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The Home Auxiliary 
 
 AND REFERENCE 
 
 FOR PIPILS i)F 
 
 Grammer School Grades 
 
 EDITED BV 
 WM. L. NEILL 
 
 WITH REFERENCE TO THE WORKS OF 
 
 Washington Irving, L. M. Prescolt, John J. Anderson, Robert John Lossing, 
 
 Joseph M. Rogers, W. A. Peters, Capt. Geo. R. Herbert, Geo. D. l.iiid, 
 
 John McGovern, Wm. Matthews Handy and others 
 
 Compiled Especially with the \'iew to the Needs of the Student, in Pleasing 
 
 Story Form 
 
 Thoroughly Indexed in an Alphabetically Arranged and Tabulated Manner, 
 
 for Easy and Direct Reference to American History, Biographies, 
 
 Geography, Composition or Essay, Civil Government 
 
 and the \'arious Natural Sciences 
 
 COMPLETE IN ONE VOLUME 
 
 PUBLISHED BY 
 
 THE AUXILIARY SYNDICATE 
 
 PHILADELPHIA, PA. 
 
■N^l 
 
 Copyright 1912 
 By Wm. L. Neill 
 
 £CI.A310400 
 
A CHAT WITH THE 
 PUPIL 
 
 We want to have a little chat with you. regarding the great necessity that 
 you have a proper reference in your home, to use in connection with the school 
 book, for a better nnderstanding of vour studies. 
 
 The school book, which we shall call the text Ijook, has not the space to de- 
 vote to detail, but is confined to a brief outline of llic important facts, or 
 events, that you should know or understand, to benefit 1)\ \our studies. 
 
 You can perhaps memorize the text l)ook, and may rejieat the same, word 
 for word, yet have little understanding of the subject. To succeed with your 
 studies you should not only know the fact, but understand clearly whv it is a 
 fact. That you should have further information than is given by the text book, 
 is shown by the editors notes in the same. You should be self-reliant, look up 
 this information for yourself, and not depend for help or information upon the 
 brief lectures of the instructor in the class room. 
 
 By securing a clear understanding of the subject, as you prepare your 
 studies, you will find a growing interest in your work. There will be no hard 
 tasks, and your daily lessons can be correctly prepared in one-half the time it 
 would take to memorize the text book. .Ml the worry and doubt as to whether 
 your lessons have been prepared properly will disappear, leaving ease of mind 
 and confidence in your work, insuring advancement and success. 
 
 In this volume, we believe, we have provided you with the best possible 
 help and reference. Compiled especially for your needs, covering those sub- 
 jects that you have the most need for reference. Written in a pleasing style, 
 easy to understand, concise, causing no unnecessary reading, yet giving those 
 details necessary for a clear comprehensive grasp of the subject. Thoroughly 
 indexed, so that questions can be answered quickly, clearly and satisfactorily. 
 
CONTENTS 
 
 BOOK onp: 
 
 A M 1^: R I C A N HISTORY 
 
 UNITED STATES 
 
 FIRST PERIOD 
 
 EXPLORATIONS AND DISCOVERIES. 
 
 Wcslcni Continent— Native or American Indian — Norwegian Discoveries— Europe 
 toward tlic close of the Fifteenth Century— Story of Cohimbus and Discovery of 
 America— Americus Vespuccius and naming America— The Cabots and North America 
 —Juan Ponce de Leon and Discovery of Florida— Balboa and Discovery of the Pacific 
 Ocean— Magellan and Discovery of the Philippines— De Soto and Discovery of the 
 Mississippi River— Narvaez's Expedition to Florida— Spanish Explorations from Lower 
 California to Oregon— Verazzani's voyages to North America— Cartier and the St. 
 Lawrence— Other French Explorations— Menendez and Founding of St. Augustine— 
 Frobisher— The search for the Northwest passage — F'rancis Drake and his voyages- 
 Sir Humphrey Gilbert and Walter Raleigh— Their settlements in Virginia— Gosnold. 
 Pring and Weymouth's Voyages— Tlie London and Plymouth Companies Chartered— 
 dc la Roche and Champlain— The Founding of Quebec— Hudson and his Voyages. 
 
 SECOND PERIOD 
 
 SETTLEMENTS. 
 
 Virginia— Settlement at Jamestown — Capt. John Smith— Troubles of the Settlers 
 —Captain Smith and Pocahontas — Arrival of New Emigrants— Marriage of John 
 Rolfe and Pocahontas— Dawn of Prosperity— Tobacco Planting — Representative Gov- 
 ernment Established— Massachusetts— Naming New England— Puritans— The May- 
 flowers-Plymouth Rock— Massasoit and Treaty with the Indians— Miles Standish and 
 Priscilla Mullins— New Netherland.s— Block and the "Onrust"— Naming New Nether- 
 lands—Treaty with the Iroquois — Dutch West India Company Chartered— The French 
 in the Hudson— The Walloons— Purchase of Manhattan Island — Settlement and Naming 
 of New Amsterdam— New Hampsliire and Maine— Naming New Hampshire — Ports- 
 mouth— Saco— Naming JNIaine- Maryland— Sir George Calvert— Naming Maryland — 
 Charter granted allowing Civil and Religious Liberty— Treaty with the Indians— Set- 
 tlement of St. Mary's — Representative Governtnent Established — Connecticut — Inter- 
 course between Dutch and English— Charter granted to Earl of Warwick— English 
 settle on the site of Windsor— Pequod Troubles— Settlements at Wethersfield, Hartford 
 and Springlield — War with the Peciuods- Settlement of New Haven— Convention at 
 Hartford— Rhode Island— Roger Williams— Providence— Settlement of Portsmouth- 
 Charter Obtained— Delaware— The Patroons— Settlement at Lewes— Settlements by the 
 Swedes— Christiana tWilmington)— New Jersey— Dutch Settlements — English Settle- 
 ments — Berkeley and Carteret — Pennsylvania— William Penn— Naming Pennsylvania- 
 Delaware Annexed— The Welcome — Penn's Treaty with the Indians — Controversy of 
 Lord Baltimore and Penn over the boundary line — North and South Carolina— First 
 Settlement!;- Albemarle and Clarenden County Colonies Organized— Traffic in Lumber 
 and Turpentine — Settlement of Charleston — Introduction of Negro Slaves — Carteret 
 County Colony Organized— Constitution founding an l".nipire Rejected — Georgia— 
 Oglethorpe— Naming Georgia — Settlement of Savannah— Treaty with the Creek In- 
 dians—Scotch Highlanders — John and Charles Wesley. 
 
 THIRD PERIOD 
 
 COLONIES. 
 
 Virginia — Representative Government Organized — African Slavery Introduced — 
 Women sent to the Colony — Schools Established — A Written Constitution — Massacre 
 by the Indians— Virginia becomes a Royal Province — Berkeley and the Banishment of 
 the non-Conformists — Indian Confederacy — Virginia named the Old Dominion — 
 Berkeley again appointed Governor — Effect of His Intolerant Conduct on the Colony 
 
CONTENTS 
 
 — Indian Troubles — Nathaniel Bacon — The Atrocities of Berkeley — Culpepper made 
 Governor — Progress of Colony Under the Reign of William and Mary — New Nether- 
 lands (New York) — Governor Minnit — Indian Wars — The "Patroon" Privilege — Inter- 
 course with Settlers at Jamestown — An English Vessel Warned not to Interfere with 
 the Dutch on the Hudson — Stupidity of Governor Van Tvtiller — Troubles with the 
 Swedes — Emigrants Invited to Settle in New Netherlands — Kieft's Troubles with the 
 New Englanders and Indians — The First Assembly -at Fort Amsterdam — Treaty with 
 the Indians — Treachery of Kieft and Massacre by the Indians — Peter Stuyvestant — 
 English in the Colony — Colony Surrendered to the English under Nicholls and named 
 New York — Andros appointed Governor — The lirst General Assembly — Leisler made 
 Governor by the People — Troubles with the Indians — Execution of Leisler and Others — 
 Governor Fletcher — Military Expedition against the French — Bellamont and His Pros- 
 perous Rule — Captain Kidd — Friendship with the Five Nations Restored — Settlements 
 by the German Lutherans — First Newspaper — Sons of Liberty — New England — Wm. 
 Bradford — The First Thanksgiving — Indian Troubles — Endicott Commissioned Gov- 
 ernor — Government in Religious Matters — John Winthrop — Boston Founded — The 
 United Colonies of New- England — The first Mint — King Philip's War — King William's 
 War in America — Massachusetts Bay Colony made a Royal Province — Witchcraft — 
 Queen Anne's War — King George's War — Maryland — Representative Government 
 Established — Troubles with Wm. Clayborne — War with the Indians — Civil War — Tol- 
 eration Act — Political and Religious Troubles — Death of Lord Baltimore — Naming 
 the City of Baltimore — Capital Changed to Annapolis — General Prosperity — Connecti- 
 cut, Rhode Island and New Jersey — Connecticut Joins the Confederacy — Saybrook 
 Annexed — Charter Granted — The "Charter Oak" — Growth of the Colony — Rhode Island 
 — Charter Granted — Attempt to revoke charter — Andros Governor — Representative 
 Government Restored — New Jersey — First Assembly at Elizabeth — Refusal to Pay 
 Quit-rents — Philip Carteret Compelled to Resign — Dutch Take Possession — Return 
 to English Rule — East and West Jersey — Quakers in West Jersey — First Popular As- 
 sembly in West Jersey — Carteret's Interest Purchased by William Penn and Others — 
 Becomes a Royal Province — Separated from New York — Pennsylvania — Philadelphia 
 Founded — New Charter Granted — Great Increase in Population — Schools Establishe<l 
 — Delaware Secedes from the Province — Penn Deprived of his Rights — Penn's Rights 
 Restored — Penn Returns to his Colony — New Constitution — Death of Penn — North 
 Carolina — The Settlers Resist the Attempt to Enforce the New Government — Naviga- 
 tion Laws put in Force — John Culpepper — Seth Sothel as Governor — Freedom of the 
 Settlers — The First Church — South Carolina — First Assembly — Danger from the In- 
 dians — Great Increase in Population — The Huguenots — Seth Sothel in the Colony — 
 Introduction of Rice — Religious Dissensions — German Settlers Massacred by the Indians 
 — Indians Subdued — Expedition against St. Augustine — War on the Appalachian and 
 Mobilian Indians — Spanish Att£ck on Charleston — War against Indian Confederacy — 
 South Carolina Becomes a Royal Province — Georgia — John and Charles Wesley Re- 
 turn to England — George Whitefield — Treaty with the Spanish at St. Augustine — War 
 against Spain — Oglethorpe's Expedition against St. Augustine — Spanish Campaign 
 against Georgia and the Carolinas — Slave Labor — Georgia becomes a Royal Province.' 
 
 FOURTH PERIOD 
 
 FRENCH AND INDIAN WAR. 
 
 The French and the Jesuits in America — Alliance with the Hurons — Explorations 
 of Father Alloiiez — Marquette's Exploration to the Mississippi River — Death of Mar- 
 quette — de la Salle's Explorations — Father Hennepin — The French Resolve to Possess 
 all the Country between New Foundland and the Gulf of Mexico — Nations who Settled 
 the English Colonies — Manners, Customs and Pursuits — Navigation and Custom Laws 
 passed by Parliament — Education in the Colonies — Newspapers Hrst Published — Popu- 
 lation — Conventions and Congresses held by the Colonies — The Ohio Land Company — 
 Christopher Gist's Journey to the Ohio River — The Western Indians — Troubles with 
 the French — George Washington Sent on a Mission to the French — Washington's 
 Return Journey — Preparations for War — Washington's Campaign against Fort Du- 
 Quesne — Treaty with the Six Nations — Benjamin Franklin — Indian Raids on the 
 Frontier — Washington Resigns — War Preparations — Campaign in Canada — Banishment 
 of the Acadians — Braddock and his Campaign against Fort DuQuesne — Expeditions 
 against Forts Niagara. Frontenac and Crown Point — Indian Atrocities — Capture of 
 Fort William Henry by the French — Louisburg Taken — Ticonderoga and Fort Fron- 
 tenac — Washington takes Fort DuQuesne, naming it Pittsburg — W^olfe takes Quebec — 
 Montreal Surrenders — W.ir with the Cherokees — Treaty of Peace — Pontiac and the 
 War with the Indian Confederacy. 
 
CONTENTS 
 
 FIFTH PERIOD 
 
 THE WAR FOR AMERICAN INDEPENDENCE. 
 
 George the Third and his Cabinet — Earl of Bute Prime Minister — Secret Agents 
 sent to the Colonies — James Otis — Taxation — Franklin, Agent for the Colonies in 
 England — Stamp Tax — Patrick Henry — Retaliation of the Colonial Merchants — Pitt 
 made Premier — French Agent in America — Troops Sent to Boston — Faneuil Hall, the 
 Cradle of Liberty — Union of the Colonies — North Carolinia Regulators — Lord North 
 made Premier — Boston Massacre — Gaspee Destroyed in Narraganset Bay — Boston 
 Tea Party — Boston Port Bill — Post Office Act — First Continental Congress — Minute 
 Men — Indian Troubles — Franklin Returns to America — Events in and Around Boston 
 -Battles of Lexington and Concord — Events in Virginia — Mecklenburg Declaration of 
 Independence — Washington appointed Commander-in-Chief — Battle of Bunker Hill — 
 Washington at Cambridge — Britisli Evacuate Boston — ^Hessians sent to America — 
 Army in Canada — Battle of Charleston Harbor — Conspiracy against Washington — 
 Declaration of Independence — Nathaniel Hale — Negotiations with France — Battle of 
 White Plains — Arnold on Lake Champlain — Washington in New Jersey — Surrender 
 of Burgoyne — France Recognizes the Independence of the United States — Valley Forge 
 — British in Philadelphia — Capture of Stony Point — Naval Affairs — Events in the 
 South — Treason of Arnold — Capture of Major Andre — Surrender of Cornwallis — Treaty 
 of Peace — Adoption of the Constitution — Washington elected first President. 
 
 SIXTH PERIOD 
 
 ADMINISTRATIONS. 
 
 Washington 
 
 Washington Notified of his Election — Journey to New York — Washington's Inau- 
 guration — Acts of Congress — Indian Troubles — Early Troubles — ^Presidential Cam- 
 paign. 
 
 John Adams. 
 
 Pride of the French — Refusal to Receive an American Minister — Gerry and Talley- 
 rand — War on the Ocean — Outrage by a British Naval Commander — Downfall of 
 the Federal Party. 
 
 Thomas Jefferson. 
 
 War witli Algiers — Louisiana Purchase — Lewis and Clark E.xpedition — .-Xaron Burr 
 — England and France — Depredations on American Commerce — The "Chesapeake" 
 and "Leopard" — Embargo Act. 
 
 James Madison. 
 
 The "President" and "Little Belt" — Battle of Tippecanoe — War Declared with 
 England — Events during the War — The "Hartford" Convention — Creek Indian War — 
 Treaty of Peace — Barbary Powers Humbled. 
 
 James Monroe. 
 
 Era of Good Feeling — Republic of Liberia Founded — The Acquisition of Florida 
 — Missouri Compromise — Monroe Doctrine — Lafayette the Nation's Guest — Tariff of 
 1824. 
 
 John Quincy Adams. 
 
 Georgians and tlie Indians — The Erie Canal — Deatli of Jnlm .Xdams and Jefferson — 
 South American Republics. 
 
 Jackson and Van Buren. 
 
 Troubles with the Cherokees — Black Hawk War — South Carolina attempts Se- 
 cession — Jackson's War on the United States Bank — Osceola and the Seminole Indian 
 War — Insurrection in Canada. 
 
 Harrison and Tyler. 
 Death of Harrison — Political Parties — Oregon Boimdary — Texas Controversy. 
 
CONTENTS 
 
 James K. Polk. 
 
 Treaty with Great Britain — Annexation of Texas — Wilmot Proviso — War with 
 Mexico — Events during the War — Treaty of Peace. 
 
 Taylor and Fillmore. 
 
 California seeks Admission to the Union — Omnibus Bill — Death of Taylor — Ac- 
 cession of President Fillmore — Compromise Bill Passed — Invasion of Cuba — The Mor- 
 mons — The Fugitive Slave Law — Kosuth and his Cause — Relations witli Japan. 
 
 Franklin Pierce. 
 
 Union Pacific Railroad — The Sandwich Islands — Kansas and Nebraska Terri- 
 tories — Raids in Central America — War with the Indians — Gadsden Purchase — Con- 
 flict over Question of Slavery in the Territories. 
 
 Buchanan, Lincoln and Johnson. 
 
 Dred-Scott Decision — Panic of 1857 — Mountain Meadow Massacre — Lincoln and 
 Douglass Debates — John Brown's Raid — Election of Lincoln — South Carolina Secedes 
 • — The Confederacy Established — Inauguration of Lincoln — Fort Sumter Evacuated — 
 The Civil War Opens — Battle of Bull Run — Surrender of Fort Donelson — Battle of 
 Antietcm — Capture of New Orleans — Fredericksburg — The "Trent" Affair — The Ala- 
 bama and Kearsarge — Monitor and Merrimac — Battle of Chancellorsville — Battle of 
 Gettysburg — Fall of Vicksburg — Chickamauga — Grant at Chattanooga — Sherman's 
 March — Surrender of Lee at .'\ppomatto,x — Assassination of Lincoln — Cost of the 
 War — .'\ndrew Johnson takes Oath of Office — The Thirteenth Amendment — Recon- 
 struction of the Southern States — Impeachment Trial of Johnson — Purchase of Alaska. 
 
 U. S. Grant. 
 
 Virginius Aflfair — Tribunal of Arbitration — Alabama Claims — Weather Bureau 
 .'\uthorized — Yellowstone Park — War with the Modocs — Custer Massacre— Colorado Ad- 
 mitted to the Union — Centennial Exhibition — Electoral Commission — Election of Hayes. 
 
 Hayes, Garfield and Arthur. 
 
 Removal of Federal Troops from Louisiana and South Carolina — Reform in the 
 Civil Service — Bland Silver Bill — Resumption of Specie Payment — Election of Gar- 
 field — Assassination of Garfield — Trial of Guiteau — Arthur takes the oath of Office — 
 South American Affairs — Star Route Trials — Silver Convention — Mormon Question — 
 Chinese Immigration. 
 
 Grover Cleveland. 
 
 Tariff Revision — Attack on Civil Service Reform — "Cutting" Affair — Inter-State 
 Commerce Act — Deaths of Grant. Manning, McClelland, Tilden, Hancock and Logan 
 — Charleston Earthquake — Bartholdi Statue — Fisheries Question. 
 
 Harrison's and Cleveland's Second Term. 
 
 Centennial of Wasliington's Inauguration — McKinley Tariff Bill — The Sherman 
 Act — Troubles with Chile — Revolution on Brazil — Sealing Troubles — Johnstown 
 Flood — Chinese Exclusion Act — Cleveland Elected President — World's Fair at Chicago 
 — Panic of 1893 — Sherman .'Kct Repealed — The Wilson Bill — Venezuela Controversy. 
 
 McKinley and Roosevelt. 
 
 Dingley Bill — Cuban Revolt — Destruction of the "Maine" — Cuba Declared Free 
 and Independent — War with Spain — Voyage of the "Oregon" — Dewey's Victory at 
 Manila — Troops sent to the Philippines — Cuban Blockade — Sinking of the Merrimac 
 — Seige of Santiago — Capture of San Juan Hill — Destruction of Cevera's Fleet — Sur- 
 render of Santiago — The Porto Rico Campaign — The Treaty of Paris — Hawaiian An- 
 nexation — National Bankruptcy Law Passed — Troubles in the Philippines — McKinley 
 re-elected — New Canal Treaty — Treaty with Panama — Bo.xer Rebellion — Affairs m the 
 East — Aguinaldo Captured — Cuban Affairs — Assassination of McKinley — Roosevelt 
 President — Panama Canal — St. Louis Exposition — Roosevelt re-elected — The Russian — 
 Japanese Treaty of Peace at Portsmouth, N. H. — Lewis and Clark Exposition — Balti- 
 more Fire — San Francisco Earthquake — Insurance Investigation. 
 
CONTENTS 
 
 Christopher Cohinibus. 
 Alexander Hamilton. 
 Salmon P. Chase. 
 George Washington. 
 James Monroe. 
 Charles Sumner. 
 Benjamin Franklin. 
 ^Andrew Jackson. 
 
 BOOK TWO 
 
 BIOGRAPHY 
 (See Also Index) 
 
 Robert E. Lee. 
 John Paul Jones. 
 John Quincy Adams. 
 Wm. T. Sherman. 
 John Adams. 
 Henry Clay. 
 Ulysses S. Grant. 
 Oliver Hazard Perry. 
 
 Daniel Webster. 
 Thomas Jonathan Jackson. 
 Patrick Henry. 
 John C. Calhoun. 
 Thomas Jefferson. 
 Abraham Lincoln. 
 James Madison. 
 Wm. H. Seward. 
 
 BOOK THREE 
 
 GEOGRAPHY AND ACHIEVEMENTS 
 
 The Earth. 
 
 The Sun. 
 
 The Moon. 
 
 The Planets. 
 
 Explorations. 
 Polar Explorations. 
 Lewis and Clark Exploration 
 Fremont E.xploration. 
 
 Agriculture. 
 Mining and Metals. 
 IVIarvelous Machinery. 
 Transportation. 
 Communication. 
 
 Light and Photography. 
 Mound Builders and Cliff 
 
 Dwellers. 
 Engineering. 
 Modern Warfare. 
 African Explorations. 
 Australian Explorations. ' 
 
 CIVIL GOVERNMENT 
 
 THE NATIONAL CONSTITUTION 
 
 WITH EXPLANATORY NOTES 
 
 COMrLETK GENERAL INDEX 
 
AMERICAN HISTORY 
 
 UNITED STATES 
 
 FIRST PERIOD 
 EXPLORATIONS AND DISCOVERIES 
 
 In the story of the "United States of 
 America," the student will find the 
 most absorbing interest. The great 
 unknown world with its savage na- 
 tives, the discoveries by the white man. 
 the tales of the conquests by those 
 hardy adventurers, who braved the 
 perils of the sea and the unknown in 
 their thirst for gold. 
 
 The courage and perseverance of the 
 pioneers to conquer the wilderness in 
 building for themselves homes, in their 
 perseverance against tyranny and op- 
 pression, in fact, to follow the growth 
 and rise of our country, from an un- 
 known, almost uninhabited, land, to 
 its present great proportion and its 
 millions of homes and people, leading 
 the world with their industries and 
 achievements, creating a nation in its 
 civilization and power second to none 
 among the countries of the world. 
 
 This grand Continent on which we 
 live, known as the Western Continent, 
 extending in length ten thousand miles. 
 Stretching from the regions of the 
 north, where snow and ice forever 
 abound, to the rocky cape in the far 
 south, that lifts its head out of the 
 waters of the Antarctic Ocean. In the 
 remote past there was not a house or 
 human being on the face of this great 
 continent. When or how did the first 
 man get here? None among our 
 learned men have been able to tell. 
 Very many years ago, just how many 
 no one knows, there was a people, or, 
 to be more correct, there were several 
 peoples, that lived and prospered here. 
 This we know from the remains of 
 temples, bridges, etc., built by more 
 skillful hands than those of the inhabi- 
 tants of which we have any clear 
 
 knowledge. Many of these structures 
 were built of immense blocks of stone, 
 some of which were carved with fig- 
 ures of men, animals and other objects. 
 These ruins found in South and Cen- 
 tral America, one of which a temple, a 
 ]ierfect circle in form, showing skillful 
 knowledge of architecture. 
 
 High up on the mountain tops of 
 Peru, where neither tree nor shrub can 
 grow, are stone wall inclosures, thous- 
 ands in number, which, according to 
 the tradition among the Peruvians, are 
 the remains of structures that were 
 built "before the sun shone." 
 
 In our country, the United States, 
 there are numerous evidences of a for- 
 mer civilization, though of a different 
 kind from those of Mexico and South 
 America. 
 
 Instead of great ruins in which are 
 beautiful blocks of cut stone, we have, 
 as a rule, mounds of earth, or earth 
 and rough stone. These, found mostly 
 in the valleys of the Ohio and Missis- 
 sippi, are of various sizes and shapes. 
 Some are round, some are square, 
 others have the form of animals. We 
 call these people Mound Builders, (see 
 Mound Builders.) 
 
 Perhaps we may think that the 
 mounds were made by the ancestors of 
 the people whom we call Indians. 
 Learned men, who have carefully stud- 
 ied the subject, deny this. They tell 
 us that the mounds were constructed 
 by a people who occupied the country 
 long before the Indians or their fore- 
 fathers came here; and their decision 
 seems to be supported by the character 
 and habits of the Indians, as well as 
 by other facts. It was these people 
 whom we call the Indians that we 
 
THE HOME AUXILIARY AND RI'FKRENCE 
 
 found here when the ccmntry was dis- 
 covered. The origin of these people 
 is a much vexed and unsettled question. 
 The theory having the balance of re- 
 pute in its favor derives them from 
 Asia, ferrying them across Behring 
 Strait. 
 
 The number of human inhabitants 
 of the entire continent of Americ:i, 
 from the Frozen Ocean to Cape Horn, 
 did not exceed five million, it is sup- 
 po.sed, vk^hen Columbus sailed from 
 Spain ; and that within the present do- 
 main of our Republic — The United 
 States of America — there were only a 
 little more than one million souls, or 
 one to each three and a half square 
 miles of territory. The people of the 
 latter region seemed to have all come 
 from the same original stock, e.xcept- 
 ing some on the borders of the Gulf 
 of Mexico. They had high cheek bones 
 and broad faces; heavy dark eyes; jet 
 black hair, lank and incapable of curl- 
 ing, because of its peculiar structure ; 
 and skins of a dull, copper color. They 
 spoke more than a hundred dialects, or 
 peculiar forms of expressing language, 
 all springing, evidently, from a com- 
 mon root. 
 
 They were all by habit, silent, or 
 would talk but little in society, and 
 could endure great mental or physical 
 suffering without visible emotion. 
 Their plan of government was simple, 
 and there were very few breakers of 
 the law. Their religion was as simple 
 as their " civil government. They be- 
 lieved in a great Good Spirit and a 
 great Evil Spirit, each supreme in its 
 sphere ; and they deified, or made God, 
 the sun, moon, stars, meteors, fire, 
 water, thunder, wind and everything 
 else which seemed to be superior to 
 themselves. There were no unbelievers 
 among them. They had no written 
 language, excepting rude picture-writ- 
 ing, made on rocks, barks of trees or 
 the dried hides of beasts. Their his- 
 torical records were made upon the 
 memory from parent to child, as were 
 their legends, and so transmitted from 
 one generation to another. Their 
 dwellings were rude huts made of poles 
 leaning to a common centre, and cov- 
 
 ered with bark or the skins of beasts. 
 The men were engaged in war, hunting 
 and fishing, whilst the women did all 
 the domestic drudgery. The women 
 also bore all burdens during long jour- 
 neys ; put up the tents or the wigwams, 
 as their dwellings were called ; pre- 
 pared the food and clothing; wove 
 mats for beds, and planted, cultivated, 
 and gathered the scanty crops of corn, 
 beans, peas, potatoes, melons and to- 
 bacco, wherever these products were 
 raised. In winter the skins of wild 
 beasts formed the clothing of these 
 rude people, and in summer the men 
 wore only a wrapper around their loins. 
 They sometimes tattooed then. selves, 
 that is, pricked the skin in lines to 
 form shapes of objects, and making 
 them permanent by coloring matter, put 
 in the punctures ; and they were gen- 
 erally ornamented with the claws of 
 bears, the pearl)- parts of shells and the 
 plumage of birds. Their money con- 
 sisted of little tubes made of shells, 
 fastened upon belts or strung on little 
 thongs of deer's hide, which was called 
 wampum. These collections were used 
 in traffic, and in giving tokens of 
 friendship. Their weapons of war 
 were bows and arrows, tomahawks or 
 hatchets, war-clubs, and scalping 
 knives. Some wore shields of bark and 
 also corselets of hides, for protections. 
 
 The civil governor of a tribe or na- 
 tion was called a Sachem ; the military 
 leader was called a Chief. They were 
 natural, proud and haughty, and had 
 great respect for personal dignity and 
 honor. The Indians had many of the 
 nobler traits of human nature, but with 
 a few notable exceptions, such as the 
 five nations who formed the Iroquois 
 Confederacy, within the present do- 
 m.ain of the State of New York, and 
 the dwellers in the softer climate 
 around the Gulf of Mexico; they were 
 as a whole, cruel savages, throughout 
 the entire country, north of the parallel 
 of Alabama, when the Europeans came 
 and made permanent settlements here. 
 
 \\'hen the white man came early m 
 the sixteenth century, to make perma- 
 nent settlements in our country, he 
 found the dusky inhabitants, as we 
 
FIRST PERIOD— KXPl, ORATIONS AND DISCOVERIES 
 
 have observed, speakiiiL;" alxnit a hun- 
 dred different dialects, tiut there were 
 only eight radically distinct nations. 
 They are known as the Algonquins, 
 Iroquois Confederacy, Cherokees, Ca- 
 tawbas, Uchees, Natches, Mobilians or 
 Floridians, and Dakotahs or .Sioux. 
 Of the numerous nations whicii occu- 
 pied the great .-Vmerican continent ar 
 the time of the discovery by the Euro- 
 peans, the two most advanced in power 
 and refinement were undoubtedly those 
 of Mexico and Peru. The .Vztecs, of 
 Alexico, and the Incas, of Peru. 
 
 ALGONOUINS. 
 
 Algonquins was a name given by the 
 French to a large collection of families 
 north and south of the great lakes, who 
 speaking dialects of the same language, 
 seemed to belong to the same nation. 
 These inhabited the territory now in- 
 cluded in all Canada, New England, a 
 part of Xew York and Pennsyhania, 
 the States of New Jersey, Delaware, 
 ?^raryland and X'irginia, Eastern North 
 Carolina, above Cape Fear, a large por- 
 tion of Kentucky and Tennessee and all 
 north and west of these States eastward 
 of the Mississippi River. Within the 
 folds of the Algonquin nation were the 
 Huron-Iroquois, in Canada, New 
 N'ork, Pennsylvania and Ohio : a few 
 families in southern Mrginia and up- 
 ]ier North Carolina, and the Iroquois 
 Confederacy in the State of New York. 
 
 IROQUOIS CONFEDERACY. 
 
 The Iroquois Confederacy was a re- 
 markable fact in history. It was com- 
 posed of five large families, each hav- 
 ing the dignified title of a nation. 
 These nations were named Mohawks, 
 Oneidas, Onondagas, Cayugas and 
 Senecas. They were sub-divided into 
 smaller families or tribes, each having 
 its symbol Coat-of-Arms, such as the 
 bear, the wolf, the eagle, the heron, the 
 beaver, the deer, the turkey or the tor- 
 toise. They occupied a belt of country 
 extending across the present State of 
 New York, from the Hudson River to 
 Lake Erie, south of the Adirondack 
 range of great hills, and north of the 
 
 Kratsbergs, or, as thev are commonly 
 called, the Catskill Mountains. 
 
 When Europeans became acquainted 
 with the nations of this league and the 
 form of government, they were filled 
 with admiration on account of its wis- 
 dom and strength. They called these 
 nations "The Romans of the New 
 World," because they seemed to have 
 many things in common with that an- 
 cient people, especially in military af- 
 fairs. As in old Rome the soldiers 
 were honored above all other citizens, 
 so they were among the Iroquois ; and 
 the warriors, under tlieir chiefs, were 
 all-powerful in public affairs. What- 
 ever was done in the civil councils of 
 the separate nations, or of the Confed- 
 eracy, was subjected to review by the 
 soldiery, who had the right to call 
 councils whenever they pleased, and ap- 
 prove or flisapprove public measures. 
 .And so careful were the civil authori- 
 ties to pay deference to the warriors 
 that general answers to questions of 
 state policy were postponed until the 
 soldiers might be known. Therefore, in 
 nearly every such council, decisions 
 were made by unanimous consent. 
 
 As each of the confederated nations 
 was divided into several tribes, there 
 were thirty or forty Sachems in the 
 league. These had inferior officers un- 
 'ler them, answering to our magistrates 
 in towns ; and so the civil power of the 
 government was quite widely distri- 
 buted. There was not a man who 
 gained his office otherwise tllan by his 
 own merits, and he held it only during 
 good behavior. An\' vmworthy action 
 was attended by dismissal from office 
 and the penalty of public scorn. They, 
 as well as the military leaders, accepted 
 no salary, and gave away any perquis- 
 ites of their office in time of peace, and 
 their share of plunder in time of war. 
 They felt themselves amply paid by the 
 confidence and esteem of the people. 
 
 Each canton, or nation, was a dis- 
 tinct republic, entirely independent of 
 the others in what may be termed the 
 domestic concerns of the State ; but 
 each was bound to the others of the 
 league by ties of honor and of general 
 interest. Each had an equal voice in 
 
14 
 
 THE HO?irK Al'XIT.TARY AND REFERENCE 
 
 tlie General Council or Congress of the 
 league, and each possessed a sort of 
 veto power, which prevented any ah- 
 solute ruling by the central power. 
 
 The powers and duties of the chief 
 magistrate of the Confederacy were 
 similar to those imposed upon the 
 President of the United States. He 
 had authority to "light the great Coun- 
 cil Fire" — to assemble the General Con- 
 gress- — by sending a messenger to the 
 Sachem of each nation, calling him to 
 a meeting. With his own hand he 
 kindled a blaze around which the repre- 
 sentatives gathered and each lighted 
 his pipe. He had a cabinet of six coun- 
 cillors of state, whose powers were only 
 advisory. In the council he was only 
 the moderator or presiding ofificer. He 
 had no power to control, directly, mili- 
 tary affairs, nor interfere with the in- 
 ternal policy of the several states of 
 the league. There was really no coer- 
 cive or compulsory power lodged any- 
 where, that could act upon a state or 
 individual, excepting that of despotic 
 public opinion. There was a third 
 ))arty in the government who exercised 
 great influence. These were the ma- 
 trons or elderly women, who had a 
 right to sit in the councils and there ex- 
 ercise a negative or veto power on the 
 subject of a declaration of war, or to 
 propose, or demand, a cessation of hos- 
 tilities. Theirs was a highly conserva- 
 tive power. They were pre-eminently 
 the peace-makers of the league, for 
 their personal happiness depended 
 upon peaceful pursuits. They mod- 
 estly refrained from making speeches 
 in the legislature, but they furnished 
 materials for masculine orators, and so 
 it was in that notable confederacy of 
 barbarians, formed long before their 
 contact with Europeans, woman was 
 man's co-worker in legislation — a thing 
 unheard of in civilized nations. It was 
 a government the nearest to a pure 
 democracy, and yet highly aristocratic 
 — a government of the best people — 
 that the world has ever seen. It had 
 all the essential elements of our form 
 of government. 
 
 \Ve have said that the soldiers of the 
 league controlled the legislators. The 
 
 n;ilitary leaders, like the Sachems, de- 
 rived their authority from the people, 
 who recognized and rewarded their 
 jibility as warriors. They held the rela- 
 tions to the civil heads of the nations, 
 similar to that of Roman generals to 
 emperors, whom they elevated to and 
 deposed from office. The army was 
 composed wholly of volunteers, for 
 there was no power to conscript men. 
 Every able-bodied man was bound, by 
 custom, to do military duty, and he who 
 shirked it incurred everlasting disgrace. 
 The ranks of the army, therefore, were 
 always full. The war-dance and the 
 assemblages for amusement were the 
 recruiting stations, for there the vet- 
 eran warriors, painted and decorated, 
 recounted their brave deeds in wild 
 songs, as they danced around great 
 fires singly or in a ring formed by 
 clasped hands. These stirring war- 
 songs inspired the young men with de- 
 sires to emulate their example and win 
 the honors of war. 
 
 There is no positive proof as to the 
 time when the Iroquois "Confederacy" 
 was formed. It was probably at the 
 beginning of the fifteenth century, or 
 .ibout a hundred years before Colum- 
 bus crossed the Atlantic Ocean. When 
 Europeans found it, it was powerful 
 and aggressive. Like old lome, the 
 state was constantly increasing in area 
 and population, by conquests and an- 
 nexations. Had the discovery of Am- 
 erica by Europeans been deferred a 
 century longer, no doubt that republic 
 would have embraced the continent : 
 for the Fhe Nations, as the league was 
 called, had already extended their con- 
 quests from the great lakes on our 
 northern border almost to the Gulf of 
 Alexico. 
 
 CHEROKEES, CATAWBAS, 
 UCHEES AND NATCHES. 
 
 The Cherokees inhabited the pictur- 
 esque and fertile region in the upper 
 part of Georgia, and its vicinity, where 
 the mountain ranges that form the 
 water-shed between the .Atlantic Ocean 
 and the ^lississippi River melt into the 
 lowlands, which border the Gulf of 
 
FIRST PERIOD— I-:X1'L0KAT10XS AM) DISCOVERIES 
 
 ^lexico. They were called the moun- 
 taineers of the South, and were the 
 most formidable of all the foes of the 
 conquering Iroquois. Their neighbors 
 on the borders of the Yadkin and Ca- 
 tawba Rivers on both sides of the 
 boundary line between North and 
 South Carolina. The Iroquois made 
 incursions into their country, but the\- 
 never brought the Catawbas under the 
 yoke of that confederacy. 
 
 The Uchees were only a remnant of 
 a once powerful people. They were 
 living in the beautiful land in Georgia, 
 between the sites of Augusta and Mil- 
 lidgeville, along the Oconee and 
 around the headwaters of the Ogee- 
 chee and Chattahoochee. They claim 
 to be descendants of a people more 
 ancient than those around them, and 
 they had no traditions, as all the others 
 had, of having migrated from another 
 country. 
 
 The Natchezs, who occupied a ter- 
 ritory east of the Mississippi, stretch- 
 ing north-eastward from the site of the 
 City of Natchez, along the borders of 
 the Pearl River to the headwaters of 
 the Chicasahaw River, claimed to be 
 an older nation than the Uchees. Like 
 the other Indians of the Gulf region, 
 they were "'fire and sun worshippers, 
 and made sacrifices to the sfreat lumin- 
 
 MOBILIANS OR FLORIDIANS. 
 
 The Mobilians, or Floridians, occu- 
 pied a very large territory that bor- 
 dered on the Gulf of Alexico. It 
 stretched along the Atlantic coast from 
 the mouth of the Cape Fear River to 
 the extremity of the Florida peninsula 
 and westward to the ^Mississippi River. 
 They also held jurisdiction up that 
 stream to the mouth of the Ohio River. 
 Their domain included the States of 
 Florida, Alabama and Mississippi, all 
 of Georgia not occupied by the Chero- 
 kees and Uchees, and portions of South 
 Carolina, Tennessee and Kentucky. 
 The nation was divided into three con- 
 federacies, known respectively as the 
 Creek, Choctaw and Chickasaw. 
 
 These people had the same general 
 iiue of skin, form of features and tex- 
 ture of hair as those of the more north- 
 ern countries. They were either the de- 
 scendants of the Central or South .Am- 
 ericans, or their habits or life had been 
 modified by contact with the half-civil- 
 ized people of those countries. Thc^- 
 were an athletic and vigorous race. 
 The men were well proportioned, active 
 and graceful in all their movements. 
 The women were smaller, exquisitel)- 
 furmed, and some of them were very 
 btautiful. 
 
 In the colder weather of winter, the 
 common men wore a mantle made of a 
 >ort of cloth manufactured of the soft 
 inner bark of trees, interwoven with 
 hemp or a species of fla.x. This was 
 thrown gracefully over the shoulder, 
 leaving the right arm exposed. 
 .\round the loins was a very short 
 tunic, extending half way down the 
 thighs, or only a wrapper. The richer 
 or nobler sort of men wore beautiful 
 mantles, made of feathers of every hue. 
 exquisitely arranged, or the skins of 
 fur-bearing animals, with dressed deer 
 skin tunics, wrought in colors, and 
 moccasins and buskins of the same ma- 
 terials. The women of the better sort, 
 at the cooler season, wore a garment of 
 cloth or feathers, or furs, wrought like 
 mantles of the men. It was wrapped 
 more closely around the body at the 
 waist and fell gracefully almost to the 
 knee. The rest of the form was left 
 bare excepting in the coldest weather, 
 when they wore shore mantles that fell 
 from the neck to the hips. Their heads 
 were always uncovered, but the men 
 wore a skull cap of cloth ornamented 
 with beautiful sea-shells, the claws of 
 beasts, or strings of pearls. 
 
 It is related that a queen, on the 
 banks of the Savannah River, took 
 from her neck a magnificent string of 
 pearls and tw-ined it around that of 
 De Sota, the early Spanish discoverer 
 of that region. Sometimes they wore 
 pearl pendants in their ears. In sum- 
 mer, both sexes went without clothing, 
 excepting a drapery of what is now 
 known in that region as Spanish moss, 
 gathered from tlie trees. This was 
 
THE HOME AUXUJARV AND REEEREXCE 
 
 fastened at the waist and fell in grace- 
 ful negligence to the thighs. 
 
 The Chiefs, and prophets, and other 
 principal men, and their wives, painted 
 their breasts and the front part of their 
 bodies with stripes of white and red. 
 and some practiced a kind of tattooing. 
 
 The houses of the Chiefs, spacious 
 and airy, stood upon large mounds, 
 natural or artificial, that were ascended 
 by steps of wood or earth. These 
 dwellings were built of timber, some- 
 times in the form of a great pavilion 
 with a broad piazza around it, fur- 
 nished with benches. They were cov- 
 ered with the leaves of the Palmetto, 
 or thatched with straw, and sometimes 
 they were roofed with reeds in the 
 manner of tiles. Their winter houses 
 were daubed inside and out with clay. 
 
 The weapons of the Floridians for 
 hunting and war were strong bows and 
 arrows, and javalins. Their arrows 
 were made of fine dried cane, tipped 
 with buck-horn and pointed with flint, 
 hardwood or fish bones. They were 
 carried in a quiver made of the skin of 
 the fawn, cased at the bottom with the 
 hide of the bear or the alligator, and 
 slung by a thong of deer's skin so as 
 to rest on the hips. The warriors all 
 wore shields in battle, composed of 
 wood, split cane, or the hide of the 
 alligator and buffalo. On the left arm 
 they wore a small shield of bark to 
 protect it from the rebound of the bow- 
 string. They also had short swords 
 made of hard wood. 
 
 When a Chief was about to declare 
 war. he sent a party at night toward 
 the town of tlje enemy, to stick arrows 
 in the ground at the cross paths or 
 other conspicuous places near it. From 
 these arrows waved long locks of hu- 
 man hair as tokens of scalping. Then 
 he would assemble his painted war- 
 riors, and after some wild ceremonies, 
 would turn reverentially toward the 
 sun, with a wooden javelin in his hand, 
 and invoking the aid of the great God 
 of Fire, he would take a vessel of 
 water, and sprinkle it around, saying: 
 "Thus may you do with the blood of 
 vour enemies." Raising another vessel 
 of water, he would pour it upon the 
 
 fire which had been kindled, and as it 
 was extinguisiied he would say, "Thus 
 may you destroy your enemies and 
 bring home their scalps." When the 
 battle was over, the victors cruelly 
 mutilated the bodies of their captives. 
 Carrying their disseverd limbs and 
 their scalps upon spear-points, into the 
 public square, they were there ])laccd 
 on poles, and the people celebrated the 
 triumph by dancing around the tro- 
 l)liies and singing wild songs of joy. 
 The widows of tliose lost in battle 
 gathered around the Chief with piteous 
 cries, praying him to avenge the deaths 
 of their loved ones, asking him for an 
 allowance during their widowhood and 
 permission to marry again as soon a< 
 the law would allow. Then they visited 
 the burial places of their husbands, and 
 cutting ofif their long tresses, strewed 
 them over the graves. When their hair 
 had grown to its usual length they 
 were ready to marry again. 
 
 Hunting, fishing and the cultivation 
 of the rich land were the chief employ- 
 ments of these people. The cotton 
 ])lant was unknown to them, but hemp 
 and flax were quite abundant. The 
 women assisted the men in the fields, 
 in the cultivation of corn, beans, peas, 
 squashes, and pumpkins, which yieklerl 
 enormous returns for the little labor 
 bestowed. These productions were 
 stored in granaries made of stone and 
 earth and covered with mats, for win- 
 ter use : also preserved meats. They ob- 
 tained salt by evaporation, and the 
 women were generally good cooks of 
 the simple food. They made and used 
 pottery for kitchen service, some of it 
 skillfully constructed and quite beauti- 
 ful. They were skillful artisans, as 
 evidenced by their arms, houses, beauti- 
 ful barges and canoes and ornaments. 
 They had fortifications with moats or 
 ditches; and walled towns: and some 
 of their temples were grand, imposing 
 nnd beautiful. Their roofs were steep 
 and covered with mats of split cane, 
 interwoven so compactly that they re- 
 sembled the rush carpeting of the 
 Moors. -At the entrances to some of 
 the temples, and in niches in the in- 
 terior, were well-wrought wooden 
 
FIRST PERIOD— EXPLORATIONS AND DISCOVERIES 
 
 17 
 
 statues, some of them of persons who 
 were entombed in the sacred place. Be- 
 tween these were shields of various 
 sizes^ made of strongly woven reeds, 
 adorned witli pearls and colored tassels. 
 Rich offerings of pearls and deer-skins, 
 and the furs of animals were seen in 
 these temples in great profusion, all 
 dedicated to the Sun, the great God, 
 whom they worhip]ied. 
 
 The religious system of these people 
 was very simple. They regarded the 
 Sun as the supreme Deity, and vene- 
 rated the moon and certain brilliant 
 stars. In all their invocations of bles- 
 sings upon their chiefs or upon them- 
 selves, the Sun was appealed to. as we 
 appeal to God. "May the Sun guard 
 you." "May the Sun be with you,"' 
 were the usual forms of invocation. 
 .\t the beginning of March the men of 
 a community selected the skin of the 
 largest deer, with the head and legs at- 
 tached, which they filled with a variety 
 of fruit and grain. It was sewed up 
 and appeared like the live creature in 
 form. Its horns were garlanded with 
 fruits and early spring flowers. Then 
 the effigy was carried in a procession of 
 all the inhabitants to a plain, and placed 
 on a high post. There at the moment 
 when the sun appeared upon the east- 
 ern horizon the people all fell upon 
 their knees, with their faces toward the 
 rising luminary, and implored the God 
 of day to grant them, the ensuing sea- 
 son, an abundance of fruit and grain 
 as good as those which they then of- 
 fered. 
 
 The funeral ceremonies of these 
 jjcople. especially on the death of a 
 chief or prophet, were very peculiar. 
 The body underwent a sort of embalm- 
 ing, when it was placed in the ground 
 in a sitting pDsture by the nearest rela- 
 lives of the deceased. Then food and 
 money were placed by its side, and a 
 conical mound of earth was piled over 
 it, at the foot of which was made a pal- 
 ing of arrows stuck in the ground, 
 around the tomb the people gathered in 
 great numbers, some standing, some 
 sitting, and all howling. This cere- 
 mony continued three days and nights, 
 after which, for a long time, chosen 
 
 women visited the tomb three times a 
 day, morning, noon and night. The 
 chief, whilst he was alive, was held in 
 the greatest veneration, for like the 
 Assyrian Kings, he was both monarch 
 and pontiff- — the chief magistrate anil 
 the high priest. A cruel sacrifice was 
 made to him of every first-born male 
 child, a custom learned from the Cen- 
 tral Americans. The child was brought 
 by a dancing-girl and placed upon the 
 Ijlock, and the young mother, weeping 
 in agony, was compelled to stand near 
 it. to make the offering. A prophet 
 dashed out its brains, and then a group 
 of girls danced around the altar of 
 sacrifice, singing songs. 
 
 Such is an outline picture of the 
 I'eople with whom the Spaniards first 
 came in contact on the continent after 
 the discoveries bv Columbus and his 
 contemporaries. These, with the Iro- 
 cjuois Confederacy, are the two notable 
 exceptions spoken of, to the general 
 character and liabits of the dusky na- 
 tions who then inhabited North Ain- 
 erica. 
 
 DAKOTAHS OR SIOUX. 
 
 L'nder the general title of Dakotahs 
 or Sioux, have been grouped a vast 
 number of tribes west of the Missis- 
 sippi River and the great lakes, with 
 whom the early French explorers came 
 in contact. They spoke, apparently 
 dialects of the same language, and were 
 regarded as one nation. They inhabi- 
 ted the vast domain stretching north- 
 ward from the Arkansas River to the 
 western tributaries of Lake Winnepeg, 
 and westward along that line to the 
 eastern slopes of the Rocky Mountains. 
 These have been arranged in four clas- 
 ses, namely, the Winnebagoes. the .\s- 
 sinilioins or Sioux proper, the Mine- 
 taries and the southern Sioux. 
 
 -Such was the general distribution of 
 the Indians when European settlements 
 were liegun among them. Tiiev were 
 not stationary residents of a fixed do- 
 main; nor, with the exception of the 
 Iroquois Confederacy, was there the 
 semblance of a national government 
 amongst them. They had wandered 
 
i8 
 
 THE HOME AUXILIARY AND REFERENCE 
 
 for centuries, and some of them had evi- 
 dently traversed the whole continent. 
 Yet they were not a nomadic race, or 
 "a people seeking pasture for cattle, liv- 
 ing in tents, and having no fixed home 
 for a month at a time. Neither were 
 they agriculturists, steadily cultivating 
 the soil. The horse, cow, sheep and 
 swine were unknown to them. They 
 had never tamed the buffalo nor the 
 stately elk for labor or food : nor had 
 they sheared a fleece from the great- 
 hiorned Rocky Mountain sheep. Like 
 primitive man, the Indian was a hunter 
 and fisher, and depended for his sus- 
 tenance chiefly upon the chase and the 
 hook. 
 
 AZTECS OR AIEXICAXS. 
 
 .^t the beginning of the sixteenth 
 century, just before the arrival of the 
 Spaniards, the Aztec dominion reached 
 across the continent, from the .Atlantic 
 to the Pacific ; and under the bold and 
 bloody Ahuitzotl. its arms had been 
 carried far over is original permanent 
 territory, into the fartherest corners of 
 Guatemala and Nicaragua. This ex- 
 tent of empire, however limited in 
 comparison with that of other states, is 
 truly wonderful, considering it as the 
 acquisition of a people whose whole 
 population and resources had so re- 
 centl)' been comprised within the walls 
 of their own petty city : and consider- 
 ing, moreover, that the conquered ter- 
 ritory was thickly settled by various 
 races, bred to arms like the Mexicans, 
 and little inferior to them in social or- 
 ganization. The history of the .\ztecs 
 suggests some strong points of resem- 
 blance to that of ancient Romans, not 
 onlv in their military successes, but in 
 tlie policy which led to them. 
 
 According to traditional legends a 
 conspicuous people known as the Tol- 
 lecs, entered the territory of .\nahuac ; 
 probably before the close of the sev- 
 enth century ; from a northerly direc- 
 tion, but from what region is uncertain. 
 Thej' were well instructed in agricult- 
 ure, and many of the most useful 
 mechanic arts ; were nice workers of 
 metals : invented the complex arrange- 
 
 ment of time adopted by the Aztecs ; 
 and, in short, were the true fountains 
 of civilization which distinguished this 
 part of the continent in later times. 
 They established their capital at Tula, 
 north of the Mexican \'alley. and the 
 remains of extensive buildings were to 
 be discerned there at the time of the 
 conquest. The noble ruins of religious 
 and other edifices, still to be seen in 
 various parts of Alexico, are referred 
 to this people, whose name, Toltec, has 
 passed into a synonym for achitecture. 
 
 After a period of four centuries, the 
 Toltecs, who had extended their sway 
 over the remotest borders of .\nahuac, 
 having been greatly reduced, it is said, 
 by famine pestilence, and unsuccessful 
 wars, disappeared from the land as 
 silently and mysteriously as they had 
 entered it. .-\ few of them still lingered 
 behind, but much the greater number, 
 probably, spread over the region of 
 Central .\merica and the neighboring 
 isles. 
 
 After a lapse of another hundred 
 > ears, a numerous and rude tribe, called 
 the Chichemecs, entered the deserted 
 country from the regions of the far 
 northwest. They were speedily fol- 
 lovi'ed by other races, of higher civili- 
 zation, perhaps of the same family as 
 the Toltecs, whose language they appear 
 to have spoken. The most noted of 
 these were the. .\ztecs or Mexicans, 
 and the .\colhuans. The latter, better 
 known in later times by the name of 
 Tezcucans. from their capital, Tezcuco, 
 on the eastern border of the Mexican 
 lake, were peculiarly fitted, by their 
 comparatively mild religion and man- 
 ners, for receiving the tincture of civili- 
 zation which could be derived from the 
 few Toltecs that still remained in the 
 country. 
 
 The Mexicans, with whom our story 
 is principally concerned, came, also, as 
 we have seen, from the remote regions 
 of the north, the populous hive of na- 
 tions in the New World, as it had been 
 in the Old. They arrived on the bor- 
 ders of Anahuac toward the beginning 
 of the thirteenth century, sometime 
 after the occupation of the land by the 
 Kindred races. For a long time thev 
 
FIRST PERIOD— EXPLORATIONS AXD DISCOVERIES 
 
 did nut eslahlish thcnisel\cs in any 
 permanent residence; bnt cnnlinned 
 shifting their quarters to different parts 
 of the Mexican \'alley, enduring- all 
 the casuahies and hardships of a mi- 
 gratory hfe. After a series of wander- 
 ings and adventures, they at Icngtii 
 hahed on the southwestern borders of 
 the principal lake, in the year 1325. 
 They there beheld, perched on the stem 
 of a prickly pear, which shot out from 
 a crevice of a rock that was washed by 
 the waves, a royal eagle of extraordin- 
 ary size and beauty, with a serpent in 
 his talons and his broad wings opened 
 to the rising sun. They hailed the 
 auspicious omen, announced by the or- 
 acles, as indicating the site of their 
 future city, and laid its foundations by 
 sinking piles into tlie shallows ; for the 
 low marshes were half buried under 
 water. On these they erected their 
 light fabrics of reeds and rushes ; and 
 sought a precarious subsistance from 
 fishing, and from the wild fowl which 
 frequents the waters, as well as from 
 the cultivation of such simple vege- 
 tables as they could raise on their 
 floating gardens. The place was called 
 Tenochtitlan, in token of its miracu- 
 lous origin, though only known to 
 Europeans by its other name of Mex- 
 ico, derived from their war-god 
 Mexitli. The legend of its foundation 
 is still further commemorated by the 
 devices of the eagle and the cactus, 
 which form the arms of the modern 
 Mexican Republic. .Such was the 
 humble beginnings of the \'enice of the 
 \\'estern ^\'orld. 
 
 Notwithstanding their forlorn con- 
 dition and domestic feuds. They grad- 
 ually increased in numbers and estab- 
 li-^hed a reputation for courage as well 
 as cruelty in war, which made their 
 name terrible throughout the valley. In 
 the early part of tlie fifteenth century, 
 nearly a hundred years from the foun- 
 dations of the city, an event took place 
 which created an entire revolution in 
 the circumstances, and, to some extent, 
 in the character of the Aztecs. This 
 was the subversion of the Tezcucan 
 monarchy by the Tepanecs. Wlien the 
 oppressive conduct of the victors had 
 
 at length amused a spirit of resistance, 
 its prince, Xezahualcoyotl, succeeded, 
 after incredible perils and escapes, in 
 nnistering such a force, as, with the aid 
 of the Mexicans, placed him on a level 
 with his enemies. In two successive 
 battles, these were defeated with great 
 slaughter, their chief slain, and their 
 territory, by one of those reverses 
 which characterize the wars of pett\- 
 states, passed into the hands of the 
 conquerors. It was awarded to Alexico 
 in return for its important services. 
 
 Then was formed that remarkable 
 league which has no parallel in history. 
 It was agreed between the states of 
 Mexico, Tezcuco, and the neighboring 
 little kingdom of Tlacopan, that they 
 should mutually support each other in 
 their wars, offen^-ive and defensive, and 
 that in the distribution of the spoil, one- 
 fifth should be assigned to Tlacopan, 
 and the remainder to be divided, in 
 what proportion is uncertain, between 
 the other powers. 
 
 The Aztecs receiving the greater 
 share, as evidenced b\- the territorv sub- 
 sequently appropriated. As they were 
 in a more prosperous condition than 
 their allies. The allies for some time 
 found sufficient occupation for their 
 arms in their own valley; but they soon 
 overleaped its rocky ramparts, and by 
 the middle of the fifteenth century, un- 
 der the first Montezuma, had sprearl 
 down the sides of the table-land to the 
 borders of the Gulf of Mexico. 
 
 Tenochtitlan, the Aztec capital, gave 
 evidence of the public prosperity. Its 
 old feuds were healed, the citizens who 
 had seceded were again brought under 
 a coinmon government with the main 
 body, and the quarter thev occupied 
 was permanently connected with the 
 parent city ; the dimensions of which, 
 covering the same ground, were much 
 larger than the modern capitol of Mex- 
 ico. 
 
 The form of government was nearly 
 an absolute monarchv, though elective. 
 Four of the principle nobles, who had 
 been chosen by their own body in the 
 preceding reign, filled the office of 
 electors. The sovereign was selected 
 from the brothers of the deceased 
 
THE HOME AUXILIARY AND REFERENCE 
 
 prince, or, in default of them, from his 
 nephews. 
 
 Thus the election was always re- 
 stricted to the same family. The camli- 
 date preferred must have distinguished 
 himself in war, though, as in the case 
 of the last Montezuma, he was a mem- 
 ber of the priesthood. The candidates 
 received an education which fitted them 
 for the royal dignity, the age, at which 
 they were chosen, not only prevented 
 a minor from becoming" monarch, but 
 showed their qualifications for the of- 
 fice. The result of this was favorable, 
 as shown by a succession of monarchs 
 well qualified to rule over a warlike and 
 ambitious people. 
 
 The Aztec princes had spacious pal- 
 aces provided, with halls for the differ- 
 ent councils, who aided the monarch in 
 the transaction of business. The chief 
 of these was sort of privy council, com- 
 posed in part, probably, of the four 
 electors chosen by the nobles after the 
 accession, whose places, when made 
 vacant by death, were immediately sup- 
 ])lied as before. It was the business of 
 this body, so far as can be gathered 
 from the very loose accounts given of 
 it, to advise the King, in respect to the 
 government of the provinces, the ad- 
 ministration of the revenues, and, in- 
 deed, on all great matters of public in- 
 terest. It is certain, there was a dis- 
 tinct class of nobles, with large landed 
 possessions, who held the most impor- 
 tant offices near the person of the 
 prince. 
 
 The legislative power resided wholly 
 with the monarch. This feature of 
 despotism, however, was. in some 
 measure, counteracted by the constitu- 
 tion of the judicial tribunals. 
 
 Over each of the principal cities, 
 with its dependent territories, was 
 placed a supreme judge, appointed b}' 
 the crown, with original and final juris- 
 diction in both civil and criminal cases. 
 There was no appeal from his sentence 
 to any other tribunal, nor even to the 
 King. He held his office during life: 
 and any one who usurped his ensigns 
 was punished with death. 
 
 Below this magistrate was a court, 
 established in each ]:)rovince, and con- 
 
 sisting of three members. It held con- 
 current jurisdiction with the supreme 
 judges in ci\-il suits, but, in criminal, 
 an appeal lay to his tribunal. Besides 
 these courts there was a body of in- 
 ferior magistrates, distributed through 
 th.e country, chosen bv the people them- 
 selves in their several districts. Their 
 authority was limited to smaller causes, 
 while the more important were carried 
 up to the higher courts. There was 
 still another class of subordinate offi- 
 cers, appointed also by the people, each 
 of which was to watch over the conduct 
 of a certain number of families, and 
 report any disorder or breach of the 
 laws to the higher authorities. Such 
 are the vague and imperfect notices 
 that can be gleaned, respecting the Az- 
 tec tribunals. 
 
 The judges of the higher tribunals 
 were maintained from the produce of 
 a part of the crown lands, reserved for 
 this purpose. They, as well as the 
 supreme judge, held their oi^ces for 
 life. The proceedings in the courts 
 were conducted with decency and or- 
 der. 
 
 The laws of the Aztecs were regis- 
 tered, and exhibited to them in their 
 paintings. Much the larger part of 
 them, as in every nation imperfectly 
 civilized, relates rather to security of 
 persons, than of property. The great 
 crimes against society were all punished 
 by death. 
 
 Their military code bore the same 
 stern features as their other laws. Dis- 
 obedience of orders was punished with 
 death. It was death, also, for a soldier 
 to leave his colors, to attack the enemy 
 before the signal was given, or to 
 plunder another's booty or prisoners. 
 Hospitals were established in the prin- 
 cipal cities, for the cure of the sick, and 
 the permanent refuge of the disabled 
 soldier. 
 
 The .'Vztec recognized the existence 
 of a Supreme Creator and Lord of the 
 L^niverse. But thev also believed in a 
 number of Gods, presiding over the ele- 
 ments, the seasons, and the various oc- 
 cupations of man. At the head of all 
 stood the terrible Huitzilopochtli, the 
 Mexican God of war. This was t!ie 
 
l-IKST PI:RU_)IJ— liXl'LOkATIONS AND DISCOVERIES 
 
 patron deity of the nation. His temples 
 were the most stately and august of 
 public buildings, and his alters reeked 
 with the blood of human sacrifices, 
 which had a distastrous influence on 
 the character of the people. 
 
 A far more interesting personage 
 was Ouetzalcoatl, God of the air, wlio 
 instructed them in the arts of agricult- 
 ure and government and in the use of 
 metals and who they believed would 
 again come among them. At the city 
 of Cholula is a massive ruin of a temple 
 that was dedicated to his worship, tie 
 was said to have been tall in stature, 
 had a white skin, long dark hair, and a 
 flowing beard. 
 
 The wicked of these people were sup- 
 posed to have gone to a place of ever- 
 lasting darkness : the good, and those 
 that fell in battle, or were sacrificed, 
 passed at once into the presence of the 
 Sun, whom they accompanied in his 
 bright progress through the heavens ; 
 and. after some years, their spirits re- 
 veled amidst the rich blossoms and 
 odors of the gardens of paradise. Such 
 was the heaven of the Aztecs. 
 
 The Mexican temples, Teocallis, 
 "houses of God," as they were called, 
 were very numerous. They were solid 
 masses of earth, cased with brick or 
 stone, and in their form, somewhat re- 
 sembled the pyramidal structures of 
 ancient Egypt. The bases of many of 
 them were more than a hundred feet 
 square, and they towered to a still 
 greater height. They were distributed 
 into four or five stories, each of smaller 
 dimensions than that below. The as- 
 cent was by a flight of steps, at an angle 
 of the pyramid, on the outside. This 
 led to a sort of terrace, or gallery, at 
 the base of the second story, which 
 passed quite round the building to an- 
 other flight of stairs, commencing also 
 at the same angle as the preceding and 
 directly over it, and leading to a similar 
 terrace, so that one had to make the 
 circuit of the temple several times be- 
 fore reaching the summit. In some in- 
 stances the stairway led directly up the 
 centre of the western face of the build- 
 ing. The top was a broad area, on 
 which were erected one or two towers. 
 
 forty or fifty feet high, the sanctuaries 
 in which stood the sacred images of the 
 ]>residing deities. Before these towers 
 stood the dreadful stone of sacrifice, 
 nnd two lofty altars, on which fires 
 were kept, as inextinguishable as those 
 in the temple of \'esta. Tliere was said 
 to have been si.x hundred of these altars, 
 I .n smaller buildings within the inclos- 
 iire of the great temple of ^lexico. 
 which, with those on sacred edifices in 
 other parts of the city, shed a brilliant 
 illumination over its streets, through 
 t!ie darkest night. 
 
 Human sacrifices were adopted b\- 
 the .Aztecs early in the fourteenth cen- 
 tury, rare at first, they became more 
 frequent with the wider extent of their 
 empire ; till, at length, almost every 
 festival was closed with this cruel 
 abomination. One of the most detest- 
 able features of the Aztec religion was 
 its cannibalism, they ate the bodies of 
 those sacrificed, not on account of brut- 
 ish appetite, but in obedience to their 
 religion. 
 
 ( )ne important duty of the priest- 
 hood was that of education, to which 
 certain buildings were appropriateil 
 within the inclosure of the principal 
 temple. Here the youth of both sexes 
 were placed at a very tender age. The 
 girls to priestesses. The boys were 
 taught the religion of the Aztecs, and 
 in the higher schools the mysteries of 
 hieroglyphics, the principles of govern- 
 ment, and such natural sciences as were 
 known to the priesthood. Great at- 
 tention was paid to the mora! discipline 
 of both sexes, and offenses were pun- 
 ished with great vigor. Terror, not 
 love was the spring of education with 
 the Aztecs. 
 
 All the people, even those inhabiting 
 cities, except the soldiers and great 
 nobles, cultivated the soil. The}' were 
 also well acquainted with the mineral 
 treasures of their Kingdom, but they 
 had no knowledge of the use of iron. 
 They found a substitute in an alloy of 
 tin raid copper, and from this made 
 their tools. They were very skillful in 
 fashioning gold and silver into orna- 
 ments, vases and vessels of all sorts. 
 The art of sculjituring had also attained 
 
THE HOME AUXILIARY AND REFERENCE 
 
 great advancement amung them. They 
 were also well developed in the me- 
 chanical arts, such as weaving, dyeing, 
 and made featherwork fabrics of beau- 
 tiful designs. 
 
 Their traffic was carried on mostly 
 by barter, but they had a currency of 
 different values. This consisted of 
 transparent quills of gold dust, bits of 
 tin cut in the form of a "T," and bags 
 of cacao of different weights. 
 
 In their domestic life, they were ten- 
 der and refined, cleanly to a fault. 
 They displayed all the sympathy of a 
 cultivated nature, consoling their 
 friends in affliction, and congratulating 
 them on having good fortune. 
 
 NORWEGIAN DISCO\'ERIES. 
 
 Over nine hundred years ago, a fa- 
 mous Norwegian sailor named Eric — 
 called "Eric the Red'" because he had 
 red hair and florid complexion — settled 
 in Iceland, the northern shores of 
 which touched the Arctic Circle. 
 Whilst he was on a voyage westward 
 from that far north country, he discov- 
 ered Greenland and made it his home. 
 Plis son Lief, an ambitious young man, 
 wished to become a discoverer, like his 
 father. He bought a ship — one of 
 those queer little Norwegian vessels 
 which were moved sometimes by sails 
 and sometimes by oars. They were 
 used by those old Sea Kings, as they 
 were called, of Northern Europe, who 
 spread terror by their piracies over the 
 British Islands and the coasts of West- 
 ern Europe, from the Rhine to the 
 Straits of Gibraltar, more than a thous- 
 and years ago. 
 
 Lief's ship was stout and tight. She 
 had made many voyages safely. He 
 furnished her with twenty-five strong 
 men, and invited his father to go with 
 him as the commander. Eric thought 
 himself too old for such an undertak- 
 ing. Lief and his companions sailed 
 southwesterly. It was in the early 
 summer of the year 1002. They were 
 fighting the storms and waves of the 
 North Atlantic Ocean, between Green- 
 land and Labrador, and were some- 
 times chilled by slow-drifting icebergs. 
 
 At length they saw land. It was flat 
 and stony near the shore, with high 
 snow-capped mountains, a little back 
 from the sea. They did not land, but, 
 sailing .southward, they soon came to 
 another country, flat, and covered 
 thickly with woods. It had a broad 
 beach of white sand sloping gently to 
 the sea. The adventurers anchored 
 their little ship, went on shore, and fed 
 themselves on sweet berries. A few 
 hours later they sailed away southward. 
 
 These bold seamen soon came in 
 sight of another land. It was hilly — 
 gently so — and mostly covered with 
 trees. Its northerly shores were shel- 
 tered bv an island. They found there 
 an abundance of small fruits, delicious 
 tc the taste. No traces of human be- 
 ings were found, excepting some burnt 
 wood and the bones of large fishes ; and 
 no sounds were heard but the songs of 
 birds and the chirping of squirrels. 
 Charmed by the soft climate, they 
 sought a harbor, and found one at the 
 mouth of a river, where the vessel was 
 swept by the tide into a bay. The 
 v^'aters were filled with the finest sal- 
 mon, and wild deer abounded in the 
 woods. The days and nights were 
 nearly^ equal in length, at first. As they 
 remained all winter, they noticed that 
 when the days were shortest, the sun 
 rose at half-past seven o'clock and set 
 at half-past four o'clock. 
 
 A young German of Lief's company, 
 who was Eric's servant, was missing 
 one day. They searched for him in all 
 directions. He had wandered deep into 
 the forest, and when they found him 
 he was full of joy, because he had dis- 
 covered grapes, delicious and abundant, 
 .such as grew in his own country. So 
 Lief named the country Vineland. He 
 and his company built huts and win- 
 tered there, and in the spring they re- 
 turned to Greenland. Eric had lately 
 died, and Lief, his eldest son, came 
 into the possession of his estate and 
 patriarchal office. Eric's family were 
 Christians, but Eric died a pagan. 
 
 Thorwald, Lief's younger brother, 
 bought the good ship and, with thirty 
 companions, sailed for \^ineland. They 
 passed the winter there, occupying the 
 
FIRST rHRFOn— EXPLORATrOXS AXD DISCOVERIES 
 
 huts built by Lief and his companions, 
 and subsisting, as they had done, on 
 fish. In the spring, Tliorwald and a 
 part of his company explored the 
 neighboring coasts, finding many sandy 
 islands, on which there was no traces 
 of wild beasts and few of human be- 
 ings. The summer was spent in these 
 explorations, and the next was passed 
 at their old quarters in V'ineland. 
 Other explorations were made the fol- 
 lowing summer, by the whole compan}-. 
 In the early autumn thev entered a 
 large inlet. There were high lands on 
 each side, thickly wooded. "Here,'' 
 said Thorwald, "is a goodly place; 
 here I will make my abode." They 
 found there some natives — dusky peo- 
 ple, of small stature, like the Esqui- 
 maux of Greenland. They were in 
 canoes, and were timid and harmless. 
 The Northmen caught them and cruelly 
 put them to death, excepting one. who 
 escaped to the hills and aroused his 
 countrymen. The angry savages at- 
 tacked Thorwald and his company, and 
 Thorwald was killed, but his com]ian- 
 ions escaped uninjured. Thorwald's 
 body was buried on the promontory 
 where he intended to settle. The sur- 
 vivors passed the winter in \^ineland, 
 in mortal fear of the enraged savages, 
 and in the spring they returned to 
 Greenland. 
 
 Thorstein, Eric's third son, on hear- 
 ing of the death of his brother, sailed 
 for Vineland. with twenty-five compan- 
 ions and his young wife, Gudvida. .Ad- 
 verse winds drove the vessel into the 
 desolate shores of Greenland. .\ conta- 
 gious disease broke out among them and 
 Thorstein and the greater number of 
 his companions perished. The young 
 wife then returned hime with the body 
 of her husband. 
 
 During the ne.xt summer, a rich Nor- 
 wegian named Thorfin, married Gud- 
 vida, and, accompanied by his young 
 wife, and five other young women and 
 their husbands, and other men. sailed 
 for X'ineland, to plant a colony there. 
 They landed near the spot where Lief 
 had passed the winter. 
 
 Thorfin remained with the colony in 
 \'ineland about three vears, when he 
 
 and Gudvida, with a part of the com- 
 pany, returned to Norway with speci- 
 mens of fruits and furs, which they 
 had gathered in the new country. 
 
 After making several voyages Thor- 
 lin settled in Iceland, where he died, 
 (judvida, then went on a pilgrimage to 
 Rome, where she told the story of the 
 adventurers in the ears of Pope Bene- 
 dict. 
 
 Those of Thorfin's colony who re- 
 mained in Vineland, were joined by 
 two brothers, named Helgi and Fiom- 
 bogi, with about thirty followers. 
 I-'reydisa, the daughter of Eric the Red, 
 obtained a willing permission to go 
 with them, and share in the profits of 
 the voyage. She was an artful and 
 fiery-tempered woman and a fury and 
 firebrand amongst the colonists. 
 Where peace had reigned she en- 
 throned discord. Quarrels ensued 
 which ended in a fight and the death 
 of thirty persons. Then Freydisa, find- 
 ing her own life in peril, returned to 
 Greenland, where she died. 
 
 From the chornicles of Iceland, it 
 reveals the fact that Norwegians dis- 
 covered America almost five hundred 
 years before Columbus sailed westward 
 from Spain, in search of India. The 
 stony land was doubtless Labrador. 
 The flat, wooded land, must have been 
 Newfoundland ; and the time given for 
 the rising and setting of the sun and the 
 winter solstice — the shortest day about 
 Christmas time — indicates some point 
 on the New England coast, between 
 Boston harbor and Narragansett bay, 
 as the spot where the German lad dis- 
 covered the grapes, and Lief named 
 the country Vineland. 
 
 Where Thorwald was buried, or 
 where Thorfin and Gudvida landed and 
 lived nobody knows. .A.11 positive 
 traces of these colonies in America are 
 lost. 
 
 From that time, for more than four 
 hundred years, .\merica lay hidden 
 from the knowledge of Europeans. 
 There are some traditions that seem to 
 have facts for their sub.stance, that tell 
 us of other voyages to this Western 
 W'orld, during that period. The most 
 reasonable of these stories, is that of 
 
THE HOME AL"Xn.E\RV AXD REFERENCE 
 
 Prince Madoc of ^\'ales, said to have 
 been drawn from the chronicles of that 
 country. It is beUeved by some his- 
 torical students of Madoc, who was a 
 son of Owen Gwynneth, disgusted with 
 the domestic contentions about the 
 rightful successor to his father, went 
 on a voyage of discovery, with ships 
 '.veil manned, in the reign of King 
 Henry the Second, of England ; that he 
 went westward from Ireland and found 
 a most fruitful country, in the year 
 1 170; that he returned home, and with 
 a squadron of ten ships sailed for the 
 same lands with a colony of men, 
 women and children, to settle there, and 
 that he was never heard of afterwards. 
 It has been asserted by more than one 
 traveler in this country, that light- 
 colored Indians have been met by them, 
 who had many Welsh words in their 
 kinguage. Humboldt refers to this 
 tradition ; and until the translation of 
 the Icelandic Chronicles, the Chronicles 
 of Wales claimed for Madoc the honor 
 of being the discoverer of America. 
 
 During the centuries whilst America 
 again lay hidden from Europe, great 
 changes had taken place among the na- 
 tions of the Eastern Hemisphere, and 
 we shall briefly relate the conditions 
 in Europe toward the close of the fif- 
 teenth century. 
 
 The Northmen, or Xormans, had 
 taken possession of some of the fairest 
 regions of France (Normandy), and 
 had invaded, conquered, and refined 
 England. The Germans had succeeded 
 the empire of the Franks, in the mas- 
 terv of Europe, and with their ad- 
 vanced ideas. 
 
 The crusaders had unbarred the 
 gates of the East, and let in a flood of 
 light from that source of science and 
 philosophy, and had broken up the 
 stagnation of European society. The 
 feudal S)'stem — a system in which lands 
 are held by a few nobles who farm 
 them out as a privilege secured by mili- 
 tary service — had given way to an es- 
 tablished political system in the form of 
 monarchies and powerful republics. 
 Commercial cities were gathering and 
 distributing the products of industry 
 and fleckinsr the seas with white sails. 
 
 I-roving that the arts of peace are far 
 more productive of happiness than the 
 pursuit of war. 
 
 Trade had linked various peoples in 
 bonds of mutual interests and .sym- 
 pathy. And Europe, with the birth of 
 the printing-press at that time, was 
 prepared to enter upon that new and 
 bright era of scientific investigation 
 and maritime discovery, which speedily 
 followed. 
 
 Its most wonderful activity was seen 
 m the Adriatic and in the Mediterran- 
 ean Seas. For the control of this com- 
 merce, \'enice on the Adriatic and 
 Genoa on the Mediterranean Vv-ere pow- 
 erful and zealous rivals. The ancient 
 cities of Venice and Genoa had grown 
 rich by the trade with the East. Great 
 caravans brought silks and spices and 
 other luxuries thence overland to Medi- 
 terranean ports, which were carried to 
 the Italian cities in ships and again sent 
 overland to the cities of the North. 
 This slow and expensive method of 
 transportation, might have long contin- 
 ued, had not the conquering Turks 
 seized on Constantinople and cut ofif 
 every avenue of trade southward from 
 Christian trafific. Then began men to 
 look for an all water route to India and 
 China and Japan, of whose marvelous 
 riches Marco Polo and other travelers 
 had written, with a wealth of adjectives 
 that stirred the imagination and incited 
 the cupidity of Christendom. 
 
 The leader of this movement was 
 Portugal, under Henry, son of John the 
 First. While with his father on an ex- 
 pedition into Africa, he received much 
 information from the Moors concern- 
 ing the coast of Guinea and other parts 
 that were then unknown to Europeans. 
 He believed that important discoveries 
 might be made by navigating along the 
 western coast fif that continent, and on 
 liis return home the idea absorbed his 
 whole attention. Being a studious and 
 profound mathematician, he had be- 
 come master of all the astronomy then 
 known to the Spaniards. He drew 
 around him men of science and learn- 
 ing connected with every branch of the 
 maritime art, and with these learned 
 men, he was convinced that from an- 
 
FIRST PERIOD— EXPLORATIONS AND DISCOVERIES 
 
 cient chronicles and fair induclicui, that 
 Africa was circumnavigable — that In- 
 dia might Ije reathed by going around 
 the southern shores of that continent. 
 Prince Henry firmly adhered to his be- 
 lief in the face of the threats of the 
 priests and the sneers of the learned 
 ])rofessors. Wild tales were believed 
 of dreadful reefs and stormy headlands 
 stretching far out to sea, and of a fiery 
 climate at the equator which no living 
 thing, not even whales in the depth of 
 the ocean could pass because of the 
 great heat. It was believed that the 
 waves rolled in boiling water upon the 
 fiery sands of the coasts, and that who- 
 ever should pass beyond Cape Bajador 
 would never return. Against every 
 species of opposition Prince Henry per- 
 severed. His navigators scattered all 
 these fallacies and tales by doubling 
 Cape Bajador and sailing into the trop- 
 ics. 
 
 With the revival of learning which 
 the crusades had been chiefly instru- 
 mental in producing, came into Europe 
 a knowledge of the theories and a de- 
 monstration of the Arabian astrono- 
 mers, concerning the globular form of 
 the earth. Intelligent mariners and 
 others had become impressed that it 
 was globular, whilst the clergy ve- 
 hemently opposed it. 
 
 Christopher Columbus, a native of 
 Genoa, being firmly convinced of this 
 theory, believed the quickest passage to 
 India would be made by sailing west- 
 ward. This we shall take up in the 
 
 STORY OF COLUMBUS. 
 
 Christopher Columbus, or Colombo. 
 as the name is written in Italian, was 
 born in the city of Genoa, about the 
 year 1435. He was the son of a wool 
 comber. He was the oldest of four 
 children, having two brothers, Bar- 
 tholomew and Giacomo, or James 
 (written Diego in Spanish"), and one 
 sister, of whom nothing is known. At 
 a very early age Columbus evinced a 
 decided inclination for the sea ; his 
 education therefore was mainly directed 
 to fit him for maritime life, but was as 
 general as the narrow means of his 
 
 lather would permit. For a short time, 
 also, he was sent to the university of 
 I'avia. He then returned to Genoa, 
 and, from his own account, he entered 
 upon a nautical life when but fourteen 
 years of age. 
 
 His first voyages were made in the 
 Mediterranean Sea witli a distant rel- 
 ative named Colombo, when piracy 
 was almost legalized. During many 
 years we have but a shadowy trace of 
 Columbus, and from writings of his 
 son, Fernando, we next hear of him in 
 Lisbon, about the year 1470. He was 
 at that time in the full vigor of man- 
 hood, and of an engaging presence. 
 He was tall, well-formed and muscu- 
 lar, and of an elevated and dignified 
 demeanor. His visage was long and 
 neither full nor meagre ; his complex- 
 ion fair and freckled and inclined to 
 ruddy ; his nose aquiline ; his cheek 
 bones were rather high, his eyes light 
 gray and apt to enkindle ; his whole 
 countenance had an air of authority. 
 His hair, in his youthful days, was of 
 a light color ; but care and trouble 
 soon turned it gray, and at thirty years 
 of age was quite white. He was mod- 
 erate and simple in diet and apparel, 
 eloquent in discourse, engaging and af- 
 fable with strangers, and his amiable- 
 ncss and suavity in domestic life 
 strongly attached his household to hi'; 
 person. His temper was naturally irri- 
 table; but he subdued it by the mag- 
 nanimity of his spirit, comporting him- 
 self with a courteous and gentle grav- 
 ity, and never indulging in any intem- 
 perance of language. Throughout his 
 life he was noted for his strict atten- 
 tion to the offices of religion, observ- 
 ing rigorously the fasts and ceremo- 
 nies of the church ; nor did . his piety 
 consists in mere forms, but partook of 
 the lofty and solemn enthusiasm with 
 which his whole character was strongly 
 tinctured. While attending religious 
 service, he became acquainted with 
 Dona Felipa, daughter of Bartholomew 
 Alonis de Perestrello, deceased, who 
 had been one of the most distinguished 
 navigators under Prince Henry of 
 Portugal and had colonized and gov- 
 erned the island of Porto Santo. Thev 
 
26 
 
 THE HOMi: AUXILIARY AND REFERKX'CF. 
 
 were soon married and it appears to 
 have been of pure affection as the 
 iady was without fortune. 
 
 Througli the mother of the bride, he 
 became informed of all the voyages and 
 expeditions of her late husband, she 
 brought him all his papers, charts, 
 journals and memorandums. In this 
 way he became acquainted with the 
 routes of the Portuguese, their plans 
 and conceptions ; and having become 
 naturalized in Portugal, he sailed oc- 
 casionally in the expeditions to the 
 coast of Guinea. He was compelled to 
 use strict economy, and when on shore 
 supported himself and family by mak- 
 ing maps and charts. 
 
 He resided for some time at the re- 
 cently discovered island of Porto Santo, 
 where his wife had inherited some 
 property, and during his residence 
 there she bore him a son, whom he 
 named Diego. This residence brought 
 him on the very frontier of discovery. 
 His wife's sister was married to Pedro 
 Correo, a navigator of note, who had 
 at one time been governor of Porto 
 Santo. Being, frequently together, 
 their intercourse was turned upon the 
 long sought for route to India ; and the 
 possibility of some unknown lands ex- 
 isting in the west. 
 
 In their i.sland residence, surrounded 
 by the stir and bustle of discovery, 
 communing with persons who had risen 
 by it to fortune and honor, the ardent 
 mind of Columbus kindled up to en- 
 thusiasm in the cause. One of the 
 strongest symptons of the excited state 
 of the popular mind at this eventful era 
 was the prevalence of rumors respect- 
 ing unknown islands casually seen in 
 the ocean. Columbus, however, con- 
 sidered all these appearances of land 
 as mere illusions. He made himself ac- 
 quainted with all that had been written 
 by the ancients, or discovered by the 
 moderns, relation to geography. His 
 own voyages enabled him to correct 
 many of their errors, and appreciate 
 many of their theories. His genius 
 having thus taken its decided bent, his 
 grand project of discovery was 
 wrought out by the strong workings of 
 his vigorous mind. 
 
 lie sat <lciwn as a fundamental prin- 
 cii)le that liie earth was a terraqueou ■ 
 sphere or globe, which might be trav- 
 elled round from cast to west, and that 
 men stood foot to foot when on oppo- 
 site points. The circumference on the 
 equator, Columbus divided into twenty 
 four hours of fifteen degrees each, 
 making three hundred and sixty de- 
 grees. Of these he imagined that fif- 
 teen hours had been known to the an- 
 cients, extending from the Canary In- 
 lands to the city of Thinae, in Asia, a 
 place set down as the eastern limits of 
 the known world. The Portuguese had 
 advanced the western frontier one hour 
 more by the discovery of the Azores 
 and the Cape de \'erde Islands. There 
 remained, then, according to Colum- 
 bus's estimate, eight hours, or one-third 
 of the circumference of the earth, un- 
 known and unexplored. Granting this, 
 it was manifest that by pursuing a di- 
 rect course from east to west, a navi- 
 gator would arrive at the extremitv of 
 Asia, and discover any intervening land. 
 
 According to the stories of ^larco 
 Polo and John Mandeville, these trav- 
 elers had visited the remote parts of 
 Asia, and their accounts of the extent 
 nf that continent to the eastward had a 
 great effect in convincing Colvmibus 
 that a voyage to the west, of no long 
 duration, would bring him to its shores, 
 or to the extensive and wealthy islands 
 which lie adjacent. He was also in- 
 fluenced by the tales of veteran mari- 
 ners who had found drift-wood from 
 the west, carved by other tools than 
 iron, and of reeds which Columbus 
 thought he recognized as the immense 
 reeds said to grow in India. When 
 Columbus had formed his theory, it be- 
 came fixed in his mind with singular 
 firmness, and influenced his entire char- 
 acter and conduct. He never spoke in 
 doubt or hesitation, but with as much 
 certainty as if his eyes had beheld the 
 promised land. A deep religious senti- 
 ment mingled with his meditations, and 
 he looked upon himself as standing in 
 the hand of heaven, chosen from 
 among men for the accomplishment of 
 its high purpose. 
 
FIRST PERIOD— EXPLORATIONS AND DISCOVERIES 
 
 It is impossible to determine the pre- 
 cise time when Cohnnbus first conceived 
 the design of seeking a western route 
 to India. It is certain, however, that 
 he meditated it as early as the year 
 1474. He was at this time too poor to 
 fit out the armament necessary for so 
 important an expedition. Indeed, it was 
 an enterprise only to be undertaken in 
 the employ of some sovereign state, 
 N'.hich could assume dominion over the 
 territories he might discover and re- 
 , ward him with dignities and privileges 
 commensurate to his services. It is 
 said tliat he endeavored to engage his 
 own country, Genoa, in the undertak- 
 ing, but without success. His residence 
 in Portugal placed him at hand to solicit 
 the patronage of that power, but Al- 
 phonso, who was then on the throne, 
 was too much engrossed in the latter 
 part of his reign, with a war with 
 Spain, to engage in peaceful enterprises 
 of an expensive nature. 
 
 At this juncture, in 1481, a monarch 
 ascended the throne of Portugal, of dif- 
 ferent ambftion from .\lphonso. John 
 Second, then in the twenty-fifth year of 
 his age, had imbibed the passion for 
 discovery from his grand-uncle. Prince 
 Henry, and with his reign all its activ- 
 ity revived. The magnificent idea he 
 I'lad formed of the remote parts of the 
 East made him extremely anxious that 
 the splendid project of Prince Henry 
 should be realized, and the Portuguese 
 flag penetrate to the Indian seas. 
 
 It was at this time that Columbus 
 made the first attempt to procure royal 
 I«tronage for his enterprise. Encour- 
 aged by the anxiety evinced by King 
 John the Second to accomplish a pas- 
 sage by sea to India, Columbus ob- 
 tained an audience of that monarch, and 
 proposed that in case the King would 
 furnish him with ships and men, to 
 take a shorter and more direct route 
 than that along the coast of Africa. 
 His plan was to strike directly to the 
 west, across the Atlantic. The King- 
 referred the inatter to a learned junto, 
 charged with all inatters relating to 
 maritime discovery. . This scientific 
 bod}' treated the subject as extravagant 
 and visionary. King John still mani- 
 
 festing an inclination for the enterprise, 
 it was suggested to him that Columbus 
 might be kept in suspense while a vessel 
 secretly dispatched in the direction he 
 should point out might ascertain 
 whether there was any foundation for 
 his theory. Having obtained detailed 
 information from Columbus, a caravel 
 was dispatched, which stood westward 
 for several days, until the weather be- 
 came stormy, the pilots seeing noSliing 
 but a waste of wild tumbling waters 
 still extending before them, lost all 
 courage and put back, ridiculing the 
 ]iroject of Columbus. 
 
 This unworthy act of King John, 
 aroused the indignation of Columbus, 
 and he refused to renew the negotia- 
 tions. The death of his wife, which 
 occured some time previously, dissolved 
 what ties he had with Portugal, and he 
 determined to look elsewhere for pa- 
 tronage. Before his departure, he en- 
 gaged his brother Bartholomew to 
 carry proposals to the King of England. 
 
 We next hear from Columbus in the 
 south of Spain, in 1485, seeking his 
 fortune among the nobles. He met 
 with indifferent success, and was about 
 to leave Spain to seek the aid of F"rance, 
 when the Duke of Medina Celi, fearing 
 the loss to Spain by the success of such 
 a splendid enterprise, by another power, 
 wrote to Queen Isabella recommending 
 Columbus and his project. This 
 brought a favorable reply and Colum- 
 bus accordingly set out for the Spanish 
 court. 
 
 This was one of the most brilliant 
 periods of the Spanish monarchy. The 
 union of Arragon and Castile, by the 
 marriage of Ferdinand and Isabella, 
 which consolidated the Christian power, 
 in opposition to the domination of the 
 Moors. After arriving at the court at 
 Cordova, he found the monarchs in ac- 
 tive preparation for the war, with the 
 Moors, and for over a year, was unable 
 to obtain an audience. He was finally 
 odered by Ferdinand, to present his 
 jiroject before the council of Sala- 
 manca, the leading university of Spain. 
 His theories were met with no approval, 
 and he experienced notliing but pro- 
 crastination and neglect. 
 
THE HOME AUXILIARY AND REFERENCI". 
 
 In tlie spring of I48<) the-adjounied 
 investigation appeared to be on the eve 
 of taking place. Columbus was sum- 
 moned to attend a conference of learned 
 men, to be held in the city of Seville ; 
 but as usual the appointed conference 
 was postponed, being interrupted by the 
 opening of a campaign. Columbus 
 waited through the summer of 1490, 
 and the subsequent winter, when he 
 pressed for a reply. The sovereigns 
 answered, that on account of the war 
 and its expenses, the project could not 
 be considered until its close. Renounc- 
 ing all further confidence in vague pro- 
 mises, he turned his back on Seville. 
 
 About half a league from the little 
 seaport of Palos, in Andalusia, there 
 stood an ancient convent, dedicated to 
 Santa Maria de Rabida. One day a 
 stranger on foot, in humble guise but 
 of a distinguished air, accompanied by 
 a small boy, stopped at the gate of the 
 convent, and asked of the porter a 
 little bread and water for the child. 
 Juan Perz de Marchena, the prior of 
 the convent, happening to pass by, was 
 struck by the appearance of the 
 stranger, and observing from his ac- 
 cent that he was a foreigner, entered 
 into conversation with him, and soon 
 learned his story. That stranger was 
 Columbus. He was on his way to the 
 neighboring town of Huelva, to seek 
 his brother-in-law. 
 
 The prior was a man of extensive 
 geographical and nautical knowledge, 
 he was greatly interested by the conver- 
 sation of Columbus. When he found, 
 however, that the voyager was on the 
 point of abandoning Spain to seek 
 patronage in the court of France, and 
 that so important an enterprise was 
 about to be lost forever to the country, 
 the good friar took alarm. He detained 
 Columbus as his guest, and sent for 
 Garcia Fernandez ; a physician, resi- 
 dent in Palos : a scientific friend, to 
 converse with him. Several confer- 
 ences took place at the convent, at 
 which several of the veteran mariners 
 of Palos were present. Among these 
 v.-as Martin Alonzo Pinzon, the head of 
 a family of wxalthv and experienced 
 navigators of the place, celebrated for 
 
 their adventurous expeditions. Facts 
 were related by some of these naviga- 
 tors in support of the theory of Colum- 
 bus. In a word, his project was treated 
 Vv-ith a deference in the quiet cloisters 
 of tlie convent, and among the seamen 
 which had been sought in vain among 
 the sages and philosophers of the court. 
 IMartin .\lonzo Pinzon was so impres- 
 sed tliat he offered to engage in it witli 
 ])urse and person, and to bear the cx- 
 jienses of Columbus in renewed appli- 
 cation to the court. Friar Juan Perez 
 had once been confessor to the Queen, 
 he proposed to wrtie to her immediatelx' 
 on the subject, and entreated Columbus 
 to delay his journey until an answer 
 could be received. Columbus being 
 persuaded, a letter was written to the 
 Queen, and she wrote in reply to Juan 
 Perez, thanking him for his timely ser- 
 vices, and requesting that he would re- 
 pair immediately to the court. No 
 sooner did the friar receive it. than he 
 departed privately, before midnight, 
 for the court. 
 
 He pleaded the cause of Columbus, 
 and the Queen being more susceptible 
 and sanguine than the King, was moved 
 by the representations of the friar and 
 requested that Columbus should again 
 be sent to her, and forwarded to him 
 his traveling expenses. 
 
 When Columbus arrived at the court, 
 he experienced a favorable reception. 
 the moment had now arrived, when the 
 monarchs stood pledged to attend to 
 his proposals. The war with the Moors 
 was at an end, Spain was delivered 
 from its intruders, and its sovereigns 
 might securely turn their views to for- 
 eign enterprises. They kept their word 
 with Columbus. 
 
 At the very outset of their negotia- 
 tion, however, unexpected difficulties 
 arose. So fully imbued was Columbus 
 \Aith the grandeur of his enterprise, 
 that he would listen to none but 
 ]irincely conditions. His principal stip- 
 ulation was, that he should be invested 
 with the titles and privileges of admiral 
 and viceroy over the countries he 
 should discover. With one-tenth of all 
 gains, either by trade or conquests, or 
 to furnish one-eighth of the cost, on 
 
FIRST PERIOD— EXPLORATTOXS AXD DTSCOVKRIES 
 
 condition of enjoying one-eight of the 
 profits. More moderate conditions 
 were offered to Columbus, and such as 
 appeared highly honorable and advan- 
 tageous. It was all in vain : he would 
 not cede one point of his demands, and 
 the negotiation was broken off. 
 
 Taking leave of his friends, there- 
 fore, he left Santa Fe on his way to 
 Cordova, in the beginning of February, 
 I-I92, whence he intended to depart im- 
 mediately for I-"rance. 
 
 A\'hen the few friends who were zeal- 
 ous believers in the theory of Columbus 
 saw him really on the point of abandon- 
 ing the country, they were filled with 
 distress, considering his departure an 
 irreparable loss to the nation, .\niong 
 the number was the receiver of the ec- 
 clesiastical revenues in Arragon, he en- 
 treated her majesty not to be misled by 
 the assertions of learned men, that the 
 project was visionary. He vindicated 
 the Judgment of Columbus. Neither 
 would even failure reflect disgrace upon 
 the crown. He stated the liberal offer 
 of Columbus to bear an eighth of the 
 expense, and informed her that all that 
 was necessary for the e.xpedition was 
 but two vessels and about three thous- 
 and crowns. There was still a mo- 
 ment's hesitation, the King looked 
 coldly on the affair. With an enthus- 
 iasm worthy of herself and the cause, 
 Lsabella exclaimed, "I undertake the en- 
 terprise for my crown of Castile, and 
 w ill pledge my jewels to raise the neces- 
 sary funds." This was the proudest 
 moment in the life of Isabella; it 
 stamped her renown forever as the 
 ]iatroness of the discovery of the New 
 \\ orld. PiUt her majesty was assured 
 that there would be no need of pledging 
 her jewels, as the necessar}- funds 
 would be advanced. 
 
 Columbus was pursuing his lonely 
 journey, when he was overtaken by a 
 courier from the Queen, who sum- 
 moned him to return to .Santa Fe. On 
 hearing of the sudden zeal excited in 
 the mind of the Queen, and the posi- 
 tive promise she had given to undertake 
 it, he no longer felt a doubt, but has- 
 tened back, confiding in the noble pro- 
 bity of that princess. 
 
 An immediate audience was granted, 
 lie was then fifty-six years of age: and 
 the Queen forty. She possessed more 
 genius and grandeur of soul than her 
 husband : and could far better than he 
 comprehend the theory of Columbus, 
 and estimate its mighty results, should 
 lie achieve it. .\nd when, with a tongue 
 that seemed to be touched with inspira- 
 tion, he told the Queen of his belief that 
 he was ordained of God for its aciiieve- 
 ment, and that he intended to u.se the 
 profits of his enterprise on efforts for 
 the recovery of the Holy Sepulchre at 
 Jerusalem, the beautiful Queen invoked 
 the blessings of Almighty God upon 
 him. 
 
 Isabella assented to all of the de- 
 mands of Columbus, and urged him to 
 (•epart on his great mission as speedily 
 :>s possible. Ferdinand acquiesced in 
 the arrangements. The contract was 
 signed by the sovereigns, at Santa Fe, 
 on the 17th of April, 1492. Then Col- 
 umbus departed for Palos. 
 
 The port of Palos had lately sinned 
 against the monarchs, and the citizens 
 had been condemned to serve the crown 
 one year with two armed caravels — 
 small, three-masted vessels. Furnished 
 Avith authority, Columbus caused a 
 royal order to be read commanding the 
 authorities to have two caravels ready 
 ior sea within ten days, and they and 
 their crews to be placed at the disposal 
 of the admiral. By the same order he 
 was empowered to fit out a third vessel. 
 The stories of the awful terrors of the 
 far western Atlantic, which everybody 
 believed, made the stoutest hearts of 
 the mariners quail, and for weeks no 
 progress was made toward the equip- 
 ment of the vessels. 
 
 Finally Martin Alonzo Pinzon, and 
 his brother, \'incent Yanez, came for- 
 ward, and not only engaged to furnish 
 one of the vessels ; but as they had pro- 
 mised Columbus, to each go as master 
 of a shi]), and to fm-nish one-eighth the 
 cost of the ex])edition. These acts of 
 the Pinzons had a powerful effect upon 
 the people, and very soon three vessels 
 — all that were required — were ready 
 for sea. 
 
 Two of them were no longer than 
 
30 
 
 THE HOME AUXILIARY AND REFERENCE 
 
 our river and our coast sailing vesseis 
 — without decks, pierced for oars to be 
 used in calms, with each a forecastle, 
 and a cabin in the high stern, for the 
 accommodation of the ship's company. 
 The largest, which was fitted expressly 
 for the expedition, was decked, and was 
 named the Santa IMaria. She was the 
 flag-ship of Columbus. One of the 
 caravels was called the Pinta, and was 
 commanded by Martin Alonzo Pinzon, 
 who was accompanied by his brother, 
 Francisco Martin, as pilot. The other 
 caravel was called the Nina, with lateen 
 sails, and was commanded by Vincent 
 Yanez Pinzon. There were three other 
 pilots, an inspector-general of the arma- 
 ment ; Diego de Avana, as chief alguazil 
 or constable. Roderigo de Escobar as 
 notary public and historian, a physician 
 raid surgeon, some private adventurers, 
 servants, and ninety mariners, in all, 
 one hundred and twenty persons. 
 
 The expedition sailed on Friday. 
 August 3d, 1492. On the 9th they 
 reached the Canary Islands, where they 
 were detained three weeks, and early in 
 September they passed the westernmost 
 of the group, escaped some Portuguese 
 caravels that were sent out to intercejjt 
 tl'em, and sailed boldly toward the un- 
 known. Expecting to find the eastern 
 shores of Asia, he bore a letter from the 
 Spanish sovereigns to the Grand Khan 
 of Tartary. in whose service Marco 
 Polo had been employed two hundred 
 years before. 
 
 They encountered no heavy storms, 
 nor did they observe any of the ex- 
 pected terrors of the trackless deep. 
 When they were two hundred leagues 
 or more westward of the peak of Tene- 
 riffe. Columbus observed for the first 
 time in his life, a variation of the needle 
 of his compass from a true line with the 
 north star. They encountered vast 
 masses of seaweeds, hundreds of miles 
 in extent, floating on the ocean. It 
 was doubtless the Sargasso Sea, now so 
 well known to mariners. They were 
 cheered by the sight of a flying heron 
 and a tro]3ical bird which were har- 
 bingers of land. The sailors, who had 
 been mutinous at times, were quieted In- 
 these promises of nature: hut when 
 
 they seemed deceptive, the crews be- 
 came stormy and almost ungovernable, 
 they reproached their sovereigns for 
 trusting the ambitious Italian, who 
 would sacrifice their lives '"to make 
 himself a lord." But Columbus quelled 
 the insurrection for the time. 
 
 For eleven days after leaving the 
 Canary Islands, the ships had sailed be- 
 fore the easterly trade winds. At early 
 twilight one evening, Martin Pinzon, 
 standing on the high stem of the Pinta, 
 and pointing toward the southwest, 
 shouted to the admiral, "Land! land! 
 senor ; I claim my reward" — a pension 
 promised by the sovereigns to the first 
 man who should discover land. But 
 the apparition was only a cloud, which 
 vanished before the dawn. 
 
 Days passed on, and the sun each 
 evening set in the waves. Martin Pin- 
 zon believed that a more southerly 
 course would be wiser, and he was con- 
 firmed in his opinion by seeing a flock 
 of parrots flying toward the southwest. 
 He advised them to follow but the ad- 
 miral kept on his due west course. The 
 crews again became discontented and 
 mutinous. They had lost all hope, and 
 in their desperation they defied Colum- 
 bus. With the coolness of true courage 
 he said, "This expedition has been sent 
 out by your sovereigns, and come what 
 may I am determined, by the help of 
 God, to accomplish the object of the 
 \oyage." ''We will cast you into the 
 sea and return to Spain," said the ex- 
 asperated sailors ; and just at sunset, 
 on the evening of the nth of October, 
 tliey were about to carry their threat 
 into execution, when a coast-fish was 
 seen to glide by : dolphins played near 
 the surface; a branch of thorn with 
 berries on it floated near, and a staff, 
 artificially carved, came upon the waters 
 to testify of human habitations near. 
 Such unmistakable signs of land close 
 l)y hushed the voice of rebellion, and 
 the tigers became as meek as lambs. 
 
 He enjoined them all to watch, and 
 ]iromised that whoever first discovered 
 land should be given a doublet of velvet 
 in addition to the pension offered bv 
 the sovereigns. Eagerly, every man 
 watched far into the night. Columbus 
 
FIRST PF.RIon- EXPLORATIONS AND DISCOVERIES 
 
 31 
 
 at about ten o'clock thought he saw the 
 t^lininier of a distant light. lie called 
 Gutierrez, one of the private ad\entur- 
 ers, and inquired whether he saw a 
 light. "I do," said Gutierrez. Coluiii- 
 hus then called Sanchez, another ad- 
 venturer, and after a few minutes they 
 all three saw it, gleaming like a torch 
 in a fisherman's boat, rising and falling 
 with the waves. At length, at two 
 o'clock in the morning, whilst the vessels 
 were continuing on their course, a gun 
 fired on board the Pinta announced the 
 joyful tidings that land had been seen. 
 It was first observed by a mariner 
 named Rodrigo de Trina, but, as Col- 
 umbus had seen the lights several hours 
 Ijefore, the award was given to the ad- 
 miral. The land was clearly seen at a 
 distance of about six miles. \\'ith the 
 dawn a beautiful picture was revealed. 
 Wooded shores were in full view. The 
 perfumes of flowers came upon the 
 light land breeze. Birds in gorgeous 
 plumage hovered around the vessels. 
 In spite of every difficulty and danger, 
 Columbus had accomplished his object. 
 ''The great mystery of the ocean was 
 revealed." "His theory, which had 
 been the scoff of sages, was trium- 
 phantly established ; he had secured to 
 himself a glory as durable as the world 
 itself." 
 
 At sunrise, Columbus and his com- 
 panions landed in small boats. Many 
 naked men and one woman, with skin 
 of a dark copper color, who had 
 watched the movements of the Euro- 
 peans with mingled feelings of curios- 
 ity, wonder and awe, now fled in alarm 
 to the deep shadows of the forest. Col- 
 umbus bearing the Royal Standard, first 
 stepped upon the shore. He was fol- 
 lowed by the Pinzons, each carrying the 
 white silk banner of the expedition. 
 When they were all landed, the whole 
 company knelt and kissed the earth for 
 joy. Rising from the ground, Colum- 
 bus displayed the Royal Standard, and 
 drawing his sword, took possession of 
 the land in the name of the .sovereigns 
 of Spain. To the island ( for such it 
 proved to be) he gave the name of San 
 Salvador — Holy Saviour. His follow- 
 ers crowded around him with the most 
 
 extravagant demonstrations of delight. 
 Those who had been most insolent and 
 mutinous were foremost in the utter- 
 ance of vows of faithfulness thereafter. 
 Each gladly took an oath of obedience 
 to him, as admiral and viceroy, and the 
 representative of Eerdinand and Isa- 
 bella. Now the triumph of Columbus 
 was complete. 
 
 The native inhabitants had watched 
 the ap])roaching ships since the dawn, 
 with fear and awe, regarding" them as 
 monsters of the deep ; and when they 
 saw the white men come from them, 
 dressed in gay colors, with shining lace 
 and glittering armor, they supposed 
 them to be superior beings who had 
 come down from the .skies. Each party 
 was a wonder to the other. The naked 
 people, with dusky skins, painted with 
 a variety of colors and devices, the men 
 without beards and both sexes having 
 long black hair falling from their heads, 
 over their shoulders and bosoms in 
 great profusion, were unlike any hu- 
 man beings of whom Columbus and his 
 companions had ever heard. By de- 
 grees the alarm of the timid natives 
 subsided, and they approached the Eu- 
 ropeans, giving and receiving signs of 
 friendship and good will. As the boats 
 of the navigators moved along the 
 shore, in and exploration of the coast 
 of the island, the inhabitants of villages, 
 men women and children, ran to the 
 beach, throwing themselves on the 
 ground, and assuming attitudes of wor- 
 ship of the supposed celestial beings. 
 They made signs for the Spaniards to 
 land, and when they found that the 
 boats kept on their way, many of them 
 went into the sea and swam after them, 
 and others followed in canoes. Believ- 
 ing that he was upon an island of 
 Farther India, Columbus called these 
 wild inhabitants Indians, a name which 
 all the native tribes of America have 
 since borne. 
 
 The island of San Salvador lies about 
 two hundred and fifty miles E. S. E. of 
 the southern point of the peninsula of 
 Florida, and is one of the larger of the 
 Bahama group. After examining it. 
 the admiral cruised among others of 
 the same group, naming some of them. 
 
THE HOME AUXILIARY AND REFERENXE 
 
 Me aiso touched at (jiitlsing islands as 
 he sailed southward, and on the 28th of 
 October he saw the northern shores of 
 Cuba. Entering a beautiful river, 
 which he called San Salvador, he an- 
 chored, and in honor of Prince Juan, 
 the son of Isabella, he named the great 
 island Juana. But it has retained its 
 native name of Cuba. He sailed north- 
 westerly along its coast as far as the 
 eastern entrance to Laguna de Moron, 
 which was the nearest approach to the 
 North American continent ever vouch- 
 safed to Columbus. There he tirst saw 
 a weed, the leaves of which the natives 
 rolled into long slim packages, called 
 tobacco and smoked. It was the mod- 
 ern cigar. The Spaniards considered 
 the habit a nauseous indulgence, and 
 did not adopt it. They left to an Eng- 
 li.--hman, born fifty years afterward, the 
 fame of introducing this use of tobacco 
 to Europeans. 
 
 Columbus persuaded several of the 
 native inhabitants of Cuba, of both 
 sexes, to go with him to Spain, and at 
 the middle of November he sailed in 
 that direction. Head winds and rough 
 weather caused him to return to Cuba. 
 He signalled for the Pinzons to follow 
 him. Martin Alonzo did not heed the 
 order, and very .soon the Pinta disap- 
 peared on the eastern horizon. 
 
 Early in December, Columbus saw 
 the eastern end of Cuba, and a few days 
 later, as he sailed toward Europe, the 
 charming vision of beautiful Hayti 
 burst upon his sight. The country so 
 much resembled Spain in its natural 
 features that he named it Hispaniola — 
 Little Spain. On its shore he lingered 
 with delight many days. He received 
 an invitation from one of the leading 
 caciques or native rulers to anchor his 
 vessels near his residence, and whilst 
 sailing along the coast for the purpose 
 of casting anchor in the harbor of a 
 friendly chief, the Santa Maria was 
 wrecked late on Christmas Eve, in con- 
 sequence of bad steering. Columbus 
 and his crew took refuge on board the 
 Nina, commanded by Mncent Pinzon. 
 When the cacique heard of the disaster 
 he sent men and canoes in abundance 
 to unload the vessel. Of the wreck of 
 
 the vessel they built a fort, which Col- 
 I'.mbus named La Xavidad, in com- 
 memoration of their having escaped 
 .^liipwreck on Christmas Day. 
 
 Columbus reported to his sovereigns 
 that there was no better land or people, 
 they were mild and gentle, and loved 
 their neighbors. Thirty-nine of the fol- 
 lowers of Columbus remained on the 
 island. Arena, the alguazil, was placed 
 in command of them, and they were 
 conjured by Columbus to act honestly 
 and live in united good fellowship. 
 
 In their thirst for gold, they broke 
 every promise, torturing the savages 
 until a fierce Carib chief who ruled the 
 greater part of the island, slew the 
 Spaniards and burnt their fort to ashes. 
 This conduct of the Spaniards, in their 
 future colonization of the West Indies, 
 changed a pagan Eden into a wilder- 
 ness. 
 
 Early in January, 1493, Columbus 
 left La Navidad, in the Nina, and sailed 
 for Spain. He soon saw the Pinta. 
 The avaricious Pinzon had heard of a 
 region of gold from one of the natives, 
 and with a desire to secure the treasure 
 for himself he had deserted the admiral. 
 He had returned to Hispaniola, and 
 there heard of the shipwreck of the 
 Santa Maria, but he did not go to the 
 assistance of Columbus because it 
 might interfere with his own selfish 
 projects. The admiral would have 
 cruised longer among the islands, but 
 this conduct of Pinzon, and the fact 
 that the latter had kidnapped four men 
 and two girls for the purpose of selling 
 them as slaves in Spain, had destroyed 
 liis confidence in that commander, and 
 he determined to hurry home and rid 
 himself of so undesirable a companion. 
 The Nina's prow was turned toward 
 Europe and the Pinta followed. 
 
 The caravels encountered dead calms 
 and fierce tempests on that winter voy- 
 age, and were separated. In one of 
 these storms, Columbus, fearing the de- 
 struction of the vessels, and with them 
 the loss of knowledge of his discoveries 
 placed a written narrative of his ad- 
 \entures in a sealed cask, and commit- 
 ted it to the waves. .\t dawn on the 
 4th of March, about eight weeks after 
 
FIRST FICRIOD-IiXPI. ORATIONS AXD DISCOVF.RIES 
 
 ^lif had left La Xaxidad, llie Xiiia ap- 
 peared off tile ruck of Cinlra, at tlu' 
 mouth of the Tagus, in Portugal. 
 
 Columbus immediately sent a courier 
 with a letter to Ferdinand and Isabella, 
 in which he announced his great dis- 
 covery. He also wrote a letter to John, 
 King of Portugal. That monarch ami 
 his court received Columbus with great 
 honor, and on the 13th of March, Col- 
 umbus again put to sea. Two days 
 later, the Nina entered the harbor of 
 Palos, where the admiral was received 
 with the greatest demonstrations of joy. 
 It was then seven months and twelve 
 days since he had left that harbor for 
 the regions of the unknown, and out of 
 those mysterious regions he had 
 brought the wonderful tidings of a new 
 found world. On the evening of the 
 same day the Pinta sailed into the har- 
 bor of Palos. 
 
 Columbus hastened to Seville, where 
 he received a letter from his sovereigns 
 expressing their delight because of his 
 great achievements, and inviting him to 
 repair immediately to their court. Col- 
 umbus was received by the monarchs 
 with the greatest honors, and in a clear 
 arid steadv voice recounted the chief in- 
 cidents of his voyage, exhibited gold 
 and spices, and other productions of the 
 country he had discovered, and pre- 
 sented to them the natives who he had 
 brought from the islands, and declared 
 that this was but the foreshadowing of 
 greater marvels to be revealed. 
 
 The Grand Cardinal of Spain, Gon- 
 zales dc Mendoza, Archbishop of To- 
 ledo, who had hinted to a council that 
 the theory of Columbus was irreligious, 
 was now among the first, after the mon- 
 archs to honor him. He invited the ad- 
 miral to a feast, at which was gathered 
 some of the highest prelates and nobles 
 of Catalonia. To the navigator he gave 
 the seat of honor at the table, and other 
 marks of superior di.stinction. These 
 attentions to one who was so lately a 
 floor Italian mariner excited the envy of 
 sume of the guests. A courtier present, 
 iiuived by a narrow feeling of personal 
 and national jealousy, asked the ad- 
 miral whether he thought that in case 
 he had not discovered the Indies 
 
 I which it was believed he liad fuund), 
 there were not men in .Spain who would 
 have been equal to the enterprise? Col- 
 innbus immediately took an egg that 
 w as before him and invited the courtier 
 to make it stand on one of its ends. 
 I le could not. All the company tried in 
 vain to do it. Then the admiral struck 
 the egg upon the table so as to flatten 
 the end by a fracture and left it stand- 
 ing. "Anyone could do that," cried the 
 courtier. ".After I have shown the 
 way," replied the admiral. "Gentle- 
 men," continued Columbus, "after I 
 have shown a new way to India, noth- 
 ing is easier than to follow." The 
 courtier was answered. 
 
 After giving an account of his voy- 
 age and discoveries in a letter to San- 
 ciiez, the treasurer of Spain ( which 
 was printed ) , Columbus, at the request 
 of the monarchs, immediately fitted out 
 another expedition to continue his re- 
 searches in the western seas. The har- 
 bor of Cadiz was very soon the scene 
 of busy preparation, and late in Sep- 
 tember, 1493, the admiral left the bay 
 with three large ships of heavy burthen, 
 and fourteen caravels, with fifteen hun- 
 dred men. We will not follow him in 
 detail in his subsequent voyages, for 
 they have no special bearing on the his- 
 tory of our country. It is sufficient to 
 say that he made three others from 
 Spain and during the last but one, he 
 discovered the continent of America. 
 When he left Cadiz on his second voy- 
 age, in the autumn of 1493, his good 
 fortune seemed to forsake him. His 
 followers were largely selfish and ad- 
 venturers who went out in search of 
 gold and other treasures. Quarrels and 
 mutinies followed disappointed expec- 
 tations. The chief blame was laid upon 
 the shoulders of the admiral, and he 
 finally became the victim to the in- 
 trigues of vicious men, who, envious of 
 his fame and dignities, sought continu- 
 ally to build up their own fortunes out 
 of the ruins of his character. In 149". 
 an imi^ortant event took place in Eu- 
 rope, \^asquez de Gama, a Portuguese 
 mariner, who had been in Prince 
 Henry's service in his youth, passed 
 around the Cape of Good Hope (which 
 
THE HOME AUXnJARV AND REFERENCE 
 
 he so named ), witli an Arabian chart 
 directing- his course, and crossing" the 
 Inthan Ocean landed in India at Cal- 
 cutta. Africa was circumnavigated, 
 and a new way was opened to India by 
 the ocean pathway of Pharaoh Necho. 
 Prince Henry had then been dead 
 twenty-four years. 
 
 Columbus sailed on his third voyage, 
 at the close of Alay, 1498, with six 
 ships, from the port of San Lucar de 
 Barrameda. Passing the Cape de Verde 
 Islands, he proceeded toward the equa- 
 tor in a southwesterly direction, and 
 then sailed due west with the trade 
 winds, in search of a continent. Sup- 
 posing Cuba to be a great cape of Asia, 
 he believed that under the equator he 
 would find not only the mainland, but 
 every production of nature in greater 
 profusion, perfection, and preciousness, 
 than elsewhere. He was not disap- 
 pointed, for on the first of .\ugust he 
 saw the continent, not of Asia, but of 
 South America, near the mouth of the 
 Orinoco River. That was not many 
 days after Sebastian Cabot, an Englisli 
 navigator, discovered North America. 
 
 Columbus coasted for awhile near the 
 shores of South America, and then, 
 broken in health by his labors, anxieties 
 and exposures, he sailed for his colony 
 on Hispaniola. There he found every- 
 thing in disorder; and in his et¥orts to 
 bring order out of confusion, he so in- 
 terfered with the selfish projects of 
 leading adventurers there, that they de- 
 termined to ruin him. Preferring 
 malicious and false charges against him 
 at the court of Spain, they induced the 
 sovereigns to send out a commissioner 
 to inquire into the causes of difficulties. 
 Francisco de Bobadilla was sent. He 
 was as ambitious and as unscrupulous 
 as any of the adventurers, and after de- 
 posing Columbus from the vice-royalty, 
 he sent him in chains to Spain. Valleja, 
 who was sent with the admiral as a 
 sort of guard, and also the master of 
 the caravel in which Columbus was con- 
 veyed, were grieved by this cruel treat- 
 ment of the man whom they revered. 
 They would have removed his irons, but 
 Columbus would not allow them to do 
 so. "No," he said, proudly; "their ma- 
 
 jesties commanded me by letter to sub- 
 mit to whatever Bobadilla should order 
 in their name ; by their authority he has 
 put upon me these chains ; I will wear 
 Ihem until they shall order them to be 
 taken oflf, and I will preserve them af- 
 terwards as relics and memorials of the 
 reward of my services." It was done. 
 "1 saw them always hanging in his cabi- 
 net," said his son and biographer, Fer- 
 nando, "and he requested that when he 
 died, they might be buried with him." 
 When, after the arrival of the caravel 
 at Cadiz, Isabella heard of the cruel 
 treatment of Columbus, she was very 
 indignant, and sent an order for his 
 immediate restoration to liberty. The 
 sovereigns wrote a letter to him couched 
 in terms of affection and gratitude, ex- 
 jiressing their grief because of his suf- 
 ferings, and inviting him to the court. 
 The people, too, were \ery indignant, 
 and were loud in their denunciations 
 of the treatment of such a benefactor of 
 their country. When he arrived at 
 Granada, in December, 1498, he was 
 cordially received by the monarchs, 
 who, disavowing the doings of Boba- 
 dilla as contrary to their instructions, 
 promised that he should be dismissed 
 from office. But the Spanish nobles, 
 jealous of Columbus because he was 
 evidently a royal favorite, persuaded 
 the King, who was dissatisfied with the 
 apparent unproductiveness of the ad- 
 miral's discoveries, not to reinstate him 
 in the vice-royalty. Another was ap- 
 pointed in the place of Bobadilla. Af- 
 ter experiencing neglect, and alternate 
 hope and disappointment, for almost 
 four vears, whilst others were reaping 
 the harvest of his seed time, the admiral 
 was entrusted with the command of a 
 small expedition to find a passage 
 through "the sea" now known as the 
 Gulf of Mexico, into the Indian Ocean. 
 He sailed with four caravels and one 
 h.undred and fifty men, early in May, 
 1502, and after much suffering, re- 
 turned to Cadiz in November, 1504, sick 
 and dejected. Nineteen days after his 
 arrival, the good Queen Isabella died. 
 "She was one of the purest spirits that 
 ever ruled over the destinies of a na- 
 tion." With her died the hopes of the 
 
FIRST PERIOD— EXPLORATIONS AND DISCOVERIES 
 
 admiral, for he knew how cold and cal- 
 culating was the disposition of the 
 King. That ungrateful monarch, after 
 torturing the discoverer with cold po- 
 liteness and evasive promises, for which 
 he was noted, rejected the legal an<l 
 equitable claims of Columbus to the 
 dignities and emoluments of vice- 
 royalty which had been secured to him 
 by royal contract; and this great and 
 good man, then about seventy years of 
 age, who had given more real honor 
 and glory to Spain than had the whole 
 line of her Kings or the families of her 
 nobles, was allowed to pass the remnant 
 of his days in comparative poverty and 
 obscurity. "I have,"' Columbus once 
 wrote, "no place to repair to excepting 
 an inn, and often with nothing to pay 
 for my sustenance." At length, when he 
 was utterly prostrated, and hopeless of 
 justice, death came to his relief at Val- 
 iodolid, on the 20th day of May, 1506, 
 as he was uttering the words. "Lord, 
 into thy hands I commit my spirit." His 
 remains were put into the convent of 
 San Francisco, where for seven years 
 no stone or inscription marked the place 
 (if his burial. Then the ashamed King, 
 when the navi.gators bones were re- 
 moved to a monastery in Seville, or- 
 dered a marble tomb to be placed over 
 them with the inscription : "To Castile 
 and Leon, Columbus gave a New 
 World." More indelibly than on brass 
 or stone, is the truth of that inscrii^tion 
 engraved on the memory of mankind. 
 
 Columbus died with full faith that 
 although princes might neglect him and 
 wicked men might defraud him, God 
 and eternal justice would vindicate his 
 honor and his fame, and the world 
 would pay to him the just homage due 
 for his services. He also died in the be- 
 lief that he had discovered Farther In- 
 tlia, and not an unknown continent : and 
 such was the belief of all navigators 
 and scientific men at the time. 
 
 In the year 1536, the remains of Col- 
 umbus and of his son Diego were taken 
 to Hispaniola and interred in the Cathe- 
 dral at San Domingo. There they re- 
 mained two hundred and sixty years, 
 when, in 1796, they were conveyed in 
 great pomp to Havana, in Cuba, where 
 
 they now repose. Some years ago, a 
 magnificent monument to the memory 
 of Columbus was erected in his native 
 city of Genoa, in the centre of one of 
 its public squares, where it is sur- 
 rounded bv flowers and shrubbery. It 
 is composed of Carrara marble, and is 
 about forty feet in height. On four 
 ]ianels between four pedestals are repre- 
 sented, in relief sculpture, four great 
 events in his life, namely, his Confer- 
 ence ri'/Z/j the council at Salaiiiaiica: the 
 Landing in America: Preseiitiui:; tin- 
 Indians to Queen Isabella; and the .Id- 
 miral in Chains. Upon each pedestal 
 is a figure personifying, respectively. 
 Navigation, History, Astronomy and 
 Wisdom. On a round shaft, which 
 rises between the figures are sculptured 
 in high relief the prows of ancient ves- 
 sels. This shaft is surmounted by a 
 slightly colossal statue of Columbus, 
 resting on an anchor, whilst with his 
 right hand he presents a naked Indian 
 maiden, sitting modestly at his feet, 
 holding" in her hand a small cross, upon 
 which she is gazing intently, her hand 
 adorned with the plumage of birds. 
 This figure represents America; and the 
 faith of Columbus that the New World 
 would receive the religion of Jesus 
 Christ is indicated by the symbol of the 
 Atonement. 
 
 Columbus singularly combined the 
 practical and the poetical. His mind 
 liad grasped all kinds of knowledge, 
 whether procured by study or observa- 
 tion, which bore upon his theories ; im- 
 patient of the scanty aliment of the day. 
 "his im]5etous ardor," as has been well 
 observed, threw him into the study of 
 the fathers of the church, the Arabian 
 Jews, arid the ancient geographers, 
 while his daring but irregular genius, 
 bursting from the liiuits of imperfect 
 science, bore him to conclusions far be- 
 }ond the intellectual vision of his con- 
 temporaries. If some of his conclu- 
 sions were erroneous, they were at least 
 ingenious and splendid. .\nd their error 
 resulted from the clouds which still 
 hung over his peculiar path of enter- 
 prise. His own discoveries enlightened 
 the ignorance of the age. guided con- 
 jecture to certainty, and disj^elled that 
 
36 
 
 THE HOME AUXII.IARV AND REFEREN'CE 
 
 \'ery darkness with which he had hecii 
 (ihliged to struggle. It has been said 
 tiiat mercenary views mingled with the 
 ambition of Columbus, and that his 
 stipulations with the Spanish court were 
 selfish and avaricious. The charge is 
 inconsiderate and unjust. He aimed at 
 dignity and wealth in the same lofty 
 spirit in which he sought renown ; they 
 w ere to be part and parcel of the 
 achievement, and palpable evidence of 
 its success ; they were to arise from the 
 territories he should discover, and be 
 commensurate in importance. No con- 
 dition could be more just. 
 
 We have now traced, in brief outline, 
 some of the principal causes which led 
 to the discovery of America, and the 
 chief events in the great pioneer of such 
 discovery. He demonstrated the fact 
 that the earth is globular, and that fer- 
 tile lands might be found by sailing 
 westward from Europe across the At- 
 lantic Ocean. Having discovered an<l 
 ]rointed out the way to these lands, he 
 retired, and other navigators and dis- 
 coverers appeared upon the scene. The 
 exploits of some of them we will now 
 consider. 
 
 AMERICUS \'ESPL'CCIUS. 
 
 The name of Americus Vespuccius or 
 Amerigo \'espucci, as the Spaniards 
 call him, appears prominent in history 
 as one of the discoverers of America. 
 He has no valid title to that distinction. 
 Proofs accumulate as investigations 
 proceed, which show conclusively that 
 lie was the author or abettor of a stu- 
 ]iendous historical fraud, by which Col- 
 umbus was cheated out of the honor of 
 having his name given to a continent. 
 
 Vespuccius first appears in history as 
 a mercantile agent of the Medici 
 family of Florence, first in Barcelona 
 and soon afterward in Seville, Spain. 
 He was about forty years of age, hav- 
 ing been born in Florence in 1451. In 
 Seville, he had much personal inter- 
 course with Columbus, whilst the ad- 
 miral was preparing the large fleet for 
 his second voyage. The narratixes of 
 the great (Genoese inspired \espuccius 
 with a strong desire to make a mercan- 
 
 tile venture in a voyage to the new 
 found world, and he had ambitious 
 dreams of being a discoverer, likewise. 
 He studied geography and the kindred 
 sciences, to fit himself for such an ex- 
 pedition ; and wdien, in May, 1499, 
 Alonzo deOjedo sailed from Port St. 
 INIary, opposite Cadiz, with four ships, 
 following the southern route of Colum- 
 bus to South America, Vespuccius ac- 
 companied him simply as an adventurer 
 and self-constituted geographer. They 
 discovered mountains in South Amer- 
 ica, when off the coast of Surinam, and 
 then ran along the continent to Trnia- 
 dad, which Columbus had named the 
 3-ear before. Thence they cruised 
 along the coasts and islands of \'ene- 
 zula, and crossing the Caribbean Sea, 
 touched at Hispaniola. 
 
 Vespuccius, who seems to have been 
 a shrewd, audacious, and unscrupulous 
 man, immediately sent an account of 
 the discoveries, in a letter, to one of the 
 Medici family, assmning for himself 
 the credit of the discovery; and in or- 
 der to establish his claim to first dis- 
 coverer of the American continent, he 
 antedated the time of the commence- 
 ment of the voyage, making it in 1497. 
 the year before Columbus and Cabot 
 made their respective discoveries, and 
 saying the expedition was absent from 
 Spain twenty-fi\'e months. "Ojeda, 
 when judicially interrogated, gave the 
 lie direct.' 
 
 Vespuccius. in other letters, told of 
 other voyages and great discoveries 
 which he made whilst in the service of 
 the King of Portugal, but contemporary 
 navigators, and chronicles made no 
 mention of them. They were probably 
 fictions of the boastful Florentine, who 
 had become expert in the construction 
 of charts, and was familiar with the 
 details of the numerous exploring voy- 
 ages made from Spain and Portugal in 
 his day. Finally, when Columbus was 
 dead and could make neither accusa- 
 tion or denial, these letters were pub- 
 lished. In that publication the name 
 America, as applied to our continent, 
 was used. 
 
 From other circumstances, it is clear 
 that \"espuccius was responsil)lc for 
 
FIRST PERIOD— EXPLORATIONS AND DISCOVERIES 
 
 ,37 
 
 tile fraud. He was in communication 
 with a learned German geograi)her, 
 named W'oldseemiller, or as he styled 
 himself in Greek, Hylacomylus, who 
 was a correspondent of the Academy of 
 Cosmography, at Strasburg, and at the 
 request or suggestion of Vespuccius, he 
 proposed to the members of the acad- 
 emy, under whose auspices the letters 
 of Americus were published, the name 
 of America for the western continent. 
 At about the same time Hylacomylus 
 published the "Rudiments of Cosmo- 
 graphy," in which it was proposed tn 
 name the new continent America. He 
 took an active part in the publication of 
 the letters of his friend, and he may be 
 regarded as the chief perpetrator of 
 the fraud, with \'espuccius as an ac- 
 cessory. 
 
 THE CABOTS. 
 
 When Columbus was about to leave 
 Portugal for Spain, he sent his brother 
 Bartholomew to England to ask assis- 
 tance of the British monarch. For rea- 
 sons not made clear, he did not apply 
 to the monarch until about the time his 
 brother was on his first voyage of dis- 
 covery. Henry the Seventh was then 
 King of England, and responded to 
 Bartholomew's request promptly and 
 generously. He sent him to Spain in 
 search of his brother, and to invite him 
 to the English court. At Paris, whilst 
 he was on his way, he heard the joyful 
 news of the great discoveries of his 
 brother. 
 
 \\'hen King Henry heard of the suc- 
 cess of Columbus, he felt a great dis- 
 appointment, because he had failed to 
 secure for his crown and country the 
 renown and advantages of the great 
 achievement. But he was not discour- 
 aged nor deterred from assisting in 
 further attempts at discovery. By 
 royal charter he gave to John Cabot ( a 
 Venetian merchant at Bristol), and his 
 sons, in 1406, permission to explore any 
 seas with five ships and as many sea- 
 men as they might choose to employ, at 
 their own expense, "to discover and oc- 
 cupy isles or countries of the heathen 
 or infidels before unknown to Chris- 
 tians, accounting to the King for a fifth 
 
 ]iart of the profit upon their return to 
 the port of Bristol." There is no posi- 
 ti\-e evidence that the Cabots took ad- 
 vantage of this privilege, or that any 
 of them engaged in a voyage of dis- 
 covery before the year 1498, when John 
 Cabot was dead. 
 
 All Europe was then ringing with the 
 fame of Columbus. Maritime nations 
 and seamen everywhere were crazed 
 with a desire to be the discoverers of 
 new lands and to gather immense 
 riches from glittering mines. English- 
 men caught the infection, and their am- 
 bitions and avaricious monarch was as 
 eager as any. Piqued at the glory of 
 the Spanish monarchs, he listened with 
 eager attention to a proposition of Se- 
 bastian, a young son of John Cabot, 
 concerning a voyage of discovery. 
 
 Sebastian Cabot appears to have 
 been an ardent student of geography 
 and kindred sciences, from early life. 
 When he reached young manhood he 
 was proficient in the theory and prac- 
 tice of the navigator's art. To him 
 King Henry not only gave a commis- 
 sion to go on a voyage of discovery, 
 but fitted out two small vessels for 
 him, in the year 1498. 
 
 All accounts of that voyage are very 
 meagre, and most of them are some- 
 what contradictory. Sebastian Cabot 
 had probably sailed as far as Cape 
 Farewell, in Greenland, on trading voy- 
 ages in his father's ships, and he knew 
 of the cold, icy sea beyond. Now he 
 voyaged in the same direction, hoping 
 to make a passage to India during the 
 warm summer time. Leaving Bristol 
 in May, 1498, with two caravels and a 
 full supply of men, he sailed to the 
 northwest until the ice pack in Davis' 
 Straits barred the way. Turning 
 southward, he discovered land late in 
 June or early in July, which he named 
 Prima Vista — First View. Whether 
 this was the northern shores of New- 
 fdundland. or the continent on the 
 coast of Labrador, near Cape Charles, 
 cannot be determined, l^nlike Lief the 
 Northman, who sailed southward after 
 seeing the land, Cabot turned north- 
 ward in search of a passage to Cathay, 
 and followed the coast of the continent 
 
38 
 
 THE HOME AUXILIARY A\D REFERENCE 
 
 almost to the sixtieth degree of north 
 latitude, when ice would permit him to 
 go no further. Although it was about 
 mid-summer, the weather was very 
 cold ; and seeing no prospect of an open 
 sea further northward, Cabot sailed 
 back, discovered a large island which 
 he called New-found-land — New- 
 foundland — and observed the immense 
 number of cod fishes, which have con- 
 tinued to fill the waters there ever 
 since. He divulged this secret to Eu- 
 rope after his return, and within five 
 or six years thereafter, fishermen from 
 England, Brittany and Normandy were 
 oil Newfoundland, gathering these 
 treasures of the sea. Cabot coasted as 
 far as the coast of Maine, and some 
 writers think no further, but if a re- 
 port from the Pope's legate, be true, 
 he sailed as far as the Carolinas. His 
 supplies now failing he was compelled 
 to return to England. 
 
 The discovery of North America, by 
 young Cabot, then only twenty-one 
 years of age, had conferred more im- 
 mortal honor on the English monarch 
 and the English nation than all the 
 royal affiliations and the heaping up of 
 gold. He was a native of England, and 
 had opened a pathway for his country- 
 men to a new continent. But he was 
 neglected by his King, and he finally 
 went into the service of Spain. He 
 was so annoyed by the jealousies of the 
 Spanish nobles, that he returned to his 
 native country, and not long after we 
 find him on another voyage in search 
 of a northwest passage to the Indian 
 Seas. He penetrated to Hudson's Bay, 
 and after fighting an ice-pack there, he 
 returned to England discomfited, and 
 never made another voyage to the coast 
 of North America. 
 
 When the news of Cabot's discovery 
 of a continent in the Northwest, 
 reached Lisbon, King Emanuel the 
 Great, immediately fitted out an ex- 
 pedition under Caspar Cortereal. He 
 first touched the nothern extremity of 
 Newfoundland, and, it is believed, dis- 
 covered the Gulf of St. Lawrence. Tie 
 went up the coast of Labrador almost 
 to Hudson's Bay, discovering nothing 
 of importance not already seen by Ca- 
 
 bot. The natives appeared to be rug- 
 ged and strong, so some of them were 
 seized and carried back to Portugal as 
 slaves. The natives appeared to be so 
 admirably fitted for hard labor, that 
 they named the country Laborador 
 (Labrador). 
 
 The profits of this voyage excited 
 the cupidity of Cortereal and his King, 
 and they determined to engage in an 
 active slave trade with Labrador. Cor- 
 tereal went on a second voyage in 1501 
 and was lost at sea. His brother 
 Michael went in search of him and was 
 never heard from afterward. The 
 King sent a ship to search for the 
 brothers, but no tidings were brought 
 back. These disasters frustrated the 
 cruel designs of the slave-traders, and 
 the Portuguese monarch sought to 
 win glory for his favorite and his 
 crown, by claiming that Cortereal was 
 not only the first discoverer of New- 
 foundland, but that he was the first to 
 see the continent in that region. In a 
 Portuguese map, published in 1508, the 
 coast of Labrador is called Cortereal's 
 Land ; and in support of the claim that 
 he was the first discoverer of it. maps 
 were actually forged. But all efforts 
 to deprive Cabot of that honor failed. 
 
 JUAN PONCE De LEON. 
 
 Was a native of Leon, in Spain. 
 From an early age he had been 
 schooled in war, and had served in the 
 various campaigns against the Moors. 
 He accompanied Columbus, on his sec- 
 ond voyage in 1493, and remamed m 
 the colony at Hispaniola. He proved 
 his sagacity and valor in many battles 
 against the Indians, for which he was 
 appointed Lieutenant to the Governor 
 and afterward Governor of Porto Rico, 
 a neighboring island. 
 
 He was then an old man animated 
 with the ambitions of youth : and lie 
 was still seeking renown and wealth. 
 The enjoyment of life had ever been a 
 pleasure to him, and his desire to pro- 
 long his earthly existence in vigor was 
 intense. That desire made him readily 
 believe the marvelous tales told by 
 some of the natives, of crystal waters 
 
■IRST PERIOD— EXPLORATIONS AND DISCOVERIES 
 
 30 
 
 flowing from living springs among the 
 I!ahama Islands, on the coast of a hean- 
 tiful country near them, in which he 
 who bathed would be instantly en- 
 dowed with immortal youth and great 
 beauty. They told him these fountains 
 of youth were among magnificent trees 
 which bore golden fruit, and that these 
 fruits were gathered and given to 
 strangers by beautiful maidens. Ponce 
 dreamed of these gardens, their foun- 
 tains, their golden fruit and the beauti- 
 ful maidens, until he could no longer 
 repress his desire to go in search of 
 them. So, at the beginning of Spring, 
 in 1512 — a month after Vespuccius 
 died at Seville — he sailed from Porto 
 Rico for the Bahamas, with ships fitted 
 out at his own expense. On reaching 
 the group, he went from island to is- 
 land tasting of and bathing in every 
 stream and lake that met his vision. 
 Finally, disappointed but not disheart- 
 ened, he extended his researches in a 
 northwesterly direction. A few days 
 afterwards, west winds brought the de- 
 licious perfumes of flowers. The heart 
 of the old cavalier leaped with joy and 
 hope. Soon a long line of wooded 
 shores were in view, and as he drew 
 near. Ponce saw lofty trees (magnol- 
 ias) whose marvelous blossoms were 
 tinting the forest, and burdening the 
 air with their delicate fragrance. He 
 believed he was on the borders of the 
 fabled paradise. 
 
 It was Easter morning when Ponce 
 and his companions landed near the site 
 of St. Augustine, on the southeastern 
 borders of our Republic. He took pos- 
 session of the great island, as he sup- 
 posed it to be, in the name of the 
 sovereign of Castile. Because of its 
 wealth of flowers, some say, or be- 
 cause he first saw the land on Palm 
 Sunday fPascua Florida) as others tell 
 us, he gave to the country the name of 
 Florida, now one of the States of our 
 I'nion. Among its forests and savan- 
 nahs he sought in vain for the miracu- 
 lous fountain of Youth and Beauty, ex- 
 citing the suspicions of the natives. 
 Then he cruised along its shores, 
 doubled Cape Canaveral, and strug- 
 gling with the Ciulf Stream, sailed 
 
 southward until he became entangled 
 in a group of small islands abounding 
 with huge turtles. This group he called 
 the Tortugas — the Turtles — their pre- 
 .sent name. After buffeting the ele- 
 ments for several days. Ponce in- 
 structed one of his trusted captains to 
 continue the search. Then he returned 
 to Porto Rico, an older if not a wiser 
 man. 
 
 r)rtubia, the trusted captain, soon re- 
 turned to Porto Rico, he had found 
 beautiful groves, sparkling springs, and 
 limpid streams, but not one could re- 
 turn to an old man the vernal green- 
 ness of his youth. A few months later 
 Ponce returned to Spain, he told the 
 sovereign of the beautiful land he had 
 discovered, and received the appoint- 
 ment of Governor of Florida on con- 
 dition that he should plant a colony 
 there. This was not attempted until 
 several years afterward. He had been 
 moping in disappointment at Porto 
 Rico, after an unsuccessful expedition 
 against the Caribs, until he was assured 
 that Morida was not an island, but a 
 part of the continent. Then ambitious 
 desires moved his sluggish heart, and 
 the brilliant achievements of Cortez : 
 Hernando "Cortez, with comparatively 
 few followers, landed on the coast of 
 Mexico, invaded that country, and con- 
 quered a wonderful people, whom we 
 have previously described (see Aztecs 
 of Mexico), whose government showed 
 a near approach to civilization. Secur- 
 ing immense treasure for himself and 
 Spain, and giving enormous territory 
 to the crown. This aroused the slum- 
 bering energies of the old cavalier. 
 A\'ith nearly all his wealth in two ships, 
 he sailed from Porto Rico, in 1521, and 
 landed on the shores of Florida, not far 
 from where he had first discovered that 
 land, to prepare for founding a colony 
 there. He was met by a crowd of na- 
 tives who had gathered near the beach 
 with bows and arrows and long jav- 
 elins, to defend their land from the in- 
 trusion of the palefaces, for they had 
 lately been taught, by the bitter exper- 
 ience of their neighbors, to look upon 
 them as children of the Evil .Spirit. .\ 
 sharp battle ensued. .Several of the 
 
TIIR IIOM 
 
 AUXILIARY AXn REFERFA'CE 
 
 Spaniards were killeil, anil IVnice Do 
 I. eon, badly wounded in his thigh, was 
 carried on board his ship and conveyed 
 to Cuba, where lie died. Upon his 
 tomb was written in Latin: "In this 
 Sepulchre rests the Bones of a Man 
 who was a Lion by Name and still 
 more by Nature." 
 
 Luke \'asquez D'Allyon. a wealth}- 
 colonist of Ilayti, had his avarice 
 aroused, by the reports of a mariner 
 who had accidently visited the coast 
 near the entrance to the Savannah 
 River, where the natives presented him 
 with gold and pearls. He represented 
 the masculine natives as athletic and 
 fine looking. D'.Mlyon formed a com- 
 pany, whose object was to obtain slaves 
 to work in the mines, ^^'ith two ships 
 he sailed in a northwesterly direction, 
 in the year 1520, and soon arrived on 
 the coast of South Carolina. He was 
 met with kindness by the natives, and 
 invited a number on board his vessel, 
 where he plied them with strong drink, 
 and while they were in a stupid condi- 
 tion, sailed away and carried them to 
 Hayti as slaves. The storj' of this per- 
 fidy and wickedness s])read rapidly 
 from lip to li]i along the coast, even so 
 far as the region of St. Au^istine, and 
 it aroused those natives to acts of de- 
 fence and revenge, which resulted in 
 the wounding of Ponce de Leon, and 
 the expulsion of his followers from the 
 land, the next year. 
 
 Instead of being punished for his 
 crime against mankind, D'Allyon was 
 rewarded as a discoverer of new lands, 
 w'hen he visited the court of Spain, 
 soon afterwards. He was also ap- 
 pointed chief magistrate of Chicora, as 
 the native South Carolinians called 
 Iheir country; and he was vested with 
 authority to plant a colony there. Un- 
 der this commission he fitted out three 
 ships at Hayti, and with the mariner 
 Miruela, who first saw the coast near 
 the mouth of the Savannah River, he 
 sailed for Chicora, and passing through 
 St. Helen's Sound reached the conti- 
 nent near the mouth of the Combahee. 
 There he opened traffic with the na- 
 tives, who seemed indifferent to his 
 crime, anil when he had finished trad- 
 
 ing he ])roceeded to ]>lant his colony on 
 an island in the waters of Port Royal 
 Sound, near the sight of the present 
 town of Beaufort, South Carolina. 
 
 A part of D'Allyon's company had 
 landed and prepared to lay the founda- 
 tions of a town, when a deputation 
 came from the sachem of the Comba- 
 hee and invited the Spaniards to a great 
 feast at his village at the mouth of that 
 river. About two hundred of them 
 went to the banquet, and were treated 
 with the most friendly hospitalities. 
 For three days and three nights the 
 feast went on, and at the end of it, 
 whilst the guests were soundly sleep- 
 ing, the Indians fell upon and massa- 
 cred the whole of them. Tliey had fully 
 matched the treachery of the palefaces, 
 but they were not satisfied. Hastening 
 to the site of the projected town, they 
 slew many there. Some of the Span- 
 iards escaped to the ships. Among 
 them was D'Allyon, who, badly 
 wounded, died soon afterward. Re- 
 tribution justice had overtaken him on 
 the theatre of his great crime. So 
 perished the first germ of settlement of 
 Europeans that was planted in the soil 
 of our present domain. 
 
 DISCO^'ERY OF THE PACIFIC 
 OCEAN. 
 
 The Pacifie Ocean, whose waters 
 lave the western shores of our Republic; 
 along a distance, as a bird flies, of six- 
 teen degrees of latitude, from San 
 Diego on the south to Cape Flattery on 
 the north, was discovered by one of the 
 Spanish adventurers, \"asco Nunez de 
 Balboa, an active and energetic young 
 man of noble lineage, but of small for- 
 tune, who crossed the .Atlantic to the 
 \\'est Indies in search of wealth, in the 
 year 1501. He was forced to leave 
 Hispaniola, having fallen in debt, and 
 joined other Spanish adventurers in 
 Central America. 
 
 Discontent arose among the adven- 
 turers, and Nunez succeeded in having 
 b.imself made chief magistrate, and was 
 soon joined by two Spaniards who, to 
 avoid punishment, had fled from Dar- 
 ien and found refuge and the kindest 
 
l-IRS'l' I'l'RlOD— liXPLORATlOXS AND DlSCf )VI':R1 l-.S 
 
 IrLatiiK'iit with I'arcla, the caciiiue of 
 Coyba. Tlicy re(|uite(I this hospitahty 
 of the pagan chief by advising' Nunez 
 to attack Careta in his dweUing, where 
 he would find immense booty. The 
 governor prepared to do so. One of 
 the Spaniards returned to Careta to 
 a.'i.sist Xunez in his betrayal, and the 
 other acted as guide to the invaders. 
 Xunez was kindly received by the caci- 
 que and his people, and departed with 
 presents. He halted a little way from 
 the village, and when the Indians were 
 all asleep, he led his men at mid-night 
 into the town and made Careta, his 
 wives and children and many. of his 
 people captives. With them and a con- 
 siderable booty, the treacherous Nunez 
 returned to Darien, when the good 
 cacique, distressed at his situation, said, 
 "What have I done to thee that thou 
 sliouldst treat me thus cruelly? None 
 of thy people ever came to my land that 
 were not fed, and sheltered, and treated 
 with loving kindness. When thou earn- 
 est to my dwelling tlid I meet thee with 
 a javelin in my hand? Did I not set 
 meat and drink before thee, and wel- 
 come thee as a brother ? Set me free, 
 therefore, with my family and people, 
 and we will remain thy friends \\'e 
 will supply thee with provisions, and 
 reveal to thee the riches of the land. 
 Dost thou doubt my faith ? Behold my 
 (laughter! I will give her to thee as a 
 pledge of my friendship. Take her for 
 thy wife, and be assured of the fidelity 
 of her family and her people." 
 
 Careta's daughter was young and 
 beautiful. Xunez was deeply impres- 
 .'^ed with her charms. He granted the 
 prayer of Careta, took his daughter to 
 be his wife, according to the usages of 
 her country, and becoming very fond 
 of her, she soon acquired great influ- 
 ence over him. He assisted Careta in 
 his wars against his enemies, and they 
 became fast friends. Whilst \'isiting 
 a powerful cacique, a friendly neigh- 
 bor of Careta, Nunez was told by a son 
 of that chief, that beyond the moun- 
 tains toward which he pointed, was a 
 mighty sea that could be discovered 
 from the summits of the great hills : 
 that the sea was navigated by vessels 
 
 almost as large as the .S])anish brigan- 
 lines and equipped like tliem with sails 
 and oars; that the rivers which flowed 
 down from the southern slojjes of the 
 mountains abounded with gold, and 
 that there was a country further south- 
 ward, bordering on that great sea, 
 where the Kings ate and drank out of 
 golden vessels, and that gold was as 
 plentiful there as iron was among the 
 Spaniards. 
 
 This information seemed like a re- 
 velation from heaven beaming into the 
 mind of Nunez. He felt a sudden im- 
 pulse to abandon his wayward life, and 
 an ambition to be ranked among the 
 great discoverers of the age. If he 
 could first see that mighty ocean and 
 the precious rivers, and the country 
 where its Kings ate and drank out of 
 golden vessels, he would surely be ele- 
 vated to fame and fortune. He eagerly 
 inquired how the summits of the mrjun- 
 tains and the borders of the sea might 
 be reached. "You will have to fight 
 your way to the top and down its 
 slopes, and through the plains beyond, 
 with powerful caciques and brave war- 
 riors," said the young man. "Von will 
 need a thousand men, armed like those 
 who follow you." 
 
 Nunez hastened back to Darien to 
 make preparations for his journey. 
 His thoughts were wholly occupied 
 with plans for the discovery of the 
 great sea beyond the mountains. With 
 gold of the value of fifteen thousand 
 crowns, which he sent to Don Diego 
 Columbus, in Hispaniola, to be for- 
 warded to the King as the royal share 
 of the winnings in Central .America, he 
 sent an appeal to that officer for aid in 
 men and provisions, to enable Nunez to 
 fight his way across the isthmus. 
 Whilst awaiting an answer he made 
 >everal expeditions from Darien, and 
 everywhere he heard the story of the 
 great sea beyond the mountains. Fi- 
 nally, one hundred and fifty men with 
 ample supplies, arrived at Darien from 
 Hispaniola, and Nunez determined to 
 march for the mountain summits. 
 AX'ith one hundred and ninety men and 
 a number of blood hounds, he made his 
 wav to Covba, where Careta furnished 
 
THE HOME AUXILLXRV AXD REEICRICN'CE 
 
 him with guides and Indian warriors; 
 and on the 6th of September, 1513, the 
 expedition set off for the great hills 
 which loomed up in the southern hori- 
 zon. They fought their way victor- 
 iously, spreading terror among the na- 
 tives by their guns, which, to the In- 
 dians, seemed like demons vomiting- 
 lightning and thunder. 
 
 At ten o'clock in the morning of the 
 26th of September, Nunez and his fol- 
 lowers emergcfl from a thick forest 
 high up on the mountain range. Only 
 sixty-seven of his Spanish soldiers now 
 remained, who were able to climb that 
 rugged height. The bald, rock summit 
 alone remained to be ascended. Com- 
 manding his followers to halt, and not 
 a man to stir from his place, he climbed 
 to that summit, when the glorious ap- 
 parition of a broad sea burst upon his 
 vision. It seemed to him that a new 
 and unknown world, separated from 
 the known by the lofty mountain bar- 
 rier on which he stood, had been un- 
 folded to him. He then shouted to his 
 followers to come up; and when they 
 had gathered around him on that 
 breezy height, and beheld the sea 
 stretching out interminably, he exhorted 
 them to be faithful to him and valorous 
 in the conquests of the rich heathen 
 lands before them. So it was that the 
 Pacific Ocean was discovered by Vasco 
 Nunez de Balboa. It was called by him 
 the South Sea, but Magellan, who 
 sailed into it through the straits which 
 bear his name, a few years later, called 
 it the Pacific Ocean, because its waters 
 were far less turbulent than those of 
 the Atlantic, which he had just crossed. 
 Descending the mountains on their 
 .southern sides, Nunez and his follow- 
 ers made their way to the sea. .^s the 
 tide came flowing in upon the sandy 
 beach, the leader took a banner, then 
 drawing his sword and throwing his 
 buckler over his shoulder, he marched 
 into the water until it covered his knee?, 
 and waving his banner he, with a loud 
 voice, proclaimed that he took posses- 
 sion of that sea and its islands, in the 
 name of the sovereigns of Spain. 
 
 After that Nunez made voyages 
 along the coast of the Pacific, and 
 
 heard tidings of the rich Kingdom of 
 Peru, where the Incas or monarchs ate 
 and drank out of vessels of gold. 
 Vasco Nunez de Balboa, falsely ac- 
 cused of traitorous intentions by his 
 jealous rival and successor, Davila, was 
 beheaded at Ada, in Central America, 
 by order of that officer, in 15 17, when 
 he was in the forty-second year of his 
 age. 
 
 In 1 5 19 Ferdinand Magellan started 
 (^ut on what proved to be the most fa- 
 mous voyage in history up to that time. 
 Sailing down the coast of South Am- 
 erica he found the strait that bears his 
 name, passed into the Pacific, and after 
 almost unheard of perils, reached the 
 Philippine Islands, where he was killed. 
 One of his ships kept on and finally 
 reached home in 1522, after circum- 
 navigating the earth. 
 
 HERNANDO De SOTO. 
 
 Gold was the great object of the 
 Spanish adventurers. For it they left 
 home and country, and suffered the 
 most unheard of hardships. 
 
 One of the most noted of these was 
 Francisco Pizarro, the brilliant succes- 
 sor of Cortez in Mexico, and the tales 
 of the great wealth of the Incas of 
 Peru fired him with an ambition to fol- 
 low Cortez"s example, and make a con- 
 quest of that great and wealthy coun- 
 try. 
 
 .'\s early as 1526, he contemplated an 
 invasion of Peru, making several at- 
 tempts, and finally in January. 1531, 
 sailed with three vessels and about one 
 hundred and eighty men, and twenty- 
 seven horses. He was joined later in 
 the year by Hernando De Soto and a 
 band of recruits. De Soto proving to 
 be one of his most able companions. 
 
 Having suppressed all opposition, in 
 November, 1533, he was prepared to 
 enter Cuzco, the capital of Peru. 
 
 Pizarro found a country in a high 
 state of cultivation, and with well built 
 roads, and cities, and with a well or- 
 ganized and stable form of govern- 
 ment. He was received with friend- 
 ship by the reigning Inca, and returned 
 
FIRST PERIOD— EXPLORATIONS AND DISCOVERIES 
 
 this with the usual Spanish crueUy in 
 the New World. 
 
 He took the capital, and by the most 
 treacherous means put the Inca to 
 death, and gained immense treasure, in 
 gold, silver and pearls. Pizarro used 
 these measures in opposition to the 
 judgment of De Soto and other of his 
 companions. 
 
 De Soto, with his share of the booty, 
 returned to Spain. 
 
 De Soto was of gentle birth ; of 
 known pre-eminence as a. soldier ; wise 
 in council ; prudent in action ; brave to 
 rashness in conflict, and his reputation 
 was without blemish. In person he was 
 elegant; in deportment courtly; as a 
 horseman expert, and in the prime of 
 young manhood. 
 
 De Soto longed to rival Cortez and 
 Pizarro in the brilliancy of his deeds. 
 He had appeared at the court of 
 Charles the Fifth in great splendor, as 
 fine of the richest men in Spain, and 
 had been favorably received. He had 
 lately married Isabella de Bobadilla, a 
 scion of one of the most renowned of 
 the Castilian families, and his influence 
 in court was thereby strengthened ; and 
 when he, who, as one of the conquerors 
 of Peru under Pizarro, proposed an 
 expedition for the conquest of Florida, 
 hundreds of young men, the flower of 
 the Spanish and Portuguese nobility, 
 flocked to his standard. 
 
 De Soto had heard the story of the 
 survivor of the disastrous Narvaez ex- 
 pedition. 
 
 Pamphilio de Narvaez, who was sent 
 to Me.xico to supersede Cortez, had ex- 
 traordinary adventures afterwards as 
 a discoverer in Florida. He went to 
 Spain to complain of Cortez, where he 
 remained several years, and finally, in 
 June, 1527, he sailed under the author- 
 ity of the monarch, commissioned to 
 conquer and govern Florida. With 
 less than four hundred men and forty- 
 two horses, he landed on the west side 
 of the present Tampa Bay. on the 13th 
 of April, 1528. Instead of pursuing 
 a policy of kindness in his intercourse 
 with the Indians, he used the usual 
 Spanish cruelty, and the results were 
 
 disastrous to him, and to those adven- 
 turers who followed him. 
 
 Instead of finding a country of gold, 
 he found nothing but warlike savages, 
 who fought him at every step. After 
 imtold hardships, he finally reached the 
 Gulf of Mexico, expecting to find his 
 fleet. Not seeing any of his vessels, he 
 and what remained of his companions, 
 embarked in small, frail boats that they 
 had built, and were nevermore heard 
 from. De Vaca, the treasurer of the 
 expedition, was stranded on an island, 
 and he and his companions were kindly 
 treated by the Indians. After eight 
 years of captivity, he made his way on 
 foot from tribe to tribe, until he had 
 crossed the continent, and arrived at a 
 port occupied by his countrymen on the 
 Gulf of California. Thence he made 
 his way to Spain, where he appeared at 
 the court as one risen from the dead. 
 De Vaca seems to have been the only 
 Spaniard who survived and returned to 
 Spain. His narrative was soon pub- 
 lished, and it was read with an appetite 
 such as the most marvelous romance 
 creates. 
 
 .\nd when De Soto ofifered to under- 
 take the conquest of Florida at his own 
 expense, the permission of his sover- 
 eign was readily given. He was com- 
 missioned governor of Cuba, and made 
 Captain General of the province he 
 might secure by conquest on the main. 
 He soon gathered a band of six hun- 
 dred adventurers, for De Soto believed 
 there was more gold in Florida than in 
 Mexico and Peru together, and said so. 
 De Soto sailed early in .April, 1538, his 
 armament consisted of seven large and 
 three smaller vessels, and at the close 
 of May, the ships all entered Cuban 
 waters. 
 
 Toward the middle of May, 1539, De 
 Soto sailed from Havana with a fleet 
 of nine vessels, large and small, and 
 about a thousand followers, with many 
 horses, cattle, mules, and a herd of 
 swine. Flis voyage was pleasant; and 
 vi'hen the armament anchored in Tampa 
 Bay, near where Narvaez had landed, 
 delicious perfumes came from the 
 shores, for all Florida was in bloom. 
 It was the 30th of May. 
 
TH]-: HOMl' AUXILIARY AXD REFliKE.XCE 
 
 Had De Suto been wiser tliaii the 
 other conquerers, and concihated the 
 Indians by friendly acts, all might have 
 been well, r.ut he was no wiser than 
 they. 
 
 De Soto was now ready to enter upon 
 the conquest of Florida. His troops 
 were clad in coats of steel to repel ar- 
 rows, and bore breast plates and hel- 
 mets of the same metal. They had 
 strong shields, swords, lances, arque- 
 buses (a kind of rude, short guns), 
 cross-bows and one cannon. The cava- 
 liers were mounted on one hundred and 
 thirteen horses. Savage bloodhounds 
 from Cuba were the allies of the 
 Spaniards. De Soto began his march 
 in June, 1539. From the outset he was 
 met by the most vigorous opposition. 
 In narrow defiles and other exposed 
 places, he and his followers were as- 
 sailed by clouds of arrows from the 
 hands of a multitude of natives, who 
 had been made intensely revengeful be- 
 cause of the cruelties of Narvaez and 
 his men. They had resolved to fight 
 the invaders until not one should be left 
 upon the soil. Cruelty was met with 
 cruelty. When a Spaniard was capt- 
 ured, he was mercilessly slaughtered. 
 The captives were made beasts of bur- 
 den, without regard to age or sex. The 
 antagonism of the races was fearful. 
 When De Soto, hoping to conciliate 
 Acuera, a powerful Muscogee or Creek 
 chief, whose territory he had entered, 
 and invited the cacique to a friendly in- 
 terview, he received this haughty reply : 
 
 "Others of your accursed race have, 
 in years past, disturbed our peaceful 
 .shores. They have taught me what you 
 are. What is your employment? To 
 wander about like vagabonds from land 
 to land ; to rob the poor ; to betray the 
 confiding ; to murder the defenceless in 
 cold blood. No ! with such a people I 
 want neither peace nor friendship. 
 War — never ending, exterminating war 
 — is all I ask." 
 
 In reply to a demand that he should 
 yield obedience to the Emperor, Acuera 
 as haughtily said, "I am King in my 
 own land and will never become a vas- 
 sal of a mortal like myself.'' De Soto 
 pressed his suit for a friendly inter- 
 
 \iew, Ijut \v;is always answered by the 
 caci(|ue that he hail given him all the 
 repl\- that he had to make. 
 
 Cutting his way through hostile 
 tribes, De Soto reached the fertile re- 
 gion of Tallahassee, where he wintered. 
 The commander of the vessels was or- 
 dered to Cuba immediately, and thence 
 convey provisions and other supplies to 
 Pensacola, a sheltered harbor they had 
 found, whilst De Soto should march 
 across the country to the same point. 
 Having been told that gold abounded 
 in the north, De Soto first went in that 
 direction as far as Silver Bluff, on the 
 Savannah River. On the opposite side 
 of the stream (in Barnwell District, S. 
 C.) lived an Indian "queen." young, 
 beautiful and a maiden, who ruled over 
 a large extent of country. In a richly 
 wrought canoe, filled with shawls and 
 skins and other presents, the duskv ca- 
 cica glided across the river, and with 
 kind words welcomed the governor and 
 offered him her services. Presents 
 were exchanged. A magnificent string 
 of pearls was upon her neck. This she 
 drew over her liead and hung it around 
 the neck of De Soto as token of her re- 
 gard. Then she invited him and his 
 followers to cross over to her village. 
 In canoes and log rafts they passed the 
 stream, and encamping in the shadows 
 of mulberry trees they soon received a 
 bountiful supply of turkeys and veni- 
 son. De Soto requited the hospitality 
 of the royal maiden by carrying her 
 away prisoner, and kept her near his 
 person as hostage for the good behav- 
 ior of her people toward the .Spaniards. 
 She finally escaped and returned to her 
 home, a bitter enemy of the perfidious 
 white people. 
 
 The Spaniards marched to the head- 
 waters of the Savannah, turned west- 
 ward and crossing northern Georgia, 
 through the picturesque Cherokee 
 country, and entered the village Chiaha, 
 on the site of modern Rome. They 
 were received with the greatest hos- 
 pitality, and to De Soto was given a 
 string of pearls two yards long, each 
 pearl as large as a filbert. They re- 
 mained thirty days, and then, marching 
 eastward, entered northeastern Ala- 
 
FIRST PERIOD— JiXPl.URATlOXS AND DISCOVERIES 
 
 baina in the fertile cOnsa country. It 
 was late in July, 1340. The youni;' 
 chief of this country met the Spaniards 
 with amity and ivindness, and besought 
 De Soto to plant a colony anywhere in 
 his dominions. De Soto continued his 
 march through the beautiful regions of 
 Alabama, taking with him the cacique 
 of Coosa, as hostage, as far as the town 
 of Tallase, where he was dismissed. 
 Pushing southward, the Spaniards ap- 
 proached the temporary residence of 
 Tuscaloosa, the renowned chief known 
 as the Black Warrior, who was gigantic 
 in stature, and the head of the Mobilian 
 Indians. He was forty years of age, a 
 head taller than any of his warriors, 
 with a handsome face of grace and se- 
 vere aspect. 
 
 Lord of many tribes, he was feared 
 Ijv his neighbors and subjects ; and his 
 influence was widely spread over the 
 region of the Alabama River to that of 
 the ^Mississippi. Fie received De Soto 
 with haughty courtesy, and proceeded 
 with him to his capital, called Manbila, 
 believed to be the site of Choctow Bluff, 
 in Clark county, about twenty-five miles 
 above the confluence of the Alabama 
 and Tombigbee Rivers. Tuscaloosa 
 soon found that he was considered by 
 De Soto as a hostage, and in revenge, 
 and to avenge the wrongs of his race, 
 attacked the Spaniards with great fury. 
 The conflict was disastrous to both 
 races. Eighty-two Europeans perished, 
 among whom were some of the bright- 
 est flowers of Spanish chivalry. It 
 was estimated that eleven thousand na- 
 tive Alabamians fell in battle or were 
 burned in the houses. Tuscaloosa was 
 dead, Alanbila was a smoking ruin, and 
 its inhabitants had perished. 
 
 De Soto now learned that his squad- 
 ron was in the bay of Pensacola. The 
 news of his ships gave him great joy ; 
 but his spirits were soon clouded by a 
 conspiracy which had been formed 
 among some of his followers, to aban- 
 don him and sail in the ships from Pen- 
 sacola to Spain or Peru. This dis- 
 covery changed his plans. He re- 
 solved to turn his back upon his ships 
 and go deeper into the wilderness. 
 
 This deternn'nation was armounced on 
 the 18th of November, 1540. 
 
 Northward the Spaniards marched, 
 and on reaching the waters of the 
 Black Warrior River, the)' were met 
 by a large force of Indians in battle 
 array, who longed to avenge the de- 
 struction of their friends at Manbila. 
 De Soto was compelled to fight his way 
 inch by inch. At length, after passing 
 over the uplands of Mississippi, he 
 reached the upper • tributaries of the 
 Yazoo River in Yalolnisha county, and 
 encamped in front of the town of Chic- 
 kasa, the capital of the Chickasa nation. 
 It was now December. When March 
 came and De Soto thought of march- 
 ing forward, he demanded of the chief 
 two hundred men as burflen-bearers. 
 The cacique answered the demand b\- 
 a furious attack upon the Spanisii 
 camp on a dark night, during a wild 
 gale from the north. The Spaniards 
 fought valiantly as best they might, and 
 finally drove their dusky assailants into 
 tlie forests. But the disaster to the 
 Europeans was greater than that which 
 befell them at Manbila. They had lost 
 forty of their diminished number. The 
 only Spanish woman in the camp — the 
 wife of a soldier — was burned to ashes. 
 Fifty horses had perished, and most ot 
 the men saved nothing except what they 
 had on their backs or in their hands. 
 
 The remainder of the inclement sea- 
 son was spent by the Spaniards in great 
 wretchedness. Cold and hunger, and 
 grievous wounds tortured them ; and 
 the Indians fell upon them night after 
 night like fierce tigers. At length the 
 warm sun of April arrived, and De 
 Soto moved in a northwesterly direc- 
 tion, in search of the land of gold, 
 about which he had dreamed so long. 
 The exasperated savages assailed him 
 everywhere, and at a town called Ali- 
 bamo, he had another desperate en- 
 counter with them. Then he moved on, 
 and in May he stood upon the banks of 
 the Mississippi River, in Tunica county, 
 near the lower Chickasa P.lutfs, above 
 the mouth of the St. Francis River. 
 The mighty Mississippi, then filled to 
 the brim, filled De Soto with admira- 
 tion. He had not found gold, but he 
 
46 
 
 'nil- llo.MI'; ALXII.IAKV .\.\D REFHRKKCi; 
 
 was the tirst liuropean who found tlie 
 great river upon whose hosom Hoats, 
 annually, wealth a thousand fold 
 greater than the mines of Mexico and 
 Peru ever j'ielded. He was not the 
 conqueror of a country, teeming with a 
 weak people : but he had achieved a 
 conquest far more glorious than Cor- 
 tez or Pizarro had done, and had se- 
 cured immortality for his name and 
 deeds. 
 
 Still thirsting for gold, and expect- 
 ing to find the Pacific Ocean not far 
 off, De Soto crossed the Mississippi 
 River ; traversed the lagoons of Arkan- 
 sas ; climbed over the great Ozark Hills 
 and penetrated the country westward 
 almost to the eastern slopes of the 
 Rocky Mountains. For a year he wan- 
 dered in those wild regions ; wintered 
 far up the Arkansas River, and in the 
 month of May, 1542, returned to the 
 Mississippi at a point a little north of 
 the mouth of the Arkansas. 
 
 On the eastern bank of the great 
 river, he selected a site for a colony, 
 hut the natives showed such intense 
 hostility to the Spaniards, that, utterly 
 discouraged, he began the contruction 
 of two brigantines wherewith to com- 
 municate with Cuba. Exhausted in 
 body and mind, he was soon prostrated 
 by a malignant fe\er. Satisfied that he 
 could not live, he appointed Mascoso. 
 his lieutenant, to be his successor in 
 office and commander of the ragged 
 remnant of his troops. He exhorted 
 them to keep together, bade them fare- 
 well, and then died ! To conceal the 
 fact of his death, and to protect his 
 body from desecration by the savages, 
 his followers placed it in a trough made 
 of a live oak ; and at mid-night, when 
 darkness was intense, they sunk it to 
 the bottom of the river. So perished 
 the discoverer of the Mississippi, in the 
 beautiful month of May, 1542, at the 
 early age of forty-two years. 
 
 The remnant of the expedition, af- 
 ter enduring untold miseries, reached 
 Panuco. a Spanish settlement on the 
 Ciulf of Mexico. 
 
 During- the years between 1 535-1 543. 
 while De Soto was making his explora- 
 tions in Florida, several Spanish ex- 
 
 peiHtinns were sent from Mexico. One 
 of which sent out by Cortez, discovered 
 llie peninsula of California. C)thers ex- 
 plored the Pacific Coast from Lower 
 California to Oregon. Caronada. in 
 1540, led an expedition to the strange 
 cities of the Zunius and Moquis In- 
 dians, and as far north as Nebraska. 
 
 We will now leave the Spanish dis- 
 coverers, and turn our attention to 
 others who made voyages to the coast 
 of North America on similar errands. 
 
 Francis the First, of France, sent an 
 expedition of four ships, late in the 
 year 1523. for exploration on the 
 North American coast, under command 
 of John \'erazzani, a Florentine, of 
 whom very little is known. The only 
 record of the \oyage is a letter sent to 
 the King, after his return, by which it 
 seems he sailed for the Madeiras in De- 
 cember, 1523, and left them on the 27th 
 of January, 1524. Three of his ships 
 were disabled and put back, he kept on 
 in the one ship, and reached the North 
 American coast in latitude 34 degrees 
 north, not far from Cape Fear, North' 
 Carolina. That was the month of 
 March. He explored the coast, stop- 
 ping at Albermarle Sound, and from 
 liis description he must have reached 
 the harbor of New York and dis- 
 covered the mouth of the Hudson 
 River. After touching the coast of 
 Maine, he sailed eastward and north- 
 ward until he came to Newfoundland. 
 He then returned to France. \'eraz- 
 zani had traversed the borders of the 
 North .American continent, as his ship 
 sailed, about two thousand miles, and 
 he named the vast country Xczc France. 
 He appears to have communicated with 
 Henry the Eighth of England, for 
 Henry sent two exploring expeditions, 
 one in 1527 and the other in 1536. 
 
 F"or several years, voyages of discov- 
 ery from Europe to America ceased. 
 Then a plan for making settlements in 
 New France was arranged, and two 
 ships of sixty tons each, under com- 
 mand of Jacques Cartier (James Car- 
 ter) was sent out by the French mon- 
 arch. 
 
 Cartier left St. Malo. on April 20th, 
 1534, his voyage was prosperous, and 
 
FIRST PF.RIOD— i:XPL()KATIO.\S AXO IMSCOVERIES 
 
 he reached the eastern coast of Xew- 
 foundland in twenty days. He sailed 
 northward, entered the straits of Belle 
 Isle and touched the coast of Labrador. 
 After spending some weeks in explor- 
 ing the Gulf west and southwest of 
 Newfoundland, he discovered the Mag- 
 delena Islands, the northern coast of 
 Cape Breton, and the bays of Chaleurs 
 end Gaspe. Sailing northward and 
 doubling the east end of the great .\n- 
 ticostic Island, he went up that branch 
 of the St. Lawrence some distance, 
 without suspecting that he was in the 
 mouth of a great river, whose chief 
 sources were immense inland seas of 
 fresh water. He then returned to 
 France, reaching St. Malo early in Sep- 
 tember. 
 
 Cartier made a second voyage, sail- 
 ing on the 19th of May, 1535. He ex- 
 plored the gulf on which he had sailed 
 the previous year, naming it the St. 
 Lawrence, along with the mighty river 
 that entered into it. Sailing up the 
 river, he discovered the present sites of 
 Quebec and Montreal, and returned to 
 France the 6th of July, 1536. Cartier's 
 report on the e.xtreme rigors of the 
 winter climate, discouraged any fur- 
 ther expeditions for some time. 
 
 Two other e.xpeditions were sent to 
 Canada, one in 1541, and the other in 
 1549, under Francis de la Roque. they 
 were barren of any results, and De la 
 Roque was never heard from after the 
 second expedition. 
 
 The Huguenots, as the French Pro- 
 testants were called, resolved to procure 
 an asylum in the milder regions of 
 North America, where they might en- 
 joy perfect religious and civil freedom. 
 Admiral Coligni. high in the favor of 
 Catharine de Medici, who was acting 
 regent of France, was one of the most 
 conspicuous leaders. He was readily 
 granted permission to fit out an ex- 
 pedition, and on the 18th of February, 
 1562, in two vessels under command of 
 John Ribault. an experienced mariner, 
 they sailed from Havre de Grace. 
 
 They arrived below the site of St. 
 .Augustine, at the close of April, and on 
 tlic 3d of May sailed northward, and 
 entered the fine harbor of Port Roval, 
 
 on the coast of South Carolina. They 
 explored the surrounding country, and 
 decided to found a colony on Port 
 Royal Island, near the site of the pre- 
 sent town of Beaufort. They built a 
 fort and named it F"ort Charles ( Fort 
 Carolus or Carolina) in honor of the 
 King. After leaving a colony of thirty 
 persons. Ribault sailed for France, 
 whence he expected to return immedi- 
 ately with supplies for the colony. 
 
 The colonists at Port Royal were 
 very happy for awhile, but not having 
 cultivated a rod of land, their provi- 
 sions ran short, and they were com- 
 pelled to look to their Indian neigh- 
 bors for support. Their house, in 
 which everything was stored was 
 burned, and they were left desolate. 
 
 Dissension now appeared among the 
 colonists. The Governor applied the 
 rules of disciplines so harshly, that the 
 people mutinied and put him to death. 
 Famine and the menacing attitude of 
 the Indians iletermined them to desert 
 Port Royal and return to France. They 
 constructed a frail vessel, scantily pro- 
 visioned, and set out. Their food was 
 soon exhausted, starvation came, and 
 they were compelled to subsist on their 
 shoes and leather doublets, but one af- 
 ter another died and fell into the sea. 
 It is said they were at last compelled to 
 subsist upon one another for food. The 
 survivors were at last rescued by a 
 small English vessel. It is not known 
 where they landed, but it is certain that 
 a part of the French adventurers were 
 taken into the presence of Queen Eliza- 
 beth of England, and their account of 
 the beauties of Florida created an in- 
 tense desire on the part of the English 
 to colonize that region. 
 
 When Ribault returned to France, a 
 religious war was raging and it was 
 not until April 22d, 1564, that another 
 expedition was sent out. This was un- 
 der command of Rene Laudonniere, 
 who had accompanied Ribault in tlie 
 preceding voyage. In two months they 
 r.rrived and anchored in the St. Johns 
 River. They did not go to Port Royal, 
 so it is evident they had heard the re- 
 port of tho.se who had abandoned Fort 
 Charles, before thev left France. Thev 
 
48 
 
 THK HOME AUXILIARY AND REFERENCE 
 
 were received with great friendship by 
 the Indians, who gave them permission 
 to erect a fort, which they called Fort 
 Carolina. Through dissensions, idle- 
 ness and a thirst for gold, where none 
 could be found, the colony did not pros- 
 per, and they were about to return to 
 Europe when Ribault arrived with 
 fresh supplies and more colonists. 
 This was near the end of .\ugust, 1365. 
 
 During this time, great religious per- 
 secutions were being carried on, with 
 great fury, in Europe, Menendez. a 
 great Spanish sea captain, was in- 
 structed by his sovereign to extermi- 
 nate all Protestants in whatever corner 
 of the world he might find them. In a 
 great expedition he sailed, and arrived 
 on the coast of Florida. He laid the 
 foundations of the city of St. .Augus- 
 tine, forty years earlier than those of 
 any other town in America, north of 
 ^lexico. This was in the year. 1565. 
 
 Menendez now attacked Fort Car- 
 olina, destroyed it. and butchered its 
 inhabitants, men, women and children. 
 .\ few men were hanged upon trees, 
 and over them was placed the inscrip- 
 tion : 
 
 "Not as Frenchmen, lUit, as Luther- 
 ans." 
 
 The French, no matter what their re- 
 ligious convictions, were greatly 
 moved by these horrid crimes against 
 their countrymen. The French court 
 appearing to be indifferent to these out- 
 rages, Dominic de Gourges. a member 
 of an eminent family, and a devout 
 Roman Catholic, fitted out an expedi- 
 tion at his own expense, being refused 
 assistance from his King. With three 
 small vessels, one hundred soldiers and 
 eighty mariners, he arrived on the 
 coast of Florida in the spring of 1568. 
 The Indians received him with friend- 
 ship, and became his allies against the 
 Spaniards. The Spaniards had built 
 two forts on the St. Johns River, on 
 opposite banks. These forts were at- 
 tacked and the garrison massacred. 
 They now marched to the Spanish fort 
 on the site of the former Fort Carolina, 
 which was captured. There was an in- 
 discriminate massacre as before, a few 
 only being reserved as prisoners. Now 
 
 these, with others that had been re- 
 served, were placed in rows on trees, 
 upon which the Huguenots had been 
 hung. They were all suspended by 
 their necks. Over them he placed the 
 inscription: "'Not as Spaniards and 
 Mariners, But as Traitors, Robber.^ and 
 Murderers." 
 
 De Gourges now returned to France. 
 
 Menendez firml\ planted a colony at 
 St. .\ugustine, and sent an expedition 
 to explore the waters of the Chesa- 
 peake Bay, but his death in 1574 ar- 
 rested the enterprise, and no further at- 
 tempts were made by the Spaniards to 
 settle within the domain of our Repub- 
 lic. 
 
 From the tales of the survivors ot 
 the ill-fated, first expedition of John 
 Ribault. and from W'alter Raleigh, a 
 }oung Devonshire gentleman, of a good 
 family, was well educated, and who had 
 heard from De Gourges, while in the 
 service of the Huguenots of France, the 
 storj' of the fora}- in Florida ; Queen 
 Elizabeth and her government took a 
 live!}- interest in the exploration and 
 settlement of North .America. Mean- 
 while English navigators had been try- 
 ing to solve the question, namely, the 
 existence of a northwest passage to 
 Asia from the British Isles. IMartin 
 Frobisher, early in June, 1576. sailed 
 with three vessels, he touched at Green- 
 land, coasted up the shores of Labra- 
 dor and entered a strait or inlet above 
 the entrance to Hudson's Bay, which 
 bears his name. 
 
 Inpenetrable pack-ice, the lasp of 
 some of his men and the growing dis- 
 content of others caused him to return 
 to England. The fact that gold had 
 been found, soon got noised abroad, 
 and many persons eagerW offered 
 money to Frobisher to make another 
 voyage to those high latitudes. In 
 I\Iay, 1577, he sailed in a vessel of the 
 royal navy, and two other vessels. Fro- 
 bisher had demonstrated the impossi- 
 bility of passing the polar ice fields, and 
 so no explorations were made. As 
 very little gold was found, he returned 
 to England. In May, 1578, he sailed 
 on another expedition, instructed to 
 find genuine gold ore, or for a north- 
 
FIRST rKRIOD-F.XPLOkATIOXS AND DISCOVERIES 
 
 west passage, he discovered neither and 
 returned to England. 
 
 This brave leader won the honors of 
 a discoverer and the fame of having 
 lieen tlie first European who had pene- 
 trated so far toward the Arctic Circle. 
 Frobisher's Inlet being under the sixty- 
 liiircl degree north latitude. 
 
 Francis Drake, another Devonshire 
 man, about this time circumnavigated 
 the globe, a feat performed by Magel- 
 lan, half a century before. Drake had 
 suffered inuch from the Spaniards, and 
 vowed vengeance. Under sanction of 
 the Queen, with five vessels he sailed 
 from Plymouth. November, 1577, and 
 touching at Brazil, and other places 
 down the east coast of South .America, 
 he passed through the straits of ]\lagel- 
 lan, early in September, 1578. Then nc 
 ran up the western coast, plundering 
 the Spanish settlements in Chili and 
 Peru, capturing a royal Spanish gal- 
 leon, heavily loaded with treasure, and 
 taking possession of California in the 
 name of the Queen. Burdened with 
 gold and silver, and his revenge fully 
 satisfied, Drake determined to return 
 home. Fearing to meet a superior 
 force in the ocean, he resolved to seek 
 a passage around the northern shores 
 of .\merica. Repelled by severe cold, 
 he sailed across the Pacific and Indian 
 Oceans, doubled the Cape of Good 
 Hope, and arrived at Plymouth late in 
 September, 1579, having discovered 
 points on the western coasts of our 
 country as far north as Washington, 
 above the Columbia River. He was 
 then onl\' between thirty and forty 
 years of age. 
 
 After that the exploits of Drake on 
 the sea were marvellous. They were 
 against the Spaniards, whom he hated 
 intensely. Within the space of a year 
 he captured and plundered Carthagena, 
 in South .America, and several other 
 towns in that region ; burned Forts An- 
 tonio and St. .\ugustine, ravaged places 
 in the W'est Indies, and running up the 
 coasts of Florida, Georgia and the Car- 
 olinas, he visited Roanoke Island, and 
 bore away from it, to England, a fam- 
 ishing colony which Raleigh had 
 ])lanted there. On another occasion he 
 
 burned one hundred Spanish vessels in 
 the harbor of Cadiz. Although he is 
 honored for his enterprise and the glory 
 he won for England, and is regarded 
 as the founder of the Royal Navy, Sir 
 Francis Drake was only a daring pirate 
 on a large and legalized scale. 
 
 In 1594. the Spanish King threatened 
 lingland with a great show of power. 
 Drake entered the service of his sover- 
 eign, and with Admiral Hawkins, he 
 sailed for America in 1595, with 
 Iwenty-six vessels. A divided com- 
 mand worked mischievously. Hawkins 
 died at Porto Rico, partly from the 
 eflfects of a wound and partly from 
 chagrin, because of reverses. Drake 
 ^-oon afterward achieved great tri- 
 umphs. He destroyed several Spanish 
 towns : but a fatal fever seized him late 
 in the year. It was aggravated by men- 
 tal agitation on account of a defeat of 
 his forces, and he died in December. 
 The gallant sailor was honored bv a 
 sailor's funeral. He was buried at sea 
 in sight of Puerto ESello. 
 
 While Drake was plundering Span- 
 ish settlements, the minds of the British 
 Queen and many of her leading suId- 
 jects were directed to the more benc- 
 ficient object of founding colonies in 
 the region of North .America, dis- 
 covered by Cabot. With this was 
 ir.ingled a thirst for gold which was be- 
 lieved to exist in abundance some- 
 where in those regions. These desires 
 had assumed a tangible shape and had 
 been stimulated into action by Raleigh, 
 on his return from the continent : and 
 his half-brother. Sir Humphrey Gilbert, 
 obtained a patent from the Queen, 
 which authorized him to explore and 
 hold any lands unoccupied by Christian 
 powers. That was in the year 1578. 
 He did not believe there was much gold 
 in the high latitudes, hut the fisheries 
 of? Newfoundland, to which more than 
 four hundred vessels repaired annually, 
 turned his thoughts to a project of 
 planting a colony there ; and in this 
 scheme Raleigh acquiesced. 
 
 Walter Raleigh was one of the most 
 illustrious of the English adventurers 
 of his time. He was only twenty-six 
 vears of age at this time, and had un- 
 
so 
 
 THE HOME AUXILIARY AND REFERENCE 
 
 bounded ambition. He had lately re- 
 turned from Ireland, where he had put 
 down a rebellion. Meeting the Queen 
 one day while she was walking w'th 
 two of her maids of honor, he took 
 from his shoulders his rich velvet man- 
 tle, and spread it over a wet spot in the 
 path for her to walk upon. Because of 
 this delicate gallantry, he was admitted 
 to court where he obtained the Queen's 
 special favor. 
 
 Gilbert's patent, bound him to pay to 
 the crown one fifth of all gold and 
 silver which the countries he might 
 discover and colonize should produce. 
 The laws were to be in accordance with 
 the statutes and policy of England, and 
 he was made civil and criminal legis- 
 lator. It also guaranteed to his fol- 
 lov\'ers the civil rights of Englishmen. 
 It was to extend six years, during 
 which time no one was permitted to es- 
 tabish a settlement within two hundred 
 leagues of any spot which these ad- 
 venturers might occupy. At his own 
 expense he fitted out a squad''on and 
 sailed for America, late in 1579. Most 
 of his company was utterly unfit to be- 
 come founders of a state, for most of 
 them were idlers and some were dis- 
 solute. It is said by some that Raleigh 
 sailed with him. Heavy storms or 
 Spanish war vessels destroyed one of 
 his ships, and compelled the remainder 
 to turn back, and for four years the 
 enterprise was held in abeyance. Ral- 
 eigh and his friends at end of that time, 
 fitted out another small .squadron, for 
 Gilbert was impoverished. It sailed 
 under command of Gilbert, June, 1583, 
 accompanied by a learned Hungarian. 
 They reached Newfoundland in 
 August, and in the harbor of St. Johns, 
 in the presence of hundreds of fisher- 
 men, took possession of the country in 
 the name of Queen Elizabeth. Con- 
 tinued storms and disasters compelled 
 them to return to England, and on the 
 homeward voyage the expedition was 
 lost, including Gilbert, with the excep- 
 tion of one vessel that escaped the tem- 
 pests and returned to England with 
 tidings of disaster. 
 
 Misfortune seemed to stimulate Ral- 
 eisfh. he obtained a charter from the 
 
 Queen in all respects the same as Gil- 
 bert's. It constituted him Lord Pro- 
 prietor of all countries between Dela- 
 ware Bay and the mouth of the Santee 
 River, in South Carolina. Quick in 
 execution of his projects, two ships 
 were made read)' for sea before June, 
 1584, well equipped with men and pro- 
 visions. Arthur Barlow was placed in 
 chief command, assisted by Philip 
 Amidas, of French descent, but a na- 
 tive of England. They were directed 
 to explore the coast between the paral- 
 lels named, and choose a place for set- 
 tlement. They took the southern 
 course and approached the coast in the 
 latitude of Florida. They sailed up the 
 coast, explored Roanoke Island and 
 Pamlico and Albermarle Sounds. The 
 Indians they found were gentle and 
 friendly. On Roanoke Island the Eng- 
 lishmen were received with great hos- 
 pitality. To the feelings of the Eng- 
 lish everything was charming, magnifi- 
 cent trees, draped with vines clustered 
 with growing grapes, and the forest 
 swarrned with birds. They now de- 
 parted for England, accompanied by 
 two of the native chiefs. 
 
 The glowing description of the re- 
 gion delighted Raleigh and his sover- 
 eign, and Elizabeth, as a memorial of 
 the splendid domain that had been 
 added to the realm, during the reign ot 
 a virgin queen, named the country Vir- 
 i;inia. 
 
 Raleigh now took measures for send- 
 ing out a colony to people his American 
 domain. On the gth of April, 1585, he 
 saw a fleet of seven ships sail out of 
 Plymouth harbor with one hundred and 
 eighty colonists, and a full compliment 
 of seamen, for the coast of Virginia. 
 Sir Richard Grenville, one of the most 
 gallant men of the times, was in com- 
 n-and of the squadron, and Ralph Lane, 
 a soldier, was sent as governor of the 
 colony, with Amidas as assistant. 
 They were accompanied by Thomas 
 Cavendish, who, the next year followed 
 the path of Drake around the world ; 
 by a competent painter to delineate 
 men and things in America, and by 
 Thomas Harriot, an eminent mathema- 
 tician and astronomer, who went as his- 
 
FIRST PERIOD— F.XPLOKATIONS AXD DISCOVERIES 
 
 torian and naturalist of the expeilition. 
 
 Tlie choice of Grenville as com- 
 mander was unfortunate. lie was 
 more intent on plunder than on coloni- 
 zation. Sailing over the southern 
 route, he cruised among the West India 
 Islands, capturing Spanish vessels, and 
 so infusing the colonists with a spirit 
 quite the reverse of that of peaceful 
 settlers. They did not reach the Am- 
 erican coast until late in June, when the 
 vessels came near being wrecked on a 
 l)oint of land which, from that cir- 
 cumstance, the}' named Cape Fear. 
 Sailing up the coast they finally landed 
 on Roanoke Island, with one of the In- 
 dian chiefs (named Manteo), who re- 
 turned with them. 
 
 Harriot, the historian remained there 
 a year, making drawings and taking 
 observations of e\erything of interest. 
 He labored hard to restrain the cu]5i<!- 
 ity of the colonists, who were more in- 
 tent upon winning gold and plunder, 
 than tilling the soil. For eight days 
 they explored the country, and were re- 
 ceived hospitably everywhere. At an 
 Indian village a silver cup was stolen 
 from the English and was not immedi- 
 ately returned. Grenville ordered the 
 whole town to be burned, and the 
 standing corn around it destroyed. 
 This enkindled in the savage mind re- 
 \enge, furious and destructive, which 
 could not be quenched. Unsuspicious 
 of the consequences of his act, the com- 
 mander left the colonists and returned 
 to England. 
 
 Lane was delighted with the country, 
 and in a letter he sent home by Gren- 
 ville, he wrote: "The continent is of 
 a huge and unknown greatness. The 
 climate is so wholesome that we have 
 not one sick since we have touched the 
 land." 
 
 Harriot was a man of keen observa- 
 tion, he perceived that the way to have 
 the country permanently settled, was 
 to treat the natives kindly as friends 
 and neighbors, and he tried to quench 
 the fires of revenge, which the conduct 
 of Grenville had enkindled. The In- 
 dians regarded the persons of the Eng- 
 lish with reverance and awe. The 
 colonists were never sick and had no 
 
 women with them, so the nati\es imag- 
 ined that they were not born of woman 
 and were therefore immortal. 
 
 Had the colonists been as wise and 
 good as Harriot, all might have been 
 Mell. But they were greedy for gold. 
 The Indians, believing that more Eng- 
 lishmen were coming to take their 
 lands, they yearned to exterminate the 
 intruders. 
 
 Lane, impressed with the belief of a 
 viide-spread conspiracy to destroy his 
 colony, prepared to strike the first blow. 
 1 le invited several of the principal 
 chiefs to a conference. At a precon- 
 certed signal, Lane and his followers 
 fell upon the Indians and murdered 
 them. Thenceforth each party stood 
 on the defensive, and very soon the 
 condition of the English became des- 
 perate. Their provisions were ex- 
 liausted ; no ships came from England 
 with supplies, and no food could be 
 obtained from the Indians. Only the 
 woods and waters offered them a pre- 
 carious subsistence, and they were on 
 the verge of despair, when they saw, 
 one day, the joyful apparition of white 
 sails coming in from the sea. It was 
 the fleet of Sir Francis Drake, who 
 looked upon the colonists that he might 
 report their condition to his friend 
 Raleigh. He offered them aid and en- 
 couragement, but they were so thor- 
 oughly despondent that they begged 
 and received permission to return to 
 England in the Baronet's ships. 
 
 Whilst they were in Virginia, Lane 
 and his associates had acquired a taste 
 for smoking tobacco, a habit which pre- 
 vailed among the natives; and they 
 were the first persons who carried the 
 plant to England. Raleigh adopted and 
 encouraged its use in England, and 
 very soon the habit became so wide- 
 spread that the demand exceeded the 
 supply. It became the staple product 
 of Virginia and a bond of union be- 
 tween England and some of her Ameri- 
 can colonies, as well as a source of 
 much revenue. 
 
 Drake's ships had scarcely left the 
 coast when a vessel appeared with .sup- 
 plies for the fugitive colonists. Find- 
 ing the post abandoned the ships re- 
 
52 
 
 THE HOME AUXILIARY AXD REFERENCE 
 
 turned to Iui,L;lan(l; ami a fnrtiiiglit af- 
 ter it left Roanoke, Sir Richard ("ireii- 
 ville arrived with three well furnished 
 ships, and searched in \ain for the 
 settlers. Unwilling to give up posses- 
 sion of the country, he left fifteen men 
 there to protect the rights of England, 
 and then he, too. returned home. 
 
 Raleigh was not dismayed by these 
 mishaps. Lane, whose failure as a 
 leader was conspicuous, gave a gloomy 
 account of the country, but the report 
 of Harriot was so encouraging, that 
 Raleigh found very little difficulty in 
 gathering another colony, and of bet- 
 ter materials. They were not gold 
 seekers, but agriculturists and artisans, 
 with their wives and children, who con- 
 sented to become permanent settlers in 
 America. 
 
 In April, 1587, a squadron of three 
 ships, fitted out at Raleigh's expense, 
 under command of John White, sailefl 
 for Chesapeake Bay. White went first 
 to Roanoke and proceeded no further. 
 He arrived there in July, he found the 
 little fort built by Lane broken down, 
 and a heap of human bones that told 
 the sad fate of Grenville's "Protectors 
 of the Rights of England." 
 
 The new colonists wisely resolved to 
 cultivate the friendship of the Indians. 
 Manteo, who lived on Croatan Island, 
 invited them to make their abode on 
 his domain, when White took the op- 
 portunity to have the chief receive the 
 rights of Christian baptism, by the 
 command of Raleigh, and to bestow on 
 him the order of a feudal baron as 
 "Lord of Roanoke." This was the first 
 and last peerage ever created on the 
 soil of our Republic. 
 
 For a time matters went on smoothly, 
 when an unlucky mistake of the Eng- 
 lish in attacking friendly Indians pro- 
 duced bad blood. At about the same 
 time it became necessary for the ships 
 to return to England for supplies. 
 W'hite was persuaded to go with them 
 that he might hasten their return. He 
 left behind him eighty-nine men, seven- 
 teen women and two children, .\mong 
 these was Eleanor Dare, wife of one of 
 his assistants, and his daughter, who had 
 given birth since her arrival to a 
 
 dauglilei'. 111 whom they gave the name 
 of X'irginia — \ irginia Dare, the first 
 white child of English parents born on 
 .American soil. On his way back, 
 \Miite touched Ireland, where he left 
 some potato plants, the first ever seen 
 in Europe. 
 
 Raleigh, by great exertions, sent 
 ^^'hite back in two ships, in A]M-il. 1588. 
 Instead of going straight to \ irginia, 
 he chased Spanish ships in search of 
 jilunder. Both his vessels were so 
 much injured that he was compelled to 
 take them back to England, and it was 
 not until 1590 that he sailed for the 
 colony. He found Roanoke desolate. 
 An inscription on the bark of a tree 
 seemed that they had gone to Croatan. 
 
 White searched no further, but has- 
 tened back to England with the sad 
 tidings of the uncertain fate of the 
 colonists. 
 
 Raleigh's means were now ex- 
 hausted. He formed a company of 
 merchants and 'adventurers under his 
 charter, to whom he assigned a portion 
 of his rights. They did nothing but 
 carry on a petty trade with Virginia 
 for a while, and at the time of Queen 
 Elizabeth's death, in 1693, there was 
 not a single Englishman settled in all 
 America. 
 
 Raleigh, it is said, sent persons at 
 fi\-e different times, at his own expense, 
 to search for the lost colonists, but no 
 trace of them could be found. 
 
 Raleigh, when at the age of thirty- 
 seven, decided to abandon the scheme 
 for colonizing \'irginia, proceeded to 
 ]ierform other services, which alone 
 would have made his name immortal. 
 He did much toward the destruction of 
 the Spanish Armada ; discovered the 
 large, rich and beautiful empire of 
 Guiana, in South America, and other 
 notable deeds for the glory of Eng- 
 land. 
 
 When Queen Elizabeth died, in 1603, 
 the sun of his glory went down. King 
 James stripped him of all his prefer- 
 ments, he was soon afterward arrested 
 on a false charge of conspiracy, and on 
 conviction without proof was con- 
 demned to death. Reprieved, he was 
 sent to prison, where he was confined 
 
FIRST PERTOD—EXPLORATIOXS AND DISCOVERIES 
 
 many years, durin;;' which time lie 
 wrote his "History of the World." In 
 1 615, the King, wanting his services to 
 search for gold in Guiana, released him 
 from prison, on condition that he would 
 go there, but did not pardon him. Ral- 
 eigh was then sixty-three years of age, 
 and an invalid. He embarked the 
 whole of his wife's fortune and his own 
 in the expedition, which was a failure, 
 and he returned to England in the sum- 
 mer of 1618. a wreck in fortune, health, 
 reputation and spirits. Raleigh was 
 recommitted to prison, the execution of 
 the unjust sentence of fifteen years be- 
 fore pronounced, and soon afterward 
 caused to be beheaded. "This is a 
 sharp medicine, but a cure for all dis- 
 eases," said Raleigh, on the scatTold, 
 as he felt the keen edge of the axe and 
 handed it to the executioner. 
 
 The inhabitants of North Carolina, 
 on whose shores the great adventurer 
 had made his attempts at settlement, 
 showed their sense of justice by giving 
 to their capital the name of Raleigh. 
 
 Bartholomew Gosnold, a friend of 
 Raleigh's, and who had made a voyage 
 to America, and who, like Raleigh, had 
 iiot lost faith in the colonization and 
 settlement of Xorth America, when 
 offered the command of an expedition 
 to plant a settlement in America, on the 
 advice of his friend Raleigh, accepted 
 it, and on the 26th of April, 1602. 
 sailea in a small vessel, with twenty 
 colonists and eight mariners, on a di- 
 rect track, and arrived on the coast of 
 America, near Xahant, in Massachu- 
 setts Bay, in just eighteen days after 
 his departure from England. Sailing 
 southward, discovered a great sandy 
 point, which he named Cape Cod, be- 
 cause of the immense number of cod- 
 fishes seen near its shores, and lamled 
 there with four men. It was the first 
 time an Englishman had landed on the 
 soil of New England. 
 
 Doubling the Cape, he passed around 
 the promontory of Bayhead, which he 
 named Dover ClifT, and entered Buz- 
 2:ard's Bay, where he found a group of 
 attractive islands. He named the west- 
 ernmost, Elizabeth, the name of his 
 Queen, and the whole group now bear 
 
 lliat name. They landed (in l^lizabetli 
 Inland, now known by its Indian name 
 of Cattyhunk. \'egetation was luxuri- 
 ant, and small fruits were in abun- 
 dance, so they resolved to plant a little 
 colony there, and built a rude stone 
 house and fort. 
 
 The colonists now thought the In- 
 dians unfriendly, they di(l not know 
 what the winter might be, and losing 
 their courage, they abandoned their 
 little paradise of beauty, and in less 
 than four months were back home in 
 England. Had their courage held out 
 they would have had the honor of mak- 
 ing the first permanent English settle- 
 ment in America. 
 
 Early in April, 1603, an expedition 
 under Alartin Pring, another friend of 
 Raleigh, sailed, and reached the Am- 
 erican coast, and entered Penobscot 
 Bay early in June. They went up the 
 Penobscot River some distance, and 
 then, sailing along the coast, they en- 
 tered the mouths of the Saco, Kenne- 
 bunk and Piscataqua Rivers, on the 
 coast of Maine. 
 
 Sailing southward, they went to the 
 region where Gosnold had stopped, and 
 landed on a large island, abounding 
 with grapes, which they named Mar- 
 tin's Vineyard, now Martha's Mneyard. 
 They then returned to England after 
 an absence of six months. 
 
 In March, 1605, George Weymouth, 
 another friend of Raleigh, lead an ex- 
 pedition which took the shorter track, 
 but on account of storms was six weeks 
 making the journey, and arrived ofif the 
 coast of Nantucket. Sailing north- 
 ward, he entered Penobscot Bay. 
 While there he kidnapped several In- 
 dians and returned with them to Eng- 
 land. Three of them were in the 
 family of the Governor of Plymouth, 
 where they acquired considerable 
 knowledge of the English language. 
 This kidnapping left on the shores of 
 New England the seeds of much future 
 trouble. 
 
 All doubts respecting the commercial 
 value of every part of the American 
 coast, from Florida to Newfoundland, 
 had now vanished from the English 
 iriind, and King James was petitioned 
 
THE HOME AUXILIARY AND REFERENCE 
 
 Ic charter an organization to colonize 
 the shores of this Western World. 
 Moved by these considerations, he is- 
 sued letters patent on the 20th of April. 
 1606. 
 
 There were two companies formed, 
 one called the "London Company," and 
 the other called the "Plymouth Com- 
 pany.'' Thev were granted the terri- 
 tory between the thirty- fourth and the 
 forty-fifth parallels of north latitude, 
 and any islands within one hundred 
 miles of the shore. The vast domain 
 was divided into two districts, called, 
 respectively. North and South Yir- 
 ginia, the line of separation being on 
 the parallel of about the present city of 
 New York. 
 
 Now dawned the bright era, when 
 English colonies were permanently 
 planted in America. We will tell the 
 story of their wonderful growth in a 
 latter part of this work. 
 
 .\mong the earliest of the new 
 French adventurers was the ^larquis 
 de la Roche, a wealthy nobleman, who 
 gathered together a companv from the 
 prisons of France wherewith to found 
 a colony in America. He sailed with a 
 single ship in the spring of 15Q8. and 
 landed on Sable Island, in the Atlantic 
 Ocean, ninety miles southeast of Nova 
 Scotia, where he left forty men and re- 
 turned to France for supplies. Before 
 he was ready to go back he sickened 
 and died, and the poor emigrants had 
 no tidings from home or the rest of the 
 world for seven years. Then a vessel 
 was sent for them, but only twelve sur- 
 vived. 
 
 Samuel Champlain, of the French 
 navy, a man of noble lineage, and a 
 favorite of the French King, under a 
 charter, granted to the Governor of 
 Dieppe, was commissioned lieutenant- 
 general of Canada. On the 15th of 
 March, 1603, with a single vessel, com- 
 manded by Pont-Greve, a skillful mar- 
 iner, whose father had been a friend of 
 Cartier. he embarked for New France. 
 They reached the St. Lawrence in May, 
 and anchored near the site of Quebec, 
 Pont-Greve, with five men, went up 
 that stream in a canoe to the rapids of 
 La Chine, above Montreal. Turning- 
 
 back, on reaching the ship, he gave 
 Champlain a minute account of all he 
 saw. Champlain had held intercourse 
 with the savages, had found them 
 friendly, and was pleased with all he 
 had observed. They returned to 
 France in the early autumn. 
 
 When the voyagers returned, they 
 found the Governor of Dieppe dead, 
 and the concession transferred to 
 Pierre de Gast, the Sieur de Monts, a 
 wealthy Huguenot, who had received 
 the commission of Mceroy, with full 
 power for settlement and rule over six 
 degrees of latitude in America, extend- 
 ing from that of Cape May to the par- 
 allel of Quebec. That region was 
 named in the charter, L'Acadie, a cor- 
 ruption of the Greek Arcadia. .^ new 
 arrangement was made with Cham- 
 plain, and early in March, 1604, De 
 Monts, with his bosom friend Pontrin- 
 court and Pont-Greve as his lieuten- 
 ants, and Champlain as the pilot, sailed 
 from France with four vessels well- 
 manned, and a large company of Pro- 
 testant and Roman Catholic emigrants. 
 Among the latter were several Jesuits. 
 They reachced the St. Lawrence in 
 April, when thev found the river ice- 
 bound and the weather so cold that the 
 Mceroy determined to plant his settle- 
 ment further to the southward. They 
 passed around Cape Breton and Nova 
 Scotia into the Bay of Fundy, and on 
 the northern shore of the peninsula- 
 they anchored in a fine harbor en- 
 vironed by hills and meadows, early in 
 May. Pontrincourt was so charmed 
 with the appearance of the country that 
 De Monts allowed him to remain there 
 with some of the emigrants. He gave 
 him a grant of the region, which was 
 confirmed by the King, and Pontrin- 
 court named the place where he landed 
 Port Royal. It is now Annapolis, in 
 Nova Scotia. De IMonts passed over 
 to Passamaquoddy Bay, and on ?n is- 
 land, near the mouth of the St. t roix 
 River, landed, built a fort, and there 
 passed a severe winter. Half of then-i 
 were dead in the spring, when the sur- 
 vivors explored westward as far as 
 Cape Cod, and returned to Port Royal, 
 where they joined Pontrincourt's col- 
 
FIRST PERIOD— EXPLORATIONS AND DISCOVERIES 
 
 cny. Early in the autumn they re- 
 turned to France, leaving Champlain 
 and Pont-Greve to make further ex- 
 ploration. They went to the southwest 
 as far as Cape Cod. but were driven to 
 their vessels by the Indians, and in 
 1607. returned to France. In 1613, 
 Port Royal was plundered and laid in 
 ashes b)- the English, who considered 
 the French as intruders on the domain 
 of North \'irginia. 
 
 In 1608, Champlain sailed up the St. 
 Lawrence River to the St. Charles, and 
 entering that river, on the banks of 
 which he landed at the foot of a rocky 
 promontory, and laid the foundation of 
 the city of Quebec. That name is an 
 Indian word, signifying "'the narrows." 
 and is pronounced Kebec. That was 
 the first permanent French settlement 
 planted in America. 
 
 Champlain regarded the Iroquois in 
 northern New York as his enemies, 
 and allied himself with the Hurons, 
 who were the enemies of the Iroquois. 
 In the summer of 1609. he explored up 
 the Sorel or Richlieu River to the Falls 
 of Chambly, where he left his boat and 
 crew, and with only two men pushed 
 on in a canoe until he discovered a 
 great lake between two distant moun- 
 tain ranges — the Green Mountains and 
 the .\dirondacks. He gave his name to 
 this beautiful sheet of water. 
 
 In 1612. Champlain. having re- 
 turned from France with the commis- 
 sion of Lieutenant-governor of the 
 colony, engaged in vigorous wars and 
 explorations. In 16 15, he invited some 
 Jesuit Fathers to the St. Lawrence, 
 who accompanied him in expeditions 
 of discovery, extending up the Ottowa 
 River and westward to Lake Huron. 
 Turning eastward they traversed the 
 wilderness to Lake Ontario, and ex- 
 ploring that magnificent sheet of water 
 its whole length, and the St. Lawrence 
 to a point below Montreal, they re- 
 turned to France. 
 
 In 1620. he returned to Canada with 
 the authority of governor, and bring- 
 ing with him his family and other emi- 
 grants and their families. He had seen 
 that an alliance with the Indians was 
 essential to the building up of a per- 
 
 manent empire, and the influence which 
 the Jesuit Fathers had on their minds. 
 .K college was established at Quebec, 
 tor the instruction of the children of 
 the Huron's, in civilized modes of liv- 
 ing, the French language and the Ro- 
 man Catholic religion. 
 
 So was wisely laid, b}- Samuel Cham- 
 plain, the foundation of the French 
 Empire in America : its chief source of 
 strength being its firm alliance with the 
 Indians. So were secured those alli- 
 ances in emergencies, between the 
 French and Indians in America, which 
 frequently gave the English colonies 
 much and serious trouble. 
 
 Early in the year 1607, Henry Hud- 
 son, a famous navigator and an ex- 
 pert pilot, was employed by some Lon- 
 don merchants to discover a polar sea 
 passage, around northern Europe. 
 Hudson sailed on the first of May. 
 1607. The vessel in which Hudson 
 sailed was a small one, manned only by 
 ten men and a boy. He went up the 
 eastern coast of Greenland and dis- 
 covered the island of Spitzbergen, no- 
 thing more, for a solid ice barrier com- 
 pelled him to turn back. He returned 
 t<' England in September. His em- 
 ployers fitted out another expedition, 
 which sailed late in April. 1608. .Again 
 the impenetrable ice-pack compelled 
 him to turn back. His employers were 
 now disheartened and gave up the en- 
 terprise. Hudson now obtained em- 
 ployment with the Dutch East India 
 Company, and they fitted out for him a 
 small vessel, named the "Half-Moon." 
 of ninety tons, to go in search for them 
 of this northern passage around Eu- 
 rope. He sailed for Xova Scotia in 
 April. 1609. 
 
 After fighting the ice-pack on the 
 parallel of Spitzbergen, until all hope 
 of conquest vanished, Hudson was 
 compelled the third time to turn back. 
 He determined not to go without some 
 fruit to Holland, so he sailed around 
 the southern shores of Greenland into 
 the track of the searchers after a north- 
 west passage. Again the ice-pack 
 foiled him. and he sailed southward 
 until, at the middle of July, he dis- 
 covered the American continent off the 
 
56 
 
 THE HOME AL'XILIARV AXD REFERENXE 
 
 coast of Maine. Hudson now sailed 
 southward as far as the Capes of Vir- 
 ginia. Then he sailed up the coast, dis- 
 covered Delaware Bay, and entered the 
 harbor of New York, early in Septem- 
 ber. 
 
 Northward from his anchorage, af- 
 ter his vessel had entered New York 
 Hay. Hudson saw a broad stream which 
 the Indians told him came from beyond 
 the pale blue mountain ranges in the 
 distance. He believed it was a strait 
 through which he might pass into the 
 Indian Ocean ; so he sailed up the 
 stream a few miles and anchored. 
 
 The Half-Moon went leisurely up 
 the river, anchoring here and there, and 
 the commander held intercourse with 
 the Indians, sometimes friendly, some- 
 times hostile. When he passed the 
 great mountains he had seen in the dis- 
 tance, and found the water freshening, 
 he was satisfied that he was not in a 
 passage to India. It was a beautiful 
 river, flowing down from more lofty 
 hills three hundred miles from the sea, 
 and called Mahkannitiick by the na- 
 tives. The Dutch afterwards called it 
 the Mauritius, and the English gave it 
 the name of Hudson's River. 
 
 Hud.son went up the stream as far 
 as Albany. Then he sailed leisurely 
 back, everywhere charmed with the 
 beauty and grandeur of the scenerv and 
 apparent fertility of the soil. He had 
 
 discovered one of the richest portions 
 I if America. 
 
 After taking possession of the whole 
 domain he had discovered in the name 
 of the States-General of Holland, he 
 sailed for England. 
 
 This led to the commercial ventures 
 between Holland and the Hud.son 
 River, which immediately followed, 
 and resulted in the planting of the City 
 uf New Amsterdam (now New York), 
 at the mouth of the latter, and New 
 Orange (now Albany), near the head 
 of its navigable waters. These were 
 the germs of the commonwealth of 
 New Netherland, the domain of which 
 is known as the State of New York. 
 
 Hudson was the last of the dis- 
 coverers who revealed the .A.tlantic 
 coast of the American continent to Eu- 
 rope. His fate may be told in a few 
 words. He sailed from England in the 
 spring of 1610, on his fourth voyage 
 in a search of a polar ocean passage, 
 this time to the northwest. He dis- 
 covered far up North America, the bay 
 that bears his name, and intended to 
 winter there, but a majority of his crew 
 were mutinous and compelled him to 
 sail homeward. On the way, he, his 
 son, and seven of his men who had re- 
 mained faithful to him were seized, 
 pinioned, placed in an open boat and 
 abandoned on the icy sea, where, of 
 course, they soon perished. 
 
SECOND PERIOD— SETTLEMENTS 
 
 SECOND PERIOD 
 
 SETTLEMENTS 
 
 VIRGINIA. 
 
 James the First of England, in 1603, 
 was the monarch who granted charters 
 to tlie London and Plymouth Com- 
 jianies. authorizing them to make settle- 
 ment in America. 
 
 The Plymouth Company, who were 
 to control North Virginia, were first in 
 the field of adventure. There was no 
 lack of candidates, when the company 
 called for emigrants. 
 
 The charter of each company was 
 the same. The defined boundaries of 
 each domain was as follows : that of 
 the London Company, between the 
 thirty-fourth and the thirty-eighth de- 
 gree of north latitude, and that of the 
 Plymouth Company, between the fort- 
 first and forty-fifth degrees, leaving 
 three degrees of space between North 
 and South Virginia, on a breadth of 
 one hundred miles of which, in the 
 centre, neither party should be allowefl 
 If; make settlements. 
 
 The idea of the monarch, was to give 
 the colonists nothing but the bare ter- 
 ritory and the privilege of peopling 
 and defending it. The King hacl ab- 
 solute authority, and control of all ap- 
 jiointments. Jurisdiction under him 
 was given to a small body of men re- 
 siding in England, known as "The 
 Council of Virginia'," the local adminis- 
 tration was entrusted to a council in 
 the colony, appointed by the one at 
 home, the term of office of both mem- 
 bers depending upon the King. The 
 colonists were accorded the privilege 
 of perpetual English citizenship for 
 themselves and their children. The 
 doctrine and rituals of the Church of 
 England was the established religion, 
 and no dissent allowed. 
 
 At the beginning of the summer of 
 1607, the Plymouth Company sent a 
 hundred emigrants, in three small ves- 
 
 sels, under George Popham, one of 
 their members, as governor, to Am- 
 erica. They landed on a sterile spot 
 near the mouth of the Kennebec River, 
 on the coast of Maine, late in August. 
 They spent a fearful winter, and in the 
 s]3ring, when a ship arrived with sup- 
 plies, the memories of their confine- 
 ment and hardships and the loss of the 
 governor by death, had thoroughly dis- 
 couraged them, and they returned 
 home to England. 
 
 The London Company, in December, 
 1606. sent Captain Christopher New- 
 ])ort with three small vessels and one 
 hundred and five emigrants with order.s 
 to land on Roanoke sland, where Ral- 
 eigh's colony had perished twenty years 
 before. Many of the colonists, like 
 Bartholomew Gosnold, Captain John 
 Smith, George Percy, brother to the 
 Duke of Northumberland, and Edward 
 jNlaria Wingfield, were men of energy 
 ;.nd steady habits. But of the re- 
 mainder there was only twelve laborers 
 and a few mechanics. The King had 
 placed the names of the councillors for 
 the Virginia government in a sealed 
 box, with orders not to open it until the 
 colonists should have landed and pre- 
 pared to form a settlement. 
 
 They took the southern route, and 
 were four months making the voyage. 
 Disputes arose, chiefly owing to the im- 
 perious manner and outspoken opinions 
 of Captain John Smith, who possessed 
 more energy and wisdom than any man 
 among them. Although he was then 
 only twenty-nine years of age. 
 
 Smith was accused by Wingfield, 
 who was a member of the London 
 Company, of conspiring to murder the 
 council, whoever they might be, usurp 
 the government, and make himself 
 King of \'irginia. He was imprisoned 
 during the remainder of the voyage, 
 which was verv tedious. 
 
58 
 
 THE HOME AUXILTARV AND REFERENCE 
 
 Fierce storms drove tlicm far be- 
 yond Roanoke Island into Chesapeake 
 Bay, the headlands of which they 
 named in honor of the Prince of Wales 
 and his next oldest brother, Cape 
 Henry and Cape Charles. 
 
 They sailed across the mouth of the 
 Chesapeake Bay and landed upon a 
 point well wooded and fragrant with 
 flowers, and named it Point Comfort. 
 There Fortress Monroe now stands. 
 The sealed box was now opened and 
 the company were astonished to find 
 the name of Captain Smith amongst 
 those of the seven councillors. Yet he 
 was not then released. They sailed up 
 a broad river that the Indians called 
 Powhatan, for forty or fifty miles, and 
 chose a place for settlement on an is- 
 land close by the northern shore of the 
 river. In honor of their King they 
 named the river James, and choosing 
 Wingfield to preside over the council, 
 they resolved to call the island and the 
 seat of government Jainestoxvn. Here 
 was laid the first foundation for a 
 dwelling on that charming spot where 
 the first permanent English settlement 
 in America was planted. 
 
 The English were told that far up 
 the river lived Powhatan, the emperor 
 of several confederated tribes. New- 
 port, Smith and twenty others went up 
 the stream to discover its head and 
 to visit this chief. They followed its 
 winding course to the falls where Rich- 
 mond now stands, and were received 
 kindly by Powhatan. Smith, before 
 going on this expedition, had advised 
 Wingfield to build a fort, for he knew 
 that the idle and dissolute men of the 
 company would soon make trouble for 
 the colony. 
 
 (In his return he found that his fears 
 had been realized. The Indians had 
 made an attack upon the settlers, 
 wounding several and killing a boy. 
 The president then consented to the 
 building of a stockade 
 
 Newport now prepared to return to 
 England with the ships. Smith had not 
 been allowed to take his seat in the 
 council, for he had not been tried, nor 
 had the charges against him been with- 
 drawn. The jealous Wingfield pro- 
 
 posed that he should return with New- 
 port, wishing to get rid of him, and so 
 avoid the disgrace of a trial. The in- 
 dignant soldier rejected the proposal 
 with scorn, and demanded an immedi- 
 ate trial. Smith's innocence was plain 
 to his companions, and his services 
 were so much needed that they de- 
 manded his release. Wingfield with- 
 drew his charges and Smith took his 
 seat in the council, when it was ad- 
 judged by that body that the president 
 should pay him £200 damages for false 
 imprisonment. All the property Wing- 
 field had with him was seized to pay 
 this award, when Smith generously 
 "returned it to the store for the general 
 use of the colony." From that time 
 Captain Smith was the ruling spirit in 
 Virginia. 
 
