houses; their shade trees have grown to a height of fifty or sixty feet; a bus-
tling and ambitious city, with fine churches, opera-houses, electric illumination,
and the most advanced public educational system, is only a few miles away from
them. Such transformations have occurred, not alone in a few spots in Iowa
and South Dakota, but are common throughout a region that extends from the
British dominions to the Indian Territory, and from the Mississippi River to
518
ADMIXISTBATIOX OF CLEVELAXD.
X\
I'f
the Rocky Mountains — a region conijirising more than a lialf-raillion squi^re
miles.
THE GRAXARY OF THE WORLD.
Naturally the industrial lite of these Northwestern communities is based
■-olully uiMin agriculture. There is, per-
licijKs, haullv any other agricultural re-
gion of c(jual extent upon the face of the
e.iith that i-^ m) feitile and so well
adapted for the jiroduction of the most
nece^-ary articles of human food. During
the pa.-t decade the world's- markets have
Ixm notabh di^tuibed and affected, and
profound social change^ and political agi-
tatioub lune occurred in \arious remote
p arts f the
e a r t h. It is
w i t h i n
h u n d s
to as-
BETWEEN THE
XllLiL,S
sert that the mo>t
potent and far-reach-
ing factor in the alten
conditions of the industrial
world during these recent
years has been the sudden
invasion and utilization of this
great new farming region. Most parts of the world which are fairly prosperous
do not produce staple food supplies in appreciable surplus quantities. Several
regions which are not highly prosperous sell surplus food products out of their
poverty rather than out of their abundance. That is to say, the people of
BARHEL-HOIST AND TUNNEL THROUGH THE
WASHBURN MILL.
THE NORTHWESTERN FARMER. 519
India and the people of Russia have often been obliged, in order to obtain
money to pay their taxes and other necessary expenses, to sell and send away
to prosperous England the wheat which they have needed for hungry mouths at
home. They have managed to subsist ujion coarser and cheaper food. But in
our Northwestern States the application of ingenious machinery to the cultiva-
tion of fertile and virgin soils has within the past twenty-five years precipitated
upon the world a stupendous new su])ply of cereals and of meats, produced in
quantities enormously greater than the people of the Northwestern States
could consume. These foodstuffs have powerfully affected agriculture in Ireland,
England, France, and Germany, and, in fact, in every other part of the accessible
and cultivated globe.
THE NORTHWESTERN FARMER.
So much has been written of late about the condition of the farmer in these
regions that it is pertinent to inquire who the Western farmer is. In the old
States the representative farmer is a man of long training in the difficult and
honorable art of diversified agriculture. He knows much of soils, of crops and
tlieir wise rotation, of domestic animals and their breeding, and of a hundred
rofitable market. They
hope that the first two crops may render them the possessor of an unincumbered
estate, supplied with modest buildings, and with a reasonable quantity of
machinery and live stock. Sometimes they succeed beyond their anticijiations.
In many instances the chances go against them. They live on the land, and the
title is invested in them; but they are using borrowed capital, use it unskillfully,
meet an adverse season or two, lose through foreclosure that which has cost
them nothing except a year or two of energy spent in what is more nearly akin
to gambling than to farming, and finally help to swell the great chorus that
520
ADMINISTRATION OF CLEVELAND.
calls the world to witness the distress of Western agriculture. It cannot be
said too emphatically that real agriculture in the West is safe and ^jrosperous,
and that the unfortunates are the inexperienced persons, usually without capital,
who attempt to raise a single crop on new land. For many of them it would
be about as wise to take borrowed money and speculate in wheat in the Chicago
bucket-shops.
The great majority, however, of these inexperienced and capital-less wheat
and corn producers gradually be-
come farmers. It is inevitable, at , ^^v k_<\ t,
first, that a country oj)ened by the
railroads for the express purpose
of obtaining the largest possible
freightage of cereals should for a
MOSSBK^.
few seasons be a "single-crop country." Often the seed-grain is suj^plied on
loan by the roads themselves. Tliey charge " what the traffic will bear." The
grain is all, or nearly all, marketed through long series of elevators following
the tracks, at intervals of a few miles, and owned by some central company that
bears a close relation to the railroad. Thus the corporations which control
the transportation and handling of the grain in effect maintain for their own
advantage an exploitation of the entire regions that they traverse, through the
first years of settlement. Year by year the margin of cultivation extends hv-
TRANSPORTATION AND OTHER INDUSTRIES.
521
ther West, and the single-crop sort of farming tends to recede. Tlie wheat
growers produce more barley and oats and flax, try corn successfully, introduce
live stock and dairying, and thus begin to emerge as real farmers.
Unless this method of Western settlement is comprehended, it is not pos-
sible to understand the old Granger movement and the more recent legislative
conflicts between the farmers of Iowa, Nebraska, Kansas, Minnesota, and the
Dakotas, ou the one hand, and the great transportation and grain-handling coi-
porations on the other. It was fundamentally a question of the division of
profits. The railroads had
"made" the country: were they
entitled to allow the farmers
simply a return about equal to
the cost of jiroduction, keeping
for themselves the difference be-
tween the cost and the price in
the central markets, or were they
to base their charges upon the
cost of their service, and leave
the farmers to enjoy whatever
profits might arise from the pro-
duction of wheat or corn ? Out
of that protracted contest has
been developed the principle of
the public regulation of rates.
The position of these communi-
ties of farmers with interests so
similar, forming commonwealths
so singularly homogeneous, has
led to a reliance upon State aid
that is altogether unprecedented
in new and sparsely settled re-
gions, where individualism has usually been dominant, and governmental
activity relatively inferior.
TRANSPORTATION AND OTHER INDUSTRIES.
But agriculture, while the basis of Northwestern wealth, is not the sole
pursuit. Transportation has become in these regions a powerful interest,
because of the vast surplus agricultural product to be carried away, and of the
great quantities of lumber, coal, salt, and staple supplies in general, to be dis-
tributed throughout the new prairie communities. The transformation of the
ANCIENT BLOCK-HOUSE, ALASKA.
522 ADMINISTRATION OF CLEVELAND.
pine forests into the homes of several million j^eople has, of course, developed
marvelous sawmill and building industries; and the furnishing of millions of
new homes has called into being great factories for the making of wooden
furniture, iron stoves, and all kinds of household supplies. In response to the
demand for agricultural implements and machinery with which to cultivate five
hundred million acres of newly utilized wild land, there have come into exist-
ence numerous great establishments for the making of machines that have been
especially invented to meet the peculiarities and exigencies of Western farm life.
Through Illinois, Iowa, Nebraska, and Kansas, Indian com has become a
greater j^roduct in quantity and value than wheat; while in Wisconsin, Minne-
sota, and North and South Dakota the wheat is decidedly the preponderant
croj:). Although in addition to oats and barley, which flourish in all the
Western States, it has been found possible to increase the acreage of maize in
the northern tier, it is now believed that the most profitable alternate crop
in the latitude of Minneapolis and St. Paul is to be flax. Already a region
including parts of Wisconsin, Minnesota, Iowa, Nebraska, and the Dakotas has
become the most extensive area of flax culture in the whole world. The crop
has been produced simjily for the seed, which has supplied large linseed oil
factories in jMinneapolis, Chicago, and various Western places. But now it has
been discovered that the flax straw, which has heretofore been allowed to rot in
the fields as a valueless product, can be utilized for a fibre which will make a
satisfactory quality of .coarse linen fabrics. Linen mills have been established
in Minneapolis, and it is somewhat confidently predicted that in course of time
the linen industry of that ambitious city will reach proportions even greater
than its wonderful flour industry, which for a number of years has been without
a rival anywhere in the world.
THE " TWIN CITIES."
The railroad system of the Northwest has been developed in such a way
that no one centre may be fairly regarded as the commercial capital of the
region. Chicago, with its marvelous foresight, has thrown out lines of travel
that draw to itself much of the traffic which would seem normally to belong to
Minneapolis, St. Paul, and Duluth on the north, or to St. Louis and Kansas
City on the south. But in the region now under discussion, the famous "Twin
Cities," Minneapolis and St. Paul, constitute unquestionably the greatest and
most distinctive centre, both of business and of civilization. They are beauti-
fully situated, and they add to a long list of natural advantages very many
equally desirable attractions growing out of the entei-prising and ambitious fore-
thought of the inhabitants. They are cities of beautiful homes, pleasant parks,
€nter2:)rising municipal imj^rovements, advanced educational establishments, and
UNITED PUBLIC ACTION AND ITS INFLUENCE.
523
varied industi'ial interests. Each is a distinct urban community, although they
lie so near together that they constitute one general centre of commerce and
transportation when viewed from a distance. Their stimulating rivalry has had
the effect to keep each city alert and to prevent a listless, degenerate local
administration. About the Falls of St. Anthony, at Minneapolis, great manu-
facturing establishments are grouping themselves, and each year adds to the
certainty that these two picturesque and charming cities have before them a
must l»ri]li;int civic future.
THE FALLS OP ST. ANTHC
UNITED PUBLIC ACTION AXD ITS INFLUENCE.
The tendency to rely upon united public action is illustrated in the growth
of Northwestern educational systems. The universities of these commonwealths
are State universities. Professional education is under the State auspices and
control. The normal schools and the agricultural schools belong to the State.
The public high school provides intermediate instruction. The common
district school, supported jointly by local taxation and State subvention, gives
elementary education to the children of all classes. As the towns grow the
tendency to graft manual and technical coui'ses upon the ordinary public school
cui-rieulum is unmistakably strong. The Northwest, more than any other j^art
of the country, is disposed to make every kind of education a public function.
Radicalism has flourished in the homoireneous asfricultural society of the
524 ADMINISTRATION OF CLEVELAND.
Northwest. In the anti-monopoly conflict there seemed to have survived some
of the intensity of feeling that characterized the anti-slavery movement; and a
tinge of this fanatical quality has always been ajjparent in the Western and
Northwestern monetai-y heresies. But it is in the temperance movement that
this sweep of radical impulse has been most irresistible. It was natural that
the movement should become political and take the form of an agitation for
prohibition. The history of ^prohibition in Iowa, Kansas, and the Dakotas, and
of temperance legislation in Minnesota and Nebraska, reveals — even better
perhajis than the history of the anti-monopoly movement — the radicalism,
homogeneity, and powerful socializing tendencies of the Northwestern people.
Between these different agitations there has been in reality no slight degree of
relationship ; at least their origin is to be traced to the same general conditions
of society.
The extent to which a modern community resorts to State action depends
in no small measure upon the accumulation of private resources. Public or
organized initiative will be relatively strongest where the imjsulse to progress is
positive but the ability of individuals is small. There are few rich men in the
Northwest. Iowa, great as is the Hawkeye State, has no large city and no large
fortunes. Of Kansas the same thing may be said. The Dakotas have no rich
men and no cities. Minnesota has Minneapolis and St. Paul, and Nebraska
has Omaha; but otherwise these two States are farming communities, without
large cities or concentrated private capifal. Accordingly the recourse to public
action is comparatively easy. South Dakota farmers desire to guard against
drought by opening artesian wells for irrigation. They resort to State legisla-
tion and the sale of county bonds. North Dakota wheat-growers are unfor-
tunate in the failure of crops. They secui'e seed-wheat through State action
and their county governments. A similarity of condition fosters associated
action and facilitates the progress of popular movements.
In such a society the spirit of action is intense. If there are few philoso-
phers, there is remarkable diffiision of popular knowledge and elementary
education. The dry atmosphere and the cold winters are nerve-stimulants, and
life seems to have a higher tension and velocity than in other parts of the
country.
THE INDIAN QUESTION.
The Northwest presents a series of very interesting race problems. The
first one, chronologically at least, is the problem that the American Indian pre-
sents. II is not so long ago since the Indian was in possession of a very large
portion of the region we are now considering. A number of tribes were gradu-
ally removed further West, or were assigned to districts in the Indian Territory.
But most of them were concentrated in large reservations in Minnesota,
OTHER ELEMENTS OF POPULATION.
525
Nebraska, North and South Dakota, Montana, and Wyoming. The past few
years have witnessed the rapid reduction of these reservations, and the adoption
of a policy which, if cai'ried to its h)gical conchision with energy and good
faith, will at an early date result in the universal education of the children, in
the abolition of the system of reservations, and in the settlement of the Indian
families upon farms of their own, as fully enfranchised American citizens.
OTHER ELEMENTS OF POPULATION.
The most potent single element of population in the Northwest is of New
England origin, although more than half of it has found its way into Iowa,
Minnesota, the Dakotas, Nebraska,
and Kansas, by filtration through
the intermediate States of New
York, Pennsylvania, Ohio, Mich-
igan, Wisconsin, and Illinois.
But there has also been a vast
direct immigration from abroad;
and this element has come more
largely, by far, from the northern
than from the central and south-
ern races of Eurojie. The Scan-
dinavian peninsula and the coun-
tries about the Baltic and North
Seas have sujiplied the Northwest
with a population that already
numbers millions. From Chi-
cago to Montana there is now a
population of full Scandinavian
origin, which, jierhaps, may be
regarded as about equal in lunnbers to the pojuilation that remains in Sweden
and Norway. In Wisconsin, Minnesota, North Dakota, and South Dakota, as
well as in northern Iowa and in some parts of Nebraska, there are whole counties
where the pojiulation is almost entirely Scandinavian. Upon all this portion of
the country for centuries to come the Scandinavian patronymics will be as firmly
fixed as they have been upon the Scotch and English coasts, where the North-
men intrenched themselves so numerously and firmly about nine hundred or a
thousand years ago. The Scantlinavians in the Northwest become Americans
with a rapidity unequaled by any other non-English-speaking element. Their
political ambition is as insatiate as that of the Irish, and they already secure
offices in numbers. Their devotion to the American school system, their polit-
LAKE-SHORE DRIVE, CHICAGO.
526 ADMINISTRATION OF CLEVELAND.
ical aptitude and ambition, and their enthusiastic pride in American citizen-
ship are thorouglily hopeful traits, and it is generally believed that they will
contribute much of strength and sturdiness to the splendid race of North-
western Americans that is to be developed in the Upper Mississippi and INIis-
souri Valleys. The Northwestern Germans evince a tendency to mass in towns,
as in Milwaukee, and to ju'eserve intact their language and national traits.
SOCIETY AND GENERAL CULTURE.
The large towns of the Northwest are notable for the great numbers of the
brightest and most energetic of the young business and professional men of the
East that they contain. While they lack the leisure class and the traditions of
culture that belong to older comuiunities, they may justly claim a far higher
percentage of college-bred men and of families of cultivated tastes than belong
to Eastern towns of like population. The intense pressure of business and
absorption of private jjursuits are, for the present, seeming obstacles to the
progress of Western communities in the highest things; but already the zeal
for public improvements and for social progress in all that pertains to true
culture is very great. Two decades hence no man will question the quality of
Northwestern civilization. If the East is losing something of its distinctive
Americanism through the influx of foreign elements and the decay of its old-
time farming communities, the growth of the Northwest, largely upon the basis
of New England blood and New England ideas, will make full compensation.
Everv nation of the world confronts its own racial or climatic or industrial
problems, and nowhere is there to be found an ideal state of happiness or virtue
or prosperity; but, all things considered, it may well be doubted whether there
exists any other extensive portion, either of America or of the world, in which
there is so little of pauperism, of crime, of social inequality, of ignorance, and
of chafing discontent, as in the agricultural Northwest that lies between Chicago
and the Kocky Mountains. Schools and churches are almost everywhere flour-
ishing in this region, and the necessities of life are not beyond the reach of any
element or class. There is a pleasantness, a hospitality, and a friendliness in
the social life of the Western communities that is certainly not surpassed.
CHAPTER XXIV.
ADNIINISTRAI^IOISI OK XIcIvlNLEY, 1897-1901,
William McKinley — Organization of "Greater New York" — Removal of General Grant's Remains to
Morningside Park — The Klondike Gold Excitement — Spain's Misrule in Cuba — Preliminary Events
of the Spanish-American War.
THi; TWENTY-FIFTH PRESIDENT.
WiLLiAJi McKinley was born at Niles, Trumbull County, Ohio, January
29, 1843, of Scotch ancestry, his father, Uuvid, being one of the pioneers of the
iron bnsiness in Eastern Ohio.
The pai-ents were in moderate
circumstances, and the son, having
prejiared for college, was matricu-
lated at Alleghany College, Mead-
ville, Pennsylvania, l)ut his poor
health soon obliged him to return
to his home. He liecame a school-
teacher at the salary of $25 jier
month, and, as was the custom in
many of the country districts, he
"boarded round;" that is, he made
his home by turns witli the different
patrons of his school. He used
rigid economy, his ambition being
to save enough money to pay his
way through college.
Destiny, however, had another
career awaiting him. The grcMt
Civil War was impending, and wdien
the news of the firing on Fort Sum-
ter was flashed tlirough the land,
his patriotic impulses were roused, and, like thousands of others, he hurried
to the defense of his country. He enlisted in Company E, as a jirivate. It
"was attached to the Twenty-third Ohio regiment, of which AV. S. Rosecrans
(.527)
WILLIAM McKINLEY.
l\M:',- .) One term, 1M7-19U1.
528 ADMINISTRATION OF McKINLEY.
was colonel and Rutlierford B. Hayes major. Of no other regiment can it be
said that it furnished two Presidents to the United States.
For more than a year Private McKinley carried a musket, and on the 15th
of April, 1862, was promoted to a sergeancy. Looking back to those stirring
•days of his young manhood. President McKinley has said :
"I always recall them with j^leasure. Tliose fourteen months that I served
in the ranks taught me a great deal. I was but a schoolboy when I went into
the army, and that first year was a formative period of my life, during which I
learned much of men and affairs. I have always been glad that I entered the
service as a private and served those months in that capacity."
McKinley made a good soldier and saw plenty of fighting. Six weeks
after leaving Columbus, his regiment was in the battle of Carnifex Ferry,
Western Virginia, where the only victories of the early days of the war were
Tvon. It was the hardest kind of work, hurrying back and forth through the
mountains, drenched by rains, and on short rations most of the time. The boy
did his work well and was soon ordered to Washington, where he became one
of the units in the splendid Army of the Potomac under General McClellan.
At Antietam, the bloodiest battle of the war, McKinley's gallantry was so
conspicuous that he was promoted to a lieutenancy. He was sent to West
Virginia again, where he was fighting continually. As an evidence of the kind
of work he did, it may be said that one morning his regiment breakfasted in
Pennsylvania, ate dinner in Maryland, and took supper in Virginia.
Winning promotion by his fine conduct, lie became captain, July 25, 1864,
and was brevetted major, on the recommendation of General Sheridan, for con-
spicuous bravery at Cedar Creek and Fisher's Hill. The title, "Major McKin-
ley," therefore, is the military one by which the President is remembered.
With the coming of peace, the young man found himself a veteran of the
war at the age of twenty-two, and compelled to decide upon the means of earning
his living. He took up the study of law, and was graduated from the Albany,
N. Y., law school, and admitted to the bar in 1867. He began practice in
Canton, Ohio, and, by his ability and conscientious devotion, soon achieved
success. He early showed an interest in politics, and was often called ujjon to
make public addresses. He identified himself with the Republican party, and
was elected district attorney in Stark County, which almost invariably went
Democratic. In 1876, he was elected to Congress, against a normal Democratic
majority, for five successive terms, being defeated when he ran the sixth time
through the gerrymandering of his district by his political opponents.
During his seven terms in Congress, Mr. McKinley was noted for his clear
grasp of national questions and his interest in tariff legislation. It was in 1890
that he brought about the passage of the tariff measure which is always asso-
"GREATER NEW YORK."
529
ciated with his name. In the same year he was defeated, but, being nominated
for governor, he was elected by 80,000 majority. As in the case of Mr, Cleve-
land, this triumph attracted national attention, and his administration was so
satisfactory that he could have received the nomination for the presidency twice
before he accepted it.
The 23residential administration of Mc
the most eventful in our history, for, as set
ters, it marked our entrance among the lead
in the field of territorial expansion beyond
tiiient and hemisphere. Before entering
phase of our national existence, attention
happenings of a difterent nature. One of
these was the organization of what is popu-
larly known as "Greater New York."
Kinley has proven one of
forth in the following chap-
ing nations of the world,
the limits of our own con-
upon the history of this
must be given to imjiortant
THE OBELISK IN CENTRAL PAKK, NEW YORK.
" GREATER NEW YORK."
For a number of vears, a prominent question among the inhabitants of the
metropolis and outlying cities was that of their union under one government.
The New York Legislature in 1890 appointed a committee to inquire into and
report upon the subject. After several years of discussion, the Legislature
provided for a referendum, the result of which showed a large majority in favor
34
530 ADMIXISTEATION OF McKIXLEY.
of uniting the cities referred to. A bill was carefully framed, passed both
branches of the law-making body by a strong vote in February, 1897, and was
signed by the mayors of Brooklyn and of Long Island City. Mayor Strong,
of New York, however, vetoed the bill, but the Legislature immediately repassed
it, and it was signed by Governor Black.
The exjjanded metropolis began its official existence January 1, 1898, the
government being vested in a mayor and a municipal assembly, which consists
of two branches elected by the people. The population at the time named was
about 3,400,000, the daily increase being 400. Should this rate continue, the
total population at the middle of the twentieth century will be 20,000,000,
which will make it the most populous in the world, unless London wakes up
and grows faster than at present.
The area of Greater New York is 317.77 square miles. Its greatest width
from the Hudson River to the boundary line across Long Island beyond Creed-
moor is sixteen miles, and the extreme length, from the southern end of Staten
Island to the northern limits of Yonkers, is thirty-two miles. Within these
bounds are the cities of New York, Brooklyn, Long Island City, Jamaica, all
of Staten Island, the western end of Long Island, Coney Island, Rockaway,
Valley Stream, Flushing, Whitestone, College Point, Willets' Point, Fort
Schuyler, Throggs' Neck, Westchester, Baychester, Pelham Manor, Van
Cortlandt, Riverdale, and Spuyten Devil.
REMOVAL OF GENERAL GRANX's REMAINS TO MORNINGSIDE PARK.
The removal of the remains of General Grant to their final resting-place
in the magnificent tomb on Morningside Heights, on the banks of the Hudson,
took place during the first year of McKinley's administration, and was marked
by ceremonies among the most impressive ever Avitnessed in the metropolis of
the country. The final tributes to the foremost defender of the country were
made by eloquent tongues, and pens, and by the reverent affection of the nation
itself.
There have been many attempts made to analyze the character of this remark-
able man. Some of his most intimate friends failed to understand him. Among
the best of these analyses is that of Lieutenant-General John M. Schofield. In
this our last reference to General Grant, the words of his trusted confidant
deserve record:
"General Sherman wrote that he could not understand Grant, and doubted
if Grant understood himself. A very distinguished statesman, whose name I
need not mention, said to me that, in his opinion, there was nothing special in
Grant to understand. Others have varied widely in their estimates of that
REMOVAL OF GENERAL GRANT'S REMAINS.
531
extraordinai-y character. Yet I believe its most extraordinary quality was its
extreme simplicity, so extreme that many have entirely overlooked it in their
search for some deeply hidden secret to account for so great a character,
unmindful of the general fact that simplicity is one of the most prominent
attributes of greatness.
"The greatest of all the traits of Grant's character was that which lay
always on the surface, visible to all who had eyes to see it. That was his moral
and intellectual honesty, integrity, sincerity, veracity, and justice. He was
incapable of any attempt to deceive anybody, except for a legitimate purpose,
as in military strategy; and, above .
all, he was incapable of deceiving
himself He possessed that rarest
of all human faculties, the power
of a perfectly accurate estimate of
himself, uninfluenced by vanity,
pride, ambition, flattery, or self-in-
terest. Grant was very far from
being a modest man, as the word
is generally understood. His just
self-esteem was as far above it as it
was above flattery. The highest
enconiums were accepted for what he
believed them to be worth. They
did not disturb his equilibrium in
the slightest degree. Confiding, just,
and generous to everybody else, he
treated with silent contempt any
suggestion that he had been unfaith-
ful to any obligation. He was too
proud to explain where his honor
liad been questioned.
"While Grant knew his own merits as well as anybody did, he also knew
liis own imperfections and estimated them at their real value. For exam])le,
his inability to speak in public, which produced the impression of extreme
modesty or diffidence, he accepted simply as a fact in his nature which was of
little or no consequence, and which he did not even care to conceal. He would
not, for many years, even take the trouble to jot down a few words in advance,
so as to be able to say something when called upon. Indeed, I believe he would
have regarded it as an unworthy attem]>t to appear in a false light if he had
made preparations in advance for an 'extemporaneous' speech. Even when he
JOHN SHERMAN.
Secretan- of State under President McKiniey; resigned 1898.
532 ADMINISTRATION OF McKINLEY.
did in later years write some notes on the back of a dinner-card, he woukl take
care to let everybody see that he had done so by liolding the card in pUiiu view
while he read his little speech. After telling a story, in which the facts had
been modified somewhat to give the greater effect, which no one could enjoy
more than he did, Grant would take care to explain exactly in what respects he
had altered the facts for the jjurpose of increasing the interest in his story, so
that he might not leave any wrong impression.
"When Grant's attention was called to any mistake he had committed, he
would see and admit it as quickly and unreservedly as if it had been made by
anybody else, and with a smile which expressed the exact opposite of that
feeling which most men are apt to show under like cii'cumstances. His love of
truth and justice was so far above all personal considerations that he showed
unmistakable evidence of gratification when any error into which he might
have fallen was corrected. The fact that he had made a mistake and that it was
plainly pointed out to him did not produce the slightest unpleasant impression ;
while the further fact, that no harm had resulted from his mistake, gave him
real pleasure. In Grant's judgment, no case in which any wrong had been
done could possibly be regarded as finally settled until that wrong was righted,
and if he himself had been, in any sense, a i^arty to that wrong, he was the
more earnest in his desire to see justice done. While he thus showed a total
absence of any false pride of opinion or of knowledge, no man could be firmer
than he in adherence to his mature judgment, nor more earnest in his deter-
mination, on proper occasions, to make it understood that his opinion was his
own and not borrowed from anybody else. His pride in his own mature
opinion was very great; in that he was as far as possible from being a modest
man. This absolute confidence in his own judgment upon any subject which
he had mastered, and the moral courage to take upon himself alone the highest
responsibility, and to demand full authority and freedom to act according to his
own judgment, without interference from anybody, added to his accurate esti-
mate of his own ability and clear perception of the necessity for undivided
authority and responsibility in the conduct of military operations, and in all
that concerns the efficiency of armies in time of war, constituted the foundation
of that very great character.
" When summoned to Washington to take command of all the armies, with
the rank of lieutenant-general, he determined, before he reached the capital,
that he would not accejjt the command under any conditions than those above
stated. His sense of honor and of loyalty to the country would not permit
him to consent to be placed in a false jjosition, one in which he could not
perform the service which the country had been led to expect from him, and he
had the courage to say so in unqualified terms.
REMOVAL OF GENERAL GRANT'S RE.VAINS.
533
"These traits of Grant's character must now be perfectly familiar to all
who have studied his history, as well as to those who enjoyed familiar inter-
course with him during his life. They are the traits of character which made
him, as it seems to me, a very great man, the only man of our time, so far as we
know, who possessed both the character and the militai-y ability which were,
under the circumstances, indispensable in the commander of the armies which
were to suppress the great rebellion.
"It has been said that Grant, like Lincoln, was a typical American, and
for that reason was most beloved and respected by the people. That is true of
the statesman and the soldier, as
well as of the people, if it is meant
that they were the highest type, that
ideal which commands the respect
and admiration of the highest and
best in a man's nature, however far
he may know it to be above himself
The soldiers and the peoj^le saw in
Grant or in Lincoln, not one of
themselves, not a plain man of the
people, nor yet some superior being
whom they could not understand,
but the personification of their high-
est ideal of a citizen, soldier, or
statesman, a man whose greatness
tliey could see and understand as
plainly as they could anything else
under the sun. And there was no
more mystery about it all, in fact,
than there was in the 2">opular mind."
SPEAKER THOMAS B. REED.
Resigned as Speaker in 18'J9,
To the widow of General Grant
was given the right to select the spot tor the last resting-phice of his remains,
she to repose after death beside her husband. She decided upon Riverside.
It then became the privilege of his friends to provide a suitable tomb for the
illustrious soldier. The funds needed, amounting to nearly half a million dol-
lars, were raised by subscription, ground was broken on the anniversary of
Grant's birthday, April 27, 1891, and a year later the corner-stone was laid by
President Harrison.
The tomb of General Grant, standing on the banks of the Hudson, is an
imjiosing structure, square in shape, ninety feet on each side, and of the Grecian-
534
ADMINISTRATION OF McKINLEY.
Doric order. The entrance on the south side is guarded by a portico in double
lines of columns, approached by steps seventy feet in width. The tomb is
surmounted at a height of seventy-two feet with a cornice and })ara)iet, above
which is a circular cupola, seventy feet in diameter, terminating in a top the
sha^ie of a j^yramid, which is 280 feet above the river.
The interior of the structui'e is of cruciform form, seventy-six feet at its
greatest lengtli, the piers of masonry at the corners being connected by arches
whicli form recesses. The arches are fifty feet in height, and are surmounted
by an open circular gallery, capped with a j^anneled dome, 105 feet above the
floor. Scenes in General Grant's career are depicted with sculpture on the plane
j»>-
"''i""™ '"""^'TTSSTf^SSCn^
TOMB OP U S. GRANT, NEW YOHK.
and relieved surfaces in alto rUievo. The granite of the structure is light in
color, and the sarcophagus of brilliant reddish porphyry. The cryj^t rests
directly under the centre of tlie dome, staii-ways connecting with the passage
surrounding the sarcophagus, where the remains of the widow of General Grant
are eventually to repose.
The ceremonies attending the removal of the remains on April 27, 1897,
included three impressive displays, the ceremony at the tomb, the parade of the
army — the National Guard and civic bodies — and the review of the navy and
merchant marine on the Hudson. Those who gathered to take part in the final
tribute to the great soldier included the President, Vice-President of the United
REMOVAL OF GENERAL GRANT'S REMAINS.
535
States, the Cabinet, many State governors, prominent American citizens, and
representatives of foreign nations. From 129th Street to the Battery, and from
Whitehall np East River to the Bridge, thousands of American and foreign
flags wei-e tlisplayed, while tlie parade of men on foot included 60,000 persons.
Bishop Newman opened the exercises with prayer, and President McKinley
made one of the finest speeches of his life, the opening words of which were:
"A great life, dedicated to the welfiire of the nation, here finds its earthly
coronation. Even if this day lacked the impressiveness of ceremony and was
devoid of pagean
be memorable, be
anniversary of the
famous and best be
ican soldiers."
"^^-.^ "^SS^^-w*"
try, it would still
cause it is the
birth of the most
loved of Amer-
concluded with
The President
the words: . _ „ y
"With Wash REVIEW of the navy ani? merchant ington and Lin-
T n ^11 marine ON THE HUDSON, AtRIL 27, 1897. u ] 1 „„•„
coin, Grant had an exalted place in
the history and the affections of the ]ieople. To-day his memory is held in equal
esteem by those whom he led to victory, and by those who accepted his generous
terms of jDcace. The veteran leaders of the Blue and Gray here meet not only
to honor the name of Grant, but to testify to the living reality of a fraternal
536
AD.MTNISTEATION OF McKINLEY.
national spirit which has triumphed over the differences of the past and trans
cends the limitations of sectional lines. Its completion — which we pray God 6/
speed — will be the nation's greatest glory.
"It is right that General Grant should have a memorial commensurate with
his greatness, and that his last resting-place should be in the city of his choice,
to which he was so attached, and of whose ties he was not forgetful even in
death. Fitting, too, is it that the great soldier should sleep beside the noble
river on whose banks he first learned the art of war, and of which he became
master and leader without a rival.
"But let us not forget the glorious distinction with which the metropolis
aninni; the feir sisterhood of American cities has honored his life and memory.
With all that riches and sculpture can do
to render the edifice worthy of the man,
ujion a site unsurpassed for magnificence,
has this monument been reared by New
York as a perpetual record of his illus-
trious deeds, in the certainty that, as time
passes, around it will assemble, with grati-
tude and revei'ence and veneration, men of
all climes, races, and nationalities.
" Xew York holds in its keeping the
]n'ecious dust of the silent soldier, but his
achievements — what he and his brave com-
rades wrought for mankind — ai-e in the
keeping of seventy millions of American
citizens, who will guard the sacred heritage
tiirever and forevermore."
General Horace Porter, president of the Grant Memorial Association, made
an address, giving the history of the crowning work of the association, rendering
acknowledgment to those who had given valuable help, and closing with a
masterly and eloquent tribute to the great citizen whom all had gathered to
honor.
THE KLOXDIKE GOLD EXCITEMENT.
There was much excitement throughout the country in 1897 over the
reported discoveries of rich deposits of gold in the Klondike, as the region
along the Yukon River in Alaska is called. These reports were discredited at
first, but they were repeated, and proof soon appeared that they were based
upon truth. In the autumn of 1896, about fifty miners visited the section, led
thither by the rumors that had come to them. None of the men carried more
■ ^ ,V! \":^^
1
i
V
A
SPAIN'S MISRULE IN CUBA.
537
than his outfit and a few hundred dollars, but when they returned they brought
gold to the value of from So,000 to $100,000 apiece, besides leaving claims behind
them that were worth hundreds of thousands of dollars. In July, 1807, a
party of miners arrived at Seattle from the Klondike, bringing with them
nuggets and gold-dust weighing more than a ton and worth a million and a
half of dollars. Besides this, other men continually came back with such
quantities of the precious metal that it was apparent that not only were the
reports justified, but, what
^'*™?*-
is the exception in such
cases, the whole truth had
not been told.
The natural conse-
quence was that a rush
set in for the Klondike,
which is the name of a
tributary of the Yukon,
and flows through the
richest gold fields, where
the mining days of early
California were repeated.