 Newport departed for England for 
 more emigrants and supplies, at the 
 middle of June. The outlook for the 
 colony was now not very bright. Aluch 
 of their food had been spoiled during 
 the long voyage, and the hostile In- 
 dians withheld supplies. As one of the 
 colonists wrote, "had we been as free 
 from all sins as from gluttony and 
 drunkeness, we might have been cano- 
 nized as saints." Most of the emi- 
 grants were too idle or too ignorant to 
 till the soil. Within a short time after 
 Newport had left them, hardly ten of 
 them were able to stand through fevers 
 and dysentery, brought b}' the summer 
 heat, which produced malaria from the 
 swamps. Before the beginning of Au- 
 tumn one-half of the emigrants were 
 dead. .A.mong the victims was Gos- 
 nold, a man of great worth, to whose 
 example the settler? were indebted for 
 the little order that prevailed among 
 them. The survivors discovered that 
 during their distress, the avaricious 
 and unscrupulous Wingfield was liv- 
 ing on choice stores and was preparing 
 to abandon the settlement and escape 
 to the West Indies. He was deprived 
 of his office, and Captain John Rat- 
 cliffe, a man much weaker in mind and 
 equally wicked, was put in his place. 
 The settlers soon perceived their mis- 
 take and removing Ratcliffe, they 
 placed the reins of government in the 
 
SECOND PERIOD— S1:TTLEMENTS 
 
 hands of Captain Smith. This event 
 saved the colony from ruin. Hopeful, 
 cheerful, energetic, honest, full of in- 
 vention and equal to any emergency. 
 Smith soon brought order out of con- 
 fusion ; inspired the Indians with awe 
 and compelled them to bring him food. 
 Wild fowl, returning from the north, 
 swarmed on the waters in October, and 
 at the beginning of November, an 
 abundant crop of Indian corn had been 
 gathered by the savages, who shared it 
 with their dependent white neighbors. 
 The London Company had given 
 special instructions to the settlers to ex- 
 plore every considerable stream they 
 should find flowing from the northwest, 
 hoping so to discover a passage to the 
 Indian Ocean and coveted Cathay. 
 Smith did not share the ignorance of 
 liis employers, but he gladly made their 
 instructions his warrant for exploring 
 the surrounding country. He sailed up 
 the Chickahominy in an open boat as 
 far as the shallow waters, and con- 
 tinued his journey, with two comjian- 
 ions and one guide, far into the woods 
 in search of game. The savages, under 
 Opechancanough, the King of Pam- 
 unky, slew his two companions and 
 captured Smith. He was now conduc- 
 ted from village to village in great 
 state, for the Indians considered him a 
 superior being, where the women and 
 children stared at him in mute astonish- 
 ment. Then they conducted him into 
 the presence of the Emperor Powhatan, 
 at a place now known as Shelly, on the 
 banks of the York River, in Gloucester 
 county, \'irginia, and asked him to de- 
 cide the fate of the prisoner. There 
 Smith obtained permission to send a 
 letter to Jamestown, in which he in- 
 formed the settlers of his condition, 
 and directed them to impress the mes- 
 senger with as much fear of the Eng- 
 lish as possible. Smith was finally 
 brought before a council of full twd 
 luindred warriors. By that council he 
 was doomed to die. Two huge stones 
 were brought before the emperor, to 
 which the jjrisoner was dragged and 
 his head laid upon them, whilst two 
 big savages stood by with clubs ready 
 to beat out his brains. Matoa, or Poca- 
 
 hontas, a young daughter of the em- 
 peror, begged for the life of the Cap- 
 tain, but in vain, when, just as the 
 clubs were uplifted, she darted from 
 her father's knee, clasped the prisoner's 
 head with her arms and laid her own 
 head upon his. The emperor yielded to 
 the maid, and consented to spare tlie 
 life of the captive. He did more; he 
 released Captain Smith, sent him with 
 an escort of a dozen men to James- 
 town, and he and his people promised 
 to be fast friends of the English. But 
 for the energy and wisdom of Captain 
 Smith and the tender compassion of an 
 Indian maiden, the settlers at Jame— 
 town would have all been murdered or 
 dispersed. 
 
 On his return. Smith found the 
 stronger members of the colony, which 
 had been reduced to forty persons, on 
 the point of abandoning the place. By 
 his personal courage he compelled them 
 to stay, and so, again he saved the 
 colony from ruin. These men now 
 hated him with an intensity that sought 
 his destruction. 
 
 The settlers were n(_i\v engaged in 
 building a house for the President of 
 the Council, and Smith ordered the re- 
 building of the church, which had been 
 burned. 
 
 Newport returned to Jamestown 
 earl)- in 1608, with two vessels. But 
 be Ijrought no better materials for a 
 colony than before. Instead of needed 
 mechanics and farmers with families, 
 he brought chiefly idle "gentlemen, " 
 some of them vicious. There were one 
 hundred and twenty of them and there 
 was scarcely a useful man among 
 ihem. There were several unskilled 
 goldsmiths, whose ignorance caused a 
 most destructive gold-fever to prevail. 
 They pronounced some glittering yel- 
 low earth near Jamestown to be gold, 
 and for a while there was "no talk, no 
 hope, no work, but dig gold, refine 
 gold, load gold." Newport loaded his 
 vessel with this worthless earth, and re- 
 turned to England with the impression 
 that he was an immensely rich man. 
 Me was soon undeceived. 
 
 Captain Smith implored the settlers 
 to plant and sow, that thev might ha\e 
 
THE HOMK AUXILIARY AXD REl- I'.KF.XCF. 
 
 ])lent\ without the aid of the Indians, 
 who, chiefly through Pocahontas, were 
 sending them supphes. Hut they 
 would not listen, and early in the sum- 
 mer of that year, he turned from 
 Jamestown in disgust, and with a few 
 more sensible men he went in an open 
 boat to explore the Chesapeake Bay 
 and its numerous tributaries. 
 
 In three months, he made two voy- 
 ages. During the first he went up the 
 Potomac River to the Falls near 
 Georgetown, and up the Rappahannock 
 to the Falls near Fredericksburg, and 
 then returned to Jamestown. During 
 the second voyage he went up the Pa- 
 tapsco to the site of Baltimore and up 
 the narrower part of the Chesapeake 
 Bay into the Susquehanna River, a 
 short distance above Havre-de-Grace, 
 where he heard of the powerful Iro- 
 quois Confederacy in the present State 
 of New York. In these two voyages. 
 Smith not only explored the shores of 
 the great waters, but penetrated into 
 the country, made friendly alliances 
 with several chiefs, and smoothed the 
 way for future settlements on the bor- 
 ders of the noble Chesapeake. He had 
 voyaged about three thousand miles in 
 an open boat and made a map of the 
 region explored, remarkable for its ac- 
 curacy, which is preserved in London. 
 
 \Mien Captain Smith returned to 
 Jamestown, early in September, he 
 found the colony again in confusion. 
 His advent was hailed with delight, 
 and three days after his return he was 
 chosen President of the Council. He 
 now organized labor and compelled the 
 ]ierformance of the same, .\bout this 
 time Xewport arrived with two ships, 
 bearing supplies and seventy emigrants. 
 There were two women, the first of 
 Furopean blood to arrive in the colony. 
 The men were no better than the other 
 emigrants. The London Corporation 
 had sent lo the settlers a message, say- 
 ing, "L'nless you shall send us sufficient 
 commodities to pay for the voyage 
 (£2000) ; unlesi yovi shall send us a 
 lump of gold, the product of Virginia, 
 assurance of having found a passage 
 to the South Sea (Pacific Ocean), and 
 also one of the last colony of Roanoke, 
 
 you shall be left in \ irginia as ban- 
 ished men." To this threat Smith re- 
 l)lied with spirit, showing the absurdity 
 of their demand and entreating them 
 to send mechanics and husbandmen. 
 
 This threat assisted the president in 
 enforcing rules for labor. He de- 
 manded six hours work from every 
 able-bodied man. "He who will not 
 work shall not eat," he said. \'ery 
 soon the little village showed signs of 
 an orderly community. 
 
 The London Company obtained a 
 new charter in May, 1609, by which the 
 boundaries of their domain was en- 
 larged. Lord De la Ware was made 
 Governor and Captain-general for 
 life. In June, more than five hundred 
 emigrants were sent out under com- 
 mand of Captain Xewport. These emi- 
 grants were composed of some of the 
 worst classes in England. The only 
 things brought by the fleet that were 
 \aluable to the settlement were horses, 
 swine, goats and sheep, and domestic 
 fowls. To these were added, two years 
 later, one hundred cows and other 
 cattle. 
 
 In the absence of the new governor, 
 anarchy menaced the colony, but Smith, 
 with his usual energy, asserted his 
 authority, and devised new expeditions 
 that the vicious might be employed, and 
 saved the settlement from ruin. In the 
 autumn an accidental explosion of gun- 
 powder so wounded Smith that he was 
 compelled to go to England for sur- 
 gical aid. and never returned to Mr- 
 ginia. 
 
 It was more than si.x months after 
 the departure of Captain Smith, before 
 three commissioners arrived who were 
 to represent the governor. Meanwhile, 
 the settlers, left almost without re- 
 straint, had indulged in every irregular- 
 ity of life, and their provisions were 
 soon exhausted. They had, by cruelty, 
 made the Indians hostile, who had 
 withheld food from them. Finally the 
 Indians devised a plan to exterminate 
 the wdiole body of the intruders. It 
 was frustrated by Pocahontas, who al- 
 ways proved to be the friend of the 
 settlers. \\'hen she heard the plot, she 
 hastened to Jame.stow-n, and revealing 
 
SECOND PERIOD— SETTLEMENTS 
 
 6i 
 
 llic conspiracy to Percy, put the Eng- 
 lish on their guard. 
 
 Famine came with its horrors and 
 transformed civihzed Englishmen into 
 cannibals. They fed on the Indians 
 tliey slew, and sometimes on their own 
 companions who had died from hunger. 
 \\'hen the commissioners arrived in the 
 spring of 1610, of the four hundred 
 and ninety persons whom Smith left in 
 Virginia, only sixty remained alive. 
 Alany a time, during that winter and 
 spring, which was ever afterward re- 
 ferred to as "the starving time," flid 
 they lament the folly in not following 
 the advice of Captain Smith to till the 
 soil. 
 
 Brave, honest and true. Captain 
 .Smith won the honor of being the first 
 jjlanter of the Saxon race, on the soil 
 of the United States, and is entitled to 
 the endearing name of Father of Vir- 
 ginia. 
 
 The commissioners, on their arrival 
 at the settlement, saw, instead of a 
 prosperous colony, sixty starving men 
 in the depths of despair. They saw 
 no other way to save their lives than to 
 abandon the settlement, sail to New- 
 foundland, and distribute the settlers 
 among the English fishermen there. 
 
 They were about to embark, when 
 the governor. Lord De la Ware, ar- 
 rived with provisions and emigrants, 
 and saved the colony. 
 
 The governor, a pious, prudent, gen- 
 erous and humane man. won the respect 
 of the colonists. He caused the church 
 to be rebuilt, the dwellings to be im- 
 proved and many more acres cultivated. 
 The health of the governor now failed 
 and he returned to England in the 
 spring of 1611, lea\ing Percv in 
 cliarge. 
 
 Sir Thomas Dale, a brave soldier, 
 now arrived with su|)plies and assumed 
 the reins of government and ruled un- 
 der martial law both the church and 
 state. At the close of summer. Sir 
 Thomas Gates, with six well furnished 
 ships and three hundred emigrants, ar- 
 rived. These emigrants were a much 
 lietter class than any who had as yet 
 appeared in X'irginia. The greater por- 
 tion were sober and industrious, and 
 
 they had a good influence on the earlier 
 settlers. Gates now assumed the gov- 
 ernorship, and Dale went up the river 
 and planted settlements at the mouth ot 
 the Appomattox River ( now Bermuda 
 Hundred) and at the Falls (now Rich- 
 mond). 
 
 Another charter was now obtained 
 from the Company, which allowed the 
 powers of the association to be distri- 
 buted in a democratic manner among 
 all of the members, who met in mass 
 for deliberation and legislation. The 
 most important feature affecting t!ie 
 welfare of the settlement was that 
 which allowed every man to cultivate 
 a few acres of land for his own sole 
 use and benefit. Before that time the 
 land was tilled in common, and the in- 
 dustrious provided food for the laz\'. 
 An ample supply of provisions for all 
 was easily obtained, and the com- 
 munity system was abandoned. Al- 
 though no political privileges were 
 granted by the new charter, the settlers 
 were contented. 
 
 Ever since the departure of Captain 
 Smith, Powhatan had evinced hostility 
 to the settlers, and the powerful Chica- 
 hominies, their nearest neighbors, sym- 
 pathized with him and allowed no food 
 to be carried to Jamestown. Provi- 
 sions there became scarce, and Captain 
 .\rgal!, a sort of buccaneer, who was 
 then in X'irginia, was sent with a for- 
 aging expedition up the York and 
 James Rivers. He bribed an Indian 
 with the gift of a copper kettle, when 
 near the residence of Powhatan, to en- 
 tice Pocahontas on board his vessel, 
 where he detained her a prisoner, ex- 
 pecting to get a large quantity of corn 
 from her father as a ransom for his 
 daughter, and to recover some arms 
 and implements of labor which had 
 l)een stolen by the Indians. The em- 
 peror rejected the proposition of ran- 
 som with scorn, and refused to hold 
 any intercourse with the pirate, but de- 
 claring to the authorities at Jamestown, 
 that if his daughter should be released, 
 he would forget the injury and be a 
 friend to the English. They would not 
 trust his word, and the maiden was 
 taken to ]amcst(i\\n and detained 
 
62 
 
 THE HOME AUXILIARY AND REFERENCE 
 
 there several montlis, but was always 
 treated with respectful consideration. 
 The affair was assuming a serious as- 
 pect, when love settled the difficulty. 
 Among the young men of rank and 
 education, at Jamestown, was John 
 Rolfe, of an excellent English family, 
 who became enamored of Pocahontas, 
 she reciprocated his passion, and they 
 agreed to be wedded. He taught her 
 the Christian religion, she proved to be 
 an apt scholar and was soon baptized 
 with the name of Rebecca. She was 
 the first Christian Indian in Virginia. 
 
 They were married in April, 1613. 
 Her father's consent to her marriage 
 had been easily obtained, and he sent 
 his brother Opachisco to give away his 
 daughter according to the Christian 
 ritual, for he would not trust himself 
 with the English at Jamestown. 
 
 This brought present peace with the 
 Indians, and Powhatan was ever after- 
 ward the fast friend of the English. 
 \V'hen the Governor, Sir Thomas Dale, 
 returned to England, in 1616, they, 
 with several others of the settlement 
 and all the women there accompanied 
 him. 
 
 In England the "Lady Rebecca" re- 
 ceived great attentions from the court 
 and all below it. Pocahontas remained 
 in England about a year ; and when she 
 was about to embark for America with 
 her husband and son, and Tomocome, 
 her father's chief councillor, she sick- 
 ened and died at Gravesend, in June, 
 1617, when she was not cjuite twenty- 
 two years of age. She left a son, 
 Thomas Rolfe, who became a distin- 
 guished man in Mrginia, and whose 
 descendants have been numbered 
 among the honorable citizens of that 
 commonwealth. 
 
 Prosperity was now the destiny of 
 the settlements in Virginia, although 
 the prime element of a permanent state 
 — the famih' — was yet wanting. Be- 
 cause of this want, the settlers contin- 
 ually indulged in dreams of returning 
 home. Dale, who had ruled with wis- 
 dom and energy, discouraged this feel- 
 ing, and by engaging them in the culti- 
 vation of the tobacco plant, somewhat 
 allayed it. His successors encouraged 
 
 its production, and in spite of the ef- 
 fort of King James to prevent its use 
 in England, its growth and exportation 
 to the mother country soon became the 
 staple and verj' profitable business of 
 the planters in Virginia. Its culture 
 became a mania. The streerts of James- 
 town were planted with it, and food 
 producing products were so neglected, 
 that while great cargoes of tobacco 
 were preparing for England, the neces- 
 saries of life were wanting. It became 
 the currency of the country, the money 
 value of a pound of tobacco being fixed 
 at about sixty-six cents. 
 
 Dale left Argall as deputy governor, 
 but his petty tyranny and rank dis- 
 honesty disgusted the people. The 
 story of his conduct checked emigra- 
 tion, and his office was given to George 
 Yeardly, a wise statesman and a friend 
 of man. On the death of Lord De la 
 W^are, while on a voyage to resume the 
 reins of government. Yeardly was ap- 
 pointed governor with wide discretion- 
 ary powers. He abolished martial law, 
 releasing the planters from feudal ser- 
 vice and confirming their titles to lanas 
 in their possession, and establishing a 
 representative government on the 
 banks of the James, he laid the founda- 
 tions of a permanent colony. He 
 found the settlers yearning for the free- 
 dom enjoyed by their fellow-subjects in 
 England. He could not reconcile that 
 freedom with the then disabihties, so, 
 with the sanction of the Company, he 
 introduced a new political system in 
 Virginia. The settlements were divi- 
 ded into eleven boroughs, each having 
 two representatives, called burgesses, 
 who were chosen by the people. These 
 with the governor and council consti- 
 tuted the colonial government. Be- 
 cause of these liberties, the settlers ex- 
 pressed their gratitude; and when, in 
 June, 1619, a representative assembly 
 met at Jamestown, they felt they had 
 a home in Virginia. W'ithin two years 
 after the meeting of the first House of 
 I'lUrgesses — the first representative as- 
 sembly in America — about two hundred 
 and fifty reputable }oung women were 
 sent over from England to become the 
 wives for the planters. These were re- 
 
SECOND PERIOD— SETTLE.MEXTS 
 
 63 
 
 ceived witli gladness, and cherished 
 with fondness. The tribe of gold- 
 seekers had disappeared. Industry 
 was the rule and not the exception in 
 the settlements, and the colony of 
 Virginia was hrmly established. 
 
 MASSACHUSETTS. 
 
 We have considered the failures of 
 the Plymouth Company to plant settle- 
 ments in America. We will now con- 
 sider other attempts and failures, and 
 the permanent establishment of a 
 settlement in New England. 
 
 The restless Captain Smith did not 
 long remain idle after his return from 
 Virginia. In company with four Lon- 
 don merchants he fitted out two ships 
 for the purpose of discovery and traffic 
 in the northern regions of America. 
 Captain Thomas Hunt commanded one 
 of the vessels and Smith sailed in the 
 other. They sailed in March, 1614, anct 
 landed on the island of Mohegan, about 
 twent}' miles from the mouth of the 
 Penoliscot River. Smith left the crews, 
 employed in fishing, while he and a few 
 men explored the several rivers far 
 into the interior, and the coast from the 
 Penobscot to Cape Cod. Smith con- 
 structed a map of the region, and after 
 an absence of seven months, the vessels 
 returned to England with cargoes of 
 considerable value. On the map that 
 Smith constructed the region was called 
 Nczi: England, which title was con- 
 firmed by the King. Captain Hunt, 
 wishing to impede settlements by in- 
 flaming the wrath of the Indians, .so 
 that he and a few others could enjoy a 
 monopoly of the traffic on the coast, 
 kidnapped twenty-seven of the savages 
 at Cape Cod with Squanto, their chief, 
 and taking them to Spain sold them as 
 slaves. Some of them were taken by 
 benevolent friars, who educated them 
 for missionaries among the tribes, but 
 only Squanto returned to America. 
 The next fishing vessels that came 
 from New England brought word that 
 the natives were greatly exasperated. 
 
 Smith sailed on another voyage in 
 the spring of 1615. His ship was shat- 
 tered by a tempest and returned to port. 
 
 On the 4th of July, following, he sailed 
 again but was captured by the French. 
 \Vhile a prisoner, he wrote an account 
 of his voyage to New England which 
 was published the next year. After a 
 brief captivity he was released and re- 
 turned home. Meanwhile, the Plym- 
 outh Company had made him admiral 
 of New England ; but. discouraged by 
 ill luck, the company had again aban- 
 doned the project of planting a colony 
 there. Smith now drops out of sight in 
 history, and not long after (1631 ) the 
 founder of the Virginia colony died at 
 the age of fifty-one years. 
 
 In 1620, King James gave a grant of 
 all the land lying between 40 and 48 de- 
 grees north latitude, and from the .At- 
 lantic to the Pacific, to a commercial 
 company, with many exclusive privil- 
 eges. So great a monopoly did this be- 
 stow upon the company that Parlia- 
 ment took up the subject in warm de- 
 bate, and while all parties concerned 
 were wrangling over the subject, a 
 permanent settlement in New England 
 was made by the Puritans, who are fa- 
 miliar and dear to the American heart 
 as the "Pilgrim Fathers." 
 
 The Puritans were a religious sect 
 of England, who had existed since 
 1550. Their prominent traits of char- 
 acter were an uncompromising absti- 
 nence from gayety and amusements, 
 firm belief in the practice of the teach- 
 ings of the Bible, and a fervid love of 
 civil and religious liberty. Having been 
 driven from England by prosecution, 
 because they would not conform to the 
 doctrines of the Church of England, 
 they took refuge in Holland in 160S. 
 There they were permitted to live and 
 worship God as they chose, but the na- 
 tional disregard for the Sabbath and 
 the demoralizing influences surround- 
 ing their children, at last determined 
 them to emigrate to the wilderness of 
 America. Reports of the Virginia 
 settlement had reached them, and they 
 made application to the London Com- 
 pany to become colonists on their land. 
 In their petition they made the follow- 
 ing declaration of their principles: 
 "We verily believe that God is with us 
 and will prosper us in our endeavors. 
 
64 
 
 THE HOME AUXILIARY AND REFERENCE 
 
 We are weaned from our mother 
 country, and have learned patience in 
 a hard and strange land. We are in- 
 dustrious and frugal ; we are bound to- 
 gether by a social bond of the Lord, 
 whereof we make great conscience, 
 holding ourselves to each others good. 
 We do not wish ourselves home again : 
 we have nothing to hope from England 
 or Holland ; we are men who will not 
 be easily discouraged." 
 
 Some objections being made to their 
 admission to the colony by members of 
 the company, their consent was not 
 given to the Puritans to emigrate to 
 \'irginia. One great difficulty in the 
 way was their extreme poverty. In 
 their persecutions and exile for con- . 
 science's sake they had become so poor 
 that they could supply little or no 
 means toward the expedition. After 
 their failure to arrange with the Lon- 
 don Company, a number of London 
 merchants formed a company to ad- 
 vance the means for establishing the 
 colony on condition that each emigrant 
 should labor seven years to make up 
 the amount of his stock in the company 
 against the sum of ten pounds paid in 
 by each of the merchants. 
 
 Two vessels, the Mayflower and 
 Speedwell, were secured for the voy- 
 age, and all the younger and more 
 vigorous of the Puritan congregation 
 in Holland embarked on the vessels at 
 Delft Haven in charge of William 
 P>rewster. At the parting their vener- 
 able pastor, John Robinson, who re- 
 mained in charge of those still left in 
 Holland, delivered to the emigrants an 
 affectionate farewell, in which he said : 
 "I charge you before God and His holy 
 angels, that you follow me no further 
 than you have seen me follow the Lord 
 Jesus Christ. If God reveal anything 
 to you, be ready to receive ; for I am 
 verily persuaded the Lord has more 
 truth yet to break out of His Holy 
 Word. I beseech you to remember it 
 is an article of your Church covenant 
 that you be ready to receive whatever 
 truth shall be made known to you from 
 the written Word of God. Take heed 
 what you receive as truth ; examine it. 
 consider it, and compare it with other 
 
 scriptures of truth before you receive 
 it : the Christian world has not yet 
 come to the perfection of knowledge !" 
 
 The night before their departure was 
 passed in prayer and exhortation on 
 shore, in company of the venerable pas- 
 tor and brethren who came with him 
 from Ley den, and the next morning, 
 after a prayer and benediction from 
 Robinson, the Pilgrims went on board 
 the ships and embarked for the New 
 World. After stopping at Southamp- 
 ton and again sailing, it was discovered 
 that the Speedwell was unseaworthy. 
 and her captain, declaring that he could 
 not cross the ocean with her, both ships 
 put back to Plymouth, where they left 
 the Speedwell and all the emigrants 
 who could not go in the ]Mayflower. 
 Again the ^^layflower sailed with her 
 devoted band of one hundred Pilgrims, 
 and buffeting the waves with her prec- 
 ious freight, she reached the shores of 
 a rock-boimd. winter coast. 
 
 The Pilgrims had intended settling 
 on the neutral territory near the Hud- 
 son River, but after sixty-three days 
 they found themselves on the coast of 
 Massachusetts, where they made a 
 landing in a rock harbor, which they 
 named Pl_\mouth, after the last port 
 from which they had sailed in the Old 
 World. The landing was made on 
 Plymouth Rock, on the 2ist day of 
 December, 1620, and immediately they 
 began to build the first town in \ew 
 England. 
 
 Among the prominent men of the 
 colony were : W'illiam Brewster, the 
 ruling elder : John Carver, W'illiam 
 Bradford. Edward Winslow and Miles 
 Standish. John Carver was elected 
 governor and Miles Standish, the in- 
 trepid soldier, who had fought in 
 Queen Elizabeth's army sent to aid the 
 E)utch against the Spaniards, was elec- 
 ted as the captain of the colony. 
 
 The sufferings of the colonists be- 
 gan on the very day of their landing, 
 but they bravely bore them without a 
 murmur, and maintained a firm trust 
 in God. It was .slow, hard work to fell 
 and hew the trees for building their 
 houses, but they persevered even when 
 their strength left them. During the 
 
SECOND PERIOD— SETTLEMEXTS 
 
 65 
 
 month of December, six of the colonists 
 were taken sick, and before the winter 
 ended over forty of them had been 
 laid in their graves. Bradford and 
 Winslow lost their wives, and Miles 
 Standish also lost his young bride. 
 Rose Standish, while among the men, 
 Carver, the governor, lost his son ; then 
 he died and was soon followed by his 
 wife, all of them were buried near 
 Plymouth Rock. So discouraging was 
 their condition that at one time only 
 seven of the colony were not confined 
 to sick beds. 
 
 But with all their sad and destitute 
 condition not one of them desired to 
 return on the ^^layflower, when she 
 set .sail for England. The blessings of 
 civil and religious liberty were too dear 
 to them in the land of their adoption to 
 be abandoned while life lasted, and 
 even death would be sweet if at so dear 
 a cost the}- could leave the birthright of 
 freedom and constitutional government 
 to their children and to unborn ages. 
 
 .■\s spring advanced the health and 
 ])rospects of the colonists improved, 
 and during the summer they raised a 
 scanty supply of food, but in the fall 
 a new company of emigrants came, al- 
 most without provisions, and there was 
 great danger of a famine. For many 
 months the Indians had never entered 
 the settlement, but when seen near by 
 and approached, had always tied, until 
 one day a friendly Indian, named 
 Samoset, of the Wampanoags, entered 
 the little village, exclaiming in English, 
 "Welcome, Englishmen ! Welcome, 
 Englishmen !" It was a surprise to the 
 little colony to hear him speak in their 
 native tongue. He had learned a few 
 English words from previous naviga- 
 tors and the fishermen on the Penob- 
 scot. Samoset told the colonists that 
 they could occupy the settlement, as a 
 pestilence had destroyed the former 
 owners of the land. In a few days 
 Samoset returned with Squanto, who 
 was formerly kidnapped and taken to 
 Spain as a slave, where he was ran- 
 somed by the monks and educated for 
 a missionary, and returned to his na- 
 tive land. Squanto informed the Pil- 
 grims that Massasoit, the chief of the 
 
 Wampanoags, wanted an interview 
 with them. In a few days Massasoit, 
 with a number of his tribe, visited 
 Plymouth, and Squanto acted as inter- 
 preter, and by his influence a treaty 
 was made with the Pilgrims, by which 
 they bound themselves to defend eacii 
 other from the attacks of enemies. 
 This treaty was observed for over fifty 
 years. 
 
 Captain Standish, feeling that it was 
 "not good for man to be alone," almost 
 immediately turned to Priscilla Mullins 
 for consolation. She was the daughter 
 of William iNIullins, one of the May- 
 flower passengers. The captain was 
 then thirty-seven years of age, and 
 Priscilla had but just lately bloomed 
 into young womanhood. In Standish's 
 family lived John Alden, a young 
 cooper from Southampton, whom the 
 captain sent as ambassador to Pns- 
 cilla's father to ask his consent for the 
 soldier to visit her with matrimonial 
 intent. He performed the duties of his 
 mission modestly and faithfully. The 
 father readily gave his consent, adding, 
 "But Priscilla must be consulted." She 
 \\ as summoned to the room. There sat 
 John .\lden, whom she well knew — a 
 young man of graceful form, a hand- 
 some, ruddy face and sparkling eyes, 
 and of almost courtly manners. The 
 ambassador of love repeated his mes- 
 sage from the soldier. The calendar 
 tells us it was leap-year, when English 
 maidens had the privilege of wooing. 
 "Prithee. John," said Priscilla, as she 
 fixed her mischievous eyes on the face 
 of the young diplomat, "why do you not 
 speak for yourself?" John blushed, 
 bowed and retired, for he was faithful 
 to his trust. But his visit was soon re- 
 peated ; and it was not long before the 
 nuptials of the young couple were cele- 
 brated b}' the whole community, ex- 
 cepting Captain Standish, who could 
 not readily forgive the weakness of his 
 young friend in surrendering at the 
 first assault from the eyes and lips of a 
 maiden. 
 
 That was the first marriage in the 
 colony, and the inciilents were some- 
 what dramatic, for John Alden went to 
 the nuptials seated on a young bull, 
 
THE HOME AUXILIARY A.\I) REEICKENXE 
 
 laparisoiied with a piece of handsoiiie 
 broadcloth. Returning from the wed- 
 ding, he led the bull by a ring in its 
 nose, walking by his side, whilst his 
 l)ride rode like a queen upon the ani- 
 mal. To the heart of Miles Standish, 
 Priscilla upon Taurus was a repetition 
 of the story of the carrying away of 
 Europa, the Phoenician princess. Such 
 is the story of tradition and poetry. 
 History gravely tells us that there was 
 no horned cattle in the colony until 
 some time after this marriage. 
 
 From time to time the memory of 
 that first marriage in New England has 
 lieen revived by history and song. A 
 vivid picture of it is given in Long- 
 fellow's "Courtship of Miles Stan- 
 dish ;" and the notable wedding was 
 brought to mind when, in April, 1874, 
 Mrs. Phoebe C. Bailey died in Dover, 
 New Hampshire, at the age of ninety- 
 one years. She was the great-grand- 
 daughter of John Alden and Priscilla 
 Mullins. 
 
 NEW NETHERLANDS. 
 
 We have already considered the in- 
 cidents attending the discovery of the 
 Hudson River and the country on its 
 borders between its mouth and the site 
 of Albany, in 1609. Let us now view 
 the more prominent events connected 
 with the establishment of a permanent 
 settlement there. 
 
 The report that the newly discovered 
 region abounded with fur-bearing ani- 
 mals, excited the keenest cupidity in 
 the Dutch, for they had recently tasted 
 the pleasures of a profitable fur trade, 
 which they had opened with northern 
 Russia. 
 
 Among the bold navigators who 
 came from Holland was Adrien Block. 
 His vessel was the Tigress. Late in 
 the autumn of 161 3, when laden with 
 bear skins, she was accidentally burned 
 to a useless wreck. The crew now built 
 for themselves a rude log hut. where 
 the warehouses of Beaver Street now 
 stand, and went at work to construct a 
 new vessel. Before spring it was fin- 
 ished and named the Onrust — "Rest- 
 less"' — a title that seems prophetic of 
 
 the unresting activity which now marks 
 the island of Manhattan. The little 
 hamlet then built, and the vessel there 
 constructed, were fruitful seeds of the 
 great commonwealth of New York. 
 
 In the spring of 1^14, Block sailed 
 through the dangerous strait of Hell 
 Gate into Long Island Sound. Dis- 
 covered and explored the Housatonic, 
 Connecticut and Thames Rivers ; an- 
 chored in the bay of New Haven ; 
 touched Montauk Point on the eastern 
 end of Long Island and landed on a 
 small island discovered by Verazzani, 
 a century before, and which is now 
 known as Block Island. After leaving 
 Narragansett Bay, he sailed up the 
 coast beyond Boston Harbor, where he 
 fell in with his friend, Hendrick Chris- 
 tiansen, who was about to sail for Hol- 
 land. Leaving his vessel in command 
 of another navigator. Block sailed to 
 Holland with his friend. 
 
 The merchants concerned in Block's 
 discoveries, stimulated by his reports, 
 obtained a charter in October, 1614, 
 from the States-General granting them 
 the privilege of making four voyages 
 to any new passages, haven, land or 
 places they might discover. The ter- 
 ritory included in the charter, and 
 which was defined as lying between 
 Mrginia and New France — between 
 the parallels of 40 and 45 degrees — was 
 called A'ctc A'ctlicrlaiid. 
 
 I\Ieanwhile, the Onrust, under com- 
 mand of Cornelius Hendrickson, had 
 entered and explored Delaware Bay 
 and River. Efforts were made to ob- 
 tain a charter for this region also, but 
 it was considered part of Virginia and 
 not granted. 
 
 In 1618, at the expiration of the 
 charter, it was not renewed. The di- 
 rectors of New Netherlands then pro- 
 secuted their trading enterprise upon 
 the borders of the Hudson with in- 
 creased vigor. They had built a fort 
 on an island just below the site of Al- 
 banv. They now enlarged their store- 
 house at Manhattan and made the little 
 hamlet a social village. The traders 
 went into the Mohawk Valley, and be- 
 came acquainted and made a treaty 
 with the powerful Iroquois league, 
 
SECOND PERIOD— SETTLl-.M EXTS 
 
 67 
 
 which was kept inviolate until New 
 Xetherlands passed into the hands of 
 the English. It was a wise measure, 
 for that confederacy was strong 
 enough to have swept from the face of 
 tlie earth all European intruders. 
 Their power was felt, as we have oh- 
 served, from the St. Lawrence to the 
 Gulf of Mexico 
 
 The Plymouth Company complained 
 to King James of England that the 
 Dutch were intruders on their domain, 
 and Captain Dermer, of an English 
 ^hip. when he stopped in the bay of 
 Xew York, in June, 1619, warned them 
 to leave. But the good-natured Dutch- 
 men answered, "We found no English- 
 men here;" and went on smoking their 
 pipes, planting their gardens, catching 
 1 leavers and otters, as if they had never 
 heard the voice of Captain Dermer. 
 
 The sounds of royal bluster came oc- 
 casionally from Great Britain, but that 
 did not deter the States-General from 
 helping their "loyal subjects" in New 
 Xetherlands, and they proceeded to 
 charter the "Dutch West India Com- 
 pany," making it a great commercial 
 monopoly by giving it almost regal 
 powers to colonize, govern- and defend, 
 not only the little domain on the Hud- 
 son, but the whole unoccupied coast of 
 America, from Newfoundland to Cape 
 Horn. That charter contained all the 
 guarantees of freedom in social, politi- 
 cal and religious life necessary to the 
 founding of a free state. Republican- 
 fsm was recognized as the true system 
 of government and home in its broad- 
 est and purest sense, as the prime ele- 
 ment of political strength. X^o 
 stranger was to be questioned as to his 
 nativity or his creed as matters which 
 concerned the state. "Do you wish to 
 build, to plant, and to become a citi- 
 zen ?" was the sum of their catechism, 
 when a new comer appeared. If the 
 answer should be satisfactory, he was 
 to be welcomed. That charter was 
 granted on the 3d of June, 1621, at the 
 time when the stricken Pilgrims at 
 Plymouth, on the coast of ]\Iassachu- 
 setts, were cultivating their first fruit 
 gardens and corn fields. 
 
 The Plymoutli Company had lieen 
 
 granted a charter about this time. 
 Without their consent no ships might 
 enter any harbor on the .\merican 
 coast from the latitude of Philadelphia 
 to Newfoundland, no fish could be 
 caught within three miles of the coast, 
 not a skin taken in the forests, nor an 
 emigrant live upon the soil without 
 their consent. The Ilolanders at the 
 Hague were little moved by this order 
 from the Plymouth Company, nor were 
 the French, for a little later the captain 
 of a b'rcnch vessel, anchored in the 
 mouth of the Hudson River, attempted 
 to set up the arms of France there, and 
 take possession of the country in the 
 name of his King. 
 
 At that time there were thousands 
 of refugees from persecution in the 
 Xetherlands. Among these were many 
 of French extraction, who spoke the 
 French language, called Walloons. 
 They were a hardy, industrious and 
 skillful race of men and women, and 
 ranked among the most thrifty, honest 
 and religious inhabitants. The\' heard 
 the enticing stories of the beauty and 
 fertility of \'irginia, and some of them 
 desired to emigrate to America. They 
 applied to the London Company, but 
 the terms were not liberal enough. The 
 States-General, hearing of the move- 
 ment commended them to the Dutch 
 West India Company. An agreement 
 was made with several families, and in 
 the spring of 1623, they were ready 
 for departure for their new home. 
 
 The emigrants, consisting of thirty 
 families, with agricultural implements, 
 cows, horses, sheep and swine, arrived 
 in Xew York Harbor in May. They 
 were under command of Cornelius 
 Jacobsen May, of Hoorn, who was to 
 lemain in New Netherlands as first di- 
 rector or governor. His lieutenant was 
 Adrien Joris. On their arrival they 
 found the French mentioned above ly- 
 ing at anchor. The yacht Mackerel 
 had just come down the Hudson. She 
 compelled the French vessel to leave. 
 He went round to the Delaware and re- 
 ceived similar treatment, when he 
 sailed for I'rance. This ended the at- 
 tempts of tlie French to assert juris- 
 diction below the forty-fiftli parallel. 
 
68 
 
 THE HOME AUXILIARY AXD REFERENCE 
 
 Some of the emigrants, it is said, 
 settled on Long Island and founded 
 the city of Brooklyn, now part of 
 "Greater New York :" others went up 
 tlic Connecticut River to a point near 
 the site of Hartford and built Fort 
 Good Hope, others planted themselves 
 in the present Ulster County, in New 
 York, and others founded Albany, 
 where the Dutch had a fort called Fort 
 ( )range. Others, it is said, settled on 
 the Delaware, then called the South 
 River, near the month of Timber 
 Creek, below the site of Philadelphia. 
 
 \\''hen May's lieutenant, Joris, re- 
 turned to Amsterdam with a ship laden 
 with furs, and reported the success of 
 the settlers, the Company sent out ships 
 with cattle, horses, sheep, swine, farm- 
 ing implements and seeds for their use, 
 and more emigrants. 
 
 The English were now in league with 
 the Dutch against the Spanish. This 
 promised non-interference on the part 
 of the Engish, and the Dutch ^\'est In- 
 dia Company proceeded to lay the poli- 
 tical foundations of a state in New 
 Netherland. 
 
 They commissioned Peter Alinuit 
 governor, with a council of seven men, 
 a secretary of state, who also kept the 
 Company's accounts, and a sheriff, who 
 was public prosecutor and manager of 
 the revenue. The council was invested 
 with full powers, both civil and crimi- 
 nal, except in capital cases, which were 
 to be tried in Holland. The council 
 were under the jurisdiction of the .Am- 
 sterdam College or Chamber of Nine- 
 teen. 
 
 Governor Minuit arrived in IManhat- 
 tan at the beginning of ^lay. 1626. He 
 at once opened negotiations with the 
 Indians for the purchase of the island, 
 so as to procure a more valid title than 
 that of discovery and occupation. It 
 was purchased for the West India 
 Company for twenty-four dollars and 
 was estimated to contain twenty-two 
 thousand acres. A fort was built 
 where the "P)attery" now stands, and 
 named Fort Amsterdam, and after- 
 ward the city which grew up there was 
 called New Amsterdam. 
 
 About this time an event occurred 
 
 which had a serious effect on the future 
 success of the colony. Two adult In- 
 chans and a small boy, of a tribe in 
 \\"estchester County, went from their 
 homes to the Dutch settlement with 
 beaver skins for barter. Near a pond 
 which was situated where the "Tombs" 
 prison now stands, the two Indians 
 were murdered and their skins stolen. 
 The boy escaped. He vowed ven- 
 geance: and in after years, when he 
 was a stalwart brave, he fearfully exe- 
 cuted his vow. The murder was im- 
 known to the Dutch authorities for a 
 long time, so the guilty men probably 
 escaped punishment. 
 
 The Company took measures im- 
 mediately to secure their title to the 
 domain by more extended occupation. 
 They had taken possession of the 
 country before their final organization, 
 by virtue of their charter, because they 
 knew how jealous were the English : 
 and to give a show of actual occupa- 
 tion, they had sent trading vessels 
 which bore instructions to the officers 
 of Manhattan and on the North River. 
 and, as we have seen, proceeded to 
 build fortifications. 
 
 Within seventeen years from the dis- 
 covery of the Hudson, the foundations 
 of the great commonwealth of New 
 York were laid by families, most of 
 whom were voluntary exiles from their 
 native land for the sake of freedom of 
 thought and action. These were the 
 first seeds of the State. To these were 
 added genuine Hollanders, who 
 brought with them the principles of 
 toleration, which lie at the foundations 
 of a truly Christian State. 
 
 New Amsterdam gave to the state 
 and nation a race in whose veins 
 courses the blood of the Teuton, Saxon. 
 Celt and Gaul. The colonists from 
 Holland exhibited from the beginning, 
 a more enlarged vision of the rights of 
 conscience and respect for the dignity 
 of personal freedom, than any other 
 of the early American settlers. 
 
 Their passion for far-reaching com- 
 merce and adventurous enterprise has 
 ever hovered over Manhattan Island 
 like a tutelar deity, during all its social 
 and political vicissitudes, and has made 
 
SECOND PF.RIOD— SETTLiaiENTS 
 
 69 
 
 Xcw York City llic commercial empor- 
 ium of the \\'estern Continent. 
 
 NEW IlAMPSniRE AXD AlAIXE. 
 
 Sir Ferdinando Gorges and Captain 
 John Mason obtained a patent for the 
 country along the coast of New Eng- 
 land, between the Merrimac and Ken- 
 nebec Rivers, and back to the St. Eaw- 
 rcnce, under the title of the "Province 
 of Laconia." It was represented to be 
 a terrestrial paradise in beauty and fer- 
 tility. Mason and Gorges had agreed 
 to (livide their territory at the Piscata- 
 (|ua River, and in 1629 the former ob- 
 tained a patent for the country between 
 that river and the Merrimac, and gave 
 it the name of New Hampshire. He 
 built a house at the mouth of the Pisca- 
 taqua, in 1631, and named the spot 
 I'ortsmouth. Four years after he died. 
 These settlers were now left to them- 
 selves to fashion an independent state, 
 but it was of slow growth. There was 
 then only one agricultural settlement 
 in all New England, excc])ting in Mas- 
 sachusetts, and scarcely tlie germ of a 
 state had appeared. The colonists were 
 mostly squatters and moved from place 
 to place. Feeble and scattered settle- 
 ments grew in New Hampshire, and in 
 1641 these formed a union with the 
 flourishing colony of Massachusetts, 
 and remained a part of that colony un- 
 til 1680, when it became a royal pro- 
 vince. Then was laid the foundation 
 of the commonwealth of New Hamp- 
 shire. 
 
 The Plymouth Company being dis- 
 solved, Ferdinando Gorges was ap- 
 pointed Governor-General over New 
 England, he sent his nephew, William 
 Gorges, as his lieutenant, to administer 
 the government. He made his head- 
 quarters at Saco, where he founrl 
 about one hundred and fifty inhabi- 
 tants. He established a regular gov- 
 ernment on the 28th of March. 1636, 
 the first within the state of Maine. 
 Soon after, a royal charter made the 
 elder Gorges lord proprietor of a large 
 territory in that region called the "Pro- 
 \ince and County of Maine." He made 
 laws for his domain, but they were 
 
 little heeded in .America. He lived for 
 eight years after his ap])ointment, and 
 soon after his death the ]jrovince passed 
 under the jurisdiction of Massachu- 
 setts. 
 
 MARYLAND. 
 
 Sir George Cahert had taken great 
 interest, from early youth, in the dis- 
 covery and settlement of foreign coun- 
 tries. He was a member of the London 
 Company, by whom Virginia had been 
 colonized. He purchased a part of 
 Newfoundland, named his domain 
 Avalon, and at once, in 1620, took 
 measures to plant a colony there, and 
 failed. 
 
 In 161 7, Calvert had been Knighted 
 by his King, and in i6ic^ was made one 
 of the principal Secretaries of State. 
 He was then thirty-seven years of age. 
 In the summer of 1624, his leanings 
 toward the Roman Catholic Church be- 
 came so palpable that he was compelled 
 to relinquish his secretaryship. The 
 following March he was appointed by 
 King James to the Irish peerage as 
 "Baron of Baltimore," in the County 
 of Longford. 
 
 He made an attempt to found a 
 colony in Newfoundland, and took his 
 family there, but the climate was so 
 rigorous in winter that he abandoned 
 it. The Roman Catholics in England 
 were suffering much persecution at that 
 time from the Puritans oil one side, 
 who were daily increasing in strength, 
 and from the Church of England on 
 the other. And this is what induced 
 Lord Baltimore to make the attempt to 
 found a colony in Newfoundland, to 
 make an asylum for them in America. 
 In the spring of 1629, he sent his chil- 
 dren home, and at the beginning of 
 autumn, with his wife and retainers, 
 sailed for Virginia, arriving at James- 
 town in October. Being a Roman 
 Catholic he was not allowed to settle 
 there, .so leaving his wife and retainers 
 to winter there, he returned to Eng- 
 land. 
 
 Lord Baltimore, while in England, 
 obtained a patent for the territory south 
 of the James River, and returned for 
 his wife and retainers in 1630. The 
 
70 
 
 THE HOMF. AUXILIARY AN'D REFERENCE 
 
 \'irgiiiia Company made S(i much up- 
 position to his charter that he was in- 
 duced to surrender it and accept one 
 for the territory north and east of the 
 Potomac River, and embracing the 
 Chesapeake Bay, which he explored. 
 
 Lord Baltimore desired to call that 
 chartered territory Crescentia ; but in 
 deference to the King, was named after 
 the queen "Henrietta ]\Iary," and 
 called Mar\<land. Lord Baltimore died 
 in London, in 1632. 
 
 The territory defined in tlie charter 
 extended on each side of the Chesa- 
 peake Bay, from the fortieth degree to 
 the mouth of the Potomac, and west- 
 ward along the line of that river. 
 
 This charter gave greater democratic 
 privileges to the settlers than any yet 
 issued by monopolist or monarch. It 
 declared that the territory was "out of 
 the plentitude of royal power :" the 
 people were exempted from taxation by 
 the crown, except by their own con- 
 sent; and other important political 
 privileges were secured to them. It 
 silently allowed religious toleration. 
 While it was in accordance with the 
 Church of England, the matter of state 
 theology was left to the legislative 
 powers of the colonists. This pro- 
 moted the growth of the colony when 
 it was established. For those who were 
 persecuted for religion, went thither 
 and found peace. In the charter, it 
 stated that no laws were to be made, 
 without the consent of the freemen of 
 the colony, or their representatives con- 
 voked in general assembly. This was 
 the first instance of any provisions hav- 
 ing been made in an American patent 
 for securing to the citizens a share in 
 legislation. 
 
 Lord Baltimore's son Cecil, now 
 Lord Baltimore, armed with this char- 
 ter, set about the business of colonizing 
 his domain. He appointed his half- 
 brother, Leonard Calvert, governor ; 
 and on the 22d of November, 1633, that 
 kinsman and his brother, "with near 
 twenty gentlemen, and three hundred 
 laboring men" (so Lord Baltimore 
 wrote), "sailed in two ships, the Ark 
 and Dove. The greater portion of the 
 laborers were not protestants. The 
 
 emigrants were accompanied by two 
 Jesuit priests. Fathers Andrew White 
 and John Altham. 
 
 They took the southern route, and 
 late in February, 1634. sailed in be- 
 tween the Capes of Virginia. They 
 touched at Point Comfort and then 
 went up to Jamestown. They then 
 sailed for the Chesapeake and into the 
 broad mouth of the Potomac River. 
 They named this stream St. Gregory, 
 in honor of a Pope of that name. The 
 colonists sailed up the Potomac to the 
 Heron Islands, and on Blackstone 
 (which they named St. Clements) they 
 landed at a little past March. 
 
 Calvert now made a treaty of peace 
 with the Piscataways, who were the rul- 
 ing tribe of that region, and going to 
 their village called Piscataway, above 
 Alt. \'ernon, the chief readily gave 
 them permission to settle anywhere 
 within his empire, near him or more 
 distant. Calvert thought it better to 
 settle nearer the mouth of the Poto- 
 mac, and returned to St. Clements. 
 Ihere he found the natives friendly 
 and familiar. The governor now ex- 
 l^lored the Wicomico Ri\er, emptying 
 into another one (which they called St. 
 George ) twelve miles upward, and an- 
 chored at an Indian village of the same 
 name, where he and his com])any were 
 hospitably entertained that night. Af- 
 ter holding a friendly conversation 
 with the reigning sachem, he deter- 
 mined to plant his first settlement there, 
 and make Wicomico the capital. 
 
 He possessed delegated powers to 
 take possession of the country without 
 leave or reward, but he believed that 
 there was more profit in honor than 
 dishonor. He entered into a treaty 
 with the sachem to purchase a large 
 portion of his domain. Calvert gave 
 the Indians some English cloth, axes, 
 hoes, rakes, knives, and some trinkets 
 for the women of little value, for about 
 thirty miles of territory, including the 
 village ; and he named the domain 
 "Augusta Carolina." The Indians 
 gave up to the colonists, for their im- 
 mediate use, one-half of their village. 
 Their houses were of "an oblong and 
 oval shape," with a window in the roof, 
 
SECOND PERIOD— SETTLliMENTS 
 
 wliicli adinitteci light ami allowed the 
 smoke to escape from the fire built in 
 the middle of the room. They also 
 agreed to give the settlers one-half of 
 their corn grounds, which they were 
 then planting, and after the harvest the 
 wiiole of the purchased domain was to 
 be given up to the Britons. They mut- 
 ually agreed to protect each other from 
 injury, and were to be allies in war. 
 The King regarded this as essential, 
 for he wished a powerful ally, his terri- 
 tory having been desolated, and his 
 subjects driven from their homes by 
 the powerful "Susquehanocs" of the 
 north. 
 
 On the 27th of March, 1634, Calvert 
 look formal possession of the territory. 
 The vessels came from St. Clements 
 with the remainder of the emigrants. 
 They built a storehouse and a small 
 battery and planted a portion of the 
 soil. There the governor, in April, 
 with imposing ceremonies, named the 
 .'■ettlement St. Mary's. The settlers 
 immediately began to build, aided by 
 the really gentle Indians. Governor 
 Harvey, of Mrginia, visited the settle- 
 ment, and was received by Governor 
 Calvert with great ceremony. He gave 
 a banquet to Harvey and several of the 
 neighboring Indian chiefs. 
 
 These settlers seemed to be exempted 
 from the distresses which had befallen 
 the earlier emigrants to other colonies. 
 The surrounding native inhabitants 
 were friendly ; they had a genial cli- 
 mate, general good health prevailed : 
 they had abimdance of food and the 
 soil \ielded to moderate tillage, abun- 
 dant fruit. They were vested with 
 peculiar civil privileges ; were not ham- 
 ])ered by religious restrictions, and a 
 year after they had established their 
 capital of St. Mary's, a legislative as- 
 sembly, composed of the whole people 
 — a purely democratic legislature — con- 
 vened there. In 1639, a representative 
 government was established, the peo- 
 ple being allowed to send as many dele- 
 gates as they pleased. Then was 
 founded the republican commonwealth 
 of Maryland. 
 
 CONNECTICUT. 
 
 So early as 1623, the agents of the 
 Dutch West India Company seems to 
 have taken possession of the Connecti- 
 cut River ( which was named by its 
 discoverer, "Block," the "Freshwater") 
 and the lands drained by its tributaries, 
 in the name of the Company and the 
 States-General of Holland. By seiz- 
 ing one of the Indian chiefs they ex- 
 asperated the natives, and were com- 
 pelled to build a fort to protect them- 
 selves at what is yet known as Dutch 
 Point, near the site of the present city 
 of Hartford. When the Indians were 
 pacified, at their request the fort was 
 abandoned. 
 
 A friendly intercourse now opened 
 up between the Dutch and the English 
 at New Plymouth. In the spring of 
 1627, Governor Minuit officially in- 
 formed Governor Bradford, of Plym- 
 outh, that a settlement had been 
 founded on the Hudson River, and that 
 the Hollanders wished to cultivate 
 friendly and commercial relations with 
 the Pilgrims. Bradford replied that he 
 wished friendly intercourse with the 
 Dutch, but they must not occupy or 
 trade in the country north of the for- 
 tieth parallel, as that region was 
 claimed by the English. The Dutch 
 answered that they obtained their 
 rights from the States-General of Hol- 
 land. Bradford did not answer this 
 letter, as the strength of the Dutch ex- 
 ceeded that of the English. 
 
 The Dutch now sent a commission to 
 Plymouth to' confer on all matters ot 
 intercourse. That mission opened a 
 profitable trade between the two settle- 
 ments, and led to the speedy planting 
 of an English colony in the A'alley of 
 the Connecticut. 
 
 The Dutch advised the Pilgrims to 
 leave their sterile soil and make their 
 home in the fertile country on the 
 banks of the Fresh Water River. At 
 the same time the Mohegan tribe of 
 Indians offered Governor Winthrop, 
 of Massachusetts, in i'')3i, to give them 
 lands and an annual tribute if they 
 would do so. The Indians' object was 
 tc ])Iant a barrier between them and the 
 
THE HOME AUXILIARY AND REFERENCE 
 
 war-like Pequods. whose seat was on 
 the hills between Newfoundland and 
 Stonington. The Puritans would not 
 consent to become subjects of the 
 Dutch, nor a shield for the Indians. 
 
 In 1632, Edward Winslow, one ot 
 the Puritans, visited that region along 
 tJie Connecticut River, and confirmed 
 all that had been said as to its beauty 
 and fertility. The lame of it had al- 
 ready reached Old England and two 
 years before Winslow's visit a charter 
 had been granted for liie territory ex- 
 tending "in a certain width through the 
 mainland there, from the Atlantic to 
 the Pacific Oceans" to the Earl of 
 Warwick, who conveyed it to Lord Say 
 and Seal, Lord Brook, Mr. Saltonstail 
 and others, in 1632. The Dutch pur- 
 chased the territories from the Indians, 
 the rightful owners, and completed a 
 fort already begun on Dutch Point, 
 named it Fort Good Hope, and armed 
 it with cannon. 
 
 The New England colonies now pro- 
 posed an alliance for the taking of im- 
 mediate possession of the valley. Win- 
 throp refused to join them. But sent 
 a message to the Dutch, in a formal 
 way, telling them that the country be- 
 longed to the English and they must 
 not build there. Governor Van Twiller 
 answered, requesting him to defer his 
 claim until their respective govern- 
 ments should define the limit of the 
 colonies. At the same time Van Twil- 
 ler informed him that the Dutch had 
 already purchased the soil and "set up 
 a house with intent to plant." 
 
 The Plymouth settlers "purchased a 
 tract of land above Fort Good Hope 
 from a number of banished Indians, 
 from the Connecticut \'alley ( families 
 driven away w-ith their chief by the 
 Pequodj), prepared a house of wood 
 and stowed it on board a boat com- 
 manded by Capt. Wm Holmes. They 
 sailed with these savages and some 
 Englishman and approached Fort Good 
 Hope, the commander of the fort or- 
 dered them back, but they kept on, and 
 without molestation landed above. 
 1 lastily erecting the house they had 
 hrought with them, they took posses- 
 sion ot the country, and prepared to 
 
 maintain their position. This house 
 was built on the site of Windsor, Con- 
 necticut. So was begun the first Eng- 
 lish settlement in the region, in die 
 autumn of 1633. The Dutch stormed 
 at this intrusion, but the matter was 
 finally referred to the authorities at 
 Amsterdam. Before an answer could 
 arrive, the subject became mixed with 
 another of a serious nature. A Cap- 
 tain Stone had been on a trading voy- 
 age from Massachusetts to Virginia, on 
 his return he sailed up the Connecticut 
 River to trade with the Dutch garrison 
 at Fort Good Hope. He and his com- 
 panions were treacherously seized and 
 murdered by the Pequods. This crime 
 was soon followed by the massacre of 
 some Indians friendly to the Dutch. 
 Then the Dutch seized a guilty jld 
 sachem and some of his followers and 
 hanged them. The Pequods flew to 
 arms and made a treaty with the Eng- 
 lish, in which they were to give them 
 the Connecticut \'alley and surrender 
 the murderers of Captain Stone, for 
 their passive friendship. So Winthrop 
 gained a great advantage over Brad- 
 ford, and both parties won powerful al- 
 lies, as they supposed, in the expelling 
 of the Dutch from the \'alley. At the 
 same time the position and security of 
 the settlers at Windsor were strength- 
 ened. 
 
 The Dutch, at this time, received in- 
 structions to maintain their position at 
 all hazards. They sent an expedftion 
 against Windsor. The latter made a 
 bold stand. After a parley the Dutch 
 withdrew and friendly relations were 
 established. The question as to whom 
 tlie Valley of the Connecticut belonged 
 was not considered and an influx of 
 immigrants from Massachusetts Baj' 
 followed. In the autumn of 1635, sixty 
 Puritan men, women and children 
 joined the colony at Windsor. In Oc- 
 tober immigrants started from !Massa- 
 chusetts Bay, settled Wethersfield, on 
 the site of Plartford. 
 
 Governor \Vinthrop's son John, then 
 twenty-nine years of age, now arrived 
 at Boston with a commission from the 
 proprietors of the soil of Connecticut 
 territory, as governor. His joint coin- 
 
SECOND PERIOD— SETTLEMENTS 
 
 73 
 
 niissioners were Hugh Peters and 
 Harry \'ane, respectively thirty-five 
 and twenty- four years of age. They 
 were instructed to build a fort and 
 plant a colony at the mouth of the Con- 
 necticut River. The Dutch were driven 
 away, and the dispute between tlie 
 Massachusetts Bay and the Plymouth 
 people in regard to the possession of the 
 territory was amicably settled. This 
 made way for the emigration of the 
 English to the valley, which occurred 
 in the summer of 1636. That summer. 
 Rev. Thomas Hooker, a non-conformist 
 minister, led lOO men, women and chil- 
 dren, with over 150 head of cattle, to the 
 Connecticut \^alley. They arrived in 
 July, and some settled at \\'ethersfiel(I, 
 some at Hartford and some went fur- 
 ther up the river and settled Spring- 
 field. There were now five feeble 
 settlements in the Connecticut \'alley. 
 One named in honor of Lords Say and 
 P.rook, was called Saybrook, it was 
 near the fort at the mouth of the river. 
 
 Soon after this the settlers faced a 
 storm, which seemed ready to sweep 
 the little settlements from the face of 
 the earth in a moment. The Pequods 
 who were jealous of the English be- 
 cause the latter appeared to be friendly 
 with the Mohegans on the west and 
 Xarragansetts on the east, the bitter 
 enemies of this war-like tribe. Sassa- 
 cus, a brave but treacherous sachem, 
 vias ruler, and held sway over twenty- 
 six inferior tribes, and his domain ex- 
 tended from Narragansett Bay to the 
 Hudson River, and over Long Island. 
 He had the unbounded admiration of 
 his warriors, who would follow him 
 anywhere, and of whom there was al- 
 most two thousand. Seeing the power 
 of the English in garrison at Saybrook, 
 and knowing that more would join 
 them, he resolved to exterminate the 
 intruders. He tried every means to in- 
 duce the Mohegans and Narragansetts 
 to become his allies. 
 
 They kidnapped children, murdered 
 Englishmen found alone, and destroyed 
 or made captive families found on the 
 borders of the settlements. Intending 
 to exterminate the English in rletail. 
 They captured a Massachusetts trading 
 
 vessel on Block Island, plundered the 
 vessel and killed the commander. 
 
 An expidition was sent out by the 
 authorities in Boston, they killed a few- 
 Indians, burnt some wigwams and de- 
 stroyed crops. The expedition, weak 
 in numbers and injudiciously con- 
 ducted, was looked upon with contempt 
 by the savages, and intensified their 
 hatred of the white intruders. 
 
 The Pec|uods were now on the point 
 of inducing the Narragansetts to join 
 them in a war of extermination, when 
 at this critical juncture. Roger Wil- 
 liams, who had been driven from ]\Ias- 
 sachusetts by persecution and had 
 taken refuge with the Xarragansetts, 
 who had learned to love and respect 
 him, heard of the proposed alliance and 
 perceived the danger. L^nmindful of 
 the wrongs he had suffered from the 
 Puritans, he hastened in an open boat, 
 on a stormy day, across Narragansett 
 Bay, to the dwelling of Miantonomoh, 
 near the site of Newport, on Rhode Is- 
 land. He was acting in place of his 
 uncle (the chief Cononicus), who was 
 very old, and was revered by them all. 
 
 He there found ambassadors from 
 Sassacus, and at the peril of his life he 
 prevented the alliance with the Pe- 
 quods, and induced Narragansett chiefs 
 to go to Boston, where they concluded 
 a treaty of peace and alliance with the 
 colonists. 
 
 The Pequods kept the settlements in 
 constant fear all the autumn and win- 
 ter. They plundered and murdere't, 
 and finally attacked Wetherfield, killed 
 se\eral and captured two girls. They 
 had now slain more than thirty Eng- 
 lishmen. 
 
 At this time there were in the colon- 
 ies two brave soldiers, who had served 
 in the Netherlands. These were Cap- 
 tains John Mason and John LTnderhill. 
 Mason was in Connecticut and L'nder- 
 hill was in Massachusetts, where he 
 had been brought from England by 
 Winthrop. Underbill was now placed 
 ni command of about two hundred men 
 to help the people in the Connecticut 
 \ alley in the war. The settlers m the 
 valley placed, under Mason, ninety 
 men who rendezvoused at Harttord 
 
THE IIOMIC AUXILIARY AXU RKFEREXCE 
 
 With twenty of them the captain has- 
 tened to reinforced the garrison at Say- 
 hrook. There he found Underhill, with 
 an equal number of men. Mason hur- 
 ried back, assembled his whole force, 
 with these and seventy warriors of the 
 Mohegans, under Uncas, he marched 
 down to the fort. Uncas was of the 
 royal blood of the Pequods, but was 
 now in open rebellion against Sassacus, 
 and a fugitive. He gladly joined the 
 English against his enemy. As the war 
 was begun by the Connecticut people, 
 Captain Mason was regarded and 
 obeyed as the commander-in-chief of 
 the expedition. 
 
 It was determined to go into the 
 Xarragansett country and march 
 against the rear of the Pequods. The 
 expedition, in three vessels, sailed east- 
 ward, and the savages concluded that 
 the English had abandoned the Con- 
 necticut \'alley in despair. This was a 
 fatal mistake on their part, they relaxed 
 their vigilance and the whites, joined 
 by two hundred Narragansets and as 
 many Niantics, marched swiftly to- 
 ward the stronghold of the Pequods. 
 This stronghold was a few miles north 
 of Xew London and Sonington, on a 
 hill near the Mystic River. 
 
 Early on a June morning, in the 
 bright moonlight, the stronghold was 
 taken by assault, and in one hour, seven 
 hundred men, women and children per- 
 ished in the flames. Sassacus was not 
 in the fort, and on hearing of the fate 
 of his people, escaped and sought 
 refuge among the Mohawks. 
 
 The remnant of the Pequods were 
 searched out and exterminated without 
 mercy, with the exception of a few 
 who surrendered. Sassacus was as- 
 sasinated by the Mohawks and his scalp 
 sent to the English. A blow had been 
 struck which gave peace to New Eng- 
 land forty years. Uncas remained a 
 firm friend of the English, and was 
 buried near the falls of the Yantic, in 
 the city of Norwich, where a granite 
 monument, erected by the descendants 
 of his white friends, marks the place 
 of his sepulchre. 
 
 In 1637, there arrived in Pioston, the 
 Rev, John Davenport, a popular Puri- 
 
 tan preacher from London : Theophilus 
 Eaton, a rich London merchant, and a 
 third was Edward Hopkins, another 
 rich London merchant. They were 
 both members of Mr. Davenport's con- 
 gregation and much attached to him. 
 Their creed was, that you could carry 
 out in practice the idea of finding in 
 the Scriptures a special rule for every- 
 thing in church and state. For the 
 purpose of trying an experiment in 
 government on the basis of that idea, 
 ^Ir. Eaton and a small party settled 
 on the banks of a stream, which the 
 Indians called Ouinnipiack, which 
 emptied into a charming harbor on the 
 north side of Long Island Sound. 
 That was the site of Xev\' Haven, Con- 
 necticut. In the spring of 1638, Mr. 
 Davenport joined his friends on the 
 Ouinnipiack, with a company of Lon- 
 don merchants, and in proportion to 
 their number, they formed the richest 
 colony in America. They purchased 
 the land from the Indians and pro- 
 ceeded to plant the seeds of a new 
 state, according to their peculiar ideas. 
 The settlement was to be governed bv 
 the Word of God (the Bible), and 
 none should be allowed to settle there 
 without their consent, whether they 
 came in by purchase or otherwise. In 
 1640 they named the settlement Neiv 
 Haven. 
 
 People from Ouinnipiack and the 
 A'alley now settled Fairfield, Norwalk, 
 Guilford and Stratford, and Milford 
 on the Housatonic. Others settled as 
 far westward as Greenwich. The 
 Dutch, however, continued in posses- 
 sion of their lands at Fort Good Hope, 
 and a small garrison was kept there. 
 When the English became strong in 
 numbers, they paid little respect to the 
 rights of the Hollanders. They 
 ploughed up their lands and excused 
 themselves with the plea that the soil 
 was lying idle and ought to be culti- 
 vated by somebody. 
 
 In the middle of January, 1639, a con- 
 \ontion was called to meet at Hartford, 
 to frame a constitution of government. 
 Like that of the X^ew Haven colony. 
 It was framed without the slightest 
 reference to anv other government. 
 
SECONM) PKRK )!)— SICTTLICMENTS 
 
 This instrument whicli lias Ixx-n 
 spoken of as the "first example in his- 
 tory of a written constitution — a dis- 
 tinct organic law. constituting a gov- 
 ernment and defining its powers," and 
 which recognized no authority outside 
 of its own inherent potency, continued 
 in force as the fundamental law of 
 Connecticut one hundred and eighty 
 years. It secured for that common- 
 wealth a degree of social order and 
 general prosperity rarely equalled in 
 the life of nations. The political c- 
 ganization under it was called the Con- 
 necticut Colony, and the domain ac- 
 quired the title of "the land of steady 
 hahits." The two colonies were not 
 united until twenty-six years later, but 
 in 1639, was laid the foundations of the 
 commonwealth of Connecticut. 
 
 RHODE ISLAND. 
 
 Narraganset Bay was discovered and 
 thoroughly explored by Block, the 
 Dutch navigator, as early as 1614, 
 when he gave the name of Roode Ey- 
 landt or Red Island to the insular do- 
 main on its eastern side, now known as 
 Rhode Island. New Netherland 
 claimed the territory as far east as 
 Narraganset Bay and westward from 
 that line of longitude to Canada. That 
 claim was made at about the time 
 Roger Williams, the founder of the 
 commonwealth of Rhode Island, 
 sought refuge from persecution in the 
 forests on the borders of Narraganset 
 Bay. 
 
 Mr. Williams was a Welsh Puritan, 
 educated in England. At the age of 
 thirty-two years he fled from persecu- 
 tions to New England, where he ar- 
 rived in 163 1, with his beautiful wife 
 Mary. He was soon appointed assis- 
 tant minister in the church at Salem, 
 where he offended the ruling powers 
 in both churches and state by his views 
 respecting the freedom of conscience. 
 He withdrew to Plymouth and after 
 two years returned to Salem and be- 
 came pastor of the congregation to 
 whom he had ministered as assistant. 
 His views again got him in conflict 
 with the authorities, for he maintained 
 
 that there was an aljsolute and eternal 
 distinction between the functions of the 
 ci\il government and the Christian 
 Church. 
 
 Late in the year 1635, he was ban- 
 ished from the colony, but through 
 the intercession of influential friends, 
 the time of his departure was extended 
 until the following spring. He now 
 taught his doctrines with more fervor, 
 and boldly proclaimed himself in his 
 opinions. This was too much for his 
 people and the authorities in church 
 and state, and it was resolved to send 
 the "troubler" back to England. He 
 had refused a summons to appear be- 
 fore the magistrate at Boston. Cap- 
 tain L'nderhill had been sent with a 
 warrant to arrest him, but he had been 
 informed, and kindly, but secretly ad- 
 vised by Ex-Governor Winthrop to 
 "steer his canoe to the Narraganset 
 Bay and Indians ;" and when Underbill 
 arrived he had been gone three day.i. 
 He made his way alone, through the 
 forests and the deep snow, to the house 
 of Massasoit, the venerable sachem of 
 the Wampanoags, where he was 
 warmly welcomed. The sachem gave 
 him a tract of land on the Seekonk 
 River, eastward of the site of Provi- 
 dence, at which place he and some 
 friends who had joined him seated 
 themselves, in the spring of 1636. 
 Some distance above them, on the See- 
 konk or Pawtucket River, was a soli- 
 tary settler named William Blackstone. 
 He was a non-conformist minister who 
 disliked the "lords brethren" of Massa- 
 chusetts as much as the "lords bishops" 
 of England. This place he had named 
 Rehoboth-room. He was the first set- 
 tler, but not the founder of Rhode Is- 
 land, for he refused to join Williams 
 and his friends. 
 
 The new colony was just about to be- 
 gin and plant near the present Man- 
 ton's Cove, when they received a letter 
 from Governor Winslow, saying they 
 were within the jurisdiction of the 
 Plymouth Colony, and as he did not 
 wish to offend the "the Bay" and de- 
 sired that exiles should not be dis- 
 turbed, he advised them to pass to the 
 other side of the Seekonk, where they 
 
76 
 
 THE TIOME AUXILIARY A\D RHFERENCE 
 
 would be beyond the juri^diclion of 
 both colonies on the coast. 
 
 The settlers heeded this kind and 
 wise advice, and in June settled at the 
 mouth of the Mooshansic River. Wil- 
 liams named the spot Pvovidcncc, and 
 tledicated it as "a shelter for persons 
 distressed for conscience.' 
 
 Williams purchased the land from 
 the aged Canonicus and the younger 
 Aliantonamoh, who had learned to love 
 him. The land was obtained not for 
 money, but through the personal in- 
 fluence of the men who there estab- 
 lished a pure democracy, under the fol- 
 lowing simple articles of agreement : 
 
 "W'e. whose names are hereunder 
 written, being desirous to inhabit in 
 the town of Providence, do promise to 
 submit ourselves, in active or passive 
 obedience, to all such orders or agree- 
 ments as shall be made for public good, 
 by the body in an orderh- way, by the 
 major consent of the inhabitants, mas- 
 ters of families, incorporated together 
 into a township, and such others as 
 they shall admit into the same, only in 
 civil things." 
 
 Every man was required to sign this 
 compact, which left him free in all but 
 "civil things." The conscience was left 
 absolutely free. 
 
 During the Pequod war, we have 
 mentioned William's services to the 
 Puritans in Massachu.setts and Con- 
 necticut, for which they showed no 
 gratitude. 
 
 A brilliant and beautiful woman 
 named Anne Hutchinson, a sister of 
 the Rev. John Wheelwright, aroused 
 the enmity of the authorities in Boston, 
 through her preachings. She and her 
 followers were invited by Williams to 
 settle in the land of the Narragansets. 
 They purchased from the Indians the 
 beautiful island of Aquetneck, now 
 Rhode Island ; and at the close of 
 March, 1638, they began a settlement 
 at Portsmouth, near its northern ex- 
 tremity. They all signed an agreement 
 similiar to the one of Providence 
 Colony. The motto of this colony was : 
 Amor vincit Omnia — "Love is all- 
 powerful." 
 
 I'nwilling to yield allegiance to 
 
 either of the other colonies, Rhode Is- 
 land and Providence settlements 
 sought an independent charter which 
 should unite them in one common- 
 wealth. Through stern bigotry, they 
 had been denied union with the other 
 New England colonies for mutual de- 
 fense. There isolation in case ot 
 trouble with the savages, would be both 
 jierilous and inconvenient. So Mr. 
 \\'illiams was sent to England in 1643, 
 and obtained a charter from the King 
 on the 14th of March, 1644, wdiich con- 
 nected the towns of Providence, Ports- 
 mouth and Newport under the title of 
 "the incorporation of Providence Plan- 
 tations in the Narraganset Bay in New 
 England." 
 
 The charter which he bore to the 
 people on the banks of the Narragan- 
 set was the corner-stone of a state. 
 Then was founded the commonwealth 
 of Rhode Island. 
 
 DELAWARE. 
 
 The Dutch, to stimfllate emigration 
 to their colony in New Netherland, 
 granted a charter of "Privileges and 
 Exemptions" to the Dutch ^^■est India 
 Company, in 1629. 
 
 This charter gave them the right to 
 grant to each settler, as much land as 
 he was able to improve, to offer to 
 every person who should "discover fit 
 places for erecting fisheries or the mak- 
 ing of salt ponds," an absolute property 
 in such discovery. Any member of the 
 Company who should plant a colony of 
 fifty settlers anywhere in the province 
 outside of the Island of Manhattan, 
 was allowed a grant of land sixteen 
 miles along one side of a navigable 
 stream or eight miles on both shores. 
 He had absolute control political and 
 otherwise. 
 
 These proprietors were called "pa- 
 troons" and the settlers under them 
 were to be exempted from all taxes 
 and tribute for the support of the pro- 
 visional government for ten years, and 
 were not to leave the patroon for the 
 same period. Every colonist, whether 
 patroon or independent settler, was 
 liound to make satisfactory arrange- 
 
SECOND PKRIOD— SETTLEMENTS 
 
 77 
 
 ments with the Indians, for the land 
 they should occupy. 
 
 One of these estates, on the Hudson, 
 with some of its privileges, existed un- 
 ti' late in the last century. 
 
 Under this charter, a large tract of 
 land was purchased from the Indians, 
 extending from Cape Henlopen, thirty 
 miles northward and two miles inland, 
 ;uk1 Michael Pauw purchased another, 
 the land around the mouth of the Hud- 
 .son and the whole of Staten Island. 
 
 Immediate steps were taken to settle 
 on this domain, and in April, 1630, 
 thirty settlers, under command of 
 Peter Heyes, with their cattle and im- 
 plements settled near the site of Lewes, 
 Delaware, on Delaware Bay. Two 
 years after, when another expedition 
 sailed to the Delaware, they found the 
 settlement destroyed and the colonists 
 massacred. This crime was forgiven, 
 and the Indians and Hollanders re- 
 mained friends. 
 
 William Usselincx, the projector of 
 the Dutch West India Company, dis- 
 satisfied with his associates in that cor- 
 poration, visited Sweden. The great 
 Gustavus Adolphus was then King, and 
 from reports he had heard, looked with 
 longing eyes on the rich countries in 
 America. He entered warmly into the 
 projects of Usselincx, for planting a 
 colon\- on the Delaware, and was pre- 
 paring an expedition when he was 
 killed in battle. 
 
 Mis Chancellor, Count Oxenstiern, 
 had favored the project, and now be- 
 ing regent of the kingdom, granted a 
 charter to the Swedish West India 
 Company, in 1634. 
 
 Governor Minuit, who had been re- 
 called from New Netherland, because 
 he had favored the grasping patroons 
 too much, offered his experience and 
 personal services to the new company. 
 They were gladly accepted ; and at near 
 the close of 1637, he sailed with fifty 
 emigrants in two vessels, bearing a 
 commission to plant a colony on the 
 west side of Delaware Bay. He landed 
 at the site of Xewcastle. in .\pril, 1638, 
 and purchased from the Indians the 
 whole territory from Cape Henlopen to 
 the falls of the Delaware River at 
 
 Trenton, without the slightest regards 
 for the claims of the Dutch. Then he 
 sailed into the mouth of the river, and 
 anchored in a creek at the site of Wil- 
 mington. They named the place Chris- 
 tiana, in honor of their Queen, and built 
 a fort and a church. The country they 
 named New Sweden. 
 
 The Dutch made a protest against 
 the Swedes making a settlement on 
 what they deemed was their territory, 
 but Minuit paid no attention to this, 
 but built Fort Christiana on the present 
 site of Wilmington, and erected posts 
 for trading. Well acquainted with the 
 Indian traffic from long experience, he 
 soon drew to Christiana a profitable 
 fur trade : and sent back to Sweden 
 cargoes of peltry and other products 
 of the land. The fort was well gar- 
 risoned and provisioned, and the set- 
 tlers there planted and reaped. So was 
 established the first permanent settle- 
 ment on the soil, and then and there 
 was planted the fruitful seed of the 
 commonwealth of Dchnvarc. 
 
 NEW JERSEY. 
 
 Eastward of the Delaware Bay and 
 River (so called in honor of Lord De 
 la \Vare, Governor of Virginia ) lies 
 New Jersey. It was first included in 
 the New Netherland charter. 
 
 In 1622, transient settlements had 
 been made at Bergen, and in the fol- 
 lowing year Director May built a fort 
 at the mouth of the Timber Creek, a 
 few miles below Camden, on the Dela- 
 ware River, and settled some Wal- 
 loons, at the site of the present Glouces- 
 ter. 
 
 This was the first settlement on the 
 soil of New Jersey that lived long, but 
 it, too, withered away in time. Di- 
 rector May gave his name to the cape 
 at the southern extremity of the state 
 (Cape May). 
 
 Michael Pauw, when he made his 
 purchase from the Indians, seven years 
 later, named his territory Pavonia. 
 
 Charles the Second, King of Eng- 
 land, granted a greater portion of the 
 claimed territory of New Netherland 
 to his brother, the Duke of York. The 
 
78 
 
 Til]'. IIOMP: AUXILIARY AND REFliRENCE 
 
 Duke sent a licet and army lo take pos- 
 session of his domain, the task was an 
 easy one, and early in the autumn of 
 
 1664, the province passed into the 
 hands of the English. While the fleet 
 was on the ocean, and without the 
 knowledge of Colonel Richard Nicholls, 
 its commander, and deputy-governor of 
 the province, the Duke granted to two 
 of his favorites, Lord Berkeley, bro- 
 ther of the Governor of Mrginia, and 
 Sir George Carteret, who had been 
 governor of the island of Jersey, which 
 he had gallantly defended against the 
 forces of Cromwell, a charter to the 
 territory extending from Cape May to 
 the latitude of forty degrees and forty 
 minutes north. 
 
 Nicholls had named the territory, on 
 taking possession of New Netherland. 
 New York on the east of the Hudson, 
 and Albania to the west of that river. 
 So honoring his employer, who was 
 Duke of York and Albany. 
 
 Berkeley and Carteret hastended to 
 make use of their patent. They 
 framed a constitution of government 
 for the new colony and named it Nova 
 Caesarea or New Jersey. The consti- 
 tution provided for a governor and 
 council, appointed by the proprietors, 
 and representatives to be chosen by the 
 people, who were to have the choice of 
 a president in the absence of the gov- 
 ernor or his deputy. All legislative 
 power was vested in the Assembly of 
 Representatives. Liberal provisions 
 were made for the encouragement of 
 emigration to New Jersey. 
 
 They appointed Philip Carteret, a 
 cousin of Sir George, governor, and 
 with about thirty emigrants, some of 
 whom were Frenchmen, skilled in the 
 art of salt-making, arrived in July, 
 
 1665. Governor Nicholls was as- 
 tounded by the folly of the Duke in 
 parting with so much of his valuable 
 domain, for he regarded Albania as the 
 "most improvable part of the territory." 
 He was mortified over the dismember- 
 ment of a state over which he had been 
 ruling so many months with pride and 
 satisfaction. 
 
 He received Carteret, however, with 
 all the honors due his rank and station. 
 
 In pursuance of the Duke's orders, 
 Nicholls formally surrendered Al- 
 bania into the quiet possession of Car- 
 teret, and thenceforth that region ap- 
 peared as New Jersey on the maps. 
 
 Carteret entered his domain, as gov- 
 ernor, early in August, with a hoe on 
 his shoulder in token of his intention 
 to become a planter among them. 
 
 He chose for his seat of government 
 a spot on the present site of Elizabeth, 
 which he called Elizabethtown, in 
 honor of the wife of Sir George Car- 
 teret, where he found four English 
 families living in as many neatly built 
 log cabins, with gardens around them. 
 
 He built a house for himself on the 
 banks of the little creek, and there he 
 organized a civil government. So was 
 laid the colony and commonwealth of 
 Xezv Jersey. 
 
 PENNSYLVANL\. 
 
 George Fox, a shoemaker of Leices- 
 tershire, England, was the founder of 
 the sect called Friends or Quakers. 
 This sect preached morality so strict 
 that they were called ascetics. Taking 
 part in war, slavery, lawsuits, intem- 
 perance and profanity of speech, was 
 sufficient reason, if persisted in. for the 
 expulsion of a member from the So- 
 ciety. Their practices so generally 
 agreed with their principles that it was 
 admitted that the profession of a 
 Quaker or Friend was a guarantee of 
 a morality above the level of the 
 world. 
 
 Among the multitude of converts to 
 the doctrines of George Fox was 
 young William Penn, a son of the dis- 
 tinguished admiral of that name. He 
 embraced the doctrines while he was 
 yet in college. On account of his con- 
 victions, he had a long struggle with 
 his father. He was beaten and turned 
 out of doors by his angry parent. For 
 preaching in the streets he was tried in 
 court, and on being acquitted by the 
 jury, was imprisoned for contempt ot 
 court for wearing his hat. The young 
 Quaker was then only about twenty- 
 four years of age. 
 
 Many "Friends" had emigrated to 
 
SECOXn PERIOD— SETTLEMENTS 
 
 America, and two had become pro- 
 prietors of New Jersey. Penn acted as 
 umpire between them in a dispute that 
 arose and so his particular attention 
 was drawn toward this country. He 
 looked with longing eyes across the .A.t- 
 lantic, for a home for himself and his 
 sectarian friends, out of the reach of 
 persecution. 
 
 Jn payment of a debt of eighty 
 thousand dollars, due to his father 
 from the government, he obtained a 
 charter from the crown for a vast terri- 
 tory beyond the Delaware. With the 
 perpetual proprietorship given to him 
 ;ind his heirs, in the fealty of the an- 
 imal payment of two beaver skins. 
 Peim proposed to call the domain 
 "New \\'ales," in honor of the land of 
 his ancestors, but the Welsh secretary 
 of state objected. Then he suggested 
 '".Sylvania" as appropriate for such a 
 woody country. The secretary who 
 drew up the charter prefi.xed the name 
 of Penn to Sylvania. in the document. 
 The proprietor offered him one hun- 
 dred dollars to leave it off. On his re- 
 fusal to do so, Penn complained to the 
 King, who insisted that the province 
 should be called "Pennsylvania," in 
 honor of his dead friend the admiral. 
 .\nd so it was. The domain extended 
 r.orth from Xew Castle, in Delaware, 
 three degrees of latitude, and five de- 
 grees of longitude west from the Dela- 
 ware River. To Penn was given power 
 to ordain all laws with the consent of 
 the freemen, subject to the approval of 
 the King. Xo taxes were to be raised 
 except by the provincial Assembly ; and 
 clergymen of the Angelican Church 
 were to be allowed to reside in the pro- 
 \ince without molestation. 
 
 Penn's charter was granted on the 
 14th of March, 1681. In May he sent 
 his Kinsman William Markham, to 
 take possession of his province and to 
 act as deputy governor. .A large com- 
 pany of emigrants went with him. 
 They were employed by the Company 
 of Free Traders, who had purchased 
 lands in Pennsylvania of the proprietor. 
 They settled near the Delaware. With 
 the help of .Algernon Sidney, the 
 sturdy republican, I'enn drew u]) a 
 
 code of wise, liberal and benevolent 
 regulations for the government of the 
 colony, and sent them to the settlers 
 tlie next year for their approval. It 
 was not a formal constitution, but a 
 body of wholesome laws for the bene- 
 fit of all concerned. 
 
 Penn found that the want of a sea- 
 board for his colony would be a serious 
 bar to its future prosperity. He desired 
 Delaware for that purpose and re- 
 •-olved to have it if possible. It was 
 claimed by Lord Baltimore as a part of 
 Maryland, and had been a matter of 
 disi)ute between him and the Duke ot 
 "S'ork. Penn advised the Duke that 
 Baltimore's claim was "against law, 
 civil and common." The Duke gladly 
 assented to the opinion, and the wise 
 Quaker obtained from the Duke a c[uit- 
 claim deed for the territory comprising 
 the whole State of Delaware, then, as 
 now, divided into three counties, of 
 Newcastle, Kent and Sussex : also for 
 all of his interest in the soil of Penn- 
 sylvania. 
 
 Within a week after the bargain was 
 settled. Penn set sail for .\merica. in 
 the ship Welcome, with about one hun- 
 dred emigrants, many of whom died 
 of small-pox on the voyage. That was 
 at the close of August, 1682. On his 
 arrival at New Castle early in Novem- 
 ber, he found almost a thousand new 
 emigrants there. These, with the three 
 thousand old settlers — Swedes. Dutch, 
 Huguenots. Germans and English — 
 composed materials for the solid foun- 
 dations of a state. There, in the pre- 
 .--ence of the people, he received from 
 the agents of the Duke of York a for- 
 mal surrender into his hands of that 
 fine domain. By this transfer Penn in- 
 herited for himself and descendants a 
 dispute with the proprietors of Maryland. 
 Penn now went many miles up the 
 Delaware River, to the present Ken- 
 sington district of Philadelphia, and 
 there, under a wide-spreading elm, he 
 concluded a treaty with the Indian 
 chiefs, not for the purchase of lands. 
 but to confirm what JMarkham had 
 promised them for him, and to make 
 an everlasting covenant of peace and 
 friendship with them. "We will live 
 
So 
 
 THE HOME AUXILL-\RV AND REFERENCE 
 
 in lii\L' willi William Peiin and hi> 
 children," they said, "as long as the 
 sun and moon shall endure." And they 
 did. Not a drop of the blood of a 
 Quaker was ever shed by an Indian. 
 
 There is no written record of that 
 treaty, made in the open air. on the 
 banks of the Delaware. We have ac- 
 counts of the personal character of the 
 council. Penn was then a graceful 
 man, strong built and of fair complex- 
 ion, and thirty-eight years of age. 
 Most of his companions were younger 
 than himself, and all were dressed in 
 the garb of Quakers. The Indians 
 were clad in the skins of beasts, for it 
 was on the verge of winter. Penn was 
 accompanied by the deputv governor, 
 and a few others : and the Indian 
 sachems brought their wives and chil- 
 dren, who sat upon the ground, mod- 
 estly back. 
 
 Penn now journeyed through New 
 Jersey to New York and Long Island, 
 visiting friends and preaching with 
 fervor. He then returned to the Dela- 
 ware, and on the seventh of November 
 he went to Uplands (now Chester), 
 where he met the first Provincial As- 
 sembly of his province. There he 
 made known his benevolent designs to- 
 ward all men, civilized and savage, and 
 excited the love and reverence of his 
 hearers. The .Assembly tendered their 
 grateful acknowledgments to him, and 
 the Swedes authorized one of their 
 number to say to him in their name that 
 they would "live, serve, and obey him 
 with all they had," declaring that it 
 "was the best day they ever saw." He 
 informed the Assembly of the union of 
 the "territories" fas Delaware was 
 called) with their province. 
 
 Then was laid the foundations of 
 the commonwealth of Pcntisyk'ania. 
 
 From Chester, Penn went to Mary- 
 land to confer with Lord Baltimore, 
 concernmg their boundary lines, but 
 did not make a satisfactory arrange- 
 ment. On his return he went up the 
 Delaware in an open boat to Wicaco, 
 to attend the founding of a city. Be- 
 fore his arrival in this country he had 
 determined to give to the future city 
 the name of Philadelphia — a Greek 
 
 word signifying brotherly love — as a 
 token of the principles in which he in- 
 tended to govern his province. Near 
 a Iilock house, which the Swedes had 
 liuilt and had changed into a church, he 
 purchased lands extending from the 
 banks of the Delaware to those of the 
 Schuylkill. There his surveyors laid 
 out the city of Philadelphia upon a 
 plan which would embrace twelve 
 square miles. 
 
 NORTH AND SOUTH CAROLINA. 
 
 The desire of the white man, to 
 found colonies in the warmer portions 
 of North America, had alwavs been 
 -strong. The efforts -of the English and 
 French had met with failure," and the 
 country south of the James River, in 
 \'irginia, was in the same virgin state 
 as it was when discovered. Some few 
 settlers went there to find homes or 
 in search of fortune, but no permanent 
 settlements were made until after the 
 middle of the seventeenth century. 
 
 Captain John Smith, in 1609, sent a 
 few colonists, from Jamestown, who 
 settled on the Nansemond River, near 
 the Dismal Swamp. In 1630, Sir 
 Robert Heath, the Attorney-General of 
 Charles the First, obtained a charter 
 for a large region in this section, but 
 it was declared void in 1663, because 
 the agreements had not been fulfilled. 
 
 In 1653, a few Presbyterians, in or- 
 der to escape persecution, left James- 
 town and settled on the Chowan River, 
 near the present village of Edenton. 
 They were joined by others and the 
 settlement grew. In 1661, some New 
 Englanders purchased lands in the 
 vicinity of Cape Fear, and were plant- 
 ing a colony, when they were informed 
 that the whole country had been 
 granted by the King to some of his 
 favorites. Most of the New Eng- 
 huiders returned home, and reported 
 that the soil was poor and the harbor 
 dangerous. 
 
 The above charter or grant was 
 given in March. 1663. It included the 
 region between .■\lbemarle Sound and 
 the .St. John's River, in Florida, and 
 west to the Pacific Ocean. 
 
SECOXD rF.RIOD— SETTLE.MEXTS 
 
 Si 
 
 The colonists on the Chowan Ri\er 
 had now flourished to such an extent 
 that they were organized into a sepa- 
 rate government, under the title of the 
 . ilbcmarlc Count\ colony, so named in 
 honor of Monk, Duke of Albemarle. 
 The colonists were given every free- 
 dom which they could reasonabl}' de- 
 sire, and they were left to grow into an 
 independent state with \ery little hin- 
 drance. 
 
 Two years later some English emi- 
 grants, from Barbadoes, purchased 
 from the Indians thirty-two square 
 miles of land on the Cape Fear River 
 and settled there, this included the 
 country abandoned by the Xew Eng- 
 landers. This was near the present 
 site of \\'ilmington, Xort Carolina. 
 Sir John Yeamans was appointed gov- 
 ernor, with jurisdiction from Cape 
 Fear to the St. John's River. The 
 settlers found on the land were treated 
 very kindl}', and the name Clarendon 
 County Colony was given to the settle- 
 ment. The soil was poor, which re- 
 tarded the growth of the colony as an 
 agricultural settlement. But they soon 
 found, in the immense pine forests, an 
 industry that made them prosperous, 
 they manufactured boards, shingles 
 and staves, and gathered turpentine, 
 for all of which there was a ready sale 
 in the West Indies. The settlement 
 became permanent ; and so, with the 
 organization of the two colonies, the 
 foundation of the commonwealth of 
 Xortli Carolina was laid. 
 
 .\nother charter was obtained in 
 June, 1665, by the patentees wdiich con- 
 firmed the former one. It granted to 
 them the territory from the now 
 southern boundary of A'irginia to the 
 peninsula of Florida, and westward to 
 the Pacific C)cean, comprising all of 
 lair states excepting the lower part of 
 I-"lorida, south of the thirty-si.xth de- 
 gree, and a part of Mexico, the whole 
 under the name of Carolina. The 
 founding of a great empire was the ob- 
 ject of the proprietors, and nothing 
 was neglected to thai end. The in- 
 terests of England or the colonists 
 were not considered. 
 
 Three ships, under the directions of 
 
 William .Sayle and Joseph West, were 
 sent with emigrants, early in 1(170, to 
 settle the southern portion of Carolina. 
 They entered Port Royal harbor and 
 settled on Beaufort Island, near the 
 place where the Huguenots built Fort 
 Carolina a hundred years before. 
 There Sayle died and was buried. 
 Beaufort was soon abandoned and 
 sailing northward the emigrants en- 
 tered Charleston harbor, and on the 
 hanks of a stream, a few miles above 
 Charleston, they settled, built houses 
 and tilled the soil. This spot they 
 called Old Town, and there was the be- 
 ginning of the colony of South Caro- 
 lina. Yeamans. the governor, arrived 
 a little later, and brought with him 
 fifty families and many negro slaves. 
 This was the introduction into South 
 Carolina of slave-labor, which has al- 
 ways been a planting state. 
 
 The settlement of Old Town was or- 
 ganized under the title of Carteret 
 County Colony, and representative gov- 
 ernment was established there in 1672. 
 This was the tounding of the common- 
 wealth of Sonfli Carolina. 
 
 It was known as the place where 
 freedom was enjoyed, and emigrants 
 flocked to it, from England, Holland 
 and Xew York. Tiiey spread over the 
 ])eninsula between the .\shley and 
 Cooper Rivers, named in honor of 
 Ashley Cooper, one of the proprietors. 
 
 -At Oyster Bay, on the verge of £ 
 fine harbor, in the sight of'the sea, and 
 at the junction of three streams, was 
 foundetl, eight or ten years later, the 
 capital city Charles Town (Charles- 
 ton) named after the King. Old 
 Town was now abandoned. 
 
 The Constitution which w-as framed 
 to establish a great empire in the Caro- 
 linas, was the ideas of Sir .\shley 
 Cooper and John Locker, and Was per- 
 fected in i66q. Neither of these men 
 were fittcrl to the task of forming a 
 government for a free people. It pro- 
 \ided for titles, and classes, and aristo- 
 cratic distinctions in .-Vmerica. It was 
 submitted to the people and rejected. 
 The colonists had made their own laws, 
 were satisfied with them and would 
 have nothing to do with the laws of 
 
Till': iiuMi': 
 
 AUXILIARY AXU REF ERF.N'CE 
 
 the proprietors. Under their own laws 
 they remained over sixty years, when 
 they were separated and formed the 
 colonies of North and South Carolina. 
 
 GEORGIA. 
 
 Between the Savannah and the Ala- 
 tamaha Rivers, there was a region 
 wholly unoccupied by white inhabitants 
 at the end of the first quarter of the 
 eighteenth century. At that time in both 
 Europe and America, the English and 
 the Spaniards held an unconquerable 
 antagonism to each other. The Eng- 
 lish were rapidly filling up the terri- 
 tory bordering on the Spanish posses- 
 sions in Florida, with emigrants, and as 
 the Indians of that region had an abid- 
 ing hate for the Spaniards, the English 
 were rapidly gaining all the trade with 
 
 tbem. , , , • c *t, 
 
 Nearlv all the manual labor in boutn 
 Carolina at this time, was performed 
 by negro slaves, imported from Africa. 
 Thev had become essential to the pros- 
 peritv of the colony. To prevent the 
 Engfish planters from settling below 
 the Savannah River, the Spaniards 
 were enticing their slaves away with 
 promises of freedom and the privileges 
 of Spanish subjects. They were suc- 
 cessful, and it was from this alarming 
 state of things that the South Carolin- 
 ians were seeking a remedy. 
 
 At this time in England, the condi- 
 tions of the prisoners for debt was hor- 
 rible in the extreme. They were en- 
 during sufferings worse than the slaves 
 in the West Indies. Colonel James Ed- 
 ward Oglethorpe, a graduate of Ox- 
 ford a brave soldier, and then a mem- 
 ber of Parliament, caused an act to be 
 passed to inquire into the condition of 
 these unfortunates. The revelations of 
 the prisons were horrible and sicken- 
 ing. , 
 
 Oglethorpe now proposed to plant a 
 colony of the unfortunates in the un- 
 occupied country below the Savannah. 
 His colleagues readily assented, an ap- 
 propriation was made, and on the gth 
 of Tune. 1732. the King granted a 
 charter for founding a colony with the 
 name of Georgia, in compliment to 
 King George the Second. 
 
 Colonel Oglethorpe was appointed 
 governor. The legislative power was 
 vested in twenty-one trustees, the gov- 
 ernor being one of the number, and 
 their powers were to last twenty-one 
 years. , 
 
 Thirty-five families, one hundred 
 and twenty emigrants, men, women, 
 and children, now set sail, accompanied 
 by Oglethorpe as governor, and arrived 
 at Charleston at the middle of January. 
 173^. They w^ere received with great 
 iov'by the inhabitants, and the As- 
 sembly of South Carolina voted them a 
 large 'supply of cattle and other pro- 
 visions, for they were regarded as 
 valuable auxiliaries. 
 
 Oglethorpe, accompanied by a guide, 
 went forward to select a suitable place 
 for settlement. He chose Yamacraw 
 Bluff on the Savannah River, about ten 
 miles from the sea. There he laid out 
 a town and returned to P.eaufort. 
 where the emigrants had been sent 
 from Charleston. Then they all pro- 
 ceeded to the spot he had chosen, and 
 arrived on the first of I-ebruary. The 
 settlement was named Savannah. 
 They were now in the territory of the 
 powerful Creek Confederacy, and not 
 far from the seat of the tribe over 
 whom presided Tomochichi, a vener- 
 able chief, ninety-one years old, of 
 commanding person and grave de- 
 meanor. His power was supreme and 
 he had great weight throughout the 
 confederacv. Oglethorpe now made a 
 treaty with this powerful Indian chief, 
 by which all unoccupied lands within 
 defined boundaries were assigned to the 
 Eno-lish This treatv was ratified by 
 the'' trustees on the i8th of October, 
 1-1!^ when the English obtained sover- 
 eio-nty over all the domain between the 
 Savannah and Alatahama Rivers, west- 
 ward to the extent of tide water, and 
 all islands but three from Tybee to St. 
 Simons. 
 
 In the spring of I734. Oglethorpe 
 went to England, leaving the colony in 
 the care of others. He took along with 
 him Tomochichi, his Queen, his 
 nephew and several other chiefs, be- 
 lieving that the sight of the power of 
 the English would increase the respect 
 
SECOND PERIOD— SETTLEMENTS 
 
 83 
 
 of the savages. Tlie Indians remained 
 in England four months, were pre- 
 sented to the King and were every- 
 where given the pleasantest welcome. 
 They returned, with a considerable 
 number of new emigrants, in Decem- 
 l)er, 1734. 
 
 Oglethorpe returned to Georgia in 
 the beginning of iy^f>. He brought 
 with him about one hundred and fifty 
 Scotch Highlanders, who constituted 
 the first army in Georgia during its 
 early struggles. With him also came 
 the Rev. John Wesley, the founder of 
 the Methodist Church, and his brother 
 
 I'hark--^. wlio came to preacii the gos- 
 l>cl to the heathen. 
 
 With a population of more than five 
 hundred souls ; with a military force, 
 and with means of religious instruc- 
 tion, the foundations of the colony of 
 Georgia was now firmly laid. 
 
 We have now considered the more 
 prominent events in the history of the 
 planting of settlements in .America, and 
 the development of many of them into 
 permanent colonies. 
 
 We will now consider the processes 
 by which small settlements grew into 
 great commonwealths in the form of 
 P.ritish-.'Kmerican colonies. 
 
84 
 
 THE liU.ME AUXILIARY AND RHFERKNCE 
 
 THIRD PERIOD 
 
 COLONIKS 
 
 VIRGINIA. 
 
 The first permanent ICnglisli colony 
 in America was established in Virginia, 
 when Governor Yeardley, in 1619, or- 
 ganized a representative government 
 there. 
 
 At about this time, an element was 
 introduced into Virginia society which 
 had a powerful influence on its destiny, 
 and on the nation which it afterward 
 formed a part. That was the introduc- 
 tion of negro or African slavery. The 
 planters had heard of the capacity of 
 the black men and women to endure 
 labor in the warm regions. They pur- 
 chased twenty of these from a Dutch 
 slave trader, and finding them good 
 workers and docile, imported more. So 
 began the system of slavery in our 
 country. 
 
 The London Company had spent 
 large sums of money in colonizing Vir- 
 ginia, and now, twelve years after its 
 settlement, there was only six hundred 
 Europeans there. Sir Edwin Sandys, 
 whose reputation for candor and other 
 virtues was well known among the 
 colonists, was sent to investigate what 
 retarded its progress. In one year he 
 purged Mrginia of its bad name, and 
 induced more than twelve hundred 
 emigrants to go to the James River. 
 
 The sagacious Sandys perceived tne 
 needs of the colony. The English, 
 more delicate in their tastes and habits 
 than the I'rench or Portuguese, refused 
 to marry the Indian women. And very 
 few English women had crossed the 
 .\tlantic. \'ery few of the settlers ex- 
 pected to remain in the colony. Most 
 of them looked for a return to Eng- 
 land when they had obtained the means. 
 Sandys proposed to send to \'irginia. 
 one hundred virtuous and attractive 
 young English women of the middle 
 class in society, to become the wives of 
 
 ilic planters. Their transportation to 
 be paid by their future husbanils. 
 
 Ninety young women were induced 
 to go to Virginia, early in 1620. In a 
 few days after their arrival at James- 
 town they were all married. The 
 young matrons sent home word for 
 other maidens to come, and sixty more 
 arrived the next year, others followed. 
 The price of a wife was fixed at one 
 hundred and twenty pounds of tobacco 
 or about ninety dollars. It finally rose 
 to one hundred and fifty dollars. To 
 encourage wedding, the Company gave 
 preference to married men in confer- 
 ring employments. Men no longer 
 talked of returning to England, but 
 called \'irginia their home. Emigra- 
 tion rapidly swelled the population, and 
 at the close of 1621, there were three 
 thousand five hundred inhabitants of 
 European blood in \'irginia. Settle- 
 ments had already been made on the 
 James River as far remote from the 
 capitol as the present site of Richmond. 
 And at Dutch Gap, then named Henri- 
 copolis, a church had been built and a 
 grammar school established for the 
 education of the Indian children. 
 Seventy years afterward, during the 
 reign of William and Mary, a college 
 was established at Williamsburg, 
 named after those sovereigns, which 
 still flourishes. 
 
 In the year 1621, the London Com- 
 pany granted a written constitution to 
 \'irginia, modelled after that of Eng- 
 land, but exceedingly simple ; the pil- 
 grims in the May-Flower, more demo- 
 cratic, gave to themselves a written 
 constitution about the same time, fash- 
 ioned to meet the circumstances of 
 their case, and still more simple. A 
 century and a half afterward, as we 
 shall discover, the inhabitants of these 
 two colonies, then founded, were lead- 
 
THIRD PERIOD— COLON'TES 
 
 ers in the struggle for that pohtical 
 independence which these early consti- 
 tutions forshadowed. The Virginia 
 constitution provided for a governor 
 and council to he appointed by the 
 Company, and a popular legislative 
 body to be chosen by the people, called 
 a House of Burgesses, and these, with 
 the governor and council, composed the 
 General Assembly. The acts of the 
 Assembly were not valid unless they re- 
 ceived the sanction of the Company in 
 London. But with unexampled justice, 
 it was also provided that no orders 
 from the Company should be binding, 
 unless ratified by the Assembly. 
 
 The colonists now rejoiced in the 
 prospect of long years of peace and 
 prosperity before them, and the atmo- 
 sphere of their daily life appeared per- 
 fectly serene. 
 
 Powhatan, the friend of the Eng- 
 lish, was dead, and his younger 
 brother, the truly savage Opechanca- 
 nough (the captor of Smith), was 
 ruler of his empire. He hated the 
 English and believed they intended to 
 seize his lands, and exterminate his 
 race. He therefore determined to 
 strike a blow for his countr\' and his 
 ])eople. He professed great friendship 
 for the English, but at the same time 
 used every means to inflame the anger 
 of his people against them. 
 
 There had never been a war with the 
 Iiidians. The settlements were scat- 
 tered, some of them in solitary places, 
 and }et no one had ever been disturbed 
 since the happy marriage of Poca- 
 hontas. At mid-day, on the first of 
 April, 1622, the Indians fell upon all 
 the remote and isolated settlements, 
 and in one hour, three hundred and 
 fifty men, women and children were 
 slain. Among the victims were six 
 members of the council and several of 
 the wealthier inhabitants and even the 
 missionary who taught the Indian chil- 
 dren. 
 
 The people at Jamestown were 
 warned by a friendly Indian, and were 
 so prepared. In the course of a few 
 days, eighty inhabited plantations were 
 reduced to eight. But a large part of 
 the colonv was saved. 
 
 The English, in revenge, now im- 
 mediately waged a vindictive and ex- 
 terminating war. Every man capable 
 of bearing arms, appeared in the field. 
 They spread death and desolation over 
 the peninsula between the York and the 
 James Rivers. The Indians were 
 slaughtered by scores, or driven far 
 back in the forest. Before the war. 
 there were about six thousand Indians 
 within sixty miles of Jamestown, at the 
 close of the war, there were probably 
 not a thousand within that territory. 
 Opechancanough escaped, but his 
 power was broken, and the strength of 
 his people had departed. 
 
 The blight of war, pestilence and fa- 
 mine fell upon the colony. Large areas 
 of land were left uncultivated ; and 
 many of the settlers returned to Eng- 
 land. From four thousand souls, the 
 colony was reduced to twenty-five hun- 
 dred. The condition of the colonists 
 excited sympathy in England, and shijis 
 were sent with supplies. 
 
 King James, finding a majority of 
 the London Company drifting toward 
 republicanism, decided to obtain con- 
 trol of the Company and the colony. 
 .\t an election of officers for the Com- 
 pany, in 1622, he tried to control the 
 candidates, and failed. He sent a 
 commission to \'irginia, to inquire into 
 the affairs of the colony, and to 
 frighten the House of Burgesses into a 
 relinquishment of their rights, under 
 the charter. Not being successful, the 
 King in July, 1624, cancelled the 
 charter and \'irginia became a royal 
 province again. Sir Francis Wyatt was 
 appointed governor by the King, wnth 
 twelve councillors of state, but he did 
 not interfere wath the House of Burg- 
 esses. King James died soon after- 
 ward, and was succeeded by his son, 
 Charles the First, on the 6th of April, 
 1625. 
 
 Charles did not change the political 
 situation in the colony. He appointed 
 Sir George Veardley, governor and 
 gave to the planters a monopoly of 
 the English market for their tobacco. 
 But. however, they were compelled to 
 sell their product to the agents ap- 
 jjointed by the King. One of these 
 
86 
 
 HOME AUXILIARY AND REFERENCE 
 
 agents was the harsh Sir John Harvey. 
 The colony prospered until Harvey 
 was made governor in 1629, two years 
 after the death of Yeardley. In 1628, 
 not less than a thousand English people 
 emigrated to \'irginia. Harvey as- 
 sumed the duties of his appointment 
 in 1630, and very soon made himself 
 very unpopular, and caused much con- 
 fusion. His land grants tended to place 
 the soil in the hands of a few ; he 
 offended the Republicans in many 
 ways. The House of Burgesses de- 
 posed him and sent him to England. 
 The King sent him back with power 
 to rule the state independently of the 
 people. 
 
 Harvey was succeeded in 1639 by Sir 
 Francis W'yatt. whose administration 
 was an uneventful one. In February, 
 1642, Sir \\'illiam Berkeley, brother of 
 Lord Berkeley (one of the earliest 
 English proprietors of New Jersey), 
 arrived at Jamestown as governor. He 
 was only thirty-two years of age, and 
 of fine appearance, educated at Oxford 
 and polished by extensive travel in 
 Europe. 
 
 He was very popular in \'irginia for 
 many years. He was a staunch royal- 
 ist, but his adhesion to the cause of the 
 King during the civil war between the 
 years 1641 to 1649 was so prudent that 
 a greater part of the Virginians were in 
 sympathy with him. The majority of 
 the colonists were members of the 
 Church oi England, but a considerable 
 number of Puritans had settled there. 
 Berkeley being of the cavalier class, 
 despised the non-conformists, and 
 knowing their leanings toward repub- 
 licanism decreed that no Puritan 
 minister should preach in public. And 
 this was soon followed by the banish- 
 ment of non-conformists from the 
 colony. It was a calamity ; but a 
 heavier one soon fell upon the \'ir- 
 ginians. 
 
 Ever since the massacre in 1622 
 there had been deadly hostility between 
 the colonists and the Indians. Ope- 
 chancanough was yet living, and past 
 ninety years of age. When Thomas 
 Rolf, the son of Pocahontas, came from 
 England with the consent of the \'ir- 
 
 ginia Assembly, to visit his uncle, the 
 chief heard from his lips of the civil 
 war raging in England. This was in 
 1643. The old chief concluded this was 
 the time to strike. \'ery soon a con- 
 federacy was formed among the In- 
 dians over an area many hundred 
 square miles in extent. A day was 
 fi.\ed for the execution of the scheme. 
 Early in April, 1644, the savages fell 
 upon the colonists, and in the space of 
 two days killed three hundred of the 
 settlers. 
 
 Berkeley met the murderers with an 
 armed force and drove them back with 
 great slaughter. The old chief was 
 taken prisoner, and having been mor- 
 tally wounded soon died. The remain- 
 ing chiefs acknowledged allegiance to 
 the authorities, and after ceding large 
 tracts of land the confederacy expired. 
 The colonists then had peace and 
 jjrosperity. 
 
 The colonists felt none of tlie op- 
 pressions nor disputes that afflicted 
 their kindred in England. When the 
 King was beheaded the cavaliers 
 flocked to \'irginia in great numbers, 
 bringing valuable additions to the 
 refined society of the colony, and 
 strengthened the royal cause in that 
 pro\ince. The colonists exercised the 
 freedom of an independent govern- 
 ment. In 1648 there was over twenty 
 thousand inhabitants in Virginia. When 
 the King was slain the \'irginians 
 recognized the exiled son as sovereign ; 
 and Sir \\'illiam Berkeley conducted 
 the affairs of the colony as governor 
 under a commission sent him by that 
 prince. Virginia was the last country 
 belonging to England that submitted 
 to the government of the common- 
 wealth under Cromwell. 
 
 In the spring of 1652 a powerful 
 fleet was sent to Virginia by the Repub- 
 lican Parliament in England. On their 
 arrival they were met with such firm- 
 ness, and astonished at the boldness of 
 the colonists, deemed it prudent to 
 compromise with them. Berkeley re- 
 sisrned, and Richard Bennet was elected 
 
 Sfovernor. 
 
 When Berkeley and the cavalier 
 party in Mrginia had received news of 
 
THIRD PERIOD— C()I.nXIKS 
 
 87 
 
 tlie expedition to be sent to subjugate 
 tbem the}- had in\ited Prince Charles 
 to come o\er and be tlieir King. Events 
 liowever foreshadowed the restoration 
 of the monarchy, which took place in 
 16C0, when Prince Charles ascended 
 the throne, as Charles the Second of 
 F.ngland. From the circumstance the 
 title of the "Old Dominion" was given 
 to \ irginia. 
 
 When Matthews died (1660), whom 
 Cromwell had appointed governor, the 
 people elected Berkeley. He refused 
 to serve unless he should receive the 
 royal commission, and went to England 
 to obtain it. The King made him gov- 
 ernor, and he returned to \'irginia 
 prepared to execute the King's will in 
 full. Cavaliers and land-owners were 
 elected to the House of Burgesses, and 
 Berkeley had a pliant assembly of roy- 
 alists. Laws were passed which modi- 
 fied, abridged or abolished nearly every 
 franchise which the people possessed. 
 The Church of England was made 
 supreme, and attempts were made to 
 sweep every other sect out of the 
 colony. Large numbers of Quakers 
 and Puritans sought the wilds of North 
 Carolina, where they formed settle- 
 ments away from persecution. 
 
 As Berkeley grew older he became 
 less tolerant, and drifted in thought 
 and action to the cavaliers, who hated 
 everything that marked the character 
 of the Puritans. There were no free 
 schools, and printing was a crime. 
 There were no roads or bridges, and 
 every planter was compelled to be his 
 own mechanic. Most of the houses 
 were mean log huts with unglazed 
 windows. Milages existed nowhere. 
 Even the capital of the colony consisted 
 only of a church, state-house and 
 eighteen dwellings at this time. 
 
 Meanwhile the large land-owners 
 were living in luxury in fine mansions, 
 surrounded by slaves or indentured 
 servants. The "common people" saw- 
 that the tendency in Virginia was to- 
 ward a landed aristocracy and an im- 
 poverished peasantry, and thev longed 
 for a pretext to as.sert their natural 
 rights. 
 
 The King, in i'')7,^, actually gave to 
 
 Lord Culpep]ier and the Earl of 
 Arlington all the dominion, "land and 
 water called X'irginia, for the term of 
 thirty-one years. 
 
 Oppression vigorously stimulated 
 Republicanism in \"irginia. The men 
 of toil, and righteous ones of the aris- 
 tocracy, soon formed a powerful party, 
 and the act of the King increased its 
 strength. 
 
 Rebellious murmurs were heard 
 everywhere. The toiling people were 
 made to regard the aristocracy as their 
 natural enemies. 
 
 In i<>/S 3. war broke out between 
 Maryland and the Indians, and \ ir- 
 ginia sent a company of soldiers, under 
 John Washington, the great-gran- 
 father of George Washington, to help 
 the people of Maryland. When they 
 arrived on the Potomac the Susque- 
 hannas sent six of their chiefs to treat 
 for peace, but the \'irginians killed the 
 entire number. This enraged the 
 Susquehannas, and they marched over 
 the border into \'irginia and killed ten 
 men for every one of theirs whom the 
 \'irginians had slain. In their distress 
 the people called upon Berkeley to send 
 soldiers to their aid, but he was more 
 interested in the fur trade, and made 
 no effort in behalf of the unprotected 
 settlements. The people then called on 
 Nathaniel Bacon, a young Englishman, 
 a lawyer and a patriot, to take com- 
 mand of their volunteer soldiers, but 
 Berkeley, who disliked Bacon, refused 
 tr grant him a commission. The In- 
 dians continue^ their bloody work until 
 tlic situation became so desperate that 
 the volunteers put themselves under 
 command of Bacon and marched 
 against the Indians. On hearing of 
 this action Berkeley proclaimed Bacon 
 a traitor and his soldiers rebels. At 
 this time the more populous counties 
 that were not molested by the Indians 
 exhibited signs of dissatisfaction at the 
 usurpation of the Assembly and the 
 haughty actions of the governor, and 
 as soon as Bacon had returned success- 
 fully with his troops the people forced 
 the obnoxious Asseml)ly to dissolve, 
 and an election for new members was 
 called. Among these Bacon was elected 
 
RR 
 
 TIIF. HOME AUXILIARY AND REFERENCE 
 
 to represe;it Henrico County, and the 
 new Assembly corrected the evils of its 
 usurping predecessor. They also elected 
 Bacon commander of the army, to 
 which at first Berkeley refused to give 
 his sanction, but after having done so, 
 as soon as Bacon again went in pur- 
 suit of the Indians Berkeley again pro- 
 claimed him a traitor. In reply to this 
 Bacon said : "It vexes me to the heart 
 that while I am hunting the wolves 
 which destroy our lambs, I should my- 
 self be pursued like a savage." 
 
 To thwart the will of the people 
 Berkeley then gathered a motley army 
 of English sailors and Indians and pre- 
 pared to subjugate the people to his 
 will. In anticipation of his intentions 
 tlie people met in convention at Middle 
 Plantation, and resolved to oppose his 
 tyranny by force. Soon after this 
 Berkeley with five ships sailed to 
 Jamestown to put down what he termed 
 an insurrection of the people. At 
 Jamestown he was met and defeated 
 by Bacon and the army of the people. 
 and Berkeley and his mongre army 
 fled, leaving Jamestown in possession 
 of Bacon. To protect Berkeley from 
 again securing possession of James- 
 town, a council of war was held, and 
 it was resolved to burn the town. 
 Drummond and Lawrence and other 
 prominent patriots applied the torch to 
 their own dwellings. Thvis the first 
 town built on this continent by English- 
 men crumbled to ashes as a sacrifice- 
 to civil liberty, and all that to-day re- 
 mains is the old vineclad ruin of the 
 church tower. 
 
 It was now believed that the people 
 of Virginia had secured the fruits of a 
 permanent victory over usurpation, 
 but their noble leader was soon seized 
 with an illness which ended his brave 
 and useful life. The tyrant Berkeley 
 seized upon, the opportunity to again 
 possess himself of the government, 
 and began to prosecute with fines, con- 
 fiscation and death all who had sided 
 with the patriots. The first who was 
 condenmed to death was Hansford, who 
 was not permitted to be shot like a 
 soldier, but was executed by hanging, 
 being the first white native of America 
 
 who perished on the gallows. When 
 Drummond was taken Berkeley said 
 with an air of triumph : "You are wel- 
 come : I am more glad to see you than 
 any man in Virginia. You shall be 
 hanged in half an hour." Before the 
 vengeance of Berkeley was satiated 
 twenty-two persons were executed. 
 
 At last Berkeley left the country and 
 returned to England ; and to celebrate 
 the departure the people built bon-fires 
 and held a public rejoicing. In Eng- 
 land he was received with loathing and 
 disgust, and even King Charles ex- 
 claimed : "The old fool has taken away 
 more lives in that naked country than 
 I for the murder of my father." 
 
 The cup of \'irginia was not yet full. 
 In 1678 Charles gave the government 
 of \'irginia to Culpepper for life, and 
 in 1680 he came and began enriching 
 himself by taxing and impoverishing 
 the people, and when he had sufficiently 
 robbed them he took his departure, and 
 a more impecunious and avaricious 
 governor named Effingham succeeded 
 him. 
 
 A new Assembly convention con- 
 vened in 1688. It was "more turbu- 
 lent," the governor and council said, 
 "than any which had preceded." They 
 ]jaid very little attention to the un- 
 lawful orders of the magistrate, and 
 boldly discussed the rights of citizens. 
 The governor determined to dissolve 
 the Assembly. The people flew to 
 arms, and were on the verge of an open 
 insurrection when the news came over 
 the sea that King James had been 
 driven from the throne. In February. 
 1689, William and ]\Iary were pro- 
 claimed joint monarchs of 'England. 
 From the accession of those monarchs 
 a great change was made in the policv 
 of the English government toward its 
 colonies in .America. From that period 
 to the beginning of the French and 
 Indian War at the middle of the 
 eighteenth century the history of Vir- 
 ginia is the story of the steady, quiet 
 progress of an industrious people who 
 were ready in "the fullness of time'' 
 to join with other colonies in the estab- 
 lishment of a great republic. 
 
THIRD PERIOD—COLONIES 
 
 89 
 
 NEW NETHERLAXD— .\E\\^ 
 YORK, 
 
 Peter Miiuiit was the first tiirector- 
 general or governor of the colony of 
 Xew Xetherland, with his seat of 
 government at New Amsterdam ( now 
 New York). He was an able and 
 energetic man, and the colony flour- 
 ished under his direction. The inter- 
 coiu'se between the Dutch and the In- 
 dians was friendly for some time. The 
 Hollanders had extended their traffic to 
 the upper waters of the Hudson, and 
 built a fort on the site of .-Xlbany. called 
 Fort Orange. Eight families had set- 
 tled there. The Mohawk Indians on 
 one side of the river and the Mohegans 
 on the other, quarreled and w'ent to 
 war. The Dutch became involved in 
 tile quarrel, and the commander of the 
 fort and three of his men were slain. 
 
 The settlers fearing massacre aban- 
 doned their farms, and with all the 
 women in the fort removed to New 
 Amsterdam. That was in the year 
 1626. 
 
 From that time, until 1628, wars 
 with the Indians checked settlement 
 outside the bounds of Manhattan 
 Island. To increase the value of 
 the province nothing seemed wiser than 
 to increase the population ; so they 
 adopted the plan of making separate 
 and independent colonies on the Hud- 
 son and Delaware Rivers. To enlist 
 private capital in the undertaking it was 
 proposed to give "patroon" privilege. 
 This proposition was approved by the 
 States-General in 1630; and so the feu- 
 dal system as displayed by the manorial 
 estates in Holland was transferred to 
 .\merica. 
 
 Governor ^linuit returned to .\m- 
 sterdam in 1632, leaving the province 
 in a state of increasing prosperity. He 
 was succeeded the following year by 
 Walter \'an Twiller, a narrow minded 
 and inexperienced clerk in the employ 
 (if the Comjjany. He had married a 
 niece of one of the directors, and had 
 no fitness for the position of governor. 
 He was entirely ignorant of public 
 affairs and had not a single quality of 
 a statesman. 
 
 \'an Twiller's administration lasted 
 four years, and the colony prospered 
 in spite of him. Just before his ap- 
 pointment Captain de \'ries, one of the 
 ' patroons" who had an estate on the 
 Delaware River, had sailed for James- 
 town, and opened up friendly inter- 
 course with the settlers there. On his 
 return he sailed up the Delaware and 
 found his affairs far from prosperous; 
 so he abandoned the country to the 
 Intlians and sailed into the harbor of 
 New Amsterdam, at about the time 
 \'an Twiller arrived from Amsterdam. 
 Jacob Elkens came a few days after 
 de \^ries arrival, in the English ship 
 U'illiain, with the intention of going 
 u]) the Hudson to trade with the In- 
 dians. Elkens had been a former com- 
 missary at Fort Orange and knew Van 
 Twiller at Amsterdam, and counted on 
 his impotence. When the governor 
 demanded his papers he refused, saying 
 "The country belongs to England, for 
 it was discovered by an Englishman. 
 I command an English ship and will 
 go where I please." De \'ries advised 
 the governor to send an expedition 
 after the intruder, which the stupid 
 governor did, and very soon Elkens w^as 
 sent to sea with an injunction not to 
 attempt any further interference with 
 the Dutch on the Hudson. 
 
 The province lacked the prime ele- 
 ment of independent farmers tilling 
 their own land. The wealthy monopo- 
 list owned the land ; the tiller might 
 own the house he li\ed in — no more. 
 There were continued disputes between 
 the grasping "patroons" and the agents 
 of the Company concerning the fur- 
 trade, wliich each was seeking to secure. 
 The governor had lost respect of all 
 parties, and was simply a clog to pro- 
 gress. Parson Bogardus. who had come 
 over with him from Holland, called 
 him a "child of the devil" to his face ; 
 and he also told him on one occasion 
 that if he did not behave himself he 
 woidd give him such a "shake from the 
 l>ulpit" the next Sabbath as would make 
 liim tremble like a bowl of jelly. Van 
 Twiller was finally recalled. 
 
 In 1^)37. Van Twiller was succeeded 
 hy William Kieft. He has been de- 
 
TME HOME AUXILIARY AND RKF KRICXCE 
 
 scribed as spiteful, rapacious, energetic 
 and never so happy as when in trouble 
 with some one ; unscrupulous and a 
 petty tyrant. He was, nevertheless, a 
 better man for the Company than Van 
 Twiller. He was an agitator and agita- 
 tion is healthier than stagnation. 
 
 Kieft's administration was stormy, 
 therefore a delightful one for him. He 
 had regarded Minuit as a model gov- 
 ernor, and Minuit for a long time was 
 the bane of Kieft's official peace and 
 quiet. He had just commenced his 
 duties, as governor, when news reached 
 him of the settlement of the Swedes, 
 led by Minuit, on the Delaware. They 
 had built a house and claimed the whole 
 country westward, from Cape Hen- 
 lopen to Trenton. Kieft issued a proc- 
 lamation protesting against this inva- 
 sion of the territory of New Nether- 
 land. 
 
 Kieft begar 'nis administration by 
 concentrating all the power in his own 
 hands. He reformed the abuses which 
 abounded everywhere. Fort Amster- 
 dam was repaired, and he caused by 
 example and command fruit trees to be 
 planted where there had been brambles. 
 Police ordinances were framed and 
 thoroughly enforced. Religion and 
 morality was fostered for a time, and a 
 church was built in the fort. 
 
 In 1638, the States-General com- 
 pelled the Company to throw open the 
 internal trade of the colony to free 
 competition for all the inhabitants ot 
 Holland, under restrictions; and the 
 governor of New Netherland was in- 
 structed to accommodate every emi- 
 grant with as much land as he and his 
 family could cultivate. Emigrants 
 ])assed into Amsterdam to seek oppor- 
 tunity to go to New Netherland. The 
 Com])any wisely offered a free passage 
 to respectable farmers. A good class 
 of citizens sought homes in the colony 
 — men of culture and fortune. De 
 \'ries, with emigrants, planted a colony 
 on Staten Island. Strangers came from 
 A'irginia and New England, for there 
 was freedom of conscience. The only 
 obligation was an oath of fidelity and 
 allegiance to Holland. 
 
 New Englanders now became trou- 
 
 blesome. They were spreading over 
 the country westward of the Housa- 
 tenic River. It being evident that they 
 intended to push their settlements to 
 the Hudson River Kieft, in 1640, pur- 
 chased from the Indians, in the name 
 of the States-General, all the islands 
 near Norwalk and the domain west- 
 ward, which comprised nearly the whole 
 of Westchester County. The English 
 disregarded the title deeds of the In- 
 dians, and the Dutch proclamations, 
 and mocked the officials at New Am- 
 sterdam. Kieft was a more energetic 
 man than \'an Twiller. He soon put a 
 stop to their encroachments and com- 
 pelled the settlers on the newly pur- 
 chased domain to take the oath of alle- 
 giance to the States-General. 
 
 Had Kieft's policy and conduct been 
 as wise and just as it was firm and 
 energetic his administration might 
 have been marked by peace and great 
 prosperity. But he pursued a policy 
 toward the Indians that inflamed whole 
 tribes with resentment toward the 
 Dutch. His partiality for the Mo- 
 hawks, with whom the Dutch came in 
 contact at Fort Orange, e.xcited the 
 jealousy of the river Indians. They 
 were sold rum and cheated by the 
 traders while intoxicated. Kieft winked 
 at these offenses and shared in the 
 plunder. He exacted tribute from the 
 tribes around Manhattan, and when he 
 saw the clouds of vengeance gather- 
 ing his fears awakened his cruelty. 
 
 Some swine had been stolen from De 
 \'ries' plantation on Staten Island. The 
 innocent Raritan Indians of New Jer- 
 sey were charged with the crime, and 
 the governor sent an armed force to 
 chastise them with a belief that a show 
 of power would disarm the vengeance 
 of the savages. .Several Indians were 
 killed, and all the neighboring tribes 
 were aroused for war. The Raritans 
 murdered the Hollanders whenever 
 they met them in the forests, and the 
 settlement on Staten Island was ruined. 
 Fifteen or twenty years before some 
 of Minuit's men had murdered an 
 Indian belonging to a tribe beyond the 
 Harlem River. His nephew, then a 
 boy, made a vow of vengeance. He was 
 
THIRD PERIOD— COI.OXTES 
 
 now a lusty man. He proceeded to 
 execute liis vow by murdering an un- 
 offending Dutchman in his wheel- 
 wright shop high upon Manhattan 
 Island. With his scalp and the plunder 
 of his dwelling the savage returned to 
 his tribe in triumph. 
 
 Kieft demanded the murderer, but 
 the chief would not gi\e him up. say- 
 ing he had been revenged according to 
 the customs of his race. 
 
 It was now evident to the people 
 tliat it was the rapacity and greed of 
 Kieft that caused all the trouble. They 
 reproached him for his selfish cow- 
 ardice, they blamed him, who had not 
 slept out of the fort a single night since 
 liis arrival, for endangering their lives 
 and homes in' undefended places. In 
 order to get the good will of the people, 
 and to carrv out his designs, he now' 
 called the heads of families to meet 
 him in convention. They assembled at 
 l-'ort Amsterdam and chose twelve 
 men a> their representatives. So were 
 planted the seed of a representative 
 democracy in Xew Netherland, and the 
 first congress for political purposes in 
 the \-ear 1641, almost on the spot where 
 Washington, a century and a half later, 
 was inaugurated first President of the 
 L'nited States. 
 
 De Vries was chosen president, and 
 the twelve counselled peace and pro- 
 ceeded to establish a government sim- 
 ilar to that of the Fatherland. Kieft 
 now agreed to make popular conces- 
 sions if the Twelve would allow him 
 to make war on the offending Indians. 
 When they agreed to his proposition 
 the governor dissolved them, saying 
 he had no further use for them, and 
 forbade any popular assemblage there- 
 after. 
 
 In T642. a treaty was made with the 
 iift'ending tribes. In the winter of 1643, 
 the fierce Iroquois invaded the country 
 nf the Indians on the lower Hudson, 
 who sought the protection of the Dutch. 
 De Vries now counselled was the time 
 to make enduring peace with these In- 
 dians, but was overruled by Kieft and 
 some leading citizens. In February. 
 1643, Kieft sent an armed force against 
 
 these natives, and they were massacred, 
 men, women and children. 
 
 This treachery aroused the fury of 
 the savages far and near, and for two 
 }ears a devastating war was raged. The 
 white people were butchered wherever 
 found, and the colony was on the verge 
 of ruin. The people had now lost all 
 confidence in the governor, and de- 
 manded his recall. This was granted, 
 and the colonists saw him depart in the 
 spring of 1647. The vessel in which 
 Kieft sailed was lost, and the governor 
 perished. 
 
 The new governor, Peter Stuyvesant. 
 arrived in Xew Netherland late in ^lay, 
 1647. He was tiien a man in the prime 
 of life, physically strong, stern and in- 
 flexible, but a just and honest man. He 
 had lost a leg in an attack on the Portu- 
 guese, and had a wooden one, all cov- 
 ered with silver bands in place of it. 
 He commenced his administration by 
 reforming all the most flagrant abuses 
 of the colony. His kindness to the In- 
 dians soon won their friendship and 
 confidence. He found the finances of 
 the colony in such a low state that taxa- 
 tion was imperative. Knowing that 
 taxation was imperative without repre- 
 sentation had been considered as tyr- 
 anny in Holland for two centuries he 
 dared not tax the people without their 
 consent, although he was by nature a 
 despot. He therefore called a conven- 
 tion of citizens to represent the tax- 
 payers, but he was careful to hedge 
 them about with restrictions. Nine 
 were to be selected, who were to be 
 a co-ordinate part of the government. 
 
 By prudent and adroit management 
 Stuyvesant soon swept awav annoy- 
 ances in the shape of territorial claims. 
 In 1647, a representative of Lord Stir- 
 ling landed on Long Island and set up 
 a claim as governor. He was arrested, 
 sent to Holland, but allowed to escape. 
 
 In T650, by a treaty at flartford, he 
 ^-ettled all the disputes with the New 
 Englanders. He now went with an 
 expedition against the Swedes on the 
 Delaware, built Fort Cassimer, near 
 the site of New Castle. Delaware, and 
 crossed the river to New Tersev at Fort 
 
THE HOME AUXILIARY AND REFERENCE 
 
 Nassau. He had obtained fiDni the 
 Indians a deed to all the land occupied 
 by the Swedes. The Swedish governor 
 protested in vain. The two magistrates 
 promised to keep neighborly friendship 
 and correspondence together. That 
 was in the year 1651. 
 
 The next year the colonists of New 
 Amsterdam were granted a charter 
 like the free cities of Holland, the 
 officers to be appointed by the gover- 
 nor, and in 1653 it was organized as a 
 city. 
 
 To escape the intolerance of the 
 authorities English families had been 
 coming to New Netherland for several 
 years. Land was freely granted to 
 them, and an English secretary ap- 
 pointed. They had intermarried with 
 the Dutch, and formed strong allies of 
 the Nine. The arbitrary and despotic 
 rule of Stuyvesant, although an honest 
 n^an and believing in his convictions, 
 fostered the growth of Republicanism. 
 
 That popular feeling had expression 
 when, late in the autumn of 1653, a 
 convention of Nineteen delegates as- 
 sembled in New Amsterdam ostensibly 
 to take measures to secure themselves 
 against the savages and pirates. The 
 governor tried to control their actions, 
 but they paid no attention to him. He 
 saw it would be prudent to yield to the 
 demands of the people to call another 
 convention, so he gave legal sanction to 
 the election of delegates thereto. These 
 meet in New Amsterdam on the loth 
 of December. 1633. There were ten 
 Dutch and nine English delegates. 
 
 The object of the convention was to 
 form and adopt a remonstrance against 
 the tyrannous rule of the governor. It 
 was drawn by Baxter, the English sec- 
 retary. Stuyvesant met this with his 
 usual pluck, and ordered them to dis- 
 ]icrse, but tlie convention was not to be 
 silenced, and they sent an advocate to 
 1 lolland to ask for the reforms. The 
 Swedes now sent an expedition to the 
 Delaware. They captured Fort Cassi- 
 mer, and changed its name to Fort 
 Trinity. The surrender occurred on 
 Trinity Sunday, 1654. 
 
 In September of the following year 
 (1655) with seven vessels and more 
 
 than six hundred soldiers, Stuyvesant 
 sailed from New Amsterdam. They 
 arrived in the Delaware and retook 
 I'^ort Cassimer without a struggle. The 
 captives were wisely made citizens ot 
 New Netherland, and they became loyal 
 friends of the Dutch. 
 
 When Stuyvesant returned to Man- 
 hattan he found the wildest confusion. 
 Van Dyck, a former civil officer, had 
 killed a squaw detected stealing peaches 
 from his garden. The fury of her 
 tribe was kindled. The Indians found 
 and killed \'an Dyck, and ravaged New 
 Jersey and Staten Island. Stuyvesant 
 soon brought order, and prevented a 
 like calamity by ordering those who 
 lived in secluded places to gather in 
 villages "after the fashion of their 
 New England neighbors,." New Neth- 
 erlands now prospered in quiet for 
 almost ten years. 
 
 This whole country had been as- 
 signed, by Charles the Second of Eng- 
 land, to his brother, the Duke of York. 
 Including Long Island and a part of 
 Connecticut, with the authority to take 
 possession and hold the territory. Four 
 ships of war, bearing four hundred and 
 fifty soldiers commanded by Colonel 
 Richard Nicolls, arrived before New 
 Amsterdam at the close of August, 
 1664. Stuyvesant had just brought a 
 war with the Indians above the high- 
 lands of the Hudson to a close, and was 
 then at Fort Orange. When he heard 
 the news of the invasion of the English 
 he hastened back to his capital, where 
 he received a formal notice to surrender 
 the fort and city. Nicolls also sent a 
 proclamation to the citizens, promising 
 perfect security of person and property 
 to all who should quietly submit to 
 English rule. The magistrates and 
 burghers were anxious to submit, as 
 their force was not strong enough to 
 make any resistance successful. Stuy- 
 vesant held out for a week and surren- 
 dered on the 8th of September. 1664. 
 
 The fort was renamed Fort James, 
 and the city and province to New York, 
 in honor of the Duke of York. Colonel 
 Nicolls was proclaimed deputy-gov- 
 ernor, and all officers were required to 
 take the oath of allegiance to the Brit- 
 
THIRD PERIOD— COLONIES 
 
 ish crown. So passed into history tlie 
 domination of the Dutch in America, 
 after an existence of half a century. 
 England was now the mistress of all 
 the domain on the Atlantic coast from 
 Florida to Acadie. At the end of the 
 war between the Dutch and English in 
 1667, Stuyvesant was granted by King 
 Charles of England trading privileges 
 with New York for seven years. He 
 returned to his old home in New York, 
 where he was cordially welcomed, and 
 enjoyed on his farm the peace and 
 f|uiet of a domestic life. There he died 
 in 1682. Stuyvesant. known as Peter 
 the Headstrong, left his mark as a 
 strong and courageous man. 
 
 Nicolls ruled wisely, and his suc- 
 cessor, Francis Lovelace, in 1667, ruled 
 mildly. Although he showed consid- 
 erable energy in dealing with the 
 French and hostile Indians on the 
 northern frontier of New York. In the 
 summer of 1672 a Dutch squadron 
 sailed into the harbor of New York 
 and demanded its surrender. There 
 was war again between the Dutch and 
 English. On the 9th of August, 1672, 
 New York passed into the hands of the 
 Dutch, and in a short time the whole 
 of the province followed. At the 
 treaty of peace, made in London early 
 in 1674, the province again was re- 
 stored to the British crown. 
 
 In June. 1674, King Charles gave the 
 Duke of York a new grant of terri- 
 tory, which consisted of all the domain 
 west of the Connecticut River, to the 
 eastern shore of the Delaware ; also 
 Long Island and a territory in Maine. 
 
 Major Edmund Andros was ap- 
 pointed governor. He was then about 
 thirty-seven years of age, a thorough 
 royalist a good Dutch and French 
 scholar. His private character was 
 without blemish, and he nas well fitted 
 for the part he was about to play. He 
 soon became known in the province as 
 the "tyrant." With all their political 
 disabilities under Andros the people 
 were prosperous and therefore com- 
 paratively happy. 
 
 He was succeeded in 1683 by Thomas 
 Dongan. a Roman Catholic. He was 
 a mild mannered and enlightened 
 
 Irishman, and under instructions from 
 the Duke of York, granted the people 
 the right to elect an Assembly of 
 Representatives, (^n the 17th of Octo- 
 ber, 1683, the first General Assembly 
 of the Province of New York was in 
 session at New York. 
 
 When the Duke of York ascended 
 the throne of England as King James 
 the Second, in 1685, he immediately 
 demolished civil and religious liberty in 
 New York. A direct tax was ordered; 
 the printing press was forbidden a 
 place in the colony. He determined to 
 establish the Roman Catholic religion, 
 and all the provincial ofifices were filled 
 with adherents of that church. He 
 tried to introduce French priests among 
 the Iroquois, but fortunately for the 
 English it did not succeed, and they 
 stood, in after years, a powerful barrier 
 between the French and English. 
 
 Dongan stood by the people and the 
 interests of England, that finally of- 
 fended the monarch. He was dismissed 
 from office, and Andros appointed in 
 his place, and the government consoli- 
 dated with that of New England in the 
 spring of the year 1688. 
 
 When James was driven from the 
 throne of England William and Mary 
 succeeded him. When the news reached 
 New England Andros and his political 
 associates were seized at Boston and 
 sent to England. Fort James was 
 seized in New York, and Jacob Leisler, 
 an influential merchant and commander 
 of militia took an active part. He was 
 a German colonist, a Presbyterian, an 
 admirer of William of Orange, but with 
 democratic tendencies. A provisional 
 government was organized, and Leisler 
 made governor until a regularly author- 
 ized one should be appointed. Leisler 
 had considerable opposition in the 
 colony, and did not show good judg- 
 ment in the treatment of his political 
 enemies. The awful destruction of 
 Schenectady by the Indians in Febru- 
 ary, 1690, united the people in common 
 defense, and the authority of Leisler 
 was ackuDwledged. 
 
 Henry .Sloughter was appointed gov- 
 ernor of New York by the crown, and 
 on his arrival, in March, 1691, arrested 
 
THE nO.ME AUXILIARY AND REFERENCE 
 
 Leislcr, ]Milbouniu and six others for 
 high treason. They were tried, con- 
 victed, and condemned to be hanged. 
 They appealed to the King. Sloughter 
 was prevailed to sign their death war- 
 rant while intoxicateil. and they were 
 hanged. It was murder, and when 
 Sloughter came to his senses, he was 
 so tortured with remorse for his act 
 that he died in three months, of dclir- 
 iiiin tremens. 
 
 Four years afterward the P.ritish 
 Parliament passed an act declaring 
 them innocent of treason. From that 
 hour republicanism grew vigorously in 
 Xew York, and gave future royal gov- 
 ernors a great deal of trouble. 
 
 Benjamin Fletcher succeeded Slough- 
 ter as governor of New York. He was 
 also appointed commander of the 
 militia of Connecticut, New York and 
 Xew Jersey. He disgusted all parties 
 by his recklessness, and caused more 
 resistance to the royal power than ever 
 before. He visited Hartford in the 
 autumn of 1693 and attempted to call 
 out the militia. They paid no attention 
 to him. He compromised by making 
 I-Tetcher commander of the Connecti- 
 cut militia only in time of war. 
 
 The French and Indians under 
 Count Frontenac, were seeking a pas- 
 sage through the Five Nations to the 
 English settlements below. Mayor 
 Schuyler, of Albany, who had great in- 
 fluence over the Iroquois, led an ex- 
 pedition, with about three hundred 
 English and as many Mohawk war- 
 riors, against the foe. They beat the 
 French back to the St. Lawrence, and 
 50 desolated the French settlements 
 around Lake Champlain. that Fronte- 
 nac was glad to remain quiet at Mon- 
 treal. 
 
 During the whole of the seven years 
 of Fletcher's administration, the As- 
 sembly was in constant opposition to 
 him, although filled with the bitter 
 enemies of Leisler. .\nd when he was 
 superseded by the Earl of Bellamont, in 
 1698, he seemed as glad to leave the 
 province as the people were to get rid 
 of him. 
 
 Bellamont was an honest and ener- 
 getic Irish peer. He knew the circum- 
 
 stances and causes of the trial and 
 death of Leisler. He settled the differ- 
 ences of factions, opened the way for 
 just legislation, and reformed abuses in 
 public affairs. Through the influence 
 iif Bellamont, and a letter from the 
 King, the Assembly, in 1700, confirmed 
 the verdict of Parliament in favor of 
 the innocence of Leisler and granted 
 indemnity to his family. During this 
 time, English commerce suffered 
 greatly from French privateers and 
 pirates. A company was formed of 
 which Bellamont was the American 
 member, to suppress them. Captain 
 Kidd, of New York, was duly commis- 
 sioned as commander of a vessel, called 
 the Adventure, by the King. He sailed 
 under the orders of this Company and 
 did much to suppress these sea-robbers 
 and to protect English commerce in 
 American waters. Kidd collected 
 about one hundred and fifty men under 
 him, sailed into the Indian Ocean and 
 turned pirate himself. His acts be- 
 came so scandalous that when he re- 
 turned to .\merica he was arrested, 
 sent to England and hanged. It was 
 believed at the time that Bellamont was 
 his business partner, and that the Com- 
 pany shared in his plunders. This cast 
 a cloud over the character and other- 
 wise good conduct of his administra- 
 tion as governor. 
 
 Sir Edward Hyde, uncle of Queen 
 Anne, was the next governor, and on 
 occasions was a persistent enemy of 
 popular freedom and a religious bigot. 
 In 1705, the Assembly obtained the 
 right from the Queen to make appro- 
 priations of money, and appoint their 
 own treasurer. In 1708, the Queen 
 yielded to the wishes of the people and 
 recalled Hyde. From this time until 
 1732, democratic principles were al- 
 lowed to grow and flourish, and friend- 
 ship between the English and the Five 
 Nations, which had been disturbed, 
 was restored. 
 
 Robert Hunter was the next gov- 
 ernor, and during his administration 
 three thousand German Lutherans, 
 from the Palatinate of the Rhine, 
 settled in different parts of New York 
 and Penns\l\ania. They were chiefly 
 
THIRD PERIOD— COLONIES 
 
 95 
 
 llic ancestors of the German population 
 of the latter state. 
 
 ■ William Burnet succeeded Hunter. 
 While he was governor, William Brad- 
 ford, in the autumn of 1725, established 
 the first public newspaper in New York. 
 Jolin ■Montgomery succeeded Burnet, 
 in 1728. He died in 1731, when Rip 
 \'an Dam, the senior member of the 
 council, took charge of public affairs 
 initil the arrival of William Cosby as 
 governor, in 1732. 
 
 Cosby's first act as governor was the 
 bringing of a law-suit against Van 
 Dam, for one-half the salary he had 
 received while acting-governor. The 
 court being the governor's personal 
 friends gave judgment against Van 
 Dam, with the exception of the Chief- 
 Justice Morris, who decided against the 
 governor. He was removed without 
 consulting the council, and James De- 
 Lancey put in his place. 
 
 The sympathies of the people were 
 with Van Dam, and they induced John 
 Peter Zenger, who had been an appren- 
 tice and business partner with Brad- 
 ford, to establish a newspaper to be 
 the organ of the democratic party. In 
 November, 1733, he published the 
 "New York Weekly Journal," with 
 Van Dam behind him as financial sup- 
 porter. Bradford's paper was then 
 controlled by the government. 
 
 The "Journal" made vigorous war- 
 fare upon the governor and his politi- 
 cal friends. It finally charged theiti 
 with violating the rights of the people, 
 and the perversion of their official sta- 
 tions for selfish purposes. In the 
 autumn of 1734, Zenger was arrested 
 for libel, and kept in jail until the next 
 August, when he was brought to trial. 
 The case caused intense excitement 
 throughout the country, because it in- 
 volved the great question of liberty of 
 speech and of the press. 
 
 An association known as the "Sons 
 cif Liberty" obtained the services of 
 Andrew Hamilton, of Philadelphia, 
 then eighty years of age and the fore- 
 most lawyer in the country, to defend 
 him. Zenger was acquitted, and this 
 triumph of the popular cause — this vin- 
 dication of the freedom of the press — 
 
 tliis evidence of the people to protect 
 Ihcir champions, and this success of an 
 organization in its infancy, which ap- 
 peared in power thirty years later un- 
 der the same name of "Sons of Lib- 
 erty," was a sure prophecy of that 
 political indepen<lence of the colonies 
 which was so speedily fulfilled. 
 
 From the arrival of Cosby until the 
 beginning of the I'rench and Indian 
 War, at the middle of the century, the 
 history of the province of New York is 
 composed chiefly of party strife. 
 
 NEW ENGLAND. 
 
 William Bra^ord was the successor 
 of John Carver, the earliest governor 
 of the Plymouth Colony, and the first 
 historian of Massachusetts. 
 
 He was born in Ansterfield, York- 
 shire, in the north of England, in the 
 year 1588. From early life he had 
 been accustomed to the teachings of the 
 Puritans, and attempted to fly to his 
 persecuted brethren in the Netherlands, 
 when only seventeen years of age. Be- 
 trayed, he was seized and imprisoned 
 at Boston, in Lincolnshire, for awhile, 
 but escaped and joined the fugitives at 
 Amsterdam, where he learned the silk 
 weaver's art and pursued that occupa- 
 tion. He lost his patrimony in unsuc- 
 cessful business ventures, and when the 
 establishment of a free colony in Am- 
 erica was projected at Leyden, he was 
 one of the most zealous prompters of 
 the measure ; and he and his young 
 wife were among the earliest emigrants 
 to that land of promise. Mrs. Brad- 
 ford was the first death among the 
 Pilgrims, after their arrival. While 
 still riding at anchor in Cape Cod Bay, 
 before a settlement was selected, she 
 fell into the sea and was drowned. 
 Shrewd, wise, active, humane and gen- 
 erous, Bradford was very popular ; and 
 he was in the chair of state almost con- 
 tinuously from 1 62 1 until his death in 
 1657. a period of thirty-six years. 
 
 The I'ilgrims of Plymouth, in the 
 autumn of 1621, rejoiced in an abun- 
 dance of food, it being the first year of 
 their settlement. Therebv their hearts 
 were filled with gratitude, and after the 
 
q6 
 
 THE HOMK AUXILIARY AND REFERENCE 
 
 fruits of their labor had all been 
 gathered, the governor sent out hunts- 
 men to bring in supplies for a general 
 and common thanksgiving. That was 
 the first celebration of the great New 
 England festival of Thanksgiving, now 
 annually held in almost every state and 
 territory of the Union in the month of 
 November. Great quantities of wild 
 turkeys and deer were gathered at 
 Plymouth, and for three days the Pil- 
 grims indulged in rejoicing, firing of 
 guns and feasting — entertaining at the 
 same time. King Massasoit and ninety 
 of his dusky followers, who contributed 
 five deer to the banquets. 
 
 A second ship had arrived during the 
 summer, among the new-comers was 
 the Rev. Robert Cushman, one of the 
 founders of the colony, who, in Decem- 
 ber, 1 621, preached the first sermon in 
 New England. 
 
 Governor Bradford had already se- 
 cured the friendship of J^Iassasoit, and 
 his people ; but Canonicus, the chief of 
 the Xarragansets, living on Canonicut 
 Island, oposite the site of Newport, 
 was loth to bo friendly at first. To 
 show his contempt for and defiance of 
 the English, he sent a messenger to 
 Governor Bradford with a bundle of 
 arrows in a rattlesnake skin. That was 
 in the dead of winter, 1622. It was a 
 challenge to engage in war in the 
 spring. Bradford acted wisely on the 
 occasion. He accepted the challenge to 
 fight the multitude of savages by send- 
 ing the significant quiver back, filled 
 with gunpowder and shot. The sav- 
 ages had heard of the great guns at 
 the seaside, and they dared not keep 
 the symbols of the governor's anger, 
 but sent them back to Plymouth in 
 token of peace. Canonicus subdued, he 
 and the other cliiefs humbly begged the 
 English for friendship. The English 
 built a fort which served as a meeting 
 house, and in April, when they received 
 the news of the massacre by the In- 
 dians in Virginia, they kept their 
 houses barricaded and a careful watch 
 was constantly kept. 
 
 Not long after this, the first war be- 
 tween the English and savages broke 
 out. Weston, a wealthy and dissatis- 
 
 fied member of the Plymouth Com- 
 ])any, sent o\'er a colony of sixty un- 
 married men to plant a settlement on 
 his own account, somewhere on the 
 shores of Massachusetts Bay. They 
 were mostly idle and dissolute young 
 men, and after living several weeks 
 upon the scanty means of the Plymouth 
 families, they went to the site of Wey- 
 mouth, where they began a settlement. 
 They exasperated the Indians by plun- 
 dering their corn fields, and other 
 sources of supplies. The savages, fear- 
 ing the vengeance of the white people 
 should they destroy the young men at 
 Weymouth, determined to exterminate 
 all the English in the land. ^Massasoit 
 revealed the plot to the English, 
 and the Plymouth people immediately 
 sent Captain Standish, with a few 
 soldiers, to protect the ofl:'ending 
 Englishmen, and in a contest that en- 
 sued an Indian chief and several of his 
 followers were killed. The Indians 
 Avere very much frightened, and sued 
 for peace. The colony at Weymouth, 
 too weak to endure was broken up a 
 year after it was planted, and the most 
 worthless of its members returned to 
 England. 
 
 At the end of seven years, the colon- 
 ists purchased the interest of the part- 
 ners in London, in the colony, and gen- 
 eral prosperity was soon manifested. 
 The community system, or the common 
 sharing of labor and its products was 
 abandoned, the cultivators of the soil 
 became freeholders. The restless en- 
 terprise of the Pilgrims compelled 
 them to obtain other landed possessions. 
 They acquired the right of domain on 
 Cape Anne and on tlie borders of the 
 Kennebec. The colony had been 
 spared the affliction of a governor sent 
 from England, and had from the be- 
 ginning enjoyed self-government with- 
 out the royal sanction. That govern- 
 ment was simple. At first the only 
 officers were a governor and one assis- 
 tant magi.strate. In 1624, five assis- 
 tants were chosen, in 1630, when the 
 colony nut:ibered five hundred souls, 
 seven assistants were chosen by the 
 whole people. This pure democracy 
 existed at Plymouth until 1639, a per- 
 
THIRD PERIOD— COLONIES 
 
 97 
 
 iod of nineteen years, when a repre- 
 sentative government was establislicd, 
 and a pastor was chosen as a spiritual 
 guide. Mr. Robinson, although in 
 Holland, was regarded as the head of 
 the Puritans in New England, until 
 his death in 1625 ; but he was never 
 iillowed to emigrate to America, 
 tl'.rough the influence of the London 
 I'artners of the colony with the crown 
 and Church of England. 
 
 Two independent colonies had been 
 planted during this time, one at Wes- 
 ton, and the other where Gloucester 
 now stands, both failed. The latter 
 had been attemjited by the Rev. John 
 White. With several other powerful 
 citizens. White, in 1628, formed a 
 company and purchased a tract of land 
 extending from three miles north of 
 the Merrimac River to three miles 
 south of the Charles River, and west- 
 ward to the Pacific Ocean. 
 
 In the summer of that year, the Com- 
 pany sent John Endicott. one of their 
 number (including his wife and chil- 
 dren) with emigrants, to settle on the 
 domain. Endicott was commissioned 
 governor or general manager of the 
 colony ; and then he began his long and 
 eventful career in New England. He 
 was then forty years of age ; possessed 
 of an imperious and unyielding will ; 
 was a most rigid Puritan in thought 
 and manner, benevolent though austere 
 and was intolerant of all dissenting 
 opinions. 
 
 Endicott settled at Naumkeag, 
 where some of White's men from Cape 
 Anne were seated. The place was 
 named Salem, the Hebrew word for 
 "peaceful." There he soon displayed 
 his stern opposition to all vain amuse- 
 ments, by causing a May-pole to be cut 
 down. 
 
 Several persons of wealth and in- 
 fluence in Boston. Lincolnshire, and 
 elsewhere, joined the colony, early in 
 1629, and in March a royal charter was 
 granted, creating them a corporation 
 under the name of "The Governor and 
 Company of the Massachusetts Bay, in 
 New England." The administration of 
 public affairs was intrusted to a gov- 
 ernor, deputy, and eighteen assistants 
 
 nr magistrates, who were to be elected 
 annually by the stockholders of the 
 Company. A general assembly of the 
 freemen was to be held at least four 
 times a year to legislate for the colony. 
 The King claimed no jurisdiction, for 
 he regarded the whole affair as a trad- 
 ing operation. The charter conferred 
 upon the colonists of Massachusetts 
 I '-ay all the rights of English subjects, 
 without exacting many corresponding 
 duties : and it was afterward used as a 
 text for many powerful discourses 
 against the usurpations of royalty. 
 
 The Company was careful to make 
 ample provisions for the spiritual af- 
 fairs of the colony, and sent three min- 
 isters — Skelton, Higginson and Bright 
 — to Salem, that summer, with two 
 hundred additional settlers. ,-\ church 
 society was organized, antl Samuel 
 Skelton, with Francis Higginson as as- 
 sistant, was appointed pastor. An in- 
 \ itation was sent to the Plymouth peo- 
 ple to be present. Governor Bradford 
 and others joined the society, and so 
 v.'Hs founded the first church in New 
 England. They said they were not 
 Separatists from the Church of Eng- 
 land, but a better part of it. Yet to 
 all outward things they were Separa- 
 tists. Two brothers, named Browne, 
 were sent back to England for worship- 
 ]>ing according to the Church of Eng- 
 land, and the Company did not disclaim 
 the act. 
 
 This high-handed act, unreproved, 
 established the fact that the authorities 
 of Massachusetts might, at their dis- 
 cretion, exclude all persons from the 
 colony who did not conform to the pat- 
 tern of morals and religion prescribed 
 by the governor and ministers. This 
 was the beginning of the blind intoler- 
 ance of the Puritans of Massachusetts 
 which appears as a dark stain on the 
 annals of New England. 
 
 The government of the colony was 
 transferred from the Company to the 
 people on the 2yth of ."\ugust, 1629, es- 
 tablishing a democracy like that at 
 Plymouth. This act gave a mighty im- 
 jnilse to emigration to Massachusetts. 
 The old officers resigned and John 
 Winthrop was chosen governor, 
 
g& 
 
 THE HOME AUXILIARY AND REFERENCE 
 
 Thomas Dudley, a veteran soldier, de- 
 puty-governor. Eighteen assistants 
 were also chosen. 
 
 Winthrop was then forty-two years 
 of age. He was a native of Groton, 
 Suffolk County, where he had consider- 
 able landed property. He was a lawyer 
 and learned in statesmanship, polished 
 in manners and had been in the society 
 of men eminent in church and state. 
 Dudley was well along in years and had 
 served under Henry the Fourth, of 
 France. The assistants were all noted 
 men. 
 
 Winthrop and his companions, con- 
 sisting of about three hundred families, 
 arrived at Salem, in June, 1630. They 
 found neither a church or a tow-n. A 
 rather stately house where the gov- 
 ernor lived, and a few hovels among 
 cornfields. Death had been busy 
 among the old settlers during the pre- 
 vious winter. Provisions w^ere scarce. 
 Disease attacked the new-comers, and 
 before the close of autumn, two hun- 
 dred had died. 
 
 The colonists now sought more at- 
 tractive places for settlement than 
 Salem. Some went to the present sites 
 of Charlestown, Dorchester, Roxbury, 
 Watertown and Cambridge. It was 
 proposed to found the capital of the 
 colony at Charlestown, but the un- 
 w'holesome water induced them to re- 
 move to the peninsula of Shawmut, the 
 present site of Boston, vi-here they 
 found an abundance of pure spring 
 water. The capital was named Boston, 
 in commemoration of the native place 
 of some of the emigrants from Lin- 
 colnshire, in England. At the close of 
 the year 1630, a large number of emi- 
 grants had arrived. 
 
 The people well knew the tendency 
 toward tyranny, of men exercising un- 
 lestrained control, so, in May, 1631, 
 it was agreed that all the officers of the 
 government should be chosen annually 
 by the freemen of the colony. These 
 consisted of only men wdno were mem- 
 bers in good standing o fsome church. 
 This w^as an attempt to establish a 
 religious aristocracy to control the 
 state. 
 
 There was another change in 1634, 
 
 when a representative government was 
 established, the second in America. 
 There were now eight distinct settle- 
 ments in Massachusetts, and the 
 growth of the colony was now more 
 rapid and sturdy than that of Plymouth. 
 Winthrop, whom the people re-elected, 
 ruled wisely. He cultivated the friend- 
 ship of the surrounding Indians, and 
 also with the neighboring settlements 
 and distant colonies. He visited Gov- 
 ernor Bradford at Plymouth, and ex- 
 changed friendly communications with 
 New Netherland about the occupation 
 of part of the Connecticut Valley. His 
 policy was peace and good-fellowship. 
 
 The intolerance of the authorities of 
 ^Massachusetts, in church and state, al- 
 most put an end to emigration, until 
 the religious persecutions in England 
 against all Non-conformists gave an 
 amazing impetus to emigration to Am- 
 erica. 
 
 During the year 1635, three thousand 
 new settlers went to Massachusetts, 
 among whom were men of wealth, in- 
 fluence, and distinction. Among these 
 men Hugh Peters, an eloquent Puritan 
 preacher, and Harry Vane, then 
 twenty-five years of age, took a 
 conspicuous part in the affairs of the 
 colony. 
 
 The rigid discipline and the intem- 
 perate zeal of the Massachusetts 
 authorities, under Endicott, in their 
 proceedings against those who did not 
 conform to their teachings, aroused 
 both church and state in England. Or- 
 ders were issued to the authorities of 
 Massachusetts to produce their charter 
 before the Privy Council in England. 
 This was followed, in the spring of 
 1634, by an arbitrary commission with 
 Loud, the premate of England at their 
 head. He and his associates received 
 full power over the .\merican colonies 
 to organize new governments and dic- 
 tate laws ; to regulate pubic worship, 
 and to inflict punishment and revoke 
 charters. 
 
 ^^'hen the news reached Xew Eng- 
 land, with a rumor that a viceroy was 
 on his way, it was resolved not to re- 
 ceive a governor appointed by the 
 crown, and to resist as long as possible. 
 
THIRD PERIOD— COLONIES 
 
 It was at this time tliat the great emi- 
 ,t;;ration just spoken of took place. 
 
 Hugh Peters, on his arrival at Bos- 
 ton, was made pastor of the church va- 
 cated by Roger Williams, when he was 
 banished, whose doctrines he de- 
 nounced, and whose followers he ex- 
 pelled from the church. 
 
 \'ane was the son of one of the 
 King's high officers of state, and a 
 young man of purest morals. He had 
 flcil to Xew England to enjoy the free- 
 dom of worship among those whose 
 cause lie had espoused. He was re- 
 garded as the forerunner of the speedy 
 emigration to Massachusetts of leading 
 men of the realm. 
 
 He was received with open arms, and 
 the colonists, forgetting their old 
 leaders, elected him governor of the 
 colony. He defended the broad views 
 of Mr. Williams and Mrs. Hutchin.son, 
 and a strong opposition was organized 
 against him. After a tempestuous 
 year, \'ane was defeated at the next an- 
 nual election, when he returned to 
 England. 
 
 Soon after \'ane's departure, Mrs. 
 Hutchinson was banished and she 
 settled in Rhode Island. Then to be 
 entirely free from religious bigotry, 
 slie settled near the present village of 
 Xew Rochelle, in West Chester County, 
 in. what was then, New Netherland. 
 When the Indians made war upon the 
 Dutch, in revenge for the cruelties 
 suffered by them under Governor 
 Kieft, Mrs. Hutchinson and her family 
 were not spared. The Indians, in their 
 blind fury, swept through the forests, 
 and she and her family were murdered, 
 with the exception of her grandchibl, 
 who was made captive. The child, fair 
 and curlv-liaired and eight years of age, 
 was tenderly cared for by the savages. 
 \Mien four years afterwards, little 
 Anna Collins was delivered to the 
 Dutch governor at New Amsterdam to 
 be returned to her friends at Boston, 
 in accordance with the terms of a 
 treaty, she had forgotten her own 
 language and was unwilling to leave 
 her Indian friends. 
 
 .\ confederation of New England 
 colonies for mutual defense had been 
 
 proposed by Connecticut immediately 
 after the war with the Pequods. In 
 1638, when the crown threatene^I to 
 deprive Massachusetts of her charter, 
 the other colonies counselled resistance, 
 and the people from the Bay threatened 
 secession from the British realm. The 
 civil war in Old England broke out in 
 1 641, and the people of New England 
 relieved from royal displeasure, ■ re- 
 solved to unite in a political league. 
 They very soon agreed upon twelve 
 articles of Confederation, and consti- 
 tuted a confederacy under the title of 
 "The United Colonies of New Eng- 
 land." That written agreement was 
 signed on the 20th of August, 1643, by 
 deputies from Plymouth. Connecticut, 
 New Haven and Massachusetts, at 
 Boston. Rhode Island and the settle- 
 ments in New Hampshire and Elaine 
 were not admitted on account of their 
 liberty of conscience in religious mat- 
 ters. 
 
 This famous league, of which Massa- 
 chusetts assumed control, because of its 
 greater population, and its being a 
 "perfect republic," remained in exis- 
 tence more than fortv years, during 
 which period the government of Eng- 
 land was changed tiiree times. They 
 found in Oliver Cromwell a sincere 
 friend and protector. 
 
 The colony of Massachusetts in par- 
 ticular, prospered. The trade with the 
 West Indies brought gold and silver 
 bullion into the colony, and led to an 
 act of sovereignty on the part of the 
 authorities in 1652, by the establish- 
 ment of a mint. This was the first 
 coinage within the territory of the 
 United States. 
 
 The laws of the Puritans in tliose 
 days, in relation to religion, were very 
 strict. Their iron rule was condemned 
 at the time, and has been ever since. 
 Their persecutions of the Friends or 
 Quakers, fully proved their bigotry am! 
 austerity. These people had amongst 
 them members, who, by their intem- 
 perate zeal, offended the authorities, 
 and they were compelled to suffer im- 
 prisonment, banishment and death. 
 The severity of the laws against them 
 lasted from 1656 until ifi6i, when a 
 
THE HOMF. AUXILIARY AND REFERENCE 
 
 rcvulsiuii was caused in public seiiti- 
 ineiit, and the laws were repealed. 
 
 At the restoration of the monarchy 
 in England, in May, 1660, the members 
 of Parliament, who had signed the 
 death warrant of Charles the First, 
 were hunted by the royal vengeance. 
 .\mong those who fled to New England 
 were Edward Whalley and William 
 Goffe. The former was a cousin of 
 Cromwell, and a distinguished cavalry 
 officer. Goffe was Whalley 's son-in- 
 law and had been a colonel of infantry. 
 These regicides, as they were called, 
 were closeh' hunted, but the people of 
 New England effectually concealed 
 them. It is related that soon after the 
 arrival of General Goffe, at Boston, a 
 fencing master defied anyone to fight 
 him with swords. Goffe accepted the 
 challenge. He wrapped a huge cheese 
 in a cloth as a shield, and arming him- 
 self with a mop filled with muddy 
 water, he appeared on the platform 
 erected for the contest. The fencing 
 master made a thrust at him which 
 Goffe received in the cheese, in which 
 he held the sword until he had 
 smeared his antagonist with mud. The 
 enraged fencing master caught up a 
 broad sword, when Goffe exclaimed: 
 "Stop, sir; hitherto, you see, I have 
 onlv played with you, but if you come 
 at me now with the broadsword, know 
 that I will certainly take your life." 
 The alarmed fencing master cried out, 
 as he dropped his sword, "Who can 
 you be? You must be either Goffe, or 
 Whalley, or the Devil, for there were 
 no other men in England who could 
 beat me." 
 
 The New England colonies, espec- 
 ially Massachusetts, expected very little 
 favors from the new monarch, Charles 
 the Second, for their republicanism 
 was decided and conspicuous. 
 
 They sent agents to London to per- 
 suade the King of their loyalty, at the 
 same time to secure their independence 
 in local affairs, as a self-governing 
 people. It was a difficult task, but John 
 Newton and .Simon Bradstreet success- 
 fully performed it. In the autumn of 
 1662, the King confirmed the Massa- 
 chusetts charter, and granted a condi- 
 
 tional amnesty or general pardon for 
 all past offenses in the civil war ; at the 
 same time the King asserted his right 
 to interfere with the domestic con- 
 cerns of the colony. 
 
 False stories were carried to the 
 King, leading him to believe that there 
 was a rebellion in the colonies, and 
 there was a general belief in London, 
 for awhile, that Whalley and (joffe 
 were at the head of a Xew England 
 army, and that the New England Con- 
 federacy had been formed for the ex- 
 press purpose of casting oft" all de- 
 pendence on the mother country and 
 establishig a republic in .-Vmerica. In 
 1664. when the English fleet was sent 
 to take possession of New Netherland, 
 under command of Colonel Nicholls. 
 Commissioners were sent. Colonel 
 Nicholls being one of the members, to 
 rule New England as deputies of the 
 monarch. All the colonies protested 
 except Rhode Island. The acts and 
 orders of the commissioners were dis- 
 regarded, and the democratic spirit 
 throughout New England was stimu- 
 lated. They departed in 1666. leaving 
 the colonies triumphant. Massachu- 
 setts ever afterwards held a front rank 
 in the sturdy battle for independence 
 which was waged for more than a hun- 
 dred years. .\t about the time when 
 she triumphed over the eft'orts of the 
 Crown to enslave her, she was in- 
 volved in a most disastrous war with 
 Metacomet, or King Philip, a son of 
 the dead Massasoit. That contest is 
 known in our history as King Philip's 
 War. 
 
 Massasoit died in 1661, at the age 
 of eighty years, leaving two sons whom 
 the English called, respectively, Alex- 
 ander and Philip. The former did not 
 long survive his father, when Philip 
 became chief sachem and warrior of 
 the Wampanoags, with his royal resi- 
 dence on Mount Hope, not far from 
 Bristol, Rhode Island. He was called 
 King Philip. He resumed the treaty 
 made by his father, and observed it 
 faithfully a dozen years. 
 
 Massasoit saw, before his death, that 
 the Indians would soon be deprived of 
 tlieir lands, and become vassais of the 
 
THIKn PERIOD— COLONIES 
 
 pale race. Philiii. being more war- 
 like, pondered with deep bitterness 
 these possibilities. He resolved to 
 strike an e.xterminating blow against 
 the English in defence of his country 
 and race. His resolution was natural 
 and patriotic. The number of his own 
 warriors being inadequate, he planned 
 a confederacy of the New England 
 tribes, which might have numbered 
 twenty-five thousand souls. Before 
 any actual conspiracy was effected, 
 Philip found himself compelled to de- 
 clare war and lift the hatchet. 
 
 There were many Christian converts 
 among the Indians, who were firmly 
 attached to the English. A converted 
 Wampanoag, John Sassamon, who had 
 been educated at Cambridge, where 
 John Harvard had established a col- 
 lege, was a sort of secretary to Philip. 
 He revealed to the authorities at 
 Plymouth the conspiracy, and was 
 murdered for his treachery. Three 
 Wampanoags, who were convicted of 
 the crime on very slender testimony 
 were hanged. The anger of the tribe 
 was fiercely kindled by- the event, and 
 they were clamorous for war. Philip 
 knew his weakness and hesitated. The 
 young warriors of the tribe demanded 
 war. and taunted him with causing all 
 their wrongs, by allowing, a few years 
 before, the jealous white man to take 
 all their firearms away from them. 
 This enraged Philip, and he started his 
 warriors on the war-path. It was but 
 the storm in which the ancient inhabi- 
 tants of the land were to vanish away. 
 They rose without hope, and therefore 
 they fought without mercy. 
 
 On the 4th of July, 1675, Swanzey, 
 twenty-five miles southwest from 
 Plymouth, was attacked. Many of the 
 inhabitants were killed, and the rest 
 fled to the surrounding settlements. 
 The country was aroused, .\rmed men 
 from Plymouth. Boston, and other 
 places near, joined, and making a 
 forced march toward Mount Hope, be- 
 sieged the Wampanoags in a swamp 
 several days. Philip escaped with most 
 of his followers, and took refuge with 
 the Nipmucs in the interior of ^lassa- 
 chusetts, who espoused his cause. At 
 
 the head of fifteen hundred warriors 
 he pressed through the forests to the 
 beautiful valley of the Connecticut to 
 lay waste the settlements there. 
 
 Meanwhile, the Narragansets were 
 compelled to make a treaty with the 
 English, by armed force. When Phili]:) 
 heard of this he was amazed. His 
 stout heart almost failed. He now saw- 
 that it was only vigorous action that 
 could sa\-e him. He aroused other 
 tribes to join him in exterminating the 
 pale- faces by the methods of treachery, 
 ambush and surprise. The scourge 
 that now appeared was terrible. Men 
 in the fields, families in their beds at 
 mid-night, and congregations in houses 
 of worship, were murdered. The Eng- 
 lish settlements east of the Hudson 
 then numbered about fifty thousand 
 souls, and, at one time, it seemed prob- 
 able that few of them would escape the 
 fury of the savages. The Connecticut 
 \'alley was desolated from Springfield, 
 northward almost to the present line 
 between Massachusetts and Vermont. 
 Brookfield was burned, and early in 
 September a hot battle was fought at 
 Deerfield. where seven hundred In- 
 dians were defeated by one hundred 
 and eighty Englishmen : but a week 
 later, prowling savages laid the town in 
 ashes. On the same day — Sunday — 
 Hadley was attacked, but was saved by 
 the bravery of Goffe. A few days af- 
 ter, Springfield was burned and a small 
 body of young men were murdered by 
 several hundred Indians, on the banks 
 of a little stream near Deerfield, now 
 known as Bloody Brook. 
 
 The Indians were now masters of the 
 situation, and Philip, encouraged by 
 his siiccesses. now resolved to attack 
 Hatfield, the chief settlement above 
 Springfield. In October, Philip, with 
 the help of new allies from Indians 
 who had been friendly with the Eng- 
 lish had one thousand warriors. He 
 attacked Hatfield, but the people were 
 prepared, and he was driven off with 
 great slaughter of the Indians. Philip 
 left the Connecticut \'alley. with his 
 shattered forces, and fled to Rhode 
 Island. The Narragansets, in viola- 
 tion of their treaty with the English. 
 
TH1-: HOMK AUXILIARY AND REFERENCE 
 
 received him with open arms, hecame 
 liis alhes, and, late in the year, went out 
 upon the war-path with him. For this 
 perfidy the Narragansets were terribly 
 punished. Massachusetts, Plymouth 
 and Connecticut gathered together, 
 under Captain Josiah Winslow. fifteen 
 hundred armed men. They marched 
 into the Narraganset country. Snow 
 had fallen to a great depth, and the 
 savages felt secure for the season. 
 Suddenly, at near the close of Decem- 
 ber, Winslow and his little army ap- 
 peared before the fort of the Indians, 
 which was in a swamp near the present 
 village of Kingston, Rhode Island. The 
 English captured the fort and in a few 
 hours hundreds of men, women and 
 children perished in the fire, and over 
 a thousand warriors were killed or 
 wounded and several hundred taken 
 prisoners, among whom was Canon- 
 chet, the chief, who was put to death. 
 Philip, and a remnant of the Xarra- 
 gansets escaped, and took refuge with 
 the Nipmucs. So disappeared the do- 
 minion of the Narragansets. 
 
 Philip, during the winter, induced 
 some of the exasperated Indians east 
 of Massachusetts to join his standard. 
 He also tried his influence with the 
 powerful Mohawks, but they stood 
 firm in their friendship with the Eng- 
 lish. Early in the spring of 1676 the 
 work of destruction began. Villages 
 and isolated dwellings were burned, 
 and their inmates destroyed. \\'ey- 
 mouth, Groton, ^iledford, Lancaster 
 and Marlborough, in Massachusetts, 
 were laid in ashes : and \\'arwick and 
 Providence, in Rhode Island, were 
 given to the flames. 
 
 Quarrels among themselves soon 
 weakened the power of the Indians. 
 The Xipmuc and the Xarragansets 
 charged their misfortunes to the am- 
 bition of Philip. The alliance was 
 dissolved. The eastern Indians has- 
 tened to their mountain fastnesses. 
 Many who had been in arms surren- 
 dered to avoid starvation. Others went 
 to Canada and joined tribes there ; and 
 Captain Benjamin Church, the most 
 famous Indian fighter of his day, 
 
 hunted and slew all the hostile red men 
 he could find. 
 
 Philip eluded his pursuers for many 
 months, hiding in many places, with a 
 resolution never to surrender. His 
 wife and son were captured, and a few 
 days afterward a faithless Indian shot 
 him in a swamp when Captain Church 
 was close upon his track. 
 
 Philip's son, the heir to Massasoit, 
 was sold as a bond slave in Bermuda. 
 So perished the dynasty of the good 
 Massasoit. and so ended the famous 
 A'/;.'^t: Pliilip's JJ'ar. The war was car- 
 ried on a little longer by the Eastern 
 Indians, for they drew their supplies 
 from the French, in Acadie. Finally, 
 in 1678, hostilities were ended by a 
 treaty. 
 
 About this time the English govern- 
 ment attempted to carry out a long 
 cherished desire of the King to resume 
 control of the colony. They sent Ed- 
 ward Randolph, a greedy adventurer 
 to collect the customs at Boston, and 
 to exercise other authority as agent of 
 the crown. Randolph excited the 
 cupidity, fears and jealousy of the 
 King, by exaggerating the population, 
 wealth, power and independence of the 
 colony. The governor ( Leverett") was 
 firm in his opposition to Randolph's 
 pretensions, ^^'hen Randolph, by roj'al 
 authority, declared the charter ot 
 Massachusetts void, and attempted to 
 govern, the people spurned him. The 
 King now intended to take possession 
 of the domain, under a decision of the 
 High Court of Chancery, when he died. 
 That was early in 1685. 
 
 The Duke of York now ascended the 
 throne of England as James the Sec- 
 ond. He declared the charter ot 
 Massachusetts to be void, and ap- 
 pointed Joseph Dudley president of the 
 country from Rhode Island to Nova 
 Scotia. 
 
 Edmund Andros succeeded Dudlev. 
 He arrived in Boston late in 1686, 
 bearing the commission of viceroy or 
 governor-general of all New England. 
 He abridged the freedom of the press; 
 interfered with marriage contracts — 
 levied "blackmail" — advanced the fees 
 
THIRD PERIOD— COLONIES 
 
 103 
 
 of all officers of the government, and 
 threatened to make the Church of 
 England the established religion in all 
 America. The people of Massachu- 
 setts resented his conduct, and were 
 about to drive him from the colony by 
 force of arms when news came to 
 Boston in May. 1689. that James had 
 been driven from the throne. 
 
 The people immediately reinstated 
 Simon Bradstreet as governor. He 
 had been deposed by Andros. Andros 
 and about fifty of his most obnoxious 
 associates were arrested and cast into 
 prison. In May, William and Mary 
 were proclaimed King and Queen in 
 the colony : and from their sovereigns 
 the provisional government of Massa- 
 chiLsetts received a letter sanctioning 
 their late proceedings, and directing 
 them to send Andros to England to 
 answer the charges preferred against 
 him. 
 
 War began in this year between Eng- 
 land and France, and soon extended to 
 their colonies in .America. This con- 
 flict lasted seven years, and is known 
 in our history as King William's W^ar. 
 
 The power of France had been car- 
 ried into the American continent by a 
 Roman Catholic religious society, 
 known as the Order of Jesuits. They 
 regarded as a brother ever\' man with- 
 out respect to skin or lineage ; and the 
 French Jesuits who were the pioneers 
 of French dominion in America re- 
 garded every convert to Christianity 
 among the savages an enfranchised cit- 
 izen of France. Whole tribes came 
 under their sway, and many of the 
 traders made wives of the Indian 
 maidens, and so established strong 
 social ties between the French and the 
 savages. The French could rely on the 
 Indians as allies, which made border 
 wars for the New England colonists 
 tenfold more distressing. Xew York 
 had the powerful Iroquois Confeder- 
 acy, like a strong wall, between them- 
 selves and the Indians of Canada. 
 
 Dover, a frontier town of Yew 
 Hampshire, was the first to feel the 
 violent hands of the mongrel foe. In 
 July. i68q, it was taken by the French 
 and Indians, twenty of the garrison 
 
 were killed, and thirty persons taken 
 prisoners and sold as slaves to the 
 French in Canada. In August the gar- 
 rison at Pemaquid was captured. In 
 February following, Governor Fronte- 
 nac sent three hundred French and 
 Indians from Montreal to destroy Al- 
 bany. They made their way as far as 
 Schenectady, burned the dwellings and 
 murdered more than sixty of the in- 
 habitants there. Seventeen of the slain 
 were children. Early the next spring 
 several eastern villages suffered the 
 same fate, and scores of women and 
 children were carried away as captives 
 and suffered untold cruelties. 
 
 Massachusetts sent an expedition 
 against the French early in 1690. under 
 Sir William Phipps. He seized Port 
 Royal, and plundered the town. In 
 June. English privateers again plun- 
 dered the town. In the preceding May 
 a Congress of the colonies met at Xew 
 York, and resolved to invade Canada 
 by land and sea. The army was under 
 command of a son of Governor Win- 
 throp, of Connecticut. It was the end 
 of September before the army reached 
 the head of Lake Champlain, Colonel 
 Peter Schuyler with some troops and 
 Indians from the Five Xation's pushed 
 on toward the St. Lawrence. Schuyler 
 was repulsed by Frontenac and the 
 whole army returned to Albany. The 
 fleet under Phipps made an expedition 
 against Quebec, but believing the forti- 
 fications of the town too strong for 
 them returned to Xew England before 
 the winter storms set in. 
 
 Sir William Phipps was now sent to 
 England to obtain aid for the colonies, 
 and to procure the restoration of the 
 charter of Massachusetts. Aid was 
 refused. A new charter was granted 
 by William in which Massachusetts, 
 Plymouth, !Maine and Xova Scotia 
 were united under the name of 
 '■^lassachusetts Bay Colony," and was 
 made a royal province, with Phipps as 
 governor. He arrived with the new 
 charter in 1692. The new charter was 
 in some respects an improvement upon 
 the old. Although it abridged the 
 rights of the citizens it granted tolera- 
 tion to religious worship except to 
 
104 
 
 THE HOME AUXILIARY AND REFERENCE 
 
 Roman Catholics, and tlie right to vote 
 was made ahnost universal. 
 
 The Puritans brought the belief in 
 witches and witchcraft to America. 
 They established laws for the punish- 
 ment of witches ; and before 1648 four 
 persons had been executed for the 
 alleged ofifense in the vicinity of Bos- 
 ton. In 1688, a wayward daughter of 
 John Godwin, of Boston, about thirteen 
 years of age, accused a servant girl of 
 stealing some of the family linen. The 
 mother of the servant girl, an Irish 
 woman and a Roman Catholic, rebuked 
 the accuser as a false witness. The 
 young girl in revenge pretended to be 
 bewitched by the Irishwoman. Some 
 others of her family followed her ex- 
 ample. The Rev. Cotton Mather, a 
 credulous and egotistical clergyman, 
 with other ministers from Boston and 
 Salem, prosecuted the ignorant Irish 
 woman as a witch, and she was hanged, 
 "for the glory of God." In the spring 
 and summer of 1692 an epidemic dis- 
 ease broke out in Danvers (then a 
 part of Salem), and spread rapidly. 
 The physicians could neither control 
 nor cure it ; and with the statements 
 of Mather before them they readily 
 ascribed the malady to the work of 
 witches. Other old and ill-favored 
 women now shared with the Irish- 
 woman in the suspicion of being 
 witches, and several of them were pub- 
 licly accused and imprisoned. At length 
 the "afflicted" and the accused became 
 so numerous that no person was safe 
 from suspicion and its consequences. 
 Malice, revenge and rapacity impelled 
 persons to accuse others who were 
 innocent. When the magnates in 
 church and state saw themselves in 
 danger they cautiously expressed their 
 doubts as to the justice of the proceed- 
 ings against accused persons. A citizen 
 of Andover, who was accused, wiser 
 and more bold than governor or clergy, 
 immediately caused the arrest of his 
 accuser on a charge of defamation of 
 character, and laid his damages at five 
 thousand dollars. The spell was in- 
 stantly broken, and witchcraft was no 
 more heard of in Andover, and so it 
 died out through the province. 
 
 During the time this delusion pre- 
 ^■ailed twenty persons had been exe- 
 cuted, over fifty had been tortured, and 
 over two hundred had been named as 
 worthy of arrest. This strange episode 
 in the history of Massachusetts aston- 
 ished the civilized world and made an 
 unfavorable impression on the sur- 
 rounding Indians, who despised a 
 people that cherished a religion which 
 sanctioned such cruelties toward their 
 countrymen. The Jesuit missionaries 
 contrasted their own mild and beni- 
 ficent system of religion with that of 
 of the Puritans. It had a serious eflfect 
 upon the future destiny of New Eng- 
 land, for the Indians on the frontiers 
 were henceforth strongly wedded to 
 the fortunes of the French. 
 
 Phipps tried to make an alliance 
 with some of the Indian tribes on the 
 frontier with whom he had made a 
 treaty. They were willing to abide by 
 the teims of the treaty, but, more at- 
 tached to the French than ever, they 
 refused an alliance with a people who 
 believed in such a religion, and refused 
 to associate with a people who cher- 
 ished it. Phipps returned to England 
 and left his deputy, Stoughton, as chief 
 magistrate. 
 
 During- Stoughton's administration, 
 which lasted about three years, the 
 French and Indians spread terror and 
 desolation over the frontier. Nova 
 Scotia submitted to the rule of France, 
 and the summer of i6g6 Fort William 
 Plenry, at Pemaquid, was attacked and 
 captured. The French and Indians 
 penetrated New England as far as 
 Haverhill, within thirty miles of Bos- 
 ton, which was attacked by the Indians 
 in March, 1697, when forty persons 
 were killed or taken prisoners, .\mong 
 those captured was the wife of Thomas 
 Dustin, who was an invalid, and her 
 nurse, whose name was Mary NefT. 
 They were compelled to walk several 
 days in the snow and slush to the vil- 
 lage of the Indians, where they met an 
 English lad, whose name was Samuel 
 Leonardson, and who had been a cap- 
 tive for more than a year. The In- 
 dians did not believe that the women 
 would have courage enough to attempt 
 
THIRD PERIOD— CCJLONTKS 
 
 to escape. So they did not keep watch, 
 and they beheved the lad faithful to 
 them. Mrs. Dustin ascertained 
 through the lad how to kill a man in- 
 stantly, and how to take off his scalp. 
 I'.efore daylight the next morning, 
 while the Indians were in deep sleep, 
 Mrs. Dustin awakened the nurse and 
 the lad, and -with their assistance killed 
 ten of the twelve sleepers. After 
 scuttling all the boats but one, they 
 started down the river. They had not 
 proceeded far when Mrs. Dustin, re- 
 flecting that her friends might demand 
 ocular proof of the truth ojf her story, 
 went back with her companions, 
 scalped the Indians and carried them 
 away in a bag. 
 
 They journeyed down the Alerrimac, 
 and succeeded in reaching the settle- 
 ments in safety, where they were re- 
 ceived as persons risen from the dead. 
 In 1874, a monument was erected on 
 Dustin's Island, the place where the 
 Indian wigwam stood, to commemo- 
 rate this heroic deed. 
 
 During the summer of 1697, other 
 places suffered dreadfully, and con- 
 tinued until the treaty of peace be- 
 tween France and England, in the same 
 year, stayed the flow of blood. 
 
 In 1702, England and France again 
 became involved in war, and as before, 
 was carried to the colonies of the two 
 governments in America. In England 
 it is known as Queen .\nne's war, \\''il- 
 liam having died. 
 
 The Earl of Bellamont was now the 
 governor of New England, and on his 
 arrival in Boston, in 1699, he found 
 public affairs in pleasant shape. The 
 prosperity and peace of the colonists 
 was rudely broken, however, on the 
 breaking out of the war between Eng- 
 land and France. The Indians who 
 had professed friendship for the Eng- 
 lish suddenly in the summer of 170;^ 
 fell with remorseless fury on the 
 frontier settlements, and swept them 
 out of existence. The French Jesuits 
 were blamed for the treachery of the 
 Indians, and incurred the intense hatred 
 of the English colonists. By acts of 
 legislation they had been driven from 
 all the New England colonies. 
 
 During the winter of 1703-04, the 
 people along the New England frontier 
 lived in perpetual dread of the foe. In 
 March the village of Deerfield, on the 
 Connecticut River in Massachusetts, 
 was laid in ashes and its inhabitants 
 either killed or made captives. Remote 
 settlements were abandoned. The 
 farmers gathered in fortified villages 
 and labored in the fields in groups and 
 well armed. There was no civilized 
 warfare in the methods of the French 
 and Indians, and their cruelties in- 
 spired good men everywhere with 
 horror. At length in 1707, Massachu- 
 setts, New Hampshire and Rhode 
 Island, resolved to carry the war into 
 the French domain on the east. An 
 expedition was sent againt Port Royal, 
 but it was a failure. In 1710 another 
 expedition was fitted out at the joint 
 expense of New York, New Jersey and 
 the New England colonies, and a fleet 
 from England, under command of 
 Colonel Nicholson. They sailed for 
 Port Royal, which surrendered on the 
 13th of October, and the name was 
 changed to Annapolis, in honor of 
 Queen .^nne. Acadie was annexed to 
 the realm of Great Britain, under the 
 title of Nova Scotia. 
 
 Nicholson carried the news to Eng- 
 land, and urged the conquest ot 
 Canada. An expedition for that con- 
 quest was planned, and fifteen war 
 ships, forty transports and six stores 
 >hips were placed under command of 
 .Admiral Sir Hovenden Walker, witli 
 marines and veteran soldiers, which 
 sailed for Boston and arrived in June, 
 171 1. New England promptly raised 
 a provincial force, and the ships sailed 
 for Quebec on the loth of .A.ugust bear- 
 ing about seven thousand troops. At 
 the same time other colonies raised an 
 army, under command of Nicholson, 
 for the capture of Montreal. The 
 French received news of these move- 
 ments and prepared themselves for the 
 invasion. 
 
 Quebec was never reached. The fleet 
 was overtaken by a storm at the mouth 
 of the St. Lawrence, eight of the ves- 
 sels driven ashore, and almost a 
 thousand perished in the sea. The ex- 
 
THE HOME AUXILIARY AND REFERENCE 
 
 pedition was abandoned, and the dis- 
 heartened admiral returned to England. 
 Nicholson hearing of the calamity and 
 the result, unwillingly retraced his 
 steps to Albany, and left Montreal un- 
 molested. 
 
 In the spring of 1713 the war was 
 ended by a treaty of peace, and Eng- 
 land received large accessions of terri- 
 tory from France. ^Massachusetts and 
 New Hampshire now made solemn 
 treaties of amity and peace with the 
 eastern Indians on the 24th of July. 
 A long peace ensued, and for thirty 
 years the colonists enjoyed compara- 
 tive repose. It was broken only by 
 discontented Indians in the East — the 
 powerful Abenakes. They disputed 
 the claim of Massachusetts to their 
 territory, which the French had sur- 
 rendered. After laying the town of 
 Brunswick in ashes, the Indians were 
 conquered and subdued by the exas- 
 perated English. In one of these 
 forays Father Rale, a Jesuit mission- 
 ary, was killed. He was the last of 
 that society in New England, and witii 
 him perished French influence in the 
 East. 
 
 From that time until late in the 
 spring of 1744 the history of Massa- 
 chusetts is chiefly a record of warm 
 political disputes between the gover- 
 nors and the representatives of the 
 people. When news reached the colon- 
 ists that France had declared war 
 against England they prepared for the 
 conflict, which is known as "King 
 George's War." Before war had been 
 declared some French soldiers sur- 
 prised, captured and carried to Louis- 
 burg a small English garrison at 
 Canseau. Then some Indians attacked 
 the fort at Annapolis, but were re- 
 ptilsed. The men taken from Conseau 
 had been paroled and sent to Boston, 
 where they gave a minute account of 
 the fortress at Louisburg. It had been 
 built by the French at a cost of five 
 and a half million of dollars, and be- 
 cause of its strength it was known as 
 "The Gibraltar of America." 
 
 The English colonists now resolved 
 to attempt the capture of this fortress. 
 
 All the colonies joined in the move- 
 ment, either with men or supplies, and 
 they had reason to expect the help of a 
 British fleet, then in the West Indies, 
 under Admiral Sir Peter Warren. In 
 April, 1745, New England troops 
 sailed from Boston for Canseau, under 
 command of William Pepperill, of 
 Maine. In about a month they were 
 joined by the fleet under Warren and 
 more troops from Connecticut. 
 
 Finally, a combined attack of the 
 fleet and army was made on Louisburg, 
 and on the 17th of June, the city, 
 fort, garrison and batteries surren- 
 dered to the English, together with the 
 Island of Cape Breton. The value ot 
 the stores and prizes captured was over 
 five millions of dollars. 
 
 The French sent a powerful fleet to 
 retake Louisburg, under command of 
 Duke d'Anville. His vessels were 
 wrecked by violent storms, and disease 
 wasted hundreds of his men, and the 
 enterprise was abandoned without 
 striking a blow. 
 
 Peace was declared at Aix-la- 
 Chapelle, in October, 1748, when it was 
 agreed that all property and territory 
 should be restored as it was before the 
 commencement of hostilities. So 
 Louisburg passed into the hands of 
 the French by peaceful means. 
 
 The most intense hatred was created 
 by religious and national causes be- 
 tween the English and French colon- 
 ists, and the horrid acts of the Indians 
 made the people on the frontier re- 
 gard them as almost as obnoxious as 
 ravenous beasts of prey. 
 
 At about the middle of tlie eight- 
 eenth century they came to blows, and 
 then began the fierce struggle of the 
 English and French for supremacy on 
 this continent, known in history as 
 "The French and Indian War." 
 
 MARYLAND. 
 
 In the year 1639 a representative 
 form of government was established 
 in Maryland. The freemen chose as 
 many representatives as they pleased. 
 So did the proprietor. Lord i?altimore. 
 
THIRD PERIon— COLONIES 
 
 107 
 
 riiese, with a governor appointed by 
 the proprietor, and a secretary, com- 
 posed the government of the colony. 
 
 The Indians were friendly, and 
 everything social and political prom- 
 ised for Maryland a long career of 
 ])eace and prosperity. 
 
 William Clayborne had received 
 from the governor of Virginia in 1627 
 authority to explore the headwaters of 
 the Chesapeake Bay north of the 34th 
 degree north latitude. Four years 
 later King Charles gave him the privi- 
 lege of making discoveries in the same 
 region and trafficking with the na- 
 tives. He established a trading post 
 on Kent Island, in Chesapeake Bay. 
 
 Clayborne insisted upon the exemp- 
 tion of Kent Island from the jurisdic- 
 tion of the Maryland proprietor, and 
 the Virginia Assembly secretly sup- 
 ported the claim : and when Calvert 
 insisted that Clayborne should either 
 leave the island or take oath of alle- 
 giance to the governor he would do 
 neither, but fitted out an armed vessel 
 to protect his domain and cruise 
 against the colonists. His vessel was 
 captured by a Maryland force, and 
 Clayborne, who was not in the expe- 
 dition, prudently fled to \^irginia, and 
 there efl^ectually excited the hostility 
 of the Indians against Calvert's colony, 
 telling the savages they were Span- 
 iards. When Calvert demanded him 
 from the governor of Virginia he fled 
 to England. The ]\Iaryland legisla- 
 ture in 1638 deprived him of all his 
 civil rights and property in their 
 jurisdiction. He laid the case before 
 the King, and it was decided against 
 him. 
 
 The King of the Paxutents now 
 showed unfriendly actions toward the 
 colonists, and it alarmed and disquieted 
 ihem. But the more powerful King . 
 of the Piscataways, who had been very 
 sick, and had been cured by Father 
 White, a Roman Catholic priest, was 
 \ery grateful. He asked to be bap- 
 tized. On a summer day in 1640 the 
 King, his queen, and their little child, 
 with several of their council were bap- 
 tized in the presence of the governor 
 and other distinguished citizens. His 
 
 ilaughler, an intelligent young woman, 
 followed her father's example, and was 
 sent to school at St. Mary's. The old 
 King of the Piscataways died, and his 
 daughter was made queen. She could 
 not protect the Christians against hos- 
 tile pagans within their borders and 
 beyond, with whom Clayborne and his 
 emissaries had tampered. 
 
 In 1642, the Indians, alarmed at the 
 increasing nutnber of Englishmen in 
 their country, and made suspicious by 
 Clayborne, made war on the colonists. 
 It lasted two or three years, but did 
 not cause much damage. It had just 
 ended when Clayborne, assisted by 
 Captain Richard Ingle, stirred up the 
 people to rebellion. Civil war was then 
 raging in England, and Calvert could 
 expect no help from the monarch. The 
 rebels, with the help of disaffected In- 
 dians, instantly triumphed, and the 
 governor and his council were com- 
 pelled to fly to Virginia. The rebellion 
 was crushed in the summer of 1646, 
 when the governor returned to his chair 
 of state. Many of the records of the 
 province had been destroyed during the 
 civil war, and those carried away by 
 Captain Ingle were lost. Clemency was 
 extended to all the rebels, excepting 
 Ingle, and peace was speedily restored. 
 
 William Stone, of Virginia, a Prot- 
 estant, was appointed governor, and 
 through his influence numbers of Puri- 
 tans settled in the colony, coming from 
 \'irginia. The "Maryland .\ssembly, 
 composed of Puritans, Church of Eng- 
 land men, and a few Roman Catholics, 
 met in 1649, and paassed the "Tolera- 
 tion Act" under the pressure of strong 
 Puritan influence. This act tolerated 
 all Christians, but Jews and Unitarians 
 were excluded. The persecuted in other 
 colonies now flocked to Maryland to 
 enjoy this freedom of conscience. This 
 act was the pride and glory of Mary- 
 land's early legislation, yet it was not 
 the first act of the kind passed in 
 America. In May, 1647, two years be- 
 fore, the General .Assembly of Rhode 
 Island adopted a code of laws which 
 closed with the declaration that "all 
 men may walk as their consciences 
 persuaded them, without molestation — 
 
THE HOME AUXILIARY AND REFEREXXE 
 
 cvenone in the name of his God." It 
 was absolute toleration. 
 
 The republican Parliament in Eng- 
 land now appointed a commission, with 
 Clayborne as a member, to govern 
 Afaryland. Three commissioners de- 
 posed Stone, and abolished the author- 
 ity of the proprietor of the province. A 
 few months after they reinstated Stone, 
 put Kent and Polmer's Islands into the 
 ]jossession of Clayborne, and so enabled 
 the vigorous "outlaw" to trample over 
 his enemy, Lord Baltimore. In 1653, 
 Cromwell restored full power to Lord 
 Baltimore as proprietor. Stone dis- 
 placed all officers appointed by the 
 commissioners. They in turn, in- 
 censed at his conduct, deposed him and 
 \ ested the government of the province 
 in a board of commissioners. 
 
 When the General Assembly con- 
 vened in the fall of 1654 the Protest- 
 ants were still in the majority. They 
 disfranchised members of the Roman 
 Catholic Church and of the Church of 
 I-Lngland. They also flogged and im- 
 prisoned Quakers. Lord Baltimore 
 secured an order from Cromwell, sent 
 to the commissioners, "not to busy 
 themselves about religion but to settle 
 the civil government." 
 
 So encouraged. Lord Baltimore or- 
 dered Stone to raise an army for the 
 icstoration of the proprietor. Stone 
 acted vigorously, he raised a force, 
 chiefly of Roman Catholics. Finally, 
 a battle was fought in April. 1655, near 
 the site of Annapolis, in which Stone 
 was made prisoner. The governor and 
 others were tried for treason. His life 
 was saved, but four of his colleagues 
 were hanged. 
 
 Josiah Fendall, a former insurgent, 
 was appointed governor by Baltimore. 
 For two years there was bitter strife 
 between the people and the agents of 
 the proprietor. The latter finally made 
 important concessions, and Fendall was 
 ]jermitted to act as governor. By pru- 
 dent conduct he secured the confidence 
 of the people. When Cromwell died 
 the people did not wait upon England, 
 but boldly asserting their authority 
 dissolved the proprietary portion of the 
 Assembly in the spring of ififo. and 
 
 assumed the whole legislative power of 
 the state. Fendall was given a com- 
 mission as governor. Three months 
 after monarchy being restored in Eng- 
 land, Lord Baltimore was restored to 
 liis proprietary rights. Baltimore 
 wisely pardoned all political offenders, 
 and for thirty years Maryland enjoyed 
 peace and repose. The province pros- 
 pered and the people were happy. 
 
 Emigrants came from every part of 
 Europe to enjoy the tolerant rule there. 
 The population of the province con- 
 sisted of about ten thousand white 
 people living together in harmony and 
 religious tolerance. Lord Baltimore 
 died in 1673, after a rule in Maryland, 
 with several interruptions, for forty- 
 three years. He had never trodden 
 the soil of his colony, but a grateful 
 people cherished his memory by nam- 
 ing the chief city of the state "Balti- 
 more." 
 
 In 1678. the General Assembly es- 
 tablished the right of suffrage on a 
 broad basis. When Charles Calvert, 
 the son of Lord Baltimore, returned to 
 the province in 1681 he annulled this 
 act. and the King issued an order that 
 all offices of government should be 
 filled by Protestants alone. In 1684, 
 Charles Calvert, now Lord Baltimore, 
 again went to England, leaving the 
 government in the charge of several 
 deputies. While he was in England 
 A\illiam and Mary ascended the throne. 
 The Protestants in the colony believing 
 there was a plot between the Roman 
 Catholics and the Indians formed an 
 armed association, led by a man named 
 Coode. They took possession of Mary- 
 land's capital and organized a provin- 
 cial government in May, 1689. Lord 
 Baltimore was deposed by the sover- 
 eigns ; and Coode was ordered to ad- 
 minister the government in the name 
 of the King. The people became di.s- 
 gusted with Coode's rule, and he was 
 displaced in 1692. and Sir Lionel 
 Copley appointed governor by the 
 King. During his administration the 
 capital was changed from St. Mary's 
 to the present site at Annapolis in 1694. 
 Copley made the Church of England 
 the state church, and supported it by 
 
THIRD PERIOD— COLONIES 
 
 a tax on the whole people. The pro- 
 prietary rights of the Baltimore fam- 
 ily were not restored until 1715, the 
 Lord Baltimore at that time being a 
 Protestant. This man was a contem- 
 porary of W'liliam Penn, and was 
 equally conspicuous for benevolence. 
 Thev are regarded as the best of the 
 proprietors who owned chartered do- 
 mains in America. 
 
 Charles, Lord Baltimore, died in 
 1 75 1, after ruling the province in per- 
 son and by deputies thirty-six years. 
 During that period the growth of the 
 province in wealth and population was 
 remarkable. The inhabitants then 
 numbered about one hundred and 
 thirty-five thousand souls, of whom 
 about forty thousand were slaves. 
 
 When the French and Indian war 
 broke out in 1755 Maryland became 
 involved, at first simply in an attitude 
 of self-defense, and a generous assist- 
 ant of the other colonies. When the 
 Indians commenced to plunder her 
 own frontiers the General Assembly, 
 aroused to the imminent danger voted 
 men and money for a vigorous prose- 
 cution of the war ; and the command 
 of all the forces engaged against the 
 French on the Ohio was given, by a 
 royal commission, to Governor 
 Sharpe of Maryland. The people of 
 that province were forced by circum- 
 stances to consent to a union which 
 was finally cemented by the blood of 
 the Revolution. 
 
 CONXECTICUT, RHODE ISLAND 
 AND NEW JERSEY. 
 
 The Connecticut colonists managed 
 their private and public affairs pru- 
 dently and were prosperous, and they 
 worked in harmony until they were 
 united into one commonwealth in 1665. 
 .""^tuyvesant, when he visited Hartford, 
 in 1650, had settled all their troubles 
 with the Dutch. The Indian tribes 
 had given them some disquietude and 
 made them approve and join the New 
 England Confederacy in 1643. The 
 following year the little independent 
 colony at Saybrook, at the mouth of 
 the Connecticut River, was annexed. 
 
 .\t the breaking out of the war l.ie- 
 tween England and Holland in 1653 
 alarming rumors had spreaad through 
 Xew England that the Dutch and the 
 Indians intended destroying the Eng- 
 lish colonies. Connecticut, being on 
 the frontier, asked the aid of Massa- 
 chusetts in making war on the Dutch. 
 When Massachusetts refused Connec- 
 ticut asked aid of Cromwell, who sent 
 four ships-of-war, but before their 
 arrival a treaty of peace between Eng- 
 land and Holland ended the war. 
 
 On the restoration of monarchy in 
 England in 1660 the General Assem- 
 bly of Connecticut resolved to make a 
 formal acknowledgment of their alle- 
 giance to the crown and ask the King 
 for a charter. Governor John W'in- 
 throp, a son of Winthrop, of Massa- 
 chusetts, took a petition, signed in May, 
 1 63 1, to England. He obtained an 
 interview with the King, and after 
 ^ome delav a charter was issued on 
 the 1st of May, 1652. It confirmed 
 Ihe popular constitution of the colony, 
 ;ind contained more liberal provisions 
 than any yet issued by royal hands. It 
 defined the boundary so as to include 
 the Xew Haven colony and a part of 
 Rhode Island on the East, and west- 
 ward to the Pacific Ocean. The New 
 Haven colony reluctantly gave its 
 consent to the union in 1665, and the 
 boundary between Connecticut and 
 Rhode Island remained a subject for 
 dispute for more than sixty years. That 
 old charter, engrossed on parchment, 
 if among the archives in the Connec- 
 ticut State Department. During King 
 F'hilip's war the colonists of Connec- 
 ticut did not sufifer much from hostile 
 Indians excepting some remote seettle- 
 ments high up the Connecticut River. 
 
 Governor Andros, of New York, 
 claimed jurisdiction as far east as the 
 Connecticut River. He went with a 
 small naval expedition in 1675 to the 
 mouth of that stream to assert his 
 authority. Captain Bull, commander 
 of the fort at Saybrook, compelled him 
 to return to Xew York. For a dozen 
 years after this expedition nothing oc- 
 curred to disturb the repose of the 
 colonyy. 
 
THE HOME AUXILIARY AND REFERENCE 
 
 King James the Second was deter- 
 mined to have absolute rule over all 
 New England. So Andres, on liis ar- 
 rival in Xew York, demanded a suf- 
 render of all the colonial charters into 
 his hands. The authorities of all com- 
 plied excepting Connecticut. Andros, 
 to subdue their stubbornness, pro- 
 ceeded with sixty armed men to Hart- 
 ford, and demanded the surrender of 
 the charter in person. On his arrival 
 there on the 31st of October (old 
 style), 1687, he found the General As- 
 sembly in session. The members re- 
 ceived him with the courtesy due his 
 rank. Before that body, with armed 
 men at his back he demanded a formal 
 surrender of that precious document 
 into his own hands. 
 
 It was now near sunset. A subject 
 of some importance was under debate, 
 and the discussion was purposely con- 
 tinued until some time after the can- 
 dles were lighted. Then the charter 
 contained in a long mahogany box was 
 brought in and laid upon the table. A 
 IJreconcerted plan to save it from the 
 grasp of the usurper was now instantly 
 executed. As Andros put forth his 
 hand to take the charter the candles 
 were all snuffed out and the document 
 was snatched by Captain Wadsworth, 
 whose train-bands were near to pro- 
 tect the Assembly from any violence 
 which the royal soldiers might offer. 
 Wadsworth bore away the charter, the 
 crowd opening as he passed out, and 
 closing behind him, and hid it in the 
 hollow of a venerable oak tree on the 
 outskirts of the village. When the 
 candles were re-lighted the members 
 were seated in perfect order, but the 
 charter could not be found. The tree 
 in which the document was hidden was 
 ever afterward known as the "Charter 
 Oak." It was destroyed by a storm in 
 .August, 1856. 
 
 Andros, however, declared the 
 charter forfeited and annulled, and 
 from that time until he was expelled 
 in 1689 from the country he governed 
 Connecticut as an autocrat. Then the 
 charter was brought out from its place 
 of concealment in May, i68q: a pop- 
 ular Assemblv was convened; Robert 
 
 Treat was chosen governor, and Con- 
 necticut again assumed the position of 
 an independent colony. 
 
 From the time that Benjamin Flet- 
 cher, in 1693, was foiled in his at- 
 tempts to exercise control over the 
 militia of Connecticut until three- 
 fourths of a century later, the history 
 of Connecticut is intimately woven 
 with that of the other colonies of 
 America settled by the English. 
 
 The inhabitants of Connecticut, by 
 prudent habits and good government, 
 steadily increased in numbers and 
 wealth. They went hand in hand with 
 the other colonies in measures for the 
 promotion of the welfare of all ; and 
 when in the fullness of time the pro- 
 vinces were ripe for union, rebellion 
 and independence the people of Con- 
 necticut were foremost in their eager- 
 ness to assert their rights as a free 
 people. 
 
 Rhode Island was favored by Parlia- 
 ment with a charter, in 1644. The 
 General Assembly, in a code of laws 
 adopted in 1647, declared "all men 
 might walk as their conscience permit- 
 ted them — everyone in the name of his 
 God." Throughout the whole com- 
 m.unity, so independent in thought and 
 action, appeared a healthier religious 
 sentiment than in Massachusetts, 
 where the people were straight-laced 
 by creeds and dogmas, and were con- 
 stantly tempted to be hypocrites. 
 There was a high-toned morality, and 
 every man was safe in his person, 
 name and estate. 
 
 In 1651, the Executive Council of 
 State, in England, granted to William 
 Coddington a commission for govern- 
 ing the islands within the limits of 
 Rhode Island charter. The people 
 were alarmed, Roger Williams and 
 John Clarke hastened to England, and 
 with the assistance of Sir Henry \"ane, 
 the "sheet-anchor of Rhode Island," 
 the commission was recalled and the 
 charter given by Parliament was con- 
 lirmed. That was in October, 1652. 
 This act put an end to the persevering 
 efforts of Massachusetts to absorb the 
 little commonwealth. 
 
 Williams, on his return in the fall of 
 
THIRD rKRlOD— COLONIES 
 
 1654, was chosen president of the 
 colony, and the charter given by Par- 
 liament was confirmed by Cromwell, 
 the following year. 
 
 On the restoration of the monarchy 
 in 1660, the inhabitants of Rhode Is- 
 land sent an address to Charles, in 
 which they declared their loyalty and 
 begged his protection. This was fol- 
 lowed by a petition for a new charter. 
 In July. 1663, the King issued a patent 
 highly democratic in its general feat- 
 ures, and similar in every respect to 
 the one granted to Connecticut. Bene- 
 dict Arnold was chosen the first gov- 
 ernor, and it continued to be the 
 supreme law of the land until 1842, or 
 one hundred and eighty years. 
 
 \\'hen Andros demanded the surren- 
 der of the colonial charters, in 1687, 
 Rhode Island instantly yielded. An- 
 dros proceeded to Rhode Island, where 
 he found no opposition and where 
 he was graciously received. He for- 
 mally dissolved the Assembly, and as- 
 sumed the functions of governor, ad- 
 mitting five of the inhabitants into his 
 legislative council. But he did not take 
 away the parchment on which the char- 
 ter was written. 
 
 When Andros was deposed, in the 
 spring of 1689, the people assembled at 
 Newport, resumed popular government 
 under the old charter, and began a new 
 and independent jjolitical career, 
 h'rom that time until the enforced un- 
 ion of the colonies for mutual defense 
 at the breaking out of the French and 
 Indian War, the inhabitants of Rhode 
 Island always bore their fair share in 
 defensive efforts, especially when the 
 hostile savaares hune along the fron- 
 tiers of New England and New York. 
 
 From the beginning of King Wil- 
 liam's War, soon after the expulsion of 
 Andros, the history of Rhode Island is 
 identified with that of all New Eng- 
 land. 
 
 We will now consider the history of 
 New Jersey as a colony. Agents were 
 sent by the authorities to New Eng- 
 land to invite settlers, and a company 
 from New Haven were soon seated on 
 the banks of the Passaic. Others fol- 
 lowed, and the first legislative as- 
 
 sembly that met at Elizabethtown. in 
 1668, was largely made up of New 
 England Puritans. The soil was fer- 
 tile, the climate salubrious, and the In- 
 dians friendly, so the colony rapidly in- 
 creased in population and prosperity. 
 In 1670, specified quit-rents of a half- 
 penny for each acre of land was de- 
 manded. The people murmured, and 
 refused to pay, not on account of the 
 amount, but because it was an unjust 
 tax levied without their consent. 
 
 These disputes continued for two 
 years, and the province was in confu- 
 sion. There was actual rebellion ; and 
 in May, 1672, the disatifected colonists 
 sent deputies to a popular Assembly, 
 which compelled Philip Carteret, the 
 ])roprietary ruler, to vacate his chair 
 and leave the province. While the pro- 
 prietors were making preparations to 
 recover the province bv force of arms, 
 New Jersey and all the rest of the ter- 
 ritory claimed by the Duke of York, 
 fell into the hands of the Dutch, with 
 whom the English were then at war. 
 That was in August, 1673. 
 
 When this domain was returned to 
 the English, fifteen months afterward, 
 the Duke received a new charter from 
 the King and appointed Andros gov- 
 ernor of the whole domain. Carteret 
 complained, and his authority was 
 partly restored ; but sufficient was re- 
 served to give Andros a pretext for as- 
 serting his authority and annoying the 
 proprietors and the people. 
 
 Lord Berkeley, becoming disgusted, 
 sold his interest in the province to 
 John Fenwick and Edward Byllinge, 
 English Friends or Quakers, for the 
 sum of five thousand dollars. This 
 tract of land was in the western part of 
 the province. Fenwick and a companv 
 of emigrants, mostly Friends, settled 
 on a spot not far from the Delaware 
 River, which was named .Salem, on ac- 
 count of the peaceful aspect of the 
 country, and of the surrounding In- 
 dians. 
 
 Byllinge's interest in the province 
 was sold to William Penn and others. 
 In July, 1676, the province was divided. 
 Carteret taking the eastern part and 
 the associated purchasers taking the 
 
THE HD.Ml'. AUXILIARY AND REFERENCE 
 
 wcslcni part. From that time until 
 tiiey were united and became a royal 
 province, in 1702, these divisions were 
 known as East and JJ'est Jersey. 
 
 The proprietors of West Jersey gave 
 tlie settlers, who were mostly Friends, 
 ;i \ery liberal constitution of govern- 
 ment.' In 1677, more than four hun- 
 dred Friends came from England and 
 settled below the Raritan River. An- 
 dros at this time required the colonies 
 to acknowledge his authority as repre- 
 >entative of the Duke of York. They 
 refused, and the matter was referred 
 to the eminent crown-lawyer. Sir AVil- 
 liam Jones, for adjudication. Sir 
 William decided against the claim of 
 the Duke, who submitted to the decis- 
 ion, released both provinces from al- 
 legiance to him, and the Jerseys be- 
 came independent of foreign control. 
 The first popular Assembly in West 
 Jersey met at Salem, in November, 
 1681, and adopted a code of laws for 
 the government of the people. One of 
 these laws provided that in all criminal 
 cases, excepting treason, murder, and 
 theft, the aggrieved part should have 
 ])ower to pardon the offender. 
 
 Carteret died in 1679, and in 1682 his 
 Jersey estate was purchased by William 
 Venn and others, among them the Earl 
 of Perth, the friend of Robert Barclay, 
 whom the proprietors appointed gov- 
 ernor for life. This purchase was 
 made in the interest of a land specula- 
 tion, and not in the interest of religion 
 or liberty. 
 
 liarclay governed the province by 
 deputies until his death, in 1690, when 
 only forty-two years of age. Immi- 
 grants flocked into East Jersey from 
 England and Scotland and from Long 
 Island, to find repose and peace, for 
 tiiey were mostly members of the so- 
 ciety of Friends. But they were com- 
 ]iclled to submit to the tyranny of An- 
 drns, when he was made viceroy by 
 James the Second. When that de- 
 tested viceroy was driven from the 
 country, in 1689, the Jerseys were left 
 without a regular civil government and 
 so they remained several years. 
 
 The proprietors wearied with their 
 contentions with the people and the 
 
 goxernment in England, and their los- 
 ses in unprofitable speculation, sur- 
 rendered their rights in the Jerseys to 
 the crown, in 1702. Sir Edward Hyde, 
 governor of New York, was appointed 
 governor, with absolute legislative, ex- 
 ecutive and judicial power. Liberty of 
 conscience was granted, except to Ro- 
 man Catholics. Printing was prohibi- 
 ted in the province, and the traffic in 
 negro slaves was especially encouraged. 
 
 The province of New Jersey re- 
 mained a dependency of New York, 
 with a distinct legislative assembly of 
 its own, until the year 1738, when, 
 through the efforts of Lewis Morris. 
 its chief justice, it was made an inde- 
 pendent colony, and so continued unti-1 
 the war for independence. Mr. Morris 
 was commissioned its first governor, 
 after the province had gained its free- 
 dom from New York. He was the son 
 of an officer in Cromwell's army who. 
 at about the year 1672, settled on a 
 farm of three thousand acres on the 
 Harlem River, New York, which was 
 named Morrisania. 
 
 The last of the royal governors of 
 New Jersey was William Franklin, son 
 of Dr. Benjamin Franklin, who was 
 ;i])pointed, in 1763. and closed his 
 official career in the summer of 1776. 
 v\hen he was deposed by the Conti- 
 nental Congress, and sent under guard 
 to Connecticut, where he was released 
 on parole and sailed for England. He 
 died there in 1813. 
 
 PENNSYL\'ANIA. 
 