Dawson City was founded
at the mouth of the Klon-
dike, and in a short time
had a population of 5,000.
Before the year closed,
500 claims were located,
with more taken up daily.
As was inevitable, there
was much sufiering, for
the Yukon is closed by
ice during the greater
part of the year, and the
winter climate is of Arctic
severity. The most productive fields were found to be not in Alaska, but in
the British provinces known as the Northwest Territories. While many
gathered fortunes in the Klondike, the majority, after great hardships and
sufiering, returned to their homes 2^(jorer than when they left them.
READY FOR THE TRAIL.
Spain's misrule in cuba.
The administration of McKinley occupies a prominent place in American
538 ADMINISTRATION OF McKINLEY.
history because of our brief and decisive war with Spain. A full account is
given in the pages that follow, but it is proper in this chapter to set forth some
historical facts, that will serve to clear the way to a proper understanding of the
story of the war itself.
Spain may best illustrate the certain decline of the Latin race and the rise
of the Anglo-Saxon. When America was discovered, she was the leading
maritime power of the world, but she was corrupt, rapacious, ferocious, and
totally devoid of what is best expressed by the term "common sense." So
lacking indeed was she in this prime requisite that she alienated, when it was
just as easy to attract, the weaker nations and colonies with which she came in
contact. It has been shown in the earlier chapiters of this work that when her
exploring expeditions into the interior of America were obliged to depend for
their own existence upon the good-will of the natives, and when they could
readily gain and retain that good-will, they roused the hatred of the simple-
minded natives by their frightful cruelties. The chief amusement of the early
Spaniards was killing Indians. They did it from the innate brutality of their
nature, when they could have gained tenfold more by justice and kindness.
The treatment of those poor people was precisely what on a larger scale has
been shown to her colonies. England wins and holds her dependencies through
her liberality and justice; Spain repels hers through her treachery, falsehoods,
and injustice. As a consequence, England has become one of the mightiest
nations in the world, while Spain has steadily declined to a fourth-rate power.
With the example of the results of her idiocy, to say nothing of its dishonor,
ever before her, she has persisted in that idiocy, never learning from experience,
but always selfish, short-sighted, cruel, treacherous, and unjust.
The steadiness with which Cuba clung to the mother country won for her
the title of the "Ever Faithful Isle." Had she received any consideration at
all, she still would have held fast. She poured jirincely revenues into the lap
of Spain; when other colonies revolted, she refused to be moved. It required
long years of outrage, robbery, and injustice to turn her affection into hate, but
Spain persisted until the time came when human nature could stand no more.
The crushed worm turned at last.
When Napoleon Bonaparte deposed the Bourbon King, Ferdinand VII.,
in 1808, and placed his brother Joseph on the throne of Sj^ain, Cuba declared
her loyalty to the old dynasty, and the king made many promises of what he
would do to prove his gratitude when he should come to his own. This took
place five years later, whereupon the king violated every pledge he had made.
The truth gradually worked its way into the Cuban mind that the only
thing a Spaniard could be depended upon to do is to violate his most solemn
promises. Secret societies began assuming form in the island, whose plotting
SPAIN'S MISRULE IN CUBA.
539
and aim were to wrest their country from Spain, on the ground of the non-ful-
iiHment of tiie pledges made by Ferdinand VII. of what he would do when he
came to the throne.
Preparations were made for a revolt, whose avowed object was the estab-
lishment of a Cuban republic. A certain night in 1823 was fixed upon for a
general uprising, but there were traitors in the councils, who notified the author-
ities, and, before the date named, the leaders were arrested and the revolt
quenched ere a blow could be struck.
These severe measures could not quell the spirit of liberty that was abroad.
It was not long before the Black Eagle Society was formed. It included many
hundred members, had its headquarters in
Mexico, and boldly secured recruits in
the United States. But again the cause
was betrayed by its members, the leaders
were arrested and imprisoned, and Spain
was secure for a time in the control of
the island.
As an illustration of that country's
course against suspected citizens, it may
be said that in 1844 a rumor spread that
large numbers of the slaves ou the plan-
tations near Matanzas were making secret
jjreparations to rise and slay their masters.
Investigation failed to establish the truth
of these charges, but many were put to
the torture to compel them to confess, and
nearly a hundred were condemned and
shot in cold blood.
Naturally the affairs of Cuba from
its proximity were always of great interest to the United States, and a number
of filibustering expeditions landed on the island and aided the Cubans in their
futile revolts against Spain. These attempts at their best could only keep the
island in a turmoil, and give Spain the 2>retext for using the most brutal meas-
ures of repression.
In 1868 a revolution occurred in Spain itself, and Queen Isabella, one of
the worst rulers that sorely accursed country ever had, was driven into exile.
Cuba had not forgotten the lesson of the opening of the century, and, instead
of proclaiming her loyalty to the deposed dynasty, she seized what promised to
be a favorable opportunity for gaining her own independence.
One of the fairest and most impartial publications anywhere is the Edin-
GENERAL CALIXTO GARCIA.
Hero of three wars for Cuba's freedom. Die of the most reniarkal)le in history — was next to occur.
On Api'il 'Joth thi' following dispatch of eight potent words was cabled to
Coniiiiodore Dewey on the coast of China: "Capture or destroy the Spanish
squadron at Manila." "Never," says James Gordon Bennett, "were instructions
more effectively carried out. Within seven lionrs after arriving on the scene of
action nothing remained to be done." it \v;is mi the 27tli that Dewey sailed
from Mirs Bay, China, and on the night oT the oOih he lay before the entrance
of the liarhor of Manila, seven hundred miles away. Under the cover of dark-
nc>s, with all lights extinguished on his ships, he duringly steamed into this
unknown harboi-, which he believed to be strewn with mines, and at d.-iyhrcak
engaged the Hpanish fleet. Commodore Dewey knew it meant everything for
hiui and his fleet to win or lose this battle. He was in the enemy's counti-y,
7,000 miles from home. The issue of this battle must mean victory, Spanish
dungeons, or the bottom of the ocean. ^' Keep cool and obey ordei's" was the
signal he gave to his fleet, and then came the order to fire. The Americans
had seven ships, the 0/i/inpia, Ba/fiiiiore, Raleigh, Petrel, Concord, Boston, and
the dispatch-boat McCullomjh. The Spaniards had eleven, the Reina Christina,
Castilla, Don Antonio de Ulloa, Jsla de Luzon, Mn de Cuba, General Leso,
3Iarquis de Ducro, Cano, Velasco, Ma de Mindanao, and a transport.
From the beginning Commotlore Dewey fought on the offensive, and, after
the manner of Nelson and Farragut, concentrated his fire upon the strongest
ships one after another with terrible execution. The Spanish ships were inferior
to his, but there were more of them, and tiiey were under the protection of the
land batteries. The fire of the Americans was especially noted for its terrific
rapidity and the wondei-ful accuracy of its aim. The battle lasted for about
five hours, and resulted in the destruction of all the Spanish ships and the
silencing of the land batteries. The Spanish loss in killed and wounded was
estimated to be fully one thousand men, while on the American side not a shiji
was even seriously damaged and not a single man was killed outright, and only
six were wounded. Moi'e than a month after the battle. Captain Charles B.
Gridley, Commander of the Olympia, died, though his death was the result
of an accident received in the discharge of his duty during the battle, and not
from a wound. On INIay 2d Commodore Dewey cut the cable connecting
Manila with Hong Kong, and destroyed the fortifications at the entrance of
Manila Bay, and took possession of the nav;il station at Cavite. This was to
prevent communication between the Philippine Islands and the government at
Madrid, and necessitated the sending of Commodore Dewey's official account of
the battle by the dispatch-boat McCullough to Hong Kong, whence it was
cabled to the United States. After its receipt, May 9th, both Houses adoj^ted
Canal Ue r,
"""'on
,^
554 THE SPANISH-AMERICAN WAR.
resolutions of congratulation to Commodore Dewey and his officers and men for
their <^allantry at Manila, voted an appropriation for medals for the crew and a
fine sword for the gallant Commander, and also passed a bill authorizing the
President to appoint another rear-admiral, which honor was promptly confei-red
upon Commodore Dewey, accompanied by the thanks of the President and of
the nation for the admirable and heroic services rendered his country.
The Battle oi Manila must ever remain a monument to the daring and
courao-e of Admiral Dewey. However unevenly matched the two fleets
may have been, the world agrees with the eminent foreign naval critic who
declared: "This complete victory was the product of forethought, cool, well-
balanced judgment, discipline, and bravery. It was a magnificent achievement,
and Dewey will go down in history ranking with John Paul Jones and Lord
Nelson as a naval hero."
Admiral Dewey might have taken possession of the city of INIanila imme-
diately. He cabled the United States that Ke could do so, but the fact remained
that he had not sufficient men to care for his ships and at the same time effect a
successful landing in the town of Manila. Therefore he chose to remain on his
ships, and though the city was at his mercy, he refrained from a bombardment
because he believed it would lead to a massacre of the Spaniards on the part of
the insurgents surrounding the city, which it would be beyond his power to stop.
This humane manifestation toward the conquered foe adds to the lustre of the
hero's crown, and at the same time places the seal of greatness upon the brow
of the victor. He not only refrained from bombarding the city, but received
and cared for the wounded Spaniards upon his own vessels. Thus, while he did
all that was required of him without costing his country the life of a single
citizen, he manifested a spirit of humanity and generosity toward the vanquished
foe fully in keeping with the sympathetic spirit which involved this nation in
the war for humanity's sake.
The Battle of Manila further demonstrated that a fleet with heavier guns is
virtually invulnerable in a campaign with a squadron bearing lighter metal,
however gallantly the crew of the latter may fight.
Before the Battle of Manila it was recognized that the government had
serious trouble on its hands. On May 4th President McKinley nominated ten
new Major-Generals, including Thomas H. Wilson, Fitzhugh Lee, Wm. J.
Sewell (who was not commissioned), and Joseph Wheeler, from private life,
and promoted Brigadier-Generals Breckinridge, Otis, Coppinger, Shafter,
Graham, Wade, and Merriam, from the regular army. The organization
and mobilization of troops was promptly begun and rapidly jjushed. Meantime
our naval vessels were actively cruising around the Island of Cuba, expecting
the appearance of the Spanish fleet.
THE BOMBARDMENT OF SAN JUAN.
555
On May 11th the gunboat Wilmington, revenue-cutter Hudson, and the
torpedo-boat Winsknv entei-etl Cai'denas Bay, Cuba, to attack the defenses and
three small Spanish gunboats that had taken refuge in the harbor. The Winslow
being of light draft took the lead, and when within eight hundred yards of the
fort was fired upon with disastrous effect, being struck eighteen times and ren-
dered helpless. For more than an hour the frail little craft was at the mercy
of the enemy's batteries. The revenue-cutter Hudson, quickly answered her
signal of distress by coming to the rescue, and as she was in the act of di-awing
the disabled boat away a shell from the enemy burst on the Winsloiv's deck,
killing three of her crew outright and wounding many more. Ensign Worth
CAMP SCENE AT CHICKAMAUGA.
Bagley, of the Winsloiv, who had recently entered active service, was one of the
killed. He was the first ofiicer who lost his life in the war. The same shell
badly wounded Lieutenant Bernadou, Commander of the boat. The Hudson,
amidst a rain of fire from the Spanish gunboats and fortifications, succeeded in
towing the Winslow to Key West, where the bodies of the dead were prepared
for burial and the vessel was placed in repair. On May 12th the First Infontry
landed near Port Cabanas, Cuba, with supplies for the insurgents, which they
succeeded in delivering after a skirmish with the Spanish troops. This was the
first land engagement of the war.
On the same date Admiral Sampson's squadron arrived at San Juan, Porto
Rico, whither it had gone in the expectation of meeting with Admiral Cervera's
53(3 THE SPANISH-AMERICAN WAR.
fleet, which had sailed westward from the Cape Verde Islands on April 29th,
after Portugal's declaration of neutrality. The Spanish fleet, however, did not
materialize, and Admiral Sampson, while on the ground, concluded it would be
well to draw the Are of the forts that he might at least judge of their strength
and efficiency, if indeed he should not render them incapable of assisting the
Spanish fleet in the event of its resorting to this port at a later period. Accord-
ingly, Sampson bombarded the batteries defending San Juan, inflicting much
damage and sustaining a loss of two men killed and six wounded. Tiie loss of
the enemy is not known. The American war-ships sustained only trivial in-
juries, but after the engagement it cuuld be plainly seen that one end of Morro
Castle was in i-uins. The Cabras Island fort was silenced and the San Carlos
battery was damaged. No shots were aimed at the city by the American fleet.
Deeming it unnecessary to wait for the Spanish war-ships in the vicinity of
San Juan, Sampson withdrew his squadron and sailed westward in the hope of
finding Cervera's fleet, which was dodging about the Caribbean Sea. First it
was heard of at the French island, Martinique, whence after a short stay it
sailed westward. Two days later it halted at the Dutch island, Curafoa, for
coal and supplies. After leaving this point it was again lost sight of. Then
began the chase of Commodore Schley and Admiral Sampson to catch the
fugitive. Schley, with his flying squadron, sailed from Key West around the
western end of Cuba, and Sampson kept guard over the Windward and other
passages to the east of the island. It was expected that one or the other of these
fleets would encounter the Spaniard on the open sea, but in this they were mis-
taken. Cervera was not making his way to the Mexican shore on the west, as
some said, nor was he seeking to slip through one of the passages into the
Atlantic and sail home to Spain, nor attack Commodore Watson's blockading
vessels before Havana, according to other expert opinions expressed and widely
])ublished. For many days the hunt of the war-ships went on like a fox-chase.
On May 21st Commodore Schley blockaded Cienfuegos, supposing that Cervera
was inside the harbor, but on the 24th he discovered his mistake and sailed to
Santiago, where he lay before the entrance to the harbor for three days, not know-
ing whether or not the Spaniard was inside. On May 30th it was positively dis-
covered that he had Cervera bottled up in the narrow harbor of Santiago. He
had been there since the 19th, and had landed 800 men, 20,000 Mauser rifles, a
great supply of amrauTiition, and four great guns for the defense of the city.
OPERATIONS AGAINST SANTIAGO.
On May 31st Commodore Schley opened fire on the fortifications at the
mouth of the harbor, which lasted for about half an hour. This was for the
purpose of discovering the location and strength of the batteries, some of which
OPERATIONS AGAINST SANTIAGO.
557
were concealed, and in this he was completely successful. Two of the batteries
were silenced, and the flagship of the Spaniards, which took part in the engage-
ment, was damaged. The Americans received no injury to vessels and no loss
of men. On June 1st Admiral Sampson arrived before Santiago, and relieved
Commodore Schley of the chief command of the forces, then consisting of six-
teen war-ships.
Admiral Sampson, naturally a cautions cummander, suft'ered great aj^pre-
hension lest Cervera might sli]j out of the harljor and escape during the dark-
ness of the night or the progress of a storm, which would comjK'l the blockading
fleet to stand far ofl' shore. There was a point in tlie clninnel wide enough for
onl)' one war-ship to j^ass at a time, r
and if this could be rendered im-
passable Cervera's doom would be
sealed. How to reach and close this
passage was the difficult problem to
be solved. On either shore of the
narrow channel stood frowning forts
with cannon, and there were other
fortiflcations to be passed before it
could be reached. Young LieiUenaiit
Richmond Pearson Hobson, a naval
engineer, had attached himself to Ad-
miral Sampson's flagship. New Yorh\
just before it sailed from Key AVest,
and it was tliis young man of less
than thii-ty years wlio solved the pro-
blem by a plan originated by Admiral
Sam|«on, which he executed with
a heroic daring that finds perhaps no
parallel in all naval history. At three
o'clock A. M., June 3d, in company
with seven volunteers fi-om theiVew York and other ships, he took theUnited States
collier llerritnac, a large vessel with GOO tons of coal on board, and started with
the purpose of sinking it in the channel. The chances were ten to one that the
batteries fi'om the forts would sink the vessel before it could reach the narrow
neck, and the chances were hardly one in one hundred that any of the men on
board the collier would come out of this daring attempt alive. Tlie ship had
hardly started when the forts opened fii'e, and amid the thunder of artilleiy and
a rain of steel and bursting shells the boat with its eiglit brave hei-oes held on
its way, as steadily as if they knew not their danger. The channel was reached,
RICHMOND PEAESON HOBSON.
558 THE SPANISH-A3TERICAN WAR.
and the boat turned across the channeL The sea-doors were opened and tor-
pedoes exploded by the intrepid crew, sinking the vessel almost instantly, but
not in the position desired. As the ship went down the men, with side-arms
buckled on, took to a small boat, and, escape being impossible, they surrendered
to the enemy. It seems scarcely less than a miracle that any of the eight men
escaped, yet the fact remained that not one of them was seriously injured. The
Spaniards were so impressed with this act of bravery and heroism that they
treated the ^^risoners with the utmost courtesy, confined them in Morro Castle,
and Admiral Cervera promptly sent a special officer, under a flag of truce, to
inform Admiral Sampson of their safety. The prisoners were kept confined in
Morro Castle for some days, when they were removed to a place of greater safety,
where they were held until exchanged on July 7th.