 William Penn founded the city of 
 Philadelphia, at the close of 1682, and 
 with the help of his surveyor, Thomas 
 ITolme, laid out a town and caused the 
 boundaries of the streets to be marked 
 on the trunks of the chestnut, walnut, 
 locust, spruce, pine and other forest 
 trees that covered the land. Several 
 streets of that city yet bear the names 
 of those trees, then given to them. 
 The new town had a rapid growth. 
 Within a year after the surveyor had 
 finished his task, almost a hundred 
 houses had been erected there, and the 
 Indians came daily with the spoils of 
 
THIRD PERIOD— COLONIES 
 
 tlic forest as presents ior "I'atluT 
 I'eiin," as tliey delighted to call the 
 proprietor. 
 
 The second AssembI}- of the pro- 
 \ ince, honored the new city by gather- 
 ing there in the March following. At 
 this meeting, Penn offered the repre- 
 sentatives of the people a new charter. 
 It was so liberal in all its provisions 
 that when the question, "Shall we ac- 
 cept the new constitution or to adhere 
 I > the old one?" came up in that body, 
 there was a solid vote in favor of the 
 new one. 
 
 .\ re])resentative republican govern- 
 ment, with free religious toleration and 
 having justice for its foundation; con- 
 stituted the main grants in the charter, 
 and the proprietor, unlike those of 
 other provinces, surrendered to the 
 people his chartered rights in the ap- 
 pointment of officers. From the be- 
 ginning, the happiness and prosperity' 
 of his people appeared to be uppermost 
 m the heart and mind of \A'illiam Penn. 
 It was this happy relation between the 
 proprietor and the people, and security 
 against Indian raids, that made Penn- 
 sylvania far outstrip her sister colonies 
 in rapidity of settlement and perma- 
 nent prosperity. 
 
 A small house was erected on the 
 site of Philadelphia, late in 1682, for 
 the use of Penn. It occupied a place 
 in Letitia Court, between Front and 
 Second Streets, and survived until late 
 in the last century. There were fash- 
 ioned those excellent laws, with Penn's 
 assistance, which gave Pennsylvania a 
 high character. .\t about the same 
 time Pennsylvania was divided into 
 three counties — Bucks, Chester and 
 Philadelphia ; and the annexed terri- 
 tory was also divided into three count- 
 ies — New Castle, Kent and Sussex — 
 known for a long time afterward as the 
 "Three lower counties on the Dela- 
 ware." 
 
 When I'enn returned to England in 
 the summer of 1684. He left the gov- 
 ernment of the province, during his ab- 
 sence, in the care of five members of 
 the council and Thomas Lloyd as presi- 
 dent. His luission in America had been 
 a triumphant success. His wise and 
 
 beneficient conduct had s])read a rejiort 
 all over Europe that William Penn had 
 opened, in a beautiful land beyond the 
 ocean, an asylum to the good and op- 
 pressed of every nation and creed. 
 These and others came from Scandi- 
 navia, the borders of the Rhine, and 
 from England, Wales and Scotland and 
 Ireland, to plant quiet homes in the do- 
 minion of the "Quaker King." His 
 "City of Brotherly Love" had, in the 
 course of two years, grown more 
 rapidly than had the city of New York 
 in almost half a century. At the close 
 of 1685, it contained si.x hundred 
 houses; schools were established, and 
 William Bradford, who had landed 
 where Philadelphia was afterward laid 
 out, had set up a printing press there. 
 His ".\lmanack for the Year of the 
 Christian's Account, 1687," was printed 
 there in March of that year. 
 
 At the death of Charles, when James 
 the Second ascended the throne of 
 England, there was great political and 
 religious excitement in England. Penn 
 and the new King had long been per- 
 sonal friends : and through Penn's in- 
 fluence, twelve hundred persecuteil 
 l'"riends had been released from prison, 
 in 1686. King James was known to be 
 under the influence of the Jesuits, and 
 Penn was suspected of being one of 
 them ; and after James had been driven 
 from the throne, he was arrested three 
 times, on false charges of treason, and 
 as often acquitted. The last time was 
 in 1690. In the meanwhile, great re- 
 ligious and political commotions dis- 
 turbed Pennsylvania, and in April, 
 1 891, the Three Lower Counties on the 
 Delaware, withdrew from the union, 
 offended at the action of the council at 
 Philadelphia. Penn yielded to the se- 
 cessionists so far as to appoint a sepa- 
 rate deputy-governor over them. 
 
 William and Mary were now on the 
 throne of England. From accusations, 
 which came from Pennsylvania, made 
 against Penn, he was deprived of his 
 rights as governor of his province in 
 1692. Governor Fletcher, of New 
 York, was placerl in control and ap- 
 peared at the head of the council in 
 Philadelphia, on the 13th of May, 1693, 
 
THE HOME AUXILIARY AND REFERENCE 
 
 with William Markhani, Penn's deputy, 
 as lieutenant governor. He reunited 
 the Delaware counties to the parent 
 province. 
 
 Penn was called before the Privy 
 Council in England, to answer the ac- 
 cusations. He was proven innocent 
 and powerful friends interceded with 
 King William for the restoration of his 
 rights. In the summer of 1694. a few 
 months afterward, all his rights were 
 restored. He lingered in England in 
 comparative poverty, his fortune hav- 
 ing been wasted, until 161)9. when, with 
 his daughter and his second wife, Han- 
 nah Callowhill, he sailed for Philadel- 
 phia. The province under William 
 Markham, his old deputy, had asserted 
 their right of self government, and 
 made laws for themselves while he was 
 in England. The province was pros- 
 perous, but clamorous for political 
 privileges guaranteed them by law. 
 Penn gave them a new constitution, in 
 November, 1701, more liberal than the 
 former ones, and perfectly satisfactory 
 to all. The people of the "Three 
 Lower Counties" had been forced into 
 union with Pennsylvania, so he made 
 provisions for their permanent separa- 
 tion in legislation, in 1702; and the first 
 independent legislature in Delaware 
 was assembled at New Castle, in 1703. 
 Although Pennsylvania and Delaware 
 ever afterward continued to have 
 separate legislatures, they were under 
 the same governor until the revolution 
 in 1776. 
 
 Penn had come to Philadelphia to 
 live and die there ; and had built a fine 
 bfick house to reside in, which stood on 
 the corner of Second Street and Norns 
 Alley, but the news from England that 
 measures were pending before the 
 Privy Council for bringing all the pro- 
 prietory governments under the crown, 
 determined him to return to his native 
 country to defend his rights. He did 
 so late in 1701, and succeeded. He 
 never returned to America. Business 
 troubles connected with the province 
 harassed and wearied him, and he wa> 
 about to sell his rights in the province 
 in 1 71 2. for sixty thousand dollars, 
 when he was prostrated by paralysis. 
 
 He survived six years when he died, 
 leaving his estates in America to his 
 three sons. His family governed 
 Pennsylvania, as proprietors, until 
 the revolution made it a free state 
 in 1776. Meanwhile, the province had 
 sustained its share of mutual defense 
 with its sister colonies, during the 
 troubles with the French and Indians. 
 
 NORTH AND SOCTH CAROLINA. 
 
 The new scheme of government, 
 formed by Locke and Cooper, was 
 signed in March, 1670, and Alonk, 
 Duke of Albemarle, was created vice- 
 roy for the new empire. The simple 
 .^ettlers had something to say. when the 
 governor of Northern or Albemarle 
 County colony attempted to introduce 
 the new government. When the ques- 
 tion was forced upon them, "Will you 
 accept it?" They said, "No." They 
 resolved to adhere to the form of gov- 
 ernment of their own far better adap- 
 ted to their needs than the one sent 
 from England. 
 
 The attempts to enforce obedience 
 to the new form of government, op- 
 pressive taxation, and the restrictive 
 English navigation laws, spread wide 
 discontent. This was encouraged by 
 refugees from Virginia, who had been 
 implicated in "Bacon's Rebellion," and 
 who had sought safety among the peo- 
 ple below the Roanoke. These refu- 
 gees scattered the seeds of popular 
 freedom, and successful oppression was 
 made difficult, if not impossible. 
 
 The whole state of North Carolina 
 did not, at that time, contain four thou- 
 sand inhabitants. They carried on a 
 small trade with New England, in to- 
 bacco, maize and cattle, and in return 
 received those articles of foreign pro- 
 duction, which otherwise thev could not 
 procure. English cupidity envied them 
 their privileges, and in 1672, the navi- 
 gation laws were put in force. A tax 
 of a penny on every pound of tobacco 
 sent to New England was demanded. 
 The colonists resisted and tax-gathers 
 were sent to collect the levy. There 
 were frequent collisions with the peo- 
 l)le, and on one occasion, a tax-gatherer 
 
THIRD PERIOD— COLONIES 
 
 H5 
 
 tried to drive away a steer, seized for 
 the payment of the tax on a shipment 
 of tobacco to New England by a 
 planter. The wife of the sturdy yeo- 
 man beat him off with a mop stick, and 
 saved the animal. 
 
 Finally, the exasperated people, led 
 by John Culpepper, a refugee from the 
 Southern or Carteret County colony, 
 ■-eized the governor and the public 
 funds : imprisoned him and six of his 
 councillors ; called a new representative 
 Assembly, and appointed a chief magis- 
 trate and judges. That was in Decem- 
 ber, 1677. The colonists conducted the 
 affairs of their government for two 
 years without any foreign control. 
 Meanwhile, Culpepper, whom the 
 royalists denounced as one who merited 
 hanging, conscious of his integrity, 
 went boldly to England to plead the 
 cause of the colonists. While in Eng- 
 land he was arrested and tried for 
 treason, for which he was acquitted. 
 Returning to North Carolina, he was 
 appointed surveyor-general of the pro- 
 vince ; and in 1680 he was employed in 
 laying out the city of Charleston, in 
 South Carolina. 
 
 Seth Sothel had purchased a share 
 in the soil of the jjrovinces and was 
 sent to administer the government 
 there, as governor. He reached North 
 Carolina in 1683, after having been 
 captured by the Algerian pirates. His 
 advent disturbed tranquility, for he was 
 avaricious, extortionate and cruel, and 
 plundered both the projirietors and the 
 [jeople. After ruling about six weeks, 
 the people rose in rebellion, seized and 
 imprisoned him. He was tried before 
 the colonial Assembly and sentenced to 
 one year's banishment and perpetual 
 disqualification for the office of gov- 
 ernor. Sothel then withdrew to the 
 Southern colony. 
 
 Philip Ludwell. an energetic and 
 honest man, succeeded Sothel. He 
 soon restored order and good feeling in 
 the colony. He was succeeded by other 
 honorable men, among them the good 
 John Archdale, a member of the society 
 of Friends, who was made governor of 
 the two colonies. The people of North 
 Carolina, o\er whom he ruled, were 
 
 almost as free in their opinions and act- 
 ions as the air they breathed. They 
 were widely scattered, with not a city 
 or town, and scarcely a hamlet in their 
 sylvanian domain. There were no 
 roads but bridle paths from house -to 
 house, and these were indicated by 
 notches cut in trees. There was no 
 settled minister of the Gospel among 
 them until 1703. The first church was 
 erected in North Carolina in 1705. No 
 building for a court house was con- 
 structed until 1722; and it was not 
 until 1754 — about a hundred years af- 
 ter the first permanent settlement was 
 made in the region of the Chowan — 
 that a printing press was set up in the 
 province. 
 
 The first legislative assembly of 
 .South Carolina convened in the spring 
 of 1672, at the place on the Ashley 
 River where the colony was first seated. 
 The Southern or Carteret colony ha<l 
 been steadily advancing in population 
 and wealth, since its first settlement. 
 They had not conformed to the plan of 
 government drawn up by Locke and 
 Cooper. 
 
 In the Assembly, there were many 
 parties, all bigoted and resolute. Their 
 debates became so warm at times, that 
 the members almost came to blows, and 
 it was a relief to the people when the 
 Assembly adjourned. The danger from 
 hostile Indian foes finally healed the 
 dissensions among the settlers. Moved 
 by the instinct of self-preservation, 
 they joined in a successful warfare 
 upon the Indians, who had begun to 
 plunder the plantations, and to menace 
 the lives of the colonists. The Indians 
 were subdued in 1680. Old Town was 
 abandoned, and on Oyster Point. 
 Charleston, the future capital of the 
 colony was founded. It was chiefly 
 settled by the English, the Dutch and 
 others, spreading over the country 
 along the Edisto and Santee Rivers. 
 Immigrants from Europe rapidly 
 swelled the population of Charleston 
 and its vicinity, and aspirations for 
 political independence were manifested 
 there at that early day. 
 
 A second popular Assembly met at 
 Charleston in 1682. Harmony to a 
 
ii6 
 
 THE HOME AUXILLA.RV AND REFEREN'CE 
 
 great extent iirexailed, wise laws were 
 framed, and immigrants flowed in witli 
 a continuous stream. Families from 
 Ireland, Scotland and Holland; and 
 when the edict of Nantes was revoked, 
 large numbers of French-Huguenots 
 sought an asylum in the Carolinas. 
 The hatred of the English for the 
 French prevented these French refu- 
 gees from obtaining citizenship in the 
 colonies for full ten years. 
 
 A little colony that had been settled 
 by the Scotch, in 1682. at Port Royal, 
 led by Lord Cardross. was destroyed 
 by the Spaniards, in 1686. 
 
 The Huguenots were being persecu- 
 ted with the utmost rigor in France. 
 They were a sturdy and industrious 
 people, and fully five hundred thous- 
 and of them left France. Those that 
 settled in America were blessings to 
 every community in which they made 
 homes. The warmer climate of the 
 Carolinas was more congenial to these 
 children of sunny France, and great 
 numbers settled there. They gave 
 some of their best blood to the Caro- 
 linas, and their descendants have borne 
 a conspicuous part in the building up 
 of those states, and of our free Re- 
 public. 
 
 In 1686. John Colleton, one of the 
 owners, was appointed governor of 
 South Carolina. He ruled four years 
 and his administration was a very tur- 
 bulent one. He was in continual col- 
 lision with the people and drove them 
 into open rebellion. They seized the 
 public records: imprisoned the secre- 
 tary of the province ; called a new As- 
 sembly, and defied the power of the 
 governor. He declared the province 
 under martial law, and called out the 
 militia. They did not respond to his 
 call, and he was impeached and ban- 
 ished from the colony by the Assembly, 
 in 1690. 
 
 Seth Sothel, who had been banished 
 from North Carolina, arrived in the 
 colony and espoused the cause of the 
 people. He was made governor, and 
 for two years hs plundered the colony 
 and the people. He was removed in 
 1692, and died two years afterward. 
 It was during the ;idministration of 
 
 Sothel that the I luguenots in South 
 Carolina were granted the liberty of 
 citizenship. This act of enfranchise- 
 ment was repealed in 1697. 
 
 Colonel Philip Ludwell, of ^^irginia, 
 and then governor of North Carolina, 
 was appointed successor of Sothel. He 
 had a brief and unhappy administra- 
 tion and gladly retired. The pro- 
 prietors, after a trial of twenty years, 
 were now satisfied that the government 
 planned by Locke and Cooper, could 
 never be imposed on the people, so it 
 was abandoned. They sent John Arch- 
 dale to govern both colonies. His ad- 
 ministration was short, but highly 
 beneficial. He healed dissensions ; es- 
 tablished equitable laws, religion had 
 full toleration, and he made the In- 
 dians love and respect him. He intro- 
 duced the growth of rice into the 
 colony, and so the cultivation of that 
 valuable cereal was introduced into our 
 country. 
 
 From the close of Archdale's admin- 
 istration, the history of the two Caro- 
 linas should be considered separate and 
 distinct, although they were politically 
 disunited until 1729. 
 
 The Indians along the sea-board of 
 North Carolina had disappeared before 
 the advance of the white man, at the 
 end of the seventeenth century. The 
 broad domain from the sea to the 
 Yadkin and the Catawba then lay al- 
 most uninhabited. 
 
 In 1704, Deputy-Governor Daniells 
 was sent to the province to establish the 
 dominion of the Church of England. 
 As the colonists were nearly all dis- 
 senters, he was opposed in his scheme. 
 The Friends led in the opposition. For 
 a while there were two governors and 
 two Assemblies. The dissensions were 
 soon quieted, but they did not become 
 Churchmen. Several years afterward, 
 there was only one clergyman in the 
 provinces, for no congregations could 
 be gathered. 
 
 In 1707, some Huguenots came from 
 \'irginia, and settled on the banks of 
 the Trent, a tributary of the Xeuse. At 
 about the same time a hundred German 
 families came from the devasted Pala- 
 tinate on the Rhine, led by Count Graf- 
 
THIRn TERIOD— COLON'lliS 
 
 fenreid. ami settled al the headwaters 
 of the Xeuse ami uii the Ijanks of the 
 Roanoke. Emigrants from Switzer- 
 land, founded New Berne. 
 
 A fearful calamity fell upon the Ger- 
 mans soon after they were planted. 
 The remnants of the native tribes, 
 driven to the forests, were incited and 
 led by the Tuscaroras, a fierce .\lgon- 
 quin tribe, and joined by the Corees. a 
 tribe near the sea-board further south, 
 to exterminate the whites and re-pos- 
 sess themselves of their lands. 
 
 They fell upon the German settle- 
 ments along the Loanoke, and on an 
 October night, in 1711, they slew one 
 hundred and thirty men, women and 
 children, and laid their settlements in 
 ashes. John Lawson, surveyor-general 
 of the province, and Count Graffenreid 
 were taken captives. Lawson was 
 Inirned to death but the Count escaped. 
 
 There was the wildest excitement in 
 North Carolina, and South Carolina 
 was called upon for helj). Colonel 
 Barnwell hastened northward with 
 some Carolinians and a body of 
 friendly Indians, composed of Creeks. 
 Catawbas, Cherokees and Yammasees. 
 The Tuscaroras were driven to their 
 fortified town, and there made a sol- 
 emn treaty of peace with the white 
 man. The South Carolinians, on their 
 way homeward, aroused again tlie en- 
 mity of the Indians. The Tuscaroras 
 again went on the war-path, but were 
 defeated by Colonel Moore and some 
 Indian allies. Those of the Tuscaroras 
 that were not made captives, fled to the 
 North and joined the Iroquois Con- 
 federacy. The Corees soon afterward 
 made a treaty of peace, and North 
 Carolina never afterward suffered 
 from the hostility of Indians. 
 
 The first issue of paper money in 
 North Carolina was to pay the cost of 
 this war. 
 
 When England went to war against 
 France and Spain, in 1702, James 
 Moore, governor of South Carolina, 
 proposed an expedition against the 
 Spaniards at St. Augustine. The As- 
 sembly agreed with the governor and 
 appropriated nearly ten thousand dol- 
 lars for the enterprise. A fleet and 
 
 army were now sent against St. .\ugus- 
 tine. Colonel Daniels, in command of 
 the army and Governor Moore in com- 
 n;and of the fleet. The expedition was 
 unsuccessful and returned to Charles- 
 ton. The cost of this to the colony was 
 lieavy, and the first issue of paper 
 monev by South Carolina was to pay 
 this debt. 
 
 The following year, governor Moore 
 made war against the hostile Appala- 
 chians, a Mobilian tribe, who occupied 
 a region in Georgia between the Savan- 
 nah and Atlantamha Rivers. He laid 
 v.ast their country and made captives 
 of eight hundred men, women and chil- 
 dren, and the Indians of the whole re- 
 gion were made vassals or subjects of 
 tlie English. 
 
 Trouble over religion now disturbed 
 South Carolina. The majority of the 
 Assembly were members of the Chiu'ch 
 of England. They deprived the dis- 
 senters from the rights of citizenship. 
 The dissenters appealed to the crown, 
 and in the fall of 1706, tlie Assembly, 
 by order of Parliament, repealed the 
 law of disfranchisement. But the An- 
 gelican Church maintained its suprem- 
 acy in religious affairs until the war 
 of the revolution. 
 
 The attack on St. Augustine, by the 
 South Carolinians, had angered the 
 Spaniards. An expedition consisting 
 of five vessels-of-v\'ar, imder command 
 of the French admiral LeFeboure, and 
 a large body of troops, was sent from 
 Havana to attack Charleston, to con- 
 quer the province and annex it to the 
 Spanish territory in Florida. The 
 squadron arrived oflf Charleston in 
 May, 1706, landed about eight hundred 
 troops, and demanded the surrender of 
 the city. It was met by the reply tliat 
 the people would not surrender and 
 were ready to meet any attack. 
 
 The South Carolinians now made a 
 furious assault on the landing party, 
 killed many, captured more, and drove 
 the remnant back to their ships. At 
 the sajne time the little provincial navy 
 prepared to attack the invading squad- 
 ron. The French admiral, amazed and 
 alarmed by the display of valor, 
 weighed anchor and fled to sea. A 
 
THE HOME AUXn.IARV AXD REFERENCE 
 
 l<"rench ship soon after this, unin- 
 formed of these events, sailed into the 
 harbor with troops, and was captured. 
 The Spaniards, in Florida, and the 
 French, on the Mississippi, had been 
 for some time secretly inciting the In- 
 dians to exterminate- the English. A 
 confederacy was formed among the In- 
 dians, from Cape Fear on the north to 
 the St. Mary's on the south, and back 
 to the rivers beyond the mountains in 
 the west. This league was formed in 
 forty days. The warriors of the league 
 numbered six thousand. It comprised 
 the Cherokees, Choctaws, Chicasaws, 
 Catawbas and Congarees on the west, 
 and the Creeks, Yammasees and Ap- 
 palachians on the south. At the same 
 time a thousand warriors broke forth 
 from the forests of the Neuse region to 
 avenge their misfortunes in the war 
 two or three years before. 
 
 The savages had managed so secretly 
 that not a whisper of warning had 
 reached Charleston. The Yammasees, 
 on the morning of April 13th, 171 5, 
 began an indiscriminate massacre of the 
 white people along the sea-board. The 
 news had now arrived of the outbreak 
 to the settlers at Port Royal. These 
 fied to Charleston with the news. 
 Charleston now became the centre of a 
 stream of terror stricken planters and 
 their families. Governor Craven acted 
 promptly. He took measures to pre- 
 vent men from leaving the colony. He 
 declared the province to be under mar- 
 tial law ; took measures to secure all 
 arms and ammunition to be found, and 
 called upon the citizens to prepare to 
 fight valiantly for their lives and prop- 
 erty. With a motley army of whites, 
 I)lacks and Indians, twelve hundred 
 strong, he marched to meet the savages. 
 after severe fighting, the governor 
 drove the Yammasees across Georgia, 
 and giving them no rest until they were 
 under the guns of St. Augustine. The 
 savages from the north were driven 
 back to the forests and the Cherokees 
 and their neighbors retired to their 
 hunting grounds. The war with the 
 Indians was settled in May. 171 5. 
 
 The colonists of South Carolina were 
 now tired and disgusted with proprie- 
 
 tary rule, their popular Assembly de- 
 clared they would have nothing to do 
 with the proprietors. Governor John- 
 ton refused to rule in the name of the 
 King. On the first of December, a con- 
 vention of the people chose James 
 IMoore as governor. Soon after pro- 
 prietary rule was dismissed from the 
 soil of South Carolina. The charter of 
 the proprietors was abrogated by the 
 crown, and in 1720, South Carolina be- 
 came a royal province, with Francis 
 Nicholson as royal governor. 
 
 The proprietors of North Carolina, 
 seeing the inevitable drift of public 
 sentiment, made a virtue of necessity, 
 and sold the domain to the King for 
 eighty thousand dollars. It then be- 
 came a royal province. The two Care- 
 linas were then separated. George 
 Eurrington was appointed governor of 
 North Carolina and Robert Johnson 
 was made chief magistrate of South 
 Carolina. 
 
 From that time up until the French 
 and Indian war, the history of the two 
 colonies is largely made up of records 
 of disputes between the people and 
 royal governors. 
 
 GEORGIA. 
 
 Georgia was the latest colony planted 
 by the English in America. When 
 (iglethorpe returned from England, 
 early in 1736, he brought with him a 
 company of Scotch Highlanders, who 
 were skilled in military art, and many 
 Germans who were to join their Mo- 
 ravian brethren, who had settled in 
 Georgia two or three years before. He 
 was also accompanied by John and 
 Charles Wesley. John was then thirty- 
 three years of age, and came as a mis- 
 sionary of the Gospel among the set- 
 tlers and the surrounding pagans. 
 Charles came as an assistant to his 
 brother and as secretary to Oglethorpe. 
 John W'esley had led to the founding 
 of the Methodist denomination, and 
 was fervent and eloquent in speech. 
 He obtained a large congregation at 
 first, but his austerity of maxims, and 
 his rigid exercise of ecclesiastical 
 authority, soon involved him in serious 
 
Tl^riRI) ]'KKl()n~COLOXI 
 
 disputes with tlie settlers, who were a 
 peculiarly mixed people. At the end 
 of two years he returned to England. 
 His mission in Georgia was a failure. 
 
 George W'hitefield, a sturdy young 
 preacher, who had been swaying large 
 multitudes in England, and a friend of 
 the W'esleys, obtained permission to 
 join them in Georgia. He was not 
 quite twent)'-four years of age when he 
 arrived in Savannah. The Wesleys had 
 departed when he arrived, but he en- 
 tered upon his duties with fervor. 
 More practical than \Vesley, he became 
 not only a blessing to Georgia, but to 
 other American colonies, where he 
 labored as an itinerant preacher. He 
 founded an asylum for orphans in 
 Savannah, and worked lovingly with 
 tlie Moravians in Georgia, who made a 
 most salutary impression on society 
 there. 
 
 Tlie Spaniards at St. Augustine were 
 \ery jealous of the rapid growth of 
 Georgia. Oglethorpe saw, on his re- 
 turn to the colony, that he was not 
 prcijared to resist an invasion by arms. 
 He sent a messenger to St. Augustine 
 to invite the commander to a friendly 
 conference. In the meantime, he and a 
 number of his Highlanders, went on 
 an exploring expedition among the is- 
 lands and along the coast of Georgia. 
 On St. Simon's Island he founded 
 I-'rederica and built a fort there. Sail- 
 ing up Alatamaha Sound, he visited 
 New Inverness (now Darien). where 
 a few Scotch people had planted a 
 settlement. He was warmly received 
 by the settlers and marked out a small 
 fortification there. 
 
 Oglethorpe, on his return to Savan- 
 nah, which was in the warm spring 
 weather, found that his messenger had 
 not returned from St. Augustine. He 
 now proceeded to sustain the claims of 
 Great Britain to the country as far 
 south as the St. John's River. He had 
 marked out a fort called St. Andrew's 
 on Cumberland Island, which would 
 command the mouth of the St. Mary's 
 River, the stream wliich finally became 
 the southern boundary of Georgia. He 
 planned a small military work on an 
 island at the mouth of the St. John's 
 
 Ri\cr called Fort St. George. He also 
 founded Augusta, far up the Savan- 
 nah River, as a defense against In- 
 dians from the west, who might be 
 under the influence of French or S])an- 
 ish traders. 
 
 The news of Oglethorpe's hostile 
 ]3reparations irrated the Spaniards at 
 St. Augustine. They detained Ogle- 
 thorpe's messengers as prisoners, and 
 tlireatened war. The Indians, friendly 
 to the English, now made assurances of 
 alliance, and sent warriors to Ogle- 
 thorpe's aid. The governor at St. 
 Augustine, hearing of these alliances, 
 released the messengers, and at a meet- 
 ing of the parties concerned, an honor- 
 able treaty was made. The Home gov- 
 ernment in Spain did not approve of 
 this, and notified (3glethorpe that a 
 commission from Cuba would meet him 
 at Frederica. The commissioner ap- 
 peared with his secretary, after leav- 
 ing three regiments of Spanish in- 
 fantry at St. Augustine, and peremp- 
 toril)' ordered the evacuation of all 
 Georgia by the British and of all of 
 South Carolina below the parallel of 
 Port Royal, claiming all that region as 
 a part of the dominion of Spain. The 
 conference ended without an agree- 
 ment. 
 
 Oglethorpe now returned to Eng- 
 land to confer with the trustees and 
 seek military strength for his colony. 
 He informed them of the increase in 
 the number of soldiers thrown into 
 Florida, and the peril of the colony. 
 He was commissioned a brigadier-gen- 
 eral, with control over the military in 
 Georgia and South Carolina. He ar- 
 rived in the province with troops from 
 England in the autumn of 1738, where 
 he found general discontent. 
 
 The unwise regulations of the trus- 
 tees, and the class of emigrants who 
 had settled in the province, many of 
 them unaccustomed to manual labor 
 and habits of industry, did not promote 
 prosperity. The use of slave labor was 
 pi-ohibited, and tillage neglected. 
 
 The greed of English merchants, 
 who were growing rich by illicit trade 
 on the coasts of South .\merica at the 
 expense of Spanish commerce, was fos- 
 
Till': lIOMi: AUXILIARY AND RICI']' RI' XCl', 
 
 lered by the British ministry, who were 
 bent on destroying the Spanish colonial 
 system in the so-called New World. 
 Spain resented this interference witli 
 her rights, and for this — the real cause 
 — England declared war against that 
 Kingdom late in 1739. 
 
 Oglethorpe had just put an end to a 
 conspiracy in Georgia to assassinate 
 liim, and a negro insurrection in South 
 Carolina — both incited by Spanish 
 emissaries. lie heard of the declara- 
 tion of war, and he decided to strike a 
 blow before his enemy should be well 
 prepared. 
 
 lie penetrated Florida with a small 
 force and captured some outposts early 
 in 1740. In May he marched into 
 Florida with six hundred regular 
 troops, four hundred Carolina militia, 
 and a large body of friendly Indians. 
 He was before St. Augustine in June, 
 after capturing two little forts, one 
 within twenty miles of the city, and the 
 other only two miles distant. An in- 
 stant demand of the surrender of the 
 fort and garrison was made, which was 
 refused. He surrounded the town and 
 blockaded the harbor. The blockade 
 was weak, and the Spanish garrison 
 soon obtained supplies. Oglethorpe 
 resolved to abandon the siege, malaria 
 had invaded his camp, and warned by 
 the approach of the sickly season he 
 returned to Savannah. 
 
 Hostilities were now suspended for 
 almost two years, when the Spaniards 
 determined to invade Georgia. With a 
 fleet of thirty-six vessels from Cuba 
 and a land force of about three thous- 
 and, they entered the harbor of St. 
 Simons in July, 1742. The vigilant 
 Oglethorpe was there before them, but 
 with less than a thousand men, includ- 
 ing Indians. The Governor of South 
 Carolina had failed to furnish men or 
 supplies and upon the Georgians de- 
 volved the task of defending both pro- 
 vinces from invasion. The intrepid 
 general, when he saw the white sails of 
 the Spanish vessels in the distance, went 
 on board one of his own little vcs.sels. 
 and addressing the seamen, said : ''We 
 must protect Carolina and the rest of 
 the colonies from destruction, or die in 
 
 the attempt. I rely on your valor, and 
 Ijelieve we will be \'ictorious. 
 
 The Spanish fleet passed the English 
 batteries, and Oglethorpe fell back to 
 Frederica. The reinforcements frona 
 South Carolina did not come, and he 
 \vas annoyed by frecjuent attacks from 
 the Spaniards, but he always repulsed 
 them. 
 
 Oglethorpe at length resolved to act 
 on the oiifensive, and make a stealthy 
 night attack upon the Spanish encamp- 
 ment near St. Simons. Fie moved 
 cautiously along a road he had con- 
 structed, v\-ith a dense forest on one 
 side and a deep morass on the other. 
 \\'hen he was near the camp, a French- 
 man in his little army ran ahead, fired 
 his musket, and deserted to the enemy. 
 The Spaniards were aroused, and Ogle- 
 thorpe fell back to Frederica. 
 
 The general punished the deserter in 
 a novel way. He employed a Spanish 
 ]3risoner to carry a letter to him, 
 secretly, in wdiich Oglethorpe addressed 
 him as a spy in the enemy's camp. He 
 told him to represent the Georgians as 
 \ ery weak in men and arms, and advise 
 the Spaniards to attack them at once; 
 and if they would not do so, to try and 
 l)ersuade them to remain at St. Simons 
 three days longer, for within that time 
 a British fleet, with two thousand land 
 troops would arrive to attack St. 
 .\ugustine. The bearer of the letter, as 
 Oglethorpe expected and hoped he 
 would, carried it to the Spanish com- 
 mander. It produced a great commo- 
 tion in camp. The Frenchman was ar- 
 rested and put in irons, and afterward 
 hanged as a spy. A council of war was 
 held, and while it was in session some 
 vessels from Carolina were seen at sea. 
 They were mistaken for the British 
 fleet alluded to, and the Spaniards de- 
 termined to attack Oglethorpe im- 
 mediately, and then hasten to the de- 
 fense of St. Augustine. 
 
 .\n advanced division moved im- 
 mediately on Frederica. On the nar- 
 row road flanked by the forest and the 
 morass, within a mile of the fort, they 
 were assailed by Oglethorpe and his 
 Highlanders, who lay in ambush. Al- 
 most the whole party of the invaders 
 
THIRD PKRIOO— COLONIES 
 
 were killed or captured. A second 
 part}' pressing" furward to their relief, 
 met the fate of the first. Tlie Span- 
 iards retreated in confusion, leaving 
 about two hundred of their companions 
 dead on the field. They fled to their 
 ships and hastened to St. Augustine, 
 I mly to find they had been outgeneraled 
 by the governor of Georgia. The 
 stratagem of Oglethorpe had worked 
 such disaster to the Spanish expedition 
 tliat its commander, Don Manuel de 
 .Monteano, was dismissed from the ser- 
 \ice. That stratagem probably saved 
 ( k'orgia and South Carolina from utter 
 ruin. 
 
 I laving firmly established the colony, 
 ( )gletliorpe returned to England in 
 1743. In 1775, he was offered the com- 
 mand of the I3ritish army in this coun- 
 try, on the return of General Gage to 
 Rngland. His benevolent ideas did not 
 suit the temper of the British ministry 
 then, and General William Howe re- 
 ceived the appointment. When, at the 
 close of the revolution, John Adams 
 went to England as American minister 
 at the British Court, Oglethorpe was 
 among the first to congratulate him be- 
 cause of the independence of this coun- 
 try. Oglethorpe died at the age of 
 ninety years. 
 
 .After the departure of Oglethorpe, 
 (ieorgia enjoyed repose from conflicts 
 with hostile neighbors. He left the 
 
 country in a state <if tranquility. The 
 same year it passed from the control 
 of a mild military government to that 
 of a civil organization, managed by a 
 president and five councillors or assi.s- 
 tants, under the supreme authority of 
 the trustees in England. Yet the 
 colon)- languished for reasons already 
 mentioned, and general discontent pre- 
 vailed. The laws relating to slave labor 
 were evaded. Slaves were brought 
 across from South Carolina, and hired 
 to the Georgia planters for a hundred 
 years, the sum paid for such service 
 being the market value of the slave. 
 The transaction was practically the in- 
 troduction of the slave labor system 
 into Georgia. It was not interfered 
 w ith : and very soon ships leaden with 
 slaves from Africa came to Savannah, 
 and men, women and children were 
 oftered for sale, in a way somewhat 
 evasive of law, in the open market, by 
 the auctioneer. In the year 1750, 
 Georgia was really a slave labor pro- 
 \ince. Then agriculture flourished, and 
 the colony took its place as a planting 
 State in an ecjual position by the side of 
 its sister across the Savannah. 
 
 In 1752, when the twenty-one years 
 named in the charter had expired, the 
 trustees gladly gave that instrument to 
 the King, and Georgia became a royal 
 I)rovince. So it remained until the old 
 war for independence. 
 
THE HO-ME AUXILIARY AND REFERENCE 
 
 FOURTH PERIOD 
 
 FRENCH AND INDIAN WAR 
 
 The French in America, through the 
 influence of tlie Jesuits, made a power- 
 ful impression upon the minds of the 
 savages of this country, and easily per- 
 suaded them to become the friends of 
 Frenchmen in peace and their allies in 
 war. The seeds of the French dominion 
 in America were planted by Champlain 
 at Quebec. He selected for his com- 
 panions and spiritual co-workers some 
 of the mild and benevolent priests of 
 the Franciscan Order, who, he said, 
 were "free from ambition," except to be 
 instrumental in the salvation of souls. 
 But these priests were not sufficiently 
 aggressive to suit the ambitious French 
 Church, nor worldly-wise enough to 
 serve the state in carrying out its pol- 
 itical designs for enlarging its domin- 
 ions in America. They were with- 
 drawn, and to the Jesuits, was given 
 the Franciscan Order, who, he said, 
 converting the heathen of Canada. 
 (Champlain, with their help, established 
 an alliance with the Hurons on the St. 
 Lawrence and in the country westward ; 
 and so began the widespread affiliations 
 between the French and Indians that 
 became so disquieting to the luiglish 
 colonists. 
 
 As early as 1636 there were fifteen 
 Jesuit priests in Canada — a band of 
 men ready to endure any privation and 
 sufifer any danger in the service of their 
 church. Champlain introduced three of 
 tlie.se black robed missionaries — Bre- 
 beuf, Daniel and Davost — to an assem- 
 blage of Huron chiefs and sachems at 
 Ouebec. These priests followed the 
 Hurons to their dominions, as far as 
 the shores of Lake Huron, near which 
 they planted their first mission house. 
 They shared in all the toil and priva- 
 tions of their Indian allies in the long 
 journey. The barbarians regarded them 
 with awe and reverence, as the greatest 
 ■■medicine men" they had ever known. 
 
 The extreme devotion to their religion 
 was ma'"velous in the eyes of the won- 
 dering savages, and it was not long be- 
 fore whole tribes bowed in rude Jesuit 
 chapels in the forest, and became nom- 
 inal Christians. So the Jesuits took a 
 firm grasp of the savage minds, and 
 held a controlling influence over these 
 children of the forest far and near, 
 from the St. Lawrence to the Gulf of 
 Mexico. A college was founded in 
 Canada for the education of Indian 
 boys, a year before Massachusetts took 
 up that work. And very soon after- 
 ward a young and rich widow of France 
 established the LTrsuline Convent at 
 Ouebec for Indian girls. In 1640 they 
 took possession of Montreal. Mission- 
 ary after missionary followed, and in a 
 space of thirteen years they had carried 
 the Gospel and French power from Nia- 
 gara to the shores of Lake Superior. In 
 1656, two young traders returned to 
 Ouebec, after being away two years, 
 with tales of the magnificent country to 
 the west. Father Allouez, a daring 
 Jesuit went boldly into that region. To 
 the Chippewas he proclaimed the King 
 of France as their sovereign, and built 
 mission houses there. From the Sioux 
 he heard of the magnificent IMississippi 
 River, which they called the Father of 
 Waters. This intelligence reaching 
 Ouebec, Fathers Marquette and Dablon, 
 set out to explore the mysterious land 
 and plant the banner of the cross in the 
 very heart of the heathen world. They 
 labored in the cause of religion among 
 the Chippewas, and gave efficient aid to 
 loliet, a French agent, in his political de- 
 signs, when he arrived there. At the 
 Falls of St. Mary, after summoning a 
 convention of all the Indian tribes be- 
 tween Lakes Huron and Sujierior he 
 built a chapel, raised the cross, and took 
 possession of the country in the name of 
 France. 
 
FOURTH PERIOD— FRENCH AND INDIAN WAR 
 
 Marquette resolved to reach the 
 Mississippi River. With Joliet he went 
 up the Fox River to the water shed 
 between the Mississippi and the Lakes, 
 and crossing the portage went down the 
 Wisconsin River to its mouth. Late in 
 June, 1673, they were upon the bosom 
 of that mighty river which De Soto had 
 discovered a century and a quarter be- 
 fore. The Indians called it Mississipf'i, 
 which, in their language, signified The 
 ( Ireat Water. 
 ( They now sailed down the river with 
 winds and currents, past the inflowing 
 waters of the Missouri and Ohio, and 
 other less tributaries, holding friendly 
 intercourse with the natives. Below 
 the mouth of the ,'\rkansas River they 
 met a hostile tribe of sun-worshippers, 
 who had a.xes of steel, which implied 
 intercourse with Europeans. 
 
 Marquette being now satisfied that 
 the Mississippi did not flow into the 
 .Atlantic or Pacific Ocean, but at some 
 intermediate receptacle he sailed north- 
 ward with Joliet and his companions, 
 and reached Green Bay before the 
 frosts of October were seen there. Mar- 
 (|uette labored among the Indians in 
 tlie neighborhood of Chicago for two 
 Aears. He crossed over to the eastern 
 shore of Lake Michigan, where he was 
 taken mortally sick, and died on the 
 banks of the Mackinack. 
 
 At this time Robert Cavalier dc la 
 .'^alle, a young Frenchman who had been 
 educated for the priesthood in a Jesuit 
 seminary but who preferred a secular 
 life, was settled at the foot of Lake 
 Ontario, and had a monopoly of the fur 
 trade with the Five Nations south of 
 the lake. He built a fort on the site of 
 modern Kingston and named it Fronte- 
 nac, in honor of his patron. The mild 
 Franciscans were now tolerated in Can- 
 ada, and were carrying on their relig- 
 ious work among the Indians under 
 favor of La Salle. 
 
 La Salle stirred by the adventures of 
 De Soto, and his ambition influenced 
 bv the story of Marquette's voyages on 
 the Mississippi, and of the beauty and 
 wealth ot the country through which 
 the Ohio River flowed, determined to 
 attempt the establishment of a widely 
 
 extended commerce with the natives 
 there, and, if possible, plant colonies 
 in the vast wilderness. He went to 
 France, and obtained the support of 
 Colbert, the famous minister of Louis 
 the Fourteenth. 
 
 The King ga\'e him a monopoly of 
 the fur trade among the Indians, and 
 a commission to perfect the explora- 
 tions of the Mississippi River. La Salle 
 returned to Fort Frontenac in 1678, 
 with some mechanics and others, and 
 Tonti, an Italian as his lieutenant. W"ith 
 these, and some Franciscan priests, they 
 crossed Lake Ontario and went up the 
 Niagara River to the site of Lewiston. 
 They established a trading post, built a 
 sailing vessel in which they crossed the 
 lakes to Mackinack, and pushing for- 
 ward anchored in Green Bay, west of 
 Lake Michigan. La Salle now sent his 
 vessel back with a cargo of furs, and 
 awaited her return. He tarried among 
 the Miamies at Chicago for some time, 
 when with Tonti, Father Hennepin, 
 two other Franciscans and about thirty 
 followers, boldly penetrated the wilder- 
 ness westward on foot and in canoes, 
 until he reached Lake Peoria, in Illin- 
 ois. There he built a fort, and sent 
 Father Hennepin forward to explore 
 the L'pper Mississippi, while he re- 
 turned to Frontenac to look after his 
 property. 
 
 Hennepin went up the Mississippi 
 River as far as St. Anthony's F"alls, 
 which he discovered, and named after 
 his patron saint. In the fall of 1680, 
 he returned to Green Bay by the way 
 of the Wisconsin and Fox Rivers. In 
 the meantime Tonti had been driven 
 out of Illinois by the savages, and had 
 taken refuge among the Indians on the 
 west shore of Lake Michigan. 
 
 La Salle returned to the Illinois 
 country, and early in 1682 he started on 
 an exploration of the Mississippi River, 
 with twenty-three Frenchmen and 
 eighteen New England Indians with 
 ten women and three children. They 
 reached the Mississippi in February, 
 and descended the mighty river to the 
 Gulf of Mexico, everywhere observing 
 evidences of unbounded wealth in the 
 bosom of the soil along its course. They 
 
124 
 
 THK flOMI': AUXILIARY AND RI'FKREX'CF. 
 
 lield intcrcoursL' witli the Indians at 
 many places along its sin ires. At one 
 place below the Arkansas River they 
 found a powerful King over many 
 tribes, to whom La Salle sent presents. 
 Mutual assurances of friendship passed 
 lietween them. The people over whom 
 this King ruled were a part of those 
 barbarians of the Gulf region who wor- 
 shipped the sun. They were called 
 Taenses. 
 
 La Salle proceeded southward to the 
 Gulf of Mexico and proclaimed the 
 whole Mississi]jpi \'alley as part of the 
 dominion of France. He named the 
 magnificent domain Louisiana in honor 
 of the King of France. 
 
 La Salle now went back to Quebec, 
 and then hastened to France and laid a 
 re])ort of his discovery before the 
 cc4irt. La Salle procured from the 
 King a commission to colonize Louis- 
 iana. With four ships and almost 
 three hundred emigrants, La Salle 
 sailed from Rochelle late in July, 1684, 
 for the Mississippi River by way of St. 
 Domingo. His company consisted of 
 one hundred soldiers, and the remainder 
 were chiefly artisans and farmers, with 
 a few yoimg women. La Salle had difli- 
 culties with the commanders of the 
 ships, and it caused him to miss the 
 mouths of the Mississippi while sailing 
 westward over the Gulf of Mexico. 
 They found themselves in Matagordo 
 Bay, on the coast of Texas, and there 
 La Salle determined to disembark. Li 
 a gale the store ship was lost, and the 
 timid ones among the emigrants re- 
 turned with tlie vessels to France. Two 
 hundred and thirty emigrants remained 
 with La Salle. He constructed a fort 
 named St. Louis, and claimed the 
 country in the name of France. 
 
 In December, 1685, he and some of 
 his men departed in search of the Miss- 
 issippi. After penetrating to almost the 
 Red River, he was com]ielled to re- 
 turn to the fort, as desertions, deaths. 
 and loss of supplies, would allow him 
 to go no further. ,\fter another fruit- 
 less search for rich mines In New 
 Mexico, of which he had heard, he re- 
 turned to the fort disap])ointed in the 
 spring of 1086. 
 
 La Salle now determined to go to 
 
 Canada for reinforcements and supplies 
 for his colony in Louisiana. Leaving a 
 garrison at P^ort St. Louis he departed 
 with sixteen men and five wild horses 
 which he had procured in New Mexico. 
 They crossed Texas to the uplands of 
 Trinity River, when some of the men 
 Ijccame mutinous. Two of them who 
 had embarked all their fortunes in the 
 enterprise, and who blamed La Salle 
 for their losses, conspired against his 
 life. One of these, named Duhaut, 
 killed him while he was searching for 
 his nephew (one of the party), who 
 had been already murdered. His body 
 was plundered and left to be devoured 
 by eagles and wolves. Some of the 
 party managed to make their way to 
 Canada with the sad tidings of the ex- 
 plorer's death. 
 
 The French now claimed all the 
 country from Newfoundland to the 
 Gulf of Mexico, excepting the narrow 
 border of territory on the sea coasts oc- 
 cupied by the English. They coveted 
 the whole country and resolved to 
 possess it. Trading posts, mission 
 stations and colonies had followed in the 
 ])ath of their explorers, and New Or- 
 leans had been founded ear.'y in the 
 eighteenth century. Their alliance 
 with the Indians, through the Jesuits, 
 liad that object in view, and for forty- 
 five years after the death of Louis the 
 Fourteenth, the struggle for the mas- 
 tery between the French and English 
 settlements continued. It was ended 
 only when the English, by force of 
 arms, and by conquest stripped France 
 of a great portion of its claimed terri- 
 tory in our country. 
 
 Several of the European nations con- 
 tributed materials for the English- 
 American colonies. Although these 
 people were of opposite tastes, habits and 
 religious views, as a rule, they mingled 
 with each other without asperity ; aufl 
 when the time came for a political 
 union no serious antagonism was ap- 
 parent. The different Protestant sects 
 and the Roman Catholics, though often 
 narrow in their views, manifested a 
 common lo\e of liberty, and acted upon 
 the common rule that the majority 
 should govern. 
 
 A great majority of the emigrants 
 
FOURTH PKRinD— FRENCH AM) IXDI.W WAI 
 
 were English, Scotch, Dutch and 
 Swedes. The Irish and French were 
 few at first. Denmark and the regions 
 of the Baltic contributed a consider- 
 able number, and natives from Africa 
 were soon scattered among the white 
 population of all the colonies. The 
 colonies had been founded without the 
 aid of the British government, with the 
 exception of Georgia, and often in defi- 
 ance of the expressed wishes and abso- 
 lute decrees. Subjects of the same 
 perils and hardships, there grew up 
 among them, insensibly, a brotherhood 
 (if feeling that prepared the people of 
 thirteen of the colonies, after uniting in 
 resistance to the aggressiveness of the 
 IVench during a war of more than 
 sc\ en years duration, to resist, almost 
 as one man, every form of oppression, 
 when the government to which they 
 acknowledged their allegiance became 
 an op]iressor. 
 
 Owing to their origin, early habits 
 ;ind the climate a great diversity of 
 character was seen among the inhabi- 
 tants. Virginia was settled from classes 
 ni English society, where a lack of rigid 
 moral discipline allowed freeliving, and 
 its attendant vices. The mild climate 
 tended to produce voluptuousness and 
 ease among them, and their southern 
 neighbors. The settlers of Xew Eng- 
 land were from the middling classes of 
 society. Very rigid in their manners. 
 shy and jealous of strangers. They 
 included a great many religious enthu- 
 siasts, who were very strict in their 
 faith. Their legislation tended to con- 
 trol the most minute regulations of 
 social life. 
 
 The ideas, manners, customs and pur- 
 sm'ts of the Dutch made a deep impres- 
 sion upon the colonists of New York, 
 and portions of New Jersey and Penn- 
 sylvania. They were industrious, frugal 
 and j)lod(ling money-getters, loving 
 personal ease and freedom from dis- 
 turbance. They were averse to change, 
 and followed the customs of their 
 fathers. But they had many of the 
 substantial virtues that are necessary in 
 giving health and stability to a state. 
 The Swedes and Finns on the Delaware 
 did not fliffer nnich from the Dutch. 
 
 The Friends, whose inllucncc prednm- 
 inated in West Jersey and I'enn.syl- 
 vania, were Cjuite difi^erent. They won 
 the esteem and respect of every class 
 by their refined simplicity. They gov- 
 erned their daily life by a religious sen- 
 timent, without fanticism, which was a 
 powerful safeguard against \ice and 
 immorality. 
 
 The Maryland settlers were less re- 
 strained but greater formalists in their 
 religion than either New Englanders or 
 tilt Dutch. At the middle of the eigh- 
 teenth century inter-migration had 
 greatly modified the peculiarities of the 
 inhabitants. They were industrious and 
 generally more refined than the colon- 
 ists of the East. Religious intolerance 
 had been published ; and when common 
 <langer called for common defenders of 
 the soil and of the chartered rights of 
 the colonists, they stood shoulder to 
 shoulder in battle array and in legis- 
 lative halls. 
 
 The principal jdu-suit of the i'".nglish- 
 .American colonists was agriculture in 
 t!ie middle of the eighteenth century. 
 Commerce and manufacturers were 
 struggling against unwise and unjust 
 laws for existence. Manual labor was 
 regarded as honorable and dignified, 
 es])ecially in Xew England and the ad- 
 joining proxinces. The evil example of 
 an idle privileged class was never before 
 the settlers in the forests of America. 
 There was no trade that may be digni- 
 fied by the name of commerce before 
 the revolution. Early in 1636, a Massa- 
 chusetts vessel made a voyage to the 
 West Indies : and two years later an- 
 other vessel went from Salem to New 
 Providence, and returned with a cargo 
 of cotton, salt, tobacco and negroes. 
 This was the beginning of negro slavery 
 in New England. It was recognized by 
 law in Massachusetts in 1641 : in Conn- 
 ecticut and Rhode Island, about 1650; 
 in New York, in 1656; in Maryland, in 
 1663; and in New Jersey, in 1(1(15. 
 There were but a few slaves in Penn- 
 sylvania as early as 1600, chiefly in 
 I'hiladelphia. 
 
 These successful voyages, and the 
 extensive fishing industry, were har- 
 bingers of an -American commerce to 
 
126 
 
 THE HOME AUXILIARY AND REFEREX'CE 
 
 tlie Xew England people, but the jeal- 
 ousy of the English caused navigation 
 laws to be passed by Parliament in 1651, 
 and more stringent ones in 1660. New 
 England now saw that its commerce 
 was doomed. The attention of Parlia- 
 ment had been called from time to time 
 to the industries of the American colo- 
 nies. Laws were passed by the House 
 of Commons, in 1719, to discourage 
 these industries, and in 1750 an act was 
 passed forbidding the erection of any 
 iron works. Hats were forbidden to be 
 exported from one colony to another. 
 Sugar, molasses and rum were bur- 
 dened with exorbitant duties. In the 
 Carolinas it was actually forbidden to 
 cut down a tree in their vast pine for- 
 ests for the purpose of making staves or 
 turpentine. And so for about a hun- 
 dred years the British government had 
 attempted by restrictive laws to confine 
 the commerce of the colonies to the 
 interchange of their agricultural prod- 
 ucts for English manufacture only. 
 These acts of oppression constituted the 
 chief item in the "bill of particulars" 
 presented by the Americans in the ac- 
 count with Great Britain when, on the 
 Fourth of July, 1776. they gave to the 
 world their reasons for declaring them- 
 sehes "free and independent" of the 
 British crown. 
 
 Education received special attention 
 in most of the colonies. Early in 1621 
 schools were established in Virginia for 
 white and Indian children. These 
 schools did not flourish, and the funds 
 were finally given to the support of 
 William and Mary College, which was 
 founded at Williamsburg, in Virginia, 
 in 1692, fifty-four years before the 
 Rev. John Harvard had given half of 
 his estate and three hundred of his 
 books for the founding of a college at 
 Cambridge, Massachusetts, which bears 
 his name. Yale College was founded at 
 .Saybrook, at the mouth of the Connec- 
 ticut River, in 1701. It was removed 
 to New Haven, Connecticut in 1717, 
 the birthplace of Elihu Yale, then presi- 
 dent of the English East India Com- 
 pany, from whom ft derives its name. 
 King's (now Columbia) College was es- 
 tablished in New York City in 1750, and 
 
 these four colleges composed the chief 
 seats of learning when the French and 
 Indian war broke out. 
 
 The common schools — the glory and 
 pride of New England especially — were 
 flourishing. In the early existence of 
 Connecticut laws were provided that 
 every town and organized religious 
 community containing one hundred 
 householders should maintain a gram- 
 mar school. Similar provisions were 
 made throughout New England. 
 
 The first newspaper published in the 
 colonies appeared in September, i6()0, 
 entitled "Public Occurances Both For- 
 eign and Domestic." Only one number 
 of this newspaper was issued. The 
 first permanent newspaper was "The 
 Boston News-Letter," first issued in the 
 spring of 1704. The first in T^ennsyl- 
 vania was "The American," published 
 in Philadelphia in 1719. The first in 
 New York was "The New York 
 Gazette," in 1725; the first in Mary- 
 land was "The Maryland Gazette," 
 issued at Annapolis in the summer of 
 1728. "The South Carolina Gazette," 
 issued at Charleston at the beginning of 
 1732; "The Rhode Island Gazette," 
 printed at Newport in 1732; "The Vir- 
 ginia Gazette," printed at Williamsburg 
 in 1736: "The Connecticut Gazette." 
 printed at New Haven in 1755; "The 
 North Carolina Gazette," printed at 
 New Berne the same year, and the 
 "New Hampshire Gazette," printed at 
 Portsmouth in the summer of 1756, 
 were the first newspapers published in 
 these colonies. At the period of the 
 French and Indian war newspapers 
 were printed in all the colonies except- 
 ing in New Jersey, Delaware and 
 Georgia. The printing machines on 
 which all the colonial newspapers and 
 books were printed were simple in form 
 and rude in construction. 
 
 Of the number of inhabitants at tliat 
 time of the colonies Mr. Bancroft, after 
 a careful examination of many official 
 returns, makes the following statement: 
 Massachusetts, 207,000 whites : New 
 Hampshire, 50,000 whites, and in these 
 two colonies about 3,000 blacks : Conn- 
 ecticut, 133,000 whites, 3,500 blacks: 
 Rhode Island, 35.000 whites, 4,500 
 
FOURTH PERIOD— FRENCH AND INDIAN \VAR 
 
 blacks; New York, 85,ocx) whites, ii,- 
 ooo blacks ; New Jersey, 73,000 whites. 
 5,000 blacks ; Pennsylvania and Dela- 
 ware, 195,000 whites, 11,000 blacks; 
 -Maryland, 104,000 whites, 44,000 
 blacks: Virginia, 168.000 whites. 
 116,000 blacks; North Carolina, 70.000 
 whites, 20,000 blacks ; South Carolina, 
 40,000 whites. 40,000 blacks ; Georgia, 
 5,000 whites, 2.000 blacks. 
 
 Making the number of white inhabi- 
 tants in all the colonies about 1,165,000. 
 and the blacks ( who were mostly 
 slaves ) to be 260,000. 
 
 The colonists were tillers of the earth, 
 scattered over an immense territory 
 from Nova Scotia to Florida, united by 
 mild government. The Hritish ministry 
 treated the colonists as minor children, 
 or as absolute subjects to be governed 
 without question, but the lofty idea of 
 republicanism was working out in the 
 ])rovinces through local self-gov- 
 ernment. 
 
 The common danger from the Indians 
 caused a confederation of the New 
 England colonies in 1643. A half a 
 century later William Penn put forth a 
 plan for a union of all the colonies. In 
 1684 a congress had been held at Al- 
 bany, composed of the officers of the 
 governments of Massachusetts, New 
 York, Maryland and \'irginia, and 
 sachems of the Five Nations. When it 
 was resolved to invade Canada, in 1711. 
 a convention was held at New London, 
 Connecticut, to consult upon the matter. 
 In 1722, a congress of colonial officials 
 and Indian sachems was held at .Albany 
 for the promotion of a friendly feeling 
 and the strengthening of the alliance 
 then existing with the Iroquois Confed- 
 eracy. In 1744, a similar congress for 
 the same purpose, met at Lancaster, in 
 Pennsylvania, where over two hundred 
 and fifty representatives of the Six 
 ( late Five) Nations were in attendance. 
 
 The last of these colonial congresses. 
 ;ill exhibiting tendencies toward a na- 
 tional union, was held at Albany in the 
 summer of 1748. The congress was 
 called for a two- fold purpose. One 
 was to strengthen the bonds of friend- 
 ship with the Six Nations and their 
 savage neighbors on the west. This was 
 
 successful. The other, advanced by 
 Governor Clinton, of New York, and 
 Governor Shirley, of Massachusetts, 
 was to al)ri<lge the rights of the people. 
 The royal governors gained nothing by 
 the congress. Clinton, after violent 
 quarrels with all political factions in the 
 province, abandoned the government in 
 disgust and returned home. Sir Dan- 
 \ers Osborne, who succeeded him, fore- 
 seeing much trouble ahead, he became 
 despondent. This state of mind was 
 aggravated by grief because of the re- 
 cent death of his wife, and he hanged 
 himself. 
 
 But more urgent consideration occu- 
 pied the attention of the British gov- 
 ernment and the American colonies at 
 that time. The French, from the time 
 of the capture of Louisburg in 1745, 
 had put forth the most vigorous efforts 
 for the extension and strengthening of 
 their dominion in America. They were 
 resolved on a persistent strife for 
 power ; and their aggressive movements 
 about the year 1753 aroused the British 
 government and the American colonial 
 assemblies and people to the necessity of 
 employing ec|ually vigorous measures 
 for opposing their common enemy. 
 Then the colonists united among them- 
 selves and with the Home Government 
 in defense of British dominion in .Amer- 
 ica. Then began the conflict known in 
 America as the French and Indian War, 
 and in Europe as the Scirn ]'cars' IJ'ar. 
 
 Virginians and Alarylanders had pro- 
 posed the planting of an English colony 
 beyond the Allegheny Mountains. The 
 governor of \'irginia was instructed bv 
 the King to grant to a company of 
 speculators five hundred thousand acres 
 of land en the north side of the Ohio 
 between the present site of Pittsburgh 
 and the mouth of the Kanawha River. 
 This company was known as Tlic Oliio 
 Land Company. They were to settle 
 one hundred families on the tract, with- 
 in seven years, and at their own ex- 
 pense to build a fort there. Robert 
 Dinwiddie, of Scotland, then surveyor 
 general for the southern colonies, and 
 soon after made lieutenant governor of 
 Mrginia, was one of the proprietors. 
 
 The ( )hin Land Company took meas- 
 
THl 
 
 IIO.MK AUXII.T.VRV AND RKFKRF.NXE 
 
 ures for dehniiig aiiil nccupying their 
 domain. Thomas I.ee, Augustine and 
 Lawrence Wasliington. and other lead- 
 ing \'irginia members of the Company, 
 ordered goods to be sent from London 
 for trading with the Indians. The 
 Company knew of the richness and 
 fertiHty of the country beyond the 
 mountains from reports of Enghsh 
 traders. As a prehminary movement 
 the Company took measures to obtain 
 information concerning the best lands 
 within their grant. In the autumn of 
 1750 Christopher Gist, a \'irginian, who 
 was a bold and skilful woodsman, and 
 acquainted with Indian life, was em- 
 ]jloyed to spy out the land and ascertain 
 the strength of the Indian tribes. At 
 the close of October, Gist made his 
 way over the mountains, crossed the 
 Ohio ri\er, and made his way to Logs- 
 town, where it was proposed to hold an 
 Indian council. He was received with 
 coolness by the Indians, but undaunted 
 he pressed forward to the Muskingum, 
 stopping at a village of the Ottowas, 
 who were friends of the French. The 
 W'yandots at Muskingum received him 
 cordially, and there he found George 
 Croghan, an emissary of the Pennsyl- 
 vanians, who were jealous of the Ohio 
 Company, regarding them as rivals seek- 
 ing a monoply of the trade with the 
 Indians of the Northwest. He pushed 
 on, with Grogan, and some other trad- 
 ers, until they reached the Scioto River 
 a few miles from its mouth. There 
 dwelt the Delawares ; and a short dis- 
 tance below the Scioto, on both sides of 
 the Ohio, were the Shawnees. Both 
 professed friendship for the English, 
 and a willingness to attend a general 
 council at Logstown. They went north- 
 ward to the land of the Miamis, a con- 
 federac)' more powerful than the Iro- 
 (|Uois, with whom they were friendly. 
 .A treaty of alliance was made, and 
 arrangements were made for all the 
 friendly tribes to meet at Logstown. 
 Gist now returned to \'irginia, and re- 
 ported his information to Lawrence 
 Washington, at Mount Vernon, then 
 chief director of the Ohio Company. 
 The promised council was held with the 
 western tribes in Tunc, 17^2, when 
 
 friendly rc1ali(_>ns were established by a 
 treaty. Hut the Indians steadily refused 
 to grant titles to the land west of the 
 Alleghenies to either the English or the 
 French. 
 
 The jealousy of the French was now 
 aroused, for they considered the Eng- 
 lish as intruders. They saw the ulti- 
 mate destruction of their line of forti- 
 fied communication between Canada 
 and the Gulf of Mexico. In 1753, the}- 
 imprisoned some English surveyors and 
 traders, and erected forts at Presq-islc. 
 now Erie, and another at Le Boeuf, now 
 W'atcrford, and a third at the junction 
 of French Creek and the Allegheny 
 River, on the site of the village of 
 Franklin. 
 
 The Ohio Company complained of 
 these hostile demonstrations. These 
 lands were in the chartered limits of 
 \'irginia, and the authorities felt it their 
 duty to interfere in defense of the rights 
 of the Company. The English govern- 
 ment had instructed the governors of 
 \'irginia and Pennsylvania to e.xpel the 
 French by force of arms, if necessary. 
 Robert Dinwiddle, governor of \'ir- 
 ginia, and one of the Company, deter- 
 mined to first send a letter of remon- 
 strance to M. de St. Pierre, the French 
 commander. Now, George Washington, 
 who was destined to occupy a conspic- 
 uous place in the history of our country 
 and of the world, first appeared in 
 public action, at the very opening of the 
 drama whose closing scene was the 
 founding of a mighty nation. 
 
 Young Washington was then little 
 more than twenty-one years of age, of 
 an excellent and honorable family, 
 whose roots lay far back in English his- 
 tory. He was a foster-son of old Lord 
 Fairfax; and as a public surveyor and 
 skilful hunter, had traversed the forests 
 of Virginia far and near, in the direc- 
 tion of the Ohio. At the age of nine- 
 teen he had been commissioned a major 
 of militia, charged with defending the 
 colony against the Indians. He had 
 been called from that service to attend 
 upon a dying brother, but he had 
 evinced, during his short service, such 
 an aptitude for military pursuits, and 
 such faithfulness in ]ierformance, that 
 
FOURTH PERIOD— FREXCIT AND INDIAN WAR 
 
 lie was marked for jirompt promotion. 
 
 Dinwiddie sent for Major Wasliing- 
 ton. lie appeared promptly at the 
 room of the Heutenant governor in the 
 old state house at Williamsburg, late in 
 October, 1753. Young Washington was 
 full six feet in height, strongly built, 
 with a florid complexion and every indi- 
 cation of high health and physical 
 strength. The governor gave him a 
 commission and instructions to proceed 
 to the quarters of the French com- 
 mander, and present to him in person a 
 letter from Dinwiddie, in which the gov- 
 ernor inquired by what authority 
 French troops had presumed to intrude 
 upon tlie territory of the British mon- 
 arch, and what were his designs. It was 
 a mission of great delicacy, and discre- 
 tion, ability, courage, physical endur- 
 ance, experience in woodcraft and a 
 knowledge of Indian manners were re- 
 quisite. Believing young Washington 
 to be possessed of all of these in an 
 eminent degree the governor chose him 
 to be his ambassador, out of hundreds 
 of more pretentious aristocracy of 
 Virginia. 
 
 Washington was directed to proceed 
 to Logstown (on the right bank of the 
 Ohio, about fourteen miles below the 
 site of Pittsburgh) ; convene influential 
 Indian chiefs there; tell them the object 
 (if his visit, and request them to furnish 
 him with a competent escort as a safe- 
 guard to the headquarters of the French 
 commander. There he was to demand 
 an answer to Dinwiddle's letter in the 
 name of his King ; to observe with 
 caution the number of troops that 
 crossed the lake ; perceive the number 
 and strength of their forts, and their 
 distance from each other, and gain all 
 information possible concerning the 
 French on the English frontier. With 
 these instructions Washington left W^il- 
 liamsburg, on the thirty-first of Octo- 
 ber, and was joined by John Davidson, 
 an Indian interpreter, and Jacob \'an 
 Braam, a Hollander by birth, and ac- 
 (|uainted with the French language. On 
 his way he was joined by Gist, who 
 acted as guide. With these and four 
 other men (two of them Indian trad- 
 ers), they left the borders of civiliza- 
 
 tion at the mouth of Wills Orcek (now 
 Cumberland, Maryland), and made 
 their way over the Allegheny Moun- 
 tains, then covered with snow. They 
 endured every hardship incident to a 
 dreary wilderness and the rigors of 
 winter. Late in November they reached 
 the forks of the Ohio, on the site of 
 I'ittsburgh, and then proceeded to Logs- 
 town, accompanied by an influential 
 sachem of the Delawares. 
 
 A bold and patriotic chief named 
 Half-King, who had protested against 
 the French building a fort in his coun- 
 try, and supposed the English were 
 only traders, acted as an escort to the 
 eight members of W^ashington's com- 
 pany to the headquarters of M. de St. 
 Pierre, which was one hundred and 
 twenty miles from Logstown. 
 
 They arrived at Fort \'enango (now 
 Franklin) in December. M. Joncaire, 
 the commandant, received the English 
 with civility, but tried to detach and 
 detain the Indians, hoping to shake their 
 confidence in the English, but he did 
 not succeed. 
 
 Washington found St. Pierre at Fort 
 Le Boeuf. Here was the end of the 
 X'irginia ambassador's journey of forty- 
 one days. The French commandant re- 
 ceived him and his companions with 
 great politeness. He received the gov- 
 ernor's letter with thanks ; entertained 
 the bearer and his friends four days, 
 and then delivered into the hands of 
 Major Washington a sealed letter in re- 
 ply to Dinwiddle's. With this letter and 
 much useful information respecting 
 the forts and forces of the French, 
 Washington returned to Williamsburg 
 at the end of January. 
 
 The return journey was more perilous 
 and fatiguing than the first. A greater 
 jKjrtion of it was performed by Wash- 
 ington and Gist alone and on foot. At 
 one time they were fired on by Indians, 
 supposed to have been incited to the 
 deed by Joncaire. On another occasion, 
 after working all day in constructing a 
 raft, they attempted to cross the swift 
 and swollen current of the .-Xllegheny 
 River on it. The stream was filled with 
 floating ice. They embarked at twilight 
 and soon found themselves buft'eting 
 
THE HOME AUXHJARY AND REFERENCE 
 
 great perils. Washington while hold- 
 ing a setting pole was jerked off into 
 the water ten feet deep. The raft was 
 crushed, and the travelers thoroughly 
 drenched were cast upon a desert island 
 where they lay upon the snow all night, 
 hungry and half frozen. The next 
 morning the channel of the river was 
 frozen o\er, and they crossed on the ice, 
 and toward evening reached the cabin of 
 a Scotch settler, near the spot where a 
 year and a half afterward Braddock 
 fought the French and Indians in the 
 battle of the Monongahela. The island 
 on which the travelers were wrecked is 
 directly opposite the United States 
 Arsenal, at Lawrenceville, Pennsylva- 
 nia, and is known as Washington's 
 Island. 
 
 Major Washington and his compan- 
 ion now rested two or three days for 
 their own refreshment and to procure 
 horses. During that time the major 
 paid a complimentary visit to the Indian 
 Queen, Aliquippi, who resided at the 
 confluence of the Monongahela and 
 Youghioghany Rivers, in the southeast- 
 ern part of .Allegheny County. She had 
 complained of his neglect in not calling 
 on her when on his outward journey. 
 Young W^ashington explained the cir- 
 cumstances that prevented him, and 
 with an apology he gave her a coat and 
 a bottle of rum. The latter, Washing- 
 ton wrote, "was thought the much 
 better present of the two, and harmony 
 of feeling was restored. Aliquippa, who 
 was a woman of great energy, and had 
 performed some brave deeds, was held 
 in respect amounting almost to rever- 
 ence by the Indians in Western Penn- 
 sylvania. 
 
 St. Pierre's reply to Governor Din- 
 widdle caused immediate preparations 
 for war. He said it did not become 
 him as a soldier to discuss civil mat- 
 ters ; that Dinwiddle's letter should have 
 been sent to the Marquis Du Ouesne, 
 the governor of Canada, by whose or- 
 ders he acted and whose instructions he 
 should carefully obey ; and that the sum- 
 mons of the governor of Virginia to the 
 French to retire from the country could 
 not be complied with, lender general 
 instructions from the King the governor 
 
 authorized the enlistment of two hun- 
 dred men to march to the Ohio River 
 and build two forts there. Major 
 Washington was commissioned a lieu- 
 tenant colonel, and placed in command 
 of the troops to be raised. Washing- 
 ton authorized Captain Trent to enlist 
 men among' the traders and frontier 
 settlers. An appeal was now sent to 
 all the colonies for help. All hesitated 
 except North Carolina, whose Assembly 
 immediately voted men and money for 
 the purpose. After much debate the 
 \'irginia House of Burgesses authorized 
 the raising of a regiment of six com- 
 panies, and appointed Joshua Fry, an 
 English born gentleman, colonel, and 
 young Washington as his lieutenant. 
 On the recommendation of Washington 
 the Forks of the Ohio — the site of 
 Pittsburgh — was chosen the place on 
 which to build the first fort ; and Cap- 
 tain Trent was instructed to employ his 
 recruits in- its construction. 
 
 Early in April Washington left Alex- 
 andria with a small force, and reached 
 Will's Creek (now Cumberland) on the 
 20th. He was met on the way by a 
 swift Indian runner, sent by Half-King, 
 with the message that the French were 
 embarking on the Allegheny at Ven- 
 ango. He was met by another runner, 
 who said the French were at the Forks ; 
 and the next day an ensign from 
 Trent's company came with the start- 
 ling news that the French, a thousand 
 strong, with eighteen cannon, sixty ba- 
 teaux and three hundred canoes, had 
 come down the Allegheny under com- 
 mand of Captain Contrecoeur, and 
 taken possession of the unfinished fort. 
 The French immediately finished the 
 fort on a stronger plan, and called it 
 Du Quesne in honor of the governor of 
 Canada. 
 
 Colonel Fry had not yet joined the 
 advance, and Washington assumed the 
 responsibility of pressing forward. With 
 only a small number of men and few 
 supplies he made his way through the 
 wilderness, and early in May they stood 
 on the banks of the Youghioghany, 
 within forty miles of Fort Du Ouesne. 
 Washington, hearing from Half-King, 
 that the French were near, fell back to 
 
FOURTH rERlOD— I'KEXCH Ai\D INDIAN WAR 
 
 131 
 
 a [ilain which he had crossed, called the 
 Great Meadows. There he built a 
 stockade and named it Fort Necessity. 
 It was near the modern national road 
 between Cumberland and Wheeling, in 
 the southeastern part of P'ayette Coun- 
 ty, Pennsylvania. 
 
 Washington, now understanding that 
 a party of Frenchmen were lying in 
 ambush not far away, decided to attack 
 them. With forty men of his com- 
 mand and some friendly Indians, he 
 marched against the foe. They were 
 discovered among some rocks. Wash- 
 ington, who was at the head of the party 
 and carried a musket, when he saw the 
 Frenchmen, shouted Fire! and at the 
 same moment discharged his own gun 
 among them. After a fight of about 
 fifteen minutes, Jumonville, the com- 
 mander of the French party, and ten of 
 his men were killed, and all of the re- 
 mainder were captured but fifteen, who 
 escaped. This skirmish occurred on the 
 28th day of May, 1754, and was the 
 first blood shed in the French and In- 
 dian war. When the news of this en- 
 gagement reached Europe, the French 
 denounced Washington as a murderer, 
 but the proof that Jumonville was the 
 bearer of a hostile message, and his 
 skulking in ambush is proof of his 
 hostile intentions. The war had began 
 by the capturing of the fort at the 
 Forks, and every circumstance justified 
 the conduct of Washington. 
 
 Colonel Fry having died at Will's 
 Creek, Washington was left in chief 
 command. He was now joined at Fort 
 Necessity by more troops, and by In- 
 dians under Half-King and Queen 
 Aliquippa. On the 3rd of July, Wash- 
 ington was here attacked by a large 
 force of French and Indians, under M. 
 de Villiers, a brother of Jumonville, and 
 compelled to surrender the fort and 
 troops. It was agreed, in the terms of 
 the capitulation, that he and his troops 
 were to return to the inhabited portion 
 of the country, the French prisoners 
 were to be released, and he was not to 
 erect any establishment west of the 
 mountains for a space of one year. 
 
 Aleanwhile a civil movement of great 
 importance had taken place in the col- 
 
 onies. It was a movement in the direc- 
 tion of a national union. The Indians, 
 especially the Six Nations (the Five 
 Nations having been joined by the Tus- 
 caroras when they were driven from 
 North Carolina), were becoming un- 
 easy, through the influence of the 
 French missionaries. Measures were 
 now taken to get the good will of the 
 Indians. The British Secretary of State 
 proposed a convention of the colonies, 
 and on the 19th of June, 1754, twenty- 
 five delegates from Alassachusetts, New 
 Hampshire, Connecticut, Rhode Island, 
 New York, Pennsylvania and Maryland 
 met in the old City Hall in Albany. The 
 most remarkable man of all was Dr. 
 Franklin, of Philadelphia, then almost 
 fifty years of age. "King Hendrick," 
 the eminent Mohawk sachem who was 
 killed near Lake George the following 
 year, while battling for the English, and 
 the chiefs of the Six Nations were 
 there in great force. .\ treaty was 
 made, on the whole, satisfactory to both 
 ])arties. Through the suggestion of the 
 Massachusetts delegates, a Plan of 
 Union, conceived by Dr. Franklin, was 
 adopted by the convention. It was re- 
 jected by both the crown and the differ- 
 ent assemblies. 
 
 The British ministry now resolved to 
 recover what had been lost, and create 
 a new colony west of the Allegheny 
 Mountains. Dinwiddie was instructed to 
 grant to any settler in the Ohio region 
 not more than a thousand acres of land, 
 and he was also ordered to prepare for 
 a winter campaign against the French. 
 It was late in the year, and the moun- 
 tains were co\-ered with snow drifts, 
 making them impassable for an army in- 
 adequately supplied. Washington knew 
 this ; and he so advised the governor's 
 council. His words were heeded, and 
 the mad scheme abandoned. 
 
 French emissaries were now busy 
 among the savage tribes west of the 
 mountains, inciting them to a war of 
 extermination against the English. A 
 murderous raid had already been made 
 against the New England frontier. 
 Massachusetts, New York, Maryland 
 and \"irginia made appropriations to 
 raise troops to defend the colonies, and 
 
13-2 
 
 THE HOME AUXILIARY AND REEEREXCE 
 
 the British gmcnimcnt sent over fifty 
 thousand dollars for the same pur- 
 pose. Governor Sharpe, of Alarylaii'l, 
 was made temporary commander-in- 
 chief of the colonial forces. This led to 
 injurious disputes among the Virginia 
 officers, when Dinwiddle, entirely igno- 
 rant of military affairs, assumed the re- 
 sponsibility of arranging these affairs 
 in his colony as he pleased. He en- 
 larged the provincial army to ten com- 
 paines of one hundred men each, so that 
 the highest rank was captain, inferior to 
 the same rank of those commissioned 
 by the crown. Washington would not 
 submit to the degradation, but resigned 
 his commission and retired from the 
 military service. It was urged by the 
 governor for him to remain in the 
 army, and intimated that he might hold 
 his former commission. He declined 
 the empty appointment, and added : "I 
 shall have the consolation of knowing 
 that I have opened the way when the 
 smallness of our numbers exposed us to 
 the attacks of a superior enemy : and I 
 have had the thanks of my country for 
 the services I have rendered." 
 
 That winter Franklin had a confer- 
 ence at Boston with Governor Shirley, 
 in relation to a union of the colonies 
 for mutual defense. Their views dif- 
 fered, and the governor said that he 
 would recommend a union planned by 
 Parliament and also a tax. 
 
 The British government now resolved 
 to send military aid to the colonists. 
 Edward Braddock, an Irish officer of 
 distinction, was appointed commander- 
 in-chief of all the British forces in 
 America, and ordered to proceed to 
 A'irginia with two regiments of regular 
 troops. He was ordered to call a coun- 
 cil of the royal governors, and exact a 
 revenue from the colonies for military 
 service. "To establish a fund for the 
 benefit of all the colonies collectively in 
 North America" — a financial union — 
 and that the general and field officers of 
 the provincial forces should have no 
 rank when serving with the general and 
 field officer conimissioned by the King. 
 
 Braddock arrived with two regiments, 
 carried by the fleet under Admiral 
 "Keppel," in the s])ring of 1755. In 
 
 .\pril, at a meeting of the governors, 
 he was advised that the Assemblies 
 would not grant his demands, and that 
 the colonies must be forced to pay the 
 expenses of the royal troops. 
 
 The warm weather was coming, and 
 so were the French and Indians. So the 
 council of governors planned the cam- 
 paign of 1755. General Braddock was 
 to proceed against Fort Du Quesne, 
 General Shirley was to lead an expedi- 
 tion against Fort Niagara and Fort 
 Frontenac, and William Johnson (a 
 nephew of Admiral Warren) was to at- 
 tempt the seizure of Crown Point on 
 Lake Champlaine. A fourth expedition 
 had already been planned on the east, 
 for the expulsion of the French from 
 Nova Scotia, and possibly the recapture 
 of Louisburg. 
 
 All the colonial legislatures voted men 
 and supplies, except Pennsylvania and 
 Georgia. The Quaker Assembly of 
 Pennsylvania were conscientiously op- 
 posed to military movements, and Geor- 
 gia was too poor in men and money to 
 do anything. 
 
 About the time the Ohio Land Com- 
 pany was granted its charter, the Eng- 
 lish government was trying to secure 
 dominion over Nova Scotia or Acadie. 
 These people were simple minded 
 French farmers, and were Roman Cath- 
 olics in religion. The French priests 
 were trying to have them settle on the 
 frontier, so as to be a barrier against 
 the English. At about the same time 
 Governor Shirley, of Massachusetts, 
 proposed to remove them, and distribute 
 them among the English colonies. He 
 finally induced the British government 
 to settle disbanded soldiers and marines 
 amongst them. During the year 1740, 
 about fourteen hundred of these, led by 
 Colonel Cornwallis, went among the 
 Acadians, and planted the first English 
 town east of the Penobscot, and named 
 it Halifax. The Acadians about 
 twenty years before had submitted to 
 English rule, and had been promised 
 freedom in religious matters, and ex- 
 emption from bearing arms against the 
 French and Indians. They were now 
 commanded to take the oath of allegi- 
 ance to the Itritish crown in religious 
 
FOURTH I'liRlUU— FRENCH AND INDIAN WAR 
 
 133 
 
 matters, and to be suhjected to all the 
 duties of English subjects. About a 
 thousand of them asked permission to 
 sell their lands, and remove to some 
 French settlement, but were refused. 
 
 The Indians, who had been incited to 
 furious raids on the New England 
 frontier, by the Jesuits, were com- 
 manded to give instant submission to 
 the English. They refused, and orders 
 were given by Colonel Cornwallis that 
 ten guineas would be paid for every In- 
 dian taken or killed. 
 
 After the French lost Louisburg, in 
 1745, they built strong vessels at the 
 foot of Lake Ontario ; made stronger 
 their little trading fort at Niagara ; built 
 a cordon of fortifications, more than 
 sixty in number, between Montreal and 
 New Orleans ; claimed dominion over 
 all the territory drained by the tribu- 
 taries of the Aiississippi, with the plea 
 that they were the discoverers of a 
 greater portion of that stream, and were 
 negotiating treaties with the jxiwerful 
 Delawares and Shawnees, on the fron- 
 tiers of Pennsylvania and Virginia. The 
 English perceived the real and impend- 
 ing danger. Hence the desire to plant 
 English settlements in Canada, and to 
 the west of the .Alleghenies. 
 
 When the French heard that Keppel 
 had sailed with Braddock's troops they 
 sent a fleet with soldiers, under Baron 
 Dieskau, who was accompanied by 
 \'audreuil, the successor of Du Quesne 
 as governor of Canada. Admiral Ros- 
 ea wen, with some English ships pursued 
 the French fleet. South of Newfound- 
 land they came together, and two of 
 the French ships were captured, and 
 the remander escaped and landed the 
 governor, with Dieskau and his troops 
 at Quebec, late in June. Meanwhile the 
 eastern expedition of three thousand 
 men, under John Winslow sailed from 
 Boston, in May, 1755. The French at 
 Beau-Sejour and other military posts 
 on the peninsula were taken. The 
 Acadians who had been forced into the 
 French service were granted an am- 
 nesty. They readily took an oath of 
 allegiance, but could not pledge them- 
 selves to bear arms against their kin- 
 dred in nation and religion. The chief 
 
 justice of N'ova Scotia decided that 
 any one not taking all the required 
 oaths could not hold lands in the Brit- 
 ish dominion. So it was determined to 
 drive them out of the province and 
 force them to settle in the English colo- 
 nies. The French government asked 
 for them the privilege of their lands, 
 taking with them their effects, and 
 choosing for themselves their future 
 home. The oflFer was refused. A gen- 
 eral proclamation was issued ordering 
 all the .Acadians, "old men and young 
 men, and lads ten years of age, to as- 
 semble at designated places, on the 5th 
 of September, 1755. They obeyed. The 
 proceedings at one place afford a fair 
 picture of those at all others. At Grand 
 Pre, four hundred and eighteen un- 
 armed men were assembled. They 
 were told that everything had been for- 
 feited to the crown with the exception 
 of their money and household goods. 
 Nineteen hundred and twenty-three 
 men, women and children were driven 
 aboard British vessels at the point of 
 the bayonet, from Grand Pre alone, and 
 distributed among the colonies, from 
 the Penobscot to the Savannah, without 
 resources. Some wandered through the 
 forests to Louisiana and Canada. Some 
 sought refuge among the Indians. The 
 fate of the people of Grand Pre was the 
 fate of all. The wrath of the English 
 excited against the French for their 
 long and cruel warfare upon the fron- 
 tier settlements of New England, with 
 their savage allies was poured out in 
 full measure upon the heads of this 
 innocent pastoral people, who had never 
 voluntarily lifted sword nor spear nor 
 firebrand to harm the English. 
 
 ^Vhile these movements in the East 
 were going on it was decided to make 
 an expedition for the recovery of Fort 
 Du Quesne. In an interview with Dr. 
 Franklin, Braddock had boasted what 
 he would do elsewhere, after he had 
 captured the fort. The philosopher, 
 seeing how shallow was the general's 
 knowledge of the impediments before 
 him, ventured to inform him. But it 
 was impossible to make any imjiression 
 on him. 
 
 The army for the recovery of l'"ort 
 
134 
 
 THE HOMK AUXILIARY AND REFERENCE 
 
 DiiQuesiie assembled at Alexandria. 
 Colonels Dunbar and Sir Peter Halket 
 were Braddock's chief lieutenants. 
 There Colonel Washington, who had 
 been invited by Braddock to join his 
 military family as aide and retain his 
 title, and had agreed to accept the posi- 
 tion, but as volunteer only, had his first 
 interview with the general. The army 
 had been detained at Will's Creek 
 (Cumberland), Maryland, by lack of 
 horses and wagons, which were si'n- 
 plied by Dr. Franklin. Here Washing- 
 ton joined them in May. The whole 
 force, regulars and provincials, each in 
 about equal numbers, was two thou- 
 sand men. Braddock had supreme con- 
 tempt for the provincials, and on ac- 
 count of the delays of some of the army 
 contractors, charged the whole Amer- 
 ican people with a lack of ability, honor 
 and honesty. He raved at times like a 
 madman and Washington found him, 
 as he wrote to William Fairfax, "in- 
 capable of arguing without warmth, or 
 giving up any point he asserts, be it 
 ever so incompatible with reason or 
 common sense. 
 
 The distance from Cumberland to 
 Fort DuQuesne was about one hundred 
 and thirty miles. At the close of May 
 five hundred pioneers were sent for- 
 ward to clear a pathv\'ay and collect 
 stores at Fort Necessity ; but the main 
 army was not ready to move until the 
 loth of June. This delay gave the 
 French time, and they were well pre- 
 pared to meet the English. On Wash- 
 ington's advice, the general consented 
 to move part of the army forward in 
 light marching order, with the artillery, 
 leaving the remainder to move more 
 slowly. Washington was placed in com- 
 mand of the provincials. They reached 
 the forks of the Monongahela and 
 Youghiogony rivers on the 8th of July. 
 On the 9th they crossed the Monon- 
 gahela. Washington knew the perils of 
 the situation, for the troops were dis- 
 posed in solid platoons. He ventured 
 to remonstrate with Braddock, and ad- 
 vised him to employ the Indian mode 
 of fighting in the forests. The general 
 angrily said: "What! a provincial 
 
 colonel teach a British general how to 
 fight !" 
 
 De Beaujue, the commander of a 
 party of less than three hundred French 
 and Canadians, and a little more than 
 six hundred Indians had been sent from 
 Fort DuQuesne, by Contrecoeur, to 
 meet the advancing English. They 
 came upon the latter sooner than De 
 r.eaujeu expected, but the ambush was 
 ciuickly and skilfully formed. He 
 fought bravely and fell in the first 
 deadh' onslaught of the combatants. 
 
 The sudden attack and the horrid 
 war-whoop of the Indians, frightened 
 and disconcerted the regulars, and they 
 were thrown into confusion, and noth- 
 ing saved the little army but Washing- 
 ton and the provincials, who fought as 
 the Indians did. The regulars soon be- 
 came unmanageable, but the officers 
 fought nobly. Braddock was in the 
 front of the fight, rallying his recoiling' 
 troops. The battle raged for more than 
 two hours. Of eighty-six English offi- 
 cers sixty-three were killed or wounded, 
 among the former was Sir Peter Hal- 
 ket. One-half of the private soldiers 
 were also killed or wounded. So 
 bravely did the provincials maintain 
 their ground that they were nearly all 
 killed. Of three \^irginia companies 
 only about thirty men were left alive. 
 Braddock had five horses shot and dis- 
 abled under him, and at last received a 
 bullet through the body and fell mor- 
 tally wounded. Washington wrote to 
 his mother from Cumberland, "The 
 dastardly behavior of the regulars ex- 
 loosed all others who were inclined to 
 do their duty to almost certain death." 
 AX'ashington rallied the provincial 
 troops and gallantly covered the retreat, 
 leaving their cannon and their dead on 
 the battlefield. Braddock was buried 
 in the forest about fifty miles from 
 Cumberland. Colonel Dunbar, in the 
 rear, received the broken army. They 
 abandoned Fort Cumberland and 
 marched to Philadelphia. Washington 
 and the southern provincials went back 
 to Virginia, and so ended the second 
 expedition of the campaign of 1755. "I 
 luckily escaped without a wound," 
 wrote Washington to his mother, 
 
FOURTH PERIOD— FRENCH AND INDIAX WAR 
 
 135 
 
 "though I liad iuur bullets through luy 
 coat, and two horses shot under me." 
 Washington was never wounded in 
 battle. 
 
 Governor Shirley was appointed 
 Braddock's successor in chief command 
 of the British forces in America. 
 The expedition led by him against 
 Forts Niagara, and Frontenac, though 
 not exposed to great perils nor dis- 
 asters, did not accomplish much. They 
 arrived at the southern shores of Lake 
 Ontario, at Oswego, in August. 
 Strengthened both forts on each side of 
 the river and built vessels. The storms 
 in September, and the approaching win- 
 ter compelled him to abandon the ex- 
 pedition for a season. Leaving seven 
 hundred men to garrison the fort, the 
 general marched back to Albany, 
 where he arrived in October. 
 
 The expedition against Crown Point, 
 on Lake Champlain, under William 
 Johnson, consisted chiefly of New Eng- 
 land militia and Indians from the Mo- 
 hawk Valley. They were in immediate 
 command of General Phineas Lyman. 
 Among the troops were Putnam and 
 Stark, who afterward became famous 
 leaders in the war for independence. 
 They built a fort on the banks of the 
 upper Hudson, where Johnson arrived 
 in August, and took command and 
 named Fort Edward. With the main 
 body of the troops Johnson marched to 
 a beautiful body of water, about a 
 dozen miles distant, which he named 
 Lake George, in honor of his King. 
 The French had now raised about six- 
 teen hundred troops, French and In- 
 dians and were well prepared to defend 
 Crown Point. A greater portion of 
 these troops were placed under com- 
 mand of Baron Dieskau, who intended 
 to make a swift march on Fort Edward 
 and capture it by surprise. 
 
 The French, in ambush, surprised 
 and defeated a detachment of troops 
 and Indians, under Colonel Ephraim 
 Williams, of Massachusetts, and Hen- 
 drick, the Indian chief, who had been 
 sent to the relief of Fort Edward. 
 Williams and Ilendrick were killed, and 
 the detachment driven back to the camp. 
 Captain ^^'illiams, in his will, be- 
 
 c|ueathed a modest estate which 
 founded Williams' College, at Williams- 
 town, Massachusetts. Baron Dieskau 
 now attacked the camp on Lake George, 
 but was defeated, wounded and taken 
 prisoner. Johnson now fortified the 
 camp and named it William Henry. 
 On the approach of winter he garri- 
 soned both Forts William Henry and 
 Edward, dismissed the New England 
 militia and retired to his home near 
 Amsterdam, New York. This ended 
 military operations in America in the 
 year 1755. 
 
 The overwhelming defeat of Brad- 
 dock and retreat of Dunbar was fol- 
 lowed up in Virginia and Pennsylvania 
 with all the horrors of Indian warfare, 
 and the frontiers were ravaged with 
 the most savage ferocit_v. 
 
 At Kittanning, thirty miles from 
 Fort DuQuesne, was a village of In- 
 dians, whose chief was known as Cap- 
 tain Jacobs. The depredations of this 
 tribe induced Governor Armstrong, of 
 Pennsylvania to send a force of Penn- 
 sylvania volunteers, who suddenly sur- 
 rounded the village at night, and, set- 
 ting fire to the wigwams, almost en- 
 tirely destroyed the tribe, and for a 
 season restored peace to the frontier. 
 
 In 1756 Montcalm was sent to 
 Canada to begin a vigorous warfare 
 against the English, and on his first ex- 
 pedition he captured Fort Oswego, with 
 1,600 men, one hundred and twenty 
 cannon, and all the stores. Lord Lou- 
 don, who had been appointed Governor- 
 General of the English colonies, had 
 previously arrived with instructions to 
 begin immediate operations against the 
 French, but he wasted time in supersed- 
 ing the ofticers of the colonial troops 
 with English officers, and finally went 
 into winter quarters without striking a 
 blow. 
 
 In the meantime Montcalm busily 
 prepared to capture Fort William 
 Flenry which was garrisoned by hardy 
 American troops, among whom was the 
 brave John Stark, husband of Molly 
 Stark, and on the 2d of August. 1757, 
 with 6,000 French and 2,000 Indians, 
 Montcalm surrounded the fort and de- 
 manded its surrender. The fort, with 
 
T36 
 
 THE HOAFE AUXILIARY AND REEERENXE 
 
 J, 200 men, was in CDiiimaiul uf Colonel 
 .Monroe, who refused to capitulate, and 
 at once sent to General Webb, at Fort 
 Edward, for assistance. Webb had 
 four thousand troops, but with cow- 
 ardly caution he refused to send any of 
 liis force, and advised Monroe to sur- 
 render. Still IMonroe held out bravely 
 until his ammunition was exhausted 
 and then accepted the honorable terms 
 of capitulation offered by Montcalm, 
 an important condition of which was a 
 safe escort to Fort Edward. This 
 Montcalm faithfully intended to fur- 
 nish, but the savages in their ferocity 
 and hope of plunder, fell upon the 
 Americans and slaughtered a large 
 number of them before they could 
 reach Fort Edward. In the meantime 
 Loudon did nothing beyond seeking a 
 safe headquarters. This imbecility re- 
 sulted by the close of 1757 in the 
 French possessions extending over the 
 valleys of the St. Lawrence and Missis- 
 sippi until they exceeded in dimensions 
 twenty times those of the English. 
 
 England with deep anxiety viewed 
 the victorious growth of French power 
 in America, and decided to take more 
 vigorous steps to crush it out. W^illiam 
 Pitt was made Prime Minister, and 
 America at once became his first care. 
 He granted many concessions to the 
 colonial troops, and urged upon them 
 to raise volunteers, making colonial of- 
 ficers of the same rank as their grade 
 in the British army. This gave new 
 life to the cause, and when Pitt ordered 
 that the colonial expenses of the war 
 should be borne by the mother country, 
 fifty thousand soldiers were soon raised 
 for expeditions against the French. 
 Amherst and Wolfe were to march 
 against Louisburg, Lord Howe and 
 .Abercrombie were to advance upon 
 Crown Point and Ticonderoga, and 
 Forbes was to command the expedition 
 against Fort DuOuesne. 
 
 The expedition against Louisburg 
 was undertaken on the 8th of June, 
 1758. Amherst formed his troops in 
 line under cover of the fire of his ships, 
 and Wolfe led the advance. After a 
 fierce bomlwrdment of fifty days, the 
 fort surrendered with about 6,000 pris- 
 
 oners, and the Englisli took possession 
 of the whole of Cape Lireton and Prince 
 ICdward's Island. They then disman- 
 tled Louisburg, and made Halifax their 
 fortress of the northeast. 
 
 The expedition against Ticonderoga 
 was then undertaken with an army of 
 7.000 English and 9,000 Americans. 
 They embarked on Lake George in one 
 thousand boats, but through a mistake 
 of the guide fell into an ambuscade, in 
 which Lord Howe was killed just as 
 the English reached the scene of action. 
 Abercrombie unwisely ordered an at- 
 tack upon the French 'before his artil- 
 lery arrived, and ]\Iontcalm taking ad- 
 vantage of this, repulsed the English, 
 with a loss to them of nearly 2.000 
 killed and wounded. This ended the at- 
 tack upon Ticonderoga, and nothing 
 further was done in the campaign but 
 the capture of Fort Frontenac and 
 some armed French vessels on Lake 
 Ontario. 
 
 The third expedition was undertaken 
 against Fort DuOuesne. This would 
 have proved a failure but for the intre- 
 pid and able Washington. He advised 
 the advance by Braddock's old route, 
 but Forbes tmdertook to make a new 
 road, during the slow progress of which 
 three hundred of his men were am- 
 bushed and slain. The news of this 
 disaster decided Forbes to return and 
 abandon the expedition, but Washing- 
 ton, having learned from scouts of the 
 weak condition of Fort DuOuesne was 
 granted his urgent request to proceed 
 alone with his \ irginia troops. Arriv- 
 ing at the fort. Washington was grati- 
 fied to find that the French, hearing of 
 his approach, had hastily abandoned the 
 fort and fled down the Ohio in boats, 
 and on the 25th day of November, 1758, 
 Washington raised the English flag 
 over the deserted fort, and in honor of 
 the noble Pitt, he changed the name of 
 the settlement to Pittsburgh. 
 
 Leaving the important position in 
 charge of a force of his brave soldiers, 
 Washington returned to Virginia, 
 where with great honor he was received 
 by the people, and although but twenty- 
 six years of age, he was elected to the 
 House of Burgesses. 
 
FOURTH TERIOD— FRENXII AND IXDIAxN' WAR 
 
 Pitt, with his statesmanHke sagacity, 
 planned to crush out the French. His 
 diplomacy in bearing the expenses of 
 the colonies in the war had not only 
 secured their earnest co-operation, but 
 the reverses it brought the French be- 
 gan to incline the Indians to the win- 
 ning side. Pitt recalled Abercrombie, 
 and appointed Amherst general-in-chief 
 of the army and governor of Virginia. 
 New expeditions were now planned. 
 Wolfe was assigned to the campaign in 
 Canada, where he was to ascend the 
 St. Lawrence to Quebec. Amherst was 
 to capture Ticonderoga and after ad- 
 A ;'.ncing upon Montreal by way of Lake 
 Champlain, and capturing that city, was 
 to join Wolfe at Quebec. Prideaux 
 was to march upon Niagara, and after 
 its capture proceed to Montreal, while 
 the country between Pittsburgh and 
 Lake Erie was to be taken possession of 
 by General Stanwix. 
 
 Part of these expeditions were suc- 
 cessful. The French abandoned Ticon- 
 deroga on the approach of Amherst, 
 but the latter general instead of march- 
 ing to co-operate with Wolfe, wasted 
 his time in fortifying the abandoned 
 positions and left Wolfe unsupported 
 in the work of reducing Canada. Pri- 
 dcau.x's army captured Niagara, but he 
 was unfortunately killed by the burst- 
 ing of a gun. 
 
 The greatest undertaking of the war, 
 however, was that of the capture of 
 Quebec. It w-as a position of great 
 strength, w-ith the fortress of St. Louis, 
 upon a solid rock, looming up almost 
 perpendicular over three hundred feet 
 above the river. Llchind this stretched 
 the lofty Plains of .Abraham for miles. 
 
 The force for the attack upon Quebec 
 was concentrated at Louisburg. It con- 
 sisted of twenty-two ships of the line 
 and as many more transports contain- 
 ing 8,000 men and large quantities of 
 stores. This force arrived at the Isle 
 of Orleans, opposite Quebec, on the 
 26th of June 1759, upon which the 
 troops landed and prejiared for action. 
 To oppose this force Montcalm had a 
 feeble army and a fortress that was 
 deemed impregnable. The camp of the 
 French commander was situated be- 
 
 tween the St. Charles and the Mont- 
 morenci rivers, where it was guarded 
 by a fleet of war vessels, but the Eng- 
 lish naval supremacy was soon asserted, 
 and after the detachment of French 
 troops were driven from Point Levi, 
 Wolfe erected batteries at that point 
 and soon destroyed the lower town, but 
 the height of the citadel and upper 
 town prevented their bombardment. 
 \\olfe"s next movement was to cross 
 the river for the purpose of forcing 
 IMontcalm to an engagement, but a divi- 
 sion of the English army rashly at- 
 tempted to carry the French lines by 
 storm without waiting for their sup- 
 port to come up. This unfortunate at- 
 tack cost the English a repulse with a 
 loss of over four hundred men. 
 
 Wolfe was discouraged by this fatal 
 move, as well as by the failure of Am- 
 herst to form a junction with him. At 
 last he resolved to. scale the Heights of 
 Abraham. Deceiving the French as to 
 his intentions by ordering soundings to 
 be made opposite Montcalm's camp to 
 indicate that tiie fleet were preparing 
 for an attack upon his position, the 
 troops were suddenly sent on board the 
 ships, which sailed above the French 
 lines as if to land. .At night the army 
 dropped down in boats to Wolfe's Cove, 
 from whence the ascent of the heights 
 was to be begun. So successful was 
 this daring undertaking that the French 
 troops on the summit were driven back, 
 and by daylight Wolfe's army held pos- 
 session of the Plains of Abraham. 
 
 Montcalm was astounded when the 
 news was carried to him, but hastily or- 
 dering all the detachments to the front, 
 he hastened to give battle to the Eng- 
 lish. Wolfe met the advance with great 
 coolness, and when the French regu- 
 lars were within forty yards he or- 
 dered such a deadly discharge of mus- 
 ketry, with grape and cannister from a 
 few guns, that the French were driven 
 back with great slaughter. Wolfe then 
 decided the day by a fierce charge with 
 bayonets. At that moment Wolfe fell 
 mortally wounded, and in his sinking 
 condition he exclaimed, "Support me ; 
 let not my brave fellows see me fall." 
 While being carried to the rear he heard 
 
i3« 
 
 THE HOME AUXILIARY AND REK EKMNXE 
 
 the sliout ; "The)- run I they run!" 
 "Who runs?" he asked. "The French,'' 
 was the reply. Giving his last com- 
 mand the brave Wolfe then fell back 
 and said, feebly, "Now, God be praised. 
 I die happy," and with these last words 
 he perished on the field of his triumph. 
 
 Montcalm was also mortally wounded 
 in the fiercest of the battle, and when 
 informed by the surgeon that he had 
 but a few hours to live, he replied : "1 
 am glad to hear that I shall not live to 
 see the surrender of Uuebec." 
 
 In his last hours Montcalm urged his 
 officers to concentrate their forces and 
 attack the English before they could 
 intrench, but the strength of the French 
 was broken, and on September 17 Que- 
 bec was surrendered to the English. 
 Upon this historic spot a white monu- 
 mental shaft stands with the name of 
 Montcalm generously inscribed upon it 
 by the English, side by side with that 
 of their hero, Wolfe. 
 
 The French concentrated all their 
 forces at Montreal, where on Septem- 
 ber 7 of the following year Amherst 
 marched upon them, and the French 
 surrendered not only the city, but their 
 entire claim upon Canada, likewise De- 
 troit and Mackinaw. 
 
 The Cherokees and other Indians in 
 the south now went on the warpath. 
 After desolating the frontier for over a 
 year, they were finally subdued, and a 
 treaty of peace was made in June, 1761. 
 At the treaty of peace, between France 
 and England in February, 1763, France 
 
 ceded to England all her claimed terri- 
 tory east of the Mississippi River. New 
 Orleans and the whole of Louisiana was 
 ceded to Spain. And Spain ceded to the 
 English East and West Florida at the 
 same time. Now the English held pos- 
 session, undisputed (excepting by the 
 Indians) of the whole continent from 
 the shores of the Gulf of Mexico to the 
 Frozen Sea, and, by claimed prescriptive 
 right, from ocean to ocean. 
 
 When, after the treaty of Paris in 
 1763, the tribes w'ere informed that 
 France had ceded the country to Great 
 Britain, without asking their leave, 
 there was widespread indignation 
 amongst them. A vast confederacy was 
 formed for the purpose of attacking all 
 of the English forts on the same day, 
 west of the Alleghanies. 
 
 At the head of this conspiracy was 
 a great Ottowa chief, Pontiac, then 
 about fifty years of age. Every post 
 west of Oswego, excepting Niagara, 
 Fort Pitt and Detroit, fell into the hands 
 of the Indians. It was over a year be- 
 fore the power of the Indian Confed- 
 eracy was broken and chiefs of the hos- 
 tile tribes sued for pardon and peace. 
 The haughty Pontiac would not yield. 
 At last, in 1769, this powerful Indian 
 prince, who had aluKist unbounded sway 
 over thousands of square miles of ter- 
 ritory, was slain near Cahokia. A stroll- 
 ing Indian was bribed by an English 
 trader to murder him. That savage, for 
 the gift of a barrel of rum, stole softly 
 behind Pontiac, in the forest, and buried 
 his hatchet in his brain. 
 
FIFTH PERIOD— THE WAR FOR INDEPENDENCE 
 
 FIFTH PERIOD 
 
 THE WAR FOR INDEPENDENCE 
 
 George the Third ascended the throne 
 of England in (October, 1760. He was 
 born in London, in 1738. In his reign 
 of fifty years was the period in English 
 history most interesting to Americans. 
 In 1761 he discarded the wise and sa- 
 gacious William Pitt as his Prime Min- 
 ister and chose for his counsellor and 
 guide the Earl of Bute, with George 
 Grenville as his chancellor of the ex- 
 chequer. This was a mistake that led 
 tu lasting disasters to the realm. The 
 unwise policy advised by Bute, concern- 
 ing the English-American colonies, en- 
 gendered much of the ill-feeling toward 
 the mother country that led to a revo- 
 lutionary war and the dismemberment 
 of the British Empire. 
 
 Bute's idea concerning the .American 
 colonies was that they should be brought 
 into absolute subjection to the British 
 Parliament by force, if necessary, and 
 to do this he advised the employment 
 of measures for reforming the colonial 
 charters. 
 
 .•\cting upon the advice of Bute, the 
 k'ing sent secret agents to travel in the 
 colonies, to collect information about 
 the character and temper of the people. 
 They returned to England with reports 
 that led to erroneous conclusions, which 
 led to trouble. Writs or warrants were 
 now granted to officers of the customs 
 to empower them to call upon the people 
 and all officers of the government in 
 America to assist them in the collection 
 of the revenue, and to enter stores and 
 houses of the citizens at pleasure in pur- 
 suit of their vocation. The writs of as- 
 sistance were first issued in Massachu- 
 setts. Their legality was questioned. 
 and the matter was brought iDefore the 
 court in Boston in February, 1761. 
 Among the defenders of the colonists 
 was James Otis. He said : "A man's 
 house is his castle ; and whilst he is 
 quiet, he is as well guarded as a prince 
 
 in his castle." This writ if it should be 
 declared legal would totally annihilate 
 that privilege. "I am determined," he 
 said, "to sacrifice estate, ease, health, 
 applause and even life to the sacred calls 
 of my country in opposition to a kind 
 of power the exercise of which cost our 
 king his head and another his throne." 
 The speech and event constitute the 
 opening scene of resistance to British 
 oppression. It stirred the people 
 through all the provinces, .\bsolute in- 
 dependence was not then desired ; they 
 asked only for justice and equality and 
 the privilege of local self-government. 
 Otis was elected to a seat in the Massa- 
 chusetts Assembly in the spring of 1761. 
 
 The subject of the right to ta.x the 
 Americans, they not being represented 
 in Parliament, had been debated in the 
 House of Commons in March, 1763, 
 for the first time, when it was deter- 
 mined in the affirmative by a unani- 
 mous vote. When the news of that de- 
 bate and vote reached Massachusetts, 
 the Assembly of that colony, then in 
 session, immediately resolved : That the 
 sole right of giving and granting monev 
 of the people of this province is vested 
 in them, as the legal representatives : 
 and that the imposition of taxes and 
 duties by the Parliament of Great Bri- 
 tain upon a ])eople who are not repre- 
 sented in the House of Commons is ab- 
 solutely irreconcilable with their rights. 
 Taxation without representation is tyr- 
 rany : and upon that principle the .\mer- 
 icans thereafter rested in opposing the 
 taxation schemes of the mother country. 
 
 Charles Townshend, the first Lord of 
 Trade in England, advocated the sub- 
 stitution of royal authority for the col- 
 onial charters and a new territorial ar- 
 rangement of the provinces. He also 
 proposed a stamp tax. .\t about the 
 same time a bill was introduced in Par- 
 liament to enforce the navigation laws 
 
THE HOME AUXILIARY AXD REFERENCE 
 
 which empowered every officer and sea- 
 man of the British navy to act as cus- 
 tom-house officers and informers, and 
 so subjecting to seizure every American 
 vessel on sea or in port. 
 
 In the spring of 1764, Grenville read 
 in the House of Commons a series of 
 resokitions declaring the intentions of 
 the government to raise a tax in Amer- 
 ica on stamped paper. The subject ex- 
 cited great feelings in the colonies. In 
 Massachusetts .Samuel Adams wrote the 
 address of the citizens of Boston to the 
 Massachusetts legislature, in which they 
 denied the right of Parliament to tax 
 the colonies and looked upon the power 
 of union for a redress of grievances. 
 The sentiments of the colonists were: 
 "If we are taxed without our consent, 
 if we are not represented in the body 
 that taxes us and we submit we are 
 slaves." The Massachusetts Assembly 
 had sent a circular letter to the other 
 assemblies of the colonies on the sub- 
 ject of resistance to taxation. It was 
 proposed that the colonies unite in an 
 expression of views and present them 
 to Parliament through their agents, 
 that the end sought for might be ob- 
 tained. So it was that petitions and re- 
 monstrances against the proposed stamp 
 tax were soon on their way to Eng- 
 land. That from Xew York was the 
 boldest of all. 
 
 Late in October, 1764, the Pennsyl- 
 vania Assembly chose Dr. Franklin, 
 agent of that province in England. 
 Soon after, he became a sort of national 
 representative of the British colonial 
 empire in America. Franklin advised 
 the ministry in England that the stamp 
 act was an unwise measure, and the en- 
 forcement of the act would endanger 
 the unity of the empire. 
 
 On the assembling of Parliament in 
 January, 1765, the king recommended 
 the carrying out of Grenville's scheme 
 of the stamp tax and assured them that 
 he should use every endeavor to enforce 
 obedience in the colonies. This act pro- 
 vided that every skin or piece of vellum, 
 or parchment, or sheet or piece of paper 
 used for kgal purposes, such as bills, 
 bonds, notes, leases, policies of insur- 
 ance, marriage licenses and a great 
 
 many other documents, in order to be 
 held valid in the courts of law was to 
 be stamped and sold by public officers 
 appointed for the purpose, at prices 
 which levied a stated tax on every such 
 document. To the odiousness of the tax 
 itself was added the provisions of its 
 collection by arbitrary power, under de- 
 crees of the British judges, without any 
 trial by jury. The act was passed and 
 the bill made a law on the 22d of 
 March, 1765. Colonel Barrie, who had 
 been with Wolfe in the campaign 
 against Quebec, and who had lived in 
 America, was a member of Parliament. 
 He was one of the champions of the 
 American cause, and in a speech he 
 made in their behalf, he spoke of the 
 colonists as Sons of Liberty. This 
 name was soon adopted and became 
 familiar on the lips of Americans. 
 
 Everywhere in America the act was 
 denounced, and people in villages and 
 cities gathered in excited groups and 
 boldly expressed their indignation. 
 Among the foremost of those who 
 boldly denounced the act was Patrick 
 Henry, then about twenty-nine years of 
 age. He had lately been elected a mem- 
 ber of the Virginia House of Burgesses, 
 who were in session at that time. When 
 the news was published to that body by 
 the speaker, a scene of wild excitement 
 ensued. Henry wrote five resolutions, 
 and submitted them to the House. The 
 first declared that the original settlers 
 brought with them and transmitted to 
 their posterity all the rights enjoyed by 
 the people of Great Britain. The sec- 
 ond affirmed that these rights had been 
 secured by two royal charters granted 
 by King James. The third asserted that 
 taxation of the people by diemselves, 
 or by persons chosen by themselves, 
 was the distinguishing characteristics 
 of British freedom, and without which 
 the ancient constitution could not exist. 
 The fourth maintained that the people 
 of \'irginia had always enjoyed the 
 right of being governed by their own 
 assembly in the article of taxes, and 
 that this right had been constantly rec- 
 ognized by the king and people of Great 
 I'.ritain. The fifth resolution, in which 
 was summed up the essentials of the 
 
FIFTH PERIOD— THE WAR FOR INDEPENDENCE 
 
 [)rcccc'(linL; lour, dfcl.ircil "That the 
 ( ieiicral Assembly of this colony have 
 llie sole riglit and power to levy taxes 
 and impositions upon the inhabitants 
 of this colony, and that every attempt 
 to vest such power in any other per- 
 son or persons whatsoever, other than 
 the General Assembly aforesaid, has a 
 tendency to destroy British as well as 
 American freedom. 
 
 After an impassioned speech by Mr. 
 Henry, these resolutions were carried. 
 On the next day some of those who had 
 voted for the fifth resolution under ex- 
 citement became alarmed and the House 
 reconsidered and rejected it. In the 
 month of June the Mrginia resolves 
 and the ^Massachusetts circular reached 
 all the colonies, and everywhere they 
 met a hearty response. 
 
 The Stamp Act was to go into effect 
 on the first of November, 1765 Inger- 
 soll arrived at Boston at the beginning 
 of August, bearing commissions for 
 stamp distributors, and on the eighth 
 of that month their names were pub- 
 H'hed. They immediately became ob- 
 jects of public resentment and scorn, 
 and there was a general determination 
 not to allow them to exercise the func- 
 tions of their office. In Boston the peo- 
 [)le tore down a building which Andrew 
 ( )liver was erecting for a stamp officer, 
 and made a bonfire of it. Believing his 
 life in danger, Oliver resigned his office 
 and the town was quieted. Governor 
 Bernard, after ordering a proclamation 
 for the discovery and arrest of the riot- 
 ers, fled to a castle on an island in Bos- 
 ton harbor. In Providence, Rhode Isl- 
 and, after destroying the house and 
 furniture of an obnoxious citizen, a 
 mob compelled the stamp officer to re- 
 sign. At New Haven, in Connecticut, 
 Ingersoll, who had been the agent for 
 the colony in England, was denounced 
 as a traitor ; and the fact that the initials 
 of his name were the same as were 
 those of Judas Iscariot was publicly 
 pointed out, and he was compelled to 
 promise that he would not sell stamps 
 or stamped paper. In New York and 
 New Jersev the stamp officers, fearing 
 violence, resigned. At Annapolis, in 
 Maryland, the excited populace pulled 
 
 (iiiwn a house that the stamp officer was 
 building, and the governor dared not 
 interfere. General alarm prevailed 
 among officers of the crown. They saw 
 that the Americans were thoroughly 
 aroused and very strong. In other 
 colonies, not here named, there was 
 eciual firmness, but less violence, in pre- 
 \enting the sale of stamps, and when 
 the first of November arrived, the law, 
 S(i far as its enforcement was con- 
 cerned, was a nullity. A convention, 
 called the "Stamp Act Congress" as- 
 sembled at New York on the seventh of 
 ( )ctober. All the colonies were repre- 
 sented or gave their assent to its pro- 
 ceedings, which embodied the principles 
 that governed the men of the Revolu- 
 tion that broke out ten years after. 
 
 The .\mericans held in their hands 
 a power which might compel the British 
 F'arliament to repeal the obnoxious act. 
 The merchants and people agreed to 
 handle nothing of British manufacture. 
 One source of British prosperity was 
 thus dried up. When firm but respect- 
 ful appeals went to the ears of the 
 British ministry from .America, the 
 merchants and manufacturers of Eng- 
 land seconded them, and their potential 
 voices were heeded. 
 
 In the summer of 1765, Grenville 
 was succeeded by the Marquis of Rock- 
 ingham, a friend of the Americans, as 
 Premier of Great Britain in the new 
 cabinet. Meanwhile public sentiment 
 had been deeply stirred in England by 
 events in America. When Parliament 
 assembled in January ,_^ 1766, the min- 
 istry was fully alive "to the necessity 
 of prompt and vigorous action. Pitt, 
 who was in his place in the House, in 
 a remarkable speech proposed an abso- 
 lute, total and immediate repeal of the 
 Stamp Act, at the same time declar- 
 ing the absolute sovereignty of Great 
 Britain over the colonies. It was 
 warmly seconded by Edmund Burke, 
 then thirty-six years of age, and who 
 was sitting in Parliament for the first 
 time, in two remarkable speeches in 
 favor of repeal. The repeal became a 
 law on March i8th, it receiving the re- 
 luctantly given signature of the king. 
 The repeal jiroduced great joy in both 
 
THE HOME AUXILIARY AND REFERENCE 
 
 England and America. In London the 
 event was celebrated by bonfires and 
 illuminations. Equal joy was mani- 
 fested in America. In Boston, New 
 York, Philadelphia, Charleston and 
 other places Pitt and the king and Par- 
 liament were praised and honored. 
 In New York the Sons of Liberty, 
 under sanction of the governor, erected 
 a tall mast in the fields in front of 
 Warren street, which they called a Lib- 
 erty Pole. Statues were erected to the 
 king and William Pitt in New York 
 and other places in the provinces. If 
 the British ministry had been wise, 
 they might have easily conciliated the 
 Americans and ushered in an era of 
 peace and prosperity on both sides of 
 the Atlantic. But they were not wise. 
 Christopher Gadsden, of South Caro- 
 lina, and other sagacious observers, per- 
 ceived that the repeal bill was only a 
 truce in the war upon the liberty of the 
 Americans. The liberal press of Eng- 
 land denounced the act, and Pitt's plea 
 of expediency could not save him from 
 severe censure by the Americans when 
 they gravely considered the matter. 
 
 In the summer of 1766, the popular 
 Rockingham ministry was dissolved, 
 and Pitt was made Premier. He ac- 
 cepted a peerage from the king. After 
 this, and during this administration of 
 two years and four months, some of the 
 most obnoxious acts of Parliament con- 
 cerning Americans became laws. 
 
 Troops were sent to New York with 
 power, under the law, to break into 
 houses in search of deserters. The 
 royal governors demanded of the As- 
 semblies appropriations for the support 
 of the troops. The troops were ob- 
 jects of intense dislike to the people, 
 and when they cut down the Liberty 
 Pole in New York, fearful retaliation 
 would have followed this act had not 
 the governor ordered the troops to re- 
 frain from further aggressive acts. 
 This was in the spring of 1767. 
 
 In June, 1767, a bill proposed by 
 Townshend, for levying duties on tea, 
 glass, paper, painters' colors and other 
 articles imported by the colonists, was 
 adopted by Parliament. Also bills were 
 passed for creating resider^t custom 
 
 officers to enforce the revenue laws 
 and forljidding the Assembly of New 
 York to perform any legislative act 
 whatever, until they should support the 
 troops. The y\ssembly of New York 
 disregarded the disabling act, and the 
 colonial assemblies of the other colonies 
 protested against the revenue laws. 
 They were regarded as direct blows 
 against the liberties of the Americans, 
 and excited almost as violent opposition 
 as did the Stamp Act. 
 
 The pro-spect of disruption delighted 
 the French m.inistry. The French had 
 been shorn of a vast domain in Amer- 
 ica, the pride of that nation had been 
 humbled by England, and there was 
 a determination to strike a deadly re- 
 taliatory blow when opportunity should 
 offer. Baron De Kalb, a colonel in the 
 French Army, and afterward a general 
 in the American Army of the Revolu- 
 tion, was sent as an emissary to as- 
 certain the strength of their purpose to 
 withdraw from Great Britain by the 
 Americans. To find out the character 
 of their leaders, civil and military, and 
 their resources. The Baron's report to 
 Choiseul, the French minister, did not 
 warrant the hope for an immediate rup- 
 ture. From that time it was the cher- 
 ished policy of the French government 
 to foster the quarrel and to give aid to 
 the Americans whenever they should 
 strike a blow for freedom. 
 
 The colonists were preparing to re- 
 sist the taxation schemes, and the com- 
 mon danger had thoroughly united 
 them. The colonial newspapers were 
 champions of the people, and in them 
 the principles of liberty and the rights 
 of the colonists were ably discussed. 
 The "Letters of a Farmer of Pennsyl- 
 vania to the Inhabitants of the Brit- 
 ish Colonies," written by John Dick- 
 inson, in the fall of 1767, and published 
 in a Philadelphia newspaper, portray- 
 ing the fatal consequences to liberty in 
 America of a supine acquiescence to 
 ministerial measures, had an immediate 
 and subsequent effect that was wonder- 
 ful. Non-importation associations were 
 reorganized, and that powerful machin- 
 ery almost destroyed the commerce 
 with England. Dr. Franklin caused 
 
FIFTH PERIOD— THIC WAR I'OR IXDEPEXDENCE 
 
 tlie letters to be republished in Eng- 
 land, with a preface written by him- 
 self, in 1768. They were also trans- 
 lated into French and published in 
 Paris. 
 
 Early in 1768, Massachusetts was 
 looked upon by the British ministry 
 as the focus of sedition, and conse- 
 (|uently became the object of their sus- 
 jMcion and wrath. At the opening of 
 the Assembly of that province, resolu- 
 tions were passed opposing a standing 
 army in America, objecting to the es- 
 tablishing of commissioners of cus- 
 toms, e.xpressing alarm because of the 
 attempt to annihilate the legislative au- 
 thority of New York, and declared the 
 intention of Massachusetts to defend 
 its rights. From the pen of Samuel 
 Adams letters were sent to distin- 
 guished men in England, and a petition 
 to the King, in which the principles of 
 the sacred right of being taxed by only 
 representatives of their own free elec- 
 tion was laid down. A letter, also 
 written by Samuel Adams, was sent 
 to the other colonial assemblies, invit- 
 ing them to join Massachusetts in 
 "maintaining the liberties of America." 
 Responses now came to Boston from 
 the other assemblies, expressing cor- 
 dial approbation of its sentiments. The 
 British ministry instructed the royal 
 governors to dissolve any assembly that 
 gave "any countenance to the seditious 
 papers," but this only increased the 
 zeal in the assemblies in the cause in 
 which Massachusetts was leading. Ord- 
 ers were issued to General Gage at 
 New York to hold a regiment in readi- 
 ness to go to Boston. The admiralty 
 was also directed to send a frigate and 
 four smaller vessels of war to Boston 
 harbor, and directions were given to re- 
 pair Castle William. This measure 
 was regarded by Americans as a vir- 
 tual declaration of war. 
 
 New England men were impressed 
 into the British naval service, and in 
 Tune the sloop Liberty, belonging to 
 John Hancock, was seized for evad- 
 ing the obnoxious revenue laws. 
 These acts created the wildest excite- 
 ment in Boston and vicinity. .\ great 
 meeting of the people was held in Fan- 
 
 euil Hall on the thirteenth of June, 
 1768, at which the people plainly told 
 the crown that its oppressions must 
 cease. So was consecrated Faneuil 
 Hall as The Cradle of Liberty. 
 
 A royal order was sent by Lord 
 Hillsborough, Secretary of State for 
 the colonies, late in April, 1768, requir- 
 ing the American Assemblies to treat 
 the Circular Letter of the Massachu- 
 setts Legislature with contempt. It 
 threatened them with dissolution in case 
 they refused compliance That order 
 was properly regarded as a direct at- 
 tempt to abridge or control free dis- 
 cussion in the colonies, and was more 
 potential in creating a permanent union 
 in the colonies than anv event in their 
 past history. Franklin, in England, 
 writing to his son concerning a prof- 
 fered colonial office, said : 'T apprehend 
 a breach between the two countries." 
 The Colonial Assemblies everywhere 
 took decided action and exhibited re- 
 markable unanimity of sentiment. In 
 the face of the warnings of the royal 
 governor, that their action tended to in- 
 dependence and would bring ruin to 
 America, they approved the Massachu- 
 setts Circular and rejected the royal 
 order. Their dissolution followed. At 
 the beginning of 1769 there was a per- 
 fect union of the thirteen colonies. 
 
 When the news of these events in 
 Massachusetts reached England, in the 
 summer of 1768, Parliament denounced 
 the proceedings and proposed to trans- 
 I)ort Otis, Hancock, the Adamses and 
 other leaders to England for trial and 
 punishment. During this time Gov- 
 ernor Bernard, of Massachusetts, was 
 the chief source of information to the 
 English ministry. While he pretended 
 to be a friend of the colonists, he, at 
 the same time was greatly exaggerating 
 exery movement there to the ministry 
 in England. By this means he hoped 
 to keep the people quiet until he could 
 induce the ministry to send troops and 
 warships to Boston to overav^-e the peo- 
 ple and make his own seat more se- 
 cure. This duplicity was known to the 
 citizens of Boston. Satisfied that the 
 troops would come sooner or later, 
 nearlv all the merchants of Boston, in 
 
THE HO.ME AUXILIARY AND REFEREX'CE 
 
 August, 1768, .subscribed to a uon-im- 
 portation league, to go into operation 
 on the January following. By this 
 powerful influence on the British mer- 
 chants, they hoped to restrain the hand 
 of the government 
 
 The people were now thoroughly 
 alive to a sense of their dangers and 
 duties. The other colonies were watch- 
 ing Massachusetts. When the Mrginia 
 Assembly was dissolved, it reorganized 
 in a private house and then adopted a 
 non-importation agreement presented 
 by George Washington. 
 
 While the people of ^lassachusetts 
 were preparing to fight for their lib- 
 erties, if necessary, those in North Car- 
 olina, far away from the seaboard, 
 vvere in open insurrection because of 
 the cruelty of oppressors. Governor 
 Tryon, who was sent to rule North 
 Carolina in 1765, attempted to suppress 
 free speech on the great question of the 
 stamp tax. He found he had an ob- 
 stinate people to deal with. He tried 
 to compel the people to take the stamps, 
 but they compelled the stamp officer to 
 publicly resign his commission. The 
 governor, now alarmed, tried to con- 
 ciliate the militia, but was not success- 
 ful. The rapacity of the public offi- 
 cers in the province, from the governor 
 down, drove the people to the \'erge of 
 rebellion. They resolved to form a 
 league for mutual protection and to 
 take all the power in certain inland 
 counties into their own hands. At an 
 assembly held on the banks of the Eno, 
 not far from Hillsborough, it was re- 
 solved that the people in the more in- 
 land counties should regulate public 
 affairs there, and they almost declared 
 themselves independent of all external 
 authority. From that time they were 
 called Regulators, and were a promi- 
 nent and powerful body. ' For several 
 years the Regulators resisted oppres- 
 sion with all their might. Anarchy pre- 
 vailed in the discontented regions, and 
 sheriffs dared not e.xercise their official 
 functions. Judges were driven from the 
 bench and general lawlessness was 
 observed. Governor Tryon, with some 
 militia in April, 1771, in a conflict with 
 these regulators, defeated them, and 
 
 compelled the people in all that region 
 — conscientious people — to take an oath 
 of allegiance, which restrained their 
 patriotic action when the war of the 
 Revolution was earnestly begun. This 
 was the first battle in the ivar for inde- 
 pendence. It was a sort of civil war, 
 for it was fought on the soil of North 
 Carolina, between citizens of North 
 Carolina. The movement of the Regu- 
 lators was a powerful beginning of that 
 system of resistance which marked the 
 ])eople of North Carolina in the im- 
 pending struggle. 
 
 Governor Bernard had assured the 
 Massachusetts Convention of his dis- 
 pleasure and his intention to enforce 
 the laws. On the first of October, 1768, 
 eight vessels of war, bearing two regi- 
 ments of British soldiers, commanded 
 by Colonels Dalrymple and Carr, ap- 
 peared off Boston harbor. They were 
 landed in the built-up portion of the 
 city. Natural hatred of the troops by 
 the people, deep and abiding, was soon 
 engendered, and the terms rebel and 
 tvrant were frequently bandied between 
 them. Lord North now commenced 
 the leadership of the ministry in Eng- 
 land, which continued until nearly the 
 close of our struggle for independ- 
 ence About this time Bernard was re- 
 called, and the province was left in the 
 care of Lieutenant-Governor Thomas 
 Hutchinson. 
 
 The merchants of New York, Phila- 
 delphia, Annapolis and other places 
 had now renewed their non-importation 
 leagues with vigor. The distress 
 created by these leagues to British 
 commerce and manufactures caused the 
 English merchants to urge on Parlia- 
 ment the repeal of the taxes on the 
 .American colonies. Lord North, who 
 was the echo of the monarch, insisted 
 that one tax must always be laid to 
 keep up that right. A circular letter 
 was then sent to all the colonies, in 
 which a promise was given that no 
 more taxes should be laid upon them 
 and all duties repealed except that upon 
 tea. It was believed that this conces- 
 sion would satisfy the .Americans, for- 
 getting that a principle broader and 
 deeper and more vital than any statute 
 
FIFTH PFRIOD— THE WAR FOR INDEPFXDENCE 
 
 law was at the bottom of the discon- 
 tent in the colonies. This circular had 
 not the least effect on the colonies, ex- 
 cept to stimulate them to more deter- 
 mined resistance. For so long as the 
 (lut)- on tea was retained, the principle 
 involved remained the same. 
 
 The troops in Boston were a constant 
 source of irritation to the citizens, who 
 wanted them removed outside the city. 
 Early in January, 1770, there had been 
 serious trouble between the citizens and 
 soldiers in New York, and intense ex- 
 citement prevailed there. On the sec- 
 iind of March, in Boston, a soldier and 
 a workman in a rope vi'alk had an al- 
 tercation, in which the soldier was se- 
 \erely beaten. I'^ull of wrath, he 
 hastened to the barracks and soon re- 
 turned with several companions, when 
 they beat the rope makers and chased 
 them through the streets. The citizens 
 naturally espoused the cause of the 
 rope makers, and many of them as- 
 sembled in the afternoon with a deter- 
 mination to avenge the wrongs of the 
 workman. The disturbance was settled 
 for a time by the authorities, but ven- 
 geance only slumbered. On the evening 
 of the fifth of March, a large lumiber 
 of citizens and soldiers, armed with 
 clubs, etc., became involved in an alter- 
 cation, which culminated in the soldiers 
 obtaining their arms and firing on the 
 citizens. Three of the populace were 
 killed, five were severely wounded, and 
 three were slightly hurt. Colonel Dal- 
 rymple, with the lieutenant-governor, 
 were soon on the spot and promised the 
 orderly citizens who had taken the place 
 of the dispersed mob that justice should 
 be vindicated in the morning. Such is 
 the sad story of the famous "Boston 
 Massacre," gleaned from conflicting 
 evidence of witnesses at the time. 
 
 The event produced a profound im- 
 pression everywhere. The cause of 
 Boston became the cause of the con- 
 tinent. The story, embellished in its 
 course from lip to lip. became a tale of 
 horrors, that stirred the blood of patri- 
 ots everywhere. Tt was a crisis in the 
 history of the colonies. Some were 
 disposed to consider the events on that 
 night as forming the principal cause 
 
 of the Revolution, which soon after- 
 ward broke out. Soon after the mas- 
 sacre it was deemed expedient to re- 
 move the troops to quiet the e.xcited 
 feelings of the people. 
 
 On the twelfth of April, Lord North 
 succeeded in obtaining from Parlia- 
 ment a repeal of all duties, except a 
 three per cent, tax on tea. Had the 
 news of the troubles in Boston reached 
 J'arliament at this time, there is no 
 doubt that duty would not ha\c been 
 retained 
 
 During the next two }'ears after the 
 Boston Massacre, the colonists were not 
 disturbed by any obno.xious legislation 
 by Parliament. At that period a spirit 
 of adventure caused many persons to 
 climb o\-er the mountains west of the 
 British-American colonies to explore 
 the valleys of the Ohio, Cumberland 
 and Tennessee Rivers, and to penetrate 
 the dark forests in the more southern 
 portions of the ]\Iississippi X'alley. 
 Washington then made himself thor- 
 oughly acquainted with the region of 
 West Virginia, on the borders of the 
 Ohio River. Daniel Boone and com- 
 panions from the Clinch and Holston 
 Rivers were traversing the wilds of 
 Kentucky and preparing the way for 
 settlements there ; and James Robert- 
 son and others were exploring the bord- 
 ers of the sinuous Cumberland and 
 planting a permanent settlement on the 
 blufTs of Nashville. So these pioneers 
 v.ere revolutionizing that vast and rich 
 country into which an industrious popu- 
 lation soon flowed and made perma- 
 nent habitations. 
 
 In 1772, Parliament, by a special act 
 for strengthening the powers of the 
 royal governors in .\merica, excited the 
 indignation of the colonists. It pro- 
 vided for the payment of the salaries 
 of the governors and judges indepen- 
 dent of the colonial assemblies. They 
 knew the significance of the act and 
 denounced it as a violation of their 
 charters. At a town-meeting in Bos- 
 ton, a large committee was appointed, 
 which drew up and published a state- 
 ment of all the rights and grievances 
 of the colonies. It was the boldest and 
 most complete the colonies had yet put 
 
146 
 
 THE HOME AUXILLARY AND REFERENCE 
 
 forth. Dr. Franklin, who had been 
 appointed agent for Massachusetts in 
 England, published it there, with a 
 preface written by himself. It pro- 
 duced a deep impression on both sides 
 of the Atlantic. 
 
 In the summer of 1772 an occur- 
 rence in Xarraganset Bay made a great 
 stir in the colonies and Great Britain. 
 The commissioners of customs, at Bos- 
 ton, sent the Gasper, a British armed 
 schooner, into the bay to enforce the 
 revenue laws and prevent illicit traffic. 
 Lieut. Duddingston, the commander, 
 played the petty tyrant and obstructed 
 legitimate commerce. A message was 
 sent by Governor Wanton to him. ask- 
 ing him to produce his commission 
 without delay. He refused to comply. 
 This demand was repeated in a second 
 letter without result. Admiral ]\Ion- 
 tagu, at Boston, to whom these letters 
 had been sent by the lieutenant, wrote 
 a letter to the governor, saying: "The 
 lieutenant. Sir, has done his duty. I 
 shall give the King's officers directions 
 that they send every man molesting 
 them to me. As sure as the people of 
 Newport attempt to rescue any vessel, 
 and any of them are taken, I will hang 
 them as pirates." 
 
 Duddingston now became more in- 
 solent and annoying. (Jn the ninth of 
 June, 1772, the Gasper, in pursuit of a 
 vessel that had refused to salute her, 
 was misled and hopelessly stranded. 
 That night armed men in boats attacked 
 the schooner, wounded the lieutenant, 
 carried off the crew, and the vessel was 
 set on fire, and at early dawn she was 
 blown up by her ignited magazine. This 
 high-handed outrage was condemned 
 by the local authorities in public. The 
 perpetrators of this outrage were not 
 known until after the war with Great 
 Britain had actually begun, although 
 the governor and the British govern- 
 ment offered large rewards to discover 
 their names. 
 
 At the beginning of 1773, the East 
 India Company found itself greatly em- 
 barrassed b)' the American non-impor- 
 tation agreements concerning tea. On 
 appealing to the ministry, leave was 
 granted to the company to send tea to 
 
 America on their own account, without 
 paying an export duty, and so enable 
 the colonists to buy it cheaper from 
 England than from any other market. 
 The company received the proper li- 
 cense in August, and although warned 
 by Franklin and others that the Amer- 
 icans would not accept the new ar- 
 rangement, ships were filled with car- 
 goes of tea for American ports. Agents 
 were appointed at all the seaports to 
 receive it. and relief for the embar- 
 rassed company seemed to be nigh. 
 
 The colonists accepted the issue. 
 They met the commercial question with 
 one of deeper significance than that of 
 the dearness or cheapness of a com- 
 modity. Is there a duty for revenue 
 imposed on tea ? was the true question. 
 It was answered in the affirmative, and 
 it was resolved that tea, whatever its 
 price, should not be landed in America 
 until that duty was taken off. 
 
 Meetings of the colonists were held 
 in Boston, New York, Philadelphia, 
 Charleston and other places, in which 
 it was resolved not to receive any of the 
 cargoes. The captain of a ship which 
 had arrived at New York, perceiving 
 how strong were the sentiments of the 
 people, returned to England with his 
 \essel. The same occurrence happened 
 at Philadelphia. At Boston, yet the 
 focus of resistence to British oppres- 
 sion, the greatest demonstrations con- 
 cerning tea ships occurred. It was re- 
 solved to resist the landing of any car- 
 goes of tea at all hazards. A commit- 
 tee called upon the consigners with a 
 request that they should resign. Their 
 answer was : "It is out of our power to 
 comply with the request of the town.'' 
 
 On Monday morning, the twenty- 
 ninth of November, 1773, a great meet- 
 ing was held at Faneuil Hall, at which 
 it was resolved, by unanimous vote, to 
 prevent the landing of a cargo of tea 
 that had arrived the day before in a ves- 
 sel anchored off the fort in the har- 
 bor. It was also resolved that no duty 
 be paid, and that the captain be in- 
 structed to return with his ship and 
 cargo to London. 
 
 The governor would not allow this, 
 and ordered two armed ships to be 
 
FIFTH PERIOD— THE WAR FOR INDEPENDENCE 
 
 1-17 
 
 lilaced at the entrance of lioston har- 
 bor, to [irevent the egress of vessels, 
 and he directed the commander of the 
 fort not to allow any vessel to pass out 
 from the range of his great guns with- 
 out a permit signed by himself. 
 
 In the meantime the vessel had been 
 brought into the harbor and anchored 
 at Griffin's wharf. At a great meet- 
 ing, held on the sixteenth of Decem- 
 ber, 1773, of over seven thousand peo- 
 ple, Mr. Rotch, the captain of the ves- 
 sel, was sent to the governor to ask 
 him for a permit to depart. On his 
 return, several hours afterward, he re- 
 ported that the governor peremptorily 
 refused him permission to send his ves- 
 sel to sea before the tea should be 
 landed. A murmur ran through the 
 \ast assemblage, but the rising excite- 
 ment was hushed into silence when 
 Samuel Adams arose, and in a clear 
 voice said : "This meeting can do no 
 more to save the country." At that 
 moment a person with painted face and 
 dressed like an Indian gave a war- 
 whoop, another voice shouted: "Boston 
 harbor a teapot to-night ! Hurrah for 
 Griffin's wharf !" The meeting in- 
 stantly adjourned, and the people 
 rushed for the street, and pushed 
 toward Griffin's wharf, followed by a 
 number of men disguised as Indians. 
 The jioinilace cheered. Guards were 
 [)Osted to keep order. Among them was 
 John Hancock. The disguised men and 
 others went on board the teaships 
 moored at Griffin's wharf, and in the 
 course of three hours they emptied three 
 hundred and forty-two chests of tea 
 into the water of the harbor. The op- 
 eration was performed in the presence 
 of a multitude, who were silent spec- 
 tators of the scene. It was done at an 
 early hour in the evening — a bright, 
 cold', moon-lit evening — and of sixty 
 men who went on board the teaships, 
 only a part of them were disguised as 
 "Mohawks." It was not a mob that de- 
 stroyed the tea, but sober citizens. It 
 was the work of patriotic men, encour- 
 aged by patriotic citizens, who were de- 
 termined not to be trifled with any 
 longer. Of the immediate actors on 
 board the teaships on that eventful 
 
 night, the names of fifty-nine are 
 known. The last survivor of the band 
 was David Kinnison. who died in Chi- 
 cago in 1 85 1, at the age of one hun- 
 dred and fifteen years. The audacity 
 and firmness of the Bostonians was ap- 
 plauded throughout the colonies. Even 
 in Canada and the West Indies then- 
 were but feeble voices of censure. 
 
 When the news of the "Boston Tea 
 Party" reached England in January, 
 1774, the Parliament assured the King 
 that he should be sustained in efiforts to 
 maintain order in America. Lord 
 North succeeded, in March, in having 
 the famous "Boston Port Bill" passetl 
 by an almost unanimous vote. It pro- 
 \ided for the removal of the custom- 
 house, courts of justice and government 
 offices of all kinds from Boston to 
 Salem, and forbade every kind of shi])- 
 ping business in the harbor of Boston. 
 This was followed by another bill, in 
 which the crown appointed the go\- 
 ernor's council and the judges of the 
 supreme court ; for the selection of 
 jurors by the sheriff, the nomination of 
 all other executive, military and judicial 
 officers by the governor without con- 
 sulting his council, and for prohibiting 
 town-meetings, except for elections. A 
 third bill provided for trial in England 
 of all persons charged in the colonies 
 with murders committed in support of 
 the government. A fourth bill provided 
 for the quartering of troops in America. 
 
 In order to secure the loyalty of the 
 French in Canada, who were nearly all 
 Roman Catholics, a bill was passed 
 granting to them the "free exercise of 
 the religion of the Church of Rome, and 
 confirmed to the clergy of that church 
 their accustomed dues and rights.'' 
 This act was inconsistent, as the Ro- 
 man Catholic religion had no legal exist- 
 ence in Ireland. The Quebec Act, so 
 called, was passed, so that the English 
 government could more easily send in- 
 struments to enslave the English-Amer- 
 ican colonies from the River St. I-aw- 
 rence. 
 
 Dr. Franklin, who was agent for the 
 colonies in England, about this time in- 
 curred the displeasure of the ministry. 
 The government in England was deter- 
 
148 
 
 THE HOME AUXTLTARY AND REEERENCE 
 
 mined tu fill tlie postofficcs in America 
 with friends of the crown, so as to 
 watch and obslrnct the communications 
 between the political leaders in the sev- 
 eral colonies. They seized on this ex- 
 cuse and dismissed him from the office 
 of deputy postmaster-general. Dr. 
 Franklin wrote of this to his friends in 
 the colonies, in which he states: "It may 
 be worth your consideration, especially 
 as the postoffice act of Parliament al- 
 lows the postmaster to open letters, if 
 warranted to do so by the order of a 
 secretary of state, and every provincial 
 secretary may be deemed a secretary of 
 state in his own province." How safe 
 the correspondence of your Assembly 
 committees along the continent will be 
 through the hands of crown officers ? 
 
 Governor Hutchinson, of Massa- 
 chusetts, was recalled in May, 1774. 
 He had many political, as well as per- 
 sonal friends in Massachusetts, for it 
 must be remembered that the patriotic 
 zeal which animated the Sons of Lib- 
 erty was not universally felt, even in 
 Boston. When he was about to depart 
 for England, more than a hundred mer- 
 chants in Boston, and a number of law- 
 yers, magistrates and men of property 
 there and in the neighborhood signed an 
 address to him, in which they expressed 
 an entire approbation of his public 
 acts and affectionate wishes for his 
 personal happiness. These people be- 
 came objects of intense dislike. Many 
 of them were compelled to leave the col- 
 ony, and became the first of the host 
 of "Loyal Refugees" who peopled 
 British provinces after the war that en- 
 sued. 
 
 It was the tenth of May when the 
 "Port Bill''' reached Boston. It was al- 
 ready in the hands of the Sons of Lib- 
 erty in Xew York. They held a meet- 
 ing and resolved that the only safeguard 
 for the freedom of the colonies was in 
 a General Congress of deputies. They 
 also resolved to stand by Boston in its 
 hour of distress. The suggestion was 
 echoed back with approval from every 
 colony. So originated the famous First 
 Continental Congress in 1774. 
 
 General Gage arrived in Boston on 
 the seventeenth of Mav. On the first 
 
 of June the ])nrt was closed and the law- 
 was vigt)ronsly enforced. Xot a vessel 
 of any kind was allowed to be used in 
 the harbor. Business of every kind was 
 immediately paralyzed. A cordon of 
 \essels-of-war enclosed the town, and 
 several regiments, that soon arrived, 
 made Boston an immense garrison. 
 Tliere was soon produced widespread 
 suffering, and the sympathy of the 
 people everywhere was warmly excited. 
 \ ery soon money, grain, flour and live 
 stock were on their way toward Boston, 
 accompanied by letters of condolence. 
 
 The Carolinas and Georgia sent rice, 
 and the more northerly colonies sent 
 grain, sheep and beeves, with money. 
 The City of London, in its corporate ca- 
 pacity, sent three-quarters of a million 
 dollars for the relief of the poor of 
 Boston. The people of Marblehead and 
 Salem offered the free use of their 
 wharves and stores to the Boston mer- 
 chants, for they scorned to profit by the 
 misfortunes of their neighbors. 
 
 W^hen the Massachusetts Assembly 
 met on the seventh of June, there was 
 a very full attendance. A large ma- 
 jority of the members were republicans. 
 Governor Gage commanded the Assem- 
 bly to dissolve, but before doing so, 
 they adopted a "Solemn League and 
 Covenant" concerning non-importa- 
 tions, and agreeing with Xew York in 
 the proposition for a General Congress, 
 they appointed James Bowdoin, Samuel 
 Adams, John Adams, Thomas Gushing 
 and Robert Treat Paine to represent 
 Massachusetts in the proposed (ieneral 
 Congress. They named Philadelphia as 
 the place, and the beginning of Septem- 
 ber next ensuing as the time ; and in a 
 circular which they sent to the other 
 colonies, the time and place were 
 mentioned. So ended the last Assembly 
 of Massachusetts under a royal gov- 
 ernor. 
 
 On the same day an immense town- 
 meeting, presided over by John Adams, 
 was held in Faneuil Hall. The inhabi- 
 tants, by vote, refused to make any pro- 
 \isions for paying the East India Com- 
 pany for its tea destroyed. They rati- 
 fied the acts of the Assembly and as- 
 sumed an absolutely defiant attitude. 
 
FIFTH PERIOD— THE WAR FOR INDEPENDENCE 
 
 The iiriipdsiliiin fur a ( ieniTal t'un- 
 yress, to be held in Sepleniber, in Phila- 
 delphia, received universal assent, and 
 before the close of the summer of 1774, 
 twelve of the thirteen British-American 
 colonies had chosen delegates to attend 
 it. Only Georgia remained silent. 
 
 During the summer and autumn of 
 1774 the people, everywhere, were pre- 
 paring for impending war. They armed 
 themselves and practiced military tactics 
 every day. Men of all stations in life 
 might be found in the ranks for disci- 
 pline. At the close of the Congress at 
 Philadelphia, late in the autumn, the 
 l^rovincial Congress of Massachusetts 
 voted to enroll twelve thousand of these 
 patriots under the general title of Min- 
 ute Men — volunteers who would be 
 ready at a minute's warning to take the 
 field with arms in their hands. .All 
 .\ew England did likewise, and the ex- 
 ample was contagious. Other colonies 
 followed, and in \'irginia the Minute 
 Men were of special service to the 
 patriot cause at a critical juncture. 
 
 Gage, in August, proceeded to form a 
 council, under the act of Parliament. 
 The popular indignation was so great 
 that twenty of them resigned and the 
 remainder sought protection under the 
 troops in Boston. Gage now moved his 
 seat of government to Boston and pre- 
 pared to cast up fortifications across 
 the "Neck." At about the same time, 
 he sent out troops to seize gunpowder 
 belonging to the province at Charles- 
 town and Cambridge. This was fol- 
 lowed, a few days afterward, by a 
 rumor that went over the land, even to 
 the Connecticut River and beyond, that 
 war had begun in Boston ; that the Brit- 
 ish ships were bombarding the town, 
 and that the British troops were mur- 
 dering the patriotic inhabitants. The 
 3\linute Men everywhere seized their 
 arms and marched in squads to Boston. 
 ' This host of fully thirty thousand men, 
 intent upon the salvation of their breth- 
 ern, and the destruction of the enemy, 
 were not halted until they were satis- 
 fied that the story was untrue. 
 
 On the sixth of September, 1774, a 
 convention of delegates representing the 
 towns in the countv to which Boston 
 
 belonged, in a rcsi>lnli(in I'ranklv told 
 Gage that they would not submit to any 
 oi the late acts of Parliament concern- 
 ing the Americans. They resolved that 
 they would not commence war, but act 
 on the defensive only, so long as just 
 reason required. Gage denounced the 
 convention as treasonable, and he de- 
 clared that he would adopt such meas- 
 ures as he pleased to protect his troops. 
 On the fifth of September, 1774, 
 delegates from twelve British- American 
 ]jiovinces met in Carpenters' Hall, in 
 Philadelphia, and were organized into 
 what they called themselves, a Conti- 
 nental Congress, having for their ob- 
 ject the consideration of the political 
 slate of the colonies, also the devising 
 of measures for obtaining relief from 
 oppression and to unite in etiforts to se- 
 cure forever for themselves and their 
 posterity the free enjoyment of natural 
 and chartered rights and liberties, in a 
 perfect union with Great Britain. \'ery 
 few of them had aspirations yet for pol- 
 itical independence. There were pres- 
 ent forty-four delegates. These were 
 John Sullivan and Kathaniel Folsom, 
 from Nciv Hampshire; Thomas Gush- 
 ing. Samuel Adams, John Adams and 
 Robert Treat Paine, from Massachu- 
 setts: Stephen Hopkins and Samuel 
 Ward, from Rhode Island: Eliphalet 
 Dyer, Roger Sherman and Silas Deane, 
 from Connecticut; James Duane, John 
 Jay, Philip Livingston, Isaac Low and 
 William Floyd, from Nezv York ; James 
 Kinsey, William Livingston, John Hart, 
 Stephen Crane and Richard Smith, 
 from New Jersey; Joseph Galloway, 
 Samuel Rhodes, Thomas Mififlin, 
 Charles Humphreys, John Morton and 
 Edward Biddle, from Pennsylvania: 
 Caesar Rodney, Thomas McKean and 
 George Read, from Delazvare; Robert 
 Goldsborough. William Paca and Sam- 
 uel Chase, from Maryland; Peyton 
 Randolph, George Washington, Patrick 
 Henry, Richard Bland, Benjamin Har- 
 rison and Edmund Pendleton, from 
 Virginia, and Henry Middleton, John 
 Rutledge, Christopher Gadsden, 
 Thomas Lynch and Edward Rutledge, 
 from South Carolina. Others came 
 soon afterward: John .\lsop 
 
ISO 
 
 THE HOME AUXILIARY AND REFERENCE 
 
 1111(1 Henry Wisner, from Xcn' York; 
 George Ross and John Dickinson, 
 from Pcnnsyh'ania; Thomas John- 
 son and Matthew Tighhnan, from 
 Maryland; Richard Henry Lee, from 
 Virginia; WilHam Hooper, Joseph 
 Hewes and Richard Caswell, from 
 North Carolina — making the whole 
 number fifty- four. Peyton Randolph, 
 of \'irginia, was chosen president, and 
 Charles Thomson, a native of Ireland, 
 who, in early life, had emigrated to Del- 
 aware, and then a citizen of Philadel- 
 phia, was chosen secretary. 
 
 Patrick Henry, of Virginia, opened 
 the Congress in an eloquent speech, in 
 which he said: "British oppression has 
 effaced the boundaries of the several 
 colonies. / am not a Virginian, but an 
 American. This was the test of every 
 l^atriotic discourse thereafter. On the 
 eighth of October it was passed : 
 "That this Congress approve the oppo- 
 sition of the inhabitants of Massachu- 
 setts Bay to the execution of the late 
 acts of Parliament; and if the same 
 shall be attempted to be carried into 
 execution by force, in such case all 
 America ought to support them in their 
 opposition. From that hour the crys- 
 tallization of the British-American col- 
 onies into an independent nation went 
 rapidly on. 
 
 After addressing letters, written by 
 John Jay, to the people of Great Bri- 
 tain, and making a petition to the King, 
 drawn by John Dickinson, in which the 
 final decision of the colonies was given 
 in conciliatory terms, and an elaborate 
 Address to the Inhabitants of the Prov- 
 ince of Quebec, also written by ]\Ir. 
 Dickinson, were agreed to, the First 
 Continental Congress ended. This was 
 on the twenty-sixth of October, 1774. 
 A few days before, the Congress had 
 recommended the holding of another at 
 Philadelphia on the tenth of May fol- 
 lowing, if the grievances were not re- 
 dressed in the meantime. In January, 
 1775, the British King and his coun- 
 sellors, instructed the royal governors 
 to prevent the meeting of the delegates 
 in the following May. 
 
 At Annapolis, in Maryland, long 
 after the excitement occasioned bv the 
 
 destruction of tea in Boston harbor had 
 subsided, a ship sailed into that port on 
 the 15th of October from London, 
 owned by Anthony Stewart of An- 
 napolis. Among her cargo was seven- 
 teen packages of tea. The people at a 
 mass meeting resolved that the tea 
 should not be landed, and that the ship 
 and cargo should be burned. Charles 
 Carroll, of Carrollton, advised Mr. 
 Stewart for the security of his own per- 
 sonal safety, and that of the town, to 
 burn his vessel with his own hands be- 
 fore the next gathering of the people. 
 Stewart consented to do so. He 
 caused the ship to be run aground and 
 set on fire in the presence of a multi- 
 tude of people. This was the last at- 
 tempt to import tea during the colonial 
 rule. 
 
 Gage had summoned the Assembly of 
 Massachusetts to meet on the 5th of 
 October, but the aspect of the delegates 
 was so seditious that he countermanded 
 his order. The members denied his 
 right to countermand and organized 
 themselves into a Provincial Congress, 
 with John Hancock as President and 
 Benjamin Lincoln, Secretary. They 
 called out the militia of the province 
 and appropriated sixty thousand dol- 
 lars to procure ammunition and mili- 
 tary stores.. At the same time ex- 
 pressed their loyalty to the King, and 
 protested against the fortifications 
 around Boston. Gage denounced the 
 Convention as an illegal body, and 
 warned them to desist from further 
 action. That Provincial Congress as- 
 sumed legislative and executive powers, 
 and received the allegiance of the peo- 
 ple generally, and authorized the enroll- 
 ment of twelve thousand Minute-men. 
 At the close of 1774, Gage found him- 
 self unsupported excepting by his 
 troops, a few government officials in 
 Boston and passive loyalists who were 
 under the protection of his regiments. 
 -\11 outside of Boston wore the aspect 
 of rebellion. 
 
 During this time there was a speck of 
 war with the Indians on the frontiers 
 of Virginia. By the Quebec Act, all 
 of the country north and west of the 
 Ohio River was included in that prov- 
 
FIFTH PERIOD— THE WAR FOR INDEPENDENCE 
 
 IS! 
 
 ince. In this territory there was no 
 government to restrain the actions of 
 Cliristians or Pagans. Governor Dun- 
 more, of Virginia, disregarded the Que- 
 bec Act and continued to grant lands to 
 settlers in the Scioto \^alley. He as- 
 serted jurisdiction over Pittsburgh and 
 the surrounding country to the west- 
 ward, and this territory was rapidly 
 filling up with settlers from Virginia 
 and Maryland. Karly in 1774 the In- 
 dians committed many murders and dc- 
 jiredations along the Ohio borders, and 
 the tribes seemed to be in preparation 
 for war. They were led by Logan, a 
 Mingo chief, who in revenge for the 
 cold-blooded murder of his mother, 
 brother and sister, who was the wife 
 of one of the white traders, during that 
 following summer exacted fearful retri- 
 bution. Governor Dunmore, now re- 
 newed a treaty of peace with the Six 
 Nations and fitted out an expedition 
 against the hostile Indians. In Oc- 
 tober, at Point Pleasant, near the junc- 
 tion of the Great Kanawha and Ohio 
 Rivers, a battle was fought with the 
 Indians with large losses on both sides. 
 A few days afterward a satisfactory 
 treaty of peace was concluded, and then 
 the \*irginians returned to their homes, 
 from which they had been absent about 
 three months. The troops, when they 
 received the news of public affairs, dur- 
 ing their absence, resolved to exert 
 every power in defence of .American 
 liberty. 
 
 The elections for members of Parlia- 
 ment in the autumn of 1774 satisfied the 
 ministry that they were strong in the 
 atTectio'ns of the people. This pleased 
 the King, and the government was not 
 in a frame of mind to receive with com- 
 placency the state papers put forth by 
 the Coiitinental Congress, especially the 
 petition to the King. The New Eng- 
 land governments are now in a state of 
 rebellion. PjIows must decide whether 
 they are to be subject to this country, 
 or to be independent. This was King 
 George's ultimatum, to which he ob- 
 stinately adhered. 
 
 Dr. Franklin, at this time in England, 
 intimated that peace could be estab- 
 
 lished with the American Colonies by 
 allowing them the right and privileges 
 claimed as the birthright of English 
 subjects in England. Dr. Franklin re- 
 turned to America in the spring of 
 1775. abandoning any hope of recon- 
 ciliation, and entered vigorously upon 
 the prosecution of the war, which soon 
 after broke out. 
 
 In the early part of 1775 the British 
 government had proclaimed Massachu- 
 setts to be in a state of rebellion, and 
 provided means for suppressing that re- 
 bellion by force of arms. For ten years 
 the people of those provinces had 
 pleaded, remonstrated and worked in 
 vain endeavors to obtain justice for 
 themselves and their posteritv. Thev 
 had asserted the inalienable rights of 
 every free-born Englishman, and had 
 been haughtily spurned as slaves. They 
 had bravely, meekly, patiently and per- 
 sistently opposed the revolution which 
 the king and Parliament seemed deter- 
 mined to efTect (and did effect) by 
 overturning the colonial charters and 
 denying to British subjects in America 
 the freedom and privileges of British 
 subjects in England. 
 
 The colonists now said : "We must 
 fight." They repeated it from Maine 
 to Georgia. They buckled on their 
 armor and stood on the defensive de- 
 termined not to give the first blow. We 
 shall now see how their oppressors be- 
 came the aggressors, and spilled the 
 first blood that flowed in the war of that 
 momentous revolution which King 
 George the Third began. That revolu- 
 tion, as we have observed, was not the 
 work of the people here. They did not 
 seek to overturn anything: they sought 
 only to preserve the precious things that 
 existed. They had never known hered- 
 itary titles, nor prerogatives, nor any 
 of the forms of feudalism, in .America, 
 other than as temporary e.xotics. Thev 
 had grown to greatness in plain, unos- 
 tentatious ways, chiefly as tillers of the 
 soil and moving on a social plane of 
 almost absolute equality. They had all 
 been born free. They were not called 
 upon to fight for freedom, for they al- 
 ready possessed it : they were compelled 
 
THE HOME AUXILIARY AXI) REFERENCE 
 
 to tigiit for its maintenance. Tlicrc- 
 fore, the American people in 1775 were 
 not revolutionists. 
 
 In February, 1775, Great Britain, as 
 we have seen, had virtually declared 
 \var against the colonies. "The time 
 for reconciliation, moderation, and 
 reasoning is over," General Gage wrote 
 to Lord Dartmouth. 
 
 In reply to a letter from Dartmouth, 
 ordering him to assert, by force, the 
 absolute authority of the king, Gage 
 wrote that the civil government was 
 nearly at an end in Massachusetts. He 
 advised the sending of twenty thou- 
 sand troops, with whom he would un- 
 dertake to enforce the new form of 
 government, to disarm the colonists, 
 and to arrest and send to England for 
 trial the chief traitors in IMassachu- 
 setts. Meanwhile the British govern- 
 ment were prejiaring to reinforce the 
 troops in Boston. It was determined 
 to make the number there ten thou- 
 sand. They also resolved to send an- 
 other general to take the place of Gage, 
 whom ministers considered too ineffi- 
 cient for the exigency. General Wil- 
 liam Howe was chosen to succeed him. 
 His major-generals were Sir Henry 
 Clinton and John Burgoyne. General 
 Howe took the appointment with reluc- 
 tance. "Is it a proposition or an or- 
 der from the king?" Howe asked. "It 
 i.s an order." "Then it is my duty to 
 obey,'' he said, with real reluctance, 
 for he remembered with gratitude the 
 vote of Massachusetts to erect a monu- 
 ment in memory of his brother, Lord 
 Howe, who was killed near Ticonder- 
 cga. His reluctance was somewhat di- 
 minished when he was told that he and 
 his brother Richard Earl Howe (who 
 had been appointed naval commander 
 in America), would go as peace com- 
 missioners also, bearing the sword in 
 one hand and the olive branch in the 
 other. 
 
 Franklin, not long before his depart- 
 ure from England, had written to 
 friends in Massachusetts, saying, in 
 substance, "Do not begin war without 
 the advice of the Continental Congress, 
 unless on a sudden emergency." He 
 said : "New England alone can hold out 
 
 for ages against this country, and, if 
 they are firm and united, in seven _\ears 
 will win the day." The prophecy was 
 fulfilled in time and facts. The French 
 minister in London wrote to his gov- 
 ernment: "Every negotiation which 
 shall proceed from the present admin- 
 istration will be without success in the 
 colonies." The conduct of the .\mer- 
 icans gratified the wishes of Franklin 
 and the hopes of the French ambas- 
 sador. 
 
 When news of the contemptuous re- 
 ception of the petition of Congress to 
 the king, and copies of the Address of 
 Parliament to his majesty, reached the 
 Americans, there was an outburst of 
 patriotism from the hearts of all the 
 colonies. The spirit of the times gave 
 fire to the tongue of Joseph Warren, 
 when, on the anniversary of the Boston 
 Massacre, he thrilled the souls of a vast 
 concourse of citizens in the Old South 
 Meeting-house. 
 
 .All through March and far into .April 
 Boston was like a seething cauldron of 
 intense feeling. Gage was irresolute 
 and timid. He had about four thou- 
 sand well-drilled soldiers, eager to fall 
 upon the "rebels," yet he hesitated. .At 
 length he resolved to nip rebellion in 
 the bud. He prepared to seize John 
 Hancock and Samuel .Adams as arch- 
 traitors, and send them to England for 
 trial on a charge of treason. 
 
 In the meantime Hancock and 
 .\dams, who were in attendance at the 
 Provincial Congress held at Concord, 
 had received warning of their personal 
 danger, for an intercepted letter from 
 London had revealed it ; and when that 
 Congress adjourned on the 15th of 
 .April, they tarried at Lexington, where 
 they lodged at the house of Rev. Jonas 
 Clarke. At the same time the Minute- 
 men were on the alert everywhere, and 
 the fifteen thousand troops which the 
 Provincial Congress had called for were 
 in readiness to confront the oppressors 
 of the people. 
 
 The capital part of the scheme was to 
 arrest Hancock and Adams at Lexing- 
 ton, ten miles from Boston. For this 
 purpose the soldiers who were to do 
 the work, were to lea\e lioston secretlv 
 
FIFTH PERIOD— THE WAR FOR [XDEPENDENCI 
 
 153 
 
 in the evening, at an lionr that woulil 
 enahle them to reach I.cxington at past 
 iiiiehiight, when the doomed patriots 
 would be sleeping soundly. Their ar- 
 lest accomplished, the troops were to 
 move rapidly forward to Concord, six 
 miles further, and seize or destroy the 
 cannon and military stores which the 
 patriots had gathered. Preparations 
 for the expedition were made as early 
 as the fifteenth. On that day about 
 eight hundred grenadiers and infantry 
 were detached from the main body and 
 marched to a dilTerent part of the town, 
 under the pretense of teaching them 
 some new military movements. At 
 night boats from the transports, which 
 had been hauled up for repairs, were 
 launclied and moored under the sterns 
 of the men-of-war. Dr. Warren, one 
 of the most watchful of the patriots, 
 sent notice to Hancock of these suspi- 
 cious movements, and enabled the Com- 
 mittee of Safety, of which the latter 
 was chairman, to cause some of the 
 stores at Concord to be removed to 
 jjlaces of safety, in time to save them 
 from the invaders. 
 
 In the afternoon of the i8th (April, 
 1775), Gage's secret leaked out, and 
 the patriots in Boston watched every 
 movement of the troops with keen 
 \ision. Dr. Warren, Paul Revere and 
 others made arrangements for a sud- 
 den emergency, to warn Hancock and 
 Adams of danger, and to arouse the 
 country. Their precautions were 
 timely, for at ten o'clock that evening, 
 eight hundred British troops marched 
 silently to the foot of the Common, 
 where they embarked in boats and 
 passed over to Cambridge. They were 
 commanded by Lieutenant-Colonel 
 .Smith, assisted by Major Pitcairn. 
 Revere had engaged his friend New- 
 man, sexton of the North Church, to 
 give him a timely signal. 
 
 The moon was just rising when the 
 British landed on the Cambridge side of 
 the water. Newman had hung out two 
 lanterns, and the watching Revere, 
 springing into a saddle on the back of 
 a fleet horse, hurried across Charles- 
 town Neck. At the end of the isthmus 
 he was confronted Iiv two British 
 
 soldiers, who atlemiited to arrest him. 
 Turning back toward Charlestown, he 
 soon reached the Aledford road and 
 escaped ; and at a little past midnight 
 he rode up to Clarke's house in Lex- 
 ington. 
 
 The story of impending peril was 
 soon told, and the whole household 
 was astir. William Dawes, who went 
 by Roxbury, soon afterward arrived. 
 After refreshing themselves, he and 
 Revere rode swiftly toward Concord, 
 arousing the inhabitants by the way, as 
 the latter had done between Medford 
 and Lexington. They were overtaken 
 by Dr. Samuel Prescott, who had been 
 wooing a young woman in Lexington, 
 and he joined them in their patriotic 
 errand, when Revere, who was rid- 
 ing ahead, was suddenly surrounded by 
 some British officers, and with Dawes 
 was made a prisoner. Prescott dashed 
 over a stone wall with his active horse 
 and escaped. He rode over to Concord, 
 and at about two o'clock in the morn- 
 ing of the 19th gave the alarm. Revere 
 and his fellow-prisoner were closely 
 questioned concerning Hancock and 
 Adams, but gave evasive answers. 
 They were threatened with pistol-balls, 
 when Revere told his captors that men 
 were out arousing the country in all 
 directions. Just then a church bell was 
 heard : then another, when one of the 
 Lexington prisoners said: "The bells 
 are ringing — the town is alarmed — you 
 are dead men. The frightened officers 
 left their prisoners and fled toward 
 Boston. 
 
 The alarm rapidly spread, and the 
 J\!inute-men seized their arms. At two 
 o'clock in the morning. Captain John 
 Parker called the roll of his company 
 on Lexington Green in front of the 
 meeting-house, and ordered them to 
 charge their guns with powder and ball. 
 Colonel Smith was convinced that their 
 secret was known and there was a 
 general ujjrising of the people, for 
 church bells were heard in various di- 
 rections. He sent back to Boston for 
 reinforcements, and ordered ^lajor Pit- 
 cairn to push rapidly on through Lex- 
 ington and seize the bridges at Concord. 
 .As the latter advanced, he secured 
 
THE HOME AUXILIARY AXD REFEREXCE 
 
 every man seen on the way. ( )ne of 
 these escaped, and mounting a fleet- 
 footed horse, hurried to Lexington and 
 gave the alarm, but not until the in- 
 vaders were within less than two miles 
 of the village green. The bells rang 
 out an alarm. The Minute-men came ; 
 and just at the earliest dawn of day 
 Captain I^arker found himself at the 
 head of almost se\enty men. 
 
 In the gray of the early morning, 
 Major Pitcairn and his scarlet-clad 
 .soldiers appeared, and halting not far 
 from the line of Alinute-men on Lex- 
 ington Common, loaded their muskets. 
 The patriots stood firm. They had 
 been ordered not to fire a shot until 
 they were assailed by the invaders. A 
 pause ensued, when Pitcairn and other 
 officers galloped forward, waving their 
 swords over their heads, and followed 
 by the shouting troops in double-quick 
 time. "Disperse, you villains ! Lay 
 down your arms ! Why don't you dis- 
 perse, you rebels? Disperse!" cried the 
 major. In rushing forward the troops 
 had become confused. As the Minute- 
 men did not immediately obey the com- 
 mand to lay down their arms, Pitcairn 
 wheeled his horse, and waving his 
 sword, shouted : "Press forward, men ! 
 siyround the rascals!" At the same 
 moment some random shots were fired 
 over the heads of the Americans by the 
 British soldiers, but without eflfect. 
 The Minute-men had scruples about fir- 
 ing, until their own blood had been 
 spilled. Pitcairn was irritated by their 
 obstinacy, and drawing his pistol, dis- 
 charged it, at the same moment shout- 
 ing fire! A volley from the front rank 
 followed the order, with fatal etifect. 
 Some Americans fell dead or mortally 
 wounded, and others were badly hurt. 
 There was no longer hesitation on the 
 part of the Minute-men. The condi- 
 tions of their restraint were fulfilled. 
 The blood of their comrades had been 
 shed; and as the shrill fife of young 
 Jonathan Harrington set the drum a- 
 beating, the patriots returned the fire 
 with spirit, but not with fatal efifect. 
 The blood of American citizens stained 
 the green grass on Lexington Common, 
 but no British soldier lost his life in 
 
 that memorable conflict. Captain 
 Parker, perceiving his little band in 
 danger of being surrounded by over- 
 whelming numbers and massacred, or- 
 dered his men to disperse. They did 
 so ; but as the British continued to fire, 
 the American returned the shots with 
 spirit, and then sought safety behind 
 stone walls and buildings. Four of the 
 ]\Iinute-nien were slain by the fir.st fire, 
 and four afterwards, and ten were 
 wounded. Only three of the British 
 were wounded, with Pitcairn's horse. 
 
 So ended the opening act in the great 
 drama of the Old War for Indepen- 
 dence. 
 
 Meanwhile the news of the skirmish 
 was spreading with great rapidity over 
 the province. Before noon that day 
 the tidings reached Worcester, thirty 
 miles from Lexington. As the news 
 spread, the implements of husbandry 
 were thrown by in the fields, and the 
 citizens left their homes with no longer 
 delay than to seize their arms. In a 
 short time the Minute-men were par- 
 aded on the Green, under Captain Tim- 
 othy Bigelow ; after fervent prayer by 
 Rev. Mr. McCarty, they took up their 
 line of march. They were soon fol- 
 lowed by as many of the train-bands 
 as could be gathered under Captain 
 Benjamin Flagg. 
 
 The scene at Worcester on that oc- 
 casion was a type of a hundred others 
 enacted within twenty-four hours after 
 the skirmish at Lexington. It afl^ords 
 a vivid picture of the spirit of the 
 people. 
 
 The serious question arose. Who 
 fired first at Lexington, the British or 
 the Provincials? LIpon the true solu- 
 tion of that question depended, in a 
 degree, the justification or condemna- 
 tion of the belligerent parties, for the 
 Americans had resolved not to be the 
 aggressors. So late as ]May the next 
 year, a London journal said: "It is 
 whispered that the ministry are en- 
 deavoring to fix a certainty which party 
 fired first at Lexington, before hostili- 
 ties commenced, as the Congress de- 
 clare, if it can be proved that American 
 blood was first shed, it will go a great 
 way toward efl^ecting a reconciliation on 
 
FIFTH PERIOD— THE WAR FOR IXDEPENDENCE 
 
 ISS 
 
 tlie most honorable terms." The testi- 
 mony of contemporaries seems to prove, 
 l)eyond a doubt, that the British fired 
 first. 
 
 The precedence as to the time and 
 place where blood was first shed in the 
 Revolution is claimed for Westminster, 
 X'ermont, where, more than a month be- 
 fore the affair at Lexington, officers of 
 the crown in endeavoring to subdue a 
 mob, caused the death of one of the 
 rioters. The event is recorded in an 
 epitaph inscribed upon a slab of slate 
 in the old burial grounds at Westmin- 
 ster. 
 
 Concord had been aroused. Dr. 
 Prescott had reached the town twenty 
 minutes after he left Revere and Dawes 
 in the hands of their captors. 
 
 Men from Lincoln, Acton and other 
 places hurried toward Concord, and in 
 the gray of early morning these, with 
 the local Minute-men, were drawn up 
 in battlearray on the Common, under 
 the general command of Ci^lonel James 
 Uarrett, a soldier of the French and 
 Indian war. Guards were placed at the 
 bridges which spanned Concord River, 
 a sinuous, sluggish stream, and at the 
 centre of the village ; and some militia 
 were sent toward Lexington to gain in- 
 formation about the invading regulars, 
 of whom they had uncertain stories. 
 .'Kt about seven o'clock the militia men 
 came hurrying back with the startling 
 news that the regulars were near, and 
 in number three times that of the Am- 
 ericans then assembled. The whole 
 force of defenders now fell back to a 
 hill about eighty rods from the centre 
 of the village. 
 
 Rumors of the events at Lexington, 
 vague and uncertain, had reached the 
 Minute-men at Concord. .All Middle- 
 sex was awakened. The militia were 
 flocking in from Carlisle, Chelmsford, 
 AX'eston, Littleton, and Acton ; and be- 
 fore ten o'clock the force amounted to 
 1 full four hundred men — about one-half 
 that of the regulars. They were drawn 
 up in line by Joseph Hosmer, of Con- 
 cord, acting adjutant, and Alajor But- 
 trick, of the same village, took the im- 
 mediate command. When they saw the 
 smoke ascend from the town, the ques- 
 
 tion pressed itself upon the heart and 
 judgment of every man: "What shall 
 we do?" There was no Continental 
 Congress ; they had no orders from the 
 Provincial Congress ; they were a little 
 army of Middlesex farmers gathered 
 for the defence of their homes and 
 their rights : by what authority might 
 they attack British troops acting under 
 lawful orders? Would it not be trea- 
 son? But the troops were trampling 
 upon their rights, and the smoke of 
 their burning property was rising be- 
 fore their eyes. They took counsel of 
 duty, and acted promptly. Isaac Davis, 
 of Acton drew his sword, and, turning 
 to the company of which he was cap- 
 tain, said : "I haven't a man that's 
 afraid to go." Then Colonel Barrett 
 gave the word march, and the Acton 
 company, followed by others, all under 
 the command of Major Buttrick, pres- 
 sed forward, in double file with trailed 
 arms, to drive the British from the 
 North Bridge. The latter began to 
 destroy it, when Buttrick urged his men 
 forward to save it. As they ap- 
 proached the river, they were fired upon 
 by the regulars. Captain Davis and one 
 of his company were killed, when But- 
 trick shouted : "Fire, fellow-soldiers ; 
 for God's sake, fire !" Immediately a 
 full volley was given by the Minute- 
 men, which killed three of the British 
 and wounded several. Some other 
 shots were fired, when the invaders re- 
 treated and the ]\Iinute-men took pos- 
 session of the bridge. 
 
 The war begun at Lexington that 
 morning was seconded at Concord at 
 the middle of the forenoon, and ar 
 meridian the same day, British power 
 in America became wane, when British 
 regulars made a hasty retreat before 
 an inferior number of provincial militia. 
 Colonel Smith, hearing the firing at the 
 bridge, sent out reinforcements. These 
 met the retreating detachment. See- 
 ing the increasing strength of the 
 IMinute-men, they turned about, and at 
 noon the whole invading force re- 
 treated toward Lexington, the main 
 column covered by strong flanking 
 parties. It was soon perceived that the 
 whole countrv was in arms. .Minute- 
 
156 
 
 THE IKIMI': AUXILIARY AND KEFERILNXI-: 
 
 men appeared with muskets every- 
 where. Ji'ar had begun. In open high- 
 ways the exasperated yeomanry at- 
 tacked the retreating invaders : beliind 
 stone-walls, fences, buildings and in 
 wooded ravines they ambushed, and 
 assailed their foes with single shots or 
 deadly volleys ; and man after man fell 
 dead in the British ranks or was badly 
 wounded, until great wagons were 
 filled with the slain and maimed. The 
 heat was intense, and the dust in the 
 roads was intolerable. Exhausted by 
 want of sleep, fatigue of marching, 
 famine and thirst, tlie eight hundred 
 men — the flower of the British army 
 in Boston — must have surrendered to 
 the armed yeomanry of ^Middlesex, 
 soon after reaching Lexington, had not 
 relief arrived. It came in the form of 
 reinforcements under Lord Percy, and 
 met the fugitives within half a mile of 
 Lexington Common. 
 
 The request sent to Gage early in 
 the morning for reinforcements had 
 been promptly answered by ordering 
 Lord Percy to lead about a thousand 
 men to support Smith and Pitcairn. 
 
 Rumors of the skirmish at Lexing- 
 ton had reached the people along the 
 line of Percy's march, and the gather- 
 ing militia hung like an angry, threat- 
 ening cloud upon his flanks and rear. 
 Between two and three o'clock he met 
 the retreating army, when he opened 
 fire from his cannon upon the pursu- 
 ing Americans, formed a hollow 
 square, and received in it the e.xhaustefl 
 fugitives. Many of the soldiers fell 
 upon the ground completely overcome 
 with fatigue, some of them "with their 
 tongues hanging out of their mouths, 
 like those of dogs after a chase." 
 Percy dared not tarry long, for the 
 woods were swarming with ]\Iinute- 
 men. After brief rest and partaking 
 of some refreshments, the united force 
 resumed their march toward Boston, 
 satisfied that if they did not get back 
 before sunset, they would not get there 
 at all, for the militia were gathering 
 from the neighboring counties. It was 
 a fearful march for the troops, and for 
 the people of the country through 
 
 which they passed. The .Vmcricans re- 
 lentlessly pursued, while flanking par- 
 ties of the British committed many hid- 
 eous excesses, plundering houses, burn- 
 ing buildings, and ill-treating the de- 
 fenceless inhabitants All the way to 
 West Cambridge the retreating army 
 was dreadfully harassed by their con- 
 cealed foes. There General William 
 Heath, whom the Provincial Congress 
 had appointed to the command of the 
 militia, accompanied by Dr. Warren, 
 concentrated a considerable body of 
 Minute-men, and skirmished sharply 
 with the British. The British kept the 
 militia at bay, and pressed on toward 
 Boston, narrowly escaping seven hun- 
 dred Essex militia under Colonel 
 Timothy Pickering, who attempted to 
 bar the way to Charlestown, whither 
 the fugities were compelled to go. The 
 regulars finally reached that village and 
 the shelter of the guns of their frigates, 
 when Heath ordered the pursuit to be 
 stayed. 
 
 Charlestown had been in a state of 
 panic all day. Dr. W'arren rode 
 through the streets early in the fore- 
 noon, and told the people of the blood- 
 shed at Lexington. Then came the 
 news from Concord, at which many of 
 tlie men had seized their muskets and 
 h.nstened to the country. The schools 
 were dismissed ; places of business 
 were closed ; and when it was known 
 that the retreating British would pass 
 through the town, many of the inhabi- 
 tants gathered up their valuable effects 
 and prepared to leave. The firing at 
 Cambridge caused most of them to rush 
 toward the Neck to seek safety in the 
 country, when they were driven back 
 in despair by the approaching fugi- 
 tives. Rumors reached them that the 
 British were slaughtering women and 
 children in their streets, and many of 
 the terror-stricken people passed the 
 night in the clay-pits back of Breed's 
 Plill. Not a single person was harmed 
 in Charlestown. Percy ordered the 
 women and children to stay in their 
 houses. Reinforcements were sent 
 over from Boston ; guards were sta- 
 tioned ; the wounded were taken to the 
 
FIFTH PERIOD— Till'. \\.\K FOR IXDEPEXDFNCE 
 
 hospital, and quiet was restored, (gen- 
 eral Pigot assumed command at 
 Cliarlestown the next morning, and be- 
 fore noon the shattered army were in 
 tlicir quarters in Boston. During the 
 niciuorable day, the British lost in 
 killed, wounded and missing, two hun- 
 dred and seventy-three men; the Pro- 
 vincials lost one hundred and three. 
 
 Three days after the fight at Lexing- 
 ton and Concord, the Provincial Con- 
 gress of Massachusetts assembled at 
 Watertown, seven miles west of Bos- 
 ton, and chose Dr. Joseph Warren to 
 be their President. A committee was 
 appointed to draw up a "narrative of 
 the massacre." They took many de- 
 positions, by which it was proven con- 
 clusively that the British fired the first 
 shots. 
 
 The news of the events on the i<)th 
 of April spread rapidly over the land, 
 and stirred society in the colonics as 
 it had never been stirred before. There 
 was a spontaneous resolution to envi- 
 ron Boston with an army of provin- 
 cials that should confine the British to 
 die peninsula. For this purpose. New 
 Hampshire voted two thousand men, 
 with Folsom and Stark as chief com- 
 manders. Connecticut voted six thou- 
 sand, with Spencer as chief and Put- 
 nam as second. Rhode Island voted 
 fifteen hundred, with Greene as their 
 leader^ — Nathaniel Greene, who became 
 one of the most efficient of the mili- 
 tary officers in the war for indepcn- 
 <lence. He was a Friend, or Quaker, 
 in religious sentiment. 
 
 Meanwhile ;nost important events 
 had occurred in \'irginia. On the 20th 
 of ]\larch a convention of representa- 
 tives of that province met in St. John's 
 Church in Richmond. They approved 
 the acts of the Continental Congress, 
 and thanked their representatives who 
 sat in that body. They resolved to be 
 firm in defence of their liberties, but 
 ex])ressed a hope of speedy reconcilia- 
 tion. Patrick Henry promptly rebuked 
 their expression of that hope. He, like 
 Samuel Adams, Hawley, and Greene, 
 saw clearly that the colonies must fight. 
 He knew the danger that threatened 
 the liberties of his people. The House 
 of Burgesses could no longer be relied 
 
 upon as an au.xiliary of the people in 
 their struggle, because of the contiiuial 
 interference of the royal governor. 
 The colony was unprepared for the im- 
 pending conflict. Only a little pow- 
 der and a few muskets in the old mag- 
 azine at Williamsburg comprised their 
 luunitions of war. In view of this 
 weakness in the presence of danger 
 which he foresaw, Henry proposed the 
 appointment of a committee to prej^arc 
 a plan for the embodying, arming, and 
 disciplining a sufficient number of men 
 to place the colony in a posture of de- 
 fence. True patriots in the conven- 
 tion opposed the measure as mischie- 
 vous at that time. They would not be- 
 lieve that armed resistance would be 
 necessary. "It will be time enough to 
 resort to measures of despair," they 
 said, "when every well-founded hope 
 has vanished." They suggested that 
 the colonies were too weak to think 
 of resisting the arms of Britain, and 
 deprecated any action that should pro- 
 voke war. They relied upon the in- 
 nate justice of Englishmen for redress 
 and reconciliation. 
 
 Henry's resolution was adopted by 
 an almost unanimous vote, and himself, 
 Richard Henry Lee, George Washing- 
 ton, Thomas Jefiferson and others were 
 appointed a committee to execute their 
 designs. In a few days they submitted 
 a plan for the defence of the colony, 
 which was accepted, when the conven- 
 tion reappointed the delegates to the 
 first Congress to seats in the second, 
 to convene in May, adding Thomas 
 Jefiferson "in case of the non-attend- 
 ance of Peyton Randolph." Henry's 
 prophecy was speedily fulfilled. .Al- 
 most "the next gale" that swept from 
 the North brought to their "ears the 
 clash of resounding arms" at Lexing- 
 ton and Concord. 
 
 There bold proceedings caused the 
 Jiame of Henry to be presented to the 
 British government in a bill of attain- 
 der, with those of Randolph, Jefiferson, 
 the two Adams's and Hancock. They 
 excited the official wrath of Governor 
 Dnnmore. wlio stormed in proclama- 
 tions; and to frighten the \'irginians he 
 caused a rumor to be circulated that he 
 intended to excite an insurrection 
 
iS8 
 
 THE HOME AUXILIARY AND REFERENCE 
 
 of the slaves. He extinguished the last 
 spark of respect for himself, when, late 
 in April he caused marines to come 
 secretly at night from a vessel-of-war 
 in the York River and carry to her the 
 powder in the magazine at Williams- 
 burg. The movement was discovered. 
 Patrick Henry was at his house in 
 Hanover when he heard of the act. He 
 assembled a corps of volunteers and 
 marched toward the capital, when the 
 frightened governor sent a deputation 
 with the receiver-general to meet him. 
 Sixteen miles from Williamsburg, they 
 had a conference with the patriot. The 
 matter was compromised by the pay- 
 ment by the receiver-general of the full 
 value of the powder. Henry sent the 
 money to the public treasury, and re- 
 turned home. 
 
 In the midst of this excitement, the 
 governor called the House of Burges- 
 ses together, to consider a conciliatory 
 proposition from Lord North. They 
 rejected it ; and the governor now ful- 
 minated proclamations against Henry 
 and the committees of X'igilance, which 
 were formed in every county in \'ir- 
 ginia. He declared that if one of his 
 officers should be molested, he would 
 raise the royal standard, proclaim free- 
 dom to the slaves, and arm them 
 against their masters. He surrounded 
 his house — his "palace" as he called it 
 — with cannon, and secretly placed 
 powder under the floor of the maga- 
 zine, with the evident intention of 
 blowing it up, should occasion seem to 
 call for the deed. The discovery of 
 this "gunpowder plot" greatly excited 
 the people. Then came a rumor, on 
 the 7th of June (1775), that armed 
 marines were on their way from the 
 York River to assist Dunmore to en- 
 force the laws. The people flew to 
 arms. The governor, alarmed for his 
 personal safety, withdrew, with his 
 family that night to Yorktown and the 
 next morning took refuge on board the 
 British man-of-war Foivey. He was 
 the first royal governor who abdicated 
 government at the beginning of the 
 Revolution. 
 
 Other royal governors were also 
 compelled to abdicate; and, before the 
 
 close of the summer of 1775, British 
 dominion in the English-American 
 provinces had ceased forever, and the 
 people were preparing for war. 
 
 News of the events of the 19th of 
 A.pril reached the city of New York 
 on Sunday the 23d. Regarding pa- 
 triotism as a holy thing, the Sons of 
 Liberty there did not refrain from do- 
 ing its work on the Sabbath. They im- 
 mediately proceeded to lay an embargo 
 on vessels bound to Boston with sup- 
 plies for the British troops there. In 
 defiance of the King's collector at that 
 port, they landed the cargo of a vessel 
 which he had refused to admit, de- 
 manded and received the keys of the 
 Custom-house, dismissed those em- 
 ployed in it, and closed it. 
 
 In May, a convention of the repre- 
 sentatives of the towns in Mecklen- 
 burg county. North Carolina, met at 
 Charlotte, and by their proceedings, 
 virtually declared the inhabitants of 
 that county independent of the British 
 crown. Taking into consideration the 
 fact that the crown had proclaimed the 
 people of the colonies to be rebels, the 
 Convention declared that all govern- 
 ment in their country had ceased, and 
 proceeded by a series of resolutions, 
 passed on the 31st of May, to organize 
 independent local government for 
 themselves. This famous "Mecklen- 
 burg Declaration of Independence" 
 has been the subject of much discus- 
 sion, disputations, and acute historical 
 inquiry. 
 
 In the meantime, an army of patriots 
 were gathering around Boston with a 
 determination to confine the British 
 troops to the peninsula, or drive them 
 to their ships and out to sea. 
 
 \'eterans of wars with the Indians 
 and the French appeared as leaders : 
 and before the close of April a fluctu- 
 ating armv of several thousand men 
 were forming camps and piling forti- 
 fications around Boston, from Rox- 
 bury to the Mystic River, along a line 
 of about twenty miles. So early as 
 the afternoon of the 20th, General Ar- 
 temas Ward, the senior military officer 
 appointed by the Provincial Congress 
 
FIFTH PERIOD— THE WAR FOR INDEPENDENCE 
 
 of Massachusetts, was on the groun<.l, 
 and assumed the chief command. That 
 Congress, like the Committee of 
 Safety, worked day and night in pa- 
 triotic duty. 
 
 They took legislative and executive 
 power into their own hands, and so 
 abolished royal government in Massa- 
 chusetts ; and they forwarded deputa- 
 tions to the Second Continental Con- 
 gress that assembled early in Alay, sug- 
 gesting the necessity for making pro- 
 vision for organizing an army compe- 
 tent to oppose the troops expected 
 from Great Britain. Ticonderoga and 
 Crown Point, on Lake Champlam, 
 were captured May loth, by Ethan Al- 
 len and Seth Warner, almost without 
 striking a blow. The Continental Con- 
 gress met in Philadelphia in May. 
 John Hancock was elected President. 
 Without discussing independence or 
 any other issue, Congress made the 
 cause of Massachusetts its own, elected 
 George Washington of Virginia, Com- 
 mander-in-chief, who set out for 
 Boston. 
 
 At the beginning of June (1775) 
 the army at Cambridge numbered 
 about sixteen thousand men, all New 
 Englanders. General Ward was the 
 chief, and John Thomas was his lieu- 
 tenant. Richard Gridley, who was the 
 engineer-in-chief at the reduction of 
 Louisburg, thirty years before, was 
 commissioned to command an artillery 
 corps and to be chief engineer, and was 
 assisted by Henry Knox, a Boston 
 bookseller, who had commanded an ar- 
 tillery company in that town. The 
 British force in Boston was increasing 
 by fresh arrivals. It numbered then 
 about ten thousand men. Generals 
 Howe, Clinton and Burgoyne had ar- 
 rived late in May, and heartily joined 
 Gage in forming and executing plans 
 for dispersing the "rebels." Feeling 
 strong with these veteran officers and 
 soldiers around him, and the presence 
 of several ships-of-war under Admiral 
 Graves, the governor issued a most in- 
 sulting proclamation, declaring martial 
 law, branding those citizens in arms, 
 and their ahbettors, as "rebels" and 
 "parricides of the Constitution," and 
 
 otTering pardon to all who should forth- 
 with return to their allegiance, except- 
 ing Samuel Adams and John Hancock, 
 who were reserved for condign punish- 
 ment as traitors. This proclamation 
 produced intense indignation through- 
 cut the province. "All the records of 
 time," wrote Mrs. John Adams to her 
 husband, "cannot produce a blacker 
 page. Satan, when driven from the 
 regions of bliss, exhibited not more 
 malice. Surely the father of lies is 
 superseded. Yet we think it the best 
 proclamation he could have issued." 
 
 At about the middle of June, the 
 British officers in Boston waked to the 
 consciousness that "rebel" batteries at 
 Dorchester Heights on the south, or on 
 Charlestown Heights — Bunker's or 
 Breed's Hills — on the north, might 
 make the situation of the troops in the 
 town not only disagreeable but perilous. 
 They resolved to sally out and fortify 
 these heights themselves, Dorchester 
 on the i8th of June and Bunker's Hill 
 a few days later. Rumors of this in- 
 tention reached the Committee of 
 Safety, to whom the Provincial Con- 
 gress had delegated all discretionary 
 powers to regidate the movements of 
 troops, and they proposed the im- 
 mediate fortification of Bunker's Hill 
 before their enemy should come out. 
 
 On the iTith of June, an order was 
 issued for the regiments of Colonels 
 Frye, Bridges and Prescott, Samuel 
 Gridley's company of artillery, and a 
 fatigue party of Connecticut troops, 
 under Captain Thomas Knowlton, of 
 Putnam's regiment, to parade in the 
 camp at Cambridge at six o'clock in the 
 evening, with intrenching tools. The 
 whole were placed under the command 
 of Colonel William Prescott of Pep- 
 perell, who received written orders from 
 General Ward to proceed to and fortif>- 
 Bunker's Hill on the Charlestown pen- 
 insula. At nine o'clock in the evening, 
 after a prayer by Dr. Langdon, Presi- 
 dent of Harvard College, a larger por- 
 tion of these regiments, accompanied 
 by General Putnam, marched over 
 Charlestown Neck and along the road 
 to Bunker's Hill. The whole force 
 numbered about thirteen hundred men. 
 
r6o 
 
 THE HOME AUXILIARY AND REFERENCE 
 
 They proceeded silently in the darkness. 
 A conncil was held in the glonni, when 
 it was decided that Breed's Hill, nearer 
 Boston, would be the most etTective 
 point for a fortification. They accord- 
 ingly proceeded to that eminence over- 
 looking Charlestown on the edge of the 
 water, and there, in the starlight, a 
 thousand men began the work with pick 
 and spade. The waning moon rose at 
 midnight, and in its pale light they 
 worked in such silence until dawn, that 
 they were not discovered by the senti- 
 nels on the ships-of-war that lay in 
 sight below them, and whose voices, 
 crying out hourly "All's well !" they 
 could distinctly hear. There lay the 
 Lively, Glasgozv, Somerset and Ccrebus, 
 with floating batteries, in fancied se- 
 curity, while the toilers piled the earth 
 so vigorously that a redoubt rose six 
 feet above the earth at daybreak on Sat- 
 urday, the i-th of June. Then they 
 were discovered by the sentinel on the 
 Lively. The captain beheld the 
 strange apparition with wonder and 
 alarm, and without waiting for orders 
 from the admiral, he put springs on his 
 cable and opened a sharp fire on the 
 unfinished work. Other vessels opened 
 broadsides upon that seeming creation 
 of magic, while the Americans within 
 the redoubt, unhurt by the shots, 
 worked steadily on. 
 
 That cannonade at dawn on a beau- 
 tiful summer morning, broke the slum- 
 ber of the troops and citizens in Boston, 
 and filled both with astonishment. Very 
 soon roofs, balconies and steeples were 
 alive with gazers upon the strange 
 scene. Gage summoned his principal 
 officers to a council, when it was de- 
 cided that the .\mericans must be dis- 
 lodged, at all hazards. The newly-ar- 
 rived generals proposed to land troops 
 on Charlestown Neck, and taking the 
 "rebels" in reverse, cut off their retreat 
 and prevent their reinforcement. Gage 
 decided to attack them in front ; and 
 about twenty-five hundred troops, com- 
 posed of infantry, grenadiers and artil- 
 lery, with twelve pieces of cannon, 
 crossed the Charles River in boats, at a 
 little past noon, under cover of a tre- 
 mendous cannonade from the shipping 
 
 and Copp's flill, antl landed toward the 
 eastern extremity of the Charlestown 
 l)cniasula, at the head of the present 
 Chelsea Bridge. There Howe recon- 
 noitred the American position, ordered 
 his men to dine, and sent back to Bos- 
 ton for reinforcements. The men at the 
 redoubt had toiled all the forenoon, 
 completed their work, and at meridian 
 exchanged the pick and spade for the 
 accoutrements of war. Almost twelve 
 hours had they labored, with little rest 
 and food. They had cast up a re- 
 doubt about eight rods square, and an 
 embankment on its left extending about 
 a hundred yards toward the Mystic 
 River ; also a similar line on the right. 
 The troops, wearied with work and 
 want of food and sleep, asked for re- 
 lief, but their leader said "No; you 
 have cast up the redoubt, and you 
 shall have the honor of defending it." 
 They asked for reinforcements, which 
 he at first declined calling for, sup- 
 posing the British would not attack 
 him. At length there were indica- 
 tions in the city that they were com- 
 ing out, and Prescott sent to General 
 Ward for reinforcements. That officer 
 tardily complied with the request, and 
 sent the New Hampshire regiments of 
 Stark and Reed; also some small field 
 pieces. Some other detachments joined 
 Prescott, and Dr. Joseph Warren, who 
 had just received a commission as 
 major-general, arrived with the cheer- 
 ing news that other reinforcements 
 were coming. Putnam was there, fly- 
 ing from point to point to make dis- 
 positions for securing a victory, and 
 urging Ward, who was afraid of an 
 attack upon Cambridge, to send on re- 
 inforcements. 
 
 When Howe was about to move at 
 three o'clock in the afternoon, the 
 Americans were prepared for the con- 
 test. Prescott, with Warren, and the 
 constructors of the redoubt, were with- 
 in that V. ork, excepting the Connecti- 
 cut troops, who, with the New Hamp- 
 shire forces, were at a rail fence and 
 breastworks on the west of the re- 
 doubt. The artillery companies were 
 between the breastwork and a rail 
 fence on the eastern side, and three 
 
FIFTH PERIOD— THK WAR FOR INDEPENDENCE 
 
 i6i 
 
 companies were stationed in Charles- 
 town at the foot of Breed's Hill. 
 
 Just as the fight was about to be- 
 gin, reinforcements came for Howe and 
 landed at the present entrance to the 
 Xavy Yard. They consisted of a regi- 
 ment, some companies of light infan- 
 try and grenadiers, and a marine bat- 
 talion led by Major I'itcairn, of Lex- 
 ington fame. The entire British force 
 now confronting the Americans on the 
 peninsula numbered more than three 
 thousand. 
 
 At half-past three o'clock. Howe's 
 great guns moved toward the redoubt, 
 and opened fire upon the works. They 
 were followed by the troops in two col- 
 umns, commanded respectively by Gen- 
 erals Howe and Pigot, the infantry and 
 grenadiers assailing the outworks. At 
 tlie same time the guns on the ships and 
 the battery on Copp's Hill hurled ran- 
 dom shot in abundance upon the little 
 earthwork. In the midst of the roar- 
 ing thunder, the .Americans were silent 
 in the redoubt, and mostly so along the 
 lines of intrenchments and fences, for 
 their leader had ordered them not to 
 fire until they could see the whites of 
 the eyes of the approaching foe. The 
 silence was a riddle to the English. 
 It was soon solved. When they were 
 within the prescribed distance, up rose 
 the concealed host, fifteen hundred 
 strong, at the word Fire! and poured 
 such a tremendous and destructive 
 storm of bullets upon the climbers of 
 the green slope, that whole platoons 
 and even companies were prostrated as 
 a scythe would have mown down the 
 long grass through which they were 
 wading. Flags fell to the ground like 
 the tall lilies in a mown meadow, and 
 the shattered army was horror-struck 
 for a moment. The bugles sounded, 
 and they fell back to the shore, when 
 a shout of triumph went up from the 
 crest of Breed's Hill. Howe soon ral- 
 lied his men, and repeated the attack 
 with a similar result. 
 
 The British were greatly annoyed by 
 shots from houses in Charlestown, and, 
 at the rec|uest of Howe, shells were 
 thrown into it from Copp s ?Iill, and 
 set the village cjn fire. \'ery soon al- 
 
 most two hundred wooden buildings — 
 dwellings and churches — were in 
 ilames, and Breed's Hill was shrouded 
 in black smoke for awhile, until a gen- 
 tle breeze that suddenly sprang up blew 
 it away. At the same time General 
 Clinton, who, from Copp's Hill, had 
 seen the second recoil of the British 
 troops, hastened across the river, and 
 at the head of some broken battalions 
 shared in the perils and success of a 
 third attack, for Howe had again ral- 
 lied his troops, and was pressing toward 
 the Americans. The British had been 
 ordered to march at quick step and 
 use only their bayonets. These and the 
 artillery soon drove the defenders of the 
 breastworks into the redoubt. Again 
 from that flaming centre went out 
 dreadful volleys that shattered the 
 head of the British column. The pow- 
 der of the Americans was now almost 
 exhausted. Their fire became more 
 feeble. The British pushed up to and 
 over the ramparts; and after a hand- 
 to-hand struggle in the redoubt with 
 bayonets and clubbed muskets, the 
 Americans were driven out. They fled 
 toward Charlestown Xeck, where rein- 
 forcements had been arrested by a se- 
 vere enfilading fire from the British 
 vessels. The retreat of the main body 
 was covered by the prolonged fighting 
 of Stark, Reed and Knowlton at the 
 outworks, with some reinforcements. 
 Warren was the last to leave the re- 
 doubt, and was hurrying toward Bun- 
 ker's Hill, where Putnam was trying 
 to rally the fugitives, and was shot 
 dead by a bullet that pierced his brain. 
 The British loss in this battle — killed, 
 wounded and prisoners — was ten hun- 
 dred and fifty-four. Among the offi- 
 cers slain was Major Pitcairn. His 
 pistols are now in the possession of 
 descendants of General Putnam. The 
 Americans lost in killed, wounded and 
 missing, four hundred and fifty. 
 
 This conflict, known as the Battle of 
 Bunker's Hill, though fought on 
 Breed's Hill, lasted almost two hours. 
 It was gazed upon by anxious thou- 
 sands, who were on the neighboring 
 hills and roofs and steeples in Boston, 
 deeply interested s])ectators of a terri- 
 
l62 
 
 THE HOME AUXILIARY AND REFERENCE 
 
 ble scene in wliich dear kindred were 
 engaged. \\'Iicn the redoubt was car- 
 ried, and tlie Americans retreated, the 
 whole body of troops on the peninsula 
 were compelled to run the gauntlet of 
 cannon-balls from the British vessels, 
 as they fled across Charlestown Xeck. 
 Many were slain there. The survivors 
 encamped that night on I'rospect Hill, 
 and the British reposed on their arms 
 on the field of battle until the next 
 morning, when they passed over the 
 water to Boston, never again to appear 
 on the main land of Massachusetts. 
 
 On the twenty-first of the month, 
 Washington left Philadelphia to take 
 command of the army that was watch- 
 ing Gage. He was escorted as far as 
 New York by Lee, Schuyler and others, 
 all on horseback. They had scarcely 
 gone twenty miles when they met a 
 courier on his way to Congress with 
 the news of the battle fought four days 
 before. The courier's hurried account 
 made Washington sad, but, upon being 
 told that the patriots fought bravely, a 
 weight of anxiety was lifted from his 
 heart, and he exclaimed : "The liber- 
 ties of the country are safe!" 
 
 The army now reached some 20,000 
 men, but was a disorganized mass of 
 volunteers, who came and went at will. 
 Washington undertook the difficult 
 task of putting them into shape, and 
 there was no more fighting for some 
 time. Congress was still disposed to 
 think the King would see the error of 
 his ways and relent. Accordingly, a 
 petition to him was drawn u]) and 
 adopted, against the advice of John 
 Adams and many of the New England 
 delegates, who declared that the King 
 would never yield. .At the same time 
 Congress adopted a declaration of the 
 reasons for taking up arms, which was 
 the forerunner of the Declaration of In- 
 dependence. Both these documents 
 were from the pen of John Dickinson, 
 the most influential man in Congress, 
 who at the same time was drilling a 
 regiment for war. The petition to the 
 King was useless, as .\dams had fore- 
 seen, but before declaring irrevocably 
 for Independence, an attack was 
 ordered on Canada. Benedict Arnold 
 
 was sent, with the greatest difficulty, 
 through the .Maine wilderness to at- 
 tack Quebec, while Richard Mont- 
 gomery marched on Montreal by way 
 of Lake Champlain, captured it and 
 joined Arnold in December. The com- 
 bined army was small and poorly 
 equipped, and Quebec was the strong- 
 est fortress in America. .Vn assault 
 was made on the last day of the year 
 1775. Montgomery was killed, Arnold 
 wounded, and the expedition failed 
 completely, only a remnant reaching 
 home. 
 
 Washington began his campaign in 
 the spring. He seized Dorchester 
 Heights, and fortified them so that 
 Boston lay at his mercy. By agree- 
 ment, Howe evacuated Boston, March 
 17th, 1776, and sailed away for Hali- 
 fax. Except for a few raids, this 
 was all of the fighting that took place 
 in New England. Washington then 
 marched his army to Brooklyn, Long 
 Island, as he expected an attack would 
 be made in that section. 
 
 The King's answer to the colonists 
 was war. He tried to raise an army 
 in England, but found it easier to hire 
 some German troops. Strange as it 
 m.ay seem, this was no uncommon oc- 
 currence. The mercenaries were 
 treated as so many cattle. The petty 
 Princes of Germany did a fine busi- 
 ness in hiring out troops, but they were 
 not very bloodthirsty and usually had 
 a pleasant time of it. It was a novel 
 idea, however, to send them over for 
 such a purpose, and the Hessians — so- 
 called because most of them came from 
 Hesse-Cassel — did not enjoy the plan at 
 all. The King declared the colonists 
 rebels, raised all the troops convenient, 
 in addition to the 17.000 hired Hessians, 
 and expected to put down the rebellion 
 easily. When the colonists learned this 
 their last hope of compromise was 
 gone. About this time Thomas Paine 
 published a tract called "Common 
 .Sense," which had great effect in mold- 
 ing public opinion in the direction of 
 independence. 
 
 The Provincial Congress of New Jer- 
 sey, disregarding the authority of the 
 roval governor fa son of Dr. Franklin), 
 
FIFTH PERIOD— THE WAR FOR INDEPENDENCE 
 
 163 
 
 assumed all the functions of regular 
 government with the sanction of the 
 people. They proceeded to regulate the 
 militia. They authorized the raising of 
 two battalions for the Continental ser- 
 vice, to be commanded respectively by 
 William Maxwell and William Alex- 
 ander {Lord Stirling), and the issuing 
 of bills of credit to defray the public 
 expenses. In Pennsylvania, through the 
 influence of timid or wavering leaders, 
 there was much hesitation during 1775, 
 while Delaware, under the same execu- 
 tive head, took a decided stand in favor 
 of the republican cause. Maryland, lay- 
 ing aside local disputes, did likewise. 
 A Provincial Council for Safety super- 
 seded the royal government and took 
 vigorous measures for sustaining the 
 war that was begun. Comparative 
 tranquillity prevailed during 1775 in 
 New Jersey, Pennsylvania, Delaware 
 and Maryland, while in New York, \'ir- 
 ginia and all New England, the people 
 were excited by political discord or act- 
 ual hostilities within their borders. 
 
 After Governor Dunmore, of Vir- 
 ginia, fled to the Fozccy, the people of 
 that colony assembled at Richmond in 
 a representative convention, and exer- 
 cised the functions of government by 
 providing for the common defence and 
 for the security of the province from 
 invasion from without, and a servile 
 insurrection within, which the fugitive 
 governor threatened to excite. They 
 regulated the militia, provided for the 
 raising of troops, and for issuing treas- 
 ury notes. They also authorized the 
 raising of independent companies for 
 the defence of the frontiers. 
 
 Early in the autumn Dunmore pro- 
 ceeded to execute his threat concern- 
 ing the slaves. Me unfurled the royal 
 standard over the Finucy at Norfolk, 
 and proclaimed freedom to all slaves 
 who should rally under it. He also pro- 
 claimed martial-law over all Virginia. 
 He sent a party ashore to destroy the 
 printing office of John Holt, an ardent 
 Whig journalist ; and at the head of a 
 motley band of Tories and negroes, he 
 committed depredations in southeastern 
 Virginia. With the aid of some P>rit- 
 ish vessels he attacked Hampton, near 
 
 Old Point Comfort, late in October, 
 when he was repulsed by the militia. 
 Exasperated by his defeat, he openly 
 declared war against the people. The 
 militia of Lower Virginia flew to arms; 
 and under Colonel Woodford, who had 
 been sent there with a body of Minute- 
 men, they prepared to drive 'the traitor 
 governor from their soil. He became 
 alarmed, and after fortifying Norfolk, 
 he caused some works to be thrown 
 up at the Great Bridge over the Eliza- 
 beth River, near the Dismal Swamp, by 
 which he expected the approach of 
 Woodford. There a short but severe 
 battle was fought on the morning of the 
 ninth of December, 1775. between the 
 Mrginia militia and a band of Tories 
 and negroes under Captains Leslie and 
 Fordyce. The latter were routed and 
 fled back to Norfolk in confusion, where 
 Dunmore, covered as he was, had re- 
 mained in safety. In bis rage, he 
 threatened to hang the boy who had 
 brought him the first news of the dis- 
 aster. 
 
 Woodford pushed on toward Nor- 
 folk, drove Dunmore to the small ves- 
 pels-of-war. and entered the city in 
 triumph, where he was joined by Col- 
 onel (afterward General) Robert 
 Howe, with a North Carolina regiment, 
 who took chief command. That spirited 
 officer annoyed Dunmore exceedingly 
 by desultory cannon-shots, attacks upon 
 British foraging parties, and the dis- 
 cliarge of musketry from the houses in 
 Norfolk. At length the British frigate 
 Liverpool came up the river from 
 Hampton Roads, when the governor 
 sent a message to Howe demanding the 
 instant cessation of the firing, and also 
 a supply of food, and threatening to 
 cannonade the town in case of a re- 
 fusal. .\ prompt refusal was sent back, 
 when the governor executed his threat, 
 and more. On the morning of the first 
 of January, 1776, his vessels-of-war 
 opened a cannonade upon Norfolk, and 
 he sent a party of marines and sailors 
 to set the city on fire. The conflagra- 
 tion raged for fifty hours, during which 
 time the cannonade was ke])t up. The 
 distress occasioned by this wicked act 
 at that inclement season was terrible; 
 
164 
 
 THE HOML-: ATXILIARY AXl) REFEREXXE 
 
 anil the remembrance of il nerved the 
 arms of the X'irginia soldiers and the 
 hearts of the \irginia people all 
 through the struggle for independence. 
 
 In North Carolina resistance to op- 
 pression began early, as we have seen. 
 The Mecklenberg Declaration of Inde- 
 pendence in May. 1775, was but a cul- 
 mination in action of the patriotic sen- 
 timents of the province. Governor 
 Martin, who succeeded Tryon, alarmed 
 by the threatening aspect of the popu- 
 lar will, first fortified his "palace" at 
 New Berne, and then took refuge in 
 Fort Johnson, near the mouth of the 
 Cape Fear River. From that strong- 
 hold he was driven by the patriots in 
 amis in July to the Pallas, sloop-of- 
 war, in the Cape Fear. The fort was 
 destroyed, and the governor culminated 
 menacing proclamations from his float- 
 ing quarters. His political frientls 
 were numerous ; but under the wise 
 leadership of Cornelius Harnett. John 
 Ashe and a few others, the Whigs were 
 so well organized that they silenced the 
 Tories and kept the most obnoxious 
 ones prisoners on their own plantations. 
 The Continental Congress voted to fin-- 
 nish supplies for a thousand men in that 
 province to counteract the influence of 
 Governor Martin and his friends; and 
 a popular convention that assembled at 
 Flillsborough in August, and assumed 
 the control of the colony, authorized 
 the raising of two regiments, with Rob- 
 ert Howe and James Moore to com- 
 mand them. The governor, from the 
 Pallas, sent a proclamation in which he 
 denounced the Convention as treason- 
 able, and the Convention denounced his 
 manifesto as "a scandalous, malicious 
 and scurrilous libel, tending to disunite 
 the good people of the province," and 
 ordered it to be burned by the common 
 hangman. 
 
 Many Scotch Highlanders who were 
 involved in the rebellion in 1745 in 
 favor of the "Young Pretender" had 
 settled in North Carolina, and were 
 firm Loyalists. Among them was Flora 
 MacDonald, who. in her beautiful 
 young maidenhood, had saved the life 
 of the "Pretender" after the battle of 
 Colloden. She had settled at Cross 
 
 Creek (now Fayettevillc). with her 
 husband and children, and had great 
 influence among her countrymen. 
 They were all true to King George ; and 
 when, late in 1775, Governor Martin 
 was acting in concert with Dunmore in 
 sotithwestern Mrginia. and was expect- 
 ing a British force on the coast of 
 North Carolina, he resolved to strike 
 an eftecttial blow against the republi- 
 cans of the province. He commis- 
 sioned Donald MacDonald, an influ- 
 ential Scotchman at Cross Creek, a 
 brigadier-general, and Flora's husband 
 took a captaincy under him. He was 
 authorized to embody the Highlanders 
 and other Loyalists into a military 
 corps, and raise the royal standard at 
 Cross Creek. It was formally un- 
 furled, at a large gathering of the clan, 
 by Flora herself, who was then a hand- 
 some matron between forty and fifty 
 years of age. \'ery soon fifteen hun- 
 dred armed Tories g-athered around it, 
 while Colonel Howe was absent with 
 his regiment, assisting the Virginians 
 against Dunmore. 
 
 When Colonel IMoore heard of this 
 gathering of the Tories he marched 
 with his regulars and some Hanover 
 militia — eleven hundred strong — to dis- 
 perse them. At the same time the 
 Minute-men were gathering in large 
 numbers. MacDonald was alarmed and 
 fled toward the Cape Fear, hotly pur- 
 sued by Moore. At a bridge over 
 Moore's Creek (an aflluent of the 
 South River, a principal tributary of 
 the Cape Fear), he was met by armed 
 patriots of the Neuse region, vuider 
 Colonels Caswell and Lillington on the 
 evening of the 26th of February. 1776. 
 The following morning a sharp fight 
 occurred there, in which the Loyalists 
 were defeated and dispersed : many of 
 them were killed, and more were made 
 prisoners. Among the latter were the 
 general, and the husband of Flora Mac- 
 Donald. This victory greatly inspired 
 the Whigs and discouraged the Tories ; 
 and soon afterward the ^MacDonalds 
 returned to Scotland in a sloop-of-war, 
 encountering a French cruiser on the 
 way. During an engagement between 
 the two vessels, the brave Mora re- 
 
I'TI' 
 
 II iM':kioi)— •nil': war for indkpI':'ni)|';xci': 
 
 I ''is 
 
 inaincd nti deck, and was wounded in 
 llic hand. 
 
 In South Carolina armed resistance 
 was active in 1775. The Provincial 
 Congress, over whom Henry Laurens 
 presided, issued $600,000 in paper 
 money and voted to raise two regi- 
 ments, of which Christopher Gadsden 
 and William Moultrie were chosen cf)l- 
 onels. Lieutenant-Governor Bull tried 
 in vain to suppress the republican 
 s]iirit: and when, in July, Lord Wil- 
 liam Campbell arrived at Charleston 
 with the commission of governor, and 
 called an assembly, that body declined 
 to do any business under him. Execu- 
 ti\e powers were intrusted to a Coun- 
 cil of Safety, who proceeded to organ- 
 ize civil government on a republican 
 basis, and to put the province in a state 
 of defence. The Tories in the back 
 country, who were ver)' numerous, 
 were disarmed by a force under Wil- 
 liam Henry Drayton, a nephew of the 
 lieutenant-governor. An armed vessel 
 was sent to seize an English powder- 
 ship lying in the harbor of St. Augus- 
 tine, and returned to Charleston with 
 fifteen hundred pounds of that much- 
 needed article. Early in September, 
 Colonel Moultrie was ordered to take 
 possession of the little fort on Sulli- 
 van's Lsland near the entrance to 
 Charleston harbor. In so doing he 
 found no resistance ; for the garrison, 
 e.xjjecting the hostile visit, had fled to 
 the British sloops-of-war Tainar and 
 Cherokee, lying near, where they were 
 soon joined by Governor Campbell, who 
 took refuge there from a storm of pop- 
 ular indignation which had been created 
 by a knowledge that he had tried to in- 
 cite the Indians on the frontier to at- 
 tack the Carolinians, and had tampered 
 with the Tories in the interior. So 
 ended royal rule in South Carolina, and 
 republicanism reigned supreme. 
 
 Early in 1776, Moultrie was ordered 
 to build a fort on Sullivan's Island large 
 enough to accommodate a garrison of 
 a thousand men, because information 
 had been received by the Council of 
 Safety that a British land and naval 
 force was preparing to attack Charles- 
 ton. The fort was built of palmetto 
 
 logs and earth, and was named I'ort 
 Sullivan. Over it was unfurled the 
 flag of South Carolina, which Moultrie 
 had designed. As there was then no 
 national flag, and the provincial troops 
 who garrisoned the fort were dressed 
 in blue, and wore a silver crescent on 
 the front of their caps, he had a large 
 blue silk flag prepared with a white 
 crescent in the dexter corner. This 
 was the first American flag displayed 
 in South Carolina. 
 
 Georgia, tardy in joining the Con- 
 tinental mo\ement, felt the flame of pa- 
 triotism warming the hearts and minds 
 of her sons early in 1773. In I'ebru- 
 ary, the inhabitants of the parish of 
 St. Johns, in that province, chose Ly- 
 man Hall to represent them in the sec- 
 ond Congress, and he took his seat as 
 such at the middle of May. In July 
 the Provincial Convention that had 
 been formed adopted the American As- 
 sociation, and chose delegates to repre- 
 sent the whole province in the Con- 
 gress ; and then the bright galaxy of the 
 "Old Thirteen" was perfected. The 
 royal governor, Sir James Wright, had 
 tried in vain to suppress the rising tide 
 of republicanism in Georgia. So early 
 as May, 1775, when it was suspected 
 that he was about to imitate General 
 Gage, by seizing the ammunition of the 
 province, several members of the Coun- 
 cil of Safety and others broke open the 
 magazine, sent a greater portion of the 
 powder to Beaufort, South Carolina, 
 and hid the remainder in their own 
 garrets. When the governor and the 
 Tories were preparing to celebrate the 
 king's birthday, on the 4th of June, by 
 firing the cannon on the battery in Sa- 
 vannah, some of the leading Whigs 
 spiked the guns there and hurled them 
 to the bottom of the blufif. Not long 
 afterward a letter written by the gov- 
 ernor to General Gage, asking him to 
 send troops to Georgia to suppre/.s the 
 rising rebellion there, was intercepted 
 at Charleston. The republicans were 
 greatly exasperated ; and a day or two 
 afterward they seized a British shi]) at 
 the mouth of the Savannah River, with 
 thirteen thousand pounds of gunpowder 
 on board. The spirit of resistance 
 
i66 
 
 THK HOME AUXILIARY A\D REFERF.NXE 
 
 waxed stronger and stronger, until, in 
 Januar)'. 1776, the Whigs resolved to 
 endure the adverse influence of the gov- 
 ernor and the Tories no longer. Joseph 
 Habersham, a member of the popular 
 legislature, with some armed volun- 
 teers, seized Governor Wright and 
 made him a prisoner on parole at his 
 own house. A sentinel was placed be- 
 fore it, with orders not to allow any 
 intercourse between the governor and 
 the Loyalists. During a stormy night 
 in February, Sir James escaped through 
 a back window of his house, walked 
 five miles down the borders of the 
 river with a friend, and then entering 
 an open boat, fled in the pelting rain, 
 under the cover of darkness, for shelter 
 to the British vessel-of-war Scarbor- 
 ough, lying in Tybee Sound. 
 
 So was ended royal rule in Georgia. 
 At the same time royal authority had 
 really ceased in all the colonies. Each 
 had formed a provisional government 
 for itself, and each looked to the Con- 
 tinental Congress as the central director 
 of the civil and military movements of 
 the United Colonies in the great strug- 
 gle before them. 
 
 We left the little army of republicans 
 in Canada, bereaved of their brave 
 leader, shattered in strength and shiv- 
 ering with cold outside the walls of 
 Quebec. The time of the enlistment 
 of many of the soldiers expired with 
 the year, and they went home ; and 
 the besieging army was reduced to 
 about four hundred Americans, and 
 as many uncertain Canadian volun- 
 teers. Arnold, on whom the command 
 devolved, though disabled by his 
 wound, retired with them to Sillery, 
 above Quebec, where he formed a camp 
 and passed a rigorous winter. Schuy- 
 ler sent urgent appeals to the Conti- 
 nental Congress and that of New York 
 for jnen, money and munitions, flow 
 could they be furnished? With diffi- 
 culty the army of Washington on the 
 seacoast, in the midst of a populous 
 region, could be supplied with these : 
 how then could they be furnished for 
 service on the St. Lawrence, more than 
 three hundred miles from the .sea, with 
 a desolate wilderness between, and the 
 
 broad forests and few open fields and 
 lakes covered with snow and ice? It 
 was impossible. 
 
 Washington, who was then at New, 
 York with a little more than eight 
 thousand troops, sent three thousand of 
 his best men, under General Sullivan, 
 for service in Canada. 
 
 Meanwhile, Congress had appointed 
 Dr. Franklin, Samuel Chase and 
 Charles . Carroll a board of comiuis- 
 sioners invested with full authority to 
 proceed to Canada. They perceived 
 that the main objects of their mission 
 could not be obtained, and it was de- 
 termined to withdraw the troops to St. 
 Johns, and there to fortify and rein- 
 force them, so that they might be an 
 impassable barrier to an army that 
 might attempt to penetrate the country 
 below. 
 
 The force was too v\'eak to make a 
 successful stand at St. Johns against 
 the great army of Burgoyne that were 
 slowly pursuing, and they continued 
 their flight to Crown Point, in open 
 boats without awnings (for they could 
 get none), exposing the sick to the fiery 
 sun and the drenching rain. 
 
 Terrible were the scenes at Crown 
 Point after the fragments of the army 
 were gathered there. More than thirty 
 victims of disease were buried daily, 
 for awhile. Every spot and every- 
 thing seemed to be infected with pesti- 
 lence. For a short time the troops were 
 poorly housed, half-naked and inade- 
 quately fed ; their daily rations being 
 raw salt pork, hard bread and unbaked 
 flour. Five thousand men were there. 
 During two months the Northern Army 
 had lost by desertion and sickness full 
 five thousand soldiers. So ended in 
 disaster the remarkable invasion — one 
 of the boldest ever undertaken, all 
 things considered. 
 
 The army under Washington, which 
 had driven the British out of Boston, 
 soon afterward appeared in other fields 
 of duty, a part of them, as we have 
 seen, in Canada, but more at New 
 York and in its vicinity. At the be- 
 ginning of the year Washington ascer- 
 tained that Sir Flenry Clinton was 
 about to sail from Boston, with 
 
FIFTH PERIOD— TUF WAR J'OR INDEPENDENCE 
 
 167 
 
 troops, on a secret cxpeilition. It was 
 suspected that New York was Iiis des- 
 tination, where Governor Tryon was 
 ready to head a formal demonstration 
 in favor of the crown. The Tories 
 tliere were active and numerous. Dis- 
 aflection prevailed extensively ; and it 
 was fostered by Tryon, whose "palace" 
 was the armed-ship Duchess of Gordon, 
 lying in the harbor. Fearing that prov- 
 ince might be lost to the republicans, 
 Washington ordered General Charles 
 Lee, then recruiting in Connecticut, to 
 embody the volunteers and march to 
 New York. Governor Trumbull lent 
 his official aid to Lee, and within a 
 fortnight after the latter recei\e(l his 
 orders, he was in full march for the 
 Harlem River with twelve hundred 
 men and the bold Son of Liberty, Isaac 
 Sears, as his adjutant-general. 
 
 Sir Henry Clinton's vessels appeared 
 off Sandy Hook on the day when Lee 
 arrived in New York. He was bound 
 for the coast of North Carolina to ex- 
 ecute a plan of the ministry for the 
 subjugation of that province, suggested 
 by Governor Martin the previous au- 
 tumn. It was believed by the king and 
 liis advisers that the people of the 
 southern provinces would join the royal 
 troops when they should appear ; but 
 Dartmouth, evidently having some 
 doubts, instructed Clinton, in case the 
 people were not loyal, to distress them 
 by burning any of their towns that 
 might refuse to submit. 
 
 A fleet commanded by Sir Peter 
 Parker, and designed to act under Clin- 
 ton's orders, did not leave Ireland 
 until February. Then the vessels were 
 delayed by storms. Clinton, mean- 
 while, had been awaiting their arrival 
 with impatience. It was May before 
 he entered the Cape Fear River with 
 .some of them. Satisfied that the North 
 Carolians could not be coaxed nor 
 frightened into submission, the Pirit- 
 ish ft)rces proceeded to attempt the re- 
 duction of Charleston, South Carolina, 
 as a prelude to the fall of Savannah. 
 General Lee, who had been ordered by 
 Washington to watch the movements 
 of Clinton, had made his way south- 
 
 ward by land and arri\ed at Charles- 
 ton on the 4th of June. 
 
 The militia from the surrounding 
 country now flocked into Charleston at 
 the call of President Rutledge. These, 
 with Carolina regulars and the troops 
 from the North, brought by .\rm- 
 strong and Lee, made an available 
 force of almost si.x thousand men. 
 Colonel Gadsden commanded the garri- 
 son in Fort Johnson, on James Island, 
 three miles from the city. Colonel 
 Moultrie was at the head of the troops 
 in Fort Sullivan, on Sullivan's Island, 
 and Colonel Thompson commanded 
 riflemen from Orangeburg, stationed 
 on the eastern end of that island. 
 
 .After long delay Clinton completed 
 his arrangements for a combined attack 
 of ships and troops upon Fort .Sulli- 
 van, which was chosen to receive the 
 first blow. It was garrisoned by about 
 four hundred men, mostly South Caro- 
 lina regulars, with a few volunteer mil- 
 itia ; and its only aid was a sloop, with 
 powder, anchored ofif Haddrell's Point. 
 Lee had pronounced the fort absolutely 
 untenable, and called it "a slaughter 
 pen ;" and he advised Rutledge to with- 
 draw the garrison and abandon Sulli- 
 van's Island without striking a blow. 
 Rutledge refused. Lee, with sharp 
 words and angry tone, persisted in his 
 \ lews, and if he dared he would have 
 withdrawn the troops in spite of the 
 wiser President. Fie annoyed Moultrie 
 by his orders looking to a flight from 
 the fort, directing him to build bridges 
 for retreat to the main : but Moultrie 
 did not believe that he could be driven 
 from his little fortress of soft palmetto 
 logs, for he knew, better than Lee, their 
 resisting power. Lee tried to weaken 
 his force by ordering detachments to 
 be sent from the fort : and up to the 
 last moment he wished to have Moul- 
 trie removed from the command. Had 
 he been acting in favor of the enemy 
 he could not have given better advice ; 
 and in view of his subsequent treason, 
 it cannot be sure that he was not, at 
 that time, acting the part of a traitor. 
 
 Clinton had landed soldiers on Long 
 Island, a strip of sandy land separated 
 
THE HOME AUXILIARY AND REFERENCE 
 
 from Sullivan's Island by a shallow 
 creek. There he erected batteries to 
 confront those of Thompson on Sulli- 
 van's Island, and awaited the pleasure 
 of Admiral Parker. On the morning 
 of the 28th of June, Sir Peter, from his 
 flag-ship, the Bristol, gave a signal for 
 attack. 
 
 At this time, Clinton with his two 
 thousand land troops and six hundred 
 seamen, attempted to co-operate with 
 the fleet by landing on Sullivan's Isl- 
 and and attacking the fort on its unfin- 
 ished side. He opened his batteries on 
 Long Island, upon Thompson, who had 
 only two guns, but his Carolina rifle- 
 men were expert and dangerous sharp- 
 shooters. Clinton embarked some of 
 his troops in boats covered by floating 
 batteries in the creek ; but the soldiers 
 could not land in the face of the ter- 
 rible volleys from Thompson's men, 
 and were speedily disembarked. The 
 baronet accomplished almost nothing 
 during the furious conflict of ten hours 
 on that bright and hot June day. 
 Thompson held him at bay until the 
 battle ceased at evening. 
 
 In that battle — one of the most se- 
 vere of the war — the British lost in 
 killed and wounded, two hundred and 
 twenty-five men. Of the four hundred 
 and thirty-five in the beleaguered fort, 
 only ten were killed and twenty-two 
 wounded, though thousands of shot and 
 many shells were hurled against them. 
 Charleston was saved, and South Caro- 
 lina was defended from invasion by 
 the valor of her own sons ; and in 
 honor of the brave colonel who com- 
 manded the garrison, the palmetto log- 
 fortress was named Fort Moultrie. 
 After remaining a few days at Long 
 Island to repair damages, the British 
 fleet, with Clinton's army, sailed for 
 New York, where they joined the 
 forces under General and Admiral 
 Howe. 
 
 Immediately after the evacuation of 
 Boston, Washington hastened to New 
 York with a greater part of his army, 
 for he suspected Howe of an intention 
 to attack that city. British war ves- 
 sels lingered in Boston harbor even so 
 late as June, and there was a prevail- 
 
 ing fear in New England that Howe 
 intended to return to their shattered 
 capital. It was therefore determined 
 by the Massachusetts Assembly to drive 
 the ships to the sea. This was done at 
 the middle of June, by General Lin- 
 coln, at the head of militia and a few 
 regulars, who so annoyed the ships with 
 cannon planted on the shores, that they 
 departed never to return. Howe went 
 to Halifax to prepare for attacking the 
 Americans at what he supposed to be 
 a more vulnerable point. 
 
 In June, 1776, General Howe sailed 
 with his recruited army from Halifax 
 for New York, and arrived at Sandy 
 Hook at near the close of that month. 
 There he was soon afterward joined by 
 a large fleet commanded by his brother 
 Richard, Earl Howe. The latter had 
 been made joint commissioner with the 
 general, and authorized by the king to 
 ofl:"er pardon to all rebels, in his name, 
 and to negotiate for peace or to prose- 
 cute the war as circumstances might 
 demand. 
 
 When Washington arrived in New 
 York, he pushed forward the defences 
 of the city, and in the Hudson High- 
 lands, for already intimations had 
 reached the Americans that a grand 
 scheme of the ministers for dividing 
 the colonies, was to effect a junction 
 between troops going up the Hudson 
 \'alley, and others coming down from 
 the St. Lawrence, the latter being al- 
 ready at the foot of Lake Chainplain. 
 Fort Washington was built on the high- 
 est part of Manhattan Island (now 
 Washington Heights) : and strong bat- 
 teries were constructed near it as well 
 as in the more immediate vicinity of the 
 little town whose northern verge was 
 The Fields, now City Hall Park. 
 
 The commander-in-chief went to 
 Philadelphia to confer with the Con- 
 tinental Congress on the topic of the 
 general defence of the colonies, for 
 the theatre of war was evidently about 
 to expand along the entire seaboard. It 
 was then known that the mercenaries 
 of the British monarch were on their 
 way to America; and it was believed 
 that the city of New York was des- 
 tined to receive the first stunning blow 
 
FIFTH PERIOD-THE WAR FOR INDFPF\DENCE 
 
 Ibrj 
 
 fruiii the combined I'.ritish and ficrnian 
 armies. Danger appeared imminent, 
 and Congress authorized the enlistment 
 of thirteen thousand troops from New 
 England, New York and New Jersey ; 
 also the establishment of a Flying 
 Camp under General Hugh Mercer, 
 coniposed of men from Pennsylvania, 
 Delaware and Maryland. These were 
 to rendezvous at Amboy, in New Jer- 
 sey, opposite Staten Island. The Con- 
 gress also authorized the forming of a 
 body of Indians, two thousand in num- 
 ber, for service in Canada, to oppose 
 the savages employed by Carleton. 
 General Schuyler, who was wiser con- 
 cerning the Indians than the senators 
 at Philadelphia, asked the significant 
 question : "\\' here are the Indians to 
 be found ?'" He knew it would be im- 
 possible to gather so large a number for 
 such a purpose. "1 think," he said, 
 "that if the Indians can be kept from 
 joining the enemy, it will be as much 
 as we have a right to expect." Know- 
 ing their cruel disposition, he was 
 a\ erse to employing them in war ; he 
 knew, also, that their maxim in alli- 
 ances with the white people was to ad- 
 here to the strongest, most liberal in giv- 
 ing rewards, and with whom there was 
 the least danger. Schuyler labored suc- 
 cessfully in effecting that neutrality ; he 
 held the Six Nations in restraint from 
 1/75 "ntil 1783. 
 
 Washington returned to New York 
 early in June. Soon after his return, 
 a foul conspiracy, hatched by the un- 
 scrupulous Governor Tryon on board 
 the Duchess of Gordon, was discovered. 
 The brothers Howe were hourly ex- 
 pected to enter the harbor of New 
 York with a powerful fleet and army, 
 and a plan was formed for causing the 
 uprising of the Tories in New York and 
 in the lower \alley of the Hudson at 
 that moment ; to cut off all communica- 
 tion with the mainland ; to fire the mag- 
 azine ; to murder Washington, his staff 
 and other leading officers of the Amer- 
 ican army in the city; or to seize them 
 and send them to England for trial on 
 a charge of treason ; and. making pris- 
 oners of the great body of the troops, 
 carry out the separating design of the 
 
 ministry just mentioned. The mayor 
 of New York (Matthews) was Tryon's 
 chief vehicle of communication with 
 the Tories. A large number of per- 
 sons were concerned in the plot. 
 Washington's Life Guards were tam- 
 pered with, and two of them were se- 
 duced from their fidelity. To one of 
 them, an Irishman named Hickey, was 
 entrusted the task of destroying Wash- 
 ington. He resolved to poison his com- 
 mander, and tried to make the gen- 
 eral's housekeeper, a faithful maiden, 
 an accomplice in the deed. The maiden 
 had revealed the plot to Washington. 
 He ordered the arrest of Hickey, who 
 was tried by a court-martial and was 
 condemned. He was hanged on a tree 
 in Colonel Rutger's field, a little east 
 of the Bowery, on the 28th of June, 
 1776, in the presence of twenty thou- 
 sand people. Already Mayor Matthews 
 and more than twenty others had been 
 arrested by order of the Provincial 
 Congress, but only Hickey suffered 
 death. It was the first military execu- 
 tion in the Continental Army : and it 
 is a notable fact that the delinquent was 
 from a body of men who were specially 
 chosen for their trustworthiness. The 
 horrible plot was traced directly to Gov- 
 ernor Tryon, as its author. 
 
 The question of independence now 
 agitated Congress. Some of the ablest 
 men in it, including Dickinson, thought 
 the time had not yet come to make the 
 declaration, and urged that the co-op- 
 eration of France or some other nation 
 be first secured. It was finally agreed 
 that those who opposed the movement, 
 but acquiesced in it, should not vote 
 at all, so as to make the matter unani- 
 mous. Richard Henry Lee had offered 
 a resolution declaring independence, 
 June 7th, while Congress met in Car- 
 penter's Hall, but action was delayed 
 until a select committee should draw 
 up a report. Dickinson would have 
 headed this committee and drawn the 
 declaration, but for his personal views, 
 which were sincere and cost him much 
 of his popularity and future Federal 
 honors, though he was afterward 
 President (Governor) of Delaware and 
 of Pennsylvania. The Declaration was 
 
170 
 
 THE HOME AUXILIARY AND REFERENCE 
 
 drawn up by Thomas Jefferson, of Vir- 
 ginia, and revised by Benjamin Frank- 
 lin, John Adams, Roger Sherman and 
 Robert R. Livingston. This declara- 
 tion was adopted July 4th, 1776, in the 
 State House, which has been restored 
 to the exact condition it was at that 
 time. 
 
 Right here the student should lay 
 down this book and carefully read the? 
 Declaration of Independence. 
 
 The far-reaching results of the Dec- 
 laration of Independence were not ap- 
 preciated at the time, by the great 
 body of the people. There was gen- 
 eral joy, because there was a vague idea 
 in the public mind that something bene- 
 ficial might immediately ensue. 
 
 Meanwhile the resolution of Congress 
 adopted in May, recommending the col- 
 onies to form State governments, had 
 been acted upon by several of them. 
 New Hampshire had prepared for a 
 State government, in January, 1776. 
 The royal charters of Rhode Island 
 and Connecticut were considered suffi- 
 ciently democratic : and that of the lat- 
 ter remained the fundamental law of 
 the State until 1842. New Jersey 
 adopted a State constitution on the 2d 
 of July ; Virginia adopted one on the 
 3th, and Pennsylvania on the 15th. On 
 the 14th of August, Maryland followed 
 their example ; Delaware on the 20th of 
 September, and North Carolina on the 
 1 8th of December. Georgia adopted a 
 State constitution on the 5th of Feb- 
 ruary, 1777, and New York on the 20th 
 of April following ; but South Carolina 
 did not follow the example until the 
 19th of March, 1778. Massachusetts, 
 the most eager champion for local self- 
 government, deferred the important 
 measure that secured it, until the 2d of 
 March, 1780. Within a year after the 
 Declaration of Independence was made, 
 most of the States had organized settletl 
 governments, but no national govern- 
 ment was established until the armed 
 j-truggle had been going on for six 
 \ears. as we shall observe hereafter. 
 
 General Howe arrived at Sandy Hook 
 at the close of June, and on the 8th of 
 July he landed nine thousand men on 
 Staten Island. There he awaited the 
 
 arrival of his brother, .Vdmiral Howe, 
 with his fleet bearing liritish regulars 
 and German hirelings. These, and the 
 broken forces of Clinton and Parker 
 from the Carolinas, soon joined General 
 Howe; and by the middle of August, 
 the British, land and naval, numbered 
 almost thirty thousand men. 
 
 The brothers entered upon a narrow 
 diplomatic mission immediately after 
 the arrival of the admiral. They sought 
 first to open communication with 
 Washington. For this purpose they 
 sent a note to him by a flag, inclosing a 
 copy of a declaration of the royal clem- 
 ency. The letter did not bear the official 
 title of the commander-in-chief — only 
 "George Washington, Esq." — and he 
 refused to receive it. The ad- 
 miral addressed a friendly letter to Dr. 
 Franklin in a similar manner, and re- 
 ceived from the statesman a reply, 
 courteous in tone, but in no wise sooth- 
 ing to his feelings as a soldier or a 
 Briton. Franklin concluded his let- 
 ter by saying: "This war against us is 
 both unjust and unwise: posterity will 
 condemn to infamy those who advised 
 it ; and even success will not save from 
 some degree of dishonor those who vol- 
 untarily engage to conduct it." The 
 brothers suspected Franklin uttered the 
 sentiments of the Congress with whom 
 they were not permitted to treat ; and 
 that the words of Washington were in 
 accordance with the views of the same 
 body. War, and not peace, now occu- 
 pied the attention of the brothers for 
 awhile. 
 
 Captain Nathan Hale was chosen by 
 his colonel from among other volun- 
 teers for the perilous service of a spy. 
 He entered the British camp as a plain 
 young farmer, and made sketches and 
 notes unsuspected. At length a Tory 
 kinsman betrayed him, and he was taken 
 before General Howe at the Beekman 
 mansion in New York. Hale frankly 
 avowed his name, rank and his char- 
 acter of a spy, which his papers re- 
 vealed, and Howe ordered him to be 
 hanged the next morning ( .September 
 22d, 1776 , without even the form of a 
 trial. Hale met death with firmness. 
 With unfaltering voice he said: "I only 
 
FIFTH PERIOD— THE WAR FOR INDEPENDENCE 
 
 rci^rct tliat I lia\c but one life to lose 
 for my country." These were the last 
 words uttered by the young patriot, 
 then only a little more than twenty-tine 
 xears of age. 
 
 Silas Deane was sent to France by 
 Congress, in the spring of 1776, as a 
 commercial agent to obtain supplies for 
 an army. 
 
 At that time, Beaumarchais, an irre- 
 pressible Frenchman, conspicuous in the 
 literary and political world of Paris, 
 was a secret agent of the French gov- 
 ernment in watching the course of the 
 llritish ministry toward the colonies, 
 and feeling the pulse of public opinion 
 in England. 
 
 Arthur Lee (brother of Richard 
 Henry Lee), an aspiring young bar- 
 rister, and whom Franklin had left in 
 charge of the agency for Massachusetts 
 when he returned to America, became 
 acquainted with Beaumarchais's ex- 
 pressed desire to aid the Americans. 
 ( ){ this he gave information to the Con- 
 gress, through his brother, who was a 
 member of that body. 
 
 Early in the autumn of 1776, the 
 Congress sent Dr. Franklin as a Com- 
 missioner of the United States to the 
 French Court, with Deane and Lee as 
 bis assistants. The Congress had elab- 
 orated a plan for a treaty with France, 
 by which it was hoped the States 
 would secure their independence. So 
 first began the Foreign Diplomacy of 
 the L^nited States. 
 
 Washington had, early in his chief- 
 taincy, urged upon the Congress the 
 necessity of the establishment of a per- 
 manent army, and with prophetic words 
 had predicted the very evils arising 
 from short enlistments and loose me- 
 thods of creating officers, which now 
 prevailed. But they were so afraid of 
 the "military despotism" implied by a 
 standing army, that much of the efficacy 
 of this longer term of enlistment was 
 neutralized by retaining the old method 
 of levying troops by requisitions upon 
 the several States. Yet he never des- 
 paired nor uttered a petulant word of 
 complaint, nor threatened to resign. 
 His duty as a patriot and soldier was 
 plain, and he pursued it. 
 
 T"he crest of Mount Washington was 
 crowned with a five-sided earthwork, 
 named Fort Washington. It was two 
 hundred and thirty feet above tide- 
 water, a mile northward of headquar- 
 ters at Harlem Heights, with strong 
 ravelins and outworks, and motinting 
 thirty-four great guns. This was the 
 principal fortification within the Amer- 
 ican lines, and was commanded by Gen. 
 eral Putnam. General Greene, the best 
 leader in the army, excepting Washing- 
 ton, was in command of Fort Lee on 
 the Palisades on the New Jersey shore. 
 
 At this time General Charles Lee was 
 making his way toward the camp. Pie 
 had been called from the CaroHnas by 
 the Congress, to take the chief com- 
 mand of the army in the event of Wash- 
 ington being disabled. His fame was 
 very great, not because of an) thing of 
 importance which he had done, but 
 from what it was supposed he was 
 capable of doing. But he was a char- 
 latan, and afterward became a traitor 
 to a cause which he really despised and 
 supported only from base motives. 
 
 John Adams, then the chairman of 
 the lioard of War, gave Lee the confi- 
 dence which he always withheld from 
 Washington. When a letter from the 
 commander-in-chief, warning the Con- 
 gress of the great dangers to which 
 his army was exposed, was read in that 
 body, Adams treated it as the utter- 
 ance of a timid man. "'The British 
 force is so divided," he said, "they will 
 do no great matter this fall ;" and at 
 that critical moment, when his energy 
 was most needed in his responsible posi- 
 tion, he obtained leave of absence. 
 
 In August, 1776, Howe landed on 
 Long Island and defeated Washing- 
 ton's troops under Sullivan on the 27th. 
 Washington then, under cover of fog, 
 crossed to New York and took position 
 at Harlem Heights, where Howe at- 
 tacked him, but was repulsed. At 
 White Plains Washington received a 
 reverse, and on November i6th Fort 
 Washington on the Hudson was cap- 
 tured by Howe, with 3,000 prisoners. 
 Its unfortunate garrison filled the pris- 
 ons of New York and crowded the 
 British iirison-ships, wherein they were 
 
THE HOME AUXILIARY AND REFERENCE 
 
 dreadful sufferers. 
 
 The Jersey was the most noted of the 
 floating British prisons. .'^Ibe was the 
 hulk of a 64-gun ship lately dismantled, 
 and placed in W'allabout Bay near the 
 present Brooklyn Navy Yard. Some- 
 times more than a thousand prisoners 
 were confined in her at one time, where 
 they suffered indescribable horrors from 
 unwholesome food, foul air, filth and 
 vtrmin, and from small-pox, dysentery 
 and prison fever, that slew them by 
 scores. Their treatment was often 
 brutal in the extreme, and despair 
 reigned there almost continually. Every 
 night, the living, the dying and the dead 
 were huddled together. At sunset each 
 day was heard the savage order, ac- 
 companied by horrid imprecations — 
 "Down, rebels, down !" and in the morn- 
 ing the significant cry — "Rebels, turn 
 out your dead!" The dead were then 
 selected from the living, sewed up in 
 blankets, taken upon deck, carried on 
 shore and buried in shallow graves. 
 Full eleven thousand victims were 
 taken from the Jersey, and so buried, 
 during the war. Their bones were 
 gathered and placed in a vault by the 
 Tammany Society of New York in 
 1808, with imposing ceremonies. That 
 vault is at the southwestern corner of 
 the Navy Yard, where their remains 
 still rest. Several years ago a magnifi- 
 cent monument dedicated to the martyrs 
 of the British prisons and prison-ships 
 was erected in Trinity Churchyard, 
 near Broadway, at a point over which 
 speculators were trying to extend 
 Albany street through the property of 
 that corporation. The street was not 
 opened. So patriotism triumphed over 
 greed. 
 
 The army in the North, sick and 
 dispirited, halted, as we have seen, at 
 Crown Point, whither General Gates 
 was sent to take the command of them, 
 General Sullivan retiring. Gates at 
 once aspired to be chief of the Northern 
 Department, then under the command 
 of General Schuyler, and his preten- 
 sions were supported by a small fac- 
 tion in the Congress. 
 
 Satisfied that Carleton would attempt 
 thf recapture of the I^ake fortresses. 
 
 so as to control the waters of Lake 
 Champlain, the little army, by order 
 of General Schuyler, withdrew from 
 Crown Point and took post at Ticon- 
 deroga, where they began the construc- 
 tion of a flotilla of small war-vessels. 
 By the middle of August, a little squad- 
 ron was in readiness for service at 
 Crown Point, and General Arnold was 
 appointed its chief commander. 
 
 When Carleton heard of the ship- 
 building on the lake, he sent about seven 
 hundred skilled workmen from Quebec 
 to St. John, to prepare a fleet to cope 
 with the Americans. In the course of 
 a few weeks a considerable naval force 
 was floating on the Sorel, and a strong 
 land force under Burgoyne were on Isle 
 aux Noix. On the nth of October, the 
 British fleet defeated Arnold and he re- 
 treated to Crown Point. 
 
 Early in September, 1776, the Chero- 
 kees, excited to hostilities by British 
 emissaries, were defeated and subdued 
 by the exasperated settlers. 
 
 Governor Carleton, who was with his 
 fleet, took possession of Crown Point 
 on the 14th of October. Although he 
 was within two hours' sail of Ticon- 
 deroga, then garrisoned by only three 
 thousand efTective men, with twenty- 
 five hundred on Mount Independence 
 opposite, he was too cautious to attempt 
 its capture. At the beginning of No- 
 vember, he fled back to Canada, with 
 his troops, where he found himself 
 about to be superseded in military com- 
 mand by General Burgoyne. 
 
 Washington with his little army near 
 Fort Lee was on the Jersey shore. Pie 
 was soon disturbed by Lord Cornwalhs, 
 who, early on the morning of the 20th 
 of November, crossed the Hudson from 
 Dobb's Ferry to Closter's Landing, five 
 miles above Fort Lee, and with ar- 
 tillery climbed a steep, rocky road to 
 the top of the Palisades, unobserved 
 by Greene. That officer was told of 
 his danger by a farmer, who awoke 
 him from slumber. Greene gave warn- 
 ing to Washington, who ordered Lee 
 to cross the Hudson immediately and 
 join him. Greene fled in haste from 
 I*"ort Lee, with two thousand men, 
 lea\'ing behind cannon, tents, stores 
 
FIFTH PERIOD— THE WAR FOR INDEPENDENCE 
 
 and camp equipage, and barely escap- 
 ing capture. Washington covered tlie 
 retreat of the garrison so effectually 
 that less than one hundred stragglers 
 were made prisoners. 
 
 It was now suspected tliat the Brit- 
 ish would move on Philadelphia. Wash- 
 ington, with his army, led by himself, 
 and reduced to less than four thousand 
 men, marched toward the Delaware to 
 impede the progress of the invader as 
 much as possible. His force decreased 
 at almost every step. The patriotism 
 of New Jersey seemed to be para- 
 lyzed by the presence of a British 
 army on the soil. Hundreds of re- 
 [)ublicans — even men who had been ac- 
 tive in the patriot cause — signed a 
 pledge of fidelity to the British crown. 
 During the twelve days that Washing- 
 ton was making his way to the Dela- 
 ware, so closely pursued by Cornwallis, 
 that the rear-guard of the Americans 
 often heard the music of the van-guard 
 of the royal troops, he was chilled by 
 the seeming indifference of the people. 
 He halted at points as long as possible, 
 for Lee to join him and so give him 
 strength to make a stand against his 
 pursuers ; but that officer, assuming 
 that his was an independent command, 
 paid no attention to the order of his 
 superior. He was then evidently play- 
 mg a desperate game of treason. Daily 
 messages to him, urging him to push 
 forward with his troops, did not affect 
 him. He lingered long on the Hudson, 
 until many of his soldiers had left him 
 and gone home ; and he tried to induce 
 Heath to weaken his force in the High- 
 lands by assigning for duty under Lee, 
 two thousand of his men. Failing in 
 this, he moved slowly as far in the 
 rear of Washington as possible ; and 
 finally (eleven days after the chief had 
 reached the Delaware), he took lodg- 
 ings at Baskingridge in East Jersey, 
 three miles from his camp, and nearer 
 the enemy. There, on the morning of 
 the 13th of December, he suffered him- 
 self to be captured by a small British 
 scout. General Sullivan led the rest of 
 the troops to join Washington. Every- 
 thing seemed to be going against the 
 patriotic cause, and one more defeat 
 
 must have crushed all present hope of 
 independence. Washington rightly con- 
 sidered that the Hessians at Trenton 
 would be making merry at Christmas 
 time. On that night (1776), crossing 
 the Delaware in small boats during a 
 blinding snowstorm, he captured the 
 whole of the Hessians (1,000). This 
 revived the hopes of the patriots. Lord 
 Cornwallis now brought an army to 
 Trenton to destroy Washington, but the 
 latter stole away one night and on the 
 morning of January 3, 1777, defeated 
 the British at Princeton, and then 
 marched to Morristown. Cornwallis 
 then went back to New York. This 
 rather disheartened the British, but 
 they said it only postponed the end a 
 short time, as General Burgoyne was 
 coming from Canada with an army. 
 It was the great military fault of the 
 British generals that they jierpetually 
 tried to hold territory rather than crush 
 the American army. These mistakes 
 cost them dear. Burgoyne was to come 
 down from Canada and the plan, laid 
 in London, was that another army 
 under Colonel St. Leger should start 
 from Oswego, while Howe should move 
 up from New York and all three armies 
 should join and operate against the ene- 
 my. The story goes that the order to 
 Howe was written out in London, but 
 was corrected in several places. The 
 Minister laid it aside to have a fair 
 copy made, and forgot all about it, and 
 it never reached New York. Burgoyne 
 started with his army and Indian al- 
 lies in the spring of 1777, but found 
 his task more difficult than he expected. 
 The roads through the woods were 
 poor, and the Americans felled so many 
 trees across them that it was slow work 
 to move the army. Burgoyne heard of 
 some supplies at Bennington, \^ermont, 
 and sent a detachment of Hessians to 
 destroy them. The Hessians were de- 
 feated by Colonel John Stark, and his 
 Green Mountain boys. St. Leger had 
 started from Oswego and had raised a 
 lot of Indians as allies. General Nich- 
 olas Herkimer went to meet him, but 
 was ambushed near Oriskany by a 
 large force of British and Indians. Her- 
 kimer was nuirtallv wounded and with- 
 
THE HOME Al'XILlARY AND REFEREXXE 
 
 liix-w his forces. Arnold hastened to 
 the rehef of Herkimer's troops, St. 
 Leger retreated to Lake Ontario, and 
 that part of the expedition failed. To 
 meet Burgoyne there was a small but 
 tolerably etTective army under General 
 Schuyler, but he was removed on false 
 suspicion, and General Horatio Gates, a 
 vain mediocre man, given command. 
 Burgoyne was now in a critical condi- 
 tion. He had no help coming from any 
 source, and his supplies were cut off 
 from Canada. He fought an indecisive 
 battle at Bemis Heights, and suffered 
 a defeat near Saratoga, where Arnold 
 fiercely attacked him. The poor Hes- 
 sians were greatly alarmed and refused 
 to fight any more. Burgoyne's army 
 had dwindled to 6,000. He sur- 
 rendered, October 17, 1777, to Gates, 
 who thus obtained an honor he did not 
 deserve. As a result of this, France 
 recognized the Independence of the 
 United States, loaned some money, 
 promised a great deal of aid on land 
 and sea, very little of which was really 
 performed; but it was a great advan- 
 tage to us, as England had to fight 
 I'Yance once more, who was now joined 
 by Spain and later by Holland. 
 
 One would suppose that General 
 Howe would naturally want to hunt up 
 Washington's army and defeat it. In- 
 stead he decided to capture Philadel- 
 phia, and at the same time hold New 
 York. He sailed southward, but did 
 not come up the Delaware, choosing the 
 Chesapeake. Washington marched to 
 Wilmington, Delaware, and up the 
 Brandy wine to Chadd's Ford. Here he 
 met the British, and for a time pre- 
 vented the crossing, but a detachment 
 of the latter crossed further up the 
 stream and outflanked Washington, Sep- 
 tember II, 1777, who was compelled to 
 retreat. In this battle General Laf- 
 ayette, a young French nobleman who 
 had come to our aid, was wounded. 
 Washington retreated and Howe en- 
 tered Philadelphia. Washington at- 
 tacked him in the suburbs of the city 
 at Germantown, October 4, 1777, but 
 owing to a fog and tactical mistakes, he 
 was defeated and retired to Valley 
 Forge on the Schuylkill for winter 
 
 f|uartcrs. Howe s|ient the winter in 
 Philadelphia, but accomplished abso- 
 lutely nothing in a military way. Many 
 of the Philadelphians, especially the 
 Quakers, were opposed to the war any- 
 way, and Howe simply divided his 
 forces without accomplishing anything. 
 
 That winter at Valley Forge was one 
 of the darkest periods of the war. 
 Through the impotence of Congress, 
 tile rascality of contractors, and the 
 lack of system, the army was often 
 without food or clothing. I\Ien went 
 barefoot in the snow and many froze 
 to death or starved. During this win- 
 tei a damnable pint on the part of some 
 of the officers and men in civil life was 
 hatched to supplant Washington. This 
 conspiracy, known as the Conway 
 Cabal, was discovered, but its authors 
 were not punished. The only ray of 
 light was the fact that Baron Steuben, 
 an accomplished German officer, had 
 come over, and by the greatest expen- 
 diture of energy had drilled the troops 
 so that they were more effective than 
 ever before. Howe was now succeeded 
 by Sir Henry Clinton, who evacuated 
 Philadelphia. Washington started after 
 him and overtook him at Monmouth, 
 New Jersey, where he delivered battle, 
 June 28, 1778. The treacherous Lee, 
 who had been exchanged, insisted on 
 taking the lead, but had scarcely be- 
 gun to fight when he retreated. For- 
 tunately \\^ashington came up in time 
 to arrest Lee and continue the battle. 
 The British retreated to New York as 
 fast as they could, losing men and muni- 
 tions on the way. Washington marched 
 up the Hudson to West Point. A 
 French fleet came over and an attack 
 was made on a British garrison at New- 
 port without success. There was little 
 fighting in the North for the rest of the 
 year, except that small bands of Brit- 
 ish raided Connecticut without doing 
 serious damage. One of the strongest 
 British fortifications on the Hudson was 
 Stony Point. One dark night General 
 Anthony Wayne carried it by assault 
 with little loss. This is considered one 
 of the most brilliant events in military 
 history. 
 
 Late in 1775, the Congress ordered 
 
FIFTH PERIOD— THE WAR I'OR IXDEPEXDEXCE 
 
 tlic establishment of a Continental na\ y. 
 The thirteen vessels then authorized to 
 be built or purchased were furnished 
 early in 1776, and these, with many 
 ])rivateers. did good service on the 
 ocean. 
 
 Esek Hopkins, of Rhode Island, was 
 appointed coniniander-in-chicf of the 
 little Continental navy. The avowed 
 object of the armament was to inter- 
 cept British vessels bearing supplies for 
 the British armies in America, but the 
 Continental war-ships were fref|uently 
 more aggressive. Hopkins sailed on his 
 first cruise in February, 1776. He left 
 the Delaware with a small squadron of 
 five vessels, carrying an aggregate of 
 ninety-eight guns. The Alfred. 28, was 
 his flag-ship, and his first-lieutenant 
 was John Paul Jones, who afterward 
 became famous. Jones raised on the 
 .1 If red, in the Delaware, in December, 
 1775, the first American ensign e\er 
 shown on an American vessel-of-war. 
 Hopkins's captains were Whipple, Bid- 
 die, J. B. Hopkins and Hazard, all of 
 them, but Biddle, Rhode Island men. 
 The first cruise was against Lord Dun- 
 more, then distressing the Virginia 
 coast. Hopkins extended his cruise to 
 the Bahama Islands to capture British 
 stores at Nassau, New Providence, and 
 was successful. Among the spoils were 
 one hundred cannon. Retiring, he 
 o])erated ofif the New England coasts : 
 but the Congress censured him for de- 
 parting from the line of his instruc- 
 tions, and dismissed him from the ser- 
 vice. His lieutenant, Jones, was placed 
 in command of the Alfred, the follow- 
 ing autumn. No naval commander-in- 
 chief was subsequently appointed. 
 
 Jones was always successful. While 
 in command of the Providence, in Sep- 
 tember, 1776, he was chased by two 
 British ships-of-war off the Carolina 
 coasts, but escaped, and sailing east- 
 ward as far as Nova Scotia, he cap- 
 tured and carried into Newport fifteen 
 prizes. Aleanwhile Whipple and Bid- 
 die were equally successful ofl:' the east- 
 ern coasts ; and the New England col- 
 ony vessels were very active. These, 
 and the Continental cruisers, deprived 
 the British army of about five hundred 
 
 si.ildiers during the summer and fall 
 of 1776. No less than three hundred 
 and forty-two British vessels fell into 
 the hands of the Americans that year. 
 
 In the fall of 1776, the Continental 
 ship Reprisal, Captain Wickes, carried 
 Dr. Franklin, as American Commis- 
 sioner, to France, where she cruised 
 in European waters, the first Ameri- 
 can armed ship that had appeared there. 
 She captured se\eral British jjrizes in 
 the Bay of Biscay. .Among these was 
 the royal English packet on its way 
 from F"alniouth to Lisbon. These 
 prizes were sold in French ports, and 
 the proceeds were used by the Ameri- 
 can commissioners in Paris for purchas- 
 ing other vessels in French ports. In 
 the summer of 1777, Wickes, with a 
 little squadron of three vessels, sailed 
 entirely around Ireland, sweeping the 
 channel in its whole breadth, and cap- 
 turing or destroying a great number 
 of British merchant vessels. This cruise 
 produced a powerful impression on 
 the public mind in England, and France 
 was required to renounce its friendshi]) 
 for the rebellious colonists or pronounce 
 a disclaimer. Policy, then, dictated the 
 latter course, and the .American vessels 
 were ordered to leave the French coast. 
 When the Reprisal was returning home- 
 ward, she was wrecked on the coast 
 of Newfoundland, and Captain Wickes 
 and all of his people but the cook per- 
 ished. 
 
 Early in 1777, the Randolph. Captain 
 Biddle, sailed on her first cruise. She 
 was successful ; but in the spring of 
 1778, while fighting a British vessel- 
 of-war, she blew up, and Biddle and 
 all of his crew perished, excepting four 
 men. During 1777, Captains Manly, 
 McNeil, Saltonstall, Olney, Hinman, 
 Thompson and others made successful 
 cruises: and the year closed with a less 
 to the British of four hundred and 
 sixty-se\en merchantmen, notwithstand- 
 ing they had seventy vessels-of-war in 
 American waters. 
 
 Soon after the conclusion of the treaty 
 of alliance in 1778, French vcssels-of- 
 v.'ar went out on the ocean to co-operate 
 with the .\mericans. and the Congress 
 fitted out some more armed ships at 
 
176 
 
 THE HOME AUXILIARY AXD REFERENCE 
 
 the same time. Among thcni, the .11- 
 liancc, ^2, became the favorite ship of 
 the patriots. The most conspicuous 
 naval operations of that year were the 
 cruise of the Providence, Captain Rath- 
 burne, to the Bahamas; of the Raleigh, 
 Captain Thompson, and the Alfred, 
 Captain Hinman, from L'Orient ; the 
 J'irginia, Captain Nicholson, on the 
 American coast ; of John Paul Jones in 
 the Ranger, in British waters, and of 
 Captain Barry in the Raleigh, in the 
 waters of the Atlantic ocean. The ^-U- 
 fred was captured in March, 1778, by 
 two British war-ships, in European 
 waters, and at about the same time the 
 Virginia was lost in Chesapeake Bay. 
 Early in April (1778), Jones appeared 
 in British waters for the first time. The 
 Ranger was an inferior vessel, and yet 
 lier commander, after making some im- 
 portant captures in the British Chan- 
 nel, undertook the bold task of seizing 
 the English ship-of-war Drake, lying in 
 the harbor of Carrickfergus, Ireland. 
 He failed. Then he sailed to the Eng- 
 lish coast, entered the port of White- 
 haven, seized the forts, spiked the can- 
 non, and, setting fire to a ship in the 
 midst of a hundred other vessels, de- 
 parted. The flames were extinguished 
 and the shipping was saved ; and from 
 that day to this, the name of Jones 
 has been associated in the English mind 
 with ideas of piracy and devastation, 
 and he is called a "pirate" and "cor- 
 sair" by English historians. His ex- 
 ploit spread terror along the British 
 coasts, and produced a profound sen- 
 sation throughout the kingdom. 
 
 Emboldened by this success, Jones 
 proceeded to the coast of his native 
 country (Scotland), cruised up and 
 down between the Solway and the 
 Clyde, and attempted the capture of 
 the Earl of Selkirk, at his seat near the 
 mouth of the Dec. The earl was the 
 early friend of Jones's father ; and be- 
 neath his majestic oak and huge chest- 
 nut trees our hero had played in his 
 boyhood. He anchored the Ranger in 
 the Solway at noon, and with a few 
 men in a single boat, went to the 
 wooded promontory on which the earl's 
 fine mansion stood, where he learned 
 
 that his lordship was absent. Disap- 
 pointed, he ordered his men back to the 
 boat, when his lieutenant, a large and 
 fiery man, proposed to carry away the 
 plate of the earl, in imitation of Eng- 
 lish plunderers on the American coasts. 
 Jones would not entertain the proposal. 
 The memory of old associations forbade 
 it. He was standing in the shadows 
 of the old wood wherein he had enjoyed 
 life in his childhood. From the hand 
 of Lady Selkirk he had received noth- 
 ing but kindness. Again he ordered liis 
 men back, but they and the lieutenant, 
 eager for prize money, made his ex- 
 postulations vain, and he ordered them 
 to perform, what he deemed to be a 
 iviean robbery, with the greatest deli- 
 cacy. The frightened Lady Selkirk de- 
 livered up the plate with her own 
 hands : and when the marauders re- 
 turned to the boat, they found Jones 
 walking moodily among the old trees. 
 He had laid his plans for the future. 
 When the prizes of the Ranger were 
 sold in the harbor of Brest, in May, he 
 bought the plate and returned it to Lady 
 Selkirk with a letter, in which he ex- 
 pressed his regret because of the an- 
 noyance she had suffered. 
 
 Late in Apn'l, Jones again appeared 
 oflF Carrickfergus, when the Drake went 
 out to give the Ranger battle. They 
 fought more than an hour, when the 
 Drake, much shattered, and forty of 
 her men slain, surrendered. With this 
 prize Jones went around Ireland and 
 arrived at Brest on the 8th of May. 
 Meanwhile D'Estaing had sailed for the 
 Delaware, and his arrival made the 
 American cruisers more active and bold. 
 Captain Barry performed some notable 
 exploits in the fall of 1778: and early 
 in 1779, the Alliance. Captain Landais. 
 sailed for France, bearing Lafayette, 
 who went home to urge his king to send 
 troops to America. 
 
 During the spring and summer of 
 1779, the American cruisers were verv 
 active. In March, the Hanifyden, a 
 Massachusetts ship, had a severe fight 
 with an English Indiaman. and was 
 much damaged, but escaped capture. In 
 April, Captain J. B. Hopkins, .sailing 
 on a cruise from Boston, captured sev- 
 
FIFTH PFRIOD— THF WAR FOR INDFPFNDENCE 
 
 cral British vessels bound for Georgia 
 w itli supplies for Prevost. In June, 
 Captains Whipple and Rathburne, in 
 command of two ships, captured several 
 British merchant-vessels under con- 
 voy of a ship-of-the-line. In a money 
 point of view, this was one of the most 
 successful enterprises of the war. The 
 estimated value of eight of the prizes 
 taken into Boston was over a million 
 dollars. 
 
 While these events were occurring 
 in the western hemisphere, the French 
 monarch and the American commis- 
 sioners joined in sending Paul Jones, 
 with five vessels, from L'Orient to the 
 coast of Scotland, at the micldle of 
 August. His flag-ship was the Boii- 
 Hoiutnc Richard. Just as he was about 
 to strike some armed British vessels, 
 in the harbor of Leith, a storm arose, 
 which drove his squadron into the 
 Xorth Sea. When the tempest sub- 
 sided he drew near the land, and cruis- 
 ing along the coast of Scotland, he cap- 
 tured thirteen prizes by the middle of 
 September. Consternation prevailed 
 along the coast, and many people buried 
 their plate to keep the "pirate's" hands 
 from it. 
 
 Later in September, while the squad- 
 ron of Jones lay a few leagues north 
 of the mouth of the Humber. he dis- 
 covered the Baltic fleet of forty mer- 
 chantment, convoyed by the Scrapis. a 
 44-gun ship, and the Countless of Scar- 
 borough, of 22 guns, stretching sea- 
 ward from behind Flamborough Head. 
 Here was a tempting prize for which 
 he had sought. Jones signalled for a 
 general chase, and all but the Alliance, 
 Captain Landais, obeyed. The l^)ritish 
 vessels immediately prepared to defend 
 the merchantmen : and while they and 
 the Richard and Pallas were manoeuv- 
 ring for advantage, night fell upon the 
 scene. The darkness did not restrain 
 the impetuous Jones. At seven o'clock 
 in the evening, the Richard was within 
 musket-shot distance of the Serapis. 
 when one of the most desperate naval 
 fights ever recorded began. The wind 
 was slack, and as the vessels were 
 struggling for the weather-guage, they 
 came in contact. Their spars and rig- 
 
 ging were entangled, when Jones, at 
 the head of his men, attempted to board 
 the Serapis. After a sharp and close 
 contest with pike, pistol and cutlass, he 
 was repulsed, when Captain Pearson of 
 the Serapis, who could not see the en- 
 sign of the Richard, called out: "Has 
 your flag been struck?" Jones shouted, 
 "1 have not begun to fight yet." 
 
 The vessels now separated, and Jones 
 attempted to lay his ship athwart the 
 hawser of his enemy. He failed, and 
 the wind brought the two ships broad- 
 side to broadside, the muzzles of the 
 guns touching each other. Jones in- 
 stantly lashed the ships together, and 
 in that close embrace they poured their 
 terrible volleys into each other with aw- 
 ful effect. From deck to deck of the 
 entangled vessels the combatants madly 
 rushed, fighting like demons. Very 
 soon the Richard was pierced between 
 wind and water with several 1 8-pound 
 balls, and began to fill. The ten greater 
 guns were silenced, and only three g- 
 pounders kept up the cannonade ; but 
 the marines in the round top of the 
 Richard sent deadly volleys of bullets 
 down upon the struggling Englishmen. 
 Ignited combustibles were scattered 
 over the Serapis; and at one time she 
 was on fire in a dozen places. Some 
 cartridges were ignited on her lower 
 deck and blew up the whole of the offi- 
 cers and men that were quartered abaft 
 the mainmast. At half-past nine, just 
 as the moon rose in a cloudless sky, 
 the Richard was discovered to be on 
 fire, also, and a scene of appalling gran- 
 deur was presented. In the midst of 
 smoke and half- smothered flame, and 
 the incessant roar of great guns, men 
 as furious as wounded tigers were seen 
 struggling hand-to-hand for the mas- 
 tery. At that moment a cry was raised 
 on the Richard — "The ship is sinking !" 
 .\ frightened gunner ran aft to pull 
 down the .American flag, when he found 
 the halyards cut away. He cried, 
 "Quarter, quarter!" until he was sil- 
 enced by a blow from a discharged 
 pistol which Jones hurled at his head. 
 It fractured his skull, and sent him 
 headlong down the gangway. "Did you 
 ask for quarter?" shouted Pearson. 
 
178 
 
 THE HOME AUXILIARY AND REEEREXCE 
 
 "Never!" replied Jones. "Then I'll 
 give you none," answered the enraged 
 Englishman ; and the desperate fight 
 went on more fiercely than before. 
 
 The situation of Junes was becom- 
 ing, every moment, more critical, for 
 his ship could not float much longer. 
 Nothing appeared more hopeless than 
 his prospect for victory. Yet he won 
 it. The flames crept up the rigging 
 of the Scrapis, and by their glow and 
 the full light of the moon, Jones saw 
 that his double-headed shot had almost 
 cut Pearson's mainmast in two. He 
 hurled another shot upon it, until the 
 tall mast reeled. Pearson saw his great 
 peril, and striking his flag, surrendered 
 to his really weaker foe. Enveloped in 
 sparks and smoke, Pearson said, in a 
 surly manner, as he hurriedly handed 
 his sabre to Jones : "It is painful to de- 
 liver up my sword to a man who has 
 fought with a rope around his neck." 
 Jones courteously replied, as he re- 
 turned the weapon: "Sir, you have 
 fought like a hero, and I make no 
 doubt your sovereign will reward you 
 .in the most ample maimer." The king 
 knighted Pearson. When Jones heard 
 of it, he said : "Well, he deserves it ; 
 and if I fall in with him again, I'll make 
 a lord of him." 
 
 The battle ceased after raging three 
 hours. Fire was consuming both shi]:)S, 
 and all hands turned to fighting the 
 flames. They did so successfully. The 
 vessels were soon disengaged, when the 
 mast of the Serapis. which had been 
 kept erect by the entangled spars and 
 rigging, fell with a tremendous crash. 
 carrying with it the mizzen-topmast. 
 The Richard was damaged past recov- 
 ery, and now settled rapidly. Every 
 living person was transferred to the 
 Scrapis. and sixteen hours afterward 
 the gallant Bon Houunc Richard went 
 down into the valleys of the North Sea. 
 
 The Countess of Scarborough, Cap- 
 tain Contineau, surrendered to the Pal- 
 las after an hour's fight, notwithstand- 
 ing the treacherous Landais brought 
 the guns of the Alliance to bear upon 
 the latter as he had ujjon the Richard. 
 pretending to have mistaken them, in 
 the darkness, for the ships of the ene- 
 
 my. This brilliant \ictory was achieved 
 on the night of the 23d of September. 
 The Baltic fleet had taken shelter be- 
 hind Flamborough Head. After toss- 
 ing about on the Northern Sea ten days, 
 Jones ran into the Texel, Holland, with 
 his little squadron^ and prizes, only a 
 few hours before eleven English ships- 
 of-war that had been sent after him, ap- 
 peared in the offing. A demand was 
 made upon Holland to deliver up the 
 prizes, and Jones and his men, to the 
 English authorities. By adroit diplo- 
 macy, the States-General refused, with- 
 out involving themselves in trouble 
 with the British government ; and Jones, 
 instead of being conveyed to England 
 as a "corsair," was put in command of 
 the Alliance, and did good service for 
 the Americans afterward. His fame 
 spread through the civilized world. 
 The French monarch gave him an ele- 
 gant gold-mounted sword, bearing on 
 its blade the words : "Louis XVI, Re- 
 warder of the J^aliant Asserter of the 
 Freedom of the Sea." He also created 
 him a knight of the Order of Merit. 
 Catharine of Russia conferred on him 
 the ribbon of St. .\nne : and from Den- 
 mark he received marks of distinction 
 and a pension. The United States 
 thanked him cordially, and eight years 
 afterward gave him a gold medal. 
 
 The exploits of Jones exasperated 
 and alarmed the British. They made 
 even hea\y line-of-battle-ships shy of 
 him. 
 
 There was no more fighting in the 
 North, but the scene shifted to the 
 South, where the campaigns were ac- 
 tive, and where the British showed bet- 
 ter generalship than in the North. 
 Early in the war a British attack had 
 been made on Charleston, but it failed. 
 Later Savannah was captured, and the 
 -State of Georgia fell into British hands. 
 When in the winter of 1778-9 Clinton 
 seized Sa\annah, a combined French 
 and American force under General 
 Lincoln besieged the city, but could not 
 dislodge the British. An assault was 
 made, but failed, with a terrible loss of 
 life. In 1780 Clinton transferred the 
 seat of war to the South and came with 
 an army and captured Charleston. 
 
FIFTH PFRIOD— THE WAR FOR INDEPENDENCE 
 
 179 
 
 (iding back to Xew York, Cornwallis 
 was left in command, with Lord Raw- 
 don next in rank. Another prominent 
 figure was Colonel Tarletoii, who com- 
 n^anded the British cavalry. These 
 three men acted with promptness and 
 \ igor. Gates, flushed with pride over 
 liis success in the North, was in com- 
 mand of the American army in South 
 Carolina. It was not a well disciplined 
 force, but might have done well under 
 an able commander. Cornwallis met 
 tliis army August 16, 1780, at Cam- 
 den and routed it almost completely. 
 It was the worst American defeat of 
 the war. For the time this broke up 
 organized resistance on the part of the 
 .\niericans, but Generals Sumter and 
 Marion, with small bodies of horsemen, 
 continued to harass the British at every 
 possible point. The daring of these men, 
 the swiftness with which they would ap- 
 pear and as suddenly disappear, gained 
 them the name of "swamp foxes." The 
 British horsemen were too confident 
 that they had put down all opposition. 
 While many of the people were Tories, 
 there were many patriots left, who con- 
 tinued the war. In October over 1,000 
 British went as far west as King's 
 ^fountain, in \orth Carolina. Here the 
 Americans hastily gathered a force 
 largely of mountaineer riflemen, who 
 suddenly fell on the British and killed 
 or captured them all. 
 
 Clinton attempted, by the aid of trea- 
 son, to accomplish what he had failed 
 to do by honorable warfare. The man 
 who played the part of a traitor to the 
 .\merican cause on that occasion was 
 C.eneral Benedict Arnold, a brave sol- 
 dier, but a bad man. He was ambitious 
 of personal renown, impulsive, rapa- 
 cious, unscrupulous and vindictive ; per- 
 sonally very unpopular, and seldom 
 without a C|uarrel with some of his fel- 
 low-officers. The sad stor\- of his trea- 
 son has been so often told in detail, 
 that we need to give it in general out- 
 line only. 
 
 Soon after the appointment to the 
 military governorship of Philadelphia, 
 in 1778, he married the beautiful daugh- 
 ter of Edward Shippen, a leading loval- 
 ist of that city. He lived in a s'tvle 
 
 which caused expenditure beyond his 
 income, and to meet the demands of 
 importunate creditors, he engaged in 
 fraudulent and dishonorable official acts 
 which caused the public to detest him. 
 Finally serious charges of dishonest\- 
 were preferred against him before the 
 Continental Congress : and a court- 
 martial ordered by that body to try him, 
 found him guilty. In their sentence 
 they treated him most leniently. It 
 was a simple reprimand by the com- 
 mander-in-chief. That duty was per- 
 formed by Washington in the most 
 delicate manner : but the disgrace awak- 
 ened vengeful feelings in the bosom of 
 Arnold. These, operating with the 
 pressure of debt, made him listen to 
 the suggestions of a bad nature ; and he 
 let Sir Henry Clinton know that he pre- 
 ferred service in the British army to 
 that in which he was engaged. Corre- 
 spondence upon the subject, which was 
 continued several months, was con- 
 ducted on the part of Sir Henry, 
 through the accomplished Major Andre, 
 his adjutant-general, under an assumed 
 name. So, also did Arnold assume a 
 fictitious name ; and on the part of 
 both, the correspondence was carried 
 'on in commercial phraseology. Arnold 
 agreed to ask for the command of the 
 strong post of ^^'est Point and its de- 
 pendencies, in the Hudson Highlands, 
 and, if obtained, to betray it into the 
 bauds of Clinton. For thisi service 
 Arnold was to receive the commission 
 of brigadier in the British army and 
 fifty thousand dollars in gold. It is 
 asserted by Mr. Bancroft that "in the 
 course of the winter of 1778-1779, he 
 was taken into the pay of Clinton, to 
 whom he gave on every occasion most 
 material intelligence." 
 
 The nefarious plot had been made 
 known to the British minister, and he 
 and Clinton believed that its consum- 
 mation would end the war. In the 
 spring of 1780, Arnold took lueasures 
 to secure for himself the command of 
 West Point. He enlisted the sym- 
 pathies and services in his behalf of 
 General Schuyler, Robert R. Living- 
 ston and other leading patriots in New 
 York, pretending that his wounds 
 
THE HOME AUXILIARY AND REFERENCE 
 
 would riol ijcnnit him to do active ser- 
 vice in the field, and that he was very 
 anxious to serve his country. Mis pro- 
 fessions of patriotism were so vehe- 
 ment that he deceived those men, and 
 they united in recommending Washing- 
 ton to give him the important position. 
 The latter had lost faith in Arnold's 
 integrity, but could not believe him 
 capable of treason to the cause. He 
 finally yielded to the request of others 
 more than to the dictates of his better 
 judgment, and in August ( 1780) he 
 placed Arnold in command of the High- 
 land forts, with his headquarters at the 
 house of Beverly Robinson (yet stand- 
 ing), opposite West Point. Then 
 Arnold bent all his energies for the 
 consummation of his treason, first re- 
 quiring a personal interview with 
 Andre, to make a definite arrangement 
 about the terms of the bargain. 
 
 It was late in September before that 
 personal interview was held. Wash- 
 ington, accompanied by Lafayette and 
 Hamilton, crossed the Hudson at Ver- 
 planck's Point (where he was joined 
 by Arnold), on his way to Hartford, to 
 have his first personal conference with 
 Rochambeau there. That was on the 
 i8th. Arnold ascertained the time 
 when they might be expected at West 
 Point, on their return, and he resolved 
 to bring the plot to a point ready for 
 the final act before them. He immedi- 
 ately informed Clinton of the situation, 
 and desired him to send Andre up the 
 river to the Vulture sloop-of-war, then 
 lying just above Teller's (now Croton) 
 Point, to which a boat with a flag would 
 be sent to convey the major to a selected 
 place of meeting between midnight and 
 dawn. Clinton embarked troops on the 
 Hudson, with a pretext that they were 
 bound for the Chesapeake. These he 
 intended to lead in person against the 
 Highland forts. 
 
 On the morning of the 20th Andre- 
 departed from Dobb's Ferry for the 
 I'ulture; but it was the second night 
 after his arrival, when the flag ap- 
 peared, borne by Joshua H. Smith, a 
 resident near Haverstraw. Andre had 
 been instructed by Clinton not to change 
 his dress and not to take any papers 
 
 with him ; so, with his regimentals, cov- 
 ered with a long surtout, he went ashore 
 and met Arnold in bushes at the foot 
 of Thorn Mountain, near Haverstraw, 
 by the light of a waning moon. Dawn 
 was approaching before the interview 
 was ended ; and the conspirators 
 mounted horses which Arnold had 
 provided, and rode to the house of 
 Smith before the break of day. At 
 sunrise, cannons were heard upon the 
 river, and the J^ulture was seen to fall 
 down the stream, out of sight, to avoid 
 the effects of artillery trained upon her 
 at Teller's Point. This gave Andre un- 
 easiness, for he would be compelled to 
 return to New York by land. 
 
 The conference at Smith's house 
 lasted several hours. It was agreed 
 that Arnold should so distribute the 
 garrison at West Point as to weaken it. 
 When it should be known that the 
 British troops were ascending the river, 
 Arnold was to apply to Washington at 
 Tappan for reinforcements; and after 
 making a show of resistance, he was to 
 surrender the post in time for Clinton 
 to fall upon the approaching troops 
 which might be led by the commander- 
 in-chief in person. So, at one blow, 
 Washington's army was to be ruined, 
 and the important post to be seized by 
 the enemy. 
 
 Andre received from Arnold a writ- 
 ten statement of the condition of the 
 Highland forts, and a pass for "John 
 Anderson" (his assumed name) "to the 
 White Plains and beyond." With the 
 latter in his pocket and the former 
 under his feet, in his boots, the young 
 officer, having exchanged his scarlet 
 uniform for a coat that belonged to Mr. 
 Smith, buttoned his surtout up to his 
 chin, crossed the river at the King's 
 Ferry, and on horseback made his way 
 toward New York on the east side of 
 the Hudson. So far the plot had 
 worked well. Knowledge of the con- 
 spiracy was yet locked in the bosom of 
 a single American — the traitor himself. 
 But difficulties soon arose. When the 
 major had reached the vicinity of Tar- 
 rytown, sixteen miles from the strong 
 British post at King's Bridge, and was 
 riding in fancied security up the gentle 
 
FIFTH PERIOD— THE WAR FOR INDEPENDENCE 
 
 hill from Sleepy Hollow, he was sud- 
 denly confronted hy three young mil- 
 itiamen — John Paulding, Isaac Van 
 Wart and David Williams — who be- 
 longed to a party of seven who were 
 out to prevent cattle being driven from 
 the vicinity to the British lines and to 
 arrest any suspicious characters on the 
 highway. These young men were play- 
 ing cards in the shadow of a wood by 
 the road side, when Andre appeared. 
 Paulding, followed by his companions, 
 stepped into the road, and presenting 
 his bayonet ordered the well-dressed 
 "gentlemanly traveler" to stop. Andre, 
 supposing them to be Loyalists, said : 
 "Gentlemen, I hope you belong to our 
 party." "Which party?" asked Pauld- 
 ing. "The Lower party." Paulding an- 
 swered misleadingly, "We do," when 
 Andre said, "Gentlemen, I am a Brit- 
 ish officer, out in the country on par- 
 ticular business, and hope you will not 
 detain me a minute." He then showed 
 them his watch in token of his being an 
 officer, when Paulding ordered him to 
 dismount. Perceiving his mistake, 
 Andre said: "My God! I must do any- 
 thing to get along," and then showed 
 them Arnold's pass. "Gentlemen," he 
 said, "you had best let me go, or you 
 will bring yourselves into trouble, for 
 your stopping me will detain the gen- 
 eral's business." He told them he was 
 going to Dobb's Ferry to meet a per- 
 son there from whom he expected im- 
 portant intelligence for Arnold. Pauld- 
 ing courteously said : "I hope you'll not 
 be offended ; we do not intend to take 
 anything from you ; there are many bad 
 people on the road, and you, perhaps 
 are one of them. Have you any let- 
 ters?" He answered, "No." Then 
 they took him into the bushes and 
 searched him. Andre was dressed in a 
 blue surtout, a claret-colored body-coat 
 trimmed with lace ; nankeen waistcoat 
 and breeches ; flannel underclothes, 
 round hat and thread stockings and 
 boots. They stripped him to his shirt, 
 but foinid no papers on him ; and they 
 were about to let him go, when it was 
 suggested that something might be con- 
 cealed in his boots. He reluctantly 
 obeyed an order to pull them off, when 
 
 the papers alluded to were found be- 
 tween his stockings and his feet. "This 
 is a spy!" exclaimed Paulding. Andre 
 oft'ered them large bribes to release him. 
 "Not for ten thousand guineas," said 
 Paulding ; and the three young men con- 
 ducted their prisoner to Lieutenant- 
 Colonel Jameson, who was in command 
 of the nearest military post, at North 
 Castle. Jameson, with amazing stupid- 
 ity, resolved to send the prisoner to 
 .'\rnold. Major Tallmadge, next in 
 rank, suspecting the general of treach- 
 ery, warmly remonstrated, when Jame- 
 son consented to confine the captive 
 until he should receive orders from 
 Washington or Arnold. He insisted 
 upon writing a letter to Arnold inform- 
 ing him of the arrest of the prisoner. 
 This was a fatal blunder, and led to 
 great mischief. 
 
 That night the prisoner wrote a let- 
 tei to Washington, frankly announcing 
 his name and rank, and giving a truth- 
 ful account of the whole affair. He 
 gave the letter to Tallmadge, to read, 
 who was astonished to find that the 
 captive was Major Andre, adjutant- 
 general of the British army. He was 
 finally taken to the headquarters of the 
 army at Tappan. 
 
 While these events were occurring, 
 Washington was on his way from Hart- 
 ford. On the morning of the 25th 
 (September, 1780), he and his attend- 
 ants left Fishkill before the dawn, and 
 rode on with speed toward the Rob- 
 inson house to breakfast with General 
 and Mrs. Arnold. When near there, the 
 chief turned down a lane to view a bat- 
 tery on the brink of the river, and told 
 his young companions to go forward 
 and he would soon join them. While 
 they were at the table with the general, 
 a messenger brought a letter to him 
 from Jameson ; but instead of announ- 
 cing, as he expected he would, that a 
 British armament was ascending the 
 river, it told him of the arrest of ]\Ta- 
 jor Andre. His presence of mind did 
 not forsake him. He told his guests 
 that business of importance demanded 
 his presence at West Point immedi- 
 ately. He ascended to his wife's 
 chamber and sent for her. There, 
 
THE HOME ArXILTARY AND REFERENCE 
 
 in brief and hurried words, lie told her 
 that they must instantly part, perhajis 
 forever, for his life depended upon his 
 reaching the British lines as ([uickly 
 as possible. Horror-stricken, the poor 
 young creature, one year a mother but 
 not two a bride, swooned and sank 
 senseless upon the floor. Arnold dared 
 not call for help, but kissing with lips 
 blasted by words of guilt and treason, 
 his boy then sweetly sleeping, he rushed 
 from the room, mounted a horse be- 
 longing to one of his guests, and has- 
 tened to the river along a byway yet 
 known as Arnold's Path. Then he en- 
 tered his barge, and directed his six 
 oarsmen to push out into the middle of 
 the river and pull for Teller's Point. 
 They were ignorant of his errand, and 
 having their muscles stimulated by a 
 promise of two gallons of rum, they 
 rowed the little vessel swiftly down the 
 stream to the I'lilturc. Having made 
 himself known to the commander, 
 Arnold rewarded his faithful men with 
 the fate of prisoners instead of the 
 promised beverage. Clinton, despising 
 the traitor's meanness, set them at lib- 
 erty when the I'lilture arrived at New 
 York. 
 
 Washington arrived at Robinson's 
 house just after Arnold had left. .\o 
 one there, excepting Airs. .A.rnold in her 
 chamber, knew of the traitor's flight. 
 Supposing he had gone over to West 
 Point, the chief crossed the river, and 
 did not return until near noon. He was 
 met near the landing-place by Hamil- 
 ton, into whose hand a messenger from 
 Jameson had placed the proof of 
 Arnold's guilt — the papers taken from 
 Andre's boots, and the major's letter to 
 Washington. Efforts were immediately 
 made to overtake the traitor, but he had 
 four hours the start, and escaped, as 
 we have observed. The fugitive's wife 
 was crazed by the shock for several 
 hours, and her condition e.xcited the 
 warmest sympathy of the chief and his 
 attendants. She pressed her infant to 
 her bosom and lamented his fate be- 
 cause of the conduct of his father. 
 "All the sweetness of beauty, all the 
 loveliness of innocence, all the tender- 
 ness of a wife, and all the fondness of 
 
 a mother," wrote Colonel Hamilton, 
 "showed themselves in her appearance 
 and conduct." They believed that she 
 was entirely ignorant of his crime until 
 it was revealed to her at the time of 
 his flight. 
 
 Major Andre was tried at Tappan by 
 fourteen general officers, found guilt\-, 
 and hanged there on the 2d of October, 
 1780. He begged to be shot that he 
 might die like a soldier and not as a. spy. 
 In a letter to Washington he pleaded 
 with touching but manly earnestness for 
 this boon. 
 
 The usage of both armies and the im- 
 placable demands of the military code 
 toward a spy forbade a compliance with 
 his wishes. The British officers, on all 
 occasions, had been quick to hang 
 American captives. We have seen how 
 brutally they gibbeted young Nathan 
 liale; and scores of patriots in South 
 Carolina had recently perished by the 
 rope by order of Cornwallis, for no 
 other oflfence than loving the serxice 
 of their own country better than that 
 of their oppressors. Every officer in 
 the American army would gladly have 
 exchanged .Andre for Arnold, and ef- 
 forts to accomplish that end were made, 
 but failed. .Arnold died in his bed 
 twenty-one years afterward ; wlvle 
 Andre, the more innocent victim of the 
 wicked complot of Clinton and Arnold, 
 perished on a gibbet four days after he 
 was convicted. 
 
 Washington now sent General 
 Greene, one of his most trusted offi- 
 cers, to take command in the South. 
 With difficulty a small army was raised. 
 It was officered admirably by Generals 
 Daniel Morgan, "Light-Horse" Harry 
 Lee and William Washington. These 
 made one of the most remarkable com- 
 paigns in history. They won but a sin- 
 gle victory of the first importance, and 
 were several times defeated, but won 
 the campaign. January 17, 1781, Col- 
 onel Tarleton fell on General Morgan 
 at the Cowpens and was defeated and 
 almost annihilated. The Americans had 
 the smaller force and lost but twelve 
 men killed. Greene ne.xt met Corn- 
 wallis at Guildford, North Carolina. It 
 was a hard-fought battle, but Greene 
 
FIFTH PFRIOD— niE WAR FOR IXDEPEXDEXCE 
 
 iS.^ 
 
 had to retire. Cornwallis did not fol- 
 low, but went to \'irginia to recuper- 
 ate. The moral effect of the campaign 
 was favorable to the Americans. 
 Greene was hard pu.'ihed by Cornwallis 
 and had retreated northward until 
 ready to fight, when he chose his own 
 ground. Pretty soon Greene returned 
 South and was defeated by Rawdon at 
 Hobkirk"s Hill and Eiitaw Springs, but 
 he so manoeuvercd that he cleared the 
 Ilritish out of the interior, and the cam- 
 paign was a decided success. In \'ir- 
 ginia Cornwallis found Arnold in com- 
 mand of a British force. He sent the 
 traitor to New York, and took pos- 
 session of Yorktown, which was of no 
 possible use to him. For some reason 
 not entirely clear, but with the idea he 
 was obeying orders, he fortified the 
 place, and he and Lafayette with a 
 small army had played at hide and seek 
 with each other. When \\'ashington 
 heard about Cornwallis' position, he 
 feinted as if about to attack New York, 
 but swifty moved South and besieged 
 Cornwallis with the aid of some French 
 troops brought by Admiral De Grasse, 
 who had been long cooped up in New- 
 liort. but had escaped. For the first 
 time in the war the military odds were 
 against the British, and escape was im- 
 ])ossible. Cornwallis surrendered Oc- 
 t(-,ber 10, 1781, and the war was prac- 
 tically over. 
 
 Great was the exultation and joy of 
 the .\mericans as the news of the sur- 
 render went from lip to lip throughout 
 the Union. Lieutenant-Colonel Tighl- 
 man, one of Washington's aids, rode ex- 
 pressly to Philadelphia to carry the de- 
 spatches of his chief announcing the 
 joyful tidings to the Congress. It was 
 midnight (October 23d) when he en- 
 tered the city. Thomas IMcKean. then 
 President of the Congress, resided on 
 High .Street, near Second Street. 
 Tighlman knocked so violently at his 
 door that a watchman was disposed to 
 arrest him as a disturber of the peace. 
 ]\fcKean arose, received the messencjer 
 with joy, and soon the glad tidings 
 spread over the city. The watchmen 
 proclaiming the hour, and the usual crv 
 "All's well !" added "and Cornwallis is 
 
 taken !" That announcement, going out 
 upon the frosty night air, called thou- 
 sands from their beds. The old State 
 House bell that sounded so clearlv 
 when independence was declared more 
 than five years before, now rang out 
 tones of gladness. Lights were seen 
 moving in almost every house : and 
 very soon the streets were thronged 
 with men and women, all eager to know 
 the details. It was a night of great joy 
 in Philadeljihia, for the people had an- 
 xiously waited for news from York- 
 town. The first flush of morning was 
 greeted with the booming of cannon : 
 and at an early hour the Congress as- 
 sembled and heard Charles Thompson 
 read the despatch from Washington. 
 That grave Senate could hardly repress 
 huzzas while the Secretary read : and 
 at its conclusion it was resolved to go 
 in a body, at two o'clock in the after- 
 noon, to the Dutch Lutheran Church, 
 and "return thanks to Almighty God 
 for crowning the allied armies of the 
 United States and France with suc- 
 cess." Six- days afterward that body 
 voted thanks and appropriate honors to 
 Washington, Rochambeau and De 
 Grasse and their officers, and resolved 
 that a marble column should be erected 
 at Yorktown with emblems of the alli- 
 ance in commemoration of the event. 
 The Congress also appointed a dav for 
 a grand thanksgiving and prayer 
 throughout the Union, on account of 
 the signal mark of Divine power. Leg- 
 islative bodies, executive councils, city 
 corporations and many private socie- 
 ties presented congratulatory addresses 
 to the commanding generals and their 
 officers : and from almost every pul- 
 pit in the land arose the voice of thanks- 
 giving and praise, accompanied by the 
 alleluiahs of thousands of worshipers 
 before the altars of the Lord of Hosts. 
 
 The Duke de Lauzun bore the glad 
 tidings to I*"rance. w^here he found the 
 king and court rejoicing because of the 
 birth of a dauphin, or heir to the 
 French throne. The city of London 
 petitioned the king to "put an end to the 
 unnatural and unfortunate war." 
 
 Measures had meanwhile been taken 
 by the Congress and tlie British govern- 
 
i84 
 
 THE HOME AUXILIARY AND REFERENCE 
 
 nient to arrange a treaty of peace. The 
 former appointed (September, 1782) 
 four Commissioners for the purpose, 
 that different States of the Union might 
 be represented. These Commissioners 
 were John Adams, of Massachusetts ; 
 John Jay, of New York ; Dr. Franklin, 
 of Pennsylvania, and Henry Laurens, 
 of South Carolina, who were all in 
 Europe at that time. The British gov- 
 ernment gave Mr. Oswald full power 
 to treat for peace with these Commis- 
 sioners. He had discussed the terms 
 with Dr. Franklin, who assured him 
 that independence, satisfactory bound- 
 aries and a participation in the fisher- 
 ies would be indispensable requisites in 
 a treaty. In July the British Parliament 
 had passed a bill to enable the king to 
 acknowledge the independence of the 
 United States, and all obstacles in the 
 way of negotiation were removed. The 
 American Commissioners first named 
 were joined by Laurens at Paris, where 
 the negotiations were carried on. 
 There, on the 30th of November, a pre- 
 liminary treaty of peace, on the basis 
 of independence, was signed by the 
 American Commissioners, and Mr. 
 Oswald without the knowledge of the 
 French government. This was in viola- 
 tion of the spirit of the terms of alli- 
 ance, by which it was understood ( and 
 the Commissioners had been so instruc- 
 ted) that no treaty should be signed by 
 either party to the alliance without the 
 knowledge of the other. Some of the 
 Commissioners doubted the good faith 
 of Vergennes, believing him to be 
 swayed by Spanish influence ; but he 
 acted honorably throughout. Dr. 
 Franklin, who never doubted him, re- 
 moved the dissatisfaction in the mind 
 of Vergennes, because of this affront. 
 by a few soft words. In the mean- 
 time the States-General of Holland had 
 acknowledged the independence of the 
 L'nited States by receiving John Adams 
 as an ambassador from the Congress 
 in April of that year; and on the 8th 
 of October (1772I they concluded a 
 treaty of amity and commerce with 
 them. This was signed at the Hague 
 by I\Tr. Adams and representatives of 
 
 the Netherlands. It was not ratified 
 until January, 1783. 
 
 Coincident with these preparations 
 for a solid national existence, was the 
 adoption of a device for a great seal — - 
 the symbol of sovereignty and author- 
 ity — for the inchoate republic. A com- 
 mittee for the purpose was appointed 
 iin the afternoon of the 4th of July, 
 1776. That committee and others, from 
 time to time, presented unsatisfactory 
 devices. Finally, in the spring of 1782, 
 Charles Thompson, the Secretary of 
 Congress, gave to that body a device 
 largely suggested to John Adams by Sir 
 John Prestwich, of EnglaJid, which was 
 made the basis of a design adopted on 
 the 20th of June, 1782, and which is still 
 the device of our great seal. It is com- 
 posed of a spread-eagle, the emblem of 
 strength, bearing on its breast an es- 
 cutcheon with thirteen stripes alternate 
 red and white. In his right talon he 
 holds an olive-branch, emblem of peace, 
 and in his left, thirteen arrows, em- 
 blems of the thirteen States, ready for 
 war if it should be necessary. In his 
 beak is a ribbon bearing the legend : 
 £ Pliiribns Uiium — "many in one" — • 
 many States making one nation. Over 
 the head of the eagle is a golden light 
 breaking through a cloud surrounding 
 thirteen staps forming a constellation 
 on a blue field. On the reverse is an 
 unfinished pyramid, emblematic of the 
 unfinished republic, the building of 
 which is still going on. In the zenith 
 is an All-seeing Eye surrounded b}' 
 light, and over the eye the word Annuit 
 Coeptis — "God favors the undertaking." 
 On the base of the pyramid, in Roman 
 numerals, the date 1776, and below the 
 words: Novus ordo scclonim — "a new 
 series of ages." So the .\mericans 
 showed their faith in the stability of the 
 structure' whose foundations they had 
 laid. Only the side on which the 
 eagle and escutcheon appear has ever 
 been used. 
 
 Peace hath her troubles no less than 
 war. When the war was over the sit- 
 uation of the country was not what 
 might have been supposed. There was 
 practically no government. During the 
 
FIFTH PERIOD-THE WAR FOR INDEPENDENCE 
 
 war the old self-constituted Continental 
 Congress had been succeeded by the 
 Congress under the Articles of Confed- 
 eration which had been adopted as a 
 constitution. This Congress was com- 
 posed of inferior men and was sub- 
 ject to limitations which made legisla- 
 tion well nigh impossible. Each State 
 had but a single vote, while two-thirds 
 of the States were necessary to pass im- 
 portant bills. It had no power to raise 
 money except by borrowing if it could, 
 issuing scrip which became worthless, 
 or asking the States, which did not re- 
 sult very satisfactorily. Congress could 
 levy no taxes and had no coercive 
 power. Little wonder then that poor 
 provision was made for the army, that 
 it was poorly fed. worse clad and almost 
 never paid ! Small wonder that officers 
 complained when no provision was 
 made for them, or that the men some- 
 times mutinied. It was due to Wash- 
 ington's skill, forbearance and moral 
 influence, the patriotism and bravery 
 of his officers and men that victory 
 came, and not to Congress, which was 
 almost useless. 
 
 Indeed, so critical was the situation, 
 so necessary was some strong govern- 
 ment, that Washington's army would 
 have made him King, a suggestion he 
 would not consider. Finally Congress 
 made some provision in the way of land 
 grants for the Army, but many of that 
 patriot band had little other than glory 
 as a reward. In the eight years many 
 troops had been enlisted, but most of 
 them served only a very short time dur- 
 ing some emergency. It was seldom 
 that Washington had 12,000 men in one 
 army. The country had prospered in 
 spite of the war which, except for the 
 ravages of Indians on the frontier, was 
 humanely conducted. New Jersey and 
 Pennsylvania saw most of the fight- 
 ing, but business was not greatly inter- 
 rupted. 
 
 When the war was over, the States 
 drifted back into their old ways be- 
 fore the war. Each had its own laws. 
 Strong jealousies and rivalries existed 
 which were manifested in legislation. 
 Each State had its own tariff law and 
 discriminated against its neighbors. 
 
 i8s 
 
 Each State was in debt for the war. 
 Congress was in debt for the loans it 
 had made abroad, and'borrowed money 
 U> pay the interest. Large sums had 
 been borrowed at home, largely 
 through the efforts of Robert Morris, 
 but no interest was paid on this, while 
 the Continental currency was practi- 
 cally worthless. 
 
 In the meantime, Great Britain did 
 not evacuate the Western forts, nor did 
 the States pay debts to British citizens 
 contracted before the war. Congress 
 was in desperate straits. The Confed- 
 eration was only formed by promises 
 of all the States to give up to the Gov- 
 ernment the lands west of the Alle- 
 .ghanies, north of the old Ohio, but the 
 Government was slow in making any 
 government for them. In 1784, Jeft'er- 
 son drew up a plan, but it failed, and 
 he went to Paris as our minister. In 
 1787, the so-called Ordinance was 
 passed, which provided for the govern- 
 ment of the Northwest Territory and 
 Its ultimate division into States. ' This 
 law provided for limited self-govern- 
 ment under national control, and for- 
 ever prohibited slavery in that section. 
 On this general basis, excepting the 
 slavery clause, all our territories were 
 erected up to i8q8. 
 
 It seems paradoxical, but it is true, 
 that the first years of peace and free- 
 dom of the States were in many re- 
 spects less satisfactory than before the 
 war began. There were quarrels over 
 which State had done the most in the 
 war, claims of offsets against demands 
 by Congress, crimination and recrimi- 
 nation over various points, until that 
 body became so powerless that some- 
 times it could not actually raise enough 
 money to buy stationery. Thoughtful 
 men soon saw that something must be 
 done right speedily, or else we would 
 either have a civil war or would fall a 
 prey to foreign attack. In 1754, 
 twenty_ years before the struggle, 
 Franklin had published the picture of a 
 serpent cut into thirteen parts, with the 
 superscription: "LInite or die." This 
 advice or warning was now quite as 
 imperative. If the .Articles of Confed- 
 eration had been stronger our history 
 
THE HOME AUXn,TARY AND REFERENCE 
 
 niiyht have Iieen slioiier. 'I'hcy being 
 so weak, a stronger govcrnnK'nt l)c- 
 came necessary. " 
 
 Maryland, as we have seen, had 
 troubles about her boundaries, but now 
 she had troubles of a different sort. 
 On the south she was bounded by the 
 Potomac, while the Susquehanna came 
 down from the north. It was very 
 difficult to settle on trade regulations 
 under these circumstances, as oppor- 
 tunities for smuggling and cheating 
 were plenty. There was a question 
 also as to who could rightfully control 
 the mouth of the Potomac, while Penn- 
 -sylvania was in danger of having the 
 mouth of the Susquehanna closed ea- 
 tirely. In consequence the three States 
 were about to send Commissioners to 
 discuss the matter when \^irginia in- 
 vited delegates fronj all the States to 
 discuss trade and commerce. Neither 
 New England nor the far South took 
 any interest in the matter, but delegates 
 from five States met at Annapolis in 
 1786. They declared in favor of a con- 
 vention at Philadelphia the next year 
 to amend the Articles of Confedera- 
 tion, to which Congress agreed after 
 som.e hesitation. 
 
 The Constitutional Convention of 1787 
 marks the turning point in our history. 
 Rut for its work we might be now in as 
 deplorable condition as South America. 
 It was a common danger that once 
 more forced the former colonies to act. 
 The Convention was called to amend 
 the Articles of Confederation — it 
 adopted a new constitution entirely. 
 Indeed, amendment had several times 
 proved impossible, as it required a 
 unanimous vote of all the States. Twice 
 Rhode Island and once New York had 
 prevented the adoption of absolutely 
 necessary amendments to enable the 
 Congress to raise money. In conse- 
 quence every State did practically as 
 seemed good in its own eyes. Con- 
 necticut laid claim to Northeastern 
 Pennsylvania and was driven out by 
 force. In Massachusetts the so-called 
 Shay's Rebellion, in favor of paper 
 money had necessitated raising an 
 army. It was hard to collect debts in 
 distant States,, and all sorts of foolish 
 
 legislation was indulged in, until it 
 was seen that ruin or regeneration 
 must follow. 
 
 Fortunately the .States sent delega- 
 tions of their ablest men. Not since 
 the Continental Congress of 1776 had 
 so many strong men been gathered to- 
 gether. From Massachusetts came 
 Caleb Strong, Nathaniel Gorham, El- 
 bridge Gerry and Rufus King. From 
 New York, Alexander Hamilton, John 
 Lansing and Robert Yates but the two 
 latter left the convention and did not 
 sign. From Delaware Gunning Bed- 
 ford, Jr., George Read and John 
 Dickinson. From Pennsylvania, Jared 
 Ingersoll, Robert Morris, Thomas 
 Mifflin, James Wilson and Benjamin 
 Franklin, the wisest man of all. From 
 \'irginia, George Washington, James 
 Madison, Edmund Randolph and 
 George Mason. From New Jersey, 
 W'illiam Paterson and Jonathan Day- 
 ton. From North Carolina, William 
 r.lount and Alexander Martin. From 
 South Carolina, Pierce Butler, John 
 Rutledge, Charles Pinckney and Chas. 
 C. Pinckney. From Georgia, William 
 Houston and Abraham Baldwin. 
 From Connecticut, Roger Sherman and 
 Oliver Ellsworth. From Maryland, 
 Daniel Carroll and James jNIcHenry. 
 From New Hampshire, John Langdon 
 and Nicholas Gilman. Rhode Island 
 was not represented. The above are 
 only the leading delegates from the 
 States, but they sufficiently indicate the 
 high quality of the whole. The Con- 
 vention met in Philadelphia, ]\Iay 25, 
 1787. with at first only seven States 
 represented : it did not complete its 
 work until September 17, and all its 
 sessions were secret. George Wash- 
 ington was elected President, and it 1 
 was in great measure due to the cer- 
 tainty that he would be the first Ex- 
 ecutive of the country that the Con- 
 vention was finallv adopted. 
 
 It was soon developed that there was 
 a marked division of opinion amona;' 
 the delegates as to the nature of the 
 new frame of government. The larger 
 States in population, such as \''irginia, 
 A^assachusetts and Pennsylvania, 
 wanted a strong Central Government. 
 
FIFTH PERIOD— THE WAR FOR INDEPENDENCE 
 
 Small States, like New Jersey and 
 Delaware, preferred to have the gen- 
 eral plan of the Articles of Confedera- 
 tion remain. It was soon agreed to 
 divide all powers of government be- 
 tween executive, legislative and judi- 
 cial bodies. But here harmony ceased. 
 Some wanted a single and some a 
 plural executive. Some wanted a 
 single and some a dual legislature. 
 Some wanted only States represented, 
 some wanted the population, some the 
 wealth and some both wealth and 
 population as bases of representation, 
 'ilie final agreement was that the lower 
 house should be based on population 
 and the upper on the States which were 
 all accounted equal. This was the first 
 compromise, but it involved another. 
 The States of South Carolina and 
 Georgia wanted all slaves enumerated ; 
 the Northern States wanted them ig- 
 nored. A compromise was elTected by 
 counting three-fifths of the negroes. 
 
 Trade regulations caused great dis- 
 cussion, and it was long ere a compro- 
 mise was agreed on whereby no export 
 duties were to be laid, while the im- 
 portation of slaves was permitted until 
 1808. Congress was allowed to con- 
 trol navigation laws, and fugitive 
 slaves were returnable to their owners. 
 The question of State representation 
 and slavery being settled, the Consti- 
 tution was finally evolved and signed 
 by members from all the States, but 
 not bv all of them. Congress referred 
 the Constitution to the various States, 
 who called conventions to consider it. 
 Delaware led the way and Pennsyl- 
 vania and New Jersey soon followed. 
 Georgia and Connecticut ratified in 
 January, 1788, and Massachusetts in 
 February. Then there was a lull, and 
 fears were entertained that the neces- 
 sary nine States could not be secured. 
 In the interest of ratification a series 
 of publications called "The Federalist" 
 were issued which argued strongly the 
 merits of the Constitution and have 
 ever since held high rank among the 
 commentaries on that great document. 
 These papers were by .Alexander 
 Hamilton, James Madison and John 
 lay. The rise of political parties was 
 
 based on the issue of ratification. 
 Those favoring the strong Centra! 
 Government of the Constitution be- 
 came known as Federalists. Those 
 who objected to the powers ceded to 
 the Federal Government and preferred 
 to reserve more to the States, opposed 
 ratification and were known as antr- 
 federalists, and later formed the 
 nucleus of the Republican, now called 
 the Democratic party. It was not un- 
 til June that New Hampshire, the 
 necessary ninth State, ratified, but 
 New York and \'irginia soon followed. 
 North Carolina waited more than a 
 year, and Rhode Island was not admit- 
 ted until 1790, by which time she was 
 treated as a foreign power and was 
 about to feel strong pressure. 
 
 It is noteworthy that the choice of 
 President by an Electoral College was 
 deliberately made after once proposing 
 to have Congress perform the duty. 
 No suggestion was made that the elec- 
 tion be by the people. Such a proposi- 
 tion would have received no support. 
 The Constitutional Fathers were not 
 believers in democracy. They feared 
 the masses, and believed that only the 
 learned, the wise, the wealthy and the 
 well born should govern. This is the 
 less remarkable when we consider that 
 in all the States except New Jersey the 
 franchise was ver\' considerably re- 
 stricted. Property owners, or those 
 paying a certain amount of rental, 
 alone were allowed to vote for assem- 
 blymen, while the State Senates were 
 chosen by a much more exclusive class 
 of voters. The Fathers left the choice 
 of a President to a body of electors, 
 who were supposed to be the wisest 
 men in the country and fit for the .sol- 
 emn duty of choosing a chief magis- 
 trate. It was intended that they should 
 be unhampered, but this theory soon 
 broke down. 
 
 The Congress was sitting at New 
 York when it adopted the Constitution. 
 It ordered that electors be chosen (in 
 this case all by the Legislatures) on the 
 first Wednesday in January, that they 
 vote on the first W'ednesdav in Febru- 
 ary, and that the inauguration take 
 place on the first Wednesday in March. 
 
1 88 
 
 THE HOME AUXILIARY AND REFERF-XXE 
 
 whicli on that day fell on the fourth. 
 Washington was unanimously chosen 
 President and John Adams was chosen 
 Vice-President, but the inauguration 
 did not take place until April 30, 1789. 
 Nevertheless the term was held to be- 
 gin on March 4, and has so continued, 
 much to the distress of people who 
 gather on that date to witness the cere- 
 monies, for it is not infrequently that 
 the weather is raw and inclement. The 
 old Congress did not dissolve in state. 
 It died for want of a quorum, and its 
 decease was unlamented. 
 
 The history of the old Continental 
 Congress is a remarkable one. At first 
 it was a spontaneous gathering of 
 patriotic representatives of thirteen 
 colonies that stretched a thousand miles 
 along the western shores of the At- 
 lantic, who met to act for the common 
 good. With unexampled boldness and 
 faith, they snatched the sceptre of rule 
 from their oppressing sovereign, and 
 assuming imperial functions, created 
 armies, issued bills of credit, declared 
 
 the provinces to be independent States, 
 made treaties with foreign nations, 
 founded an empire, and compelled 
 their king to acknowledge the States, 
 which they represented, to be indepen- 
 dent of the British crown. The career 
 of that Congress astonished the world 
 with the brilliancy of the events 
 achieved. A mightier and more stable 
 power took the place of this conqueror, 
 and immediately arrested the profound 
 attention of the civilized nations. It 
 was seen that its commerce, diplomacy, 
 and dignity were no longer exposed to 
 neglect by thirteen clashing legislative 
 bodies, but were guarded and con- 
 trolled by a central power of wonder- 
 ful energy. Great Britain no longer 
 thought of sending hither consuls, 
 alone, to represent her, but placed a 
 minister plentipotentiary near the re- 
 publican court. Other European gov- 
 ernments sent hither dignified diplo- 
 matic agents. We no longer exhibited 
 the weakness of a League of States, but 
 the power of a Nation. 
 
SIXTH PERIOD— WASHINGTON'S ADMINISTRATION 
 
 189 
 
 SIXTH PERIOD 
 
 ADMINISTRATIONS 
 
 WASHINGTON'S ADlMIN- 
 ISTRATION. 
 
 Washington was making the usual 
 tour of his fields on the 14th of March, 
 1789, when Charles Thomson, the Sec- 
 retary of the Continental Congress, ar- 
 vhed at Mount \>rnon with a letter 
 from John Langdon, tlie pro-tcmporc 
 president of the United States, an- 
 nouncing the election of the illustrious 
 farmer to the Presidency o'f the re- 
 public. Washington accepted the office 
 and made immediate preparations for 
 the journey to the seat of government. 
 Toward evening, accompanied by his 
 favorite body-servant, Billy, he left 
 Mount \'ernon and rode rapidly to- 
 ward Fredericksburg, to visit his 
 mother, then past eighty years of age 
 and sutifering from an incurable dis- 
 ease. The interview was a touching 
 one. When he was about to leave, the 
 son promised the mother, that so soon 
 as public business would allow, he 
 would hasten to \'irginia to see her. 
 "You will see rrie no more," said the 
 aged matron ; "my great age and the 
 disease which is rapidly approaching 
 my vitals warn me that I shall not be 
 long in this world." The dutiful son 
 stooped and kissed her, as she sat in 
 her arm-chair, when she took his 
 brawny hands in her attenuated ones 
 and said : "Go, George ; fulfill the 
 high destinies which Heaven appears 
 to assign to you ; go, my son, and may 
 that Heaven's and your mother's bles- 
 sing be with vou always." They never 
 met again on the earth. When Wash- 
 ington returned to Virginia, his 
 mother's body was in the grave. She 
 died in August, 1789, at the age of 
 eighty-two years. 
 
 On the morning of the 6th of .April, 
 Washington left Mount Vernon for 
 New York, accompanied by Mr. Thom- 
 son and Colonel Humphreys. Every- 
 
 where on his journey he was greeted 
 by demonstrations of the most pro- 
 found respect and reverence. At 
 Gray's Ferry, on the Schuylkill, near 
 Philadelphia, a triumphal arch had 
 been erected and covered with laurel 
 branches. As ^Vashington passed 
 through it, Angelica Peale, a daughter 
 of the artist, Charles Wilson Peale— a 
 child of rare beauty, concealed among 
 the foliage — let down an ornamented 
 civic crown of laurel which rented on 
 the head of the Patriot. This incident 
 drew from the multitude loud huzzas, 
 and shouts of "Long live George 
 \yashington! long live the Father of 
 his Country !" filled the air. 
 
 At Elizabethtown Point, Washing- 
 ton was met by a committee from each 
 House of Congress, and civil and mili- 
 tary officers. They had prepared a 
 magnificent barge for his reception, 
 manned by thirteen pilots in white uni- 
 forms. In this the President-elect was 
 conveyed to New York. 
 
 On the 30th of April, Washington 
 was inaugurated President of the re- 
 public. The ceremony took place in 
 the open gallery of the old City Hall 
 (afterward callejd Federal Hall), in 
 the presence of a vast multitude. The 
 oath of office was administered by 
 Robert R. Livingston, then chancellor 
 of the State of New York. Near them 
 were John Adams, who had been 
 chosen \"ice-President ; George Clin- 
 ton, Governor of New York; Philip 
 Schuyler, John Jay, General Knox, 
 Ebenezer Hazard, Samuel Osgood and 
 other distinguished men. The Chan- 
 cellor exclaimed, "It is done !" and then 
 turning to the people he shouted, 
 "Long live George Washington, the 
 first President of the United States." 
 That shout was echoed and re-echoed 
 Ijy the multitude, when the President 
 and the members of Congress retired 
 
THE HOME AUXILIARY AXD REFERENXE 
 
 to tlie Senate Chamber, where Wash- 
 ington pronounced a most impressive 
 inaugural address. 
 
 The new government entered upon 
 its duties under the keen scrutiny of a 
 jealous op]50sition, and an ever-watch- 
 ful democracy which regarded with 
 alarm every aspect of aristocracy to be 
 found in the new order of things. 
 
 Washington was anxious to so regu- 
 late his intercourse with the public at 
 large, that he might secure dignity for 
 the office and order for his own com- 
 fort and the public good. W'ishing to 
 give his time to public affairs, he re- 
 solved at the outset not to return any 
 visits. To prevent being overrun witli 
 mere callers, he appointed the hour be- 
 tween three and four o'clock each 
 Tuesday for the reception of gentle- 
 men. He met ladies at the receptions 
 given by Mrs. Washington, who also 
 had stated times for the ceremony. 
 
 Even before the inauguration of the 
 President, Congress began in earnest 
 the great work of putting the machin- 
 ery of the new government into har- 
 monious and vigorous action. The 
 first and most important duties to 
 which they were called were the de- 
 vising of a revenue system — for the 
 public treasury was empty — and es- 
 tablishing a national judiciary as a co- 
 ordinate branch of the national gov- 
 ernment. Two days after the votes of 
 the Presidential electors were counted, 
 Mr. Madison, to whom the leadership 
 in the House of Representatives was 
 conceded, brought forward a plan for 
 a temporary .system of imports, to be 
 based upon one proposed by the Con- 
 tinental Congress. He was decidedly 
 favorable to free trade ; but the wants 
 of the public treasury and the impossi- 
 bility to obtain reciprocal action on the 
 part of other governments, made him 
 consent to and propose a tariff. Ac- 
 cordingly the first act of importance 
 (being numerically the second") was one 
 laying the duties on enumerated articles 
 to raise money and for "the protection 
 of manufactures." The duties were 
 low, there was a considerable free list, 
 and a discrimination was made in favor 
 of goods imported in .American bot- 
 
 toms. The debates on this bill were 
 practically the same that have been re- 
 peated ever since. There were those 
 who believed in protection ; there were 
 those who believed only in a revenue 
 measure, and there were those who 
 were a,gainst the theory of protection, 
 but saw to jt that industries in their 
 own localities were protected. 
 
 Soon after the inauguration of 
 Washington, the House having made 
 provisions for raising a revenue, 
 turned their attention to a reorganiza- 
 tion of the Executive Departments. 
 Those of the old Congress were still in 
 operation, and were filled by the in- 
 cumbents appointed by that body. The 
 Department of Forei.gn .Affairs, es- 
 tablished in 1 781, was incorporated 
 with one for Home Affairs, and was 
 called the Department of State, having 
 charge not only of all foreign negotia- 
 tions, and all papers connected there- 
 with, but also the custody of all papers 
 and documents of the old Congress, 
 and all engrossed acts and resolutions 
 of the new government which had be- 
 come laws ; also the issuing of all com- 
 missions for civil officers. The Treas- 
 ury Department was continued sub- 
 stantially on the plan established in 
 1 78 1. It was the duty of its chief offi- 
 cer to digest and prop.ose plans for the 
 improvement and management of the 
 public revenue ; to superintend the col- 
 lection of the same ; to execute services 
 connected with the sale of public lands ; 
 to grant warrants on the treasury for 
 all appropriations made by law; and to 
 report to either House of Congress as 
 to matters referred to him or aper- 
 taining to his office. Under him were 
 subordinate officers — a controller, an 
 auditor, a register, and a treasurer. 
 The chief of the Department of State 
 was called Secretary of State, and of 
 the Treasury Department, Secretarv' 
 of the Treasury. 
 
 The Department of ^^'^ar was organ- 
 ized very much upon the plan adopted 
 in 1 781, and its head was called Secre- 
 tary of W^ar. He was also intrusted 
 with the superintendence of naval as 
 well as military afifairs, the material of 
 the united service then being limited. 
 
SIXTH PERIOD— WASHINGTON'S ADMINISTRATION 
 
 Not a single vessel of llie C'oiitiiieiilal 
 navy remained ; aiul the military es- 
 tablishment consisted of only a single 
 regiment of foot, a battalion of artil- 
 lery, and the militia which the Presi- 
 dent might call out for the defence of 
 the frontiers. There was a wholesome 
 dread of a standing army. The Post- 
 office Department was continued on 
 the plan of Dr. Franklin, the first Post- 
 master-General appointed by the Con- 
 tinental Congress. Franklin had been 
 succeeded by his son-in-law, Richard 
 Bache, and he, in turn by Ebenezer 
 Hazard, who then held the office. A 
 Secretary of the Navy was not ap- 
 pointed until 1798. The Postmaster- 
 General did not become a cabinet offi- 
 cer until 1829, the first year of Presi- 
 dent Jackson's administration. 
 
 While the House of Representatives 
 were engaged with the subject of rev- 
 enue and the Executive Departments, 
 the Senate was busy in perfecting a 
 plan for national judiciary. A bill 
 drawn by Oliver Ellsworth, of Con- 
 necticut, chairman of a committee ap- 
 pointed for the purpose, was, after 
 considerable discussion and some al- 
 teration, passed, and was concurred in 
 by the other House. By its provisions, 
 the judiciary was to consist of a Su- 
 preme Court, having one Chief Justice 
 and five Associate Justices, who were 
 to hold two sessions annually at the 
 seat of the national government. Cir- 
 cuit and district courts were also es- 
 tablished, which had jurisdiction over 
 certain specified cases. Each State in 
 the Union was made a district, as were 
 also the territories of Kentucky and 
 Maine. With the exception of these 
 two, the districts were grouped into 
 three circuits. An appeal from these 
 lower courts to the Supreme Court was 
 allowed, as to points of law, in all civil 
 cases when the matter in dispute 
 amounted to two thousand dollars. 
 The President was authorized to ap- 
 point a marshal for each district, hav- 
 ing the general powers of a sheriff, 
 who was to attend all courts and was 
 authorized to serve all processe'^. 
 Provision was also made for a district 
 attorney in each district to act for the 
 
 I'nited States in all cases in which the 
 national government might be inter- 
 ested. That organization, with slight 
 modifications, is still in force. 
 
 The next important business that en- 
 gaged the attention of Congress dur- 
 ing its first session was the considera- 
 tion of amendments to the national 
 Constitution. The subject was brought 
 forward by Mr. Madison, in conform- 
 ity to pledges given to his State (Vir- 
 ginia), which was opposed to the Con- 
 stitution without certain amendments. 
 These were referred to a committee, 
 which consisted of one member from 
 each State. That committee finally re- 
 ported, and after long debate and var- 
 ious alterations, twelve articles were 
 agreed to and submitted to the people 
 of the several States for ratification or 
 rejection. Only ten were ratified in 
 the course of the next two years. Two 
 other amendments were afterward 
 made, and these were the only ones 
 adopted until the period of the late 
 Civil War. 
 
 The national debt was a subject that 
 demanded the earnest attention of Con- 
 gress. Hamilton's views were by 
 many believed to be fanciful, but he 
 was prepared to demonstrate that they 
 were feasible. He proposed to fund all 
 the debt and interest at par, to es- 
 tablish a national bank, which should 
 become the fiscal agent of the Govern- 
 ment, and levy an internal revenue tax 
 to make up the deficiency in revenue. 
 .Strange as it may seem, there was the 
 bitterest opposition on the part of 
 some States to beine relieved from 
 debt. Moreover, the domestic debt 
 which it was proposed to refund at 
 par, had long been at a heavy discount, 
 and few of the bonds were in the hands 
 of the original owners. Many wanted 
 these scaled down, but Hamilton was 
 firm for keeping the national pledge, 
 and won. 
 
 Interlaced with this proposition was 
 one to locate the Federal Capital ac- 
 cording to its Constitutional permis- 
 sion. New York, Philadelphia and 
 Baltimore wanted the honor, while 
 Southern men wanted a site on the 
 Potomac chosen. Germantown, then a 
 
THE HOME AUXILIARY AND REFERENCE 
 
 suburb of rhiladelphia, was once al- 
 most selected, but tbe debt matter got 
 mixed up with it, and finally, by Jeffer- 
 son's aid, a compromise was effected 
 by which Philadelphia was made the 
 temporary Capital, the Potomac site, 
 where now stands the Capital City, was 
 chosen as the permanent Capital, and 
 Southern votes supported the assump- 
 tion of the State war debt. This was 
 a fine piece of log-rolling, and the only 
 time that Jeft'erson and Hamilton 
 worked together. At the next session 
 Hamilton succeeded in getting a char- 
 ter for his National Bank, with $io,- 
 000,000 capital, but the charter was to 
 run only twenty years. A tax on 
 spirits was laid which soon had impor- 
 tant consequences. The slavery ques- 
 tion was injected into this Congress by 
 petitions of Quakers in favor of eman- 
 cipation. There were some earnest de- 
 bates on the subject, but the House re- 
 solved that the .States alone could deal 
 with the subject. South Carolina and 
 Georgia were largely responsible for 
 the maintenance and growth of slavery. 
 It soon became extinct in all the States 
 north of Maryland. Virginia was ser- 
 iously considering emancipation, but 
 rouki not solve the problem. But tor 
 the invention of the cotton gin, slavery 
 might have died out in the South. 
 Certainly the institution would have 
 been milder than it finally became. But 
 for Georgia and South Carolina some 
 project looking toward gradual eman- 
 cipation would probably have been 
 placed in the Constitution. 
 
 The third and final session of the 
 First Congress at Philadelphia de- 
 veloped differences of policy which 
 gave the trend of future political par- 
 ties. Alexander Hamilton was the 
 leader of the Federalists, and his policy 
 of protection, bounties, national bank, 
 and strong federal control was the plat- 
 form of his followers. Jefferson was 
 the leader of the opposition, who re- 
 gretted assumption, objected to the 
 National Bank, and feared the protec- 
 tive and concentrating policy of Hamil- 
 ton. The administration won most of 
 its measures, but Madison was no 
 longer its leader in the House, as he 
 
 \eere(l over to Jeft'erson's views. The 
 financial condition of the country had 
 vastly improved, our national credit 
 was high at home and abroad, confi- 
 (ience in business was restored, and 
 Hamilton was justified by the results 
 of his policy. There was opposition to 
 the excise tax in the West, but it cul- 
 minated later. 
 
 The most serious trouble was with 
 the Indians, west of the Alleghenies. 
 The trend of emigration had been so 
 great that Kentucky was admitted in 
 1792 as a State along with Vermont 
 ( 1791). What is now Ohio was being 
 settled, but the savages had committed 
 such ravages that it was necessary to 
 suppress them with a strong hand. 
 The regular army was small — indeed, 
 it has never been sufficiently large for 
 the emergencies that have so often 
 arisen, lb General Harmar was con- 
 fided the task, in 1790, of restoring or- 
 der, but he underestimated the task. 
 The British posts w-ere still held in de- 
 fiance of the Treaty of Paris, and from 
 them the Indians received material and 
 moral support. Harmar was badly 
 worsted at the R-Iaumee, in October, 
 1790, by Little Turtle, largely by the 
 sudden flight of the raw militia. An- 
 other expedition was determined on 
 and Gen. Arthur St. Clair, Governor of 
 the Northwest Territory, was chosen 
 to lead it. Washington, who was 
 skilled in frontier warfare, warned St. 
 Clair of the nature of his task, and 
 bade him beware of surprise. St. Clair 
 was a good officer, but old and gouty. 
 Most of his troops were undisciplined 
 militia from the West, and he had 
 great difficulty in getting together any- 
 thing like a suitable force. In Septem- 
 ber, 1 79 1, about 2.000 regulars and 
 ] ,000 militia started from near the pre- 
 sent city of Cincinnati for the head- 
 waters of the Wabash, building a line 
 of forts as they progressed through 
 the wilderness. The journey was slow, 
 c'lnd by November desertions had re- 
 duced the little army to about 1,400 
 men. Straggling along with improper 
 discipline, the army reached the head- 
 waters of the Wabash, not far from 
 the scene of I larmar's defeat, when they 
 
SIXTH PERIOD— WASHINGTON'S ADMINISTRATION 
 
 were suddenly set upon (November 4, 
 1791) by Little Turtle and his braves, 
 and cut to pieces. St. Clair fougiit 
 i:obly, but the Indians were in a stra- 
 tegic position behind trees and logs, so 
 that they were not easily attacked. 
 General Butler, his second in com- 
 mand, was heroic in his eliforts but fell 
 in battle. The battle raged for three 
 hours before the flight began with a 
 remnant of survivors. Over 600 offi- 
 cers and men were killed and 250 
 wounded. The rout was complete. 
 
 When Washington heard of the dis- 
 aster his rage knew no bounds. For a 
 few moments he gave vent to his tem- 
 per, which at such times was terrible. 
 Then he regained composure and de- 
 termined to turn defeat into victory. 
 The new expedition was placed in com- 
 mand of General Anthony Wayne, of 
 Pennsylvania. Wayne and Greene 
 were the only two Americans aside 
 from Washington who had come out 
 of the recent war with reputations of 
 the first rank. Both were soldiers of 
 the highest order, and would have won 
 honors in any field. Wayne was the 
 greater genius, though Greene may 
 have excelled him as a strategist. The 
 only other General of the war who de- 
 veloped genius was the traitor Bene- 
 dict Arnold, whose military sagacity 
 and courage were ruined by his moral 
 depravity. In 1793, Wayne started 
 from Pittsburg via Fort Washington 
 ■Cincinnati) for the Indian country. 
 In 1794 he advanced to the Maumee, 
 not far from Toledo, and fell upon the 
 Indians, August 20th, whom he de- 
 feated with terrible slaughter. The 
 Indian opposition was broken forever 
 in this section. All the chiefs sought 
 for peace, gave up their captives, and 
 the rich country was rapidly settled by 
 a prosperous people. In this campaign 
 Wayne showed all the qualities of a 
 great general. He kept all details un- 
 der his own eye, enforced discipline, 
 kept ever on the alert, so that he gained 
 the name of "the General who never 
 sleeps." His winter quarters after the 
 battle now bears the historic name Fort 
 Wayne, one of the thriving cities of 
 Northern Indiana. 
 
 The federal city chosen by Washing- 
 ion, on the banks of the Potomac, orig- 
 inally included a portion of Virginia, 
 which was later ceded again to that 
 State. On the hills above the river 
 where Washington had encamped his 
 army in the Braddock campaign, the 
 new capital was located. Owners of 
 the land gave one half their ground to 
 the Government, and sold what else 
 was needed at a reasonable rate. One 
 half the territory was given up to 
 streets and parks under the wise direc- 
 tion of Major L'Enfant, who provided 
 for a great city in the future which 
 could be beautifully adorned as well as 
 made strategically defensible from the 
 leading hill tops. It is, however, within 
 the memory of the present generation 
 that Washington became a beautiful, 
 well ordered, well paved and properly 
 adorned city. 
 
 The period of the First Congress 
 was one of general satisfaction, but 
 d.uring that of the Second the storm of 
 partisanship burst. The new National 
 Bank, chartered for twenty years, had 
 been launched with great success, but 
 it encountered the fiercest opposition. 
 The exxise tax made trouble on the 
 frontier. Hamilton was busy pushing 
 his sthemes for concentration, while 
 Jefferson was his open opponent, 
 though both sat at the same executive 
 board. Both were among the most 
 useful of American citizens, each was 
 actually modified in action by the other, 
 but they agreed on nothing. Hamilton 
 was brilliant, original, forceful, domi- 
 neering, and self-confident. He was 
 pro-British in his views, and a theorist 
 in political philosophy, but bold in 
 action. Jefiferson was also brilliant, but 
 facile, secretix'e, rued with a plastic 
 touch, and was greatly influenced by 
 his residence in France when demo- 
 cracy was being elevated to the gods 
 before being turned into anarchy. Of 
 all our statesmen Hamilton was the 
 most original in constructive legisla- 
 tion. He fought for his views, gener- 
 ally right, but with too little regard for 
 the means employed, so that he jvas 
 obliged to purge himself of a false 
 charge of fraudulent official conduct. 
 
THE HOME AUXILIARY AND REFERENCE 
 
 Hamilton was the friend of rich men, 
 but never gained a dollar by his official 
 position, though it was charged that 
 his friends grew rich. Jefferson was 
 never accused of enriching himself by 
 official position, and died poor, but he 
 used the patronage of his office to in- 
 jure Hamilton. The result of this 
 quarrel was that eventually both left 
 the Cabinet after inducing \\'ashing- 
 ton, much against his will, to accept a 
 second term. 
 
 Before this term ended, however, the 
 French Revolution took place and for 
 a time this country was wild with en- 
 thusiasm for the people that had helped 
 us in our time of trial and had now 
 erected a democracy. Washington did 
 not share in the enthusiasm of Jeffer- 
 son, and the latter soon found that the 
 French ideas of liberty, equality and 
 fraternity were not those which in 
 theory he had commended. In 1793. 
 Genet, the French Minister from the 
 new Republic, arrived at Charleston 
 and proceeded North more as a sover- 
 eign than an ambassador. Assuming 
 that we would take up arms at once for 
 France, he gave commissions right and 
 left, and was received with enthusiasm 
 until he reached Philadelphia, where 
 news of the excesses of the Directory 
 had proceeded him. In a short time he 
 was denouncing and defying Washing- 
 ton for his dignified attitude of neu- 
 trality. This latter course brought the 
 people to their senses. Genet was soon 
 discredited here and recalled by the 
 Directory, but that body had gotten into 
 such an unconquerable habit of decapi- 
 tating those who displeased them that 
 Genet remained and married an .Amer- 
 ican heiress. 
 
 Washington's second term was full 
 of disappointments. During ninst of 
 it he was obliged to forsake his digni- 
 fied position of independence and be- 
 come an avowed Federalist. He was 
 maligned as almost no man in our his- 
 tory. It almost broke his heart, for he 
 had been pure in thought and honor- 
 able in action, yet he had not escaped 
 calumnv. Edmund Randolph became 
 Secretary of State, while William I'rad- 
 ford, of Pennsylvania, took the At- 
 
 torney-Generalship. Oliver W'olcott, 
 of Connecticut, became Secretary of 
 the Treasury somewhat later, and 
 Timothy Pickering, of Pennsylvania, 
 became Secretary of War and later 
 Secretary of State. All these changes 
 were gradual. 
 
 The First Congress was strongly 
 with the administration, Frederick A. 
 Muhlenberg, of Pennsylvania, being 
 Speaker. The Second was Federalist 
 and chose Jonathan Trumbull ( Brother 
 Jonathan ) as Speaker. The Third had 
 \eered round to the party of Jei?er.son, 
 known as Republicans, and Aluhlen- 
 berg was once more Speaker. In the 
 latter Congress the Senate was very 
 close, and the Federalists used their 
 slight advantage to refuse a seat to 
 Albert Gallatin, just chosen from Penn- 
 sylvania, on the technical ground that 
 he had not been long enough a citizen 
 of the country. Gallatin was a Swiss, 
 but had lived here since boyhood. Set- 
 tling in ^^'estern Pennsylvania, he soon 
 came into prominence and became one 
 of the most useful .American citizens of 
 his time, serving in many capacities and 
 living to a green old age. He was 
 soon elected to the House, where he in- 
 jured the Federalists far more than he 
 could have done in the Senate. 
 
 The chief danger confronting the 
 peo])le was the insolent and aggressive 
 position of Great Britain. That coun- 
 try had not carried out its obligation 
 to abandon the forts in our territory, 
 where the Indians received most of 
 their support, nor had it permitted us 
 that freedom of trade which our sov- 
 ereignty entitled us to. Moreover, she 
 had a habit of seizing on any persons 
 she choose to claim as her own citizens 
 and impress them into her navy. In- 
 cluded among these were many Ameri- 
 can citizens. Protests were useless, 
 and we soon came to the situation that 
 we must go to war or acknowledge 
 King George as our suzerain. This 
 situation was complicated by the begin- 
 ning of the wars between France and 
 the rest of Europe, which lasted for 
 twenty-two years with brief intervals. 
 Our shipping was in danger of being 
 ruined. The Federalist party gener- 
 
SIXTH PERIOD-WASHINGTON'S ADMINISTRATION 
 
 ally sided with Great Britain hoping 
 for an accommodation. The Republi- 
 cans sympathized with France but were 
 doubtful as to a policy. In this di- 
 lemma \\'ashington sent Chief Justice 
 John Jay on a special mission to Great 
 Britain to negotiate a new treaty. He 
 arrived at London in 1794 and after 
 some delay negotiated a treaty that was 
 far from satisfying the wishes of the 
 administration. The British posts were 
 to be evacuated, the Mississippi was to 
 be open to both countries, we were to 
 pay certain damages claimed, the 
 northern boundary was to be rectified, 
 while Great Britain was to pay for 
 certain American vessels recently 
 seized. The only trade rights secured 
 were very meager ones with the West 
 Indies, under restrictions that were 
 practically of no value. This was a 
 stingy treaty and the Senate ratified it 
 by a bare two-thirds necessary vote. 
 As an appropriation was necessary the 
 House had to bring in a bill and here 
 the opposition was intense. Jay was 
 reviled and execrated to an extent that 
 now seems almost impossible. The treaty 
 would have failed but for one man. 
 Fisher Ames, of Massachusetts, was 
 the first of Congressional orators. He 
 w as ill, believed he was on his death- 
 bed, but so anxious to avert war that 
 he came to the House and in a speech 
 of the most impassioned imagery anri 
 touching pathos, besought the House 
 to avert war, which was the only alter- 
 native. As one about to sink to the 
 grave, he begged Congress not to per- 
 mit the indiscriminate horrors on the 
 frontier, when women and children 
 would be a prey to the savages. This 
 turned the scale and the treaty was 
 saved by a close vote. The treaty was 
 not satisfactory and it was not long be- 
 fore new friction arose which finally 
 culminated in war. 
 
 The other important event of this ad- 
 ministration was a domestic one. In 
 \\'estern Pennsylvania the people for- 
 cibly resisted the collection of the ex- 
 cise tax and brought on the Whisky 
 Rebellion — so-called. This rebellion 
 was not only against what was es- 
 teemed a tax on a necessitv, but be- 
 
 cause suits arising out of the subject 
 were triable in Philadelphia, which 
 caused enormous troube and expense. 
 In 1794 the federal authorities were 
 forcib,ly resisted in Western Pennsyl- 
 \ania and Washington immediately 
 took measures to restore order. An 
 army of 15,000 men was called for and 
 the response was immediate. No re- 
 sistance was offered and the opposition 
 quieted down. There were two con- 
 victions of crimes and Washington 
 pardoned both. 
 
 The Fourth Congress was torn up 
 over the Jay treaty and the rivalries be- 
 tween the friends of Hamilton and 
 Jefferson. The Federalists had gained 
 slightly in the Senate, but the Republi- 
 cans still held the house. Muhlenberg 
 was succeeded by William Dayton, of 
 New Jersey, a Moderate. Congress 
 was obliged to pay the Dey of Algiers 
 $1,000,000 to ransom some captives 
 and agree to an indemnity of $60,000 a 
 year as guarantee against his pirate 
 hordes and finally present him with a 
 frigate. This humiliation was atoned 
 for later. 
 
 The Presidential succession proved 
 an exciting contest. Washington had 
 positively refused to be considered and 
 John Adamc- became the Federalist 
 candidate, much to the chagrin of Ham- 
 ilton. Jefferson was the Republican 
 candidate, who, on his retirement (after 
 leaving the Cabinet) had not lost his 
 grip on public affairs. In those days 
 many States chose their electors by 
 Congressional districts, while in some 
 the Legislature chose them. There was 
 no fixed rule. Each elector voted for 
 two persons without designating which 
 was to be President. While electors 
 were allowed to vote for whom they 
 pleased, this was the only contest in 
 which it was even alleged that any 
 personal choice was exercised. The 
 vote was so close that two electors 
 carried the scale in favor of Adams. 
 It was charged that they were elected 
 in the interest of Jefferson. The Fed- 
 eralist candidate for the Vice-Presi- 
 dency was Thomas Pinckney, of South 
 Carolina, while Aaron Burr, of New 
 York, was second choice of the Re- 
 
ig6 
 
 THE HOME AUXILIARY AND REFERENCE 
 
 publicans. Hamilton hoped that Pinck- 
 ncy's popularity in the South would 
 be such that he might even get more 
 votes than Adams and thus become 
 President, but the scheme failed, 
 though it produced a breach in the 
 Federalist party. Jefferson was chosen 
 Vice-President. It is pleasing to note 
 that as the retirement of Washington 
 drew near, partisan spirit vanished, 
 and all looked up to the patriot sage 
 with honor and appreciation. His fare- 
 well Message has ever since been a 
 beacon light in our history. 
 
 JOHN ADAIMS" ADMINISTRA- 
 TIOX. 
 
 John Adams took the chair as chief 
 magistrate of the republic, in the spring 
 of 1797, with a powerful, energetic 
 and disappointed political party in op- 
 position. They lacked only two votes 
 in the electoral college of giving the 
 office to Adams's democratic rival, 
 Thomas Jefferson, who became Vice- 
 President. 
 
 The French Directory composed of 
 five persons who had been installed 
 executive rulers of France late in 1795. 
 In the plentitude of their pride, when 
 they heard that the people of the 
 United States, refusing to bow to their 
 dictation, had probably elected the op- 
 ponent of their friend, Mr. Jefferson, 
 they declared that until our govern- 
 ment had redressed some alleged griev- 
 ances of which they comjilained, no 
 minister of our republic should be re- 
 ceived by them. 
 
 James Monroe, a senator from Vir- 
 ginia, who had been sent to France as 
 minister, in 1794, remained as such 
 after the installation of the Directory. 
 He had been received in a most theat- 
 rical manner, as he was properly re- 
 garded as the represfrntative of the 
 ultra sympathizers with the French rev- 
 olutionists in America. 
 
 Having opposed Jay's treaty at the 
 French republican court, Monroe was 
 recalled by his government in 1796, and 
 Charles Cotesworth Pinckney, of .South 
 Carolina, was appointed to fill his 
 place. On Pinckney's arrival in France 
 
 late in the year with the letter of re- 
 call and his own credentials as min- 
 ister, the Directory refused to receive 
 him. Not only so, but after treating 
 him with great discourtesy, the Direc- 
 tory peremptorily ordered him to leave 
 France. He v/ithdrew to Holland in 
 February, 1797, and there awaited fur- 
 ther orders from home. When Mr. 
 .Adams took the Presidential chair, the 
 United States were without a diplo- 
 matic agent in France. 
 
 Disappointed by the failure of the 
 "French party" to elect Mr. Jefferson 
 President of our republic, the insolent 
 Directory, after hearing of the result 
 in the electoral colleges, determined to 
 punish a people who dared to thwart 
 their plans. In May, 1797, they issued 
 a decree which was tantamount to a 
 declaration of war against the United 
 States. It not only authorized the cap- 
 ture of American vessels under certain 
 ccmditions, but declared that any Amer- 
 ican found on board of a hostile ship, 
 though placed there without his con- 
 sent, by impressment, should l>e hanged 
 as a pirate. 
 
 Almost simultaneously with the issu- 
 ing of the French decree, an extraordi- 
 nary session of Congress, called by 
 President Adams to consider the for- 
 eign relations of our government, met 
 at Philadelphia. The conduct of the 
 Directory had produced a great revul- 
 sion in public feeling in our country. 
 The reaction strengthened the Execu- 
 tive arm and the administration party, 
 and patriotic Democrats began to talk 
 complacently of war with France, which 
 then seemed inevitable. Rut a majority 
 of the cabinet favored further attempts 
 at negotiations ; and the President, 
 with the concurrence of the Senate, ap- 
 pointed John Marshall, a Federalist and 
 afterward Chief Justice of the United 
 States, and Elbridge Gerry, a Demo- 
 crat and afterward Vice-President of 
 the republic, envoys extraordinary to 
 join Mr. Pinckney and attempt to set- 
 tle all matters in dispute between the 
 two governments, by diplomacy. After 
 a session of little more than six weeks. 
 Congress adjourned. They had pro- 
 vided for calling out eighty thousand 
 
SIXTH PERIOD— ADAMS' ADMINISTRATION 
 
 militia, creating a small naval force, 
 and acts for preventing privateering. 
 
 In the meantime success had waited 
 on French arms and French diplomacy 
 almost everywhere. Bonaparte, who 
 was making his victorious marches 
 toward the Danube and the Carpathian 
 Mountains, had compelled Austria to 
 make peace with his government ; and 
 England, the most powerful of the ene- 
 mies of Prance, seemed to be totter- 
 ing to its fall, for the suspension of 
 specie payment by the Bank of Eng- 
 land had rudely shaken and weakened 
 her financial power. It was at this 
 flood-tide of the military and diploma- 
 tic conquests of France in October, 
 1/97, that the American envoys reached 
 that country and sought an audience 
 with the French Directory. Their re- 
 quest was met by a haughty refusal, un- 
 less the envoys would agree to the hu- 
 miliating terms of first paying into the 
 exhausted French treasury a large sum 
 of mone)' in the form of a loan ; by the 
 purchase of Dutch bonds wrung from 
 that nation by the French, and a bribe 
 to the amount of $240,000 for the pri- 
 vate use of the five members of the 
 French Directory! This proposition 
 came semi-officially from Talleyrand, 
 one of the most expert and unscrupu- 
 lous political trimmers that ever lived. 
 It was accompanied by a covert threat, 
 that if the proposition was not com- 
 plied with, the envoys might be ordered 
 to leave France in twenty-four hours, 
 and the coasts of the United States be 
 ravaged by French frigates sent from 
 St. Domingo. The envoys refused com- 
 pliance, and the occasion gave Pinck- 
 ney the opportunity to utter in sub- 
 stance the noble words: "Millions for 
 defence, but not one cent for tribute." 
 Finding their mission to be useless, the 
 envoys asked for their passports. They 
 were given to the two I'ederal envoys 
 under circumstances which amounted to 
 their virtual expulsion from the coun- 
 try, while Gerry was induced to remain. 
 He, too, was soon treated with so much 
 insolence and contempt by Talleyrand 
 and his associates that he returned 
 home in disgust to meet the indignation 
 of his countrymen for consenting to re- 
 
 main. Gerry had held interviews with 
 Talleyrand without the knowledge of 
 his associates, and it was believed that 
 his representation of the strength of the 
 "I'"rench party" in the United States en- 
 couraged that minister to pursue the 
 course he did. 
 
 Meanwhile the Directory had issued 
 another decree, which effectually anni- 
 hilated American commerce in Euro- 
 pean waters. This act, the indecent 
 treatment of the envoys and the con- 
 tiiuied depredations of the French 
 cruisers, aroused a vehement war-spirit 
 in the United States. President Adams, 
 in his first annual message to Congress 
 (November 2;^, 1797), recommended 
 preparations for war. In March, 1798, 
 the P'resident, in a special message, 
 asked Congress to provide means for 
 war. The request was promptly com- 
 plied with. A provisional army of 
 twenty thousand regular soldiers was 
 voted, and provision was made for the 
 employment of volunteers as well as 
 militia ; and then were made those pro- 
 visions for a national navy already al- 
 luded to. The office of Secretary of the 
 Navy was created, and Benjamin Stod- 
 ert, of the District of Columbia, was 
 the first to enter the cabinet as the head 
 of the Navy Department, which he did 
 at the close of April, 1798. I'arty- 
 spirit disappeared in the National Leg- 
 islature to a great degree, and the pop- 
 ular excitement against the opposition 
 leaders in Congress became so intense, 
 that some of the most obnoxious of 
 them from Virginia sought personal 
 safety in flight, under the pretence of 
 needed attention to their private affairs. 
 Washington approved the war-meas- 
 ures of the government, and in July he 
 was appointed by the President com- 
 mander-in-chief of all the forces raised 
 and to be raised, with the commission 
 of lieutenant-general. Washington re- 
 quested the appointment of his friend 
 Alexander Hamilton, then forty-one 
 years of age, as acting general-in-chief. 
 For this purpose, Hamilton was com- 
 missioned the first major-general. 
 Washington held a conference with all 
 the general officers of the army at 
 Philadelphia, in November (1798) 
 
ipS 
 
 THE HOME AUXILIARY AND REFERENCE 
 
 when arrangements were made for a 
 complete organization of the regular 
 forces on a war-footing. But from the 
 beginning he believed that the gathering 
 clouds, portending a fearful tempest, 
 would pass away and leave his country 
 unscathed by the lightning and the hail 
 of war. 
 
 Events soon justified Washington's 
 faith. The wily Talleyrand, ever ready 
 to change his political coat, caused in- 
 formation to reach the Lhiited States 
 governiment that the Directory were 
 ready to receive advances from the 
 former for entering into negotiations. 
 
 Without consulting his cabinet or the 
 national dignity, President Adams nom- 
 inated William \'ance Murray, then the 
 representative of the United States at 
 the Hague, as minister plenipotentiary 
 to France. Congress and the people 
 were amazed, and the Senate deter- 
 mined not to confirm the nomination. 
 No direct communication had been re- 
 ceived from the Directory, and this 
 advance after unatoned insults, seemed 
 like cowardly cringing before a half- 
 relenting tyrant. The President stoutly 
 persisted for awhile, when he con- 
 sented to the appointment of three en- 
 voys extraordinary, oi which Mr. Mur- 
 ray should be one, to settle all disputes 
 between the two governments. For this 
 purpose Oliver Ellsworth and William 
 R. Davie were appointed to join Mr. 
 Murray, but they were not to proceed 
 to Europe until assurances should be 
 received from France of their courte- 
 ous reception there. Such assurances 
 came from Talleyrand, and in Novem- 
 ber, 1799, the two envoys sailed for 
 France. 
 
 Fortunately for all parties concerned, 
 a change occurred in the government of 
 France in the month when the envoys 
 departed from our shores. Bonaparte 
 was made First Consul or supreme 
 ruler of France for life. 
 
 It was at this crisis in the political 
 affairs of France when the American 
 envoys reached Paris. They were cor- 
 dially received by Talleyrand, by order 
 of the First Consul, and an amicable 
 settlement of all difficulties was soon 
 made. A convention was signed at 
 
 Paris on the 30th of September, 1800, 
 by the American envoys and Joseph 
 Bonaparte, C. P. E. Fluvien and Pierre 
 L. Roederer, in behalf of France, which 
 was satisfactory to both parties. The 
 convention aLso made the important de- 
 cision, in the face of the contrary doc- 
 trine avowed and practiced by the Brit- 
 ish government, that free slii(^s should 
 ■make free goods. Peace was estab- 
 lished, the envoys returned home, and 
 the provisional army of the United 
 States was disbanded. 
 
 While the political events just re- 
 corded were in progress, war between 
 the two nations actually began upon the 
 ocean, although neither party had pro- 
 claimed hostilities. In July, 1798, the 
 American Congress had declared the 
 treaties between the United States and 
 France at an end, and authorized Amer- 
 ican vessels-of-war to capture French 
 cruisers. A marine corps was organ- 
 ized, and a total of thirty cruisers were 
 provided for. Under the law for the 
 creation of a navy, several frigates had 
 been put in commission in 1797, but 
 they were not ready for sea in the 
 spring of 1798: but it was not long in 
 the presence of impending war, before 
 the United States, the Constitution, the 
 Constellation and other war-vessels 
 were out upon the ocean under 
 such commanders as Dale, Barry, Deca- 
 tur the elder, Truxton, Nicholson and 
 Phillips. Decatur soon captured a 
 French corsair (April, 1798); and the 
 British and French, authorities in the 
 West Indies were greatly surprised by 
 the appearance of so many American 
 cruisers in those waters in the summer 
 and autumn of 1798. At the close of 
 th.e year, the American navy consisted 
 of tweny-three vessels, with an aggre- 
 gate armament of four hundred and 
 forty-six guns. 
 
 It was at this time that the first of a 
 series of outrages upon the flag of the 
 republic was committed by a British 
 naval commander, that finally aroused 
 the people of the United States to a vin- 
 dication of their honor and independ- 
 ence by an appeal to arms. The Ameri- 
 can cruiser Baltimore, Captain Phillips, 
 in charge of a convoy of merchant ves- 
 
SIXTH PERIOD— ADAMS' ADMINISTRATION 
 
 199 
 
 sels from Havanna to Charleston, when 
 in sight of Moro Castle fell in with a 
 British squadron. The United States 
 and Great Britain were then at peace, 
 and Phillips did not expect anything 
 from the commander of the squadron 
 but friendship, when, to his surprise, 
 three of the convoy were captured by 
 the British cruisers. Phillips bore up 
 alongside the British flag-ship to ask 
 for an explanation, when he was in- 
 formed by her commander that every 
 man on board the Baltimore, who could 
 not show a regular American protec- 
 tion paper, should be transferred to the 
 British vessel. Phillips protested 
 against the outrage ; and when fifty- 
 five of his crew were taken to the Brit- 
 ish flagship, he, under legal advice, sur- 
 rendered his vessel with the intention 
 of referring the matter to his govern- 
 ment. Only five of the crew were 
 detained by the British commander. 
 These were impressed into the service 
 of the royal navy, and the remainder 
 were sent back. The Baltimore was re- 
 leased, and the British sf|uadron sailed 
 away with the three merchant-vessels as 
 prizes. 
 
 This outrage — this practical applica- 
 tion of the claims of the British govern- 
 ment to the right of searching American 
 vessels without leave and taking sea- 
 men from them without redress — 
 lighted a flame of hot indignation 
 throughout our republic. But, at that 
 time, the American government, like 
 that of England, was strongly influ- 
 enced, if not controlled, by the mer- 
 cantile interest which had become very 
 potential. The American cabinet in 
 their obsequious deference to Great 
 Britain had actually instructed the naval 
 commanders not to molest the cruisers 
 of any nation (the French excepted) on 
 any account — not even to save a ves- 
 sel of their own nation. The pusillan- 
 imity of this policy was now aggravated 
 by an act of flagrant injustice and cow- 
 ardice on the part of our government, 
 that made the cheeks of true patriots 
 crimson with shame. Captain Phillips 
 was dismissed from the navy, without 
 trial, because he had surrendered his 
 vessel without making a show of re- 
 
 sistance, and no notice was taken of the 
 outrage by the British commander! 
 
 During the year 1799, the .\merican 
 navy was much strengthened by the 
 launching and putting into commission 
 of several new vessels. In February, 
 the frigate Constellation. Commodore 
 Truxton commanding, fell in with and 
 captured the famous French frigate 
 L'Insurgentc, of 44 guns and 409 men, 
 off the Island of Nevis, in the West 
 Indies. The American and English 
 press teemed with eulogies of Truxton. 
 
 At the beginning of February, 1800, 
 Truxton, in the Constellation, gained a 
 victory over the French frigate La 
 J'engeance, of 54 guns and 500 men. 
 The battle was fought on the 1st of 
 February, off Guadaloupe. In conse- 
 (luence of the falling of the mainmast 
 of the Constellation, the supporting 
 shrouds of which had been cut away, 
 the Vengeance escaped. For this ex- 
 ploit Congress gave Truxton a gold 
 medal. La I'engeance would have been 
 a rich prize. She had on board a large 
 amount of merchandise and specie, and 
 the governor of Guadaloupe and his 
 family returning to France. The con- 
 vention at Paris brought peace, and the 
 navy of the United States was soon 
 called into another field of service. 
 
 The action of President Adams in the 
 nomination of envoys to France before 
 official intimations from the Directory 
 that negotiations were desirable haci 
 been received, caused very serious di- 
 visions in the Federal party. Hostile 
 feelings already existing, were thereby 
 intensified, and the speedy downfall of 
 the Federal party, as a. controlling 
 power in the government, was charged 
 to the errors of judgment and temper 
 on the part of Mr. Adams. He had 
 already become unpopular because of 
 his obstinacy and ])ersonal strictures. 
 Very vain and egotistical, he was sen- 
 sitive and jealous. His judgment was 
 often swayed by his vivid imagination. 
 His prejudices were violent and im- 
 placable, and his honesty and frank- 
 ness, which made him almost a stranger 
 to policy and expediency, made him 
 very indiscreet in his expressions of 
 opinions concerning men and measures. 
 
THE HOME AUXILIARY AXD REFEREXCE 
 
 These characteristics made him an un- 
 til leader of a great party. Persons who 
 disagreed with him concerning meas- 
 ures of puWic policy, he regarded as 
 personal enemies, and for this reason 
 his feelings toward Hamilton were as 
 bitter as ever were those of Jefferson. 
 The consequence was that he was at 
 vi'.riance with many of the leaders of the 
 Federal party, who, regarding him as a 
 Jonah, laid a plan to defeat his re-elec- 
 tion to the Presidency — an event which 
 they knew he earnestly desired should 
 take place. The cunning Democrats 
 fanned the flame of separation in the 
 Federal party. Mr. Adams's political 
 partisans succeeded in the scheme for 
 his defeat : but they did no more. They 
 defeated the Federal party. The Demo- 
 cratic candidate for President, Mr. Jef- 
 ferson, was elected, with Aaron Burr 
 as \'ice-President. The controlling 
 power of that party, in the government, 
 was then lost forever, after a most use- 
 ful existence of about ten years. The 
 odium in which Adams's administration 
 was held was in consequence of the pas- 
 sage of the Alien and Sedition Laws 
 which he favored — laws which author- 
 ized the President to expel aliens from 
 our countrv under certain conditions. 
 and by which citizens might be punished 
 by fine and imprisonment who might 
 combine in opposing government mea.s- 
 ures. or who might resist the govern- 
 ment in words, in a "false and scanda- 
 lous manner." Hamilton deprecated 
 the laws and wrote: "Let us not estab- 
 lish a tyranny. Energy is a very differ- 
 ent thing from violence." He saw the 
 danger, and wrote prophetically: "If 
 we push things to the extreme, we shall 
 then give to faction body and solidity." 
 
 In the closing month of the 1 8th 
 century the inhabitants of the young 
 republic were bereaved by the death of 
 Washington. 
 
 (jn the 13th of December, 179Q. 
 \\ ashington was exposed to a storm of 
 sleet, and took cold. The malady in- 
 creased in intensity, and before mid- 
 night the spirit of the Beloved Patriot 
 took ita flight 
 
 TEFFERSOX'S ADMINISTRA- 
 TION. 
 
 In the summer and autumn of the 
 vcar iSoo, the seat of the national gov- 
 ernment was transferred from Phila- 
 delphia to the embryo city of Washing- 
 ton, on the banks of the Potomac and 
 at the verge of a Maryland forest. 
 
 The City of Washington was laid out 
 on a magnificent scale, in 1791. with 
 broad avenues bearing the names of the 
 several States of the Union radiating 
 from the hill on which the Capitol was 
 built, with streets intersecting them in 
 such a peculiar way that they have ever 
 been a puzzle to strangers. The corn- 
 erstone of the Capitol was laid by 
 Washington, hi April, 1793, with ma- 
 sonic ceremonies. Only the two wings 
 were first built, and these were not 
 completed until 1808. 
 
 The site for the citj' was a dreary 
 one. At the time when the govern- 
 ment was first seated there, only a 
 path, leading through an alder swamp 
 on the line of the present Pennsylvania 
 Avenue, was the way of communica- 
 tion between the President's house and 
 the Capitol. For awhile the executive 
 and legislative officers of the govern- 
 ment were compelled to suffer many 
 privations there. 
 
 ^Ir. Jefferson began his administra- 
 tion on the 4th of ^larch, 1801, under 
 favorable auspices. 
 
 Mr. Jefferson indicated his policy, as 
 follows, in a letter to Nathaniel Macon : 
 "i. Levees are done away with. 2. The 
 first communication to the next Con- 
 gress will be. like all subsequent ones, 
 by message, to which no answer will be 
 expected. 3. The diplomatic establish- 
 ment in Europe will be reduced to three 
 ministers. 4. The compensation of col- 
 lectors depends on you (Congress), and 
 not on me. 3. The army is undergoing 
 a chaste reformation. 6. The navy will 
 be reduced to the legal establishment by 
 the last of this month (May, 1801). 7. 
 Agencies in even,' department will be 
 revised. 8. We shall push you to the 
 uttermost in economizing. 9. A very 
 early recommendation has been given to 
 the Postmaster-General to emiiloy no 
 
SIXTH PERIOD— JEFFERSON'S ADMIXISTRATIOX 
 
 printer, foreigner, or Revolutionary 
 Tory in any of his offices." Mr. Jefifer- 
 son appointed James Madison, Secre- 
 tary of State; Henry Dearborn, Secre- 
 tary of War; and Levi Lincoln, Attor- 
 ney-General; He retained Mr. Adams's 
 Secretaries of Treasury and Navy, un- 
 til the following autumn, when Albert 
 Gallatin, a naturalized foreigner, was 
 appointed to the first-named office, and 
 Robert Smith, to the second. The Pres- 
 ident early resolved to reward his pol- 
 itical friends, when he came to "revise" 
 the "agencies in every department." 
 Three days after his inauguration he 
 wrote to Colonel Monroe: "I have 
 firmly refused to follow the counsels 
 of those who have desired the giving 
 of offices to some of the Federalist lead- 
 ers in order to reconcile. I have given, 
 and will give, only to Republicans, 
 under existing circumstanres." The 
 doctrine, ever since acted upon, that "to 
 the victor belongs the spoils," was then 
 practically promulgated from the foun- 
 tain-head of the government patronage ; 
 and with a Cabinet wholly Democratic 
 when Congress met in December, 1800, 
 and with the minor offices filled with his 
 political friends, Mr. JefTerson began 
 his Presidential career of eight years" 
 duration. 
 
 The insolence of the North African 
 pirates now became unbearable, and the 
 United States resolved to cease paying 
 tribute to the Barbary Powers. Captain 
 Bainbridge had been sent, in 1800, in 
 the frigate George Washington, to pay 
 the usual tribute to the Dey of .Algiers, 
 and had been treated with cruel inso- 
 lence by that ruler. After performing 
 the errand courteously, and when he 
 was about to leave, the Dey commanded 
 Bainbridge to carrj- an Algerian ambas- 
 sador to the Court of the Sultan of 
 Constantinople. Bainbridge politely re- 
 fused compliance, when the haughty 
 governor said : "You pay me tribute, by 
 which you become my slave, and there- 
 fore I have a right to order you as I 
 think proper." Bainbridge could not 
 sail out of the harbor of Algiers with- 
 out the permission of the vigilant guns 
 of the castle, and was compelled to 
 yield. He bore the swarthy ambassador 
 
 to the Golden Horn, when the .Sultan 
 saw our starry-flag for the first time. 
 He had never heard of the United 
 States of America. His own flag was 
 garnished with a crescent, and he con- 
 sidered it a favorable omen for a flag 
 bearing the stars of heaven to enter the 
 waters of the seat of the Moslem Em- 
 pire. 
 
 Bainbridge was granted a firman to 
 protect him from further insolence 
 from the Barbary rulers, and he u.sed 
 it efficiently. When he returned to Al- 
 giers, he was ordered by the Dey to 
 go on another errand to Constantinople, 
 when the captain peremptorily refused. 
 The African, enraged, sprang from his 
 seat, and threatening Bainbridge with 
 personal injury, ordered his attendants 
 to seize him. Bainbridge quietly pro- 
 duced the firman, when the lion became 
 like a lamb. The Dey obsequiously of- 
 fered the man whom he had just re- 
 garded as his slave, his friendship and 
 service. Bainbridge. assuming the air 
 of a dictator, demanded the instant re- 
 lease of the French consul and fifty or 
 sixty of his own countrymen, whom 
 the Dey had imprisoned, and they were 
 borne away in the Washington in tri- 
 umph. Then he wrote to the Secretary 
 of the Navy : "I hope I shall never again 
 be sent to Algiers with tributes, unless 
 I am authorized to deliver it from the 
 mouth of our cannon." 
 
 In the spring of 1801, President Jef- 
 ferson, in anticipation of troubles with 
 the Barbary powers, ordered Commo- 
 dore Dale to go with a squadron, com- 
 posed of the frigates President, Phila- 
 delphia, Essex and Enterprise, to 
 cruise ofif the North African coasts. 
 Dale reached Gibraltar on the first of 
 July, and found that Tripoli had lately 
 declared war against the United States, 
 and its corsairs were out upon the sea. 
 His presence efifectually restrained the 
 pirates, and made them quite circum- 
 spect. The next year a larger squad- 
 ron, composed of the frigates Chesa- 
 peake, Constitution. Xezv York, John 
 Adams, Adams and Enterprise, com- 
 manded by Commodore Richard \'. 
 ^Morris, were sent to the same waters, 
 one after another, from February to 
 
THE HOME AUXILIARY AND REFERENCE 
 
 September. The harbor of Tripoli was 
 blockaded in May, and not long after- 
 ward the Chesapeake, Lieutenant 
 Chauncey acting captain, had a severe 
 fight with a flotilla of Tripolitan gun- 
 boats. These, as well as some cavalry 
 on shore, were severely handled by this 
 frigate. Finally, in 1803, the whole 
 squadron appeared off the coasts of the 
 Barbary powers, and effectually pro- 
 tected American commerce from the 
 corsairs, for awhile. But Morris's 
 cruise was not regarded as an efficient 
 one. A court of inquiry decided that 
 he had not "discovered due diligence 
 and activity in annoying the enemy," 
 and the President dismissed him from 
 the service without trial. 
 
 In August, 1803, Commodore Preble, 
 in command of a squadron, sailed for 
 the Mediterranean in the frigate Con- 
 stitution. After settling some difficul- 
 ties with the Emperor of Morocco, 
 whose corsairs were on the sea, he ap- 
 peared with his vessel before the har- 
 bor of Tripoli, where a serious disaster 
 occurred. The frigate Philadelphia, 
 commanded by Captain Bainbridge, 
 while reconnoitering the harbor, struck 
 a rock and was captured by the Tri- 
 politains. Her officers were made pris- 
 oners-of-war, and her crew were made 
 slaves. When the news reached Preble 
 at Malta, a plan was devised for the de- 
 struction of the Philadelphia before 
 her captors could make her ready for 
 sea. Lieutenant Decatur, with seventy- 
 four volunteers — ardent and gallant 
 young men like himself — sailed from 
 Syracuse in a small vessel called a 
 "ketch," named the Intrepid. She en- 
 tered the harbor of Tripoli on the 
 evening of the 3d of February, 1804, 
 in the disguise of a vessel in distress, 
 and was moored alongside the Phila- 
 delphia. Decatur and his men were 
 concealed below, when suddenly they 
 burst from the hatches like a destruc- 
 tive flame, leaped on board the Phila- 
 delphia, and after a desperate fight, 
 killed or drove into the sea her turban- 
 ed occupants. Then they set her on 
 fire and escaped by the light, under 
 cover of a heavy cannonade from the 
 American squadron, and followed by 
 
 shots from the castle, vessels at anchor 
 in the harbor, and batteries on shore. 
 Yet not one of Decatur's men was 
 harmed. Before a favoring breeze 
 they sailed to Syracuse, where they 
 were greeted with joy by the American 
 squadron there. The scene of the 
 burning vessel was magnificent. As 
 the guns of the Philadelphia were 
 heated, they were discharged, giving a 
 grand feu de joie for the victory. 
 
 This bold act alarmed the Bashaw, 
 and subsequent events made him very 
 discreet. In August following, Preble, 
 with his squadron, opened a heavy bom- 
 bardment upon his town, castle, shore- 
 batteries and flotilla of gun-boats, no 
 less than four times, between the 3d 
 and the 28th. In one of these engage- 
 ments Decatur again distinguished 
 himself. In command of a gun-boat, he 
 laid her alongside one of the largest 
 of the Tripolitan vessels, boarded her, 
 aud made her a prize. Then he boarded 
 another, when he had a desperate per- 
 sonal encounter with her powerful cap- 
 tain. The struggle was brief but fear- 
 ful. Decatur killed his antagonist, and 
 the vessel was captured. Finally, on 
 the 28th of August, Preble, with his 
 flag-ship, the Constitution, entered the 
 harbor, when her great guns opened 
 a heavy fire upon the town, the castle, 
 the batteries on shore and the camps of 
 twenty-five thousand land troops, and 
 the flotilla in the harbor. She silenced 
 the Tripolitan guns, sunk a Tunisian 
 vessel-of-war, damaged a Spanish one, 
 severely bruised the enemy's galleys and 
 gun-boats, and then withdrew without 
 a man hurt. 
 
 Another attack was made on the 2d 
 of September. On that night — a very 
 dark one — the Intrepid, which had been 
 converted into a floating mine — an im- 
 mense torpedo — with one hundred bar- 
 rels of gimpowder below her deck, and 
 a large quantity of shot, shell and ir- 
 regular pieces of iron lying over them, 
 went into the harbor under the general 
 direction of Captain Somers, to scatter 
 destruction among the vessels of the 
 enemy. She was towed in by two 
 boats, with brave crews, in which it 
 was expected all would escape, after 
 
SIXTH PERIOD— JEFFERSON'S ADMINISTRATION 
 
 203 
 
 firing combustibles on board of her. 
 All hearts in the American sciuadron 
 followed the Intrepid as she disap- 
 ])eared in the gloom. Suddenly a lurid 
 llame, like that from a volcano, shot 
 up from the bosom of the harbor, and 
 lighted with its horrid glare the town, 
 castle, batteries, ships camps and sur- 
 rounding hills. It was followed by an 
 cx])losion that shook the earth and sea, 
 and flaming masts and sails and fiery 
 bombs rained upon the waters for a 
 moment, when darkness more pro- 
 found settled upon the scene. The saf- 
 ety-boats were anxiously watched for 
 until the dawn. They never returned, 
 and no mar> of that perilous expedi- 
 tion was heard of afterward. Their 
 names are inscribed upon a monument 
 elected to the memory of these brave 
 men, and the event, that stands at the 
 western front of the Capitol at Wash- 
 ington city. Hostilities on the Barbary 
 coast now ceased for the season. Preble 
 was relieved by Commodore Samuel 
 I'.arron, and early in 1805 he returned 
 home and received the homage of the 
 nation's gratitude. 
 
 While Barron's ships blockaded Trip- 
 oli, an important land movement against 
 that province was undertaken, under 
 the general management of William 
 Eaton, American consul at Tunis. The 
 reigning Bashaw of Tripoli was an 
 ursurper, who had murdered his father 
 and taken the seat of power from his 
 brother, Hamet Caramalli. The latter 
 had fled to Egypt. A plan was con- 
 certed between him and General Eaton 
 for the restoration of his rights. The 
 latter acted under the sanction of his 
 government. Eaton went to Egypt, and 
 at the beginning of ?ilarch he left Alex- 
 andria, accompanied by liamet and his 
 followers, some Egyptian soldiers, and 
 seventy United States seamen. They 
 made a march of a thousand miles 
 across the borders of the Libyan desert ; 
 and at near the close of April, in con- 
 junction with two American vessels, 
 they captured the Tripolitan city of 
 Derne, on the borders of the Medi- 
 terranean Sea. They had defeated the 
 Tripolitan forces in two battles, and 
 were about to march on the capital 
 
 when news came that the American 
 consul-general (Tobias Lear) had made 
 a treaty of peace with the terrified 
 Bashaw. So ended the hopes of Hamet, 
 and also the four years' war with Trip- 
 oli. But the ruler of Tunis was yet 
 insolent. He was speedily humbled by 
 Commodore Rodgers, Barron's succes- 
 sor, and the power of the L^nited States 
 was respected and feared by the half- 
 barbarians of the north of Africa. Pope 
 Pius the Seventh declared that the 
 Aimericans had done more for Christen- 
 dom against the pirates than all the 
 powers of Europe united. 
 
 In 1802 JelYerson learned with alarm 
 that Spain had in 1800 secretly ceded 
 back to France all the territory gained 
 after the French and Indian war. The 
 importance to us arose from the fact 
 that this territory called Louisiana con- 
 trolled the navigation of the Mississippi, 
 which was of vast importance to the 
 people of Tennessee, Kentucky and 
 Ohio, which had just been admitted as 
 a State (1802). We had succeeded in 
 getting from Spain the right to freely 
 navigate the river through her terri- 
 tory, and what was of more import- 
 ance, obtained the privilege of making 
 New Orleans a base of deposit for our 
 merchandise. This concession, how- 
 ever, was suddenly revoked, with the 
 result that our trade was ruined. Jef- 
 ferson accordingly instructed Edward 
 Livingston, our Rlinister to Paris, to 
 urge strongly upon Napoleon the pur- 
 chase on our part of what was called 
 "the island of New Orleans" on the east 
 side of the river. Talleyrand at first 
 conducted the negotiation with his usual 
 baffling policy, until Monroe arrived in 
 Paris, who joined Livingston in the 
 negotiations. Suddenly Najwleon 
 turned on Livingston and asked him 
 how he would like to buy the whole 
 Louisiana territory, stretching from the 
 Mississippi river to Mexico and the 
 Rocky Mountains. Such a proposition 
 came very much as would now an otter 
 of Great Britain to sell us the whole 
 of the Dominion of Canada. Livings- 
 ton consulted Monroe, and, though they 
 were without authority, resolved to 
 make the bargain, not without a feel- 
 
THE HO^rE AUXILIARY AND REFERENCE 
 
 ing that there was some uherior motive 
 on the part of Kapoleon. The chief 
 motive was money, of which the con- 
 queror stood in great need, and also 
 the fact that he had no means of de- 
 fending the territory against the Brit- 
 ish fleet, and that his enemy might de- 
 prive him of it. The bargain was 
 (juickly struck. Talleyrand not appear- 
 ing in this negotiation, because of the 
 X. Y. Z. controversy. Napoleon's min- 
 mum was 50,000,000 francs, but Barbe- 
 Alarbois, who acted for him, offered 
 first to sell for 100,000,000, and finally 
 took 80,000,000, which would equal 
 about $15,000,000 of our money, ac- 
 cording to the rate of exchange. We 
 were to pay $11,250,000 in 6 per cent, 
 bonds and assume $3,750,000 of claims 
 of our own people against France for 
 the spoilations of our commerce. We 
 agreed to give French shipping equal 
 rights with ours for twelve years, and 
 forever on the basis of the most fav- 
 ored Nation. The ceded citizens were 
 assured the rights in religion and prop- 
 erty and were in due time to become 
 citizens. This took but a few days to 
 settle, and our commissioners were as- 
 tounded at their success. Finding, after 
 the bargain was struck, that the terms 
 delimiting this territory were indefinite, 
 they tried later to find whether Louis- 
 iana included the Florida, but were met 
 with evasive answers. We got all that 
 Spain got from France, but whether 
 this included West Florida or not was 
 uncertain. It would not do to ask 
 Spain, for that Nation was ignorant of 
 the transaction, and great was her 
 wrath on hearing of it, when it was too 
 late. She then resisted our effort to 
 include even West Florida in the ces- 
 sion, but we finally took it by force. 
 The southwestern boundary was not 
 stated and not settled for many .years. 
 The treaty was signed i\Iay 2, 1803, 
 and great was the excitement in .Amer- 
 ica when the news became known. The 
 treaty was ratified in spite of Jeffer- 
 son's own belief that it was unconsti- 
 tutional thus to acquire territory, and 
 the objections from the East that it 
 would ruin the country. In spite of all 
 fears the people considered it a good 
 
 bargain and decided that the sovereignty 
 of the Nation gave the right to acquire 
 territory as might be desired. Thus by 
 a stroke of the pen our territory was 
 almost doubled. 
 
 The same year when Louisiana was 
 bought. President Jefferson, by a con- 
 fidential message to Congress, recom- 
 mended an appropriation, which was 
 made, to defray the expenses of the 
 Lewis and Clark e.xpedition to explore 
 the \^'est, detailed elsewhere in this 
 volume. Michigan was erected into a 
 Territory in the year 1805, and all 
 along the Mississippi settlements were 
 taking deep root and flourishing. 
 
 At that time there was. a prevailing 
 opinion in our country that the Span- 
 ish inhabitants in Louisiana would not 
 quietly submit to the rule of our gov- 
 ernment. Taking advantage of this be- 
 lief, and the restless spirits of the in- 
 habitants who were forming States in 
 the Great \'alley, Aaron Burr, an ard- 
 ent politician and expert and unscrupu- 
 lous intriguer, who had been Vice- 
 President of the United States during 
 Jefferson's first term, thought he saw 
 an opportunity to make circumstances 
 subservient to his own ambitious views. 
 In the summer of 1804 he had murdered 
 General Hamilton in a duel, and became 
 an outcast from society. He was tol- 
 erated only by his political party, and 
 was not renominated by Mr. Jefferson. 
 
 In the spring of 1805 Burr departed 
 for the West, giving deceptive reasons 
 for his journey. He went down the 
 Ohio River in an open boat, and on a 
 pleasant morning in May he appeared 
 at the charming island home of Herman 
 Blennerhassett. 
 
 Into that paradise the wily serpent 
 crept, and repeated the story of the 
 fall. Mrs. Blennerhassett, an ambitious 
 woman, with an enthusiastic nature, 
 ^\as tempted by the apple of liurr's se- 
 ductive promises of wealth, power and 
 immortal honors, and she persuaded 
 her husband to eat of the fruit. He 
 placed his fortune and reputation at 
 the disposal of that heartless dema- 
 gogue, and lost both. He was driven 
 by necessity from his lost paradise, and 
 died in comparative poverty. 
 
SIXTH PERIOD—JEFFERSON'S ADMINISTRATION 
 
 Burr, at first, gained the confidence 
 of that stern patriot, Andrew Jackson, 
 whom he visited at his log-dwelling at 
 the "Hermitage," near Nashville. They 
 corresponded for a time after Burr re- 
 turned to the East in the fall of 1805, 
 and so active were the schemer and his 
 few partisans in the West in 1806 that 
 a military organization was partly ef- 
 fected. He had overcome General Wil- 
 kinson with his wiles ; and so strong 
 was the confidence of Jackson in the 
 integrity of Burr, that when the latter 
 again visited the Hermitage early in 
 the autumn of 1806, the former pro- 
 cured for him a public ball at Nash- 
 ville, at which the tall hero, in military 
 dress, led the little adventurer in his 
 suit of black into the room, and intro- 
 duced him to the ladies and gentlemen 
 present. Circumstances soon afterward 
 caused Jackson to suspect Burr's fidel- 
 ity to his country, and he communicated 
 his suspicions to Governor Claiborne at 
 New Orleans. The national govern- 
 ment received similar warnings, and 
 took measures to crush the viper in its 
 egg. Burr's arrest was ordered, and 
 this was accomplished in February, 
 1807, near Fort Stoddart, in Alabama, 
 by Lieutenant (afterward Major-Gen- 
 eral ) E. P. Gaines. Burr was taken 
 to Richmond, in Virginia, and there 
 tried for treason. The evidence seemed 
 to show that his probable design was an 
 invasion of the Mexican provinces and 
 not a disseverance of the Union, and 
 he was acquitted. 
 
 At about this time when Burr con- 
 ceived his schemes, trouble between 
 Spain and the United States had oc- 
 curred, and, for awhile, threatened to 
 kindle a flame of war between the two 
 governments. But the boundaries were 
 amicably settled by satisfactory defini- 
 tions, and the clouds passed away. 
 
 The First Consul of France had pro- 
 cured his election to a seat on an im- 
 perial throne, in the spring of 1804; 
 and on the 2d of December following, 
 he appeared before the altar of the 
 Church of Notre Dame, in Paris, where 
 he was consecrated "The High and 
 Mighty Napoleon the First, Emperor of 
 the French." In 1806, he was monarch 
 
 of Italy, and his three brothers were 
 made ruling sovereigns. Then he was 
 upon the full tide of successful domi- 
 nation, and a large part of continental 
 Europe was prostrate at his feet. Eng- 
 land had joined the continental powers 
 against him in 1803, in order to crush 
 out the Democratic revolution which 
 liad occurred in France, and threatened 
 the peace of the United Kingdom ; and 
 the British navy had almost destroyed 
 the French power on the sea. At the 
 same time American shipping enjoyed 
 the privilege of free intercourse between 
 the ports of England and France, and 
 pursued a very profitable carr)ing 
 trade which unforeseen circumstances 
 soon destroyed. 
 
 The envious shipping-merchants of 
 Great Ijritain, and her navy officers 
 and pri\'ateers who could then obtain 
 \ery few prizes lawfully, represented to 
 their government that the Americans, 
 under the guise of neutrality, were sec- 
 retly aiding the French. This hint 
 caused that government to revive in full 
 force the "rule of 1756" concerning 
 neutrals ; and orders were secretly is- 
 sued authorizing British cruisers t6 
 seize and British admiralty courts to 
 condenui as prizes American vessels 
 and their cargoes that might be captured 
 by British cruisers. 
 
 The depredations of these cruisers 
 upon American commerce were com- 
 menced under the most frivolous and 
 absurd pretexts, and the most intense 
 indignation was aroused throughout the 
 United States. Memorials from mer- 
 chants in all the seaboard towns and 
 cities were presented to Congress, in 
 which the Democrats, with Mr. Jeffer- 
 son (just re-elected) at their head, had 
 an overwhelming majority. This and 
 other grievances inflicted by the Brit- 
 ish government were discussed. Among 
 them the alleged right of search which 
 the British put forth, was paramount ; 
 and on the recommendation of the 
 President, Congress, in the spring of 
 1806, jiassed an act prohibiting the im- 
 portation into the United States of 
 many of the more important manufac- 
 tures of Great Britain, after the first 
 of November following. In May Wil- 
 
206 
 
 THE HOME AUXILIARY AXD REFERENCE 
 
 lliain Pinckney was sent to London to 
 join Mr. Monroe, the American min- 
 ister there, in negotiating a treaty with 
 the British government concerning the 
 rights of neutrals, the impressment of 
 seamen, and the right of search. A 
 treaty was finally signed, but as it did 
 not offer security to American vessels 
 against the aggressions of British cruis- 
 ers in searching for and carrying off 
 seamen, the President would not lay it 
 before the Senate. 
 
 A new difficulty now arose. In their 
 anxiety to injure each other, the British 
 and French governments ceased to re- 
 spect the rights of other nations, and 
 dealt heavy blows at the life of the 
 commerce of the world. In this busi- 
 ness Great Britain took the lead. On 
 the i6th of May (1806) that govern- 
 ment, by an order in council, declared 
 the whole coast of Europe from the 
 Elbe to Brest to be in a state of block- 
 ade. Napoleon retaliated by issuing a 
 decree from Berlin on the 21st of No- 
 vember, in which he declared all the 
 British islands to be in a state of block- 
 ade. This was intended as a blow 
 against Britain's maritime supremacy, 
 and was the beginning of the Emperor's 
 "Continental System," designed to ruin 
 Great Britain. The latter, by another 
 order in council issued January, 1807, 
 prohibited all coast trade with France. 
 So these desperate powers played with 
 the world's commerce in their mad ef- 
 forts to injure each other. American 
 vessels were seized by both English and 
 French cruisers, and American com- 
 merce dwindled to a merely coast trade. 
 Our republic lacked a competent navy 
 to protect our commerce on the high 
 seas; and the swarm of gun-boats 
 (small sailing-vessels having each a can- 
 non in the bow and stern), which Con- 
 gress had authorized from time to time, 
 were insufficient for a coast-guard. 
 
 Early in 1807, American commerce 
 was almost swept from the sea by the 
 operations of the "orders" and "de- 
 crees." The French had withheld the 
 operation of the decrees for full a year, 
 but the British cruisers had been let 
 loose at once. This produced bitter 
 feeling toward the government of (ireat 
 
 Hritain on the part of the .\mcricans, 
 and this was intensified by the haughty 
 assertion and offensive practice of the 
 British doctrine of the right of search 
 for suspected deserters from the royal 
 navy, and to carry away the suspected 
 without hindrance. This right was 
 claimed on the ground that a British- 
 born subject could never expatriate 
 himself, and that his government might 
 take him, wherever found, and place 
 him in the army or navy, although, by 
 legal process, he may have been a citizen 
 of another nation. This right of search 
 and seizure had been strenuously denied 
 and its policy strongly condemned, be- 
 cause American seamen might be thus 
 forced into the British service under 
 the false pretext that they were desert- 
 ers. Thij had already happened. It 
 had been proven, after thorough inves- 
 tigation, that since the promulgation of 
 the British rule of 1756, a dozen years 
 before, nearly three hundred seamen, a 
 greater portion of them Americans, had 
 been taken from vessels and pressed 
 into the British service. 
 
 A crisis now approached. A small 
 British squadron lay in American 
 waters near the mouth of the Chesa- 
 peake Bay, watching some French frig- 
 ates blockaded at Annapolis, in the 
 spring of 1807. Three of the crew of 
 (jne of the vessels, and one of another 
 had deserted, and enlisted on board the 
 United States frigate Chesapeake, lying 
 at the Washington Navy Yard. The 
 British minister made a formal demand 
 for their surrender. Our govern/nent 
 refused compliance, because it was as- 
 certained that two of the men (one 
 colored) were natives of the United 
 States, and there was strong presump- 
 tive evidence that a third was, likewise. 
 No more was said, but the commander 
 of the British squadron took the mat- 
 ter into his own hands. The Chesa- 
 peake, on going to sea on the morning 
 of the 22d of June ( 1807), bearing the 
 broad pennant of Commodore Barron, 
 was intercepted by the British frigate 
 Leopard, whose commander hailed the 
 commoilore and informed him that he 
 had a dispatch for him. L^nsuspicious 
 of unfriendliness, the Chesapeake was 
 
SIXTFl PERIOD— JEFFERSONS' ADMINISTRATION 
 
 laid to. when a British boat bearing a 
 iHeutenant came alongside. That offi- 
 cer was politely received by Barron, in 
 his cabin, when the former presented 
 a demand from the commander of the 
 Leopard to allow the bearer to muster 
 the crew of the Chesapeake, that he 
 might select and carry away the alleged 
 deserters. The demand was author- 
 ized by instructions received from 
 Vice-Admiral Berkeley, at Halifax. 
 Barron told the lieutenant that iiis 
 crew should not be mustered, e.xcepting 
 his own officers, when the latter with- 
 drew and the Chesapeake moved on. 
 
 Barron, suspecting mischief, had 
 caused his vessel to be prepared for 
 action as far as possible. The Leopard 
 followed, and her commander called 
 out to the commodore through his 
 trumpet: "Commodore Barron must 
 be aware that the vice-admiral's com- 
 mands must be obeyed." This was re- 
 peated. The Chesapeake kept on her 
 way, when the Leopard sent two shot.s 
 athwart her bows. These were followed 
 by the remainder of the broadside that 
 poured shot into the -hull of the Chesa- 
 peake. The latter was unable to re- 
 turn the fire, for her guns had no 
 priming powder. Not a shot could be 
 returned ; and after being severely 
 bruised by repeated broadsides, she 
 was surrendered to the assailant. Her 
 crew was mustered by British officers ; 
 the deserters were carried away, and 
 the Chesapeake was left to pursue her 
 voyage or return. The "vice-admiral's 
 command" had been obeyed. One of 
 the deserters, who was a British sub- 
 ject, was hung at Halifax, and the 
 three Americans were spared from the 
 gallows only on the condition that they 
 should re-enter the British service. 
 
 The indignation of the American 
 people was hot because of this outrage. 
 The President i.'^sued a proclamation at 
 the beginning of July, ordering all 
 British armed vessels to leave the 
 waters of the United States, and for- 
 bidding any to enter them until ample 
 satisfaction should be given. A de- 
 mand for redress was made upon the 
 British government, when an envoy ex 
 
 iraordinary was sent to Washington 
 city to settle the difficulty. He was in- 
 structed to do nothing until the Presi- 
 dent's proclamation should be with- 
 drawn. So the matter stood for more 
 than four years, when, in 1811, the 
 P.ritish government disavowed the act. 
 Meanwhile Commodore Barron had 
 been tried on a charge of neglect of 
 duty in not being prepared for action, 
 found guilty, and suspended from ser- 
 vice for five years without pay or 
 emolument. 
 
 During the year 1807, American 
 genius and enterprise achieved a great 
 triumph in science and art, by the 
 successful and permanent establish- 
 ment of navigation by the power of 
 steam. This was the second of the 
 great and beneficient achievements 
 which have distinguished American in- 
 ventors during the last eighty years. 
 The cotton-gin, invented by Eli Whit- 
 ney, was the first; an implement that 
 can do the work of a thousand persons 
 ill cleaning cotton-wool of the seeds. 
 
 Another heavy blow was struck at 
 American commerce late in 1807. A 
 British order in council issued on the 
 nth of November, forbade all neutral 
 nations to trade with France or her 
 allies, except upon the payment of a 
 tribute to Great Britain. Napoleon re- 
 taliated by issuing a decree at Milan, in 
 Italy, on the 17th of December, for- 
 bidding all trade with England and her 
 colonies; and authorizing the confisca- 
 tion of any vessel found in his port.« 
 which had submitted to English search, 
 or paid the tribute exacted. These edicts 
 almost stopped the commercial opera- 
 tions of the civilized world. American 
 foreign commerce was annihilated. 
 The President had called Congress to- 
 gether at an earlier day ( October 25 ) 
 than usual, to consider the critical state 
 of public affairs ; and in a confidential 
 message, he recommended that body to 
 pass an act levying a commercial em- 
 bargo. Such an act was passed on the 
 22d of December, 1807, by which all 
 American and foreign vessels in our 
 ports were detained and all American 
 vessels abroad were ordered home iin- 
 
208 
 
 THE HOME AUXILIARY AND REFERENCE 
 
 mediately, that the seamen might he 
 trained for the impending war in de- 
 fence of sacred rights. 
 
 This act caused widespread distress 
 in commercial communities, and the 
 firmness of the government and the 
 patriotism of the people were severely 
 tried for more than a year, under ag- 
 gravated insults by the Britisli govern- 
 ment which exacted tribute in a form 
 more odious than that of the North 
 African robbers. In the spring of 
 1808, the British Parliament, with an 
 air of condescension, passed an act per- 
 mitting Americans to trade with 
 France and her dependencies, on the 
 condition that vessels engaged in such 
 trade should first enter some British 
 port, pay a transit duty, and take out 
 a license. 
 
 The embargo failed to obtain from 
 France or Great Britain the slightest 
 acknowledgment of American rights, 
 and it was repealed on the first day of 
 ]\Iarch, iSog — three days before Mr. 
 Jefferson left the Presidential chair to 
 make room for James Madison, who 
 had been elected to succeed him as 
 chief magistrate of the republic. On 
 the same day Congress passed an act 
 forbidding all commercial intercourse 
 with France and Great Britain until the 
 "orders in council" and the "decrees" 
 should be repealed. 
 
 JAMES MADISON'S AD:\1INIS- 
 TRATION 
 
 James Madison began his adminis- 
 tration with George Clinton, of New 
 York, as Vice-President, during this 
 troublesome time in our Country's his- 
 tory. 
 
 It was believed that the new Presi- 
 dent would perpetuate the policy of 
 Jefiferson ; but when, dressed in a suit 
 of plain black cloth, he modestly pro- 
 nounced his inaugural address before 
 a multitude of eager spectators, on the 
 4th of ^larch, i8oq, the tone and tem- 
 per of that speech fell like oil upon 
 troubled waters. His most placable 
 political enemies who heard him, and 
 those who read the address, could not 
 refrain from uttering words of appro- 
 
 bation ; and the whole nation enter- 
 tained hopes that his measures might 
 change the gloomy aspect of public 
 affairs. He had able constitutional ad- 
 visors in Robert Smith, as Secretary 
 of State ; Albert Gallatin, Secretary of 
 the Treasury; William Eustis, Secretary 
 of War; Paul Hamilton, Secretary of 
 the Navy, and Csesar Rodney, At- 
 torney-General. 
 
 At the beginning of his administra- 
 tion, Madison was assured by the 
 British minister at Washington (Mr. 
 Erskinc) that such portions of the or- 
 ders in council as affected the United 
 States would be repealed by the loth 
 of June; and that a special envoy would 
 be sent by his government to adjust all 
 matters in dispute. Regarding these 
 assurances as official, the event seemed 
 like a ray of sunlight among the tem- 
 pestuous clouds. The President issued 
 a proclamation on the 19th of April 
 ( 1809), permitting a renewal of com- 
 mercial intercourse with Great Britain 
 from that day ; but the British govern- 
 ment disavowed Erskine's act, and in 
 August the President, by proclamation, 
 renewed the restrictions. This event 
 produced intense excitement through- 
 out our country ; and had the President 
 then proclaimed war against Great 
 Britain, it would undoubtedly have 
 been a popular measure. 
 
 Great Britain not only continued her 
 hostile orders, but sent ships-of-war 
 to cruise off the principal ports of the 
 L^nited States to intercept American 
 merchant-vessels and send them to 
 England as lawful prizes. In this busi- 
 ness the Little Belt, Captain Bingham, 
 a British sloop-of-war, was engaged in 
 the spring of 181 1 off the coast of \'ir- 
 ginia, where she was met on the i6tli 
 of April by the American frigate 
 President, Captain Ludlow, bearing 
 the broad pennant of Commodore 
 Rodgers. The latter hailed the com- 
 mander of the sloop, asking — "What 
 ship is that?" and received a cannon- 
 shot in reply. "Equally determined." 
 said Rodgers, in his report, "not to be 
 the aggressor, or suffer the flag of my 
 country to be insulted with impunity. 
 I gave a general order to fire." .After 
 
SIXTH PERIOD— .A! ADISOX'S AD.MINISTRATIOX 
 
 a very brief action, Captain Bingham, 
 having eleven men killed and twenty- 
 one wounded, gave a satisfactory ans- 
 wer. The vessels parted company, the 
 Little Belt sailing for Halifax. 
 
 The conduct of both officers, in this 
 affair, was approved by their respec- 
 tive governments. That of the United 
 States and the people regarded the con- 
 duct of Captain Bingham as an out- 
 rage without palliation ; and the Am- 
 ericans wcer willing to take up arms in 
 I !e fence of what they regarde(l as right, 
 justice and honor. They knew the 
 strength of the British navy and the 
 weakness of their own, yet they were 
 willing to accept war as an alternative 
 for submission, and to measure 
 strength on the ocean. At that time 
 the British navy consisted of almost nine 
 linudi'cd vessels, with an aggregate of 
 one hundred and forty-four thousand 
 men. The American vessels-of-war, of 
 large size, numbered only twek'c, with 
 about three hundred guns. There was 
 a large number of gun-boats, but these 
 were scarcely sufficient for a coast- 
 guard. For a navy so weak to defy a 
 navy so strong, seemed like madness. 
 \\'e must remember, however, that the 
 royal navy was much scattered, for that 
 government had interests to protect In 
 \arious parts of the w-orld. It was the 
 boast of the Britons that the sun never 
 set on the dominions of their monarch. 
 
 The administration was now sus- 
 tained by a larger majority of the Am- 
 erican people than that of Jefferson 
 had ever been, and the Federalists, or 
 the Opposition, were in a hopeless 
 minority. The continued acts of ag- 
 gression by the British were increas- 
 ing the Democratic strength every day ; 
 and in 1811, circumstances seemed to 
 niake war with Great Britain an im- 
 ]ierative necessity for the vindication of 
 ihe honor, rights and independence of 
 tlic I'nited States. 
 
 In the same )'ear occurred an upris- 
 ing of Indians in the West, which at 
 one time looked very serious. The 
 British agents in Canada had continued 
 to stir up the Indians against the 
 United States, which caused much fric- 
 tion There arose now two remarkable 
 
 chiefs among the Shawnee tribe, in In- 
 diana, who planned a general ujtrising 
 tiiat should destroy our rule West of 
 the Alleghanies. These two brothers 
 were Tecumseh, a warrior chief, and 
 Elkswatawa, a medicine man or priest, 
 commonly known as the "Prophet." 
 These were men of ability and cunning. 
 They preached a general uprising of 
 all the Indian tribes in the country and 
 succeeded in stirring u[) great excite- 
 ment among the redmen. With no 
 pi'oper organization or equipment such 
 a movement was bound to fail, but it 
 was nipped in the bud by General Wil- 
 liam Henry Harrison, Governor of the 
 Northwest Territory. After consider- 
 able palaver, in which the Indian chiefs 
 professed friendship Harrison did not 
 believe, and which their marauding be- 
 lied, Harrison was treacherously at- 
 tacked by the Indian allies at Tippe- 
 canoe, the Prophet's town, near Terre 
 Haute, in the absence of Tecumseh. 
 I le utterly defeated them, after a hard 
 battle, and broke the power of the con- 
 federacy. Tecumseh sought Canada 
 and the knowledge of aid he secured 
 there increased the resentment against 
 Great Britain. On top of this came the 
 Henry exposure. John Henry, a 
 British agent, had been in this country 
 seeking to stir up political factions and 
 to fan the Federalist resentment 
 agains the Administration. Having a 
 falling out with the ministry he sold 
 the correspondence in his possession to 
 Madison for $50,000. This showed a 
 great defection in New England, and 
 while no one was incriminated it dis- 
 clo.sed that Great Britain was secretly 
 trying to bring about a civil war. 
 After this, the preservation of peace 
 was no longer possible unless Great 
 Britain should back down. 
 
 The Twelfth Congress chose Henry 
 Clay, of Kentucky, as Speaker. Clay, 
 who had already served a part of a 
 term in the Senate, was now the com- 
 ing man in Congress. He was the first 
 of the vigorous, breezy Western states- 
 men. He was bold, earnest and de- 
 fiant. In the House the young men 
 who had grown up since the Revolu- 
 tion were in the ascendant. John C. 
 
THE HOME AUXILIARY AND REFERENCE 
 
 Calhoun and Langdon Cheeves, of 
 South Carolina, were men who became 
 leaders at the start and were particu- 
 larly the leaders of the party of War 
 Hawks, who declared that negotiations 
 should end and war begin. Randolph 
 had fallen from influence, but was still 
 a picturesque and brilliant free lance. 
 On April 4, 1812, a ninety days em- 
 bargo was laid, preliminary to war, and 
 June 18, war was formally declared 
 against great Britain. Hurried meas- 
 ures were passed to raise funds, enroll 
 militia and increase the army and navy 
 to prepare for the contest. Canada 
 was looked upon as the battle ground, 
 though the actual military force at 
 hand was ludicrously small. 
 
 As a matter of fact. Great Britain 
 had already repealed the obnoxious or- 
 ders in Council, but this did not be- 
 come known for weeks. Quick com- 
 numication might have prevented war, 
 but. perhaps, it was necessary to show 
 to the world that we could maintain 
 our position by force if necessary. 
 
 Surely the country was ill prepared 
 for war. The army was small, muni- 
 tions were scarce ; of able generals 
 there were almost none, while the 
 Treasury was not prepared to raise the 
 money needed for the strife. More- 
 over the country was by no means 
 unanimous in favor of the war. New 
 England was largely against it and the 
 financial centers as a whole were op- 
 posed to it. The National Bank was 
 gone and the only way to raise money 
 was by an appeal for subscriptions to 
 bonds. New England leaders had 
 never been satisfied with Republican 
 rule, but success of the administration 
 of Jefferson had carried some of the 
 States in its favor. A reaction now set 
 in and the subscriptions to bonds in 
 New England were almost nil. In- 
 deed, if Stephen Girard, the Philadel- 
 phia banker, a native Frenchman, had 
 not come forward at a critical moment 
 with a loan of $5,000,000 the Treasury 
 would have been bankrupt. 
 
 The fir.st year of the war consisted 
 in one series of disastrous failures on 
 land and brilliant victories on the sea. 
 The war will be treated as a whole, and 
 
 an interruption is here made to an- 
 nounce that Madison was re-elected, 
 though the opposition was formidable, 
 and for a time it seemed as if a coali- 
 tion had been formed which would 
 have defeated him. Eldridge Gerry, of 
 Alassachusetts, who has added the 
 term "gerrymander" to our political 
 lexicon, was chosen Vice-President. 
 The opposition candidates were De- 
 witt Clinton, of New York, and Jared 
 Ingersoll, of Pennsylvania. The elec- 
 toral vote stood: Madison, 128: Clin- 
 ton, 89. This seems like a comfortable 
 majority. but Pennsylvania alone 
 turned the scale. Even then Clinton 
 would have won had he carried North 
 Carolina and either Vermont or Ohio, 
 all of which were confidently claimed 
 by the Federalists. This was the last 
 National stand of the father party and 
 they now practically disappeared from 
 politics. 
 
 Few persons realize that George HI 
 was still King of Great Britain at this 
 time, but he was no longer the am- 
 bitious, bull-headed man of fifty years 
 previous. He was practically an im- 
 becile and Great Britain was governed 
 by a ministry which contained hard 
 headed, gruff men, v\d:o could see or 
 would see nothing but Napoleon, for 
 whose destruction they worked un- 
 ceasingly. Strange as it may seem to 
 us, after all the bitter affronts to our 
 representatives, the terrible spoliation 
 of our commerce, the wholesale im- 
 pressment of our seamen amounting to 
 worse than slavery, the aid given to 
 barbarous Indians and the continuous 
 insults to the Nation, the British Min- 
 istry was not only surprised but pro- 
 fessed itself hurt at the declaration of 
 war and really believed it was paving 
 the way for a good understanding. It 
 is not remarkable that a war was neces- 
 sary to enlighten such an intellectual 
 status. Had this country been pre- 
 pared to strike quick and hard, Canada 
 would soon have been ours. Unfortu- 
 nately this country has never been pre- 
 pared for war, has always suffered 
 terribly for its neglect of so plain a 
 duty, yet the lessons of every conflict 
 up to and including the Spanish War, 
 
SIXTH PERIOD— MADISON'S ADMINISTRATIOX' 
 
 of 1898, seem to liave taught Congress 
 little of the virtues of being forearmed. 
 
 The Canada campaign of 1812 reads 
 almost like a comic history. Three at- 
 tempts were made, or rather were to 
 be made: one by way of Lake Cham- 
 plain, one at Buffalo and one at De- 
 troit, while General Harrison was to 
 raise an army in the South and West 
 to follow up expected victories. Gov- 
 ernor Hull, of Alichigan Territory, 
 crossed from Detroit into Canada, July 
 12, 1812, with 2,200 men, mostly vol- 
 unteers, captured a small post and 
 threatened Maiden. Soon he learned 
 that the British and Indians had cap- 
 tured Fort Mackinaw, and hearing that 
 the British General. Brock, was ap- 
 proaching, had a slight skirmish with 
 his advance guard and retreated to De- 
 troit in August. (In the i6th he basely 
 surrendered without a struggle. Har- 
 rison was now appointed to retrieve 
 our fortunes in this section and the 
 task proved a difficult one. It was 
 hard to get an army together, supplies 
 were scarce, transportation slow and 
 unsatisfactory, so tliat winter came on 
 before any move could be made. 
 
 In the meantime General Dearborn 
 imdertook the Eastern campaign with 
 no better success. Gen. Van Rensselaer 
 assembled an army principally of vol- 
 unteer mihtia on the .\iagara River, 
 crossed over and would have had bril- 
 liant success if most of 4he militia had 
 not refused to cooperate. Captain John 
 Wool and Lieutenant Winlield Scott, 
 destined to later fame, fought valiantly 
 but in vain, though General Brock, con- 
 queror of Detroit, fell mortally 
 wounded. The expedition completely 
 failed, \'an Rensselaer resigned, and 
 General Smyth, who succeeded him, 
 made a more disgraceful failure, 
 though he was much better equipped. 
 Dearborn, at Lake Champlain. did 
 i;ractically nothing at all except to re- 
 pulse a small British attack, wherein 
 (jne Jacob Brown, a recent Quaker far- 
 mer, showed those qualities which later 
 made him the chief hero of the war. 
 Certainly this was a record of failure 
 most discouraging. The only offset 
 
 was the sudden and une.xjjected glory 
 achieved by our little navy. 
 
 Four complete victories not only 
 fired American hearts, stimulated them 
 to renewed efforts on land, but struck 
 terror and amazement to British hearts 
 for their navy had been considered 
 well-nigh irresistible. These four 
 naval duels were as follows : 
 
 The American frigate Constitution, 
 forty-four guns. Captain Isaac Hull, on 
 August 15th, met the British frigate 
 Guerriere, thirty-eight guns, oft' the 
 Gulf of St. Lawrence. They were al- 
 most evenly matched, though the Con- 
 stitution was the stronger vessel and 
 threw a heavier broadside, but the con- 
 test was decided by the superior gun- 
 nery of the .American tars in a very 
 brief time. The Guerriere was forced 
 to strike her colors — the first time a 
 British frigate had surrendered to a 
 single frigate in many years. 
 
 On October i8th. Captain Jacob 
 was cruising the sloop-of-war Wasp, 
 eighteen guns, in Southern waters, 
 when he fell in with the British sloop 
 Frolic, twenty guns, convoying mer- 
 chantmen. .Again superior marksman- 
 ship decided the contest, and the 
 Frolic, reduced almost to a complete 
 wreck, struck her colors. Both vessels 
 were shortly afterward captured by a 
 British frigate, but this did not dim 
 the glory of the achievement. 
 
 On October 25th, Captain Decatur, 
 in the frigate United States, forty- 
 four guns, fell in with the British 
 frigate Macedonian, off the Madeiras, 
 and captured her after a two hour's 
 fight. Again the odds were slightly in 
 favor of the .American ship, but they 
 were small. 
 
 The last sea fight of the year was be- 
 tween the Constitution and the British 
 frigate Java, thirty-eight ^,vnfi, off the 
 coast of Brazil. The ships were nearly 
 equal, the Constitution, now being 
 commanded by Captain Bainbridge. 
 The contest was soon decided over- 
 whelmingly in our fa\or. Indeed, in 
 all these contests it was apparent that 
 our captains were better seamen, the 
 tars more alert, while our gunners were 
 
THE HOME AUXILIARY AND REFERENCE 
 
 far superior. If, as sIkhiIiI have been, 
 our operations on land had been 
 equally successful, the war would 
 probably have come to an end at once 
 with a good understanding all around, 
 for neither the British Ministry nor the 
 British people liked the war. It added 
 terribly to the national expense, de- 
 prived them of a source of provisions, 
 and presently a horde of American 
 privateers went forth and almost 
 ruined British commerce. .American 
 privateers were daredevils in those 
 days, and often paid dearly for their 
 ri.sks ; yet in the w-ar they captured 
 some 2,700 British merchantmen, 
 sometimes in sight of the coast of Eng- 
 land, infested the Irish Channel, put 
 up marine insurance to prohibitive 
 rates, produced famine prices for 
 grain, and brought about unnecessary 
 distress. And for what? \\'eli. 
 Great Britain's original idea in her 
 policy was that she was using us to 
 crush Napoleon, and now here she was 
 at war with us, while Napoleon 
 laughed in his sleeve. If, after the re- 
 peal of the Order's in Council, the 
 British Government had given assur- 
 ance that impressment would be dis- 
 continued, peace might have been 
 made, but the Ministry evidently felt 
 that they had gone far enough, and the 
 v/ar proceeded on the main question of 
 sailor's rights. And it was our sailors 
 who first demonstrated that .American 
 seamen must be free. After their vic- 
 tories in this war no treaty was neces- 
 sary to assure them their rights. The 
 greatest hardship was that impressed 
 American tars were now comjielled to 
 fight their own countrymen, and when 
 they refused were placed in dungeons, 
 where many of them died. 
 
 The war was no sooner begun than 
 Napoleon undertook his long-cherished 
 plan of bringing Russia to book. Rus- 
 sia, it seems, would not agree to Na- 
 poleon's demands in the way of neutral 
 trade, and was far from being humble 
 or submissive. Having reduced most 
 of the rest of the Continent to al)ject 
 submission. Napoleon marked the 
 Czar for his next victim. Then en- 
 sued the disastrous Moscow camjiaign. 
 
 which broke the Napoleonic spell and 
 marked the beginning of his ruin. 
 Great Britain and Russia were now 
 allied against Napoleon, and it seemed 
 .-trange to the Czar that the American 
 war should continue over abstract 
 questions which would settle them- 
 selves if Napoleon were out of the 
 way. Our ^linister at St. Petersburg 
 v\as John Ouincy Adams, son of the 
 second President, with whom the Czar 
 iiad repeated conferences, and Adams 
 impressed upon him the true situation. 
 Accordingly, the Czar officially jiro- 
 posed to Great Britain to mediate on 
 all questions involved in the American 
 war. This offer was embarrassing to 
 the British Ministry. The American 
 war was a burden, but it could not be 
 given up at this stage, because pride 
 forbade. And so the Czar's offer was 
 refused, but not until this country had 
 accepted it and commissioners were 
 sent to represent our side of the con- 
 troversy. Madison sent Gallatin and 
 James A. Bayard, of Delaware, to join 
 Adams, but by the time they arrived 
 Great Britain had declined the offer of 
 the Czar, and the war went on. 
 
 To raise an army was easy enough 
 on paper, but difficult in fact. Bonds 
 sold slowly, heavy war taxes were laid, 
 and every effort put forth to instill life 
 into the army without a great deal of 
 success. 
 
 The military campaign of 1813 was 
 opened by Harrison in the West. A 
 ]iortion of his troops were surprised in 
 January at the River Basin by a British 
 and Indian force, and utterly defeated. 
 Surrendering the remnant, the P>ritish 
 commander allowed his red-skinned al- 
 lies to wreak their fury on the captives, 
 and a terrible slaughter of innocents 
 followed. This fresh disaster brought 
 gloom to the country, but a desire for 
 revenge as well, so that "Remember the 
 River Raisin" was long a battle-cry. It 
 was now midwinter, and Harrison 
 could not bring up reinforcements, so 
 that operations in this quarter were su- 
 spended for some time. 
 
 The war in the East promised little 
 more. Dearborn captured York (now 
 Toronto) and ;i few towns in Ontario 
 
SIXTH PERIOD— MADISON'S ADMINISTRATION 
 
 213 
 
 of no strategic iniiKirtaiice- which he 
 was obhged to abandon. The British 
 made an attack on Sackett's Harbor, 
 which was bravely repulsed by Hrown, 
 wlio had few resources at his command. 
 Uearborn, who was aged and incom- 
 petent, now retired, and CJeneral Wil- 
 kinson, who had been implicated in the 
 Burr plot, was brought from Louisiana 
 to command. He prepared for an at- 
 tack on Montreal- but with little vigor. 
 General Armstrong, who had now be- 
 ctjme Secretary of War, came to the 
 front and took personal charge. .\n 
 invasion by two armies was planned, 
 and then the Secretary went home, 
 leaving a bad state of feeling behind. 
 The army was fairly well equipped, the 
 elTort was made in a feeble way. but 
 absolutely nothing came of it, and the 
 Eastern army went into winter quar- 
 ters. Another year of failure on land. 
 Again it was the navy that brought 
 all the honors of the year. The con- 
 trol of the Great Lakes being of the 
 highest importance, efforts were put 
 forth on both sides to produce a fleet 
 which had to be built of green timber. 
 In an incredibly short time a small fleet 
 was constructed at Erie, for which the 
 cannon and rigging had laboriously been 
 dragged overland. In command of 
 Captain Oliver H. Perry this fleet with 
 diiificulty got afloat, largely manned by 
 landsmen, and set forth to dispute pos- 
 session with Captain Barclay, a vet- 
 eran British officer who had a flotilla at 
 the other end of the lake. Battle was 
 joined September loth. The British 
 were superior in guns, particularly 
 those available at long range. The 
 American fleet was the largest, but part 
 of the vessels stayed out of the fight 
 until it was nearly over. Barclay 
 brought his heavy guns to bear on the 
 Lawrence, and soon disabled her. 
 Perry transferred his flag from the 
 Lawrence and began the fight once 
 more, whicli ended in complete victory, 
 after heavy losses on both sides. This 
 fight took place off the present city of 
 Sandusky, near which lay Harrison 
 with his army. To him Perry sent the 
 now memorable dispatch : '"We have 
 met the enemy and they are ours." 
 
 This hard-fought i)atile, in which Bar- 
 clay lost his life, greatly added to the 
 renown of our navy, and revived the 
 drooi)ing spirits of .Americans wlu) were 
 disgusted with the army. 
 
 But now came one military victory 
 to the nation's relief. Harrison had 
 raised a considerable army, and began 
 to advance on the British under Proc- 
 tor, near Detroit. The latter retreated 
 to Canada, and liarrison followed. The 
 I'.ritish were assisted by Tecumseh with 
 a large band of Indians. Coming up 
 ' with this force on October 5, 181 3, at 
 the River Thames, Harrison delivered 
 battle, overwhelmingly defeated the 
 enemy, drove Proctor east in alarm, 
 while Tecumseh was numbered among 
 the slain. 
 
 l-'or the first time there were military 
 operations in the South, where the 
 Creeks had been roused by Tecimiseh 
 and the "Prophet." They began the 
 usual Indian atrocities, but this time 
 the man of the hour was at hand. An- 
 drew Jackson, who had already been 
 prominent in the W'est, began a cam- 
 paign which by March 27, 1814, abso- 
 I lutely broke the power of warlike sav- 
 ages after a series of conflicts terrible 
 in their ferocity. The Indians had set 
 the i)ace by murdering, .August 30, 1S13, 
 over 400 men, women and children at 
 Port Mims. After this there was little 
 (|uarter given. Jackson returned from 
 this campaign with substantial honors, 
 soon to be greatly enhanced. 
 
 The navy again brought credit to the 
 country, but the recor<l of successes 
 was broken. Indeed, nothing else could 
 have been expected. The British had 
 over 600 vessels in their navy, while 
 the Americans started out with about 
 twenty, but these were gradually taken 
 or blockaded until, in spite of the new 
 ones constructed, there were at the close 
 of the war very few of them on the 
 ocean — at times not a single frigate on 
 tl.e Atlantic. 
 
 On h^bruary 24th Capt. James Law- 
 rence, of the llornet, eighteen guns, fell 
 in with the I'riti.sh brig Peacink-. of 
 about the same size and armament. The 
 battle was short and decisive. In fif- 
 teen miniUes the Peacock was shcil to 
 
214 
 
 THE HOME AUXn^TARY AND REFEREXCE 
 
 pieces and soon sank. For this gallant 
 action Lawrence was placed in com- 
 mand of the Chesapeake, which was be- 
 ing refitted in Boston harbor. Out- 
 side the bar the British frigate Shan- 
 non, Captain Broke, was cruising, anx- 
 ious to meet any comer. In a spirit of 
 bravado Broke sent a challenge to Law- 
 rence, which the latter unfortunately 
 accepted. The Chesapeake was not a 
 manageable ship, was not yet in good 
 condition, and her hastily collected 
 crew was not drilled for service. But 
 Lawrence would not wait for anything. 
 His impetuosity overruled his judg- 
 ment. The action was short, sharp and 
 decisive. The Chesapeake was early 
 crippled with the broadsides that in- 
 jured her steering gear. Lawrence was 
 mortally wounded, his last words be- 
 ing, "Don't give up the ship." Unfor- 
 tunately the ship was already lost, and 
 was carried to Halifax, where Law- 
 rence was buried with the honors of 
 war. It was now England's turn to re- 
 joice, but it was her only opportunity 
 during the war where the contending 
 forces were about even. 
 
 The British sloop Pelican captured 
 the Ainerican sloop Argus, August 13th, 
 but on September 4th the British brig 
 Boxer, with her flag nailed to the mast, 
 was taken by the Enterprise. The ves- 
 sels were of about equal size, carrying 
 fourteen guns each. The last naval ex- 
 ploit of the war was the cruise of Cap- 
 tain Porter in the Essex, who sailed 
 around Cape Horn and destroyed Brit- 
 ish commerce, particularly whaling ves- 
 sels. After a remarkably successful 
 cruise he refitted in some Pacific islands 
 and sailed for X'alparaiso and there, in 
 a neutral port, he was attacked by a 
 force twice the size of his own and de- 
 feated, March 28, 1814, but not without 
 honor. In this cruise young midship- 
 man Farragut first showed those qual- 
 ities that made him so great a com- 
 mander half a century later. 
 
 In the spring of 1814, when the war 
 had continued nearly two years, noth- 
 ing had been accomplished on land. 
 Our victories on the ocean had been 
 important, but at great co.st, so that 
 we had no longer an effective force at 
 sea, because of the blockade of our 
 
 ports. Though we had ravaged 
 British commerce, our own had suf- 
 fered, and business at home was de- 
 moralized. The Government finances 
 were in bad condition, and the admin- 
 istration of the War Department was 
 grossly inefficient. We held not a foot 
 of foreign territory, except a little in 
 the neighborhood of Detroit. Not only 
 had we lost our opportunities, but Na- 
 poleon was now in Elba and the 
 flower of Wellington's troops were sent 
 to .\merica, where resistance seemed 
 likely to be feeble. Three expeditions 
 were sent from England, one to Can- 
 ada to march into New York, one to 
 New Orleans to capture Louisiana, and 
 one to the Chesapeake to attack Wash- 
 ington. There was gloom and despair 
 everywhere, while New England was 
 in open political revolt. When the State 
 troops were desired, some of the Gov- 
 ernors in New England wanted to hold 
 them for local defense. Insofar as they 
 were not placed at the disposal of the 
 War Department they were not paid. 
 Opposition to the administration and 
 the war was so bold and open that a 
 threat of secession was made. If, early 
 in 1814, New England had taken this 
 step, the consequences would have been 
 incalculable. Instead of doing so, a 
 self-constituted body met at Hartford 
 in convention and deliberated on the 
 state of the country. Not all the States 
 were represented, and the delegates 
 were not radical men. The conven- 
 tion never came to a definite policy. It 
 tentatively ofifered a plan to Congress 
 requiring the adoption of a number of 
 amendments to the Constitution which, 
 if adopted would soon have reduced 
 the Nation to anarchy or political im- 
 potency. There was an implied threat 
 of secession if the terms were not ac- 
 cepted, and the Convention adjourned 
 to get the answer of Congress, but as 
 peace came almost at the moment, the 
 propositions were never acted on, the 
 convention never recalled, and every- 
 one connected with the movement was 
 anxious to have the matter forgotten. 
 There was treason meditated, but it 
 never was undertaken, and the subse- 
 quent protests that none was contem- 
 plated showed an anxiety for justifica- 
 
SIXTH PKRl on -MADISON'S ADMINISTRATION 
 
 tion unnecessary in those possessed of 
 patriotic motives. 
 
 This was the critical and last year of 
 the war. Strangely enough, when mat- 
 ters were at their worst they began to 
 ir.end, sometimes in quarters least ex- 
 pected. The Central invasion was a 
 temporary success only. Admiral 
 Cockburn arrived in the Chesapeake, 
 ravaged and burned defenseless towns 
 early in the summer of 1814. In August 
 troops under General Ross were 
 landed, and a march made overland tn 
 Washington. To repel this force. Gen- 
 eral Winder collected a force of militia 
 at Bladensburg, outside \\"ashington. 
 There were men enough, but absolutely 
 no discipline, and the arrangements 
 made so necessarily involved defeat 
 that it was inevitable. On August 24th 
 Ross brushed aside the force and 
 marched triumphantly into Washing- 
 ton, as the President and his Cabinet 
 escaped across the Potomac. The 
 Capitol, the President's house, the 
 Treasury, and practically all the public 
 buildings, were ruthlessly burned, to- 
 gether with bridges and property, al- 
 together amounting to $2,000,000. 
 Stopping only a day. General Ross and 
 Admiral Cockburn returned to the fleet, 
 which sailed u]) the Chesapeake and at- 
 tacked Fort IMcIlenry, the fortress de- 
 fending Baltimore. Ross made a land 
 attack, but the troops were defeated 
 and he was slain by a sharpshooter's 
 bullet. An American citizen, Francis 
 Scott Key, on board a British vessel, 
 watched the bombardment all night, 
 and in the morning beheld the flag of 
 his country still waving over Fort Mc- 
 Henry. On the inspiration of this 
 moment he wrote the National anthem, 
 "The Star Spangled Banner," which 
 was set to a well-known tune, and it 
 has ever since been closest to the pa- 
 triotic American heart. The fleet re- 
 tired, and all the military invaders 
 could boast of was the sacking of a 
 capital in the spirit of the Middle Ages 
 and a dead General. 
 
 This ended .Armstrong's administra- 
 tion of the War Department. Monroe 
 became Secretary of War, and still re- 
 mained Secretary of State. Indeed, 
 
 Monroe was not only the last hope of 
 the administration, but was about all 
 there was of it. 
 
 In the meantime, on the Canadian 
 border had taken place the only scien- 
 tific campaign of the war. In the 
 changes that took place the redoubtable 
 Quaker, Jacob Brown, became Com- 
 mander on the Niagara frontier. His 
 }ouiig brigadiers were Scott, Ripley, 
 Gaines, Porter, and Miller, each witha 
 small brigade, but the officers and men 
 were trained and courageous. .At the 
 Chippewa Creek, on the Canadian side, 
 ? stubborn battle was fought, July 5, 
 181 4, in the open field, and the British 
 defeated. .A.t Lundy's Lane, near Ni- 
 agara Falls, another stubborn fight 
 took place July 2Sth, lasting until long 
 after dark, and this was a moral and 
 material victory, though Brown re- 
 treated to Fort Erie opposite Buffalo, 
 where, in one of the most brilliant en- 
 gagements of the war, the British were 
 driven back with great slaughter. The 
 main hope of the British was a naval 
 demonstration on Lake Champlain, to 
 assist the invading army under General 
 Prevost. The American army under 
 Izard, and the little flotilla under "Mac- 
 Donough, prepared to resist though 
 largely overmatched. On September 
 nth, the British fleet sailed down and 
 attacked MacDonough, who was at 
 first badly handled. He had taken the 
 precaution to so dispose his anchored 
 fleet so that he could wear ship and 
 turn the guns of the other si les of his 
 vessels, which had not been in service, 
 against _ the_ enemy. This foresight 
 made his victory complete, and Pre- 
 vost fled in haste back to Canada. 
 
 The last battle of the war took place 
 after the treaty of peace had been 
 signed. Jackson was placed in com- 
 mand of "the South, where General Sir 
 Heni-y Pakenham, one of the ablest 
 British Generals, was expected with the 
 flower of Wellington's volunteers. The 
 expedition arrived late in 1814 and, 
 coming to Lake Borgne, started over- 
 land to New Orleans. Jackson, who 
 for some weeks had apparently failed 
 to appreciate the situation, now hastily 
 gathered his forces, being principally 
 
2l6 
 
 THE HOME AUXILIARY AND REFERENXE 
 
 riflemen, and took a strong position be- 
 tween the Mississippi and a swamp. 
 Pakenham's advance was delayed by 
 our artillery and two small vessels, but 
 on January 8, 1815. an assault was 
 made on the American breastworks 
 Pakenham had some 10.000 men, while 
 Jackson had about 6.000. The assault 
 was bravely made in the face of a 
 withering fire. It was a failure, and 
 the casualities were proportionately 
 among the greatest in modern warfare. 
 Pakenham was killed. General Gibbs 
 mortally wounded. General Keane 
 badly wounded, and General Lambert 
 alone of the P>ritish general officers re- 
 mained unhurt, while 2,600 soldiers 
 were killed, wounded or captured. 
 Jackson lost 8 men killed and 13 
 wounded. The victory was one of the 
 most complete in history. Lambert re- 
 treated and soon learned that the war 
 was over. 
 
 The end of the conflict was remark- 
 able. When Great r>ritain, as narrated, 
 refused the Czar's mediation, there was 
 great disappointment in this country. 
 Adams also was discouraged, but he 
 broached the subject of an arbitration 
 once more. Though in the midst of a 
 campaign, the Czar made a second offer 
 to Great Britain. This greatly em- 
 barrassed the British Ministry. They 
 dared not offend the Czar, with whom 
 they were engaged in crushing Na- 
 poleon, but they could not accept his 
 offer. As a middle ground they agreed 
 to negotiate with the L'nited States di- 
 rect, and accordingly commissioners 
 met at Ghent to discuss the subject. To 
 Adams, Gallatin and Bayard were now 
 joined Henry Clay and Jonathan Rus- 
 sell, of Connecticut. These were five 
 of the ablest men in America, and for 
 the purpose employed could not easily 
 have been overmatched. The British 
 Ministry apparently was not so much 
 desirous of peace as of gaining time 
 to get the new expeditions off safely 
 to the L'nited States. Accordingly, 
 they sent three inferior men. Sir Henry 
 Goulburn, Lord Gambler and William 
 Adams. The latter were soon over- 
 matched. They made preposterous de- 
 
 mands fnr territory, which put Great 
 Britain in the position of waging a 
 war of conquest. This was untenable, 
 but after negotiations, lasting from 
 August to late in December, wherein 
 our own commissioners, though not al- 
 together harmonious, completely out- 
 witted their opponents, a treaty of 
 peace was finally made which left mat- 
 ters practically as they were before the 
 war on paper, but it was well under- 
 stood that impressment should cease, 
 while Napoleon's fall left our commerce 
 free. Before this was done the Min- 
 istry in vain tried to get the Duke of 
 Wellington to take command in Amer- 
 ica. The treaty was signed December 
 24, 1814, by which we gained an hon- 
 orable peace. Our victories on land 
 and sea insured us respect at home and 
 abroad. Theoretically the war seems 
 to have been unnecessary and avoid- 
 able, but practically it gained for us that 
 prestige that has made us ever since 
 respected as a sovereign Nation. The 
 war was worth all it cost, but it is likely 
 that if the British had known into what 
 I)olitical demoralization we had fallen, 
 how low were our finances, and how 
 weak our armies, w-e might not have 
 come off so well. 
 
 Peace was received in Great Britain 
 and the L'nited States with the wild- 
 est enthusiasm. The Hartford con- 
 vention proposition was buried, and 
 ^Madison's administration suddenly 
 achieved great reputation just as it 
 seemed on the verge of collapse. 
 
 As soon as the war with Great Bri- 
 tain was ended, the L^nited States felt 
 impelled to engage in another with Al- 
 giers. Offended because he had not 
 received from the American govern- 
 ment, as tribute, precisely the articles 
 which h& had demanded, the semi-bar- 
 barian Dey of Algiers, in 181 2, uncere- 
 moniously dismissed ^Ir. Lear, the 
 American consul, and declared war: and 
 afterward his corsairs captured an 
 American vessel, and the crew were re- 
 duced to slavery. Mr. Lear was com- 
 pelled to pay the Dey $27,000 for the 
 safety of himself and family, and a few 
 Americans w-ho were there, to save them 
 
SIXTH PERIOD— MADISON'S ADMINISTRATION 
 
 all from being made slaves. Believing 
 that the United States navy had been 
 almost annihiliated by the British in the 
 late contest, this North African robber 
 renewed depredations upon American 
 commerce in violation of treaty obliga- 
 tions. Determined to pay tribute no 
 longer to this insolent ruler, the Amer- 
 ican government accepted his challenge 
 for war, and in May, 1815, sent Com- 
 modore Decatur to the Mediterranean, 
 with a squadron, to humble the Dey. 
 \\ hen Decatur passed the straits of 
 Gibraltar, he found the Algerine pirate 
 fleet cruising in search of American 
 vessels. On the 17th of June, Deca- 
 tur met the flag-ship of the Algerine 
 admiral (a frigate of 44 guns), and 
 after a brief engagement captured her, 
 also another pirate ship with almost six 
 hundred men. With these prizes he im- 
 mediately sailed for the bay of Algiers, 
 and on the 28th of June, he demanded 
 the instant surrender of all the Ameri- 
 can prisoners, full indemnification for 
 all property destroyed, and absolute re- 
 linquishment of all claims to tribute 
 from the United States thereafter. 
 
 When the Dey of Algiers heard of 
 the fate of a part of his fleet, that ter- 
 rified robber hastened to comply with 
 Decatur's demands ; and in obedience 
 to the commodore's requirements, the 
 haughty chief appeared on the quarter- 
 deck of the Guerriere (the flag-ship) 
 with some of his officers of state and 
 acompanied by the captives he was to 
 release. There, on the 30th of June, he 
 signed a treaty in accordance with the 
 demands of Decatur, and departed 
 deeply humiliated. From Algiers, after 
 this triumph, the commodore sailed for 
 Tunis, and demanded and received from 
 the Bashaw or ruler of that state $46,- 
 000, in payment for American vessels 
 which he had allowed the British to 
 capture in his harbor. This was in 
 July. Then Decatur proceeded to Trip- 
 oli, the capital of another of the Bar- 
 bary States, and in August demanded 
 from the Bey, its ruler, $25,000 for the 
 same kind of injury to property and the 
 release of prisoners. The treasury of 
 the Bey being nearly empty, Decatur 
 
 accepted, in lieu of cash, the release 
 from captivity of eight Danish and two 
 Neapolitan seamen, who were held as 
 slaves. This cruise in the Mediter- 
 ranean sea gave full security to Ameri- 
 can commerce in these waters, and 
 greatly elevated the character of the 
 United States in the opinion of Euro- 
 peans. During this cruise of about two 
 months, in the summer of 1815, the 
 navy of the United States accomplished, 
 in the way of humbling the .Xorth Af- 
 rican robbers, what the combined pow- 
 ers of Europe dared not to attempt. 
 
 The eventful administration of Presi- 
 dent Madison drew to a close in 1816. 
 During that year the efforts of the gov- 
 ernment were put forth to complete the 
 readjustment of the finances of the 
 country after the derangements pro- 
 duced by a state of war. The finances 
 of the government were then in a 
 wretched condition. In this state of 
 things the friends of a national bank 
 pressed its claims upon Congress, and 
 in the spring of 1816 a second bank 
 of the United States was chartered for 
 twenty years. The creation of this 
 bank gave an impetus to general busi- 
 ness. The government bank went into 
 operation early in 1817, and receiving 
 on deposit the funds of the national 
 government. 
 
 During Madison's administration- 
 Louisiana and Indiana were admitted 
 into the Union as States — the former 
 in April, 1812, and the latter in De- 
 cember, 1816. There had been warm 
 discussions on the subject of the admis- 
 sion of Louisiana, the Federalists 
 strongly opposing the measure. The 
 question of boundary between the pos- 
 sessions of Spain and the l^iited States, 
 in that region, was a serious one. East- 
 ward of the vast territory which, under 
 the title of Louisiana, had been ceded to 
 the United States, and bordering on the 
 Gulf of Mexico, was a region in pos- 
 session of the Spainiards, known as East 
 and West Florida, the dividing line be- 
 tween them being the Perdido River, 
 now the line between Florida and Ala- 
 bama. The western portion was 
 claimed by the United States as in- 
 
THE HOME AUXILIARY AND REFERENCE 
 
 eluded in the cession, while the Spanish 
 authorities asserted that their posses- 
 sion extended to the ]\Iississippi. With 
 the act for the admission of Louisiana 
 was passed another act, annexing to that 
 State that part of West Florida lying 
 between the Mississippi and Pearl Riv- 
 ers, and all eastward of that stream to 
 the Perdido was annexed to the Terri- 
 tory of IMississippi. This measure pro- 
 duced unpleasant relations between the 
 United States and Spain, which con- 
 tinued several years ; and the dispute 
 was not settled until after the retire- 
 ment of Mr. Madison from the Presi- 
 dency. The latter event occurred on 
 the 4th of March, 1817. James Mon- 
 roe, his Secretary of State, was his suc- 
 cessor, having received an almost unani- 
 mous vote for the high office in the elec- 
 toral colleges. At the same time, Dan- 
 iel D. Tompkins, of New York, was 
 elected Vice-President by a large ma- 
 jority. 
 
 JAMES MONROE'S ADMINIS- 
 TRATION. 
 
 Monroe was the fifth President of 
 the United States, and he entered upon 
 the duties of his office under favorable 
 auspices for himself and country. His 
 inaugural address was liberal in its tone 
 and gave general satisfaction, and the 
 beginning of his administration was re- 
 garded as the dawning of an era of 
 good feeling. The Federal party was 
 declining in strength, and from the 
 dominant party which had elected him, 
 the President chose his cabinet-minis- 
 ters, composed of John Ouincy Adams, 
 of Massachusetts, Secretary of State; 
 William H. Crawford, of Georgia. Sec- 
 retary of the Treasury, and John C. 
 Calhoun, of South Carolina, Secretary 
 of War. These were all aspirants for 
 the Presidential chair. B. W. Crown- 
 inshield was continued Secretary of the 
 Navy, and William Wirt was appointed 
 Attorney-General. The President was 
 thus surrounded by some of the ablest 
 men of the republic as his constitutional 
 advisers. 
 
 Mr. Monroe was conservative, judi- 
 cious and conciliatory? just such a man 
 
 as was then needed in the place which 
 he filled. It was a critical time in the 
 history of the republic, for the coun- 
 try was in a transition state from that 
 of war to one of peace. The demand 
 for domestic manufactures and the 
 high prices obtained for them during 
 the war, had stimulated that particular 
 industry, and many manufacturing es- 
 tablishments had been nurtured into 
 vigorous life. When the war was 
 ended and European manufactures 
 came like a flood in quantity and at low 
 prices, that industry was suddenly over- 
 whelmed in disaster. Thousands of 
 men and women were compelled to seek 
 other employments, and many turned 
 their eyes and their hopes to the mil- 
 lions of fertile acres beyond the Alle- 
 ghany Mountains, and before the close 
 of Monroe's administration, the Great 
 West had begun its wonderful career. 
 That administration was marked by an 
 immense expansion in the material 
 growth of the United States. Five in- 
 dependent States had been created and 
 added to the Union — namely, Missis- 
 sippi in 1817, Illinois in 1818, Alabama 
 in 1819, Maine in 1820, and Missouri 
 in 1821. 
 