THE SECOND BOMBARDMENT OF SANTIAGO AND THE COMING OF THE ARMY.
On the 6th of June the American fleet under Admiral Sampson bombarded
the forts of Santiago for about three hours. The gunners were all instructed,
however, to spare Morro Castle lest they should inflict injury upon Hobson and
his heroic companions, who were then confined within its walls. Nearly all of
the fortifications at the entrance of the harbor were silenced. An examination
after the fleet had withdrawn revealed the fact that no lives were lost on the
American side, and none of the vessels were seriously injured. The Spanish
ship Eeina Mercedes was sunk in the harbor, she being the only ship from the
enemy's fleet which ventured within the range of the American's guns.
The danger of entering the narrow harbor in the face of Cervera's fleet
rendered it necessary to take the city by land, and the government began pre-
parations to send General Shafter with a large force from Tampa to aid the fleet
in reducing the city. Some 15,000 men, including the now famous Rough
Riders of New York, were hurried upon tiansports, and under the greatest con-
voy of gunboats, cruisers, and battle-ships which ever escorted an army started
for the western end of the island of Cuba.
But the honor of making the first landing on Cuban soil belongs to the
marines. It was on June the 10th, a few days before the army of General
Shafter sailed from Tampa, that a landing was effected by Colonel Huntington's
six hundred marines at Caimanera, Guantanamo Bay, some distance east of
Santiago. The object of this landing was twofold : first, to secure a place where
our war-ships could safely take on coal from colliers, and, second, to unite if pos-
sible Avith the insurgents in harassing the Spaniards until General Shafter's army
could arrive. Furthermore, Guantanamo Bay furnished the American shii^s a
safe harbor in case of storm.
In the whole history of the war few more thrilling jjassages are to be
SECOND BONBARDMENl OF SANTIAGO.
559
fouiKl than the record of this brave band's aehievements. Tlie place of hmding
was a low, round, bush-covered hill on the eastern side of the bay. On the
crest of the hill was a small clearing occupied by an advance post of the
Spanish army. When the marines landed and began t(^ climb the hill, the
enemy, with little resistance, retreated to the woods, an.ct.ve battle of the Spanish War
THE VICTORY OF THE ROUGH RIDERS.
561
Spaniards was hiddeu. Lieutenant-Colonel Roosevelt's Rougli Riders, tech-
nically known as the First Volunteer Cavalry, under command of Colonel
Wood, were in the fight, and it is to their bravery and dash that the glory of
the day chiefly belongs. TroojJS under command of General Young had been
sent out in atlvance, with the Rough Riders on his flank. There were about
1,200 of the cavalry in all, including the Rough Ridei's and the First and
Tenth Regulars. They encountered a body of two thousand Spaniards in a
thicket, whom they fought dismounted. The volunteers were especially eager
for the fight, and, perhaps due somewhat to their own imj^rudence, wei'e led into
an ambuscade, as perfect as was ever
planned by an Indian. The main
body of the Spaniards was posted on
a hill approached by two heavily
wooded slopes and fortified by two
blockhouses, flanked by intrench-
ments of stones and fallen trees. At
the bottom of these hills run two
roads, along one of which the Rough
Riders marched, and along the other
eight troops of the Eighth and Tenth
Cavalry, under General Young.
These roads are little more than gul-
lies, very narrow, and at jilaces al-
most impassable. Nearly half a
mile separated Roosevelt's men from
the Regulars, and it was in these
trails that the battle began.
For an hour they held their
position in the midst of an unseen
force, which poured a perfect hail of
bullets upon them from in front and on both sides. At length, seeing that their
only way of escape was by dashing boldly at the hidden foe, Colonel Wood took
command on the right of his column of Rough Riders, placing Lieutenant-
Colonel Roosevelt at the left, and thus, with a rousing yell, they led their soldiers
in a rushing charge before which the Spaniards fled from the hills and the vic-
torious assailants took the blockhouses. The Americans had sixteen killed and
fifty-two wounded, forty-two of the casualties occurring to the Rough Riders and
twenty-six among the Regulars. It is estimated that the Spanish killed were
nearlv or quite one hundred. Thirty-seven were found l)y the Americans dead
THEODORE ROOSEVELT.
562 THE SFAXISH-AJIERICAN WAB.
on the ground. They had carried off their wounded, and doubtless thought
they had taken most of the killed away also.
PREPARING FOR THE ASSAULT UPON SANTIAGO.
The victory of the Rough Riders and the Regulars at LaGuasima, though
so dearly bought, stimulated the soldiers of the whole army with the spirit of
war and the desire for an opportunity to join in the conquest. They had not
long to wait. The advance upon Santiago was vigorously prosecuted on the
land side, while the ships stood guard over the entrapped Spanish Admiral
Cervera in the harbor, and, anon, shelled every fort that manifested signs of
activity. On June 2oth, Sevilla, within sight of Santiago, was taken by General
ChaflPee, and an advance upon the city was planned to be made in three columns
by way of Altares, Firmeza, and Juragua. General Garcia with 5,000 Cuban
insurgents had placed himself some time before at the command of the American
leader. On the 28th of June another large expedition of troops was landed, so
that the entire force under General Shafter, including the Cuban allies, num-
bered over 22,000 fighting men.
The enemy fell back at all points until the right of the American colunni
■vas within three miles of Santiago, and by the end of June the two armies had
well-defined positions. The Spanish intrenchments extended around the city,
being kept at a distance of about three and one-half miles from the corporation
limits. The trenches were occupied by about 12,000 Spanish soldiers, and there
were some good fortifications along the line.
It was the policy of General Shafter to distribute his forces so as to face
this entire line as nearly as possible. A week was consumed, after the landing-
was completed, in making these arrangements and in sending forward the
artillery, during which time the battle of La Guasima, referred to, with some
minor affairs, had occurred. Meantime the ships of Admii-al Sampson had
dragged up the cables and connected them by tap-wires with Shafter's head-
quaj-ters, thus establishing connnunication directly with Washington from the
scene of battle.
THE BATTLES OF SAN JUAN AND EL CANEY.
The attack began July 1st, involving the whole line, but the main struggle
occurred opposite the left centre of the column on the heights of San Juan, and
the next greatest engagement was on the right of the American line at the little
town of El Caney. These two points are several miles apart, the city of San-
tiago occupying very nearly the apex of a triangle of which a line connecting
these two positions would form the base. John R. Church thus described the
battles of July 1st and 2d :
THE RATTLES OF SAN JUAN AND EL CANEY. 563
" El Caney was taken by General Lawton's men after a sharp contest and
severe loss on both sides. Here as everywhere there were blockhouses and
trenches to be carried in the face of a hot fire from Mauser rifles, and the rifles
were well served. The jungle must disturb the aim seriously, for our men did
not suffer severely while under its cover, but in crossing clearings tlie rapid fire
of the repeating rifles told with deadly effect. The object of tlie attack on El
Caney was to crush the Spanish lines at a point near the city and allow us to
gain a high hill froui whieli the place could be bombarded if necessary. In all
of this we were entirely successful. The engagement began at 6.40 A. m., and
by 4 o'clock the Spaniards were forced to abandon the place and retreat toward
their lines nearer the city. The fight was opened by Capron's battery, at a
range of 2,400 yards, and the troops engaged were Chaffee's brigade, the
Seventh, Twelfth, and Seventeenth Infantry, who moved on Caney from the
east; Colonel Miles' brigade of the First, Fourth, and Twenty-fifth Infantry,
operating from the south ; while Ludlow's brigade, containing the Eighth and
Twenty-second Infantry and Second Massachusetts, made a detour to attack
from the southwest. The Spanish force is thought to have been 1,500 to 2,000
strong. It certainly fought our men for nine hours, but of course had the
advantage of a fort and strong intrencliments.
" The operations of our centre were calculated to cut the communications
of Santiago with El Morro and jiermit our forces to advance to the bay, and the
jtrincipal effort of General Linares, the Spanish commander in the field, seems
to have been to defeat this movement. He had fortified San Juan strongly,
throwing up on it intrencliments that in the hands of a more determined force
would have been impregnable.
" The battle of San Juan was opened by Grimes' battery, to which the
enemy replied with shrapnell. The cavalry, dismounted, supported by Haw-
kins' brigade, advanced up the valley from the hill of El Pozo, forded several
streams, wliere they lost heavily, and deployed at the foot of the series of hills
known as San Juan under a sharp fire from all sides, which was exceedingly
annoying because the enemy could not be discerned, owing to the long range
and smokeless powder. They were under fire for two hours before the charge
could be made and a position reached under the brow of the hill. It was not
until nearly 4 o'clock that the neighboring hills were occupied by our troops
and the final successful effort to crown the ridge could be made. The obstacles
interposed by the Spaniards made these charges anything but^ the ' rushes '
which war histories mention so often. They were slow and pkinful advances
through difficult obstacles and a withering fire. The last 'charge' continued
an hour, but at 4.45 the firing ceased, with San Juan in our possession.
"The Spaniards made liberal use of barbed-wire fencing, which proved to
564 THE SPANISH-AMERICAN WAR.
be so effective as a stop to our advance that it is likely to take its place among
approved defensive materials in future wars. It was used in two ways : Wires
were stretched near the ground to trip up our men when on the run. Beyond
them were fences in parallel lines, some being too high to be vaulted over.
" The object of our attack was a blockhouse on the top of the iiill of San
Juan, guai'ded by trenches and tlie defenses spoken of, a mile and a half long.
Our trooixs advanced steadily against a hot fire maintained by the enemy, who
used their rifles with accuracy, but did not cling to their works stubbornly when
we reached them. San Juan was carried in the afternoon. The attack on
Aguadores was also successful, though it was not intended to be more than a
feint to draw off men who might otherwise have increased our difficulties at San
Juan. By nightfall General Shafter was able to telegraph that he had carried
all tlie outworks and was within three-quarters of a mile of the city.
"Though the enemy's lines were broken in the principal jilaces, they
yielded no more than was forced from them, and the battle was resumed on thg
2d. The last day saw our left flank resting on the bay and our lines drawn
around the city within easy gun-fire. Fears were entertained that the enemy
would evacuate the place, and the right flank was pushed around to the north
and eventually to the north w^est of the city."
In the fight at San Juan General Linares, commanding the Spanish forces
in Santiago, was severely wounded, and transferred the command to General
Jose Toral, secontl in authority.
THE DESTRUCTION OF CERVERA's FLEET.
During the previous two days' fight by land the fleet of Admiral Cervera
in Santiago harbor had taken an active part in shelling our positions, with no
inconsiderable effect; and General Shafter, largely on this account, had about
despaired of taking the city, with the force at his command. In fact, he went
so far on the morning of July 3d as to telegraph Washington that his losses
had been greatly underestimated, that he met with stronger resistance than
he had anticipated, and was seriously considering falling back to a jiosition five
miles to the rear to await reinforcements. He was also anxious for an interview
with Admiral Sampson. The fleet had been shelling the enemy during the two
days' fight, but it was necessary that the navy and army should have an under-
standing; and at 8.30 o'clock on Sunday morning Admiral Sampson with his
flagship New York steamed eastward for the purpose of conferring with the
general.
General Miles telegraphed General Shafter, in response to his request to
hold his position, that he would be with him in a week with strong reinforce-
ments; and he promptly started two expeditions, aggregating over 6,000 men,
THE DESTRUCTION OF CEEVERA'S FLEET.
565
wliicli reached Santiago on the 8th and 10th respectively, in time to witness the
closing engagements and surrender of the city. But foi'tune again favored our
cause and completely changed the situation, unexpectedly to the American com-
manders of the land and naval forces.
It was on Sunday morning, July od, just before Sam])S()n landed to meet
Shafter, that Admiral Cervera, in obedience to commands from his home
government, endeavored to run his fleet past the blockading squadron of the
Americans, with the result that all of his ships were destroyed, nearly 500 of
his men killed and wounded, and himself and niinnt 1,800 others wore made
prisoners. This naval engagement
was one of the most dramatic and
terrible in all the history of conflict
upon the seas, and, as it was really
the beginning of the end of what
promised to be a long and terrible
struggle, it was undoubtedly the most
important battle of the war.
It had been just one month, to
a day, since Hobson sunk the Mcrri-
viac at the harlior's mouth to keep
Cervera in, and for nearly one month
and a half the fleets of Schley and
Sampson had lain, like watch-dogs
before the gate, without for one mo-
ment relaxing their vigilance. The
quiet of Sunday morning brooded over
the scene. Even the winds seemed
I'esting from their labors and the sea
lay smooth as glass. For two days
before, July 1st and 2d, the fleets
had bombarded the forts of Santiago
for the fourth time, and all the ships, except the Oregon, had steam down so
low as to allow them a speed of only five knots an hour. At half-past nine
o'clock the bugler sounded the call to quarters, and the Jackies appeared on
deck rigged in their cleanest clothes for their regular Sunday inspection. On
board the Texas the devout Captain Philiji had sounded the trumpet-call to re-
ligious services. In an instant a line of smoke was seen coming out of the
harbor by the watch on the loiva, and from that vessel's yard a signal was run
up — "The enemy is escaping to the westward." Simultaneously, from her
bridge a six-pounder boomed on the still air to draw the attention of the other
REAR-ADMIRAL WINFIELD SCOTT SCHLEY.
566 THE SPANISH-AMERICAN WAR.
ships to her fluttering signaL On every vessel white masses were seen scram-
bling forward. Jackies and firemen tumbled over one another rushing to their
stations. Officers jumped into the turrets through manholes, dressed in their
best uniforms, and captains rushed to their conning towers. There was no time
to waste — scarcely enough to get the battle-hatches screwed on tight. Jingle,
jingle, went the signal-bells in the engine-rooms, and "Steam! Steam!" the cap-
tains cried through the tubes. Far below decks, in 125 to 150 degrees of heat,
naked men shoveled in the black coal and forced drafts were put on.
One minute after the Iowa fired her signal-gun she was moving toward the
harbor. From under the Castle of Morro came Admiral Cervera's flagship, the
Infanta llaria Teresa, followed by her sister armored cruisers, Almirante
Oquendo and Vizcaya — so much alike that they could not be distinguished at
any distance. There was also the splendid Cristobal Colon, and after them all
the two fine torpedo-boat destroyers, Pluton and Furor. The Teresa opened
fire as she sighted the American vessels, as did all of her companions, and the
forts from the heights belched forth at the same time. Countless geysers around
our slowly approaching battle-ships showed where the Spanish shells exploded in
the water. The Americans replied. The battle was on, but at a long range of
two or three miles, so that the secondary batteries could not be called into use ;
but thirteen-inch shells from the Oregon and Indiana and the twelve-inch shells
from the Texas and Iowa were churning up the water around the enemy. At
this juncture it seemed impossible for the Americans to head off the Spanish
cruisers from passing the western point, for they had come out of the harbor at
a sj)eed of thirteen and one-half knots an hour, for which the blockading fleet
was not prepared. But Admiral Sampson's instructions were simple and well
understood — "Should the enemy come out, close in and head him off"" — and
every ship was now endeavoring to obey that standing command while they
piled on coal and steamed up.
Meanwhile, from the rapidly approaching Neiv York the signal fluttered
— "Close into the mouth of the harbor and engage the enemy; " but the admiral
was too far away, or the men were too busy to see this signal, which they were,
nevertheless, obeying to the letter.
It was not until the leading Spanish cruiser had almost reached the western
point of the bay, and when it was evident that Cervera was leading his entire
fleet in one direction, that the battle commenced in its fury. The Iowa and
the Oregon headed straight for the shore, intending to ram if possible one or
more of the Spaniards. The Indiana and the Texas were following, and the
Brooklyn, in the endeavor to cut off" the advance ship, was headed straight for
the western point. The little unprotected Gloucester steamed right across the
harbor mouth and engaged the Oquendo at closer range than any of the other
DESTRUCTION OF CERVERA'S FLEET.
667
ships, at the same time firing on the Furor and Pluton, wliich were rapidly
approaching.
It then became apparent that the Oregon, and Iowa could not ram, and that
the Brooklyn could not head them ofl", as she had hoped, and, turning in a
parallel course with them, a running fight ensued. Broadside after broadside
came fast with terrific slaughter. The rapid-fire guns of the Iowa nearest the
Teresa enveloped the former vessel in a mantle of smoke and flame. She was
followed by the Oregon, Indiana, Texas, and Brooklyn, all pouring a rain of
red-hot steel and exploding shell into the fleeing cruisers as they passed along in
their desperate effort to escape. The
Furor and Pluton dashed like mad
colts for the Brooklyn, and Commo-
dore Schley signaled — "Repel tor-
pedo-destroyers." Some of the heavy
ships turned their guns upon the
little monsters. It was short work.
Clouds of black smoke rising from
their thin sides showed how seriously
they suffered as they floundered in
the sea.