 Monroe determined to know more 
 of the country and the people he was 
 called upon to preside o\er, and sixty 
 days after he was seated in the chair of 
 state he left the capital for an exten- 
 sive tour. In the journey the Presi- 
 dent became acquainted with leading 
 men of all parties, and was cordially 
 received everywhere with civic and mil- 
 itary escorts and the profound respect 
 of the people. The effect of that tour 
 was every way beneficial. Partisan as- 
 perity was softened, and genuine 
 patriotism filled the hearts of tlie peo- 
 ple. There was then an almost perfect 
 union of sentiment throughout the 
 country : but the slave system soon 
 awakened the most bitter sectional feel- 
 ing that disturbed the repose of the peo- 
 ple for about forty years. 
 
 Congress had passed laws, after the 
 year 1808, prohibiting the .'\frican slave 
 trade in our country ; but after the war, 
 the rapid increase in the cultivation of 
 cotton made the demand for slave labor 
 
SIXTH PERIOD— MONROE'S ADMINISTRATION 
 
 greater tlian the supply, and the Afri- 
 can slave trade was reopened on the 
 southern coasts in violation of law. 
 There was also a brisk inter-state slave- 
 trade act established, which continued 
 initil the breaking out of the late civil 
 war. 
 
 Before the Revolution the unpleasant 
 situation of free colored people among 
 the slaves on account of their social dis- 
 al)ilities had attracted the attention of 
 benevolent persons, and efforts had been 
 made to form a settlement for them in 
 Africa. Nothing of great importance 
 was accomplished until about the begin- 
 ning of Monroe's administration, when 
 the American Colonization Society was 
 formed for that purpose, and for send- 
 ing to such settlements slaves who had 
 been unlawfully brought to the United 
 States. The society founded the Re- 
 public of Liberia on the western coast 
 of Africa which, since 1848, has been 
 an independent state governed by its 
 own people. 
 
 There were several important fea- 
 trires of ]\Ionroe's administration that 
 deserve especial attention. These were : 
 
 1. The acquisition of Florida. 
 
 2. The territorial compromise on 
 slavery. 
 
 3. The Monroe doctrine of our hege- 
 mony in this hemisphere. 
 
 4. The tariff of 1824. 
 
 An Indian war arose along the Flor- 
 ida border, where it was easy for the 
 Indians in Spanish territory to ravage 
 the American border and escape. West 
 h'lorida (all west of the Perdido) we 
 held by power if not by right. Jack- 
 son, who commanded the army in the 
 South, was so tired of Indian outrages 
 and so regardless of international law, 
 that he proposed seizing East Florida 
 (the present State) without consulting 
 Spain. Pursuing Indians into Florida 
 in 1818, he seized two Rritish subjects, 
 whom he hanged as spies, and drove out 
 the Spanish garrison. This the admin- 
 istration had to disavow, though Adams 
 was disposed to uphold Jackson, while 
 Calhoun opposed him — an act that had 
 great effect on his political future. 
 Jackson's conduct, however, was im- 
 mensely popular, and this was increased 
 
 subsequently by a treaty with Spain, by 
 which in 1819 we secured Florida on 
 the payment of .'?5,ooo,ooo of claims by 
 our citizens against Spain. Unfortu- 
 nately King Ferdinand long delayed rat- 
 ifying this treaty, and we were about to 
 seize it forcibly when the ratification 
 was effected in 182 1. By this treaty 
 our Southwestern border was fixed at 
 the Sabine, the present western boun- 
 dary of Louisiana. Between this river 
 and the Rio Grande lay the territory 
 known as Texas, to which we might 
 have laid claim, certainly to half of it 
 with good reason; but Monroe had 
 noted the rising conflict between sla\c 
 and free States and chose to cut off 
 Texas, which would have afforded ronui 
 for slavery extension. This aroused 
 opposition in the South, and soon began 
 the movement for the "reannexation of 
 Texas," which was accomplished some 
 twenty-five years later. 
 
 Now began the first earnest debate in 
 Congress on the subject of the exten- 
 sion of the slave-labijr system in our 
 country. The first effort to check that 
 extension was, as we have observed, in 
 1787, when the Northwestern Territory 
 was organized. The subject was only 
 briefly considered incidentally, from 
 time to time, until 18 19, when the in- 
 habitants of the Missouri Territory 
 asked for its admission into the Union 
 as a State. A bill for that purpose was 
 introduced into Congress which con- 
 tained a provision forbidding the exist- 
 ence of slavery in the new State when 
 admitted. This caused one of the most 
 violent debates in the House of Repre- 
 sentatives on the subject of slavery that 
 had ever occurred in the national legis- 
 lature. Extreme doctrines and fool- 
 ish threats were uttered on both sides ; 
 and there was much adroit management 
 by the party leaders, who used great 
 dexterity in trying to avoid a compro- 
 mise which had been agreed to at a 
 previous session, when the subject was 
 before the House. One party wished to 
 have Missouri enter the Union as a 
 slave-labor State, and the other party 
 desired its admission as a free-labor 
 State. 
 
 As compromise seemed to be the only 
 
THE HOME AUXILIARY AND REFERENCE 
 
 door through which ^Missouri might en- 
 ter the Union, at that time, Henry Clay, 
 who then first assumed the character of 
 a pacificator, moved a joint committee 
 to consider whether or not it was ex- 
 pedient to admit Missouri into the 
 Union, and if not, what provision 
 adapted to her actual condition ought to 
 be made. This motion was adopted, a 
 committee was appointed, but the final 
 result, which was a compromise, was 
 not reached until early in 1821. Dur- 
 ing the session of 1820-21, the discus- 
 sions were sometimes very angry. The 
 whole country, in the meantime, had be- 
 come violently agitated by disputes on 
 the subject, and a cry went forth from 
 unwise and unpatriotic lips at the North 
 and in the South for a dissolution of the 
 Union. Then for the first time the peo- 
 ple of the Union were vehemently and 
 decisively divided on the subject of slav- 
 ery. A member of Congress from 
 Georgia prophetically said in the course 
 of the debate : "A fire has been kindled 
 which all the waters of the ocean can- 
 not put out, and which only seas of 
 blood can extinguish." A compromise 
 was effected by the adoption of a pro- 
 vision in the bill (February, 1821 ) for 
 the admission of Missouri, tliat in all 
 territory south of thirty-six degrees and 
 thirty minutes north latitude ( the south- 
 ern boundary of the State of Missouri ) 
 slavery might exist, but was prohibited 
 in the region north of that line. This 
 agreement, known as the "Missouri 
 Compromise" (by which that Territory 
 was admitted as a free-labor State ) , 
 was respected for more than thirty 
 years, when, in 1854, it was violated in 
 favor of the slaveholders. Maine was 
 admitted in 1820. 
 
 Our foreign concern had now taken 
 a new direction. The Spanish States in 
 North, Central and South America 
 finally revolted against the cruelty and 
 maladministration of the home Govern- 
 ment. It took years to accomplish all 
 this, but by 1821 Spanish control on the 
 Western mainland had vanished, and re- 
 publics were set up, Brazil still remain- 
 ing a Portuguese dependency. All these 
 events were of the gravest import to 
 our country. Our people generally 
 
 sympathized with the patriots who won 
 independence, and chimerical schemes 
 of a great federated republic of the 
 W'estern Hemisphere were proposed. 
 Monroe, during the revolutions, took 
 the lead in granting belligerent rights, 
 which step was of great value. King 
 I'erdinand viewed these losses with 
 alarm, but as Spain was reduced almost 
 to impotency, he was unable alone to 
 reconcjuer them. To get them back he 
 implored the aid of the "Holy Alliance," 
 which had been organized in 1815 by 
 the sovereigns of Russia, Austria and 
 I'russia in the general interests of legi- 
 timacy to prevent another Napoleon 
 gaining power, and to put down all re- 
 volts of the people against those "whom 
 God has rendered responsible for 
 power." Ferdinand considered that his 
 case came under the protection of the 
 "Holy Alliance" all the more because a 
 recent revolution in Spain had imposed 
 on him a constitutional form of Gov- 
 ernment that restricted his authority in 
 a way most e.xasperat-ing to the "Lord's 
 Anointed." Ferdinand was rescued by 
 a French army, which once more over- 
 ran poor, devastated Spain, suppressed 
 popular government and restored to 
 Ferdinand his "rights." 
 
 The situation was now a delicate one. 
 Great Britain had no love for the "Holy 
 Alliance." Her war against Napoleon 
 had not been so much to restore the 
 liourbons as to crush the despotism of a 
 man who sought to dominate Europe. 
 The British Ministry now showed a 
 friendliness to the United States never 
 before expressed. Great Britain wanted 
 peace and feared another Continental 
 war. Her tone of studied indifference 
 to our concerns gave way to an earn- 
 est friendliness that was as pleasing as 
 it was surprising to our .\mbassador, 
 Richard Rush. It was not long before 
 Rush discovered that if Monroe took a 
 strong position in reference to South 
 .American affairs, he would receive the 
 moral support of Great Britain. This 
 may or may not have influenced Mon- 
 roe, but certain it is that, in his annual 
 message of 1823, Monroe covered the 
 whole ground of our position briefly, 
 yet forcibly. His position was this; 
 
SIXTH PERIOJJ— ADAMS' ADMINISTRATION 
 
 The United States will not interfere 
 with any existing European govern- 
 ments in the Western Hemisphere, but 
 it will not permit any interferences with 
 the existing Republics nor any further 
 European colonization in America what- 
 ever. This firm expression, known as 
 the Monroe Doctrine, has ever since 
 been successfully asserted. It has often 
 been stretched to mean more than was 
 applicable to the then existing situation, 
 but, in general, the doctrine of Amer- 
 ica for the Americans with the United 
 States, as leader and champion of the 
 whole, has become a fixed tenet in our 
 political philosophy. The "Holy Alli- 
 ance" took the hint, and it was forty 
 years before any Nation in Europe 
 imdertook to defy the Monroe Doc- 
 trine, at a time when we were in tiic 
 throes of Civil War. 
 
 The tariff bill of 1824 was the be- 
 ginning of the policy which finally pro- 
 duced the Whig party. Clay led in 
 favor of higher jjrotection than we had 
 even attempted in times of peace, while 
 Webster appeared in opposition. The 
 measure was passed by a narrow mar- 
 gin, and became a rallying point in 
 politics. 
 
 While the Missouri question was 
 pending, an election for President of 
 the United States occurred. Never was 
 a canvass carried on more quietly than 
 this, and Monroe and Tompkins were 
 re-elected by an almost unanimous vote, 
 the old Federal party as a political or- 
 ganization being nearly extinct. Mr. 
 Alonroe's second term was not marked 
 by any very important public occur- 
 rences, but a pleasing incident in our 
 history distinguished the last year of his 
 administration. It was the visit of Gen- 
 eral Lafayette to the United States as 
 the "Nation's guest.'' 
 
 The elections held in the autunui ot 
 1 1^24 showed conclusively that not one 
 of the candidates would be elected by 
 the popular vote, and that the choice 
 would de\olve upon the House of Rep- 
 resentatives. This was determined by 
 the \ote of the electoral colleges ; and 
 in February, 1825, the House of Repre- 
 sentatives chose John Ouincy Adams, 
 of Massachusetts, for President, and 
 
 John C. Calhoun, of South Carolina, 
 for \'ice-President, by the votes of thir- 
 teen States. 
 
 JOHN OUINCY ADAMS' ADMIN- 
 ISTRATION. 
 
 John Ouincy Adams, son of the sec- 
 ond President of the United States, en- 
 tered upon the duties of that high office 
 on the 4th of March, 1825. The Senate 
 w as in session at the time of his inaugu- 
 ration, and that body, by unanimous 
 vote, immediately confirmed Mr. 
 Adams's nominations for cabinet min- 
 isters, excepting Henry Clay, against 
 whose confirmation fourteen votes were 
 cast. It had been charged that Mr. 
 Clay, seeing little chance for his own 
 election to the Presidency, had used 
 his influence in favor of Adams and 
 against Jackson with the understand- 
 ing that he was to be appointed Secre- 
 tary of State. This alleged "bargain" 
 was the cause of opposition to Clay's 
 confirmation. He was appointed Secre- 
 tary of State : Rich Rush, Secretary of 
 Treasury ; James Barbour, Secretary of 
 War; Samuel L. Southard, Secretary 
 of the Navy, and William Wirt, At- 
 torney-General. 
 
 IMr. Adams's administration began 
 under the most pleasant auspices. The 
 country was at peace with all nations, 
 and no serious domestic trouble ap- 
 peared, while general prosperity reigned 
 in the land and there seemed to be 
 nothing that would disturb the serenrty 
 of public affairs. This quietude pre- 
 vailed, in a degree, during the whole of 
 Mr. Adams's administration of four 
 years, which were the least conspicuous 
 for stirring events in the history of the 
 republic. The discords engendered by 
 the late exciting election had produced 
 healthful agitation, but measures were 
 adopted that caused stormy times in 
 the administration that followed. 
 
 A threatening cloud appeared in the 
 firmament at the beginning of Adams's 
 administration. When Georgia relin- 
 quished her claim to a considerable por- 
 tion of the Mississippi Territory, the 
 national government agreed to purchase 
 for that State the Indian lands within 
 
THE HOME AUXILIARY AND REFERENCE 
 
 its borders ''whenever it could be peace- 
 able done upon reasonable terms." The 
 Creeks and the Cherokees, who were 
 practicing the arts of civilized life, re- 
 fused to sell their lands and remove 
 into an uncultivated wilderness. The 
 Georgians were impatient, and their 
 governor demanded of the United 
 States the instant fulfillment of the 
 contract, by a removal of the Indians. 
 He ordered a survey of their lands to 
 be made, and he prepared to distribute 
 their possessions among the citizens of 
 Georgia ; and because the national gov- 
 ernment seemed tardy, he assumed the 
 right to remove the Indians himself. 
 Our government took the just position 
 of defenders of the Indians, and for 
 awhile the matter bore a serious aspect. 
 The difficulties were finally settled, and 
 in the course of a few years the Creeks 
 and Cherokees were settled on lands 
 beyond the Mississippi River. 
 
 It was at the beginning of Mr. 
 Adams's administration that the great- 
 est vv'ork of internal improvement ever 
 undertaken in our country, in the in- 
 terest of commerce, was completed, ft 
 was the Erie Canal, which traverses the 
 State of New York in an east and west 
 line three hundred and sixty-three miles, 
 between Buffalo and Albany, and con- 
 nects the water of the upjjer lakes and 
 those of the Hudson River by a navi- 
 gable stream. 
 
 The veneral)le father of the Presi- 
 dent, John .\dams, died at Quincy, 
 Massachusetts, on the 4th of July, 1826, 
 just fifty years, almost to an hour, after 
 the Declaration of Independence was 
 adopted. On the same day and almost 
 at the same hour, Thomas Jefferson 
 expired, at Monticello, in Mrginia. Mr. 
 Adams was about ninety-one years of 
 age, and Mr. Jefferson about eighty- 
 three. They were both members of the 
 committee appointed to draft the Dec- 
 laration of Independence. Mr. Jeffer- 
 son was its literary author, and Mr. 
 Adams was its chief supporter in the 
 Congress. The death, simultaneouslv. 
 of these two of the chief founders of 
 the republic, produced a profound sen- 
 sation ; and in many places throughout 
 
 the Union, eulogies and funeral orations 
 were pronounced. 
 
 The most important movement in the 
 foreign policy of Adams's administra- 
 tion was the appointment of commis- 
 sioners to attend a congress of repre- 
 sentatives of the South American Re- 
 publics, which assembled at Panama, on 
 the Pacific coast, on the 22d of June, 
 1826. The result of that congress was 
 not very important ; but the policy of 
 sending to it representatives of the gov- 
 ernment of the United States caused 
 much discussion here. 
 
 The American System, as it was 
 called (a system of protection and en- 
 couragement for American manufac- 
 turing establishments, by means of high 
 duties imposed on fabrics made abroad 
 and imported into the United States), 
 was fully developed and assumed the 
 form of a national policy late in the 
 administration of Mr. Adams. On ac- 
 count of the illiberal commercial policy 
 of Great Britain, tariff laws were en- 
 acted in 1816 as retaliative measures; 
 and in 1824 imposts were laid on for- 
 eign fabrics imported into our country, 
 for the avowed purpose of encouraging 
 home manufactures. These movements 
 were opposed by the cotton-growers, as 
 inimical to their interests : and to a na- 
 tional convention assembled at Harris- 
 burg, Pennsylvania, in 1826, to discuss 
 the general subject of tariffs and manu- 
 factures, only four of the slave-labor 
 States sent delegates. That conven- 
 tion petitioned Congress to increase the 
 duties on foreign fabrics that were spec- 
 ified, and it was done in the spring of 
 1828. The measure pleased the manu- 
 facturing interest, and displeased the 
 cotton-growing interest. It was de- 
 nounced in some of the .Southern States 
 as oppressive and unconstitutional, and 
 resistance to the law was suggested. 
 
 In the autumn of 1828, John Quincy 
 Adams and Andrew Jackson were rival 
 candidates for the Presidency of the 
 L'nited States. Jackson was elected, 
 with John C. Calhoun as Vice-Presi- 
 dent, by a very large majority, after 
 a most exciting canvass, during which 
 a stranger to our institutions, looking 
 
SIXTH PERIOD— JACKSON'S ADMINISTRATION 
 
 on, would have believed tlie nation to 
 be on the verge of civil war. Mr. 
 Adams's administration closed on the 
 4th of March, 1829. It had been 
 marked by great tranquillity and un- 
 exampled national prosperity. Peace- 
 ful relations with foreign nations ex- 
 isted, and the national debt had been 
 diminished at the rate of more than 
 S-.ooo.ooo a year, it being at the time of 
 his retirement about $58,000,000. This 
 real prosperity he bequeathed to his suc- 
 cessor, and he left the chair of state 
 blessed with the grateful benedictions 
 of the survivors of two wars and their 
 families, to whom had been distributed 
 in pensions, during the four years, 
 more than .$5,000,000. 
 
 ANDREW TACKSON'S ADMIN- 
 ISTRATION. 
 
 Jackson, when a lad, had served as 
 a soldier in the old war for independ- 
 ence ; and when he proceeded from his 
 lodgings, in Washington City, to the 
 Capitol to be inaugurated on the 4th 
 of March, 1829, he was escorted by 
 surviving officers and soldiers of that 
 war. His valorous deeds in the sec- 
 ond war for independence (1812- 
 15) were remembered by the soldiers 
 of the second war, and they thronged 
 the national capital on that day to wit- 
 ness the exaltation of the chief. 
 
 President Jackson was honest, brave 
 and true to his moral convictions. He 
 began his administration with an au- 
 dacity of conduct that amazed his pol- 
 itical friends, and alarmed his enemies. 
 He swept his political opponents out of 
 the various offices ; but in making new 
 a])pointments, he aimed to have the in- 
 cum!)ent answer the searching queries 
 in the affirmative — "Is he capable? Is 
 he honest?" I lis foreign policy was 
 indicated in his instructions to I.ouis 
 McLane, his first minister to England, 
 in which he said : "Ask nothing but 
 what is right, and submit to nothing 
 that is wrong." Jackson was so de- 
 cided in his opinions and actions — so 
 jjositive in character — that he was 
 thoroughly loved or thorouglily hated ; 
 and for eight years he braved the fierce 
 
 tempests that arose out of partisan 
 strifes, domestic perple.xities and for- 
 eign arrogance, with a skill and cour- 
 age that challenge our profound admir- 
 ation. 
 
 At the beginning of Jackson's admin- 
 istration, the government of Georgia re- 
 newed its demand for the removal of 
 the powerful Cherokee nation from 
 that State. The President favored the 
 demand, and white people proceeded to 
 take possession of Cherokee estates 
 which had been assigned to them. 
 These Indians were then advanced in 
 civilization, many of them being suc- 
 cessful agriculturists. They had 
 churches and schools, and a printing- 
 press ; and as they were disposed to 
 defend their rights, civil war appeared 
 inevitable for awhile. In 1832, the 
 Supreme Court of the United States 
 decided against the claim of Georgia, 
 when that State, supported by the Pres- 
 ident, resisted the decision. An amic- 
 able settlement was finally reached ; 
 and under the mild coercion of General 
 Winfield Scott and several thousand 
 troops, the Cherokees left Georgia in 
 1838, and went to lands assigned them 
 well toward the eastern slopes of the 
 Rocky Mountains. 
 
 In his first annual message. Presi- 
 dent Jackson took strong ground 
 against a renewal of the charter of 
 the United States Bank, which would 
 expire in 1836. It was occasionally 
 varied by some contra-excitement, like 
 that of the "Black Hawk War" in 
 1832. At that time the region now 
 known as the State of Wisconsin was 
 an almost unbroken wilderness. Sev- 
 eral Indian tribes inhabited it ; and 
 these, led by Black Hawk, a fierce Sac 
 chief, made war upon the frontier set- 
 tlers of Illinois in April, 1832. After 
 some skirmishes with United States 
 troops and the militia of Illinois, the 
 Indians were driven beyond the Mis- 
 sissippi, and their leader, made captive, 
 was taken to eastern cities, that he 
 might be impressed with the folly of 
 contending with a nation so numerous 
 and strong. 
 
 Now began a conflict which shook 
 the republic to its very centre. The 
 
224 
 
 THE HOME AUXILIARY AND REFERENCE 
 
 doctrine of State sovereignity, or State 
 supremacy, formulated in the first con- 
 stitution of the republic known as the 
 Articles of Confederation, and dis- 
 carded in the second constitution, yet 
 prevailed, especially in South Caro- 
 lina, where John C. Calhoun was its 
 most earnest exponent. The discon- 
 tents alluded to growing out of the 
 tariff acts and crystallized by the al- 
 chemy of this doctrine, assumed the 
 concrete form of incipient rebellion 
 against the national government when, 
 in the spring of 1832, an act of Con- 
 gress was passed imposing additional 
 duties on imported textile fabrics. A 
 Slate convention of delegates was held 
 in South Carolina in November follow- 
 ing, at which it was declared that the 
 tariff acts were unconstitutional and 
 therefore null and void ; and it was re- 
 solved that no duties should be col- 
 lected in the port of Charleston by the 
 national government. It was also pro- 
 claimed that any attempt to enforce the 
 law would be resisted by the people 
 in arms, and would cause the secession 
 of South Carolina from the Union. The 
 State Legislature that met soon after- 
 ward passed laws in support of this dec- 
 laration, and military preparations were 
 made for that purpose. Civil war 
 seemed to be inevitable, but the Presi- 
 dent met the exigency with his usual 
 promptness and vigor. On the loth of 
 December he issued a proclamation 
 (written by Louis McLane, Secretary of 
 the Treasury), in which he denied the 
 right of any State to nullify an act 
 of the national government, and 
 warned those engaged in the movement 
 in South Carolina that the laws of the 
 United States would be enforced by 
 military power, if necessary. The "nul- 
 lifiers" yielded to necessity for the mo- 
 ment, but their zeal and determination 
 were not abated. Great anxiety filled 
 the public mind for a time, until Henry 
 Clay, one of the most earnest promoters 
 of the American System, appeared as a 
 pacificator, by offering a bill (Febru- 
 ary 12, 1833) which provided for a 
 ■gradual reduction of the obnoxious du- 
 ties during the next ten years. This 
 compromise was accepted by both par- 
 
 ties, and the bill became a law in March. 
 President Jackson had been re-elected 
 to the Chief Magistracy in the autumn 
 of 1832, with Martin Van Pmren as 
 Vice-President. The latter had been 
 Secretary of State, and was appointed 
 by the President, during the recess of 
 Congress, to succeed Mr. McLane as 
 minister to England. The Senate after- 
 ward refused to ratify the appointment, 
 and \'an Buren was recalled. This act 
 was regarded as a gratuitous indig- 
 nity offered to the administration. Its 
 friends made use of it to create sym- 
 pathy for the rejected minister, and he 
 was elected to preside over the body 
 which had declared him to be unfit to 
 represent the republic at the British 
 court. The result completely alienated 
 Calhoun from the administration. 
 
 While the country was agitated by 
 the movements of the nullifiers, the 
 President himself produced equal ex- 
 citement by beginning a series of acts 
 in his warfare upon the United States 
 Bank which were denounced as high- 
 handed and tyrannical. In his annual 
 message in December, 1832, the Presi- 
 dent recommended Congress to author- 
 ize the removal from that institution 
 of the government moneys deposited in 
 it. and to sell the stock of the bank 
 owned by the United States. Congress 
 refused to do so. After the adjourn- 
 ment of that body, the President took 
 the responsibility of ordering "Sir. 
 Duane, the Secretary of the Treasury, 
 to withdraw the public funds from the 
 bank, and deposit them in certain State 
 banks. The Secretary refused, when 
 the President removed him from office, 
 and put in his place R. B. Taney, then 
 the Attorney-C^eneral and afterwa-rd 
 Chief-Justice, who obeyed his superior. 
 The removal of the funds began in Oc- 
 tober, 1833. When the functions of the 
 bank were paralyzed, all commercial 
 operations felt a deadening shock. This 
 fact confirmed the opinion of the Pres- 
 ident that it was a dangerous institu- 
 tion, and he refused to listen favorably 
 to all prayers for a modification of his 
 measures, or for action for relief made 
 by numerous committees of merchants, 
 manufacturers and mechanics, who 
 
SIXTH PERIOD— JACKSON'S ADMINISTRATION 
 
 waited upon him. To all of them he 
 said, in substance: "The government 
 can give no rehef nor provide a rem- 
 edy ; the banks are the occasion of the 
 evils which exist, and those who have 
 suffered by trading largely on borrowed 
 capital ought to break ; you have no 
 one to blame but yourselves." The 
 State banks received the government 
 funds on deposit, and loaned them 
 freely. The panic subsided ; confidence 
 was gradually restored, and apparent 
 general prosperity returned. 
 
 It collapsed at the touch of the 
 Ithurial spear of Necessity. A failure 
 of the grain crop of England caused a 
 large demand for corn to pay for food 
 products abroad. The Bank of Eng- 
 land, seeing exchanges running high 
 and higher against that country, con- 
 tracted its loans and admonished 
 houses who were giving long and ex- 
 tensive credits to the Americans, by the 
 use of money borrowed from the bank, 
 to curtail that hazardous business. At 
 about the same time the famous "Specie 
 Circular" went out from our Treasury 
 Department (July, 1836), directing all 
 collectors of the public revenue to re- 
 ceive nothing but coin. From the par- 
 lor of the Bank of England and from 
 the Treasury of the United States went 
 forth the unwelcome fiat. Pay up! 
 /\merican houses in London failed for 
 many millions ; and every bank in the 
 United States suspended specie pay- 
 ments in 1837, but resumed in 1839. 
 Then the United States Bank, char- 
 tered by the legislature of Pennsylvania, 
 fell into hopeless ruin, and with it went 
 down a very large number of the State 
 banks of the country. A general bank- 
 rupt law, passed in 1841, relieved of 
 debt almost forty thousand persons, 
 whose liabilities amounted in the ag- 
 gregate to about $441,000,000. 
 
 These financial troubles were pre- 
 ceded by the breaking out of war with 
 the Seminole Indians in East Florida, 
 a consequence of an attempt to re- 
 move them, by force, to the wilderness 
 west of the Mississippi River. Led by 
 Micanopy, their principal sachem and 
 chief, they began a most distressing 
 warfare u]3on the frontier settlements 
 
 of Florida, in which Osceola, a chief 
 superior in ability to Micanopy (for he 
 possessed the cunning of Tecumtha and 
 the heroism of a Metacomet), was an 
 active leader for awhile, for he had 
 private wrongs to revenge. 
 
 In the spring of 1832, some of the 
 Seminole chiefs, in council, agreed to 
 lea\ e Florida, and made a treaty to that 
 effect. Other chiefs (among whom 
 was Osceola) and the great body of the 
 nation resolved to stay, declaring that 
 the treaty was not binding upon them. 
 At length, in 1834, General Wiley 
 Thompson was sent to Florida with 
 troops to prepare for a forcible re- 
 moval of the Indians. Osceola stirred 
 up the nation to resistance. One day 
 his insolent bearing and offensive words 
 in the presence of Thompson caused 
 that general to put the chief in irons 
 and in a prison for a day. Osceola's 
 wounded pride called for vengeance, 
 and it was fearfully wrought during a 
 war that lasted about seven years. By 
 bravery, skill, strategies and treachery, 
 he overmatched the L'nited States 
 troops sent against him and commanded 
 by some of the best officers in the ser- 
 vice. 
 
 At last the treacherous chief became 
 a prisoner in the hands of General 
 Jesup. That officer received Osceola 
 and other chiefs, with a train of seventy 
 warriors, under a fiag of truce, in a 
 grove of magnolias in the dark swamp. 
 As the chief arose to speak, Jesup gave 
 a signal, when two or three of his sol- 
 diers rushed forward and seized and 
 bound Osceola with strong cords. He 
 made no resistance ; but several of his 
 excited followers drew their gleammg 
 hatchets from their belts. The muskets 
 and bayonets of Jesup's troops re- 
 strained them, and they were dismissed 
 without their leader, who was sent to 
 Charleston and confined in Fort Moul- 
 trie. There he died of a fever, and a 
 small monument was erected over his 
 grave near the main entrance to the 
 fort. The Seniinoles, under other 
 leaders, continued to resist, notwith- 
 standing almost nine thousand LTnited 
 .States troojis were in their territory at 
 the close of 1837. For more than two 
 
326 
 
 THE HOME AUXILIARY AND REFERENCE 
 
 years afterward Taylor and his men 
 endured great hardships in trying to 
 bring the war to a close. A treaty for 
 that purpose was made in May, 1839, 
 but so lightly did its obligations bind 
 the Indians that they continued thetr 
 depredations. It was not until 1842 
 that a permanent peace was secured, 
 when scores of valuable lives and mil- 
 lions of treasure had been wasted in 
 a war that had its origin in the injus- 
 tice of the white man toward his dusky 
 neighbor. 
 
 In the intercourse of President Jack- 
 son's administration with foreign gov- 
 ernments, his instructions given to 
 Minister jMcLane, already alluded to, 
 formed the basis of action. He de- 
 manded what was right with vigor, and 
 refused to submit to what was wrong 
 on all occasions; and by this course he 
 secured to our republic the profound 
 respect of the nations of the globe. At 
 the end of his first term, the foreign 
 relations of our government were very 
 satisfactory, excepting with France. 
 That government, by a treaty which he 
 had vigorously pressed to a conclusion, 
 had agreed to pay to the United States 
 $5,000,000, by instalments, as indemnity 
 for injury to American commerce, 
 which the operations of the various de- 
 crees of Napoleon from 1806 until 181 1 
 had inflicted. The legislative branch of 
 the French government did not 
 promptly comply with the provisions 
 of the treaty, and the President as- 
 sumed a hostile attitude. The affair 
 was finally settled in 1836, before 
 Jackson left the chair of state. Similar 
 claims were made against Portugal, and 
 payment obtained ; and for similar rea- 
 sons the king of Naples agreed to pay 
 to the United States $1,720,000. Com- 
 mercial treaties were made with sev- 
 eral Furopean states and with the Sul- 
 tan of Turkey; and when Jackson re- 
 tired from ofifice in the spring of 1837, 
 our republic, with its national debt ex- 
 tinguished, was more respected than 
 ever by the ])0wers of the earth. 
 
 During the administration of Presi- 
 dent Jackson, of eight years, two new 
 States were admitted into the Union, 
 making the whole number twenty-six. 
 
 These were Arkansas and Michigan. 
 The former was admitted in June, 1836, 
 and the latter in January, 1837. At 
 that time Jackson's administration was 
 drawing to a close. Martin Van Buren, 
 who had been nominated for the Pres- 
 idency, with the understanding that if 
 elected he would continue the general 
 policy of Jackson, was chosen to that 
 office by a very large majority of the 
 popular vote. The people failed to elect 
 a \'ice-President, when the Senate chose 
 Richard M. Johnson of Kentucky, for 
 that office. 
 
 ^.lARTIN VAN BUREN'S ADMIN- 
 ISTRATION. 
 
 It seemed to be the opening of a new 
 era in the history of our Republic, 
 when, on the 4th of March, 1837, Mar- 
 tin Van Buren, of New York, of Dutch 
 descent, was inaugurated the eighth 
 President of the , United States. His 
 predecessors in that office were all of 
 British stock, and had been personally 
 engaged in the events of the old war for 
 independence ; he was born at near the 
 close of that war, and was in the fifty- 
 fifth year of his age when he entered 
 the chair of state. 
 
 Mr. \'an Buren's administration be- 
 gan at an inauspicious time, for the 
 fearful commercial revulsion, already 
 alluded to, had just begun. During 
 March and April, 1837, there were mer- 
 cantile failures in the city of New York 
 to the amount of more than one hun- 
 dred million dollars. Only fifteen 
 months before, property to the amount 
 of more than twenty million dollars had 
 l5een consumed by a great fire, which 
 iiccurred in December, 1835, when 
 more than five hundred buildings were 
 destroyed. The effects of these losses 
 and failures at the commercial em- 
 porium were felt in every part of the 
 Union, and business confidence received 
 a paralyzing shock. A deputation of 
 merchants and bankers of New York 
 waited upon the President in May with 
 a petition praying him to defer the col- 
 lection of duties,\ rescind the "Specie 
 Circular," and call an extraordinary ses- 
 sion of Congress. Their prayer was 
 
SIXTH PKRIOD— VAN RUREN'S ADAEINISTRATION 
 
 rejected, and when tlie fact became 
 known, nearly all the banks in the coun- 
 try suspended specie payment. This 
 movement embarrassed the government, 
 for it was unable to obtain coin where- 
 with to discharge its own financial ob- 
 ligations. So situated, the public good 
 demanded legislative relief, and the 
 President called an extraordinary ses- 
 sion of Congress on the 4th of Septem- 
 ber. In his message to that body, he 
 proposed the establishment of an inde- 
 pendent treasury for the public funds, 
 totally disconnected with all banking 
 institutions; but during a session of 
 forty-three days. Congress did very lit- 
 tle for the general relief, excepting the 
 authorizing of an issue of treasvury 
 notes, in amount not exceeding ten mil- 
 lion dollars. The indejiendent treasury 
 scheme met with violent opposition, but 
 a bill to that effect became a law in 
 July, 1840, and the "Sub-Treasury 
 System" was put into operation. 
 
 Peaceful relations between the United 
 States and Great Britain, which had 
 then existed many years, were some- 
 what disturbed in 1837 and 1838 by 
 events connected with a revolutionary 
 movement that broke out in Canada, 
 the avowed object being to achieve the 
 independence of the jjrovinces of Brit- 
 ish rule. In this effort our people sym- 
 pathized, and gave the insurgents all 
 possible aid and comfort. Individuals 
 and organized companies went across 
 the border and joined the insurgents ; 
 and refugees from Canada were pro- 
 tected here. The agitation and the out- 
 break occurred simultaneously in Upper 
 and Lower Canada, but local jealousies 
 prevented a unity of action, and the 
 scheme failed. The active sympathy of 
 the people of the "States," and espe- 
 cially along the northern frontier, irri- 
 tated the British government. The 
 President issued a proclamation, warn- 
 ing Americans not to violate neutrality 
 and international laws ; and he sent 
 General Winfield Scott to the northern 
 frontier to preserve order. It was not 
 permanently effected until at the end 
 of about four years. 
 
 Many stirring incidents occurred on 
 the frontier during that outbreak in the 
 
 Canadas, the most conspicuous of which 
 was on the bosom of the Niagara River. 
 A party of Americans, seven hundred in 
 luimber, with twenty cannon, took pos- 
 session of Navy Island, in that stream, 
 two miles above the Great Falls. They 
 liad a small steamboat named Caroline, 
 that plied between the Island and 
 Scholosser, on the New York shore. 
 One dark night in December, 1837, a 
 party of royalists crossed the river from 
 Canada, set the Caroline on fire, cut her 
 loose from her moorings, and allowed 
 her to go blazing down the fearful 
 rapids and over the crown of the mightv 
 cataract into the seething gulf below. 
 It was believed that some persons were 
 on board the Caroline, and perished 
 with her. 
 
 Another cause for unpleasant feeling 
 between the governments of the United 
 States and Great Britain was a long- 
 standing dispute concerning the true 
 boundary between the State of Maine 
 and the British province of New Bruns- 
 wick. The inhabitants of each frontier 
 had become so exasperated that at the 
 close of 1838 they were preparing for 
 actual war. General Scott was sent to 
 the scene of strife as a pacificator in the 
 winter of 1839, and the dispute was 
 settled by a treaty negotiated by Daniel 
 W ebster and Lord Ashburton, the same 
 year. Provision was made in the same 
 treaty for the co-operation of the two 
 governments in the suppression of the 
 African slave trade; also for the giv- 
 ing up of fugitives from justice, in cer- 
 tain cases. This is known in history as 
 the Ashburton Treaty. 
 
 Mr. ^'an Buren was a candidate for 
 the Presidency a second time, and was 
 nominated for that office by the unan- 
 imous vote of the Democratic conven- 
 tion assembled at Baltimore in 1840. 
 In December. 1839, a national Whig 
 convention, held at Harrisburg in Penn- 
 sylvania, nominated General William 
 Henry Harrison of Ohio for President 
 and John Tyler of \'irginia for \^ice- 
 President. The canvass was a very ex- 
 citing one, and the method of carrying 
 it on by one party was exceedingly de- 
 moralizing. Because Harrison lived in 
 the West and his residence was for- 
 
THE HOME AUXILIARY AND REFERENCE 
 
 ivcrly a log cabin, such a structure be- 
 came the symbol of his party ; and be- 
 cause of his proverbial hospitality, that 
 quality was symbolized by a barrel of 
 cider. Log cabins were erected all over 
 the country as places for political gath- 
 erings, and seas of cider were drank in 
 them. Young and old partook freely 
 of the beverage, and the meetings were 
 often mere drunken carousals that were 
 injurious to all, and especially to youth. 
 Many a drunkard afterward sadly 
 charged his departure from the path of 
 sobriety to the "Hard Cider" campaign 
 of 1840. Demagogues, as usual, had 
 made the people believe that a change 
 in administration would restore pros- 
 perity to the country, and they adroitly 
 held the administration of \'an Buren 
 responsible for nearly all the woes the 
 country was suffering. The conse- 
 quence was that Harrison and Tyler 
 were elected by overwhelming majori- 
 ties ; and in the spring of 1841 Mr. Van 
 Buren surrendered the Presidential 
 chair to the popular soldier of the West. 
 
 HARRISON'S AND TYLER'S AD- 
 MINISTRATIONS. 
 
 General Harrison was an old man — 
 sixty-eight years of age — when he en- 
 tered upon the duties of chief magis- 
 trate of the nation. He seemed vigor- 
 ous in mind and body when he de- 
 livered his inaugural address from the 
 eastern portico of the Capitol. It was 
 received with favor by all parties, for 
 it was full of wisdom ; and confidence 
 was half restored in the commercial 
 world, when it was known that he had 
 chosen Daniel Webster for Secretary 
 of State : Thomas Ewing, Secretary of 
 the Treasury : John Bell, Secretary of 
 War : George E. Badger, Secretary nf 
 the Navy : Francis Granger, Post- 
 master-General and John J. Crittenden, 
 Attorney-General. This beginning gave 
 omen of the dawn of a day of pros- 
 perity for the land, and there were glad 
 hearts everywhere. But the anthems 
 of the inaugural day were speedily 
 changed into solemn dirges. The hopes 
 centered in the new President were ex- 
 tinguished ; for precisely one month 
 
 after he took the oath of oflice ironi 
 Chief-Justice Taney, he died. He had 
 performed only one official act of great 
 importance during his brief administra- 
 tion, and that was the issuing of a proc- 
 lamation on the 17th of March, calling 
 an extraordinary session of Congress 
 in May to consider the subjects of fi- 
 nance and revenue. 
 
 John Tyler, the Vice-President, be- 
 came the constitutional successor of 
 President Harrison. He was called to 
 Washington from ^Villiamsburg in \'ir- 
 ginia, by a message sent by Harrison's 
 cabinet-ministers on the 4th of April 
 (the day on which the President died)- 
 and he was in the national capital at 
 four o'clock on the morning of the 
 6th. At noon the cabinet-ministers 
 called upon him in a body, and he took 
 the oath of office, administered by 
 Judge Cranch. To the gentlemen pres- 
 ent, after alluding to the deceased 
 President, Mr. Tyler said, "You have 
 only exchanged one Whig for another." 
 He had been a Democrat of the school 
 of strict constructionists of the Con- 
 stitution, but when he was a candidate 
 for the \ice-Presidency, he had avowed 
 himself to be a firm and decided Whig. 
 It seems proper here, in order to better 
 understand the brief record of events 
 that follow, to give an outline sketch 
 of political parties in the United States 
 at that time. 
 
 We have seen that the Federal party 
 was cast into a minority on the election 
 of Mr. Jefiferson in 1800, and continued 
 in opposition until the close of Madi- 
 son's administration in 1817, when they 
 soon afterward became extinct as a 
 national party ; the administration of 
 I\Ir. Monroe being so generally satis- 
 factory, that opposition practically 
 ceased. When, in 1824. .Adams and 
 Jackson. Crawford and Clay, became 
 rival candidates for the Presidency, sep- 
 arate political organizations of a per- 
 sonal nature were formed, composed of 
 Federalists and Democrats intermin- 
 gled ; but when Jackson was elected to 
 the chief magistracy in 1828, his sup- 
 porters claimed the name of Democrats. 
 His opponents took the name of Na- 
 tional Republicans, but when in 1833 
 
'YTII PERIOD— HARRISON'S AND TYLER'S ADMINISTRATION 22y 
 
 and 1834 they were joined by seceders 
 of tlie Democratic party, they took the 
 title of Whigs. At the accession of Mr. 
 Van Buren in 1837, the great national 
 parties into which the people were di- 
 vided were known respectively as 
 Democrats and \Miigs. Several minor 
 parties (some of them local in their or- 
 ganization), such as the Anti-Masons 
 in the Eastern States ; the State-Rights 
 men in the South, who were opposed to 
 the removal of the deposits from the 
 I'nited States Bank ; and the supporters 
 of Jackson in Georgia, Tennessee, and 
 other States, who were opposed to \'an 
 Buren, generally acted witli the Whig 
 party. 
 
 Even before the elevation of Mr. \'an 
 Buren to the Presidency, the Demo- 
 cratic party had been (li\ided in the 
 Northern and Middle States. There 
 arose in its ranks, in 1835, in the city 
 of New York, a combination opposed 
 to all moneyed institutions and mon- 
 opolies of every sort. They were the 
 successor of the defunct Workingmen's 
 party, formed in 1829, and called tiiem- 
 selves the "Equal Rights Party." They 
 acted with much caution and secrecy in 
 their opposition to the powerful Na- 
 tional Democratic party. They never 
 rose above the dignity of a faction, 
 and their first decided demonstration 
 was made in Tammany I Tail, one even- 
 ing at the close of October, 1835, when 
 the "Equal Rights" men objected to 
 some names on the ticket to be put be- 
 fore the people. There was a struggle 
 for the chair, which the "regulars" ob- 
 tained, declared their ticket and resolu- 
 tion adopted, and then attempted to ad- 
 journ the meeting and put out the 
 lights. The opposition were prepared 
 for this emergency by having "loco- 
 foco" or friction matches in their 
 pockets, with which they immediatelv 
 restored light to the room, placed their 
 leader in the chair, adopted an "Equal 
 Rights" Democratic ticket, and passed 
 strong resolutions against all monop- 
 olies. The faction was ever afterward 
 known as the Poco-Focos, and the name 
 was finally applied by the Whigs to the 
 whole Democratic party. This faction 
 became formidable, and the regulars 
 
 endeavored to conciliate the irregulars 
 by nominating Richard M. Johnson of 
 Kentucky, their favorite candidate for 
 the Presidency, for Vice-President, 
 with Mr. Van Buren. The advocacy 
 of an extensive specie currency by the 
 latter, and his proposition for a sub- 
 treasury, alienated another portion of 
 the Democratic party, and they formed 
 a powerful faction known as "Conser- 
 vatives." This faction finally joined 
 the Whigs, and in 1840 aided in the 
 election of Harrison and Tyler. 
 
 The first extraordinary session of the 
 Twenty-seventh Congress began on the 
 31st of May, 1841, and continued until 
 tlie 13th of September following. Sub- 
 jects of grave importance to the nation 
 were presented to that body, chief of 
 which was that of the finances of the 
 country. The Secretary of the Treas- 
 ury (Air. Ewing) strongly urged the 
 necessity of a national bank, and recom- 
 mended Congress to charter one with 
 a capital of thirty million dollars. At 
 the request of Congress (whose action 
 was suggested by the President ) . the 
 Secretary reported a plan of a "Fiscal 
 Bank of the United States," with a bill 
 for its incorporation. He endeavored 
 to free the ]ilan from the constitutional 
 objections to preceding institutions of a 
 similar nature. It was known that the 
 President had decided constitutional ob- 
 jection to the old bank and had assisted 
 Jackson in his warfare upon it : and a 
 bill was finally framed, partly upon the 
 plan proposed by the Secretary, and 
 partly by one proposed in the Senate 
 by Mr. Clay, which the President, it 
 was said, had declared met his views. 
 It was passed on the 6th of August, as 
 eminently the great Whig measure of 
 the session, and one which was to re- 
 store confidence to the business com- 
 munity and inaugurate a day of na- 
 tional prosperity. It was sent to the 
 President for his signature, when, to 
 the great disappointment of his political 
 friends, he returned it with his objec- 
 tions ten days after its passage. The 
 Whigs in Congress were bewildered, 
 and great anxiety was felt throughout 
 the country. There was not a sufficient 
 number of its supporters in Congress 
 
230 
 
 THE HOME AUXILIARY AND REFERENCE 
 
 to enable them to carry the measure 
 over the President's veto, and they has- 
 tened to construct a new bill that would 
 meet his views. He was visited by 
 two members deputed for the purpose, 
 and a bill in accordance with his wishes 
 was drawn up and submitted to Mr. 
 Webster, the Secretary of State, who 
 laid it before Mr. Tyler. The latter 
 approved it, and it was sent to the 
 House of Representatives and passed 
 by that body. In conformity to his 
 wishes the name of "Bank" was omitted 
 in the latter. 
 
 While the second bill was pending in 
 Congress, a private letter written by the 
 late John j\l. Botts of Virginia, con- 
 cerning the veto, was made public. He 
 charged the President with infidelity to 
 the party in power, saying: "One Cap- 
 tain Tyler is making a desperate effort 
 to set himself up with the Loco-Focos, 
 but he'll be headed yet, and, I regret to 
 say, it will end badly for him. He will 
 be an object of execration with both 
 
 parties He has refused to 
 
 listen to the admonitions of his best 
 friends, and looked only to the whisper- 
 ings of ambitious and designing mis- 
 chief-makers who have collected around 
 him." This letter so irritated the Presi- 
 dent that, allowing his personal feelings 
 to control his public action, he resolved 
 to oppose any bank bill that might be 
 offered at that session. The second 
 bill, which the President had approved, 
 was passed without alteration on the 
 3d of September. He had expressed 
 a strong desire, at the beginning of the 
 session, to have the matter postponed 
 until the regular session, but the friends 
 of the measure in Congress and 
 throughout the country demanded im- 
 mediate action. The bill was submitted 
 to the President for his signature, and 
 pursuant to his resolve, he vetoed it 
 on the 9th — six days after its adoption. 
 In consequence of this act the Whigs, 
 who had elevated Mr. Tyler to his high 
 dignity, were greatly exasperated, and 
 he was denounced as unfaithful to 
 solemn pledges and as a secret enemy, 
 who was playing into the hands of his 
 late associates, the Democrats. All of 
 Mr. Tyler's cabinet-ministers resigned 
 
 excepting !Mr. Webster, who patrioti- 
 cally remained at his post because grave 
 public interests connected with his de- 
 partment required it. In fact, Mr. 
 Webster felt that the bank matter had 
 been pushed with too much haste and 
 persistency, considering the state of the 
 President's mind, "since there was rea- 
 son to believe that the President would 
 be glad of time for information and 
 reflection before being called on to form 
 an opinion on another plan for a bank — 
 a plan somewhat new to the country." 
 Mr. Webster wrote, "I thought his 
 known wishes ought to be complied 
 with. I think so still. I think this is 
 a course just to the President and wise 
 in behalf of the Whig party." But 
 such counsels did not prevail, and there 
 was a decided alienation between the 
 I'resident and the ^^ hig party from the 
 time of the resignation of his cabinet. 
 During that e.xtraordinary session of 
 Congress, other important measures 
 were adopted. The wants of the 
 treasury were supplied, provision was 
 made for fortifications, the sub-treas- 
 ury act was repealed, and a bankrupt 
 act, which Mr. Webster spoke of as "a 
 great measure of justice and benevo- 
 lence," was passed. By the latter act, 
 thousands of honest and industrious 
 men who had been prostrated by the 
 tempest of business disaster which had 
 swept over the land, and were hope- 
 lessly in debt, were enabled to stand on 
 their feet again and give their ener- 
 gies to the promotion of the various in- 
 dustries of the country. It bore hard 
 upon the creditor class ; and when 
 rogues sought its shelter while cheating 
 honest men, the law was repealed. 
 
 The second year of Mr. Tyler's ad- 
 m.inistration (1842) was distinguished 
 by the return of an expedition which 
 the government sent out late in the 
 summer of 1838, under the command 
 of Lieutenant Charles Wilkes, to ex- 
 plore the great Southern Ocean. That 
 expedition cruised along what was 
 supposed to be the shores of a South- 
 ern continent, seventeen hundred miles 
 in the vicinity of latitude 66 degrees. 
 ■Much valuable scientific information 
 was obtained, for able scientists and 
 
SIXTH PERIOD— HARRISOX'S AXD TVLF.RS ADMIXISTRATIOX 231 
 
 artists accompanied the expedition ; but 
 owing to the imperfect methods of the 
 publications of the results, that knowl- 
 edge has not been properly diffused 
 among the people. At the end of a 
 voyage of about ninety thousand miles, 
 the expedition presented to the nation 
 a large collection of specimens of the 
 natural history and curiosities of the 
 islands of the South Atlantic and Pa- 
 cific Oceans. A greater portion of 
 these are preserved in the custody of 
 the National Institute, in the building 
 of the Smithsonian Institution at 
 Washington city. The last-named in- 
 stitution was founded with funds be- 
 queathed to the United States govern- 
 ment by James Smithson, of England, 
 in trust, to be used for "the increase 
 and diffusion of knowledge among 
 men." The sum bequeathed, when re- 
 ceived in 1838, was more than half a 
 million dollars in gold, and in 1865, a 
 residuary legacy of over $26,000 was 
 received. That institution is carrying 
 out the benevolent views of Mr. Smith- 
 son in an admirable manner. 
 
 During President Tyler's administra- 
 tion, a spark of civil war appeared in 
 Rhode Island, which seemed to de- 
 mand the interference of the national 
 government. The constitution of 
 Rhode Island was the old charter 
 granted by Charles the Second, and 
 under it the people had prospered until 
 1842, when it was proposed to abandon 
 it and make a new constitution. There 
 was a wide dilTerence of opinion as to 
 the method to be pursued in making the 
 change. A "Suffrage," or Radical 
 party, and a "Law and Order." or 
 Conservative party were formed. 
 Each adopted a constitution and elected 
 a governor and legislature under it : 
 and in May and June. 1843, both parties 
 were armed in support of their respec- 
 tive claims. The State was on the 
 verge of civil war, when the interfer- 
 ence of national troops was invoked. 
 The constitution of the "Law and Or- 
 der" party was sustained, and no fur- 
 ther trouble ensued. 
 
 This local agitation was followed by 
 a national one. On the Southwestern 
 borders of our Republic was a sover- 
 
 eign State called Texas, a part of the 
 domain of ancient Mexico that was 
 conquered by the Spaniards. The 
 Mexicans revolted and set up an in- 
 dependent government, which became 
 a Republic under a constitution similar 
 to that of the United States, and was 
 divided into nineteen States and five 
 Territories ; Te.xas was one of the for- 
 mer. The ^lexican government en- 
 couraged emigration into that State, 
 and in 1833, full ten thousand Ameri- 
 cans were settled there. Santa Anna, 
 a restless, unscrupulous and selfish m- 
 triguer and revolutionist, had made 
 himself military dictator of Mexico. 
 The people of Texas, unwilling to sub- 
 mit to his arbitrary rule, revolted, and 
 in 1836, that State was declared to be 
 independent. Santa Anna was then in 
 that country with a heavy military 
 force : but at a battle near the San 
 Jacinto River, late in April, he was de- 
 feated by General Houston and made a 
 prisoner. This ended the war for 
 Texan independence, and that indepen- 
 dence was acknowledged by the United 
 States in the spring of 1837. But the 
 people of Texas were continually har- 
 assed by Mexican marauders ; and 
 when, in 1843, President Tyler made a 
 proposition to the President of that Re- 
 public for its annexation to the United 
 States, it was gladly accepted. A 
 treaty to that eft"ect was negotiated, and 
 it was signed in April, 1844, by the 
 Texan commissioner and John C. Cal- 
 houn, who was then Secretary of 
 State: but the Senate rejected it. 
 
 The country was soon afterward 
 violently agitated by discussions on the 
 subject of annexation. The chief 
 point of antagonism lay in the slavery 
 question, the friends of that institution 
 being all in favor of the measure, 
 while its opponents were firmly op- 
 posed to it, for they regarded it as a 
 plan for strengthening the political 
 power of the slave-labor States ; also 
 because it would surely lead to a war 
 with Mexico, for that government had 
 never given up its claim to Texas as 
 one of the States of the Republic. 
 This question entered largely into the 
 canvass for the Presidency in 1844. 
 
THE HOME AUXILIARY AND REFERENCE 
 
 For that high office James K. Polk, of 
 Tennessee, who was warmly in favor of 
 the annexation of Texas, was nomi- 
 nated by the Democrats, and George 
 M. Dallas, of Pennsylvania, was named 
 for \'ice-President. They were elected 
 over the opposing Whig candidates, 
 Henry Clay, of Kentucky, and Theo- 
 dore Frelinghuysen. of New Jersey. 
 
 The region known as Oregon had 
 been a matter of dispute at an early 
 day, between the United States and 
 Great Britain. In the year 1792, Cap- 
 tain Gray, of Boston, in the ship Col- 
 umbia, entered the mouth of the great 
 river of that region and gave the name 
 of his vessel to the stream. \Mien a 
 report of this fact was pressed upon the 
 attention of President Jefiferson, he 
 sent Captains Lewis and Clark on an 
 overland expedition to the Pacific 
 Coast at the mouth of that river. The 
 exploration was accomplished in 1804- 
 1806; and this transaction, with the dis- 
 covery by Captain Gray, gave to the 
 United States a title to the region 
 watered by the Columbia River, accord- 
 ing to the British interpretation of the 
 law of nations. The region so watered 
 extended to the parallel of 54° 
 40' north latitude. By the pur- 
 chase of Louisiana, in 1803, the United 
 States acquired whatever title to that 
 domain France had possessed. But 
 the British government, instigated by 
 the Hudson's Bay Company, claimed 
 Oregon. Finally, by a treaty made in 
 1818, it was agreed that citizens of 
 both nations should jointly occupy it for 
 ten years. This was renewed for an 
 indefinite period, each party having the 
 right to end the agreement at any time 
 by giving twelve months' notice to the 
 other. Such notice was given by the 
 United States in 1839, and prepara- 
 tions were made for the occupation of 
 the territory by American citizens. 
 Great Britain then claimed the whole 
 of Oregon. The LTnited States ofi'ered 
 to compromise by drawing the northern 
 line of its possessions there, along the 
 parallel of 49° 40'. The British per- 
 sisted in their claim, and during the 
 political canvass of 1844, "Texas" and 
 "Oregon" became a part of the battle- 
 
 cry of the Democrats. At their con- 
 vention in Baltimore they had declared 
 by resolution "that our title to the whole 
 of the territory of Oregon is clear and 
 unquestionable ; that no portion of the 
 same ought to be ceded to England or 
 any other power ; and that the reoccu- 
 pation of Oregon and the reannexation 
 of Texas (it had been claimed as a 
 part of Louisiana, purchased of 
 France) at the earliest practicable 
 period, are great American measures 
 which this convention recommends to 
 the cordial support of the democracy 
 of the L^nion." The former proposi- 
 tion was popular in the North, and the 
 latter was popular in the South and 
 secured the election of Polk and Dallas. 
 The war-cry of "Fifty-four forty, or 
 fight !" was often heard during the can- 
 vass. A compromise was finally ef- 
 fected with Great Britain. The north- 
 ern boundary of our Republic in that 
 region was fixed at the parallel of 49° ; 
 and in 1848 the Territory of Oregon 
 was organized. In February, 1859, it 
 was admitted into the Union as a 
 State. 
 
 The closing act of Mr. Tyler's ad- 
 ministration was an imitation of Presi- 
 dent Jackson's "pocket veto." A bill 
 making appropriations for certain har- 
 bors and rivers had passed both houses 
 at near the close of the session, and was 
 sent to the President for his signature. 
 He retained it until the session had 
 closed ; and so, without formally veto- 
 ing it, he prevented its becoming a law. 
 
 At the close of his administration, 
 on the 4th of March, 1845, Mr. Tyler, 
 the tenth President of the LTnited 
 States, and then fifty-five years of age, 
 retired to private life, where he re- 
 mained a greatly respected "private 
 citizen" until the civil war broke out, 
 when he took an active part with the 
 enemies of the Republic. He died at 
 Richmond, Virginia, in January, 1862. 
 
 POLK'S ADMINISTRATION. 
 
 The administration of Polk is one of 
 the most successful in our history, 
 viewed from a material standard. He 
 entered office with a definite purpose in 
 
SIXTH PERIOD— POLK'S ADMINISTRATION 
 
 233 
 
 view and accomplished it. In spite of 
 all attempts at sophistry, the real is- 
 sue in 1844 was the annexation of 
 Texas. If it had been a question of the 
 extension of slavery within our own 
 border, Clay would have won. But the 
 annexation of Texas seemed in itself 
 so desirable that the slavery question 
 was put in the backg'round and the 
 issue a', best was a mixed one. Clay 
 was evasive on the issue for Southern 
 consiimption, which not only did him 
 no good, but lost to him support in the 
 North. The issue of slavery exten- 
 sion had been rising for years. The 
 handful of men and women who fol- 
 lowed Garrison and Birney had no 
 strength in politics, but they created 
 an issue which ripened rapidh- in later 
 vears. John Ouincy Adams was no 
 doctrinaire, but he stood by his guns 
 and fought for the right of petition 
 until he won. The Old Man Eloquent 
 reached his highest fame when he com- 
 pelled by logic, by invective, and by an 
 aroused moral sentiment an unwilling 
 Congress to obey the Constitution. The 
 tactics of the opposition were bad from 
 the start. The slavery propaganda 
 made one continuous series of errors, 
 which finally caused the overthrow of 
 their domestic institution. 
 
 \'an Buren's administration failed, 
 because it inherited all the ills arising 
 out of Jackson's bad policy. Tyler's 
 failed because he turned apostate, and 
 yet the failure is, in a political sense 
 only, for Tyler's was a good administra- 
 tion, and the country prospered, while 
 National finances were carefully looked 
 after. Tyler never was a \Miig at 
 heart, and made a mistake in enlisting 
 under that party's banner if he did not 
 subscribe to its doctrine. But Polk was 
 a thorough disciple of Jeffersonian 
 Democracy, who had learned his les- 
 sons well. He entered the Presidency 
 resolved to secure the annexation of 
 Texas at any cost, and he succeeded. 
 The country had a successful foreign 
 war, greatly increased its territory, and 
 added to its prestige abroad. For his 
 advisers Polk choose : James Bu- 
 chanan, of Pennsylvania, Secretary of 
 State; Robert J. Walker, of Missis- 
 
 sippi, Secretary of the Treasury ; Wil- 
 liam L. Marcy, of New York, Secre- 
 tary of War; George Bancroft, of 
 Alassachusetts, Secretary of the Navy; 
 Cave Johnson, of Tennessee, Post- 
 master-General, and John Y. Mason, of 
 \irginia, Attorney-General. 
 
 Victorious as the party has been, it 
 was by no means harmonious, particu- 
 larly in the great pivotal State of New 
 York, there were differences on public 
 questions which required delicate ad- 
 justment to keep in line. Th.ere a clear 
 issue on the slavery extension question 
 wou'd have defeated Polk, and there in 
 1848 it did defeat his party's successor. 
 
 Aside from the Texas issue, which 
 was complicated by the fear that both 
 France and Great Britain were coquet- 
 ting for control, the Oregon question 
 was an important one. We laid claim 
 to the Oregon country from the forty- 
 second parallel of latitude to 54 degrees 
 40 minutes, under various claims of 
 discovery, exploration and purchase. 
 The issue had been long neglected, but 
 had recently risen into importance, and 
 the time had now come for a decision. 
 Taking a false cue, the Democrats 
 raised the cry of "Fifty-four forty or 
 fight," but that was a blind. Polk was 
 willing to cede something in the wil- 
 derness of the Northwest for the sake 
 of being let alone in the Texas matter, 
 and a treaty with Great Britain finally 
 fixed the Forty-ninth parallel to Pu- 
 get's Sound as our boundary after ne- 
 gotiations had been suspended and a 
 rupture was feared. 
 
 Tyler's messenger, despatched in 
 haste to deal with the subject, found 
 Texas waiting. The Lone Star Re- 
 public declared for annexation with 
 boundaries of her own choosing, and 
 in December, 1846, the resolution of 
 annexation passed Congress, and was 
 duly signed. 
 
 The high-tarifif men who had been 
 convinced that Polk and his party were 
 protectionists equally with Whigs soon 
 had a rude awakening. Walker was a 
 shrewd financier, and no mean politic- 
 ian. He prepared a tarifif measure 
 which was not only a purely revenue 
 producer, but had the original idea of 
 
THE HOME AUXILIARY AND REFERENCE 
 
 levying duties on the value of the im- 
 portations and not the mass. The ad 
 valorem idea was correct in theory, 
 but opened the door to innumerable 
 frauds. The Walker tariff was driven 
 through Congress by whip and spur. 
 In the Senate it prevailed solely by the 
 casting vote of Dallas, who was 
 from the greatest protection State in 
 the Union. Terrible was the wrath of 
 the Whigs, but they sufTered from their 
 own lack of moral convictions. Their 
 shifty position had cost them dear. 
 ' Nevertheless the Walker tariff was a 
 good revenue producer and remained 
 unchanged, except in a few particulars, 
 up to the outbreak of the civil war. 
 
 The annexation of Texas meant war 
 with Mexico. The desire of the admin- 
 istration was to throw the burden of 
 beginning it on Mexico, and this was 
 shrewdly accomplished. Colonel and 
 Brevet Brigadier-General Zachary 
 Taylor was sent to Corpus Christi, 
 Texas, with a small army "to observe"' 
 and was finally ordered to the east 
 bank of the Rio Grande with Point 
 Isabel as his base. Texas had gener- 
 ously voted itself territory to the Rio 
 Grande, and immense tracts in the 
 Northwest. This was presumptuous 
 as under Mexican dominion she had 
 less territory than the present State 
 contains. Beyond the Colorado, or at 
 most, the Nueces, the territory cer- 
 tainly was in dispute. Across this lat- 
 ter territory Taylor, according to or- 
 ders, marched to a point opposite 
 Matamoras and erected a fort. Leav- 
 ing a small garrison in Fort Brown, he 
 marched to his base. Hearing that the 
 fort was attacked, he started to relieve 
 it, and on the way fought the battles 
 of Palo Alto and Resaca de la Palma, 
 May 8 and 9. 1846, defeating superior 
 forces after sharp contests. Compared 
 with later battles, the casualities were 
 not large, but reports of them created 
 the greatest excitement in the llnited 
 States. As we had annexed the soil 
 on which the battles were fought, Polk 
 sent a message to Congress announcing 
 that a state of war existed by the act 
 of Mexico in shedding American blood 
 on American soil. It is true that many 
 
 people denied that the soil was iucon- 
 testably American, but the war fever 
 rose high and Congress promptly re- 
 sponded. Fifty thousand volunteers 
 were called for, and money voted for 
 the war without stint. Taylor was or- 
 dered to move forward into Mexico, 
 and the war began in earnest. 
 
 Mexico, which had recently suffered 
 severely from revolutions and internal 
 disorders, resolved on making a brave 
 resistance, and, considering her re- 
 sources, she did well. It was not along 
 the Rio Grande alone that she had her 
 fears. California was even in these 
 days, before gold was thought of, 
 looked upon as desirable territory, and 
 several "exploring" expeditions had 
 been sent thither. John C. Fremont, 
 son-in-law of Senator Benton, had 
 gained the title of "Pathfinder" in 1842 
 and 1843 by crossing the Rocky 
 i\ fountains into California, and explor- 
 ing most of the country west of the 
 range. In August, 1846, General 
 Kearney marched on Santa Fe, New 
 Mexico, and captured it, and there a 
 part of his forces marched across to 
 meet Taylor. Fremont led a small 
 force to California, and in connection 
 with the navy, easily seized the whole 
 of the Pacific Coast almost without loss. 
 
 Thus stood the situation when Con- 
 gress met in December, 1846. In 
 truth, the people were by no means 
 unanimously satisfied with the way the 
 war had been brought on. Polk was 
 blamed for unnecessarily precipitating 
 it at a time when he had asked for an 
 appropriation to negotiate with Mex- 
 ico for a purchase and settlement of the 
 issue. In the summer of 1846, Con- 
 gress was ready to give $2,000,000 for 
 the purpose, but an amendment was 
 ofifered to the appropriation which 
 killed it. This amendment, known in 
 history as the Wilmot Proviso, from 
 David Wilmot, of Pennsylvania, who 
 ofifered it, provided that no part of the 
 territory to be purchased with the 
 money should be open to slavery. As 
 it was desired to gain territory in Cali- 
 fornia for the sole purpose of making 
 slave States, the Southern people would 
 not have it, and so the bill fell. This 
 
SIXTTI PERIOD— POLK'S ADMINISTRATION 
 
 Proviso was offered at each session for 
 several years, became the new rallying 
 cry in politics, and at last furnished the 
 Whigs with a moral issue which they 
 did not wholly adopt. 
 
 Congress could not refuse war bills, 
 and the conquest of Mexico went on. 
 Troops were rushed to the Rio Grande. 
 Taylor moved across the river, took 
 Matamoras, and then moved westward 
 to Monterey, which was naturally a 
 strong position, and defended by a 
 laige garrison. After careful invest- 
 ment the place was assaulted and fell 
 in September, after heavy losses on 
 both sides. This victory still further 
 aroused enthusiasm in the United 
 States, and Taylor was the hero of the 
 hour. The administration was greatly 
 embarrassed by the praise of Taylor, 
 who was a Southern man and a Whig, 
 tliough he was absolutely no politician. 
 'J"he commander of the army was Win- 
 field Scott, also a Wliig, but with de- 
 cided ambitions. There was no Demo- 
 cratic General in the army to rank 
 either of these, and the administratioii 
 was by no means inclined to make 
 Whig heroes. Polk thought at one 
 time of making Benton a Lieutenant- 
 General, but this fell through. Scott, 
 naturally, wanted to go to ^lexico, and 
 lead the army to victory, and prepared 
 a plan for landnig at Vera Cruz, and 
 marching to the capital over the route 
 followed by Cortez. After long hesi- 
 tr.tion, and when no other course was 
 open. Polk consented, and Scott started 
 for the front. Calling at Point Isabel, 
 he took most of Taylor's regulars there 
 without seeing him, and sailed for 
 Yen Cruz. After a bombardment by 
 the navy that city fell March 20, 1847, 
 and Scott prepared to march his little 
 army to the interior. 
 
 Tii the meantime. Taylor had marched 
 westward, and nothing had been heard 
 from him for a long time. Santa 
 Anna, once more in power, had raised 
 a large armv and prepared to destroy 
 him. On February 23, 1847, Taylor 
 took UD a strone position at Buena 
 "Vista, and defeated Santa Anna in the 
 hardest fought battle of the war, 
 against terriljle odds, for most of his 
 
 small force was composed of raw 
 troops. Santa Anna then withdrew 
 and marched overland to meet Scott. 
 The victory of Buena \'ista was the 
 most brilliant of the war, and made the 
 modest Taylor a Presidential candidate 
 in spite of himself. Scott moved his 
 small army with order and precision 
 toward the capital. His force was far 
 less than he had been promised, but he 
 moved ahead ttntil he came to the pass 
 of Cerro Gordo, where the read enters 
 a ravine, flanked on each side by high 
 mountains. By almost superhuman ex- 
 ertions, Santa Anna had raised another 
 army to oppose the invaders. It ap- 
 ])eared at first sight that the Mexican 
 position was impregnable, but Scott, 
 who was an able General, in spite of 
 some personal eccentricities, detected 
 one weak spot, sent a detachment to 
 take it, and finally drove Santa Anna's 
 army in wild flight to the rear, April 
 17, 1847, after a most brilliantly 
 planned and executed battle. March- 
 ing on leisurely, no resistance was en- 
 countered until in the neighborhood of 
 the City of Mexico. At Contreras, 
 Santa Anna was again defeated ^ Au- 
 gust 20, while other victories were at 
 Churubusco and San Antonio on the 
 same day. The Americans were out- 
 numbered, but they fought desperately, 
 and won against great odds. Scott 
 now was almost at the gates of the 
 capital, when Nicholas Trist. of the 
 State Department, arrived to negotiate 
 a treaty, much to the disgtist of Gen- 
 eral Scott. An armstice was concluded, 
 but the negotiations came to nothing, 
 and early in September, fighting was 
 renewed. The high castle of Chapulte- 
 pec was assaulted, and Molino del Rev 
 captured, September 7-8, after hard 
 fighting. The castle was finally taken 
 by assault on the 13th, and the city fell. 
 This practically ended the war, in which 
 our arms were ever victorious, and 
 which proved a training school for 
 young officers, who fought on both 
 sides in the Civil ^^'^ar. 
 
 The treaty of peace was agreed on 
 early in 1848, and ratified by both na- 
 tions, by which Mexico yielded all the 
 territory then known as New Mexico 
 
236 
 
 THE HOME AUXH.IARY AND REFERENCE 
 
 and California, hut including also the 
 present State of Nevada, part of Colo- 
 rado, and all of Arizona. To salve 
 National conscience a large sum was 
 paid for this territory. 
 
 The Congress which met in 1847 was 
 in no friendly mood toward the ad- 
 ministration. The Whigs elected 
 Rohert C. Winthrop, of Massachusetts, 
 S]jeaker, and gave the administration 
 Hioney for the war, but no political sup- 
 port. In this Congress appeared Abra- 
 ham Lincoln, who, as a Whig, sup- 
 ported the war bills, but invariably 
 voted for the Wilmot Proviso, which 
 struck at the root of the administration 
 policy. Indeed the Whigs had been 
 gaining ground in State elections, so 
 that they hoped to carry the next Na- 
 tional election, and were disposed to do 
 as little for Polk as possible. He was 
 allowed to conquer Mexico, but his 
 party was deprived of the fruits of 
 victory. While this Congress was in 
 session and the slavery question was 
 being agitated, John Quincy Adams 
 fell over his seat unconscious, and died 
 sixty hours later, February 23, in the 
 Speaker's room. 
 
 There was no doubt that Taylor was 
 the Whig favorite for the Presidential 
 nomination. "Old Rough and Ready," 
 who had served nearly all his life in 
 the army, was no politician, and had no 
 ambitions until his victories created a 
 sentiment he could not ignore. He did 
 not seek the ofifice, and doubted his fit- 
 ness, but the jropular demand was for 
 him. Clay was again a candidate, and 
 so was Webster. Naturally neither 
 looked with favor on a candidate with- 
 out political experience, who had never 
 been heard of until a few months be- 
 fore. The Whig convention met in 
 Philadelphia, Jnne 7, 1848, and nomi- 
 nated Taylor on the fourth ballot. The 
 second honor was offered to Webster, 
 who refu.sed, and it went to Millard 
 Fillmore, of New York. Taylor had 
 written a letter to a friend before the 
 convention expressing modestly his 
 views on public questions, which so 
 pleased the convention that they did 
 
 not even ado]jt a platform. The Whigs 
 were generally pleased with the ticket 
 outside of party leaders, who could 
 not believe it possible a mere military 
 chieftain could be preferred before the 
 wheel horses. Both Webster and Clay 
 were bitter in denunciation of the 
 ticket, though at last they gave a 
 grudging consent to it. Clay had been 
 out of the Senate for some time, and 
 now felt that his public career was 
 ended. 
 
 And now appeared that split in the 
 Democracy long foreseen, but which up 
 to this time had not been fatal. While 
 there were Whigs with moral ideas, 
 the party program was almost exclu- 
 sively a commercial one. Moral ideas 
 now split the Democracy in twain. The 
 war was over, and we had gained an 
 immense territory in the West. The 
 Southern people earnestly desired that 
 this be divided up into slave States to 
 offset the rapidly increasing number of 
 free States in the Northwest. But 
 there was a sentiment opposed to this 
 that was not confined to party lines. 
 Slavery was becoming recognized as 
 a moral evil, and while no one in au- 
 thority was disposed to interfere with 
 slavery where it existed, there was a 
 rapidly growing feeling that the Wil- 
 mot Proviso was the proper stand, and 
 so many Northern Democrats had no 
 desire to see California and New Mex- 
 icii cut up into slave States. 
 
 The Democrats had nominated Gen- 
 eral Lewis Cass, of Michigan, for 
 President, and William O. Butler, of 
 Kentucky, for Vice-President, at a con- 
 vention lield in Baltimore. 
 
 \'an Buren was nominated by the 
 Free Soil Democracy for the Presi- 
 dency, with Charles Francis Adams as 
 running mate. This third jiarty move- 
 ment did not carry a single State, but 
 it elected Taylor. The electoral vote 
 stood: Taylor, 163; Cass, 127; New 
 York once more turning the scale, giv- 
 ing more votes to Van Buren than to 
 Cass. The popular vote stood : Van 
 Buren, 291,263; Cass, 1,220,544; Tay- 
 lor, 1,360,101. 
 
SIXTH PERIOD-TAYLOR'S AND FILLMORE'S ADMINISTRATION 237 
 
 ADMINISTRATIONS OF TAYLOR 
 AND FILLMORE. 
 
 General Taylor was eminently a 
 "])lain, blunt man," with no ]iretensions 
 ti) polished manners, hut with every 
 characteristic of a true gentleman. He 
 cliose for his constitutional advisers 
 John M. Clayton for Secretary of 
 State; William M. Meredith, Secretary 
 of the Treasury ; George N. Crawford, 
 Secretary of War ; William li. Preston, 
 Secretary of the Navy ; Thomas Ewing, 
 .Secretary of the Interior, a department 
 which had just been created ; Jacob Col- 
 lamer, Postmaster-General, and Rev- 
 erdy Johnson, Attorney-General. 
 
 President Taylor's administration 
 was marked by events which led to very 
 important results. In .August, 1849, 
 tk>neral Riley, then military governor 
 of California, summoned a convention 
 of delegates to meet at Monterey, on 
 tlie Pacific coast, to form a State con- 
 stitution. California had not yet been 
 organized as a Territory; but it was so 
 rapidly filling u]i with the elements of 
 a new and powerful State, that its 
 speedy admission into the L^nion as 
 such seemed probable. These elements 
 were then principallv goldscekers, who 
 were mostly enterprising young men. 
 The convention met, and on the first of 
 September (1849) they adopted a 
 State constitution, an article of which 
 excluded slavery from that Territory 
 forever. This action — the actual for- 
 mation of a State by the voice of the 
 jieople — was accomplished twenty 
 months after gold was first found at 
 Sutter's Mill. It produced warm de- 
 bates in and out of Congress, and ex- 
 cited a violent controversy throughout 
 the republic on the subject of slavery, 
 which ended only when that institution 
 was utterly destroyed. 
 
 Tender their State constitution, the 
 Califnrnians elected Edward Gilbert 
 and G. H. Wright, delegates to the Na- 
 tional House of Representatives; and 
 the State Legislature, at its first session, 
 appointed Tohn Charles Fremont and 
 William M. Gwinn, Ignited States 
 Senators. The latter carried the State 
 
 constitution with tiiem lo Washington 
 city, and in hebruary they presented a 
 l)etition to Congress, praying for the 
 admission of California into the Union 
 of States. It was perceived that a 
 compromise on the subject of slavery 
 must be effected to avoil serious difti- 
 culty, for the supporters of the system 
 of slave-labor declared their intention 
 to dismember the republic, if California 
 should be admitted into the I'nion with 
 its constitution forbidding the existence 
 of slavery in that domain. .A joint 
 resolution was ofiered for the appoint- 
 ment of a committee of thirteen to 
 consider the subject of territorial gov- 
 ernment for California, New Mexico 
 Deseret ( the latter settled chiefly by a 
 Mormon community), with instructions 
 to report a ])lan of comiiromise embrac- 
 ing all the ([uestions then arising out 
 of the institution of slavery. The reso- 
 lution was adopted in April, and Mr. 
 Clay was made chairman of the com- 
 mittee. He had already submitted a 
 ])lan of comi)romise to the Senate, and 
 s])oke elo(|uently in favor of it ; and on 
 the 8th of May he, in behalf of the 
 committee of thirteen, reported a bill 
 intended as a pacificator. It provided 
 for the admission of California as a 
 State ; for a territorial go\'ernment for 
 New Mexico and Deseret or L' tali ; for 
 a law which would compel the return, 
 to their masters, of all fugitive slaves ; 
 for the suppression of the slave-trade 
 in the District of Columbia, and for a 
 settlement of the boundary of Texas. 
 This bill, containing such a variety of 
 important propositions, was called the 
 "Omnibus Bill," but as a whole it was 
 known as the Compromise Act. It was 
 not satisfactory to the slaveholders, 
 nothwithstanding its large concessions 
 to their interests; and in June they held 
 a convention at Nashville, in Tennessee, 
 and by resolutions presented to the 
 country alternatives for the settlement 
 of the controversy, namely, the security, 
 by an enactment of Congress, of protec- 
 tion to their property in slaves, for 
 those who should choose to emigrate 
 into anv of the Territories, or a parti- 
 tion of the Territories between the free 
 
238 
 
 THE HOME AUXILIARY AND REFERENCE 
 
 and slave labor sections of the Union, 
 on the basis of the Missouri Com- 
 promise. 
 
 For four months a discussion and a 
 controversy, which shook the republic 
 to its very foundations, was carried on 
 in Congress and among the people — a 
 controversy on the slavery question 
 more violent than any which had yet 
 occurred. The Compromise Act was 
 violently opposed in both sections of the 
 Union, but. of course, on opposite 
 grounds. The extreme pro-slavery 
 men regarded it as a surrender of their 
 most vital claims, to the political sen- 
 timentality of the North ; and they re- 
 solved not to submit to it. Threats of 
 disunion were loud, violent and numer- 
 ous : and opposition to the Compromise 
 took the shape of a political party first 
 in Mississippi, with Jefferson Davis as 
 leader. It spread into other slave-hold- 
 ing States, and appeared formidable. 
 The opposition to the measure in the 
 Northern States was comparatively 
 feeble ; but there was a powerful min- 
 ority in these free-labor States who 
 were strenuously opposed to the Fugi- 
 tive Slave law, which formed a part of 
 the Compromise, as unworthy of the 
 sanction of a civilized nation. Yet the 
 majority of the northern people acqui- 
 esced in the measure because it prom- 
 ised peace and the maintenance of the 
 commercial prosperity which then pre- 
 vailed. 
 
 In the midst of the excitement oc- 
 casioned by this controversy, the coun- 
 try was startled by the death of the 
 President, caused by bilious fever, 
 which occurred on the 9th of July, 1850, 
 when he was in the sixty-fifth year 
 of his age. There was much real 
 mourning on account of his death, for 
 the reflecting men of all parties relied 
 upon his justice, integrity and firmness 
 in the right, in that hour of apparent 
 peril to the republic. Millard Fillmore, 
 the \'ice-President, became the consti- 
 tutional successor of President Taylor, 
 and on the day after the death of the 
 latter, Mr. Fillmore took the prescribed 
 oath of office as President of the United 
 States. On the following day, William 
 R. King, of Alabama, was elected presi- 
 
 dent pro tempore of the Senate, and 
 became acting \'ice-I'resident. 
 
 The several members of the cabinet 
 of President Taylor tendered their 
 resignations to Mr. Fillmore, who ac- 
 cepted them and immediately nominated 
 others for his constitutional advisers. 
 These were Daniel Webster, Secretary 
 of State; Thomas Corwin, Secretary of 
 the Treasury ; Charles M. Conrad, Sec- 
 retary of War; William A. Graham, 
 Secretary of the Navy; Alexander H. 
 H. Stuart, Secretary of the Interior; 
 Nathan K. Hall, Postmaster-General, 
 and John J. Crittenden, Attorney-Gen- 
 eral. These names impressed the peo- 
 ple with confidence in the administra- 
 tion of Mr. Fillmore. 
 
 The most important measures of the 
 government that were pending at the 
 death of President Taylor, and which 
 claimed the early attention of President 
 Fillmore, were the several bills included 
 in the Compromise Act. These were all 
 adopted, with slight modifications, and 
 became laws in the nionth of September 
 by receixing the signature of the Presi- 
 dent. Mr. Seward offered an amend- 
 ment to the act for the suppression of 
 the slave trade in the District of Col- 
 umbia, which provided "That slaverv in 
 the District be entirely abrogated ; that 
 its abolition depend on the vote of the 
 inhabitants : and that in case, on such 
 \ote being taken, it should be in favor 
 of emancipation, the sum of two hun- 
 dred thousand dollars be appropriated 
 to pay the owners of the slaves for 
 whatever loss they may suffer." This 
 amendment, after a brief discussion, 
 was rejected by five yeas to forty-five 
 nays. 
 
 During Ta\dor's administration, some 
 unpleasant feeling had been engenderetl 
 between the governments of the United 
 States and Spain, by an invasion of 
 Cuba by a military force organized in 
 this country. It will be observed here- 
 after that the men and measures con- 
 nected with these movements, were in- 
 timately associated with the actors in, 
 and the preliminary events of the late 
 Civil War. General Lopez, a native of 
 Cuba, who led an expedition to that 
 island from the United States, was 
 
SIXTH PERIOD— TAYLOR'S AND FILLMORE'S ADMINISTRATION 
 
 backed by many men wbo were con- 
 spicuous in the secession movements 
 ten years later. The avowed object of 
 the invasion was to stir up the Creoles, 
 or native Cubans, to a revolt for the 
 purpose of overthrowing the local 
 government, casting off the Spanish 
 yoke, and forming an independent 
 State. No doubt this was the principal 
 and perhaps the only design of Lopez, 
 but not of the politicians at his back. 
 Their chief object undoubtedly was to 
 seize Cuba, and make it a part of a 
 great slave empire of the Smith — a 
 pro])osition shamelessly set forth in the 
 discreditable "Ostend ^lanifesto" of a 
 later day. Lopez and his followers 
 landed at Cardenas, in Cuba, at the 
 middle of April, 1850, where he ex- 
 pected to be joined by some of the 
 Spanish troops and a host of native 
 Cubans and with them overthrow the 
 government of the island. He was dis- 
 appointed. The troops and people did 
 not appear to co-operate with him, and 
 he returned to the LTnited States to 
 ]irepare for a more formidable invasion. 
 
 The introduction of the Compromise 
 Act. the invasion of Cuba and the ad- 
 mission of one State and three Terri- 
 tories into the LTnion, were the most 
 prominent features of President Tay- 
 lor's administration. That State was 
 California; the Territories were New 
 Mexico, Utah and Minnesota. The 
 name of the latter is the Indian title of 
 the River St. Peter, a large tributary 
 of the LTpper Mississippi, and means 
 sky-colored water. 
 
 Allusion has been made to the Mor- 
 mons in Utah. Their history is a most 
 remarkable one. About fifty years ago, 
 a young man named Joseph Smith, a 
 native of Vermont, pretended to have 
 revelations from heaven. In one of 
 these he was directed to go to a hill 
 near Palmyra. New York, where he 
 woulfl find a record of the ancient in- 
 habitants of America and a new gospel 
 for mankind, written centuries before 
 on plates of gold, in unknown char- 
 acters and languages. From these 
 plates (it was alleged) Smith, sitting 
 behind a blanket to prevent their be- 
 ing seen by profane eyes, read the in- 
 
 scriptions which were written down by 
 a scribe who was not permitted to see 
 the ''leaves of gold." This copy was 
 published under the name of "The Book 
 of Mormon." The true story, as ascer- 
 tained by investigation, appears to be, 
 that the Rev. Solomon Spaulding, many 
 years before, wrote a work of fiction, 
 founded upon the theory that our con- 
 tinent was peopled by the "lost tribes 
 of Israel ;" that the manuscript came, 
 by accident, into the hands of Smith, 
 and that he read to his scribe from the 
 manuscrijJt, and not from any plates 
 containing mysterious characters. 
 
 Smith found dupes and followers, 
 and in 1830 he established a "church" 
 with thirty members. He was assisted 
 in his work by Sidney Rigdon, who, it 
 was said, had become possessed of 
 Spaulding's manuscript and placed it 
 in the hands of Smith. The latter pre- 
 tended to be governed by continual rev- 
 elations from heaven ; and in accord- 
 ance with one of them, he led his de- 
 luded followers to Kirtland, Ohio, 
 where they built a temple and remained 
 several years, until the conduct of the 
 leaders became so obno.xious that they 
 were compelled to leave. Thev estab- 
 lished themselves in Hancock county, 
 Illinois, where they founded the city of 
 Xauvoo, and built a temple. Mean- 
 while they had attempted to plant them- 
 selves in Missouri, but they were ex- 
 pelled by the exasperated people, who 
 were assisted by the civil and military 
 [)cvvers. At Kirtland, they were joined 
 by a shrewd young man named Brig- 
 ham Young, a native of Vermont, who 
 was president of the Mormon church 
 more than thirty years. It was at Xau- 
 voo that the system of polygamy was 
 first practiced among them, and Young 
 has ever been foremost among its de- 
 fenders. That system was established 
 in consef|uence of the jealousy of 
 Smith's wife because of his intimacies 
 with other women. In justification of 
 his immoral conduct. Smith had a spe- 
 cial revelation from heaven, authoriz- 
 ing polygamy, and declaring that the 
 greater number of wives a man pos- 
 sessed the greater would be his future 
 reward ; also that the women who con- 
 
THE HOME AUXILIARY AXD REFERENCE 
 
 sciited to share the honors of wifcliood 
 with others would thereby be assured 
 of eternal happiness. 
 
 This "revelation" led to events which 
 resulted in the imprisonment of Smith 
 and some of his intimate associates. 
 The "prophet" and his brother were 
 shot dead by a mob at the prison : and 
 their followers, in 1845, prepared for 
 an exodus, led by Brigham Young, who 
 had succeeded to the presidency of the 
 Mormon church, on the death of 
 Smith. They finally crossed the Missis- 
 sippi and penetrated to the valley of 
 the Great Salt Lake, where, in 1848, 
 they seated themselves in a most pic- 
 turesque region, founded a city and 
 built a temple. In 1849 President Fill- 
 more appointed Young governor of that 
 territory named Utah. The Mormons 
 now number, in our own and other 
 countries, probably, more than two 
 hundred thousand souls. They have, 
 from time to time, given our govern- 
 ment considerable trouble, by their de- 
 fiance of its laws. 
 
 It was believed by superficial thinkers 
 and observers that the Compromise Act 
 of 1850 had quieted forever all con- 
 troversy on the subject of slavery; and 
 during his entire administration Presi- 
 dent Fillmore gave his support to all 
 the measures embraced in that act. 
 When his administration closed in the 
 .srpring of 1853, there seemed to be very 
 little uneasiness in the public mind on 
 the subject of slavery. But it was only 
 the ominous calm that precedes the 
 bursting of a tempest. The moral sense 
 of the people in the free-labor States 
 (and of thousands in the slave-labor 
 States) had been shocked by the pas- 
 sage of the Fugitive-Slave Law, which 
 compelled every person to become a 
 slave-catcher, under certain circum- 
 stances, willing or not willing. 
 
 In 185 1, General Lopez renewed his 
 attempt to cause an insurrectionary 
 movement in Cuba, by landing a strong 
 military force, organized in this coun- 
 try, upon its shores. Again Lopez 
 found the Cubans unwilling to revolt. 
 He became a fugitive and at near the 
 close of August, he and six of his fol- 
 
 lowers were arrested, taken to Havana, 
 and executed. 
 
 At the same time our government 
 was making peaceful acquisitions of ter- 
 ritory in the northwest by the purchase 
 from the Sioux Indians of millions of 
 acres of fertile lands beyond the Missis- 
 sip]ii, in the newdy organized Territory 
 of Minnesota. 
 
 Toward the close of the same year, 
 our government reaffirmed its policy of 
 non-interference with the domestic af- 
 fairs of European nations, under pe- 
 culiar circumstances. In December, 
 Louis Kossuth, the exiled governor of 
 Hungary, arrived in the LTnited States 
 to plead the cause of his country-men, 
 who were struggling for their inde- 
 pendence of the rule of Austria, and 
 to ask for material aid from our gov- 
 ernment. The President, however, at 
 his first interview with Kossuth, told 
 liim frankly that our policy of non-in- 
 terference would not allow our gov- 
 ernment to give him any material aid. 
 This was aiTorded, to a considerable ex- 
 tent, by private subscriptions. 
 
 There was a little ruffling of tiic 
 good feeling between the governments 
 of the L'nited States and Great Britain, 
 in 1852, in consequence of the alleged 
 \iolation by American fishers off the 
 coast of British America. The dispute 
 was amicably settled by mutual conces- 
 sions. 
 
 Owing to our increasing intercourse 
 with Asia across the Pacific Ocean, 
 friendly relations with the Japanese was 
 desirable. To establish such amity, our 
 government sent a squadron of seven 
 vessels, commanded by Commodore M. 
 C. Perry, in the summer of 1853, to 
 convey a letter from the President of 
 the LTnited States to the Emperor of 
 Japan, asking him to consent to the ne- 
 gotiation of a treaty of friendship and 
 commerce between the two govern- 
 ments. The mission was successful, 
 and friendly relations were then estab- 
 lished between the two countries. 
 
 The sympathy manifested by a large 
 portion of the people of the LTnited 
 States in the efforts of Lopez in Cuba, 
 gave rise to suspicions in Europe that 
 it was the policy of our government to 
 
SIXTH TERIOD— PIERCF;S ADMIXISTRATION 
 
 ultimately possess that island and as- 
 sume control over the Gulf of Mexico 
 ( the open door to California) and the 
 West India Islands, which were owned 
 chiefly by France and England. To 
 prevent such a result, the governments 
 (if these two countries asked that of 
 the United States to enter into a treaty 
 with them, which should secure Cuba 
 to Spain, b}^ agreeing to disclaim "now 
 and fore\er hereafter, all intention to 
 obtain possession of the Island of 
 Cuba," and "to discountenance all such 
 attempts, to that effect, on the part of 
 any individual or power whatever." To 
 this invitation our Secretary of State 
 ( Edward Everett ) replied, in the 
 spirit of the "Monroe Doctrine," that 
 the question was an American and not 
 an European one, and not properly 
 within the scope of the interference of 
 European cabinets : that the United 
 States did not intend to violate any ex- 
 isting neutrality laws; that the govern- 
 ment claimed the right to act in rela- 
 tion to Cuba independent of any other 
 power, and that it could not see with in- 
 diiference "the island of Cuba fall into 
 the hands of any other power than 
 Spain." 
 
 When Mr. Fillmore's administration 
 w as drawing to a close, nominations for 
 his successor were made. .\ Demo- 
 cratic national convention assembled at 
 I'.altiniore in June. 1852, nominated 
 General Franklin Pierce of New Hamp- 
 shire, for F'resident, and William R. 
 King of Alabama for Vice-President. 
 A Whig national convention assembled 
 at the same place in the same month, 
 and nominated General Winfield Scott 
 for President and Willian.i A. Graham 
 iif North Carolina for \'ice-President. 
 The Democratic nominees were elected, 
 and on the 4th of March, 1853. Presi- 
 dent iMllmore retired to private life. 
 ( .'ne of the most important of the clos- 
 ing events of his administration was the 
 creation, by act of Congress, of a new 
 Territory called Washington, which 
 was carved out of the northern part 
 of Oregon. The bill for this purpose 
 became a law on the 2d of March, 1853. 
 
 IRANKLIN PIERCE'S ADMINIS- 
 TRATION. 
 
 General Pierce took the oath of office 
 as President of tlie United States upon 
 a platform of New Hampshire pine, 
 which had been erected at the eastern 
 portico of the Capitol. It was admin- 
 istered in the prcscence of thousands of 
 people, who stood in a storm of driving 
 sleet as witnesses of the august cere- 
 mony. President Pierce chose for his 
 cabinet William L. Marcy, Secretary of 
 State : James Guthrie, Secretary of the 
 Treasury : Jefferson Davis. Secretary of 
 Vv'ar; James C. Dobbin, Secretary of 
 the Navy: Robert :\IcClelland, Secre- 
 tary of the Interior; James Campbell, 
 Postmaster-General, and Caleb Gush- 
 ing, Attorney-General. 
 
 Important American explorations by 
 sea and land, in the interests of com- 
 merce, marked the earlier portion ot 
 Pierce's administration. The acquisi- 
 tion of California opened the way for 
 an immense commercial interest on our 
 Pacific coast ; and in the sprins: of 1853, 
 Congress sent four armed vessels to the 
 eastern shores of Asia, by way of Cape 
 Horn, to explore the region of the 
 Pacific Ocean, which, it was evident, 
 would soon be traversed by American 
 steamships plying between the ports of 
 our western frontier and Japan and 
 China. At the same time plans were 
 maturing for the construction of a rail- 
 way across the continent from the At- 
 lantic to the Pacific Ocean. Congress. 
 in the summer of 1853, sent out four 
 surveying expeditions to explore as 
 many routes along the general course of 
 four degrees of latitude. One of these 
 lines of railway, known as the Union 
 Pacific, was completed in the spring of 
 1869. 
 
 At that time the government of the 
 Sandwich Islands was making over- 
 tures for the annexation of that ocean- 
 empire to our republic. This aroused 
 the jealousy of France and England, 
 v.ho felt disposed to interfere in the 
 matter. A change of rulers in the 
 islands, put an end to the matter. A 
 
THE HOME AUXllJARV AND REFERENCE 
 
 dispute in relation to the boundary line 
 between New Mexico and the Province 
 of Chihuahua, in old Mexico, threat- 
 ened to produce war, but it was hap- 
 pily diverted by diplomacy. With the 
 government of Austria there were 
 some unpleasant relations about that 
 time, growing out of the protecting 
 power of our government in the case 
 of a naturalized citizen. A Hungarian 
 exile, named Kozta, had become 
 naturalized here. While engaged in 
 business in Smyrna, he was seized by 
 order of the Austrian consul-general 
 and placed on board a brig to be sent 
 to Trieste as a refugee. The St. Louis, 
 one of our naval vessels, was then in 
 the harbor of Smyrna, and her com- 
 mander (Captain Ingraham) claimed 
 Kozta as a citizen of the United States 
 and demanded his release. It was re- 
 fused, and Ingraham cleared his ship 
 for action. This argument was effec- 
 tual, and Kozta was delivered up on 
 board the St. Louis. Congress showed 
 their approval of the conduct of their 
 servant by voting Ingraham a sword. 
 Austria was oiTended, but no serious 
 difficulty ensued. This protection of 
 an humble citizen of the United States, 
 in a foreign land, increased the respect 
 for our government and flag abroad. 
 An unexpected movement now 
 aroused a vehement discussion of the 
 slavery question. In January, 1854, 
 Senator Stephen A. Douglas presented 
 a bill in the Senate for the erection of 
 two vast Territories in mid-continent, 
 to be called, respectively, Kansas and 
 Nebraska. The bill provided for giv- 
 ing permission to the inhabitants of 
 those Territories to decide for them- 
 selves whether slavery should or should 
 not exist within their domain. This 
 proposed nullification of the Missouri 
 Compromise produced rancorous con- 
 troversies in and out of Congress, and 
 the people of the free-labor States be- 
 came violently excited. After long 
 and bitter discussions in both Houses 
 of Congress, the bill became a law in 
 May following. The people of the 
 North thought they perceived in this 
 measure a determination to make 
 slavery national; and the boast of 
 
 Robert Toombs, of Georgia, that he 
 would yet ''call the roll of his slaves 
 on Bunker Hill," seemed likely not to 
 be an idle one. While this irritating 
 subject was under discussion, fresh 
 difficulties with Spain appeared. The 
 Spanish authorities in Cuba seized the 
 American steamship Black Warrior 
 and confiscated her cargo, under some 
 )iretence of her violating the neutrality 
 hiws. Our government, satisfied of 
 the flagrancy of the act, was disposed 
 to suspend those laws. A special mes- 
 senger was sent to the Spanish govern- 
 nent at Madrid to lay the case before 
 the imperial authorities. The Cuban 
 officials, becoming alarmed, proposed 
 to deliver up the vessel and cargo on 
 the payment of a fine, by her owners, 
 of six thousand dollars. It was paid 
 mider protest, and the afifair was amic- 
 ably settled by the governments. 
 
 In the light of historic events, it is 
 clear to-day, that men who afterward 
 appeared as leaders in the war against 
 our government, were then concocting 
 and executing schemes for the exten- 
 sion of the domains of the slave sys- 
 tem. It must expand or suffocate. 
 They contrived and put in motion ex- 
 peditions for conquering neighboring 
 jirovinces, in the southwest, under var- 
 ious pretexts, and their acts were re- 
 buked by our government. They 
 formed a design to conquer parts of 
 Mexico, and also Central America ; and 
 the theatre of their first practically 
 successful endeavors was on the north- 
 ern portion of the great isthmus, be- 
 tween North and South America. The 
 first movement was an armed "emi- 
 gration" into Nicaragua, with peace- 
 ful professions, led by Colonel H. L. 
 Kinney. This was followed by an 
 armed invasion by Californians, led by 
 William Walker, first, of provinces in 
 Mexico, and then of the State of Nica- 
 ragua. Walker also made peaceful 
 professions on landing, but the next 
 day he cast off the mask and attempted 
 to capture a town. He was soon 
 driven out by Nicaraguan troops, and 
 escaped in a schooner. He soon re- 
 appeared with a stronger force (Sep- 
 tember, 1855), when the country was 
 
SIXTH PERIOD— PIERCE'S ADMINISTRATION 
 
 in a state of revolution, and pushed his 
 scheme of conquest so vigorously that 
 lie seized the capital of the State 
 ( Grenada ) , in October, and placed one 
 of his followers (a Nicaraguan) in the 
 ])residential chair. He also strength- 
 ened his power by armed "emigrants" 
 who came from the slave-labor States. 
 The other governments on the isthmus 
 were alarmetl for their own safety, and 
 in the winter of 1856 they formed an 
 alliance for expelling the invaders. 
 Troops from Costa Rica marched into 
 Nicaragua, but were soon driven out 
 I-y ^\'alker's forces. So firm was his 
 grasp that he caused himself to be 
 elected President of Nicaragua ; and 
 the government at Washington has- 
 tened to acknowledge the new "nation," 
 by cordially receiving \\'alker's embas- 
 sador in the person of a Roman 
 Catholic priest, named Vigil. For two 
 years this ursurper ruled that State 
 with a high hand, and offended com- 
 mercial nations by his interference 
 with trade. At length the combined 
 ]iowers on the isthmus crushed him. 
 In May, 1857, he was compelled to sur- 
 render the remnant of his army, but 
 escaped himself through the inter- 
 Ijositiori of Commodore Davis of our 
 navy. Late in the same year he reap- 
 ]ieared in Central .Amercia, when he 
 was seized, with his followers, by 
 Commodore Paulding, and sent to 
 New York as an offender against 
 neutrality laws. The President (Bu- 
 chanan) privately commended Pauld- 
 ing for his action, but for "prudential 
 reasons," as he said, he publicly con- 
 demned the commander in a message 
 to Congress, for "thus violating the 
 sovereignty of a foreign country." 
 W^alker was allowed to go free, when 
 he fitted out another expedition and 
 sailed from Mobile. He was arrested 
 only for leaving port without a clear-, 
 ance, and was tried and acquitted by 
 tlic supreme court at New Orleans. 
 Then he went again to Nicaragua, 
 where he made much mischief, and 
 was finallv captured and shot at Trux- 
 illo. 
 
 Settlers in the Territories of Oregon 
 and Washington, on the Pacific coast, 
 
 h:id trouble with the Indians there in 
 1.S55, who went out in parties to plun- 
 der and murder. General Wool, then 
 .stationed at San Francisco, went up 
 to Portland, in Oregon, to arrange a 
 campaign against them. The savages 
 were so well organized in both Terri- 
 tories that, at one time, it appeared as 
 if the white settlers would be com- 
 jielled to abandon the country. The 
 Indians were subdued in 1856, but for 
 a long time restlessness appeared 
 among the tribes of the Rocky Moun- 
 tains. It was generally believed that 
 they were incited to hostilities by the 
 employes of the Hudson's Bay Com- 
 [lany, in British Columbia. At the 
 same time the friendly relations be- 
 tween Great Britain and the Ignited 
 States were somewhat disturbed by the 
 enlistment, in our country, of recruits 
 for the British Army, then operating 
 against Russia in the Crimean Penin- 
 sula. This violation of neutrality laws 
 had been done with the sanction of 
 British officials here, among whom was 
 tiie liritish minister at \\'ashingtoii. 
 The minister and the British consuls 
 at New York, Philadelphia and Cin- 
 cinnati, were dismissed by our govern- 
 ment. There was much irritation felt 
 by the British cabinet for some time ; 
 but as our government was clearly in 
 the right, a new minister and new con- 
 suls were soon sent hither. 
 
 Our country, at this juncture, was 
 approaching that great crisis which ap- 
 peared in the dreadful aspect of civil 
 war — a tremendous conflict between 
 Freedom and Slavery for supremacy 
 in the republic. With the enactment 
 and enforcement of the Fugitive-Slave 
 Law and the virtual repeal of the Mi.s- 
 -souri Compromise Act, in the case of 
 Kansas and Nebraska, the important 
 question was forced upon the attention 
 of the whole people of the land, ".Shall 
 the domain of our republic be the 
 theatre of all free or all slave labor, 
 with the corresponding civilization of 
 each as a consequence ?" The time had 
 come when one or the other of these 
 social systems must prevail in all parts 
 of the land. Part free and part slave 
 was a condition no longer to he toler- 
 
THE HO^IE AUXILIARY AXD REFEREXCE 
 
 ated, for it meant perpetual war. The 
 supporters of the slave-system, en- 
 couraged by their recent triumphs, had 
 full faith in their ability to win other 
 and more decisive victories, and did 
 not permit themselves to doubt their 
 ultimate possession of the field, so they 
 sounded the trumpet for their hosts to 
 rally and prepare for the struggle. 
 Kansas was the chosen field for the 
 preliminary skirmishing. It lay nearest 
 10 the settled States ; it was bordered 
 on the east by a slave-labor State, and 
 it was easy of access from the South. 
 On the surface of society they saw only 
 insignificant ripples of opposition. 
 They began to colonize the Territory ; 
 and, flushed with what seemed to be 
 well-assured success, they cast down 
 the gauntlet of defiance at the feet of 
 the friends of free-labor in the nation. 
 That gauntlet was quickly taken up 
 by their opponents, and champions of 
 freedom seemed to spring from the 
 ground like the harvest from the seed- 
 sowing of dragons' teeth. Enterpris- 
 ing men and women swarmed out of 
 New England to people the virgin .soil 
 of Kansas with the hardy children of 
 toil. They were joined by those of 
 other free-labor States in the North 
 and West. The then dominant party 
 in the Union were astonished at the 
 sudden uprising, and clearly perceived 
 that the opponents of slavery would 
 speedily outvote its supporters. Com- 
 binations were formed under various 
 names, such as "Blue Lodges,"' 
 "Friends' Society," "Social Band," 
 "Sons of the South," etc., to counteract 
 the efforts of the "Emigrant Aid So- 
 ciety,"' of Massachusetts, to gain nu- 
 merical supremacy in Kansas — a 
 society which had been organized im- 
 mediately after the passage of tlie 
 Kansas-Nebraska bill. The supporters 
 of slavery, conscious that their votes 
 could not secure supremacy in Kansas, 
 where the question of .slavery or no 
 slavery was to be decided at the ballot- 
 bo.x, organized physical force in Mis- 
 souri to oppose this moral force. .As- 
 sociations were formed in Missouri, 
 whose members were pledged to be 
 ready, at all times, to assist, when 
 
 called upon by the friends of slavery in 
 Kansas, in removing from that Terri- 
 tory, by force, every person who 
 should attempt to settle there "under 
 the auspices of the Northern Emigrant 
 Aid Society." 
 
 In the autunm of 1854, A. H. Reeder 
 v.as sent to govern the Territory of 
 Kansas. He immediately ordered an 
 election of a Territorial legislature, and 
 with that election the struggle for 
 supremacy there was finally begun. 
 Missourians went into Kansas to as- 
 sist the supporters of slavery there to 
 carry the election. They went with 
 tents, artillery and other weapons. 
 There were then eight hundred and 
 thirty-one legal voters in the Territory, 
 but there were more than six thousand 
 votes polled. The members of the 
 Legislature were all supporters of 
 slavery ; and when they met at Shaw- 
 nee, on the borders of Missouri, they 
 proceeded to enact laws for upholding 
 slavery in Kansas. These laws were 
 regularly vetoed by Governor Reeder, 
 who became so obnoxious that presi- 
 dent Pierce was asked to recall him. 
 The President did so, and sent Wilson 
 Shannon, of Ohio, who was an avowed 
 supporter of slavery, to fill Reeder"s 
 place. 
 
 The actual settlers in Kansas, who 
 were chiefly from the free-labor States, 
 met in mass convention in September, 
 1855, and resolved not to recognize the 
 laws passed by the illegally elected 
 legislature, as binding upon them. 
 They called a delegate convention to 
 assemble at Topeka on the 19th of 
 October, at which time and place the 
 convention framed a State constitution 
 which was approved by the legal voters 
 of the Territory, and which contained 
 an article making provision for consti- 
 tuting Kansas a free-labor State. Un- 
 der this constitution they asked Con- 
 gress to admit that Territory into the 
 Union as a State. By this action the 
 contest between Freedom and Slavery 
 was transferred from Kansas to 
 Washington, for awhile. The prospect 
 of success for the opponents of slavery, 
 in Kansas, was beginning to appear 
 bright, when President Pierce gave the 
 
SIXTH PERIOD— BUCHANAN'S ADMINISTRATION 
 
 >upporters of the institution much com- 
 fort by a message to Congress in Janu- 
 ary, 1856, in which he declared the 
 action of the legal voters, in adopting 
 a State constitution, to be open rebel- 
 lion. 
 
 Throughout the spring and summer 
 of 1856, armed men from other States 
 roamed over Kansas, committing many 
 excesses under pretext of compelling 
 obedience to the laws of the illegal 
 legislature. There was much violence 
 and bloodshed ; but during the autumn, 
 the Presidential election absorbed so 
 much of the public attention, that Kan- 
 sas was allowed a season of rest. At 
 that election there were three parties in 
 the field, each of which had a candi- 
 date for the Presidency. One was a 
 party composed of men of all political 
 creeds, who were opposed to slavery. 
 It was called the Republican party, and 
 it assumed powerful proportions at the 
 outset. Another powerful political or- 
 ganization was known as the American 
 or Know-Nothing party, whose chief 
 bond of union was opposition to for- 
 eign influence and Roman Catholicism. 
 The Democratic party, dating its or- 
 ganization at the period of the election 
 of President Jackson, in 1828, was then 
 the dominant party in the Union. The 
 Democratic candidate for the Presi- 
 dency was James Buchanan, of Penn- 
 sylvania ; of the Republican party, John 
 C. Fremont, of California, and of the 
 American party. Ex-President Fill- 
 more. After an exciting canvass, 
 James Buchanan was elected President, 
 with John C. Breckenbridge, of Ken- 
 tucky, as Vice-President. 
 
 ADMINISTRATIONS OF BU- 
 CHANAN, LINCOLN AND 
 JOHNSON. 
 
 Buchanan had long been in public 
 life, was a man of upright character 
 and conservative views. He com- 
 manded the support of many people, 
 personally opposed to slavery extension, 
 who believed that his experience and 
 wisdom were needed at this time to 
 prevent sectional animosity from 
 spreading. The short session of Con- 
 
 gress was partly occupied with Kansas 
 matters, but nothing was done. A 
 new tariff bill was passed, which raised 
 some rates and lowered others. 
 
 In spite of the fact that Buchanan 
 was a Northern man, and of conserva- 
 tive views, his election did not satisfy 
 either the slavery or the anti-slavery 
 element. The friends of slavery exten- 
 sion felt that their victory was a bar- 
 ren one, as Buchanan was, in a large 
 minority, on the popular vote. Min- 
 nesota had been admitted as a free 
 State and Oregon was soon to follow, 
 Init there were no slave territories to 
 offset these. It was a firm conviction 
 of the pro-slavery men that there must 
 be an equal number of free and slave 
 States. 
 
 That slavery must sooner or later 
 have been eradicated is certain, but that 
 it required a Civil War to do it is dis- 
 puted by many. Certain it is that 
 slavery leaders, no matter how intense 
 their feelings or how honest their con- 
 victions, were unfortunate in leader- 
 ship. These leaders constantly forced 
 issues, which made matters worse for 
 their own contention. From the day 
 the Compromises of 1850 were signed 
 there was a continuous series of false 
 moves. This may by some be ac- 
 counted for by the fact that their whole 
 basis was wrong. The slave propa- 
 gandists thought the North wanted to 
 free all the slaves. L'p to 1864 such 
 an issue would probably not have car- 
 ried a single State. 
 
 Almost coincident with Buchanan's 
 inauguration came the famous Dred 
 Scott descision. It is impossible in 
 this day to appreciate the excitement 
 which this caused. Buchanan had re- 
 ferred incidentally, in his inaugural ad- 
 dress, to the fact that the decision was 
 coming, which led many wrongfully to 
 suppose he was aware of its nature. 
 Dred Scott and family were slaves of 
 an army officer in the South, who was 
 detailed to posts in Illinois and Minne- 
 sota, which were free-soil under their 
 constitutions. Coming back to Mis- 
 souri, Dred Scott claimed to be a free 
 man, as he had been li\ing on free 
 soil. This involved a great principle, 
 
246 
 
 THE HOME AUXILIARY AND REFERENCE 
 
 and there were found men ready to 
 sustain Scott and pay the expense of a 
 long law suit. Finally, on an appeal 
 from the District Court, this reached 
 the Supreme Court of the United 
 States on a technicality, which was 
 called upon to decide simply the ques- 
 tion whether Dred Scott was an Ameri- 
 can citizen and entitled to appear in a 
 Federal court at all. This question 
 was settled in the negative. If it had 
 done no more the decision would have 
 attracted little attention. But the court 
 did a great deal more. It undertook 
 to discuss the whole slavery question 
 and settle its status forever. At that 
 time the Supreme Court stood higher 
 in public respect than it ever has since. 
 Chief Justice Taney was a man of 
 high legal attainments and unques- 
 tioned integrity. It is reported that he 
 was anxious to do his country a ser- 
 vice by settling questions concerning 
 which the Legislature and administra- 
 tive branches of Government had 
 failed. It is also said that he was 
 stimulated to do this by the fact that 
 one of his colleagues was to write a 
 dissenting opinion. At any rate, the 
 Dred Scott decision, outside of the 
 single point at issue, was really a 
 political document. It contained these 
 three principal contentions : 
 
 1. The Missouri Compromise was 
 unconstitutional, as slavery is by the 
 Constitution a National institution not 
 to be limited in Federal territory. 
 
 2. Once a slave always a slave, un- 
 less freed by the master. 
 
 3. The inferiority of the negro race 
 was such that ]:)0]3ularity so far back as 
 1788, the negro had "no rights which 
 the white man was bound to respect." 
 
 This was a bitter pill for the anti- 
 slavery people to swallow. The dis- 
 senting opinion of Justice McLean 
 pointed out that these contentions were 
 not true in fact or in law. This de- 
 cision became a powerful issue in 
 politics. As for Scott and his family, 
 they eventually gained freedom. 
 
 Buchanan's Cabinet was as follows : 
 Lewis Cass, of IMichigan, Secretary of 
 State; Howell Cobb, of Georgia. Sec- 
 retary of the Treasury ; John B. Floyd, 
 of Virginia, Secretary of War; Isaac 
 
 Toucey, of Connecticut, Secretary of 
 the Navy ; Jacob Thompson, of Missis- 
 sippi, Secretary of the Interior; Aaron 
 \ . Brown, of Tennessee, Postmaster- 
 General ; Jeremiah S. Black, of Penn- 
 sylvania, Attorney-General. 
 
 This was one of the weakest Cabi- 
 nets on record. Cass was in his dotage 
 and Black was the only strong man of 
 the lot. An important appointment 
 was that of Robert J. \Valker, to be 
 Governor of Kansas. Walker had 
 been Polk's Secretary of the Treasury, 
 and his selection for Kansas showed 
 how serious was the issue. He guar- 
 anteed a fair election for the Legisla- 
 ture, and the Free State men won, as 
 the "Border Ruffians" were kept out. 
 In the meantime, a pro-slavery consti- 
 tutional convention had met at Le- 
 compton and drew up a remarkable 
 constitution, providing for slavery and 
 a good many other things obnoxious to 
 the Free State men. The administra- 
 tion was committed to permit the peo- 
 ple to vote on the constitution, but the 
 convention avoided this by a trick. 
 Knowing that it could not be adopted 
 as a whole, it only allowed the people 
 to vote on whether they would accept 
 the Constitution "with slavery" or 
 "without slavery," no opportunity be- 
 ing given to vote against it as a whole. 
 The Free State men refused to vote at 
 all and the Constitution was adopted 
 "with slavery." 
 
 The fall of 1857 is ever memorable 
 for the financial crisis that took place. 
 This was the result of a bad currency 
 system, wild speculation and over con- 
 struction of railways. .'\t this time 
 each State regulated its banking sys- 
 tem, and in some the laws were imper- 
 fect or improperly executed. The 
 notes of most of these banks declined 
 in value as they got away from the 
 place of issue. In general. Eastern 
 banks were sounder than those in the 
 West and South, but there were poor 
 ones in the East. This caused great 
 inconvenience in business, for mer- 
 chants were often paid in inferior cur- 
 rency, while travelers had great diffi- 
 culty in getting the various bills ac- 
 cepted. Every merchant had a 
 counterfeit detector and a table show- 
 
SIXTH rERIOD-EUCHANAN'S ADMINISTRATION 
 
 247 
 
 iiig the value of the notes of most of 
 the banks, and business was conducted 
 accordingly. The impetus caused by 
 the discovery of gold in California 
 stimulated trade and also speculation. 
 L'nfortunately, most of the gold went 
 to Europe. There was a craze for 
 building railways. Some were built ex- 
 travagantly ; some were built which 
 manifestly could not pay expenses; but 
 railroads were considered a sort of 
 .Vladdin's lamp, that would bring im- 
 mediate prosperity to every community 
 that was on the route. This stimulated 
 speculation in land and prices rose 
 rapidly, but the lands and town lots 
 were usually covered with mortgages. 
 The crisis came in the fall of 1857, and 
 the bricks fell fast. Hundreds of 
 banks went to the wall, merchants 
 failed, railroads went into bankruptcy, 
 and the ruin of the country seemed 
 complete. It was a hard winter for the 
 poorer classes, as many were thrown 
 out of employment, but the enormous 
 resources of the country soon improved 
 conditions, so that the recovery was far 
 more rapid than seemed possible at 
 first, and much more rapidly than in 
 3ears before. 
 
 The whole of Buchanan's adminis- 
 tration was taken up with the struggle 
 over slavery. The President was de- 
 termined that Kansas should be ad- 
 mitted as a slave State under the Le- 
 compton constitution. The Senate 
 passed the bill, though Douglas vigor- 
 ously opposed it, because the people of 
 Kansas had not liad a chance to vote on 
 the Constitution as a whole. The 
 House rejected this bill and passed one 
 of its own. Finally as a compromise, 
 a bill known as Lecompton, Jr., was 
 passed, allowing Kansas to come in 
 under the Lecompton constitution if 
 the voters so decided, and offering the 
 State large grants of land. But the 
 Kansas people refused the terms by a 
 large majority. Eventually a new 
 Constitution was adopted at Wyan- 
 dotte, but the State was not admitted 
 until just before the Civil War. 
 
 Southern men were anxious to se- 
 cure Cuba, Nicaraugua, and all or a 
 part of Mexico, so that the balance be- 
 
 tween free and slave States could be 
 kept up. There was also a desire to 
 reopen the slave trade on the ground 
 that the natural increase in this country 
 was not sufficient. The main theoreti- 
 cal question was whether slavery was 
 a National or local institution. Ac- 
 cording to the Dred Scott descision it 
 was National, but many refused to 
 abide by that decision. All efforts at 
 getting territory failed. Walker was 
 killed in Nicaraugua after he had set 
 up a Government, Spain would not 
 listen to any offer for Cuba, while an 
 effort to take advantage of the revolu- 
 tionary state of affairs in Alexico failed, 
 because the Senate, in i860, would not 
 ratify the treaty. There was no legis- 
 lation possible on the slavery question, 
 as the Senate and House were opposed 
 to each other on the subject. 
 
 One event caused much excitement 
 for a time. Fillmore had commis- 
 sioned Brigham Young as Governor of 
 Utah, and Buchanan appointed a new 
 man from the East. Young refused to 
 give up office and threatened resistance. 
 Force was actually used, but General 
 Johnston was sent with an army, which 
 made resistance impossible, and a com- 
 promise was effected by which the new 
 Governor was recognized, and the army 
 withdrew from Salt Lake City. There 
 existed great prejudice in the East 
 against the Mormons both on account 
 of polygamy and the alleged outrages 
 committed by some of them on emi- 
 grants. At Mountain Meadow a large 
 number of emigrants to California 
 were foully murdered, and it was years 
 before the offenders were brought to 
 justice. 
 
 The elections in 1858 showed that 
 political sectionalism was rising and 
 driving North and South sharply. 
 There were Democratic gains in the 
 South and Republican gains in the 
 North. The Native Americans, who 
 called themselves "Southern Ameri- 
 cans," formed the remnant of the 
 Whig party in the South, but they were 
 losing ground. 
 
 An interesting contest this year, be- 
 cause of its personnel, was that be- 
 tween Senator Douelas and Abraham 
 
248 
 
 THE HOME AUXILIARY AND REFERENCE 
 
 Lincoln for the Senatorship in Illinois. 
 According to the custom in this State, 
 party conventions named candidates 
 for the Senate, to which the Legislators 
 of each party adhered. Douglas had 
 the advantage of occupying the seat 
 and was backed by powerful influences. 
 ]\Ioreover, his stand on the Lecompton 
 constitution question had made him 
 many friends among anti-slavery peo- 
 ple. He had a further advantage in 
 the fact that the holding-over State 
 Senators were largely of his own faith. 
 Abraham Lincoln was practicing law 
 and had become a leader at the bar. 
 He was ambitious for Senatorship, 
 which he wanted in 1854, when Trum- 
 bull was elected. By arrangement a 
 series of joint debates was held, at 
 which questions at issue were discussed. 
 Douglas was the better stump speaker. 
 He could appeal to an audience with 
 great tact and keep them in good 
 humor. Much of his speeches were de- 
 voted to ridicule, while he attempted to 
 brush the slavery issue aside, saying he 
 did not care whether slavery was voted 
 up or down in a territory so long as 
 the people had a chance to vote on it. 
 Lincoln, on the othec hand, was always 
 serious, often melancholy, and discus- 
 sed the whole slavery issue in detail, 
 claiming that slavery was WTong and 
 must not be extended, and that Douglas 
 ought to care whether it was voted up 
 or down. It was agreed that each of 
 the candidates should prepare ques- 
 tions which his opponent must publicly 
 answer. Lincoln answered those put to 
 him frankly. He was not in favor of 
 sumptuary legislation against slavery, 
 but he was opposed to its extension. In 
 return he asked Douglas a question, the 
 answer to which was the turning point 
 in the latter's career. Douglas had 
 posed as the champion of popular sov- 
 ereignty, holding that slavery was a 
 local and not a National issue. Lin- 
 coln asked Douglas a question which 
 was to put him on record as to whether 
 or not lie agreed with the Dred Scott 
 decision, that slavery was a National 
 institution, and by right existed in all 
 the National territory, and must be 
 upheld in spite of local views, though 
 
 this was not its exact form. This put 
 Douglas in a corner. He could not 
 say "yes," for his record was on the 
 other side. If he said "no" it would in- 
 jure his political future. Therefore he 
 made the ingenious reply that the 
 theory was not worth discussing be- 
 cause as a matter of fact slavery could 
 only be maintained by police regula- 
 tions, and if the local Legislature in 
 any territory was opposed to slavery it 
 could b)' "unfriendly legislation" pre- 
 vent its introduction. This is what is 
 known as the "Freeport Doctrine," 
 from the name of the town in which he 
 announced it. The answer pleased the 
 audience and no doubt contributed 
 materially to Douglas' success, for he 
 was reelected. The Republicans car- 
 ried the State on the popular vote, but, 
 owing to the way the districts were 
 formed, lost even the lower House ot 
 the Legislature. The fall elections 
 showed that the administration was not 
 being supported, even Pennsylvania go- 
 ing Republican. 
 
 During 1859 the people were busy re- 
 covering from the effects of the panic, 
 while the politicians were discussing 
 not only slavery and the Presidency, 
 but the state of the Union. The ad- 
 mission of Oregon as a State had still 
 further disturbed the equilibrium be- 
 tween free and slave States. New 
 Mexico, it was evident, had not popu- 
 lation enough for a State, and there 
 was nothing there for slaves to do 
 with profit, so that about twenty per- 
 sonal servants constituted the whole 
 slave population. Kansas was deter- 
 mined not to have slavery, and no for- 
 eign territory was available. Indeed 
 but a handful of slaves were ever held 
 there in spite of the efforts of the pro- 
 slavery men. 
 
 It is easy to imagine that when 
 every one in the countrv was more or 
 less wrought up over the slavery issue, 
 the John Brown raid made a sensation 
 almost unparalled. John Brown was a 
 crack-brained, albeit shrewd, man, who 
 felt himself called to be the instrument 
 that was to destroy slavery. He went to 
 Kansas, and with some followers foully 
 murdered inoffensive pro-slavery men 
 
SIXTH PERIOD— BUCHANAN'S ADMINISTRATION 
 
 in the Pottawatamie \'alley. Escaping, 
 he went East and tried, with some suc- 
 cess, to interest anti-slavery people in a 
 scheme to raise a revolt among the 
 slaves, and by arms destroy the insti- 
 tution he hated. There never was a 
 wilder sclieme proposed bj' man, but 
 Brown proceeded to carry it out. On 
 the night of October i6, 1859, with 
 some twenty-two men. he descended 
 from the Pennsylvania hills upon Har- 
 per's Ferry, captured the town, took 
 some of the leading men prisoners, and 
 raised the standard of revolt among the 
 slaves. By daylight the town was 
 aroused and help sent for, and Brown 
 retreated to the Baltimore and Ohio 
 roundhouse, where, on the night of the 
 17th, with his little band, he fought 
 desperately for hours, finally to be 
 overpowered by Colonel Robert E. Lee 
 with a detatchment of marines, after 
 losing two sons and several others of 
 his followers, besides being wounded 
 himself. Brown's movement failed 
 completely as a military enterprise. 
 The slaves would not rise and never 
 intended to do so. If the negroes had 
 been of that nature they would never 
 have been kept in slavery. The feeble 
 attempt of a man who, while not crazy, 
 was little less, alarmed the South. It 
 was feared that Brown had many ac- 
 complices, and that the Harper's Ferry 
 raid was but an incident in a vast con- 
 spiracy that was to upset slavery and 
 destroy the South. These fears were 
 not unnatural, but they were ground- 
 less. Brown's only confidants were a 
 few men who had listened to him, al- 
 most none of whom approved his plans, 
 but who were now greatly alarmed for 
 fear of being accused of complicity. 
 Gerrit Smith, the famous anti-slavery 
 man, a friend of Brown, temporarily 
 lost his reason from alarm. 
 i Brown was tried and convicted of 
 I treason. He met his death calmly, as a 
 ; l)hilo>opher. During his confinement in 
 jail he seemed to regain his mental bal- 
 ance. He openly avowed his deed and 
 spoke of it in such a way that Senator 
 Mason, of Virginia, was moved at his 
 sincerity. 
 
 This raid became injected into poli- 
 
 tics, and made matters worse. There 
 were conservative men everywhere wno 
 were praying for national harmony and 
 party union, but as the months passed 
 away there were found to be irreconcil- 
 able difficulties. The Democratic party, 
 which had so long been in power, was 
 split in twain over the question as to 
 whether slavery was a national or local 
 institution. It is worthy of note that 
 the division on this question was al- 
 most entirely sectional, indicating the 
 honest)' of convictions on both sides, 
 which were dominated largely by local 
 surroundings. It would be unjust to 
 suppose that men in either section were 
 not equally as honest in their convic- 
 tions as to slavery as they were years 
 later on the silver question. Among 
 those who were foremost in the cause 
 of abolition, aside from those already 
 m.entioned, were Whittier, the poet; 
 Emerson, the philosopher, and Beecher, 
 the orator and clerg\-man. 
 
 \\'hen Congress met in December, 
 1859, another long contest for the 
 Speakership took place. There were 
 109 Republicans, loi Democrats, and 
 27 Americans, principally former 
 \Vhigs from the South. John Sherman 
 was the Republican candidate, and 
 failed of election because he had in- 
 dorsed, though without reading, a book 
 entitled ''The Impending Crisis." by 
 Ilinton Rowan Helper, a Southern 
 man, who attacked slavery not only on 
 moral, but economic grounds, holding 
 that the South would never prosper so 
 long as slavery existed. Some- of his 
 language was abusive, and the book was 
 detested in the South more than "Uncle 
 Tom's Cabin," because it was by a 
 Southerner, and because it could not be 
 answered. Pennington, of Xew Jersey, 
 was finally chosen. He was a conser- 
 vative Republican. The contest lasted 
 until January 30, and was full of ran- 
 cor. Many members went armed, and 
 personal combats were often imminent. 
 
 The Democratic Convention met in 
 Charleston in April, i860. It was com- 
 posed of leading men of the party, and 
 there was the most sincere desire to 
 effect a compromise which would save 
 the party and prevent any steps of dis- 
 
2SO 
 
 THE HOME AUXILIARY AND REFERENCE 
 
 union. The most radical men from the 
 South were as anxious as the men from 
 New England to reconcile differences, 
 but it was impossible. The two-thirds 
 rule made it necessary for the winning 
 candidate to get many votes from both 
 sections, but the sections were nearly 
 solidly opposed to each other on the 
 issue. The Committee on Resolutions 
 reported a platform embodying the 
 views of the radical Southern men, but 
 the Convention, instead, adopted a 
 minority report, which was drawn in 
 the Douglas interest, which referred 
 all questions of protecting slavery, to 
 the Supreme Court. This split the 
 party. Southern men who had known 
 and loved Douglas could not accept his 
 views nor follow his leadership. That 
 one expression, "unfriendly legisla- 
 tion," at Freeport, had alienated from 
 him the support of most Southern men. 
 A large portion of the Southern dele- 
 gates to the Convention withdrew, not 
 without a feeling of sadness, and, in 
 cases of great emotion. The Conven- 
 tion proceeded to ballot, and, while 
 Douglas had a majority of the votes, 
 he could not command the necessary 
 two-thirds. The Convention finally ad- 
 journed to meet at Baltimore in June, 
 where, after more withdrawals, Doug- 
 las was finally nominated, with Her- 
 schel V. Johnson, of Georgia, for Vice- 
 President. 
 
 The Democrats who left the two 
 conventions nominated John C. Breck- 
 enbridge, of Kentucky, with Joseph 
 Lane, of Oregon, for second place. 
 The platform was substantially that re- 
 jected at Charleston. Slavery was de- 
 clared a National institution. 
 
 Some conservative men of the 
 country, who feared the Union was en- 
 dangered, formed the Constitutional 
 Union party, whose only platform was 
 the preservation of the Union and exe- 
 cution of the laws, and nominated 
 John Bell, of Tennessee, for President, 
 and Edward Everett, of Massachu- 
 setts, for Vice-President. This party 
 drew its principal strength from the 
 border .slave States, where slavery was 
 practiced and defended, but not con- 
 sidered as the vital issue in politics. 
 
 The large vote for Bell in the border 
 States was a strong factor in keeping 
 all but Eastern \'irginia from joining 
 the Confederacy. 
 
 The Republican party, at Chicago, 
 Alay 16-18, i860, nominated Abraham 
 Lincoln and Hannibal Hamlin on a plat- 
 form declaring against slavery exten- 
 sion. Lincoln's nomination was a sur- 
 prise, as Seward had been considered 
 the most likely candidate. But Lin- 
 coln had many personal friends in 
 politics, and his debates with Douglas 
 had a profound effect on the country. 
 The nomination at first was not warmly 
 received in the East, but Seward threw 
 himself into the breach, and harmony, 
 v.ith enthusiasm, was restored. The 
 early State elections foreshadowed 
 Lincoln's election, which was confirmed 
 in November. The electoral vote 
 stood: Lincoln, 180; Breckenbridge, 
 72; Bell, 39; Douglas, 12. The popu- 
 lar vote was: Lincoln, 1,866,352; 
 Breckenbridge, 845,763 ; Bell, 589,581 : 
 Douglas, 1,375.157- Total, 4,676,853. 
 
 Thus Lincoln was in a large minor- 
 ity on the popular vote, but, on the 
 other hand, Breckenbridge, the candi- 
 date of the radical Southern wing, was 
 a very bad third in the race, with Bell 
 a much better fourth. The people who 
 declared that equilibrium of slave and 
 free States was essential to the per- 
 petuity of the Republic, turned out to 
 be only one-sixth of the whole, while 
 exactly one-third of the States gave 
 Lincoln their electoral vote. Congress 
 was, however, divided again, the 
 Senate still being Democratic, and no 
 radical legislation was possible so long 
 as this condition existed. 
 
 No sooner was the result known than 
 South Carolina decided on secession, 
 and a convention passed an ordinance 
 r December 20. i860 'I repealing the act. 
 by which the Federal Constitution had 
 been ratified, declared its independence 
 to each other on the slaverv question, 
 and sent commissioners to Washington 
 to negotiate a convention as to public 
 l)roi)erty and the like, and asked seven 
 other States to join in the movement, 
 while preparations were made for war. 
 
 When Congress met, the ardor of 
 
SIXTH PERIOD— BUCHANAN'S ADMINISTRATION 
 
 the Republicans was cooled by the news 
 that secession had been undertaken, 
 and was likely to spread. Joy over the 
 election of Lincoln was greatly tem- 
 pered by anxiety as to the future, and 
 the President's message was awaited 
 with great eagerness, in the hope that 
 he could either give some plan of ad- 
 justment or at least outline a policy 
 that would save the Nation's territorial 
 integrity. On the contrary, the mes- 
 sage was the most disappointing that 
 this country has ever received. It was 
 a scolding message, practically rebuk- 
 ing the people for electing Lincoln, 
 and, while theoretically declaring 
 against the right of secession, declared 
 also that there was no way to coerce a 
 State that wanted to withdraw. This 
 suited nobody, and there went up a 
 cry from the North, "Oh! for one 
 hour of Andrew Jackson." Is it not 
 strange that the two most determined 
 foes of secession were Jackson and 
 Taylor, Southern men and slave- 
 holders? Is it not strange that the 
 acts of Northern men like Fillmore 
 and Buchanan gave aid and comfort 
 to pro-slavery men, though both were 
 personally loyal to the Union? As the 
 President offered no remedy. Congress 
 started to see what it could do. Many 
 speeches were made. There was a 
 peculiar mixture of sober earnestness 
 and anger on both sides. The mem- 
 bers kept dropping out as their States 
 ]iassed ordinances of secession. But 
 one final eflfort at compromise was 
 made by the successor of Clay — John 
 J. Crittenden, of Kentucky, one of the 
 best of the old-school, L''nion-loving 
 statesmen. A committee of thirteen, 
 reiircscnting all factions in the Senate, 
 was appointed to see if a remedy could 
 be found. None was found, and the 
 committee so reported, though Seward 
 and Davis worked diligently for a com- 
 promise. Crittenden's plan was to have 
 a Constitutional amendment passed, 
 prohibiting Congress from ever abol- 
 ishing slavery, restoring the Missouri 
 Compromise line, with an eye to future 
 accessions of territory, payment for es- 
 caped slaves not returned, and the like. 
 It was too late — the day of compro- 
 
 mise had passed. Patriotic men called 
 a Peace Convention at Washington. 
 Delegates appeared from most of the 
 States, and ex-President Tyler pre- 
 sided. It could do no more than Crit- 
 tenden did. The movement was a fail- 
 ure, and war was certain. In January, 
 Mississippi, Florida, Alabama, Geor- 
 gia, and Louisiana passed ordinances 
 of secession, while Texas made ar- 
 rangements to do so in March. All 
 prepared for war. Members of Con- 
 gress from these States generally re- 
 tired as the ordinances were passed, 
 and soon the Republicans and Douglas 
 Democrats were in a large majority. 
 Kansas was admitted, and legislation 
 looking toward war was passed, includ- 
 ing the Morrill Tariff Bill. An 
 amendment to the Constitution was 
 passed by this Congress, providing 
 that Congress should never abolish 
 slavery, but, the war coming on, it was 
 not acted on by enough States to de- 
 cide its fate. 
 
 Meanwhile, the Cabinet had been re- 
 organized. Cass could not stand Bu- 
 canan's logic, and resigned. Cobb, 
 who had been an unsuccessful admin- 
 istrator of the public funds, had al- 
 ready gone, leaving an empty treasury. 
 The next to go was Floyd, who was 
 ?;870,ooo short in his accounts, due to 
 improper favoritism to contractors, 
 though he resigned in feigned high 
 dudgeon because Sumter was to be 
 reinforced without notice to South 
 Carolina. Black became Secretary of 
 State : Joseph Holt, of Kentucky, Sec- 
 retary of War; Edwin M. Stanton, of 
 Penns\lvania. Attorney-General : while 
 Philip F. Thomas, of Maryland, be- 
 came Secretary of the Treasury. Af- 
 ter this reorganization, Buchanan was 
 better advised, and acted with more 
 firmness. Buchanan had given the 
 South Carolina Commissioners a purelv 
 unofficial recejition. They demanded 
 the evacuation of all the forts held by 
 the Federal army. While they were in 
 Washington news came that Major 
 Anderson, in command of the Charles- 
 ton harbor, had grown unea.sy over the 
 military operations of the South Caro- 
 lina army, removed his men to Fort 
 
252 
 
 THE HOME AUXILIARY AND REEERENCE 
 
 Sumter, on an island in the harbor, 
 commanding the entire city. In anger 
 the Commissioners at Washington de- 
 manded that Anderson be ordered back 
 Ic Fort Moultrie, but the President re- 
 fused, and the Commissioners, becom- 
 ing excitable, and using undignified 
 language, were dismissed. Anderson 
 \vas in sore straits, and it was soon a 
 question of whether he should be rein- 
 forced or ordered away. In January, 
 an expedition was sent with men, mu- 
 nitions and provisions, on "The Star 
 of the West," but Secretary Thompson 
 had given the South Carolina authori- 
 ties notice, and the vessel was fired on 
 and prevented from reaching Fort 
 Sumter. Finally a truce was patched 
 up for a time, and Sumter was not mo- 
 lested, while Anderson bought pro- 
 visions in the open market. Secretary 
 Thomas, not proving a success, was 
 succeeded at the Treasury by John A. 
 Dix, of New York, a determined foe 
 of secession, who gained undying fame 
 by his letter to a subordinate, in which 
 he said: "If any man attempts to haul 
 down the American flag, shoot him on 
 the spot." This was the first strong 
 note the North had heard, and it was 
 joyfully received. 
 
 Many people in the South believed 
 that secession would be peacefully ac- 
 complished. Many more believed that 
 there would be a brief and glorious 
 war. Jefferson Davis was not one of 
 these. He anticipated a long and 
 bloody war. He retired from the 
 Senate in January, after a most affect- 
 ing farewell speech, for personally he 
 was very popular. He went to his 
 home, expecting to take up arms in 
 favor of his dogtna. A convention rep- 
 resenting the six States that claimed 
 to have seceded met at Montgomery, 
 Alabama, drew up a temporary Con- 
 stitution and elected Davis President, 
 and Stephens, of Georgia, \^ice-Presi- 
 dent. Stephens was one of the last to 
 give in to secession. He argued that 
 it was not yet time for such a step, but 
 he went with his State. Davis at once 
 accepted. The Constitution was largely 
 a copy of the Federal Constitution, ex- 
 cept upon the questions of slavery 
 
 and State Rights. Later a more perfect 
 Constitution was adopted, and Rich- 
 mond, Virginia, was made the capital. 
 The States of North Carolina. Arkan- 
 sas, Texas, Tennessee and \'irginia fi- 
 nally joined the Confederacy, the ( )ld 
 Dominion being the last to take action, 
 after long hesitation. 
 
 Jefferson Davis' first Cabinet was as 
 follows: Robert M. T. Hunter, of 
 \'irginia. Secretary of State ; Charles 
 Y. Memminger, of South Carolina, 
 Secretary of the Treasury ; Judah P. 
 Benjamin, of Louisiana, Secretary of 
 ^\'ar: Stephen R. Mallory, of Florida, 
 Secretary of the Navy; John H. Rea- 
 gan, of Texas, Postmaster-General : 
 Thomas H. Watts, of Alabama, At- 
 torney-General. Benjamin soon suc- 
 ceeded Hunter, and his place as Sec- 
 retary o* War was filled by James A. 
 Seddon, of Virginia. The Confederate 
 Congress soon became an unimportant 
 body, because exigencies of the war 
 made legislation sometimes impossible, 
 and often Mr. Davis was obliged to act 
 almost as a dictator. Most of the lead- 
 ing men went into the army instead of 
 Congress, which had far less power 
 than that of the L^nited States, owing 
 to so many rights being reserved to the 
 States. 
 
 Practically nothing was done at 
 Washington to meet this coming storm. 
 General Scott got a few troops into the 
 capital, but the army was being rapidly 
 demoralized by the resignations of 
 Southern officers, and often by com- 
 panies and regiments following them 
 into the Confederacy. When Lincoln 
 was inaugurated, the only Southern 
 forts held by the Government were Fort 
 Sumter, at Charleston, and Fort Pick- 
 ens, at Penascola. It was a trying time 
 in the North. Many still hoped for a 
 compromise. Many believed that it was 
 best to let "the erring sisters go in 
 peace," as Horace Greeley expressed it. 
 Even in the seceding States opinion was 
 far from unanimous ; the border States 
 for a time were as one for the Union, 
 and only Virginia, in part, went over 
 to the Confederacy, after long hesita- 
 tion. In some States the vote was 
 close, and Stephens claimed that 
 
SIXTH PERIOD— LINCOLN'S ADMINISTRATION 
 
 253 
 
 Georgia was really opposed to seces- 
 sion. Many leaders claimed that their 
 States only went out in order to get 
 back into the Union on better terms, 
 but war soon put this notion to sleep. 
 
 Abraham Lincoln remained quietly at 
 home in Springfield during all the ex- 
 citing times, doing all he could to allay 
 Southern excitement. He wrote to 
 Stephens to try and convince him that 
 the South had nothing to fear from him 
 so long as it obeyed the laws. It was 
 too late. In consequence much time 
 was taken up in preparing his Cabinet 
 with a view to anticipated emergencies. 
 Seward was early offered the position 
 of Secretary of State, which he ac- 
 cepted. The rest of the Cabinet was 
 composed of men little known in Na- 
 tional politics, with the exception of 
 Salmon P. Chase, of Ohio, who took 
 the Treasury. It was a coalition Cab- 
 inet, about equally divided between Re- 
 jHiblicans and former Democrats, and 
 included several of the President's 
 rivals for the nomination. Indiana was 
 given the Interior portfolio in the per- 
 son of Caleb Smith, which smacked of 
 a convention deal. Edward Bates be- 
 came Attorney-General'; Montgomery 
 Blair, Postmaster-General ; Gideon 
 Welles, Secretary of the Navy, and 
 Simon Cameron, Secretary of War. At 
 the last minute the slate was nearly 
 smashed. Lincoln, having been asked 
 to change the last name on it, remarked 
 that if broken at all it would be broken 
 at the top. Seward learned of this, and 
 wrote, declining to serve, but Lincoln 
 held him to his promise. Many thought 
 that Seward would be the whole ad- 
 ministration, and Lincoln had learned 
 enough to make him hesitate a moment. 
 This Cabinet was not settled until the 
 last minute. In the meantime Lincoln 
 had made an extended tour, from 
 Springfield to Washington, speaking in 
 many cities. Some things he said 
 failed to meet popular favor. It 
 seemed as if he were jesting in the face 
 of an awful crisis, and some of his 
 speeches seemed to indicate that there 
 was no crisis at all. No man read the 
 signs of the times more correctly than 
 Lincoln. What he meant was that there 
 
 was no reason for a crisis ; that insofar 
 as it existed or should grow, it was on 
 a false basis, and that the i)erpetuity of 
 the Union was not in the least affected 
 by the election of a Republican Presi- 
 dent, insofar as the party intended the 
 invasion of the rights of any persons, 
 party or section. Reports gaining cur- 
 rency that there would be an attempt 
 to assassinate him, his tour was cut 
 short, and he reached Washington un- 
 announced and unexpected. Inaugura- 
 tion day passed off without incident. 
 The President spoke earnestly in favor 
 of the Union, and denied that secession 
 was possible, or that any cause for it 
 existed, closing with a glowing appeal 
 for the LTnion. 
 
 Commissioners purporting to repre- 
 sent the Confederacy now appeared to 
 take up again the Fort Sumter issue. 
 Secretary Seward saw them unofficially, 
 and once informed them that he be- 
 lieved the fort would soon be evac- 
 uated. Indeed, the Cabinet had prac- 
 tically agreed to this, when the Presi- 
 dent changed his mind. Justice of the 
 Supreme Court Campbell, who was 
 about to resign, but waited around to 
 get news, acted as an intermediary, and 
 a dispute arose between him and Se- 
 ward when the fort was not evacuated. 
 Campbell claimed that Seward made a 
 promise, but the latter said he only ex- 
 pressed an opinion based on the Cab- 
 inet decision, which was afterward 
 changed. 
 
 The President's greatest anxiety was 
 to save the border States of Missouri, 
 Kentucky, Virginia, Maryland and 
 Delaware. In this he succeeded after 
 great difficulties and many discourage- 
 ments, except that \"irginia. after once 
 declaring overwhelmingly for the 
 Union, reversed the decision. Only a 
 portion of the State accepted the ver- 
 dict, and West Virginia was born, and 
 admitted to the LTnion in 1863. It was 
 at one time believed that North Caro- 
 lina and Tennessee would refuse to se- 
 cede, but they finally joined the others, 
 so that eleven States were admitted to 
 the Confederacy. In theory Missouri 
 and Kentucky also belonged, and their 
 representatives sat in the Congress at 
 
254 
 
 THE HOME AUXILIARY AND REFERENCE 
 
 Richmond, but this was a mere farce. 
 The cliaotic condition of the army and 
 navy, due to resignation, desertions and 
 surrenders, made important miHtary 
 preparations impossible, yet General 
 Scott did his best. In order that \'ir- 
 ginia might not feel offended, no troops 
 were placed on her soil until after she 
 had joined the Confederacy, and thus 
 strategic points were lost. The little 
 navy was at that time scattered all over 
 the world, with only about lialf a dozen 
 vessels near aJ; hand available for tise. 
 As the days passed on, and Ander- 
 son did not evacuate Fort Sumter, the 
 South Carolina forces became angry, 
 charged bad faith, and, on April 12, 
 1861, opened fire on the fort, just as 
 the relieving ships appeared off the bar. 
 Anderson responded, and for two days a 
 hot fire was kept up, during which no 
 one was hurt on either side. Fort Sum- 
 ter, being only partially completed, suf- 
 fered severely, the barracks were 
 burned, and salt pork alone left for ra- 
 tions. Under these circumstances Ma- 
 jor Anderson surrendered on the 14th, 
 hauled down his flag, and by agreement 
 went North with his command. The 
 effect of this was electrical. It sol- 
 idified the sections. The North became 
 unanimous, the South likewise, while 
 the border States strove to maintain 
 neutrality, but were really divided in 
 sentiment. Lincoln at once issued a call 
 for 75,000 volunteers, to serve three 
 months. The first troops to respond 
 were five independent companies from 
 Central Pennsylvania, who rushed to 
 the Capital, and were received by the 
 President with joy. They were placed 
 in the Capitol, for there were many ru- 
 mors of sudden attack. Next came the 
 Sixth Massachusetts, which was as- 
 saulted by a mob in Baltimore. There 
 were four soldiers killed and thirty 
 wounded, while the mob suffered much 
 more heavily. The excitement was in- 
 tense. The railway bridges near Balti- 
 more were burned, so that for a time 
 there was no direct communication be- 
 tween Washington and the North. 
 General Butler, with Massachusetts 
 troops, sailed to Annapolis, and, in 
 spite of the Governor's protest, landed 
 
 and marched to the railway between 
 Baltimore and Washington ; then, in the 
 night, he captured Baltimore, and the 
 railway was reopened to the North. 
 
 The military history of the Civil War 
 has filled many volumes, and the out- 
 lines only can be given here. Kentucky 
 having declared neutrality, no troops 
 for a time were sent to that State, but 
 immediate steps were taken in Mis- 
 souri, where an army was raised and 
 Federal authority maintained, after the 
 Governor had declared for the Con- 
 federacy. General Fremont was in 
 command, but he issued an order eman- 
 cipating the slaves of those who had 
 taken the side of the Confederacy, and 
 in consequence was soon relieved. In 
 the center considerable bodies of troops 
 were located in Western Virginia un- 
 der General George B. McClellan, 
 where the first conflicts of the war took 
 place, and near Harper's Ferry, under 
 General Patterson. The Army of the 
 Potomac was organized at Washington 
 under the command of General Mc- 
 Dowell. 
 
 It took only a few days to enlist the 
 75.000 men. but it took time to equip 
 them, and fe\v of them saw any ac- 
 tive service until they re-enlisted under 
 the next call for 300,000 men for three 
 years. To tell the story of the dif- 
 ficulties in getting guns and powder, 
 tents and clothing, and rations, the dif- 
 ficulties in organizing and drilling regi- 
 ments, would be simply to repeat what 
 has happened in every one of our wars. 
 The South was little better off, except 
 that it began earlier to make prepara- 
 tions, but in equipment it was worse 
 off" than the North. The smooth-bore 
 musket of the Mexican War period was 
 the principal arm, and many of these 
 were converted flint-locks. Floyd made 
 a great virtue of what he had done 
 for the South in selling condemned 
 arms and the like, but it appears he was 
 more an.xious to get a good job under 
 the Confederacy than to tell the exact 
 truth. The guns he sold to the South 
 were of little tise. and Floyd's boasts 
 were principally bombast, though they 
 were at one time generally believed. He 
 had been a professed Union man almost 
 
SIXTH PERIOD— LINCOLN'S ADMINISTRATION 
 
 to the last, and never rose to import- 
 ance imder the Confederacy. 
 
 The contest over West \'irginia was 
 brief and decisive. Compared with 
 other battles they appear insignificant, 
 but at the time they were thought im- 
 portant. McClellan and Rosecrans, by 
 a series of brilliant maneuvers and 
 sharp attacks, defeated the Con- 
 federates at Rich Mountain and Car- 
 rick's P'ord, took many prisoners, and 
 later on drove them from the State. 
 This made McClellan a hero, and 
 brought him into prominence. In the 
 West, General Lyon, by active v^^ork, 
 kept Missouri in the Union and drove 
 the Confederates toward the Southern 
 border. In the center General Patter- 
 son lay with a large army, confronting 
 the Confederates, under General Joseph 
 Johnston. Patterson was to prevent 
 Johnston from joining Beauregard at 
 Manassas, about twenty miles from 
 Washington, where lay the principal 
 part of the Confederate army, under 
 General Beauregard. In the meantime, 
 all was excitement at Washington. 
 There was a ceaseless cry of "On to 
 Richmond," and the pressure from the 
 politicians ; the press and the public to 
 begin offensive operations was so strong 
 that the Administration gave in against 
 the opinion of the army officers, who 
 feared the raw troops would not stand 
 fire. A forward movement was or- 
 dered on Manassas, and Patterson was 
 finally informed that the attack would 
 be made on the i'8th, and to look out 
 for Johnston. The attack was delayed 
 until the 2ist, and the battle took place 
 along a stream called Bull Run. Gen- 
 eral Sherman says it was the best 
 planned and worst fought battle of the 
 war. The earlier part of the battle was 
 favorable to the Federals, but the Con- 
 federate General, Thomas J. Jackson, 
 made a stout defense, that gained him 
 the name of "Stonewall." Johnston 
 eluded Patterson, and reached the field 
 in time to turn the tide. The Federal 
 troops were repulsed, but it was not a 
 serious defeat, as the reserves could 
 have been brought up and the attack re- 
 newed. Instead, a senseless jianic fol- 
 lowed, and the whole Federal army fled 
 
 in terror to Washington, leaving its 
 impediments along the route. The Con- 
 federates had suffered heavily, and 
 not until they heard of the flight of the 
 h'ederals did they understand the e.xtent 
 of their victory. However, they made 
 no attack on Washington. 
 
 McClellan was now placed in com- 
 mand of all the armies of the United 
 States and in direct command of the 
 Army of the Potomac, and he set about 
 organizing an efficient army, but it did 
 not have a battle of importance for 
 nine months. During this interval Mc- 
 Clellan was actively engaged in drill- 
 ing and disciplining, seeking to make 
 soldiers of the untrained recruits. 
 
 During the rest of this year the Con- 
 federates were driven out of West- 
 Virginia and pushed further South in 
 Missouri, though the gallant General 
 Lyon fell at the battle of Wilson's 
 Creek. Fremont was succeeded, in gen- 
 eral command of the West by General 
 Halleck. In command under him, at 
 Cairo, was General U. S. Grant, who 
 had early in the war been appointed 
 Colonel of an Illinois regiment, and by 
 rapid promotion was now a Brigadier- 
 General. He took-possession of Padu- 
 cah, Kentucky, attacked a Confederate 
 camp at Belmont, Missouri, and cap- 
 tured it, but, being attacked in turn, re- 
 crossed the river to Cairo, as the move- 
 ment was only a diversion to keep re- 
 inforcements being sent to the interior 
 to aid General Price, who commanded 
 the Confederates in Missouri. In Vir- 
 ginia the Federals were sharply re- 
 pulsed in a small engagement at Ball's 
 Bluff. Colonel Baker, a Senator from 
 Oregon, the intimate friend of Lincoln, 
 was killed. 
 
 The whole year may be said to have 
 been one of preparation on both sides. 
 Neither side was equipped for war, as 
 the battle of Bull Run showed. After 
 this the cry of "On to Richmond !" 
 died out, and both parties prepared for 
 the struggle. The contest was more 
 equal than would seem at first sight. 
 While the eleven States of the Con- 
 federacy had a less population than 
 those which remained in the l7nion. 
 Missouri, Kentucky, and ^Maryland 
 
256 
 
 THE HOME AUXILIARY AND REFERENCE 
 
 were practically divided in furnishing 
 troops, so far as individuals were con- 
 cerned. The North also had the dis- 
 advantage of having to invade the 
 South and maintain its line of transpor- 
 tation, which took many men. The 
 North, however, was rich in factories 
 and shops that could turn out muskets 
 and cannon, while in a short time rifles 
 were made in large quantities. The 
 North had resources in men and money 
 far beyond the South, but the cotton 
 industry furnished the latter with an 
 asset which would have offset these ad- 
 vantages if it could have been realized 
 on. In April, 1861, President Lincoln 
 declared a blockade of the whole Con- 
 federate coast. This was at first a 
 "paper" blockade, as we had few ves- 
 sels for such a task. New ones were 
 undertaken, and many merchant vessels 
 were bought and fitted up as well as 
 possible. The first sea capture of the 
 war was a remodeled Hudson River 
 ferry boat. The Confederate privateers 
 did some damage early in the war, but 
 later they retired from active service. 
 Congress met in special session July 
 4, 1861, and for a short time was su- 
 pine. After Bull Run, the seriousness 
 of the situation was discovered, and 
 large supplies of men were granted. 
 For a time specie payments were main- 
 tained, but before long this was impos- 
 sible, and the war was fought with 
 paper money, as will be described else- 
 where. The Confederacy was in a 
 hopeful mood at this time. Cotton was 
 believed to hold the key to the situation. 
 It was believed that neither France nor 
 England would consent to have such 
 articles of necessity cut ofif, and more 
 active help was looked for. Commis- 
 sioners were sent to London and Paris, 
 with no result, and a more formidable 
 mission was later sent, v^diich will be 
 treated upon fully in another place. 
 One of ^Ir. Davis' Southern critics 
 complains that his Cabinet was com- 
 posed of figureheads, and that he 
 wanted to control everything. He is 
 blamed for not seizing all the cotton 
 in the South, fixing a certain price for 
 it, and then rushing it abroad before 
 the blockade was established. A fleet 
 
 of iron merchantmen was off'ered the 
 Confederacy by a foreign firm on easy 
 terms, but was not accepted until it 
 was too late to make the transfer. The 
 Confederacy issued bonds, which for 
 a time sold at a good figure, but finally 
 recourse was had to paper money, 
 which depreciated constantly as the war 
 went on. It is impossible here to give 
 the details of Confederate legislation. 
 As the war went on, Air. Davis became 
 practical dictator, and he, as also the 
 Confederate Congress, was as roundly 
 abused by many men in the South for 
 acts of usurpation, as was the North 
 before the war began. This is the case 
 in all wars of this kind. States' Rights, 
 on which the Confederacy was con- 
 structed, proved as bad a condition in 
 this war as it had during the Revolu- 
 tion. If the Confederacy had suc- 
 ceeded it could not have been main- 
 tained on the original basis. Central- 
 ized control is essential to any large 
 nation. 
 
 Before the blockade became eflfective 
 supplies and munitions of war were 
 rushed in. The blockade was never 
 complete, for blockade runners from 
 Nassau and the Bermudas got in and 
 out during the war, bringing in guns 
 and powder in exchange for cotton. 
 The contraband trade was risky and 
 often disastrous, but where one voy- 
 age paid the cost of a ship, the tempta- 
 tion was greater than the risk. 
 
 The grand strategy of the war de- 
 veloped slowly, and many mistakes 
 were made on both sides. The Con- 
 federates' plan was to hold the Missis- 
 sippi, stretch a chain of forts and camps 
 from the Mississippi to the Alleghanies, 
 along the south central section of Ken- 
 tucky, while the Army of ^^irginia was 
 to complete the chain to the Atlantic. 
 The Federal plan was not so well con- 
 ceived at first. The original idea was 
 to save the border States. Then came 
 the ill-advised method of advance on 
 Richmond. Kentucky, claiming to be 
 neutral, was left alone for a short 
 time, for policy's sake, but she soon 
 declared for the Union, and Grant was 
 ordered to attack Fort Henry, on the 
 Tennessee River, and break the chain 
 
SIXTH PERIOD— LINCOLN'S ADMINISTRATION 
 
 of forts that connected tlie great river 
 and the mountain cliain. A flotilla of 
 gunboats, made out of river steamers, 
 and others constructed on new plans, 
 were put in command of Commodore 
 Porter to co-operate with the army. 
 The Confederates had a small flotilla 
 at and below Memphis. The first 
 break in the Confederate line was made 
 by General Thomas, in January, 1862, 
 who defeated and killed General Zolli- 
 kofTer, at Mill Spring, Kentucky. The 
 Confederates were obliged to retreat 
 into Tennessee. General Grant then 
 advanced on Fort Henry, Commodore 
 Foote sailed up the river with his 
 flotilla, and the garrison either sur- 
 rendered or fled to Fort Donelson, a 
 few miles away on the Cumberland 
 River. This was in February, 1862, 
 when the roads were bad and it was 
 difficult to move supplies for the army. 
 Fort Donelson was invested by the 
 army and navy. There were three days 
 of fighting, due to an attempt of the 
 garrison to escape. It was the hardest 
 fighting of the war, up to this time, 
 and the men on both sides showed the 
 results of discipline and training. The 
 fort was now imtenable. General Pil- 
 low turned the fort over to General 
 Floyd, who in turn handed it over to 
 liuckner, who asked for terms. This 
 brought forth the now historic reply of 
 Grant: "No terms e.xcept unconditional 
 and immediate surrender can be ac- 
 cepted. I propose to move immediately 
 upon your works." It is of interest to 
 note that General Grant, then a captain 
 who had just resigned, a few years 
 previous, had landed penniless in New 
 York, and General P.uckner, then a 
 subaltern and an old comrade, loaned 
 him money to get to his family. Buck- 
 ner was obliged to surrender, and the 
 line of defenses from the river to the 
 mountains was smashed. Grant moved 
 his army up the Tennessee River to 
 Pittsburgh Landing to await the arrival 
 of General Don Carlos Buell, who was 
 coming with an army from Central 
 Kentucky. He did not expect an at- 
 tack and made no adequate earth works 
 for defense, so little was the art of 
 war then appreciated. On April 6, 
 
 1862, General Albert S. Johnston, with 
 a well-trained army, fell on the Fed- 
 erals at daybreak. It was at least a 
 partial surprise, and the Federals were 
 driven back some distance before a firm 
 defense could be made. General Grant 
 ordered up a division under General 
 Lew Wallace, from down the river, but 
 it arrived too late for active work that 
 day. Many of the raw soldiers fled to 
 the river bank, but the main body of 
 the army contested the battle firmly, 
 General Wm. T. Sheridan's division be- 
 ing especially efl^ective. The Con- 
 federacy met with a serious loss. Gen- 
 eral Johnston being mortally wounded. 
 That night Buell arrived, and Grant was 
 enabled to take the ofi^ensive next day, 
 the battle ending in the defeat of the 
 Confederates. Though Grant's victory 
 was complete, his losses were so great 
 that there was an outcry against him, 
 and from being the popular hero of 
 Donelson he was unjustly maligned and 
 even accused, though falsely, of drunk- 
 enness on the day of battle. General 
 Halleck immediately arrived on the 
 scene and took command. He seemed 
 to have an antipathy for Grant, which 
 made the latter's position very uncom- 
 fortable. There was no reason why the 
 army should not have been in front of 
 Corinth in a few days, but Halleck oc- 
 cupied a month in going thirty miles, 
 only to find that the enemy had fled. 
 Then he fortified Corinth as if it were 
 the greatest strategic point in the South. 
 Soon he was called East, and Grant 
 was left in command, but by this time 
 the Confederates had gotten two armies 
 together, and the opportunity was lost 
 to pierce "the hollow shell of the Con- 
 federacy." In the meantime General 
 Pope and the navy, under Porter, had 
 moved down the Mississippi, captured 
 Island No. 10, Fort Pillow, and Mem- 
 ]:)his. The Confederate line had now 
 been moved to the southern border of 
 Tennessee, except in the eastern part 
 of that State. 
 
 It is time to return to Eastern af- 
 fairs. McCIellan was in charge of all 
 the arnu'es, and spent many months in 
 preparation, during which many thou- 
 sands of his soldiers died of camp dis- 
 
258 
 
 THE HOME AUKTLIARY AND REFERENCE 
 
 ease. There were never frank relations 
 between him and Lincohi. liy his own 
 admission, afterward made pubhc, Mc- 
 Clellan had a small opinion of Lincoln, 
 and was restive under his orders. The 
 distrust of Lincoln was for a time wide- 
 spread. Even Seward, in the early part 
 of his secretaryship, was ambitious to 
 control the Administration and reduce 
 Lincoln to a mere figurehead, but he 
 soon found that he had a strong man 
 to deal with. McClellan had an exag- 
 gerated idea of the strength of John- 
 ston's army, and would not move on 
 Manassas until late in the winter of 
 1861-62, even when ordered to do so 
 by Lincoln. When he did move he 
 found the place abandoned. He now 
 proposed to take 100,000 men by sea to 
 the Yorktown Peninsula, go up the 
 York River and capture Richmond. 
 The plan was agreed to, provided he 
 left an army under McDowell between 
 Washington and Richmond to protect 
 the Capital. This army was to march 
 overland to meet McClellan if its ser- 
 vices were not needed to defend Wash- 
 ington. 
 
 The army landed near Yorktown, 
 and met strong opposition. Instead of 
 pushing on to Richmond, McClellan 
 stopped to besiege Yorktown and Wil- 
 liamsburg, which gave the Confeder- 
 ates time to collect an army before 
 Richmond, under General Joseph John- 
 ston. When McClellan reached Rich- 
 mond he met a fierce resistance. The 
 stream Chickahominy, small in itself, 
 but bordered by impassable swamps, 
 flows eastward just north of Rich- 
 mond. Expecting McDowell, McClel- 
 lan put part of his army north of the 
 Chickahominy, to connect with the ex- 
 pected Northern army. Here they 
 were attacked by General Joseph John- 
 ston and narrowlv escaped a disastrous 
 defeat in the battle of Fair Oaks, or 
 Seven Pines. General Johnston was 
 seriously wounded in this engagement, 
 and General Robert E. Lee succeeded 
 him in command of the army of North- 
 ern \^irginia. The new commander 
 prepared for vigorous action. Stone- 
 wall Jackson, one of the ablest Con- 
 federate leaders, had drawn the Fed- 
 
 erals from the Shenandoah Valley, and 
 was now recalled to join Lee before 
 Richmond. On June 26, 1862, a sud- 
 den attack was made on McClellan's 
 army at Mechanicsville. A stubborn 
 contest ensued, battle after battle being 
 fought for seven days. It ended in the 
 repulse of McClellan, who felt obliged 
 to abandon the siege of Richmond and 
 intrench himself at Harrison's Land- 
 ing, on the James River. He had de- 
 feated Lee at Malvern Hill on July i, 
 but failed to take advantage of his vic- 
 tory. From his new headquarters he 
 sent angry telegrams to Lincoln, claim- 
 ing that his army had been victimized 
 by the holding back of McDowell's 
 forces. 
 
 McClellan's defeat led to new deals 
 in Washington. On July 11, General 
 ITalleck was made commander-in-chief 
 of the LTnion armies, and in August 
 McClellan was ordered back to Wash- 
 ington to aid in repelling threatening 
 Confederate movements. General Lee, 
 taking advantage of McClellan's in- 
 action, had dispatched Jackson to the 
 north to operate against Pope, and it 
 was the success of these operations that 
 led to McClellan's recall. As soon as 
 Lee learned of the embarkation of the 
 Federal army, he marched rapidly to 
 Jackson's aid and joined him near the 
 old Bull Run battlefield, where the 
 combined forces administered a crush- 
 ing defeat to General Pope. Finding 
 that McClellan's troops held Washing- 
 ton and secured it against attack, Lee 
 now marched up the Potomac and in- 
 vaded Maryland, with the hope of gain- 
 ing recruits and aid from that State. 
 McClellan was at once put in com- 
 mand of Pope's army and sent in hasty 
 pursuit, overtaking Lee's rear at South 
 ^fountain, where a sharp fight took 
 place. Meanwhile Stonewall Jackson 
 had captured Harper's Ferry and its 
 garrison, and on September 17, 1862, 
 the two armies met at Antietam Creek. 
 Here a fierce two days' battle took 
 place, ending in a night retreat of Lee 
 across the Potomac, unpursued by 
 McClellan. Both armies had met with 
 heavv losses. 
 
 General ATcClellan's delay in pursu- 
 
SIXTH PERIOD— LIXXOLX'S ADMINISTRATION 
 
 iiig the retreating enemy gave mucli 
 dissatisfaction to the Administration. 
 and on Octoher 6th he was ordered to 
 cross the Potomac and give battle to 
 Lee, or drive him south. His delay in 
 doing this increased the annoyance of 
 the President and on the 7th of Xo- 
 \cmber, he was removed from his com- 
 mand. General Burnside being ap- 
 pointed to replace him. The new com- 
 mander had distinguished himself in 
 the earlier part of the war and given 
 \aluable service at Antietam, but was 
 not well fitted, as the event proved, for 
 tlie new position given him. After some 
 manouvering. he led his army to the 
 banks of the Rappahannock River, op- 
 posite the city of Fredericksburg. An- 
 ticipating an attack on this city, Gen- 
 eral Lee made all haste to station his 
 army on the hills in its rear. 
 
 Meanwhile, Commodore Farragut, 
 with a strong fleet, had destroyed the 
 Confederate fleet defending the Missis- 
 sippi, and captured the forts. General 
 Butler took possession of New Or- 
 leans, which he ruled with a vigorous 
 hand. Its loss was a severe blow to 
 the Confederacy. Farragut sailed up 
 past \'icksburg and met Foote, who 
 was co-operating with Grant to take 
 Mcksburg, and aided in driving the 
 Confederates from the Upper Missis- 
 sippi. 
 
 \\'e must go back a little. In the 
 summer of 1862, General Bragg, with 
 a Confederate army, made a dash from 
 Chattanooga for Louisville. Buell 
 started to intercept him, and gained the 
 city by one day. Then Bragg retreated 
 and Buell followed. The armies met 
 at Perryville, Ky., October 8th, and a 
 hea\'y battle was fought, but only a 
 portion of either army was engaged. 
 Bragg was beaten back, but the defeat 
 was not so decisive as might have been 
 the case had the Federal army been con- 
 centrated. Grant had sent troops with 
 Buell, and the Confederates again took 
 the initiative. Generals Price and \'an 
 Dorn attempting to defeat the Federal 
 army in detail. There were unimpor- 
 tant battles at luka and Holly Springs. 
 and then the two Confederate armies 
 united. Rosecrans met them at Cor- 
 
 inth and gave them a severe defeat, 
 driving them forty miles in a complete 
 rout. There was dissatisfaction with 
 Buell for his failure to destroy Bragg, 
 probably unfounded, and Rosecrans 
 was given command of Buell's army. 
 Bragg now attempted another North- 
 ern raid, but was met by Rosecrans at 
 Stone River, near Murfreesboro. The 
 battle lasted two days (December 31 
 and January 2, 1862-3), with one day's 
 intermission. The losses on both sides 
 were among the severest of the war. 
 Bragg was defeated, and moved South 
 in good order. 
 
 In the meantime. Grant had sent 
 Sherman, in December, 1862, to attack 
 Mcksburg, the chief stronghold of the 
 Confederates on the Mississippi. He 
 failed in this elTort, largely from the 
 difficult character of the country. 
 Early in 1863, the Confederates were 
 driven out of Missouri. General Cur- 
 tis was sent with a large army to meet 
 Price and Van Dorn. He met them at 
 Pea Ridge, Arkansas, March 6th to 8th, 
 and, after a hard battle, defeated them 
 decisively. After one more movement 
 north, the Confederates were entirely 
 driven out of Missouri, and got no 
 foothold again during the war. 
 
 The last battle of the year, in the 
 East, was at Fredericksburg. Burn- 
 side threw his arm}' across the river 
 (December 13, 1862) to attack the 
 Confederates. A portion of the army 
 succeeded, but, owing either to poor 
 plans, lack of concert or failure to get 
 orders in time, the army again failed 
 to act in concert. The main attack on 
 IMarye's Heights, behind the town, was 
 repulsed by the Confederates with ter- 
 rible slaughter, and the movement came 
 to an end. Burnside was relieved and 
 General Joseph Hooker placed in com- 
 mand. 
 
 The war had now lasted nearly two 
 years. In the East there had been no 
 advantages gained, and the Federal 
 armies had been defeated, except in 
 West A^irginia and Maryland. In the 
 West, the Federal forces held most of 
 Western Tennessee and the northern 
 portion of i\lississippi : and in the 
 South, New Orleans and vicinity. This 
 
26o 
 
 THE HOME Al'XTLIARY AXD REFERENCE 
 
 was not very encouraging to the North, 
 and the elections went against the Re- 
 publicans. The Democrats elected a 
 majority of the House of Representa- 
 tives, but a majority of the whole was 
 favorable to a vigorous prosecution of 
 the war. On January i, 1863, Lin- 
 coln, after ninety day's notice, issued 
 a proclamation declaring free all slaves 
 in that portion of the Confederacy not 
 occupied by Federal arms. He had de- 
 termined to do this if Lee should fail 
 in his Northern raid. The proclama- 
 tion was not received with unanimous 
 favor, as many felt that the question 
 at issue was the Union and not slavery, 
 not understanding how the two were 
 connected. 
 
 Let us look back at foreign affairs 
 for a moment. That arch-intermed- 
 dler. Napoleon III, Emperor of the 
 French, was ready to interfere on be- 
 half of the South, if he were backed 
 by Great Britain. At this time the 
 British Cabinet was not particularly 
 friendly to the North. Cotton was 
 needed for the factories, and to out- 
 siders it seemed as if the Confederacy 
 might win. The so-called Trent Af- 
 fair nearly won over Great Britain at 
 first, but eventually ranged her on the 
 side of the Federal Government. The 
 first commissioners sent abroad had ac- 
 complished nothing, not even an emis- 
 sary to the Pope, who declined to in- 
 terfere so long as slavery was recog- 
 nized by the Confederacy. Late in 
 1861. President Davis sent James M. 
 Mason and John Slidell as Ministers to 
 Great Britain and France, to negotiate 
 for a recognition of independence, 
 claiming that cotton was a world staple 
 obtainable only from the Confederacy, 
 and must not be blockaded, and claim- 
 ing that the blockade was not effective, 
 and, therefore, under the laws of Na- 
 tions, not valid. L^nfortunately for 
 this last contention, the Ministers or 
 Commissioners and their families had 
 hard work in running the blockade and 
 reaching Havana. In the latter city 
 they were received with great demon- 
 strations of joy. They took passage 
 on the Britisli Steamer Trent for St. 
 Thomas, intending to proceed thence 
 
 to England. Captain Wilkes, of the 
 U. S. Steamship San Jacinto, heard of 
 this and resolved to capture them. On 
 November 8, 1861, he stopped tne 
 Trent, took off the Commissioners and 
 Secretaries, and let the steamer pro- 
 ceed. Great was the joy in the North 
 over this, and great the anger in Great 
 Britain. The latter took the initiative, 
 and sent an ultimatum to the United 
 States. Yet it was not intended to 
 force an issue. The dying Prince Con- 
 sort Albert toned down the dispatches, 
 and the British Minister at Washington, 
 Lord Lyons, was instructed to allow a 
 reasonable time for a reply. Secretary 
 Seward spent a week on the subject, 
 which was an important one, as a fail- 
 ure to give up the captured Commis- 
 sioners meant a foreign war. His re- 
 ])ly was that the seizure of the Trent 
 was legal, but that ^Vilkes should have 
 brought her into a prize court for ad- 
 judication and, because he did not, the 
 Commissioners were entitled to be re- 
 turned to Great Britain. This was 
 done, and though it was a bitter bill, 
 it saved Great Britain from ensuring 
 the success of the Confederacy. When 
 Messrs. Mason and Slidell reached 
 Europe they got no encouragement. 
 Foreign intervention was never se- 
 cured, and no aid except from block- 
 ade runners for private account and 
 the laxity of British officials in allow- 
 ing the Confederate cruisers Florida. 
 Alabama and Shenandoah to be built 
 in British ports and to go forth to prey 
 on the commerce of the Lhiited States. 
 Another cruiser was built, but was 
 ncAcr let out of the dock because an 
 Englishman gave a $5,000,000 bond in 
 favor of the British Ministry for a few 
 days. To cover this, an equal amount 
 of United States bonds were issued and 
 hurried to England. It took Mr. Chit- 
 tenden, Register of the Treasury, many 
 hours of continuous labor to sign these 
 bonds, and he never recovered from a 
 partial paralysis due to the labor in- 
 volved. For many years it was cus- 
 tomary to speak of these vessels as 
 privateers, but the best American 
 writers now concede that they were 
 full-fledged Confederate cruisers, un- 
 
SIXTH PERIOD— LINCOLN'S ADMINISTRATION 
 
 dcr the laws of nations, and entitled to 
 do their work when once in commis- 
 sion. There were some Confederate 
 privateers which did some damage to 
 American commerce, bnt they were 
 comparatively a small factor. The 
 Florida, after an exciting career, was 
 captured in violation of neutrality laws, 
 but sank before Brazil, the offended 
 nation, could secure her return. It is 
 believed that her loss was not acci- 
 dental. The Alabama destroyed many 
 vessels, and swept American commerce 
 from the seas. She was finally de- 
 stroyed June 19, 1864, by the U. S. 
 Steamship Kearsarge, off Cherbourg. 
 The Shenandoah went to sea late and 
 cruised principally in the South seas, 
 where she did great damage, even after 
 the war was over. Learning of the end 
 she steamed into Liverpool and hauled 
 down her flag. 
 
 The principal event of 1862 was the 
 appearance of the [Monitor as a new 
 factor in warfare. In 1861 the chief 
 navy yard in the country was near Nor- 
 folk, Va. Every effort was made to 
 protect this, but a series of accidents, 
 misconstruction of orders and fear of 
 capture led to its loss. The principal 
 vessels could have been saved, but this 
 v.-as in April, 1861, when the adminis- 
 tration was coquetting with \'irginia— 
 all to no purpose. Too late the order 
 was issued to sail away, the Confed- 
 erates were coming : the vessels were 
 blown up, and the principal buildings 
 burned, but a great mass of valuable 
 war material, principally cannon, fell 
 into the hands of the Confederates. 
 
 The destruction at this time was not 
 so great as was supposed. Subsequent 
 events showed that the Federals could 
 have preserved most all of the equip- 
 ment, but, in the haste to destroy after 
 evacuation had proved a failure, the 
 work was not complete. When Vir- 
 ginia joined the Confederacy it was 
 found that great stores of cannon and 
 ammunition had been saved, while the 
 vessels supposedly destroyed were not 
 beyond redemption. One of the war 
 vessels, tht Merrimac, was raised and 
 rebuilt as an ironclad. She was cut 
 down to the hull, a slanting roof pro- 
 
 tected by iron was placed on her deck, 
 and she was altered as far as possible 
 to be the most complete fighting ma- 
 chine afloat. In IMarch, 1862, sha 
 steamed down to Hampton Roads, near 
 Fortress Monroe, to do all the damage 
 she could, and to sail up the Potomac, 
 if possible. On both sides the situation 
 was overestimated. The Confederates 
 knew that the vessel was vulnerable, 
 while the Federals overestimated her 
 powers. If the Merrimac could destroy 
 the fleet in Hampton Roads, what might 
 she not accomplish ? The frigate Cum- 
 berland was destroyed easily March 8, 
 1862, and the Minnesota grounded, but 
 the Merrimac retired to Norfolk with- 
 out completing the destruction of the 
 latter. That night the Monitor arrived 
 to protect the Federal fleet. She was 
 the invention of John Ericsson, and 
 from this vessel all modern navies have 
 in some respects been modeled. Her 
 hull was almost entirely below water, 
 and on her flat deck an iron turret was 
 placed, which revolved on an axis. In 
 the turret were two large guns. For 
 that day she was invulnerable, but she 
 was far from being perfect. A hot duel 
 ensued next day with the Merrimac, in 
 which neither vessel was seriously in- 
 jured, but the Merrimac withdrew to 
 Norfolk and was blown up when that 
 city was evacuated soon afterwards. 
 The Monitor was subsequently lost at 
 sea. It marked a decisive era in the 
 history of the war, though it is doubtful 
 if the Merrimac could really have 
 threatened Washington very seriously, 
 as was supposed, if the Alonitor had 
 not arrived. 
 
 The year 1863 is generally looked 
 upon as the decisive year of the war, 
 though fighting continued until the 
 spring of 1865. The campaign may be 
 said to have been begun in December, 
 1862, by General Burnside, who was in 
 command of the Army of the Potomac, 
 and fought on fhe 13th and 14th, a 
 desperate and fruitless conflict at Fred- 
 ericksburg. He was succeeded in com- 
 mand by General Joseph Hooker. At 
 the center General Rosecrans fought 
 the desperate and successful battle at 
 Stone River, near Murfreesboro, and 
 
262 
 
 THE HOME AUXILIARY AND REFERENCE 
 
 advanced to Central Tennessee. In the 
 West General Grant began to draw in 
 on Vicksburg, which controlled the 
 Mississippi. The plan of campaign in- 
 volved forward movements of the three 
 armies, which should have been simul- 
 taneous, but were not. 
 
 Hooker, in j\Iay, evolved a plan to 
 drive Lee out of Fredericksburg, and 
 defeat him in open battle. The plans 
 were well laid, and up to a certain point 
 well executed. The Federal army 
 -.crossed the Rappahannock, and one 
 corps made an attack on Fredericks- 
 burg, while the main part of the army 
 engaged General Lee. The battle took 
 place in the Wilderness (May 1-4, 
 1863), while Hooker's headquarters 
 were at the Chancellor House, which 
 gives the name of Chancellorsville to 
 the battle. Leaving a sufficient force 
 to defend Fredericksburg, Lee marched 
 against Hooker and one of the great 
 battles of the war ensued. The strik- 
 ing feature of it was a flank movement 
 made by Stonewall Jackson by a long 
 detour through the wooded country. 
 He was very successful in this move- 
 ment, driving the Federal flank back 
 in utter disorder, but Jackson was 
 severely wounded by a mistaken volley 
 from his own men, and died soon after. 
 The battle ended in the defeat of 
 Flooker. Ko further movement was 
 made until June, when Lee resolved on 
 another raid to the North, in the hope 
 that victory would lead foreign nations 
 to interfere on behalf of the Confed- 
 eracy. His army was divided into three 
 infantry corps under Hill, Ewell and 
 Longstreet, and a cavalry corps com- 
 manded by J. E. B. Stuart. The move- 
 ment was so quiet that some days 
 elapsed before Hooker discovered it and 
 started in pursuit. Lee's main army 
 crossed the Potomac not far from Har- 
 per's Ferry, and invaded Pennsylvania, 
 the cavalry crossing near XA^ashington 
 and reaching the Susquehanna. Hooker 
 pushed hard after, but on the road was 
 superseded by one of his corps com- 
 manders. General Meade. The two 
 armies were spread over a large terri- 
 tory, but the first conflict came July i, 
 1863, near the village of Gettysburg, 
 
 Pennsylvania. Early in the fight the 
 Federal General Reynolds was killed, 
 but General Howard, who soon arrived 
 with his corps, took command. The 
 Confederates concentrated more rapidly 
 than the Federals, and the first day 
 went hard against the latter, who finally 
 retired to a ridge several miles long, 
 extending from Cemetery Flill to Big 
 Round Top, though the ridge was badly 
 broken through in one place by a ravine 
 not far from Little Round Top. On 
 July 2d Lee took the ofi^ensive, and 
 made heavy onslaughts at both ends of 
 the Federal line. He gained some suc- 
 cess with heavy loss, but could not 
 break the lines. On July 3d he tried 
 to smash the center. The divisions of 
 Pickett and Pettigrew, with some addi- 
 tional troops, about 15,000 in all, were 
 marched a mile across the valley to 
 pierce the center on Cemetery Ridge. 
 It was one of the most magnificent at- 
 tempts in history, but it failed. The 
 Confederates were decimated by an 
 enfilading fire before they reached the 
 Federal line, and were driven back in 
 confusion with heavy loss. At the same 
 time Stuart's effort to break through 
 the rear was prevented. The campaign 
 was a failure. After sustaining terrible 
 losses, Lee was compelled to retreat. 
 This he did in a masterly way, and 
 reached Virginia almost without moles- 
 tation. The rest of the year there was 
 a series of maneuvers on both sides 
 to get into desirable position, but there 
 was little fighting, and both armies went 
 into winter quarters, leaving matters 
 much as they were when the year 
 opened. 
 
 In the West there was a difi'erent 
 state of affairs. After tremendous 
 labor. General Grant succeeded in cross- 
 ing the Mississippi, getting his army 
 below Vicksburg, and besieged the city 
 from the rear. The Confederates were 
 defeated in several important battles, 
 and Jackson was taken. A final assault 
 on the earthworks of Vicksburg was 
 repelled with heavy loss, but the city, 
 under General Pemberton, capitulated 
 July 4, 1863. Shortly after the Con- 
 federates at Port Hudson, where alone 
 on the river they w^ere in force, sur- 
 
SIXTH PERIOD— LINCOLN'S ADMINISTRATION 
 
 263 
 
 rendered, and the ^lississippi ran un- 
 vexed to the sea. An expedition was 
 sent up the Red River on a raid, but it 
 had no strategic value. The expedition 
 was unsuccessful, and got back again 
 with great difficulty, as the river had 
 fallen rapidly. 
 
 The next move was made at the cen- 
 ter. Rosecrans moved his army south 
 and invaded Georgia. The success of 
 Grant at \'icksburg led Rosecrans into 
 fancied security, for his army was 
 stretched over a wide section when he 
 was confronted, in September, by a 
 strong Confederate force under Bragg, 
 reinforced by Longstreet from Lee's 
 army. The first day's fighting (Sep- 
 tember 19, 1863J along the Chicka- 
 mauga Creek, was undecisive, and 
 during the night Rosecrans concen- 
 trated his army. The next day the 
 fighting was furious, but the Federals 
 held their own until the blunder of an 
 officer allowed a brigade to be with- 
 drawn, leaving a large gap in the center. 
 Into this gap Longstreet hurled his 
 legion and doubled up the Federal line 
 both ways, inflicting a most disastrous 
 defeat. Thomas alone, on the Federal 
 left, held firm and gained the name of 
 "the Rock of Giickamauga." The 
 army retreated to Chattanooga and was 
 soon besieged, leaving only a wagon 
 road open for supplies. Rosecrans was 
 relieved from command, and was suc- 
 ceeded by Thomas. 
 
 General Grant was now placed in 
 command of all the armies of the West, 
 and w^nt at once to Chattanooga. In 
 a short time he had the army well fed 
 and equipped. General Sherman was 
 sent with a corps to attack Bragg's 
 forces on Missionary Ridge. General 
 Thomas was to aid in this attack, while 
 General Hooker, with two corps from 
 the Army of the Potomac, was to caj)- 
 ture Lookout Mountain. In two days 
 the Confederates were completely dis- 
 lodged and driven South. The battle 
 above the clouds, on Lookout ( Novem- 
 ber 24, 1863), and the charge up Mis- 
 sionary Ridge ( November 25th ) were 
 two spectacular and important military 
 events of the war. Immediately after- 
 ward Grant sent Sherman to the relief 
 
 of Burnside, who was besieged at 
 Knoxville by Longstreet. The siege 
 was raised, and Longstreet joined Lee 
 in \ irginia. 
 
 The Confederacy was now not only 
 split, but had lost control of Louisiana, 
 Tennessee and portions of other States ; 
 but there was no talk of surrender. 
 Grant was made Lieutenant-General, 
 and placed in command of all the 
 armies. His plan of campaign was 
 simple. All the armies were to co- 
 operate and make for Richmond. Sher- 
 man was placed in command in the 
 West. Grant remained in the East, 
 where Meade still commanded the 
 Army of the Potomac and Butler the 
 Army of the James. In May, 1864, the 
 forward movements began. Grant 
 threw his army across the Rapidan 
 and fought successive battles in the 
 Wilderness, at North Anna and Cold 
 Harbor, in which the losses were ter- 
 rible on both sides. Lee would not 
 come from behind his entrenchments, 
 and Grant could not get over them, 
 but Lee could not stop Grant's prog- 
 ress. Finding it impossible to get Lee 
 into open battle, Grant threw his army 
 across the James and besieged Peters- 
 burg during the rest of the year, and 
 until the next spring. When Grant 
 was fighting Lee, General Early 
 swooped down and threatened Wash- 
 ington, but was driven off. 
 
 The Shenandoah \'alley had long 
 been the storehouse of the Confederacy, 
 and Federal attempts to control it had 
 not been successful. Banks, Hunter 
 and others had been driven out, and 
 W'inchester had repeatedly changed 
 hands. Grant now sent General Sheri- 
 dan there, who swept the valley from 
 one end to the other, inflicting, in Sep- 
 tember, 1864, serious defeats on Gen- 
 eral Early, who opposed him. After 
 this the valley remained in Federal con- 
 trol. 
 
 In the West Sherman marched to 
 Atlanta, after being opposed with great 
 ability by the Confederates under Gen- 
 eral Joe Johnston. The latter did not 
 want to fight unless compelled to do 
 so, as his army was small. Sherman 
 also did not care to fight unless 
 
264 
 
 THE HOME AUXILIARY AND REFERENCE 
 
 necessary, so a brilliant succession of 
 military maneuvers took place, in which 
 Sherman was successful. As a result, 
 General Hood was appointed to succeed 
 Johnston, and made several severe at- 
 tacks, only to meet with defeat. After 
 the fall of Atlanta, he made a move- 
 ment northward, with the purpose of 
 cutting Sherman's communications in 
 Tennessee. Thomas was sent to Nash- 
 ville to deal with him, while Sherman, 
 with his main army, marched across 
 Georgia to Savannah, which he reached 
 about Christmas, 1864. Meanwhile 
 Farragut, with his fleet, had captured 
 jMobile and Schofield had defeated 
 Hood at Franklin, Tennessee, in one 
 of the bloodiest battles of the war, and 
 fallen back on Nashville. In Decem- 
 ber, 1864, Thomas came out and, in a 
 two days' battle, utterly defeated Hood 
 so that his army never again became an 
 effective force. This ended the war 
 in the West, except for fighting on a 
 small scale. In February. 1865. Ste- 
 phens, with two others, met Lincoln at 
 Hampton Roads and tried to arrange 
 peace, but it was not successful, as 
 Lincoln demanded that the LTnion be 
 kept intact and the slaves freed. 
 
 Meanwhile Sherman started north to 
 meet Grant, before Richmond, but was 
 met by Johnston, with a small army, in 
 North Carolina. Grant did not wait 
 for Sherman. It was evident that Lee 
 must evacuate Richmond, and his plan 
 was to join Johnston and defeat Sher- 
 man. This plan was foiled. Petersburg 
 fell April 2, 1865, and Richmond on the 
 third. Then there was a week's race 
 and hard fighting to the southwest, but 
 Grant was ahead, and finally Lee sur- 
 rendered his whole army at Appomat- 
 tox Court House on April 9, 1865. 
 Grant paroled the whole army, and al- 
 lowed the men to take home their 
 horses to begin fanning. A few days 
 later Sherman received terms from 
 Johnston, which were not satisfactory, 
 and then, after some friction between 
 Sherman and the administration, John- 
 ston surrendered on the same terms 
 as Lee, and the war was over, other 
 small armies surrendering in a short 
 time without a struggle. The army 
 
 disbanded quickly, the men returning 
 to their homes, and soon but 50,000 
 men were left under arms. The liberal 
 land laws to veterans let thousands of 
 the late soldiers go West and take up 
 claims. In this way Kansas and Ne- 
 braska soon had a thriving population. 
 
 ]\Ieanwhile important events had 
 taken place. Lincoln had been re- 
 elected, in 1864, after a bitter struggle. 
 There was a large section of the Demo- 
 crats of the North dissatisfied with 
 the conduct of the war, and these chose 
 General McClellan for their candidate. 
 Fremont had been nominated by dis- 
 satisfied Republicans, but he withdrew 
 before the election. Lincoln had an 
 overwhelming majority in the Electoral 
 College, but the popular vote was as 
 follows: Lincoln, 2,216,067; McClel- 
 lan, 1,808,725. Electoral vote: Lin- 
 coln, 212; McClellan, 21. 
 
 This showed a closer division than 
 might have been expected. ]\IcClellan 
 received almost the same number of 
 votes that Lincoln got in i860, while 
 Lincoln gained less than 400,000. The 
 slavery question was still in politics. 
 The Emancipation Proclamation had 
 not been received well in some por- 
 tions of the North, where the question 
 of slavery was of less importance than 
 of preserving the Union, and it was 
 feared it would prevent a restoration 
 on any terms. It appeared to Mr. 
 Lincoln that re-election by Republican 
 votes alone was impossible, so he de- 
 termined to secure the nomination of a 
 War Democrat for ^'ice-President. He 
 first offered the nomination to General 
 Butler, who declined it, and then to 
 Andrew Johnson, who accepted it. 
 Johnson was a man of little educa- 
 tion, but of great will power. He 
 had been Governor of Tennessee, Sen- 
 ator, and then Military Governor, ris- 
 ing from the tailor's bench in a little 
 mountain town. 
 
 Great was the joy in the North over 
 the fall of Richmond and the surrender 
 of Lee. Just four years had the fight- 
 ing lasted, and peace was welcomed 
 with the wildest enthusiasm, only to 
 be dampened by the murder of the 
 President. ( )n the night of Good Fri- 
 
SIXTH PERIOD— LINCOLN'S ADMINISTRATION 
 
 265 
 
 day, April 14, 1865, in I'onrs Theatre. 
 Washington, John Wilkes iSooth, the 
 actor, entered the box where the Presi- 
 dent was seated, shot him, and jump- 
 ing to the stage, shouting "Sic semper 
 tyrannis." He broke the bones of his 
 ankle in the jump from the box, but 
 managed to escape and, by the aid of 
 Confederates, crossed the Potomac and 
 got into \'irginia, but in a few days 
 was discovered. Refusing to surrender, 
 he was shot. On the same night that 
 Lincoln was shot. Secretary Seward 
 was stabbed seriously, and Grant 
 escaped only by absence from the city. 
 Pincoln survived until Saturday morn- 
 ing, April 15, 1865, but died without 
 recovering consciousness. 
 
 Terrible was the wrath of the North 
 over the event, and the best men in 
 the South regretted it equally, for all 
 had come to respect Lincoln, and they 
 realized that his murder would be laid 
 upon the South, which would suffer 
 accordingly — a presentiment that was 
 correct. It developed that there was 
 a small conspiracy involved, but that 
 it included no one outside of Washing- 
 ton and was not inspired by any South- 
 ern leaders. Just how much each of 
 the parties to the conspiracy knew is 
 uncertain. The meetings were at the 
 home of Mrs. Surratt. The others who 
 were found to be most closely involved 
 were men named Harold, Payne and 
 Atzerott, who, with Mrs. Surratt, were 
 executed. Others who in any way 
 aided Booth to escape were punished 
 severely. 
 
 Could the Confederacy have had a 
 steady outlet for cotton it could have 
 kept up the struggle much longer. 
 
 It was with this purpose in view 
 that Mr. Davis sent Mason and Slidell 
 to Great Britain and France ; but the 
 failure was as complete as was an ap- 
 peal to the Pope at Rome, who made 
 the abolishment of slavery a sine qua 
 Hon of recognition. This, of course, 
 was impossible. The Confederacy first 
 resorted to loans guaranteed by cotton, 
 and for a time their loans sold well, 
 but when cotton was no longer allowed 
 to leave the country except as captured 
 by the Federals, there was difficulty in 
 
 making loans on any good basis. The 
 Confederate expenses were enormous, 
 because of the great risk in getting in 
 supplies from abroad. There were 
 few good mechanics in the South, and 
 few foundries ; the Tredegar Iron 
 \\ orks, at Richmond, was the only first- 
 class establishment of its kind in the 
 Confederacy, ^^'hen loans from the 
 States and bond sales failed to raise 
 money, resort was had to paper cur- 
 rency, which was issued in large 
 amounts. Just how inuch was current 
 will never be known. The workman- 
 ship on the notes was poor, and coun- 
 terfeits in the X'orth were easily made, 
 so that the South was swamped with 
 paper money. It declined steadily with 
 the fortunes of the Confederate arms, 
 and after the war it became, along with 
 the bonds, entirely worthless. Many 
 of these bonds were held abroad. In 
 fairness it can be said that the finances 
 of the Confederacy were never well 
 handled, even considering all the diffi- 
 culties involved. 
 
 The Federal Government was more 
 fortunate. After a short period of 
 gloom and despair the Northern people 
 resolved to stick together. A meeting 
 of the leading bankers was held and 
 money was furnished for a tirne almost 
 as called for. The Treasury also is- 
 sued interest bearing notes for small 
 denominations, but even these were not 
 sufficient for the strain. When it was 
 found that there was to be a long and 
 bloody war, entirely original measures 
 were taken. The National Banking 
 System, substantially as it now is, was 
 established. This had the two-fold 
 effect of marketing bonds and provid- 
 ing currency for the needs of the peo- 
 ple. Income and internal revenue taxes 
 were laid on many articles. Specie 
 payments were suspended, but no great 
 disaster came. Finally, non-interest 
 bearing Treasury notes to the amount 
 of nearly $450,000,000 were issued to 
 pay war expenses. These were never 
 on a par with gold, falling to about 40 
 per cent, at one time, but fluctuating 
 according to the success of the Federal 
 arms. After the war they rose in value 
 rapidly, but did not reach par until 
 
266 
 
 THE HOME AUXILIARY AND REFERENCE 
 
 1878. During the most trying part of 
 the war Mr. Chase was at the head of 
 the Treasury, but. on the death of Chief 
 Justice Taney, succeeded him and Hugh 
 McCullough became Secretary. During 
 the war most of the bonds were sold 
 through the agency of Jay Cooke, of 
 Philadelphia — the fourth man from that 
 city to finance our Government in a 
 war. By August, 1865, the National 
 debt, which was only about $80,000,000 
 in i860, had reached $2,845,000,000. 
 About $800,000,000 was raised during 
 the war by customs duties, internal 
 revenue and direct taxes. 
 
 The death of Lincoln in 1865 
 caused unparalleled sorrow and alarm. 
 It was not only that a beloved leader 
 was dead, but it was believed that a 
 great conspiracy existed to reopen the 
 war and destroy the fruits of victory. 
 In time this was found to be untrue, 
 but the belief had a great effect on 
 subsequent history. Revenge for Lin- 
 coln's death and belief in the treach- 
 erous nature of Southern people were 
 responsible for much of the subsequent 
 legislation that bore so hard on the 
 South. Indeed, it is hard to estimate 
 the direct and indirect influence Booth's 
 act had upon the late Confederate 
 States. Directly we can trace some of 
 it, but indirectly we can only estimate 
 what might have been done under the 
 wise direction of Abraham Lincoln, 
 whose last official act was connected 
 with a speedy restoration of the LTnion. 
 That Lincoln would have encountered 
 opposition from Congress is certain, but 
 that his commanding position would 
 have enabled him to deal with recon- 
 struction in a way that would have 
 commanded general support is unques- 
 tioned. Lincoln had the mature judg- 
 m-ent, the plastic touch, and the g/eat 
 heart that would have found a solu- 
 tion to the greatest problem of the age 
 without all the troubles that came in 
 its train. 
 
 To digress a moment : Sheridan was 
 sent with an army to Texas, ready, if 
 necessary, to drive the French out of 
 Mexico, where Napoleon III had set 
 an Austrian Prince on the Imperial 
 throne, but the French retired, and 
 
 Emperor Maximilian was executed. At 
 the Hampton Roads conference Ste- 
 phens hoped that a foreign war would 
 bring about domestic peace. His idea 
 was to combine both armies and 
 march against Mexico, and then settle 
 internal differences afterward. This 
 was, of course, rejected by Mr. Lincoln. 
 All eyes now turned on Andrew 
 Johnson, who at once took the oath of 
 office, and his unfortunate condition at 
 the time gave rise to exaggerated re- 
 ports of his drunkenness. In his speech 
 he made no reference to Lincoln, but 
 used the first personal pronoun freely. 
 This made a bad impression. He re- 
 tained Mr. Lincoln's Cabinet — the only 
 accidental President to take such action. 
 As has been said. Johnson was a Demo- 
 crat, without culture and very head- 
 strong. At first he proposed to make 
 "treason odious." Being a Southern 
 man, many Southern leaders feared 
 a drastic policy, and many civil and 
 military officers of the late Confederacy 
 tied the country. Wiser counsels pre- 
 vailed, however, and Johnson, under 
 the influence of his Cabinet, was in- 
 duced to take a different course. Thgn 
 he went to the other extreme. Davis 
 was put in a military prison, but sub- 
 sequently released on bail, and never 
 tried for treason. Amnesty was 
 granted under conditions, from time to 
 time, until only the high civil and mili- 
 tary officers were exempt, and to these 
 it was generally granted on application, 
 until Congress, in alarm, took that duty 
 on itself. Congress was not called in 
 session during the rest of the year, and 
 though many leaders had grave doubts 
 about the new President, the Repub- 
 lican party seemed satisfied with John- 
 son's administration, as he was gener- 
 ally endorsed at State conventions. 
 
 The administration was busy at work 
 on the question of reconstruction. It 
 had been the policy of President Lin- 
 coln to recognize any lately seceded 
 States whenever 10 per cent, of the 
 loyal voters of i860 formed a govern- 
 ment under proper restrictions. This 
 was done by Louisiana and Arkansas, 
 but after a controversy with the Presi- 
 dent, the most serious of his adminis- 
 
SIXTH PERIOD— JOHNSON'S ADMINISTRATION 
 
 267 
 
 tration. Congress finally refused to 
 recognize this reconstruction. Johnson 
 continued this plan on a liberal scale. 
 He appointed provisional Governors, 
 and urged all the States to form gov- 
 ernments by votes of the loyal white 
 citizens, including those who were 
 amnestied, and resume peaceful pur- 
 suits, holding that there never had been 
 and never could be legal secession, and 
 that the Union was intact. Now, this 
 was the Republican theory, but, in prac- 
 tice, it was desired that some bonds 
 be given for future conduct, and that 
 restoration to sovereignty and member- 
 ship in the Union must be preceded by 
 Congressional action. 
 
 The thirteenth amendment to the 
 Constitution, forever forbidding slav- 
 ery, was ratified and proclaimed in 
 1865. Great was the indignation in the 
 radical section of the Republican party 
 when, in December, 1865, members of 
 Congress elected from some of the 
 States lately in revolt applied for ad- 
 mission. Some of these, including 
 Stephens, appeared and took the "iron 
 clad" oath that they had been loyal to 
 the Government. In these States reg- 
 ular forms of government had been set 
 up in accordance with Presidential 
 proclamation. They adopted new Con- 
 stitutions, in which slavery was elimi- 
 nated ; elected Legislatures which 
 adopted the thirteenth amendment, 
 abolishing slavery (which had been 
 proposed by the preceding Congress), 
 and elected Senators, while the people 
 chose Representatives. By acting in 
 accord with the executive proclamation 
 these States expected to be received 
 back into the Union on the terms laid 
 down. Congress refused admission to 
 these members, declaring Congressional 
 action was necessary to reconstruction ; 
 thus leaving the late Confederate States 
 in the position of being neither in the 
 Union nor out of it. Much of the 
 objection was due to the fact that the 
 new Southern Legislatures passed laws 
 regarding vagrant negroes, which, if 
 carried out, would have in many cases 
 made their lot little worse than before. 
 Southerners replied that there were 
 modeled on the master and servant 
 
 statutes of New England — which were, 
 however, seldom executed, as the cus- 
 tom of indenturing had gone out of 
 use. Congress had already passed the 
 Freedman's Bureau Act, by which aid 
 was given to the freedman, through 
 the Bureau, whose agents were army 
 officers, not all of whom were fit men. 
 Grant complained bitterly of some of 
 these men, but many were honest and 
 efficient. Congress passed a new act, 
 extending the powe.s of the Bureau, 
 but the President vetoed it. Then 
 another similar act was passed, vetoed, 
 and passed over the President's head. 
 The break between Cf ngress and the 
 President was complete. Congress 
 wanted to reconstruct the Union in its 
 own way, and ignored or denied the 
 President's authority. U^nfi rtunately it 
 had as yet no definite plnn. Johnson 
 was as firm for his prerogatives as 
 was any Stuart King, and the clash 
 came. An act giving the negro civil 
 rights was likewise vetoed, and passed 
 over the President's head. The Presi- 
 dent was greatly disappointed, and, in 
 a tour of the country, made some very 
 radical and unusual speeches, declaring 
 that Congress was not a legal Congress, 
 because it denied admission to legally 
 elected members from the South. Rad- 
 ical men in Congress believed Johnson 
 to be in secret alliance with the South, 
 and the fight became bitter. The four- 
 t^enth amendment to the Constitution 
 was finally ratified and proclaimed in 
 1868. It defined citizenship, provided 
 for apportionment of Representatives, 
 prohibited former National or State 
 officers who had sworn allegiance to 
 the Government, and had joined the 
 Confederacy, from holding office, unless 
 their disabilities were removed by 
 Congress, confirming the public debt, 
 and prohibited the payment of any 
 Confederate debts. After long delay, 
 in 1867, two acts were passed, on which 
 reconstruction was based. The late 
 Confederacy was divided into five mili- 
 tary districts, each under the control 
 of a General, and past attempts at re- 
 construction were ignored, except pro- 
 visionally. Drastic provisions were 
 made for forming new governments. 
 
THE HOME AUXILIARY AND REFERENCE 
 
 among wliich negro suffrage was prac- 
 tically provided for, and which required 
 adoption of the fourteenth amendment 
 to the Constitution. The second act 
 required the "iron clad oath" to be 
 given voters (save those who had ac- 
 cepted amnesty), by which only those 
 were given the ballot who were not 
 disfranchised for rebellion. All were 
 disfranchised who had previously taken 
 the oath of allegiance and violated it, 
 so that nearly all the white men of 
 any prominence in the South were dis- 
 franchised, while the negroes voted and 
 got many o-f the offices. The result of 
 this legislation was that the State 
 Governments set up only represented a 
 minority of the wealth and intelligence 
 of the States ; and, as many of the 
 officials were recent comers from the 
 North, the so-called "carpet bag gov- 
 ernments" were the result. In most 
 cases these governments were failures ; 
 the Legislatures were often either ig- 
 norant or corrupt, or both, and enor- 
 mous debts were created, usually for 
 building railways, much of which was 
 absolutely wasted. A large part of 
 these debts was afterward repudiated 
 by the States. Finally, after the pas- 
 sage by Congress of the fifteenth 
 amendment, giving the negro the right 
 to vote (adopted 1870), the remaining 
 unreconstructed States were obliged to 
 adopt that amendment or be kept out. 
 This legislation was carried in the 
 House under the leadership of Thad- 
 deus Stevens, of Pennsylvania, who 
 maintained a power over legislation 
 never equaled in that body. In justice 
 it should be said that the greatest 
 prejudice against the South was in the 
 minds of those who had never been in 
 the war. Those who had fought were 
 in a difi^erent position. They respected 
 men who fought to the last ditch for 
 their opinions. It is believed that 
 Abraham Lincoln contemplated calling 
 a convention of all the Federal and 
 Confederate officers above the rank of 
 Brigadier-General to consider the state 
 of the Union, and that good results 
 would have been obtained. 
 
 The result of this controversy was a 
 violent attack by Congress on the Presi- 
 
 dent, who was now on bad terms with 
 General Grant — now Commander of 
 the army with the rank of Lieutenant- 
 General. Laws were passed, over his 
 veto, practically taking away his com- 
 mand of the army, and requiring all 
 orders to be sent through the Com- 
 mander of the army, who should live 
 at the Capitol. The Tenure of Office 
 Act was passed, making it illegal for 
 a President to remove any of his 
 I'ederal appointees from office without 
 the consent of the Senate, and finally 
 an attempt at impeachment was made, 
 which failed. All this time the Presi- 
 dent had kept Lincoln's Cabinet ; and 
 to his credit be it said that he executed 
 all the laws passed o\er his veto. But, 
 during the recess of Congress, he re- 
 moved Secretary Stanton and put Grant 
 in his place. When the Senate con- 
 vened it refused to confirm Grant, who 
 resigned, and Stanton took his old 
 place. Johnson again removed him and 
 appointed Adjutant-General Lorenzo 
 Thomas. For this Johnson was im- 
 peached by the House and tried by the 
 Senate on many grounds, but the main 
 point at issue was whether Johnson 
 had really violated the Tenure of Office 
 Act. While the defense showed clearly 
 enough that there had been so such 
 violation, inasmuch as Stanton was an 
 appointee of Lincoln and not of John- 
 son, party spirit ran so high that there 
 was only one vote lacking of the two- 
 tliirds necessary to convict. A number 
 of Republicans who voted against con- 
 viction were consigned to political in- 
 famy, and suffered a political martyr- 
 dom that was in some cases most 
 painful. Yet of those who voted for 
 conviction and lived twenty years there- 
 after, many admitted that they were 
 moved largely by political considera- 
 tions, that their judgment was warped 
 by the excitement of the times, and that 
 Johnson did not deserve conviction. 
 It is generally believed now that he 
 wanted to carry out Lincoln's policy, 
 as he incorrectly understood it, but that 
 his defects of temperament and char- 
 acter and his lack of calm judgment, 
 together with his inordinate ambition 
 and ridiculous vanity, made it impos- 
 
SIXTH PERIOD— JOHNSON'S ADMINISTRATION 
 
 269 
 
 sible to command the confidence of the 
 people. He was restrained by his 
 Cabinet from doing many things lie 
 wished, while the public often censured 
 Seward for remaining in the Cabinet : 
 he did the country a great service by so 
 doing. If Johnson had not been re- 
 strained, the consequences would have 
 been very serious for the nation. His- 
 tory has done justice to both parties to 
 this controversy. Both sides were 
 honest in intention, but warped in judg- 
 ment by circumstances. Those who sit 
 down calmly in a later age to distribute 
 praise and blame must remember that 
 human nature is stronger than human 
 law, and too often is in defiance of 
 Divine commandment. Truly did the 
 bard of all time say: "Forbear to 
 judge, for we are sinners all." Both 
 made mistakes, but, if we may judge 
 by the results, Johnson's plan was in 
 the main correct. So long as the mili- 
 tary arm gave protection the recon- 
 struction governments were sustained 
 in power. When that arm was with- 
 drawn the white people in the South 
 resumed possession of their States in 
 no pleasant frame of mind, and the 
 negro was practically eliminated from 
 the franchise in spite of the adoption 
 of the fourteenth and fifteenth amend- 
 ments to the Constitution, which were 
 supposed to guarantee him power and 
 self -protection. Indeed, the hope of the 
 negro is not in the past legislation of 
 Congress, but in the lines laid down 
 by Booker T. Washington and others 
 of the race, who clearly see that the 
 negro must fully win respect by his 
 own character and his deeds before he 
 can be equal with the Saxon in treat- 
 ment, as he is in the law that cannot 
 be executed. 
 
 The rest of Johnson's administration 
 was uneventful. The Republicans, in 
 1868, at Philadelphia, nominated Gen- 
 eral Grant for President and Speaker 
 Schuyler Colfax, of Indiana, for Vice- 
 President. The Democrats nominated 
 Horatio Seymour, of New York, and 
 Francis P. Blair, of Missouri. The 
 result was never in doubt. Grant win- 
 ning by a large vote, both popular and 
 electoral, as follows: Grant and Col- 
 
 fax, 3,015,071 ; Seymour and Blair, 
 2,709,613; Republican majority, 30=5.- 
 458- 
 
 Grant had 214 and Seymour 80 
 electoral votes; Mississippi, Texas and 
 Virginia, with 22 votes, not voting. 
 
 One event in Johnson's administra- 
 tion must not be overlooked. In 1867, 
 by a treaty with Russia, we purchased 
 Alaska for $7,500,000. There was 
 great opposition to the purchase, but 
 time has justified it. There is a story 
 current to the effect that this alleged 
 purchase was merely a blind to repay 
 Russia for fitting out her fleet ready 
 to interfere on our side if France and 
 Great Britain came to the aid of the 
 Confederacy. The story is not con- 
 firmed, but it is certain that Russia 
 was our firm friend all through the 
 war. 
 
 The career of Andrew Johnson ex- 
 hibits a peculiar phase in our social 
 system — the possibilities that wait upon 
 citizens of the most humble origin. 
 j\lr. Johnson was born in Raleigh, 
 North Carolina, late in 1808. His 
 parents were poor and lowly; and at 
 the 'age of four years he was bereft of 
 his father. Without an hour's school- 
 ing he was apprenticed to a tailor at 
 the age of ten years, and during that 
 service he taught himself to read. With 
 his own hands he supported his mother, 
 and with her he moved to Greenville. 
 East Tennessee, when he was eighteen 
 years of age. There he soon married 
 an excellent girl, who taught him to 
 write. The energy of his character, his 
 sobriety and strength of mind, com- 
 mended him to the citizens, and he was 
 elected alderman of Greenville at the 
 age of twenty, and mayor when he was 
 twenty-one. 
 
 Mr. Johnson was possessed of a cer- 
 tain kind of rugged and ready oratory 
 that made him very popular; also the 
 elements and aspirations of an adroit 
 politician ; and he made his way upward 
 in the path of distinction by his own 
 indomitable will, passing successively 
 through the offices of alderman, mayor, 
 member of both houses of the Legis- 
 lature of Tennessee, presidential elec- 
 tor, member of Congress, Governor of 
 
270 
 
 THE HOME AUXILIARY AND REFERENCE 
 
 Tennessee, National Senator, \'ice- 
 President and Acting-President of the 
 United States. His moral nature was 
 more feeble than his ambition, and 
 yielded to it ; and in his career as Presi- 
 dent that weakness prevented his 
 achieving most enviable fame as a 
 patriot and a benefactor of his race. 
 
 GRANT'S ADMINISTRATION. 
 
 Auspicious omens of peace and pros- 
 perity appeared at the beginning of 
 President Grant's administration. The 
 condition of public affairs, at home and 
 abroad, seemed to promise a bright 
 official career for the new Chief Magis- 
 trate. The only cloud seen in the 
 firmament of our foreign relations that 
 betokened future difficulties was the 
 irritation felt concerning the depreda- 
 tions of the Alabama under the tacit 
 sanction of the British Government. 
 The Government of the United States 
 claimed for its citizens payment for the 
 damages inflicted upon them by that 
 Anglo-Confederate cruiser. 
 
 To effect a peaceful solution of the 
 difficulty, Reverdy Johnson, of Mary- 
 land, was sent to England in 1868 to 
 negotiate a treaty for that purpose, but 
 his mission did not have a satisfactory 
 result. The treaty agreed to was almost 
 universally condemned by his country- 
 men, and it was rejected by the Senate 
 by a vote of fifty-four against one. Mr. 
 Johnson was recalled, and J. Lothrop 
 Motley, the historian, was appointed 
 American Minister to the British court, 
 charged with the negotiation of another 
 treaty for the same purpose. Mr. IMot- 
 ley was no more successful in that 
 particular mission than was his prede- 
 cessor, and General Grant recalled him 
 in 1870. The matter was finally settled 
 by arbitration. 
 
 At an early period of Grant's ad- 
 ministration an important amendment 
 to the National Constitution was pro- 
 posed, by Mr. Julian, of Indiana, for 
 securing the ballot to women, in the 
 following form : 
 
 "The right of suffrage in the United 
 States shall be based on citizenship, and 
 
 shall be regulated by Congress ; and 
 all the citizens of the United States, 
 whether native or naturalized, shall en- 
 joy this right equally, without any 
 distinction or discrimination whatever, 
 founded on sex." 
 
 As the first section of the fourteenth 
 amendment declares that "all persons, 
 born or naturalized in the United 
 States, and subject to the jurisdiction 
 thereof (without an allusion to se.x I 
 are citizens of the United States, and 
 of the State wherein they reside," this 
 amendment clearly gives to women the 
 rights and privileges of citizens. No 
 action has since been taken by Con- 
 gress on the subject; but organizations 
 for effecting that object exist, and the 
 matter will not be allowed to slumber 
 indefinitely, for justice demands such 
 a fundamental law. The right to the 
 exercise of the elective franchise is 
 guaranteed to our colored citizens ; do 
 women less deserve the privilege? 
 
 The great event in railroad history 
 was the completion of the first trans- 
 continental railway. This project, sug- 
 gested as far back as 1848, had been 
 indorsed by both political parties as a 
 necessity and the Government urged to 
 aid it. No private capital would under- 
 take it, and the Go\ernment did not 
 care to go into the business on its 
 own account. As a compromise it was 
 proposed that the Government loan Ti 
 per cent, bonds to a corporation which 
 should build the road and give first 
 mortgage bonds for these advances. By 
 the act of 1862 the Government was 
 to give $16,000 per mile, in its own 
 bonds, and a liberal land grant. Owing 
 to the war even this liberal offer could 
 not be accepted by any corporation, 
 as that part of the line across the Rocky 
 Mountains would be enormously ex- 
 pensive. In 1864 the corporation that 
 liad been formed for the work suc- 
 ceeded in getting Congress to double 
 the land grant, giving half the land 
 for ten miles on each side of the road, 
 allowing $32,000 per mile on the more 
 difficult section and $48,000 per mile in 
 the mountain sections, while taking a 
 first mortgage lien on the road. Even 
 
SIXTH PERIOD— GRANT'S ADMINISTRATION 
 
 this liberal offer did not attract capital 
 to an enterprise which was believed to 
 be, if not an engineering impossibility, 
 at least a scheme which would be 
 financially disastrous. This should be 
 remembered in connection with the 
 scandals which followed. As the work 
 was too great for one corporation, it 
 was divided. One company, the Cen- 
 tral Pacific, was to build east from 
 San Francisco, and the other, the Union 
 Pacific, west from Omaha, until they 
 met on the line already agreed on by 
 engineers. The western end of the 
 work was undertaken by Leland Stan- 
 ford, C. P. Huntington. Mark Hopkins, 
 Charles Crocker and a few others, with- 
 out any knowledge of railroad construc- 
 tion : all being comparatively poor men. 
 They amassed fortunes, and have been 
 subject to much abuse, but it should 
 be remembered that they did a work no 
 one else would undertake, while the 
 nation has been greatly benefited by 
 their enterprise. 
 
 The eastern end was constructed 
 largely by the energy of Oakes and 
 Oliver Ames, of Boston, who met with 
 the greatest difficulties in getting capital 
 to complete the forty-mile sections be- 
 fore Congressional aid was available. 
 As no contractor could undertake so 
 large a work, construction was sublet 
 to a corporation known as "the Credit 
 Mobiler" (borrowing a French name 
 from similar institutions in France), 
 which contracted for the whole work. 
 Shares of this stock were undoubtedly 
 sold to Congressmen to influence their 
 votes on the second bill granting aid 
 to the road, and in some cases the 
 payment was made long after delivery. 
 At least stock, which soon became very 
 valuable, was carried in their names, 
 to be paid for on demand, for their 
 benefit. This of itself was originally 
 considered as legitimate as to own 
 national bank stock, which was affected 
 by Congressional legislation. This was 
 called "d6ing evil for a good purpose," 
 but such sophistry did not avert a 
 scandal. A committee of Congressmen, 
 some years later, investigated the sub- 
 ject, and Oakes .Ames was recom- 
 mended to be expelled ; as the alleged 
 
 misdemeanor was in a previous Con- 
 gress, he was only censured, and died 
 soon afterward, partly of chagrin, after 
 doing what he felt to be a national 
 service. Many whose names were con- 
 nected with the scandal were driven 
 from public life, though some survi\ed 
 it. All denied improper motives, but 
 such excuses were not received. It is 
 true that the road was of immense 
 public value, that it was a strategic and 
 commercial necessity, but it is also true 
 that proper aid could or should 
 have been secured without improper 
 methods. Nevertheless, posterity has 
 been kind to Oakes Ames and has been 
 inclined to forgive one who erred on 
 the side of the country's good, even if 
 he did profit by it and use bad methods. 
 Yankee ingenuity was taxed to its 
 utmost in constructing this line. There 
 were great rivers to bridge, mountain 
 ranges to cross, and new problems to 
 solve. The Indians were hostile, the 
 cost of construction exceeded expecta- 
 tions, and finally the Union Pacific 
 Company had to confess that it needed 
 more help. Again the great financiers 
 were asked to aid by taking second 
 mortgage bonds, and they refused. In 
 this emergency the company again went 
 to Congress and asked that the Govern- 
 ment take a second lien for its money. 
 so that first mortgage bonds could be 
 sold in the market. It was getting this 
 legislation throug-h that most of the 
 scandals occurred. Congress assented 
 and money was raised to complete the 
 work. Toward the end there was aij 
 exciting race between the two com- 
 panies to see which would lay the most 
 track. The rails joined at Promontory 
 Point, near Ogden, Utah, and on May 
 lo, 1869, the golden spike was driven 
 that united San Francisco and New 
 York by rail. The occasion was made 
 one of great festivity all over the coun- 
 try, and with good reason, for it not 
 only bound East and West, but stimu- 
 lated other enterprises of tlie same 
 kind, until now there are half a dozen 
 transcontinental lines, most of which 
 received some Government aid in the 
 way of land grants, and some in money 
 also. The total Government cash paid 
 
THE HOME AUXILIARY AXD REFERENCE 
 
 for all the lines amounted to $64,633,- 
 512, but as very little interest was paid 
 the total sum due in 1898 was several 
 times as much. A Government com- 
 mission estimated the total actual cost 
 of the Central Pacific at $58,000,000, 
 and the Union Pacific at $50,720,000. 
 
 One result of the building of the 
 transcontinental railway was the dis- 
 covery that between the Missouri 
 River and the Sierra Xevadas were 
 some of the richest portions of the 
 country, available for agriculture and 
 grazing, and rich in gold, silver and 
 copper. These mines have produced 
 more wealth than those of California. 
 Moreover, the railway hastened the 
 movement of the population westward, 
 so that by 1870 there were a million 
 along the line of the road, whereas in 
 i860 there had been but a few thou- 
 sand. From 1870 onward the develop- 
 ment was rapid. Nevada was made a 
 State during the Civil War (1864), for 
 political reasons. Since the completion 
 of the road there have been organized 
 west of the Missouri the States of 
 North Dakota, South Dakota, Montana, 
 Wyoming, Idaho. Washington, Utah 
 and Colorado, none of which probably 
 would have become a State in the 
 Nineteenth Century save for the Gov- 
 ernment aided railways. In i8g8 the 
 Union Pacific and Central Pacific 
 mortgages fell due and were paid, as 
 to the former principal and interest, 
 and principal and part interest as to 
 the latter were to be paid in the ensuing 
 ten years. So the Government got its 
 money back and made millions by the 
 sale of lands, which would have been 
 worthless had not the railroads been 
 constructed. In spits of scandals in 
 Congress, stock jobbing and other re- 
 ported evil doings, the country has 
 profited largely by aiding Western rail- 
 way construction. Altogether Congress 
 voted about $120,000,000 to all the 
 Western railways. 
 
 At times these peculiar relations be- 
 tween our people and those of the 
 neighboring Spanish colony caused 
 much irritation, and promised a disrup- 
 tion of the peaceful relations between 
 the United States and Spain. Finally, 
 
 late in 1873, war between the two coun- 
 tries seemed to be inevitable. The 
 steamship J'irgiuius, flying the flag of 
 our Republic, suspected of carrying 
 men and supplies to the Cubans, was 
 captured by a Spanish cruiser off the 
 coast of Cuba, taken into port, and 
 many of her passengers and her captain 
 and some of the crew were publicly 
 shot by the local military authorities. 
 'J'his outrage produced intense excite- 
 ment throughout our country. There 
 was for awhile a hot war-spirit in the 
 land, but wise men in the control of 
 the Governments of Spain and the 
 United States calmly considered the 
 international questions involved, and 
 settled the matter by peaceful diplo- 
 macy. There were rights to be ac- 
 knowledged by both parties. The 
 Virg'uuus was surrendered to the 
 United States authorities, and ample 
 reparation for the outrage was offered. 
 While the vessel was on its way to 
 New York, under an escort, she sprung 
 a leak off Cape Fear, and went to the 
 bottom of the sea, at the close of De- 
 cember, 1873. 
 
 In the year 1870 the claims of the 
 Government of the United States upon 
 that of Great Britain, for damages 
 inflicted upon the American shipping 
 interest by the depredations of the 
 Alabama, and other Anglo-Confederate 
 ciuisers, occupied a large share of pub- 
 lic attention. Two eft'orts to effect a 
 treaty had been made, and failed. 
 Much diplomatic correspondence en- 
 sued. Finally, late in January. 1871, 
 Sir Edward Thornton, the British 
 m-inister at Washington, under instruc- 
 tions from his government, proposed, 
 in a letter to Secretary Fish, a Joint 
 High Commission, to be appointed by 
 the two governments respectively, to 
 settle a serious dispute which had arisen 
 concerning the fisheries, and so to estab- 
 lish a permanent friendship between the 
 two nations. I\Ir. Fish, in reply, pro- 
 posed that the commission should em- 
 brace in its inquiries the matter of the 
 "Alabama claims," and other subjects 
 of dispute, so that nothing should re- 
 main to disturb the relations of friend- 
 ship which might be established. The 
 
SIXTH PERIOD— GRANTS ADMINISTRATION 
 
 suggestion was approved by the British 
 minister, and each government pro- 
 ceeded to appoint its commissions. 
 
 The commissioners of the United 
 States were instructed to consider (i) 
 the fisheries; (2) the navigation of the 
 St. Lawrence River; (3) reciprocal 
 trade between the United States and 
 the Dominion of Canada; (4) the 
 Northwest water boundary and the 
 Island of San Juan; (5) the claims of 
 the United States against Great Britain 
 for compensation for injuries com- 
 mitted by rebel cruisers, and (6) 
 claims of British subjects against the 
 United States for losses and injuries 
 arising out of acts committed during 
 the recent Civil War. 
 
 On the 27th of February (1871) the 
 commission had their first meeting, in 
 Washington city. Lord Tenterden, 
 Secretary of the British Commission, 
 and J. C. Brancroft Davis, Assistant 
 Secretary of State of the United States, 
 were chosen clerks for the Joint High 
 Commission. They held many meet- 
 ings and the subjects were fully dis- 
 cussed, when a treaty was agreed to, 
 which provided for the settlement, by 
 arbitration, by a mixed commission, of 
 all claims on both sides for injuries 
 by either governments to the citizens 
 of the other, during the Civil War, and 
 for the permanent settlement of all 
 questions in dispute between the two 
 nations. This treaty was signed on the 
 8th of May, 1871, and was speedily 
 ratified by the two governments. 
 
 The conclusion of the treaty was 
 followed by the appointment of 
 arbitrators. 
 
 On the 15th of December, 1871, the 
 "Tribunal" assembled at Geneva, in 
 Switzerland, where Count Sclopis was 
 chosen to preside. After two meetings 
 it was adjourned to the middle of June, 
 1872. A final meeting was held in 
 September, the same year; and on the 
 14th of that month its decision on the 
 Alabama claims was announced. That 
 decision decreed that the Government 
 of Great Britain should pay to the 
 Government of the United States the 
 sum of $15,500,000 in gold, to be given 
 
 to citizens of the latter for losses in- 
 curred by the depredations of the 
 Alabama and other Anglo-Confederate 
 cruisers. That amount was paid into 
 the Treasury of the United States, a 
 year afterwards, through the agency of 
 the banking firms of Drexel, Morgan & 
 Company and Jay Cooke & Company, 
 who made a contract with the British 
 Government to pay this award on or 
 before the loth of September, 1873. 
 This transaction was performed in the 
 following manner, without moving a 
 dollar of coin : 
 
 The contracting bankers, from time 
 to time, bought bills of exchange, which 
 they deposited in comparatively small 
 amounts, and received coin or gold cer- 
 tificates for such deposits, and pur- 
 chased LTnited States bonds. Those 
 bonds and coin certificates they finally 
 exchanged with the Secretary of the 
 Treasury for a single certificate for 
 $15,500,000, which reads as follows: 
 "It is hereby certified that fifteen mil- 
 lion five hundred thousand dollars have 
 been deposited with the Treasurer of 
 the United States, payable in gold, at 
 his office, to Drexel, Morgan & Co., 
 Morton, Bliss & Co.. and Jay Cooke & 
 Co., or their order." This was endorsed 
 by these parties to pay the amount to 
 the British minister at Washington, 
 and the British Consul-General at New 
 York. The minister and consul en- 
 dorsed it with an order to pay the 
 amount to Hamilton Fish, Secretary 
 of State; and he, in turn, endorsed it 
 with an order to pay it to W. A. 
 Richardson, Secretary of the Treasury. 
 The money was invested in the new 
 five per cent, bonds of the United States 
 of the funded loan, redeemable after 
 the first day of May, 1881 : and a com- 
 mission was appointed to distribute the 
 award among the just claimants for 
 damages. 
 
 The question of boundary on the 
 Pacific coast between our country and 
 the British possessions was referred to 
 the Emperor of Germany, who decided 
 in favor of the claims of tJie United 
 States, which gave to our territory the 
 island of San Juan, the domain in 
 
274 
 
 THE ho:me auxiliary and reference 
 
 dispute. So was settled by the peaceful 
 and just method of arbitration most 
 exciting questions. 
 
 In the year 1870 Congress authorized 
 the establishment of a Weather Signal 
 Service, under the control of the War 
 Department, which was designed to 
 collect information and give notice by 
 signals or by telegraph of any approach- 
 ing danger; in time of peace, of dan- 
 gers to arise from storms in their 
 progress, or other atmospheric dis- 
 turbances. 
 
 By an act of Congress a large tract 
 of the public domain, about forty miles 
 square, lying near the head-waters of 
 the Yellowstone River, on the north- 
 eastern slope of the Rocky ?^Iountains, 
 was set apart for a public park. It is 
 withdrawn from sale, settlement and 
 occupancy, and is dedicated to the 
 "pleasure and enjoyment of the people 
 of the United States." 
 
 Early in the year 1872 several politi- 
 cal national conventions were held for 
 the purpose of nominating candidates 
 for the Presidency. 
 
 Grant and Wilson were elected, the 
 majority of the former being much 
 greater than he received in 1868. 
 
 The Senate immediately confirmed 
 President Grant's nominations of con- 
 stitutional advisers, which were as fol- 
 lows: Hamilton Fish. Secretary of 
 State; William A. Richardson, Secre- 
 tary of the Treasury ; William W. Belk- 
 nap, Secretary of War : George A. 
 Robeson, Secretary of the Navy ; Co- 
 lumbus Delano, Secretary of the In- 
 terior; John A. J. Creswell, Postmaster- 
 General, and George H. Williams, 
 Attorney-General. Changes in the per- 
 sonnel of the Cabinet afterward took 
 place, and only Mr. Fish retained his 
 position during the eight years of Presi- 
 dent Grant's administration. 
 
 At the beginning of the second term 
 of President Grant's administration the 
 future of our country, in all its aspects, 
 appeared brighter than ever before, 
 since the end of the Civil War. There 
 seemed to be a steady improvement in 
 the tone of public feeling after the 
 irritations caused by the Civil War and 
 the measures adopted for the restora- 
 
 tion of the Union. The Government, 
 in its dealings with the leaders in the 
 insurrection, had been exceedingly len- 
 ient. Of the thousands of our citizens 
 who consciously and willingly com- 
 mitted "treason against the United 
 States," as defined by Article III, Sec- 
 tion 3, Clause I, of the National Con- 
 stitution, not one had been punished 
 for that crime ; and only Jefferson 
 Da\is, the acting head of the Confed- 
 eracy, had been indicted, and he was 
 released from jail (illegally) by Presi- 
 dent Johnson's proclamation of amnesty 
 on Christmas Day, 1868, already men- 
 tioned, and has never been called to 
 account. 
 
 In the spring of 1873 difficulties oc- 
 curred with the Modoc Indians, who 
 for twenty years had shown a hostile 
 feeling toward the white people. A 
 treaty had been made with them in 
 1864, which provided for the setting 
 apart for them of seven hundred and 
 sixty-eight thousand acres of land in 
 Southern Oregon. Some of the tribe 
 settled there ; others, led by a chief 
 known as "Captain Jack," a conspic- 
 uous warrior, preferred to remain 
 where they were, but sullenly consented 
 to go. Trouble with other Indians 
 there caused the Modocs to leave the 
 reservation and begin anew their depre- 
 dations. It was finally determined to 
 compel them to go to their reservation, 
 when the Indians, under the immediate 
 leadership of Captain Jack, broke out 
 into open war late in 1872, and on the 
 same day eleven citizens were mur- 
 dered. 
 
 In January, 1873, a severe engage- 
 ment occurred between the National 
 troops and the IModocs. who were 
 strongly intrenched among rocks and 
 vast lava-beds. All attempts to dis- 
 lodge them were made in vain, and 
 a peace commission was appointed to 
 confer with them. That commission 
 reported, on the 3d of March, that the 
 Modocs had agreed to surrender their 
 arms and go to the reservation. On 
 the following day they were compelled 
 to report that the barbarians had 
 changed their minds, and had rejected 
 all propositions for a removal, and re- 
 
SIXTH PERIOD— GRANT'S ADMINISTRATION 
 
 fused to go to the reservation. Then 
 another peace commission was ap- 
 pointed, composed of Genera! Canby, 
 the Rev. Dr. Thomas, and others. 
 They found the Modocs under the in- 
 fluence of Captain Jack, very insolent 
 in their bearing, and showing unmis- 
 takable signs of hostile feeling. Fi- 
 nally, on the nth of April, 1873, while 
 they were engaged in a council with the 
 Indians, General Canby and Dr. 
 Thomas were murdered by them, the 
 savage warriors stealing upon them in 
 a most cowardly manner. 
 
 This treachery caused the Govern- 
 ment to make the most vigorous war 
 ufion the Modocs ; and before the first 
 of June they were driven from the 
 lava-beds and were completely subdued. 
 Captain Jack was deserted by most of 
 his followers, and was finally captured, 
 with several of the participants in the 
 murder. They were tried by a court- 
 martial, in August, and six of them 
 were condemned to death. Captain 
 Jack and three of his companions were 
 hung on the 3d of October following, 
 at Fort Klamath, in Oregon. 
 
 General George A. Custer had been 
 sent into the region known as the Black 
 Hills, with a military force, to examine 
 and report upon the state of affairs 
 there. It is a region that had been set 
 apart by our Government as a reserva- 
 tion for the powerful and warlike 
 Sioux Indians. They are the most nu- 
 merous of all the tribes, and more dif- 
 ficult to conquer than any body of bar- 
 barians within our domain. It is esti- 
 mated that if they should rally all their 
 strength, they might muster ten thou- 
 sand warriors. The Rlack Hills, 
 which had been assigned to them, oc- 
 cupy portions of the Territories 'of 
 Dakota and Wyoming. Custer was 
 charmed with the beauty and apparent 
 fertility of that region of country. He 
 reported it to be another Florida in 
 the exuberance of its floral Ijeauty, and 
 also extremely rich in precious metals. 
 The cupidity of frontiermen was ex- 
 cited, and very soon prospecting miners 
 appeared on the Sioux domain. In- 
 structed by past experience of the bad 
 faith of our Government the Indians 
 
 saw in these mo\-ements a sure signs of 
 their final dispossession of these fair 
 lands. Their jealousy was aroused. 
 Their suspicions were well-founded ; 
 for near the close of 1874, a bill was 
 introduced into Congress which pro- 
 vided for the extinguishment of the 
 Indian title to so much of the Black 
 Hills reservation as lay within the 
 Territory of Dakota. 
 
 In the spring of 1875, Mr. Jenny, 
 Government geologist, was sent to the 
 Black Hills country to make a survey 
 of that region. He was escorted by 
 six companies of cavalry and two of in- 
 fantry. This invasion of their reserva- 
 tion, and the significant presence of 
 surveyors, confirmed the suspicions of 
 the Sioux, of the design of our Gov- 
 ernment to deprive them of these lands ; 
 and all through that year they showed 
 such unmistakable signs of prepara- 
 tions for war to defend their domain, 
 that early in 1876 a strong military 
 force was sent into the region of the 
 Yellowstone River, in Montana Terri- 
 tory and the adjoining region, to watch 
 the movements of the barbarians. Fi- 
 nally, a campaign against them was or- 
 ganized. The general plan was for the 
 military force to make a simultaneous 
 movement, under experienced leaders, 
 in three columns — one from the De- 
 partment of the Platte, led by General 
 Crooke ; one from the Department of 
 Dakota, commanded by General Terry, 
 and a third from the Territory of Mon- 
 tana, led by General Gibbon. The latter 
 was to move with his column down 
 the Valley of the Yellowstone, to pre- 
 vent the Sioux from escaping north- 
 ward. General Custer, at the same 
 time, pushing across the country from 
 the Missouri to the Yellowstone to 
 drive the Indians toward General Gib- 
 bon, while General Crooke was to 
 scout the Black Hills and drive out any 
 of the hostile Sioux that might be 
 found there. The expedition was un- 
 der the chief command of General Al- 
 fred H. Terry, a brave, judicious and 
 experienced officer. He and his staff 
 accompanied Custer from Fort Abra- 
 ham Lincoln to the Yellowstone River. 
 On their arrival in the vicinity, at about 
 
276 
 
 THE HOME AUXILIARY AND REFERENCE 
 
 the first of June (1876), and com- 
 municating with General Gibbon, they 
 found that Indians were in the neigh- 
 borhood, in large numbers, and well 
 supplied with munitions of war. 
 
 The reports of scouts caused a be- 
 lief that the Indians, with their great 
 movable village, were in the meshes of 
 the net prepared for them near the 
 waters of the Big and Little Horn, 
 Powder and Tongue Rivers (tribu- 
 taries of the Yellowstone), and Rose- 
 bud Creek. The concentrated troops 
 began to feel for themselves. On the 
 17th of June, Crooke had a sharp fight 
 with a superior force of Sioux, who 
 were thoroughly armed and equipped, 
 and was obliged to retreat. Terry and 
 Gibbon met at the mouth of the Rose- 
 bud. Custer was there, at the head 
 of the stronger column, consisting of 
 the whole of the Seventh regiment of 
 cavalry, composed of twelve companies, 
 and he was ordered to make the attack. 
 He and Gibbon marched toward the 
 vicinity of the Big Horn River. Custer 
 arrived first and discovered an im- 
 mense Indian camp on a plain. He had 
 been directed to await the arrival of 
 Gibbon, to co-operate with him, before 
 making an attack; but inferring that 
 the Indians were moving off, he di- 
 rected Colonel Reno to attack them at 
 one point with seven companies of the 
 cavalry, while he dashed off with five 
 companies (about three hundred men) 
 to attack at another point A terrible 
 struggle ensued on the 25th of June, 
 1876, with a body of Indians, in num- 
 ber five to one of the white men. They 
 were commanded by an educated, bold 
 and skilful chief named "Sitting Bull." 
 Custer and almost his entire command 
 were slain. Two hundred and sixty- 
 one were killed and fifty were wounded. 
 
 With General Custer perished two of 
 his brothers, a brother-in-law, and 
 other gallant officers. Many of them 
 had doubtless been murdered after they 
 had been captured, and the bodies hor- 
 ribly mutilated. The body of the gen- 
 eral was afterward found and fully 
 identified. It was taken to Fort Abra- 
 ham Lincoln, in Dakota Territory, 
 where provision was made for its con- 
 
 veyance to West Point, on the Hudson 
 River, for interment. It was at first 
 sent to Poughkeepsie, at midsummer, 
 1877, and deposited in the receiving 
 vault of the Rural Cemetery there, 
 where it remained until the loth of 
 October following, when it was con- 
 veyed to West Point, with a certificate 
 from the post-surgeon of Fort Lincoln, 
 that the burial casket contained "the re- 
 mains of General George A. Custer, 
 lieutenant-colonel Seventh cavalry, 
 killed at the battle of Big Horn River, 
 June 25, 1876." 
 
 The news of the destruction of 
 Custer and his command produced 
 much excitement throughout the 
 country ; and the Government imme- 
 diately ordered a large military force 
 into the region of the Black Hills, for 
 the purpose of utterly crushing the 
 power of the Sioux. Sitting Bull and 
 his followers, anticipating severe chas- 
 tisement, at length withdrew into the 
 British possessions, where they re- 
 mained until the summer of 1881. 
 
 The Territory of Colorado had to 
 wait for admission into the Union as 
 a State, ten years after first making 
 application for the privilege. That act 
 was consummated on the 4th of July, 
 1876. 
 
 In the last year of Grant's term was 
 held the exhibition at Philadelphia, to 
 celebrate the centennial of American 
 liberty. Philadelphia was selected be- 
 cause "the Declaration of Independence 
 was signed there. It was by far the 
 greatest world's fair that had been held 
 up to that time. The city set aside a 
 large portion of Fairmount Park for 
 the purpose, and here were erected six 
 large buildings and hundreds of smaller 
 ones. The expense was borne largely 
 by local enterprise, but the Govern- 
 ment loaned .'f 1,500,000, which was re- 
 paid. The total expense was $8,500,000. 
 part of which was defrayed by the city, 
 and part by the State. The rest was 
 raised by subscription to stock in the 
 enterprise, a portion of which was re- 
 paid. The total number of visitors was 
 just under 10,000,000, and the largest 
 on any one day was 274,910. The expo- 
 sition was open from l\Iay 10 to No- 
 
SIXTH PERIOD— GRANT'S ADMINISTRATION 
 
 veinber lo, except Sundays, a total of 
 159 days. It was opened with appro- 
 priate ceremonies by President Grant 
 and Emperor Dom Pedro, of Brazil. 
 
 The exhibits came from all parts of 
 the world, and for the first time in our 
 history our people had an opportunity 
 to compare their own products with 
 those of other nations. The visitors 
 likewise came from all over the world, 
 and the result was most gratifying. 
 
 The year 1876 was a "Presidential 
 year" as well as a "Centennial year." 
 The campaign for the prize of the 
 Presidency of the Republic was vigor- 
 ously begun at the middle of June, 
 when a Republican National Conven- 
 tion assembled (June 16) at Cincinnati, 
 to make nominations for President and 
 Vice-President. There were two 
 prominent candidates before the Con- 
 vention, James G. Blaine of Maine, and 
 Roscoe Conkling of New York. They 
 were both rejected, and the Conven- 
 tion nominated Rutherford Birchard 
 Hayes, at that time governor of Ohio, 
 for the Presidency, and William A. 
 Wheeler of New York, for the Vice- 
 Presidency. On the 27th of the same 
 month a Democratic National Conven- 
 tion assembled at St. Louis for the 
 same purpose and nominated Samuel 
 J. Tilden (then governor) of New 
 York, for President, and Thomas A. 
 Hendricks of Indiana, for Vice-Presi- 
 dent. A most exciting canvass ensued, 
 during which the lawlessness that dis- 
 turbed portions of some of the 
 Southern States was reproduced with 
 increased vehemence, and at times local 
 civil war seemed to be inevitable. 
 
 The result of the Presidential elec- 
 tion was long in doubt, each party 
 claiming a majority for its candidate. 
 One hundred and eighty-five votes in 
 the electoral college was necessary to 
 the success of a candidate. It was 
 decided, immediately after the election, 
 that Mr. Tilden had one hundred and 
 eighty-four. Democratic Presidential 
 Electors had been chosen in three 
 Northern States — New York, New Jer- 
 sey and Connecticut ; in one of the 
 Western States — Indiana ; and in all 
 the Southern States except South Caro- 
 
 lina, Florida and Louisiana. The Re- 
 publican Electors had been chosen in 
 si.x Northern States — Maine, Massa- 
 chusetts, New Hampshire, Pennsyl- 
 vania, Rhode Island and Vermont ; in 
 eleven Western States — California, 
 Illinois, Iowa, Kansas, Michigan, 
 JMinnesota, Nebraska, Nevada, Ohio, 
 Oregon and Wisconsin ; and in one 
 Southern State — South Carolina — 
 giving Hayes 173 votes. 
 
 Then ensued a long, bitter and 
 sometimes violent contest in South 
 Carolina, Florida and Louisiana, over 
 the official returns of the elections. 
 Each party charged the other with 
 fraud or intended fraud, in making up 
 these returns. There was the wildest 
 excitement in the Gulf region and there 
 was much agitation and anxiety at the 
 North and West. 
 
 Thoughtful men foresaw much trou- 
 ble at the final counting of the votes 
 of the Electoral College by the Presi- 
 dent of the Senate, according to the 
 provisions of the Constitution, for al- 
 ready the question had arisen as to his 
 absolute power in the matter. Each 
 party persistently claimed the prize of 
 the Presidency, when returning boards 
 in the doubtful States had decided that 
 I\Ir. Hayes had one hundred and 
 eighty-five electoral vote, and Mr. Til- 
 den one hundred and eighty-four. To 
 prevent serious difficulty, plans were 
 offered. On the 5th of December, 
 Senator Edmunds offered in the Senate 
 an amendment to the Constitution, 
 providing for the counting and declara- 
 tion of the electoral vote by the Su- 
 preme Court of the L^nited States. It 
 was defeated. On the 14th, Proctor 
 Knott (a Democrat), from the Ju- 
 diciary Committee of the House of 
 Representatives, reported a resolution 
 (as a substitute for one previously of- 
 fered) that a committee of seven mem- 
 bers, to be appointed by the Speaker, 
 to act in conjunction with any similar 
 committee that may be appointed by the 
 Senate, to prepare and report such a 
 measure, either legislative or constitu- 
 tional, as may, in their judgment, be 
 best calculated to accomplish the end 
 ])roposed, namely, that the elector.il 
 
278 
 
 THE HOME AUXILIARY AND REFERENCE 
 
 votes may be counted and the result de- 
 clared by a tribunal whose authority no 
 one can question, and whose decision 
 all will accept as final. This resolu- 
 tion was adopted without a division. 
 On the i8th, the Senate voted in favor 
 of a committee to act with that ap- 
 pointed by the House. 
 
 On the 1 8th of January, 1877, the 
 joint committee reported. They pre- 
 sented a bill that provided for the meet- 
 ing of both Houses in the hall of the 
 House of Representatives, on the ist 
 of February, 1877. Two tellers, to 
 have been previously appointed by 
 each House, to whom should be handed, 
 as they were opened by the President 
 of the Senate, all the certificates and 
 papers purporting to be certificates of 
 electoral votes ; these to be opened, pre- 
 sented, and acted upon in the alpha- 
 betical order of the States. When 
 there should be a single return from a 
 State, and an objection thereto, with 
 its ground, should be made in writing, 
 and signed by at least one Senator and 
 one Representative, the two Houses 
 should separately decide upon such ob- 
 jection or objections, the vote to be re- 
 jected only by the affirmative vote of 
 the two Houses. In the cases of more 
 than one return from a State, all such 
 returns having been read by the tellers, 
 should be, upon objection being made, 
 submitted to the judgment and decision 
 as to which is the true and lawful elec- 
 toral vote of the State, of a Commis- 
 sion of fifteen, to be composed of five 
 members from each House, to be ap- 
 pointed z'iva voce, January 30, with 
 five Associate Justices of the Supreme 
 Court of the United States, four of 
 these Justices being those of the First, 
 Third, Eighth and Ninth Circuits, who 
 should on January 30, select another 
 of the Associate Justices of the same 
 Court ; the entire Commission to be 
 presided over by the Associate Justice 
 longest in commission. Each of the 
 members of the Commission to take an 
 oath to consider the questions sub- 
 mitted, and to give a true judgment 
 thereon agreeably to the Constitution 
 and the laws. The decision of the 
 Commission, or a majority thereof, to 
 
 be made in writing, signed by the as- 
 senting members, and submitted to 
 Congress ; and this decision, having 
 been entered in the journal of each 
 House, must be final, unless overruled 
 by the action of both Houses. This 
 is a brief summary of the bill. 
 
 After much debate, this bill was 
 passed by both Houses. It was signed 
 by the President on the 29th of Jan- 
 uary, and on the 30th the two Houses 
 elected five members each, to serve on 
 the Electoral Commission. On the fol- 
 lowing day a communication was re- 
 ceived by both Houses from the four 
 Associate Justices named in the bill — ■ 
 Clifford, ]\Iiller, Field and Strong — an- 
 nouncing that they had chosen as the 
 fifth member of Associate Justices, 
 Joseph P. Bradle}'. 
 
 The joint Electoral Commission as- 
 sembled in the hall of the House of 
 Representatives on the ist of Febr- 
 uary, 1877. The President of the 
 Senate proceeded to open the certifi- 
 cates of the several States, in their al- 
 phabetical order. The counting was 
 completed on the 2d of March, when 
 the President of the Senate announced 
 that Rutherford B. Hayes was elected 
 President of the Republic, and William 
 A. Wheeler was elected \'ice-President. 
 On Saturday, the 3d day of March, 
 the Forty-fourth Congress finally ad- 
 journed. 
 
 ADMINISTRATIONS OF HAYES, 
 GARFIELD AND ARTHUR. 
 
 The 4th of March — the day pre- 
 scribed for the inauguration of a new 
 President of the United States — falling 
 on Sunday, Mr. Hayes, to prevent any 
 technical objections that might be 
 raised, privately took the oath of office 
 on that day, and on Monday, the 5th, 
 he was publicly inaugurated. 
 
 A special session of the Senate was 
 opened on the day of the public inau- 
 guration, and received and confirmed 
 the following cabinet nominations from 
 President Hayes: William M. Evarts 
 of New York, for Secretary of State ; 
 John Sherman of Ohio, Secretary of 
 the Treasury ; George W. McCreay, of 
 
SIXTH PERIOD— HAYES' ADMINISTRATION 
 
 379 
 
 Iowa, Secretary of War; Richard W. 
 Thompson of Indiana, Secretary of 
 tlie Navy ; Carl Schurz of Missouri, 
 Secretary of the Interior; David M. 
 Key of Tennessee, Postmaster-General, 
 and Charles Devens of Massachusetts, 
 Attorney-General. 
 
 The political situation in Louisiana — 
 both parties claiming the right of the 
 respective magistrates chosen by them 
 to govern the State — was made the spe- 
 cial subject for discussion in President 
 Hayes' cabinet on the 20th and 21st 
 of March, when it was decided to send 
 a commission to that State to investi- 
 gate the matter. There were two rival 
 claimants to the governorship of the 
 State, and each party declared that its 
 own chosen officers were legally elected. 
 There was a similar state of affairs in 
 South Carolina, and the President 
 sought diligently for the truth and 
 right. The opponents of the late ad- 
 ministration declared their readiness to 
 submit to law and justice, and prom- 
 ised obedience and loyalty in the event 
 of the removal of United States troops, 
 the presence of which they regarded 
 as a menace, and as a restraint upon 
 the free action which every citizen has 
 a right to exercise. 
 
 Upon the report of the commission 
 sent to the South, the President re- 
 solved to trust the promises of the op- 
 position in both Louisiana and South 
 Carolina, and removed from them the 
 restraints of military force. A salutary 
 result was soon perceived, in an im- 
 proved tone of public feeling there. 
 This measure, and a reform in the civil 
 service of the Republic, were the most 
 conspicuous features of the public 
 policy of the Administration. 
 
 The subject of the Presidency oc- 
 cupied so much of the time and atten- 
 tion of the last session of the Forty- 
 fourth Congress, that at its adjourn- 
 ment there was left a great deal of un- 
 finished important business. There 
 was, toward the last, so much factious 
 opposition to the outgoing and incom- 
 ing administration, that Congress failed 
 to pass important appropriation bills, 
 and this neglect caused the necessity 
 
 for calling an extraordinary session of 
 the Forty-fifth Congress, to provide 
 means for carrying on the Government. 
 It was thought proper, at first, to have 
 a summer session, but prudential rea- 
 sons forbade it, and on the 5th of May 
 (1877) the President issued a proc- 
 lamation calling a session in October. 
 When Congress met on the 15th of 
 that month, the President in a message 
 stated the object of their meeting, 
 which was simply to make appropria- 
 tions to supply money deficiences ; he 
 presented a list of estimates of the 
 amount needed, which aggregated 
 about $37,000,000. It was expected 
 that the session would be short, and 
 it would have been, had only its legit- 
 imate business been attended to ; but 
 other subjects engaged the attention of 
 members. The bills were delayed, and 
 the extraordinary session was pro- 
 longed until the time for the opening 
 of the regular session, on the 3d of 
 December. 
 
 During the summer of 1877, our 
 Government engaged in a war with the 
 Nez Perce (Pierced-Nose) Indians, in 
 Idaho. It was not only a blunder, but 
 crime, on the part of the United States. 
 
 At the first regular session of the 
 Forty-fifth Congress, a bill known as 
 the "Bland Silver Bill" was passed, on 
 the 2 1st of February, 1878. The Presi- 
 dent returned it to the House of Repre- 
 sentatives on February 28th, with his 
 objection; but, on the same day, it was 
 passed by both Houses over his veto, 
 and it became a law. It provided for 
 the coinage of silver dollars of the 
 weight of 4121^ grains, and that the 
 rate of coinage should be at least $2,- 
 000,000 a month, and not more than 
 $4 ,000,000. 
 
 During the summer and fall of 1878 
 the yellow fever prevailed as a fearful 
 epidemic in the region of the Lower 
 Mississippi River from Memphis to 
 New Orleans. In his annual message 
 to Congress the President called the 
 attention to that body of the necessity 
 for investigating the causes of the epi- 
 demic ; and on the 3th of December the 
 Senate appointed a committee to settle 
 
28o 
 
 THE HOME AUXILIARV AND REFERENCE 
 
 the matter, with one from the House 
 of Representatives, and appropriated 
 $50,000. 
 
 On the first of January, 1879, a most 
 important event occurred — it was the 
 resumption of specie payments by the 
 National Government and the Banks, 
 after a suspension of about eighteen 
 years. There was very strong and per- 
 sistent opposition to the measure on 
 the part of the opponents of the ad- 
 ministration, and efforts were made in 
 Congress to defeat it. The authoriza- 
 tion of the circulation of silver coin by 
 act of Congress, in January, 1875, pre- 
 pared the way for resumption. As the 
 time approached for resumption, the 
 opponents became louder prophets of 
 evil. They predicted greater prostra- 
 tion of business, and the impossibility 
 of meeting the enormous demand for 
 coin on the day fixed for resumption, 
 and afterwards. The premium on gold, 
 however, continually diminished, and 
 paper money was at par value in De- 
 cember. 1878. For some weeks private 
 business houses had been paying out 
 gold. Notwithstanding these indica- 
 tions, the Government Sub-Treasuries 
 and the Banks employed an increased 
 clerical force to assist in the labors of 
 the first of January. These clerks were 
 not needed. At the closing hour the 
 Banks had more gold in their vaults 
 than at the opening. Resumption had 
 been imperceptibly effected. Its salu- 
 tary influence was immediately felt. 
 From the first day of resumption, busi- 
 ness began to revive, and the tide of 
 prosperity throughout the whole coun- 
 try has continued to rise higher and 
 higher. 
 
 On the Pacific Coast a strong preju- 
 dice against the Chinese immigrants 
 had been created, chiefly by other for- 
 eign-born persons, because of their al- 
 leged monopoly of labor at reduced 
 prices. The matter was brought to the 
 attention of Congress and a bill to re- 
 strict Chinese immigration passed both 
 Mouses in the winter of 1879. It re- 
 stricted the number of Chinese pas- 
 sengers in one voyage to fifteen. The 
 President vetoed the bill. 
 
 The opposition majority in Congress 
 
 resolved to defeat, by means of legisla- 
 tion, the operations of the law author- 
 izing the use of United States troops 
 to keep the peace at the polls where 
 candidates for National offices were to 
 be voted for. The employment of 
 Cnited States Marshals for the same 
 purpose was also opposed. The method 
 resorted to for effecting their purpose 
 caused very excitirjg debates in Con- 
 gress. They burdened every appropria- 
 tion bill with a "rider," or conditions 
 requiring that United States troops 
 should not be allowed at any election 
 in any State, and that the Marshals 
 should not interfere in any elections. 
 So persistent were the opposition mem- 
 bers in their methods, that they seemed 
 determined to clog the wheels of Gov- 
 ernment unless their measures were 
 adopted. The Forty-fifth Congress ex- 
 pired without passing the usual appro- 
 priation bills, and this failure in duty 
 caused the necessity for calling a ses- 
 sion of the Forty-sixth Congress. They 
 were summoned to meet on March 18, 
 1879. They did so and passed appro- 
 priation bills with obnoxious "riders," 
 which were vetoed by the President. 
 This extraordinary session lasted until 
 July 1st. Failing to pass the vetoed 
 bills over the President's veto, they 
 were shorn of their obnoxious appen- 
 dages and were passed and approved 
 by the President. 
 
 There was a remarkable and com- 
 paratively sudden exodus of colored 
 people from the States on the Lower 
 Mississippi in 1879. The reason for 
 the movement was alleged to be a 
 denial of the exercise of civil rights 
 to the negroes, to which they had a 
 constitutional right, and their oppres- 
 sions in various ways at the hands of 
 the white people. The earlier emi- 
 grants and the larger number went to 
 Kansas. Later a considerable number 
 went to Indiana. A committee was ap- 
 pointed by the Senate to investigate the 
 causes of the movement. Their re- 
 port was not very satisfactory. They 
 declared that the causes were partly 
 political and partly pecuniary. 
 
 There was a sudden outbreak of hos- 
 tility to the white people by the Ute 
 
SIXTH PERIOD— GARFIELD'S ADMINISTRATION 
 
 281 
 
 tribe of Indians in Colorado in the 
 early autumn of 1879. The movement 
 was fierce and desperate, and created 
 great alarm throughout a considerable 
 portion of that State. The barbarians 
 murdered N. C. Meeker, the Indian 
 agent at White River. Major Thorn- 
 burgh, of the United States Army, was 
 sent with a force to suppress the hostile 
 movement ; and in a battle with the 
 Utes at Milk Creek, on September 29th, 
 he and ten of his command were slain. 
 For six days the rest of his force were 
 surrounded by Indians, but being in- 
 trenched it held out until succor ar- 
 rived. The outbreak ended almost as 
 suddenly as it was begun. 
 
 The year 1880 was the "Presidential 
 year," and both the great political par- 
 ties as well as smaller organizations, 
 began early to make preparations for 
 the quadrennial contest for the coveted 
 prize of the Presidency of the Repub- 
 lic. In the months of June the several 
 political parties each held a National 
 Convention to nominate candidates for 
 President and \'ice-President of the 
 L'nited States. In this movement the 
 Republican party first appeared. Its 
 chosen representatives assembled in 
 convention at Chicago, Illinois, on 
 June 2d, 1880. They nominated James 
 Abram Garfield, of Ohio, for President, 
 and Chester Allan Arthur for Vice- 
 President of the Republic. After a 
 most exciting canvass, the election, in 
 November, 1880, resulted in the choice 
 of James A. Garfield for President and 
 Chester A. Arthur for Vice-President 
 of the Republic. 
 
 On the 2Qth of February, 1881, 
 President-elect Garfield left his home 
 at Mentor, Ohio, for Washington City. 
 He was accompanied by his family — 
 his aged mother, eighty years old, his 
 wife, and his two sons. He made a 
 short, parting address at the railway- 
 station, which he concluded with the 
 words : ''What awaits me I cannot now 
 speak of ; but I shall carry to the dis- 
 charge of the duties that lie before me, 
 to the problems and dangers I may 
 meet, a sense of your confidence and 
 your love, which will always be an- 
 
 swered by my gratitude. Neighbors, 
 friends, constituents — farewell !' 
 
 Many friends accompanied General 
 Garfield on his journey. He reached 
 Washington on the morning of March 
 jst, where he was met by a committee 
 and taken to his quarters. His aged 
 mother was conveyed to the President's 
 house, where the room she was to oc- 
 cupy was assigned her by Mrs. Hayes, 
 whose guest she remained until after 
 the inauguration, which event occurred 
 on Friday, March 4, with imposing 
 ceremonies. 
 
 President Hayes had issued a procla- 
 mation convening the Senate, in special 
 executive session, on the afternoon of 
 the 4th of March, to receive and act 
 upon the nominations of Cabinet min- 
 isters which the new President might 
 make. These were sent in the next 
 day, and the nominations were immed- 
 iately confirmed without debate. They 
 were as follows : For Secretary of 
 State, James G. Blaine, of Maine; for 
 Secretary of the Treasury, William 
 Windom, of Minnesota ; for Secretary 
 of War, Robert T. Lincoln, of Illinois, 
 son of President Lincoln ; for Secre- 
 tary of the Navy, William H. Hunt, of 
 Louisiana ; for Secretary of the Inter- 
 ior, Samuel J. Kirkwood, of Iowa; for 
 Postmaster-General, Thomas L. James, 
 of New York ; for Attorney-General, 
 Wayne J\IcVeagh, of Pennsylvania. 
 
 Subsequent nominations sent in to 
 the Senate for confirmation were not so 
 well received. With regard to one of 
 them, the nomination of Judge Robert- 
 son to the important office of Collector 
 of Customs at New York, great efforts 
 were made by Senator Conkling, ot 
 New York, and the wing of the Re- 
 publican party which acknowledged 
 him as its leader, to procure its rejec- 
 tion. Garfield, however, regarding 
 himself as the President of the whoie 
 nation, not of any party in it, or of any 
 wing of a party, steadily refused to 
 withdraw the obnoxious nomination, 
 and the two Senators from New York 
 State, hopeless of carrying their point, 
 adopted the unprecedented step of re- 
 signing their seats in the Senate. Sena- 
 
THE HOME AUXILIARY AND REFERENCE 
 
 tors Conkling and Piatt at once ap- 
 pealed to the Legislature of New York 
 for re-election. The conflict between 
 the two factions was now transferred to 
 Albany, and the war was carried on 
 with unexampled bitterness. The Vice- 
 President, Mr. Arthur, did not think 
 it unbecoming his high office to mingle 
 personally in the fray and exert his in- 
 fluence for the cause of his friend 
 Conkling. But it was in vain. The 
 Senators who had resigned did not suc- 
 ceed in gaining the re-election which 
 would have returned them to the 
 Senate with the endorsement of their 
 State. The fierce political struggle was 
 just terminating, when every heart was 
 stricken with horror at the intelligence 
 of a terrible tragedy. For the second 
 time the elected head of this free peo- 
 ple was struck down by the hand of an 
 assassin. On the 2d of July the Presi- 
 dent was leaving Washington for a 
 • brief holiday, during which he was to 
 pass the anniversary of the Declaration 
 of Independence with Mr. Cyrus W. 
 Field, near New York, and then to visit 
 Williams College, Massachusetts. In 
 the company of Mr. Blaine and other 
 members of his Cabinet, he was taking 
 his ticket at the railroad station, when 
 the assassin Guiteau shot him in the 
 back with a heavy ball from a pistol 
 called an "English Bulldog." The 
 President fell to the ground, and from 
 the nature of the wound death was re- 
 garded as imminent. Before the full 
 effect of the deed was realized, Guiteau 
 had been arrested and conveyed to 
 prison, a circumstance fortunate for 
 our national honor by reserving his 
 punishment to the solemn verdict of 
 justice, instead of leaving it to the pas- 
 sions of an infuriated mob. The assas- 
 sin made no attempt to escape. He had 
 been a lecturer, a lawyer, a persistent 
 seeker of office of any kind, always a 
 swindler. He boasted of his crime. He 
 was a "Stalwart," he said, and believed 
 that the death of Garfield was the only 
 means of saving the Republican party. 
 Meanwhile, the wounded man was re- 
 moved to the White House, where, in 
 the language of the legal indictment of 
 his murderer, which has a deep pathos 
 
 in the words, "he did languish, and 
 languishing did live" till the 19th of 
 September. All that our best surgical 
 skill could do was done, but in vain. 
 The magnificent constitution of the 
 sufferer enabled him to linger, not to 
 recover. Wliile thus slowly dying, his 
 demeanor was throughout manly, with 
 that manliness which touches every 
 heart. "Is the wound mortal?" was the 
 first question he addressed to the sur- 
 geons who examined him. "There are," . 
 was the straighforward answer, 
 "ninety-nine chances to one against 
 your recovery." "Then," was the 
 brave reply, "I will take that one 
 chance." His chief anxiety was for 
 his wife, and how she would bear the 
 news. A telegram was sent to her at 
 Elberon, summoning her to Washing- 
 ton. She came to be his nurse and 
 strengthener. To all foreboding of a 
 fatal termination she replied, "He has 
 made up his mind to recover, and he 
 will recover." Her courage was as 
 great as his own. When, after the 
 lapse of a few days, it was seen that the 
 illustrious patient had not succumbed 
 to the shock, as was anticipated, hope 
 grew strong in every breast. Every 
 fluctuation of the pulse, every rise or 
 fall of temperature, was watched with 
 interest by every citizen in our wide ex- 
 tended Union. Operations had to be 
 performed to discharge the purulent 
 secretions from the track of the wound ; 
 they were borne with constancy, and 
 the temporary relief they gave inspired 
 the sufferer with new confidence, and 
 the people with new hopes. Baseless 
 hopes and unfounded confidence ! The 
 assassin's ball, as it was thereafter 
 proved, had injured the spinal column, 
 and recovery was impossible. The 
 President gradually got weaker. The 
 White House, situated near the swamps 
 of the Potomac, was considered un- 
 healthy, and the opinion spread that 
 Garfield's recovery was kept back by 
 malarial influences. He himself seemed 
 to share this opinion, and lunged for 
 change of scene. He wished to be re- 
 moved to Mentor, his quiet, unpretend- 
 ing home in Ohio. But the distance 
 from Washington to liis beloved home 
 
SIXTH PERIOD— GARFIELD'S ADMINISTRATION 
 
 283 
 
 was too great for him to bear. As a 
 last resource he was taken to the sea- 
 coast at Elberon. Weeping crowds ac- 
 companied the htter on which he was 
 carried out from that Executive Man- 
 sion to occupy which has been the as- 
 piration of our best and bravest. The 
 line of railroad by which he passed was 
 bordered by sorrowing muhitudes who 
 flocked thither for miles, and a sym- 
 pathizing throng awaited his arrival. 
 But no voice was heard, no cheer was 
 raised as the sad cortege went on. At 
 Elberon he seemed, for a day or two, to 
 gather strength ; he felt himself a new 
 man ; he was raised up to see the bright 
 ocean heaving in the sunlight and 
 splashing on the shore. But neither 
 change of place, nor refreshing breezes 
 vere of avail. He was able to sign one 
 official document. The last words he 
 wrote were scribbled on a bit of paper, 
 Strangiilatits pro repiiblica. The day 
 before his death he said to his old 
 friend Rockwell, "Old boy, do you 
 think my name will have a place in 
 human history ?" "Yes, a grand one ; 
 but grander, in hmnan hearts. Old 
 fellow, you must not talk in that way, 
 you have a great work to do." "No,'' 
 said the dying man, "my work is done." 
 
 And then the end. Down to the very 
 last, no murmurs escaped his lips, no 
 regrets at leaving the power and glory 
 of his exalted position, or at the sud- 
 den cutting short of his brilliant career. 
 He sank with patient resignation, 
 courageous and uncomplaining, only 
 anxious for her who had borne him. and 
 her who had been the bride of his 
 youth, and the true companion of his 
 manhood. 
 
 \\hen Garfield's death was an- 
 nounced, President Arthur at once took 
 the oath of office in his own house at 
 Xew York, at one o'clock in the morn- 
 ing, and two days afterward repeated 
 it at \\'ashington. in the presence of 
 the Chief-Justice of the Supreme Court 
 and the Cabinet. As usual, the Cabi- 
 net tendered their resignations, and 
 were requested to retain office till new 
 appointments could be made. 
 
 The year 1881 being the centenary of 
 
 the surrender of Cornwallis at York- 
 town, that crowning triumph of the 
 Revolutionary War was celebrated at 
 the spot where it took place. Delegates 
 from the French government were 
 present to commemorate a victory in 
 vv'hich the arms of France had borne a 
 conspicuous part, and descendants of 
 Rochambeau, La Fayette, De Grasse, 
 and Villiers. as well as representatives 
 of Von Steuben, met on the field where 
 their ancestors had stood side by side 
 a century before. The celebration was 
 concluded by a ceremony which shows 
 in a striking manner the generosity of 
 our people and its gratitude for the 
 sympathy displayed by the English 
 sovereign during Garfield's illness and 
 at his death. The British flag was 
 hoisted and received a royal salute. A 
 striking token of good will between the 
 two branches of the great Anglo-Saxon 
 race ; a good will which it is to be 
 hoped will long continue to promote 
 civilization and bless mankind. 
 
 On the fourteenth of November, 
 1 881, the trial of Guiteau for the assas- 
 sination of President Garfield began in 
 the Court of the District of Columbia. 
 Between the murder and the trial lie 
 had been detained in jail, under the 
 guard of some regular troops. But so 
 deep and so wide-spread was the in- 
 dignation of the people at his dastardly 
 deed, that even his guardians did not 
 escape it, and even one of the sentries 
 of the prison attempted to shoot the 
 wretched criminal through the bars of 
 his cell. During the progress of the 
 trial, another attempt to kill Guiteau 
 was made. The assailant, mounted on 
 a fleet horse, rode up to the cellular van 
 in which the prisoner was being carried 
 from the court-house to the jail, and 
 fired his pistol through one of the win- 
 dows of the vehicle. In both cases 
 Guiteau received no injury. Judge Cox 
 presided over the trial, the prosecution 
 was conducted by the District Attorney, 
 Corkhill, assisted by ]\Ir. Davidge and 
 Judge Porter, the latter an eminent ad- 
 vocate of New York, who had been 
 conspicuous in the Beecher trial. The 
 evidence of the murder was soon given. 
 
284 
 
 THE HOME AUXILIARY AND REFERENCE 
 
 The facts were indisputable. The ques- 
 tion as to the sanity of the prisoner re- 
 main to be discussed. On January 25, 
 1882, the jury returned a verdict of 
 guilty amid volleys of blasphemy from 
 the prisoner. An appeal was made, and 
 a new trial demanded. But the de- 
 mand was rejected, and on the 3d of 
 February Charles J. Guiteau was sen- 
 tenced to be hung on the 30th of June. 
 
 The first change in the Cabinet took 
 place in November, 1881, when Mr. 
 W'indom resigned the Treasury, and 
 was succeeded by Judge Folger, of New 
 York. On the ist of January, 1882, 
 Mr. James resigned the Postmaster- 
 ship, and was succeeded by Mr. Howe. 
 Mr. Blaine, the Secretary of State, had, 
 during the illness of Garfield, inaugu- 
 rated a line of foreign policy which 
 seems calculated to involve the country 
 in sundry complications. He had sent 
 instructions to our Ministers in Peru 
 and Chili which looked to an interven- 
 tion on the part of the United States to 
 prevent Chili exercising her legitimate 
 rights of conquest. He had proposed 
 in a highly undiplomatic tone the abro- 
 gation of the Clayton-Bulwer treaty 
 with Great Britain respecting the guar- 
 antees of an interoceanic canal between 
 the Atlantic and Pacific, and proposed 
 to the Central American Republics the 
 meeting of a convention of delegates 
 from each State to be held at Washing- 
 ton, and to deliberate on their common 
 and mutual interests. The full extent 
 of these negotiations was not known to 
 the public till Mr. Blaine finally left the 
 Cabinet. The new Secretary of State, 
 Mr. Frelinghuysen, of New Jersey, 
 modified the instructions given by Mr. 
 Blaine to Messrs. Trescott and Blaine, 
 our special envoys to Peru and Chili, 
 and to the moderation of the views held 
 by him and the President, ample evi- 
 dence is borne by their subsequent acts. 
 
 One of the most important state 
 trials ever held in this coimtry, whether 
 we regard the high position of the par- 
 ties incriminated, or the failure of jus- 
 tice which public opinion considers to 
 have taken place, was that of the "Star 
 Routes." The "Star Routes" of our 
 Postal Service may be described as 
 lines upon which mail cannot be car- 
 
 ried by railroad or steamboat lines. 
 There were one hundred and thirty- 
 four such routes, on which the com- 
 pensation was raised from $143,169 to 
 $622,808. This was accomplished by 
 increasing the number of trips, shorten- 
 ing their time and obtaining therefor 
 by political influence additional com- 
 pensation. On twenty-six of the routes 
 the pay was raised from $65,216 to 
 $530,319, Chief among those accused 
 of being implicated in this attempt to 
 defraud the Government were Senator 
 S. W. Dorsey and Second Assistant 
 Postmaster-General Thomas J. Brady. 
 Against them and others in minor po- 
 sitions, the formal indictment was 
 brought on the 4th of March, 1882, the 
 proceedings having commenced in No- 
 vember of the year previous. The first 
 jury disagreed, and charges of receiv- 
 ing bribes were brought against sev- 
 eral of its members. The Marshal of 
 the District of Columbia, the Wash- 
 ington Postmaster, and others, were ac- 
 cused of aiding the prisoners and 
 were dismissed. A new trial was be- 
 gun in December of the same year, 
 ending, however, in their acquittal. 
 
 A question concerning Peru and 
 Chili arose from the war going on be- 
 tween those countries. Peru, being 
 overrun by the Chilians, was in a state 
 of anarchy, and two so-called govern- 
 ments co-existed. In June, according 
 to instructions from Secretary Blaine, 
 the Provisional Government of Cal- 
 deron, one of the pretenders, was for- 
 mally recognized in place of that of 
 Pierola. General Hurlburt in July sent 
 a communication to General Lynch, 
 commander of the Chilian forces, say- 
 ing that the United States disapproved 
 of war which had in view territorial 
 aggrandizement, and that the proposal 
 of Chili to take possession of Peruvian 
 territory, unless Peru demonstrated 
 its inability to pay in any other way the 
 indemnity imposed upon it by Chili, 
 was disapproved by this Government. 
 This letter produced violent excitement. 
 The Peruvians expected aid from the 
 United States, and were correspond- 
 ingly elated and grateful. The Chil- 
 ians, on the other hand, denounced 
 Minister Hurlburt with exceeding the 
 
SIXTH PERIOD— ARTHUR'S ADMINISTRATION 
 
 285 
 
 bounrls both of his own authority and 
 that of the United States. In response 
 to the inquiries of the Chihan govern- 
 ment General Kilpatrick, the minister 
 at Lima, wrote a letter contradicting 
 the statements of his Peruvian col- 
 league. Upon this affair Secretary 
 Blaine, for his own vindication, pub- 
 lished his instructions to the ministers 
 and various other documents. In these 
 he desires the ministers, if it lies in 
 their power, to persuade Chili to fore- 
 go the claim upon Peruvian territory. 
 He wrote : "There is nothing more dif- 
 ficult or more dangerous than forced 
 transfer of territory, carrying with it 
 an indignant and hostile population, 
 and nothing but a necessity, proved be- 
 fore the world, can justify it. It is 
 not a case in which the power desiring 
 the territory can be accepted as a safe 
 or impartial judge." As a consequence 
 of General Hurlburt's letter. President 
 Calderon was imprisoned by order of 
 General Lynch. 
 
 Affairs having become so involved, 
 Mr. William H. Trescot was appointed 
 special envoy to Peru and Chili. Mr. 
 Blaine was succeeded by Mr. Freling- 
 huysen. He immediately telegraphed 
 to ^Ir. Trescot that the questions aris- 
 ing from the suppression of the Cal- 
 deron government could be attended to 
 in Washington, and he proceeded to 
 say: "Were the L^nited States to as- 
 sume an attitude of dictation toward 
 the South American republics even for 
 the purpose of preventing war, the 
 greatest of all evils, or to enforce its 
 mandate, and to this end tax our peo- 
 ple for the exclusive benefit of foreign 
 nations." He nevertheless urged mod- 
 eration on Chili's part, declaring that 
 otherwise this government would not 
 give any aid in negotiating with Peru. 
 Mr. Partridge was afterward sent as 
 minister to Peru. He called an in- 
 formal meeting of the representatives 
 of various European powers to en- 
 deavor to agree upon a solution of the 
 difficulty. In this action he was re- 
 garded as having exceeded his author- 
 it)-, and was recalled. 
 
 The question of the coinage of silver 
 again became a prominent subject, not 
 merely in political, but in financial anc 
 
 commercial circles. By Xovember 1st 
 there were in the Treasury about 66,- 
 000.000 silver dollars. The danger 
 arose that this would inflate the paper 
 circulation of the country and reduce 
 its currency to the standard of the 
 silver dollar, and that gold would be 
 withdrawn from circulation. To avoic" 
 this emergency France and the Unite-.. 
 States invited various important na- 
 tions to send delegates to a conventio.i 
 which should determine a fixed ratio 
 between gold and silver. The conven- 
 tion was held, but Great Britain and 
 Germany refused to be bound by any 
 promises and the convention was ad- 
 journed. 
 
 Early in the session two important 
 measures were brought before the at- 
 tention of Congress. The peculiar 
 practices of the ^lormons in the Terri- 
 tory of Utah — practices which, openly 
 avowed as they are, conflict with our 
 normal civilization — were felt to be in 
 discord with the ordinary moral prin- 
 ciples of society. The other was a bill 
 relating to Chinese immigration. 
 
 As regards the Mormon Question, a 
 law passed in 1862 prohibting the Mor- 
 mon system of "sealing," or polyga- 
 mous marriage, was so negligently en- 
 forced that only three convictions had 
 occurred. To carry out the intention 
 of the bill, and render prosecution more 
 easy of proof, the so-called Edwards 
 Law was passed. By this, in addition 
 to a re-enactment of a fine and im- 
 prisonment, those who contravene the 
 law are prohibited from voting or hold- 
 ing oflSce. Under this act all the elec- 
 tive officers in Utah were dismissed 
 from office, and a commission of five 
 appointed by the President to dis- 
 charge their duties. The result of the 
 position taken by the Federal Govern- 
 ment has been the conviction of many 
 of the leading bishops, elders and other 
 dignitaries of the I\Iormon Church for 
 violation of the law. 
 
 The Chinese Question is one of 
 much greater extent than any mere 
 local issue. It is this: whether this re- 
 public, which has always loudly pro- 
 claimed itself as the refuge for the 
 poor and oppressed of all nationalities, 
 shall, in violation of its own constitu- 
 
286 
 
 THE HOME AUXILIARY AND REFERENCE 
 
 tional principles, and of the treaties 
 which it has. as a sovereign power. 
 entered into with a foreign nation, re- 
 fuse the ordinary protection for life 
 and property to a certain class of im- 
 migrants who, in frugality, industry 
 and patience, afford a striking contrast 
 to the majority of those who advocate 
 their exclusion. By the articles of the 
 Burlingame treaty concluded between 
 the United States and China in 1868, 
 the Chinese were accorded the same 
 privileges in regard to settling in this 
 country and becoming naturalized as 
 are enjoyed by those of any other na- 
 tionality. In 1880. after violent agita- 
 tion against their admission, formented 
 particularly by the working classes of 
 the Pacific States, the treaty was modi- 
 fied. By the new terms this Govern- 
 ment could regulate or suspend, but not 
 prohibit, the immigration of the labor- 
 ing classes, and in response to many 
 demands for a stricter law. a bill was 
 passed in 1882 prohibiting the importa- 
 tion of Chinese laborers for a term of 
 ten years. 
 
 In this year full reports were heard 
 of the ill-fated band who had sailed 
 under D.e Long in the Jeannette. 
 
 In domestic as well as in foreign af- 
 fairs Mr. Arthur's presidency was 
 uneventful. If the saying is true that 
 the country is happiest which has no 
 history, his term must be included in 
 the list of happy presidencies. 
 
 The Republican Convention met on 
 June 3d in the Exposition Building at 
 Chicago. President Arthur had hoped 
 to be nominated, but his record in New 
 York politics had alienated the Civil 
 Service Reformers, and his course of 
 action since his accession to his high 
 office had rendered hostile the adherents 
 of Mr. Blaine. On the fourth ballot 
 Mr. J. G. Blaine, of Maine, was nomi- 
 nated as the Republican candidate for 
 the presidency, and on the 15th of July 
 he addressed to the committee deputed 
 to inform him of his nomination a 
 formal letter of acceptance. The Demo- 
 cratic Convention met in the same city 
 on the 8th of July. Grover Cleveland 
 was nominated as the candidate of the 
 party. ' Mr. Cleveland was known to 
 
 have discharged admirably his duties as 
 Mayor of Buffalo in opposing municipal 
 corruption. He was elected Governor 
 of New York as a reform Governor, 
 hostile to Federal interference in State 
 affairs, and had discharged his duties 
 in a manner which gained the approval 
 of the Civil Service Reformers as well 
 as of the Democrats. His election had 
 been a rebuke of the management of 
 the Republican party as careless of its 
 traditions and of the purpose of a great 
 body of Republicans, and was a declara- 
 tion of political independence. 
 
 CLEVELAND'S ADMINISTRA- 
 TION. 
 
 On the 4th of ]\Iarch Grover Cleve- 
 land was inaugurated at Washington 
 with the usual ceremonies, and nomi- 
 nated as his Cabinet : Thomas F. 
 Bayard, Secretary of State ; Daniel 
 Manning, Secretary of the Treasury; 
 William C. Whitney, Secretary of the 
 Navy : William C. Endicott, Secretary 
 of War ; L. O. C. Lamar, Secretary 
 of the Interior: Augustus H. Garland. 
 Attorney-General, and William F. Vilas, 
 Postmaster-General. 
 
 The minor appointments to minor 
 positions under the Federal Govern- 
 ment began at once to trouble the new 
 administration. There was the strong 
 party of old Democrats, hungry for the 
 spoils of victory, who clamored for the 
 immediate dismissal of old Republican 
 office-holders. Great was their wrath 
 when, in consequence of a strong peti- 
 tion from most of the business houses 
 of New York, Mr. Pearson was re- 
 tained as postmaster at our commercial 
 metropolis. There were the anti-Blaine 
 Republicans, who had voted for Cleve- 
 land in the interest of Civil Service 
 reform, and whom both the old parties 
 designated as "Mugwumps." This 
 strange word, first popularized at this 
 epoch, is an old Narragansett Indian 
 word, used in Elliott's translation of 
 the Bible for chief or king, and was 
 now applied to the Civil .Service re- 
 formers and Independent Republicans 
 to insinuate that they thought them- 
 selves better than other men, and bound 
 
SIXTH PERIOD— CLEVELAND'S ADMINISTRATION 
 
 287 
 
 to no allegiance. The "Mugwumps" in 
 their turn were indignant at the nomi- 
 nation of Mr. Eugene Iliggins as ap- 
 pointment clerk in the Treasury. He 
 was described as an unscrupulous 
 political worker and with a bad record, 
 and his installation in such a position 
 as that named was justly regarded as 
 indicating a swerving on the part of 
 the President from his earlier profes- 
 sions of a desire to reform the Civil 
 Service — a desire proclaimed in his an- 
 nouncement that no removals from 
 office would be made except in the case 
 of heads of departments, for "cause" 
 or for "offensive partisanship." 
 
 It is advisable to go into these details 
 respecting the formation of the admin- 
 istration of President Cleveland, as in 
 them lie the causes why he did not suc- 
 ceed in procuring a re-election to a 
 second term. It is the old story — a man 
 cannot serve two masters. 
 
 The first business that attracted the 
 attention of the President was the civil 
 war raging in the Central American 
 States, to the detriment of American 
 interests in that quarter. A naval force 
 was dispatched to the scene of disturb- 
 ance, and a force of marines landed to 
 protect life and property at Aspinwall, 
 which had been occupied and burned 
 by one of the factions. At home the 
 failing health of General Grant con- 
 tinued to evoke universal sympathy. 
 The last act of President Arthur had 
 been to sign the bills restoring him to 
 his rank in the army, but he was not 
 destined to hold the honor long. He 
 died on the 23d of July, and on the 
 8th of August his remains were brought 
 from Mount MacGregor, where the 
 death took place, to New York. The 
 body lay in state for two days in the 
 City Hall, and was then transported to 
 a spot on the banks of the Hudson in 
 Riverside Park, which the city had as- 
 signed for that purpose. 
 
 On the 28th of November the Vice- 
 President, Mr. Hendricks, died sud- 
 denly. By his decease before the meet- 
 ing of Congress, the succession to the 
 presidency, in case of the death or dis- 
 ability of the President, was left unde- 
 termined. By the Constitution, the 
 
 Congress has the power to provide for 
 the case of the removal or death of 
 either the President or Vice-President, 
 but the Congress had not yet organized. 
 When it did meet on the 7th of De- 
 cember the Senate elected Senator 
 Sherman its President pro tempore, the 
 acting Vice-President thus being the 
 leader of the opposition to the Presi- 
 dent's policy. So great was the an.xiety 
 felt at this unexpected state of affairs 
 that, by the advice of his Cabinet, the 
 President declined to attend the funeral 
 of his colleague. Various proposals 
 had been made at various times with 
 a view of settling beyond peril the ques- 
 tion of succession. In the early part 
 of 1883 a bill for this purpose was 
 brought in, and as the death of Mr. 
 Hendricks again called the attention of 
 the nation to this important matter, the 
 President in his message recommended 
 the subject to the careful consideration 
 of Congress. In accordance with this 
 recommendation, and in view of the 
 alarming results that might ensue if a 
 question of such grave importance was 
 not at once settled by the Legislature, 
 a bill prepared by Senator Hoar was 
 introduced and finally passed. By its 
 provisions, in case of the death of both 
 the President and Vice-President, '.iie 
 functions of the office are to be dis- 
 charged till an election can be held 
 under the articles of the Constitution, 
 by the Cabinet officers, in the order of 
 the seniority of creation of their olfices. 
 In addition to the suggestion for im- 
 mediate action on the settlement of the 
 presidential succession. President Cleve- 
 land, in his first address to the First 
 Session of the Forty-ninth Congress, 
 while presenting to the Senate the re- 
 ports of his various Secretaries of the 
 Executive Departments, endorsed and 
 enforced the views expressed by these 
 officers. His recommendations were 
 strictly on the line of the ideas he had 
 promulgated in his inaugural address 
 and in his letter of acceptance of the 
 presidential nomination. As a prelimi- 
 nary he pointed out what he deemed 
 the constitutional functions of the 
 Executive and the Legislature, and the 
 line that was to be drawn between them. 
 
288 
 
 THE HOME AUXILIARY AND REFERENCE 
 
 "The Constitution," he wrote, "which 
 requires those chosen to legislate for 
 the people to annually meet in the dis- 
 charge of their solemn trusts, requires 
 the President to give to Congress in- 
 formation of the state of the Union, 
 and recommend to their consideration 
 such measures as he shall deem neces- 
 sary." And he proceeded: "The 
 Executive may recommend such meas- 
 ures as he may deem expedient ; the 
 responsibility for legislative action rests 
 with those who are selected by the peo- 
 ple to make their laws." Having thus 
 defined his own position with respect 
 to the Houses of Congress, he recom- 
 mended the abolition of all custom 
 duties on imported works of art, a 
 measure involving only a trivial sacri- 
 fice of revenue. The next recommend.i- 
 tion was of far wider import, for it 
 was no less than one for the revision 
 of the tariff. 
 
 .The President during the whole of 
 his term of office was placed in a most 
 embarrassing position, for, in addition 
 to open enemies in Congress, he had 
 to contend against the lukewarm sup- 
 port or scarcely disguised hostility of the 
 rank and file of the Democratic party. 
 To them the principle of Civil Service 
 reform, to which he had pledged him- 
 self, was in every respect distasteful. 
 It was denounced as un-American, stig- 
 matized as Chinese and British, and 
 declared to be the first step towards 
 creating a bureaucracy, the members 
 of which, neither hoping for promotion 
 nor fearing dismissal from the people, 
 or the chosen representatives of the 
 people, or the Chief of the State, would 
 form an arrogant, exclusive, almost 
 independent body, able, if not entirely 
 to thwart, at least to embarrass the 
 execution of the popular will. The 
 principle of rotation in office was pro- 
 claimed as the true American and 
 Democratic principle, and it was urged 
 that, as all offices since the war, dur- 
 ing all the successive Republican ad- 
 ministrations, had been fihed by Re- 
 publicans, so now, when a President 
 elected by the Democratic party occupied 
 the White House and administered 
 public affairs through a Democratic 
 
 Cabinet, all offices ought to be filled 
 by Democrats. 
 
 "Turn the rascals out!" had been for 
 years a rallying cry for the Democracy, 
 and its fulfillment was demanded. Nor 
 would the public service, it was argued, 
 suffer by such changes in its personnel, 
 for the offices in whicli they took place 
 were such as any intelligent citizen 
 could discharge satisfactorily; while in 
 the present state of affairs a substitu- 
 tion of Democrats for Republican offi- 
 cials was especially desirable, in order 
 to give the party that had been so long 
 excluded from every share in the ad- 
 ministration some training in the offi- 
 cial routine of public office. Above all, 
 the managers of the Democratic party 
 insisted on the doctrine that "to the 
 victor belongs the spoils," and that the 
 only way by which the party could be 
 held together, or those who had worked 
 zealously for its triumphs be rewarded, 
 was the bestowal of office, if only as 
 an acknowledgment of services ren- 
 dered and an encouragement of services 
 to come. Great as was the pressure 
 thus put on the President, and often as 
 he was compelled to give way to it, 
 on the whole he endeavored to the best 
 of his ability to carry out the pledges 
 on which he had appealed to the people 
 when a candidate for their suffrages. 
 
 But whatever political troubles en- 
 vironed President Cleveland from open 
 foes or doubtful friends, he had found 
 time to win a wife ; and although the 
 matrimonial alliances of our Presidents 
 have no such political bearings as those 
 of European potentates, the event de- 
 serves mention, for thereafter the 
 President acquired a temporary and 
 sentimental popularity. 
 
 The foreign relations of the United 
 States were as uneventful as usual. A 
 new extradition treaty between Great 
 Britain and this country had been for 
 some time under discussion. It was 
 considerably wider in its terms than 
 the existing one, but one of its clauses, 
 stipulating for the surrender of per- 
 sons who should have inflicted injury 
 by the use of dynamite, gave rise to 
 great opposition. 
 
 On the Mexican frontier the usual 
 
SIXTH PERIOD— CLE\-ELAND'S ADMINISTRATION 
 
 289 
 
 condition of aft'airs continued. Law- 
 less men from both countries crossed 
 and recrossed the frontier, but without 
 any acts involving any international 
 question. In the month of August, 
 1886, however, a new and curious con- 
 troversy arose between the Mexican 
 and American Governments. At the 
 frontier town of El Paso, in Texas, 
 there lived an American citizen. Cut- 
 ting by name, who published a news- 
 paper there. For some reason or other 
 he moved from the American side to 
 the Mexican side of the boundry line, 
 and there, in pursuit of his calling, he 
 began the publication of a paper in the 
 Spanish language. With true American 
 journalistic enterprise, he set out to 
 make his paper popular by making it 
 sensational, and he made it sensational 
 by violent attacks on the local govern- 
 ment. He was arrested for libel, but 
 released on signing a retraction. On 
 his release he at once crossed into 
 Texas, had the original libel repub- 
 lished there in Spanish in an American 
 newspaper, and taking copies of this 
 paper with him, returned to ^Mexico and 
 sold them. He was rearrested, tried, 
 convicted and sentenced to imprison- 
 ment. The American Government 
 took up the position that the offense 
 was committed within the jurisdiction 
 of the L'nited States and could not be 
 punished in ^Mexico, and demanded 
 [jereniptorily his immediate release. 
 The affair was temporarily adjusted 
 by the Mexican Government making a 
 proposition, through the United States 
 Minister at Mexico, that the American 
 Government should send a special en- 
 voy to confer with the Mexican Attor- 
 ney-General as to the proper interpreta- 
 tion of the law in the case. The 
 proposition was acted upon, and Mr. 
 Arthur G. Sedgwick was deputed to 
 act in behalf of the United States, but 
 without diplomatic powers or authority 
 to effect a settlement. The upshot of 
 the affair was that the Mexican court 
 released Mr. Cutting on a technical 
 plea. 
 
 Congress passed in 1887 the Inter- 
 state Commerce Act. The bill itself 
 was designed to stop the encroachment 
 
 of raiKvaj' corporations on individual 
 rights, and to check discrimination in 
 the rates of freight to the advantage 
 of certain localities or certain favored 
 customers. It was not without pro- 
 tracted debate that the measure became 
 law, and it was not without consider- 
 able misgivings and foreboding of evil 
 that the railroad companies commenced 
 to comply with its provisions. The 
 ultimate or permanent success of even 
 this measure is still quite doubtful. 
 An investigation held in April, 1889, 
 elicited the fact that, while the great 
 railway managers had found difficulties 
 in the way of carrying out its provi- 
 sions, none of them asked for its re- 
 peal. On the contrary, they urged the 
 necessity of the Government strictly 
 enforcing its provisions on all railroads 
 in the United States or that, pass 
 through the United States. This last 
 demand was aimed especially at the 
 Canadian railroads, of which tlie Grand 
 Trunk Railroad has a branch running 
 through the State of Maine, and de- 
 rives the bulk of its business from the 
 Western cities of Chicago, Detroit and 
 St. I^aul. The law, too, it was urged, 
 placed American transcontinental lines 
 at a disadvantage compared with the 
 great Canadian Pacific Railroad that 
 runs to \'ancouver's Island from the 
 Atlantic seaboard. Built by the aid of 
 lavish subsidies from the Canadian 
 Government, this transcontinental line, 
 running wholly outside the United 
 States, is necessarily exempt from the 
 action of its laws. It is not, moreover, 
 hampered by any such restrictions as 
 those embodied in the Interstate Com- 
 merce Bill respecting rates of freight 
 or the relation of the rates of freight 
 to the number of miles over which the 
 freight is carried. It can, therefore, 
 carry some classes of goods between 
 England and San Francisco cheaper 
 than our lines can. The contention, 
 therefore, of the railway managers is 
 that, as far as the connections of this 
 company extend to the United States, 
 so far ought the Interstate Commerce 
 Bill to be enforced. 
 
 In April, 1887, an important change 
 took place in the Cabinet, the Secre- 
 
THE HOME AUXILIARY AND REFERENCE 
 
 tary of the Treasury, JMr. Daniel Man- 
 ning, being compelled by ill-health to 
 resign his high position. To his exer- 
 tions the election of Grover Cleveland 
 as Governor was mainly due, and his 
 action in the National Convention of 
 1884, as head of the New York delega- 
 tion, had equally great influence on 
 his nomination to the presidency. His 
 knowledge of banking and finance well 
 qualified him for the office to which 
 he was assigned, and his discharge of 
 his duties was satisfactory to the 
 financial and commercial community. 
 After his resignation he paid a visit 
 to Europe, but the improvement of his 
 health did not continue on his return 
 hence, and in December he died, in his 
 native city of Albany. 
 
 In 1885 death removed from the 
 scenes of active life General George 
 B. McClellan, the commander of all the 
 armies of the United States after the 
 retirement of General Scott, and the 
 organizer of the Army of the Potomac. 
 His career in the war and his candidacy 
 for the presidency in 1864 have already 
 been told in these pages. In that year 
 he had resigned his commission in the 
 army and took up his residence in New 
 York and New Jersey, devoting him- 
 self to various engineering enterprises, 
 to travel and to literary pursuits. He 
 was a clear writer, a good speaker, and 
 profoundly versed in the arts of strat- 
 egy and tactics. Too much caution 
 and a strange suspicion that the Gov- 
 ernment did not wish him to succeed, 
 led to all his failures and disappoint- 
 ments. But, to quote the words of 
 Prof. Henry Coppee, "his personal 
 magnetism had no parallel in military 
 history, except in that of the first Na- 
 poleon. He was literally the idol of 
 his officers and men. and they would 
 obey him when all other control failed." 
 
 Samuel Jones Tilden was born in 
 Lebanon, New York, in the year 1814, 
 the descendant of a New England 
 family that settled in .\merica in 1634. 
 His father was a friend of Martin 
 \'an Buren, and politics was the very 
 atmosphere of the household in which 
 the boy grew up. Both before and 
 after his entrance at Yale, in 1832, as 
 
 well as before and after his admission 
 to the bar, his tongue and pen were 
 devoted to discussing the political ques- 
 tions of the day. As a lawyer he made 
 his fame and laid the foundation of 
 his fortune by his argument in the 
 suit between the Pennsylvania Coal 
 Company and the Delaware and Hud- 
 son Canal Company, and from 1855 
 all the great Northwestern railroads 
 were his clients. In 1848 he had joined 
 in the Free Soil schism which that 
 question provoked in the Democratic 
 party, but throughout the war main- 
 tained that the struggle against the 
 Confederate States could be carried on 
 to a successful termination without 
 having recourse to unconstitutional 
 methods. In 1868 Tilden was the 
 leader of the Democrats in New York 
 State, and, to his honor, he opposed 
 with the utmost determination the cor- 
 rupt ring which, under the command 
 of \\'illiam M. Tweed, plundered the 
 city of New York. He became the 
 directing spirit which carried out the 
 impeachment of Judges Barnard and 
 Cordoza. and gave his energy and time 
 and labor to prosecute the suits by the 
 city against the "Tweed Ring" and its 
 agents and allies. He became Governor 
 of New York in 1874, and his first 
 message denounced the extravagance 
 and dishonesty that had prevailed in 
 the management of the canals of the 
 State. In 1876 he was nominated the 
 Democratic candidate for the presi- 
 dency, and although the Electoral Com- 
 mission gave the high office to Mr. R. 
 B. Hayes, yet Tilden had the popular 
 vote, the numbers being 4,284,265 for 
 Tilden, against 4,033,293 for Hayes. 
 Henceforth he was the first of Demo- 
 cratic leaders, but his state of health 
 compelled him to decline the nomina- 
 tion in 1880 and again in 1884. He 
 died, after a i)rotracted period of fee- 
 bleness, in 1886. His last important 
 act in public afl^airs was a letter ad- 
 dressed to Speaker Carlisle, urging the 
 necessity of liberal appropriations for 
 the purpose of making our coasts safe 
 against the attacks of any naval power. 
 In public life Mr. Tilden was more a 
 politician than a statesman. Astute, 
 
SIXTH PERIOD— CLEVELAND'S ADMINISTRATION 
 
 secretive, and dextrous, he was an ex- 
 cellent organizer of his party and held 
 them together in defeat, although he 
 could not lead them to victory in his 
 lifetime. To his advice Mr. Cleveland 
 owed the presence in his Cabinet of its 
 strongest man, Mr. Manning, the Secre- 
 tary of the Treasury. Mr. Tilden will 
 be long known from the contested re- 
 sult of his candidacy for the presi- 
 dency ; he will be perhaps better known 
 for the munificent legacies he left to 
 the city of New York to establish a free 
 public library in the large and stately 
 house in Gramercy I'ark, which he 
 also bequeathed to the city. 
 
 Another unsuccessful candidate for 
 the honor of the presidency died in 
 1886, General Winiield Scott Hancock, 
 who was defeated by J. A. Garfield in 
 1880. Whatever slanders political ma- 
 lignity had scattered abroad during 
 General Hancock's candidacy had been 
 forgotten before his death, and his 
 deeds during the war were alone re- 
 membered. "Hancock," wrote General 
 Grant, "stands the most conspicuous 
 figure of all the general officers who 
 did not exercise a separate command. 
 His name was never mentioned as hav- 
 ing committed in battle a blunder for 
 which he was responsible. He was a 
 man of very conspicuous personal ap- 
 pearance; tail, well-formed, he pre- 
 sented an appearance that would 
 attract the attention of an army as he 
 passed. His genial disposition gained 
 him friends, and his presence, with his 
 command, in the thickest of the fight, 
 won him the confidence of the troops 
 that served under him." General 
 .Sherman spoke equally highly of their 
 fellow-soldier. "Sit down," he said to a 
 raker-up of scandals during the heat 
 of the presidential campaign, "sit down 
 and write the best thing that can be 
 put in language about General Han- 
 cock as an officer and a gentleman, and 
 I will sign it." 
 
 To these may be added the name of 
 one who had been nominated by the 
 Republican party as their candidate for 
 the vice-presidency in 1884, General 
 Logan, of Illinois, equally distinguished 
 as a soldier and as a statesman. 
 
 John Alexander Logan was born in 
 Illinois in 1826, and died at the capital 
 of the Union in 1886. He served as a 
 soldier in the Mexican war, and after 
 it was over embraced the profession 
 of the law, where his pleasing address 
 and forcible oratory soon rendered 
 him popular. After some experience 
 in State politics, he was elected to 
 Congress in 1858 as a Douglas Demo- 
 crat, and in i860 advocated the election 
 of that statesman. He declared, how- 
 ever, on the first suspicion that the 
 election of Abraham Lincoln would be 
 the cause of strife, that he would 
 "shoulder his musket to have him in- 
 augurated." He fought as a volunteer 
 at the first battle of Bull Run, and 
 afterwards organized the Thirty-first 
 Illinois Regiment, of which he became 
 Colonel. He greatly distinguished him- 
 self in the field, and refused to interrupt 
 or abandon his military service by ac- 
 cepting a nomination to Congress. "I 
 have entered the field to die, if need 
 be," he said, "and never expect to 
 return till the object of the war is 
 obtained." He was conspicuous for 
 his skill and gallantry at Vicksburg, 
 Resaca, Atlanta, and n' arched with 
 Sherman "to the sea." When active 
 service was over he resigned his com- 
 mission and was returned to Congress, 
 where he was one of the managers of 
 the impeachment of President Johnson. 
 In 1 87 1 he was elected to the Senate, 
 and in 1884 was nominated as the 
 Republican candidate for the vice- 
 presidency on the same ticket as Mr. 
 Blaine. The most fitting tribute to his 
 memory is expressed in the words of 
 Mr. Blaine : "General Logan was a 
 man of immense force in a legislative 
 body. His will was unbending; his 
 courage, both moral and physical, was 
 of the highest order. I never knew a 
 more fearless man. He did not quail 
 before public opinion when he had once 
 made up his mind, any more than he 
 did before the guns of the enemy when 
 he headed a charge. In debate he was 
 effective and aggressive. While there 
 have been more illustrious leaders in 
 the United States and more illustrious 
 leaders in legislative halls, there has, 
 
292 
 
 THE HOME AUXILIARY AND REFERENCE 
 
 I think, been no man in this country 
 who has combined the two careers in 
 so eminent a degree as General Lo- 
 gan." General Logan was a man of 
 striking personal appearance ; swarthy, 
 as if he had Indian blood in his veins, 
 with jet-black hair, which he wore long, 
 a heavy black moustache, dark eyes, 
 and regular features, he looked the type 
 of the Western American. 
 
 Before passing on to narrate the for- 
 eign relations which the Secretary of 
 State had to conduct, and which 
 brought upon him much obloquy, it 
 will not be out of place to take some 
 notice of the alarming earthquake — ■ 
 or rather series of earthquakes — at 
 Charleston, the first and most alarming 
 shock being on August 31, 1S86. This 
 was felt, indeed, throughout the whole 
 region of the United States between 
 the Mississippi River and the Atlantic 
 Ocean. It was especially severe in 
 North and South Carolina, reaching its 
 climax in the city of Charleston, where 
 it caused terrible destruction. The city 
 was wrecked, and the streets encum- 
 bered with masses of fallen bricks and 
 tangled telegraph and telephone wires, 
 making it almost impossible to pass 
 from one part of the city to another. 
 Most of the people, with their families, 
 passed the night in the streets, which 
 were for some days crowded with men 
 and women who were afraid to re-enter 
 their houses. Fires broke out in differ- 
 ent parts of the city immediately after 
 the earthquake, adding to the general 
 alarm. An examination of the ruins 
 showed that the damage was greater 
 than was supposed. The loss was vari- 
 ously estimated at from ten to fifteen 
 millions of dollars. Though few per- 
 sons were killed, the sufi'ering of the 
 people was very great. The city was 
 for a time virtually cut ofT from the 
 outer world. The rails had been 
 twisted like threads, so that no trains 
 could approach or leave the place. 
 There was some prospect of famine, the 
 principal hope of relief from such dis- 
 aster lying on the seaward side. Famine 
 was. however, happily averted by 
 strenuous efifort and by contributions in 
 
 kind from adjoining cities. These 
 were, later, supplemented by consider- 
 able money donations from all parts of 
 the world. 
 
 In the fall of 1886 a ceremony took 
 place which rose to the dignity of a 
 national event — that was the solemn un- 
 \eiling of the statue, "Liberty Enlight- 
 ening tlic World," which now stands 
 in New York Harbor. 
 
 One of the most important and deli- 
 cate questions that occupied the atten- 
 tion of the Secretary of State during 
 President Cleveland's administration 
 was the so-called "Fisheries Question." 
 or the controversy between Canada and 
 Great Britain on one hand and the 
 United States on the other, respecting 
 the rights of American fishermen who 
 plied their trade in the waters adjacent 
 to the Dominion of Canada. It is a 
 question that is coeval with the repub- 
 lic, and which on several occasions has 
 produced considerable coolness between 
 the two Governments. 
 
 The Democratic Convention had been 
 summoned to meet in St. Louis on June 
 5, 1888. The convention nominated as 
 the party's candidate for the ensuing 
 presidential term the then holder of that 
 exalted office, and the Republican Con- 
 vention, that met at Chicago on June 
 19th, nominated as its candidate Gen- 
 eral Benjamin Harrison, of Indiana, 
 who had already served his country 
 as a soldier in the field, as Congress- 
 man in the House of Representatives 
 and as a Senator. The veteran Allen 
 G. Thurman, of Ohio, was nominated 
 by the Democrats as Vice-President on 
 the same ticket with Grover Cleveland 
 as President, while the Republicans 
 named Levi P. Morton, of New York, 
 as the Vice-President on their ticket. 
 The campaign was not disgraced by the 
 personalities which had formed so re- 
 voltinga feature in the campaign of 
 1884, but was conducted on broad, 
 economic issues. The result was that 
 Benjamin Harrison and Levi P. Morton 
 were elected President and Vice-Presi- 
 dent of the LTnited States by 233 elec- 
 toral votes, against 168 cast for Cleve- 
 land and Thurman. 
 
SIXTH PERIOD— HARRISON'S ADMINISTRATION 
 
 HARRISON'S ADMINISTRATION 
 AND CLEVELAND'S SECOND 
 
 TERM. 
 
 Benjamin Harrison, the twenty-third 
 President of the United States, was the 
 grandson of General William Henry 
 Harrison, "Old Tippecanoe," who was 
 President in 1841, and great-grandson 
 of Benjamin Harrison, of Virginia, 
 one of the signers of the Declaration 
 of Independence. He was born at 
 North Bend, Indiana, in 1833, and 
 practiced law in that city till he entered 
 the army, in which he rose to the rank 
 of Brigadier-General. When the war 
 was over he resumed his profession, 
 and was one of the Senators of his 
 State in Congress from 1880 to 1886. 
 The Vice-President, Levi P. ^Morton, 
 an eminent banker of New York, had 
 been Minister to P^rance during Mr. 
 Arthur's administration. The new 
 Executive was duly inaugurated at 
 Washington with the accustomed cere- 
 monies, and nominated a.s his Cabinet: 
 James G. Blaine, of Maine, Secretary 
 of State; William Windom, of Minne- 
 sota, Secretary of the Treasury ; R. 
 Proctor, of Vermont, Secretary of 
 War; John Wanamaker, of Pennsyl- 
 vania, Postmaster-General ; William H. 
 H. Miller, of Indiana, Attorney-Gen- 
 eral ; B. F. Tracy, of New York, Secre- 
 tary of the Navy; J. W. Noble, of 
 Missouri, Secretary of the Interior, and 
 Jeremiah Rusk, of Indiana, Secretary 
 of Agriculture. This last was a new 
 office, of which Mr. Rusk was the first 
 incumbent. 
 
 The first great public function in 
 which President Harrison was called 
 to appear was the Centennial celebra- 
 tion of the inauguration of Washington 
 at New York. The centenary of the 
 Declaration of Independence was 
 marked by the Great Exhibition in 
 Philadelphia in 1876, under President 
 Grant : the termination of the War of 
 Independence by the surrender of the 
 British forces at Yorktown was com- 
 memorated in 1881 under President 
 Arthur. President Cleveland witnessed 
 the long processions and elaborate cere- 
 monies with which Philadelphia in 1887 
 
 kept the centenary of the signing of 
 the Constitution, and now this series of 
 national celebrations was completed by 
 due observance of the hundredth anni- 
 versary of the day on which the first 
 President had been inaugurated. 
 
 The tariff act known as "the Mc- 
 Kinley Bill" was prepared and put 
 through the House. It provided for an 
 average of higher duties than had ever 
 been laid, but also greatly increased 
 the free list. In the Senate the bill 
 met opposition, where a bill to put 
 congressional and presidential elections 
 under Federal control had aroused the 
 Southern Democrats, who professed to 
 see in it a return of negro domination. 
 By skillful maneuvering Senator Quay 
 made an arrangement by which the elec- 
 tion law was dropped and the tariff 
 bill passed. 
 
 At this session was passed a new 
 bill in relation to silver. The Bland- 
 Allison Act had failed to bring the price 
 of silver up to $1.29 per ounce, where 
 the ratio of 16 to i would be main- 
 tained. The Senate passed a bill re- 
 storing the free coinage of silver, but 
 the House was opposed to it. A new 
 compromise was passed, known as "the 
 Sherman Act." By it the Secretary of 
 the Treasury was to buy in the open 
 market monthly not exceeding 4,500.000 
 ounces of silver at the market price 
 and issue certificates on it at once, 
 before coining, at the rate of one dollar 
 for each 371 1/2 grains, which should 
 be legal tender. This it was supposed 
 would absorb all the surplus silver and 
 restore the former price. In the mean- 
 time a new international conference 
 on the subject was called in the hope 
 of the general remonetization of silver. 
 This act failed to restore the price, and 
 the international conference failed as 
 before. 
 
 Foreign matters had a serious aspect 
 during this administration. In New 
 Orleans an Italian society, known as 
 "the Mafia," had long secured immunity 
 from punishment for crime by means 
 of political influence. A number of 
 particularly foul murders had been 
 committed and no one convicted. On 
 March 14, 1891, a mob gathered, broke 
 
THE HOME AUXILIARY AND REFERENCE 
 
 open the jail, and shot down seven 
 Italian prisoners who were awaiting 
 trial, and hanged two others. Italy at 
 once demanded an apology and repara- 
 tion. Mr. Blaine replied that it was a 
 matter for Louisiana and not the 
 United States to settle. The relations 
 between the two countries became 
 strained. The Italian Minister went 
 home, and ours left Rome. Eventually 
 the matter was healed over, $25,000 
 recompense given the families of the 
 nmrdered men, and friendly relations 
 were restored. 
 
 A more serious incident was that 
 with Chili. In 1891, during one of the 
 periodical revolutions, the existing gov- 
 ernment was overthrown. Our minister 
 granted asylum to the deposed Presi- 
 dent, and he escaped the fate common 
 in South American revolutions. This 
 greatly angered the successful revolu- 
 tionists, who soon took an opportunity 
 to wreck their vengeance. The revo- 
 lutionary steamer Itata was seized by 
 the United States, but sailed away sud- 
 denly. She was followed, and sur- 
 rendered at Iquique. This made 
 matters worse. The United States 
 cruiser Baltimore lay in Valparaiso 
 Harbor and some of her crew (, October 
 i6th) went ashore as usual. A mob 
 collected and drove the blue jackets 
 back to the boats, killing two and 
 wounding several. This was an insult 
 not to be brooked. President Harrison 
 demanded an immediate apology and 
 indemnity. Chili at first was not dis- 
 posed to agree to this, whereupon rapid 
 preparations were made for war. At 
 this Chili backed down and made the 
 reparation demanded, though not with 
 very good grace. The sum paid was 
 $75,000. The body of the killed boat- 
 swain's mate, Charles W. Riggin, was 
 disinterred, brought home to Philadel- 
 phia and lay in state in Independence 
 Hall, after which it was buried with 
 military honors, followed by the great- 
 est procession ever given a sailor in 
 this country. 
 
 In 1889 a revolution in Brazil had 
 driven the aged Dom Pedro from his 
 throne, and a Republic was set up. 
 In 1892 the navy revolted against the 
 
 Government, and established a partial 
 blockade of several ports, whereupon 
 one of our war vessels in the bay of 
 Rio Janeiro escorted some American 
 vessels to the dock. The rebel navy 
 did not open fire, as was threatened. 
 Soon after the rebellion was crushed. 
 .Another important dispute with Great 
 Britain was sent to arbitration. Claim- 
 ing the sole right to catch seals in 
 Ijcring Sea, this Government had seized 
 some Canadian vessels engaged in 
 shooting seals on the high seas. Our 
 contention was that we owned the seals. 
 The matter was decided against us, and 
 we paid damages. In 1897 seal catch- 
 ing was temporarily stopped to prevent 
 extermination of the herd. 
 
 One event of 1889 that will long live 
 in history was the destruction of Johns- 
 town, Pennsylvania, i\Iay 31st, by the 
 bursting of a dam which kept back a 
 large lake. The water from this lake 
 was precipitated upon the town and 
 almost totally destroyed it, while several 
 thousand persons lost their lives. Ap- 
 peals for aid were answered from all 
 over the world, and the city was soon 
 rebuilt and more prosperous than ever. 
 
 In 1888 was passed the new Chinese 
 Exclusion Act with provisions much 
 more strict than those of former days. 
 The construction of the Pacific railway 
 was the primary cause of the heavy 
 wave of Chinese immigration, which 
 soon became threatening because the 
 cheap labor drove out the Caucasian 
 who could not compete. By the act of 
 1888 Chinese laborers were absolutely 
 prohibited entering, while all Chinese 
 in the country were required to register. 
 
 In 1890 the administration met the 
 usual mid-term reverse at the elections. 
 This was partly due to party apathy 
 and partly to dissatisfaction with the 
 new tariff bill. The House of Repre- 
 sentatives was controlled by the Demo- 
 crats, and Charles F. Crisp, of Georgia, 
 was elected Speaker, which prevented 
 any partisan legislation in the latter part 
 of Harrison's temi. Just before this 
 term expired a revolution in the Ha- 
 waiian Islands deposed Queen Liliuo- 
 kalani and set up a Republic. President 
 Harrison negotiated a treaty of annexa- 
 
SIXTH PERIOD— HARRISON'S ADMINISTRATION 
 
 tioii, which was referred to the Senate, 
 but not acted on. 
 
 Th'e year 1892, judged by official sta- 
 tistics, was the most prosperous up to 
 that time. Our foreign trade was 
 large, domestic trade showed the largest 
 totals in the history of clearing house 
 statistics, and manufacturing was on 
 an unprecedented scale. Under such 
 circumstances the Republican party ex- 
 pected an easy victory. Unfortunately 
 it was not harmonious, and there was 
 much grumbling over the tariff bill on 
 the ground that it unduly raised the 
 price of necessities. The Republican 
 Convention met in Minneapolis June 7, 
 i8y2, with President Harrison the only 
 avowed candidate with a large follow- 
 ing. President Harrison had incurred 
 the personal enmity of many of the 
 party leaders, who took up Mr. Blaine 
 once more as a candidate, in spite of 
 his refusal to be a candidate. On the 
 eve of the convention Mr. Blaine re- 
 signed as Secretary of State for reasons 
 not given, but variously stated to be 
 because he wanted the nomination, and 
 that personal dift'erences had arisen be- 
 tween him and the President over 
 matters relating to his own department. 
 He was succeeded by John ^V. Foster, 
 of Indiana. The control of the con- 
 vention depended on the delegates 
 from Southern States, from most of 
 which there were contesting delega- 
 tions. The contests were generally set- 
 tled in favor of the administration 
 delegates. Cieneral Harrison was re- 
 nominated and VVhitelaw Reid, editor 
 of the New York Tribune, was given 
 second honors. 
 
 The Democratic Convention met at 
 Chicago June 20, i8(j2, and, in spite 
 of all opposition, Mr. Cleveland was 
 renominated on a platform that was not 
 quite so unequivocally against protec- 
 tion as in 1888. Adlai E. Stevenson, 
 of Illinois, got second honor. William 
 F. Harrity, of Pennsylvania, an able 
 politician of experience, was chairman 
 of the Campaign Committee. The Re- 
 publican chairman was Senator Thomas 
 H. Carter, of Montana. The contest 
 was spirited, but the Democrats won 
 easily, carrying many States hitherto 
 
 strongly Republican. The electoral vote 
 stood : Cleveland, 277 ; Harrison, 145 ; 
 Weaver, 22. The popular vote was : 
 Cleveland (D.), 5,556,562; Harrison 
 (R.), 5,162,874; Weaver (Pop.), 
 1,055,424; Bidwell (Pro.), 264,066; 
 Wing (Labor), 22,613. 
 
 It will be seen that in four years the 
 Democratic vote increased but slightly, 
 while the Republicans lost considerably. 
 The vote for Weaver, Populist, was 
 about seven times that cast for Streeter 
 in 1888. The People's (Populist) 
 party was the outgrowth of the discon- 
 tent of the farming element South and 
 West with financial legislation. Into 
 it were fused members of all parties. 
 It demanded the free coinage of silver, 
 government loans on crops, and many 
 other ideas new to our politics. Its 
 strength was largely in the West, in 
 the prairie States. During Harrison's 
 administration the States of Idaho, 
 Montana, W^yoming, Washington, 
 North Dakota and South Dakota had 
 been admitted, all but one of which 
 were counted as safely Republican, yet 
 the Populists, singly or by fusion with 
 the Democrats, carried nearly every 
 one of them. For the first time since 
 i860 a third party had carried a State. 
 During Harrison's administration ex- 
 President Hayes, James G. Blaine, Gen- 
 eral B. F. Butler and Justice Lamar 
 died. General Sheridan and General 
 Sherman died previously. 
 
 Mr. Cleveland now came into power 
 with both Houses of Congress Demo- 
 cratic, though the Senate was so di- 
 vided on financial issues that it could 
 not well be tabulated. Mr. Cleveland 
 chose for his Cabinet : Secretary of 
 State, Walter O. Gresham, of Indiana ; 
 Secretary of the Treasury, John G. 
 Carlisle, of Kentucky; Secretary of 
 War, Daniel Lamont, of New York; 
 Secretary of the Navy, Hilary A. Her- 
 bert, of Alabama ; Secretary of the 
 Interior, Hoke Smith, of Georgia ; Sec- 
 retary of Agriculture, J. Sterling Mor- 
 ton, of Nebraska ; Postmaster-General, 
 Wilson Bissell, of New York; Attor- 
 ney-General, Richard Olney, of Massa- 
 chusetts. 
 
 Mr. Gersham died in office, and was 
 
THE HOME AUXILIARY AND REFERENCE 
 
 succeeded by Mr. Olney, whose place 
 was taken by Judson Harmon, of Ohio. 
 Mr. Bissell resigned in 1895 ^"d was 
 succeeded by William L. Wilson, of 
 West Virginia. The President's first 
 act was to withdraw the Hawaiian 
 treaty, thus defeating annexation. His 
 eftort to place I.iliuokalani on the 
 throne failed, and the Republic lasted 
 until 1898, when annexation was 
 effected. 
 
 One of the President's first duties 
 was to formally open the World's Fair 
 at Chicago. This exhibition in Jack- 
 son Park, instituted at a cost of over 
 $20,000,000, was the most complete the 
 world has ever seen. Enormous build- 
 ings were erected, but instead of 
 being purely useful, the most elaborate 
 pains were taken with their architec- 
 ture. The exterior was a white com- 
 position known as staff, being princi- 
 pally plaster of paris, which looked 
 like marble. The decorations mural 
 and of statuary, were elaborate and 
 artistic. The grounds were laid out 
 with lagoons, fountains and all that 
 landscape gardening could produce. 
 The whole was a veritable fairyland. 
 At night the buildings and lagoons 
 were lighted up by electricity and the 
 artistic effect was magnificent. The ex- 
 hibits were complete and comprehen- 
 sive, showing all that the world could 
 offer in the arts and sciences. Foreign- 
 ers were amazed at the display, and 
 Americans no less. In the seventeen 
 years which had passed since the Cen- 
 tennial, progress had been wonderful. 
 Whereas in 1876 much of our showing 
 was poorly contrasted with foreign 
 exhibits, now the comparisons were 
 almost all in our favor. The exhibition 
 was open six months, during which 
 time there were 27,500,000 visitors, and 
 total receipts of over $33,000,000. The 
 Government gave directly $1,500,000, 
 besides its own exhibit, and further aid 
 by allowing the coinage of special de- 
 signs of subsidiary coin, which com- 
 manded a premium. One interesting 
 feature of the fair was the Parliament 
 of Religions, at which were gathered 
 representatives of nearly every known 
 religious creed in the whole world. 
 
 In June of this year another financial 
 panic came. The Democratic party was 
 pledged to a revision of the tariff'law, 
 which made manufacturers cautious, 
 and capitalists contracted loans. Silver 
 had continued to fall in price in spite 
 of Government purchases, and Great 
 Britain suddenly suspended the coinage 
 of the silver rupee at the Indian mints. 
 This caused a further drop in the price 
 of silver, and the panic in this country 
 assumed large proportions. Manufac- 
 turers, banks and business men failed, 
 and there was financial stringency 
 throughout the country. In this emer- 
 gency President Cleveland convoked 
 Congress in extra session to repeal that 
 portion of the Sherman Act providing 
 for purchases of silver. The House 
 elected Charles F. Crisp, of Georgia, 
 Speaker, and under the rules soon 
 passed the repeal bill. In the Senate 
 it met determined opposition. The 
 Senators from the South and far West 
 were generally in favor of free silver, 
 and they used every method to prevent 
 a vote. Senators spoke many hours at 
 a stretch against repeal, often lasting 
 all night. The fight was in vain, for 
 by a combination of "sound money" 
 Republicans and Democrats the repeal 
 bill passed in October. Nothing else 
 of importance was passed at this ses- 
 sion, but at the regular session the 
 Committee on Ways and Means of the 
 Flouse (Wm. L. Wilson, chairman) in- 
 troduced a measure greatly reducing 
 tariff duties. This bill was passed, and 
 went to the Senate, where the Demo- 
 crats were more conservative. In 
 order to gratify local interests the rates 
 were largely increased, until they were 
 about half way between the McKinley 
 law and the Wilson bill. It was the 
 intention to make concessions for lower 
 rates in the Conference Committee of 
 the two Houses, but the Republicans, 
 led by Senator Quay, who spoke for 
 days and threatened to speak for many 
 weeks, checked this design, and the 
 House accepted the Senate measure. 
 The President refused to sign it, and 
 it became a law after ten days. 
 
 The fall elections were a perfect land- 
 slide for the Republicans, following 
 
SIXTH PERIOD— CLEVELAND'S ADMINISTRATION 
 
 297 
 
 what has become ahnost a fixed rule 
 that the administration loses in the 
 middle of its term. Mr. Reed was once 
 more elected Speaker, and Nelson 
 Dingley, of Maine, became Chairman 
 of the Ways and Means Committee: 
 Mr. McKinley being now Governor of 
 Ohio. 
 
 There was no partisan legislation 
 during the rest of Cleveland's admin- 
 istration. In both of his terms Mr. 
 Cleveland largely extended the scope 
 of the civil service law, for which he 
 was criticised by Republicans, who 
 claimed that he first allowed depart- 
 p/ients to be filled with Democrats. 
 Much dissatisfaction also was caused 
 by the fact that the bonded indebted- 
 ness was increased $262,000,000. Part 
 of this was to pay expenses, but most 
 of it to maintain gold payments dur- 
 ing the silver excitement. One con- 
 tract made by the administration with 
 a Wall street syndicate for bonds at a 
 low price which the latter sold at a 
 high price, caused great dissatisfaction. 
 It was necessary, however, to get gold 
 as the "endless chain" worked rapidly. 
 
 The important foreign episode of the 
 administration was a controversy with 
 Great Britain over the Venezuela 
 boundary. For many years there had 
 been a, dispute between Great Britain 
 and \'enezuela as to the boundary line 
 between the latter and British Guiana. 
 The matter came to a crisis when gold 
 was found in the disputed country. 
 Great Britain finally laid down a line 
 as its minimum boundary and brought 
 matters to a crisis by offering to arbi- 
 trate only over a small amount of ter- 
 ritory in dispute. In this situation, in- 
 voking the Monroe Doctrine, Mr. 
 Cleveland sent an ultimatum, with an 
 implied threat of war, that the whole 
 subject must be arbitrated. The ultima- 
 tum admitted of no compromise, and 
 was so brusque that war seemed in- 
 evitable if Great Britain refused, as 
 seemed likely, to accede to our de- 
 mands. She did accede, and the matter 
 was satisfactorily settled. The mes- 
 sage to Congress, sent December 17, 
 1895, caused a small panic in financial 
 
 circles, as it was believed war was in- 
 evitable. 
 
 The political situation in 1896 was 
 very much mixed. The Populists had 
 increased in power, and they finally 
 brought over the mass of Democrats to 
 their favorite platform of free silver. 
 Contrary to custom, the Republican 
 (minority) party held its Convention 
 first, at St. Louis, June 16, 1896. The 
 ])latform declared for the gold standard 
 and against the free coinage of silver 
 without the co-operation of foreign 
 Nations. Again there were many con- 
 testing delegations, most of which were 
 settled in favor of those supporting 
 William McKinley, of Ohio, the leading 
 candidate. Other aspirants were 
 Speaker Reed and Senator Quay. Mr. 
 McKinley was nominated on the first 
 ballot. Garret A. Hobart, of New Jer- 
 sey, got second honor. A pathetic fea- 
 aure of the Convention was the with- 
 drawal from the Convention of a num- 
 ber of men who had been connected 
 with the party since its birth. Senator 
 Teller and his friends could not accept 
 the gold standard platform, and with- 
 drew — a situation somewhat similar to 
 that at Charleston in i860, though the 
 desertion was not so formidable. 
 
 The Democratic Convention met at 
 Chicago July 7th, and first adopted a 
 free silver platform, relegating the tar- 
 ifl" question to the rear for the time be- 
 ing, whereupon many Eastern dele- 
 gates withdrew. Richard P. Bland, of 
 Missouri, was the leading candidate. 
 On the fifth ballot the Convention 
 nominated William J. Bryan, of Ne- 
 braska, a brilliant young orator and 
 former Congressman, who had hardly 
 been mentioned for the place, but who 
 carried the Convention by storm in a 
 brilliant speech for free silver, .\rthar 
 Sewall, of Maine, a prominent ship- 
 builder and capitalist, got second 
 honors. 
 
 The Populist party met at St. Louis 
 and adopted a platform including free 
 silver, Government loans to farmers on 
 crops, payment of National bonds in 
 silver, etc. They nominated Mr. 
 Bryan, but refused to indorse Sewall, 
 
THE HOME AUXTLLARY AND REFEREN'CE 
 
 who was president of a National bank. 
 In his place they named Thomas Wat- 
 son, of Georgia. This conii^licated the 
 electoral tickets somewhat, but in most 
 States where the Populists had any 
 strength fusion was made so as to in- 
 sure Mr. Watson a part of the vote. 
 This year the Prohibition party split 
 and had two candidates in the field. 
 
 The Democrats who refused to ac- 
 cept the Chicago platform met at In- 
 dianapolis and nominated General John 
 M. Palmer, of Illinois, for President, 
 and General Simon B. Buckner, of 
 Kentucky, for Vice-President, on a 
 gold standard platform. While these 
 made an earnest canvass, it was more 
 for educational purposes than to get 
 votes, as most of their followers finally 
 voted for McKinley i\Ir. Bryan made 
 the most remarkable campaigning tour 
 on record, speaking in nearly every 
 State and attracting large crowds of 
 people. His youth, earnestness, bril- 
 liancy, and courage made him many 
 friends, though it has seldom occurred 
 that a tour of this kind has been suc- 
 cessful. 
 
 In November, Mr. AIcKinley was 
 elected over Mr. Bryan by a large ma- 
 jority of the popular and electoral 
 votes, and receiving a majority over all, 
 opponents. The electoral vote stood : 
 McKinley, 271 ; Bryan, 176. For Vice- 
 President the vote was: Hobart, 271; 
 Sewall, 146 ; Watson, 30. The popular 
 vote stood: McKinley, 7.107,822; 
 Bryan, 6,288,866; Bryan and Watson, 
 222.207; Palmer, 133,800; all others, 
 178,178. There were elected 207 Re- 
 publicans, 121 Democrats, 26 Popu- 
 lists and 3 Silverites to Congress. 
 
 ADMINISTRATIONS OF 
 McKINLEY AND ROOSEVELT. 
 
 President McKinley chose for his 
 Cabinet: John Sherman, of Ohio, 
 Secretary of State; Lyman J. Gage, of 
 Illinois, Secretary of the Treasury; 
 Russell A. Alger, of Michigan, Secre- 
 tary of War; John D. Long, of Massa- 
 chusetts, Secretary of the Navy; Cor- 
 nelius N. Bliss, of New York, Secre- 
 tary of the Interior; James Wilson, of 
 
 Iowa, Secretary of Agriculture ; Joseph 
 McKenna, of California, Attorney- 
 General ; James A. Gary, of Maryland, 
 Postmaster-General. 
 
 Mr. Sherman soon retired, and was 
 succeeded by William R. Day, of Ohio, 
 who was succeeded by John Hay, of 
 Ohio, then Ambassador to Great 
 Britain. Mr. McKenna was soon pro- 
 moted to the Supreme Court, and was 
 succeeded by John W. Griggs, of New 
 Jersey. Mr. Gary also retired and was 
 succeeded by Charles Emory Smith, of 
 Pennsylvania. The fourth change was 
 the resignation of 'Slv. Bliss, who was 
 succeeded by Ethan Allen Hitchcock, 
 of ^lissouri, then Ambassador to Rus- 
 sia. 
 
 Esteeming the tariff question of 
 prime necessity, an extra session of 
 Congress was called. Mr. Dingley pre- 
 pared a new high protective measure, 
 which passed both houses after many 
 amendments, and became a law in 1897. 
 Manufactories once more became busy, 
 and a sudden rise in the price of wheat, 
 due to an unusual foreign demand, 
 were factors in restoring prosperity to 
 the country. In the year i8g8 the for- 
 eign trade balance was more than $600.- 
 000,000 in our favor, the domestic 
 trade was the greatest ever known, 
 while railroads and other enterprises 
 largely increased their earnings. 
 There has been a great increase in our 
 exports since that date, especially in the 
 line of manufactured goods, with which 
 the LInited States competes very favor- 
 ably for the foreign trade. 
 
 This is the end of the second stage 
 of our history. The first ended when 
 we were acknowledged as an indepen- 
 deift Nation by Great Britain. From 
 1783 to 1898 is 115 years of progress, 
 not always constant, of struggling for 
 prosperity, of local and national growth 
 and of development entirely within the 
 confines of our national limits. In 
 January, 1898, there was little doubt 
 that we should continue developing our 
 internal resources, cultivating the good 
 will of all Nations, but interesting our- 
 selves little except commercially be- 
 yond the limits of our then existing 
 territory. In five months the whole 
 
SIXTH PERIOD McKINLEY'S ADMINISTRATION 
 
 299 
 
 situation changed and introduced into 
 our politics new ideas, new duties, and 
 new responsibilities. The expansion of 
 our territory was as sudden as it was 
 unexpected, and forms one of the most 
 interesting periods in our history, which 
 must be given with some detail. 
 
 As we have seen, the people of this 
 country have always taken a lively in- 
 terest in Cuban affairs. The island lies 
 in a position that strategically com- 
 mands the Gulf of Mexico, and is es- 
 teemed one of the richest parts of the 
 globe in material resources. Pro- 
 slavery men looked on it with longing 
 eyes, as indeed did pretty much every- 
 one until the slavery issue became 
 prominent in politics. Even Abraham 
 Lincoln in his debates with Douglas 
 would not pledge himself to vote 
 against annexation, although it was 
 slave soil at the time. The futile ef- 
 forts of the ill-starred Lopez to get up 
 an insurrection have been noted. A 
 genuine effort was made at revolution 
 in 1868, just after Isabella had been 
 driven from the throne of Spain. For 
 two years the revolutionists gained 
 steadily, their operations being con- 
 fined mainly in the eastern end of the 
 island. They raised a large army, but 
 could not procure adequate supplies of 
 guns and ammunition. In spite of do- 
 mestic troubles, Spain made great ef- 
 forts to put down the revolt, sending 
 across the seas or enlisting in Cuba over 
 235,000 soldiers, of whom 85,000 were 
 killed or died of disease, principally the 
 latter. The Cubans were aided largely 
 by their countrymen in the United 
 States, which led to much friction be- 
 tween this country and Spain, although 
 we had been the first to recognize the 
 new order of things in the Peninsula. 
 
 In February of 1895 the standard of 
 revolt was raised once more and the 
 movement became more formidable 
 than ever. A temporary government 
 was organized and military operations 
 were conducted under Generals Garcia, 
 Gomez, and the brothers Maceo. 
 
 A considerable army was raised and 
 the war was carried into every depart- 
 ment of the island. In the first two 
 years there was hard fighting and the 
 
 insurgents were generally successful, as 
 they possessed a fair amount of am- 
 munition and supplies. This country 
 was faithful to its treaty obligations; 
 and when filibustering was suppressed, 
 supplies were cut off, the Cuban army 
 stopped fighting in the open field, and 
 began harassing the enemy, burning 
 sugar plantations of Spaniards, and do- 
 ing as much damage with as little open 
 fighting as was possible. Spain raised 
 altogether some 300,000 men for the 
 war, of whom nearly one-third died of 
 disease or were killed. Finding that 
 active operations in the field were im- 
 possible, Captain-General Weyler began 
 his policy of reconcentration, forcing 
 all inhabitants to leave the country and 
 concentrate in the towns and cities, 
 where, being without money or work, 
 they died by thousands. Weyler was 
 guilty of the grossest cruelties, in de- 
 fiance of military law ; and his conduct 
 and a natural desire to see the Cubans 
 succeed aroused sentiment in this 
 country in favor of the revolutionists. 
 In spite of popular sympathy, our Gov- 
 ernment, at great expense, continued to 
 stop filibustering, and two captains of 
 vessels were imprisoned. The admin- 
 istration constantly tried to alle\-iate the 
 unnecessary suft'erings of the war and 
 to bring about peace on the island. 
 Finally Spain granted an autonomous 
 government, which was little more than 
 a farce, and at the last moment de- 
 clared an armistice, but events had 
 moved so rapidly that no compromise 
 was possible. 
 
 The administration resolved to main- 
 tain friendly relations, and, as an earn- 
 est of its good intentions, sent the 
 battleship Maine (Captain Charles D. 
 Sigsbee) in January, i8g8, to the har- 
 bor of Havana, on a friendly visit ; and 
 the Spanish cruiser Vizcaya was or- 
 dered to New York. Neither ship was 
 received with enthusiasm, and the rela- 
 tions were formal and strained. On 
 February 8th a sensation was created 
 by the publication of a letter purport- 
 ing to have been written by the Spanish 
 Minister at Washington, Dupuy de 
 Lome, to Senor Canalejas, a Spanish 
 official at Havana. In this letter Mc- 
 
300 
 
 THE HOME AUXILIARY AND REFERENCE 
 
 Kinley was called a "a low politician," 
 "weak and catering to the rabble," 
 "who desires to leave a door open to 
 me and to stand well with jingoes of 
 his party." Canalejas was urged to 
 agitate commercial relations even if 
 "only for effect," and to send a man 
 to Washington "to make a propaganda 
 among the Senators." When de Lome 
 saw the letter was published, he im- 
 mediately cabled his resignation to 
 Madrid, and, when questioned by the 
 State Department, blandly acknowl- 
 edged it and left the country. This 
 caused a storm of excitement. Just 
 how the Cuban Junta secured the letter 
 is not known, but it proved a power- 
 ful weapon. The excitment had not 
 cooled down on the morning of Feb- 
 ruary i6, 1898, when the country was 
 driven wild with excitement on learn- 
 ing that at 9.40 o'clock the evening pre- 
 vious, the battleship IMaine had been 
 blown up in Havana harbor, killing or 
 mortally wounding two officers and 264 
 men. Captain Sigsbee, who was on 
 board, was saved, and immediately 
 wired the Secretary of the Navy, ask- 
 ing suspension of judgment pending an 
 investigation. Spain desired to join in 
 the investigation, but, being refused, 
 started one of her own in a desultory 
 manner. 
 
 A Court of Inquiry, composed of 
 Captain William T. Sampson, of the 
 Iowa ; Lieutenant-Commander Adolph 
 Marix, Captain French E. Chadwick, 
 and Lieutenant-Commander W. P. 
 Potter, began an investigation, Feb- 
 ruary 26th, which lasted twenty-three 
 days. All of the survivors were closely 
 questioned ; the Maine was examined 
 by divers, mainly under the direction of 
 Ensign Powelson, whose energy and in- 
 telligence largely contributed to the 
 solution of the problem. The Court 
 unanimously reported that the Alaine 
 had been blown up by a mine situated 
 outside the vessel and that no fault 
 could be imputed to the officers of the 
 ship. The testimony showed that the 
 Maine lay at an unusual anchorage, and 
 that, on the night of the explosion, the 
 vessel had veered round to a position 
 she had not occupied before. The 
 
 Spanish Court reported that the ex- 
 plosion was from the inside of the 
 Maine, but no one ever considered it 
 seriously, as the investigation was not 
 worthy the name. Their divers were 
 down but a short time and found noth- 
 ing of importance, while Ensign Powel- 
 son showed conclusively that the keel 
 of the Maine had been forced up above 
 the water line, and everything showed 
 that a mine had been exploded beneath 
 the vessel. 
 
 The President sent the report to Con- 
 gress, saying he had referred it to 
 Spain, expecting that nation to do what 
 was right in the premises. Little at- 
 tention was paid to this, however, as 
 the people of the country were unan- 
 imous for war. The situation in Cuba 
 was such that it was no longer safe 
 for Americans. Under orders of the 
 President Consul-General Fitzhugh 
 Lee left Havana April 9, 1898, by 
 which time nearly all our consuls and 
 citizens were already gone. On .A.pril 
 7th an unusual event took place at 
 the White House. The diplomatic rep- 
 resentatives of Great Britain, Germany, 
 Austro-Hungary, France, Italy and 
 Russia, headed by Sir Julian Paunce- 
 fote, handed the President a joint note 
 expressing the hope that further ne- 
 gotiations would bring about peace. 
 The President replied that he was 
 anxious for peace, and concluded: "The 
 Government of the United States ap- 
 preciates the humanitarian and disin- 
 terested character of the communica- 
 tion now made on behalf of the powers 
 therein named, and for its part is con- 
 fident that equal appreciation will be 
 shown for its own earnest and unsel- 
 fish endeavors to fulfill a duty to hu- 
 manity by ending a situation, the in- 
 definite prolongation of which has be- 
 come insufferable." This is generally 
 conceded to be one of the most convinc- 
 ing answers to an appeal for peace ever 
 made. It satisfied the powers, not one 
 of which thereafter made a protest. 
 
 On April 10, 1898, the new Spanish 
 Minister presented a long note to the 
 State Department, making the best of 
 the situation from a Spanish point of 
 view, calling attention to autonomy, the 
 
SIXTH PERIOD McKINLEY'S ADMINISTRATION 
 
 armistice, tlie repeal of the Weyler de- 
 cree of reconcentration, and the fact 
 that General Blanco, who had suc- 
 ceeded Weyler, was trying to do the 
 best he could for humanity. It was 
 too late. War was already certain, and 
 the only question was as to the pre- 
 liminaries. There were many members 
 in both Houses who wanted to recog- 
 nize the existing Cuban Republic, but 
 the President opposed this, and, after 
 a long struggle, the administration won. 
 
 On April 19th both Houses passed 
 resolutions declaring the people of 
 Cuba free and independent, demanding 
 that Spain relinquish authority in 
 Cuba, directing the President to use all 
 the land and naval forces to carry the 
 resolutions into effect, and specifically 
 stating that this country entered upon 
 the task not for its own aggrandize- 
 ment, but expecting to leave the con- 
 trol and government of the island to 
 its people as soon as it was pacified. 
 The President signed these resolutions 
 April 20th and sent, by cable, a copy 
 to our Minister to Spain, General 
 Woodford, who was to wait two days 
 for a reply. The Spanish Government 
 already had received a copy from its 
 Minister, Polo y Bernabe, in Washing- 
 ton, and, without waiting to hear from 
 Woodford, sent him his passports. He 
 turned over the legation to the British 
 Embassy and left on the same day for 
 home. Thus Spain actually began the 
 war. On the 22d the President issued 
 an order blockading nearly all the ports 
 of Cuba. At daylight on the 23d the 
 fleet which had collected at Key West, 
 under command of Acting Rear-Ad- 
 miral Sampson, sailed for Cuba, and 
 the blockade was begun. On the way 
 the Spanish merchant steamer Buena 
 \'entura was captured as a prize by the 
 gunboat Nashville. Others soon fol- 
 lowed. On the 25th, in reply to a mes- 
 sage of the President, Congress passed 
 a resolution declaring that war existed 
 with Spain and had existed since the 
 2 1 St of April, the day Spain broke off 
 diplomatic relations. 
 
 On the 23d the President issued a 
 call for 125,000 volunteers for the war. 
 While the negotiations were in prog- 
 
 ress the country had not been idle. On 
 February ist this country was in no 
 condition for war; there were few re- 
 serve supplies of ammunition and 
 epuipment, and an immediate declara- 
 tion of war would have found the 
 country badly handicapped. The ad- 
 ministration needed some time and 
 much money to prepare for war. The 
 President asked for $50,000,000 to be 
 used at his discretion for the public 
 good. The House, on the 8th, the 
 Senate on the oth of March, unani- 
 mously voted the money. In the House 
 there were impassioned patriotic 
 speeches in which e.x-Confederate of- 
 ficers vied with ex-Federals in pledg- 
 ing support to the Government. Prep- 
 arations had already begun to get the 
 navy ready. With the sum now at 
 hand contracts were made for all sorts 
 of army and naval supplies. Warships, 
 and merchant ships for transports were 
 purchased. Supplies of ammunition 
 were sent to Commodore Dewey com- 
 manding the Asiatic naval station, and 
 every nerve was strained to get the 
 nation ready for war. When it came 
 we were partly prepared, but it took 
 many weeks to get the volunteer army 
 in anything like condition for service. 
 Laws were passed allowing the regu- 
 lar army to be recruited up to 62,000 
 men, providing for volunteer cavalry 
 and engineer regiments, and ten so- 
 called immune regiments, in addition 
 to the volunteers apportioned to the va- 
 rious States. The Army and Navy 
 Departments worked night and day to 
 equip the ships and soldiers. The 
 navy was already in good condition and 
 needed only accessions, while the army 
 had almost to be created. 
 
 The strategy of war was compara- 
 tively simple, as it turned out. though 
 it gave great anxiety at the start. 
 There was a panic of fear along the 
 Atlantic coast over the dread of bom- 
 bardment of the chief cities. The fast 
 cruiser Columbia and other vessels 
 were kept scouting off the extreme 
 northeastern coast, as far as the Grand 
 Bank, to sight a hostile fleet. A so- 
 called flying squadron, under Com- 
 modore Winfield Scott .Schley, was col- 
 
302 
 
 THE HOME AUXILIARY AND REFERENCE 
 
 lected at Hampton Roads, ready to 
 start in any direction. His flagship 
 was the armored cruiser Brooklyn, and 
 his principal ships were the Texas, 
 sister ship to the Maine, Captain Phil- 
 lip, and the first-class battleship Massa- 
 chusetts, Captain Higginson. 
 
 When Admiral Sampson sailed from 
 Key West, he had the Iowa, Captain 
 Robley D. Evans; the armored cruiser 
 New York (fla^-ship), Captain Chad- 
 wick; the Indiana, Puritan, Cincinnati, 
 New Orleans, Detroit, Marblehead, 
 ]\Iayflower, and a large number of 
 smaller vessels, with which he block- 
 aded the coast. 
 
 The only other American fleet was at 
 ITongkong, under Commodore George 
 Dewey, consisting of the flag-ship 
 Olympia (Captain Gridley), the Ral- 
 eigh, Baltimore, and Boston, all second- 
 class cruisers ; the gun-boats Concord 
 and Petrel ; the revenue cutter !McCul- 
 lough, and two transports. 
 
 On the Pacific coast there was the 
 cruiser Charleston and the monitors 
 IMonadnock and Monterey. The first- 
 class battleship Oregon, Captain Clark, 
 was ordered from San Francisco to the 
 East. Clark left ]March 19th and 
 reached Rio de Janeiro April 30th. 
 Here he was joined by the gun-boat 
 Marietta and the new cruiser purchased 
 from Brazil, the Buffalo. The Oregon 
 reached Key West, May 26th, after a 
 voyage of 12,000 miles, without a mo- 
 ment's stop for repairs — the most re- 
 markable voyage on record, due to the 
 strength of the ship and the untiring 
 efforts of the officers and crew. The 
 last part of the voyage was hazardous, 
 as it was expected that the Spanish fleet 
 might be overhauled at any time. Cap- 
 tain Clark had determined to fight 
 them all, if he met them, and subse- 
 quent events indicated that he would 
 have won. 
 
 The Spanish had a large number of 
 small gunboats and a few cruisers in 
 Cuban waters, but their principal navy 
 consisted of two fleets, one near home, 
 in the Atlantic, and the other in the 
 Philippines. The home fleet consisted 
 of some of the finest vessels afloat. 
 The Alaria Teresa, Almirante 
 
 (Jquendo, \'izcaya, and Christobal 
 Colon were considered of the finest type 
 of armored cruisers afloat, and there 
 was much anxiety in this country be- 
 cause of them. These, with the tor- 
 pedo boat destroyers Pluton, Terror, 
 and Furor, formed a fleet which was 
 sent to American waters, April 2gth, 
 from the Cape de \'erde Islands. The 
 Spanish reserve fleet, under Admiral 
 Camara, at Cadiz, consisted of the 
 battleship Carlos Y, the cruisers Pelayo 
 and Xumancia, and several converted 
 cruisers. These latter once started for 
 IManila and got through the Suez 
 Canal, but returned to Cadiz after the 
 destruction of Cervera's fleet. The 
 fleet in Manila Bay consisted of the 
 Reina Christina, Castilla, Don Antonio 
 de Ulloa, Isla de Luzon, IsIa de Cuba, 
 General Lezo, Marquis del Duero, El 
 Cano, Velasco, Isla de INIindanao, and 
 some small torpedo boats and gun- 
 boats. 
 
 .As to the army, Spain had something 
 like 200,000 trained soldiers in the 
 West Indies and about 12,000 in the 
 Philippines. There were some 80,000 
 reserves in the Peninsula called out, all 
 armed and equipped. The L'nited 
 States had a little army of 25,000 men 
 to begin with, which was in three 
 months recruited up to 57,000 regulars 
 and over 220,000 volunteers, very few 
 of whom saw much service in the field 
 of battle. 
 
 The first order was to blockade Cuba, 
 for it was not intended to begin active 
 military operations until the rainy sea- 
 son was over. The next order was for 
 Dewey to destroy the Spanish fleet in 
 the Philippines. The next object was 
 to destroy Admiral Cervera's fleet, 
 which had sailed from the Cape de 
 \'erde Islands, rio one knew just where. 
 It was believed Cervera would make 
 Cuba his objective point, which was 
 confirmed by learning of his presence 
 off the Venezuelan coast. May 14th. 
 That he would strike for Cienfuegos, 
 fin the south side of Cuba, seemed 
 most probable, as it was the nearest 
 port and in direct railway communica- 
 tion with Havana. Then began the 
 chase for this fleet, to be hereafter de- 
 
SIXTH PERIOD McKINLEY'S ADMINISTRATION 
 
 pcribed. As it turned out, there was 
 little occasion for grand strategy dur- 
 ing the war. There was one series of 
 American successes on land and sea, 
 which soon brought peace. 
 
 Before beginning tlie narrative of 
 tlie war, some space must be given to 
 the great preparations on land and sea. 
 A large number of yachts and mer- 
 chant vessels were bought or leased and 
 fitted up as gunboats and cruisers, 
 though little protective armor was put 
 on them. The four great American 
 Line steamers Paris, New York, St. 
 Louis, and St. Paul were leased, fitted 
 up as cruisers, but used largely as 
 scouts and transports, the St. Paul being 
 in command of Captain Sigsbee. The 
 Paris was rechristened the Yale and the 
 New York the Harvard. Many ves- 
 sels were hastily fitted out as trans- 
 ports, supply and hospital ships, to- 
 gether with many colliers to supply the 
 fleet. Since for the past fifteen years 
 Congress had been liberal with the 
 navy, it was much easier to fit out than 
 the army. The naval force was in- 
 creased by enlistment of men, the naval 
 reserves of States, and by promoting 
 officers and taking many from civil life. 
 
 The financial question was easily 
 settled. Stamp taxes were laid, in- 
 tended to raise over $100,000,000 per 
 year, and a popular loan of $200,000,- 
 000 in 3 per cent, bonds was offered. 
 Most of this was taken in subscrip- 
 tions of $500 or less, and no subscrip- 
 tion of $5,000 or over was accepted. 
 The loan was subscribed to many times 
 over. The bonds sold at a premium 
 long before they were ready for de- 
 livery. 
 
 The army problem Avas much more 
 difficult to solve. Ever since the Civil 
 War the army had been neglected, in 
 spite of recommendations and protests 
 from army officers and the W^ar De- 
 partment. Although the officers were 
 as fine a Lodv as ever wore uniform, 
 Congress never looked upon them and 
 the men as much more than ornamental 
 police. Only in the last fi"w years had 
 the army been equipped with the mod- 
 ern small caliVier rifle with smokeless 
 powder cartridges, and there was not 
 
 large enough reserve supply at first for 
 the regular recruits. The fear of mili- 
 tarism being ever before the eyes of 
 Congress, some little good was done by 
 a small appropriation to the various 
 States for the National Guard. Nomi- 
 nally these organizations aggregated 
 about 125,000 officers and men. In one 
 State only was the organization per- 
 fected and used to duty. Pennsyl- 
 vania's National Guard was a division 
 of three brigades, each of five regi- 
 ments of infantry, one troop of cavalry, 
 and one light battery. These were ac- 
 customed to brigade evolutions, and 
 some experience in division drill. In 
 other Eastern States, and in some cen- 
 tral States, the organization was more 
 or less perfected, but in none of them 
 was it adequate for war. The material 
 was there, but it lacked the necessary 
 training. The National Guard was 
 equipped with Springfield rifles and 
 black powder cartridges. Most of the 
 tentage and material was drawn from 
 the regular army, but the equipment 
 \\'as seldom complete. 
 
 When the call for 125,000 men was 
 issued, the States furnished their quota 
 usually by using the National Guard 
 regiments as a basis. Those who de- 
 sired to stay at home did so, and their 
 places were quickly taken by volun- 
 teers. The new law provided for a 
 regiment of three battalions of four 
 companies, each company consisting of 
 106 men. Few militia regiments were 
 so large, and they were consolidated or 
 filled up to meet the requirements. It 
 took but a short time for the States to 
 raise the quotas in local camps. As 
 they were filled the regiments were 
 sent to camps of instruction in the 
 South, so as to become acclimated, ex- 
 cept a few which were detailed to 
 guard powder mills and public prop- 
 erty. The principal camps were near 
 Washington (Camp Alger), at Chicka- 
 mauga (Camp Thomas), at Jackson- 
 ville (Camp Cuba Libre), and at Fer- 
 nandina Later there was a large camp 
 near Middletown, Pa., and many 
 smaller ones in Alabama and Georgia. 
 On May 25th, the President issued a 
 call for 7S,ouu more men, making 200,- 
 
THE HO.ME AUXILIARY AND REFKRENCE 
 
 ooo volunteers, in addition to the vol- 
 unteer cavalry, engineers, and im- 
 munes, not apportioned among the 
 States. The First Volunteer Cavalry 
 was commanded by Surgeon Leonard 
 Wood, of the army, who had been ad- 
 vanced to the rank of Colonel, with 
 Theodore Roosevelt as Lieutenant- 
 Colonel, who left the post of Assistant 
 Secretary of the Navy to assume the 
 position. This regiment was nicknamed 
 the "Rough Riders" because it was 
 largely recruited from cowboys and 
 frontiersmen in Texas, Arizona, and 
 adjacent territory. It also included a 
 large number of college athletes and 
 clubmen from New York. Nearly 
 every race and religion was represented, 
 as well as nearly every State. It 
 gained more celebrity than any other 
 volunteer organization. 
 
 This army was organized into eight 
 corps, only seven of which were com- 
 pleted. Each corps was supposed to 
 consist of two divisions, each of three 
 brigades of three regiments — nominally 
 about 24,000 officers and men. To offi- 
 cer this army, whose maximum reached 
 about 275,000 men, all of the Brigadier- 
 Generals in the regular army, as well 
 as some other officers, were made 
 Major-Generals of \^olunteers. In ad- 
 dition men of experience in the Civil 
 \\'ar were given the same rank. These 
 included James H. Wilson, of Dela- 
 ware; J. Warren Keifer, of Ohio; Fitz- 
 hugh Lee, of \'irginia; M. C. Butler, 
 of South Carolina, and Joseph Wheeler, 
 of Alabama ; the last three mentioned 
 being ex-Confederate officers. Nearly 
 all the Colonels in the regular army, as 
 well as some Lieutenant-Colonels, were 
 made Brigadier-Generals, together 
 with a considerable number from civil 
 life who had served in the Civil War. 
 Among the latter were Charles Kin,£f, 
 better known as a novelist ; Frederick 
 D. Grant, H. V. N. Boyton, Adelbert 
 Ames, hero of Fort Fisher; J. P. S. 
 Gobin, Grand Commander of the Grand 
 Army of the Republic, and W. C. 
 Oates, the latter an ex-Confederate 
 officer. 
 
 Under the law the Governors of the 
 States appointed all line officers below 
 
 the rank of Brigadier-Ciencral. To 
 provide for this army an immense in- 
 crease in the stafif was necessary. This 
 was done as far as possible by taking 
 young officers from the regular army 
 and promoting them, though many pre- 
 ferred to remain in the line. In ad- 
 dition, a large number of civilians were 
 appointed, many of whom had never 
 had the slightest military training. 
 Some of these learned their duties 
 easily and became efficient. Others 
 never did become efficient, and much 
 trouble resulted. During the war it 
 developed that the weakest spot of the 
 army was the staff, not only in the 
 iugher grades, but in the regiments. 
 Lveryone was anxious to fight, but the 
 vexatious detail of quartermaster and 
 subsistence departments, and sanitary 
 arrangements was irksome and it took 
 some time to properly learn the duties; 
 a certain amount of "red tape" being 
 necessary or else there would be hope- 
 less confusion. It took a long time for 
 green officers to learn these rules, and 
 in the meantime the men were often on 
 short rations, while few companies at 
 first had good cooks. In spite of all 
 drawbacks, by July ist there was an 
 army of over 200,000 men, nearly all 
 equipped, and all eager to fight. In 
 spite of all complaints made by per- 
 sons ignorant of war, this army was 
 assembled and equipped in a shorter 
 space of time than had ever been known 
 before. 
 
 We now turn to the narrative of the 
 war, which is brief and glorious. The 
 first conflict took place April 27th, at 
 Matanzas, Cuba. The blockading ves- 
 sels New York, Puritan and Cincinnati 
 bombarded the forts of the town and 
 dismounted some batteries without loss 
 on either side. On the same day Com- 
 modore Dewey, having received laconic 
 orders to destroy the Spanish fleet, 
 sailed away from Mirs Bay, near 
 Hongkong, expecting to find the enemy 
 at Subig Bay, north of IManila. In this 
 he was disappointed ; so he kept on, and 
 entered the Bay of Manila, sailing past 
 the batteries on Corregidor Island at 
 the entrance, about daybreak. May i, 
 1898. It was a hazardous enterprise, 
 
SIXTH PERIOD McKlNLEY'S ADMINISTRATION 
 
 305 
 
 for he knew there were mines in the 
 harbor, heavy fortifications on land, 
 and he iiad a large fleet to fight. It is 
 true that he was somewhat superior to 
 the enemy in tonnage and the number 
 and weight of his guns, but neither 
 his vessels nor those of the enemy had 
 any protective armor. The Spanish 
 fleet lay under the guns of Cavite Fort, 
 where there was an arsenal. Unless 
 Dewey could win a decisive battle, he 
 might be in a perilous position, as he 
 was 7,000 miles from the nearest Am- 
 erican port. I^ndaunted by these 
 dangers, Dewey sailed in, and by good 
 chance escaped the mines as they ex- 
 ploded. Sighting the enemy on the 
 south of the bay by the fort, he placed 
 his vessels in line and sailed around in 
 a circle, so as to give each of his ves- 
 .■^els a chance to fire and sail on out of 
 range. The line bore steadily down 
 until in just the right position, when 
 Dewey, who remained on the bridge, 
 remarked quietly to the Olympia's cap- 
 tain: "You may fire, Gridley, when 
 you are ready." An instant later, at 
 5.06, May 1st. the fight began, and 
 lasted nearly two hours and a half. 
 The enemy replied vigorously, but their 
 aim was poor. On the other hand, the 
 American gunners fired slowly and 
 with more accuracy, but not so well as 
 Dewey had expected, and he was 
 greatly troubled as he feared the am- 
 munition had run short owing to a 
 misuaderstanding of the signals. 
 When several of the enemy's vessels 
 were aflame, and all more or less dam- 
 aged, Dewey ordered the whole fleet 
 out of range to consider the situation, 
 for he was much disturbed. Contrary 
 to general belief for mouths afterward, 
 the respite was not for breakfast, but 
 to find out how much damage his fleet 
 had sustained, and how much ammu- 
 nition remained. Anxiously Dewey 
 awaited the reports from each of his 
 vessels as to the losses. When one ves- 
 sel after another reported not a man 
 lost or seriously hurt nor any damage 
 done, the Commodore breathed a sigh 
 of relief. After breakfast and a little 
 rest, the line was formed again, and 
 the attack was renewed upon the Span- 
 
 iards, who were already rejoicing over 
 a victory, supposing that they had 
 driven the American vessels off by their 
 fire. The Americans were now confi- 
 dent, their aim went true, and in a 
 short time every Spanish vessel was 
 sunk, and some 600 Spanish sailors 
 were killed, including one captain. The 
 Spaniards fought to the last, but their 
 marksmanship was very bad. (")nce 
 more Dewey called for a list of casual- 
 ties, and again found that not a single 
 life had been lost, and only eight 
 wounded, while the damage to the en- 
 tire fleet did not amount to $5,000. 
 This, the most remarkable naval battle 
 in history up to that time, caused a 
 sensation all over the world. The ad- 
 ministration breathed a sigh of relief. 
 Dewey was made Rear-Admiral and 
 given a sword by Congress, and in 1899 
 was given the full rank of Admiral. 
 
 Cavite Fort surrendered on demand 
 of Dewey, who notified Manila that he 
 would shell the town if the batteries 
 opened on him. The city was block- 
 aded, and Dewey was obliged to await 
 the arival of an army. Assistance was 
 sent as soon as possible. Some regulars 
 and a large number of volunteers were 
 sent to him, until the army in the 
 Philippines amounted to about 20,000 
 men by December. General Wesley 
 Merritt was sent in command of the 
 army, but was afterward recalled to 
 Paris and home on special duty, and 
 was succeeded by General Elwell S. 
 Otis. The Charleston sailed from San 
 Francisco. May i8th, and the First Cali- 
 fornia, with other troops, sailed on the 
 25th. Thereafter troops were sent as 
 rapidly as possible, by way of Hono- 
 lulu ; and the monitor Monterey made 
 the long trip safely in tow, soon to be 
 foHowed by the Monadnock. As the 
 cruiser Charleston was on its way to 
 Manila, it stopped, June 21st, at the 
 Island of Guam, in the Ladrone Islands, 
 belonging to Spain, and fired a few 
 shots by way of warning. The Spanish 
 Governor sent word he could not fire 
 a salute as he was out of powder. He 
 was told to surrender, and it was some 
 time before he could be made to under- 
 stand that war had been declared, and 
 
3o6 
 
 THE HOME AUXILIARY AND REFERENCE 
 
 he was a prisoner. Leaving- an Ameri- 
 can settler in charge as Governor, the 
 Charleston sailed on in safety to 
 Manila. 
 
 As the troops reached Manila, tliey 
 were placed in camp west and south of 
 the cit)'. Aguinaldo. a former leader 
 of revolutionist Filipinos, who had sold 
 out to Spain for gold, as it was 
 charged, and had gone to Hongkong, 
 had returned with Dewey, and went 
 ashore to organize a native force as 
 allies, though Dewey had no official re- 
 lations with him. Aguinaldo soon or- 
 ganized a quasi-Republic. of which he 
 became the self-appointed dictator. 
 
 Our narrative now returns to At- 
 lantic waters. Leaving smaller vessels 
 to maintain the Cuban blockade. Ad- 
 miral Sampson at Key West rendez- 
 voused the flag-ship New York, the 
 battleships Iowa and Indiana, the moni- 
 tor Puritan, the cruisers Cincinnati, De- 
 troit, and Marblehead, and the torpedo 
 boat JNIayflower, and on May 4th sailed 
 eastward, looking for Cervera's fleet, 
 which might possibly have sailed for 
 San Juan, Porto Rico. On the 12th a 
 portion of the fleet bombarded San 
 Juan, did some damage to the fortifica- 
 tions and discovered that Cervera's 
 fleet was not there. As to find the 
 Spanish fleet was the principal object 
 of the voyage. Admiral Sampson 
 turned westward again. 
 
 In the meantime the first American 
 blood of the war had been shed. Off 
 Cardenas, Cuba, the blockading vessels 
 Wilmington, Hudson and torpedo boat 
 Winslow were attacked by Spanish gun- 
 boats and shore batteries. The Win- 
 slow was disabled and the Hudson, a 
 converted ferry boat, went to her 
 rescue and took her in tow just as En- 
 sign Worth Bagley and four men were 
 killed and Lieutenant Rernadou 
 wounded by a Spanish shell. It was 
 the most destructive shot of the Span- 
 ish navy during the war. On the same 
 day the cables were cut by a party of 
 American sailors in small boats off 
 Cienfuegos, and one American was 
 killed. 
 
 On May 12th positive information 
 was received that Cervera's fleet was 
 
 at Martinique, Windward Islands. The 
 next day Schley's flying squadron 
 sailed for Key West. It was now cer- 
 tain that Cervera was going to Cuba, 
 and it was necessary to catch him if 
 possible. The plan laid out was for 
 Schley to go around the western end 
 of the island, with the chance of find- 
 ing him at Cienfuegos, while Sampson 
 sailed around the eastern end until he 
 met Schley. And now comes the story 
 of the only incident in the naval history 
 of the war that has given rise to con- 
 troversy, except one other which im- 
 mediately followed. Schley sailed 
 around Cuba and blockaded Cienfue- 
 gos, May 2 1 St, where he believed Cer- 
 vera's fleet was harbored. On the 19th 
 word reached Washington that Cervera 
 was at Santiago. Sampson was in- 
 formed, and sent the news to Schley, 
 telling him to go to Santiago if he was 
 sure Cervera was not at Cienfuegos. 
 Now, Schley, on May 25th, was not 
 certain on this point, and remained at 
 Cienfuegos until he got a second notice, 
 when he sailed, May 26th, for Santiago, 
 but did not complete a close blockade 
 of the place, owing to the smallness of 
 his fleet. He here received orders to 
 close in, hold the place and sink a col- 
 lier in the mouth of Santiago Harbor. 
 Most of Schley's vessels were nearly 
 out of coal, and he found it difficult 
 and almost impossible to coal from a 
 collier at sea. Notifying the Depart- 
 ment of his condition, and that he could 
 not follow instructions, he started to 
 go back to Key West, May 2Qth, but 
 the collier Merrimac broke down, and 
 he finally managed to coal his vessels 
 at sea. Schley claims that he had been 
 told that even if Cervera was at San- 
 tiago he would surely come to Cien- 
 fuegos, which latter point it was neses- 
 sary to watch closely. This is his ex- 
 planation of not closing in on San- 
 tiago at first. Sampson's vessels soon 
 began to arrive. On the 31st the bat- 
 teries at the harbor were bombarded, 
 and some damage done, and on June ist 
 Admiral Sampson arrived, took com- 
 mand of the whole fleet, and instituted 
 a close blockade. Sampson now re- 
 solved to execute his plan for closing 
 
SIXTH PERIOD McKINLEY'S ADMINISTRATION 
 
 up the harbor with a collier, and asked 
 In' aval Constructor Richmond P. Hob- 
 son to draw up the plan. 
 
 This he did, and received permission 
 to execute it. This plan was simply ^o 
 take in the collier Alerrimac, until he 
 reached a narrow place in the channel, 
 anchor one end of the vessel, let the 
 other swing with the tide, and, just as 
 the collier was lengthwise across the 
 channel, sink her with small torpedoes 
 controlled by electricity. This was one 
 of the most hazardous enterprises ever 
 undertaken, yet when volunteers were 
 called for nearly every man in the fleet 
 wanted to go, and there were many 
 heart-burnings over refusals. Hobson 
 chose only six men, picked for cour- 
 age, physical and technical skill. They 
 were Osborn Deignan, George F. Phil- 
 lips, Francis Kelly, George Charette, 
 Daniel Montague and J. C. Murphy. 
 Randolph Clausen, a coxswain of the 
 New York, determined to share in the 
 work, concealed himself in the Merri- 
 mac, and when discovered at the last 
 moment, refused to leave his self- 
 chosen post, making the eighth man of 
 the party. The first attempt was made 
 June 2d, but it was getting light, and 
 the enterprise was postponed until the 
 next night, when it was carried out, but 
 not to a complete success. The Spanish 
 batteries opened on the Merrimac, and 
 the crew escaped death by a miracle. 
 Unfortunately, the rudder chains were 
 shot away, part of the torpedo wires 
 cut, and when the collier sank it did 
 not close the channel. Hobson and his 
 men sank with the vessel and swam 
 to a catamaran, from which they were 
 taken at daylight by Admiral Cervera, 
 who was out looking for an American 
 warship he supposed he had sunk. On 
 hearing .Hobson's story Cervera was so 
 impressed with his bravery that he sent 
 an officer to Admiral Sampson, under 
 a flag of truce, to allow clothes and 
 money to be sent to the American pris- 
 oners, who were the only ones cap- 
 tured by Spain during the war. This 
 touch of kindness pleased the American 
 people so much that, later, the Spanish 
 Admiral received many attentions in 
 this country. 
 
 The Morro Castle and batteries along 
 the mouth of the harbor were re- 
 peatedly bombarded, and the men 
 driven from the guns, but the perma- 
 nent damage was small. A part of the 
 fleet attacked the batteries at Guanta- 
 namo Harbor, east of Santiago, and on 
 June loth, 600 marines landed and made 
 a camp. They were attacked by Span- 
 iards for two days, and lost four men. 
 The navy shelled the hills, and the 
 marines held their ground. Admiral 
 Sampson now believed that an army 
 could capture the batteries at the mouth 
 of the harbor, and wired the President 
 that with 10,000 men he could take 
 Santiago in twenty- four hours. An 
 army, principally of regulars, had been 
 collected at Tampa under General 
 Shafter, and this was hastily embarked 
 on a fleet of transports. There were 
 two divisions of infantry under Gen- 
 erals Lawton and Kent and one of 
 Cavalry under General Wheeler, but the 
 latter left their horses behind and 
 fought as infantry. The only volun- 
 teers were two squadrons of First 
 Cavalry (Rough Riders), the Seventy- 
 first New York and the Eighth Massa- 
 chusetts. Owing to a false alarm, 
 raised by the report of Spanish cruis- 
 ers in the Nicolas Channel, the sailing 
 was delayed several days for more war- 
 ships as convoys, but on June 13th the 
 expedition sailed, about 16,000 strong, 
 and was otif Santiago on the 20th. 
 There seems to have arisen a diff'er- 
 ence of opinion between Shafter and 
 Sampson, which lasted through the 
 campaign. Sampson wanted Shafter to 
 storm Morro Castle, but Shafter said 
 it would be impossible to land under the 
 fire of Spanish batteries and take the 
 place without incurring more loss than 
 he felt justified in ordering. The 
 troops began to disembark at Daiquiri, 
 about fifteen miles east from Santiago, 
 on the 2ist, Lawton's division taking 
 the lead ; but as the task was difficult, 
 due to the loss of lighters, the absence 
 of suitable docks, and the fear of trans- 
 port captains, which kept them far from 
 shore, the work progressed very 
 slowly, and the regular order of land- 
 ing was nut maintained. General 
 
3o8 
 
 THE HOME AUXILIARY AND REFERENCE 
 
 Wheeler's division began to disembark, 
 and, as Wheeler was the ranking officer 
 ashore, he pushed his men to the front 
 along the Santiago road. Early on the 
 24th the Spaniards were met at La 
 Gnasimas and engaged by General 
 Young's brigade. After a sharp fight 
 the Spaniards were driven back. The 
 American loss was sixteen killed and 
 fifty-two wounded, including in the 
 former Hamilton Fish and Captain Al- 
 lyn K. Capron, of the Rough Riders. 
 General Shafter feared Spanish bullets 
 much less than yellow fever, which he 
 knew was likely to break out, so de- 
 termined on a brief campaign even at 
 some discomfort and suffering. By the 
 26th the advance had reached within 
 four miles of Santiago, along a single 
 road over which all supplies and am- 
 munition had to be transported by mule 
 trains. Reinforcements which arrived 
 finally gave Shafter about 22,000 men. 
 General Shafter now ordered General 
 Lawton's division to the right, on July 
 1st, to capture the Spanish town El 
 Caney "before breakfast," and then to 
 move to the left and join Generals Kent 
 and \\'heeler in taking San Juan Hill. 
 Lawton did his work, but it took longer 
 than was e.xpected,, as the Spaniards 
 fought bravely from behind stone 
 walls, and there were no siege guns at 
 the front. The Spanish Mauser rifle 
 proved a terrible weapon when prop- 
 erly handled. Fortunately, the Span- 
 iards were poor marksmen, ^^'ithout 
 waiting for Lawton, Wheeler and Kent 
 charged up San Juan Hill in tlie face of 
 a galling fire from behind breastworks 
 and stone walls, and took it with a rush 
 after heavy loss. This charge up the 
 hill is one of the most brilliant feats in 
 our history. Barbed wires had been 
 stretched so as to impede progress, but 
 nothing could stop the gallant soldiers 
 as they rushed up the hill. .At the same 
 time a feint w^as made by a brigade on 
 Aguadores to the extreme left. The 
 Americans lost heavily while waiting in 
 line before the charge at the foot of the 
 hill. Just behind them was a signal 
 service balloon, which made a good tar- 
 get for the enemy. The two volunteer 
 infantry regiments used black powder, 
 
 and smoke from these made a good tar- 
 get also, .\fter the Americans cap- 
 tured San Juan Hill, they dug trenches, 
 and successfully resisted heavy at- 
 tacks from the Spaniards throughout 
 the night and during July 2, who fought 
 bravely in spite of the expectation that 
 they would fly at the first fire. As the 
 American line was thin and the attacks 
 persistent, General Shafter asked his 
 officers if it would be prudent to fall 
 back. They decided in the negative. 
 General \\"heeler, who, in spite of his 
 years and illness, had been active 
 through the campaign, was insistent 
 that no retreat should be made. On 
 hearing from Shafter, the President 
 sent General Miles with reinforce- 
 ments. General Shafter lost in the two 
 days 23 officers and 208 men killed, and 
 80 officers and 1,203 men wounded. 
 The total losses of the campaign were 
 23^ officers, 237 men killed, and 80 
 officers and 1,332 men wounded. 
 Early on July 3d General Shafter sent 
 a summons to General Toral, command- 
 ing at Santiago, to surrender. On that 
 morning occurred the second great 
 naval event of the war. General 
 Shafter desiring to consult with Ad- 
 miral Sampson as tc the shelling of 
 Santiago by the navy, the latter left on 
 his flag-ship New York to meet the 
 General. Not long after he had left, 
 Cervera's fleet made a sortie out of the 
 harbor. It was a surprise to the Amer- 
 icans. Many of the vessels had only, 
 a few boilers under steam, and some 
 liad their engines uncoupled. Commo- 
 dore Schley, the ranking officer, set the 
 signal to close in and fight. The Maria 
 Teresa, Almirante Oquendo, and Viz- 
 caya were soon riddled with shot, set 
 on fire and beached, the officers and 
 crew surendering. The torpedo boat 
 destroyers IMuton and Furor were 
 quickly sunk, while the Cristobal Colon 
 managed to get started well to the west, 
 followed by the Brooklyn, Oregon, 
 Texas and Iowa. The last two were 
 sent to look after the three beached 
 cruisers, and the others kept up the 
 chase for about forty miles. The large 
 guns seem to have done little damage, 
 but the havoc of the smaller calibers 
 
SIXTH PERIOD McKINLEY'S ADMINISTRATION 
 
 was frightful. The Colon was over- 
 taken, and ran on the beach. Soon af- 
 terward the New York came up, with 
 Admiral Sampson on board. Admiral 
 Cervera and all his surviving officers 
 and crew surrendered, amounting to i.- 
 300. Several hundred were killed or 
 drowned. The Americans lost but one 
 man. The Spanish officers were sent to 
 Annapolis, and afterward paroled. 
 The sailors were sent to Portsmouth, 
 and were finally allowed to go home. 
 
 On July 5th, Toral, who had declined 
 the first summons, was again ordered 
 to surrender, and refused ; but a truce 
 was agreed on to allow foreigners and 
 women and children to leave the city. 
 Fearing, from reports, that Shafter was 
 in a dangerous situation, reinforce- 
 ments had been rushed to him, and on 
 July nth General Miles arrived. Hob- 
 son and his crew were exchanged for 
 Spanish prisoners. The navy bom- 
 barded the city on the loth and nth, 
 and were preparing to do more execu- 
 tion when negotiations were opened by 
 which, on the 14th, General Toral sur- 
 rendered not only Santiago, but all of 
 the eastern end of Cuba, and about 2j„- 
 000 men, on condition that they be sent 
 back to Spain at the expense of the 
 United States. This was agreed to and 
 the Santiago campaign was over. 
 
 In the meantime yellow fever and 
 malaria had attacked the American 
 army with terrible effect, and proved 
 worse than Spanish bullets. Even the 
 physicians were attacked and there 
 were many deaths. .A^ccordingly a 
 camp was prepared on the east end of 
 Long Island and named Wykoff, after 
 the gallant officer who fell at Santiago, 
 whither the army was transported and 
 remained until the danger of contagion 
 was over. The volunteer regiments 
 were then disbanded. Colonel Wood 
 was made a Brigadier, later a Major- 
 General, and appointed Military Gov- 
 ernor of Santiago. Roosevelt had been 
 made Colonel of his regiment. Though 
 there have been many criticisms of Gen- 
 eral Shafter and his campaign, it should 
 be remembered that within a month 
 he had invaded a foreign, tropical coun- 
 try, fought and won two hard battles. 
 
 and received the surrender of a greater 
 force than his own with a compara- 
 ti\ely small loss. Only about a dozen 
 of the wounded died, as the Spanish 
 bullets did little damage except when 
 they struck a vital spot. 
 
 On July 20th General Miles sailed 
 from Guantanamo with transports un- 
 der con\oy for Porto Rico. Instead 
 of landing on the north side, as was 
 expected, he landed on the south side 
 at Guanica, which he took without re- 
 sistance. General Brooke had sailed 
 with his corps, amounting in all to 
 some 35,000 men, and ser\'ed under 
 General Miles. Ponce surrendered on 
 the 28th, and soon the American army 
 from three directions advanced toward 
 San Juan. There was a skirmish at 
 Guayama on the 8th ; at Coamo on the 
 9th, where the Americans lost one 
 killed and six wounded ; and on the 
 loth General Schwan drove back the 
 Spaniards from Mayaguez. General 
 Brooke now pushed to the mountains, 
 and was just about to open the only 
 serious battle of the campaign, when 
 news of the armistice came. The loss 
 in this campaign was three men killed 
 and four officers and thirty-six men 
 wounded. 
 
 Peace came about in this wise. On 
 July 26th the French Ambassador at 
 Washington, Mr. Jules Cambon. repre- 
 senting Spanish interests, asked for 
 terms of peace. On the 30th President 
 McKinley replied that peace could be 
 secured by Spain giving up sovereignty 
 of Cuba, ceding Porto Rico and Guam 
 to the United States, while the Amer- 
 icans were to hold the harbor and city 
 of ^Manila until a joint commission of 
 .Americans and Spaniards should deter- 
 mine the control, disposition and gov- 
 ernment of the Philippines. On August 
 nth a protocol agreeing on the above 
 was signed in Washington, at 4.23 p. m., 
 b}' Secretary Day and Ambassador 
 Cambon. Hostilities were ordered to 
 cease at once, but before the news 
 reached Manila a combined attack was 
 made, on the 13th, by Admiral Dewey 
 •and General Merritt, upon that place, 
 which was captured with a loss of only 
 fifty in killed, wounded and missing. 
 
310 
 
 THE HOME AUXILIARY AND REFERENCE 
 
 Previous to this, on July 31st, the Span- 
 iards had attacked Merritt's Hues at 
 night, when nine Americans were killed 
 and forty-seven wounded — most of 
 them volunteers. Soon about 100,000 
 volunteers were discharged, including 
 all who had served abroad, except a few 
 regiments in the Philippines. The total 
 strength of the army in August was 
 just under 275,000 men. The total 
 losses to October ist were 280 killed 
 and 2,630 dead of disease, including a 
 few who died of wotmds, making a 
 total of 2,910, or a trifle over i per cent, 
 of the whole, the smallest death rate 
 ever known during a campaign. The 
 deaths from disease were largely of 
 typhoid fever, most of them in volun- 
 teer camps. Up to March i, 1899, the 
 total deaths were about 5,000. 
 
 The war was now over and arrange- 
 ments were made to carry out the 
 protocol. Joint commissioners were 
 appointed to superintendent the evacua- 
 tion of Porto Rico and Cuba. The 
 former was easily accomplished, but the 
 latter was not concluded until in the 
 early part of 1899, though the Amer- 
 icans took possession of the island on 
 January ist, and raised the Stars and 
 Stripes on Morro Castle and over the 
 wreck of the Maine. 
 
 The President appointed as commis- 
 sioners to make the formal Peace 
 Treaty in Paris William R. Day, Sen- 
 ator William P. Frey, Senator Cushman 
 K. Davis, Senator George Gray and 
 Whitelaw Reid. These met the Spanish 
 Commissioners October ist, but it was 
 not until the middle of December that 
 the treaty was signed. Spain wanted 
 this country to assume all or part of the 
 Cuban debt, which was refused. Then 
 this country demanded the cession of 
 the Philippines, offering $20,000,000 as 
 compensation for recent improvements. 
 The latter was finally agreed to under 
 protest, and was ratified by the Senate 
 February 6th. The Queen Regent 
 signed the treaty March 17, 1899. 
 
 One great result of the war was the 
 wiping out of the sectional feeling in 
 this country. The North and the South- 
 were equally patriotic and by general 
 consent the one sectional issue was 
 
 buried. This alone was worth all the 
 war cost in blood and treasure. Also 
 the fact that Great Britain was our fimi 
 friend tlirough the war, though obliged 
 to act neutrally, wiped away much of 
 the prejudice that had existed between 
 the two nations, and brought them into 
 friendly relations that are likely to have 
 important consequences. 
 
 In August much complaint was made 
 as to the inefficiency of the commissary, 
 quartermaster and medical departments 
 of the army. Over 2,000 men died of 
 various camp diseases, there were com- 
 plaints that the food was bad, and it 
 was hinted that there was corruption 
 or inefficiency in many departments. 
 Secretary Alger was the chief object 
 of these complaints. He demanded an 
 investigation, and the President ap- 
 pointed nine commissioners to inquire 
 into all the complaints. They were 
 General Grenville M. Dodge, Colonel 
 J. A. Sexton, Captain E. P. Howell, 
 General J. M. Wilson, Charles Denby, 
 Urban A. Woodbury, General James A. 
 Beaver, General A. McD. McCook and 
 Dr. Phineas S. Connor. All the offi- 
 cers named were from civil life and 
 gained their titles in the Civil War, 
 except General Wilson, who was Chief 
 of Engineers of the Army, and General 
 McCook, who was a retired officer of 
 the regular army. In January, 1899, 
 Commissary-General Egan, in a report 
 to the War Inquiry Board, attacked 
 General Miles, using unbecoming and 
 abusive language, because of the for- 
 mer's charges about the army beef, 
 some of which was alleged to have been 
 "embalmed under the pretense of an 
 experiment." For his language General 
 Egan was court martialed, convicted 
 and suspended from duty for six years. 
 The unfortunate controversy over the 
 conduct of the War Department did 
 much to detract from the satisfaction 
 over our brilliant victories on land and 
 sea. The commission's report mildly 
 censured the War Department and 
 Inspector-General's Department, but 
 found in general that the operations 
 of the war had been conducted with 
 unusual swiftness and efficiency. 
 
 To investigate the charges of General 
 
SIXTH PhKlOD McKINLEY'S ADMINISTRATION 
 
 311 
 
 Miles, a Roard of Inquiry of army 
 officers was constituted. It found the 
 charges unsupported by the facts. 
 
 In the elections of November, 1898, 
 the Republicans were generally success- 
 ful and elected a majority of the House 
 of Representatives, something unusual 
 for a party in power in the middle of 
 an administration. Colonel Roosevelt 
 was elected Governor of New York, 
 and the Republican pluralities as a 
 whole were greater than in 1896, due 
 largely to the fact that a number of 
 Western States returned to Republican 
 allegiance. The Legislatures elected 
 chose enough Republican Senators to 
 give that party a large majority, so 
 that both the administrative and legis- 
 lative bodies were, after March 4th, 
 in the hands of the Republicans. 
 
 On July 6, 1898, the joint resolution 
 annexing the Hawaiian Islands was 
 passed by large majorities in both 
 Houses of Congress. A commission 
 was appointed to draft a- form of gov- 
 ernment for the islands, the American 
 flag was raised, and the local Govern- 
 ment temporarily continued. The com- 
 mission reported to Congress, but it 
 was not acted on by the Fifty-fifth 
 Congress. When Congress met in De- 
 cember, 1898, there was general satis- 
 faction over the result of the war. but 
 the policy of expansion of our territory 
 was by no means unanimously ap- 
 proved. \MTile the division of opinion 
 on what was termed "imperialism" did 
 not follow party lines entirely, most 
 of the anti-expansionists were Demo- 
 crats. The subject was injected into 
 debate when the Senate received the 
 treaty with Spain. The opposition was 
 determined and ably led. One of those 
 most anxious to defeat the treaty was 
 Senator Hoar, of Massachusetts, a life- 
 long Republican. The House also dis- 
 cussed the subject, as it was necessary 
 to appropriate $20,000,000 to carry out 
 the treaty. The Senate ratified the 
 treaty by a narrow margin, and the 
 House voted the appropriation, but not 
 until many long, and sometimes bitter, 
 speeches had been made. Indeed it is 
 possible the treaty might not have been 
 ratified at all but for the precipate ac- 
 
 tion of Aguinaldo and his followers 
 near Manila, which will hereafter be 
 described. Several Senators who wav- 
 ered in their views were brought over 
 by this outbreak to support the treaty. 
 The administration policy was to estab- 
 lish order in Cuba and the Philippines 
 before taking any steps toward estab- 
 lishing their political status. 
 
 Congress passed a law to amalgamate 
 the line and staff officers of the navy 
 in recognition of the fact that modern 
 war vessels are now mere fighting ma- 
 chines and engineers are equally re- 
 sponsible with the line officers and 
 deserve the same rewards. 
 
 A bitter fight was made o\er the re- 
 organization of the regular army. 
 Under the terms of enlistment the 
 volunteers and all but 28,000 regulars 
 were to be discharged on the ratification 
 of peace. As this would not leave 
 enough for the temporary occupation 
 of Cuba and suppression of native in- 
 surgents in the Philippines, the adminis- 
 tration desired that the regular army 
 be fixed at 100,000 men. To thi.; lead- 
 ing Democrats offered such objection 
 that a compromise was finally made to 
 increase the regular army to 65,000 men 
 and authorize the enlistment of 35,000 
 volunteers, but the extra regulars and 
 all the volunteers were to be mustered 
 out July I, i<)Oi. This bill was signed 
 b)' the President, the expectation being 
 that a new law would be passed if cir- 
 cumstances required before 1901. 
 
 Owing to a wide difference of opinion 
 as to whether Admiral Schley or Samp- 
 son was entitled to the credit for the 
 victory of Santiago, the Senate con- 
 firmed none of the President's naval 
 promotions for gallantry during the 
 war. This controversy aroused much 
 feeling. Admiral Schley was the popu- 
 lar hero, but officially Sampson was 
 given the chief credit. It wa? the only 
 controversy over naval matters of the 
 whole war. 
 
 An effort was made to provide for 
 the construction of the Nicaragua 
 Canal. Measures to this end, differing 
 in details, i^assed both houses by very 
 large majorities, but failed in confer- 
 ence, though the President was author- 
 
THE HOME AUXILIARY AND REFERENCE 
 
 ized lo appoint a commission to investi- 
 gate the whole subject. 
 
 Congress also passed in i8g8 a na- 
 tional bankruptcy law. The former one 
 had been repealed about twenty years 
 previously. 
 
 The unexpected acquisition of the 
 Philippines was the source of new 
 troubles. From the beginning Aguin- 
 aldo, the young leader of a former re- 
 bellion against Spain, had expected 
 that the United States would set up a 
 Republic in the Philippines or permit 
 the Filipinos to do so. A mock sort of 
 organization was formed with Aguin- 
 aldo at its head, but it was never 
 recognized by the United States or our 
 military authorities in Manila. There- 
 upon Aguinaldo became impatient. He 
 had collected a considerable army, 
 which was tolerably equipped and lay 
 in the outskirts of Manila. Finding he 
 would not be recognized, early in Feb- 
 ruary, 1899, he began hostilities by an 
 attack on the American troops under 
 General Otis at Manila. The attack 
 was easily repulsed with great loss to 
 the natives and little to the Americans. 
 This attack was followed by field opera- 
 tions of much difficulty, many engage- 
 ments being fought, in which the 
 Filipinos were steadily worsted. The 
 disposal of Aguinaldo's army was fol- 
 lowed by extended guerilla warfare. 
 
 The friendly feelhig between this 
 country and Great Britain had been 
 manifested in many ways during the 
 war and it was looked upon as an au- 
 spicious time to settle a number of 
 disputes of long standing with Canada. 
 These were chiefly in reference to the 
 Alaskan boundaries, fishing and sealing 
 rights and reciprocal trade. A Joint 
 High Commission of the two nations 
 met in 1898-99, but had not accom- 
 plished anything definite when they ad- 
 journed in February, to meet later 
 in the year. The most difficult sub- 
 ject was that which related to our tariff 
 laws. Canadian lumber, coal and agri- 
 cultural products would naturally come 
 in competition with our own goods, 
 and the Dingley tariff law was designed 
 to prevent this. Mr. Dingley was on 
 the commission and naturally could not 
 
 agree to important modifications. Tlis 
 death and that of Lord Herschell, head 
 of the British Commission, were greatly 
 regretted by both nations. 
 
 The American army in Cuba had little 
 trouble in preserving order, but the 
 poverty of the people and unsettled 
 political status made improvement slow. 
 By agreement with General Gomez, the 
 United States gave $3,000,000 to pay 
 the Cuban troops. The Cuban Assem- 
 bly demanded a much larger sum and 
 dismissed Gomez for accepting the 
 ofl'er. This brought the Assembly into 
 reproach, as it did not express the 
 wishes of the great masses of the 
 people. 
 
 In January the stock market devel- 
 oped an activity never before known 
 in our history. Prices advanced rap- 
 idly, and a wave of speculation seemed 
 to have struck the whole country. In 
 New York for some time the sales on 
 the Stock Exchange averaged 1,000,000 
 shares daily. • This was the result of 
 general industrial recovery from a 
 period of depression, large harvests and 
 the heavy balance of foreign trade in 
 our favor. Railway earnings showed 
 large increases, while manufacturers in 
 nearly every branch of trade were busy. 
 Development of our iron industry is 
 shown by the fact that we can sell steel 
 rails cheaper than any other nation in 
 the world. During 1898 large ship- 
 ments were made to India, Austria and 
 Russia ; many orders were refused, as 
 it was impossible to fill them. Amer- 
 ican electrical machinery was sold all 
 over the world, and American locomo- 
 tives were in great demand. These 
 tokens of prosperity helped to dispose 
 of the silver question, though the lead- 
 ing Democrats of the country declared 
 their intention of adhering to the Chi- 
 cago platform of 1896. 
 
 The rise in stocks was accompanied 
 by the formation of a great many so- 
 called "Trusts." The name arises from 
 the fact that when the earlier aggrega- 
 tion of competing firms or corporations 
 were made, the property was placed in 
 the hands of trustees for the benefit of 
 all concerned. Originators of these 
 combinations claimed that competition 
 
SIXTH PERIOD— McKINLEY'S ADMINISTRATION 
 
 had become so fierce that it was merely 
 a question of combination or general 
 failure. The public generally looked 
 upon such combinations as an attempt 
 to control the output of a commodity 
 for the purpose of raising the prices 
 to the consumer. Nearly all of the 
 States, as well as Congress, passed laws 
 to make these monopolies impossible, 
 but they have been of little effect in 
 stopping the process of combination. 
 Up to March i, 1899, there were al- 
 ready incorporated in New Jersey 
 companies with an aggregate capital of 
 $2,000,000,000, most of which were 
 combination of corporations or firms 
 to create monopolies. This probably 
 represented over one-half the total of 
 such corporate capital in the country. 
 
 So important has the movement be- 
 come that it has been injected into poli- 
 tics as an issue. Regardless of the 
 moral and economic value of these 
 trusts, it is interesting to note the de- 
 velopment of maiuifacturing in the 
 century. During the first quarter 
 manufacturing was largely done in the 
 homes by manual labor. Invention of 
 machinery developed the factory sys- 
 tem, which spread rapidly during the 
 second and third quarters, and in the 
 last quarter the individual factory be- 
 gan to disappear, and organizations to 
 monopolize various industries appeared. 
 Likewise in the cities the large depart- 
 ment stores have largely monopolized 
 trade to the exclusion of the small 
 shopkeeper. These developments have 
 been viewed with alarm by many 
 thoughtful people, who fear the cen- 
 tralization of control over the produc- 
 tion of so many commodities and 
 deprecate the elimination of the indi- 
 vidual merchant and manufacturer. 
 Certainly it is one of the interesting 
 ])roblems of the Nineteenth Century 
 which the Twentieth will be called upon 
 to settle. 
 
 In September, 1899, the Ignited 
 States addressed a note to the powers 
 in which it asked to be assured that the 
 "open door" in China would be main- 
 tained. That is to say, this country 
 wanted a declaration from the powers 
 
 to the effect that its trading privileges 
 in Chinese territory would not be in- 
 terfered with by any foreign power 
 temjjorarily or permanently in control 
 of that territory, by lease or otherwise. 
 After tedious negotiations the desired 
 assurances were obtained March 20, 
 iQoo. The first symptoms of the 
 "Bo.xer" outbreak had been observable 
 for some time, and European nations 
 were demanding protection for their 
 missionaries. It was felt that our con- 
 quest of the Philippines had given us 
 new interests in the East, which should 
 be safeguarded in any concerted action 
 by the powers. T'le advisability of 
 doing this, and even of maintaining our 
 hold on foreign conquests, was ques- 
 tioned by many, and it was made the 
 chief issue of the approaching political 
 campaign, the Republicans advocating 
 the expansion policy, the Democrats 
 the contrary. 
 
 The choice of the two principal 
 political parties for standard-bearers 
 fell on the same men as four years 
 before, McKinley and Bryan, but the 
 addition of the new issue did not 
 strengthen the Democratic nominee, for 
 he received only 155 electoral votes to 
 292 cast for his Republican opponent. 
 
 President AIcKinley made no change 
 in his Cabinet, but it was understood 
 that Attorney-General Griggs would 
 resign. He argued with signal ability 
 the Government's side in the test cases 
 brought to establish the legality of col- 
 lecting duty on importations from the 
 new possessions. The Supreme Court 
 held in two cases (December, igoo, 
 and May, 1901,) that Porto Rico and 
 the Philippines are not parts of the 
 United States in the meaning of the 
 constitutional clause which prescribed 
 that "all duties, imports and excise 
 shall be uniform throughout the 
 United States." There was a dissent- 
 ing minority. 
 
 The very general American sympathy 
 with the Roers in their unequal struggle 
 against Great Britain acted as a kind 
 of pressure on the administration, 
 v.hich had preserved the strictest neu- 
 trality. Accordingly a well-meant offer 
 
THE HOME AUXILIARY AND REFERENCE 
 
 of mediation between tlie contestants 
 was made March 13, 1900, but it was 
 declined by Great Britain. 
 
 Our trade interests were helped dur- 
 ing igoo by reciprocity treaties with 
 Portugal (June 12), Italy (June 18) 
 and Germany (July 13). Of more in- 
 terest as being in line with the adminis- 
 tration's policy was the treaty ratified 
 by the Senate January 16, providing 
 for the partition of the Samoan Islands. 
 By its terms Great Britain relinquished 
 her claims, the United States received 
 Tutuila and other islands east of 171° 
 of W. longitude, whilQ Upolu and the 
 other islands west of that meridan fell 
 to the share of Germany. This ar- 
 rangement gave us Pago Pago harbor, 
 the best and most defensible coaling 
 station in the South Pacific. But the 
 treaty which dwarfed all recent ones in 
 significance was the new canal treaty 
 with Great Britain, so widely discussed 
 and so variously modified before at- 
 taining the form finally signed by 
 Secretary Hay and Lord Pauncefote, 
 November 18, 1901. It superseded 
 the obsolete Clayton-Bulwer agreement 
 concluded half a century before, when 
 the present development of civiliza- 
 tion had scarcely been dreamed of, and 
 the changing commercial and national 
 requirements of a later age could not, 
 of course, be adequately anticipated. 
 For a long time public sentiment had 
 demanded an abrogation of the Clayton- 
 Bulwer arrangement, and the demand 
 became more imperative after the Alon- 
 roe Doctrine obtained its new impor- 
 tance. Congress had anticipated its 
 probable action in the matter by author- 
 izing the Isthmian Canal Commission 
 (headed by Admiral Walker and com- 
 posed of military, naval and civilian 
 experts) in the river and harbor act 
 passed ]\Iarch 3, 1899. The exhaustive 
 investigation of the subject by this 
 competent body covered nine months' 
 time and cost $1,000,000. Its report, 
 submitted December 4, 1900, was fa- 
 vorable to the Nicaragua route, though 
 the Panama one was acknowledged to 
 have advantages in respect of length, 
 shorter time of transit, and probable 
 smaller cost of construction. A change 
 
 of opinion came at the end of 1901, 
 when the French Canal Company, the 
 successors to the De Lesseps' Company, 
 ofl'ered to sell their partly completed 
 canal, with their material and treaty 
 rights, to the United States for $40,- 
 000,000. This offer was accepted and 
 the Nicaragua project abandoned. A 
 treaty was negotiated with the Republic 
 of Columbia to obtain the necessary 
 rights in the Isthmus, but this was re- 
 jected by the Colombian Senate. As a 
 result, Panama declared its independ- 
 ence of Colombia and established a 
 separate Republic, with which the 
 United States concluded a treaty in 
 November, 1903, agreeing to pay the 
 new Republic $10,000,000 for the terri- 
 tory and privileges needed. The fol- 
 lowing two years were consumed in 
 preliminary work, of organization, en- 
 gineering, and combating the causes of 
 disease upon the Isthmus, and it was 
 not until 1906 that the actual work 
 of construction could be inaugurated. 
 
 An important question arose as to 
 whether a sea level canal or a lock 
 canal at a higher level should be con- 
 structed. The former, while the most 
 desirable, would cost far more and take 
 much longer to construct, and the lock 
 system was finally accepted. 
 
 The "Boxer" rebellion in China, 
 commencing early in 1900, resulted in 
 the wholesale massacre of Chritsian 
 missionaries and their native converts, 
 and finally culminated in the siege of 
 the buildings occupied by the European 
 legations in Peking. In order to rescue 
 these, the powers dispatched a joint 
 force of 50,000 men, of which the 
 American contingent was commanded 
 by General Chaffee. The expedition 
 was at first unable to overcome the 
 obstacles encountered, but received re- 
 inforcements and made a new start, 
 relieving the nearly exhausted embassies 
 August 14, 1900. The Chinese Govern- 
 ment had at the outset merely connived 
 at the excesses of the "Boxer" chiefs, 
 but later had made common cause with 
 them. Accordingly, the powers deter- 
 mined to exact not only a suitable 
 money indemnity, but sufficient guar- 
 antees for the future and full material 
 
SIXTH PERIOD McKINLEY'S ADMINISTRATION 
 
 31S 
 
 reparation for the wrongs perpetrated 
 l)y the Dowager Empress and her chief 
 functionaries, who had sought safety 
 in the West on the approach of the 
 allies. Some of the aggrieved nations 
 were disposed to place so high a price 
 on. their wrongs and their vindication 
 that it could have been paid only by 
 seizing and administering the revenues 
 of the entire Empire for years to come. 
 It was seen that this would eventually 
 result in the dismemberment of the 
 Empire, and finally, at the instance of 
 the United States, the other powers 
 reduced their demands, so that the 
 whole indemnity was fixed at 450,000,- 
 000 tads ($338,000,000). In addition, 
 the chief authors of the outrages were 
 beheaded or banished to Turkestan, and 
 expiatory monuments were erected in 
 each of the desecrated foreign ceme- 
 teries. The formal evacuation of 
 Peking, in accordance with the terms 
 of the peace protocol, was completed 
 September 17, 1901. It is noteworthy 
 that the American, British and Japanese 
 troops showed themselves more amen- 
 able than the others to military disci- 
 pline and the laws which govern mod- 
 ern warfare. 
 
 Many believed that our participation 
 in this punitive expedition, following 
 so closely upon the annexation of 
 Hawaii and our acquisition of the 
 Philippines, Porto Rico, Guam and a 
 part of the Samoan group — all widely 
 separated island possessions — com- 
 mitted us to a policy of expansion. 
 This charge of "imperialism" (ta use 
 the term of those favoring the opposite 
 policy) was thought by some to be 
 confirmed by the tacit, if not formal, 
 assurance given by the United States 
 early in 1902 that it would support in 
 the East the alliance between Great 
 Britain and Japan, the two nations 
 acting in the interests of the "open 
 door," or equal commercial opportuni- 
 ties, in Manchuria, which had been 
 threatened by Russian encroachments 
 in that country. Freedom of commerce 
 was in reality all that the United States 
 showed any desire to attain. Far from 
 seeking territory in China, as other na- 
 tions were doing, this country exhib- 
 
 ited and counseled leniency in dealing 
 with that Empire after the Boxer out- 
 break, and was so greatly in favor of 
 an early evacuation of the Chinese 
 capital that General Chaffee was or- 
 dered to withdraw his forces without 
 waiting for similar action by the allies. 
 Throughout this unhappy aft'air the 
 United States showed friendliness to 
 and consideration for China, with none 
 of the self-seeking greed manifested 
 by several of the other powers. 
 
 The troops sent to Pekin in 1900 
 were withdrawn from the Philippines, 
 where the military strength of Aguin- 
 aldo and his army had been so reduced 
 that they could be spared. On March 
 23, 1901, Aguinaldo was captured by 
 a ruse adopted by General Funston, 
 and he subsequently declared his al- 
 legiance to the United States, thus 
 removing the most serious factor in the 
 Philippine problem. Guerrilla warfare 
 continued for some time longer, but 
 the main portion of the people were 
 soon pacified, and in the few following 
 years opposition was completely over- 
 come. 
 
 This cessation of hostilities was fol- 
 lowed by the replacement of military 
 by civil government, the purpose of the 
 United States being to fit the natives 
 for self-government by means of good 
 schools, impartial courts of justice, and 
 wise legislation. A special Philippine 
 Commission was appointed, headed by 
 Judge William H. Taft. By this a close 
 examination was made into the state 
 of afifairs on the islands, and on July 
 I, 1902, an act was passed by which 
 military rule in the Philippines was 
 terminated, and civil government es- 
 tablished, Judge Taft being made the 
 first Governor. On his resignation, in 
 December, 1903, to enter President 
 Roosevelt's Cabinet, Luke E. Wright 
 succeeded him as Governor. Seven 
 commissioners were appointed as execu- 
 tive officials, four of them Americans 
 and three Filipinos. A police system 
 was also established, consisting of a 
 native constabulary under American 
 control, and governors and courts were 
 given to the several provinces of the 
 islands. 
 
3i6 
 
 THE HOME AUXILIARY AND REFERENCE 
 
 A census of the Philippines was taken 
 in 1903, the population returned being 
 7,635,426. Of these nearly 7.000,000 
 were in a greater or less degree civil- 
 ized, the remainder being wild tribes, 
 some of them complete savages. The 
 islands contain thirty distinct races, 
 with different languages or dialects. 
 Education has been reorganized and 
 the schools are attended by more than 
 800,000 students, under 6,000 teachers, 
 four-fifths of whom are educated 
 Filipinos. English is very generally 
 taught, but there has been no inter- 
 ference with religious faith, the popula- 
 tion being practically all Catholics. As 
 a result of peaceful conditions, the 
 products of the islands are rapidly in- 
 creasing and commerce is steadily 
 growing, while the people are being 
 fitted for self-government. This it is 
 proposed to give them when they be- 
 como suited to its exercise, and even- 
 tually the islanders will be practically 
 permitted to govern themselves. 
 
 As regards the other insular posses- 
 sions of the United States, there are 
 only two of political importance, 
 Hawaii and Porto Rico. In the former 
 a new territorial government was in- 
 augurated at Honolulu June 14. igoo. 
 A census taken the same year showed 
 a population of 154,001. Porto Rico 
 has not advanced to territorial dignity, 
 but is controlled by a Governor and 
 Cabinet appointed by the President of 
 the United States. It has a Legisla- 
 ture, consisting of an "Upper House," 
 composed of the Cabinet officials and 
 fi\'e citizens appointed by the President, 
 and a "Lower House," elected by the 
 people. This state of affairs is not 
 satisfactory to the citizens of the island, 
 an acti\e political excitement being kept 
 up in favor of territorial or Statf or- 
 ganization. Free trade with the United 
 States exists, and prosperity is in- 
 creasing. 
 
 The relations of Cuba to the United 
 States since the war with Spain ha\e 
 been highly interesting. The close of 
 the war left that island in the military 
 occupancy of the United States, but 
 under the express understanding that 
 independence should be granted to its 
 
 people. In consequence, steps towards 
 the establishment of an independent 
 nation, under a stable system of gov- 
 ernment, were gradually taken. Gen- 
 eral Wood, appointed Military Gov- 
 ernor in December, 1898, immediately 
 selected a Civil Cabinet composed of 
 natives, a movement towards self-rule 
 which was quickly followed by others. 
 A constitutional convention began its 
 sessions on November 5, 1900, and a 
 Constitution was adopted on June 12, 
 luoi, the form of government being 
 republican, with a President and \'ice- 
 President, a Senate and House of 
 Representatives. The L^nited States 
 was in full accordance with this action, 
 though it demanded certain limitations, 
 mainly intended to secure the new 
 Republic from danger of insidious or 
 open attempts by European nations to 
 endanger its liberties. These were em- 
 bodied in the so-called Piatt Amend- 
 ment, introduced in Congress March 
 2, 1901. By this it was required that 
 Cuba should never make a compact 
 with any foreign power that might 
 impair its independence, or permit any 
 such power to obtain control of any 
 part of its territory in any manner. 
 It should contract no public debt too 
 great to permit the ordinary revenues 
 of the island to pay the interest, and 
 provide a sinking fund for the eventual 
 extinguishment. It should give satis- 
 factory attention to the sanitation of its 
 cities, so as to prevent the danger to 
 the L^nited States likely to arise from 
 the outbreak of infectious diseases. It 
 should permit the United States to 
 intervene for the preservation of its 
 independence and the maintenance of 
 a government adequate for the protec- 
 tion of life, property and individual 
 liberty. And to enable the United 
 Slates to do this it should agree to the 
 establishment of coaling or naval sta- 
 tions at certain specified points upon its 
 soil. 
 
 There was much opposition in Cuba 
 to this act of legislation, of which the 
 more significant items are above given, 
 and a delegation of prominent citizens 
 was sent to Washington to confer with 
 the President and his advisers. They 
 
SIXTH PERIOD^ROOSEVELT'S ADMINISTRATION 
 
 317 
 
 were well received, the purpose of the 
 United States was made clear to them, 
 and on their return to Havana on May 
 16 they reported in favor of accepting 
 the I'latt Amendment. This was ac- 
 cordingly done, and the only obstacle 
 to the establishment of the new Repub- 
 lic removed. 
 
 The election of a President for the 
 Republic of Cuba was next in order, 
 and T. Estranda I 'alma, the most promi- 
 nent candidate, was elected without 
 opposition, December 31, 1901. Thus 
 all the steps necessary for the launch- 
 ing of Cuba upon the world, with the 
 exception of the withdrawal of the 
 troops of the United States from its 
 soil, were taken, and this final step 
 soon followed. Under a call issued by 
 Governor Wood, the Cuban Congress 
 held its first meeting on May 5, 1902, 
 and on May 20 the new Government 
 was formally inaugurated. President 
 Palma taking the oath of office. Amid 
 the salutes of cannon, the American 
 flag was lowered from the public 
 buildings in Havana, and the Cuban 
 flag rose in its place. Within an hour 
 the last Ignited States troops left the 
 soil of Cuba, and General Wood em- 
 barked on the cruiser "Brooklyn" for 
 his return homeward. Cuba was left 
 a free nation, under the independence 
 won for her by the arms of the United 
 States. 
 
 A lamentable event took place on the 
 6th of September, 1901, President Mc- 
 Kinley being shot by an Anarchist 
 while on a visit to the Pan-American 
 Exposition at Pjufifalo, N. Y. The 
 assassin approached the President in a 
 line of visitors advancing to shake 
 hand." with him and shot him while 
 he was extending his hand for this 
 purpose. He was immediately seized 
 by the bystanders, who would have torn 
 him to pieces but for the officers of 
 tlie law. He was tried and executed 
 in the following month. The President 
 died from his wound on the 14th of 
 September, and five days after was 
 buried with impressive ceremonies at 
 Canton, Ohio. The feeling of grief in 
 the country was intense, and vast num- 
 bers of the people crowded to witness 
 
 the funeral cortege as the body was 
 borne solemnly through the country. 
 
 Vice-President Roosevelt succeeded 
 the murdered President, announcing 
 that he would maintain the policy of 
 his fallen chief, a declaration which was 
 received with high satisfaction. His 
 first message to Congress, in December, 
 1901, was an able and strong document, 
 showing a sound knowlefige of the 
 country's needs and giving forcible ex- 
 pression of his opinion upon many 
 public questions. He entered office free 
 of obligation to politicians and party 
 leaders, and began his career with a 
 rigid adherence to the principles of the 
 Civil Service Commission, of which 
 he had been a member, refusing to ap- 
 point any man to office on any standard 
 but that of merit. He soon showed 
 that he was a man of very strong char- 
 acter, firmly set in his opinions, rigid 
 and determined in action, and so full 
 of vigor and energy that he quickly be- 
 came known as the "Strenuous" Presi- 
 dent. By his independence of spirit 
 and action he won the applause of the 
 people at large, irrespective of party, 
 and grew to be a general favorite. 
 Among the principal events of his ad- 
 ministration was the settlement of the 
 question of the Panama Canal, already 
 spoken of, and the great strike of the 
 anthracite coal miners in 1902, which 
 left millions of people largely destitute 
 of coal in a severe winter. It was 
 finally settled through the influence of 
 the President. A new department, that 
 of Commerce and Labor, was added to 
 the government in 1903, George B. 
 Cortelyou. private secretary to Presi- 
 dents McKinley and Roosevelt, being 
 appointed its first Secretary. He be- 
 came a ninth member of the Cabinet, 
 and was subsequently appointed Post- 
 master-General. In 1904 St. Louis was 
 the seat of a great International Ex- 
 position, in honor of the Louisiana 
 Purchase of a century before, 1,180 
 acres being provided and twelve im- 
 mense buildings constructed. The 
 display was of extraordinary extent and 
 variety, the scenic effects were beauti- 
 ful, and it was viewed with satisfaction 
 by millions of people. 
 
3i8 
 
 THE HOME AUXILIARY AND REFERENCE 
 
 In 1904 the most prominent candi- 
 date for the presidency was Theodore 
 Roosevelt, who had won support from 
 the Democrats, as well as from his own 
 party, during his three years in office. 
 The Democratic party had no espe- 
 cially strong man to offer as a candi- 
 date, and the nominee, Alton B. Parker, 
 was decisively beaten at the November 
 election. President Roosevelt and 
 Vice-President Charles W. Fairbanks 
 were duly inaugurated on March 4, 
 1905, and the President entered upon 
 his new term of office more strenuously 
 than ever. In the summer of 1905 he 
 won the plaudits of the world by tak- 
 ing steps which led to a peace confer- 
 ence between the warring nations, Japan 
 and Russia, and the final conclusion 
 of a treaty of peace at Portsmouth, 
 N. H. 
 
 An interesting event of the year 1905 
 was an International Exposition held 
 at Portland, Oregon, as a centennial 
 recognition of the Lewis and Clark 
 expedition of a century before. The 
 period in question was also notable for 
 serious disasters. In February, 1904, 
 a conflagration swept through the busi- 
 ness section of Baltimore, destroying 
 
 property to the value of $70,000,000. 
 A far more frightful disaster took 
 place in April, 1906, an earthquake, 
 followed by a fire, destroying the 
 greater part of the city of San Fran- 
 cisco, the total loss being estimated 
 at $300,000,000, and 200,000 people be- 
 ing left homeless and dependent upon 
 charity for support. 
 
 The year 1905 was one of remarkable 
 prosperity in the country, and was 
 equally remarkable for a great reform 
 movement, made especially notable in 
 Philadelphia by the overthrow of the 
 powerful political ring in that city, but 
 showing itself in almost every large 
 city of the land. In addition, a spec- 
 tacular examination was made of the 
 affairs of the great insurance companies 
 of New York, which proved that they 
 had been permeated by fraud and led 
 to the enforced retirement of their 
 chief officials. As a result of the var- 
 ious exposures made, the United States 
 entered the year 1906 freer from pub- 
 lic and private venality than it had been 
 for many years preceding, and with a 
 degree of material prosperity almost 
 unprecedented in its history. 
 
BOOK II 
 BIOGRAPHY 
 
 (SKE ALSi) INDEX) 
 
 GEORGE WASHIN'GTOX. 
 
 1/3-2— 1/99 
 
 Father of His Country. 
 
 Until the Father of His Country had 
 finished life, it was not known that 
 human nature could produce political 
 careers so unselfish. Poets and drama- 
 tists had not even planned them, so 
 truly is the human imagination har- 
 nessed to the low-rolling car of Reality. 
 It was thought that sane and powerful 
 men, when they could, would grasp and 
 hold power and found dynasties. 
 When Robespierre watered the tree of 
 liberty with the blood of tyrants ; when 
 Danton threw at the feet of his enemies 
 the head of a King — they had but risen 
 from learning the lesson taught by the 
 living Washington. They might have 
 read hints of that lesson in the books 
 of Rousseau, but they had seen it in 
 full with their own eyes in the life of 
 Washington. 
 
 Why is General Washington greater 
 than Samuel Adams and Benjamin 
 Franklin? Because men recognize but 
 one law — force. They all reason, 
 argue, convince, submit, after they 
 must, after they feel compulsion. He, 
 therefore, who uses the ultima ratio — 
 lie who relies wholly upon force — will 
 ever be first. It is the law of gravity. 
 We do not complain that the heaviest 
 weight sinks to the bottom. A man 
 may be a genius in bringing on the 
 fight ; he may be without peer in har- 
 vesting the rewards of a victory: if he 
 cannot, did not, lead the battle and win, 
 he must righteously give way to the 
 captain who did. 
 
 Granting that General Washington 
 could have been king, and chose rather 
 tlie glory of being father of a dem- 
 ocracy, thus leai)ing to the front place 
 in human interest, why, then, was he 
 
 not merely fortunate in receiving the 
 nomination of Commander-in-Chief 
 from John Adams, rather than to see 
 that nomination go to John Hancock, 
 or Gates, or Greene, or Knox, or Ethan 
 Allen, or Joseph Warren? To this, the 
 testimony is direct from all surround- 
 ing points that any other commander 
 would have failed. General Washing- 
 ton was the one calm man who could 
 understand the situation, keep his 
 temper, keep the British from splitting 
 the Union in twain and hold the hills 
 till the French came. 
 
 General Washington, as a captain, 
 resembled Marshal Daun, Maria Ther- 
 esa's beloved leader. He took few 
 risks. The Duke of Wellington in 
 Spain seems to have copied General 
 Washington's methods. General Grant 
 certified to General Washington's skill 
 when General Lee's army was held to 
 be in itself the Great Rebellion, and 
 all other matters — cities, railroads, 
 ports, crops — were forgotten. General 
 Washington gave up New York and 
 Philadelphia willingly rather than to at- 
 tempt to defend them. The British 
 took the cities and waited for General 
 Washington to sue for mercy. When 
 the French arrived, the British them- 
 selves surrendered. This, barring Bur- 
 goyne's capitulation to General Wash- 
 ington's subordinate at Saratoga, is the 
 main part of the story. The fact that 
 o\ er seven years elapsed between Bun- 
 ker Hill and Yorktown, and over eight 
 years between Bunker Hill and peace, 
 may be taken as a measure of the pov- 
 erty and lack of public spirit mani- 
 fested by the colonies and exemplified 
 in their Congress. But it also meas- 
 ures General Washington's patience. 
 
 Augustine Washington married Jane 
 Butler, who died, leaving him three 
 sons and a daughter. He then mar- 
 
 319 
 
THE HOME AUXILIARY AND REFERENCE 
 
 ried Mary Ball, who bore him four 
 sons and two daughters. Mary was 
 the mother of George Washington, and 
 he was her first child. He was born 
 February 22, 1732, at Bridges Creek, 
 Virginia. The old-style-date of those 
 days was February 11. The birthplace 
 was afterward burned. The family 
 then went to live in a large house, with 
 two great chimneys, overlooking the 
 Rappahannock River, near Fredericks- 
 burg, which lay across the stream. In 
 1743 Augustine Washington died, leav- 
 ing his widow with ten children. 
 George was sent to Fredericksburg to 
 learn his alphabet and arithmetic 
 from one Hobby, sexton of the parish ; 
 next he went to live with his half- 
 brother, Augustine, at Bridges Creek, 
 v.-here }ilr. Williams kept a school 
 which George attended, fie was a tall, 
 muscular boy, and a leader of his play- 
 mates. His moral education had been 
 rigid, and accorded well with a highly 
 practical and severe turn in his own 
 nature. He took nearly everything in 
 earnest, and early set out to coin money 
 and good repute from the wisdom of 
 his stern mother's maxims. Tales of 
 his moral sentimentalism are as in- 
 credible as they appear to be unsound 
 in history and tradition. 
 
 Mr. \\'illiams taught his pupil arith- 
 metic, perhaps geometry, and certainly 
 trigonometry, with the practical addi- 
 tion of surveying. We must consider 
 ^"irginia as largely a wooded country 
 watered by many rivers. English lords 
 had acquired this country by gift or 
 purchase, and had settled the river re- 
 gions with friends, retainers, or pur- 
 chasers of land ; vast areas remained 
 for sale : much was still unsurveyed. 
 The profession of surveying was the 
 best one a young man could follow, 
 and this pupil was fitted by nature for 
 the hardships of the task. It is thought 
 he owned a little book called "The 
 Young IMan's Companion." Out of 
 this, when he was only a lad, he copied 
 or digested over one hundred rules of 
 etiquette and moral conduct. He con- 
 sidered them so good that he would do 
 well to adopt them. '"Labor to keep 
 alive in your breast that little spark 
 
 of celestial fire called conscience." 
 These rules — how and when to take 
 the hat off, how to act at table, how 
 to keep the conscience keenly alive — 
 were to be carefully studied, along 
 with the surveying. He was very con- 
 fident that all depended on him, and 
 that nothing could be more just. Such 
 are the traces which the early papers 
 of the Father of His Country have left, 
 showing the sane, sensible, docile ten- 
 dencies of this muscular son of the 
 silent imperious woman who bore him. 
 The half-brother of George Wash- 
 ington, Lawrence, fourteen years older, 
 was no inconi?iderable figure. Law- 
 rence went abroad as a sailor, entered 
 the British navy, fought with Admiral 
 ^"ernon at Carthagena, and, returning 
 to ^'irginia, built a house on the Po- 
 tomac River, which he gratefully 
 named Mount ^'e^non — in honor of his 
 commander — -a mansion sometime to be 
 the Mecca of democratic faith. At fif- 
 teen George \\'ashington was a visitor 
 at Mount Vernon. Lawrence mean- 
 v.hile had married the daughter of 
 William Fairfax, who was agent for 
 the Fairfax estate, one of the vast 
 grants of which we have spoken. Lord 
 Fairfax, himself chief of the house, 
 inheritor of the grant, then sixty years 
 old, was in America inspecting the 
 property, and desirous to learn how 
 much of it there might be. Lord Fair- 
 fax took a deep and generous interest 
 in George ^^'ashington on seeing him. 
 The twain went fo.x hunting together, 
 and after the young man had mastered 
 the art of surveying. Lord Fairfax 
 commissioned him to go with George 
 Fairfax, William's son, over the Blue 
 Ridge IMountains, and come back with 
 a survey of the ultra-montane acres of 
 the Fairfax estate that lay in the wil- 
 derness. In March, 1748, George Fair- 
 fax and George Washington set forth, 
 through Ashly's Gap into the valley of 
 the Shenandoah River, went on their 
 way up to the Potomac River, in spring 
 floods, surveyed the region in the 
 South Branch of the Potomac : met a 
 party of Indians, who celebrated tlieir 
 acquaintance with a war dance; met a 
 train of German emigrants ; slept out- 
 
BIOGRAPHY— GEORGE WASHINGTON 
 
 321 
 
 doors all the time, and got back to 
 Mount Vernon somewhat speedily, 
 April I2th. Careful entries were made 
 in a diary. Lord Fairfax was well 
 pleased to hear he had so many acres 
 in such a garden spot, and procui"ed 
 the appointment of public surveyor for 
 George, so his surveys would have 
 authority. This gave to the young man 
 some three years more of the same kind 
 of work. 
 
 In 175 1 Lawrence Washington was 
 sb ill with consumption that it was 
 thought best for George to go with him 
 to Barbadoes, in the West Indies, 
 iWhere George caught the small-pox, 
 recovered, and was back at Mount Ver- 
 non in February, 1752. In July Law- 
 rence died, leaving George guardian of 
 a daughter, and heir to the estate if 
 the daughter should die without issue. 
 Lawrence, with the advice of Lord 
 Fairfax, had become a great land spec- 
 ulator on the Ohio River, and had long 
 seen that he must fight to preserve the 
 rights or arrogations of his land com- 
 pany against those of the French. 
 With good military sense he had shel- 
 tered at Mount Vernon two brave 
 soldiers of Carthagena, Adjutant Muse, 
 a Virginian, and Jacob Van Braam, a 
 L")ulch soldier. These two men formed 
 the college of war by which America 
 learned to be free. Adjutant Muse 
 taught George Washington the manual 
 of arms, tactics, and the art of war. 
 Jacob Van Braam instructed his pupil 
 in the exercise of the sword. The 
 learner was then appointed Adjutant- 
 General for Northern Virginia, with 
 the rank of Major. The Governor at 
 Williamsburg, Dinwiddle, desired to 
 deliver a message to the advancing 
 Frenchmen that they were encroaching 
 on Virginia plantation. He therefore 
 commissioned Major Washington, 
 \Nith Yon Braam, servants and horses 
 (October, 1753), to go to the Ohio 
 River, under guidance of the frontiers- 
 man Christopher Gist and make known 
 the views of the English. His desire 
 was to conciliate the Indians and ally 
 them against the French. Major 
 Washington was received politely at 
 French Creek on the Ohio River, and 
 
 brought back a vague answer from 
 the French commandant. He returned 
 to Williamsburg already a hero, as he 
 had attended many a perilous war 
 dance of the Indians, and had suc- 
 ceeded where other Virginians had pre- 
 viously turned back in fear. His per- 
 sonal report was that war could not 
 be avoided. 
 
 Colonel Fry was put in command, 
 with Washington Lieutenant-Colonel, 
 and the latter recruited two companies 
 at Alexandria and hurried forward in 
 advance of Fry to protect the frontier. 
 He had not gone far before he was con- 
 vinced that there was a state of war 
 already. He reached the Monongahela 
 River, and there made a protest to the 
 Governor because of the inadequacy 
 of supplies and men. Coming up with 
 a small body of French soldiery, he 
 surprised, surrounded and fired on 
 their camp. Ten French were killed, 
 twenty-one captured, and one escaped. 
 Colonel Fry died, but the rest of the 
 regiment advanced and met Colonel 
 Washington. The "massacre," as it 
 was called, had roused the French and 
 they came on, four '..o one. They sur- 
 rounded Colonel Washington and made 
 him agree to march off and not come 
 back for a year. The Indians, his al- 
 lies, and critics, said he showed little 
 military skill, and ordered them around 
 very harshly, but the French they de- 
 nounced as cowards. He had written 
 a boastful letter about loving to hear 
 the bullets whistle, and now with the 
 "massacre" and surrender on his hands, 
 he did not figure heroically at Paris 
 when the news got there. The fact, 
 however, that Colonel Washington had 
 ofl'ered battel in the open field before 
 he agreed to march away was gratify- 
 ing to the Virginia Assembly, and they 
 voted him thanks, with a Colonel's pay. 
 At this critical juncture the English 
 Government issued an order that any 
 officer bearing the King's commission 
 should outrank any officer not bearing 
 such paper. When General Sharpe 
 asked Colonel Washington to join him, 
 the Colonel indignantly refused, as any 
 sub-lieutenant from England might 
 outrank him. General Braddock ar- 
 
322 
 
 THE HOME AUXILIARY AND REFERENCE 
 
 rived with two regiments or regulars, 
 and hearing of Colonel Washington, at 
 once offered him a staff position as 
 Colonel, where nobody could give him 
 orders but his General. Colonel Wash- 
 ington gladly accepted, early in 1755. 
 In Pennsylvania E^.enjamin Franklin be- 
 gan bargaining for Braddock's Quaker 
 wagons, on his own bond. Who could 
 believe that these Frenchmen, now 
 swooping in on all sides, were to help 
 free America, losing it first them- 
 selves ? 
 
 Braddock was hot and fiery. The 
 dignity of the provincial "Estates" net- 
 tled him. He rebuked Colonel Wash- 
 ington when he spoke of the savages 
 as warriors, and, after many delays, 
 reacher Fort Duquesne (Pittsburgh). 
 Before that French stronghold, July 
 8, 1755, "Braddock's defeat" took 
 place, with Colonel Washington push- 
 ing to the front, though ill. Six hun- 
 dred Indians and 200 French killed 
 or wounded 700 English. Sixty-two 
 out of eighty-six English officers were 
 killed or wounded. Colonel Washing- 
 ton had two horses killed under him. 
 and four bullets went through his 
 clothes. General Braddock himself 
 was mortally wounded, and Colonel 
 Washington buried him four days 
 afterwards, reading the funeral servce 
 at the grave. He led back his little 
 band of defeated soldiers, and sol- 
 emnly pondered on the reasons of their 
 disaster and retreat. He was appointed 
 to command the \'irginia frontier, and 
 passed twenty months in that region, 
 with the episode of the trip to Boston, 
 which we will describe. A Captain 
 Dagworthy appeared on the scene with 
 a King's commission, and thought to 
 take Washington's command. On this 
 Colonel Washington, in buff and blue 
 un.iform. with a white and scarlet cloak 
 over his shoulders and a sword knot 
 of red and gold, with an aide on each 
 side and servants following in the rear, 
 set out for Boston to protest to Gov- 
 ernor Shirley, the Commander-in-Chief. 
 The Colonel s horse was a good one, 
 caparisoned in the finest London hous- 
 ings, with "livery lace" and the Wasli- 
 ingfton coat of arms. His cavalcade 
 
 made a stir wherever it went. The 
 Colonel's journey was a complete suc- 
 cess. Captain Dagworthy and his 
 thirty men were put to the rearward 
 by Governor Shirley, and Colonel 
 Washington attended several balls, and 
 looked well over Puritan Boston. 
 Again Colonel Washington returned to 
 the frontier, leading a dull life, till the 
 spring of 1758. when, on a journey to 
 Williamsburg, he stopped to dine with 
 his friend Major Chamberlayne at Wil- 
 liam's Ferry. There he met Martha 
 Dandridge. the young, rich and hand- 
 some widow of Daniel Parke Custis, 
 who lived at the White House, near 
 by. On his return he called there and 
 made an offer of marriage, which was 
 duly accepted. The French Fort Du- 
 quesne fell, and he at once resigned 
 his commission and hurried home to 
 prepare for a brilliant wedding. Colonel 
 Washington was now an important per- 
 sonage in \'irginia. He owned many 
 acres of Western lands that were 
 secure. He had the military dignity 
 of a Colonel ; he had traveled to the 
 \\'est Indies and Boston ; he had been 
 in battle; he had a family connection 
 with Lord Fairfax ; he secured his 
 position as tobacco planter by wedding 
 a lady with a fortune of her own. He 
 had been elected a member of the 
 I louse of Burgesses (Legislature), and 
 now removed to Williamsburg. When 
 he took his seat the Speaker paid him 
 a high compliment, in the Virginian 
 fashion. The Colonel rose to reply, 
 but stool stammering and blushing. 
 "Sit down. Colonel Washington," said 
 the Speaker, "your modesty equals your 
 valor, and that surpasses the power of 
 any language I possess." 
 
 At thirty he was owner, by inher- 
 itance, of Mount Vernon, where he 
 lived. He was a successful tobacco 
 raiser. 
 
 He was hot-tempered — a soldier's 
 mettle. He wrote to a Major in an- 
 swer to an impertinent letter: "I would 
 not have taken the same language from 
 you personally without letting you feel 
 some marks of my resentment." 
 
 By this time political excitement had 
 reached a high stage at Boston. The 
 
BIOGRArHY— GEORGE WASHINGTON 
 
 323 
 
 Stamp Act had been passed by Parlia- 
 ment, and Patrick Henry, a new and 
 almost unknown member of the \'ir- 
 ginia House of Burgesses, had oft'eretl 
 resolutions that were considered very 
 radical. Colonel Washington had voted 
 for these resolutions, but did not fore- 
 see war. Some years later, when the 
 colony had determined to refuse to im- 
 port the taxed articles, he had strictly 
 upheld this course, using none of the 
 articles under the taboo. When next 
 Colonel Washington sat in the Legisla- 
 ture, the port of Boston had been sealed 
 by England. June i, 1774, was ap- 
 pointed a day of fasting, humiliation 
 and prayer in \"irginia out of sympathy 
 with Boston. Lord Dunmore, the Gov- 
 ernor of \'irginia, at once prorogued 
 the Legislature because it had so voted. 
 Colonel Washington dined with Lord 
 Dunmore, but nevertheless fasted on the 
 day appointed. A town meeting at 
 Boston was directing the policy of the 
 colonies ; the tobacco nobility of the 
 \^irginia rivers was going along leis- 
 urely toward rebellion. 
 
 The Fairfax County meeting sent 
 Colonel Washington to Williamsburg 
 August I, 1774. He rose in the Vir- 
 ginia Convention and said : "I will 
 raise a thousand men, subsist them at 
 my own expense, and march them to 
 the relief of Boston." He had care- 
 fully considered the case, and he was 
 at once as clear as Samuel Adams. 
 There was not a moment of indecision, 
 for it was his profession as a soldier 
 and his desire as a brave man to lead 
 the fight, if there were to be any. 
 
 Virginia sent six delegates to the first 
 Continental Congress. Colonel Wash- 
 ington, Patrick Henry and Edmund 
 Pendleton traveled together. Congress 
 sat in Carpenters' Hall, Philadelphia. 
 Here Samuel Adams met Colonel 
 Washington. Both men had little to 
 say on the floor during the fifty-one 
 days of the session. Patrick Henry 
 said: "If you speak of solid informa- 
 tion and sound judgment, Colonel 
 Washington is unquestionably the great- 
 est man on the floor." This Con- 
 gress did little, following the Quaker 
 policy at Philadelphia, Colonel Wash- 
 
 ington returned to Mount \'ernon and 
 drilled troops, a company at a time. 
 Soldiers began to arrive. May 10, 
 1775, when he next appeared at the 
 Second Continental Congress, he was in 
 his bufif and blue uniform. Thus two 
 men — Franklin and Washington — made 
 their attire reveal their sentiments, as 
 the Indians put on their war paint and 
 head dresses. Colonel Washington was 
 chairman of the military committee. At 
 Boston Samuel Adams had left Joseph 
 Warren in charge, and his army (out- 
 side Boston) was now surrounding 
 Gage in Boston. June 15, John Adams 
 at Philadelphia, forcing Congress to 
 act, nominated Colonel Washington to 
 be Commander-in-Chief. 
 
 Again Colonel Washington — now 
 General Washington — rode forth, but 
 this time at the head of a brilliant 
 troop of officers, bound for Boston. 
 The news of Bunker Hill came to him 
 only twenty miles out. "Did the 
 militia fight?" he asked. He was over- 
 joyed to hear they had done nobly. He 
 left General Schuyler in charge at New 
 York, and took General Lee on to 
 Cambridge. He was with his army of 
 Bostoneers Jvfly 2. The next day, un- 
 der the Cambridge elm, he drew his 
 sword against King George. 
 
 With headquarters at the Wads- 
 worth House, he counted 14,000 raw 
 recruits. Entrenchments were thrown 
 up, and rules separating officers from 
 men, after the Old-World military 
 fashion, were enforced. After he had 
 brought order to his military republics, 
 he advised with thirteen Governors and 
 Assemblies and Congress. He sought 
 for powder. He sent expeditions into 
 Canada. He addressed Gage in Bos- 
 ton, and Gage, in the King's name, 
 talked to him about "rebels," "crimi- 
 nals," "cords." He, like Benjamin 
 Franklin, was constituted a prize or 
 admiralty judge, and was harassed 
 with petty marine details. 
 
 March 4, 1776, at night, however, he 
 took possession of Dorchester Heights, 
 and made Boston untenable. Lord 
 Howe had assumed command in Bos- 
 ton, and on the 17th he evacuated with 
 12,000 troops, leaving cannon, but pil- 
 
THE HOME AUXILIARY AND REFERENCE 
 
 laging the city. General Washington 
 made a glowing report of what he had 
 done without powder. He was now 
 forced, as he saw the English going 
 from Boston harbor to New York har- 
 bor and southward, to consider the de- 
 vastation of his own home. He wrote 
 letters hoping the patriots would bear 
 up, and he became bitter against Tories. 
 Howe had 30,000 men. General 
 Washington, as a military necessity, 
 ought to burn New York and retire. 
 The provincial tax-payers demanded a 
 battle, at any odds, in front of New 
 York, and no evacuation by the Fed- 
 erals. He stayed on Long Island — in 
 Brooklyn. His General Sullivan was 
 surrounded, and his own main works 
 were reached. The loss was 2,000 men. 
 Nine thousand Continentals were left 
 in a critical position. Out of this di- 
 lemma General Washington escaped on 
 the night of August 29, 1776, and re- 
 treated up Manhattan Island. The 
 militia began to fade away, and to talk 
 about Braddock's defeat, listening to 
 industrious Tory recollections, all of 
 which tended to discourage the spirit 
 of independence alike in soldier and 
 civilian. The English next made a 
 dash in on the Americans at Kip's 
 Landing, where Washington, with his 
 own eyes, saw the cowardice of his men 
 at the mere sight of red-coats. This 
 rendered him furious. In his anger he 
 struck the fleeing men with his sword. 
 He retreated swiftly to King's Bridge, 
 with 12,000 men, 25,000 British coming 
 up slowly after him. The British lost 
 six days in advancing and General 
 Washington got up the Hudson River to 
 White Plains on strong ground. Gen- 
 eral Howe came up and drove General 
 Washington's forces into . a still 
 stronger place. Howe now prepared 
 to winter at Dobb's Ferry. General 
 Washington, against his own wishes, 
 had left two forts down the river oc- 
 cupied with his troops. Both fell to 
 the British. Fort Washington, the 
 second, was carried by storm and 2,600 
 Continentals with munitions were cap- 
 tured. With this deplorable loss. Gen- 
 eral Washington began to fall back into 
 New Jersey, and Lee was defeated 
 
 through neglect of orders. December 
 2, 1776, General Washington, with 3,- 
 000 raggea men, was at Princeton, 
 New Jersey. There was a growing 
 feeling of discouragement in his army. 
 The New Jersey militia would not turn 
 out. Howe's amnesty was circulated 
 everywhere. As the troops neared 
 Philadelphia, the signers of the Decla- 
 ration voted to die at their posts, and 
 then adjourned to Baltimore. 
 