The Brooklyn and Oregon
dashed on after the cruisers, fol-
lowed by the other big ships, leaving
the Furor and Pluton to the Glou-
cester, hoping the New York, which
was coming in the distance, would
arrive in time to help her out if she
needed it. The firing from the main
and second batteries of all the bat-
tle-ships — Oregon, Iowa, Texas — and
the cruiser Brooklyn was turned upon
the Vizcaya, Teresa, and Oquendo with such terrific broadsides and accuracy of
aim that the Sf)aniards were driven from their guns repeatedly; but the officers
gave the men liquor and drove them back, beating and sometimes shooting down
those who weakened, without mercy; but under the terrific fire of the Americans
the poor wretches were again driven away or fell mangled l\y their guns or
stunned from the concussions of the missiles on the sides of their ships.
Presently flames and smoke burst out from the Teresa and the Oquendo.
The fire leaped from the port-holes ; and amid the din of battle and above it all
rose the wild cheers of the Americans as both these splendid ships slowly reeled
EEAR-ADMIRAL JOHN C. WATSON.
C'ummander of the Blockading Fleet at Havana.
568 THE SPANISH-AMERICAN WAR.
like drunken men and headed for the shore. "They are on fire! We've finished
them," shouted the gunners. Down came the Spanish flags. The news went
all over the ships — it being commanded by Commodore Schley to keep every-
one informed, even those far below in the fire-rooms — and from engineers and
firemen in the hot bowels of the great leviathans to the men in the fighting-tops
the welkin rang until the ships reverhernted with exuberant cheers.
This was 10.20 A. m. Previously, the two torpedo boats had gone down,
and only two dozen of their 140 men survived, these having been picked up by
the Gloucester, which plucky little unprotected "dare-devil," not content with
the destruction she had courted and escaped only as one of the unexplainable
mysteries of Spanish gunnery, was coming up to join the chase after bigger
g:nne; and it was to Lieutenant Wainwright, her commander, that Admiral
Cervera surrendered. Tlie Maine teas avenged. (Lieutenant Wainwright was
executive officer on that ill-foted vessel when she was blown up February 15th.)
Cervera was wounded, hatless, and almost naked when he was taken on board
the Gloucester. Lieutenant Wainwright cordially saluted him and grasped him
by the hand, saying, "I congratulate you. Admiral Cervera, upon as gallant a
fight as was ever made upon the sea." He placed his cabin at the service of
Cervera and his officers, while his surgeon ch'essed their wounds and his men
did all they could for their comfort — Wainwriglit supplying the admiral with
clothing. Cervera was overcome with emotion, and the face of the old gray-
bearded warrior was suffused in tears. The Iowa and Indiana came up soon
after the Gloucesf.er and assisted in the rescue of the drowning Spaniards from
the Oquemlo and Teresa, after whicli they all hurried on after the vanishing
Brooklijn and Oregon, which were pursuing the Vizcaya and Colon, the only
two remaining vessels of Cervera's splendid fleet. From pursuer and pui-sued
the smoke rose in volumes and the booming guns over the waters sang the song
of destruction.
In twenty-four minutes after the sinking of the Teresa and Oqncndo, the
Vizcaya, riddled by the Oregon' s ^^vewi shells and burning fiercely, hauled down
her flag and headed for the shore, where she hung upon the rocks. In a dying
effi)rt she had tried to ram the Brooklyn, but the fire of the big cruiser was too
hot for her. The Texas and the little Vixen were seen to be about a mile to the
rear, and the Vizcaya was left to them and the Iowa, the latter staying by her
finally, while the Texas and Vixen followed on.
It looked like a forlorn hope to catch the Colon. She was four and one-
half miles away. But the Brooklyn and the Oregon were running like express
trains, and the Texas spetl after the fugitives with all her might. The chase
lasted two hours. Firing ceased, and every power of the ship and the nerve of
commodore, captains, and officers were devoted to increasing the speed. Men
DESTRUCTION OF CERVERA'S FLEET. 569
from the guns, naked to the waist and persj^iring in streams, were called on deck
for rest and an airing. It was a grimy and dirty but jolly set of Jackies, and
jokes were merrily cracked as they sped on and waited. Only the men in the
fire-rooms were working as never before. It was their battle now, a battle of
speed. At 12.30 it was seen the Americans were gaining. Cheers went up and
all was made ready. " We may wing that fellow yet," said Commodore Schley,
as he commanded Captain Clark to try a big thirteen-inch shell. "Remember
the Maine" was flung out on a pennant from the mast-head of the Oregon, and
at 8,500 yards she began to send her 1,000-pound shots shrieking over the
Brooklyn after the flying Spaniard. One threw tons of water on board the
fugitive, and the Brooklyn a few minutes later with eiglit-inch guns began to
]ielt her sides. Everyone expected a game fight from the proud and splendid
Colon with her smokeless powder and rapid-fire guns; but all were surprised
when, after a feeble resistance, at 1.15 o'clock her captain struck his colors and
ran his ship ashore sixty miles from Santiago, opening her sea-valves to sink
her after she had surrendered.
Victory was at last complete. As the Brooklyn and Oregon moved upon
the prey word of the surrender was sent below, and naked men poured out of
the fire-rooms, black with smoke and dirt and glistening witli perspiration, but
wild with joy. Commodore Schley gazed down at the grimy, gi-uesome, jovous
fii-emen with glistening eyes suspicious of tears, and said, in a husky voice,
eloquent with emotion, " Tliose are the fellows who made this day." Then he
signaled — "The enemy has surrendered." The Texas, five miles to the east,
repeated the signal to Admiral Sampson some miles further away, coming at top
speed of the Netv York. Next the commodore signaled the admiral — " A
glorious victory lias been achieved. Details communicated later.''' And then, to
all the ships, " This is a great day for our country,'''' all of which were repeated
by the Texas to the ships further east. The cheering was wiltl. Such a scene
was never, perhaps, witnessed upon the ocean. Admiral Sampson arrived before
the Colon sank, and placing the great nose of the New York against that vessel
pushed her into shallow water, where she sank, but was not entirely submerged.
Thus perished from the earth the bulk of the sea power of Spain.
The Spanish losses were 1,800 men killed, wounded, and made jjrisoners,
and six ships destroyed or sunk, the property loss being about $12,000,000.
The American loss was one man killed and three wounded, all from the Brooklyn,
a result little short of a miracle from the fact that tlie Brooklyn was hit thirty-
six times, and nearly all the ships were struck more than once.
The prisoners were treated witli the utmost courtesy. jNIany of them were
taken or rescued entirely naked, and scores of them were wounded. Their be-
havior was manly and their fortitude won the admiration of their captors.
570
THE SPANISH-AMERICAN WAR.
Whatever may be said of Spanish marksmanship, there is no discount on Spanish
courage. After a short detention Cervera and his captured sailors were sent
north to New Hampshire and tlience to Annapolis, where they were held until
released by order of President McKinley, August 31st.
THREATENED BOMBARDMENT OF SANTIAGO AND FLIGHT OF THE REFUGEES.
On July od, while the great naval duel was in progress upon the sea,
General Shafter demanded the surrender of Santiago upon pain of bombard-
ment. The demand was refused by General Toral, who commanded the forces
after the wounding of General Liu-
ares. General Shafter stated that
he would postpone the bombardment
until noon of July 5th to allow
foreigners and non-combatants to
get out of the city, and he urged
General Toral in the name of hu-
manity to use his influence and aid
to facilitate the rapid departure of
unarmed citizens and foreigners.
Accordingly late in the afternoon of
July 4th General Toral posted no-
tices upon the walls of Santiago
advising all women, children, and
non-combatants that between five
and nine o'clock on the morning of
the 5th they might pass out by any
gate of the city, all pilgrims going on
foot, no carriages being allowed, and
stating that stretchers would be pro-
vided for the crippled.
Promptly at five o'clock on the
following morning a great line of pilgrims wound out of Santiago. It was no
rabble, but well-behaved crowds of men and women, with great droves of chil-
dren. About four hundred persons w^ere carried out on litters. Many of the
poorer women wore large crucifixes and some entered El Caney telling their
beads. But there were many not so fortunate as to reach the city. Along the
highroads in all directions thousands of families squatted entirely without food
or shelter, and many deaths occurred among them. The Red Cross Society did
much to relieve the suffering, but it lacked means of transporting supplies to
the front.
MAJOR-QENEHAL WILLIAM E. SHAFTER.
THE LAST BATTLE.
571
While the flag of truce was still flying on the morning of July 6tji a com-
municuti(jii was received from General Toral, requesting that the time of truce
be further extended, as he wanted to communicate again with the Spanish
government at Madrid concerning the surrender of the city; and, further, that
the cable oper«>tors, who were Englishmen and had fled to El Caney with the
refugees, be returned to the city that he might tlo so. General Shafter extended
the truce until four o'clock on Sunday, July lOtli, and the operators returned
from EI Caney to work the wires for General Toral. During all this time the
refugees continued to throng the roads to Siboncy ami El Canev, until 20,0rX)
fugitives were congregated at the
two points. It is a disgraceful fact,
however, that while this truce was
granted at the request of the Spanish
general, it was taken advantage of
by the troops under him to loot the
city. Both Cuban and Spanish
families suffered from their rapacity.
THE LAST BATTLi; AXD THE SUR-
RENDER OF THE CITY.
On July 8th and 10th the two
expeditions of General Miles arrived,
reinforcing General Shafter's army
with over 6,000 men. General
Toral was acquainted with the fact
of their presence, and General Miles
urgently impressed upon him that
further resistance could but result in
a useless loss of life. The Spanish
commander replied that he had not
received permission to surrender,
and if the Americans would not wait longer he could only obey orders of
his government, and that he and his men would die fighting. Accordingly a
joint bombardment by the army and navy wa.s begun. The artillery reply
of the Spaniards was feeble and si^iritless, though our attack on the city was
chiefly with artillerv. They seemed to depend most upon their small arms,
and returned the volleys fired from the trenches vigorously. Our lines were
elaborately protected with over 22,000 sand-l)ags, while the Spaniards were
protected with l)amboo poles filled with earth. In this engagement the
dvnaraite
trophe in Havana Harbor, February 15, 1898,
CUBA, "THE CHILD OF OUR ADOPTION."
603
As if the cup ot" Cuba's sorrow were not sufficiently bitter, or her long-
suffering patriots had not drunk deep enough of its gall, General Campos was
recalled, and General Valeriano Weyler (nicknamed " The Butcher ") arrived
in February 1896. He promptly inaugui'ated the most bitter and inhuman
policy in the annals of modern warfare. It began with a campaign of iu-
timitlation, in which his motto was " Subjugation or Death." He established
a system of espionage that was i)ei'fect, and the testimony of the spy was all the
evidence he I'equired. He heeded no prayer and knew no mercy. His prisons
overflowed with suspected patriots, and his sunrise executions, every morning,
made room for others. It was thus that General Weyler carried on the war from
his palace against the unarmed natives,
his 200,000 soldiers seldom securing
a shot at the insurgents, who were
continually bushwhacking them with
deadly effect, while yellow fever car-
ried them off by the thousands. How
many lives Weyler sacrificed in that
dreadful year will never be known.
How many suspects he frightened into
giving him all their gold for mercy
and tlien coldly shot for treason, no
record will disclose ; but the crowded,
unmarked graves on tlie hillside out-
side Havana are mute but eloquent
witnesses of his infamy.
Under these conditions, Gomez
declared that all Cubans must take
sides. They must be for oi- against.
It was no time for neutrals and there
could be no neutral ground, so lie boldly levied forced contributions upon plant-
ers unfavorable to his cause, and extended protection to those who befriended
the patriots. Exasperated by Weyler's atrocities upon non-combatant patriots,
he dared to destroy or confiscate the property of Spanish sympathizers.
THE DEATH OF GENERAL MACEO.
On the night of December 4, 1896, the insurgents suffered an irreparable
loss in the death of General Maceo, who was led into an ambush and killed, it
is believed, through the treachery of his staff physician. Eight brothers of
Maceo had previously given their lives for Cuban freedom.
At the close of 1896, the island was desolate to an extreme perhaps unpre-
ONS
ct's way of getting
604
CUBA, "THE CHILD OF OUR ADOPTION."
cedented in modern times. Thie country was laid waste and the cities were
starving. Under the pretext of protecting them, Weyler gathered the non-
combatants into towns and stockades, and it is authoritatively stated that 200,000
men, women, and children of the " reconcentrados," as they were called, died of
disease and starvation. The insurgents remained masters of the island except
along the coasts. The only important incident of actual warfare was the capture
of Victoria de las Tunas, in Santiago province, by General Garcia at the head
of 3,000 men, after three days' fighting. In this battle the Spanish commander
lost his life and forty per cent, of his troops wei-e killed or wounded ; the rest
surrendered to Garcia, and the rebels secured by their victory 1,000 rifles,
1.000,000 rouuds of ammunition, and two Krupp guns.
In the spring of 1898 the United
States intervened. The story of our war
with Spain for Cuba's freedom is else-
where related.
Spain has paid dearly for her su-
premacy in Cuba during the last third of
the nineteenth century. Notwithstand-
ing the fact that the revenue from Cuba
for several years prior to the Ten Years'
War of 1868-78 amounted to $26,000,-
000 annually — about $18 for every man,
woman, and child in the island — $20,-
000,000 of it was absorbed in Spain's
official circles at Havana, and " the other
$6,000,000 that the Spanish government
received," says one historian, " was hardly
enough to pay transportation rates on the
help that the mother country had to
send to her army of occupation." Consequently, despite this enormous tax, a
heavy debt accumulated on account of the island, even before the Ten Years'
War began.
FEAKFUL COST OF THE WAR.
At the close of the Ten Years' War (1878) Spain had laid upon the island
a public debt of $200,000,000, and required her to raise $39,000,000 of revenue
annually, an average at thiit time of nearly $30 per inhabitant. But Spain's
own debt had, also, increased to nearly $2,000,000,000, and during this Ten
Years' War she had sent 200,000 soldiers and her favorite commanders to the
island, only about 50,000 of whom ever returned. According to our Consular
Report of July, 1898, when the last revolution began, 1895, the Cuban debt.
CLARA BARTON
,idiut of the Amerk-aii KfJ Cro
CUBA, ''THE CHILD OF OUR ADOPTION."
G05
nad reached $295,707,264. The interest on this alone imposed a burden of
$9.79 per annum upon each inhabitant. During the war, tSpain had 200,000
troops in the island, and the three and one-half years' contiict cost her the loss
of nearly 100,000 lives, mostly from sickness, and, as yet, unknown millions of
dollars. The real figures of the loss of life and treasure seem incredible when
we consider that Cuba is not larger than our State of Pennsylvania, and that
her entire population at the beginning of the war was about one-fourth that of
the State named, or a little less than that of the city of Chicago alone. Yet
Spain, with an army larger than the combined northern and southern forces at
the battle of Gettysburg, was unable to overcome the insurgents, who had never
more than one-fourth as many men enlisted. But -Ik h ir i^-i d, tortured, and
starved to death within three years, per-
haps, over 500,000 non-combatant citizen-;
in her attempt to subjugate the patriot-.,
and was in a fair way to depopulate the f^RMK ^MT -^i
whole island when the United States at
last intervened to succor them.
THE FUTURE OF THE ISLAND.
A SPANISH MESTIZA
Wliat the future of Cuba may be ■«-,
under new conditions of government re-
mains to be seen. Certainly, in all the
world's history few sadder or more de-
vastated lands have gathered their rem-
nants of poiJulation upon the ashes of
their ruins and turned a hopeful face to
the future.
But the soil, the mineral and the
timber not even Spanish tyranny could
destroy ; and in these lie the hope, we might say the sure guarantee, of Cuba's
future. In wealth of resources and fertility of soil, Culm is superior to all other
tropical countries, and these fully justify its right to the title "Pearl of the An-
tilles," first given it by Columbus. Under a wise and secure government, its
possibilities are almost limitless. Owing to its location at the entrance of the
Gulf of Mexico, which it divides into the Yucatan and Florida channels, on the
south and north, the island has l>een termed the " Key to the Gulf of ]\Iexico,"
and on its coat of arms is emblazoned a key, as if to imply its ability to open or
close this great sea to the commerce of the world.
Cuba extends from east to west 760 miles, is 21 miles wide in its narrowest
60G CUBA, "THE CHILD OF OUR ADOPTION."
part and 111 miles in the widest, with an average width of 60 miles. It has
numerous harbors, which afford excellent anchorage. The area of the island
proper is 41,655 square miles (a little larger than the State of Ohio); and includ-
ing the Isle of Pines and other small points around its entire length, number-
ing in all some 1,200, there are 47,278 square miles altogether in Cuba and be-
longing to it. The island is intersected by broken ranges of mountains, which
gradually increase in height from west to east, where they reach an elevation of
nearly 8,000 feet. The central and western portions of the island are the most
fertile, while the principal mineral deposits are in the mountains of the eastern
end. In Matanzas and other central provinces, the well-drained, gently slop-
ing plains, diversified by low, forest-clad hills, are especially adapted to sugar
culture, and the country under normal conditions presents the appearance of vast
fields of cane. The western jjortion of the island is also mountainous, but the
elevations are not great, and in the valleys and along the fertile slopes of this
district is produced the greater part of the tobacco for which the island is
famous.
FERTILITY OF SOIL AND ITS PRODUCTS.