 General Howe did not press on : he 
 went back for Christmas-tide at New 
 York City. Now, if General Washing- 
 ton could have received some aid from 
 Congress, it would have been well. He 
 wrote them how his life was at stake, 
 his character was to be lost, his estate 
 was to be confiscated ; could they not 
 then, see that his advice must be for 
 the best? But they considered that 
 they must debate it. At Christmas, as 
 Howe and his red-coats were under the 
 mistletoe, General Washington pre- 
 pared to strike the British with his six 
 little groups, or detatchments. He 
 would fall upon the English at Trenton, 
 across the Delaware River. Gates, 
 Ewing, Putnam, Griffin, Cadwallader, 
 all should cross the Delaware in mid- 
 winter with him, and surprise Trenton. 
 Orders were given. Gates simply 
 would not do it. Griffin met the enemy 
 and retreated. Putnam and Ewing be- 
 lieved they could do it. Cadwallader 
 started to do it, and the broken ice de- 
 terred him. General Washington ar- 
 rived at the river, to do his part, with 
 2,400 men. It was not too bad for him. 
 He went over in boats, on a terrible 
 night. From the landing it was a nine- 
 mile march in a sleet-storm to Trenton. 
 "Our arms are wet," Sullivan sent 
 word. "Then tell your General to use 
 the bayonet, for the town must be 
 taken."' The town was taken. The 
 Hessians threw down their arms and 
 fled, at seeing an invading army come 
 in out of the storm. A thousand of 
 them were captured. General Wash- 
 ington returned to his old position. If 
 all had obeyed him, New Jersey would 
 have been taken. Congress at once 
 gave him almost dictatorial powers. 
 From that moment, George Washing- 
 
BIOGRAPHY— GEORGE WASHINGTON 
 
 32s 
 
 ton lias been statuesque, incomparable, 
 in American minds. 
 
 CornwalHs now came out of New 
 York to recapture Trenton. He 
 marched past Princeton, leaving three 
 regiments. He came up with General 
 \\'asnington across a river, as night 
 was falling. Leaving his camp-fires 
 burning on the river, General Washing- 
 ton fell on Princeton, and, himself be- 
 tween the lines, came off unscathed and 
 put the three regiments to flight. The 
 Piritish thought fit to retire to New 
 York and wait for campaigning 
 weather. The American soldiers had 
 left the bloody tracks of their bare feet 
 in the snow. At this price, and on this 
 slight thread of Washington's high re- 
 solve, did Liberty depend this wmter. 
 The patriotic spirit revived on sight of 
 such personal valor, and men said one 
 to another that they must be led by a 
 prophet. 
 
 The exact personal appearance of 
 General Washington at this time has 
 been described. Ackerson commanded 
 a company of patriots. It is three days 
 before crossing the Delaware. Acker- 
 son writes to his son, in 181 1: "In 
 military costume, Washington was a 
 heroic figure, such as would impress 
 the memory ever afterward. Pie had 
 a large thick nose, and it was very red 
 that day, giving me the impression that 
 he was not so moderate in the use of 
 liquors as he was supposed to be. I 
 found afterward that this was a pecul- 
 iarity. His nose was apt to turn scarlet 
 in a cold wind. He was standing near 
 a small camp-fire, evidently lost in 
 thought, and making no effort to keep 
 warm. He sccincd six feet and a half 
 in height, was as erect as an Indian, 
 and did not for a moment relax from 
 a military attitude. His exact height 
 was six feet two inches in his boots. 
 He was then a little lame from strik- 
 ing his knee against a tree. His eye 
 was so gray that it looked almost white, 
 and he had a troubled look on his color- 
 less face. He had a piece of woolen 
 tied around his throat, and was quite 
 hoarse. Perhaps the throat-trouble 
 from which he finally dierl had its ori- 
 gin about then. Washington's boots 
 
 were enormous. They were number 
 thirteen. His ordinary walking-shoes 
 were number eleven. His hands were 
 large in proportion, and he could not 
 buy a glove to fit him, and had to have 
 his gloves made to order. His mouth 
 was his strong feature, the lips being 
 always tightly compressed. That day 
 they were compressed so tightly as to 
 be painful to look at. At that time he 
 weighed 200 pounds, and there was no 
 surplus flesh about him. He was tre- 
 mendously muscled, and the fame of 
 his great strength was everywhere. 
 His large tent, when wrapped up with 
 the poles, was so heavy that it required 
 two men to place it in the camp-wagon. 
 Washington would lift it with one hand 
 and throw it in the wagon as easily as 
 if it were a pair of saddle-bags. He 
 could hold a musket with one hand an?; 
 shoot with precision as easily as other 
 men did with a horse-pistol. His lungs 
 were his weak point, and his voice was 
 never strong. He was at that time in 
 the prime of life. His hair was a chest- 
 nut brown, his cheeks were prominent, 
 and his head was not large in contrast 
 to every other part of his body, which 
 seemed large and bony at all points. 
 His finger-joints and wrists were so 
 large as to be genuine curiosities. As 
 to his habits at that period, he was an 
 enormous eater, but was content with 
 bread and meat, if he had plenty of it. 
 But hunger seemed to put him in a 
 rage. It was his custom to take a drink 
 of rum or whisky on awakening in the 
 morning." 
 
 Nor had he lost his hot temper, 
 though it was nearly always well under 
 control. He told an officer to cross the 
 river and bring back some information. 
 He was pacing his tent with the flannel 
 on his sore neck when the officer re- 
 turned. "What did you learn?" The 
 officer related that he had found the 
 night dark and stormy and the river 
 full of ice. Therefore he could not 
 cross : therefore he had learned nothing 
 that General Washington did not know 
 already. The fire flew from Washing- 
 ton's eyes now, and the Chief, uttering 
 an oath, hurled a leaden inkstand at 
 the officers head. "Be off ! and send me 
 
326 
 
 THE HOME AUXILIARY AND REFERENCE 
 
 a 7iwn." The officer found the river 
 very easy to cross, and the storm less 
 furious than the one he had called up. 
 He returned with valuable news. 
 
 The New Jersey Building at the 
 World's Fair of 1893 was a replica of 
 the house in Morristown at which Gen- 
 eral Washington made his headquarters 
 in the early months of 1777. Here the 
 Chief was again compelled to act as a 
 recruiting-officer, a drill-sergeant, so 
 loath were Americans to make war. 
 There were few re-enlistments, and the 
 terms of service were ridiculously 
 short. It was at this house that a 
 horde of foreign officers began to come 
 in on the Commander-in-Chief. In 
 Paris, in 1871, a regiment was made up 
 of officers, but the scheme was un- 
 known in earlier days. Lafayette and 
 Steuben visited him here. General 
 Washington hoped that Howe would 
 go south against Philadelphia ; he 
 feared the British Commander might 
 go north and join the forces of Gen- 
 eral Burgoyne. The enemy did not 
 move till very late in the season, and 
 then came south with 18,000 men, 
 landing from ships in Chesapeake Bay, 
 near Philadelphia. Washington 
 
 marched his army of 11,000 men 
 through the Quaker City, to meet Sir 
 William Howe, late in August. The 
 two armies met at the Brandywine, and 
 Howe won the battle, Sullivan again 
 being outflanked and driven in, as at 
 Brooklyn. General Wayne led 1,500 
 men to harass the British rear, and was 
 worsted a day or so later. Howe now 
 took peaceable possession of Philadel- 
 phia, and chose ground at Germantown, 
 a suburb. Here General Wasliington 
 attempted a surprise with about 11,000 
 men at daybreak, October 4, 1777, and 
 was again defeated, and forced to with- 
 draw ; but the enemy did not pursue 
 him. General Washington lost about 
 1,200 men. 
 
 At this sad moment came the cheer- 
 ing news that Burgoyne had surren- 
 dered to Gates at Saratoga, with 5,752 
 soldiers, 39 cannon, and 5,000 stand of 
 arms. Burgoyne had previously lost 
 3,000 men in various ways. With this. 
 N'ergennes, Minister of Foreign Affairs 
 
 at Paris, let Franklin know that France 
 was ready to make a treaty of alliance 
 with the United States of America 
 against England. Meanwhile, Howe 
 tried to lure General Washington out 
 to fight him again, but the American 
 Commander could not be drawn out of 
 the hills which he held, and Howe went 
 back into Philadelphia. "Philadelphia 
 has taken Howe," said Dr. Franklin, at 
 I'aris. 
 
 John Adams, who had urged Gates 
 for a command, seems to have receded 
 from his support of General Washing- 
 ton as soon as Gates succeeded. A cabal, 
 headed by an Irish soldier named Con- 
 way, was formed to get Gates in chiei 
 command. General Washington would 
 not resign, as the plotters had hoped, 
 although they were able to sting his 
 pride. He wrote Patrick Henry that 
 the brave New Englanders were 
 prompt to fly against Burgoyne^ while 
 there was no such stufif in the hearts of 
 the Friends along the Delaware. 
 
 While General Washington was 
 building huts at his winter cantonment 
 of Valley Forge, and his men, barefoot, 
 were standing about the fires for lack 
 of blankets to lie down in, the Pennsyl- 
 vania Legislature, evidently in retalia- 
 tion, passed a resolution asking him to 
 go on fighting in the winter. At this 
 nioment he was compelled to forage 
 on the nearest Quakers for food, so 
 little had they done for his army. He 
 wrote indignantly to Congress, calling 
 its attention to the resolution, and re- 
 marking that his army was "occupy- 
 ing a cold bleak hill, and sleeping under 
 frost and snow, without clothes or 
 blankets." 
 
 It was not long, however, ere the 
 conduct of the Legislatures became 
 more obedient and helpful to General 
 Washington ; the Conway cabal was ex- 
 posed to the attention of the fighting 
 classes, who at once showed their in- 
 dignation, and the Commander-in- 
 Chief, with all his misfortunes, was 
 clearly seen to be the hope of the colo- 
 nies. He set Baron Steuben in charge of 
 drill and discipline; be put Greene in 
 as Quartermaster ; he hafi a better army 
 in the spring than in the autumn before, 
 
BIOGRAPHY— GEORGE WASHINGTON 
 
 3^7 
 
 and Howe gave way to Clinton in 
 Philadelphia as commander of the 
 British army, which was to be taken as 
 an indorsement of Washimjton's cam- 
 paign. Howe had regarded the patriot 
 army as so many fugitives in the hills, 
 who could not be caught, and Clinton 
 Ciid not reverse his policy. The country 
 must be tranquillized in other ways, the 
 English thought. Therefore the spring 
 was lost, talking of peace ; then Clinton 
 sent 5,000 men to the West Indies and 
 3,000 to Florida. He actually reduced 
 liimself to 10,000, while General Wash- 
 ington had kept 13,000 together. The 
 efiFect of the French alliance led the 
 Ministry at London to believe that it 
 would be wise to concentrate nearly all 
 their troops at New York City. Clin- 
 ton accordingly prepared to evacuate 
 Philadelphia, and General Washington 
 set out to strike him on the rear guard 
 of his army. Lee did not approve the 
 move, because he thought the Conti- 
 nentals ought to build a golden bridge 
 for their enemy to fly by. General 
 \\^ashington put Lafayette in charge; 
 therefore Lee grew jealous and de- 
 manded the command, so he was sent 
 out. May 27, 1778, with Generals 
 Wayne and Lafayette under him. He 
 was ordered to strike the rear guard at 
 once ; the next day he was sure the 
 British soldiers would defeat his new 
 recruits. He lost so much time that 
 Clinton got his baggage to the front 
 and was able to march Cornwallis with 
 a large force back where they could 
 make a good defense ; thus the British 
 advanced on a General (Lee) who had 
 feared all along he was going to be de- 
 feated. The subordinate Generals had 
 sent for General Washington in hot 
 haste. But as General Washington 
 came forward he met returning strag- 
 glers and then regiments, and then Lee, 
 all in pell-mell retreat. General Wash- 
 ington was in a towering rage, and 
 frightened Lee. Pie sent Lee to court- 
 martial and dismissal. He rallied Lee's 
 troops, joined the main body to them 
 as it came up, advanced in battle to 
 the field held by Lee in the morning, 
 lay down in possession, and in the 
 morning Clinton was on the march to 
 
 New York. This was the battle of 
 Monmouth, where the British lost 500 
 men in killed and wounded. It m- 
 creased the belief of the people that 
 Washington was a fighting General, if 
 he had troops that would not flee, and 
 it ruined Lee, who, because he had 
 fought in Europe, had carried many a 
 council-of-war the wrong way. 
 
 The rest of 1778 was spent in at- 
 tending upon the French. General 
 Washington was still plagued with for- 
 eign officers. "I do most devoutly 
 wish," he wrote, "that we had not a 
 single foreigner among us except the 
 Marquis de Lafayette." In another 
 letter to the same purpose. General 
 \Vashnigton hopes he is somewhat a 
 "citizen of the world." Yet he had 
 near him on his stafif, Alexander Ham- 
 ilton, still more of an anti-Gallican. 
 The Chief was of that proud spirit that 
 accepted aid with sorrow, and could 
 not pledge himself to be grateful. Con- 
 gress had moved back to Philadelphia. 
 As 1779 grew old, General Washington 
 was in attendance on that body, ob- 
 taining pay for mutinous troops, giv- 
 ing advice, deploring the stock-jobbing, 
 gambling, and other concomitants of 
 war. He wishes he "could bring those 
 murderers of our cause, the monopo- 
 lizers, forestallers, and engrossers, to 
 condign punishment. I would to God 
 some of the most atrocious in each 
 State was hung in gibbets upon a gal- 
 lows five times as high as the one pre- 
 pared by Haman." "Idleness, dissipa- 
 tion and extravagance seem to have 
 laid fast hold of the people, and 
 "speculation, peculation and an insati- 
 able thirst for riches seem to have got 
 the better of every other consideration, 
 and almost of every order of men ; 
 party disputes and personal quarrels 
 are the great business of the day." He 
 did much letter-writing that autumn 
 and winter while the French fleet was 
 in New England waters, and the Amer- 
 ican General Gates, in connnand of 
 Boston-region, was afraid Clinton 
 might strike at him. Savannah had 
 fallen to the English. General Wash- 
 ington, with headquarters at Newburg, 
 set to work to hold the Hudson River 
 
328 
 
 THE HOME AUXILIARY AND REFERENCE 
 
 and hem in Clinton, believing that the 
 Hudson was the line that would, if 
 taken by the British, divide the colonies 
 and no other. He wished to send 
 Greene south, but Congress chose 
 Gates, who later was badly defeated, 
 with the French as auxiliaries. The 
 English raided both New En^^Iand and 
 A'irginia, and the \'irginian Governor 
 was unable to gather the militia or 
 make a defense. 
 
 The spring of 1780 was coming on 
 badly enough, with General Washing- 
 ton bound to hold the Hudson, at least, 
 when the French came to Newport 
 with 5,000 men, and Gates set out to 
 mend things in South Carolina. But 
 General Rochambeau and General 
 Washington did not agree. The 
 Frenchman thought he must wait till 
 more ships came. The summer went 
 on and Gates was fearfully defeated 
 at Camden. The South was lost. Next 
 came the treason of Benedict Arnold, 
 who, to loosen General Washington's 
 grip on the Hudson, had sold West 
 Point, and was about to deliver the 
 stronghold to Major Andre. General 
 AVashington had gone to meet Rocham- 
 beau at Hartford. The people had 
 hailed him as F.\ther, and their feel- 
 ing were so affectionate toward him, 
 after coming out of the atmosphere of 
 \ alley Forge and the Hudson, that he 
 was in high spirits. Arnold made his 
 hair-breadth escape from the very 
 grasp of General Washington, and, a 
 few minutes later, was on a British 
 man-of-war. "Whom can we trust 
 now?" cried the Chief, and then was 
 silent. He hanged the spy Andre who 
 had come to get West Point. 
 
 The winter of 1780-81 was another 
 \'alley Forge of difficulties. Even the 
 American troops rebelled. Pennsyl- 
 vania made terms with its regiments, 
 but when the New Jersey men fol- 
 lowed. General Washington hanged two 
 mutineers. How many more winters 
 the great man would have endured at 
 Newburg cannot be conjectured. His 
 own State was still being ravaged. But 
 Greene, in the South, turned the day. 
 
 as Gates had once turned it in the 
 North. By a series of brilliant opera- 
 tions Cornwallis was obliged to march 
 toward the Chesapeake, and all the 
 marauding British parties were massed 
 with him. He was ordered, from Lon- 
 don, to establish a base on the Chesa- 
 peake, and Clinton, at New York, be- 
 gan to grow jealous of him. General 
 Washington alarmed Clinton into the 
 belief that he was surely to be attacked, 
 so Clinton was not willing to go south- 
 vvard. The French fleet blocked the 
 Chesapeake, and landed 3,000 men un- 
 der Lafayette. General Washington 
 prepared to strike at Cornwallis, leav- 
 ing Heath at New York with enough 
 force to keep Clinton on the defensive. 
 Congress took little heart in General 
 Washington's plans, and debated cut- 
 ting down his army at the moment he 
 was trying to show the French he had 
 an opportunity to win. He could get 
 no money, for the French were just 
 now spending their own appropriations, 
 and seeing that Dutch contractors did 
 not get all the money. While the army 
 of General Washington went by water 
 to Yorktown the General, with Roc- 
 hambeau, visited Alt. Vernon and 
 Williamsburg. He had been gone six 
 years. Cornwallis was now within 
 strong lines at Yorktown, with a 
 French fleet outside and a larger Am- 
 erican army surrounding him. The 
 siege began September 28th. Corn- 
 wallis surrendered, October 19, I78i,his 
 ships and seamen to DeGrasse, the 
 French Admiral ; his army and impedi- 
 menta to General W^ashington. There 
 were 7,073 of the red-coats whom Gen- 
 eral Washington took. General Alex- 
 ander Hamilton distinguished himself 
 in the final assault. As the troops 
 scaled the works General Washington 
 said : "The work is done, and well 
 done. Bring me my horse." 
 
 Nothing happened at Newburg while 
 he was away, and Congress grew more 
 compliant. Yet when Vergennes, at 
 Paris, demanded that the man who 
 needed the money (Washington) 
 should disburse the last French subsidv 
 
BIOGRAPHY— GEORGE WASHINGTON 
 
 that Franklin had induced him to be- 
 stow, Congress objected, and Franklin 
 had to audit bills, as of yore. 
 
 There was one late episode of the 
 war that should be noted. A troop of 
 armed Tories in the I'ritish service un- 
 der one Lippencott had captured an 
 American captain, and hanged him as a 
 traitor to their King. General Wash- 
 ington demanded the surrender of the 
 Ivnchers. Sir Gu)' Carleton, in com- 
 mand at New York, refused, but tried 
 Lippencott by court martial, who es- 
 caped on a technicality. 
 
 In May, 1782, the fears of the demo- 
 ciatic-republicans took shape in a letter 
 by Colonel Xicola, representing a 
 large party in the army, reciting the 
 weaknesses, follies and jealousies of 
 Congress, and begging General Wash- 
 ington to assume the dictatorship by 
 force. General Washington's answer 
 was noble and straightforward. He 
 "viewed the letter with abhorrence," 
 "reprehended it with severity." He 
 said, beautifully and truly: "If I am 
 not deceived in the knowledge of my- 
 self, you could not have found a per- 
 son to whom your schemes are more 
 disagreeable." 
 
 Nations do not spring full-armed 
 into existence. The land of George 
 Washington was a weakling in its in- 
 fancy. Long after Yorktown, a newly- 
 recruited regiment had the audacity to 
 again frighten the Quakers and drive 
 Congress out of Philadelphia to Prince- 
 ton. General Washington put down 
 this mutiny, and was angry, because 
 the upstarts had never seen battle, and 
 he thought — considering how much he 
 had endured from raw troops — that 
 they were imposing even on themselves. 
 The Newburg addresses by the military 
 were of the same order with Nicola's 
 letter, and caused General Washington 
 as much chagrin. Peace came none too 
 soon, for such was the inchoate con- 
 dition of things that another year of 
 X'alley-Forging might have resulted in 
 anarchy. 
 
 General Washington's last months 
 with the army were spent in various 
 trips through New York, in advising 
 Congress at Princeton, and in prepar- 
 
 ing addresses to Governors and the 
 army. As preparations for the evacua- 
 tion of New York City progressed, he 
 moved to Harlem, and on November 
 -5' ^7^3> two long years after York- 
 town, accompanied by Governor Clin- 
 ton, made his entry into the chief city. 
 There had been a conflagration that had 
 destroyed 300 houses while he was 
 gone. He was ready to resign his com- 
 mission. At Fraunces' Tavern, Decem- 
 ber 4th, he assembled his officers. Lift- 
 ing a glass of wine he said: "With a 
 heart full of love and gratitude, I now 
 take leave of you, most devoutly wish- 
 ing that your latter days may be as pros- 
 perous and happy as your former ones 
 have been glorious and honorable." "I 
 shall be obliged," he said, "if each of 
 you will come and take me by the 
 hand." Tears were in his eyes. He 
 said no more, but embraced them one 
 by one, in the fashion of partings in 
 those days. They went with him to the 
 wharf. They felt very lonesome and 
 fatherless when he had disappeared. 
 
 He adjusted his accounts at Phila- 
 delphia, but charged no salary for all 
 those years. He had disbursed about 
 $75,000 in all sorts of ways, and much 
 of this he had advanced. He appeared 
 at noon of December 23d before Con- 
 gress. The members were seated, with 
 hats on, to represent the sovereign 
 power. The spectators stood, uncov- 
 c'cd. The President of the Congress 
 slated that the L^nited States, in Con- 
 gress assembled, were prepared to re- 
 ceive the communication of General 
 \\'ashington. He then rose and read 
 his farewell, the noblest document re- 
 cording the deeds of men. He drew 
 his spectacles, saying, "You see, I have 
 grown old in your service." He sub- 
 mitted his resignation and asked to be 
 retired to private life, his country be- 
 irig no longer harassed by considerable 
 foes. His resignation was accepted, he 
 walked out of the hall, and the group 
 of law-makers once more looked about 
 them and found everybody small but 
 him ; there was even no elder brother 
 to guide them. 
 
 His trustful leaving of the service 
 of the new natfcn at the time it had 
 
THE HOME AUXILIARY AND REFERENCE 
 
 shaken off Great Britain was typical of 
 his grand and simple nature. But noth- 
 ing was less likely than that he could 
 be spared. The people had heard he 
 was extremely desirous to see a Union 
 of States well established, and they now 
 set out to do as he had advised them. 
 They thought the Chief must be left 
 a time in peace. How did he pass his 
 time meanwhile? Lafayette sent him a 
 pack of French wolf-hounds, but there 
 was no hunting. Still he was in the 
 saddle a good deal, thinking. Every 
 painter and historian visited ]\It. \'er- 
 non. The great man found he must 
 have a secretary. He went to see his 
 mother and she blessed him. Then he 
 rode away to the Ohio. He came back 
 and wrote letters, showing his extreme 
 solicitude. "'My sentiments and 
 opinions have been neglected," he says, 
 "though given as a last legacy, in a 
 most solemn manner." Thereat the 
 people, after he had once more ad- 
 vised, hastened to attempt the institu- 
 tion of some central offices and powers. 
 A Constitutional Convention was 
 called. General Washington pleaded 
 illness, but went as a delegate for Vir- 
 ginia to Philadelphia. The bells rang 
 when he arrived. The Convention met. 
 He was installed as President of the 
 body. After four months of labor, on 
 September 17, 1787, he affixed his sig- 
 nature to the present Constitution of 
 the United States, saying: "Should the 
 States reject this excellent Constitution, 
 the probability is that opportunity will 
 never be offered to cancel another in 
 peace ; the next will be drawn in blood." 
 General Washington went back to 
 Mt. Vernon urging the adoption of the 
 Constitution; urging the election of 
 Federalists, or Constitution men, and 
 therefore the Constitution was adopted 
 and the Federalists were elected. There 
 was to be a President, and that office 
 had been fitted to his stature. The 
 Chief had not asked the people to make 
 anybody else President, so there was 
 no vote for anybody else. Unhappy the 
 Elector who would have so humiliated 
 his people as to put a slight on that 
 sanctified and anointed hero, patient as 
 the sphinx, unpretent%us as the solid 
 
 monuments of the furthest ages. 
 
 General Washington made a splen- 
 did progress to take the Presidency of 
 the United States. His barge to Kew 
 York City was rowed by thirteen white 
 uniformed pilots. The great harbor 
 gave him no mean or unbeautiful wel- 
 come. The crowds not only uncovered, 
 but bowed as their hero went by, in the 
 beloved buff" and blue uniform. 
 
 On the 30th of April, 1789, in citi- 
 zen's clothes, he appeared before the 
 Congress, took the oath, and kissed the 
 Bible. The Chancellor who had sworn 
 him cried, ''Long live George W'ashing- 
 ton. President of the LTnited States !" 
 The new President said : "In our prog- 
 ress toward political happiness, my sta- 
 tion is new ;" therefore the people might 
 have seen he did not intend to be king. 
 Yet his own peculiar personality de- 
 manded some arrangement that it 
 would have tasked Jefferson to concede. 
 As President he shook hands with no- 
 body. He returned no calls. He would 
 have felt easier as "His Highness" by 
 salutation, because he thought he held 
 a sublime office. The French Ambas- 
 sador expected to be intimate, but the 
 President compelled him to wait on Jef- 
 ferson, the Secretary of State. Wash- 
 ington could be no more a friend now 
 of France than of King George. Yet 
 the Chief was glad to appoint Jefferson, 
 pupil of Rosseau and Samuel Adams. 
 How did Washington come to appoint 
 an opponent of Hamilton? Jefferson 
 supported the Constitution — that was 
 the reason ; those patriots who did not 
 (before it was adopted) were left out 
 of the Cabinet. All the Supreme Court 
 was to be named — all Constitution men. 
 Federalists, John Jay at the head. The 
 President traveled to Boston, to dine 
 with John Hancock, Governor. The 
 Governor did not call, as he should 
 have done. The President prepared to 
 leave Boston. Then Hancock, in flan- 
 nel sheets, gouty to the death, had to 
 be carried up a pair of stairs — had to 
 beg for a half-hour to make his call. 
 This precedent soon became doctrine — 
 namely, that in the United .States the 
 President, representing all the people, 
 outranks everybody else. 
 
BIOGRAPHY— GEORGE WASHINGTON 
 
 When Congress came together Jan- 
 uary 4, 1790, in New York City, the 
 President approached the hall in the 
 following state : A Colonel and a Ma- 
 jor on two white horses; the President, 
 alone, in his own coach, drawn by four 
 horses ; his chariot with his private sec- 
 retaries ; a man on horseback ; in three 
 coaches, the Chief Justice, the Secre- 
 tary of War, the Secretary of the 
 Treasury (Jefferson absent, not approv- 
 ing this panopoly). In the Senate 
 Chamber the President, with his ret- 
 inue, passed between all the Congress- 
 men and Senators, who stood. He was 
 seated beside the \'ice-Presid*nt (John 
 Adams). He rose and spoke. This 
 was the way the President's Message 
 was first delivered. He departed at 
 once, as he had come. It will be seen 
 that this was exactly as he went to 
 Boston — in such state as befitted his 
 personal station. The people, too, saw 
 no harm in it, so lovingly do they trust 
 great leaders, so fortunately did they 
 confide in George Washington. 
 
 President \\'ashingfton put down the 
 Whisky Rebellion and had Indian wars 
 out in (what is now) Indiana. It 
 would be the logical act of the new 
 nation to ally itself with France against 
 the oppressor, but Washington was by 
 connection with Lord Fairfax, an Eng- 
 lish gentleman. When England and 
 France again went to war, it there- 
 fore came to pass that the President 
 fell slightly out of harmony with the 
 American people, and for the first time 
 (that is, when George Washington 
 could be seen) they looked affectionately 
 toward Thomas Jefferson, who had 
 written the Declaration of Indepen- 
 dence. Now the Chief seemed clearly 
 wrong. There could be no mistake, 
 they thought. He was catering to the 
 British, and ill-treating Citizen Genet, 
 Ambassador from France (not Ver- 
 gennes' France, not even from Lafay- 
 ette's France, but from Robespierre's 
 France! — for there had been an awful 
 set of changes there). How much 
 sympathy had the Chief for the man 
 who slew Vergniaud, Brissot, not to 
 speak of the bad sense of slaying the 
 King and Queen of France? Citizen 
 
 Genet came on like Fouche at Lyons or 
 Carrier at Nantes. "Make way for 
 Liberty, Equality, Fraternity !" he 
 cried. "Organize Jacobin clubs, wear 
 red caps, above all attend our admiralty 
 court, set up here at Charleston, where 
 we bestow prizes and fit privateers!" 
 Behold Citizen Genet, carrying Equality 
 or Death to George Washington! This 
 was perhaps one of the most grotesque 
 things in history. At first, of course, 
 Jefferson was in close touch with the 
 Ambassador from France ; then frantic 
 with disgust. George Washington, too, 
 was wise in asking Jefferson to him- 
 self send away Genet. Especially, 
 when Citizen Genet announced that he 
 would call an election of the people to 
 vote on President Washington. By the 
 time Citizen Genet had been recalled at 
 Jefferson's demand, he did not dare to 
 go back to France. He thereupon be- 
 came a quiet and inoffensive inhabitant 
 of America. He was weary. He did 
 General W^ashington a monstrous 
 wrong with his red flag and red night- 
 cap. Jay was burned in effigy, Hamil- 
 ton was stoned, there was a town-meet- 
 ing in Faneuil Hall against the Presi- 
 dent's signature to the English treaty 
 made by Jay, and much excitement in 
 the nation. George Washington dated 
 a letter, "United States, July 28, 1795." 
 He said he was doing his duty. He 
 said, at last, that he was preparing 
 his "mind for the obloquy that disap- 
 pointment and malice" were collecting 
 to heap on him. Again, he could not 
 support James Monroe at Paris, and 
 or.ce more went against the people's 
 ideas of liberty. They could not un- 
 derstand that he was a truer friend of 
 forceful Liberty than had ever lived, or 
 perhaps ever would live again, nor 
 could Monroe, so when Washington re- 
 called him from France there remained 
 one more triumph in store for those 
 (not Jeff'erson and ]\Ionroe) who en- 
 vied George Washington because na- 
 ture had made him grand and simple. 
 At last it is possible that Jacobin editors 
 thought they would do well to write 
 scurrilous articles about "the tyrant 
 Washington," and they took up Jeffer- 
 son's and Genet's cry of "Monarchists," 
 
THE HOME AUXn.IARY AND REFERENCE 
 
 "Aristocrats," and "'corrupt squadrons,'" 
 tlie latter being Jefferson's way of at- 
 tacking Hamilton's financial legislation. 
 One editor said Washington "main- 
 tained the seclusion of a monk and the 
 supercilious distance of a tyrant." At 
 last the House of Congress refused to 
 adjourn on his birthday for half an 
 hour, in order that members might call 
 on him and pay their respects. But the 
 nation was now made. It had been 
 founded. It had elected him twice 
 trustingly, it would elect him again, but 
 it allowed editors to ungenerously as- 
 sail him. He clearly saw his work was 
 done. He prepared his farewell ad- 
 dress once more, but this time without 
 tears. Yet, out of the wealth of his 
 love of America, he offered the people 
 another legacy from the treasury of a 
 freeman's advice: "Let there be no sec- 
 tionalism, no North, South, East or 
 West. Beware of attacks, open or co- 
 vert, upon the Constitution. Do not 
 encourage party spirit. Promote edu- 
 cation, avoid debt. As a nation, have 
 rieither passionate hatreds (of Eng- 
 land) nor passionate attachments (to 
 France)." 
 
 March 3, 1797, he gave a farewell 
 dinner to President John Adams, Vice- 
 President Jefferson, and other high of- 
 ficers. Compared with the leave-taking 
 from his Generals at New York, where 
 he had been obeyed, his manner now to 
 the statesmen who had underestimated 
 him was joyous. He was glad to leave 
 one and all. But they were not merry. 
 They, again, were lonesome. The next 
 day, this phenomenon was to be re- 
 corded, namely: The people took back 
 their own into the great body of private 
 life, and yet there were eyes for no- 
 body else. The hall was nearly emp- 
 tied when General Washington went 
 out ; a multitude followed him to his 
 lodgings. And when he saw this once 
 more, he turned and bowed very low, 
 and tears were in his eyes, for the per- 
 sonal trust and love of the people re- 
 warded him and exalted him in spirit. 
 
 Beside the fact that President Adams 
 made him Commander-in-Chief of the 
 provincial army again, there were epi- 
 sodes in his life at Mt. Vernon, but 
 
 the casual reader need not be wearied 
 with their recital. Yet it cannot per- 
 haps be amiss to look in on him once 
 with the eyes of the actor Bernard. 
 
 Bernard, on horseback, riding near 
 Alexandria, came on an overturned 
 chaise which had carried a man and 
 woman ; she was unconscious ; the man 
 was unhurt ; at the same time another 
 horseman rode up. "The horse was 
 now on his legs, but the vehicle still 
 prostrate, heavy in its frame, and laden 
 with at least half a ton of luggage. 
 Aly fellow-helper set me an example of 
 activity in relieving it of the internal 
 weight ; "and when all was clear we 
 grasped the wheel between us, and to 
 the peril of our spinal columns, righted 
 the conveyance. The horse was then 
 put in and we lent a hand to help up 
 the luggage. All this helping, hauling 
 and lifting occupied at least half an 
 hour, under a meridian sun, in the mid- 
 dle of July, which fairly boiled the per- 
 spiration out of our foreheads." The 
 chaise went on, after the usual \'irgin- 
 ian proffer of civilities. "Then my 
 companion offered very courteously to 
 dust my coat, a favor the return of 
 which enabled me to take deliberate 
 survey of his person. He was a tall, 
 erect, well-made man, evidently ad- 
 vanced in years, but who appeared to 
 have retained all the vigor and elas- 
 ticity resulting from a life of temper- 
 ance and exercise. His dress was a 
 blue coat buttoned to his chin and buck- 
 skin breeches. Though the instant he 
 took off" his hat I could not avoid the 
 recognition of familiar lineaments, 
 which, indeed, I was in the habit of 
 seeing on every sign-post and over 
 every fireplace, still I failed to identify 
 him, and to my surprise I found that 
 I was an object of equal speculation in 
 his eyes. 'Mr. Bernard, I believe,' " 
 and asked Bernard to go on to his 
 house, now in sight. " 'Mt. \^ernon !' I 
 exclaimed ; and then drawing back with 
 a stare of wonder, 'Have I the honor 
 of addressing General Washington?' 
 Whh a smile whose expression of ben- 
 evolence I have rarely seen equaled, 
 he offered his hand and replied : 'An 
 odd sort of introduction, Mr. Bernard; 
 
BIOGRAPHY—BENJAMIN FRANKLIN 
 
 hut I am pleased to find you can play 
 so active a part in private, and with- 
 out a prompter.' " 
 
 General Washington had seen Bern- 
 ard act. This charming host was the 
 same person who, when President, as 
 I'resident, would not shake hands with 
 anybody. They went on, and had a 
 pleasant chat. "His eyes burned with 
 a steady fire" — they looked "glorious" 
 to Bernard, who seems to have been 
 a man not easily dazzled. 
 
 When the Bastile was taken, Lafay- 
 ette sent its great key to General Wash- 
 ington. It hangs at Mt. Vernon. When 
 Lafayette went to an Austrian dun- 
 geon, General Washington shed tears. 
 He educated young Lafayette. 
 
 December 13, 1799, General Wash- 
 ington had a sore throat, as of old on 
 the Delaware. The next day he was 
 choking to death, and died where such 
 cases are to-day successfully treated by 
 the surgeons. His death was without 
 pompous utterance. He said it was 
 the debt we must all pay, was anxious 
 to leave his affairs in good shape, and 
 kept his mind on the estate of i\It. Ver- 
 non to the last. He died childless. 
 They said, who had escaped slavery 
 by his sword, that he was the father 
 only of his history. His home, where 
 he died, Mt. Vernon, has been visited 
 by every lover of liberty and admirer 
 of greatness who has journeyed toward 
 the Chesapeake. For over forty 
 years it has been a museum of national 
 character. The State of Virginia, to 
 f:imiliarize its form to the entire na- 
 tion, copied it for headquarters at the 
 A\'orld's Fair of 1893, and the building 
 was always overcrowded. 
 
 One critical question may be asked : 
 What did the Father and the Chief 
 think of Benjamin Franklin? He said 
 to Bernard, that day, after exploiting 
 the New Englanders, as if to settle it 
 all, "Dr. Franklin is a New Englander." 
 I le looked on Dr. Franklin with the ven- 
 eration that he paid to science and to 
 all things good. He thought Dr. Frank- 
 lin was one of the few helpful civilians 
 ii the war, and loved him for his aid. 
 When he went to the Constitutional 
 
 Convention, his first act was to call on 
 Dr. I'Vanklin to pay his respects. 
 
 BENJAMIN FRANKLIN. 
 1706—1790 
 
 Gu.VNDSIRE OF THE REVOLUTION. 
 
 It is perhaps the chief boast of the 
 proud City of Boston that Benjamin 
 franklin was born there, on ]\lilk 
 street, near the corner of W^ashington. 
 His statue has the place of honor be- 
 fore the City Hall. The date of birth 
 was January 17, 1706. The father had 
 seventeen children by two wives, and 
 Benjamin was the eighth of ten chil- 
 dren by the second wife. His mother 
 was a Folger, and he took his char- 
 acteristics from her and her father. He 
 desired to be a sailor; his father 
 wished him to be a preacher. They 
 could not agree, and the father, as a 
 medium course, set the son at work in 
 a tallow chandler's factory. To escape 
 from this fate Benjamin suffered him- 
 self to be bound to his brother James 
 as a printer's apprentice for a term of 
 nine years. James was an editor, and 
 angered the press censor. To evade 
 the censor, the newspaper was pub- 
 lished under the name of Benjamin 
 Franklin, the old indenture of appren- 
 ticeship was annulled, and a secret one 
 was substituted. Thereupon the ap- 
 prentice felt safe in running away — 
 perhaps safer, for he says in his cele- 
 brated autobiography that although a 
 lad of only seventeen years, he was 
 already "a little obnoxious to the gov- 
 erning party," as his "indiscreet dis- 
 putations about religion" had caused 
 him to be pointed at with horror by 
 good people as an infidel and atheist." 
 He found no situation at New York, 
 and passed on to Philadelphia. A good 
 printer who had escaped five years of 
 k'ondage need not feel uneasy, and. 
 buying three rolls of bread, he walked 
 up Market street as far as Fourth, with 
 a roll under each arm and munching 
 a third. A passage in his autobiog- 
 raphy tends to show that little Boston 
 
THEIHOME AUXILIARY-AND REFERENCE 
 
 aid not practice the gentility of the 
 great City of Philadelphia, for he says : 
 "I passed by the door of Mr. Read, 
 my future wife's father; when she, 
 standing by the door, saw me, and 
 thought I made, as I certainly did, a 
 most awkward, ridiculous appearance." 
 He soon got work and became ac- 
 quainted with Sir William Keith, who 
 was Governor of the Province of Penn- 
 sylvania for the two sons of William 
 Penn, who owned the charter. Keith 
 persuaded Franklin to go back to Bos- 
 ton and try to get his father to invest 
 the capital necessary for a newspaper 
 at Philadelphia. But the son's lux- 
 urious appearance on his return to Bos- 
 ton did not move the father of seven- 
 teen children, who would not invest, 
 and thought Keith must be a foolish 
 man. Keith then advised Benjamin to 
 go to London, England, choose a 
 "dress" and outfit, and Keith would 
 himself furnish the funds. Keith 
 would seem to have had a secret de- 
 sire to get Franklin out of Philadel- 
 phia, and therein he was certainly a 
 good servant of the Penns, as events 
 proved. Franklin got on board a ves- 
 sel, still waiting for his bill of ex- 
 change, and went to sea before he really 
 knew he had been deceived. Even then 
 he did not lament his fate, but set out 
 to see the world at London, and was a 
 wild young man for some time. Fi- 
 nally he reformed, became a teetotaller 
 for life, and was again able to interest 
 rich gentlemen in his welfare. A Phila- 
 delphia merchant offered to take him 
 back as confidential clerk, and the twain 
 sailed home, reaching Philadelphia Oc- 
 tober II, 1726. But the merchant and 
 the young printer were both seized 
 with illness, and the benefactor died. 
 Benjamin Franklin, at twenty, was so 
 sick that he thought he would die, and 
 prepared his epitaph, now so famous: 
 
 THE BODY OF 
 
 EENJ.XMIN FR.XNKLIN 
 
 (like the cover of an old book. 
 
 its contents torn out, 
 
 AND STRIPT OF ITS LETTERING AND GILDING). 
 
 THE AUTHOR 
 
 Bradford and Keimer were the rival 
 printers in the city. It was Keimer 
 whom Franklin had worked for. Brad- 
 ford was Postmaster, and naturally 
 hated Franklin as Keimer's man. When 
 Franklin started in business for him- 
 self with a partner, he had both the 
 old men bitterly against him ; but 
 Keimer soon sold out. Then Bradford 
 would not let his postmen carry Frank- 
 lin's paper, which was eventually called 
 the Pennsylvania Gazette. Franklin 
 was a consummate editor. Richard 
 Steele, the earliest of editors, knew 
 nothing about advertisements and a job 
 office, but Franklin regarded these ad- 
 juncts as mainsail and rudder to his 
 ship. He was an advocate of paper 
 money, and worked so hard for the 
 cause that he secured the job of print- 
 ing the currency. It was a Quaker 
 town, and Franklin soon put on sober 
 garments (which he wore all his life 
 afterward), and let the wise Philadel- 
 phians know that he was saving money. 
 He now offered to marry a young 
 woman if her parents could dower her 
 with $500, and "civilly suggested a 
 mortgage"' on the paternal mansion for 
 the purpose. This negotiation failed. 
 But in these recitals at the expense of 
 Franklin, made in his Autobiography 
 at the height of his fame, we must 
 somewhat consider the tendency to 
 humor, for which the writer would sac- 
 rifice many attending circumstances. 
 He says he made other ineffectual ad- 
 vances on a commercial basis before 
 he thought of the young woman he saw 
 when he first arrived in Philadelphia. 
 By this time she was divorced from a 
 husband. She would marry Franklin, 
 but he, instead of receiving a dower, 
 might be compelled to pay the run- 
 away husband's debts. It seems that 
 by this time Franklin's marital self-im- 
 portance had dwindled, and he was con- 
 tented to run all risks, if, in his turn, he 
 could bring home his natural son Wil- 
 liam. The daughter of ]\Ir. Read and 
 Benjamin FYanklin were thereupon 
 married September i, 1730. The wife 
 took the child William and nursed it 
 as her own (William turning out in 
 the end a Tory, who hated his 'father 
 
BIOGRAPHY— BENJAMIN FRANKLIN 
 
 as the arch-rchcl). Reside this good 
 nature, the wife clothed her husband, 
 head to foot. These affairs he told, 
 revealing the perfect knowledge which 
 Franklin, as author, possessed, touch- 
 ing the likes and dislikes of humanity. 
 He now began to practice some of the 
 metropolitan arts of diplomacy that had 
 ojierated so effectually upon himself in 
 Boston Philadelphia and London. He 
 learned, he says, that he could do al- 
 most anything he thought to be feasible 
 if he would go about saying "a num- 
 ber of his acquaintances had asked him 
 to forward the project." In precisely 
 this way, he says, a number of his ac- 
 quaintances were desirous that he 
 should start a subscription library, and 
 the first American enterprise of this 
 kind had its origin. But it soon fol- 
 lowed that a considerable body of best 
 people would gladly indorse almost any 
 public act of Franklin, for he was a 
 valuable and enterprising citizen. 
 
 The role of frugality was kept up in 
 the issue of "Poor Richard's Almanac," 
 which was printed for twenty-five 
 years, and ran in circulation as high as 
 10,000 copies. It was a literature fitted 
 to oak and hickory openings, log-piles, 
 charcoal kilns, worm-fences, and the 
 battle with rugged nature. "Keep thy 
 shop and thy shop will keep thee." 
 "Plough deep while sluggards sleep." 
 "Three removes are as bad as a fire." 
 "There never was a good war or a 
 bad peace." "He had paid dear, very 
 dear, for his whistle." "Do not squan- 
 der time, for that is the stuff life is 
 made of." No man's shaving-cup was 
 in fashion without a maxim of Frank- 
 lin illustrated upon its outside. No 
 book presented to a child was wisely 
 given until it carried an inscription on 
 a fiy-leaf of one of Poor Richard's say- 
 ings. The name first adopted was 
 "Richard Saunders." This Almanac 
 was one of the great things accom- 
 plished by Franklin. He fitted a liter- 
 ature to the axe, the saw, the splint, 
 the log-house. He was one of the 
 greatest moral law-givers of the ages, 
 and succeeded among a people who 
 daily held the Bible in their hands, 
 ilany of his sayings are supposed to 
 
 be Bible doctrine by the devout. He 
 has but one exemplar in modern times 
 — Jean Jacques Rousseau. He finally 
 adopted Rousseau's religion of a Su- 
 preme Being, first, however, coming out 
 of a state of atheism. 
 
 The young husband, editor, librarian, 
 etc., was about six years making his 
 way into politics. He studied French, 
 Italian and Spanish, he formed debat- 
 ing circles, and, as his newspaper was 
 powerful, he was gi\en the office of 
 Clerk of the General Assembly in 1736, 
 and added to it the Postmastership in 
 1737- One might now suppose that 
 such a young man, so well supplied 
 with office, would lose all notion of re- 
 form and become the most pliant sub- 
 ject the Penns could have in the colony. 
 Yet we shall eventually see a long 
 m.emory in Benjamin Franklin, and it 
 is not impossible that, in all this time, 
 he was only waiting to pay off the 
 score of the London wild-goose chase 
 on which Keith had once sent him. He 
 took no small revenges. He could have 
 boycotted Bradford's newspaper, but 
 he let it go out with the rest of the 
 mail. 
 
 He invented a stove, which he called 
 "the Pennsylvania fireplace." This 
 was the first of the easily-portable fire- 
 places, which have mitigated the terrors 
 of the North American winter ever 
 since. He did not patent it. A Lon- 
 don manufacturer took out a patent and 
 made money. Franklin studied nitrates 
 and prosphates. His theory that plaster 
 of paris was a fertilizer was doubted. 
 He therefore wrote, in a field with plas- 
 ter, "This has been plastered." The 
 brilliant green and superior height of 
 the growing crop were seen to be an 
 ingenious demonstration of the truth 
 of his argument. 
 
 He had by this time thrown off or 
 outworn all the ill effects of his early 
 foibles. He had succeeded in getting 
 the University of Pennsylvania under 
 weigh, but was not a director. The 
 Board was composed of one representa- 
 tive of each sect that had contributed 
 funds. The Moravian director died, 
 and his colleagues agreed to have no 
 more Moravians. "On this," says 
 
336 
 
 THE HOME AUXILIARY AND REFERENCE 
 
 Franklin, "I was mentioned as being 
 merely an honest man, and of no sect 
 at all." This betrays his favorite form 
 01 humor — not without a sting, too. He 
 organized the first fire brigade in Amer- 
 ica. On a panic resulting from a belief 
 that the French and Indians would at- 
 tack the colony, Franklin went to New 
 York to borrow money, and prepared 
 for a lottery, all of which found him 
 friends, even among the Quakers. It 
 seems true that the people like a man 
 who takes an interest in their affairs 
 with a collateral view of not making 
 himself any the poorer; that man is dis- 
 liked who attends strictly to his own 
 business; while the man is pitied and 
 finally denounced who impoverishes 
 himself in behalf of the public. Frank- 
 lin had been eighteen years a married 
 man, twelve years a public functionary 
 with several salaries, twenty-two years 
 an editor and job-printer, when he con- 
 cluded the time had come to cease ac- 
 quiring money, as a main ambition. In 
 this resolution and in his subsequent 
 career, he has ever since commanded 
 the enthusiastic applause of the world. 
 He therefore took for partner David 
 Hall, a journeyman printer, and hoped 
 to give all his time to philosophy. But 
 the community which he had so inge- 
 niously cultivated for a quarter century, 
 now in its turn, showed him a little of 
 the wisdom of the world itself. If he 
 were a man of leisure, there could be 
 no injustice in making him a commis- 
 sioner of the peace ; also an alderman ; 
 likewise a Burgess in the Assembly. 
 And here, too, the really good man 
 found it a greater pleasure to be him- 
 self wrought on, than to work others 
 to his advantage. A passage in his Au- 
 tobiography at this stage in his career 
 purrs with so much satisfaction that 
 the world has long enjoyed it. Dr. 
 Bond wanted to found his hospital : 
 "At length," says the venerable Doctor 
 Franklin, "he came to me, with the 
 compliment that he found there was no 
 such thing as carrying a public-spirited 
 project through without my being con- 
 cerned in it. 'For,' says he, 'I am often 
 asked by those to whom I propose sub- 
 scribing. Have you consulted Franklin 
 
 upon this business ? And what does he 
 think of it ? And when I tell them that 
 I have not (supposing it rather out of 
 your line), they do not subscribe, but 
 say they will consider it.' " 'Tt is sur- 
 prising," comments Worse, with charm- 
 ing wit, "that this artful and sugar-ton- 
 gued doctor, who evidently could read 
 his man, had not been more success- 
 ful with his subscription list. With 
 Franklin, at least, he was eminently 
 successful, touching him with a con- 
 summate skill, which brought prompt 
 response and co-operation." Fie was 
 a busy man in the Council, with new 
 pavements, street lamps, and street- 
 sweepings. He next, with William 
 Hunter, farmed the post-offices, and 
 made so much money that the Crown 
 at home thought the place worth giv- 
 ing out to some Englishman, where- 
 upon it ceased to pay expenses, which 
 did not displease the complacent Ben- 
 jamin Franklin. This matter of the 
 post-office of the colonies, and the visits 
 to New York, and above all, the Penn- 
 sylvania Gazette, had spread his fame, 
 and Yale and Harvard Universities 
 both found it prudent to make him a 
 Master of Arts. "Thus, without study- 
 ing in any college, I came to partake of 
 their honors. They were conferred in 
 consideration of my improvements and 
 discoveries in the electric branch of 
 natural philosophy." 
 
 Let us behold this busy Quaker 
 about this time, or a year or so earlier. 
 He was pouring, as editorials, into the 
 backwoods, articles which read well to- 
 day — masterpieces of convincing legible 
 English ; he was beginning hospitals, li- 
 braries, university, lottery, armory, fire 
 department, night watch, street lights, 
 pavements ; he was reforming the post- 
 office, studying the peace, the Indians, 
 making laws for the Assembly — bring- 
 ing London's customs over to the 
 colony — and, as a recreation, he began 
 to debate the phenomena of electrified 
 bodies — two kinds of electricity, or two 
 exhibitions of its influence. He set the 
 world talking of positive and negative 
 currents, and Franklin's Pane. The 
 people, even in the backwoods, read his 
 scientific articles, and they affected the 
 
BIOGRAPHY— BENJAMIN FRANKLIN 
 
 professors as Dr. Roentgen's discov- 
 eries did in 1896. He noted the po- 
 tentiality of points — how the point of 
 anything was more electric than its 
 body. He, with other philosophers, 
 believed the thunder-clouds were some- 
 times giving down electricity, at other 
 times sucking it up — as the photograph 
 has since shown. He waited a long 
 time for a projected church-spire to be 
 built, and it is a wonder he did not, in 
 true Franklinian method, go around 
 with subscription paper to get the 
 temple in order to use the steeple. 
 Presently he bethought himself of the 
 kite. He made a kite of a cross of 
 cedar sticks and a thin silk handker- 
 chief. A tail and string were attached, 
 and. out of the top of the cross, a 
 sharp-pointed wire was made to project 
 a foot or more from the wood. The 
 string ended at the earth in the ring 
 or handle of a door-key, and to this 
 nng a silk ribbon was also' tide, so that 
 the electricity would not come down 
 beyond the key without meeting great 
 resistance. Now, he had to wait for 
 the first thunder-storm, as he had 
 waited for the steeple, but it came in 
 June of 1750. His son helped him to 
 get the kite to fly. As it was raining, 
 he must stand inside a door to keep 
 the silk dry, so it would resist — he did 
 not know and could not then guess how- 
 much electricity might come down, and 
 he might get killed. The clouds rolled 
 by. but his key was not emitting light- 
 ning, as he expected. Finally, however, 
 when the string became wet, the elec- 
 tric spark came. He set alcohol aflame, 
 charged a storage-battery, and made all 
 the demonstrations which had formerly 
 Iieen performed only with natural or 
 carefully-electrified bodies. At his next 
 thunder-storm, he demonstrated the pos- 
 it i\e and negative action of clouds, and 
 perfected the theory of the lightning- 
 rod. These matters took the general 
 name of "The Philadelphia experi- 
 ments." Kant called Franklin "the 
 I'rometheus of modern times." The 
 action of the colonial universities was 
 perhaps their first opportunity to honor 
 a colonist who had won world-wide at- 
 tention. The mother country was last 
 
 to recognize the value of the demon- 
 strations, and the English scientists 
 were compelled, several years after 
 everybody else, to correct their proceed- 
 ings by reprinting old matter and get- 
 tnig a record at any expense to their 
 pride. 
 
 In 1754 the Lords of Trade at Lon- 
 don ordered an Assembly of the Col- 
 onies at Albany to confer with the Six 
 Lidian Nations, in order to prepare for 
 war with France. At Albany Frank- 
 lin, who was a delegate, prepared a 
 scheme for the union of the colonies. 
 ■'Its fate was singular," says Franklin, 
 reflectively ; "in the colonial assemblies 
 it was condemned because there was 
 too much prerogative (King's power) 
 ii' it. The Board of Trade in Eng- 
 land scouted it because it had too much 
 of the democratic." Here we see Ben- 
 jamin Franklin penning the first formal 
 document looking to the United States 
 of America. This was June 24, 1754. a 
 little over twenty-two years before the 
 Declaration of Independence. Already 
 the Home Government, doubtless in- 
 spired by the Penn brothers at London, 
 looked upon the colonists as people who 
 were too outspoken. Accordingly, in- 
 stead of calling into service an army of 
 natives, who might become dangerous 
 enemies, General Braddock, with his 
 regular army, was sent to fight the In- 
 dians and French. When this high- 
 spirited commander came near to the 
 Quakers' country, they were alarmed, 
 and sent their ablest man, Benjamin 
 Franklin, to eat and chat with him. 
 Here the philosopher first met Colonel 
 Washington. The result of Franklin's 
 mission was highly peaceful. The 
 Pennsylvania farmers were to hire out 
 wagons, horses, and drivers to Brad- 
 dock, receiving seven days' pay in ad- 
 vance. The people, however, made 
 Franklin sign a bond. Braddock's de- 
 feat swallowed up $100,000 worth of 
 this kind of impedimenta. Franklin 
 was on the bond, and got off. only with 
 some loss and a thorough alarm. He 
 now became Colonel Franklin, and 
 went on west to build three forts. The 
 region of Pittsburg had then seen two 
 Colonels — George Washington and 
 
338 
 
 THE HOME AUXILIARY AND REFERENCE 
 
 Benjamin Franklin — on whom tlie in- 
 dependence of the United States en- 
 tirely depended, although in two en- 
 tirely different ways. It is to be said 
 to the testy Braddock's credit, that he 
 admired both his aides. 
 
 This war made additional expense. 
 The two Penns owned a landed cor- 
 poration in which there were now 200,- 
 000 white inhabitants to whom land had 
 been sold in fee simple. The Penns 
 appointed the Governor. This Gov- 
 ernor received his salary from the As- 
 sembly, but he had to give bond to the 
 Penns that he would keep their income 
 (about $100,000 a year) intact by pre- 
 serving the legal status quo. If he did 
 not veto obnoxious measures he must 
 pay in cash the cost to the Penns. Un- 
 der the charter, their waste lands were 
 untaxable. It was the habit of the 
 Quakers to call themselves poor and 
 industrious ; the Penns rich and indo- 
 lent. They made such complaint that 
 out of $300,000 to be raised for the 
 year of the war, the Penns voluntarily 
 contributed $30,000. But dissatisfac- 
 tion grew. Franklin had cultivated this 
 spirit assiduously. At last he was sent, 
 with his son as secretary, to London, 
 to pray that the king reassume the char- 
 tei (as he could do, on payment of 
 money) in order that Pennsylvania 
 might no longer remain the fief of ab- 
 sentee landlords. England, meanwhile, 
 was becoming jealous of the colonial 
 assemblies, and Parliament had recently 
 passed resolutions hostile to the intent 
 of Franklin's mission. The Penns 
 avi-aited their enemy with no regret. 
 He came on to certain defeat. 
 
 Yet, in a word, the rest of Frank- 
 lin's long life-work was to lie on that 
 side of the water, and because he could 
 not carry back news of a king's charter, 
 he went elsewhere, and finally returned 
 home with a treaty acknowledging the 
 first considerable democratic republic 
 of modern times. 
 
 Franklih was five years upon his first 
 errand. Lord Granville, Prime Min- 
 ister, when the Pennsylvanian arrived, 
 lectured him well as the representative 
 of seditious subjects, who could not 
 loyally understand that the king had 
 
 deputed his royal power to the Penns. 
 The Penns' lawyer at London was so 
 angry already with the astute Phila- 
 delphian that it was soon unsafe to 
 let him come near the man of peace. 
 ^^'illiam Pitt was too busy to see the 
 unknown agent of disgruntled colon- 
 ists, and Franklin, when he landed, 
 found that reputation among profes- 
 sors of physics did not carry him far 
 through the ante-rooms of the nobles 
 whom he must conciliate. The Min- 
 isters told him his people must not ex- 
 port grain or cattle to starving French- 
 men on the American Continent, and 
 Franklin reiterated that the king, if that 
 were to be law, would do well to send 
 transports from England to bring back 
 his unhappy subjects. The Penns sent 
 word to the Philadelphia Assembly to 
 displace this Franklin, who was "rude," 
 but the provincial Assembly retorted by 
 levying the tax on waste lands. The 
 Lords at last passed the order that the 
 Penns desired, but Franklin, humble as 
 he was, managed in some way to get 
 it reviewed, whereupon an almost ex- 
 actly opposite mandate issued from the 
 same quarter. At the end of three 
 years he had secured the recognition of 
 the principle that the Penns ought to 
 pay their proportion of the expense of 
 protection against common dangers that 
 threatened the settlers. The king, how- 
 e\er, would not take up the charter. 
 
 As time went by Franklin got ac- 
 quainted with Hume. Burke, Robert- 
 son, Kames, and Adam Smith. Honor 
 v/as paid to him at Edinburg. The 
 L'niversity of St. Andrews and the Uni- 
 versity of Oxford made him a Doctor 
 of Laws, and he ever bore this title. 
 His wife was afraid to cross the ocean, 
 and it is possible that this fact alone 
 prevented him from making his home 
 in the mother country, as many flatter- 
 ing invitations were extended to him. 
 Writers on the Revolution always stop 
 at this point to exalt Mrs. Franklin's 
 patriotic horror of the deep. 
 
 It stands to reason that all Dr. 
 Franklin's scientific and social successes 
 with the Edinburg scholars, and what- 
 ever triumphs he had scored against 
 the Penns, were one and all duly ex- 
 
BIOGRAPHY— BENJAMIN FRANKLIN 
 
 ploited in the columns of the Frank- 
 lin newspaper at home, while Bradford 
 and the Penns, in their turn, faithfully 
 called attention to the small value at- 
 tached to such glory. They did this 
 latter so well that Dr. Franklin did not 
 expect the flattering reception which 
 awaited him on his return to Phila- 
 delphia. He found himself doubly cele- 
 brated. He had seen Europe, and yet 
 was a colonist. He was the only colon- 
 ist who had made an impression on the 
 Old Country. His house was full of 
 callers from morning to night. The 
 Assembly voted him $15,000 for his 
 five years' expenses. His son William 
 was appointed Governor of New Jersey 
 by the English Government. This 
 made many enemies for Franklin ; par- 
 ticularly, for one, the son himself, who 
 became a loyal subject of the king and 
 drew a pension long after his duties 
 as British Governor had ceased to be 
 required. The old families denounced 
 the act of their Government as a truck- 
 ling to demagogy, and a defiance of 
 morality. It did nobody any good ex- 
 cept the younger Franklin. 
 
 Dr. Franklin was now fifty-six years 
 old, and it was well along in 1762. He 
 next traveled 1,600 miles, inspecting 
 postoffices, and thereafter became im- 
 broiled in a serious local Indian trouble. 
 The Penns had sent over as Governor 
 a nephew, and, for a while, this 
 nephew, named Penn, had gotten along 
 under Dr. Franklin's own tutelage. A 
 reckless gang of outlaws, known as 
 "the Paxton boys," massacred an In- 
 dian village, and marched on Phila- 
 delphia to demand the surrender of 
 certain Indian refugees that had fled 
 thither. In ending this afi'air Dr. 
 Franklin took the front place, the Goa'- 
 ernor staying at Dr. Franklin's house. 
 Dr. Franklin went forth among the out- 
 laws alone, and argued them into a 
 peaceful settlement. But it ended 
 somewhat to the discomfiture of the 
 peacemaker, and, after Penn had be- 
 come alienated, the anti-Franklin polit- 
 ical forces agreed that the time had 
 come to oust him from the Assembly. 
 -Accordingly an exciting political cam- 
 paign was waged, and an election was 
 
 held, in which the lame, the halt, the 
 sick, were brought to the polls and Dr. 
 Franklin was beaten by a few votes. 
 Scarcely were the rejoicings of the 
 ■'loyalists" over when the old question 
 reasserted itself — that his majesty 
 ought to rule his colony through his 
 Assembly, and Dr. Franklin was again 
 mentioned as the only fit person to be 
 Agent to go to London. Dickinson 
 made a fervent speech against "this 
 man, most obnoxious to his country," 
 but it turned out that Dr. Franklin's 
 enemies had gotten the best of him only 
 by concentrating in his district, and he, 
 popular at large, was easily elected 
 Agent. He started for England in 
 twelve days. A troop of 300 mounted 
 citizens rode sixteen miles down the 
 river with him, and when news of his 
 safe arrival in England reached Phila- 
 delphia the colonists kept the bells 
 ringing till midnight. He settled in 
 London in December, 1764. 
 
 The Seven Years' War to retrieve 
 Silesia from Frederick the Great was 
 over. England had paid vast sums of 
 money on each side of the question, and 
 must recoup with new taxes. What 
 was there new to tax? The colonies 
 in America. George Grenville, in the 
 Treasury Department, had the same 
 views as Lord Granville. Accordingly, 
 the Stamp bill was steadily grinding 
 its way into law at the Parliament 
 buildings. Dr. Franklin was not slow 
 to file expressions of repugnance, which 
 were as rapidly filed in the waste-paper 
 departments of his majesty's govern- 
 ment. He looked ruefully on the power 
 of the mother country, and her ob- 
 vious ill-will toward her American 
 children. When Americans called 
 on him he said significantly : "Go home 
 and tell your countrymen to get chil- 
 dren as fast as they can." But he did 
 not believe men in America would be 
 so "foolhardy" as to defy England. At 
 this time, he lacked a knowledge of 
 European politics and French influence. 
 The Stamp law, which passed in 
 1765, was merely a new Tariff act, 
 worse than the old one. The old law 
 compelled the colonies to restrict their 
 exports entirely to England. No for- 
 
THE HOME AUXILIARY AND REFEREXCE 
 
 eign ship could enter a colonial har- 
 bor. No ship, boat or carriage could 
 cross a colonial boundary line with 
 wool on board. A British sai.lor, in 
 colonial ports, could only buy to the 
 extent of $5 in woolens. No Bible 
 could be printed in America. The mak- 
 ing of hats was seriously discouraged 
 by legal restrictions. Iron forges were 
 prohibited as "nuisances". The slave 
 tr?de was encouraged. To these inhibi- 
 tions against the manufacture and sale 
 of goods, the Home Government now 
 added the Stamp Tax, to make pur- 
 chases equally troublesome. A duty 
 was to be collected on nearly every- 
 thing that was bought abroad. If there 
 should be infractions or disobedience, a 
 court of vice-admiralty, without a jury 
 and with a single judge was to deal 
 forth severe penalties, both fine and 
 imprisonment. While the sparse popu- 
 lation, the town meetings, and the fre- 
 quent petty elections in America had 
 cultivated a disputatious spirit, it must 
 be admitted that they now had plenty 
 to complain of. The excitement at Bos- 
 ton, under the agitation of James Otis 
 and Samuel Adams, was intense. Yet 
 Dr. Franklin had not the shadow of 
 a suspicion that the Stamp Act was the 
 last straw on the camel's back. When 
 Grenville asked him to nominate a good 
 man for Revenue Agent at Philadel- 
 phia, he unhesitatingly named Htighes, 
 and Hughes was appointed. This, the 
 Ministry took care to state, was on the 
 motion of Dr. Franklin. 
 
 The Stamp Act exploded in America 
 like a bomb. A mob started for the 
 new house in which Dr. Franklin had 
 left his wife in Philadelphia. Brad- 
 ford's newspaper had a picture of the 
 devil whispering in Dr. Franklin's ear : 
 "Ben, you shall be my agent through- 
 out my dominions." It is clear that 
 Dr. Franklin's absence from America 
 had in this case bereft him of all 
 prophetic instincts. Yet his constant 
 good fortune saved him from ruin. 
 He was as yet on the safe side. His 
 recall would have been an act of re- 
 bellion, and he himself might have 
 been appointed Governor or Judge. 
 The great boycott of luiglish goods 
 
 which the colonies one and all set up 
 was the most convincing of arguments 
 to Englishmen, and soon their own 
 quarrels led the English politicians to 
 take sides on "the American troubles," 
 with Pitt laying down as common law 
 that the settlers could not be taxed 
 without their consent. In the Parlia- 
 mentary hearings for repeal of the 
 Stamp Act, Dr. Franklin appeared, 
 and, as soon as his testimony could be 
 published in America, his position was 
 seen to be safe and patriotic. He even 
 tickled the ears of the poorest patriots 
 at home by saying: "I have some little 
 property in America, but I will freely 
 spend nineteen shillings in the pound 
 to defend my right of giving or refus- 
 ing the other shilling. And, after all, 
 if I cannot defend that right, I can re- 
 tire cheerfully with my family into the 
 boundless woods of America, which 
 are sure to afiford freedom and subsis- 
 tance to any man who can bait a hook 
 or pull a trigger." Dr. Franklin was 
 by this time a wonderful diner-out, an 
 American lion, a boon companion at 
 the coffee-houses. America, instead of 
 Frederick, was the fashion, and the 
 Doctor knew the fashionable subject of 
 America better than any other colonist. 
 It was known that Dr. Franklin was no 
 agitator of the kind that had arisen out 
 of the dragons'-teeth sown by the 
 Stamp Act. His firm statement that 
 the colonies had begun a boycott which 
 they could keep up, and that England's 
 course, if continued, would cut oft' its 
 own market, acted with force on 
 British merchants, now thoroughly 
 alarmed, and they surrounded the 
 Parliament House when, on February 
 21, 1766. the Stamp act was repealed, 
 showing their influence. The King un- 
 willingly signed the repeal a little later. 
 News of the repeal was received in 
 Philadelphia with rejoicings. Each 
 colony indulged in the fancy that its 
 own refractory course had alarmed the 
 King, and a barge or float forty feet 
 long named Franklin paraded the 
 streets of Philadelphia, firing salutes 
 and driving away all recollections of 
 the great man's sad connection with 
 Hughes, the satrap of the oligarchy. 
 
BIOGRAPHY— BENJAMIN FRANKLIN 
 
 In the early stages of the Revokition, 
 the Assemblies of the colonies were 
 jealous only of Parliament. They de- 
 sired "to govern with the King.'' We 
 are now reaching the point where 
 George III was to be regarded as a 
 tyrant. Dr. Franklin was still Depvity 
 Postmaster-General of the Colonies, 
 his son was Governor of New Jersey 
 (King's man), his tastes were becom- 
 ing metropolitan. He was beset by 
 small enviers like Arthur Lee, who 
 craved his office as Agent, and yet he 
 was held in an esteem so high that 
 each side of almost any controversy 
 desired to reckon him in its party. No- 
 body but the King could really see that 
 Dr. Franklin was the worst rebel of 
 them all — not even Samuel Adams, 
 who looked on Dr. Franklin with pa- 
 triotic suspicion. Samuel Adams was 
 so far above selfish common sense — he 
 was so firm a believer in altruism — 
 that he could not understand the 
 natures of patient, tactical, provident 
 men like Dr. Franklin and General 
 Washington. And it took all kinds of 
 patriots to found the United States of 
 America. 
 
 From 1/66 until 1773 was a period 
 in which Dr. Franklin was strengthen- 
 ing his personal power. Few students 
 of social forces have lived who could 
 so soon lay hold upon the sources of 
 power in society ; and had England pos- 
 sessed a king like Frederick of Prussia, 
 Dr. Franklin would have been the royal 
 favorite. His son in New Jersey read- 
 ily secured the New Jersey agency at 
 London for the father, and (Georgia also 
 sent credentials to Dr. Franklin. When 
 Massachusetts Bay came to think of 
 putting the Assembly's interests in 
 charge of Dr. Franklin there was bitter 
 opposition by Samuel Adams. Thus 
 when the Massachusetts agency was 
 added to the dignities of Dr. Frank- 
 lin, it came with the blighting fact that 
 the very greatest of the American se- 
 ditionaries opposed such a commission. 
 Still it was Dr. Franklin's good for- 
 tune that the opposition of Samuel 
 Adams gave the pleasant elderly 
 Quaker so much the better standing at 
 London. He had need of a Torvish 
 
 reputation, for the Ministers now in 
 power and coming into power were vin- 
 dictive foes of America, and highly dis- 
 trustful of even the most placid of pa- 
 triots. Tovvnshend, the original sug- 
 gester of taxes, was next in office, with 
 George HI highly satisfied to hear him 
 speak. When Townshend delivered his 
 address on the new taxes about to be 
 levied. Colonial Agents and merchants 
 were alike barred from the House of 
 Commons. The duties proposed were 
 highly objectionable, and, besides, the 
 salaries of the colonial governors were 
 assumed by the home government, so 
 that there should no longer be any rea- 
 son for fearless action by England's 
 agents. The second tax bill passed in 
 June, 1767. In September Tovvnshend 
 died. The boycott again began in 
 America, and the "Sam Adams regi- 
 ments" went to Boston to make the 
 Governor feel more secure in the col- 
 lection of taxes. The Boston shooting 
 happened March 5, 1770, and the South 
 Carolina rebellion in May, 1771- There 
 followed after Townshend. in the Col- 
 onial office at London, a pestiferous 
 Lord Hillsborough, and it is one of 
 those delightful episodes abounding in 
 Dr. Franklin's life of general good-will, 
 that this high and mighty noble at last 
 met a simple and unostentatious enemy 
 who could destroy him. Hillsborough 
 assumed the right to name the Colonial 
 Agents, and he did not want Dr. Frank- 
 lin among them. On Dr. Franklin's 
 first visit to His Lordship, to hand in 
 his credentials as Agent for Massachu- 
 setts Bay, the visitor was informed that 
 Assemblies could not alone appoint 
 Agents ; that Dr. Franklin was not 
 Agent ; Governor Hutchinson had ve- 
 toed the bill appointing him. This 
 news was conveyed in a mean and con- 
 temptible way, the Minister accompany- 
 ing his statements with many expres- 
 sions of scorn, notwithstanding the civil 
 remonstrances of Dr. Franklin, who 
 was wholly taken by surprise. At last, 
 the American gathered his papers and 
 made his exit, saying, with deliberation, 
 "It is, I believe, of no great impor- 
 tance whether the appointment is ac- 
 knowledged or not. for I have not the 
 
342 
 
 THE HOME AUXILIARY AND REFERENCE 
 
 least conception that an Agent can, at 
 present, be of any use to any of the 
 Colonies." The Minister who had in- 
 vited his bad feeling was nevertheless 
 quick to complain in London that the 
 American Agent had been "extremely 
 rude and abusive." "I find he did not 
 mistake me," said Dr. Franklin. 
 
 Now the clever Dr. Franklin began 
 uridermining the ill-won fame of Hills- 
 borough. This captious Minister was 
 a shining mark for criticism. With the 
 many influences that Dr. Franklin 
 could command, it soon became the 
 opinion of all who had property-stakes 
 in the colonies that Hillsborough was 
 an unsafe man. Later, on the interior 
 barrier question, Dr. Franklin opposed 
 Hillsborough before the Privy Council, 
 and they, to anger Hillsborough, 
 adopted Dr. Franklin's scheme, when 
 his Lordship resigned in anger, and was 
 let go. Dr. Franklin went to call on 
 the noble earl, and finally was asked 
 to cease paying those tributes of af- 
 fection. "I have never since," he said, 
 "been nigh him, and we have only 
 abused one another at a distance." To 
 complete Dr. Franklin's victory, he 
 was asked what English statesman 
 would be most acceptable to America, 
 and chose Lord Dartmouth as Hills- 
 borough's successor, who was ap- 
 pointed. Dr. Franklin was at once 
 recognized as Agent for Massachusetts 
 Bay, and he and Lord Dartmouth set 
 out hopefully to stem the advancing 
 tide of the Revolution. He was now 
 well on his way to undo Hutchinson, 
 for Dartmouth thought the Massachu- 
 setts Governor was "perniciously 
 loyal." The effect, too, of Grenville and 
 Townshend's taxing acts had been 
 ridiculously inadequate. The collectors 
 had spent $60,000 and extorted $7,500. 
 The East India Company had lost $10,- 
 000.000 by the boycott of its goods. 
 
 Dr. Franklin was complaining, one 
 day, of the expense and folly of send- 
 ing the "Sam Adams regiments" to 
 Boston, when "a friend at court" re- 
 marked that the Ministers had only fol- 
 lowed the advice of the Americans 
 themselves, and he at once produced to 
 Dr. Franklin the original letters of 
 
 Hutchinson, Oliver and other natives 
 of Massachusetts Bay, asking for the 
 troops. The addresses had been cut 
 from the letters, but they were other- 
 wise unmutilated — the signatures were 
 intact. Dr. Franklin, thus armed with 
 a weapon showing the un-American 
 spirit of Hutchinson, at once trans- 
 mitted the letters to Boston, covering 
 his operations with the thin veil usually 
 afforded by pledges of inviolable se- 
 crecy. The Assembly at Boston, eager 
 to make wider use of the documents, 
 invented the fable that authenticated 
 copies of the same documents had also 
 arrived from England, and publication 
 was at once made of the "authenticated 
 copies." The effect in the northern 
 colonies was such as to render the 
 writers furious, as the letters had been 
 secretly written to W'illiam Whatley, 
 who was now dead. They did not 
 know on whom to let their wrath des- 
 cend, for Dr. Franklin's hand had not 
 yet appeared. The betrayal seemed to 
 lie between Temple and Thomas What- 
 ley, the dead man's brother and execu- 
 tor, and these two men, on being ac- 
 cused by each other, fought a bloody 
 duel in London. Dr. Franklin did not 
 hear of this duel till it happened, and 
 as another hostile meeting was ap- 
 pointed, he was forced to publish the 
 fact that neither man was guilty, but he 
 (Dr. Franklin) as Agent, had trans- 
 mitted the letters as a matter of busi- 
 ness, as soon as he came across them. 
 Who really gave the letters to Dr. 
 Franklin has never transpired. Trouble 
 and plenty of it was now brewing for 
 the Agent. 
 
 The Massachusetts Bay House of 
 Representatives forwarded a petition to 
 the king, stating in effect that they had 
 seen the letters of Hutchinson and 
 Oliver, Governor and Lieutenant-Gov- 
 ernor, and humbly prayed that the 
 twain be removed from their posts. 
 This petition laid on the table of the 
 Ministry until the appearance of Dr. 
 Franklin's public explanation, made to 
 prevent the second duel, when, unex- 
 pectedly, on a Saturday, the Agent re- 
 ceived notice that the Lords of the 
 Committee for Plantation Aft'airs would 
 
BIOGRAPHY— BENJAMIN FRANKLIN 
 
 hear him at the Cockpit on Tuesday 
 noon. Late Monday lie was warned 
 that jNIauduit, Agent for Hutchinson 
 and Ohver, would be represented by 
 legal counsel at the hearing. He then 
 sought Bollan, Agent for the Council 
 oi Massachusetts Bay, who advised 
 that it was useless to employ barristers 
 in colony cases, for the eminent ones 
 did not desire to offend the Court. But, 
 although Bollan had been summoned, 
 when he rose to speak he was told by 
 the Lords that the Council was not a 
 party to the hearing. Dr. Franklin 
 spoke, renewing the prayer of his 
 clients, and asking for more time. 
 Hearing was postponed till January 
 29, 1774, but the Lord Chief Justice 
 declared that inquiry would be made 
 to learn how the Assembly obtained 
 the letters. 
 
 Whatley now sued Dr. Franklin at 
 law, the newspapers unceasingly de- 
 nounced the American savant as a med- 
 dlesome person in incendiary desigtis, 
 the Court was said to be in a rage, and 
 there were rumors of arrest and seiz- 
 ure of papers. Dr. Franklin had sent 
 a kite into the storm-clouds this time 
 that was bringing down plenty of 
 lightning. He was in deep distress, 
 ar.d, listening to Mr. Bollan's revised 
 advice, employed two eminent legal 
 advocates, and instructed them without 
 ceasing. 
 
 Dr. Franklin, now 68 years old, had 
 attained that venerable and peaceful ap- 
 pearance with which an equally com- 
 placent world, from China to Peru, in 
 spirit, now views him. He came be- 
 fore a notable assemblage of bitter and 
 malevolent enemies, in a full dress of 
 spotted Manchester velvet, in which he 
 was doomed to pass the most cruel 
 moments of his existence ; therefore, 
 he preserved the suit for correspond- 
 ing heights of joy in later years. There 
 were thirty-five Privy Councillors pres- 
 ent, all anti-American and anti-Frank- 
 linian in sentiment, and doubtless the 
 friends and companions of Lord Hills- 
 borough were not lax in their service 
 to him on this occasion. Dr. Frank- 
 lin stood immovable before the fire- 
 place, showing a degree of control over 
 
 his features that astonished all who 
 were not wholly blinded by rage. His 
 own advocates were ineffective. Wed- 
 derburn, Solicitor-General, was the ad- 
 vocate of Hutchinson and Oliver. This 
 Wedderburn was a master of low in- 
 vective. To the satisfaction of the 
 Court and all the American-haters, he 
 poured forth his billingsgate without 
 a restraining frown from the Chief 
 Jiastice. "Nothing," said this he-fish- 
 wife, "will acquit Dr. Franklin of the 
 charge of obtaining the letters by 
 fraudulent or corrupt means, for the 
 most malignant of purposes, unless he 
 stole them from the person who stole 
 them." "I hope, my Lords, you will 
 mark and brand the man, for the 
 honor of this country, of Europe and of 
 mankind." "Into what companies will 
 he hereafter go with an unembarrassed 
 face, or the honest intrepidity of virtue ! 
 j\Ien will watch him with a jealous eye; 
 they will hide their papers from him, 
 and lock up their escritoires. He will 
 henceforth esteem it a libel to be called 
 a man of letters." "He not only took 
 away the letters from one brother, but 
 kept himself concealed till he nearly oc- 
 casioned the murder of the other. It 
 is impossible to read his account, ex- 
 pressive of the coolest and most de- 
 liberate malice, without horror. Amidst 
 these tragical events — of one person 
 nearly murdered, of another answer- 
 able for the issue, of a worthy Gov- 
 ernor, hurt in his dearest interests, the 
 fate of America in suspense — here is 
 a man who, with the utmost insensi- 
 bility of remorse, stands up and avows 
 himself the author of all." "The 
 bloody African is not surpassed by the 
 coolness and apathy of the wily Amer- 
 ican." 
 
 Dr. Priestly, who was present, be- 
 lieved that the Court had no other ob- 
 ject in the hearing than to insult the 
 calm old man with benignant face who 
 stood stoically before the fireplace. The 
 speeches were soon finished. Dr. Frank- 
 lin was fruitlessly asked to reveal the 
 person who gave him the letters, and 
 the sitting closed. Report was made 
 the same day, denying the petition of 
 the Llouse of Massachusetts Bay, and 
 
THE HOME AUXILIARY AND REFERENCE 
 
 also stating, by v^y of insult to Dr. 
 iM-anklin that the conclusion of the 
 Lords was that "The charge of sur- 
 reptitiously obtaining the letters was a 
 true one." On the following Monday 
 morning he was notified that he was 
 no longer Deputy Postmaster General 
 in North America. His good name, a 
 thing precious to him, momentarily 
 seemed gone. The Lord Dartmouth, 
 whom he had advanced, had turned a 
 cruel enemy. IMassachusetts rebuked 
 him (who had sent the letters) with 
 being lax, Arthur Lee, who was to suc- 
 ceed him, was full of venom, and Lon- 
 don was agog with disturbing inquiries 
 whether or not Dr. Franklin were to 
 go to the Tower under arrest for trea- 
 son. Governor Hutchinson avowed 
 that it would be wise to prevent the 
 return to America of Dr. Franklin, who 
 was now publicly named as "The great 
 fomenter of the opposition in America." 
 
 When Dr. Franklin put away the 
 spotted velvet suit, it is likely he pre- 
 pared his papers for seizure. His true 
 friends considered his further stay in 
 England as prejudicial to his personal 
 safety, but he, probably feeling that 
 he was better represented by himself 
 than he could be by anybody else in 
 his absence, merely ofifered to resign. 
 
 In February, 1775, in the House of 
 Lords, Lord Sandwich was speaking 
 against a measure of conciliation witli 
 America under discussion. He looked 
 full at Dr. Franklin, who was stand- 
 ing well in view. The bill. Sandwich 
 said, deserved only contempt. No peer 
 did it. "It appears to me to be rather 
 the work of some American. I fancy 
 I have in my eye the person who drew 
 it up, one of the bitterest and most 
 mischievous enemies this country has 
 c\er known." Lord Chatham instantly 
 replied that the plan was entirely his 
 own, but he would have been glad to 
 have the aid of the great American, 
 "one whom all Europe ranks with our 
 Boyles and Newtons, as an honor not 
 to the English nation only, but to hu- 
 man nature." 
 
 This praise, while it was welcome to 
 Dr. Franklin at this time, was not pal- 
 atable to Arnericans, and he seems to 
 
 lia\e felt the fact, for, on hearing his 
 people abused as cowards, sneaks, 
 cheats, and heretics, in the prevailing 
 English fashion of Parliament, he 
 drew up an indignant letter, which 
 Walpole, a friend, was able to induce 
 him to suppress. Walpole did not con- 
 ceal his opinion that Dr. Franklin ought 
 to leave England forthwith. The Min- 
 istry made an abortive attempt to bribe 
 him, which rendered his position still 
 more perilous, and he placed the 
 Agency in the hands of Arthur Lee, 
 who had long waited for it with impa- 
 tience. Dr. Priestly spent a sad after- 
 noon with his departing friend, who 
 had, above most men, the quality of 
 evoking the love of his fellows, ana 
 saw him off somewhat hurriedly. Dr. 
 Franklin arrived in Philadelphia, sixty- 
 nine years old. May 5, 1775. His wife 
 was dead. His daughter was married 
 to a stranger. Just at the hour when 
 he might, in the course of nature, ex- 
 pect to rest in peace for the remainder 
 of his life, Lexington and Concord 
 were fired upon. He no longer com- 
 plained. He sat down and wrote to 
 Strahan, Member of Parliament at 
 London, who had voted for military 
 suppression : 
 
 "You have begun to burn our towns 
 and murder our people. Look upon 
 your hands ; they are stained with the 
 blood of your relations! You and I 
 were long friends ; you are now my 
 enemy, and I am 
 
 "Yours, B. FRAXKLIX." 
 
 He loved a pun. When he became 
 Postmaster-General ($5,000 a year), 
 dn-ectly afterward, he changed the 
 franking formula on his letters, "Free: 
 B. Franklin," into "B. Free, Franklin." 
 
 Five days after his return, the Sec- 
 ond Continental Congress met, and Dr. 
 Franklin had already been elected to it. 
 Bunker Hill was fought, and General 
 \\'ashington, of \'irginia, was sent to 
 Cambridge to take command of the pa- 
 triot army outside of Boston. 
 
 Dr. Franklin now established the pa- 
 triot postal service, invented an ob- 
 struction for the river, and drew up a 
 scheme for union of the colonies. Wed- 
 
BIOGRAPHY— BEX TAMIN FRAXKLIN 
 
 derburn had cured him of his loyahy 
 to King George, and when the phil- 
 osopher was elected to the Pennsyl- 
 vania Assembly, he refused to take the 
 oath of fealty, and stayed out of his 
 seat. He was already chairman of the 
 Local Committee of Safety. With all 
 his sorrows at London, and his widow- 
 erhood, his witty sayings, says Parton, 
 were "the circulating medium of Con- 
 gress." 
 
 In September, 1775, Dr. Franklin 
 was sent at the head of a committee of 
 three to confer with General W'ash- 
 ington at Cambridge. General Greene 
 writes how he "looked on that very 
 great man with silent admiration." 
 The illustrious Abigail, wife of John 
 Adams, had been taught from infancy 
 to venerate Dr. Franklin, and she now 
 read in his countenance "patriotism in 
 its full luster, blended with every virtue 
 of a Christian." 
 
 Early in 1776 the aged Doctor wa^ 
 sent to Montreal on a needless errand, 
 trying to his health. Returning, he pre- 
 sided over the body to make a Consti- 
 tution for the independent State of 
 Pennsylvania. The Quakers were too 
 slow, and Dr. Franklin felt that he 
 might have to move to Boston and set 
 up the insurrection hand in hand with 
 Samuel Adams and General Washing- 
 ton. These three men must now perish 
 if the new nation were not established. 
 The tide of opinion turned, and Dr. 
 tranklin was one of the Committee of 
 Five to draw The Declaration of In- 
 dependence. As Harrison, of \'irginia, 
 signed it, he said: "We must all hang 
 together." "Yes," said Dr. Franklin, 
 as he signed, "or we shall all hang 
 separately." So he now had company. 
 
 When General ^^'ashington had been 
 driven out of Long Island, Howe, the 
 British Admiral, Dr. Franklin's erst- 
 while friend, sought to treat, and Dr. 
 Franklin, John Adams and Rutledge 
 went to see him. .At lunch he declared 
 if America should fall he would feel 
 it like the loss of a brother. "My 
 Lord," said Dr. Franklin, "we will use 
 our utmost endeavors to sa\e your 
 Lordship that mortification." 
 
 lie wrote to Dr. Price: "Britain, at 
 the expense of $15,000,000, has killed 
 150 Yankees this campaign, which is 
 $100,000 a head; and at Bunker Hill 
 she gained a mile of ground, half of 
 which she lost again by our taking post 
 at Ploughed Hill. During the same 
 time 60,000 children have been born in 
 America. From these data a mathe- 
 matical head will easily calculate the 
 time and expense necessary to kill us 
 all and conquer our whole territory." 
 
 At the age of seventy Dr. Franklin 
 was called upon to go to France. He 
 turned his fortune into patriot bonds, 
 and arrived at Xantes, France, as the 
 chief .'Kmerican Ambassador to Europe. 
 It is believed that history does not re- 
 cord of any other man an act so daring 
 and unselfish at an age so near the na- 
 tural term of life. In France, the as- 
 tonishing Beaumarchais, fomentor of 
 two Revolutions, author of "The Bar- 
 ber of Seville," was doing all he could 
 to aid .'\merica. The troupe of Amer- 
 ican Ambassadors sent to Europe was 
 like Falstaft'"s soldiers. The most they 
 could do generally was to solicit money 
 of Dr. Franklin and send home dis- 
 couraging reports of business and criti- 
 ci.sms of their great colleague. The 
 English were awakened to the danger 
 of having "the old arch-rebel" at Paris. 
 France was warned to refuse him shel- 
 ter, and Lord Stormont, English Am- 
 bassador at \'ersailles, threatened to go 
 at once. But the American Rebellion 
 was highly popular in Paris, and Dr. 
 Franklin, with fame already great, was 
 received in person with increasing de- 
 light. His white flowing hair, without 
 wig, his brown Quaker raiment over 
 spotless white linen, his "idyllic sim- 
 plicity," the re-incarnation of the sages 
 of Athens — all this kind of comment 
 became aliuost universal, because the 
 ambassador made a most artistic figure, 
 and because "perfidious Albion" was in 
 tiouble. IMirabeau repeated Turgot's 
 epigram that Dr. Franklin had wrested 
 the lightnings from heaven and scep- 
 ters from tyrants. This is the most 
 spectacular point in the great man's 
 long career. In the tunndt of popu- 
 
346 
 
 THE HOME AUXILIARY AND REFEREXCE 
 
 larity he calmly gathered such stores 
 of power as lasted him until Yorktown 
 came. 
 
 Officers, "brave as their swords," 
 now fell upon Franklin like a swarm of 
 locusts, and he penned the following 
 model letter of recommendation, which 
 the confiding Frenchmen hugged to 
 their breasts. 
 
 "Sir: The bearer of this, who is 
 going to America, presses me to give 
 him a letter of recommendation, though 
 I know nothing of him, not even his 
 name. This may seem extraordinary, 
 but I assure you it is not uncommon 
 here. Sometimes, indeed, one unknown 
 person brings another equally unknown 
 to recommend him, and sometimes they 
 recommend one another. As to this 
 gentleman, I must refer you to himself 
 for his character and merits, with which 
 he is certainly better acquainted than 
 I can possibly be. I recommend him, 
 however, to those civilities which every 
 stranger, of whom one knows no harm, 
 has a right to, and I request you will 
 do him all the good offices and show 
 him all the favor, that on further ac- 
 quaintance, you shall find him to de- 
 serve. I have the honor to be, etc., 
 "B. Fr.-'iNklin." 
 
 Marie Antoinette and the king never 
 sympathized with Franklin in politics. 
 The king and the Count of Provence, 
 his brother, were both of a highly phil- 
 osophical mind, but his majesty readily 
 understood the meaning of Dr. Frank- 
 lin when he said the American cause 
 was "The cause of all mankind." Had 
 Marie Antoinette come high into favor 
 a little earlier, it is not probable that 
 Dr. Franklin would have secured an 
 alliance. 
 
 Our amiable doctor now set up as 
 Lord Chief Justice of the High Court 
 of Privateering on the High Seas. It 
 will be remembered that John Paul 
 Jones' ship, "Bon Homme Richard," 
 was named after Poor Richard. 
 
 Dr. Franklin took up his abode at 
 the then suburb of Passy, not far from 
 Versailles. His communications with 
 the Court were at first made through 
 Le Ray de Chaumont, with whom he 
 
 lived, who was an ardent foe of Eng- 
 land and friend of America. All the 
 work of his office was performed by 
 himself and two grandsons who had 
 come with him. What with his priva- 
 teers, his remonstrances when these 
 cruisers were stopped in French ports, 
 his pleas for money, his learned essays, 
 his encouragement of the advance of 
 liberty in France, and his comptroller- 
 ship, it seems incredible that he should 
 have got through without outside cleri- 
 cal aid. 
 
 The year 1777 grew darker and 
 darker. Howe had not only chased 
 General Washington out of Long Island 
 and New York, but he had taken Phila- 
 delphia. "No, sir," said Franklin, 
 "Philadelphia has taken Howe." At 
 last, in the nick of time, "General Bur- 
 goyne surrendered to ]\Ir. Gates," at 
 Saratoga, and Beaumarchais broke his 
 arm hurrying to spread the good news 
 at Paris. Dr. Franklin accomplished 
 the wonderful feat of dispatching the 
 messenger Austin, whom Congress had 
 sent to him with the Saratoga news, 
 into the heart of the Opposition No- 
 bility at London, and was soon in pos- 
 session of the opinion of all classes of 
 people in England. There the friends 
 of Dr. Franklin begged him, for Eng- 
 land's sake, to make no treaty with 
 France ; meanwhile England was hir- 
 ing Hessians. Dr. Franklin operated 
 with this lever on Vergennes, and that 
 Prime Minister met him in the forest 
 near Versailles and as good as made 
 the French treaty with America secure. 
 The two envoys gave Dr. Franklin 
 much trotible and little aid, but finally 
 the French treaty was ready to be 
 signed. Dr. Franklin went to Passy, 
 took out the spotted velvet suit which 
 he had worn when Wedderburn abused 
 him, and, thus attired, put his signature 
 to the second great document in the his- 
 tory of the freedom of America. 
 
 Lord Stormont, English Ambassador, 
 now left Paris, the Marquis of Noailles, 
 French Ambassador, left London, and 
 Gerard, who had drawn the treaty with 
 the Americans, left Paris for Philadel- 
 phia as the first Minister accredited to 
 the new nation. What was better, 
 
BIOGRAPHY— BENJAMIN FRANKLIN 
 
 347 
 
 though less portentous, was the sail- 
 ing of D'Estaing's French fleet from 
 Toulon to -America. Deane went back 
 with Gerard. Lee's private secretary 
 was thought to be an English spy, and 
 when the French had matters of high 
 importance they trusted only Dr. 
 Franklin. This confidence in Dr. 
 Franklin increased as the years went 
 
 \ oltaire made his triumphal entry to 
 Paris in April, 1778. At the Academy 
 I of Sciences, before a distinguished au- 
 dience, Franklin and \'oltaire, "Solon 
 and Sophocles," embraced each other, 
 whereupon the audience did likewise 
 one with another. 
 
 Gerard at Philadelphia defeated the 
 Lee-Izard cabal against Dr. Franklin, 
 and John Adams came to Paris as spe- 
 cial envoy. He found financial afl^airs 
 and accounts in confusicwi, but soon 
 agreed that they could not be disen- 
 tangled. The fault-finders were the 
 ones who had spent the most money 
 for their personal uses. Adams got 
 in a quarrel with \'ergennes and passed 
 on to Holland. Dr. Franklin had been 
 the Navy Department, Prize Court, Se- 
 cret Service, Consul-General, Financial 
 Agent and Foreign Department of 
 America, with two clerks in all, and 
 Congress, on its side, had been lax in 
 attending to such business as Dr. 
 Franklin had been able to keep straight. 
 As Dr. Franklin was the only solvent 
 Paymaster of the United States, all 
 foreign-American quarrels finally came 
 up to him for review, making hiin new 
 enemies. "It is hard," he wrote, "that 
 I, who give others no trouble with my 
 quarrels, should be plagued with all the 
 perversities of those who think fit to 
 wrangle with one another." 
 
 The prudent Dr. Franklin never let 
 go of a dollar that was foolishly paid 
 Vv^ithout writing a long letter of regret, 
 announcing his early ruin, but Con- 
 gress found it hard to bankrupt him. 
 and soon became thoroughly hardened 
 to his cries. When he first went to 
 France, shiploads of indigo and tobacco 
 were to be sent to him, which would 
 provide him with funds. The English 
 captured some of the ships ; the rest 
 
 were claimed by Beaumarchais, pos- 
 sibly with justice. Vergennes in the 
 end was the sole source of Dr. F"rank- 
 lin's funds. Congress was to borrow 
 $5,000,000 and Dr. Franklin, through 
 \'ergennes, guaranteed the interest. 
 Congress at once drew on this money 
 for all purposes, and General Wash- 
 ington did not obtain enough of it. 
 France lent America $600,000 when 
 General Burgoyne surrendered, and 
 Spain would have lent as much more if 
 Arthur Lee had not boasted of the loan 
 a little too soon. As 1779 passed, and 
 Turgot at Paris became influential, the 
 prodigal policy of Vergennes was 
 brought under criticism, and while Dr. 
 Franklin was meekly begging for more 
 money he was told that France itself 
 was $4,000,000 short. He wrote to 
 John Paul Jones, who must scrape his 
 bottoms : "For God's sake, be spar- 
 ing." He wrote to Congress, asking 
 that body to order agents in Europe 
 not to draw on him. But whenever 
 they heard he had money, the Con- 
 gressmen themselves made haste to 
 send him a bill to pay. Jay wrote from 
 Sixain — he had gone thither to raise a 
 great loan : "We should indeed have 
 been greatly distressed, had it not been 
 for your kind offices," The good but 
 sufl:'ering doctor admonished the pa- 
 triots as a whole in the style of Poor 
 Richard. Said he: "A small increase 
 of industry in every American, male 
 and female, with a small diminution of 
 luxury, would produce a sum far su- 
 perior to all we can hope to beg or bor- 
 row from all our friends in Europe." 
 He had lent his own fortune; he was 
 giving his time; now he offered the 
 people his counsel. In return, they 
 drew new bills. Public wealth actually 
 increased during the years General 
 \\'ashington was in his cheerless camps 
 and Dr. Franklin was soliciting with 
 all his earnestness — so true is it in so- 
 ciety that some must suffer for the rest, 
 or all will sink together. Patriot Laur- 
 ens, sent as Minister to the Hague, 
 landed at the Tower of London. Con- 
 gress drew bills even on him, and the 
 sympathetic Dr. Franklin accepted 
 them, for all bills would finally come 
 
348 
 
 THE HOME AUXILIARY AND REFERENCE 
 
 to Passy. It is a marvel how the fame 
 of a paymaster who pays will spread 
 among collectors. He must have signed 
 the acceptance of i,ooo bills in January, 
 1781, and 990 of them were for ex- 
 penses that did General Washington 
 little good, in Dr. Franklin's opinion. 
 At last, after almost unfriendly pres- 
 sure on \'ergennes, P'rance lent about 
 $2,000,000 it could not spare, on condi- 
 tion that General Washington should 
 draw the bills. Congress was insulted. 
 Dr. Franklin disbursed the money, and 
 it was gone before General Washing- 
 ton knew anything about it. Then Dr. 
 Franklin persuaded the Minister 
 Necker to guarantee a loan of about 
 $180,000 in Holland. In the Ameri- 
 can haste to get this money. Dr. Frank- 
 lin was left with legitimate bills un- 
 paid. "I see nobody cares how much I 
 am distressed, provided they can carry 
 their own points," he wrote in des- 
 pair. The Holland money had not been 
 spent for French goods, and Dr. Frank- 
 lin felt bitterly ashamed. The goods 
 themselves got into a lawsuit, and even 
 John Adams, in Holland, had to draw 
 on Dr. Franklin, who, vowing he could 
 ne'er disburse, disbursed. In 1781 
 Congress benignantly declared it would 
 draw on no other l\Iinisters without 
 funds, but would draw on Dr. Franklin 
 funds or no funds. When the mir- 
 aculous doctor agreed with Vergennes 
 to accept no drafts drawn later than 
 IMarch, 1781, he patriotically winked at 
 the invention of Congress whereby 
 IMarch, 1781, to judge by the bills, was 
 very slow coming, while the bills came 
 all the faster. An American agent im- 
 plored Dr. Franklin to help him to 
 some $8,200 at once, as it was plain 
 the paymaster would soon be worse off. 
 In March he got $4,000.000 : the next 
 year he got $4,000,000 in a lump sum. 
 It is usually said that nearly $6,000,000 
 of the French loans and gifts to Dr. 
 Fi'anklin were the results, pure and 
 simple, of his personal influence. No 
 other Minister — John Adams worst of 
 all — could make friends with the 
 French Ministers. All Europe came to 
 look upon Dr. Franklin as the respon- 
 sible head of American things in 
 
 Europe — the man who really sympa- 
 thized with General Washington — the 
 person to be addressed when bills were 
 to be collected or peace to be sug- 
 gested. 
 
 Lord North, English Prime Minister, 
 received the news of Yorktown No- 
 vember 25, 1781, "as he would have 
 taken a ball in his breast." He sent 
 his man Digges to Dr. Franklin in Paris 
 and Adams in Holland, to see if he 
 could not split France and America. 
 "The greatest villain I ever met with," 
 writes Dr. Franklin of Digges. March 
 22. 1782, Dr. Franklin, foreseeing that 
 his old friend Lord Shelburne must 
 come into office, threw out a friendly 
 letter, hoping for a general peace, so as 
 to release France also from the war. 
 Shelburne sent Oswald to Paris, who 
 talked matters over with both Dr. 
 Franklin and Vergennes. Various 
 other conferences, in other quarters, 
 were going forward, so there was a 
 good chance for misunderstandings. 
 Dr. Franklin trusted \^ergennes, who 
 had saved America, and \'ergennes was 
 now trying to retrieve Canada and pro- 
 tect Spain. Jay and Adams naturally 
 were glad to oppose the interests of 
 France, especially as they found Yer- 
 gennes playing false to Dr. Franklin. 
 Thus matters dragged till Shelburne 
 became full Prime Minister, with Fox 
 out. Vergennes had sufficient influence 
 with Congress to order the Paris Com- 
 missioners to favor France. Adams 
 and Jay, in session, outvoted the doctor, 
 and he, true to the majority, agreed to 
 their plan, and the three outwitted Ver- 
 gennes at his own game, though it ap- 
 pears somewhat a lamentable triumph 
 over the nation that ruined itself for 
 our making. 
 
 When Vergennes learned of the pro- 
 tocol, he wrote to Dr. Franklin : "You 
 are wise and discreet, sir ; you per- 
 fectly understand what is due to pro- 
 priety ; you have all your life per- 
 formed your duties ; I pray you con- 
 sider how you propose to fulfill those 
 which are due the king of France." It 
 was only a few weeks since Vergennes 
 had given Dr. Franklin money, and let 
 some of his own bills go to protest. 
 
BIOGRAPHY—REN lAMIN FRANKLIN 
 
 The doctor heard the Adams faction in 
 America denouncing him for his Can- 
 adian views, and he listened to the 
 just charges of duplicity leveled against 
 him at \'ersailles. It is not known that 
 he was actually aware of the simul- 
 taneous duplicity of \'ergennes, but it 
 seems likely he would be told of it by 
 Jay. He accordingly began some of 
 the most conciliatory letter-writing of 
 his life, and at last even Vergennes de- 
 clared: "I accuse no person, not even 
 Dr. Franklin. He has yielded too easily 
 to the bias of his colleagues." 
 
 When the day came at Versailles to 
 sign the preliminary treaty with Great 
 Britain recognizing the independence 
 of the United States, Dr. Franklin ap- 
 peared in his suit of spotted velvet, al- 
 though the court was in mourning. 
 There was a delay, the Doctor went 
 home, and, on a later date, arrived and 
 signed the paper clad once more in the 
 celebrated habit. He never boasted or 
 admitted his revenge, but it is believed 
 by his biographers that he thus assu- 
 aged the hurts that Wedderburn had 
 inflicted on his pride at London. 
 
 Dr. Franklin had long asked to come 
 home. "The blessing promised to the 
 ]ieacemakers," he said, "relates, I 
 fancy, to the next world, for in this 
 they seem to have a greater chance of 
 beeing cursed." But Congress, when it 
 rebuked him, calculated to draw upon 
 his unexhaustible fund of good humor, 
 and did not, until March, 1785, resolve 
 that Dr. Franklin "might return as 
 soon as convenient," antl Thomas Jeff- 
 erson might succeed him. 
 
 The good Doctor was now old and 
 infirm. Jefferson says that on the day 
 the aged American left Passy, "it 
 seemed as if the village had lost its 
 patriarch." The King's people lent him 
 a royal litter to bear him to the sea. 
 The complimentary portrait of the 
 King given to the departing Minister 
 had a double circle of 408 diamonds. 
 He was reconciled to his son at Ports- 
 mouth, and signed a peace with that 
 somewhat unlovely Tory. For Frank- 
 lin, as thoroughly as General Washing- 
 ton, had hated Tories. It is not de- 
 moralizing to read the invectives which 
 
 both these great souls poiu'cd on their 
 illogical foes. 
 
 September 13, 1785, an old man of 
 seventy-nine walked up the streets of 
 Philadelphia — we hope in his spotted 
 velvet suit. Little children were 
 brought out that they might say they 
 had looked upon a man so noble and 
 so perfect. He came like a father. He 
 came, too, like a freeman, to die not on 
 the tyrant's scaffold, to be buried un- 
 der no common jail, to be pictured in 
 no prison calendar. Beneath those 
 white hairs lay a brain that for fifty 
 years had not rested in the work of 
 liberation. 
 
 He took no salary while in France, 
 and received back only a portion of his 
 own money. He was at once elected to 
 office, and thereupon did not neglect 
 to make a mot. "They engrossed the 
 prime of my life," he said. "They 
 have eaten my flesh, and seem resolved 
 now to pick my bones." In May, 1787, 
 the Constitutional Convention added 
 him to its number, so that if General 
 Washington should be called away 
 from the chair, there might be some 
 one upon whom all could agree. He 
 was essentially with Jefferson, and 
 against Hamilton, in principle. He 
 thought a salary should not pertain to 
 high office, for then "men of indefatig- 
 able activity in their selfish pursuits" 
 would push aside the wise and moder- 
 ate. A peculiar episode is mentioned 
 in the Convention. The skeptical Dr. 
 Franklin moved that the sessions open 
 with prayer ; the devout Hamilton op- 
 posed it. Dr. Franklin wanted equal 
 suffrage, a President not re-eligible, to 
 serve seven years, subject to impeach- 
 ment: no absolute veto. He was 
 warmly for Washington for first Presi- 
 dent. 
 
 He was confined to his bed the last 
 two years of his life ; still his mind was 
 keen. "I seem to have intruded my- 
 self into the company of posterity." 
 "People that will drink to the bottom 
 of the cup must expect to meet with 
 some of the dregs." "I have received 
 more blame, as well as more praise, 
 than I deserved." "Having seen a 
 good deal of this world, I feel a grow- 
 
350 
 
 THE HOME AUXILIARY AND REFERENCE 
 
 ing curiosity to be acquainted with 
 some other." His last considerable act 
 was a memorial against the slave trade 
 which he had always utterly denounced. 
 When the French Revolution broke out, 
 he said the people of France, having 
 served an apprenticeship to liberty in 
 America, had now "set up for them- 
 selves." Presently, he thought, a lover 
 of liberty could find a country in any 
 Christian nation. 
 
 "A dying man can do nothing easily," 
 he said, late on the night of April 17, 
 i/QO, and soon sank into a lethargy, 
 and ])assed away. He was burieil with 
 such prudent splendor as the Quakers 
 could summon for a memorable ob- 
 sequy, and the frugality of the city of 
 Philadelphia restrained it from at- 
 tempting any notable memorial. He 
 was plain in life. He would prefer the 
 deep gratitude of the generous few 
 who closely study his career, to the 
 light comment of the passing crowd 
 who might be awed by the grandeur of 
 a suitable monument. 
 
 Mirabeau, before the French As- 
 sembly, delivered an impassioned elegy 
 on Dr. Franklin, and the Deputies wore 
 mourning for three days. A great fu- 
 neral was held in Paris itself, the citi- 
 zens each wearing a badge. The Revo- 
 lutionary clubs pondered affectionately 
 on his writings. .A street of Paris (in 
 Passy ) received his name. The books 
 of science were everywhere opened and 
 his death faithfully recorded. 
 
 JOHN PAUL JONES. 
 1 747- 1 792 
 
 John Paul Jones (1747-1792) was 
 born July 6, 1747, on the estate of Ar- 
 bigland, in the parish of Kirkbean and 
 the stewartry of Kirkcudbright, Scot- 
 land, where his father, John F'aul, was 
 gardner. At twelve he went to sea as 
 apprentice to a merchant of White- 
 haven, in whose ships he visited 
 America several times. He became a 
 skillful sailor and was for some time 
 mate of a slaver in the West Indies. 
 On his way back to England, after 
 leaving the slave trade in disgust, the 
 
 captain and the mate in the ships in 
 which he was both died ; and the skill- 
 ful manner in which Paul Jones 
 brought the ship safely into port in- 
 duced the owners to appoint him cap- 
 tain. In 1773, having for some un- 
 known reason assumed the cognomen 
 Jones, he settled in \'irginia, on a prop- 
 erty which had fallen to him on the 
 death of an elder brother. When the 
 American War of Independence broke 
 out two years later Jones took up arms 
 for the Colonies, and accepted com- 
 mand in the navy of the new Republic. 
 He did good service against his native 
 land, and in 1777 was sent to France 
 to receive a more important command. 
 Disappointed in that, he sailed, in 1778, 
 to the English coast in his ship Ranger, 
 and availed himself of his early knowl- 
 edge to land at Whitehaven, where, 
 however, he was unsuccessful in his at- 
 tempt to fire the shipping. Next year 
 he sailed on a similar expedition in the 
 Bonhomme Richard, along with other 
 vessels, and, steering up the Firth of 
 Forth, was only prevented by a strong 
 westerly gale from attacking Leith. On 
 his way south again he fell in, off 
 Flamborough Head, with the English 
 ship Serapis, which, after a long and 
 bloody combat, he compelled to strike. 
 That exploit raised his fame to its 
 acme. C3n his return to Paris he was 
 feted and carassed by the best society; 
 and Louis XVI presented him with a 
 gold-hilted sword, and decorated him 
 with the Military Order of Merit. 
 After some time spent in America, 
 where he was much chagrined by the 
 neglect that met his boastful requests 
 for further employment, Paul Jones re- 
 turned to Paris as agent for all prizes 
 taken in Europe under his own com- 
 mand. While he resumed his efforts 
 to pose as a man of ton he attended 
 carefully to his duties. A favorable 
 report to Congress as to his naval ser- 
 vices was followed by a vote of a gold 
 medal from that body in 1786. In 1788 
 the Chevalier Jones entered the service 
 of the Empress Catherine of Russia, 
 and became as enthusiastic a Russian as 
 he had been an American. He was ap- 
 pointed to a command in the Black Sea, 
 
BIOGRAPHY— JOHN ADAMS 
 
 351 
 
 with the rank of rear-admiral, to act 
 against the Turks ; but the jealousy and 
 rivalry of the Russian commanders 
 brought about his recall in less than 
 eight months. Summoned to St. 
 Petersburg, on a pretext of receiving a 
 post in the North Sea, he was left in 
 restless idleness until at last two years' 
 formal leave of absence was granted to 
 him. On this virtual dismissal, I'aul 
 Jones retired to Paris, soured and dis- 
 appointed, and after two years spent 
 in fruitlessly importuning the Russian 
 court, he died in that city on July 18, 
 1792. 
 
 Paul Jones is described as a "short, 
 thick little fellow^ about 5 feet 8 inches 
 in height, of a dark, swarthy com- 
 ple.xion." Naval skill and bravery he 
 certainly had, but his letters prove him 
 to have been boastful and quarrelsome. 
 He writhed under the suspicion of be- 
 ing an "adventurer ;" once and again he 
 eagerly repels the charge. English con- 
 temporary accounts generally speak of 
 him as a pirate ; and, though he cer- 
 tainly ranked as an officer of the United 
 States, the independent manner in 
 which he cruised might well suggest let- 
 ters of marque rather than a Govern- 
 ment commission. 
 
 JOHN ADAMS. 
 
 1735-1826 
 
 Second President of the United 
 States. 
 
 It was John Adams, of Massachu- 
 setts Bay, who rose superior to home 
 influences and advocated the election 
 of Colonel Washington as Commander- 
 in-Chief of the Continental army. 
 Without this firm and unselfish action, 
 it may be seen that John Hancock 
 would have secured the place ; General 
 Washington might then have seen fit 
 to defend \'irginia rather than the 
 Hudson and Schuylkill, and there 
 would have been a dififerent war, per- 
 haps, with different results. When 
 ( leneral Washington withdrew from 
 public life he considered the Constitu- 
 tion and the Government safe in the 
 
 hands of John Adams, and it may al- 
 most be said that the Massachusetts 
 statesman was the first of the Presi- 
 dents, as the Founder seemed of an- 
 other order — self-elected and self-dis- 
 missed. He had made the nation and 
 could have been its king, save that he 
 thought the time for kings had gone 
 by. and the time for representative gov- 
 ernments had come. In this sense, 
 therefore, John .\dams was considered 
 among the Fathers as the best man for 
 the new and distinguished place. Gen- 
 eral Washington had done all he could 
 to convey his own personal tlistinction 
 to the office. His confidence in John 
 Adams ; his willingness to have John 
 Adams as his Vice-President in the first 
 years of the Constitution ; these are 
 things which must be said first of the 
 subject of this notice. 
 
 John .Adams, who was born at Brain- 
 tree, Mass., on October 30, 1735, was 
 in his way and after the manner of 
 his nature as earnest in self-culture as 
 George Washington. The competition 
 and pressure around him were more 
 noticeable: he was to be self-made, 
 showing the angles and harsh places 
 that often abound in such characters. 
 But he was of an order of men that 
 we must admire and approve. It was 
 because there was a group so large, of 
 men so noble, that we are free, and this 
 volume is made. 
 
 It was not unusual for a parent of 
 those days to send his eldest son to 
 college, and, if he left an estate, to 
 divide it among the other children. 
 Thus John /Adams, being an elder son, 
 went through Harvard University. 
 The social distinctions by which pupils 
 were marked in graduating, place the 
 Adams family on record as having been 
 comparatively humble. To all intents, 
 we should regard John Adams as a 
 self-made man. He graduated in 1755, 
 and became master of a grammar 
 school at Worcester. A little later, 
 with the school on his hands, he be- 
 gan the study of law in (General) Put- 
 nam's office. 
 
 In October, 1758, the young man of 
 twenty-three was ready to seek the 
 learned Mr. Gridley, of Boston, 
 
352 
 
 THE HOME AUXILIARY- AND REFERENCE 
 
 "father" of that bar, who consented to 
 recommend the student to the court, 
 and the oath was administered. 
 
 When he was twenty-nine, October 
 25, 1764, he married Abigail Smith, 
 who became the immortal Abigail 
 Adams, one of the noblest and most in- 
 telligent of women, the wife and the 
 mother of a President of the United 
 States. By this alliance the young at- 
 torney broadened his practice and his 
 ambitions. It is difficult to point in 
 history to a more intellectual or better- 
 mated pair of people. 
 
 He attended the town meeting, which 
 was by this time a hot debating club, 
 where he was easily first, held little of- 
 fices, come to the notice of the English 
 Governor, Bernard, and, on the explo- 
 sion of the Stamp Act, with the riot 
 at Boston, drew up resolutions instruct- 
 ing Braintree's delegate to the Assem- 
 bly that were taken as a model by forty 
 other towns. 
 
 The Stamp Act, and the refusal of 
 the colonists to buy stamps, stopped 
 legal processes, and Mr. Adams, on 
 December 18, 1765, had not drawn a 
 writ since November I. Next day he 
 was notified that he, with ]\Ir. Gradley 
 and James Otis, must represent Boston 
 before the Governor and Council ( Sen- 
 ate) in support of a memorial praying 
 that the courts be opened. A less pa- 
 triotic man might have felt that ad- 
 vancement at the bar lay on the side of 
 the law and the Government ; but John 
 Adams did not waver. He spoke first, 
 without adequate preparation, as he 
 conceived, "on a question that was 
 never made before, and he wished he 
 could hope it never would be made 
 again — that is, whether the courts of 
 law should open or not." 
 
 He refused small Government offices 
 and perquisities, forseeing trouble, and 
 desiring to be free of gratitude. Early 
 in 1768 he removed to Boston, taking 
 up his residence in the "White House," 
 in Brattle Square. There Governor 
 Bernard again tried to get John Adams 
 to take office — this time the important 
 post of Advocate-General in the Court 
 of Admiralty. But the lines were 
 drawing closer, the "Sam Adams 
 
 Regiments" had come, filling the town, 
 and John Adams stood strong for 
 liberty. He thought he feared some- 
 what, but he was strong. The troops 
 were an eyesore ; the populace was tur- 
 bulent and disrespectful, teaching the 
 boys to act still more inhospitably, and 
 the attack on the sentry, with the "Bos- 
 ton Massacre" took place. The sentries 
 fired, in the end killing five rioters or 
 onlookers, and Captain Preston and 
 other soldiers were put on trial for 
 murder. John Adams was instantly re- 
 tained at the head of Captain Preston's 
 counsel, and accepted without misgiv- 
 ings. In this way Hutchinson, now the 
 Governor, silenced t)tf best orator on 
 the side of the town meeting (for Otis 
 was becoming incapacitated by mental 
 disease). The trial of Preston lasted 
 six days, and he was acquitted. Two 
 of the soldiers, after trial, were 
 branded. The opponents of John 
 Adams always taunted him with this 
 service ; Hutchinson hinted that there 
 was a large fee. But the advocate re- 
 ceived in all less than $100, and Pres- 
 ton never thanked his successful 
 counsel. 
 
 He stood so well before Boston in 
 this delicate matter that he was at once 
 elected delegate to the Assembly, an 
 honor, however, that looked like ruin. 
 
 In 1771 he thought his health had 
 completely failed him, and, becoming 
 exceedingly despondent, moved his 
 family back to the town of Braintree, 
 liut still practiced law in Boston. He 
 Vv-as famous as a "Son of Liberty." 
 
 In June, 1774. while John Adams 
 was presiding over town meeting at 
 Eaneuil Hall, Samuel Adams was lock- 
 ing the doors at Salem and getting 
 delegates to Philadelphia appointed be- 
 fore the Governor could break in to 
 prorogue the rebellious Assembly. 
 John Adams was one of the five dele- 
 gates so appointed. He who went to 
 Philadelphia, as he believed, without an 
 idea, was one of the few who arrived 
 there with ideas. The first Congress 
 did little save indorse the Massachu- 
 setts policy of boycott, but John Adams 
 was on the chief committees, and was 
 an early target for the jealousy and 
 
BIOGRAPHY— JOHN ADAMS 
 
 envy of other debaters of less skill, in- 
 dustry and native courage. The influ- 
 ence of the Virginia members was con- 
 servative, and much was done to keep 
 them in line. The Philadelphians were 
 determined to leave no stone unturned 
 in the way of loyal petition to the sov- 
 ereign in order to escape war. All the 
 people who had come with Samuel 
 Adams must keep in the background, 
 save that Mr. Hancock was supposed 
 to be a man with some property-stake 
 at Boston. 
 
 When Mr. Adams returned, he was 
 summoned for consultation by the 
 Provincial Assembly, and set to work 
 newspaper writing. When John Adams 
 again started for Philadelphia the times 
 were dark indeed. He was forced to 
 leave wife and small children in a farm- 
 house near the seashore, exposed to a 
 thousand dangers. But his leonine 
 wife bade him go. At Philadelphia he 
 now saw Colonel Washington in his 
 fighting clothes, and his spirits rose cor- 
 respondingly. "I have bought some 
 military books," he wrote. 
 
 The Conciliationists were still strong; 
 they singled him out as the champion 
 of a republic, of the Presbyterians, as 
 they called the Bostoneers. He, on his 
 side, was determined that Congress 
 should adopt the army at Boston, and 
 should commission Washington as 
 Commander-in-Chief. In this he was 
 even ahead of Samuel Adams. 
 
 The action of John Adams in press- 
 ing this matter on Congress, and carry- 
 ing the day as he did, marks him at 
 once as one of the great Fathers of the 
 Republic. 
 
 The news from Mr. Adam's home 
 was disturbing. An epidemic raged, 
 and the members of his family were all 
 stricken ; his brother and his wife's 
 mother had died. He went home in 
 the summer recess of 1775, and, while 
 he was gone, the Conciliationists 
 seemed to increase in number. The 
 most prominent of these was John 
 Jay, afterward a leading patriot. On 
 his return to Philadelphia. Air. Adams 
 set out with renewed vigor to increase 
 the feeble flame of Revolution. 
 
 We shall see that John Adams, in 
 
 actual Revolutionary times, was al- 
 ways well supported, both by men and 
 events. Few statesmen have been so 
 clearly able to see the future. To in- 
 crease his prestige in Congress, he had 
 been appointed Chief Justice of the 
 patriot State of Massachusetts, but in 
 December, 1775, he considered it wise 
 to go back, get in complete touch with 
 the people, and, beside, learn what Gen- 
 eral Washington most needed from the 
 other States. This was a satisfactory 
 visit for the Massachusetts delegates 
 in Congress were bidden to urge Con- 
 gress "to concert, direct, and order 
 such further measures as shall to them 
 appear best calculated for the establish- 
 ment of right and liberty to the Ameri- 
 can colonies, upon a basis permanent 
 and secure against the power and art 
 of the British Administration." 
 
 As the Declaration of Independence 
 began to be an assured future event, 
 John Adams felt increasing awe. He 
 was now unquestionably the leader, par 
 excellence, of Congress. Samuel 
 Adams was satisfied with obscurity, so 
 long as independence was to come. 
 Jefferson could not make a striking ad- 
 dress ; it does not seem that Patrick 
 Henry cared to enter upon the trying 
 labors, or displace so sound and good 
 a man as John .A^dams. \\'hen it came 
 to writing the Declaration, Jefferson 
 and John Adams each civilly requested 
 the other to make the draft ; but it had 
 been tacitly understood that the Vir- 
 ginian should have the honor. 
 
 John Adams was connected with 
 ninety committees in Congress, but 
 seems to have served as a sort of War 
 Secretary through the hot summer of 
 1776. He was of stout build, and the 
 Philadelphia weather nearly prostrated 
 him, as he was unused to it. He was 
 forced to rest at home in the winter, re- 
 turning for another summer of the 
 same heavy work, united with the busi- 
 ness of foreign relations, especially 
 with France. When he left Philadel- 
 phia, November 11, 1777. ki company 
 with his kinsman, Samuel .\dams, he 
 expected another vacation. But De- 
 cember 3d he was notified to leave at 
 once for France as Commissioner to 
 
354 
 
 THE HOME AUXILIARY AND REFERENCE 
 
 supersede Deane and to weight his dis- 
 patch bags, so that they could be sunk 
 in the sea in case of capture by British 
 cruisers. Dr. Frankhn was alreaay m 
 Paris. Mr. Adams sailed on the frigate 
 Boston, in February, taking his son, 
 John Quincy Adams (afterward Presi- 
 dent), with him. Seventeen days out, 
 a British ship-of-war gave chase. Mr. 
 Adams urged officers and crew to fight 
 desperately, if overhauled, "deeming it 
 to be more eligible to be killed on 
 board the Boston or sunk to the bottom, 
 in her than to be taken prisoner." He 
 reached Bordeaux in safety. John 
 Adams felt grateful, and be it under- 
 stood, ever remained grateful, for the 
 friendship of the French at a critical 
 juncture. He urged an alliance with 
 France. His mission proved to be 
 more one of inspection than otlierwise ; 
 he found he was not needed, and came 
 home August 2, 1779. He then en- 
 tered the Massachusetts Constitutional 
 Convention. 
 
 In November he was again sent to 
 Europe as a special envoy, prepared 
 to treat for peace, if England should 
 make the proffer. He had a perilous 
 passage, and the unseaworthy vessel 
 which carried him made no better land- 
 ing than the Spanish port of Ferrol. 
 Thence to Paris he was compelled to 
 make the journey in winter amid severe 
 hardships, the worst that attended his 
 career. The French Minister, De Ver- 
 gennes, would have chosen an envoy 
 more docile to French wishes, and soon 
 embroiled the outspoken and busy Bos- 
 tonian in troubles that led to his disap- 
 pointment. The boundaries of the 
 United States on the land sides were 
 matters of nearly as much importance 
 as independence. Spain owned all the 
 country west of the Alississippi and 
 Florida. Should we obtain Canada? 
 Where was the boundary line west of 
 the Great Lakes? Should Boston ves- 
 sels be allowed to fish in northern 
 waters? To John Adams these were 
 al) burning questions. \'ergennes, al- 
 though he could not overthrow Mr. 
 Adams, obtained a Commission for 
 Peace, with Franklin. Laurens and Jay 
 added. The posture of affairs was pe- 
 
 culiar. The Americans were ordet'ed 
 by Congress to act under the guidance 
 of X'ergennes, and \'ergennes at this 
 moment stood ready to sacrifice Ameri- 
 can interests in preference to those of 
 France. Yet Congress ever reposed 
 perfect confidence in John Adams. H 
 he complained, something must be 
 wrong, and Massachusetts was particu- 
 larly nervous on account of her fish- 
 eries. To encourage him, he was made 
 Minister Plenipotentiary to the United 
 Provinces, and with famous audacity 
 pushed the matter of recognition for 
 America to a successful vote of the 
 constituencies, thereby actually accom- 
 plishing what the Citizen Genet after- 
 ward threatened to do in America. 
 
 April 19, 1782, Mr. Adams was for- 
 mally installed at The Hague as the 
 ^linister of a new people. \'ergennes, 
 from Paris, had secretly opposed this 
 action, and Mr. Adams justly consid- 
 ered his work the greatest success of 
 his life. "I have planted the American 
 standard at The Hague. I shall look 
 down upon the flagstaff" with pleasure 
 from the other world." 
 
 The situation at Paris, when Adams, 
 Jay and Franklin met to make peace 
 with England, was trying to the spe- 
 cial envoy. Vergennes disliked him, 
 and had secured the instructions from 
 Congress which made PVance the ac- 
 tual guardian of American interests. 
 Yet Jay and Adams outwitted him, and 
 Franklin was so loyal to the majority 
 idea that when Jay and Adams out- 
 voted him, he did not reveal the Amer- 
 ican plans to \'ergennes. In this way 
 England secretly made a preliminary 
 treaty with America, agreeing to better 
 terms than Vergennes would have de- 
 manded, because he did not wish to 
 magnify .\merica, now that she was 
 free. The English came to Mr. Adams 
 with an oddly-worded commission. It 
 authorized Oswald, its Commissioner, 
 "to treat with any Commissioner ur 
 Commissioners, named or to be named 
 by the thirteen colonies or plantations 
 in North America, and any body or 
 bodies, corporate or politic, or any as- 
 sembly or assemblies, or description of 
 men, or any person or persons whatso- 
 
BIOGRAPHY—JOHN ADAMS 
 
 355 
 
 ever, a peace or truce with the said 
 colonies or plantations, or any part 
 thereof." John Adams, to start with. 
 made the English take all those words 
 out, and substitute "L'nited States of 
 America." The preliminaries were 
 signed January 21, 1783; the definite 
 treaties September 3 of the same year. 
 
 He was busy for nearly two years 
 negotiating commercial treaties, and 
 was seriously ill several times. At last 
 he sent for his wife and daughter, and 
 the family settled for the summer of 
 1784 at Auteruil, near Paris. F'ebruary 
 24, 1785, Congress appointed him Min- 
 ister to Great Britain, a mark of very 
 high honor, which at the time probably 
 [ilaced him next to General \Vashing- 
 ton in the notice of his countrymen. 
 
 He returned home in April. 1788, and 
 was undoubtedly the most impartial 
 American there was in viewing Eng- 
 land and France. Both nations had 
 misused him because he was uncom- 
 promisingly true to the United States. 
 It wnll be seen that he remained suffi- 
 ciently grateful to France, and we may 
 easily believe he desired to play no sub- 
 servient part toward England. 
 
 He was at once chosen by the friends 
 of the Constitution — the Federalists — 
 as the proper nominee for ^^ice-Presi- 
 dcnt. 
 
 While the \'ice-Presidency appeared 
 to him to be "the most insignificant 
 office that ever the invention of man 
 contrived or his imagination con- 
 ceived," it still became highly impor- 
 tant in the time of John Adams. Ham- 
 ilton now assumed full charge of the 
 legislation of General Washington's ad- 
 ministration. His measures met so 
 much opposition that, on twenty occa- 
 sions, the \ice-President, in a tie vote, 
 cast the ballot which made Hamilton 
 triumphant. This greatly pleased Gen- 
 eral Washington. Mr. Adams received 
 jy out of 127 votes for \'ice-President 
 at the second Presidential election, 
 having won the cordial support of 
 Hamilton. 
 
 At the third Presidential election. 
 General Washington having refused to 
 serve any longer, Mr. Adams was log- 
 ically the candidate. 
 
 He retired (March, 1801) to his 
 pleasant homestead by the roadside at 
 Ouincy, Mass. Abigail Adams, his 
 wife, died October 28, 1818. He 
 watched the rise of his son, John 
 Ouincy Adams, to the first office in the 
 land. He was a Presidential Elector 
 for James Afonroe. He was nominated 
 President of the Massachusetts-Maine 
 Constitutional Convention when he was 
 eighty-five years old. For years he sat 
 on his front porch, an honored grand- 
 sire, in a region thickly settled with 
 kinsmen, who looked upon him as the 
 great freeman and patriot he was, and 
 were cheered in their pious attentions 
 by the approval of a growing nation. 
 At sunset on the 4th of July, 1826. 
 after he had seen his country declared 
 and truly free for fifty years, he whis- 
 pered : "Thomas Jefferson still sur- 
 \ives !" and gently passed away. Per- 
 haps the tumultuous feelings of the an- 
 niversary, thronging their venerable 
 memories alike, wrought mortally on 
 each. 
 
 Thus died a Revolutioniry Father 
 who, from the day he joined with his 
 kinsman, Samuel Adams, against the 
 tyrannies of the English king, never 
 allowed personal considerations to 
 swerve him one hair's breadth from 
 his first conception of the right course 
 to pursue. He stood out in front him- 
 self, and he forced others to come out 
 with him. He made Congress nominate 
 General \^''ashington ; he quickened 
 Congress in order that General Wash- 
 ington's army should not melt away ; 
 he forced recognition from Flolland ; 
 he made the English Ministry write 
 down the word "United States of 
 America;" he saved this country from 
 a dismal and dishonorable war with 
 the nation of Lafayette. Rochambcau. 
 D'Estaing and De Barras : he retired 
 obediently to private life when the peo- 
 ple determined that Thomas Jefiferson 
 represented them more certainly on 
 minor Constitutional questions. His 
 l^rivate fortune sufifered through his 
 public services, and he was separated 
 for many years from those he loved at 
 home. But, in return, he was so highly 
 honored by his people that they placed 
 
3S6 
 
 THE HOME AUXILIARY AND REFERENCE 
 
 him next to General Washington, and 
 gave him precedence before Thomas 
 Jefferson, author of the Declaration of 
 Independence. 
 
 PATRICK HENRY. 
 
 1 736- 1 799 
 
 "Give Me Liberty or Give Me 
 De-vth." 
 
 Patrick Henry was born on the 
 estate of Studley, in the County of 
 Hanover, Virginia, May 29, 1736. He 
 was not a brilliant scholar, and left his 
 studies at fifteen, first to learn a trade, 
 and thereafter to serve as a clerk in a 
 country store. At eighteen, without 
 means, he married a young woman, 
 Sarah Shelton, who was equally im- 
 poverished. The parents established 
 the headstrong couple on a small farm 
 with a few slaves. In two years the 
 husband sold the slaves at auction and 
 set up a country store. At twenty-three 
 he was insolvent. Thomas Jefferson, 
 now sixteen, met him, and thought "his 
 misfortunes were not to be traced either 
 ;n his covmtenance or conduct." "He 
 attached every one to him,'' says Jef- 
 ferson. 
 
 He next concluded he would be a 
 lawyer. How he learned his profes- 
 sion it has puzzled historians to say. 
 Patrick Henry certainly made a march 
 into legal practice the swiftest on rec- 
 ord. He said he studied a month ; some 
 said six weeks ; some dignified the 
 period into six months ; men of imag- 
 ination said nine months. He arrived 
 at Williamsburg, the capital of Mr- 
 ginia, almost as soon as Thomas Jef- 
 ferson. He was fortunate enough to 
 impress the remarkable qualities of his 
 mind on John Randolph ( not "John 
 Randolph of Roanoke"), and that as- 
 tute lawyer secured him the signatures 
 of the other legal examiners. Patrick 
 Henry related how Mr. Randolph had 
 endeavored to out-argue him. after 
 practicing all the arts of the attorney on 
 the young man. "You defend yourself 
 well, sir ; but now to the law and to the 
 testimony." Thereupon be went with 
 
 liini to his office, and, searching the au- 
 thorities, said to him : "Behold the 
 force of natural reason ! You have 
 never seen these books, nor this prin- 
 ciple of the law ; yet you are right and 
 I am wrong. And for the lesson which 
 you have given me (you must excuse 
 me for saying it) I will never trust to 
 appearances again." 
 
 The young man's success as an ad- 
 vocate was gratifying, and it was gen- 
 erally admitted he had at last discov- 
 ered his proper vocation. In about four 
 years' time, or late in 1763, he defeated 
 the celebrated "Parson's cause" in 
 court, and at once became a celebrated 
 Virginian. 
 
 In 1764, the seat of a member of the 
 House of Burgesses was contested, and 
 Patrick Henry went to the colonial 
 capital as attorney for the sitting mem- 
 ber. "For a day or two before the 
 hearing of the case the members of the 
 House had observed an ill-dressed 
 yoimg man sauntering in the lobby, 
 moving awkwardly about, with a 
 countenance of abstraction and total 
 unconcern as to what was going on." 
 He lost the cause before the committee, 
 but made a deep impression as an ora- 
 tor. 
 
 In May, 1765, he was himself elected 
 a member of the House of Burgesses 
 (legislature) for a county in which he 
 did not reside. A copy of the Stamp 
 -Act had arrived from England. On 
 the 29th the House went into Com- 
 mittee of the Whole, and Patrick 
 Henry, a new and imtried member, 
 with the foreknowledge of only two 
 members, moved the celebrated "Vir- 
 ginia Resolves'' — that taxation without 
 representation was odious to English 
 law and practice, and would have a 
 tendency to destroy freedom. The de- 
 bate was long and acrimonious. 
 "Many threats were uttered, and much 
 aluise cast on me." said Patrick Henry. 
 "Torrents of sublime eloquence from 
 Mr. Henry" are recorded. Reaching a 
 climax of invective, he paused, and 
 said with solemnity: "Cfesar had his 
 Brutus ; Charles the First his Crom- 
 well ; and George the Third ('Trea- 
 son!' shouted the Speaker of the 
 
BIOGRAPHY-PATRICK HENRY 
 
 357 
 
 House. 'Treason! Treason!' came 
 from all parts of the hall) — and 
 Cicorge th° Third may profit by their 
 example. If this be treason, make the 
 most of it." The resolutions, alter 
 two days of debate, passed the Vir- 
 ginia House. They had been cut down 
 in number, which modified their tone, 
 but a manuscript copy of Patrick 
 Henry's resolutions soon reached New 
 ^'ork City, where they "were handed 
 about with great privacy." They were 
 accounted so treasonable that the pos- 
 sessors of them declined printing them 
 in that city. They reached Xew Eng- 
 land, where the Sons of Liberty were 
 prompt to give them wide circulation. 
 In the papers accompanying his will, 
 Patrick Henry left the original manu- 
 script of the "Virginia Resolves." 
 "They formed," he wrote, "the first 
 opposition to the Stamp Act." "Find- 
 ing that no person was likely to step 
 forth. I determined to venture ; and 
 alone, unadvised and unassisted, on a 
 blank leaf of an old law book, wrote 
 the within." 
 
 For nine years the troubles of the 
 colonies increased. During that time 
 Patrick Henry was a member of the 
 House, and at last a member of the 
 Committee of Correspondence with 
 Boston. After Governor Dunmore dis- 
 solved the House, Patrick Henry was 
 the leader of the revolutionary body. 
 George Washington wrote : "He is by 
 far the most powerful speaker I ever 
 heard. But his eloquence is the small- 
 est part of his merit. Pie is, in my 
 opinion, the first man upon this Conti- 
 nent, as well in abilities as public 
 virtues." Late in August, 1774, with 
 Colonel George Washington and Ed- 
 mund Pendleton, Patrick Henry left 
 \'irginia for the First Continental 
 Congress. Roger Atkinson, of Peters- 
 burg, wrote, describing Henry as a 
 delegate: "Patrick Henry is a real 
 half-Quaker — your brother's man — 
 moderate and mild, and in religious 
 matters a saint, but the very devil in 
 politics ; a son of thunder. He will 
 shake the Senate. Some years ago he 
 bad liked to talk treason into the 
 House." 
 
 Charles Thomson, Secretary of Con- 
 gress, described Patrick Henry as 
 "dressed in a suit of parson's gray, and 
 from his appearance I took him for a 
 Presbyterian clergyman, used to har- 
 ranguing the people." In his first 
 speech he said : "The distinctions be- 
 tween Virginians, Pennsylvanians, New 
 Yorkers and New Englanders are no 
 more. I am not a \'irginian, but an 
 American." 
 
 On the 28th of September began the 
 debate on Galloway's plan of reconcilia- 
 tion, which was opposed by Massachu- 
 setts and Virginia, but defeated by a 
 vote of only six colonies to five. 
 Patrick Henry made a fierce assault on 
 the scheme of quasi-home-rule. As 
 they parted from the Congress, John 
 Adams read to Patrick Henry the con- 
 tents of a letter from Major Hawley, 
 of Massachusetts, which concluded : 
 "After all, we must fight." Mr. Henry 
 had his head down. "He raised his 
 head, and with an energy and vehem- 
 ence that I can never forget, broke out 
 with : 'By G — , I am of that man's 
 mind !' " This is the only oath that is 
 on record as coming from the lips of 
 I'atrick Henry. 
 
 Returning from Philadelphia in the 
 autumn of 1774, Patrick Henry, when 
 he next appeared before the public, at 
 the old church in Richmond, on the 
 23d of March, 1775, as a member of 
 the Second Revolutionary Convention 
 of Virginia, made the immortal speech 
 upon which his fame popularly rests. 
 This oration, perfectly stationed in the 
 drama of bloody events that was to 
 follow, ofi^ers almost the only recorded 
 example of adequate eloquence outside 
 the pages of the sublimest poets. .As 
 an actual happening in actual life, it 
 will ever thrill the student of history 
 and exalt the lover of patriotism. The 
 resolutions under debate authorized "a 
 well-regulated militia" for the defense 
 of the colony. Patrick Henry thought 
 there was too much opposition to the 
 resolutions and he seems to have 
 charged upon that sentiment with the 
 very highest powers of his mind. The 
 early portion of the speech is full of 
 well-turned sentences of indubitable 
 
358 
 
 THE HOME AUXILIARY AND REFERENCE 
 
 truth and sound sense. "This is no 
 time for ceremony," he said. "The 
 question is one of awful moment to 
 this country" — "freedom or slavery. 
 And in proportion to the magnitude 
 of the subject ought to be the free- 
 dom of the debate." "Should I keep 
 back my opinions at such a time, 
 through fear of giving ofifense, I 
 should consider myself as guilty of 
 treason toward my country, and of an 
 act of disloyalty toward the majesty 
 of Heaven, which I revere above all 
 earthly kings." "It is natural in man 
 to indulge in the illusions of hope. We 
 are apt to shut our eyes against a pain- 
 ful truth, and listen to the song of that 
 siren till she transforms us into beasts." 
 
 "I have but one lamp by which my 
 feet are guided, and that is the lamp 
 of experience. I know of no way of 
 judging the future but by the past." 
 "Ask yourselves how this gracious re- 
 ception of our petition comports with 
 those warlike preparations which cover 
 our waters and darken our lands. Are 
 fleets and armies necessary to a work 
 of love and reconciliation? Have we 
 shown ourselves so unwilling to be 
 reconciled that force must be called in 
 to win back our love? Let us not de- 
 ceive ourselves, sir. These are the im- 
 plements of war and subjugation — the 
 last argument to which kings resort." 
 
 "Shall we resort to entreaty and 
 humble supplication? What terms 
 shall we find which have not been al- 
 ready exhausted?" "We have peti- 
 tioned ; we have remonstrated ; we have 
 supplicated ; we have prostrated our- 
 selves before the throne, and have im- 
 plored its interposition to arrest the 
 tyrannical hands of the Ministry and 
 Parliament. Our petitions have been 
 slighted ; our remonstrances have pro- 
 duced additional violence and insult; 
 our supplications have been disre- 
 garded ; and we have been spurned with 
 contempt from the foot of the throne." 
 
 "There is no longer any room for 
 hope (of peace). If we wish to be 
 free," "we must fight ! I repeat it, sir, 
 we must fight ! An appeal to arms, 
 and to the God of Hosts is all that is 
 left to us." 
 
 To this point in the address, of which 
 the above are only striking sentences, 
 all was deliberate and self-constrained. 
 
 An aged clergyman related the fol- 
 lowing: "Henry rose with unearthly 
 fire burning in his eyes. He com- 
 menced somewhat calmly, but the 
 smothered excitement began more and 
 more to play upon his features and 
 thrill in the tones of his voice. The 
 tendons of his neck stood out white 
 and rigid, like whipcords. His voice 
 rose louder and louder, until the walls 
 of the building, and all within them, 
 seemed to shake and rock in its tre- 
 mendous vibrations. Finally, his pale 
 face and glaring eye became terrible to 
 look upon. Men leaned forward in 
 their seats, with their heads strained 
 forward, their faces pale, and their eyes 
 glaring, like the speaker's." The hearer 
 felt sick with excitement. 
 
 Patrick Henry continued, with in- 
 creasing fury of words : "They tell us, 
 sir, that we are weak — unable to cope 
 with so formidable an adversary. But 
 when shall we be stronger?" "Shall 
 we acquire the means of efl^ectual re- 
 sistance by lying supinely on our backs, 
 and hugging the delusive phantom of 
 hope, until our enemies have bound us 
 hand and foot?" He next sums up the 
 very considerable power of the colonies. 
 "P.esides, sir, we shall not fight our 
 battles alone. There is a just God who 
 presides over the destinies of nations, 
 and who will raise up friends to fight 
 our battles for us. The battle, sir, is 
 not to the strong alone ; it is to the 
 vigilant, the active, the brave. Besides, 
 sir, we have no election. If we were 
 base enough to desire it, it is now too 
 late to retire from the contest. There 
 is no retreat, but in submission and 
 slavery. Our chains are forged. Their 
 clanking may be heard on the plains 
 of I>o.ston. The war is inevitable. And 
 let it come! I repeat it, sir, let it come! 
 It is in vain, sir, to extenuate the mat- 
 ter. Gentlemen may cry peace, peace, 
 but there is no peace. The war is ac- 
 tually begun. The ne.xt gale that 
 sweeps from the north will bring to our 
 ears the clash of resounding arms. 
 Why stand we here idle? What is it 
 
BIOGRAPHY— PATRICK HENRY 
 
 that gentlemen wish? What would 
 they have? Is life so dear, or peace 
 so sweet, as to be purchased at the 
 price of chains and slavery? Forbid it, 
 Almighty God! I know not what 
 course others may take, but as for me, 
 give me liberty, or give me death!" 
 
 When Patrick Henry sat down, every 
 eye yet gazed entranced upon him. It 
 is said that he enacted the bent form 
 of the slave bearing his gyves and man- 
 acles of iron ; that as he closed, he 
 straightened his form, threw oiif his 
 slavery, and gave the impression of 
 having a dagger in his hand, to be 
 aimed at his own heart. All the hear- 
 ers agreed that the tones of his voice 
 were deep with awe and the gaze of 
 his eyes full of splendor — something 
 altogether different from the most 
 highly-excited expressions of other 
 men. The effect was complete. Every- 
 thing was done by vote that he asked 
 for, and he himself was made the chair- 
 man, to see that the legislative action 
 should be carried into effect. 
 
 "The first overt act of war in Vir- 
 ginia," says Thomas Jefferson, "was 
 committed by Patrick Henry." He was 
 the captain of an independent company 
 of militia. Governor Dunmore had re- 
 moved some powder. Patrick Henry 
 marched on Williamsburg and com- 
 [lelled the Receiver General to pay an 
 indemnity of $1,650. The Governor 
 thereupon issued a proclamation against 
 "a certain Patrick Henry and a number 
 of deluded followers" who had "put 
 themselves in a posture of war. This 
 would "call for the vengeance of of- 
 fended majesty," and all subjects were 
 warned "not to abet or give counten- 
 ance to the said Patrick Henry." He 
 was now acclaimed as the logical 
 leader of the patriots, and nearly every 
 company sent him a message of con- 
 gratulation touching the powder epi- 
 sode. In May, 1775, however, he set 
 off for the Second Congress, where he 
 took little interest. In August he re- 
 turned and was made Colonel and 
 Commander of the Virginia troops. 
 His relations with the civil committee 
 of safetj were unpleasant, and he soon 
 resigned, to the great grief of the 
 
 militia, who parted with him as their 
 true and rightful leader. Early in 
 March, 1776, his wife, Sarah, mother 
 of six children, died. He thereafter 
 returned to the Third Virginia Con- 
 vention. His hope of a French alliance 
 was keen from the first, and he urged 
 measures to bring it about, or make it 
 easy. "May we not lose her?" "The 
 French alliance is everything." On 
 July 5, 1776, he became the first elected 
 Governor of Virginia, and took up his 
 residence in the palace that had been 
 vacated by Lord Dunmore. He was re- 
 elected in 1777, and on the 9th of Oc- 
 tober married Dorothea Dandridge, 
 who was considerably his junior— he 
 was now forty-one. During his second 
 term efforts were niade by the secret 
 members of the Conway cabal to wean 
 Governor Henry away from the sup- 
 port of General Washington, who had 
 suffered a number of defeats. The 
 loj'al action of the Governor, in at once 
 sending warning to the General, to- 
 gether with the sentiments of his letters 
 at that time, reflect tlie highest honor 
 upon both his judgment and his affec- 
 tion. 
 
 "I really think your personal welfare 
 and the happiness of America are in- 
 timately connected." "The most ex- 
 alted merit has ever been found to at- 
 tract envy." To these expressions of 
 regard and solicitude General Washing- 
 ton responded warmly, and his admira- 
 tion for Patrick Henry never lessened. 
 
 Governor Henry was re-elected in 
 1778. His third term was disastrously 
 marked at its very close by the British 
 invasion of Virginia. The Governor 
 was an efiicient aid to General Wash- 
 ington, whose letters to Patrick Henry 
 abound with testimonies of high ap- 
 proval and recognition. He declined a 
 re-election as Governor, being annoyed 
 with long-continued charges that he en- 
 tertained an usurper's ambitions. 
 
 He owned a new estate of 10,000 
 acres, called Leatherwood, southwest 
 from Richmond, along the North Car- 
 olina boundary, in the county of Henry, 
 named after himself. To this "wild 
 and mountainous solitude" he at once 
 removed, making it his home for five 
 
36o 
 
 THE HOME AUXILIARY AND REFERENCE 
 
 years. He wrote to Thomas Jefferson, 
 now Governor, in denunciation of 
 Tories. They were "miscreants — wret- 
 ches who, I am satisfied, were laboring 
 our destruction. They should be 
 shunned and execrated, and this is the 
 only way to supply the place of legal 
 conviction and punishment." He was 
 elected to the Assembly in 1780, but 
 was compelled to leave in poor health. 
 He returned for the winter of 1780- 
 81, when the Legislature retreated be- 
 fore Benedict Arnold, the traitor, now 
 making war on Virginia. The mem- 
 bers adjourned to Charlottesville, and 
 thence actually fled over the mountains 
 to Staunton. The traditions of \'ir- 
 ginia are illuminated with a well- 
 wrought series of stories seemingly 
 made at the expense of Patrick Henry, 
 yet all reflecting the admiration that 
 was everywhere felt for him as the first 
 \''irginia patriot. In the head-long 
 flight from Charlottesville, the fugitives 
 broke into small parties, one of these 
 being composed of Benjamin Harrison, 
 Colonel William Christian, John Tyler 
 and Patrick Henry. Weary with 
 travel, late in the day, they halted be- 
 fore a hut in the gorge and asked for 
 food. An aged woman asked them who 
 they were. Patrick Henry answered 
 that they were members of the Legisla- 
 ture, compelled to leave Charlottesville 
 on the approach of the enemy. "Ride 
 on, then, ye cowardly knaves," cried 
 the ancient dame, in wrath ; "here have 
 my husband and sons just gone to 
 Charlottesville to fight for ye, and you 
 running away with all your might. 
 Clear out — ye shall have nothing here." 
 "But," expostulated Patrick Henry, "it 
 would not do for the Legislature to 
 be broken up by the enemy. Here is 
 I\Ir. Speaker PTarrison : you don't think 
 he would have fled had it not been 
 necessary?" "I always thought a great 
 deal of Mr. Harrison till now, but he'd 
 no business to nm from the enemy" 
 (starting to close her door). "Wait 
 a moment, my good woman," urged 
 Mr. Henry ; "you would hardly believe 
 that Mr. Tyler or Mr. Christian would 
 take to flight if there were not good 
 reason for it?" "No, indeed, that I 
 
 wouldn't." "But Mr. Tyler and Colonel 
 Christian are here." "They here?" she 
 said, as if in doubt. "Well, I never 
 would have thought it ! No matter. 
 We love these gentlemen, and I didn't 
 suppose they would ever run away 
 from the British. But since they have, 
 they shall have nothing to eat in my 
 house. You may ride along." Now 
 Mr. Tyler stepped forward: "What 
 would you say, my good woman, if I 
 were to tell you that Patrick Henry 
 fled with the rest of us?" "Patrick 
 Henry ! I should tell you there wasn't 
 a word of truth in it !" she replied 
 with rising anger. "Patrick Henry 
 would never do such a cowardly thing!" 
 "But this is Patrick Henry!" said Mr. 
 Tyler, pointing to him. The old woman 
 started, twitched her apron-string con- 
 vulsively, and surrendered: "Well, 
 then, if it's Patrick Henry, it must be 
 all right. Come in, and ye shall have 
 the best Pve got." 
 
 In 1784 and 1785 the favorite son of 
 \'irginia was called upon to serve two 
 more terms as Governor, retiring on his 
 own demand to recuperate his fortune. 
 He refused to attend the convention at 
 Philadelphia which formulated the Con- 
 stitution of the United States, and his 
 attitude led General Washington to 
 greatly fear that Virginia would reject 
 that document. So deep was the an.xi- 
 ely of the Father of His Country that 
 he sent a copy of the instrument with 
 an entreating letter to his old friend. 
 But General Washington could not sil- 
 ence Patrick Henry's scruples, and it 
 was doubtless his valiant opposition that 
 led to the first ten amendments. He 
 came down to the Virginia convention 
 to make a bitter fight against adoption, 
 and spoke often on eighteen days of the 
 debate. He made one speech seven 
 hours long. He made eight speeches 
 in one day, five in another. Pie used 
 the word "secession," but denied that 
 he approved such an act. He wanted 
 a new convention. The President, 
 Patrick Henry thought, might become 
 King. 
 
 Although he was outvoted, and the 
 Constitution was adopted by Virginia, 
 it was seen that the amendments which 
 
BIOGRAPHY—PATRICK HENRY 
 
 361 
 
 lie desired must be conceded, for his 
 prestige contimied to increase under de- 
 feat. He made imperative the de- 
 mands of Virginia on Congress. Lear, 
 secretary to General Washington, sor- 
 rowfully recounted Patrick Henry's 
 triumphs at this time ( 1789) : "In 
 plain English, he ruled a majority of 
 the Assembly : and his edicts were regis- 
 tered by that body with less opposition 
 than those of the Grand Monarque have 
 met with from his Parliaments. He 
 chose the two Senators. He divided 
 the State into districts" (gerrymander- 
 ing so as to exclude James Madison 
 fiom Congress). "And after he had 
 settled everything relative to the Gov- 
 ernment wholly, I suppose, to his satis- 
 faction, he mounted his horse and rode 
 home, leaving the little business of the 
 State to be done by anybody who chose 
 to give themselves the trouble of at- 
 tending to it." Congress unwillingly 
 responded, and the first ten amendments 
 stand to-day as the necessary conces- 
 sions made to the apprehensive patriot- 
 ism of Patrick Henry. 
 
 Through all the years from 1786 to 
 1794, when he retired with a compet- 
 ence, he was an advocate without peer 
 at the bar of \'irginia. He retired in 
 1795 to an estate called Red Hill, in 
 Charlotte County, and there he spent 
 the last four years of his life, the peo- 
 ple proud of his fame, and boastful that 
 his like had never before lived among 
 the eloquent. It was said that he would 
 stand on an eminence and give com- 
 mands to his servants "in tones as 
 melodious as an Alpine horn," his 
 enunciation being so clear that he might 
 be imderstood in every part of a space 
 that would have held 50,000 people. 
 He, like Shakespeare, sought rather to 
 show his wealth in acres than to receive 
 homage for his eloquence. He was 
 highly abstemious and religious. It dis- 
 concerted and grieved the greatest of 
 the fathers to see this giant of liberty 
 cold to the new nation, yet, as the 
 smaller gentry of critics assembled to 
 annoy George Washington, Patrick 
 Henry increased his tributes of venera- 
 tion for the Father of His Country; 
 therefore efforts did not cease to attach 
 
 tlie old wheelhorse to the new car of 
 Liberty. He was made United States 
 Senator, but declined; Washington 
 fruitlessly tendered him the portfolio 
 of Secretary of State; later the Father 
 offered the great office of Chief Justice 
 of the United States. They elected him 
 Governor for the sixth time. All of 
 these flattering offers Patrick Henry 
 put aside. John Adams ascended to 
 the presidency, and, casting oft' all party 
 ties, nominated Patrick Henry as one 
 of the envoys to France, believing the 
 French nation must generously welcome 
 such a patriot. The health of the states- 
 man was too feeble to permit him to re- 
 enter public life. But he was at last in 
 full harmony with the Federalists, and 
 at the personal request of General 
 Washington, Patrick Henry, in J\larch, 
 1799, went to the hustings and stood as 
 a candidate for the Legislature. This 
 was an act of extraordinary generosity. 
 Vast crowds from all over Virginia 
 came forth when it was heard that the 
 renowned orator would once more lift 
 his voice. He counseled obedience to 
 Federal laws, and told the people they 
 had planted thorns upon his pillow and 
 called him forth from a happy retire- 
 ment, to see if he could not prevent 
 civil discord. "Where," he asked, "is 
 the citizen of America who would dare 
 to lift his hand against the Father of 
 His Country?" A drunken man cried 
 out that he would dare. "No," cried 
 the feeble orator, rising once more to 
 his full majesty, "you dare not do it. 
 In such a parricidal attempt the steel 
 would drop from your nerveless arm !" 
 
 The young John Randolph, of Roa- 
 noke, followed in a speech, as the candi- 
 date of the opposing party. While he 
 was speaking Patrick Henry retired into 
 the tavern. When the young man re- 
 turned to the room where the patriot 
 was resting, the latter took him by the 
 hand, saying with great kindness: 
 "Young man, you call me father. Then, 
 my son, I have something to say unto 
 thee: Keep justice, keep truth — and 
 you will live to think differently." The 
 poll resulted in a great majority for 
 Patrick Henry. 
 
 It may be believed that the patriotic 
 
ib2 
 
 THE HOME AUXILIARY AND REFERENCE 
 
 effort of Patrick Henry, to which he 
 was moved by the entreaties of General 
 Washington, was more than his feeble 
 body would bear, and it is probable that 
 his infirmity had been courageously 
 concealed, even from the Father of His 
 Country. Patrick Henry returned to 
 his bed and never left it, and died on 
 the 6th of June, 1799. 
 
 OLIVER HAZARD PERRY. 
 
 1785-1819. 
 
 Oliver Hazard Perry was born at 
 South Kensington, Rhode Island, on 
 the 23d of August, 1785. He was the 
 son of Christopher Perry, who served 
 in the Revolutionary War, first in the 
 army and then in the navy. 
 
 As a child, Oliver H. Perry quickly 
 made friends with all strangers, show- 
 ing a fearlessness of danger. We shall 
 see that he kept this same fearlessness 
 all through his life. 
 
 He first went to school to a neighbor 
 who taught a few children until they 
 were old enough to go to school to 
 Lower Hill, four miles from the Perry 
 home. 
 
 When about seven years of age the 
 family moved to Newport, and Oliver 
 went to school at this place, where Mr. 
 Frazer, the master, took quite an in- 
 terest in him. For five years he con- 
 tinued his studies, among which was 
 navigation. When twelve years old the 
 Perrys moved to Westerly, a little vil- 
 lage in the southwestern part of Rhode 
 Island. 
 
 For five years Oliver had been a 
 faithful pupil of Mr. Frazer. and he 
 was now far advanced for his years. 
 
 About this time our country having 
 trouble with France and England, Cap- 
 tain Christopher Perry was given com- 
 mand of the new war vessel, the Gen- 
 eral Grant, and Oliver, not quite 
 thirteen years of age, received an ap- 
 pointment of midshipman on his 
 father's vessel. It was here that Oliver 
 was taught his lessons of naval honor. 
 He also applied the lesson in naviga- 
 tion which he had learned from Mr. 
 Frazer. 
 
 During 1799 and 1800 the General 
 
 Grant cruised to and from the West 
 Indies, protecting the American trade. 
 Terms of peace having been arranged 
 with France, it was decided by the 
 Government to dispose of nearly all the 
 naval vessels. As a result, many of 
 the captains and midshipmen were dis- 
 missed. Captain Perry being one of the 
 number. 
 
 Fortunately for the country, young 
 Oliver was retained as midshipman. 
 In 1802, with the squadron commanded 
 by Commodore ]\Iorris, sent to the 
 Barbary States, was the Adams. On 
 this vessel was Oliver Perry as mid- 
 shipman. Soon after the arrival of his 
 ship in the Mediterranean Oliver cele- 
 brated his seventeenth birthday, and he 
 was appointed lieutenant on that day. 
 
 When Commodore Morris was re- 
 called he returned in the Adams, and 
 it so happened that in November, 1803, 
 Oliver Perry arrived again in .\merica. 
 His father was then living in Newport, 
 and Oliver remained at home until 
 July of the next year. In September. 
 1804, he was ordered to return in the 
 Constellation to the Mediterranean. 
 The troubles in the Barbary States 
 being settled, in October, 1806, Oliver 
 Perry returned to America. 
 
 During these times the continued 
 depredations of the English upon 
 American commerce caused President 
 Jefferson, who was a man of peace, to 
 call a special session of Congress to 
 see if the trouble could not be settled 
 without war. As a result of this ses- 
 sion, a law was passed known as the 
 Embargo Act. In order to enforce this 
 law. Congress ordered a number of 
 gunboats to be built. These were to 
 sail up and down the coast and prevent 
 any vessel from entering or leaving the 
 ports. 
 
 Lieutenant Perry was ordered to 
 superintend the building of a fleet of 
 these gunboats at Newport. After they 
 were built he was put in command of 
 them, and ordered to patrol Long 
 Island Sound. 
 
 At this time the Government wanted 
 a map of the harbors in the neighbor- 
 hood of Newport. On account of his 
 standing as a seaman, and of his edu- 
 
BIOGRAPHY- OLIVER HAZARD PERRY 
 
 363 
 
 cation, Lieutenant Perry was selected 
 to visit the harbors and make such a 
 map. 
 
 On May 5, 181 r, he was married to 
 Elizabeth Champlin Mason. He took a 
 wedding journey through New Eng- 
 land, visiting the place where his 
 Quaker ancestors had lived so many 
 years before. 
 
 On June 18, 1812, the formal declara- 
 tion of war was declared against Eng- 
 land. 
 
 Lieutenant Perry, being in command 
 of the flotilla of gunboats on the New- 
 port station, offered his services for 
 the lakes, and early in February, 1813, 
 a letter to him from Commodore 
 Chauncey said : "You are the very 
 person I want for a particular service, 
 in which you may gain reputation for 
 yourself and honor for your country." 
 That service was the command of a 
 naval force on Lake Erie, and on the 
 17th of February Perry received orders 
 from the Secretary of the Xavy to re- 
 port to Chauncey ' with all possible 
 dispatch, and to take with him to Sack- 
 ett's Harbor all of the best men of 
 the flotilla at Newport. He sent them 
 forward at once in companies of fifty 
 under sailing masters Almy, Champlin 
 and Taylor, and followed them in a 
 sleigh. He met Chauncey at Albany, 
 and they journed together in a sleigh 
 through the dark wilderness to Sackett's 
 Harbor. ■ A fortnight afterward 
 (March, 1813) Perry went to Presque 
 Isle (now Erie, Pa.) to hasten the 
 construction and equipment of a little 
 navy there, to co-operate with General 
 Harrison for the recovery of Michigan. 
 
 Four vessels were speedily built at 
 Erie and five others were taken to that 
 slieltered harbor from Black Rock, be- 
 low Buffalo, where Henry Eckford had 
 fashioned merchant vessels into war- 
 riors. The little fleet of nine vessels 
 were all ready at Erie early in July, 
 and the flagship was named the Law- 
 rence, in compliment to the gallant 
 commander of the Chesapeake, who 
 had just given his life to his country. 
 But men and supplies were wanting, 
 and Perry had to wait weeks, in great 
 impatience, before he could get out on 
 
 the lake to meet a British squadron 
 that was cruising there under Commo- 
 dore Barclay. That squadron seriously 
 menaced the fleet at Presque Isle, while 
 Perry chafed under compulsory idle- 
 ness. Late in July he wrote to 
 Chauncey: "For (jod's sake and yours 
 and mine, send me men and officers 
 and I will have them all (the British 
 vessels) in a day or two . . . Our 
 sails are bent, provisions on board, and, 
 in fact, everything is ready. Barclay 
 has been bearding me for several days ; 
 I long to be at him. . . . Think of 
 my situation — the enemy in sight, the 
 \essels under my command more than 
 sufficient and ready to make sail, and 
 yet obliged to bite my fingers with 
 vexation for want of men." 
 
 Meanwhile the tardy government and 
 stay-at-home citizens were calling 
 loudly upon Perry and Harrison to 
 "do something," and the former, fretted 
 by these implied complaints, having 
 been reinforced by about one hundred 
 men under Captain Elliot, went out 
 upon the lake with his little fleet early 
 in August, before he was fairly pre- 
 pared for vigorous combat. He de- 
 termined to report to Harrison that he 
 was ready for co-operation with him, 
 and on the 17th day of August, when 
 off Sandusky Bay, he fired signal guns, 
 according to agreement. Late on the 
 evening of the 19th Harrison and his 
 suite arrived in boats and went on 
 board the Lawrence, where arrange- 
 ments were made for the fall cam- 
 paign in that quarter. Harrison had 
 then about eight thousand militia, 
 regulars and Indians, at Camp Seneca, 
 a little more than twenty miles from 
 the lake. While he was waiting for 
 Harrison to prepare his army for 
 transportation to Maiden, Perry cruised 
 about the lake. Then he lay quietly 
 at anchor in Put-in-Bay for a few 
 days. On a bright and beautiful morn- 
 ing, the loth of September, the sentinel 
 watching in the maintop of tlie Law- 
 rence cried, "Sail ho !" It announced 
 the appearance of the British fleet, 
 clearly seen in the northwestern hori- 
 zon. The sentinel's cry was followed 
 by signals from the Lawrence to the 
 
364 
 
 THE HOME AUXILIARY AND REFERENCE 
 
 rest of the fleet: "Enemy in sight. 
 Get under way," and the shout of the 
 boatswains, "All hands up anchor, 
 ahoy!" Perry's nine vessels were the 
 brigs Lawrence, 20; Niagara, 20; Cale- 
 donia, 3. Schooners Ariel, 4 ; Scorpion, 
 I ; and sloop Trippe, i ; in all fifty-four 
 carriage guns and two swivels. Bar- 
 clay's fleet consisted of the flagship 
 Detroit, the Queen Charlotte, Lady 
 Prevost, Hunter; Little Belt and Chip- 
 pewa, carrying six carriage guns, two 
 swivels and four howitzers. At the 
 masthead of the Lawrence Perry dis- 
 played a blue banner with the reported 
 last words of Captain Lawrence, "Don't 
 give up the ship!" displayed upon it 
 in large white letters. 
 
 The two squadrons slowly ap- 
 proached each other, and at noon the 
 battle began at long range — the Scor- 
 pion, commanded by young Champlin, 
 then less than twenty-four years of 
 age, firing the fir.st shot on the Amer- 
 ican side. Nearer and nearer the 
 vessels approached each other ; hotter 
 and hotter waxed the fight. For two 
 hours the Lawrence bore the brunt of 
 battle, with twice her force, until, like 
 the Guerrieve, she lay upon the waters 
 an almost total wreck. Her rigging was 
 all shot away; her sails were cut into 
 shreds; her spars were battered into 
 splinters, and her guns were dis- 
 mounted. One mast remained, and 
 from it the Stars and Stripes were 
 streaming. A less hopeful man than 
 Perry would have pulled them down 
 and surrendered, for his deck was a 
 scene of dreadful carnage. Meanwhile 
 most of the other vessels had been 
 fighting gallantly excepting the staunch 
 Niagara, Captain Elliot, which kept out- 
 side and was unhurt. As this lagging 
 brig drew near, Perry determined to fly 
 to her and renewing the fight gain a 
 victory. In token of his faith he put 
 on the uniform of his rank, as if con- 
 scious he should receive Barclay as a 
 prisoner. Then taking down his broad 
 pennant and the banner with the stir- 
 ring words, he entered his boat with his 
 little brother, fourteen years of age, 
 and four stout seaman for the oars, and 
 .started on his perilous voyage, anx- 
 
 iously watched by Lieutenant Yarnell 
 and a few others, who had been left in 
 charge of the battered Lawrence. 
 Perry stood upright in his boat with 
 the pennant and banner partly wrapped 
 around him, a conspicuous mark for 
 the guns of the enemy. Barclay, who 
 was badly wounded, knew that if Perry, 
 who had fought the Laivrence so 
 gallantly, should tread the decks of the 
 staunch Niagara as commander, the 
 British would be in danger of defeat ; 
 so he ordered big and little guns to 
 be brought to bear upon the boat that 
 bore the young hero. The voyage lasted 
 fifteen minutes. The oars were splint- 
 ered, bullets traversed the little vessel 
 and round, and grape shot falling near 
 covered his oarsm.en with spray. But 
 he reached the Niagara in safety. 
 Hoisting his pennant over that vessel, 
 he dashed through the British line, and 
 eight minutes afterward the colors of 
 the enemy's flagship were struck, and 
 all but two of the fleet surrendered. 
 These attempted to escape. They were 
 pursued and brought back by the brave 
 young Champlin in the Scorpion late in 
 the evening. He had fired the first gun. 
 at the opening of the battle, and now 
 he had fired the last one in securing 
 the conquered vessels. The victory was 
 complete. Assured of triumph. Perry 
 sat down and, resting his naval cap on 
 his knee, wrote with a lead pencil on 
 the back of a letter, this famous dis- 
 patch to General Harrison : "We have 
 met the enemy and they are ours ; two 
 ships, two brigs, one schooner and one 
 sloop. 
 
 "Yours, with great respect, 
 
 O. H. Perry." 
 
 The news of this victory carried joy 
 to the hearts of the Americans. The 
 lakes had echoed the triumphs of the 
 ocean. The name of Perry was made 
 immortaJ. His government, in the 
 name of the people, thanked him and 
 gave him and Elliot each a gold medal. 
 States and cities honored him. The 
 Legislature of Pennsylvania voted him 
 thanks and a gold medal, and they 
 gave the thanks of the Commonwealth 
 and a silver medal to each man who 
 
BIOGRAPHY— THOMAS JEFFERSON 
 
 365 
 
 was engaged in the battle. The loss 
 of the Americans in the conflict on 
 Lake Erie, considering the small num- 
 ber engaged, was very severe — twenty- 
 seven killed and ninety-six wounded. 
 The British lost about two hundred 
 in killed and wounded, and six hundred 
 made prisoners. Perry's humane con- 
 duct toward the captives was such that 
 Barclay declared it was sufficient to 
 immortalize him. 
 
 On November 29, 1813, he received 
 his promotion to the rank of Captain. 
 .\t that time this was the highest rank 
 in the American navy. 
 
 In August, 1814, he was ordered to 
 command a new frigate named the 
 Java. He hastened to Baltimore, where 
 this vessel was to be launched. Con- 
 gress passed a bill to fit out two squad- 
 rons of fast sailing vessels. These 
 were to cruise near the English coasts 
 and destroy the commerce between the 
 different ports. 
 
 Captain Perry was ordered to leave 
 the Java and command one of these 
 squadrons. But before he could sail 
 for England peace was declared. A 
 treaty with that country was signed 
 December 24, 1814. 
 
 The history of Captain Perry from 
 now on was uneventful ; he served 
 with distinction in the Mediterranean 
 against the Barbary powers, returning 
 to his home in Newport in March, 1817, 
 to live a quiet life with his family. 
 
 On March 31, 1819, he was sum- 
 moned to Washington and was given 
 command of an expedition to Venezuela 
 to present claims to the President of 
 that country to recover losses to Amer- 
 ican shipping from seizures of Amer- 
 ican vessels by Venezuelian privateers. 
 He reached the mouth of the Orinoco 
 River July 15, 1819. Here he was 
 obliged to take the small schooner in 
 order to go up the river to reach the 
 town of Angostura, which was then 
 the Venezuelan capital. 
 
 The weather was intensely hot, and 
 many of the crew were taken ill with 
 yellow fever, but Perry would not 
 leave until his mission was accom- 
 plished. After three weeks of delay 
 
 he succeeded in getting the promises 
 for which he had come. 
 
 On the return to his flagship he was 
 taken with a chill and showed symp- 
 toms of yellow fever. Within a mile 
 of the John Adams Captain Perry died 
 on his thirty-fourth birthday, August 
 23, 1819. 
 
 He vi'as buried on the island of 
 Trinidad with military honors, and the 
 John Adons brought back the sad news 
 to the United States. His deatli was 
 regarded as a national calamity. The 
 Government sent a war vessel to bring 
 his body home. He was finally laid 
 to rest at Newport, where a granite 
 monument marks his grave. 
 
 THOMAS JEFFERSON. 
 1 743- 1 826. 
 
 The Ideal Democr.at. 
 
 Thomas Jefferson was born April 13, 
 1743, on the estate where he lived and 
 died. It was in the end called Monti- 
 cello, and lies on the waters of the 
 Roanoke. His father, Peter, was an 
 original settler. His mother, who was 
 Jane Randolph, traced her "pedigree 
 far back in England and Scotland, to 
 which," says the great Democrat, "let 
 everyone ascribe t4ie faith and merit 
 he chooses." The son went to English 
 school at five, and to Greek, Latin 
 and French at nine. His father died 
 when he was fourteen, bequeathing to 
 Thomas Jefferson the Roanoke River 
 estate. After this event the son went 
 to study with the Rev. Mr. Maury. 
 After two years of preparation with 
 Mr. Maury the pupil entered William 
 and Mary College, where he studied 
 for two years. Here is a day's pro- 
 gramme of study, drawn up and recom- 
 mended by him : Before 8 a. m., 
 physical studies; 8 to 12, law; 12 to i, 
 politics; afternoon, history; "dark to 
 bedtime," literature, oratory, etc. 
 
 His father's death left him in the 
 position of an independent country 
 gentleman, with an income of $2,000 
 a year. At the time of his admission 
 to the bar he was described by his con- 
 
366 
 
 THE HOME AUXILIARY AND REFERENCE 
 
 temporaries as 6 feet 2 inches in height, 
 shm without attenuation, erect as an 
 arrow, with angular features, a very 
 ruddy complexion, an extremely deli- 
 cate skin, full, deep-set hazel eyes and 
 sandy hair, an expert violinist, a good 
 dancer, a dashing rider, and proficient 
 in all manly exercises. He was, and 
 continued through life, frank, cordial, 
 and sympathetic in his manner, full of 
 confidence in men, and sanguine in his 
 views of life. 
 
 On the 1st of January, 1772, he was 
 married to Martha Skelton, widow of 
 Bathurst Skelton, then twenty-three 
 years old. She very soon brought to 
 her husband a patrimony equal to his 
 own, which consequently doubled the 
 ease of their circumstances. 
 
 At Williamsburg, Patrick Henry was 
 the acknowledged leader of the young 
 men, and when Boston port was sealed 
 ( 1774) the young \'irginians thought 
 a day of fasting and prayer would 
 arouse and alarm the more lethargic of 
 their fellows to a sense of the British 
 despotism. A (revolutionary) Conven- 
 tion of Virginia was called for August 
 I, 1774. Jefferson prepared a draft of 
 instructions which he hoped should be 
 given to the delegates whom this con- 
 vention would send to the Continental 
 Congress, but, falling ill, sent a copy 
 to Patrick Henry, which he pocketed ; 
 another copy went to Peyton Randolph, 
 who showed it to the members ; they 
 printed it in pamphlet form under the 
 title of "A Summary \"iew of the 
 Rights of British America." It was 
 sent to England, and there became the 
 text-book of the Opposition to the 
 Government. The name of Jefferson 
 was placed on the secret rolls of pro- 
 scription, for the document was prac- 
 tically another statement of the wrongs 
 catalogued two years later in the Decla- 
 ration of Independence. 
 
 In June, 1775, the Burgesses sent 
 Jefferson to Congress to take the place 
 vacated by Peyton Randolph. Jeft'er- 
 son returned to Virginia; came again 
 in the autumn and went. In the Vir- 
 ginian Convention, where Patrick 
 Henry pushed the cause of independ- 
 ence rapidly forward, Jefferson was in 
 
 highest repute, and when next, in May, 
 1776, he traveled to Philadelphia, he 
 carried instructions that the \^irginia 
 delegates should move that Congress 
 declare "the United Colonies free and 
 independent States." In the meantime 
 two highly important committees were 
 formed — one to prepare a Declaration, 
 the other to draw up articles of Con- 
 federation. The work of the second 
 committee was done over again in 1789. 
 The perfect labors of the first commit- 
 tee have been the theme of Freedom's 
 poets from that time on. 
 
 The literary history of the Declara- 
 tion of Independence is meager. The 
 accounts of both Jefferson and John 
 Adams are brief ; Dr. Franklin said 
 nothing about it. The other two com- 
 mitteemen, Sherman and Livingston, 
 did not touch it. Nevertheless, al- 
 though Thomas Jefferson was twice 
 President of the United States, father 
 of Democracy in America, and withal 
 a moral teacher of politics without 
 equal in the warld, he stands before the 
 people, from the time they enter school 
 to old age, as the author of the Declara- 
 tion of Independence. There can be no 
 error, on this account, in reciting all 
 that is known touching the composition 
 of the original document. 
 
 On June 1 1 Congress balloted for a 
 committee of five, and Jefferson led the 
 poll, with Adams and Franklin next 
 in order. Jefferson and Adams each 
 politely asked the other to write the 
 manifesto, but it was tacitly understood 
 that the honor rightly belonged to Vir- 
 ginia, and to the author of the "Sum- 
 mary Statement," whose terms were 
 now satisfactory to a majority of the 
 colonies. The phrases employed by Jef- 
 ferson were purposely chosen from 
 the accepted sayings of the time, and 
 nothing could have given better evi- 
 dence of the statesman's genius. In his 
 autobiography, beyond submitting the 
 facsimile of the original draft, Jeffer- 
 son vouchsafes no history of his labor. 
 He says: "The committee desired me 
 to do it. It was accordingly done, and 
 being approved by them, I reported it 
 to the House on Friday, the 28th of 
 Tune, when it was read and ordered 
 
BIOGRAPHY— THOMAS JEFFERSON 
 
 367 
 
 to lie on the tabic." 1 te says elsewhere 
 that he submitted the draft separately 
 to Dr. Franklin and John Adams, each 
 of whom suggested a few alterations, 
 which were interlined in their own 
 hands. The committee adopted this 
 draft, whereafter Jeflcrson drew off a 
 fair copy for Congress. 
 
 The original instrument is written in 
 a very fine hand on four foolscap sheets 
 of writing-paper. The Declaration was 
 reported by committee, agreed to by the 
 House, and signed by every member 
 present except Mr. Dickinson. Be it 
 said to the honor of the constituents of 
 this man, that he misrepresented them, 
 and was not allowed to return to Con- 
 gress. 
 
 The Declaration of Independence, as 
 it stands, is practically the handiwork 
 of Thomas Jefferson. 
 
 Satisfied with the honor that had 
 come to him in Congress, and feeling 
 that the new laws of Virginia needed 
 his formative care, Mr. Jefferson re- 
 signed his seat at Philadelphia and took 
 a laboring oar at Williamsburg in Oc- 
 tober. 1776. 
 
 In January, 1779, Patrick Henry had 
 reached the limit of his constitutional 
 eligibility as Governor, and Mr. Jef- 
 ferson was compelled to take his place, 
 with the legacy of an invasion by the 
 British. Governor Jefferson went out 
 of office with \'irginia under the heel 
 of the marauding British, and was in 
 bitter humor. His wife also was 
 seriously ill. He would not return to 
 the Legislature, and caused his admir- 
 ers, Madison and Monroe, serious mis- 
 givings. The death of his wife was 
 a blow from which he was slow to re- 
 cover, and few husbands have exhibited 
 a sense of desolation so poignant. 
 While immersed in this grief he was 
 thrice appointed to go to Europe as 
 commissioner, but declined. In June, 
 ^7^3' however, he felt it necessary to 
 re-enter public life, and carried, as dele- 
 gate from Virginia, the deed of that 
 colony, presenting all her western lands 
 to the ITnited States. He signed the 
 treaty ot independence. 
 
 In May, 1784, he was a fourth time 
 appointed to a foreign mission, and 
 
 this time he accepted, and sailed with 
 his daughter Martha, whom he placed 
 in a convent school in France. 
 
 The Constitution had been made be- 
 hind closed doors at Philadelphia, and 
 Jefferson first saw a complete copy of 
 it at Paris. He who had been so alert 
 in formulating the laws of his own 
 State seems to have regarded the Con- 
 stitution of the nation as a matter of 
 lesser moment, or at least one tiiat 
 could be safely intrusted to the care 
 of his friends — Madison and Monroe. 
 He praised the instrument as a whole, 
 but found articles which he thought ob- 
 jectionable. "The absence of express 
 declarations insuring freedom of re- 
 ligion, freedom of the press, freedom of 
 the person under the uninterrupted pro- 
 tection of habeas corpus, and trial by 
 jury in civil as well as criminal cases, 
 excited my jealousy, and the re-eligibil- 
 ity of the President for life I quite 
 disapprove." He also looked upon the 
 all-powerful judicial arm of the new 
 Government with undisguised fear that 
 therein lay the germ of future dissolu- 
 tion, although he did not offer prac- 
 tical suggestions looking to a betterment 
 of the plan. In the end, feeling that 
 amendment would perfect the work so 
 well begun, he became an indorser of 
 the new Constitution, and thereby won 
 a warm place in the esteem of General 
 Washington, who regarded the question 
 of adoption as quite personal to himself 
 and essential to his country. 
 
 It became necessary for Thomas Jef- 
 ferson to accompany John Adams to 
 the English King's levees at London, 
 and there the great Democrat was stung 
 with the insulting deportment of the 
 monarch and his consort. 
 
 Thomas Jefferson came home, on 
 leave of absence, late in 1789, an ardent 
 well-wisher of the French patriots, a 
 friend of France, to whom, as suc- 
 cessor and follower of his revered Dr. 
 Franklin, he considered that his own 
 nation owed almost its life. General 
 Washington had been elected President, 
 and practically commanded Jefferson to 
 lay aside his foreign mission and ac- 
 cept the highest place in the Cabinet — 
 the Secretaryship of State. 
 
368 
 
 THE HOME AUXILL\RV AND REFERENCE 
 
 The Democratic party had grown to 
 such an extent when General Washing- 
 ton refused a third term of the presi- 
 dency, that the proponents of John 
 Adams, in securing to him the first 
 place, lost the second to Jefferson. 
 
 In the autumn of 1800 Jefferson 
 and Burr won seventy-three electors 
 each, and the choice fell to the House 
 of Representatives to see which candi- 
 date should be President. After a 
 violent strain on the then clumsy Con- 
 stitution, Jefferson was named, Hamil- 
 ton making it possible (greatly to his 
 credit). The balloting lasted seven 
 days. John Adams, outraged in every 
 fiber of his being, appointed Federalists 
 till midnight of Jilarch 3, 1801, and 
 then took horse to escape from an at- 
 mosphere which for so many coming 
 years was to be Democratic. Wash- 
 ington was dead. There was no other 
 person for whose personal feelings 
 Thomas Jefferson was willing to waive 
 certain forms of Democracy which he 
 desired to see established. 
 
 Dressed in plain clothes, he rode to 
 the capital on horseback, without guard 
 or servant, dismounted and hitched his 
 horse to the fence. 
 
 At the end of four years he regret- 
 fully announced his candidacy for a 
 second term. He was re-elected by the 
 astonishing vote of 162 to 14 electors. 
 He longed for private life, and though 
 five States requested him to serve a 
 third term, he firmly rejected the pro- 
 jiosal, offering instead the example of 
 himself and General Washington as 
 likely to supply a defect of the Consti- 
 tution and preserve the nation from the 
 ambition of a would-be usurper. 
 
 There followed in the life of this 
 sage seventeen years of old age at Mon- 
 ticello, during which time his beloved 
 pupils were Presidents of the United 
 States, and the Government was car- 
 ried on, as he would have it, in the 
 best interests of the masses. That 
 trust which the great plain people had 
 so confidingly reposed in the Father of 
 His Country while he lived, was placed, 
 with even a still warmer and keener 
 affection, in Thomas Jefferson, and he 
 
 remained till' death the chief man in 
 the Republic. 
 
 His health broke rapidly in the win- 
 ter of 1826, his eighty-third year. In 
 the middle of ^larch he made his will 
 and prepared the original draft of the 
 Declaration of Independence for pos- 
 terity. Later he read the Bible and 
 the Greek tragedies. He expressed a 
 desire, as he grew very feeble with old 
 age, to survive till the Fourth of July, 
 and the friends around his dying bed 
 awaited the dawn of that celebrated 
 day with affectionate anxiety, seeming 
 to burden themselves only with this 
 sacred hope of the grandsire. His wish 
 was gratified, but he had sunk very 
 low, and expired at i o'clock in the 
 afternoon, preceding John Adams but 
 a few hours in his exit. 
 
 JAMES MADISON. 
 
 1751-1836. 
 
 Father of the Constitution. 
 
 James Madison was born March 16, 
 1 75 1, at Port Conway, King George 
 County, \'irginia, while his mother was 
 visiting her parents. His father was a 
 planter, and dwelt on the estate called 
 Montpellier, which afterward became 
 the home also of the son, who was the 
 first-born of seven children. James 
 went to a school under the mastership 
 of Donald Robertson, a learned Scotch- 
 man. The clergyman of the parish, the 
 Rev. Thomas Martin, of Xew Jersey, 
 was a member of the Madison family, 
 and as tutor prepared James for Prince- 
 ton College, to which he was doubtless 
 recommended by the clerical gentleman. 
 James entered Princeton at eighteen, 
 and, by unusual and unhealthy applica- 
 tion, compressed the studies of two 
 years into one, taking an extra year in 
 Hebrew. In 1771 he was given the 
 degree of Bachelor of Arts, and re- 
 turned to the Rappahannock River 
 broken in health and crippled in ambi- 
 tion. Theological studies had taken 
 possession of his intellect, and, many 
 years after Patrick Henry had forced 
 
BIOGRAPHY— JAMES MADISON 
 
 369 
 
 the Virginia Resolves on the House of 
 Burgesses, James Madison was more 
 interested in rehgious controversies 
 than in taxation without representa- 
 tion. 
 
 He regarded his election as a dele- 
 gate to the \irginia Convention of 
 1776 as his first entrance into public 
 life. Here Jefferson had become the 
 dominating force. Beside ordering the 
 V irginia delegates in Congress to vote 
 for a Declaration of Independence, the 
 home convention made a Bill of Rights 
 and a Constitution. Into the Bill of 
 Rights Madison entered religious free- 
 dom as a "right" and not a "privilege 
 tolerated." He was elected to the first 
 Assembly, but because he did not stand 
 for office in the customary fashion, by 
 "treating" and public solicitation at the 
 market price, he was defeated for the 
 second Assembly. But already his fame 
 as a learned man — for he could study 
 twenty out of twenty- fotir hours, even 
 exceeding Jefferson's assiduousness — 
 had recommended him to the Revolu- 
 tionists, and they appointed him one of 
 the State Senate, where for two years 
 he took a prominent part, and was then 
 sent as a delegate to the Congress of the 
 Confederation at Philadelphia, where 
 he arrived in 1780. 
 
 A study of the inherent weakness of 
 Congress, together with the lessons en- 
 forced by great personal inconvenience, 
 caused ]\Iadison to look further — that 
 is, toward some system of Federation 
 that would cause the States, acting as a 
 whole, to be able to confer on their 
 representatives a respectable authority. 
 He prepared an Address to the States, 
 which was considered unusually able 
 and valuable, asking that Congress be 
 given the power to levy an import duty 
 for the period of twenty-five years. 
 His numerous references in debate and 
 by writing, to the schemes of govern- 
 ment and administration that had found 
 favor in other ages and administrations, 
 drew attention to his learning in that 
 direction, and he soon became recog- 
 nized as an expert in organic law. 
 
 As little could be accomplished by 
 one man at Philadelphia, Madison, like 
 Jefferson, determined to at least estab- 
 
 lish a working democracy in Virginia, 
 and transferred the scene of his labors 
 to the Legislature of that State. 
 
 As a Virginian Madison now set out 
 to give the other colonies examples of 
 submission to the Union. It was here 
 that such proffers must originate, for 
 the Northern States considered that 
 they had more valuable rights to cede, 
 as they were trading communities. The 
 effort to regulate commerce in Vir- 
 ginia, so that it could be taxed with- 
 out a wasteful number of custom 
 houses, led to a conference between 
 the Chesapeake States. It was soon a 
 matter of discernment for a constitu- 
 tional scholar like Madison to note that 
 a meeting of the thirteen States might 
 be expected to produce a practical com- 
 pact. A call was made upon the States 
 to accredit new delegates to a conven- 
 tion which should meet at Philadelphia 
 in May, 1787, "to devise such further 
 provisions as shall appear to them 
 necessary to render the Constitution 
 of the Federal Government adequate to 
 the exigencies of the Union." Vir- 
 ginia was the first to conform to this 
 request, and General Washington and 
 James Madison were among the dele- 
 gates. Twelve States, all but Rhode 
 Island, sent delegates. 
 
 Had the matter waited but a little 
 longer, the two confederacies of 1861 
 would have been precipitated in 1787 
 or thereabouts, for the Northern and 
 Southern interests were then as well 
 marked as at any time during the ex- 
 istence of slavery. It was this institu- 
 tion that gave to the Union such a 
 complex machinery of government, and 
 it was Madison's mechanical ability that 
 was able to set that machinery in opera- 
 tion. 
 
 Madison's original plan for a Union 
 was somewhat as follows : A House 
 of Congress wherein the population 
 was represented, rather than the States, 
 with necessary modifications, so that 
 the body should not be unwieldly and 
 yet each State should have at least one 
 representative; all general laws to be 
 passed by Congress ; a comparatively 
 permanent Senate with power to veto 
 all State laws ; the nation to have all 
 
370 
 
 THE HOME AUXH^IARY AND REFERENCE 
 
 the judiciary and troops ; a national 
 executive power (not named in detail) ; 
 a ratification of the plan by the people 
 at the polls. Madison deplored the 
 mention of force as a compelling cause. 
 The convention sat with closed doors 
 till September 17, 1787, and evolved, 
 on the whole, a more democratic in- 
 strument than Madison's. More self- 
 government was left to the States, both 
 in their laws and their judges. The 
 debates, apart from "the peculiar in- 
 stitution," evolved a new fabric, where- 
 in the aristocratic features of the 
 English Government were omitted, and 
 the rights of local government carried 
 down as far as the town meeting, 
 which was an adjustment to the New 
 England form. ^ladison was at first 
 disappointed — no better pleased than 
 Hamilton. A little later he learned 
 than Patrick Henry and Samuel Adams 
 were almost up in arms against the 
 compact, and that General Washington 
 looked to him to support the Federalist 
 contest in Virginia. He prepared the 
 first ten amendments to the Constitu- 
 tion, making that instrument tolerable 
 to Patrick Henry. He offered twelve, 
 but two failed of adoption by the 
 States. 
 
 For ten years after the making of 
 the Constitution the history of Madison 
 is essentially like that of Jefferson — 
 active hostility to everything advocated 
 or done by Hamilton as Secretary of 
 the Treasury. 
 
 Madison left the House when Gen- 
 eral Washington laid down the presi- 
 dency. He was the acknowledged 
 leader of a rapidly growing party of 
 opposition. About this time he mar- 
 ried a widow, Dorothea Payne Todd 
 (the daughter of a Quaker), who was 
 only twenty-six. She became the 
 "Dolly Madison" celebrated in the an- 
 nals of the White House as one of the 
 most famous of its mistresses. She 
 survived her husband thirteen years, 
 and her bust, after she had arrived at 
 jnore mature years, is familiar in the 
 engravings of to-day. Mr. Madison 
 built a new house at Montpellier, and 
 Jefferson and Monroe personally aided 
 him in getting things set to rights. 
 
 When Jefferson became President he 
 at once called Madison to be Secretary 
 of State, and here the lieutenant passed 
 eight cheerful and easy years, safe 
 under the shadow of a master, with 
 an increasing popularity registering on 
 all political doctrines for which he 
 stood. 
 
 In 1809 he became fourth President 
 of the United States by a large major- 
 ity. Madison, as President, induced 
 Erskine. English Minister, to agree to 
 a fair treaty that was at once repudi- 
 ated at London. The anti-English 
 party that had followed Jefferson 
 docilely began to push its own course 
 upon Sladison, and, as the price of re- 
 election, he was forced to declare war 
 on Great Britain, a course amply justi- 
 fied by all considerations save the one 
 of prudence, which alone withheld 
 Jefferson. 
 
 The War of 1812 developed the fact 
 that Madison was a poor wai" President. 
 
 He retired to MontpelH^r in 1817, 
 and the succession was given to James 
 Monroe, according to the plans of 
 Thomas Jefferson, entered on years be- 
 fore. Josiah Quincy called Madison 
 and Monroe James I and James H. 
 
 For nearly twenty years Mr. Madi- 
 son lived in high honor at Montpellier, 
 a planter who lost interest in neither 
 history nor government. He was justly 
 considered as the only great authority 
 on the Constitution, and succeeding 
 statesmen strove, with his interpreta- 
 tion of its meaning, to keep within 
 the scope of its provisions. 
 
 The whole nation mourned in his last 
 days, and he died full of honors June 
 28, 1836, and was buried at Montpellier. 
 "Mr. Madison," said the faithful slave 
 who attended him, "was, I think, one 
 of the best men who ever lived." 
 
 ALEXANDER HAMILTON. 
 
 1 757- 1 804. 
 
 Founder of the Treasury Dep.art- 
 
 MENT. 
 
 Alexander Hamilton was born ob- 
 scurely on the very small English 
 
BIOGRAPHY— ALEXANDER HAMILTON 
 
 3/1 
 
 island of Nevis, near St. Christopher's, 
 in the West Indies, January ii, 1757. 
 Hamihon, a lad of fifteen, remark- 
 able for his precocity, arrived at Boston 
 in October, 1772, and went thence to 
 Xew York, where he was put in a 
 suburban grammar school, friends hav- 
 ing interested themselves in his educa- 
 tion. He then entered King's College. 
 His dark skin proclaimed a tropical 
 birth, and he was called "the young 
 West Indian." In 1774 he visited Bos- 
 ton, where he gathered his first ideas 
 of "sedition" — for New York was a 
 Tory town. The opponents of the 
 English policy in New York were of 
 the poorer classes, and Hamilton first 
 attended their meeting in the fields July 
 6, 1774, where he made bold to ascend 
 their rostrum and inform the multitude 
 as to what was taking place at Faneuil 
 Hall and in the Old South Church of 
 Boston. In the autumn of that year 
 the lad published several patriotic pam- 
 phlets and became a voluminous con- 
 tributor to the press, with the idea of 
 forcing New York into the Continental 
 Congress. \\'hen the war began at 
 Boston, the student, like Monroe at 
 the Williamsburg College, joined a 
 military company of patriots, and was 
 the hero of a number of exploits that 
 reflected credit on his courage, dignity 
 and humanity. In 1776 the New York 
 Convention gave him permission to 
 raise a military company of his own, 
 and the captain drilled his men so well 
 that he rose to the favorable notice of 
 General Greene, who, in turn, intro- 
 duced him to General Washington. So 
 bravely did Captain Hamilton deport 
 himself during the continuous retreats 
 of the patriot army, and so marked was 
 his facility as a writer, that General 
 Washington appointed him one of his 
 aides, with the rank of Lieutenant- 
 Colonel March i, 1777, when he was 
 barely twenty years old. He now took 
 charge of Washington's correspond- 
 ence, and for years filled the arduous, 
 and. as he believed, not sufficiently 
 glorious post of military secretary. 
 After the great success of General 
 Gates at Saratoga Colonel Hamilton 
 was sent north to persuade or command 
 
 General Gates to detach some of his 
 troops for the succor of the main army, 
 and succeeded. He was on other occa- 
 sions a trusted messenger and envoy of 
 ^^'ashington. \Mien Major xAndre fell 
 into the toils that sometimes close 
 around a spy. Colonel Hamilton ex- 
 erted himself to save the unfortunate 
 man. 
 
 On February 16, 1781, General 
 Washington sent for Colonel Hamilton 
 to come to him, and, believing that his 
 aide had not hastened, rebuked him for 
 a lack of respect to his commander. 
 "I am not conscious of it, sir ; but since 
 you have thought it, we part." General 
 Washington strove to quiet the young 
 man's resentment, and ever looked upon 
 him with most favoring eye. It is said 
 that all the army officers who were 
 friendly to Washington, particularly 
 the French, were unequivocally fond 
 of Hamilton. Doubtless the young 
 Colonel desired a command rather than 
 a clerkship, and his withdrawal secured 
 it, for in the seventh year of the war 
 he was in the army again as a General, 
 and at Yorktown was given charge of 
 the assault on one of the redoubts. 
 He went forward impetuously at the 
 head of his men, and had possession in 
 less than ten minutes of gallant fight- 
 ing. The French were not so expedi- 
 tious, and the honors of the day went 
 to Hamilton, thus contributing greatly 
 to his standing in Revolutionary 
 councils. 
 
 After his retirement from the army 
 he was the author of several striking 
 treatises looking to a correction of the 
 evils from which he had seen the patriot 
 army suffer so cruelly. "We must 
 have a government of more power," 
 he wrote. "We must have a tax in 
 kind. We must have a foreign loan. 
 We must have a bank on the true prin- 
 ciples of a bank. We must have an 
 administration distinct from Congress, 
 and in the hands of single men under 
 their orders." 
 
 While he was General \v ashington's 
 aide, Hamilton married General Schuy- 
 ler's daughter Elizabeth, and at the close 
 of the war had for his fortune wife, 
 child, arrears-of-pay, and ambition. He 
 
372 
 
 THE HOME AUXILIARY AND REFERENCE 
 
 made a preparation for the bar almost 
 as hasty as that of Patrick Henry, and 
 was admitted to practice at New York 
 in the summer of 1782. At the same 
 time his friend Robert Morris ap- 
 pointed him Federal Tax Collector at 
 New York. Hamilton next attended 
 the Legislature at Poughkeepsie, 
 argued, lobbied, pleaded and did all he 
 could to sweep away the nerveless 
 forms of public business, but with little 
 success at the time. The Legislature, 
 however, appointed him a member of 
 Congress, and he resigned hjs Collec- 
 torship. In the Congress of 1782 he 
 met Madison, his great parliamentary 
 antagonist. Through that year and into 
 1783 he labored, as he had always done, 
 to bring the country to a sense of its 
 indebtedness to the army, but the Rhode 
 Islanders and others could not see their 
 way clear to allow a general or con- 
 tinental procedure and were inclined to 
 choose repudiation. General Washing- 
 ton calmed the army, and doubtless 
 moderated the sentiments of his young 
 admirer. McHenry wrote to Hamilton 
 that if he (Hamilton) were ten years 
 older and twenty thousand pounds 
 richer Congress would have believed all 
 his advice good. The young Congress- 
 man retired defeated at every point, 
 and attributed his lack of success to 
 the existence of thirteen democracies 
 that could not long survive under the 
 strain of their local jealousies, injus- 
 tices and ingratitudes, as expressed 
 toward the gallant army that had shed 
 its blood so copiously for them. In 
 the practice of his profession at Xew 
 York he took the case of a Tory who 
 had been sued for damages inflicted 
 vuider the British occupation of New 
 York. The patriots were all on the 
 side of the plaintiff, whom Hamilton 
 defeated. The Legislature and the peo- 
 ple were very angry, and Hamilton, in 
 taking the English side of the con- 
 struction of the treaty of peace, further 
 alienated himself from the favor of the 
 masses, for whose opinion he evidenced 
 growing indifference. He next pro- 
 voked criticism by aiding the formation 
 of the Society of the Cincinnati, whose 
 members were to perpetuate their asso- 
 
 ciation by inheritence in the first-born 
 male descendants. Yet while separating 
 himself further and further from the 
 affections of the masses, Hamilton was 
 not the less busy with thoughts of get- 
 ting the nation together into coherent 
 form. He first tried a State bank. 
 When Madison left Congress to see 
 what he could do in one State alone, 
 he found Maryland surprisingly ready 
 to debate the same questions of com- 
 mercial taxation that were pressing. 
 The first meeting led to a larger one. 
 Then the Annapolis Convention was 
 formally called, and to this Alexander 
 Hamilton came, full of hope and fertile 
 with plans to set up a stable central 
 authority. It was he who wrote the 
 Address of that rump convention — for 
 only five States sat — and that Address 
 proved to be the formal call for the 
 Constitutional Convention of the 
 United States of America — the only 
 one ever held by this nation. There- 
 fore it cannot be amiss, by way of 
 emphasis, to repeat that Alexander 
 Hamilton wrote the call for the Consti- 
 tutional Convention, and that it was 
 the outcome of all his hopes for many 
 years. 
 
 Hamilton then entered the Legisla- 
 ture of New York, where he was again 
 defeated at every point in his attempt 
 to subserve the government, or any part 
 of the government, of New York to 
 the nation. When it came to the ap- 
 pointment of delegates to the Constitu- 
 tional Convention, only three were 
 chosen, and although Hamilton was in- 
 cluded in the small delegation, his 
 voice was lost through the association 
 with him of Yates and Lansing, who 
 were sure to vote against him. The 
 course of the New York Legislature, 
 however, had given the last blow to the 
 old Confederation of Samuel Adams, 
 and there was no central bureau toward 
 whom a majority of the States looked 
 with respect or from whose officers they 
 received directions without ridicule. 
 
 Twelve States met at Philadelphia, 
 with General Washington sitting in the 
 chair and giving continental dignity to 
 the deliberations. Hamilton made a 
 speech of six hours, early in the Con- 
 
BIOGRAPHY— ALEXANDER HAMILTON 
 
 2,73 
 
 vention, and then, as he was certain to 
 be outvoted as one of the three dele- 
 gates from his State, he absented him- 
 self much of the time from the sessions. 
 He took the British institutions of 
 King, Lords and Commons, as "the best 
 models in existence." He boldly out- 
 lined his plan, so that there could be 
 no mistake as to his meaning. He de- 
 sired to effectually cripple the power 
 of the States and "establish an aristo- 
 cratic Republic as distinguished from 
 a democratic Republic." A certain 
 amount of property should entitle an 
 elector to vote for President and Sena- 
 tors, who were "to hold office during 
 good behavior." The President was to 
 appoint the Governors, and they were 
 to wield a veto-power over all legisla- 
 tion. This was a duplication of the 
 English monarchy, with the omission of 
 a few details that must follow. The 
 Senatorial rank would supply the no- 
 bility and the electoral franchise would 
 carry with it the advantages of an aris- 
 tocracy. Hamilton's plan served as the 
 tentative proposition of the ultra-con- 
 servatives : had they started nearer to 
 the base-line of democracy, they 
 would have been compelled to concede 
 more than they did. As it was, their 
 President, with his vast appointive 
 power, re-eligible for life, seemed a 
 veritable monarch to Samuel Adams, 
 Patrick Henry, and James IMonroe. 
 Hamilton's Constitutional labors lay in 
 writing the call ; in laying down the 
 extreme proposals of the "monocrats," 
 as they were then called, and in his re- 
 turn to New York and valiant service 
 as an advocate of the Constitution that 
 had passed the Convention, \'ew York 
 State being averse to its acceptance, or, 
 in fact, to entrance into any Union. 
 "Publius" was Hamilton's pen-name, 
 and his articles in the Federalist were 
 hailed with enthusiasm by all who were 
 under the influence of General \\'ash- 
 ington. Despite the opposition of Gov- 
 ernor Clinton, a Constitutional Con- 
 vention for New York (to debate the 
 proposed federal instrument) was 
 called, but Clinton was its President, 
 with 46 out of 65 votes. "Two-thirds 
 of the convention and four-sevenths o 
 
 the people are against us," wrote Ham- 
 ilton. Yet so masterly was his leader- 
 ship of the minority of nineteen with 
 which he entered the body that he came 
 out of it with a majority of three, and 
 the State signed the Constitution. The 
 Commonwealth could not then foresee 
 the leading position it was to have in 
 the Great Republic. This was the last 
 parliamentary contest of magnitude 
 which Hamilton personally led. It was 
 a victory which has filled his eulogists 
 with justifiable pride. He was elected 
 to Congress, and carried to Philadel- 
 phia tidings which gave his patron, 
 General Washington, no ordinary satis- 
 faction. But he was soon defeated at 
 many other points. He could not pre- 
 \ent the ten amendments demanded by 
 Patrick Henry, and he could not with- 
 stand the power of Clinton in New 
 York, who took him out of Congress. 
 In urging the interests of the Schuy- 
 ler family, he would make no terms 
 with the Livingstons, demanding too 
 much, and thus he finally lost influ- 
 ence in the United States Senate, for, 
 though he was able to at first control 
 both the Senators and secure Feder- 
 alists (that is, supporters of the Con- 
 stitution), he alienated the Livingstons 
 and raised up Burr against him. This 
 Burr, in the end, was to avenge his own 
 defeat by the murder of his political 
 vanquisher. 
 
 When Congress next met, there was 
 a President of the United States. But 
 it was early in the autumn before there 
 was a law for a Treasury Department. 
 Hamilton, at thirty-two, was chosen for 
 this office. 
 
 When the election of Jefferson and 
 Burr was thrown into the House, un- 
 der the crude electoral system then in 
 operation, it was Hamilton who ab- 
 sented Federalists enough to elect Jef- 
 ferson, thus defeating the hopes of 
 Burr, and in Burr's opinion betraying 
 the interests of New York. 
 
 Hamilton lived at Washington 
 Heights, now the corner of One Hun- 
 dred and Forty-fifth street and Tenth 
 avenue. New York City- The house, 
 still standing, is a large frame structure 
 with tall wooden columns. At the 
 
374 
 
 THE HOME AUXILIARY AND REFERENCE 
 
 southeast corner are thirteen tall trees, 
 planted by Hamilton to represent the 
 thirteeen States. 
 
 On the 4th of July, 1801, Philip 
 Hamilton, a lad of eighteen years old, 
 eldest son of the General, heard G. J. 
 Eaker deliver an oration in which he 
 spoke disparagingly of General Ham- 
 ilton. A short time afterward a per- 
 sonal affray resulted and a young 
 friend of young Hamilton fought a 
 bloodless duel with Eaker. On this 
 young Hamilton challenged Eaker, and 
 the principals met January 10, 1802, at 
 Weehawken, N. J., where Eaker killed 
 young Hamilton. General Hamilton, 
 hurrying to prevent this tragedy, 
 fainted on the way. That the father 
 should fall fatally wounded on this very 
 s])ot under the Weehawken ledge has 
 evoked for the widow and mother the 
 tenderest sympathies of mankind. 
 
 Both Hamilton and Burr were deeply 
 disappointed men who did not quietly 
 submit to misfortune. When Jefferson 
 was at the crest of success, General 
 Hamilton wrote, February 27, 1802, to 
 Gouverneur Morris : "jNIine is an odd 
 destiny. Perhaps no man in the United 
 States has sacrificed or done more for 
 the present Constitution than myself ; 
 and contrary to all my anticipations of 
 its fate, as you know, from the begin- 
 ning. I am still laboring to prop the 
 frail and worthless fabric. Yet I have 
 the murmurs of its friends no less than 
 the curses of its foes for my reward. 
 What can I do better than withdraw 
 from the scene? Every day proves to 
 me more and more that this American 
 world was not made for me." 
 
 Aaron Burr, on his side, had many 
 causes to hate General Hamilton. Be- 
 side the Presidential election, Hamil- 
 ton had prevented Burr's appointment 
 to a foreign mission. Then Burr stood 
 for election as Governor of New York, 
 but through Hamilton's interference 
 Lewis, a Democratic rival of Burr, was 
 elected. For fourteen years Hamilton 
 had assailed Burr with all the bitter- 
 ness of his nature. Both were now out 
 of office— one was ex-Vice-President, 
 the other ex-Secretary of the Treasury. 
 Both were extremely ambitious, but 
 
 Hamilton could not be President under 
 the Constitution, being foreign-born. 
 
 It would seem that Hamilton, by a 
 reiteration of these sentiments, had 
 come to think that they were ^afe. And 
 it seems that but for the intermed- 
 dling of one Dr. Charles D. Cooper, 
 Burr might not have thought his honor 
 as a fighting man had been put in 
 jeopardy. At last Hamilton, in the 
 presence of this Dr. Cooper, declared 
 that "he looked on Mr. Burr as a dan- 
 gerous man, and one who ought not 
 to be trusted with the reins of govern- 
 ment." 
 
 This statement of Dr. Cooper, 
 coupled with other matters of a strik- 
 ing intermeddling and tell-tale char- 
 acter, was published in a newspaper, 
 whereupon, June 18, 1804, Colonel 
 Burr sent to General Hamilton by hand 
 of W. P. Van Ness, a note as follows : 
 
 "You must perceive, sir, the neces- 
 sity of a prompt and unqualified ac- 
 knowledgment or denial of the use of 
 any expression which would warrant 
 the assertion of Dr. Cooper." 
 
 General Hamilton replied in a ver- 
 bose note two days later. He did not 
 consider the charge as being sufficiently 
 definite. 
 
 On the 2 1 St Colonel Burr again ad- 
 dressed General Hamilton. General 
 Hamilton's rejoinder was once more 
 evasive, but this time brief. It was 
 evident that he desired to avoid either 
 a battle or an apology. The corre- 
 spondence was then assumed by sec- 
 onds — Van Ness for Burr, and Pendle- 
 ton for Hamilton — each writing a 
 somewhat wordy epistle. With that of 
 \'an Ness was inclosed the formal chal- 
 lenge. 
 
 At daylight of July 11, 1804, Colonel 
 Burr and \'an Ness arrived first at the 
 duelling-ground, by appointment ; then 
 came General Hamilton, Pendleton and 
 Dr. Hosack, surgeon. The parties ex- 
 changed salutations. By lot, position 
 and word both fell to Hamilton's sec- 
 ond. The large pistols were loaded 
 and the distance of ten paces measured. 
 The second giving the word asked : 
 "Are you ready?" The answer was 
 "Yes." He cried, "Present !" and, by 
 
BIOGRAPHY— JAMES MOXROE 
 
 373 
 
 agreement, the two pistols were tired. 
 General Hamilton almost instantly fell. 
 Burr advanced, evidently to express his 
 regret, but his second, fearing a recog- 
 nition by the surgeon and approaching 
 boatmen, hurried him oft" to the boat. 
 The surgeon and Pendleton raised 
 General Hamilton to a sitting posture, 
 and he said: "This is a mortal wound," 
 swooning away. As he was carried to 
 the river-bank he said : "My vision is 
 indistinct." He was found to be mor- 
 tally wounded in the side. The house 
 was not far away, but the wounded 
 man suffered intensely on the journey, 
 and confronted the distress of a wife 
 and seven children on arrival. He was 
 undressed and put in a dark room . The 
 surgeons of the French frigates and 
 the eminent medical men of the city all 
 hastened to the stricken home, but it 
 was deemed unwise to increase the suf- 
 ferings of a dying man. At about 2 
 o'clock, as the public well know, he 
 expired. 
 
 JAMES MONROE. 
 1758-1831 
 
 Author of the Monroe DorTRixE. 
 
 James Monroe was born in West- 
 moreland County, near the head of 
 ]\Ionroe's Creek, which empties into the 
 Potomac River, April 28, 1758. Not 
 far away was the birthplace of George 
 Washington. During Monroe's boy- 
 hood the county was stirred with dis- 
 cussions of the Stamp Act, and his 
 neighbors nearly all followed the lead 
 of Patrick Henry. Monroe entered the 
 college of AV'illiam and Mary at Wil- 
 liamsburg, and was at school there 
 when the Revolutionary War broke out. 
 He, \vith thirty other students, among 
 whom was John Marshall, at once en- 
 listed, and Monroe entered the service 
 of Washington near New York as a 
 Lieutenant in the Third Virginia 
 Regiment of Colonel Mercer. He was 
 in the engagements of Harlem and 
 White Plains. At Trenton he was 
 wounded in the shoulder, and carried 
 the bullet in his body till he died. 
 
 Colonel Monroe was chosen a mem- 
 
 ber of the Assembly two years after 
 he began studying law wi.h Jefferson, 
 and in the same year entered the State 
 Senate. At the age of twenty-five he 
 was sent as a delegate to Congress, 
 where he sat for three years, following 
 that peripatetic body to Annapolis, 
 Trenton and New York. During the 
 summer of 1784 he ascended the Hud- 
 son River to Albany, went westward 
 to the lakes, and down the Ohio River ; 
 thence homeward over the mountains. 
 In the same year he visited Fort Pitt 
 on another journey. He had a states- 
 man's desire to inspect the land he lived 
 in, and in early life, after he had seen 
 a portion of it, he became an earnest 
 advocate of free soil for the parts yet to 
 be settled. This sentiment he modified 
 in later years. 
 
 While he was attending Congress at 
 New York, in 1786, he married Miss 
 Eliza Kortwright, a young woman of 
 admitted beauty, and the pair moved 
 to Fredericksburg, Va., where the hus- 
 band began the practice of law. There 
 were two children, both daughters, by 
 this marriage. The next year (1787) 
 he was chosen to the Assembly, and 
 was in the celebrated convention of the 
 next year, when Patrick Henry came 
 so near compelling Mrginia to reject 
 the new Federal Constitution. Monroe 
 followed the lead of Henry, and op- 
 posed Madison, with whom he was af- 
 terward to labor during so many years 
 in perfect harmony. When Patrick 
 Henry punished Madison by excluding 
 him as United States Senator, Monroe 
 was given the coveted place. 
 
 Here began the national career of 
 Rfonroe under the new Constitution. 
 He sat quietly in the United States Sen- 
 ate for over three years. He receixed 
 from General Washington an appoint- 
 ment to France as Minister. It was 
 well known that Monroe was an ardent 
 democratic-Republican, and an admirer 
 of the French Revolutionists. The re- 
 call of Monroe took place in August, 
 1796, but he did not reach America 
 till the spring of 1797. 
 
 Monroe became Governor of Vir- 
 ginia, and was twice re-elected to that 
 office, going to the constitutional limit. 
 
376 
 
 THE HOMR AUXILIARY AND REFEREN'CE 
 
 This period carried him past the death 
 of Washington and the election of Jef- 
 ferson as President. 
 
 As soon as Jefferson became Presi- 
 dent it gave him pleasure to vindicate 
 Governor JMonroe by an appointment 
 once more to France, with letters also 
 to Spain and England. This time 
 Monroe's mission, though no more 
 creditable to the heart, was crowned 
 with a success that in the end has added 
 thirteen commonwealths to our nation. 
 In a word, Louisiana was purchased. 
 The main negotiators were, for Amer- 
 ica, Jefferson, Monroe. Livingston ; for 
 France, Bonaparte, Talleyrand, Alar- 
 bois. Following the successful issue of 
 this mission, I^Ionroe waited officially 
 upon the English Foreign Minister at 
 London. There the rancor and ill-will 
 of the Government were still apparent. 
 Not a civil remark escaped the receiv- 
 ing official. Monroe was glad to go 
 to Madrid, to see if he could purchase 
 Florida. There he stayed without con- 
 siderable progress till May, 1805. He 
 afterward resided mainly at London, 
 and looked after the local interests of 
 some of the States. In May, 1806, he 
 was empowered, with Pinckney, to 
 make a treaty with England, and, al- 
 though he had been filled with preju- 
 dice toward England, Lord Holland 
 succeeded in getting a treaty from the 
 Americans which overlooked the out- 
 rageous search of the English ships, 
 and Jefferson, as President, would not 
 consider it. Thus Monroe's good for- 
 tune at Paris was again dampened un- 
 der English fogs, and when he returned 
 home \'irginia chose Madison rather 
 than ]\Ionroe for Presidential candi- 
 date, but softened IMonroe's rebuke by 
 electing him Governor for the fourth 
 time, he having meanwhile occupied a 
 seat in the Assembly. This great of- 
 fice he laid down to accept the port- 
 folio of State under Madison, who had 
 been President for about two years. 
 The War of 1812 came on. He was 
 Secretary of State for six years, and 
 at one time filled also the position of 
 Secretary of War. He could not re- 
 main quiet under the surrender of Hull 
 s.nd the misfortunes of Van Rensselaer 
 
 and Smyth, and though the union of 
 the executive and military arms in one 
 person was a matter to be deplored by 
 so pronounced a Democrat, he still de- 
 sired to secure a more active hold on 
 public operations than President Madi- 
 son had achieved. His views were for- 
 warded by a continuation of disastrous 
 events, and when the city of Washing- 
 ton was raided, he secured the dismis- 
 sal of Armstrong as Secretary of War, 
 took up the burden himself, and in- 
 fused no little energy into the military 
 affairs of the Republic. He wrote 
 cheering letters to General Jackson, in 
 the southwest, and mandatory dis- 
 patches to the Governors: "Hasten 
 your militia to New Orleans. Do not 
 wait for this Government to arm them. 
 Put all the arms you can find into their 
 hands. Let every man bring his rifle 
 with him. We shall see you paid." 
 At one time Monroe was in his clothes 
 for ten days, with almost no repose. 
 The war closed with the downfall of 
 Napoleon, in Europe, American hostili- 
 ties having been a harmonic vibration 
 at best — an auxiliary action, a play 
 within the play — and America shared, 
 in a release from urgent troubles, the 
 good fortune of the world. 
 
 President Madison having reached 
 the limit of official tenure as exempli- 
 fied by the withdrawals of Washing- 
 ton and Jefferson, James Monroe, his 
 chief Secretary, became the fitting can- 
 didate for President, and with Daniel 
 D. Tompkins as Vice-President, re- 
 ceived 183 electoral votes, to only 
 thirty-four for Rufus King, the Fed- 
 eralist. During the eight years of 
 Monroe's Presidency — renowned, at 
 last, in political history as "the era of 
 good feeling" — Florida was purchased, 
 Missouri admitted, Mexico recognized, 
 Lafayette welcomed, and the Monroe 
 doctrine expounded. He became Presi- 
 dent at fifty-nine. He had for impar- 
 tial advisers two ex-President, whose 
 only desire was to see him succeed. He 
 took into his Cabinet, as Secretary of 
 State, John Quincy Adams, at that time 
 a man of extraordinary distinction. 
 Calhoun was appointed Secretary of 
 Wat, Crawford Secretary of the Treas- 
 
BIOGRAPHY— ANDREW JACKSON 
 
 377 
 
 ury, Wirt Attorney-General and Aleigs 
 Postmaster-General. Andrew Jaskson 
 was a popular hero. Webster, Clay 
 and Benton were well upon the scene of 
 public events. Henry Clay resented the 
 appointment of ]\'Ir. Adams, but Gen- 
 eral Jackson was directly in the JefFer- 
 sonian line of faith, and a firm upholder 
 of Monroe. The first thing the new 
 President did was to make a tour of 
 both sections of the nation. The 
 northern tour extended to Portland, 
 Me., west to Detroit, east to Wash- 
 ington by way of Zanesville and Pitts- 
 burg. In the southern tour, two years 
 later, the President visited Augusta, the 
 Cherokees, Nashville, Louisville and 
 Lexington. 
 