The soil of the whole island seems well-nigh inexhaustible. Except in to-
bacco culture, fertilizers are never used. In the sugar districts are found old cane-
fields that have produced annual crops for a hundred years without perceptible
impoverishment of the soil. Besides sugar and tobacco, the island yields Indian
corn, rice, manioc (the plant from which tapioca is prepared), oranges, bananas,
pineapples, mangoes, guava, and all other tropical fruits, with many of those be-
longing to the temperate zone. Raw sugar, molasses, and tobacco are the chief
products, and, with fruits, nuts, and unmanufactured woods, form the bulk of
exports, though coffee culture, formei'ly active, is now being revived, and its fine
quality indicates that it must in time become one of the most important products
of the island.
As a sugar country, Cuba takes first rank in the world. Mr. Gallon, the
English Consul, in his report to his government in 1897 upon this Cuban crop,
declared : " Of the other cane-sugar countries of the world, Java is the only one
which comes within 50 per cent, of the amount of sugar produced annually in
Cuba in normal times, and Java and the Hawaiian Islands are the only ones
which are so generally advanced in the process of manufacture." Our own
Consul, Hyatt, in his report of February, 1897, expresses the belief that Cuba
is equal to supplying the entire demands of the whole western hemisphere with
sugar — a market for 4,000,000 tons or more, and requiring a crop four times as
large as the island has ever yet produced. Those who regard this statement as
extravagant should remember that Cuba, although founded and settled more
CUBA, ''THE CHILD OF OUR ADOPTION." 60?
than fifty years before the United States, has nearly 14,000,000 acres of un-
cleared primeval forest-land, and is capable of easily supporting a population
more than ten times that of the present. In fact, the Island of Java, not so
rich as Cuba, and of very nearly the same area, with less tillable land, has over
22,000,000 inhabitants as against Cuba's — perhaps at this time — not more than
1,200,000 souls.
MINERAL AXD TIMBER RESOURCES.
The mineral resources of Cuba are second in importance to its agricultural
products. Gold and silver are not believed to exist in paying quantities, bu*"
its most valuable mineral, copj^er, seems to be almost inexhaustible. The iron,
and manganese mines, in the vicinity of Santiago, are of great importance, the
ores being rated among the finest in the world. Deposits of asphalt and min-
eral oils are also found.
The tliinl resource of Cuba in importance is its forest product. Its millions
of acres of unbroken woodlands are rich in valuable hard woods, suitable for
the finest cabinet-work and ship-building, and also furnish many excellent dye
woods. Mahogany, cedar, rosewood, and ebony abound. The palm, of which
there are thirty-odd species found in the island, is one of the most characteristic
and valuable of Cuban trees.
CITIES AND COMMERCE.
The commerce of Cuba has been great in the past, but Spanish laws made
it expensive and oppressive to the Cubans. Its location and resources, with wise
government, assure to the island an enormous trade in the future. There are
already four cities of maiked importance to the commercial world : Havana
with a population of 250,000, Santiago with 71,000, Matanzas with 29,000,
and Cienfuegos with 30,000, are all seaport cities with excellent harbors, and
all do a large exporting business. Add to these Cardenas with 25,000, Trini-
dad with 18,000, Manzanillo with 10,000, and Guantanamo and Baracoa, each
with 7,000 inhabitants, we have an array of ten cities such as few strictly
farming countries of like size possess. Aside from cigar and cigarette making,
there is little manufacturing in Cuba ; but fruit canneries, sugar refine-
ries, and various manufacturing industries for the consumption of native
products will rapidly follow in the steps of good government. Hence, in the
field of manufacturing this island offers excellent inducements to cajtital.
SEASONS AND CLIMATE.
Like all tropical cmintries, Cuba has but two seasons, the wet and the dry.
The former extends from May to October, June, July, and August being the
most rainy months. The dry season lasts from November to May. This fact
€08
CUBA, "THE CHILD OF OUR ADOPTION:'
must go far toward making the island more and more 2;>opular as a winter liealth
resort. The interior of the island is mountainous, and always pleasantly cool at
night, while on the highlands the heat in the day is less oppressive than in New
York and Pennsylvania during the hottest summer weather; consequently, when
once yellow fever, which now ravages the coasts of the island on account of its
defective sanitation, is extirpated, as it doubtless will be under the new order of
things, Cuba will become the seat of many winter homes for wealthy residents of
the United States. Even in the summer, the temperature seldom rises above
A VOLANTE, THE TYPICAL CUBAN CONVEYANCE.
90°, while the average for the year is 77°. At no place, except in the extreme
mountainous altitude, is it ever cold enough for frost.
THE EVACUATION OF HAVANA.
The complete transfer of authority in the island of Cuba from Spain to
the United States took place on Sunday, January 1, 1899. At noon on that day
Captain-General Castellanos and staif met the representatives of the United States
in the hall of his palace, and with due formality and marked Spanish courtesy,
in the name of the King and Queen Regent of Spain, delivered possession of
CUBA, "THE CHILD OF OUR ADOPTION."
609
Cuba to General Wade, head of the American Evacuation Committee, and he in
turn transferred the same to General Brooke, who had been appointed by Presi-
dent McKinley as Military Governor of the Division of Cuba. No unpleasant
incident marred the occasion. General Castellanos spoke with evident yet be-
coming emotion on so important an occasion. Three Cuban generals were pre-
sent, who, at General Castellanos' request, were presented to him, and the Span-
iard said, with marked grace and evident sincerity, " I am sorry, gentlemen, that
we are enemies, being of the same blood;" to which one of the Cuban patriots
ENTBANCE TO THE PUBLIC GROUNDS, HAVANA. CUBA.
courteously responded, with commendable charity, "Wc fought only for Cuba,
and now that she is free we are no longer enemies."
The formal transfer had scarcely taken place within the palace hall when
the flag of Spain was lowered from ]\Iorro Castle, Cabanas Fortress, and all the
public buildings, and the stars and stripes instantly arose in its place on the flag-
poles of these old and historic buildings. As its graceful folds floated gently
out upon the breeze, the crowds from the streets cheered, the band played the
most appropriate of all airs, while voices in many places in the throng, catching
up the tune, sang the inspiring words of the " Star-Spangled Banner."
OUR NEW POSSESSIONS (CONTINUED).
BEAUTIFUL PORTO RICO.
It was in November of the
year 1493, on his second voyage
to the New World, that Columbus
landed upon a strange island in
quest of water for his ships. He
found it in abundance, and called
the place Aquadilla — the water-
ing place. As he had done at
Cuba the year before, the great
discoverer held pleasant confer-
ences with the natives, and with
ilue ceremony took possession of
the island for his benefactors and
sovereigns — Ferdinand and Isa-
bella of Spain. From that day
w:^ until it was ceded to the United
-^ States in 1898, as a result of the
Spanish-American War, Porto
Rico remained one of the most attractive and valuable of Spain's West Indian
possessions.
The simple and friendly natives gladly welcomed their Spanish invaders,
who, with the same promptness which was manifested in Cuba, proceeded ta
enslave and exterminate them. In 1510, Ponce de Leon founded the first settle-
ment on the site of the present village of Puerto Viejo. The next year the
noted invader founded San Juan, the present capital of the island. One of the
most interesting sights of this old city to-day is the Casa Blanca, built at that
period as the palatial residence of Ponce de Leon. It was there, perhaps, after
he had finished his conquest of the island, that this famous old Spaniard listened
to the wonderful story of the natives, who served him as slaves, concerning the
mysterious country over the sea which had hidden in its forests a fountain
wherein an old man might plunge and be restored to all the vigor of youth.
It was there and thus, perhaps, while sitting at leisure in his palace, that de
610
A MAHKi;'!' t.-IKL, PORTO RICO
BEAUTIFUL PORTO RICO. 611
L-eon planned the voyage in search of that " fountain of youth " which resulted
in the discovery and exploration of Florida.
ANCIENT INHABITANTS.
As to the number of natives in Porto Eico when the Spaniards came old
chroniclers differ. Some say there weie 500,000, others 300,000. It is all
surmise. Probably the latter figure is an over-estimate, for Cuba, more than
ten times as large, was not thought to contain more than half a million inhabit-
ants at most. A detailed account of their manners and customs was written by
one of the early Spaniards, and part of it is translated by the British Consul,
Mr. Bidwell, in his Consular Report of 1880. Some of the statements in this
old book are most peculiar and interesting. Within the last forty years archae-
ologists have discovered many stone axes, spear-heads and knives, stone and
clay images, and pieces of earthenware made by the aboriginal Porto Ricans,
and these are preserved in the Smithsonian Institute at Washington, in Berlin,
and elsewhere. It is curious that none of these remains had been found prior
to 1856. On the banks of the Rio Grande there still stands, also, a rude stone
monument, with strange designs carved upon its surface.
From the earliest times, the island, with its rich produce and commerce,
was the prey of robbers. The fierce cannibal Caribs from the south made
expeditions to it before the white men came ; and for many decades after the
Spanish conquest it suffered attacks from pirates by sea and brigands upon land,
who found easy hiding within its deep forests.
ATTACKS AND INVASIONS BY FOREIGN FORCES.
In 1595, San Juan was sacked by the English under Drake, and again,
three years later, by the Duke of Cumberland. In 1615, Baldwin Heinricli, a
Dutchman, lost his life in an attack upon the governor's castle, and several of
his shijis were destroyed by a hurricane. The English failed to capture it,
fifty-three years later ; and Abercrombie tried it again in 1797, but had to give
up the undertaking after a three days' siege. It was one hundred and one
years after Abercrombie's siege before another hostile fleet appeared before and
bombarded San Juan. That was done by Admiral Sampson, May 12, 1898,
with the United States squadron of modern iron-clad battleships and cruisers.
In this engagement Morro Castle, which, though impregnable a hundred years
before, was unable to withstand modern guns, and was in a large part reduced
to ruins.
General Nelson A. Miles landed his United States troops on the island :a
July, 1898, and on the 12th of August, before he completed his conquest, hos-
tilities were closed by the protocol of peace, and amid the rejoicing of the natives
612
BEAUTIFUL PORTO RICO.
" Beautiful Porto Eico " became a province of tlie United States. The one and
only attempt the Porto Ricans ever made to throw off the Spanish yoke was
in 1820 ; but conditions for hiding from the soldiers were not so good as the
Cubans enjoyed in their large island, and Spanish supremacy was completely
re-established by 1823.
THE ISLAXD AND iTb POPULATION.
Porto Rico is at once the most healthful and most densely populated island
of the West Indies. It is almost rectangular in form — 100 miles long and 36
broad. Its total area is about 3,600 square miles — a little larger than the com-
bined areas of Rhode Island and Delaware. Its population, unlike that of Cuba,
THE CUSTOM HOUSE, POXCE. PORTO RICO. AFTER THE KAISIKa OP THE AilEEICAN
FLAG BY GENEBAL MILES.
has greatly increased within the last fifty years. In 1830, it numbered 319,000 ;
in 1887, 813,937 — about 220 people to the square mile, a density which few
States of the Union can equal. About half of its population are negroes or
mulattoes, who were introduced by the Spaniards as slaves in the 16th and 17th
centuries.
Among the people of European origin the most numerous are the Spaniards,
with many Germans, Swedes, Danes, Russians, Frenchmen, Chuetos (descend-
BEAUTIFUL PORTO RKV. 613
ants from the Moorish Jews), and natives of the Canary Islands. There are
also a number of Chinese, while the Gibaros, or small land-holders and day-
laborers of the country districts, are a curious old Spanish cross with the abo-
riginal Indian blood. In this class the aborigines are more fortunate than the
original Cubans in having even a trace of their blood preserved.
The island is said to be capable of easily supporting three times its present
population, the soil is so universally fertile and its resources are so well diver-
sified. Though droughts occur in certain parts of the island, it is all extremely
well watered, by more than one thousand streams, enumerated on the maps, and
the dry sections have a system of irrigation which may be operated very effect-
ually and with little expense. Of the 1,300 streams, forty-seven are consider-
able rivers. jr
TIMBER IN ABUNDANCE AND VARIETY.
Forests still cover all the elevated parts of the hill country of the interior,
the inhabitants living mostly along the coast. The main need to set the interior
teeming with a thrifty and healthy population is a system of good roads. The
interior, with the exception of a few extensive savannas, is one vast expanse of
rounded hills, covered with such rich soil that they may be cultivated to their
summits. At present these forests are accessible only by mule tracks. " The
timber of the island," says our official report, " comprises more than five hun-
dred varieties of trees, and in the more elevated regions the vegetation of the
temperate zones is not unknown. On the hills is found a luxuriant and diver-
sified vegetation, tree-ferns and mountain palms being abundant. At a lower
level grow many varieties of trees noted for their useful woods, such as the ma-
hogany, cedar, walnut, and laurel. The mammee, guaiacum, and copal, besides
other trees and shrubs valuable for their gum, flourish in all parts of the island.
The coffee tree and sugar cane, both of which grow well at an altitude of a thou-
sand feet or more, were introduced into the island — the former from Martinique
in 1722, the latter from the Canaries, through Santo Domingo. Tobacco grows
easily in the lowlands, while maize, pineapples, bananas, etc., are all prolific.
The banana and plantain bear fruit within ten months after planting, and. like
the cocoa palm, live through an ordinary lifetime."
MINERALS AND MINING.
"The mineral resources of the island," says our consul in his report, "have
been very little developed, the only mineral industry of any importance being
the salt works situated at Guanica, Salinas, and Cabo Kojo. Sulphides of copper
and magnetic oxides of iron are found in large quantities, and formerly gold to
a considerable extent was found in many of the streams. At present the natives
Still wash out nuggets by the crude process in use in the time of Ponce de Leon.
614
BEAUTIFUL PORTO RICO.
Marble, carbonates, lignite, and amber are also present in varying quantities,
and hot springs and mineral waters occur, the best known ones being at Coamo,
near Santa Isabel."
COMMERCE.
The commerce of Porto Rico amounted, in 1896, to $36,624,120, exceeding
the records of all previous years ; the increase, no doubt, being largely due to
_ the unsettled condition of
Cuba. The value of the
exports for the same year
was, for the first time for
more than a decade, slight-
ly in excess of that of the
imports ; the former being
valued at $18,341,430, the
latter at $18,282,690. The
chief exports from the isl-
and are agricultural pro-
ducts. The principal ar-
ticles are sugar, coffee,
molasses, and tobacco;
while rice, wheat, flour,
and manufactured articles
are among the chief im-
ports. The value of the
sugar and molasses export-
ed to the United States
during the ten years from
1888 to 1897 made up 95
per cent, of the total value
of the exports to that
country. Fruits, nuts, and
spices are also exported to
a small extent. Of the
non-agricultural exports the most important are perfumery and cosmetics ;
chemicals, drugs, and dyes ; unmanufactured wood, and salt.
The leading article of import from the United States is wheat flour. Corn
and meal, bread, biscuit, meats, dairy products, wood and its manufactures, iron,
steel, etc., are also imported.
CITIES AND TOWNS.
San Juan, the capital, is situated on an island off the northern coast of the
NATIVE BELLES, PORTO RICO.
BEAUTIFUL PORTO RICO.
615
mainland, with which it is now connected by the San Antonio bridge. The city
is a perfect specimen of a walled and fortified town, with Morro Castle crowning
the ])roniontory at the western extremity of the island. The population, including
the inliabitants of Marina and Puerta de Tierra, as well as those within the city
walls, was estimated in 1896 at 30,000, and consists largely of negroes and of
mixed races. Owing to the lack of a good water supply, and the general unsan-
itary conditions which prevail, the city is unhealthy. The houses are all of two
stories, the poorer inhabitants occupying the ground floor, wliile those better oif
THE MARKET PLACE. PONCE, PORTO RICO.
live above them. There is no running water in the city, the inhabitants being
dependent for their supply upon the rainfall which is caught on the flat roofs
of the houses and stored in cisterns, and in dry seasons the supply is entirely
exhausted. The city is built upon clay mixed with lime packed hard and im-
pervious to water. Its manufactures are of small importance.
The city of Ponce, with a population of 37,500, and in commercial import-
ance the second city of Porto Rico, is situated two miles from the coast in the
southern part of the island. With an ample water supply conveyed to the city
by an aqueduct it is, perhaps, the healthiest town on the island. Playa, its port,
having a population of 5,000, is connected with it by a fine road.
G16 BEAUTIFUL PORTO RICO.
The town of Arecibo, with a population of from 6,000 to 7,000, is situ-
ated on the northern coast of Porto Eico, and is the port for a district of some
30,000 inhabitants.
CLIMATE.
The climate of the island, though hot and humid, is healthful, except in
marshy districts and in cities where sanitary rules are neglected. Yellow fever
seldom occurs, and when it does it is confined to the unsanitary towns and their
surroundings, never appearing far from the coasts. The thermometer does not
fall below 50° or rise above 90°. The heat is not so great as at Santiago, though
the latter is one and a half degrees further north. As in Cuba, there are but
two seasons, the rainy and the dry, the former lasting from July to December,
the latter from January to the close of June. The delightful, dry and salubrious
atmosphere of midwinter and spring, with its general healthfulness, promises to
bring this island into prominence both as a resort for invalids and for homes to
those who would escape the rigors of northern winters.
Porto Rico is an ideal lazy man's country, and the overworked American
will, undoubtedly, come to make it more and more his Mecca for rest and recu-
peration. Even the interior feels the soft, salt air from the ocean. The people
are kind-hearted, " easy-going," hospitable, and fond of amusement. Every
environment conduces to the dismission of all worriment, to rest, slee^i, and a
happy-go-lucky state of mind.
OUR NEX-V POSSESSIOXS (CONTINUED).
THE PHILIPPINE ISLANDS.
'' Most bounteous here in her sea-girt lands,
Nature stretches fortli her hands,
******
And waliis on gold and silver, and knows her power increased.
Nor fears the tyrant longer—' Our Lady of the East.' "
— Stoddard,
The most important^
and by far the most inter-
esting, as well as tlie least
known of America's new
jjossessions, gained by her
war with Spain, are the
Philippine Islands. Com-
paratively few Americans
have ever set foot upon that
far-away and semi-civilized
land, the possession of which
enables America to say with
England, "The sun never
sets ujion our flag."
The Philippines lie al-
most exactly on the other
side of the globe from us.
Approximately speaking,
our noonday is their mid-
night; our sunset is their
' sunrise. There are some
1,200 of these islands, 400 of
which are inhabited or capa-
ble of supporting a popu-
lation; they cover about
125,000 square miles ; they lie in the tropical seas, generally speaking, from five
to eighteen degrees north latitude, and are bounded by the China Sea on the west
and the Pacific Ocean on the east ; they are about 7,000 miles .southwest from
San Francisco, a little over 600 southeast from Hong Kong, China, and about
G17
iTILiIPINOS OF THE SAVAGE TKIBES.
618
THE PHILIPPINE ISLANDS.
1,000 almost due north fi-om Australia ; they contain between 6,000,000 and
8,000,000 inhabitants, about one-third of whom had prior to Dewey's victory,
May 1, 1898, acknowledged Spanish sovereignty to the extent of paying regular
tribute to the Spanish crown; the remainder are bound together in tribes under
independent native princes or Mohammedan rulers. Perhaps 2,500,000 all told
have become nominal Catholics in religion. The rest are Mohammedans and
idolaters. There are no Protestant churches in the islands.
THE STORY OF DISCOVERY.
It was tweuty-nine years
after Columbus discovered
America that Magellan saw
the Philippines, the largest
archipelago in the world, in
1521. The voyage of Magel-
lan was much longer and
scarcely less heroic than that
of the discoverer of America.
Having been provided with
a fleet by the Spanish king
with which to search for spice
islands, but secretly deter-
mined to sail round the world,
he set out with five vessels on
August 10, 1519, crossed the
Atlantic to America, and
skirted the eastern coast south-
ward in the hope of finding
some western passage into the
Pacific, which, a few years
previous, had been discovered
by Balboa. It was a year and
two months to a day from the
time he left Spain until he reached the southern point of the mainland of
South America and passed through the straight which has since borne his name.
On the way, one of his vessels deserted; another was wrecked in a storm. When
he passed through the Straight of Magellan he had remaining but three of his
original five ships, and they were the first European vessels that ever breasted
the waves of the mighty western ocean. Once upon the unknown but placid
sea — which he named the Pacific — the bold navigator steered straight to the
NATIVE HUNTERS, PHILIPPINE ISLANDS.
THE PHILIPPINE ISLANDS. 621
northwest. Five months later, about March 1st, he discovered the Ladrone
Islands — which name Magellan gave to the group on account of" the thieving
propensities of the natives — the word Ladrone meaning robber.
After a short stay at the islands, he steered southwest, landing on the north
coast of Mindanao, the second largest island of the Philippines. The natives
were friendly and offered to pilot Magellan to the island of Cebu, which lay to
the north, and which they reported to be very rich. After taking possession of
Mindanao in the name of his king, the discoverer proceeded to Cebu, where he
made such demonstrations and gave such descriptions of the glory and power
of Spain that he easily formed a treaty with the king of the island, who swore
allegiance to his new-found master and had himself and chief advisers baptized
in the Catholic faith. Magellan then joined the king in his war against some of
the neighboring jjowers, and on April 25, 1521, was killed in a skirmish. The
spot where he fell is now marked by a monument.
FIRST CIRCUMNAVIGATION OF THE GLOBE.
Trouble soon arose between Magellan's sailors and their new-found allies.
The Spaniards were invited to a banquet, and twenty-seven of them were treach-
erously slain. The remainder, fearing for their lives, escaped in their ships and
sailed for home. It was soon discovered that they had too few men to manage
the three vessels, and one of them was destroyed. The other two proceeded on
their voyage and discovered the spice island of Tidor, where they loaded with
spices; but a few days later one of the vessels sprang a leak and went down with
her freight and crew. The other, after many hardships, reached Spain, thua
completing the first circumnavigation of the ghjbe.
SECOND EXPEDITION TO THE PHILIPPINES.
In 1555, Philip II. came to the Spanish throne and determined to send
another expedition to the East Indies. His religious zeal inspired him to con-
quer and christianize the islands. To shorten the long and dangerous voyage,
he decided to prepare and start with five ships from the coast of Mexico.
Miguel Lopez de Legaspi led the expedition, consisting of four hundred soldier:
and sailors and six Augustine monks. In due time the expedition landed at
Cebu. The formidable appearance of the ships awed the natives, and on April
27, 1565 — forty years after Magellan's remnant had fled from the island —
Legaspi landed and took possession. In honor of the Spanish king the archi-
pelago was given the name of the Philippine Islands.
In 1570 Legaspi sent his grandson, Salcedo, to subdue the island of Luzon,
the northernmost and the largest of the Philippine group. He landed near tht
present site of INIanila. The trustful natives readily agreed to accept the Spanish
622
THE PHILIPPINE ISLANDS.
king as their master, and to pay tribute. Such slight tribal resistances as were
ofiered were quickly subdued. Tlie next year Legaspi went to Manila to visit
his grandson ; and, seeing the importance of the situation and its fine harbor,
declared that city the capital of the whole archipelago and the king of Spain
the sovereign of all the islands. Accordingly, he moved his headquarters to that
point, built houses and fortifications, and within a year had the city well organ-
ized, when he died, leaving Salcedo as his successor in command. It is remark-
able how much these two
men accomplished with so
small a force ; but they
did it not so much by arms
as by cajoling and deceiv-
ing the simple natives.
Furthermore, they allowed
the conquered people to be
governed by their own
chiefs in their own way,
so long as they paid a
liberal tribute to the Span-
ish ciown.
STRUGGLES FOR SUPREM-
ACY.
The history of the
Philippines has been mo-
notonous from their dis-
covery until the present, a
monotony broken at times
by periods of adventures
in which Manila has gen-
erally been the central
scene. About 1580, Lima-
hong, a Chinese pirate,
took the city with an armed fleet of sixty-two vessels, bearing 4,000 men and
1 .500 women. They met with stubborn resistance, but succeeded in scaling the
walls and entering the city. The Spanish forces were driven into a fort, which
the Chinese stormed. A bloody hand-to-hand conflict followed, and the Chinese
were finally repulsed.
Early in the seventeenth centui-y the Dutch attempted to obtain possession
of the Philippines. They captured scores of Spanish merchantmen and treasure
PHILIPPINE WABHIOBS.
THE PHILIPPINE ISLANDS. 623
ships. Many naval engagements followed, the details of which read like the
thrilling records of buccaneers and pirates, rather than the wars between two
civil powers. Finally, after half a century of warfare, the Dutch were deci-
sively beaten, and abandoned their efforts to capture the Spanish islands, much
to the disadvantage of the Filipinos, for the islands of Java, Sumatra, and other
Dutcli possessions to the south of the Philippines have been remarkably pros-
perous under the mild rule of the Netherlands.
MANILA TAKEN BY THE ENGLISH.
In 1662, the Chinese planned a revolution against the Spanish authorities.
The governor heard of it, and a general massacre of the Mongolians followed.
It was even planned to destroy every Chinaman on the islands, and they were
in a fair way to do it, when, at length, the Spaniards bethought themselves that
by so doing they would practically depopulate the islands of tradesmen and
mechanics. Accordingly, they offered pardon to those who woukl surrender
and swear allegiance. A century later, England sent a fleet under Admiral
Cornish, with General Draper commanding the troops, against Manila. After
a desperate battle the city fell, and the terms of surrender incorporated provis-
ions for free trade, freedom of speech, and, best of all, freedom in religion to the
inhabitants of the islands, and required Spain to pay England about $4,000,000'
indemnity. By the Peace of Paris, in 1763, however, the war between England
and Spain was terminated, and one of the conditions was that Spain should
retain the sovereignty of the Philippines. The English troops were withdrawn,
and the unfortunate islands were again placed (as Cuba was by the same treaty)
under the domination of their tyrannical mistress, and i-emained under Spanish
rule from that time until the Americans freed thera in 1898.
UPRISINGS OF THE NATIVES.
In nearly all the uprisings of the natives, the tyranny of the church, as con-
ducted by the friars and priests, was the cause. Such was the case in 1622, in 1649,
and in 1660. The occasion of the revolt of 1744 is a fair examjile of the pro-
vocations leading to all. A Jesuit priest ordered all his parishioners arrested as
criminals when they failed to attend mass. One of the unfortunates died, and
the priest denied him rights of burial, ordering that his body be thrown upon
the ground and left to rot in the sun before his dwelling. The brother of
the man in his exasperation organized a mob, captured the priest, killed him,
and exposed his body for four days. Thus was formed the nucleus of a rebel
army. The insurgents in their moinitain fastnesses gained their independence
and maintained it for thirty-five years, until they secured from Spain a promise
of the expulsion of the Jesuit priests from the colony.
624
THE PHILIPPINE ISLANDS.
Other revolutions followed in 1823, 1827, and 1844, but all were sup-
pressed. In 1872, the most formiaaole outbreak up to that time occurred at
Cavite. Hatred of the Spanish friars was the cause of this uprising also.
Spain had promised in the Council of Trent to prohibit friars from holding
parishes. The promises were never carried out, and the friars grew continually
richer and more powerful and oppressive. Had the plan of the insurgents not
been balked by a mistaken signal, no doubt they would have destroyed the
A NATIVE RESIDENCE IN THE SUBURBS OF MANILA.
Every cottage, however humble, is surrounded by tropical trees and flowers The interiors are remarkably clean and cheerM.
Bamboo enters largely into the construction of all native houses and they are generally covered with thatch.
Spanish garrison at Manila, but a misunderstanding caused their defeat. The
fi-iars insisted that the captured leaders should be executed, and it was done.
THE LAST STRUGGLE FOE LIBERTY.
In 1896, the insurrection broke out again. Its causes were the old oppres-
sions : unbearable taxes, and imprisonment or banishment, with the complete
confiscation of property of those who could not pay ; no justice except for those
THE PHILIPPINE ISLANDS 625
who could buy it ; extortion by tiie friars ; marriage ceremony so costly that a
poor man could not pay the fee ; homes and families broken up and ruined ;
burial refused to the dead, unless a large sum was paid in advance ; no provision
and no chance for education. Such were some of the causes that again goaded
the natives to revolution and nerved them with courage to achieve victory after
victory over their enemies until they were promised most of the reforms which
they demanded. Then they laid down their arms, and, as usual, the Governor-
General failed to carry out a single pledge.
Such was the condition, and another revolt, more formidable than any of
the past, was forming, when Commodore Dewey with his American fleet entered
Manila Bay, May 1, 1898, and, by a victory unparalleled in naval warfare, sunk
the Spanish ships, silenced the forts, and dethroned the power of Spain forever
in a land which her tyranny had blighted for more than three hundred years.
THE PEOPLE OF THE PHILIPPINE ISLANDS: THEIR MANNERS AND CUSTOMS.
It is impossible within the scope of this article to give details concerning
all the inhabitants of this far-away archipelago. Professor Worcester, of the
Uaivei'sity of Michigan, tells us that the population comprises more than eighty
distinct tribes, with individual peculiarities. They are scattered over hundreds
of islands, and one who really wants to know these peoples must leave cities and
towns far behind, and, at the I'isk of his life, through pathless forests, amid
volcanic mountains, at the mercy of savages, penetrate to the innermost wilds.
Notwithstanding the fact that for hundreds of years bold men, led by the love of
science or by the spirit of adventure, have continued to penetrate these dark
regions, there are many sections where the foot of civilized man has never trod ;
or, if so, he came not back to tell of the lands and peoples which his eyes beheld.
DIFFICULTIES OF EXPLORING THE COUNTRY.
There have been great obstacles in the way of a thorough exploration
of these islands. Spain persistently opposed the representatives of any other
nation entering the country. She suspected every man with a gun of designing
to raise an insurrection or make mischief among the natives. The account of
red tape necessary to secure guns and ammunition for a little party of four or
five explorers admitted through the customs at Manila is one of the most signifi-
cant, as well as one of the most humorous, passages in Professor Worcester's
story of his several years' sojourn while exploring the archipelago.
In the second jilace, the savage tribes in the interior had no respect for
Spain's authority, and will have none for ours for years to come. Two-thirds
of them paid no tribute, and many of them never heard of Spain, or, if so, only
remembered that a long time ago white men came and cruelly persecuted the
62G
THE PHILIPPINE ISLANDS.
natives along the shore. These wild tribes think themselves still the owners of
the land. Some of them go naked and practice cannibalism and other horrible
savage customs. Any explorer's life is in danger among theui ; consequently
most tourists to the Philippines see Manila and make short excursions around
that city. The more ainbitious run down to the cities of Iloilo and Cebu,
making short excursions into the country from those points, and then return,
thinking they have seen the Philippines. Nothing could be further from the
truth. Such travelers no more see the Pliilippine Islands than Columbus
explored America.
Even near the coast there are '=;avages who ajo almofP TIMBER.
The forest products of the islands are perhaps of greater value than their
mineral resources. Timber not only exists in almost exhaustless quantity, but
— considering the whole group, wliich extends nearly a thousand miles from
north to south — in unprecedented diversity, embracing sixty varieties of the
most valuable woods, several of which are so hard that they pannot be cut with
ordinary saws, some so heavy that they sink in water, and two oi- tliree so dura-
ble as to afford ground for the claim that they outlast iron and steel wJien
636
THE PHILIPPINE ISLANDS.
placed in the ground or under water. Several of these woods are unknown else-
where, and, altogether, they are admirably suited for various decorative purposes
and for the manufacture of tine implements and furniture.
Here also are pe2)per, cinnamon, wax, and gums of various sorts, cloves, tea,
and vanilla, while all tropical fruits, such as cocoanuts, bananas, lemons, limes.
THli: STHANGK WAGONS OF ALBAY.
The eighty-odd different tribes who inhabit the Philippines have varying dialects, manners, and customs. The peculiar house-
roofed wagons, shown in the above illustration, are found in only one locality.
oranges of several varieties, pineapples, citrons, bread-fruits, custard apples,
pawpaws, and mangroves flourish, and most of them grow wild, though, of
course, they are not equal to the cultivated fruit. There are fifty-odd varieties
of the banana in the archipelago, from the midget, which makes but a single
mouthful, to the huge fruit eighteen inches long. There seems to be no limit to
which tropical fruits and farm products can be cultivated.
THE PHILIPPINE ISLANDS. 637;
The animal and bird life of the Philippines offer a field of interesting re-
search to naturalists. There are no important carnivorous animals. A small
wild-cat and two species of civet-cats constitute about all that belong to that
class. The house-cats of the Philippines have curious fish-hook crooks in tlie
ends of their tails. There are several species of deer in the archipelago. Hogs
run wild in large numbers. The large water buffalo [carabao) has been do-
mesticated and is tlie chief beast of burden with the natives. The timarau is
another small species of buffalo, very wild and entirely untamable ; and, though
numerous in certain places, is hard to find, and when brought to bay dies
fighting.
Birds abound in all of the islands ; nearly six hundred species have been
found, over fifty of which exist nowhere else in the world. One of these species
builds a nest which is highly prized by Chinese epicures as an article of diet.
Prof. Worcester tells us " the best quality of them sometimes bring more than
their weight in gold." Crocodiles are numerous in fresh-water lakes and
streams, attaining enormous size, and in certain places causing much loss of
life among stock a'ld men as well. Snakes also abound, and some of them are
veiy venomous. Cobras are found in the southern islands. Pythons are
numerous, some of the smaller sizes being sold in the towns and kept in houses
to catch rats, at which they are said to be more expert than house-cats.
All the domestic animals, aside from the carabao, have been introduced
from abroad. Cattle are extensively raised, and in some of the islands run wild.
The horses are a small Spanish breed, but are very strong and have great en-
durance. Larg^ European horses do not stand the climate well.
CLIMATE, VOLCANOES, ETC.
The mean annual temperature of Manila is 80° F. The thermometer seldom
rises above 100° or fiills below 60° anywhere in the archi^jelago. There is no
month in the year during which it does not rise as high as 91°. January and
December are the coldest months, the average temperature being 70° to 73°,
]\Iay is the wai-mest, the average being 84°. April is the next warmest, with au
average of 83° ; but the weather is generally very moist and humid, which makes
the heat more trying. The three winter months have cool nights. Malaria is
prevalent, but contagious diseases are comparatively few. Yellow fever and
cholera are seldom heard of.
The Philippines are the home of many volcanoes, a number of them still
active. Mayon, in the island of Luzon, is one of the most remarkable volcanic
mountains on the globe. It is a perfect cone, rising to the height of 8,900 feet,
and is in constant activity ; its latest destructive eruption took place in 1888.
Apo, in the island of Mindanao, 10,312 feet high, is the largest of the Philippine
638 THE PHILIPPINE ISLANDS.
Yolcanoes. Next is Canloon in Xegros, which rises 8,192 feet above the sea.
Taal is in a hike, with a height of 900 feet, and is noteworthy as being the lowest
volcano in the world. To those not accustomed to volcanoes, these great fire-
spouting mountains, which are but jDrominent representatives of many lesser ones
in the islands, seem to be an ever-present danger to the inhabitants ; but the
natives and those who live there manifest little or no fear of them. In fact,
they rather pride themselves in their possession of such terrifying neighbors.
Such is an outline view of the Philippine Archipelago of the present day.
A new era has opened up in the history of that wonderful land with its libera-
tion from the Spanish yoke. The dense ignorance and semi-savage barbarities
which exist there must not be expected to yield too rapidly to the touch of
human kindness and brotherly love with which the Christian world will now
visit those semi-civilized and untamed ehildrea of nature. Nevertheless, western
civilization and western progress will undoubtedly work mighty changes in the
lives of those people, in the development of that country, during the first
quarter of the twentieth century, which ushers in the dawn of its freedom.
THE BATTLE OF MANILA.
In all the annals of naval warfare there is no engagement, terminating in
so signal a victory with so little damage to the victors, as that which made
the name of George Dewey immortal on the memorable Sunday morning of
May 1, 1898, in Manila Bay. The world knows the story of that battle, for it
has been told hundreds of times in the thousands of newspapers and magazines
and scores of books throughout the civilized world. But few, perhaps, who
peruse these pages have read the simple details of the fight as narrated by that
most modest of men. Admiral Dewey himself. We cannot better close this
chapter on the Philippines than by inserting Admiral Dewey's official report
of the battle which wrested the Filipinos from Spanish tyranny and placed
nearly ten millions of oppressed people under the protecting care of the United
States.
ADMIRAL DEWEy's STORY OF MANILA.
" United States Flagship Olympia, Cavite, May 4, 1898.
" The squadron left Mirs Bay on April 27th, arrived off Bolinao on the
morning of April 30th, and, finding no vessels there, proceeded down the coast
and arrived off the entrance to Manila Bay on the same afternoon. The
Boston and the Concord were sent to reconnoitre Port Snbic. A thorough
search was made of the port by the Boston and the Concord, but the Spanish
fleet was not found. Entered the south channel at 11:30 p. m., steaming in
column at eight knots. After half the squadron had passed, a battery on the
south side of the channel opened fire, none of the shots taking effect. The
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THE PHILIPPINE ISLANDS. 641
Boston and McCullocli returned the fire. The squadron j^roceeded across the
bay at slow sj^eed and arrived off Manila at daybreak, and was tired upon at
5:15 A. M. by three batteries at Manila and two near Cavite, and by the Spanish
fleet anchored in an approximately east and west line across the mouth of Bakor
Bay, with their left in shoal water in Canacao Bay.
"The squadron then proceeded to the attack, the flagship Olympia, under
my personal direction, leading, followed at a distance by the Baltimore, Raleigh,
Petrel, Concord, and Boston in the order named, which formation was main-
tained throughout the action. The squadron opened fire at 5:41 A. m. While
advancing to the attack two mines were exploded ahead of the flagship, too far
to be effective. The squadron maintained a continuous and precise fire at ranges
varying from 5,000 to 2,000 yards, countermarching in a line approximately
parallel to that of the Sj^anish fleet. The enemy's fire was vigorous, but gene-
rally ineffective. Early in the engagement two launches put out toward tho
Olympia with the apparent intention of using torpedoes. One was sunk and
the other disabled by our fire and beached before they were able to fire their
torpedoes.
"At seven a. m. the Spanish flagship Eeina Cristina made a desperate
attempt to leave the line and come out to engage at short range, but was received
with such a galling fire, the entire battery of the Olympia being concentrated
upon her, that she was barely able to return to the shelter of the point. The
fires started in her by our shells at the time were not extinguished until she sank.
The three batteries at Manila had kept up a continuous fire from the beginning;
of the engagement, which fire was not returned by my squadron. The first of
these batteries was situated on the south mole-head at the entrance of the Pasig
River, the second on the south jiosition of the walled city of Manila, and the
third at i\Iolate, about one-half mile further south. At this point I sent a mes-
sage to the Governor-General to the effect that if the batteries did not cease
firing the city would be shelled. This had the effect of silencing them.
"At 7:35 A. M. I ceased firing and withdrew the squadron for breakfiist.
At 11:16 I returned to the attack. By this time the Spanish flagship and almost
all the Spanish fleet were in flames. At 12:30 the squadron ceased fii-ing, the
batteries being silenced and the ships sunk, burned, and deserted.
"At 12:40 the squadron returned and anchored off Manila, the Petrel being-
left behind to comjilete the destruction of the smaller gunboats, which were
behind the point of Cavite. This duty was performed by Commander E. P.
Wood in the most expeditious and complete manner jiossible. Tlie Spanish lost
the following vessels: Sunk, Reina Cristina, Castilla, Don Antonio de Ulloa;
burned, Don Juau de Austria, Isla de Luzon, Isla de Cuba, General Lezo, Mar-
41
642 THE PHILIPPINE ISLANDS.
quia del Duero, El Correo, Velasco, and Isla de Mindanao (transport) ; captured,
Rapido and Hercules (tugs), and several small launches.
" I am unable to obtain complete accounts of the enemy's killed and
wounded, but believe their losses to be very heavy. The Reina Cristiua alone
had 150 killed, including the captain, and ninety wounded. I am happy to
report that the damage done to the squadron under my command was inconsid-
erable. There were none killed and only seven men in the squadron were
slightly wounded. Several of the vessels were struck and even penetrated, but
the damage was of the slightest, and the squadron is in as good condition now
as before the battle.
" I beg to state to the department that I doubt if any commander-in-chief
was ever served by more loyal, efficient, and gallant captains than those of the
squadron now under my command. CajJtain Frank Wildes, commanding the
Boston, volunteered to remain in command of his vessel, although his relief
arrived before leaving Hong Kong. Assistant Surgeon Kindelberger, of the
Olympia, and Gunner J. C. Evans, of the Boston, also volunteered to remain,
after orders detaching them had arrived. The conckict of my personal staif
was excellent. Commander B. P. Lamberton, chief of staff, was a volunteer
for that position, and gave me most efficient aid. Lieutenant Brumby, Flag
Lieutenant, and Ensign E. P. Scott, aide, performed their duties as signal officers
in a highly creditable manner ; Caldwell, Flag Secretary, volunteered for and
was assigned to a sub-division of the five-inch battery. Mr. J. L. Stickney,
formerly an officer in the United States Navy, and now correspondent for the
New York Herald, volunteered for duty as my aide, and rendered valuable
service. I desire especially to mention the coolness of Lieutenant C. G. Calkins,
the navigator of the Olympia, who came under my personal observation, being
■on the bridge with me throughout the entire action, and giving the ranges to
the guns with an accuracy that was proven by the excellence of the firing.
" On May 2d, the day following the engagement, the squadron again went
to Cavite, where it remains. On the 3d the military forces evacuated the Cavite
arsenal, which was taken possession of by a landing party. On the same day
the Raleigh and the Baltimore secured the surrender of the batteries on Cor-
regidor Island, paroling the garrison and destroying the guns. On the morning
of May 4th, the transport Manila, which had been aground in Bakor Bay, was
towed off and made a prize."
OUR NEW POSSESSIONS (CONTINUED).
THE LADRONE, OR MARIAXA ISLANDS.
It was a welcome sight to Magellan and his crew when, one day in March,
nearly 400 years ago, they beheld the verdant and beautifully slojjing hills of
the Ladrone Islands. Eighteen weary months before they had sailed from the
coast of Spain, and all that time, first to the southwest and then to the north-
west, they had followed the setting sun. Theirs were the first vessels manned by
white men that had ever plowed the trackless Pacific; and this was the first land
ever seen by white men within that unknown ocean.
It was a pitiable crew on those three small, weather-beaten ships, who drew,
that March morning, toward the coast of the present island of Guam, which is
now a possession of the United States. Hunger and thirst had driven them to
the verge of madness. They had eaten even the leather thongs from their sail
fastenings, and only a small mug of water per day was the portion of diink for
a man. "Land! Land!! " It was a glad cry from the watch aloft. There were
palm trees, cocoanuts, green grass, tropical fruits, an abundance of fresh water,
and — though naked — a curious and friendly people. No wonder Magellan
paused to rest himself and his sailors.
Those little islands have never been of much value, and never can be. Sev-
enteen of them sti-etching in a row about six hundred miles from nortli to south,
and their total area, including their islets and reefs, is variously estimated at
from 400 to 560 square miles. Hence, there is but about one-fourth more terri-
tory on the whole seventeen islands combined than is included within the cor-
porate limits of the city of Greater New York.
A broad channel divides the Ladrones into two groups. The northera
group consists of ten islets, without inhabitants ; the southern group has sevea
islands, four of which are inhabited. The largest island, OuaJian, known to us.
as Giiavi, ceded to us by Spain, was taken by our warship Charleston on July
4, 1898. This island contains the only town in the colony. Its full Spanish
name is San Iqnacio de Agana. It is the capital of the archipelago, and con-
tains more than half of tlie whole poi^ulation.
THE NATIVE INHABITANTS.
When first visited by Europeans, the archipelago contained from 40,000 to^
60,000 souls, represented b}' two distinct classes, the nobles and the people, be-
tween whom marriage, and even contact, were forbidden. But the Spanish con-
644
THE LADROKE ISLANDS.
quest soon ended this distinction by reducing all alike to servitude. For along
time after Spanish occupation, the natives complained and finally rebelledagauist
the oppressive measures of their rulers; but by the end of the seventeenth century
they ceased their resistance, and it was found by a census that fully half of them
had perished or escaped in their canoes to the Caroline Islands, and that two-
thirds of their one hundred and eighty villages had fallen to ruins. Then came
an epidemic which swept away nearly all the natives of Guam ; and the island
of Tinian (one of the group) was depopulated and its inhabitants brought to
Guam.
Nearly all the new arrivals soon died. In the year 1760, a census showed
ATIVE HOUSE AND PALMS, LADRONE ISLANDS.
a total of only 1,654 inhabitants left in all the islands, and the Spaniards repop-
ulated them by bringing Tagals from the Philippines. These, mixed with the
remaining natives and Sjianiards, have steadily increased. The population of
the islands in 1899 was estimated at about 9,000. The people are generally
lacking in energy, loose in morals, and miserably poor. Their education has
been seriously neglected. Their religion is Catholic, no Protestant missions
having been encouraged — we might say, not allowed — there or in the Philip-
pines or the Carolines.
TOPOGRAPHY, CLIMATE, ETC.
The islands of the northern group are mountainous, the altitudes reaching
THE LADEONE ISLANDS. 645
fi um 2,600 to 2,700 feet. There are evidences of volcanoes all over the archi-
pelago, and some mountains contain small craters and cones not yet extinct. The
climate of the Ladroues, though humid, is salubrious, and the heat, being tem-
pered by the trade winds, is milder than in the Philippines. The yearly aver-
age temperature of Guam is 81°. Streams are everywhere copious — though the
clearing of the land has diminished their size of late years. The original flora
consists generally of Asiatic plants, but much has been introduced from the
Philippines and other sources.
Cocoanuts, palms, the bread tree, and tropical trees and plants generally,
thrive. Tlie large fruit bat which abounds in the Philippines is indigenous to
the Ladrones, and, despite its objectionable odor, is a principal article of food.
Swine and oxen are allowed to run wild, and are hunted when needed. There
are only a few species of birds; even insects are rare; and the reptiles are rep-
resented by several kinds of lizards and a single species of serpent. Ko domes-
tic animals were known in the islands until introduced by the Spaniards.
When the United States steamship Charleston opened fire on the little city
of Agana, July 4, 1898, the j^eople had not heard of the war, and the governor
said lie thought " the noble Americans were saluting " him, and was " deeply
humiliated because he had no powder to return their salute." It was an easy,
bloodless victory. The governor and his soldiers were carried to ]\Ianila as
prisoners, and an American garrison of a few men left to take charge of thia
new American territory in the Pacific.
710*
COIMCLUSION.
Thus at the close of the nineteenth century, the Greater United States
assumes its appointed place among the foremost nations of tlie world, and stands
on the threshold of achievements whose grandeur no man dare attempt to
prophesy. We pause, awed, grateful, and profoundly impressed, when we rccad
the mighty events, the amazing j^rogress, and the wonderful advancements in
discovery, science, art, literature, and all that tends to the good of mankind that
are certain to give the twentieth century a pre-eminence above all the years
that have gone before.
The new era of our country has opened. The United States enters on the
first stage of the transformation from an isolated commonwealth into an out-
reaching power with dependencies in both hemispheres. We can no longer
hold an attitude of aloofness from the rest of the world. With vulnerable
points in our outlying possessions, we must make ready to defend them not only
by force of arms but by diplomatic skill. Entangling alliances as heretofore
will be avoided, and the conditions, complications, and policies of foreign pov/ers
must in the future possess a practical importance for us.
The original thirteen States have expanded into forty-five, embracing the
vast area between the two oceans and extending from the British joossessions to
the Gulf of Mexico. To them has now been added our colonial territory, so vast
in extent that, like the Briti>:h Empire, the sun never sets on our dominions.
Where a hundred years ago were only a few scattered villages and towns,
imperial cities now raise their heads. Thousands of square miles of forest and
solitude have given place to cultivated farms, to fiictories, and workshops that
hum with the wheels of industry. The Patent Office issues 40,000 patents each
year. We have thr.ee cities with more than a million population apiece, and
twenty-five with a population ranging from a hundred thousand to half a mil-
lion. Greater New York is the second city in the world, and, if its present
rate of growth continues, it will surpass London before the middle of the coming
century. Our population has grown from 3,000,000 at the close of the Revolu-
tion to 75,000,000. When Andrew Jackson became President there was not a
mile of railroad in the United States. To-day our mileage exceeds that of all
the countries of Europe, Asia, and Africa combined, and the employes, con-
nected directly or indirectly with rail-oads in the United States, number almost
a million persons. The half-dozen crude newspapers of the Revolution have
expanded into more .than 20,000, whose daily news is gathei-ed from every
quarter of the globe. The total yearly issue is more than three billions.
No country can approach the advancements we have made in invention, in
discovery, in science, in art, in education and in all the civilizing agencies of man-
• sixty-four pages are here added to tbe folio of the r'revious fiage to cover lire full-page illustrations not incUiflcd in tlio
previous folios.
CONCLUSION. 711
kind. Volumes would be required to name our achievements in these lines. Our
material property has been or is equally vvonderf'al. AVhen the Civil War closed,
our public debt was nearly $3,000,000,000. On December 1, 1898, it was
$1,036,000,000. Most of the leading nations have great debts, but the United
States is the only one which is steadily decreasing its debt and at the same time
enormously increasing its resources. The debt of Great Britain is now about
$87 per capita, that of France $115, of Holland $100, of Italy $75, and of the
United States less than $15, with the security increasing all the time.
Let the thoughtful reader note these striking facts. Enropean nations
generally, and some South American nations also, have been compelled to resort
to various methods of taxation to supj^ly the sums needed for ordinary govern-
mental expenses, to meet the interest on the existing debt, to provide resources for
new expenditures, buildings, armament, subsidies, and various public works. Eng-
land has an income tax and many stamp ta.xes,a house tax, and collects some 20 per
cent, of its revenue from direct taxation. France has a tobacco monopoly, regis-
tration taxes, stamp taxes, tax on windows, and innumerable local taxes, one being
the octroi, or tax on goods entering cities. In addition to an income tax, and
many stamp taxes, Austria derives a good deal of its public revenue from lotteries.
Italy goes still further with her tobacco monopoly, liouse tsix, income tax, salt
tax, octroi duties, stamp taxes, and heavy legacy and registration taxes. In the
United States, however, the public revenues have been provided for and all juiblic
ex]ienses met, and the national debt reduced beside, without recourse to any direct
taxation. We liave no government monopolies, and the Treasury maintains a
healthful condition from the receipts of customs and internal revenue payments.
Thus with the spirit of fraternity between all sections of the Union stronger
than ever before, with the spirit of patriotism more deeply imbedded and all-per-
vading, with our moral, educational, and material prosperity and progress greater
than any time in our past history, and never equaled by any nation, since the
annals of mankind began — we face the future, l)ravely resolved to meet all
reauirements, responsibilities, and duties as become men whose motto is
IN GOD IS OUR TRUST.
The End.