 With Monroe's second term came to 
 an end the twenty-four years' period 
 of Jefferson's direct personal influence. 
 
 James Monroe retired from public 
 life March 4, 1825, after forty-three 
 years of public service, and made his 
 residence at Oak Hill, Loudoun 
 County, Va., dividing his time, how- 
 ever, by long visits to New York, where 
 his daughter, Mrs. Gouverneur, lived 
 He died at New York on July 4, 1831, 
 being the third of the Presidents to 
 leave this world on the natal day they 
 had done so much to make historical. 
 
 ANDREW JACKSON 
 
 I 767- I 845 
 
 Old Hickory 
 
 Andrew Jackson was born March 15, 
 1767, at the Waxhaw Settlement, as he 
 believed, in South Carolina, but, as 
 many writers discover, in Mecklenburg 
 county. North Carolina, on the upper 
 waters of the Catawba River. The 
 English penetrated the region, hoping 
 to secure recruits. An officer wounded 
 the boy Andrew because he refused to 
 brush the officer's boots. He and his 
 two brothers were taken prisoners to 
 Camden, and the widowed mother died 
 on her way to Camden. The two bro- 
 thers lost their lives, and hatred of 
 England was implanted in the heart of 
 Andrew Jackson. At fourteen he was 
 
 without relatives or means. He became 
 a saddler's apprentice, and later a law 
 student. After four years of study, in 
 which it is said that he learned little, a 
 friend appointed him public prosecutor 
 in what is now Tennessee, but was then 
 the Western District of North Carolina, 
 and he arrived in Nashville at the age 
 of twenty-one. The inhabitants had at- 
 tempted to set up the State of Franklin, 
 and were in a condition of disorder. 
 It is probable that only a man who 
 valued life lightly would have accepted 
 Jackson's task. He seems to have 
 joined to his ordinary dangers the col- 
 lection of bad debts. Therefore his life 
 was continually at stake on every lone- 
 some road, and in every new circle of 
 acquaintances. That he should soon be 
 a leading spirit in such a state of society 
 may be considered an index of his char- 
 acter — he was sure, in the end, if he 
 survived, to be a hero. 
 
 At Nashville, Jackson boarded with 
 a widow Donelson, whose daughter 
 Rachel and her husband, Lewis Ro- 
 bards, also lived with her. Robards 
 had been married in Kentucky under 
 A'irginia law. In 1791. three years after 
 Jackson's arrival, Robards petitioned 
 for divorce, alleging that his wife had 
 ileserted him and was living with Jack- 
 son. The Legislature of Mrginia 
 passed a bill authorizing the Supreme 
 Court of Kentucky to try the case with 
 a jury, and grant a divorce if the facts 
 were found to be as stated. Robards 
 took no action for two years, but mean- 
 time Jackson married Mrs. Robards. 
 Robards secured his divorce two years 
 later, when Jackson and his wife were 
 married again. It reflects ill on Jack- 
 son as a lawyer that he was put in this 
 position. He remained through life ex- 
 tremely sensitive to criticism on this 
 matter; he clung to his wife for thirty 
 years, and mourned for her ever after- 
 ward in a noble and unaffected, almost 
 romantic manner. W'e shall see that 
 his fidelity to her was the most striking 
 point in his career. 
 
 In 1796 Jackson was a member of the 
 Con.stitutional Convention of Tennes- 
 see, and, it is said, suggested the nam- 
 ing of the State after the river. He 
 
378 
 
 THE HOME AUXILIARY AND REFERENCE 
 
 was the first Congressman of the State, 
 and, later, was made a L'nited States 
 Senator. At Philadelphia he appeared 
 to Gallatin as "a tall, lank, uncouth- 
 looking personage, with long locks of 
 hair hanging over his face, and a cue 
 down his back tied in an eel-skin ; his 
 dress singular, his manners and deport- 
 ment those of a rough backswoods- 
 man." "When I was President of the 
 Senate," says Jefferson, "he was a 
 Senator, and he could never speak on 
 account of the rashness of his feelings. 
 I have seen him attempt it repeated!}', 
 and as often choke with rage." 
 
 As a Senator, Jackson was a Jacobin, 
 and felt deeply embittered against Gen- 
 eral Washington for his friendliness to 
 England. In 1798 the Senator resigned 
 to become a Supreme Judge in Tennes- 
 see. In 1801 ex-Governor Sevier and 
 Judge Jackson were candidates for the 
 major-generalship of the militia ; Jack- 
 son won by the vote of Governor 
 Roane. In 1803 Sevier became Gov- 
 ernor, and when he casually met Jack- 
 ."-on, both men drew their pistols, but 
 no blood was shed. Jackson, while 
 Judge, was proprietor of a store, and 
 resigned his position on the bench in 
 1804, but retained his office of Major- 
 General. 
 
 General Jackson was sure to meet 
 somebody in the wilderness who could 
 not share it with him. He was ready to 
 fight all comers, and it seems that the 
 best shot of the settlements, one Charles 
 Dickinson, set out to drive him out of 
 Tennessee or kill him. Dickinson, 
 therefore, aspersed the character of 
 General Jackson's wife in order to stir 
 up the bad blood there was in General 
 Jackson, and then the duel was ar- 
 ranged as falling out of a quarrel over 
 a bet at a horse-race. Jackson chal- 
 lenged Dickinson. The meeting took 
 place near Adairsville, Tenn., May 30, 
 1806. Dickinson, on his way to the 
 rendezvous, amused his associates by 
 displaying his wonderful skill with a 
 pistol. Once, at a distance of twenty- 
 four feet, he fired four bullets, each 
 at the word of command, into a space 
 which could be covered by a silver 
 dollar. He repeatedly severed a string 
 
 with a bullet, and at a tavern, where he 
 had performed this feat of marksman- 
 ship, he said to the landlord as he 
 rode off: "If General Jackson comes 
 along this road, be kind enough to 
 show him that!" At the meeting it 
 was agreed that both parties should 
 stand facing each other with pistol held 
 downward. At the word, each man was 
 to fire as soon as he should please to do 
 so. On the word, Dickinson was 
 quickest to fire. A puff of dust flew 
 from Jackson's coat, and his second 
 saw him raise his left arm and place 
 it tightly across his chest. Meanwhile 
 he began taking aim. "Great God !" 
 cried Dickinson, "have I missed him?" 
 Jackson's trigger snapped, but did not 
 explode the load ; Jackson drew the 
 trigger back to its full-cock, again took 
 careful aim, and fired. The bullet 
 passed entirely through Dickinson's 
 body. He lived until 9 o'clock that 
 night. It was found that one of Jack- 
 son's shoes was full of blood. Dickin- 
 son's bulllet had broken two of Jack- 
 son's ribs, and the wound weakened the 
 General for life. "I would have lived 
 long enough to kill him,'' said Jackson, 
 "if he had shot me through the heart." 
 ^^'ith this blgody adjudication, how- 
 ever, popular opinion at once deter- 
 mined that Dickinson deserved death 
 for gratiously slandering a woman so 
 upright as Mrs. Jackson had proved 
 herself to be after her marriage to 
 Andrew Jackson. 
 
 General Jackson thought he ought 
 to be appointed Governor of Orleans, 
 and became embittered against Presi- 
 dent Jefferson because of non-appoint- 
 ment. He readily made friends with 
 Burr when that adventurer started on 
 his scheme of a new Empire, Burr 
 striving to make a tool of the back- 
 v.oodsman. During this period it is 
 not impossible that Jackson was a 
 negro-trader, who defied the Indian 
 agent, Dinsmore. Jackson wrote to 
 the Secretary of ^^'ar that unless he 
 removed Dinsmore the people of West 
 Tennessee would burn him in his own 
 agency. Dinsmore, who had done 
 right, was removed, and Jackson was 
 ever afterward his rancorous enemy. 
 
BIOGRAPHY— ANDREW JACKSON 
 
 i19 
 
 although Dinsmore fell into poverty 
 and sued for reconciliation. 
 
 Meantime, the French cast to politics 
 in Tennessee carried the people along 
 with Napoleon, and he was looked 
 upon with awe by the bullies of the 
 woods. As his arms prevailed, it be- 
 came a fixed opinion that America 
 must take sides with him against the 
 world. When this policy was forced 
 on President Madison, Major-General 
 Jackson, now forty-five years old, 
 I came into a conspicuous position be- 
 fore the Nation. He offered himself 
 with 2.500 volunteers and was ordered 
 to New Orleans. At Natchez he was 
 commanded to disband. He led home 
 his little army, casting severe reflec- 
 tions on the Administration. Thomas 
 H. Benton was an officer in the militia, 
 and had a brother Jesse. Jackson had 
 stood second for another man in a duel 
 with Jesse, and there was bad blood 
 with the Bentons. They met Jackson 
 September 13, 1813. Blows and shots 
 were exchanged, and Jackson was laid 
 up with a ball in his shoulder. He 
 carried this missile in his body for 
 twenty years. While he was in bed 
 from, his wound the Creek Indian war 
 broke out, and Jackson took the field 
 as soon as he could. He quarreled 
 with Cocke, the other Tennessee 
 Major-General, but showed remark- 
 able governing ability, and was a suc- 
 cessful military man. The young men 
 enlisted under him with enthusiasm. 
 March 14, 1814, by his command, John 
 Wood was shot for an assault on an 
 officer. General Jackson defeated the 
 Creeks at Tohopeka, and chased them 
 out of the Hickory Ground, building 
 Fort Jackson and winning his soubri- 
 quet of "Old Hickon,'." Major-Gen- 
 eral Pinckney, of the regular army, 
 took command .\pril 20, 1814, after 
 covering General Jackson with the 
 thanks of the Nation. May 31 General 
 Jackson was appointed Major-General 
 in the regular army, and given com- 
 mand of the Department of the South, 
 with headquarters at Mobile. The 
 English used Spanish territory in 
 Florida as a base, and when Washing- 
 ton was captured, General Jackson, in 
 
 the face of orders, attacked his enem- 
 ies wherever he found them. He, with 
 5,000 men, stormed Pensacola, Florida 
 (in Spanish territory), and when the 
 English retreated, he also withdrew to 
 Mobile. He was now in a military 
 position to defend New Orleans, and 
 reached there r>;cember 2, 1814. Be- 
 tween that time and the 7th of January, 
 1815, he was enthusiastically busy 
 making defences. The story of his use 
 of cotton bales is familiar, but the 
 cotton was easily set on fire, and had 
 to be entirely removed. General Pak- 
 enham brought 12,000 British troops 
 in a fleet, meeting entrenchments about 
 five feet high, some miles below the 
 city. The English advanced in the face 
 of a heavy artillery fire, but when they 
 came within range of the rifles ot the 
 backwoodsmen, they were slaughtered 
 so rapidly that they wavered. Paken- 
 ham fell. Lambert, who succeeded, 
 withdrew his men in the night. The 
 English loss had been over 2,000, the 
 American loss was but seven killed and 
 six wounded. The Battle of New Or- 
 leans was fought after the Treaty of 
 Ghent had been signed. The engage- 
 ment was needless, yet it was of price- 
 less value to the Democratic party, 
 who could show a victory at last, and it 
 put the seal of everlasting ignominy 
 on the Federalist convention at Hart- 
 lord, where it was well said the New 
 Englanders would have been in better 
 business at war with their enemies. 
 Yet at the moment when General Jack- 
 son might have deemed it wise to court 
 popularity, he shot six more men at 
 Mobile for mutiny. He thus had exe- 
 cuted as many men as he had lost in 
 the battle. He soon after defied a civil 
 court and was fined $1,000 for im- 
 prisoning a Judge. It certainly did 
 not seem that he possessed the arts of 
 a demagogue. Yet the able politicians 
 of Congress, noting the decadence of 
 the \'irginia power, the neutrality of 
 Monroe, the unpopularity of John 
 Ouincy Adams. Secretary of State, and 
 heir apparent, all had an eye on Gen- 
 eral Jackson, whose hold on the people 
 bade fair to exceed that of General 
 Washington. 
 
38o 
 
 THE HOME AUXILIARY AND REFERENCE 
 
 The wars had left as legacies bodies 
 of pirates, filibusters, Indians and 
 negroes, mostly on Spanish soil, and 
 when the Seminole War broke out 
 Jackson had good reason to believe he 
 had tacit permission to capture Florida. 
 Briefly stated, he pillaged, captured, 
 and devastated on Spanish soil. He 
 hanged two Indian captives whose per- 
 sons he had gained by a base stratagem. 
 He hanged two Englishmen, on the 
 ground that they were stirring up war 
 — making eleven, and with Dickinson, 
 twelve people he had sent to violent 
 death. He sent up to the administra- 
 tion a very disagreeable entanglement 
 with Spain and England, which John 
 Ouincy Adams, Secretary of State, 
 took on himself to unravel. Calhoun 
 secretly assailed Jackson. Henry Clay 
 openly attacked the Administration as 
 soon as it adopted Jackson, and there 
 began the Clay- Jackson feud. But as 
 for enemies of the United States in 
 Jackson's purview, there were none. 
 Success had followed him at every 
 turn, and he had hanged or shot all 
 who had opposed him if they fell into 
 his hands. In J. Q. Adam's diary it is 
 written that Alonroe asked Jefferson, 
 in 1818, if it would not be a good idea 
 to ship off^General Jackson as Minis- 
 ter to Russia: "\Vhy, good G — !" 
 cried Jefiferson, "he would breed you a 
 quarrel before he had been there a 
 month.'' 
 
 William B. Lewis, a neighbor (Sum- 
 ner calls him "the Great Father of the 
 wire-pullers"), now grasped the op- 
 portunities offered by Jackson's po£U- 
 larity, and, as a move toward the Presi- 
 dency, secured the General's nomina- 
 tion by the Tennessee Legislature, and 
 his election to the United States Senate. 
 General Jackson, thus a nominated 
 Presidential candidate, was himself 
 compelled to take the lesser place, be- 
 cause no Jackson man could beat the 
 other candidate. He was all this time 
 outside "the machine," and his oppo- 
 nents rarely used any other epithet than 
 "murderer." But General Jackson had 
 nothing sordid about him : he was sim- 
 ple, chaste, and domestic in his habits ; 
 he was not a demagogue ; he did nr t 
 
 drink liquor ; he remained unrewarded 
 by the people, although they seemed 
 anxious to acknowledge the value of 
 his services. Therefore, John Quincy 
 Adams came so near losing his one 
 term as President that General Jackson 
 in the Electoral College had ninety- 
 nine votes to only eighty-four for 
 Adams. Clay kept up his feud when 
 the election came to the House, and 
 Adams was chosen. 
 
 President Adams went out of office 
 because the people believed nearly all 
 of the false accusations made against 
 him. 
 
 On the 22d of December, 1828, the 
 wife of Andrew Jackson died at the 
 Hermitage. The day of the funeral 
 General Jackson, President-Elect, feeble 
 and heartbroken, walked slowly behind 
 the coffin of Rachel, leaning upon a 
 long cane that he was accustomed to 
 carry on the farm. As he stood look- 
 ing on her face for the last time, he 
 lifted his cane and commanded the at- 
 tention of all : "In the presence of this 
 dear saint, I can and do forgive all my 
 enemies. But those vile wretches who 
 have slandered her must look to God 
 for mercy." She was buried in the 
 little garden near the residence. 
 
 At Washington, the next March, 
 when General Jackson was inaugurated, 
 there was a Jeff'ersonian jubilee. 
 
 All the previous Presidents together 
 had removed seventy-four officers. 
 Andrew Jackson began with a pro- 
 scription of about 700. He made about 
 2,000 removals in all. He was the first 
 of the Presidents to give compliant 
 country editors post-offices. The cries 
 of the functionaries who had been 
 forty years in place were pitiful, and 
 it is said some slight harm came to the 
 public service. 
 
 The first National Convention met 
 and nominated Jackson and \'an Buren 
 (dropping Calhoun) ; the National Re- 
 publicans nominated Clay and Ser- 
 geant ; there was an anti-AIason ticket 
 (Wirt) which carried \'ermont. South 
 Carolina stood out. and cast her eleven 
 votes for Floyd. Jackson and Van 
 Buren were elected by popular and 
 Electoral-College majorities. 
 
BIOGRAPHY—ANDREW JACKSON 
 
 381 
 
 In 1832 the nullifiers came in full 
 control of the South Carolina Govern- 
 ment, and proceeded to construct a 
 metaphysical scheme of Constitutional 
 secession. Yet all was not smooth for 
 the nullifiers in their own State. A 
 Union convention met at Columbia, 
 and L'nion men were strong at Charles- 
 ton. Civil war was possible within the 
 commonwealth. 
 
 Now there sat in the President's 
 chair a man, in General Jackson, who 
 looked on all this as a mere invention 
 of Calhoun — Calhoun, who had thought 
 to ruin Andrew Jackson after the Sem- 
 inole executions — Calhoun, who had 
 testified friendship and taken office on 
 the same ticket with Andrew Jackson. 
 Andrew Jackson therefore beheld nulli- 
 fication as a purely personal affair — 
 some more people to be hanged or shot, 
 and it was not long before he began to 
 study what grounds he might have for 
 executing both Calhoun and Clay, if 
 necessary. 
 
 January 30. 1835, an insane man 
 named Lawrence snapped a pistol 
 twice at General Jackson. The Presi- 
 dent openly accused Poindexter, of 
 Mississippi, as the instigator, probably 
 without just reason. 
 
 He had his party well drilled and dis- 
 ciplined on the modern plan. The elec- 
 tions fulfilled the President's hopes, and 
 on March 2, 1837. the proud old chief- 
 tain wrote to Trist : "On the 4th I 
 hope to be able to go to the Capitol 
 to witness the glorious scene of Mr. 
 \'an Buren, once rejected by the Senate, 
 sworn into office by Chief Justice 
 Taney, also being rejected by the fac- 
 tious Senate." 
 
 March 7, 1837, Andrew Jackson set 
 out from Washington for the Hermit- 
 age. He left his party in full control 
 of the nation by popular and electoral 
 vote, on a platform of low taxes, no 
 debt, no glory, no public works, no dis- 
 play at the expense of taxpayers. If 
 slavery had been out of the way, it is 
 difficult to see that this program could 
 ever have been outvoted. On his way 
 home he met the same demonstrations 
 of tender, popular affection that at- 
 tended Washington's journey to Mt. 
 
 \'ernon. He, like Washington, was re- 
 garded as a strong man, who had been 
 converted to the New World doctrine 
 of freedom for all. There could be 
 no doubt of the permanency of our in- 
 stitutions if the soil would produce such 
 as he. He continued to be a never- 
 failing oracle, and politicians did not 
 hesitate to make long journeys in order 
 to be seen by the people going under 
 the sacred lintels of the Hermitage near 
 Nashville. In 1843 he wrote a letter 
 favoring the annexation of Texas. 
 
 He spent eight years in retirement, 
 and saw Calhoun, Clay and Biddle all 
 defeated or ruined. The things he did 
 were all approved by the people, and 
 he was a political saint long before he 
 died. There were many sides of his 
 character that shone gloriously in the 
 light of liberty, and the tenderness of 
 his love for Rachel charmed many who 
 would have been alienated by his taste 
 for revenge. He was as true as he was 
 terrible. He was as forceful as he was 
 simple. He had the mettle of a dic- 
 tator, and the fidelity of a democratical 
 philosopher. His soul was as strong 
 as his body was frail. 
 
 The Hermitage was approached 
 through a long double row of cedars. 
 It is a quaint old building, main rooms 
 and shed rooms of brick, with wooden 
 columns and copings in front. Here 
 the old hero lived with Colonel An- 
 drew Jackson, adopted grandson, his 
 wife and mother, and two old negroes, 
 man and wife. General Jackson every 
 day visited the grave of her he had 
 loved, whose enemies he would have 
 killed to a man, whose name was re- 
 vered to him, whose gentle graces he 
 regarded as those of the angels. He 
 joined the Church, at last, and, under 
 the urgent arguments of his spiritual 
 savoirs, forgave his enemies en masse. 
 He was not sour; he had not expected 
 to escape the hatreds of evil persons, 
 and easily believed all were evil who 
 did not believe in the Union, with low 
 taxes and hard money. If Rachel had 
 been with him, his cup would have 
 over-run with joy. He died on the 8th 
 of June, 1843, and was buried beside 
 Rachel in the little warden. 
 
382 
 
 THE HOME AUXILIARY AND REFERENCE 
 
 JOHN QUINCY ADAMS 
 1 767- 1 848 
 
 "The Old Man Eloquent." 
 
 July II, 1767, in the north parish of 
 Braintree, Massachusetts Bay, two 
 years after tlie passage of the Stamp 
 Act, there was born to John and Abi- 
 gail Adams, both Revolutionary char- 
 acters of the first order, a son, John 
 Quincy Adams. When this son was 
 seven years old he, with his leonine 
 mother, climbed to the top of a high 
 hill, listened to the cannon of Bunker 
 Hill battle, and watched the flames that 
 arose from the conflagration of Charles- 
 ton. At nine he was post-rider. At 
 eleven he made a voyage with his father 
 to Europe and back, and immediately 
 set out for the Old World again with 
 his parent. He went to school at Paris, 
 Amsterdam, Leyden — wherever his 
 father happened to be. Then the En- 
 voy to Russia, Judge Dana, took him 
 to St. Petersburg as private secretary. 
 When John Adams became Minister to 
 England, he doubtless considered him- 
 self able to send the boy to college, and 
 the son was offered the opportunity, 
 which he seized, returning to America 
 and entering Harvard. He graduated 
 in 1787, and studied law at Newbury- 
 port, with Judge Parsons, \\lien he 
 was twenty-three, he was admitted to 
 practice, and established his office at 
 Boston. He scored Citizen Genet, the 
 P'rench torch-bearer of Liberty, so ef- 
 fectively that President Washington 
 was led to appoint the young man Min- 
 ister to the Hague. It is about this 
 time that he begins the celebrated diary, 
 which ranks him as one of the great 
 private annalists of the world. The 
 diary continues from 1795 to 1848, and 
 with that of his father, forms one of 
 the richest historical treasuries that ex- 
 ist as the original work of only two 
 men. He was at the Hague while the 
 army of France was victorious in the 
 Netherlands. Diplomatic business 
 called him to London, and there, in 
 1797, he married Miss Louisa C. John- 
 son, with whom he lived happily till he 
 
 died. John Quincy Adams was ap- 
 pointed Minister to Prussia, and it is 
 said the lieutenant at the gate did not 
 know there was any such country as 
 the new Minister claimed to represent. 
 He traveled through Silesia, viewed the 
 battle-fields, made a treaty, and was re- 
 called by his father when it was known 
 that Jefferson was to come in as Presi- 
 dent. 
 
 John Quincy Adams returned to the 
 practice of law at Boston, and a dis- 
 tiict judge made him a commissioner in 
 bankruptcy. From this position Presi- 
 dent Jefferson removed him. April 5, 
 1802, the ousted Federalist was elected 
 to the State Senate. In 1803 he was 
 elected United States Senator. But his 
 entry into official life at the Capital was 
 most inauspicious. To him the capital 
 city seemed, after Berlin, Paris and Lon- 
 don, as some capital city in an East In- 
 dian or South African region now ap- 
 pears to us. Not only did the rude- 
 ness of the surroundings depress him, 
 but he was personally the victim of the 
 incivility of both Democrats and Fed- 
 eralists. A motion which he would 
 make would be lost ; another Senator 
 would repeat it, and it would be car- 
 ried almost by acclamation. The envi- 
 ronment rapidly put him upon his met- 
 tle. The mistreatment which he re- 
 ceived from the expiring Federalist 
 party opened his eyes to the good that 
 was in their opponents, and toward the 
 end of his third Congress, he was able 
 to be of service to Jefferson in many 
 ways, getting well on the side favored 
 by the majority. His Legislature 
 avenged itself by forcing his resigna- 
 tion, and he was able to change parties 
 at a favorable moment. He simply felt, 
 with seven-tenths of the voters, that if 
 we must have war with a foreign na- 
 tion it ought not to be with France. 
 
 W'hen James IMadison came to the 
 Presidency, he found Mr. .Adams thus 
 out of office on principle, and was glad 
 to nominate him as Minister to Russia. 
 The Senate at first refused to consent, 
 but on a later date confirmed the nom- 
 ination. The statesman, once so un- 
 popular, had been able to change his 
 party, and yet greatly increase his 
 
BIOGRAPHY— HENRY CLAY 
 
 383 
 
 standing among his colleagues — a feat 
 not often recorded. The journey from 
 Boston to St. Petersburg was accom- 
 plished between August 5 and October 
 23. The residence at St. Petersburg 
 is important as giving a Russian as- 
 pect to the Diary of Mr. Adams, while 
 Napoleon was carrying on the greatest 
 wars the world has seen. 
 
 On August 7, 1814, Mr. Adams was 
 at Ghent, as one of the commissioners 
 of the peace that ended our War of 
 1812 with England. The deliberations 
 lasted four months. That John 
 Ouincy Adams should ever have figured 
 as a peacemaker, in a peace that was 
 made, seems incredible; yet it is prob- 
 able that Henry Clay, at Ghent, op- 
 posed more numerous obstacles. All 
 of the gentlemen were of irritable tem- 
 per. The treaty at London was con- 
 sidered a great Yankee victory. 
 
 Mr. Adams was at Paris when 
 Napoleon returned from Elba, but be- 
 came Minister at London before Water- 
 loo. When he was a young man Gen- 
 eral Washington had foretold that John 
 Ouincy Adams would some day reach 
 the head of the diplomatic service, and 
 he was now in that proud official posi- 
 tion. 
 
 When James Monroe entered on the 
 Presidency, Mr. Adams was invited to 
 become Secretary of State. 
 
 Mr. Adams would make no effort 
 whatever to secure the office of Presi- 
 dent, yet stated that if the people did 
 not elect him he should consider it a 
 vote of waning confidence. The Elec- 
 toral College was not able to announce 
 a choice, and the election went to the 
 House, where the balloting was con- 
 fined to the names of Jackson, Adams 
 and Crawford. Henry Clay, with only 
 thirty-seven votes, could not come be- 
 fore the House as a candidate, and was 
 therefore the arbiter between General 
 Jackson and ]\Ir. Adams. The logical 
 result could only be the success of Mr. 
 Adams, and that event followed on the 
 first ballot in the House, thirteen States 
 going to the New England candidate. 
 At the inauguration of President 
 Adams General Jackson shook hands 
 
 with him, but this ended their friendly 
 relations. 
 
 At the next election for President, 
 Adams was defeated by Jackson. 
 
 Now the "old man eloquent," as he 
 was soon to he called, was to enter Con- 
 gress as a Representative from the Ply- 
 mouth district. Single-handed, he was 
 to stand between fire-eating and tem- 
 porizing cohorts, for sixteen years, de- 
 fying, defeating, baiting, maddening 
 and disparaging the Solid South that 
 had proudly challenged the ill-will of 
 all the North, and had aroused the un- 
 forgiving spirit of but one real cham- 
 pion. There is not in the history of 
 legislation another campaign so long, 
 by a single gladiator so full of forti- 
 tude, so careless of danger, so deaf to 
 accommodation. Senator, Ambassador, 
 Minister, President, as he had been — all 
 his early public services dwindle into 
 the deep shadows when he stands in the 
 bright light that history throws on him 
 after he became the hated-one of a 
 slave-holding and planter-fearing Con- 
 gress which he alone visited with un- 
 mitigated contempt. 
 
 November 19, 1846, he was stricken 
 with paralysis in Boston. On Feb- 
 ruary 21, 1848, he appeared in his seat 
 as usual. At 1.30 o'clock p. m., as the 
 Speaker was putting a vote there were 
 cries: "Stop! Stop! Mr. Adams!" 
 The aged man was insensible. The 
 House adjourned. He was taken to a 
 couch in the Speaker's room. There, 
 late in the afternoon he whispered : 
 "Thank the officers of the House." 
 Soon afterward : "This is the last of 
 earth ! I am content." He thereafter 
 lay for forty-eight hours and died Feb- 
 ruary 23, 1848. He was buried imder 
 the portal of the church at Ouincy, 
 Mass., beside his immortal father and 
 mother. 
 
 HENRY CLAY. 
 
 1777-1852 
 
 "The Mill-Boy of the .Sl.\shes. 
 
 Henry Clay was born April 12, 1777, 
 in Hanover County, X'irginia, in a 
 
384 
 
 THE HOME AUXILIARY AND REFERENCE 
 
 neighborhood called the "Slashes" — a 
 place in the woods which had been 
 "slashed" or cut over — the good timber 
 taken, but the ground not cleared prop- 
 erly. His father was an eloquent Bap- 
 tist preacher, and died when Henry, the 
 fifth in a family of seven, was only 
 four years old. There is a tradition 
 that, while the dead body of the min- 
 ister lay in the house, Tarleton, the 
 English raider, took some of the prop- 
 erty of the place and left a handful of 
 gold on the widow's table. This money 
 the mother of Henry Clay indignantly 
 threw into the fireplace. 
 
 Henry Clay went to school in a log 
 cabin with a hard clay floor. He went 
 to mill on the Pamunkey River, riding 
 a pony with a rope bridle, and carry- 
 ing the "bread timber" in a bag. Hence 
 he became the "Mill-Boy of the 
 Slashes" and ran for President on that 
 industrious and democratical recollec- 
 tion. 
 
 His mother married Captain Henry 
 Watkins, who placed Henry Clay, by 
 this time fourteen years old, in a re- 
 tail store at Richmond, and afterward 
 obtained for the stepson a clerkship in 
 the office of the Clerk of the High 
 Court of Chancery. At this time 
 Henry Clay was an awkward country 
 boy. His companions made some sport 
 of his appearance, but he was studious 
 and earned the good will of George 
 \\ythe, famous as the benefactor of 
 brilliant young men. After four years 
 of clerkship, Henry Clay entered the 
 law office of Robert Brooke, Attorney- 
 General, and was indulgently admitted 
 to practice. 
 
 In 1/99 he married Lucretia Hart, 
 who became the mother of eleven 
 children. He soon was able to purchase 
 .Ashland, an estate of 600 acres near 
 Lexington, which became his future 
 home. Like all great orators, he was 
 extremely easy to come toward; he was 
 a pleasant man to meet. This char- 
 acteristic never deserted him. and he 
 early became a favorite with his neigh- 
 bors, a favored son of his State, and 
 anon the idol of a National party. In 
 the discussions attending the making of 
 a Kentucky Constitution, Mr. Clay was 
 
 ardently against slavery, without efifect, 
 although his fame as an orator be- 
 came so well established that he was 
 elected to the Legislature in 1803. Burr 
 came thorugh the country, bent on 
 some kind of a filibustering enterprise, 
 and was arrested. Clay appeared as 
 Burr's counsel. Nine years later, 
 meeting Aaron Burr, Clay refused to 
 take his hand. In 1806 the State 
 proudly sent him on to A\'ashington as 
 United States Senator for an unex- 
 pired term, to bring honor to Kentucky 
 in the debates of Congress. He was 
 not quite eligible as to age, being less 
 than thirty years old. He returned to 
 Kentucky with pleasure, and at once 
 became Speaker of the House. As 
 hatred of England increased, he sug- 
 gested that Kentuckians, particularly 
 the legislators, should wear only such 
 clothes as were the product of home 
 manufacture. For this, Humphrey 
 Marshall denounced Clay as a dema- 
 gogue, and a duel followed. 
 
 In 1809 Plenry Clay filled another 
 unexpired term as L'nited States 
 Senator, and spoke with earnestness in 
 behalf of home manufactures. He op- 
 posed, and possibly defeated, the re- 
 charter of the Bank, and was outspoken 
 against England. .\t the end of his 
 short term he was elected to represent 
 tlie Lexington district in Congress. So 
 great was Clay's fame that he was 
 elected Speaker by a large majority. 
 When Henry Clay carried President 
 Madison to war he did it entirely by 
 the force of eloquence, as a result of 
 Western feeling. The war went ill, 
 despite Clay's eloquence, and after he 
 had been a second time elected Speaker 
 he resigned to take a place on the 
 Peace Commission in Europe. It is 
 thought it was his object to interpose 
 objections against a humiliating treaty. 
 It is usually said of him that he alone 
 made the English resign the right of 
 navigation in the Alississippi. The 
 labors at Ghent lasted for five months. 
 The war ended as it began, yet Clay 
 declared in Congress afterward that 
 he would have acted the same way 
 again. At Paris, he met Madame de 
 Stael. He went to London on diplo- 
 
BIOGRAPHY— HENRY CLAY 
 
 385 
 
 malic business. He returned to Amer- 
 ica, greatly honored, in September, 
 
 1815, and again became Speaker of the 
 House of Representatives. He was 
 offered the mission to Russia, and later 
 the portfolio of War. Both offers 
 were too small. It already seemed that 
 merit and popularity must raise him to 
 the J 'residency as soon as he should 
 reach the proper age. He wished to be 
 Secretary of State, so as to get into 
 succession, but his colleague at Ghent, 
 John Ouincy Adams, was chosen for 
 the coveted place. Thus, as early as 
 
 1816. his hopes were dimmed. Never- 
 theless he again became Speaker and 
 was for the time being a much greater 
 officer than the Secretary of State. He 
 became the eloquent proponent of 
 taxes for roads and canals and protec- 
 tion of home industry. He viewed 
 President Monroe with enmity, and 
 that peaceable chief magistrate grieved 
 daily at the opposition that was rising 
 against an Administration that de- 
 served no enemies. 
 
 He was still regarded as a remark- 
 able orator and a brilliant if somewhat 
 erratic public man. It was deemed to 
 be good statesmanship to keep the 
 Speakership in the West. He made 
 many speeches in behalf of the South 
 American Republics. He possessed, by 
 all accounts, many more natural gifts 
 than he made diligent use of. He al- 
 lowed slower and less promising ath- 
 letes to outrun him over the course. 
 His next great appearance as a legis- 
 lator was in the Missouri Compromise. 
 Pie resigned his Speakership in order 
 to repair his shattered fortunes. It 
 will be seen that his Presidential hopes, 
 for some unknown reason, had led him 
 into a public course that was not logical, 
 for he was bent on pleasing the North 
 with protection and river-an<l-harb<"ir 
 bills, and the South with slavery, so 
 that he was more than likely to offend 
 both sections. He was now called "the 
 great pacificator." It was in these 
 days he said he would "rather be right 
 than President.'' 
 
 In Kentucky his fame was secure. 
 The State lost the Speakership to Vir- 
 ginia in his absence, and the ijressure 
 
 on him was heavy to return to Con- 
 gress. On his reacceptance of a seat 
 in 1824 he was again elected Speaker 
 by an overwhelming vote, and became 
 an open candidate to succeed Monroe 
 as President. But, at the elections of 
 1S24, Jackson led, Adams was second, 
 and Crawford third. Clay, being only 
 fourth, could not be voted for in the 
 House, and yet became President- 
 maker — a strange addition to the peace- 
 making chapters of his life. He elected 
 Adams, and took the portfolio of State, 
 evidently still under the belief that 
 tradition would continue to give the 
 Presidency to the Secretaries of State. 
 11iis acceptance of an office that he had 
 coveted in 1816 he regarded in after 
 life as a critical error of his career. 
 The cry of bargain-and-sale went up 
 from Jackson's friends, making Clay's 
 last days in the Speakership bitter, with 
 challenges to mortal combat and scan- 
 dal. Yet Clay retired with the record 
 of being the ablest Speaker America 
 had produced, and his course in the 
 House is still the subject of wide- 
 s]3read technical study. 
 
 Mr. Clay's health and pride both 
 suffered while he was Secretary of 
 State. He did not like the office nor 
 its labors. The sacrifices he had made 
 to take it had been fruitless of good. 
 What he had thought would be a step 
 to the Presidency was a stumbling 
 block. He went into private life at 
 fifty-two still a great party chief — to 
 the ordinary apprehension the greatest 
 man in the Union. By this time he 
 had grown imperious, and was a man 
 whom lesser souls would delight to 
 disappoint, thinking he needed stern dis- 
 cipline. There was no one to challenge 
 his sway among men save a broken- 
 hearted old backwoodsman, newly 
 elected President, whom Clay thought 
 v.'ould soon be enmeshed in trouble and 
 stultified through incompetency to fill 
 a great office. For a time this owner 
 of Ashland lived at home as a farmer, 
 striving to cultivate the agricultural 
 and pastoral graces that had broadened 
 Jefferson's hold on the people. lie re- 
 fused seats in Congress and the Legis- 
 lature. He was a lover of good horses. 
 
386 
 
 THE HOME AUXILIARY AND REFERENCE 
 
 He found his personal fame still very 
 great. He reappeared at Washington 
 in December, 1831, as Senator from 
 Kentucky and candidate for Congress 
 on a platform of antagonism to 
 "spoils," and favoring high tariff, river- 
 and-harbor bills, and United States 
 Bank. Clay's party was called the 
 National Republican. It met at Balti- 
 more and nominated him for President 
 by acclaim. But the debate on Bank 
 and high tariff went on in the Senate 
 where Clay had to compromise on the 
 tariff to please the South, thus madden- 
 ing the "tariff barons" of the Xorth, 
 and Jackson vetoed the recharter of the 
 Bank with the certainty that there were 
 more debtors than creditors, each with 
 a single vote. Clay was beaten before 
 he entered the race. 
 
 At seventy-four he was sent by 
 unanimous voice of his Legislature to 
 the United States Senate. Through the 
 great debate on the compromise of 1850 
 Clay grew in genuine statesmanship. 
 After he threw off the hope of the 
 Presidency he was truly an American 
 to boast of. When he arrived at Wash- 
 ington m December, 1851, he was too ill 
 to go to the Senate. He said, on 
 his bed of sharp distress, "Was there 
 ever man had such friends?" — for the 
 solicitude of the Nation was as aston- 
 ishing as it was gratifying. He died 
 on June 29, 1852, in the seventy-sixth 
 year of his age. 
 
 DANIEL WEBSTER. 
 
 I 782- I 852 
 
 The Expounder of the Constitution 
 
 Daniel Webster was born at Salis- 
 burg, N. H., January 17, 1782. As a 
 boy he was sickly, and could not speak 
 in school, lacking the confidence of an 
 orator. His people, by dint of affec- 
 tionate sacrifice, sent him to Dartmouth 
 College. After this he studied law in 
 the office of Christopher Gore at Bos- 
 ton, and was admitted to the bar of 
 Massachusetts in 1805. 
 
 He opened his first office at I'os- 
 cawen, near his early home, but soon 
 
 removed to Portsmouth. He married 
 Grace Fletcher, whom he devoutly 
 loved. His practice was gradually es- 
 tablished, and as a result of the orator- 
 ical talent which he displayed, he was 
 elected to Congress in 1813, as a Fed- 
 eralist, and lukewarm proponent of 
 the war with Great Britain. Yet he 
 aided Calhoun nobly. The almost se- 
 ditious Hartford Convention threw him 
 into obscurity, and he removed to 
 Boston. 
 
 There he entered, as a brilliant law- 
 yer, into a society of college-bred men, 
 who were earning large fees or har- 
 vesting ample profits as merchants. 
 
 The Massachusetts Constitutional 
 Convention met at Boston in November, 
 1820. All the learned magistrates and 
 advocates of the Commonwealth were 
 called upon to serve. Webster repre- 
 sented the interests of property and was 
 the advocate of the patrician classes, but 
 without narrowness. He came out of 
 the convention praised by all who had 
 property, office and standing, as a most 
 noble lawmaker. 
 
 On Friday, December 22, 1820, he 
 delivered the address on the landing of 
 thf Pilgrims, an effort which gave him 
 instantly a national fame as an orator. 
 
 Thereafter Daniel Webster, when he 
 spoke by appointment, was sure of "a 
 sea of upturned faces." 
 
 The pressure upon him to enter poli- 
 tical life grew stronger, and in 1823 he 
 again went to Congress from Boston. 
 He was a good supporter of the Admin- 
 istration in the House, and the leader 
 of that body while Clay was Secretary 
 of State. His elevation to the Senate 
 was regarded with misgivings by the 
 President, who dreaded his absence 
 from the popular branch of Congress. 
 He was to sit a quarter of a century in 
 the upper House, with only a slight in- 
 termission, when he should be Secretary 
 of State. 
 
 Mrs. Webster died at New York, 
 January 21, 1828, while on her way to 
 Washington to share her husband's new 
 honors. The blow fell on the great 
 orator with crushing force. He re- 
 turned to his duties as a surcease of 
 sorrow, and was in the mood that would 
 
BIOGRAPHY— DANIEL WEBSTER 
 
 387 
 
 easily bear the animadversions caused 
 b)' his support of the high tariff in 1828, 
 which made Calhoun rebel. When 
 Hayne opened his attack on New Eng- 
 land and Webster, the Senator vouch- 
 safed a fine reply, and when Hayne 
 answered that reply. Webster made his 
 immortal speech — "When my eyes shall 
 be turned to behold for the last time 
 the sun in heaven, may I not see him 
 shining on the broken and dishonored 
 fragments of a once glorious Union ; on 
 States dissevered, discordant, belliger- 
 ent ; on a land rent with civil feuds, or 
 drenched, it may be, in fraternal blood." 
 This glorious day was January 26, 1830. 
 It was then he cried: "Liberty and 
 L'nion, now and forever, one and in- 
 separable !" On that slogan Grant took 
 Buckner, Pemberton, Lee ; Sherman 
 marched from Chattanooga down and 
 up the Southern Confederacy. It is 
 justly called the summit of Daniel 
 Webster's fame. 
 
 Two years after the death of his wife 
 Webster married Catherine Bayard Le- 
 Roy, of New York. His loving brother 
 Ezekiel died. He seemed to part with 
 the past, and the remainder of his career 
 offers less delectable ground to his ad- 
 mirers. 
 
 When Andrew Jackson thought he 
 ought to move toward the hanging of 
 Calhoun, he asked Webster's aid, and 
 received it — a most happy circumstance 
 in Webster's life. For the rest he 
 fought Jackson all the way through, 
 meeting defeat at e\ery turn. Calhoun 
 came down out of the Senate's chair, 
 and began his seventeen-year duel with 
 Webster — Clay, Webster, Calhoun, such 
 v,as the order of their merit ; euphony 
 and human judgment have joined in the 
 verdict. 
 
 Mr. Webster made a short trip to 
 Europe in 1839. and was glad to speak 
 for Harrison in 1840, some of his ad- 
 dresses giving him broad opportunity to 
 dress the wounds Jackson had given 
 him and his doctrines. He accepted 
 the State Department under Harrison, 
 and was deep in the Ashburton treaty 
 when Harrison died and Tyler came in 
 as President. When Tyler killed the 
 
 r>ank. as Jackson would have done, all 
 his Whig Cabinet took leave save Daniel 
 Webster. Henry Clay's music was too 
 quick in step for him ; he stayed with 
 Tyler, and for other than Senatorial 
 and oratorical purposes was politically 
 as dead as Tyler. But he made an ad- 
 mirable Secretary of State, and his pro- 
 fessional sense informed him that his 
 country needed him at the post he held. 
 When his work was done, in Alay, 1843, 
 he resigned, which was fast enough to 
 meet his views of dignity and proper 
 procedure, retiring to his farm at 
 Marshfield, Massachusetts. He spoke 
 for Clay in the campaign which elected 
 Polk, practiced law, and was re-elected 
 L'nited States Senator to oppose Texan 
 annexation and war with Mexico, tak- 
 ing his seat in 1845. His career in the 
 Senate was to culminate with the "th- 
 of-March speech, which was to indorse 
 Henry Clay and becloud the setting of 
 his own sun. In the first place, the 
 Democrats, expanding on every side, 
 were crying "54 40 or fight." This 
 parallel on the Xorth American con- 
 tinent might have added to our gran- 
 aries more wheat than has so far been 
 raised in the world, outlandish as that 
 declaration may seem, but Webster was 
 for the forty-ninth parallel, which is 
 340 miles south. There is no other 
 potential wheat field so large as the one 
 we gave up by Daniel Webster's advice. 
 His action aroused a retaliatory investi- 
 gation of his financial accounts, which 
 were always in bad order, and friends 
 thereafter took his private business in 
 charge. He spoke bitterly against 
 Texas, with its new slave-holding Sena- 
 tors, saying that the annexation would 
 "turn the Constitution into a deform- 
 ity" ; and certainly a Northerner who 
 did not desire that the Union should 
 grow on the north did not wish to see 
 it spread on the south at the expense 
 of a sister Republic that had abolished 
 slavery. 
 
 In 1847 lie visited the Southern 
 States, which doubtless affected his 
 views on the race question. His son 
 was killed in the Mexican War, and 
 his daughter died in 1847. The son's 
 
388 
 
 THE HOME AUXILIARY AND REFERENCE 
 
 body arrived from Mexico only three 
 days after the daughter's funeral.* Me 
 then prepared at Marshfield a tomb for 
 himself and his family. Clay would 
 not support Taylor's candidacy for 
 President, and when the Achilles also 
 sulking at Alarshfield was allured from 
 his tent, he could give to Taylor only 
 such support as Hamilton once gave to 
 John Adams. 
 
 We next approach the "th of March, 
 1850 — that historical time when the 
 silvery-voiced Clay, easily first in any 
 circle of men that would gather where 
 he might be, came up to Washington, 
 a feeble-bodied statesman, and carried 
 the olive branch that no one else could 
 make acceptable to all. In the 7th-of- 
 March speech, Daniel Webster accepted 
 Clay's views. \\'hy was this action so 
 ignoble in Daniel Webster, if it were 
 patriotic in Clay ? It dimmed Webster's 
 great fame — why did it not tarnish 
 Clay's? 
 
 Probably the view of Webster is sec- 
 tional, while Clay is considered from a 
 broader field. Clay was a Southern 
 slaveholder, who had put his ear to the 
 ground and heard the anti-slavery swell. 
 Clay knew John Ouincy Adams, and 
 the slow but awful ruin he had wrought 
 in the House on slavery. 
 
 Millard I-'illmore, suddenly President, 
 called \\'ebster to be Secretary of State, 
 an office which was accepted July 23, 
 1850. December 21 he wrote to Hiilse- 
 mann, an Austrian diplomat represent- 
 ing his empire at Washington, a rebuke 
 for his impudence in holding that 
 America had no right to ascertain the 
 true extent of Kossuth's insurrection, 
 and Hiilsemann sailed away in wrath. 
 It was a good letter, sound in every 
 sense, but it has kept many a dollar's 
 worth of our goods out of Austria in 
 revenge. 
 
 In 1852 l\Ir. \Vebster was left unde- 
 ceived by his friends, and disputed with 
 his chief the honors of the Clay com- 
 promise, but Fillmore had 133 to Web- 
 ster's 29 ballots in the Whig National 
 Convention, and Scott beat Fillmore. 
 So deep was Daniel Webster's chagrin 
 
 that he advised electors to vote for 
 Pierce, which led politicians to believe 
 that the great orator had lost his head 
 altogether. 
 
 He was a sufferer from hay fever, 
 and his health was impaired. In May, 
 1852, at Marshfield, he was seriously 
 hurt in a runaway accident. In August 
 he was able to return to Washington, 
 but remained there only until the 8th 
 of September. He consulted a physi- 
 cian at Boston on the 20th. This was 
 the last time he was ever there. He 
 failed rapidly in his sick room at 
 Marshfield. On the evening of October 
 23, 1852, the aged and sleeping lion, 
 as if questioned or doubted, shook him- 
 self out of his lethargy, as of yore, and 
 cried: "I still live!" — his last words, 
 which have linked him in memory so 
 firmly to the minds of Americans. 
 
 JOHN C. CALHOUN. 
 
 1 782- 1 850. 
 
 The Arch-Prophet of Slavery. 
 
 The attention of the reader is here 
 invited to the consideration of a career 
 in which the personality of the states- 
 man entirely vanishes, and by that fact 
 alone we may see that we enter a field 
 of undiminishing intellectual interest. 
 The life of John C. Calhoun was itself 
 the Koran of Slavery ; it was a chapter 
 on logic. What is logic? It is a work- 
 ing theory of the truth. A meets B, 
 who convinces him ; A meets C, a logi- 
 cian superior to B, who unconvinces 
 him ; A meets D, a still better logician, 
 who reconvinces him — and so on, ad 
 infinitum. It is vital, in reading of 
 John C. Calhoun, to know that he was, 
 in his own opinion at least, the best 
 logician alive in his time, and that, be- 
 ginning with the generally accepted 
 premise of the Caucasian world, that 
 Labor and Capital were two things, he 
 wrought out what he regarded as a per- 
 fect theory showing ( i ) that slavery 
 was right and good, and (2) that Abo- 
 litionists were wicked and bad ; further- 
 more, slavery was a natural condition, 
 so that he who lamented the servitude 
 
BIOGRAPHY— JOHN C. CALHOUN 
 
 of the negro must also deplore the fact 
 that the dog could not speak, nor the 
 horse escape from his captivity. These 
 were Calhoun's views. No other states- 
 man of America, accepting his premise, 
 destroyed his conclusions. A poem or 
 rhyme has recently appeared, to startle 
 the world, describing "the white man's 
 burden," which is the rejuvenation of 
 the logic of John C. Calhoun. To 
 overcome the force raised up by the 
 prophecy and teachings of Calhoun re- 
 quired loo battles ; and the ideas of the 
 South Carolinian were then uprooted 
 previous to the making of an ideal basis 
 on which to logically account for the 
 actions of the white race. As a matter 
 of fact, slavery stood in the way of the 
 development of the Caucasian ; this was 
 instinctively conceived ; its abolition in 
 the New World by war was the sternest 
 and most radical proceeding history has 
 witnessed. 
 
 Inasmuch as there is but one aspect 
 to the life of Calhoun, we shall not go 
 far amiss in giving his chief utterance 
 at the beginning. It must be read care- 
 fully: "I hold that there never yet 
 has existed a wealthy and civilized 
 society in which one portion of the 
 community did not, in point of fact, 
 live on the other. I might well chal- 
 lenge a comparison between them (the 
 other methods of distribution) and the 
 more direct, simple and patriarchal 
 mode by which the labor of the African 
 race is, among us, commanded by the 
 European. I fearlessly assert that the 
 existing relation between the two races 
 in the South, against which these blind 
 fanatics are waging war, forms the 
 most solid and durable foundation on 
 which to rear free and stable institu- 
 tions. It is useless to disguise the fact. 
 There is, and always has been, in an 
 advanced stage of civilization, a con- 
 flict between Labor and Capital. The 
 condition of society in the South ex- 
 empts us from the disorders and dan- 
 gers resulting from this conflict ; and 
 explains why it is that the condition 
 of the slave-holding States has been 
 so much more stable and quiet than 
 that .of the North. The advantages of 
 the former in this respect will become 
 
 more and more manifest if left undis- 
 turbed by interference from without, 
 as the country advances in wealth and 
 numbers." 
 
 He was born of Irish Presbyterian 
 I^arents in the Calhoun settlement, 
 Abbeville District, S. C, March i8, 
 1782, a third son. His father died 
 when the son was a boy, and he lived 
 on the farm with his mother till he 
 was eighteen. His power to peer into 
 the nature of things was born with 
 him. At eighteen, his brother-in-law. 
 Dr. Waddell, a Presbyterian clergyman, 
 prepared him for Yale College, whence, 
 in 1804, he graduated with high honors. 
 He then attended the Litchfield Law 
 School, and was a lawyer in 1807, prac- 
 ticing at Abbeville, S. C. English out- 
 rages on the high seas were frequent. 
 He drew up fiery resolutions, supported 
 them with a speech, and was elected to 
 the Legislature. In 181 1 he was sent 
 to Congress, and for the rest of his 
 life was rarely out of the public service. 
 He married Floride Calhoun and re- 
 moved to Bath, on the Savannah River. 
 His wife brought him a small fortune. 
 Under the customs of his region, he 
 was fitted for continuous congressional 
 life. He was for war, and Henry Clay, 
 the Speaker, appointed him (in efifect) 
 Cliairman of Foreign Relations. He 
 thus made an entry as remarkable as 
 Clay's. December 12th he delivered 
 his first speech. He was never guilty 
 of the hectoring or bullying tone at- 
 tributed to Southern leaders ; rather, 
 lie served as the caisson from wliich 
 the hectors and bullies obtained all their 
 ammunition, save their boasts. His 
 New England education at this time 
 was reflected in his views, which were 
 essentially those of Clay as to internal 
 improvements and Bank. These were 
 changed afterward. 
 
 President Monroe made Calhoun 
 Secretary of War, and he was praised 
 foi- his efficiency in the department. 
 
 He was easily elected Vice-President 
 of the United States, while there was 
 no election between Jackson and 
 Adams, for President. Calhoun fav- 
 ored Jackson's election as President in 
 the House, and was a bitter opponent 
 
THE HOME AUXILIARY AND REFERENCE 
 
 of Adams, whose final election he 
 scouted as counterfeit. In 1828 the 
 Vice-President was re-elected with 
 Jackson as President. All this time 
 slavery had been on Calhoun's mind. 
 
 When Andrew Jackson denied to 
 Calhoun a further national career, all 
 personal matters went out of the South 
 Carolinian's mind. He became a pro- 
 slavery fanatic, as powerful in convic- 
 tion as John Brown on the other side. 
 Calhoun believed reason directed him ; 
 John Brown believed God sent him. 
 Such are the men whom the ages 
 respect. 
 
 Calhoun declared that "so far from 
 the Constitution being the work of the 
 American people collectively, no such 
 political body, either now or ever, did 
 exist." Nullification went forward in 
 South Carolina. As soon as the con- 
 vention passed the ordinance of Nullifi- 
 cation, which was to apply P'ebruary 
 I, 1833, Calhoun resigned the vice- 
 presidency, in order to take the sena- 
 torial seat vacated by Hayne, who be- 
 came Governor of South Carolina. He 
 was now at the head of a South Caro- 
 lina party. 
 
 There is little interest attaching to 
 Calhoun's career outside of slavery. 
 Briefly, he wanted more State's rights ; 
 retrenchment and economy; he thought 
 Money-and-State worse than Church- 
 and-State, and therefore was against 
 the Bank; free trade; no bond-selling; 
 no "spoils." It was not this part of 
 his career that brought on the Civil 
 War. 
 
 December 27, 1837, Calhoun, in the 
 Senate, offered his resolutions begin- 
 ning, that the Union was purely a con- 
 federation of sovereign States ; that the 
 intermeddling of States, or of "a com- 
 bination of their citizens with the 
 domestic institutions or policy of the 
 others, on any ground, or under any 
 pretext whatever, political, moral or 
 religious, with a view to their altera- 
 tion or subversion," was unconstitu- 
 tional. 
 
 England was beginning to cast reflec- 
 tions on our "free institutions." She 
 was setting our slaves at liberty when 
 she could. 
 
 When the United States and England 
 joined to prevent the African slave 
 trade, Calhoun, in voting for the treaty, 
 swallowed a bitter dose, because he 
 thought it reflected on his moral nature. 
 
 Nullification was forgotten, and 
 South Carolina nominated Calhoun for 
 President in the campaign of 1844. He 
 resigned his seat in the Senate to be 
 ready, if called, but he was not called. 
 A Southern man was chosen in Polk, 
 but the country would not support a 
 Senator who, like Calhoun, put the 
 Union second in all his calculations. 
 
 When Polk became President there 
 was no South Carolinian who would sit 
 in the United States Senate while his 
 Prophet had no seat, and Calhoun, 
 ecjually loyal to the situation, accepted 
 the seat which his fellow citizens had 
 resigned. Without Calhoun, it seems, 
 we should not have had Texas or Cali- 
 fornia. 
 
 North of Louisiana was Oregon; 
 where did Oregon begin and end? It 
 was Calhoun's advice that we should 
 maintain "a wise and masterly inac- 
 tivity" — let our country grow up till 
 we could push out the British. This 
 "masterly inactivity'' was the prod with 
 which many of the commanding Gen- 
 erals were afterward harassed by edi- 
 tors in the Civil War. Calhoun had no 
 desire to obtain more free territory. 
 He was in an odd position during the 
 Mexican war; he had stirred it up; 
 he, with grief, saw it entered on, be- 
 cause he had secured all he wished, in 
 Texas ; the rest of the Mexican booty 
 would ruin his cause. 
 
 As the territories which had been 
 pillaged from Mexico began to show 
 free-State proclivities, Calhoun, in De- 
 cember, 1848, held a Slave caucus of 
 sixty-nine Southern Senators and Rep- 
 resentatives in the Senate Chamber. 
 From this caucus issued an "Address 
 of the Southern Delegates in Congress 
 to their Constituents." With that, 
 Calhoun's work was done. He had 
 erected a Solid South. Yet so few 
 (forty) signed the address that Cal- 
 houn was sorely distressed. 
 
 Calhoun was dying. He entered the 
 Senate, leaning on friendly arms. His 
 
BIOGRAPHY— ABRAHAM LINCOLN 
 
 391 
 
 speech of Alarch 4, 1850, was read by 
 Mr. J\Iason. 
 
 He died March 31, 1850. One of 
 his last speeches was in these words, 
 uttered feebly : "The South ! The poor 
 South ! God knows what will become 
 of her!" 
 
 ABRAHAM LIXXOLN. 
 
 1809-1865. 
 The Gre.\t Liberator. 
 
 He was born February 12, 1809, in 
 Hardin County, Ky. He had lived in 
 log cabins on the Ohio River. His 
 mother had died when he was eight ; 
 his father married Sally Bush, toward 
 whom, as step-mother, Lincoln nurtured 
 the warmest love until he died. At 
 nineteen he went on a flat-boat to New 
 Orleans. On his return, in 1830, he 
 split the timber for a rail fence around 
 ten acres of ground, and built a log 
 cabin, in Macon County. 111. Soon 
 after, he built the flat-boat, as above, 
 floated it down the Sangamon, the 
 Illinois and the Mississippi to New Or- 
 leans. He then returned and served 
 as clerk in a country store at New 
 Salem, 111. In 1832 he was a captain 
 in the Blackhawk war, and became 
 •celebrated in the frontier army as a 
 strong man and the best story-teller 
 anybody had ever heard. He read the 
 Lives of Washington, of Franklin and 
 of Clay. He was postmaster at New 
 Salem, and learned to survey land with 
 instruments. At last, he studied law 
 and was elected to the Legislature (at 
 Vandalia) as early as 1834, serving 
 until the end of the session beginning 
 in 1840, and declining further election. 
 He tried to read Shakespeare thor- 
 oughly, but the deep interest he took 
 in living people made mimic life seem 
 trivial to him. In the year 1835 oc- 
 curred the tragedy that changed the 
 most joyous to the saddest of men. 
 He fell in love with Anne Rutledge, 
 a beautiful young woman, who accepted 
 him, after a painful chapter of love 
 with another man. In her troubles she 
 fell ill, and called constantly for Lin- 
 
 coln. He reached her before she died, 
 and her death shocked him so that it 
 was believed his reason would be un- 
 steady. A noble friend, Bowlin Greene, 
 took Lincoln to his cabin, and brought 
 him back to a sense of duty and man- 
 hood, after weeks of careful nursing. 
 When Greene died, in 1842, Lincoln 
 spoke at his funeral in the Masonic 
 lodge: "His voice was choked with 
 deep emotion ; he stood a few moments 
 while his lips quivered in the effort to 
 form the words of fervent praise he 
 sought to utter, and the tears ran down 
 his yellow and shriveled cheeks. Every 
 heart was hushed at the spectacle. 
 After repeated eft'orts he found it im- 
 possible to speak, and strode away, bit- 
 terly sobbing, to the widow's carriage 
 and was driven from the scene." It 
 was at this time he learned the piece 
 which the people call "Lincoln's poem" 
 — "O why should the spirit of mortal 
 be proud?" The Legislature removed 
 to Springfield, and Lincoln went into 
 legal partnership with John T. Stuart. 
 The Lincoln and Douglas leadership 
 began in the Legislature of 1836, when 
 both statesmen were young. The 
 rivalry passed over the metes and 
 bounds of politics and entered the realm 
 of lo\'e. for when Lincoln again fell 
 under the charms of a beautiful 
 woman — this time Mary Todd, whom 
 he married — Douglas carried on a strik- 
 ing flirtation with the same lady, and 
 was with difficulty persuaded to leave 
 the field to Lincoln. On this, Lincoln 
 attempted to recede, but failed. The 
 wedding was fixed, the mansion was 
 lit, the feast was spread, the guests 
 assembled, but the groom came not. 
 The feast was left untouched, the 
 guests departed, the house was dark- 
 ened. Lincoln was again in the hands 
 of his friends, who feared his gather- 
 ing humiliation would make life in- 
 tolerable. Strange as it may seem, the 
 haughty belle and the eccentric lover 
 were brought together afterward, and 
 were married November 4, 1842. A 
 legal partnership was formed with 
 Stephen T. Logan, and, soon after, a 
 final one with William H. Herndon, 
 Lincoln's principal biographer, whose 
 
THE HOME AUXH^IARY AND REFERENCE 
 
 attitude toward Airs. Lincoln must be 
 carefully considered, because his unre- 
 lenting hostility may have grown out 
 of a mutual antipathy strengthened by 
 business relations, and aggravated by 
 a partner's playful children. There 
 can be no doubt that Mrs. Lincoln 
 loved Abraham Lincoln, and made him 
 a faithful wife. His tragic death, when 
 she sat by his side, beclouded her re- 
 maining years. In 1846 Lincoln was 
 elected to Congress over the celebrated 
 Peter Cartwright, but failed to satisfy 
 his constituents, as he opposed the 
 Mexican war too emphatically after it 
 was well begun. Doubtless this very 
 experience fitted him to be patient with 
 Butternuts and Copperheads afterward 
 in the deep gloom in 1862-3. He did 
 not seek re-election because he could 
 not have succeeded, and he would have 
 accepted a moderately good Federal 
 office had it been within his reach. Me 
 made one or two speeches in Congress, 
 but caused only a small ripple in the 
 wide stream of politics at the capital, 
 and it is the only chapter in his public 
 life where he did not rise far above 
 mediocrity. 
 
 We are therefore briefly introduced 
 to the Hon. Abraham Lincoln, of the 
 firm of Lincoln & Herndon, lawyers, 
 at Springfield. The astonishing fecun- 
 dity of the story-teller, as remembered 
 in earlier days, was not so noticeable 
 in Mr. Lincoln now, and, instead, 
 periods of the deepest melancholy set- 
 tled over him at unforseen moments. 
 The testimony is without contradic- 
 tion, that the famous entertainer, 
 weaned from pleasant scenes or com- 
 pany, would at once fall into an abyss 
 of sadness very trying to the nerves 
 of those who loved him. But so vast 
 was his power to suffer that he never 
 conveyed to another soul the precise 
 character of the thoughts that were 
 afflicting him. 
 
 United with marked eccentricity and 
 deep occasional melancholia, was the 
 fact that Abraham Lincoln was usually 
 accounted the homliest man one would 
 ever see. He told this story himself : 
 "One day a stranger accosted me on 
 the cars : 'Excuse me, sir, but I have 
 
 an article that belongs to you.' 'How 
 is that?' The stranger took a jack- 
 knife from his pocket. 'This,' said he, 
 'was given to me several years ago to 
 give to the first man I should meet 
 who might be considered homlier than 
 myself. From this on, the knife is 
 yours.' " It will be well to give Hern- 
 don's careful description of Lincoln 
 when he was President-elect: "Mr. 
 Lincoln was six feet four inches high, 
 fifty-one years old, having good health 
 and no grays hairs, or but few, on his 
 head. He was thin, wiry, sinewy, raw- 
 boned ; thin through the breast to the 
 back, and narrow across the shoulders ; 
 standing, he leaned forward — was what 
 may be called stoop-shouldered, inclined 
 to the consumptive by build. His usual 
 weight was 180 pounds. His organi- 
 zation — rather, his structure and fimc- 
 tions — worked slowly. His blood had 
 to run a long distance from his heart 
 to the extremities of his frame, and 
 his nerve force had to travel through 
 dry ground a long distance before his 
 muscles were obedient to his will. His 
 structure was loose and leathery; his 
 body was shrunk and shriveled ; he had 
 dark skin, dark hair, and looked woe- 
 struck. The whole man, body and 
 mind, worked slowly, as if it needed 
 oiling. Physically, he was a very 
 powerful man, lifting with ease 400' 
 and in one case 600 pounds. His mind 
 was like his body, and worked slowly 
 but strongly. Hence, there was but 
 little bodily or mental wear and tear 
 in him. When he walked, he moved 
 cautiously but firmly ; his long arms 
 and giant hands swung down by his 
 side. He walked with inner tread, the 
 inner sides of his feet being parallel. 
 He put the whole foot flat down on 
 the ground at once, not landing on the 
 heel : he likewise lifted his foot all at 
 once, not rising from the toe, and hence 
 he had no spring to his walk. In sit- 
 ting down on a common chair he was 
 no taller than ordinary men. His legs 
 and arms were abnormally, imnaturally 
 long. It was only when he stood up 
 that he loomed above other men. His 
 head was long, and tall from the base 
 of the brain and from the eyebrows. 
 
BIOGRAPHY— ABRAHAM LINCOLN 
 
 His head ran backward, his forehead 
 rising as it ran back at a long angle, 
 like Clay's. The size of his hat, meas- 
 ured at the hatter's block, was 7 1-8, 
 his head being from ear to ear 6 1-2, 
 and from the front to the back of the 
 brain 8. Thus measured, it was not 
 below the medium size. His forehead 
 was narrow but high ; his hair was 
 dark, almost black, and lay floating 
 when his fingers or the winds lifted it, 
 piled up at random. His cheek bones 
 were high, sharp and prominent ; his 
 jaws were long and up-curved ; his nose 
 was large, long, blunt, and a little awry 
 toward the left eye ; his chin was sharp 
 and up-curved ; his eyebrows cropped 
 out like a hugh rock on the brow of 
 a hill ; his long, sallow face was 
 wrinkled and dry, with a hair here 
 and there on the surface ; his cheeks 
 were leathery ; his ears were large, and 
 ran out almost at right angles from 
 his head, caused partly by heavy hats 
 and partly by nature ; his lower lip was 
 thick, hanging and under-curved, while 
 his chin, up-curved, reached for the lip; 
 his neck was neat and trim, his head 
 being well balanced on it ; there was a 
 lone mole on the right cheek, and 
 Adam's apple on his throat. Thus,'" 
 concludes Herndon, "walked, acted and 
 looked Abraham Lincoln. He was not 
 a pretty man, nor was he an ugly one ; 
 he was a homely man, careless of his 
 looks, plain-looking and plain-acting. 
 He had no pomp, display or dignity, so- 
 called. He was a sad-looking man ; his 
 melancholy dripped from him as he 
 walked." 
 
 What was there, then, in 1850-2, 
 when Clay, Webster and Calhoun had 
 made their compromise and descended 
 into their graves that should cause 
 gigantic events to center around Mr. 
 Lincoln, of the firm of Lincoln & Hern- 
 don, a man for whom his intimate 
 friends were infinitely compassionate? 
 It was, plainly, the fact that he was 
 the most interesting man whom the 
 common people had met ; they told each 
 other so, and it spread over the North. 
 The man was as natural as a new-born 
 babe. At a pathetic passage in a 
 woman's speech at Springfield, Abra- 
 
 ham Lincoln, in tiie middle of the audi- 
 ence, burst into a hoarse laugh, and 
 was frightened to think the audience 
 did not all laugh ; nobody could guess 
 why he had done this ; nobody could 
 tell what he would do ne.xt ; but the 
 masses came toward him as if he were 
 father, brother, companion, fellow- 
 blunderer. His very humiliations in- 
 creased his hold on the hearts of the 
 lowly. But, again, why did the people 
 single him? Because, first, of his bat- 
 tery of outpouring humanity-rays; be- 
 cause of his deep love of the race, and 
 all its individuals. "God," said he, 
 "must have liked common people or He 
 wouldn't have made so many of them." 
 Yet his wit was keen, too. A .windy 
 orator closed his oration. "That young 
 chap reminds me of a steamer 1 once 
 saw on the Ohio River. It had an 
 eight-foot boiler and a twelve-foot 
 vi^histle, and every time the whistle 
 blew, the boat stopped." "These peo- 
 ple who argue State sovereignty," he 
 said, "remind me of the fellow who 
 contended that the proper place for the 
 big kettle was inside the little one." 
 Lincoln's client had been attacked, and 
 had acted in self-defense. "My client 
 was like the man with the pitchfork 
 on his shoulder; out came a fierce dog 
 from the farmyard. In parrying off 
 the brute with the fork, its prongs 
 stuck into the dog and killed it. "What 
 made you kill my dog?' cried the 
 farmer. 'What made him bite me?' 
 'But why did you not go at him with 
 the other end of the pitchfork?' 'Why 
 didn't he come at me with his other 
 end?'" With this, Lincoln whirled an 
 imaginary dog in his hands, on the floor, 
 and pushed it tail first at the jury, who 
 gave him the verdict with uproarious 
 merriment. A commercial agency re- 
 quested a report on the financial stand- 
 ing of a neighbor of Lincoln's, and 
 Lincoln replied : "I am well acquainted 
 with Mr. A and know his circum- 
 stances. First of all, he has a wife 
 and baby ; together they ought to be 
 worth $50,000 to any man. Secondly, 
 he has an office in which there is a 
 table worth $1.50 and three chairs 
 worth, say, $1. Last of all, there is, in 
 
THE HOME AUXILIARY AND REEERENCE 
 
 one corner, a large rat-hole, which is 
 worth looking into." If Lincoln were 
 in talking mood, men could not atTord 
 to miss what he said, neither could 
 anybody repress Lincoln's desire to 
 talk. It is averred that Lincoln's best 
 friend of all was Judge David Davis. 
 In court Lincoln was telling yarns, and 
 Judge Davis cried out: "Come. come. 
 Air. Lincoln, I can't stand this! There 
 is no use to carry on two courts at the 
 same time. I must adjourn mine or 
 yours, and I think yours will have to 
 be the one." This brought things to 
 rights at once. "What was that Lin- 
 coln was telling?" anxiously asked the 
 Judge, as soon as court was out for 
 dinner. 
 
 Nor was he all fun, as impertinent 
 people were sure to learn. A woman 
 wrote asking for a "sentiment" and 
 his autograph. He replied : "Dear 
 JMadam : When you ask a stranger for 
 that which is of interest only to your- 
 self, always inclose a stamp; there's 
 your sentiment ; and here's your auto- 
 graph. A. Lincoln." 
 
 Neither was it his wit nor his keen 
 defense that attracted men. The 
 photographer. Ilesler, of Chicago, testi- 
 fied : "I wondered who on earth could 
 want a picture of such a singularly 
 homely man, but before the sitting was 
 over I was charmed by his wit, so 
 fascinated by his genial humor, and 
 the noble personality of the man, that 
 I forgot his physical peculiarities. 
 Long before I was aw-are of his identity 
 I knew^ that he was great and good, 
 with a soul as sweet and pure as a 
 child's." Horace Greeley said : "I 
 doubt whether man, woman or child, 
 white or black, bound or free, virtuous 
 or vicious, ever accosted or reached 
 forth a hand to Abraham Lincoln and 
 detected in his coimtenance and man- 
 ner any repugnance or shrinking from 
 the proper contact, any assumption of 
 superiority or betrayal of disdain." 
 Frederick Douglass, the orator of bis 
 race, testified: "Mr. Lincoln is the only 
 white man with whom I have ever 
 talked, or in whose presence I have 
 ever been, who did not consciously or 
 unconsciously betray to me that he 
 
 recognized my color." .\nd it is not at 
 all certain that he did note the color 
 of the man, if the affair were between 
 only the twain. 
 
 It is not necessary to believe that one 
 after whom all common people fol- 
 lowed, or rather one with whom all 
 common people went alongside, was at 
 all oblivious of his power. He said 
 the best natural politican he ever met 
 was an Illinois Democrat, whose po- 
 litical creed was: "Find out what Abe 
 Lincoln wants you to do, and don't do 
 it!" 
 
 To these qualities in Lincoln was 
 added the great gift of poetrv. He 
 spoke in figures, and thev were tropes 
 that, while they might shock the polite, 
 never failed to illustrate and ornament 
 what he w-as saying to the humble. 
 His letter to James S. Conkling, to 
 be quoted anon, offers a fine example 
 of his happy expression, in simple and 
 homely political terms, of sentiments 
 that only a hero could hold so stead- 
 fastly as they were held by Abraham 
 Lincoln. It is to be deduced from what 
 has been narrated, that, first, the people, 
 gathered in a village post office, then 
 a county, then a valley, then a State, 
 would expect to see Lincoln promi- 
 nent in the nation. When it became 
 a matter of State pride, the presidency 
 was none too good for him. He made 
 no personal impression on the country 
 at large until his name was at the front 
 among presidential candidates of the 
 new Republican (not yet Anti-Slavery) 
 party. 
 
 He was probably best fitted to be 
 President of the common people of all 
 the statesmen who have held the office. 
 He studied the elements of the popula- 
 tion with imremitting delight. A new 
 face was a new friend to set laughing — 
 to impress with the superiority of the 
 story-teller — for here was a man who 
 could not hide his greatness of soul 
 under either an exterior uncouth or a 
 striking familiarity of speech. Major 
 G. M. McConnel narrates how, as a 
 boy. his father sent him to ask Mr. 
 Lincoln, the law-yer, the particulars of 
 a case in court. The lad met Mr. Lin- 
 coln on the street. The tall man sat 
 
BIOGRAPHY— ABRAHAM LINCOLN 
 
 395 
 
 down on the curb, put his silk hat be- 
 tween his knees, and, out of a mis- 
 cellaneous collection of documents, 
 found the particular case. Then he 
 talked to the lad so fraternally about 
 it that young McConnel carried away 
 an idea as perfect as if it had been an 
 account of a fishing expedition. For 
 the nonce, Lincoln was a lad, too, ex- 
 plaining the case in a lad's language, 
 with all the fraternity of youth. Thus, 
 it is sometimes avowed that Abraham 
 Lincoln seemed essentially different to 
 every man he met. This judgment 
 must be restricted to common people. 
 Toward those who entertained aristo- 
 cratic ideas, he was cold and enigmat- 
 ical. His son Robert was going to a 
 banquet given to Professor Longfellow, 
 the poet, by many eminent scholars. 
 "Go, my son, but if you are able to 
 maintain a respectable conversation 
 with those distinguished gentlemen, 
 you'll do more than your father was 
 ever able to accomplish." 
 
 As the fame spread of this approach- 
 able and unapproachable man, this sim- 
 ple and profound mind, there was no 
 lack of self-appointed political mana- 
 gers and stablemen, to caparison the 
 steed and watch over the presidential 
 provender. The secret sagacity of the 
 man ; his utter inability to ask for 
 favors, to lean for advice on "wise 
 men," was a maddening phenomenon 
 to a host of politicians. "Lincoln had 
 the people" ; now how to minify and 
 belittle Lincoln as to fit him into a 
 smaller office and let a figurehead go 
 in front ? That was the problem of the 
 scholarly Senators, and they could not 
 solve it, because Lincoln was great 
 enough to desire the chief office for 
 himself. When Lincoln canvassed the 
 State with Douglas, in joint debate, he 
 took grounds that would defeat him 
 (Lincoln) for the Senatorship in the 
 conservative Legislature of Illinois, in 
 order to make Douglas assume counter 
 positions that would defeat him for the 
 presidency two years later. Lincoln 
 was as quick politically as Henry Clay, 
 and was on the right side of Ma.son 
 and Dixon's line. 
 
 When the senatorial ca!n])aign was 
 
 over and Douglas was elected, he was 
 called into (Jhio, and thither Lincoln 
 followed in the autumn of 1859. At 
 the moment of the John Brown raid, 
 Lincoln was in Kansas. He became, 
 with events, hardly more radical in his 
 tttterances, and it was readily believed 
 that he had sacrified his political in- 
 terests in his slowness to exhibit a 
 strong repugnance to slavery in the 
 South. 
 
 Early in i860, at the State House in 
 .S])ringfield, 111., a meeting of Hatch, 
 Judd, J'eck, Grimshaw and others 
 modestly launched the presidential can- 
 didacy of Abraham Lincoln — Seward, 
 however, being looked on as the chief 
 aspirant for party honors. In October, 
 1859, Lincoln had been invited to speak 
 at Cooper Institute, New York City, 
 the action being an unsolicited friendly 
 move by Bryant, the poet, and others. 
 The address was made to an over- 
 flowing house in February, i860. Lin- 
 coln appeared there as rustic as the 
 early Patrick Henry. The audience 
 was agog to hear the witty stories he 
 was now famous for telling, but he, 
 warned by the Senators and political 
 magnates, kept close to his arguments, 
 which made a deep impression. His 
 speech here and other addresses in New 
 England, where he got near to the peo- 
 ple in his own inimitable way, made 
 tremendous political hits, and when he 
 returned to Springfield it could not be 
 concealed from Mr. Seward's friends 
 that Seward was to be opposed by a 
 powerful rival. On May 9 and 10 the 
 Illinois State Convention met at De- 
 catur. To that convention John Hanks, 
 a cousin, brought two of the fence rails 
 that Lincoln had split in 1830, and as 
 America, from the Alleghenies west- 
 ward, was still a primeval settlement, 
 the idea of "Lincoln, the Rail-Splitter," 
 awakened the frantic enthusiasm of the 
 pioneers. But the time was short, and 
 it looked as if Lincoln's candiriacy were 
 too young — he must wait. There were 
 not enough Lincoln States in the East. 
 The National Convention met a week- 
 later. May 16, i860, at Chicago, in a 
 wigwam, built puriJosely large, where 
 local talent could delegate itself to 
 
396 
 
 THE HOIME AUXILIARY AND REFEREXCE 
 
 create an atmosphere favorable to Lin- 
 coln's interests. David Davis opened 
 "Lincoln headquarters" at the Tremont 
 House. The wigwam was a little over 
 four blocks west of the Tremont House, 
 where Lake Street turned obliquely into 
 Market Street — a "broken corner." 
 Mr. Lincoln, still of the firm of Lin- 
 coln & Herndon, was at home in 
 Springfield. It is usually understood 
 that David Davis made voting arrange- 
 ments with Simon Cameron, of Penn- 
 sylvania, but the candidate was not wil- 
 ling to be bound by contract— not if it 
 cost the nomination, such was his 
 astonishingly cautious, secretive policy. 
 He approved Seward's idea of an "ir- 
 repressible conflict," but refused to 
 indorse his "higher law" — that is, Se- 
 ward was too radical. Thus, while it 
 .would have been the easy part of the 
 demagogue to go out beyond Seward, 
 Lincoln, at a moment when it was 
 deemed fatal to him, took the stand 
 that nominated him. He was consid- 
 ered a safer man — a little nearer the 
 South — born in Kentucky — a Missis- 
 sii)pi flatboatman — a rail splitter. The 
 people, too, must fight ; let them choose 
 their leader, and so far as mere popu- 
 larity seemed to go in Chicago, of 
 course Lincoln overtopped all other 
 candidates put together. Mr. Seward 
 did not arrive with enough votes to 
 nominate him, and when his political 
 machinery broke down he had no re- 
 maining resource. Lincoln was chosen 
 on the third ballot (Alay i8), and the 
 whole West was wildly delighted ; the 
 elder East was gravely pleased to see 
 its children so happy. Mr. Lincoln was 
 not nationally known. At Springfield 
 Lincoln was in the public square, toss- 
 ing town ball. He took the message 
 announcing his nomination, and said : 
 "I guess I will tell a little woman down 
 the street the news." The Republican 
 platform was in these words : "That 
 the new dogma, that the Constitution 
 carries slavery into all the territories, 
 is a dangerous political heresy, revolu- 
 tionary in tendency, and subversive of 
 the peace and harmony of the country." 
 Lincoln himself had gone a little fur- 
 ther: "That the spread of slavery 
 
 should be arrested, and it should be 
 placed where the public mind shall rest 
 in the belief of its ultimate extinction." 
 The Abolitionists, forced to accept the 
 sop offered in the platform, had joined 
 the Republican party, and formed its 
 extreme left, with Lincoln next to them, 
 but no one knew how sternly he con- 
 sidered himself as yet not one of that 
 extreme left. He saw the people were 
 for L'nion ; he knew that attitude meant 
 eventually Abolition ; so he saw no 
 necessity of taking a stand out ahead 
 of the people; if the Union could be 
 saved with slave States and free terri- 
 tories and free new States, he was 
 willing to save it that way. The East- 
 ern people soon grew cool. Mr. Weed, 
 who had so often defeated Henry Clay, 
 desired to be visited, but Lincoln held 
 aloof ; when David Davis went East it 
 was with a most slow consent on Lin- 
 coln's part. Lincoln did not like to 
 act. and he was stubborn to lead. He 
 was usually right in his apprehensions 
 of future events. As soon as the East- 
 ern men saw he was not worrying, they 
 themselves bestirred. When they came 
 to Springfield, making loud reproaches, 
 but offering no good suggestions, he 
 told them the story of the man who 
 was traveling on horseback in a wild 
 region, during a thunderstorm. "The 
 peals of thunder," said Lincoln, "were 
 frightful. One bolt, which seemed to 
 crash the earth beneath him, brought 
 him to his knees. Not being a praying 
 man, his petition was short and to the 
 point. He said: "O Lord, if it is all 
 the same to you, give us a little more 
 light and a little less noise!" 
 
 In those days three large States held 
 their local elections in October, while 
 the presidential election in those States 
 was a special polling of the voters in 
 November. When Pennsylvania, Ohio 
 and Indiana went Republican at their 
 State elections in October, i860, it 
 could be seen that Lincoln would win. 
 P.oth Indiana and Pennsylvania had 
 gone against the Republicans in 1856. 
 Though he was encouraged, it is likely 
 he knew the conspiracy of the Southern 
 leaders began from that very day. 
 Floyd, of \'irginia, who had received 
 
BIOGRAPHY— ABRAHAM LIXCOLN 
 
 the Xullifiers' votes for President, years 
 before, was Secretary of War, and im- 
 mediately lent his department to the 
 service of the plot. 
 
 From the moment Lincoln's candi- 
 dacy assumed the importance of a prob- 
 able election, his gloomy forebodings 
 of personal ill increased. All but three 
 of Springfield clergy opposed his elec- 
 tion, and this gave him deep affliction, 
 for he thought the profession of the 
 ministry ought of itself to impel a 
 minister to support the cause of free- 
 dom ; and such exhibitions of political 
 feeling shocked his innate respect for 
 religion. In the Xorth the campaign 
 was between Lincoln and Douglas — 
 the Rail-Splitter and the "Little 
 Giant." In the South it was every- 
 where averred that Lincoln was not a 
 human being at all — that he was an 
 anthropoid ape. In the election on 
 Xovember 6, i860, he received a plu- 
 rality of nearly 600,000 votes, and, in 
 the Electoral College, he had a ma- 
 jority over all as follows: Lincoln, 180: 
 Breckenbridge, ~2\ Bell, 39: Douglas, 
 12. Douglas carried but one State — 
 Missouri. Lincoln carried seventeen en- 
 tire States. Lincoln was constitutionally 
 and popularily the President, having 
 received \ery nearly as many votes as 
 any two of the other three candidates. 
 
 After some persuasion, Mr. Lincoln, 
 President-elect, invited Thurlow W'eed 
 to visit Springfield, and that celebrated 
 "boss" of Xew York politics arrived, 
 as was understood, in the interest of 
 Mr. Seward. John Brown's expedition 
 had suddenly precipitated the entire 
 slavery question, and his execution was 
 regarded not only as a martyrdom, but 
 a challenge. It was seen in the East 
 that all depended on "the unknown 
 Rail-Splitter who had told stories." 
 Letters poured in on Herndon, asking 
 what manner of man this Lincoln was. 
 December 21, i860, Herndon wrote, 
 summarizing eighteen years of knowl- 
 edge of Lincoln : "Lincoln is a man of 
 heart — aye, as gentle as a woman, and 
 as tender — but he has a will strong as 
 iron. He therefore loves all mankind, 
 hates slavery and every form of despo- 
 tism. Put these together — love for the 
 
 slave, and a determination, a will, that 
 ju.stice, strong and unyielding, shall be 
 done when he has a right to act, and 
 you can form your own conclusion. 
 Lincoln will fail here, namely, if a 
 question of political economy — if any 
 question comes up which is doubtful, 
 questionable, which no man can demon- 
 strate, then his friends can rule him ; 
 but when on justice, right, liberty, the 
 Government, the Constitution and the 
 L'nion, then you may all stand aside. 
 He will rule then, and no man can rule 
 him — no set of men can do it. There 
 is no fail here. This is Lincoln, and 
 you mark my prediction." 
 
 Late in January. 1861, Mr. Lincoln 
 wrote his inaugural address. He asked 
 Herndon for Henry Clay's great speech 
 of 1850, Andrew Jackson's proclama- 
 tion against Xullification, and a copy 
 of the Constitution. He locked himself 
 in an empty room over a store, and, 
 under those untoward circumstances, 
 prepared a paper which is treasured 
 among the noblest utterances of the 
 Fathers of the Xation. 
 
 In the first week of Febuary, 1861, 
 he visited his aged stepmother at 
 Farmington, and went to the grave of 
 his father, Thomas Lincoln. He was 
 deeply impressed with the idea that it 
 would be his last opportunity to see the 
 persons and things he loved. He was 
 a prophet. The causes that led to his 
 death were blind and slow in acting — 
 he was a keen judge of cause and 
 effect ; he himself knew his value and 
 power as an opponent to slavery. In 
 the last weeks of his stay at Spring- 
 field nearly all his old friends of the 
 settlements came in to bid him good-by 
 — a touching testimony, which nerved 
 him to the task before him, for now 
 the Southern Confederacy was well 
 under way. At last he stood on the 
 car platfomi, at the little railroad sta- 
 tion: "Friends," he said, "no one who 
 has never been placed in a like position 
 can understand my feelings at this hour, 
 nor the oppressive sadness I feel at 
 this parting. I go to assume a task 
 more difficult than that which devolved 
 upon \\\ishington. Unless the great 
 God who assisted him shall be with and 
 
398 
 
 THE HOME AUXILL\RY AND REFERENCE 
 
 aid me, I must fail; but if the same 
 omniscent mind and almighty arm that 
 directed and protected him shall guide 
 and support me, I shall not fail, I shall 
 succeed." Lincoln had now become 
 and remained a devout Deist. His 
 burden had grown heavier than he 
 could bear, and he appeared to have 
 looked trustfully to Heaven for guid- 
 ance. As battle after battle of our 
 Civil War piled up in American history 
 afterward, and the bloody business 
 grew familiar alike to men of peace 
 and war, this marked public religious 
 attitude of the pilot of the ship of state 
 was a never-failing source of satisfac- 
 tion to the devout in the North. His 
 route to Washington was planned to 
 evoke patriotic feeling on the way. 
 Allan Pinkerton, a detective, of Chi- 
 cago, discovered a plot of assassination 
 at Baltimore, and his tomb at Grace- 
 land Cemetery, Chicago, commemorates 
 his services to the Emancipator at this 
 time as the chief of Pinkerton's works. 
 The run into Washington from Har- 
 risburg was secret. General Scott was 
 ill in bed. but the veteran swore a round 
 oath that Lincoln should be inaugu- 
 rated, and took admirable military pre- 
 cautions. Among the Radicals of the 
 North the bitterest contempt was felt 
 for the outgoing President, Buchanan, 
 whose easy submission to the insults of 
 the South was considered as imperiling 
 the nation. These sharp fault-finders 
 asked Mr. Lincoln if he intended to 
 ride to the capitol with Buchanan or 
 to go alone. "That reminds me," said 
 Lincoln, "of the witness in a lawsuit, 
 who looked like a Quaker. When he 
 arose to take the oath he was a.sked 
 by the Judge (who seemed puzzled") 
 if he would swear or affirm. T don't 
 care a d — n which,' was the reply." 
 President Buchanan called at Wil- 
 lard's Hotel for Mr. Lincoln on the 
 morning of March 4th, and a few min- 
 utes later Honest Old Abe was Presi- 
 dent, to the very general satisfaction 
 of the North, because love for the man 
 covered the land. At this time vvar 
 was inevitable, but nobody in authority 
 believed it would last ninety days. It 
 was thought the South would fight a 
 
 little and recede from the dogma of 
 slave-extension. The nation was still 
 under the spell of slaxeholding orators ; 
 the South claimed all the chivalry and 
 respectability of the L'nion. In his in- 
 augural the new President merely said 
 the Government would not strike the 
 first blow. 
 
 Premonitions of strife had no restric- 
 tWe effect on the office-seekers, and the 
 hordes of each State now beset the 
 Chief Executive. A delegation asked 
 the appointment of a man in delicate 
 health to go to the balmy latitudes of 
 the Sandwich Islands. "Gentlemen," 
 said Mr. Lincoln, "I am sorry that there 
 are eight other applicants for that 
 place, and they are all sicker than your 
 man!" The Austrian Minister pre- 
 sented an Austrian Count, who devoted 
 much time to proving beyond perad- 
 venture that he was a person of noble 
 lineage and high standing. Mr. Lin- 
 coln laid his hand on the office-seeker's 
 shoulder, and said: "Ne\-er mind, you 
 shall be treated with just as much 
 consideration, for all that !" A crowd 
 of office-seekers informed President 
 Lincoln that he had been exposed to the 
 smallpox. "I'm glad of it," said Lin- 
 coln, "for now I'm going to have some- 
 thing that I can give to everybody." 
 
 He began his War Administration 
 with his accustomed modesty. When 
 General AlcClellan was busy organiz- 
 ing the army, the President would sit 
 in the General's ante-room, and the 
 General would send out word that he 
 was too busy to see anybody. Lincoln 
 would go away, apparently satisfied. 
 This is on the testimony of General 
 Sickles. Such a condition of depend- 
 ence lasted till after Bull Run. Robert 
 L. Wilson, an old friend, was anxious 
 for news, and Lincoln and Nicolay were 
 coming from the War Department. 
 "These war fellows are very strict with 
 me," said Lincoln, "and I suppose I 
 must obey them till I get the hang of 
 things." "But can't you tell me whether 
 the news is good or bad, Mr. Presi- 
 dent?" He grasped Wilson's arm like 
 a vice, and whispered shrilly in his ear, 
 "It's d — n bad !" And so it was, but 
 it was necessary it should be bad in 
 
BIOr.RAPHY— ABRAHAM LINCOLN 
 
 order to stir the Xorth and awaken 
 Lincoln to the dangers that surrounded 
 him from incapables. He had not yet 
 appointed Stanton ; and Grant, Sher- 
 man, Thomas, McPherson, Hancock, 
 Meade, Sheridan were not yet on the 
 scene. 
 
 The Great War settled on the land. 
 Calls for troops — 75,00 volunteers, 
 then 300,000, again 300,000, again 300,- 
 000 — came fast and faster. The 
 dreaded draft struck alike the coward 
 and the courageous, the Copperhead 
 and the Abolitionist. The taxes 
 doubled, tripled, quadrupled. Bonds 
 sold down, down, down, in greenbacks; 
 gold rose upward, to 290. Patriotism 
 might make a feeble cry, but the voice 
 of the substitute-broker was loud in 
 the land. Gamblers, cormorants, con- 
 tractors, fattened. For one thing the 
 nation hungered — victory ! And victory 
 did not come. The summers of 1861, 
 1862, and till July 4, 1863, were sea- 
 sons of the saddest and most humiliat- 
 ing history. The great man in the 
 White House gradually shifted the en- 
 tire load on his own shoulders, and 
 at last the machine of war began to 
 wreck havoc on the slaveholders. 
 
 John Hay, one of his two chief secre- 
 taries, describes the President : "He 
 did not sleep well, but spent a good 
 while in bed. He was extremely un- 
 methodical. He would break through 
 every regulation, as fast as it was made. 
 Anything that kept the people them- 
 selves away from him he disapproved, 
 although they nearly annoyed the life 
 out of him bv unreasonable complaints 
 and requests. He wrote very few let- 
 ters, and did not read one in fifty that 
 he received." He sent Nicolay or Hay 
 on long journeys rather than to write. 
 "Sometimes, though rarely, he shut 
 himself up and would see no one. 
 He was very abstemious — ate less than 
 any man I know. He drank nothing 
 but water," not from principle how- 
 ever. A temperance committee told 
 him the army was drinking so much 
 whisky it was bringing the curse of the 
 Lord on the North. He said the other 
 side was drinking more and worse 
 whisky. He did not read the news- 
 
 papers. "I know more about it than 
 any of them," he said sadly. The kid- 
 glove people never understood him, and 
 could not learn. "I," said Hay, "consider 
 Lincoln to be Republicanism incar- 
 nate — with all its faults and all its 
 virtues. As, in spite of some rudeness, 
 Republicanism is tlie sole hope of a 
 sick world, so Lincoln, with all his 
 foibles, is the greatest character since 
 Christ." 
 
 He studied Calhoun, and set his 
 great mind at work to overthrow Cal- 
 houn's logic. Of all public men, per- 
 haps, Calhoun effected the deepest im- 
 pression on him, because Calhoun made 
 a fearless presentation of his facts. 
 Mr. Lincoln particularly admired that 
 sentence of Calhoun : "To legislate 
 upon precedent is but to make the error 
 of yesterday the law of to-day." 
 
 The Abolitionists set out, one way 
 or another, to make him free the slaves, 
 on John Quincy Adams' prescription 
 that it could be done as a Presidential 
 war measure. Generals Fremont and 
 Hunter and Colonel Donii Piatt all felt 
 his rough hand when they audaciously 
 assumed the power of emancipation in 
 their military districts. His own plan 
 was State emancipation with compen- 
 sation to owners. Horace Greeley, 
 Wendell Phillips and all the great New 
 Englanders thought he went far too 
 slow. A committee of ministers from 
 a General .\ssembly, certain that they 
 came to bun inspired of God — who had 
 made that point very clear — were 
 answered : "Well, gentlemen, it is not 
 very often that one is favored with a 
 delegation direct from the Almighty." 
 James Gordon Bennett, with his New 
 York Herald, was daily handicapping 
 the Administration, and stood ready to 
 edit a Lincoln organ, if the President 
 would especially invite him to the 
 White House. Mr. Lincoln said the 
 doors were open to all. Neither godly 
 nor diabolical contrivances could move 
 Abraham Lincoln. "I can see that 
 emancipation is coming. Whoever can 
 wait for it will see it." Yet this man 
 who could not be coaxed nor driven 
 was the easiest-going and friendliest 
 of men. Leonard Swett said, of his 
 
THE HOME AUXHJARY AND REFERENCE 
 
 m,-irvelous skill in dealing with senti- 
 ment in Kentucky, Missouri and the 
 horder States generally: "He was a 
 trimmer, and such a trimmer the world 
 has never seen." Swett thought Lin- 
 coln had never asked for advice in his 
 life. Anything he needed counsel about 
 he would let others do. It was Swett's 
 sentence regarding Lincoln: "He re- 
 tained through life all the friends he 
 ever had, and he made the wrath of 
 his enemies to praise him." Not only 
 did he require indomitable will to defer 
 the emancipation proclamations until 
 the majority of the soldiers and people 
 wanted them, but he was the first strong 
 supporter of Grant and Sherman 
 against Halleck and Stanton, and as 
 the people saw him always in accord 
 with their views, they began to revere 
 him. The soldiers told his stories on 
 the battlefield. That keen desire to 
 hear about the man himself, which has 
 lasted until this day, took hold upon 
 mankind, and, when some magnate 
 would obtusely complain of Lincoln's 
 methods and manners, such a critic was 
 thereafter a well-marked character. 
 What astonished men the most was 
 that, while defeat sickened the Presi- 
 dent, and each battle left him looking 
 older and still sadder, the kind manner 
 never changed, nor did the stream of 
 wit How low. .\ notorious bully or- 
 dered an ofiicer to flee. The officer 
 arrested the bully, who struck with all 
 his force at the officer, missing him. 
 The officer, in return, struck the bully 
 so hard with his fist that the senseless 
 victim was taken to the hospital — it was 
 said, to die. The officer ran to the 
 White House for counsel and explana- 
 tion. "I am sorry," said the Presi- 
 dent, "you had to kill the man, but 
 these are times of war, and a great 
 many men deserve killing. This man, 
 according to your story, is one of them ; 
 so give yourself no uneasiness about 
 the matter. I will stand by you." But 
 the officer had sought Father Abraham 
 for spiritual consolation. His con- 
 science was stricken. Lincoln looked 
 upon him again : "Well, go home now 
 and get some sleep. But if you want 
 some advice, hereafter when you strike 
 
 a man, don't hit him with your fist. 
 Strike him with a club or a crowbar, 
 or something that won"t kill him !" 
 
 A man wanted a pass into Richmond. 
 "Happy to oblige you if my passes 
 were respected. The fact is, I have 
 given passes to 250,000 men to go to 
 Richmond, and as yet not one has 
 reached the place." Fairfax was raided, 
 and a brigadier-general and a number 
 of horses were captured. "Well, Pm 
 sorry on account of the horses. I can 
 make a brigadier-general in five min- 
 utes, but it is not an easy matter to 
 replace a hundred and ten horses." .V 
 troublesome visitor demanded exact 
 statistics showing the number of Con- 
 federate soldiers in the field. "Twelve 
 hundred thousand, according to the 
 best authority." The questioner cried : 
 "Good heavens !" "Yes, sir, twelve 
 hundred thousand — no doubt of it. I 
 have no reason to doubt our generals, 
 and every time they are whipped they 
 say the rebels outnumbered them from 
 three or five to one. We have four 
 hundred thousand men in the field, and 
 three times four makes twelve. Do 
 you see?" Alexander PL Stephens, 
 \'ice-President of the Confederacy, met 
 the President outside of Richmond. He 
 was a very small man in a large over- 
 coat. Lincoln asked Grant if he had 
 seen Stephens in his overcoat. Grant 
 had. Had Grant seen Stephens take 
 otT the overcoat? Grant had also seen 
 that. "Well, didn't you think it was 
 the biggest shuck and the littlest ear 
 you had ever seen ?" 
 
 The nation touched the tender chord 
 in their President's nature when they 
 put the power of life and death in his 
 liands. He said to Swett : "Get out 
 of the way, Swett; to-morrow is 
 butcher-day, and I must go through 
 these papers and see if I cannot find 
 some excuse to let these poor fellows 
 ofif." Stanton believed in military cap- 
 ital punishment, and plenty of it. Stan- 
 ton sent Holt, the chief military prose- 
 cutor, "to put a case strong," to 
 Lincoln. Soldiers had run back from 
 line of battle at Chancellorsville. They 
 were now under sentence of death. 
 "Holt, you acknowledge these men have 
 
BIOGRAPHY— ABRAHA^t LINCOLN 
 
 a previous record for bravery. They 
 shall not be shot for this one oiTense.'' 
 Holt knew Stanton would "explode 
 with rage," so he made another argu- 
 ment for blood. "Holt, were you ever 
 in battle?" "I have never been." 
 "Did Stanton ever march in the first 
 line, to be shot at by an enemy, like 
 these men did?" "I think not, Mr. 
 President. " "Well, I tried it, in the 
 Blackhawk War, and 1 remember, one 
 time, I grew awful weak in the knees 
 when I heard the bullets whistle around 
 me. and saw the enemy in front of me. 
 How my legs carried me forward. I 
 cannot now tell, for I thought every 
 minute that I would sink to the ground. 
 Who knows but these men's legs re- 
 fused to carry them? Send this dis- 
 patch, ordering them set free." And 
 they were set free that day. 
 
 As "the war to free the negro" grew 
 more perceptible in its logic, the com- 
 plexities of draft-riots. Butternut and 
 Copperhead Conventions, unlicensed 
 newspaper invective, and sharp military 
 criticism, seemed overwhelmingly nu- 
 merous. The President delivered up 
 Mason and Slidell to England; encour- 
 aged Juarez in Mexico: set down \'al- 
 landigham of Ohio within the Confed- 
 erate lines ; moderated the tone of Se- 
 ward's documents ; made peace as of- 
 ten as war. Finally, when the time 
 was sufficiently ripe, he issued the pre- 
 liminary Proclamation of Emancipa- 
 tion. On September 22, 1862, he in- 
 formed all regions in rebellion, nam- 
 ing them, and excepting certain coun- 
 ties, that their slaves would be free 
 January i, 1863, unless they ceased to 
 defy the authority of the Ignited States, 
 it was not Abolition as a principle — it 
 was emancipation in rebellious regions 
 as a threat, and measure of war. 
 
 He called the members of the Cabi- 
 net, and, suiumarizing his thoughts and 
 feelings, he told them this Proclamation 
 and no other would be issued. Gov- 
 ernor Seward (Secretary of State) 
 suggested a slight change, which was 
 adopted ; a day or two later he sug- 
 gested still another, which was likewise 
 adopted. The President asked the Gov- 
 ernor why he had not mentioned both 
 
 changes at once, but Governor Seward 
 did not seem to give a satisfactory 
 answer. "Seward," said Lincoln, "re- 
 minds me of a hired man who came 
 to a farmer and told him one of a fa- 
 vorite yoke of oxen had fallen down 
 dead. After a pause the hired man 
 added : 'And the other o.x in that team 
 is dead, too.' 'Why didn't you tell 
 me at once that both the oxen were 
 dead?' 'Because I didn't want to hurt 
 you by telling you too much at one 
 time." " 
 
 As soon as the responsible head of 
 the Government was well under the 
 burden which the original Abolitionists 
 had first taken up, it seemed as if all 
 parties turned to make that burden 
 heavier. The South was hit hard, and 
 it nerved itself "to deadlier and more 
 ungenerous blows." There also formed 
 parties of "Unconditional Union men" 
 in the North, who claimed to be per- 
 turbed with fear of disunion. These 
 patriots cheerfully invited the Presi- 
 dent to leave the war and come to ad- 
 dress them at Springfield. The "letter 
 to James S. Conkling" in reply to such 
 an invitation is immortal and unan- 
 swerable, warning all men, for all time, 
 to get out of the attitude of Tories, or 
 fire-in-the-rear agitators imder any 
 name whatsoever. "You desire peace, 
 and you blame me, that you do have 
 it." The writer (Lincoln) names 
 "three conceivable ways to attain 
 peace." "First, to suppress the rebel- 
 lion by force and arms. This I am try- 
 ing to do. Are you for it? If you 
 are, so far we are agreed. If you are 
 not for it, a second way is, to give up 
 the Union. I am against this. .Are 
 you for it? If you are, you should 
 say so, plainly. If you are not for 
 force, nor yet for dissolution, there only 
 remains some imaginable compromise." 
 The President gives his proofs that 
 com]5romise is impossible. "No paper 
 compromise to which the controllers of 
 Lee's army are not agreed, can at all 
 affect that army." No word of com- 
 promise from that army had ever 
 reached the President. .Should such an 
 offer come, it should not be rejected, 
 nor should it be kept secret. "But, to 
 
THE HOME AUXILIARY AND REFERENCE 
 
 be plain, you are dissatisfied with me 
 about the negro. Quite hkely, there 
 is a difference of opinion between you 
 and myself upon that subject. I cer- 
 tainly wish that all men could be free, 
 while I suppose you do not.'" "I sug- 
 gested compensated emancipation, to 
 which you replied that you wished not 
 to be taxed to buy negroes."' He then 
 argues the constitutionality of the 
 Emancipation Proclamation. "Some of 
 you profess to think a retraction of the 
 Proclamation would operate favorably 
 for the Union. Why better after the 
 retraction, than before the issue? 
 There was more than a year and a half 
 of trial to suppress the rebellion before 
 the Proclamation issued, the last one 
 hundred days of which passed under 
 an explicit notice that it was coming, 
 unless averted by those in revolt, re- 
 turning to their allegiance. The war 
 has certainly progressed as favorably 
 for us since the issue of the Proclama- 
 tion as before."" The President next 
 shows that his militarj' men are pleased 
 with the military effects of the Procla- 
 mation. "You say that you will not 
 fight to free negroes. Some of them 
 seem willing to fight to free you. But, 
 no matter. Fight you, then, exclusive- 
 ly, to save the Union. I issued the 
 Proclamation on purpose to aid you in 
 saving the Union. Whenever you shall 
 have conquered all resistance to the 
 Union, if I shall urge you to continue 
 fighting, it will be an apt time then 
 for you to declare you will not fight 
 to free negroes. I thought that, in your 
 struggle for the Union, to whatever ex- 
 tent the negroes should cease helping 
 the enemy, to that extent it weakened 
 the enemy in his resistance to you. 
 Do you think differently? I thought 
 that whatever negroes can be got to 
 do as soldiers, leaves just so much less 
 for white soldiers to do in saving the 
 Union. Does it appear otherwise to 
 you ?" 
 
 At this point in Father Abraham's 
 greatest letter he begins to be eloquent, 
 and we quote the closing pages in full : 
 "The signs look better. The Father 
 of Waters again goes unvexed to sea. 
 Thanks to the great Northwest for it ; 
 
 nor jet wholly to them. Three hun- 
 dred miles up they met Xew^ England, 
 Keystone and Jersey, hewing their way 
 right and left. The Sunnj- South, too, 
 in more colors than one, also lent a 
 hand. On the spot, their part of the 
 history was jotted down in black and 
 white. The job was a great National 
 one ; and let none be barred who bore 
 an honorable part in it. And while 
 those who have cleared the great river 
 niay well be proud, even that is not 
 all. It is hard to say that anything 
 has been more bravely and well done 
 than at Antietam. Murfreesboro. Get- 
 tysburg, and on so many fields of lesser 
 note. Nor must Uncle Sam's web feet 
 be forgotten. At all the watery mar- 
 gins they have been present. Not only 
 on the deep sea, the broad bay, and 
 the rapid river, but also up the narrow, 
 muddy bayou, and wherever the ground 
 was a little damp, they have been, and 
 made their tracks, thanks to all. For 
 the great Republic — for the principle 
 it lives by and keeps alive — for man's 
 vast future — thanks to all. 
 
 "Peace does not appear so distant 
 as it did. I hope it will come soon 
 and come to stay, and so come as to be 
 worth the keeping for all future time. 
 It will then have been proved that, 
 among free men. there can be no suc- 
 cessful appeal from the ballot to the 
 bullet: and that they who take such 
 appeal are soon to lose their case and 
 pay the cost. And then there will be 
 some black men who can remember 
 that, with silent tongue, clenched teeth, 
 and well-poised baj-onet, they have 
 helped mankind on to this great con- 
 summation ; while I fear there will be 
 some white ones, unable to forget that, 
 with malignant heart and deceitful 
 speech, they strove to hinder it." 
 
 When Mr. Lincoln next stood on the 
 east steps of the Capitol, he had been 
 endorsed by an overwhelming major- 
 ity of the North. He had Grant at 
 Richmond ; he had Sherman ranging 
 up and down the Confederacy, their 
 cities flaming behind. He had Mem- 
 phis. Natchez. New Orleans. Mobile. 
 Savannah, and the realm of Slavery 
 was cut in twain. Father Abraham 
 
BIOGRAPHY— ABRAHAM LINCOLN 
 
 now wore a beard, and looked twenty 
 years older than when he left Spring- 
 field. Peace was coming with victory. 
 It was then that he grew even more 
 gentle. It was then that he said : "\\'ith 
 malice toward none ; with charity for 
 all" — those magical words that seemed 
 to leap with poetry out of the example 
 of his life of sorrows, an inimitable 
 inscription over his catafalque anon, 
 and a precious legacy to the language 
 that he spoke. 
 
 In spirit he had not really changed. 
 All other things seemed unstable, but 
 Father Abraham was the same— far 
 better understood now, even by the peo- 
 ple who had always believed in him. 
 A widow, whose husband had fallen 
 in battle, implored that one of her three 
 soldier-sons might come home to sup- 
 port her. "Certainly," said Father 
 Abraham, "if you have given up all, 
 and your prop has been taken away, 
 you are justly entitled to one of your 
 boys." ijut the soldier whom Lincoln 
 had thus discharged was killed in bat- 
 tle before the order could reach him. 
 Again the afflicted mother and widow 
 came to Lincoln, whose face was very 
 grave as he wrote another discharge. 
 "Now." he said, "you have one, and I 
 have one of the two boys left ; that is 
 no more than right." These mothers 
 in Israel never failed to assure Abra- 
 ham Lincoln that the next time they 
 should meet him, would be in Heaven, 
 and it gladdened his heart to know they 
 felt so. 
 
 He was like Shakespeare, in that light 
 and shade, pathos and humor, played 
 across his nature as light winds on 
 summer seas. He stood with Grant at, 
 Petersburg where Smith's colored 
 troops had glorified their race. "I want 
 to take a look at those boys," said the 
 President. "I read with greatest de- 
 light how gallantly they behaved. Dana 
 said they took six out of the sixteen 
 guns captured that day. I was opposed 
 on nearly every side when I first fa- 
 vored the raising of colored regiments, 
 but they have proven their efficiency. 
 When we wanted ever)' able-bodied 
 man who could be spared to go to the 
 front, and my operators kept objecting 
 
 to the negroes, I used to tell them that 
 at such times it was just as well to be 
 a little color-blind. I think. General, 
 we can say of the black boys what a 
 country fellow, who was an old-time 
 Abolitionist in Illinois, said when he 
 went to a theater in Chicago and saw 
 Forrest playing 'Othello.' He was not 
 very well up in Shakespeare, and didn't 
 know that the tragedian was a white 
 man who had blacked up for the pur- 
 pose. After the play was over, the 
 folks who had invited him to go to 
 the show wanted to know what he 
 thought of the actors, and he said: 
 'Waal, layin' aside all sectional preju- 
 dices and any partiality I may have for 
 the race, derned if I don't think the 
 nigger held his own with any on 'em.' " 
 A Tennessee wife implored the re- 
 lease of her husband, a rebel prisoner, 
 on the ground that he was a religious 
 man. "Tell him when you meet him." 
 said the President, "that I say I'm 
 not much of a judge of religion, but 
 that in my opinion the religion which 
 sets men to rebel and fight against their 
 Government because, as they think, that 
 Government does not sufficiently help 
 some men to eat their bread in the 
 sweat of other men's faces, is not the 
 sort of religion upon which people can 
 get to Heaven." 
 
 As he entered Richmond, the picture 
 of the freed slaves gathering about 
 him and hailing him with sharp cries 
 as their deliverer, would have con- 
 vinced anybody that freedom is a 
 precious thing in the opinion of those 
 who have been denied it. 
 
 It seemed, in April, 1865, that the 
 real troubles were passed. A dozen 
 armies had been raised, $3,000,000,000 
 had been borrowed, battles, prison- 
 camps, cemeteries, rendezvous, navy 
 yards, military governments, politics, 
 draft, conspiracies — all. all, had gone 
 by, and Slavery was blotted out ; its 
 champions were prisoners of war, its 
 arch-prophets fugitives and e.xiles. On 
 what a home-returning might Abraham 
 Lincoln look — he who never forgot a 
 face. In 1840, he had taken dinner 
 with a Sangamon county farmer. 
 Now, this "'embattled farmer" shook 
 
404 
 
 THE HOME AUXILIARY AND REFERENCE 
 
 hands with the triumphant President. 
 "Yes," said Lincohi, "I remember you. 
 You used to Hve on the Danville road. 
 I took dinner with you when I was 
 running for the Legislature. I recol- 
 lect that we stood talking together out 
 at the barn-yard gate while I sharpened 
 my jack-knife." "Ya-as," drawled the 
 old soldier, "you did. But say, wherever 
 did ye put that whetstone? I looked 
 for it a dozen times, but I never could 
 find it after the day you used it. We 
 'lowed as how mebby you took it along 
 with ye." "No," said Lincoln ; "no, I 
 put it on top of that gate-post — that 
 high one." "Well, mebby you did. 
 now. Couldn't nobody else have put it 
 up there, and none of us ever thought 
 to look up there for it." The soldier 
 was soon after at home. He wrote at 
 once to his friend Abe Lincoln, that he 
 had found the whetstone on top of the 
 tall post, where it had lain untouched 
 for fifteen years, and he did not think 
 it would ever be lost again. 
 
 About the 7th and 8th of April, the 
 towns of the North were alive with 
 music and bright at night with bonfires. 
 "Swamp Angels," Fantastic Compan- 
 ies," fire brigades, and all the mechan- 
 ism of festive joy were in movement. 
 The Nation was one; Father Abraham 
 had supported Grant and Sherman in 
 the dark hours : he had been mountain- 
 like among the molehills. Even in the 
 highest moments of jubilation, the 
 thought of the Greatheart at the White 
 House would come upon the people, 
 and some latest tale would be told, in 
 imitation of his unrivaled art. Early 
 on a crisp Saturday morning, about a 
 week later, there was placarded at the 
 railroad stations, in the post-offices, at 
 the taverns, the incredible intelligence 
 that -Abraham Lincoln had been assas- 
 sinated and was dying. 
 
 As when the perverse shaft of light- 
 ning thwarts an inky sky, and shivering 
 nature bids the cheek to blanch, so 
 came that bolt of destiny upon the peo- 
 ple. They had been schooled in blood ; 
 the ghastlv deeds of war were come to 
 be familiar. But that Father Abraham 
 was no more! — that an assassin, ni- 
 stead of bearing away the aid and con- 
 
 solation of Father Abraham, had slain 
 him ! — it surpassed even the infernal 
 realities of war. There settled over 
 the land a period of such gloom as his- 
 tory does not record of other epochs 
 and ages. On the Sunday following, 
 on the Wednesday following, through 
 the slow weeks thereafter, men heard 
 the passionate sobbings of their elo- 
 quent of speech, and truly were broken- 
 hearted in the general woe. It was 
 like the Last Day is painted. It seemed 
 the air was thick and sulphurous. Men 
 were too sick with sorrow to call for 
 vengeance, or pronounce the name of 
 the wretched man who had betrayed 
 his race. It was truly an awful crime 
 against Charity, Mercy, Peace — all the 
 sweet angels ! 
 
 It was nearly 10 o'clock before the 
 peculiar name of Booth was written on 
 the bulletins. Lincoln was no more. 
 Particulars came at noon, with the 
 trains from the large cities. The little 
 theater, with its alley behind and beside 
 it, like a carpenter's square, was as well 
 fixed on the mind that baleful day as 
 it was in after years when it fell upon 
 its inmates on an anniversary day, and 
 closed the darkest chapter in our 
 chronicles. We could see the stage- 
 hand holding the saddled horse ; we 
 could see the insane actor, the crushed 
 tragedian, vaulting on the horse, push- 
 ing to the corner of the alley, and 
 rattling at right-angles to the left, up 
 the rest of the alley, past the startled 
 negro's window, out beside the theater- 
 front, up the hilly street, over and out 
 of sight, but with loud clattering hoofs 
 upon the cobblestones. 
 
 Mr. Lincoln, Airs. Lincoln, Major 
 Rathbone, and a young lady had en- 
 tered the double bo.x at the right, at 
 0.20 P. M. ]\Ir. Lincoln had sat at 
 the left in the wide space, drawing the 
 curtain so the audience could not see 
 him after he bowed to it. Booth en- 
 tered the theater at 10 o'clock, made 
 his way directly to the box, shot the 
 President from the rear, leaped over 
 the box-railing to the stage, caught his 
 spur in the flag that decorated the box 
 beneath, hurt his ankle badly, rose, 
 stalked across the stage, with a knife 
 
BIOGRAPHY— WILLIAM H. SEWARD 
 
 405 
 
 in hand, crying "Sic semper tyrannis! 
 • — The South is avenj^ed !"' met Withers, 
 the orchestra leader, stabbed him 
 sHghtly in the neck, and escaped out 
 the door into the alley, where the fel- 
 low-conspirator held the horse. 
 
 A night-clerk from the hotel oppo- 
 site ran in with an army officer, and the 
 insensible form of the President was 
 borne to the Petersen residence, across 
 the street, which shows the tablet com- 
 memorating the event. In the theater, 
 when men realized that the first Ameri- 
 can President had been assassinated, 
 they themselves became like insane 
 men, crying for wild havoc. About the 
 dying form of the martyr the chief 
 men of the Nation gathered, and saw 
 him breathe his last at 7.22 A. M., 
 April 15, 1865. Business ceased 
 throughout the land until after Wed- 
 nesday. Bells tolled more generally 
 than they have ever tolled since. A 
 singular and significant literary fact iS 
 the paucity of early record concerning 
 the assassin. It was only of later 
 years, with new generations, that the 
 "sacred terror" passed away, and full 
 particulars of the night at Ford's 
 Theater, with every survivor's narra- 
 tive and Booth's career, were given to 
 the world, or sheltered in our libraries. 
 
 The body was taken from IMr. Peter- 
 sen's home to the White House, where 
 it was embalmed, and funeral services 
 were held. Then it lay in state in the 
 rotunda of the Capitol. On Wednes- 
 day the Nation fasted in prayer. On 
 Friday the funeral train advanced 
 through Baltimore, Harrisburg, Phila- 
 delphia, to New York. "And now," 
 said Henry Ward Beecher, "the mar- 
 tyr is moving in triumphal march, 
 mightier than when alive. The Nation 
 rises up at every stage of his coming. 
 Cities and States are his pall-bearers, 
 and the cannon speaks the hours with 
 solemn progression." The scene in 
 New York was unparalleled. The 
 white letters of Charity for all, of 
 Malice toward none, glittered en- 
 trancingly on the eye. Millions wept, 
 and repudiated as inhuman the deed 
 which one of their race had done. The 
 stately cortege passed on to Albany, 
 
 ButTalo. Cleveland, Columbus, India- 
 napolis, and Chicago. At Chicago the 
 catafalque was erected in the rotunda 
 of the Court House, while the deep 
 bell overhead pulsed the moments. 
 The stream of weeping human beings 
 never dwindled, nor were all the 
 mourners able to see their dead. 
 
 On the 3d of May the catafalque was 
 placed in the State House at Spring- 
 field, to which came forth the ancient 
 sons of Illinois, cabin-builders, rail- 
 splitters, crippled soldiers, fellow- 
 citizens, fellow-pioneers — those who 
 had admired Abraham Lincoln the 
 longest, who had, to the extent of their 
 feeble might, lightened his herculean 
 burden, and gained no sordid end in 
 liis mighty elevation. All day and 
 night this inner circle also came and 
 looked on their own hero of their own 
 kind. At 10 o'clock on the morning of 
 the second day a great choir of voices 
 sang "Peace, Troubled Soul!" while 
 the lid of the casket was closed to the 
 eyes of the world. The military cor- 
 tege removed, the Bishop spoke his 
 words of faith and renunciation, the 
 vault-door opened, the choir chanted 
 "I'uveil thy bosom, faithful tomb!" 
 c'nid the body of Abraham Lincoln was 
 at rest, beyond the hurts of life. 
 
 WILLIAM H. SEWARD 
 
 1801-1872 
 Anti-Si.avery Cn.\MPiON 
 
 A year before the Civil W'ar, Wil- 
 liam H. Seward was the most distin- 
 guished American Statesman who op- 
 posed the extension of Slavery and la- 
 mented the authorization of "the pecul- 
 iar institution" in our organic law. 
 Of all the living public men, he had 
 longest been the most radical. For 
 many years, as the representative of 
 but a comparatively small group of 
 thinkers, and in the presence of Clay, 
 Web.ster, and Calhoun, he made but a 
 sorry impression on National affairs : 
 yet he fought the good fi.ght and kept 
 the faith. It seemed to the adherents 
 at large of the new coalition called the 
 
4o6 
 
 THE HOME AUXILIARY AND REFERENCE 
 
 Xational Republicans, that injustice 
 was done to him when first Fremont 
 and then Lincohi was made the stand- 
 ard-bearer of the new party, rather 
 than to entrust its leadership to the 
 man who for ten years, beginning with 
 the rebukes of Calhoun, had sustained 
 all the insults that Fremont received 
 from Slavery at the hands of Jefferson 
 Davis, Henry A. Wise, Toombs, 
 Stephens, and the rest of the slavehold- 
 ing Secessionists. 
 
 Time proved that Mr. Seward, even 
 as late as i860, was far ahead of his 
 age. The slower Lincoln, peace-loving 
 by nature, was required to curb the 
 impetuous Seward, who might have 
 had us at war not only with ourselves, 
 but with half the rest of the world be- 
 side. 
 
 Mr. Seward was defeated at Chicago, 
 in i860, when Lincoln was nominated 
 for President, mainly because of the 
 complexities of New York politics. 
 
 W'illiam Henry Seward was born 
 nearly eight years earlier than Lincoln, 
 in Florida, Orange county, N. Y., on 
 May 16, 1801, and was the fourth of 
 six children. His father, a physician, 
 had three slaves who were domestic 
 servants. He was sent to L^nion Col- 
 lege, Schenectady, and, because his 
 father would not dress him as fash- 
 ionably as the other students were 
 clothed, he ran away to Savannah, Ga., 
 where he obtained a teacher's position 
 in a new academy. The father secured 
 the return of his son by writing an 
 irate letter to the trustees, and William 
 studied law six months at Goshen, N. 
 Y. He then was permitted to join the 
 senior class at Union College, and 
 graduated in 1820 with honor. He was 
 admitted to the bar in 1822, and was 
 taken into partnership by Elijah ^Miller, 
 of Auburn, N. Y., whose daughter 
 Frances he married, October 20, 1824. 
 \\'illiam H. Seward was not, up to this 
 time, a favorite with his father. 
 
 He was, nevertheless, a fearless 
 young man in politics, and lost an ofifice 
 on principle as early as 1828. Gov- 
 ernor Clinton had appointed him Sur- 
 rogate of Cayuga county, and he went 
 to Albany. There he attended a John 
 
 Quincy Adams meeting ; Clinton had 
 declared for Jackson ; so Seward's ap- 
 pointment was rejected by the State 
 Senate. The Jeffersonian Democrats 
 had split into Bucktails ( Tammany ) 
 and Clintonians. Seward's father had 
 been a Jeffersonian ; Seward gradually 
 \eered about to Clinton, high tariff, antl 
 Erie Canal, and became friendly with 
 Thurlow Weed, who was so often to 
 dim the political hopes of Henry Clay. 
 Seward was elected State Senator on 
 this ticket in 1830. He was twenty- 
 nine, small and slender, with blue eyes, 
 light sandy hair, a smooth face, and a 
 youthful air. He seemed like a boy 
 among the elderly men who sat in the 
 Senate, a body which, at that time, was 
 also the court of last resort, like the 
 English House of Lords. Seward gave 
 much attention to the judicial work of 
 the Senate. 
 
 In 1833, Dr. Seward, the father, in- 
 vited William H. Seward, the son, to 
 accompany him to Europe. They 
 visited Lafayette at La Grange. When 
 the AMiig party formed in 1834, 
 Seward ran for Governor, a hopeless 
 race, which, however, made him a fut- 
 ure leader. For four years he was a 
 land agent or attorney in Chautauqua 
 County. Li 1838, the Whigs again 
 nominated him for Governor, and he 
 was triumphantly elected. But the 
 Legislature was in the hands of the 
 Democrats. During his administration 
 a clash between Canada and New York 
 State (the wreck of the steamer Caro- 
 line and the McLeod arrest) resulted in 
 diplomatic complications between Eng- 
 land and America. Governor Seward 
 did not think Secretary of State Web- 
 ster treated him with courtesy. His 
 term expired in January, 1843. He 
 ever after popularly bore the title of 
 "Governor." 
 
 In 1844 he spoke for Clay and 
 against Texas, receiving many marks 
 of honor from the anti-Slavery voters. 
 At Boston he first met Abraham Lin- 
 coln. The twain agreed that Slavery 
 was the real question of the future. 
 Governor Seward made it the keynote 
 of all his speeches. The success of his 
 labors was rewarded in New York in 
 
BIOGRArHV-WILLIAM H. SEWARD 
 
 February, 1849, by his election to the 
 United States Senate. lie arrived at 
 Washington as the curtain was falling 
 on Clay, Webster, and Calhoun, just in 
 time to behold that last and greatest 
 act of compromise that made the dying 
 Clay's name immortal. For Seward it 
 was an untoward entry. But Governor 
 Seward supported Lincoln cheerfully, 
 and was offered and accepted the State 
 Department. It was probably thought by 
 Mr. Weed that Governor Seward could 
 control Lincoln, and at Lincoln's 
 prompt repudiation of this idea, 
 Seward declined to serve, but was in- 
 duced to withdraw his refusal. Gov- 
 ernor Seward, naturally a gentle and 
 cultured man, was by no means in- 
 sincere in his feelings of personal de- 
 gradation when he heard that Mr. Lin- 
 coln said in public, that he had shown 
 "Seward shouldn't take the first trick, 
 and if the Cabinet slate were to be 
 broken anywhere, it would be at the 
 top." 
 
 As Secretary of State, Governor 
 Seward found ambassadors from the 
 Confederate States of America on his 
 very threshold. With these audacious 
 persons he was soon entangled in a 
 controversy concerning Fort Sumter. 
 The President was not only determined 
 to let events drift, but he was not a 
 rapid man of business. He sometimes 
 appeared to get behind with the work 
 that he really intended to do. Gov- 
 ernor Seward was soon demanding "a 
 policy," and it is not likely that the two 
 men ever cordially admired or trusted 
 each other. 
 
 Governor Seward, as Secretary of 
 State, dealt, while his hands were tied 
 by a civil war, with a haughty and un- 
 friendly government in Great Britain, 
 whose sympathies were with Slavery. 
 The St. Alban, Vt., raid, and the move 
 on Mexico by France and England, 
 were tantalizing acts, to harry us into 
 war wdiile we were weak and divided. 
 Mr. Gladstone was eloquently against 
 us. Mr. Bright was our firm well- 
 
 wisher. Governor Seward was forced 
 to look as far as Russia for a powerful 
 friend, and, with great astuteness, he 
 bid for the favor of that Empire by the 
 purchase of Alaska. 
 
 April 5, 1865, Governor Seward was 
 thrown from his carriage, and was so 
 badly injured that for a time his life 
 was despaired of. His right shoulder 
 was dislocated, and his jaw broken on 
 both sides. Nine days later, while 
 Booth was assassinating President Lin- 
 coln in Ford's Theater, an unknown 
 man (Payne) burst into Governor 
 Seward's chamber, and with a bowie- 
 knife stabbed the sick man in the face 
 and throat. The wife, aroused by the 
 screams of her daughter, was so horri- 
 fied by what she saw that she became 
 violently ill, and died June 21. The 
 (laughter, also a victim of the shock, 
 caused by seeing the bloody affray, fell 
 ill, and survived only a year. By the 
 aid of mechanical contrivances holding 
 his face aright, the shattered man was 
 able to leave his bed within a few 
 months, and he was sometimes carried 
 in a chair to the State Department. He 
 was cruelly maimed, and piteously 
 desolate. 
 
 March 4, 1869, Governor Seward 
 very gladly laid down an office which 
 the arrogations of Congress had made 
 extremely burdensome, and attempted 
 to divert his mind by travel. He visited 
 liis purchase of Alaska, went down the 
 coast to Mexico, crossed the Isthmian 
 lands, and returned to New York bv 
 way of the West Indies. He then made 
 his celebrated journey around the 
 world He everywhere evoked expre.s- 
 sions of the higbest respect. 
 
 After his return he passed the re- 
 mainder of his days either at his home- 
 -stead in Auburn, or in a cottage on the 
 banks of Owasco Lake. His strength 
 failed gradually, but his mind remained 
 clear and his temper tranquil. He was 
 at work on his notes of travel on the 
 very morning of his death, October 10, 
 1872. 
 
40g 
 
 THE HOME AUXH.IARY AND REFERENCE 
 
 SALMON P. CHASE 
 1 808- 1 873 
 
 Father ok the Greenback 
 
 Salmon Portland Chase, Father 0/ 
 the American Greenback, and first 
 Anti-Slavery Chief Justice of the 
 United States, was born in Cornish, 
 N. H., January 13, 1808. His name, 
 Salmon Portland, was given to him to 
 commemorate the death of his uncle 
 Salmon at Portland. Pie was wont to 
 say that he was his uncle's monument. 
 He wrote that his earliest recollection 
 of himself was of a dangerous attack 
 of fever. He was a bright little child 
 at school, and possessed a copy of 
 "Rollin's Ancient History" (now out 
 of vogUe), which he treasured as a 
 thing of priceless value. When he was 
 eight years old his father removed the 
 family to Keene, where he died in 1817. 
 Salmon went to Latin school three 
 years at Keene. Then his uncle, the 
 Episcopal P)ishop of Ohio, took him 
 West to Worthington, O., where he 
 again attended school, learning Greek, 
 and worked on a farm. It was the in- 
 tention of the Bishop to educate his 
 nephew for the priesthood, and the lad 
 bowed devoutly to that wish, receiving 
 confirmation with deep conviction and 
 awe. In 1822 the Bishop took the 
 Presidency of the Cincinnati College, 
 which closed in a year, and Salmon was 
 sent back to his mother. He studied 
 more at Royalton, Vt., and then en- 
 tered the junior class at Dartmouth 
 College. In the winters he taught 
 school and "boarded round." Pie grad- 
 uated with honor in 1826, and began 
 the study of law in the office of Wil- 
 liam Wht, at Washington, D. C, teach- 
 ing school si.x hours a day in a private 
 seminary in order to defray his ex- 
 penses. He was anti-Jackson and anti- 
 Slavery in principle, and, being natur- 
 ally a censorious young man, narrowly 
 restricted with conventions and forms, 
 he was shocked by the levity of Con- 
 gress, whose sessions he first attended 
 in 1828. He especially abominated 
 John Randolph ; his idol was William 
 
 Wirt. He was enabled to pass a legal 
 examination through the kind heartcd- 
 ness of Justice Cranch, because the 
 young man intended to begin practice 
 in Cincinnati. 
 
 He was married three times: First, 
 March 4, 1834, to Kathrine J. Garniss, 
 who died December i, 1835; their one 
 child died. Second, September 26, 
 1839, to Eliza A. Smith, who died 
 September 29, 1845 ; the eldest of their 
 three children became the celebrated 
 and beautiful Kate Chase Sprague ; the 
 two other children died. Third, No- 
 vember 6, 1846, to Sarah B. D. Ludlow, 
 who died in 1852; they had two chil- 
 dren, one of whom died. The other be- 
 came the wife of W. S. Hoyt, of New 
 York City. Thus only two' daughters 
 survived him, and he outlived all three 
 of his wives. His married life lasted 
 only thirteen years. In the entire 
 Chase family no sons were left. 
 
 At Cincinnati he undertook the com- 
 pilation of "Chase's Statutes of Ohio." 
 a work which tried the solidity of his 
 intellect and at once introduced him to 
 the attention of all the judiciary. Few 
 yoimg men have attempted so much, or 
 performed a similiar task so success- 
 fully. In a word, he gathered the laws 
 of Ohio out of several hundred vol- 
 umes, and reduced by a thousand-fold 
 the labors of all counselors and advo- 
 cates in the new State. In 1832 he 
 voted for his patron, William Wirt, for 
 President. 
 
 James G. Birney, a reformed slave- 
 holder, published an Abolition paper, 
 The Philanthropist, at Cincinnati. In 
 1836 his printing office was gutted, and 
 the mob then made an attack on the 
 homes of colored persons. The Mayor 
 sympathized with the mob. Seeing this 
 mob aroused the anti-slavery feelings 
 of Mr. Chase. Shortly afterward, he 
 defended the escaped slave Matilda, 
 and carried an action growing out of 
 her case to the Supreme Court of Ohio, 
 which dodged the main question, but 
 decided in favor of the appellant 
 (Birney) on a technicality, which Mr. 
 Chase would not deign to note in his 
 plea. The Birney mob caused Mr. 
 Chase to lay down extreme doctrine 
 
BIOGRAPHY— SALMON P. CHASE 
 
 409 
 
 touching the fieedom of the press, for 
 which he would not recede in war 
 times, when Story's newspaper at 
 Chicago was suppressed by General 
 Burnside (until Mr. Lincoln reversed 
 the order). As soon as Tyler became 
 President, Mr. Chase publicly advo- 
 cated the formation of a new party, 
 with a platform (i ) That Slavery must 
 stay in its own States; (2) That Slav- 
 ery must not dominate in federal 
 affairs, and must there be overthrown. 
 
 Although he had not voted for his 
 client, Birney, for President, in 1840, 
 Mr. Chase called a State Convention at 
 Columbus in December, 1841, and there 
 formed the Liberty party. In this con- 
 vention he was the most influential 
 member, wrote the address, and sug- 
 gested the State ticket. In 1843 the 
 Liberty party at Buffalo again nomi- 
 nated Birney for President, Mr. Chase 
 writing the platform. In June. 1845, 
 Mr. Chase and others called a conven- 
 tion at Cincinnati of 2,000 delegates in 
 the interest of the Liberty party. Mr. 
 Chase wrote the Address. 
 
 Although he attended the Liberty 
 Convention of 1847, which nominated 
 John P. Hale, Mr. Chase was looking 
 on every side for broader politcal 
 action, with more power. He called a 
 Convention at Columbus in June, and 
 this called a Free-Soil Convention later 
 at Buft'alo, where he presided. Ex- 
 President Van Buren was nominated 
 for President, and the Barn-Burners 
 joined. This combination of Abolition- 
 ists with anti-Slavery men polled a vote 
 of 291,263, when Taylor and Fillmore 
 were elected. 
 
 So great was the success of his politi- 
 cal movements in Ohio that he was able 
 to control the Legislature, which by a 
 very narrow vote elected him to the 
 Ignited States Senate as an Independ- 
 ent Democrat or Free-Soiler. 
 
 July 13, 1855, the ex-Senator was 
 nominated for Governor of Ohio by a 
 union of stray Whigs, Free-Soil Demo- 
 crats, and Know-Nothings, called as a 
 whole. Republicans. Chase was 
 elected, and a solid Republican State 
 party at once came into form and or- 
 ganization, to hold power for twenty 
 
 years. Governor Chase's administra- 
 tion was noted for the slave-hunts that 
 v.ere prosecuted by Southerners in 
 Ohio, and the energy with which he 
 strove to defend the small remaining 
 rights of his State. He raised and 
 equipped 15,000 State troops, with ar- 
 tillery, and had at hand a respectable 
 anti-slavery army, while not a man in 
 uniform had been seen in Ohio before 
 the new Governor was elected. This 
 force made Buchanan respect Ohio's 
 court decisions against the slave hunt- 
 ers. Chase was reelected Governor for 
 1858-9. He went into Illinois to aid 
 Lincoln's canvass. When John Brown, 
 of Ossawatomie, set the ball of civil 
 war rolling. Governor Chase wrote to 
 I'is Legislature: "While we will not 
 disavow just admiration of noble 
 qualities by whomsoever displayed, we 
 nuist not the less, but rather the more 
 earnestly, condemn all inroads into 
 States," etc. On this feeling he was 
 re-elected to the United States Senate. 
 John Brown had appealed to the 
 Higher Law." Already, the solemn 
 chant of freemen over his fate was set- 
 ting up. His soul was marching on. 
 
 Ohio went to Chicago in i860 with 
 a solid delegation for Governor Chase. 
 Some of Chase's votes nominated Lin- 
 coln. Chase could have nominated 
 Seward. He had his choice, and Lin- 
 coln forgot the debt, despite the feeling 
 often displayed by the Ohioan. Gov- 
 ernor Chase made a protracted canvass 
 for Lincoln in i860. January 3, 1861, 
 he arrived at a hotel in Springfield, 
 v.here Lincoln called on him, and of- 
 fered him the Treasury Department, 
 which seemed a subordinate place, so 
 strongly did old traditions cling to the 
 office of foreign affairs. Governor 
 Chase finally accepted the portfolio of 
 finance only because Governor Seward 
 himself was to be Secretary of State; 
 and, again, and in fact, because Mr. 
 Lincoln did not feel bound to respect 
 the expressed distinction of Governor 
 Chase to resign an independent position 
 as Senator, which he liked, in order to 
 accept a place which linked him to the 
 fortunes of a political rival. National 
 events, however, were so harassing that 
 
410 
 
 THE HOME AUXILIARY AND REFERENCE 
 
 he had not time to consult personal in- 
 terests. He therefore took the Treas- 
 ury, and in doing this he unwittingly 
 paved the way to his subsequent eleva- 
 tion to the Chief Justiceship. 
 
 His labors as Secretary of the Treas- 
 ury were prodigious. But the great 
 work of his life, and one of the great- 
 est acts of any man, was the successful 
 issue of $450,000,000 of greenbacks ; 
 which created cash without borrowing : 
 which furnished a currency of equal 
 value throughout the Nation.. To make 
 the greenbacks acceptable, he estab- 
 lished the National Banking system, 
 which was reenacted in 1882. He or- 
 ganized four new bureaus — Internal 
 Revenue, Currency, Printing of Cur- 
 rency, and Inter-State Commerce. 
 
 Secretary Chase did not like to see 
 Lincoln's ward-workers appointed to 
 office. There was a sharp touch of 
 John Quincy Adams in him — what was 
 afterward called "mugwumpery." 
 When Lincoln would please two Sena- 
 tors at the expense of one Secretary, 
 the Secretary would resign. In fact, 
 in political parlance, Salmon P. Chase 
 clubbed .Abraham Lincoln with his 
 resignation from March 5, 1861, until 
 it was accepted, June 29, 1864. 
 
 The President did not permit the 
 fallen Secretary to depart from Wash- 
 ington without sending ]\Ir. Hooper to 
 him with the comforting assurance that 
 the Chief Justiceship awaited him after 
 election, and this news, coming to Gov- 
 ernor Chase, sent him into the Presi- 
 dential canvass with a will. On De- 
 cember 6, Mr. Lincoln sent the follow- 
 in short but momentous message to the 
 Senate : 
 
 "Executive Mansion, W.^.shing- 
 TON, Dec. 6, 1864. 
 
 "To the Senate of the United States : 
 
 "I nominate Salmon P. Chase, of 
 Ohio, to be Chief Justice of the Su- 
 preme Court of the United States, 
 vice Roger B. Taney, deceased. 
 
 Abraham Lincoln." 
 
 This is one of the few times that Mr. 
 Lincoln's name will be found spelled 
 in full in his own signature. 
 
 Chief Justice Chase was a very large, 
 tall, near-sighted man. He attracted 
 unusual attention in any gathering of 
 men, and was a highly-impressive per- 
 son, without speaking. After acquaint- 
 ance, he strengthened the earlier im- 
 pressions in his auditors. Hard work 
 began to tell on him in 1869, and he 
 lost flesh so rapidly that he took alarm. 
 In the spring of 1870, he went for the 
 >ummer to Minnesota, where he stayed 
 out-doors nearly all the time. On his 
 way back, in the autunm, traveling in 
 New York State, on a Pullman car. he 
 was stricken with paralysis through his 
 entire right side. His hair turned 
 white, and the impressive statesman 
 and jurist fell in majestic ruin, to the 
 sorrow of his admirers. In June, 1871. 
 he visited the St. Louis Springs in 
 Michigan, and spent two months at 
 Waukesha, Wis. He recovered so far 
 as to resume his work on the Supreme 
 Bench, but again manifestly over-taxed 
 himself. He left the court late in April, 
 1873, on its adjournment, and visited 
 his daughter, Mrs. Hoyt, in New York 
 City. There, on May 6, he suffered a 
 second and fatal stroke of paralysis, 
 lingering alive till May 7th at 10 A. M. 
 
 CHARLES SUMNER. 
 
 1811-1874 
 
 The Scholar in Politics. 
 
 He was born with a twin sister at 
 Boston, January 6, 181 1. His father 
 was Sheriff of Boston (Suft'olk) for 
 fourteen years, and was enabled to send 
 Charles, his oldest son, to Harvard Col- 
 lege. The son graduated, and studied 
 at home for a year. While he was ar- 
 dent in the pursuit of knowledge, and 
 neglected all youthful games in order 
 to maintain his studies, he was not a 
 brilliant scholar. Yet he was a person 
 of great "approbativeness," and had a 
 deep sense of the obligations that edu- 
 cation and training imposed on him 
 as a member of society. He soon en- 
 tered the Dane Law School at Cam- 
 bridge, where he studied under Justice 
 Story and Professors .'Xshmun and 
 
BIOGRAPHY—CHARLES SUMNER 
 
 Greenleaf, and was librarian of the law 
 library. He graduated in 1833 3^"d en- 
 tered the law office of Benjamin Rand, 
 in Boston. "Of all men I ever knew 
 at his age," says Mr. Story, "he was 
 the least susceptible to the charms of 
 women. Men he liked best, and with 
 them he preferred to talk." This de- 
 votion to learning, and indifference to 
 one-half of humanity, undoubtedly had 
 its ill effects upon the usefulness of the 
 great Senator. 
 
 In the winter of 1834 he went to 
 Washington, D. C, to study legal pro- 
 cedure in the Supreme Court. He rode 
 on a railroad train and was delighted 
 with the experience. Between Balti- 
 more and Washington he saw slaves for 
 the first time. "My worst preconcep- 
 tion of their appearance and ignorance 
 did not fall as low as their actual stu- 
 pidity." Nor did he ever overcome his 
 natural aversion for the black man as 
 an actual brother. In 1836 he became 
 an associate editor of the American 
 Jurist. He already read Garrison's 
 Liberator, and was inclined to attack 
 slavery, tooth and nail. 
 
 Charles Sumner, as a young man, 
 was very tall and thin, and a rajiid 
 walker. He had a thick "head of hair." 
 He was so full of "eagerness, energy, 
 enthusiasm," that everybody noticed it. 
 He was extremely well liked by elderly 
 men. He had now, in his own lan- 
 guage, "fallen in love with Europa." 
 He must travel and study abroad. I le 
 therefore settled in Paris, and learned 
 to talk French. 
 
 In England he was received as the 
 best specimen of Young America so 
 far seen. His impressions of Europe 
 strengthened his democratic principles. 
 
 He went to Rome, and evened up all 
 that he had learned about it at Har- 
 vard. This gave him extreme delight. 
 He mastered the Italian language and 
 studied a good share of its literature, 
 v.-orking many hours a day. He then 
 ' traveled for five months in Germany. 
 He studied German in Heidelberg. He 
 arrived in New York in May, 1840, 
 29 years old. 
 
 July 4, 1845, hs was orator of the 
 day at Boston. John Quincy Adams 
 
 was making his anti-Slavery fight -^11 
 alone in the House of Representatives, 
 and aroused the admiration of Sumner, 
 who wrote many articles for the news- 
 papers. When Massachusetts at- 
 tempted to protect her free colored sea- 
 men against the indignities of the laws 
 in South Carolina and Louisiana, he 
 was a prominent contributor to the ar- 
 gument of the day on that question, and 
 always on the side of the slave. In 
 November of that year, he made his 
 first political speech at a meeting in 
 P^aneuil Hall, to protest against the ad- 
 mission of Texas as a slave State. 
 That night he declared the equality and 
 brotherhood of all men. In Septem- 
 ber, 1846, in Faneuil Hall, he outlined 
 the anti-Slavery duties of the Whig 
 party. In June, 1848, Sumner for- 
 mally left the Whig party and became 
 a Free Soiler. In August, 1848, he pre- 
 sided at the Faneuil Hall ratification 
 of Van Buren's nomination for Presi- 
 dent, at Buffalo. In fusion of Free 
 Soilers and Democrats, Sumner was 
 elected to the United States Senate by 
 a majority of one vote, on the twenty- 
 sixth ballot, April 24, 185 1, and thus 
 practically entered politics at the ripe 
 age of forty. On August 26, 1852, 
 Sumner escaped from the toils laid 
 about him by parliamentary intrigue, 
 and made a speech in the Senate against 
 the Fugitive Slave law. He wanted 
 Slavery abolished. 
 
 On May 19 and 20. 1856, Sumner de- 
 livered the speech entitled "The Crime 
 against Kansas," which led to the prin- 
 cipal event in his career. The address 
 was usually called "an unparalleled 
 philippic against Slavery." 
 
 After a short session of the Senate, 
 on the 22d, Mr. Sumner sat writing at 
 his little desk in the Senate, in a pos- 
 ture that made it impossible for him to 
 rise suddenly, when a strange man ap- 
 peared before him, stick in hand, and 
 began beating him over the head. Sum- 
 ner's hair was thick, Init the blows cut 
 open his scalp. In his endeavor to rise 
 out of the trap in which he found him- 
 self, he wrenched the little desk from 
 its fastenings to the floor, and then fell 
 unconscious, while the assailant still 
 
THE HOME AUXn^IARY AND REFERENCE 
 
 continued to beat the prostrate form. 
 Two fellow-ruffians. Congressmen Keitt 
 and Edmundson, prevented Simonton, 
 a reporter, from going to the rescue. 
 
 The ruffian was Congressman Pres- 
 ton S. Brooks, known in history as 
 "Bully Brooks." The Senate formally 
 complained of this act to the House. 
 Brooks resigned, and Keitt was cen- 
 sured. Brooks was fined $300 in the 
 criminal courts of the District. He be- 
 came a hero in the South, and his 
 "knock-down argument" was recom- 
 mended for all "Northern fanatics." 
 
 Within eight months Brooks, the ruf- 
 fian, died a dreadful death from mem- 
 braneous croup. 
 
 The history of Sumner's sufferings is 
 almost as long as the chronicle of his 
 education. Beside his wounds, there 
 was "a grave and formidable lesion of 
 the brain and spinal cord." When, 
 months afterward, he was able to travel 
 to Jjoston, he was received with extra- 
 ordinary honors. He was re-elected 
 Senator without opposition, although it 
 was not certain he could serve, and 
 sailed for Paris, where he was seven 
 times treated by the moxa, at the hands 
 of Dr. Brown-Sequard, who pro- 
 nounced it "the greatest suft"ering that 
 could be inflicted on mortal man." In 
 December, 1859, he returned to his seat 
 in the Senate, which had remained 
 empty all the time intervening. If he 
 had been a fanatic before, the planters 
 might well abhor him now, and he was 
 not so weakly supported as when Doug- 
 las was the chief cup-bearer of the 
 Southern oligarchy. June 4, i860, he 
 delivered his celebrated speech on 
 "The Barbarism of Slavery," which 
 was a far more effective and pitiless 
 tirade against Slavery than the address 
 that had" maddened Brooks and his fel- 
 low-assailants. Mr. Sumner's greatest 
 work was done when he sank uncon- 
 scious under the blows of Bully Brooks, 
 in 1856. He busied himself with ar- 
 ranging the United States statutes to 
 meet the progress of the war, wherever 
 the black race was involved, and made 
 the country pay black soldiers as much 
 as white ones. Mr. Sumner secured to 
 
 negroes the right to ride on street cars 
 in Washington. 
 
 ]\Ir. Sumner's celebrated theory of 
 State suicide, while it was not acknowl- 
 edged, was nevertheless the basis of 
 Reconstruction. According to this 
 theory, a State on failing to secede, re- 
 lajjsed into a territorial condition, the 
 same as any region that had never en- 
 joyed Statehood. The dominant party 
 of the North learned that it was neces- 
 sary to realize this theory in order to 
 perpetuate the ordinances growing out 
 of the war. 
 
 Many of the Abolitionists who were 
 out of Congress found life heavy on 
 their hands after the constitutional 
 amendments of 1865, 1866 and 1869; 
 but there remained much legislative 
 work for Sumner to do in the way of 
 securing civil rights for his wards of 
 the black race. When General Grant 
 atteinpted to anex San Domingo, Sum- 
 ner joined with Schurz in the extra- 
 ordinary Senatorial philippics that were 
 hurled at their "Csesar." This attitude 
 put him in the inglorious wing of the 
 Republican party, which split away and 
 nominated Greeley against Grant. An 
 unhappy marriage late in life contrib- 
 uted to increase the disappointments of 
 the celebrated Abolitionist. The Legis- 
 lature of Massachusetts censured him 
 for a bill he had presented in the Senate 
 to remove the names of victories on 
 Northern battle-flags, in order to sooner 
 heal the wounds of war. 
 
 In 1872 the health of the lonely man 
 began to fail, and declined through 
 the years 1873 and 1874. While he 
 was very ill, a committee came from 
 Massachusetts, to notify him that the 
 resolution of censure had been annulled 
 and expunged. Almost his last words 
 were: "Take care of my. Civil Rights 
 bill." He died at his home in Wash- 
 ington, without descendants or attend- 
 ant relatives, March 11, 1874. 
 
 ROBERT E. LEE. 
 I 807- I 870 
 
 Robert Edward Lee (1807- 1870), 
 general of the Confederate States army, 
 
BIOGRAPHY— ROBERT E. LEE 
 
 and one of the greatest of modern com- 
 manders, was born at Stratford, in 
 Westmoreland County, Virginia, on 
 January 19, 1807. His father was Gen- 
 eral Harry Lee, better known in the 
 War of Independence as "Light-Horse 
 Harry Lee," and afterwards governor 
 of \'irginia. 
 
 Robert Lee entered the ^Military 
 Academy at West Point in 1825, and 
 graduated in 1829, when he received 
 a commission in the corps of engineers. 
 When the Mexican war broke out, Lee, 
 who was then captain, served in the 
 army under General Scott. He dis- 
 tinguished himself greatly throughout 
 the campaign, and was brevetted as 
 colonel for his conduct at the seize of 
 Chapultepec, where he was wounded. 
 In 1852 he was appointed superinten- 
 dent of the Academy at West Point, 
 and in 1835 he was promoted lieu- 
 tenant-colonel of the second regiment 
 of cavalry, with which he served in 
 Texas. In March, 1861, he was made 
 colonel of the first regiment of cavalry, 
 but in the following month, learning 
 that his native State had withdrawn 
 from the L'nion. he resigned as an of- 
 ficer of the L^nited States Army, and 
 was forthwith put in command of the 
 Mrginian forces. When Virginia 
 joined the Confederacy he was the third 
 of five generals appointed by the 
 Southern Congress. Xo adequate op- 
 portunity of gaining distinction was af- 
 forded him, however, until the begin- 
 ning of June, 1862, when he received 
 command of Northern Virginia and 
 commenced the series of operations, the 
 result of which, before the month had 
 closed, was to compel McCIellan to ab- 
 andon the seige of Richmond. Follow- 
 ing up this advantage and Jackson's 
 victory at Cedar Run on August 9th, 
 Lee advanced in person to lead the 
 army that was being formed on the 
 south bank of the Rapidan. After 
 crossing that river he inflicted upon 
 Pope at Manassas the disastrous de- 
 feat by which the Federal army was 
 compelled to retire within the forti- 
 fied lines of Washington. Lee now de- 
 cided on the invasion of Maryland, and 
 advanced to Frederick City, but, be- 
 
 ing compelled to divide his forces, he 
 sustained a check in the passes of South 
 ^Mountain (September i6th, 17th) 
 which compelled him to recross the 
 Potomac. After a few weeks' breath- 
 ing time he found himself again face 
 to face with the Federal Army near 
 Fredericksburg, early in November ; on 
 December 13th the enemy, having 
 crossed the Rappahannock on the pre- 
 vious day, assailed his position in 
 strength, but was defeated in great loss. 
 
 In the following spring the hostile 
 armies still faced one another on the 
 Rappahannock, but the brilliant stra- 
 tegy of Lee, as exhibited in the battles 
 at Chancellorsville (May 2-4) against 
 vastly superior forces, resulted in the 
 defeat of the enemy, while Lee was left 
 free to resume his old policy of throw- 
 ing the Federal forces on the defen- 
 sive by an advance into Pennsylvania. 
 He encountered the enemy near Gettys- 
 burg on July 1st, and decided advan- 
 tages were gained, but the struggle was 
 renewed on the two following days with 
 disastrous consequences to him ; he re- 
 treated, however, in good order, and 
 reached Virginia on the 12th, when the 
 campaign of the year practically closed. 
 That of 1864 began on May 4, when 
 Grant crossed the Rapidan ; the passage 
 itself vi'as unresisted ; but subsequent 
 progress was hotly contested in a series 
 of well-fought battle, which did not 
 prevent the Federal general from reach- 
 ing the south side of the Appomattox. 
 The seige of Petersburg began in June, 
 and lasted until April 2, 1865. A week 
 afterward Lee surrendered with his 
 whole army, thus virtually terminating 
 the war. In the same year he was 
 elected President of Washington and 
 Lee University at Lexington, \'irginia, 
 which office he retained until his death 
 on October 12, 1870. 
 
 To do justice to his extraordinary 
 ability as a general, displayed under 
 circumstances of extreme difficulty, 
 when his movements were continually 
 hampered by political necessities, as 
 well as by the lack of material re- 
 sources, would require an elaborate mil- 
 itary biography. It was no more nobly 
 displayed than in the last hopeless 
 
THE HOME AUXILIARY AND REFERENCE 
 
 stages of the fatal struggle. The per- 
 sonal history of Lee is lost in the his- 
 tory of the great crisis of America's 
 national life. Political friends and foes 
 alike acknowledged the disinterested- 
 ness and purity of his motives, his self- 
 denying sense of duty and the unre- 
 pining loyaky with which he accepted 
 the ruin of his party. 
 
 WILLIAM T. SHERMAN. 
 
 1 820- 1 89 1 
 
 William Tecumseh Sherman was 
 born at Lancaster. Ohio, on the 8th 
 of February, 1820. His father, Charles 
 R. Sherman, had once been a judge of 
 the superior court of Ohio, and his 
 brother, Jolin Sherman, became an 
 American Senator, Secretary of the 
 Treasury and Secretary of State. 
 After his father's death in 1829, leav- 
 ing a large family and small income, 
 A\'illiam was adopted as a son by Sena- 
 tor Thomas Ewing, a devoted friend 
 of his father, and grew up in his fam- 
 ily. Here he formed a warm attach- 
 ment for the senator's daughter Ellen, 
 then a charming girl, whom he con- 
 tinued to love and who in time became 
 his wife. 
 
 Senator Ewing gained him admis- 
 sion to the West Point Military Acad- 
 emy in 1836. Here he was a diligent 
 student, though he showed no special 
 desire to be a soldier. Graduating in 
 184.0, he was commissioned second lieu- 
 tenant in the artillery service, and dur- 
 ing the years that followed was kept 
 busily engaged, at first against the Sem- 
 inoles in Florida and afterwards at 
 !^loultrie and in California. His mar- 
 riage with Ellen Ewing took place in 
 Washington in 1850. He was made 
 captain in 185 1, and in 1833 he re- 
 signed from the army and became a 
 banker in San Francisco. 
 
 During the eight years that followed 
 Sherman was not very successful in 
 business. The bank went out of exis- 
 tence in 1857 : then he vainly tried his 
 hand as a lawyer in Kansas, and in 
 i860 got a position as superintendent of 
 a new military academy in Louisiana. 
 
 In January, 1861, the Southern States 
 were seceeding and Sherman was 
 warmly implored to serve under the flag 
 of the South. His reply was warm 
 with patriotism : "I will maintain my 
 allegiance to the old Constitution as 
 long as a fragment of it survives." 
 
 In March he went to Washington, 
 where his brother John was just tak- 
 ing his seat in the Senate. The two 
 tried in vain to induce the President to 
 prepare for war; but when Fort Sum- 
 ter was fired upon there was a sud- 
 den change, seventy-five thousand 
 three-months' men were called out, and 
 Sherman was sent for. When he 
 reached Washington he told the author- 
 ities that they were making a great 
 mistake by enlisting short-term men. 
 You might as well try to put out the 
 flames of a burning house with a squirt 
 gun," he said, and refused to go to 
 Ohio to enroll three-months' volunteers. 
 He was one of the few men in the army 
 who saw from the start that the gov- 
 ernment had a great war, not a tem- 
 porary rebellion, on its hands. 
 
 In June Sherman was commissioned 
 colonel of an infantry regiment, and at 
 the battle of Bull Run, July 21, he com- 
 manded a brigade, doing his utmost to 
 save the army from defeat. On August 
 3d he was made brigadier-general of 
 volunteers, and in September was sent 
 to Kentucky. In October he was given 
 the chief command of the department, 
 and the Secretary of War asked him 
 how many men he needed. He replied, 
 with a keen prevision of coming events, 
 "Sixty thousand to drive the enemy out 
 of Kentucky and two hundred thou- 
 sand to finish the war in this section." 
 This was considered so wildly extrava- 
 gant that he was removed from the 
 command, as an unsafe, if not mentally 
 deficient, man, and was put in a sub- 
 ordinate position under General Hal- 
 leck. It was not long before they 
 learned that the man they deemed in- 
 sane was wiser than they. 
 
 It was not till April, 1862, that Sher- 
 man, as commander of the fifth division 
 of General Grant's army, was able to 
 show the metal of which he was made. 
 On the 6th and "th of that month the 
 
BIOGRAPHY— WILLIAM T. SHERMAN 
 
 desperate battle of Shiloh was fought, 
 and here his coolness, skill and energy 
 went far to save the day. Grant wrote 
 of him, "At the battle of Shiloh, on the 
 first day, he held, with raw troops, the 
 key-point of the landing. . . . To his 
 individual efforts I am indebted for the 
 Successes of that battle." Halleck also 
 wrote to the effect that Sherman saved 
 the fortunes of the day on the 6th. 
 On the /th he led his battered troops 
 with heroic energy into the fight, and 
 after the victory he pushed out and 
 whipped the enemy's cavalry, captur- 
 ing a large supply of ammunition. 
 Rousseau said of him, "He fights by 
 the week.'' During the battle he was 
 wounded in the hand and had three 
 horses shot under him. 
 
 It was evident that in Sherman the 
 North had a fighting soldier, and in 
 May he was raised in rank to major- 
 general of volunteers. A few days later 
 he took an active part in the seige of 
 Corinth, which was evacuated on the 
 29th. Sherman's ne.xt important work 
 was in Grant's operations against 
 Vicksburg, which began in December, 
 1862, and continued until July, 1863. 
 He lead the division that made the first 
 direct assault upon Mcksburg, strik- 
 ing at the stronghold from the mouth of 
 the Yazoo River, on the north side. 
 The attempt was unsuccessful, not 
 from any lack of courage or skill, but 
 simply because the place was too strong 
 to be taken by assault. Only a seige 
 could reduce it, and this Grant recog- 
 nized when he cut loose from his base 
 and "swung around to the south." 
 
 In the battles that followed in the 
 rear of Mcksburg, Sherman was ac- 
 tive; he took part in an assault on the 
 city on May 22d, and after its fall 
 on July 4th, he marched against Gen- 
 eral Johnston and drove him from 
 Jackson, the capital of Mississippi. 
 About this time he expressed his sen- 
 timents as follows : "The people of the 
 North must conquer or be conquered. 
 There can be no middle course." The 
 event proved that he was correct in this 
 as in his former utterances. 
 
 Chattanooga, on the Tennessee, was 
 the next point of interest. Here Gen- 
 
 eral Thomas, after the day of disaster 
 at Chickamauga, led his troops and held 
 the place, threatened by Bragg in front 
 and by starvation in the rear. Grant 
 hurried to his relief, and sent for Sher- 
 man, then in command at Memphis, 
 four hundred miles away. He re- 
 sponded with his usual promptness and 
 by a forced march reached Chatta- 
 nooga about November 15. It was the 
 men under his command who, on the 
 25th, led by him, made the phenomenal 
 rush up the steep face of Missionary 
 Ridge, which swept Bragg and his men 
 from their stronghold and put an ef- 
 fectual end to the seige. Immediately 
 afterwards he marched to the relief of 
 Burnside, who was beseiged at Knox- 
 ville, his cavalry reaching there on the 
 3d of December, to find that the enemy 
 had not waited for his coming. He 
 wrote in his official report : 
 
 "The men had marched for long pe- 
 riods, without regular rations of any 
 kind, through mud and over rocks, 
 sometimes barefoot, and without a mur- 
 mur. Without a moment's rest, after 
 a march of over four hundred miles, 
 without sleep for three successive 
 nights, they crossed the Tennessee 
 River, fought their part in the battle 
 of Chattanooga, pursued the enemy out 
 of Tennessee, then turned once more 
 one hundred miles north and compelled 
 Longstreet to raise the seige of Knox- 
 ville, which had been a source of anx- 
 iety to the whole country." 
 
 During the winter that followed 
 Sherman made a raid to Meridian, in 
 central Mississippi, destroying rail- 
 roads and capturing large quantities of 
 stores. But the great opportunity in 
 his career came after March 12, 1864, 
 when Grant was made Commander-in- 
 Chief of all the armies. The forces be- 
 tween the Mississippi and the .-Mle- 
 ghanies were put under Sherman, and 
 when Grant projected his great move- 
 ment against Lee in the beginning of 
 ]\Iay, he ordered Sherman to move at 
 the same time against Johnston, then 
 commanding the Confederate forces in 
 his front. Grant wrote to him with 
 warm commendation saying: "I express 
 my thanks to you and AlcPherson as 
 
4i6 
 
 THE HOME AUXILIARY AND REFERENCE 
 
 the men to wliom, above all others, I 
 feel indebted for whatever I have had 
 of success." 
 
 On May 5lh the movement began. 
 Of its purpose Sherman in his "jNlem- 
 oirs," says, "Neither Atlanta, Augusta 
 nor Savannah was the objective, but 
 the 'Army of Joe Johnston," go where 
 it might." Against that army he moved, 
 Johnston retreating, striking as he 
 went, Sherman persistently advancing. 
 For several months marching and 
 fighting were almost continuous. The 
 country was broken, and covered with 
 brush and woodland, its roads or tracks, 
 mean at the best, becoming quagmires 
 whenever it rained. At every available 
 spot Johnston impeded the march. 
 Battles were fought at each defensive 
 point, the hardest that at Kenesaw 
 jNIountain, where Sherman lost twenty- 
 five hundred men. Sherman's progress 
 resembled that of Grant. When his 
 opponent could not be driven out he 
 was flanked and forced to retire to an- 
 other strong point. 
 
 The Fabian policy of the cautious 
 Johnston did not please the cabinet 
 General at Richmond. They wanted 
 a more aggressive general, one who 
 would seek to drive Sherman back, and 
 about mid-summer they removed John- 
 ston and put the hard fighter Hood in 
 his place. They lost rather than 
 gained by the change. Hood made 
 furious attacks, lost men by the thou- 
 sands, but met with continued defeat, 
 and on the ist of September, fearinjj 
 to be surrounded in Atlanta and cut off 
 from his base of supplies, he evacuated 
 that town, leaving it to Sherman's 
 troops. 
 
 The news of the fall of Atlanta filled 
 the North w-ith delight. Sherman was 
 the hero of the hour. At all the chief 
 military posts a salute of one hundred 
 guns w^as fired in his honor. He had 
 won the first great success of the year. 
 Grant highly praised the brilliancy of 
 his campaign. His official reward was 
 promotion to IMajor-General in the 
 regular army. There he lay, in the 
 heart of the Confederacy, his work 
 only begun, not ended. F.efore taking 
 another step he awaited the move- 
 
 ments of his antagonists. When they 
 came Sherman was delighted. Hood, 
 finding himself helpless before his 
 strong foe, and knowing it to be use- 
 less to strike in front, decided to strike 
 from the rear, to cut Sherman's long 
 line of communication, and by threat- 
 ening his base of supplies, to force him 
 to retreat. He could not have done 
 anything more to the liking of his 
 shrewd antagonist. "If Hood will go 
 to Tennessee," said Sherman, with a 
 chuckle, "I will supply him with rations 
 for the trip." All he did was to send 
 General Thomas to Nashville to pro- 
 tect his rear, while he himself prepared 
 for a new and daring project, to per- 
 form which he wanted Hood and his 
 veterans out of the way. 
 
 Georgia lay before him. the greatest 
 source of supply for the Confederate 
 armies "the work-shop and corn-crib 
 of the South." Savannah lay on the 
 sea, nearly three lumdred miles away. 
 The withdrawal of Hood had left the 
 field open for him. He could let go his 
 base of supplies. Georgia was able to 
 feed him and his army. Savannafi 
 once reached, the ships of the North 
 could bring all -he needed. It was a 
 great and spectacular plan, the device 
 of a soldier of genius. 
 
 None knew of his project. North or 
 Sotith. Nothing so bold was dreamed 
 of. He and his army simply disap- 
 peared from view and for a month 
 nothing was heard of them. There 
 was intense anxiety in the North about 
 his fate, many fearing that he had 
 walked into a trap from which he 
 might never escape. President Lin- 
 coln did not appear to share this anx- 
 iety. He had as much confidence in 
 Sherman as in Grant and simply said 
 to anxious inquirers, in his humorous 
 way, "I know which hole he went in at, 
 but I do not know which hole he will 
 come out at." 
 
 Meanwhile, Sherman was "marching 
 through Georgia," with hardly an 
 enemy to oppose him, with scarcely an 
 obstacle in his path. He set out from 
 Atlanta on November i6th, with an 
 army of sixty-two thousand strong. 
 Through Georgia he swept, with a 
 
BIOGRAPHY— WILLIAM T. SHERMAN 
 
 front thirty miles from wing to wing, 
 cutting a broad swath through the 
 center of the State, gathering food 
 from the country, rendering it incap- 
 able of furnishing supplies to the Con- 
 federacy. It was to the soldiers like a 
 holiday march. To the slaves it was 
 the "day of jubilee." Thousands of 
 them followed the army, flocking from 
 every plantation, keeping on for miles 
 when told that there was no food to 
 give them. They were content to 
 starve, if they could only get freedom. 
 
 On December 13th, Fort McAllister, 
 near Savannah, was captured. On the 
 2 1st the city surrendered. Two days 
 afterwards Sherman sent the President 
 a dispatch that has become famous: "I 
 beg to present you as a Christmas gift 
 the city of Savannah, with one hundred 
 and fifty guns and plenty of ammuni- 
 tion, and about twenty-five thousand 
 bales of cotton." The success of the 
 daring march was brilliant. Sherman 
 wrote. "We have not lost a wagon on 
 the trip and our trains are in a better 
 condition than when we started." 
 
 The news of this great march filled 
 the North with exultation. There was 
 a strain of the romantic and unusual in 
 it that rivited men's attention. Sher- 
 man's enterprise had proved an easy 
 and safe one, but it seemed as if he had 
 plunged through a sea of danger, and 
 men looked upon him as if he was one 
 of the daring knight errants of old. For 
 a time nothing was talked of but Sher- 
 man's wonderful marrh, and the song 
 in which it was commemorated is still 
 a favorite marching tune. 
 
 But the work of dissecting the Con- 
 federacy, which he had set out to do, 
 was but half accomplished. After giv- 
 ing his men a thorough rest in .Atlanta, 
 he set out, on January 15th, 1865, to 
 cut it in twain from South to North. 
 Northward he went, opposition melting 
 away before him. Town after town 
 was occupied. Columbia, the beautiful 
 capital of South Carolina, took fire 
 from burning cotton and was more 
 than half consumed. Charlestown, 
 which had held out for four years 
 against all attacks from the sea, sur- 
 rendered without a blow and without 
 
 Sherman's going near it. North Caro- 
 lina was reached and here Sherman for 
 the first time found a strong force, un- 
 der his old opponent. General Johnston, 
 gathered to meet him. Only one battle 
 was fought, at Bentonville, on Alarch 
 21, in which Johnston was beaten with 
 heavy loss. He fell back on Raleigh, 
 and Sherman was pursuing him when, 
 on April nth, news reached him of 
 General Lee's surrender two days be- 
 fore. 
 
 Further fighting would have been 
 nuirder. The Confederacy was con- 
 quered. Its leaders recognized this, and 
 on April 26, Johnston surrendered, be- 
 ing granted the same terms as were 
 given to General Lee. The last ap- 
 jjearance of Sherman's army in history 
 was on May 24, in Washington, where 
 it took part in the great two day's re- 
 view. Sherman in his "Memoirs," 
 says of it as it ajjpeared that day : "It 
 was, in my judgment, the most mag- 
 nificent army in existence, sixty-five 
 thousand men in splendid physique, 
 who had just completed a march of 
 nearly two thousand miles in a hostile 
 country.'' 
 
 With this review the spectacular por- 
 tion of Sherman's life ended. He re- 
 mained a soldier, honored and revered, 
 seeking no political honors, asking for 
 no place or privilege. When, in 1868, 
 Grant was appointed general of the 
 army, Sherman succeeded him as lieu- 
 tenant-general. When Grant was in- 
 augurated as President, March 4, i86g, 
 Sherman was raised to the rank of 
 general. He was relieved at his own 
 request, November i, 188-^, and was 
 succeeded by Sheridan. He then took 
 up his residence in St. Louis, after- 
 wards removing to New York, where 
 he died February 14, 1891. 
 
 An able critic thus sums up Sher- 
 man's qualities as a soldier : "Above 
 all his other excellencies shone his 
 promptitude, celerity, and immeasur- 
 able activity. What for some com- 
 manders were winter-quarters were to 
 lu'm a bivouac. Always ready for the 
 start, indefatigable on the march, 
 omnipresent in battle, relentless in pur- 
 suit. General Sherman made himself 
 
4i8 
 
 THE HOME AUXILIARY AND REFERENCE 
 
 not only more feared but more re- 
 spected by the enemy than any general 
 in the national armies, save, perhaps, 
 the one who commanded them all." 
 
 Sherman was able not only as a sol- 
 dier but as a writer. His "Memoirs" 
 tell admirably the story of his military 
 career and have given him a high liter- 
 ary reputation. As a speaker he was 
 ready and apt, and said so many strik- 
 ing things that Chauncey Depew de- 
 clared that "he never ought to be per- 
 mitted to go anywhere without being 
 accompanied by a stenographer." He 
 was not partisan either in politics or 
 religion. In politics no one could tell 
 which party he favored, while in re- 
 ligion he expressed his creed in the 
 following pithy sentence: "If men will 
 only act half as well as they know how, 
 God will forgive them the balance." 
 
 ULYSSES S. GRANT. 
 1822-1885 
 
 Ulysses S. Grant was born on the 
 27th of April, 1822, at Point Pleasant, 
 Clermont County, Ohio, about twenty- 
 five miles from Cincinnati. He is of 
 good old Revolutionary stock. His 
 great-great-grandfather, Noah Grant, 
 was captain of a company of colonial 
 militia in the French and Indian war, 
 and as one of the patriots fell bravely 
 fighting at the battle of White Plains, 
 in 1776. 
 
 The family originally came from 
 Scotland, and Noah Grant settled in 
 Connecticut. The father of Ulysses, 
 Jesse Root Grant, was born in West- 
 moreland County, Pennsylvania. His 
 father, Noah Grant, Jr., who was born 
 in Connecticut, began his military 
 career as an officer at the battle of Lex- 
 ington, and served with honor and de- 
 votion through the Revolutionary War. 
 When a boy of sixteen Jesse R. Grant 
 was sent to Kentucky to learn the trade 
 of a tanner, and at the expiration of his 
 apprenticeship moved to Ohio, where 
 he married Hannah Simpson, and after 
 many years of close application to his 
 trade, secured a comfortable fortune, 
 and turning the tannery over to his 
 
 sons Orville and Simpson, he retired 
 from business. 
 
 Ulysses was the eldest son, and had 
 necessarily been called upon early to 
 assist his father in the routine of 
 work. He early developed a fancy for 
 horses and a talent for breaking and 
 driving them. It is related of him that 
 when only seven years old he har- 
 nessed a three-year-old colt to a sled 
 and hauled wood, and by the time he 
 was ten years old he was frequently 
 sent by his father to Cincinnati with 
 loads of wood and leather to deliver to 
 customers. His skill as a rider be- 
 came so remarkable that at twelve 
 years of age he could stand upon the 
 back of a horse going at full speed, 
 supporting himself only by the bridle. 
 At about the same age he succeeded in 
 riding the trick pony at a circus, de- 
 spite all efforts to dismount him, the 
 ringmaster even unfairly bringing a 
 monkey to his assistance, which fas- 
 tened itself on the head and shoulders 
 of Ulysses. 
 
 At one time, when his father had un- 
 dertaken to build the county jail, Ulys- 
 ses came in one day with a load of 
 logs and reported that there was no one 
 to help him load. "Why, how did you 
 load this morning?" asked his father, 
 in surprise. "Oh, Dave and I loaded," 
 he replied. Dave was one of the strong, 
 heavy horses of the team. The surpris- 
 ing part of it was that the logs would 
 have required fifteen or twenty men 
 to lift any one of them, but the sturdy 
 little boy had hitched the horse to the 
 logs, one at a time, and dragged them 
 across a fallen tree until one end was 
 high enough to back the wagon under 
 them ; then with the horse he pulled 
 them on the wagon and drove home 
 with his load. 
 
 At about twelve years of age, while 
 driving a team of horses before a light 
 wagon, he was requested to take two 
 young women to Georgetown, where he 
 lived. There had been a heavy rain, 
 and the creek which he had forded on 
 the previous day had risen over itr 
 banks, and after driving a short dis- 
 tance into the water he found that the 
 horses were swimming. The water 
 
BIOGRAPHY— ULYSSES S. GRAXT 
 
 filled the wagon box and the girls be- 
 came very much frightened, but Httle 
 Ulysses said : "Xow don't be making 
 a fuss there. Keep quiet and I'll take 
 you through safe ;" and holding the 
 horses steadily with the reins, he 
 swam them to the opposite bank. 
 
 Ulysses disliked work in the tannery 
 and declared that he would not be a 
 tanner, but wanted to be a farmer or 
 merchant. His father suggested West 
 FViint, and the idea took finely with the 
 boy, and, on an appointment being se- 
 cured, he entered the Military Academy 
 at the age of seventeen. There hap- 
 pened to be another Grant in the same 
 class, and the boys nicknamed U. S. 
 Grant "Uncle Sam" to distinguish him 
 from the other Grant. 
 
 At the academy Ulysses kept at about 
 the middle of his class, and graduated 
 from that position. In the dry studies 
 he did not take much interest, but in all 
 the military exercises, and especially 
 in horsemanship, he excelled. 
 
 On the 1st of July, 1843, Grant re- 
 ceived the appointment of Brevet Sec- 
 ond Lieutenant in the United States 
 Army, and was assigned to duty at Jef- 
 ferson Barracks, in Missoin-i, where he 
 remained until 1844, when he was sent 
 with his regiment to Camp Salubrity, 
 in Louisiana. The only notable thing 
 he remembers doing at this camp was 
 learning to smoke cigars. 
 
 But the cloud of war was hovering 
 over the locality of our young lieu- 
 tenant, and in 1845 he was sent to 
 Corpus Christi to take command in the 
 army under General Taylor, who was 
 then holding himself in readiness for 
 orders to pounce upon the Mexicans 
 who were menacing the border. Soon 
 after his arrival Grant was promoted 
 to the rank of second lieutenant, and 
 on the 8th of May, 1846. he participated 
 in the battle of Palo Alto, and the next 
 day again in that of Resaca de la 
 Palma. The first battle was a duel with 
 cannon, lasting all day. in which Lieu- 
 tenant Grant had but little opportunity 
 to display his bravery. But the next 
 day, the Mexicans, whom our heavy 
 cannon had forced to retire in the first 
 battle, rallied in a thicket of small tim- 
 
 ber and again fought fiercely a battle 
 of infantry in which Grant displayed 
 his first qualities of skill and bravery. 
 
 On the 23d of September he partici- 
 pated in the fierce battle of Alonterey, 
 in which General Taylor marched 
 boldly upon the city garrisoned by ten 
 thousand Mexican soldiers, and after 
 two or three days' fierce fighting in the 
 streets and at the fortifications of the 
 city, compelled it to surrender. 
 
 This ended his campaign with Gen- 
 eral Taylor, and he was soon afterward 
 sent with his regiment to join the army 
 of General Scott, who was then prepar- 
 ing for an attack on \'era Cruz. This 
 aft'orded Grant an opportunity of en- 
 gaging in the siege and capture of that 
 stronghold. His brave conduct here 
 marked him for a reward, and he was 
 appointed Regimental Quartermaster. 
 Notwithstanding his new position, he 
 engaged with his regiment in the battle 
 of Cerro Gordo, also in those of San 
 Antonio, Cherubusco and Molino del 
 Rey, in which latter glorious engage- 
 ment he so distinguished himself that 
 he was promoted to the brevet rank of 
 First Lieutenant. At the storming of 
 Chepultepec he added to his laurels 
 such a record for bravery that he was 
 breveted a captain. 
 
 With the capture of the City of 
 Mexico, Grant had engaged in every 
 battle of the war except Buena Vista. 
 
 Llis military career in Alexico was 
 now at an end, and he returned with 
 his regiment to New York City, whence 
 he was sent to Sackett's Harbor. Here, 
 obtaining a short leave of absence, he 
 married Miss Julia T. Dent, the daugh- 
 ter of a St. Louis merchant. 
 
 In 1849 he went with his regiment 
 to Fort Brady, where he remained for 
 two years. In 1852 the regiment was 
 sent to the Pacific coast, and one bat- 
 talion, including Grant's company, was 
 ordered to Columbia Barracks, in Ore- 
 gon. Grant, however, soon became 
 so tired of the life in that wild, remote 
 locality that he resigned his commis- 
 sion and returned to his wife and civ- 
 ilization in St. Louis. 
 
 Being now thrown on his own re- 
 sources, he followed one of his boyish 
 
THE HOME AUXILIARY AND REFERENCE 
 
 inclinations, and settled on a farm 
 which Mrs. Grant's father had gi\en 
 her. He began by hewing logs for his 
 dwelling, and built the house himself. 
 Tile farm was small, so it required his 
 hardest labor to secure from it a sup- 
 port for his family. In the winter he 
 and his son hauled wood to St. Louis, 
 each driving a team. 
 
 Four years of farming found Grant 
 discouraged with results, and moving 
 to St. Louis, he opened a real estate 
 office, but gave it up for a position in 
 the Custom House, which he soon lost 
 by the death of the Collector. In i860 
 he moved to Galena and engaged with 
 his brother in the leather business. 
 Scarcely was he settled in his new avo- 
 cation when the attack upon Fort Sum- 
 ter aroused his military enthusiasm, 
 and as soon as the call w-as made for 
 volunteers, he took command of a com- 
 pany in Galena, and went with it to 
 Springfield to report to the Governor 
 for duty. Here his fifteen years' ser- 
 vice in the regular army made him so 
 familiar with all the details of mili- 
 tary matters that his merits were soon 
 discovered by the Governor, who 
 placed him in charge of the Twenty- 
 first Illinois Regiment, and, greatly to 
 his surprise, sent him the commission 
 of Colonel. His regiment w^as soon after 
 ordered to guard the line of the I lan- 
 nibal and St. Joseph Railroad. From 
 this point the regiment went to Ironton, 
 ]\Io., and while passing through St. 
 Louis Colonel Grant received a com- 
 mission promoting him to Brigadier- 
 General, and assigned him to the com- 
 mand of Southeastern ^Missouri, 
 Southern Illinois and Western Ken- 
 tucky and Tennessee. Reporting to 
 General Fremont at St. Louis, he was 
 at once instructed to make his head- 
 quarters at Cairo, 111., to which place 
 he repaired on the 1st of September. 
 
 Grasping the situation with his fine 
 military mind, he realized that Paducah 
 and Smithland, at the mouths of the 
 Tennessee and Cumberland Rivers, 
 were two strategic points which should 
 not be left to fall into the hands of the 
 rebels, who were concentrating their 
 forces for the occupation of Kentucky. 
 
 To secure these points, General Grant, 
 on the night of the 5th of September, 
 embarked his troops on transports un- 
 der convoy of two gunboats, and on 
 the morning of the 6th arrived at Padu- 
 cah and took possession. Grant re- 
 turned to Cairo the same day ; General 
 C. F. Smith was placed in command of 
 Paducah, and troops were sent to take 
 possession of Smithland and fortify it 
 sufficiently to hold the mouth of the 
 Cumberland River. 
 
 General Grant now devoted his time 
 to fortifying Cairo and organizing and 
 drilling the raw troops who were com- 
 ing in every day. There was such a 
 lack of efficient officers that General 
 Grant had to perform most of the work 
 himself, and teach the officers how to 
 make out their different reports and 
 requisitions. 
 
 During this time General Grant had 
 gathered a force of 20,000 troops at 
 Cairo. But the rebels, far from being 
 idle, had taken possession of Columbus, 
 Ky., on the bank of the Mississippi 
 River, about twenty miles below Cairo, 
 and were rapjdly fortifying its heights 
 so as to comriiand the river. To still 
 further secure their position, they had 
 formed a camp at Belmont, on the .Mis- 
 souri shore, imder the protection of 
 the guns at Columbus. From this camp 
 the rebels intended to make raids in 
 ]\Iissouri. The position at Columbus 
 was a strong one, and if allowed to be 
 held would be a constant menace to 
 both Paducah and Cairo, besides bar- 
 ring the navigation of the Mississippi. 
 
 General Grant did not feel that his 
 force was strong enough to capture 
 Columbus, but he was quick to see that 
 he could inflict a severe punishment on 
 the rebels at Belmont, and on the night 
 of the 6th of Xovember he, with about 
 three thousand men, embarked on 
 transports, convoyed by two gun- 
 boats, and landed early next morning 
 above Columbus, just out of range of 
 the enemy's guns, and quickly and 
 quietly marching through the forest, 
 made an impetuous charge upon the 
 camp at Belmont, and swept the rebels 
 out of their positions, capturing their 
 camp, artillery and many prisoners. 
 
BIOGRAPHY— ULYSSES S. GRANT 
 
 421 
 
 The repulse of the rebels could be seen 
 fiom Columbus and General Polk be- 
 gan immediately throwing reinforce- 
 ments across the river. This afforded 
 I'illow an opportunity to reorganize his 
 command, and preparations were 
 quickly made to assail the Union forces 
 in the rear. But Grant was quick to 
 discover the movement, and seeing 
 transports crossing from Columbus 
 with reinforcements, he hastily burned 
 the rebel camp and began his retreat. 
 Almost immediately he discovered a 
 rebel force between him and his trans- 
 ports, and he ordered a charge which 
 swept the enemy from before him, and 
 gaining the cover of tlie gunboats, he 
 embarked and returned to Cairo. 
 
 This battle opened the campaign in 
 that military division, and the rebels 
 began at once to strengthen their posi- 
 tions for active work. They at once 
 reinforced Columbus with a large garri- 
 son and heavy guns, and fortified 
 Howling Green. They also constructed 
 Fort Henry, on the Tennessee, and Fort 
 Donelson on the Cumberland, about 
 twelve miles distant from each other. 
 These forts were made very strong, 
 guns of the heaviest calibre were 
 mounted, and the rebels believed they 
 would be able to control the two rivers 
 and prevent the ascent of the Union 
 fleet and forces. The nearness of the 
 forts to each other would enable one 
 to reinforce the other, and the rebels 
 did not believe that they could be taken. 
 
 General Grant quickly realized the 
 great importance of capturing both 
 these forts, and secured from General 
 Halleck the order for the movement. 
 Fort Henry was the first point of opera- 
 tion, and on the 2d of February General 
 Grant started upon the expedition with 
 seventeen thousand men on transports, 
 accompanied by seven ironclad gun- 
 boats, commanded by Commodore 
 F^oote, and, landing the troops a few 
 miles below Fort Henry for an attack 
 upon the rear, the gunboats steamed 
 up within short range and opened a 
 terrific fire upon the fort. The fire was 
 vigorously returned by the fort, and 
 General Tilghman, who was in com- 
 mand, stood bravely by his artillerists. 
 
 directing their fire. But the ironclads 
 had the advantage of the heaviest guns, 
 and completely silenced the fort in an 
 hour and a half, and compelled its sur- 
 render. Owing to high water and al- 
 most impassable roads. Grant's main 
 army did not reach the fort in time to 
 strike it in the rear, as was intended, 
 nor to intercept the main body of the 
 garrison, which escaped to Fort Donel- 
 son. 
 
 On the I2th of February General 
 Grant made the advance on Fort Donel- 
 son. The rebels in the meantime had 
 been making the greatest preparation 
 for the impending struggle, and had not 
 ordy largely increased their force, but 
 had greatly strengthened the fort, which 
 naturally was a strong position, being 
 built on a ledge of rocks which over- 
 looked the river for miles. It possessed 
 water batteries, mounting columbiads 
 and similar heavy guns. There were 
 ramparts, re-entrants, curtains, salients, 
 bastions and rifle-pits, and the ap- 
 proaches on both the land and the water 
 side were made practically impassable 
 by heavy abatis. 
 
 On the afternoon of the 12th there 
 were slight skirmishes between the 
 rebels on the outer lines and IMcCler- 
 nand's and Smith's commands, but Gen- 
 eral Grant was wisely investing the fort, 
 and holding back from an engagement 
 until the gunboats returned with the 
 transports and reinforcements, as at 
 that time the rebel forces far exceeded 
 that of the Union army. 
 
 On the night of the 13th Commodore 
 Foote arrived, bringing the much- 
 wished-for reinforcements. The next 
 day the newly arrived troops were all 
 assigned to their positions, and all 
 things being in readiness, the fleet of 
 gunboats steamed up at about 3 p. m. 
 within short range of the fort and 
 opened fire. If Commodore Foote an- 
 ticipated as easy work as he had ex- 
 perienced at Fort Henry, he was 
 doomed to disappointment. The rela- 
 tive positions of the two forts were 
 very dififerent. Fort Henry was on low 
 ground, with a river bank overflowing, 
 while Fort Donelson looked down on 
 the gunboats from an ele\ation of thirty 
 
422 
 
 THE HOME AUXILIARY AND REFERENCE 
 
 or forty feet, and could discharge her 
 solid shot with terrific etifect on the 
 gunboats. Such was the disadvantage 
 that at the end of an hour and a half 
 the gunboats had been so roughly 
 handled as to be compelled to draw olf. 
 This led the rebels to believe that they 
 had won a fictory by driving off the 
 gunboats, but, as Colonel Oglesby said : 
 "Grant had gone there to take that fort, 
 and he would stay until he did it" ; and 
 as the rebels saw the Union forces 
 growing in numbers every day the siege 
 continued, they began to lose hope, and 
 Floyd, on a consultation with his gen- 
 erals, dcided that they must, if possible, 
 cut their way out and escape This plan, 
 unfortunately for the Union forces, was 
 put into execution while Grant was 
 absent on the flagship, having been sent 
 for by Commodore Foote. The attack 
 naturally fell on the weakest part of 
 the line, and the head of the army not 
 being on the field to direct the move- 
 ment of the forces, one brigade after 
 another was forced back, and Pillow 
 ■was so sure of victory that he sent word 
 to Johnston at Nashville that he had 
 won the day. But he had "reckoned 
 without his host." Grant returned, and 
 for the first time became aware of the 
 situation. He was surprised at the at- 
 tack, and could not understand it until 
 he saw that the knapsacks of the rebels 
 were packed and their haversacks were 
 filled with rations. At once he saw 
 that they were fighting their way out, 
 and as soon as he communicated this to 
 the officers and soldiers, it revived their 
 courage, and General Grant at once, by 
 a masterly Napoleonic move, reformed 
 the lines, and charging the enemy, 
 pushed them back into their lines, and 
 when night closed the engagement, it 
 found the Union forces victorious. 
 Floyd now saw that there would be no 
 alternative but to surrender, and resign- 
 ing the command to Pillow, who in turn 
 resigned to Buckner, these two Generals 
 stole away in the night, while Forrest, 
 with more valor, fought his way out 
 with his cavalry and escaped. There 
 being no others desirous of taking the 
 risk of fighting their way out, Buckner 
 then sent a flag of truce to General 
 
 Grant, asking for an armistice and com- 
 missioners to arrange for capitulation. 
 To this Grant replied : "No terms other 
 than an unconditional and immediate 
 surrender can be accepted. I propose 
 to move immediately upon your 
 works!" Buckner realized at once that 
 delay would invoke a terrific slaughter 
 of rebels, and he complied at once with 
 the demand for "unconditional sur- 
 render," and Fort Donelson, with 14,- 
 623 men, 17 heavy siege guns, 48 pieces 
 of field artillery, 20,000 stand of small 
 arms, 3,000 horses, besides a large 
 quantity of military stores, fell into the 
 hands of Grant. 
 
 This was the most signal victory that 
 had been secured, and it created the 
 most universal joy among all Union 
 people, while it had a depressing effect 
 upon the rebels. Grant's name was 
 heralded all over the land, and the 
 greatest gratitude and praise were be- 
 stowed upon him. President Lincoln, 
 quick to recognize the sterling qualities 
 of the hitherto unknown man, rewarded 
 him at once with a commission of 
 Major-General. 
 
 The fall of Fort Donelson inflicted 
 serious damage upon the rebel cause 
 far beyond the limits of that fortifica- 
 tion. It threw Southern Kentucky and 
 a considerable portion of ^Middle Ten- 
 nessee into possession of the Federal 
 forces, and. together with Fort Henry, 
 gave them the navigation of the Cum- 
 berland and Tennessee Rivers. It also 
 forced the rebels to abandon Columbus, 
 Bowling Green and Nashville, and al- 
 low large quantities of military stores 
 to fall into our hands. It reached still 
 further in its effects — it inspired hope 
 and confidence in the Union soldiers 
 and aroused a fear in the breasts of 
 the rebels that they were not invincible, 
 after all. 
 
 After this signal defeat. General 
 Johnston, the rebel commander, con- 
 centrated his scattered forces and estab- 
 lished a new defensive line at Island 
 Ko. 10, in the Mississippi, and at Mur- 
 freesboro, but being soon compelled to 
 evacuate Island No. 10, they changed 
 their front to Corinth and Chattanooga. 
 Grant's successful operations at this 
 
BIOGRAPHY— ULYSSES S. GRANT 
 
 time were delayed and his plans 
 changed by Halleck. his superior in 
 rank and his inferior in everything per- 
 taining to military matters. In his 
 envy of Grant's success and growing 
 fame he assigned him to new districts, 
 and gave the command of important 
 expeditions to other officers, until 
 Grant, feeling the injustice so keenly, 
 insisted upon being relieved from fur- 
 ther duty in the department until he 
 could appeal to higher authority. This 
 resulted in a slight relaxation of the 
 restraint put upon Grant, and with his 
 new command he again prepared to 
 nio\e for active service. 
 
 In the meantime the rebels had been 
 making themselves strong by concen- 
 tration, compelling all small Union 
 commands in their vicinity to fall back. 
 Indications pointed to a coming engage- 
 ment on the line of the Tennessee, 
 necessary to break the hold the rebels 
 were securing in that quarter. On the 
 17th of March, 1862, General Grant 
 began to concentrate his troops at 
 Pittsburgh Landing on the Tennessee, 
 where he was to await the arrival of 
 Cieneral Buell from Nashville, with 
 forty thousand troops. At this time 
 Grant had but thirty-five thousand men, 
 while the rebels had a force of seventy 
 thousand concentrated at Corinth, only 
 twenty miles away. General Johnston, 
 who was in command at Corinth, real- 
 ized the necessity of crushing Grant 
 before Buell arrived, and at daylight 
 on the 6th of April, the entire rebel 
 force, after a quick march from Co- 
 rinth, fell upon Grant's army in over- 
 whelming numbers, and during the 
 entire day one of the most bloody bat- 
 tles of the war was fought. The 
 carnage was fearful, and the Union 
 army was in the greatest danger of 
 being swept into hopeless ruin. They 
 were driven back to the river in the 
 greate.st disorder, and nothing but the 
 gunboats saved them from an uncondi- 
 tional surrender. Bravery could avail 
 but little against the overwhelming ^ 
 force of the rebels. This was the des- ' 
 perate condition of Grant's army when 
 night closed the contest. The rebels 
 
 were confident of a complete victory 
 the next morning. 
 
 During the afternoon Buell arrived 
 in advance of his troops, and anxiously 
 inquired of Grant what preparation he 
 had made for a retreat across the river. 
 "Why," replied Grant, "7 haz'e not 
 despaired of ivhipping them yet." 
 "But," continued Buell, "you haven't 
 steamboats enough to carry away ten 
 thousand men." "Well," replied (irant, 
 "there zvon't be more than that many 
 left when I get ready to go!" 
 
 In the night 20,000 of PkieH's troops 
 arrived in advance of the others and 
 crossed the river, where they were 
 placed in position for an early resump- 
 tion of hostilities the next morning. 
 The arrival of fresh troops had so in- 
 spired the Union army with confidence 
 that at daylight they fell upon the rebels 
 in a charge so fierce and impetuous that 
 the latter were filled with astonishment. 
 Grant knew his strength and advantage, 
 and he swept everything before him. 
 All day the conflict raged with unpre- 
 cedented fury, and at night the defeated 
 rebels retreated to Corinth, leaving 
 nearly 20,000 men dead on the field. 
 Thus ended the battle of Shiloh on the 
 first day and that of Pittsburgh Land- 
 ing on the second, in which Grant 
 wrested a grand victory out of defeat. 
 
 On the 9th of April ^lajor-General 
 Halleck arrived and assumed command. 
 \\'ith the greatest caution he advanced 
 on Corinth, intrenching his position at 
 almost every step. In the entire siege, 
 which was contemptible in a military 
 point of view. General Grant was en- 
 tirely ignored by Halleck and was 
 practically relieved from command. 
 The result of this slow and cautious 
 advance was the escape of the rebels 
 from Corinth with all their materials 
 of war, to the great surprise of Halleck, 
 who was doubtless considering his own 
 chances of escape should he be attacked 
 by the rebels. This fortunately ended 
 his personal supervision of military 
 movements in the \\'est. for he was 
 soon after called to Washington and 
 Grant was again placed in command of 
 the Army of the Tennessee. He soon 
 
THE HOME AUXILIARY AND REFERENCE 
 
 after placed Rosecrans in command of 
 Corinth and improved the fortifications 
 by shortening the lines. His military 
 foresight and skill were soon evident, 
 for the rebels, under Van Dorn, ad- 
 vanced upon Corinth and made a 
 vigorous attack, which Rosecrans re- 
 pulsed ; and after a fierce battle the 
 rebels retreated, pursued by the Union 
 forces, leaving on the field nearly 1,500 
 ofticers and men and more than 5,000 
 wounded, besides losing over 2,000 
 prisoners. 
 
 The necessity for opening the Missis- 
 sippi River was becoming more evident 
 every day, and when General Grant 
 requested permission of Halleck to 
 make an attack upon Yicksburg, he 
 found the General-in-Chief favorable 
 to his plan, and he at once began to 
 concentrate troops for the great cam- 
 paign. His plan was to have the fleet 
 co-operate with the land forces, and 
 after a number of small battles in 
 Mississippi, in which divisions of the 
 army were engaged, General Grant 
 pushed on with the entire force toward 
 Mcksburg as rapidly as possible, issu- 
 ing orders for the army to subsist from 
 the country. 
 
 The siege of Vicksburg is such a 
 history in itself that only general details 
 can be given. As a natural military 
 stronghold it could scarcely be sur- 
 passed by any other position occupied 
 by the rebels. This city is located on 
 a bluff, two hundred and fifty feet 
 above low water mark, while innumer- 
 able swamps and bayous extend in all 
 directions in the rear through the al- 
 most impenetrable forests, and never 
 perhaps in the history of any siege since 
 the world began were there so many 
 natural obstacles to its progress. Every 
 means was devised that human ingenu- 
 ity could plan. Canals, passes, bayous 
 and every other species of water-course 
 were tried in the endeavor to pass 
 Vicksburg with the fleet and army to a 
 point of operation below, but these 
 plans all failed. The forests, bayous 
 and swamps were too much for human 
 ingenuity, and giving up all these plans. 
 General Grant concentrated the army in 
 front of Vicksburg and decided to send 
 
 the ironclads and transports down the 
 Mississippi River under the fire of the 
 \'icksburg batteries, and on the i6th of 
 April, at night, the fleet, under Admiral 
 Porter, steamed past Vicksburg, under 
 a terrific fire from the heaviest guns, to 
 which all the gunboats replied with 
 fearful energy while they floated with 
 the current. After the fleet and army 
 had reached a point below Vicksburg, 
 General Grant worked incessantly to 
 prepare for the grand assault which he 
 knew must be made. Immediately he 
 began a series of fierce assaults from 
 day to day on the rebel lines, while 
 all the operations of the siege were 
 pushed vigorously forward. Nearer 
 and nearer the works approached Vicks- 
 burg, while mines were sunk and sharp- 
 shooters from towers and treetops were 
 constantly picking off the rebel gun- 
 ners. On the 26th of June, a great 
 mine, dug under one of the strongest 
 batteries of the enemy, was exploded, 
 with the most tremendous force, shak- 
 ing the very city to its foundations, 
 and strewing the air with dirt, timbers 
 and cannon, and the mangled bodies of 
 the rebels. This explosion was followed 
 by an assault on the enemy's line of 
 defense, which had been broken by the 
 explosion, but it accomplished nothing. 
 At last Grant's works, mounted by 
 heavy guns, were all completed, and 
 he directed that the general attack be 
 made on the morning of the 5th of 
 July. Pemberton, the rebel commander 
 at Vicksburg, realizing the terrific 
 slaughter of his men that would result 
 from the assault, sent out a flag of truce 
 on the 3d for the appointment of com- 
 missioners to arrange for the capitula- 
 tion. But Grant demanded uncondi- 
 tional surrender, although offering to 
 meet Pemberton to arrange details. 
 The meeting took place, and Pember- 
 ton accepted the terms, which allowed 
 the officers and soldiers to be liberated 
 on their paroles, taking with them their 
 clothing, rations, cooking utensils and a 
 limited number of wagons. 
 
 These terms were accepted, and on 
 the 4th of July, and by three o'clock 
 in the afternoon, Vicksburg was in our 
 hands, with all its siege guns, small 
 
BIOGRAPHY— ULYSSES S. GRANT 
 
 arms and military stores. The force 
 surrendered amounted to 27,000 men, 
 including 6,000 wounded and sick in 
 hospital. 
 
 This grand victory of General Grant's 
 was one of the most important of the 
 war, and resulted in opening the Mis- 
 sissippi from the Ohio to the Gulf. 
 
 General Sherman had, in the mean- 
 time, been sent with a force to attack 
 Johnston, and succeeded in driving him 
 from Jackson to Meridian. 
 
 On the 6th of June a detachment of 
 colored troops, aided by the gunboats, 
 defeated McCulloch's command of 
 3,000 rebels at ]\Iilliken's Bend. 
 
 A rebel force of 8,000 men made an 
 attack upon the Union garrison at 
 Helena on the 4th of July, but General 
 Prentiss, assisted by the gunboats, made 
 such a gallant resistance that the rebels 
 were signally defeated and driven off. 
 
 As soon as the fall of Vicksburg re- 
 lieved the necessity of the large force 
 concentrated there. General Grant sent 
 reinforcements to Banks, who was be- 
 sieging Port Hudson, and on the 8th 
 of July that rebel stronghold sur- 
 rendered with 10,000 prisoners and 50 
 guns. 
 
 Thus were a series of smaller vic- 
 tories added to the brilliant conquest of 
 \'icksburg, to the great discomfiture of 
 the rebels and the depression of their 
 cause. This successful campaign raised 
 the fame of Grant above all the envious 
 falsehood and villainous influences that 
 had been brought to bear against him. 
 He had proven himself the military su- 
 perior not only of the rebel generals, 
 but also of his enemies among the 
 officers of our own army, and yet with- 
 out pride or retaliation he pushed ahead 
 and gave his noble services to the cause 
 he so dearly loved. 
 
 After the fall of Mcksburg, President 
 Lincoln and the Secretary of W^ar so 
 fully appreciated the ability of Grant 
 that he was made Major-General of 
 the regular army, which outranks a Ma- 
 jor-General of volunteers. 
 
 In September General Grant was 
 thrown from his horse in New Orleans, 
 and for nearly three weeks was con- 
 fined to his bed. During this time the 
 
 Union forces, under Rosecrans, re- 
 ceived the well-remembered defeat at 
 Chickamauga. Bragg's forces having 
 been weakened by detachments being 
 sent to other points, and Rosecrans 
 feeling sure of success, pressed on after 
 ^^>'^^gS' who retreated through Chatta- 
 nooga until he received the reinforce- 
 ments of Buckner's, Longstreet's and 
 Polk's commands. Then, with an army 
 of eighty thousand men, he turned upon 
 Rosecrans and almost crushed his army 
 at Chickamauga, inflicting a loss of si.x- 
 teen thousand men, killed, wounded and 
 missing, and besieged Rosecrans in 
 Chattanooga, where he was in the most 
 critical situation. 
 
 General Grant, as soon as he learned 
 of the disaster at Chickamauga and the 
 dangerous position of Rosecrans, re- 
 lieved him of the command and Gen- 
 eral Thomas was appointed in his place, 
 with instructions telegraphed to hold 
 Chattanooga at all hazards until rein- 
 forcements could reach him. The reply 
 of Thomas was brief and business- 
 like: "We'll hold the town till we 
 starve." General Grant immediately 
 set out for Chattanooga, and reached 
 it on the 23d of October, when he com- 
 menced his plans of operation at once 
 by opening a line of communication 
 for reinforcements and supplies. Gen- 
 eral Sherman was ordered forward 
 with all possible speed, and by a forced 
 march, under the greatest difficulties of 
 bad roads and flooded streams, that 
 faithful warrior hurried forward his 
 troops to reinforce Chattanooga. 
 
 As soon as Sherman arrived. Gen- 
 eral Grant was ready for offensive 
 operations. He sent General Sherman, 
 on the night of the 23d of November, 
 across the Tennessee River to hold a 
 position ready for attack upon Mission- 
 ary Ridge. On the 24th General 
 Hooker stormed Lookout Mountain and 
 swept away the rebels in the greatest 
 disorder from their position. The next 
 day the entire army charged the rebels 
 in one of the most terrific battles of 
 the war, and when night came the rebels 
 had been swept from every point, and 
 in a wild rout they were fleeing toward 
 Atlanta with General Grant in pursuit. 
 
426 
 
 THE HOME AUXILIARY AND REFERENCE 
 
 and the road strewn with everything 
 that they could cast away in their wild 
 rush for life and liberty. 
 
 Thus again did General Grant turn 
 into a glorious victory the impending 
 defeat and surrender which had hung 
 over the besieged army at Chattanooga. 
 The successful management of this bat- 
 tle is one of the most remarkable events 
 in history, and its result was to drive 
 back the rebels from Kentucky and 
 Tennessee and prepare the Union army 
 for finally breaking the back of the re- 
 bellion in Georgia. 
 
 The news of the great victory created 
 the wildest enthusiasm for General 
 Grant throughout the country, and on 
 the 4th of February, 1864, a bill was 
 passed in Congress reviving the grade 
 of Lieutenant-General in the army, and 
 calling General Grant to the command 
 of all the armies of the United States. 
 This at once relieved him from subjec- 
 tion to inefficient superiors and placed 
 him in supreme command, subject only 
 to the President. The bill was ap- 
 proved by Mr. Lincoln on the ist of 
 March, and on the 9th General Grant 
 received his commission. 
 
 General Grant at once decided to end 
 the rebellion on the banks of the Po- 
 tomac, and began reorganizing the army 
 and concentrating a great force in the 
 East, knowing that the rebels would be 
 compelled to withdraw or decrease their 
 troops at all other points to defend 
 Richmond and support Lee, thus leav- 
 ing the West and South at the mercy 
 of Sherman, Thomas, McPherson and 
 similar able and faithful generals. 
 
 As soon as General Grant began to 
 develop his plans all roads seemed to 
 lead to the Potomac, and from every 
 direction the martial tread of armies 
 was heard. After locating and instruct- 
 ing his generals of the Eastern army, 
 he gave to General Sherman a grand 
 expedition, which only Grant and Sher- 
 man were capable of accomplishing, 
 that of cutting the Confederacy in two, 
 and breaking the back of the rebellion 
 by that daring march from Atlanta to 
 the sea. 
 
 For the first time in the history of 
 the war the control of the army and its 
 
 military movements were in the hands 
 of the two military giants of the coun- 
 try, and the result was soon to De what 
 might have taken place two years earlier 
 under their control — the end of the war. 
 Lee had defeated every other General 
 of the Army of the Potomac who had 
 confronted him, and General Grant 
 knew that the war would only end with 
 the overthrow of the military leader 
 of the rebellion. The time had come 
 for his defeat, and no one knew it so 
 well as Grant. The following ideas, 
 expressed in one of his reports as 
 Lieutenant-General, are worthy of the 
 genius of Napoleon: 
 
 "From an early period in the rebellion 
 I had been impressed with the idea that 
 active and continuous operations of all 
 the troops that could be brought into 
 the field, regardless of season and 
 weather, were necessary to speedy ter- 
 mination of the war. The resources 
 of the enemy and his numerical strength 
 were very inferior to ours ; but, as an 
 oftset to this, we had a vast territory, 
 with a population hostile to the Gov- 
 ernment, to garrison, and long lines of 
 rivers and railroad communications to 
 protect, to enable us to supply the op- 
 erating armies. 
 
 "The armies in the East and West 
 acted independently and without con- 
 cert — like a balky team, no two pulling 
 together — enabling the enemy to use to 
 great advantage his interior lines of 
 communication for transporting troops 
 from east to west, reinforcing the army 
 most vigorously pressed and to furlough 
 large numbers during seasons of inac- 
 tivity on our part, to go to their homes 
 and to the work of providing for the 
 support of their armies. It was a ques- 
 tion whether our numerical strength and 
 resources were not more than balanced 
 by these disadvantages and the enemy's 
 superior position. 
 
 "From the first I was firm in the con- 
 viction that no peace could be had that 
 could be stable and conducive to the 
 happiness of the people of the North 
 and South until the military power of 
 the rebellion was entirely broken up. 
 
 "I therefore determined, first, to use 
 the greatest number of troops practic- 
 
BIOGRAPHY— ULYSSES S. GRANT 
 
 427 
 
 able against the armed force of the 
 enemy, preventing him from using the 
 same force at different seasons against 
 first one and then another of our armies, 
 and the possibility of repose for refit- 
 ting and producing necessary supplies 
 for carrying on resistance ; secondly, to 
 hammer continuously against the armed 
 force of the enemy and his resources, 
 until, by mere attrition, if in no other 
 way, there should be nothing left to 
 him but an ecjual submission with the 
 loyal sections of our common country 
 to the Constitution and laws of the land. 
 
 "These views have been kept con- 
 stantly in mind, and orders given and 
 campaigns made to carry them out. 
 Whether they might have been better 
 in conception and execution is for the 
 people, who mourn the loss of friends 
 fallen, and who have to pay the pecun- 
 iary cost, to say. All that I can say is 
 that what I have done has been done 
 conscientiously, to the best of my ability 
 and in what I conceived to be for the 
 best interests of the whole country." 
 
 Relying implicitly on Sherman's 
 ability to sweep irresistibly through 
 Georgia to Savannah and thence north- 
 ward, destroying railroads, devasting 
 the country, capture Charleston, Colum- 
 bia and other rebel strongholds. Gen- 
 eral Grant began his preparations. 
 
 On the 3d of May, 1864, at midnight. 
 General Grant moved his whole army 
 and crossed the Rapidan before day- 
 light. Pushing on toward Spotts- 
 sylvania his army swept through the 
 Wilderness, and he disposed his troops 
 in position to prevent every possible 
 surprise. 
 
 Lee, in his perfect confidence secured 
 by all previous experience with the 
 Army of the Potomac, determined to 
 fall upon Grant by surprise, and, by 
 cutting his army in two. sweep him 
 from the field. On the morning of the 
 5th Lee suddenly appeared, rushing im- 
 petuously upon the center of Grant's 
 army, with his troops massed and bent 
 upon dividing it and sweeping it in 
 hopeless defeat across the Rapidan. 
 But for once Lee had met his superior, 
 and although he had forced the fight 
 upon his own familiar ground, with his 
 
 own plan and at chosen time, he found 
 himself at the close of the first day's 
 terrific battle pressed back upon the 
 field and six thousand of his men 
 weltering in their blood. He realized 
 that he had a desperate undertaking 
 before him, and doubtless "bitterly 
 thought of the morrow" as he waited 
 for daylight to renew his carnage. The 
 second day dawned, and fiercely 
 through all its long hours the battle 
 raged at every point, with each army 
 pushing back divisions of the other and 
 victory refusing to perch upon either 
 standard. When night again closed 
 upon the weary combatants, twenty 
 thousand men lay dead and wounded 
 on the fearful field. 
 
 It may appropriately be said that 
 Lee was very much discouraged, and 
 during the night he retreated to seek his 
 intrenchments near Spottsylvania Court 
 House; but Grant, with worthy 
 courage and invincible determination, 
 started in immediate pursuit, and the 
 next day a running fight was kept up 
 in a parallel line, but the dense growth 
 of the trees and underbrush in the 
 Wilderness was so thick that the two 
 armies could scarcely see each other. 
 
 Thus passed the third day, and on 
 the next morning General Grant made 
 the attack upon Lee in his works, and 
 drove the rebels from their outer in- 
 trenchments with a loss of about three 
 thousand prisoners. Night again came, 
 and the armies slept, as it were, with 
 their hands on each other's throats. 
 The next morning Grant was up at 
 daylight, thundering away with his bat- 
 teries at the rebel breastworks, and all 
 day continued without an intermission. 
 The next day it was resumed and 
 fought with indescribable fury, and 
 ended with an irresistible charge upon 
 the enemy's works, sweeping them 
 from the outer line and capturing two 
 thousand prisoners. The loss in this 
 day's terrific struggle was nearly ten 
 thousand men on each side. LTp to that 
 time five thousand rebel prisoners had 
 been taken, while only a few stragglers 
 here and there had been secured from 
 our army. It was at the close of this 
 day's fighting that General Grant said 
 
428 
 
 THE HOME AUXILIARY AND REFERENCE 
 
 in his laconic message to the War De- 
 partment: "/ propose to fight it out 
 on this line if it takes me all summer." 
 
 On the next day, the i ith, the armies 
 were so completely exhausted that there 
 was no general engagement, but Grant 
 was laying his plans, and at midnight 
 General Hancock, in a terrific thunder- 
 storm, charged the enemy's lines with 
 such impetuous fury that he drove the 
 rebels back from their intrenchments 
 in that division, capturing over three 
 thousand prisoners and thirty guns. 
 This brave charge brought on a general 
 engagement, which continued the re- 
 mainder of the night and all the next 
 day, with a loss in killed and wounded 
 equal to that of the day previous. 
 Had it not been for [Meade's delay in 
 reinforcing Hancock, an overwhelming 
 victory would evidently have been 
 gained over the rebels, but in the half 
 hour in which the reinforcements were 
 behind Lee had strengthened the force 
 in front of Hancock until their position 
 could not be carried, and the brave 
 General was forced to abandon the cap- 
 tured intrenchments and fall back. 
 
 This day's battle resulted in forcing 
 Lee to fall back to his inner lines, and 
 General Grant took up a new position 
 nearer the enemy. But he had formed 
 a plan for z flank movement, and by 
 a quick march carried his army south to 
 a position beyond Spottsylvania Court 
 House. Lee, however, had the shortest 
 line of march, and, being on the alert, 
 threw his force with great celerity into 
 the intrenchments he had previously 
 prepared in front of Grant's new posi- 
 tion, with a view to prevent a march 
 upon Richmond. 
 
 When General Grant had secured his 
 new position he sent Sheridan with his 
 cavalry to destroy the railroads and 
 break Lee's communication with Rich- 
 mond. This raid was successful in 
 breaking railroad communication and 
 in defeating Stuart's cavalry ; and cut- 
 ting his way through the country. 
 Sheridan established his communica- 
 tions with Butler at Bermuda Hun- 
 dred. 
 
 General Grant followed after this 
 raiti and took up a new position at 
 
 Guinea Station. The movements of 
 General Grant had caused great un- 
 easiness to Lee, who began to fear that 
 his line of communication would be cut 
 of!', and that Grant would make a 
 forced march and capture Richmond. 
 He was therefore compelled to abandon 
 his position and push on toward Rich- 
 mond. His line of march was only a 
 few miles from that of the Union 
 forces, with whom he was keeping 
 abreast. General Grant's army had 
 been increased to one hundred and fifty 
 thousand men, and as it swept on irre- 
 sistibly Lee dared not risk an attack, 
 and could only keep up with it and 
 watch for some ung^iarded moment or 
 some false military move ; but Grant 
 was not the General to permit such op- 
 portunities. 
 
 General Grant's plan of operations 
 against Richmond had been matured 
 with a view of uniting his army with 
 the forces under Butler, whose move- 
 ment began from Fortress Monroe and 
 ended by taking up a strong position 
 at Bermuda Hundred, which afforded 
 an excellent base for operations against 
 either Petersburg or Richmond. Know- 
 ing that he was sure of reinforcements 
 on the south side of Richmond. Gen- 
 eral Grant pushed on with his army, 
 hoping any moment to catch Lee at a 
 disadvantage and to crush him. 
 
 General Grant reached Cool Arbor 
 on the 1st of June, at which point he 
 was within a few miles of Richmond 
 with his line stretching nearly ten 
 miles, at which point Lee made a vig- 
 orous assault upon the weakest part 
 of the line, hoping to break it ; but he 
 was forced to fall back behind his forti- 
 fications, where Grant in turn made an 
 attack upon him on the morning of the 
 3d. This was a gigantic conflict in 
 which three hundred thousand men 
 were engaged. Day after day the bat- 
 tle raged with terrible slaughter, with- 
 out any particular advantage percept- 
 ible ; but Grant knew that his blows 
 were having a distressing eft'ect upon 
 Lee. On the night of the 5th the 
 rebels in desperation charged upon the 
 lines of the Union Anny, under sup- 
 port of a fearful fire from their heavy 
 
BIOGRAPHY— ULYSSES S. GRANT 
 
 batteries, but they were met with a 
 solid sheet of flame from our cannon, 
 which poured forth the most deadly 
 volleys of grape and canister, sweep- 
 ing the rebels away like wheat before a 
 sickle. Appalled at the terrible destruc- 
 tion the rebels turned and fled leav- 
 ing their dead on the field. 
 
 On the nth General Grant executed 
 one of the most brilliant moves of the 
 war, and while menacing Lee with skir- 
 mishers to conceal his object, he began 
 a flank movement, and by a rapid march 
 reached and crossed the James River, 
 and forming a junction with General 
 Butler, took up a position south of 
 Richmond. Scarcely had the junction 
 been formed before Grant began his at- 
 tack upon Petersburg. 
 
 Lee was completely outwitted by this 
 movement, and had it not been for the 
 delay of General Grant's subordinates 
 in carrying out his instructions Lee 
 would have found the Union army in 
 full possession of Petersburg when he 
 arrived. It had not, however, been 
 taken, and he poured his rebels into its 
 fortifications until they were bristling 
 at every point with bayonets and frown- 
 ing with cannon. Then came the long, 
 tedious siege and daily terrific strug- 
 gles of the two armies. 
 
 While battling with Lee, General 
 Grant did not forget the great impor- 
 tance of destroying the railroads and 
 cutting off Lee's communications with 
 the South To effectually isolate Peters- 
 burg, General Grant ordered all the 
 cavalry force of his army to not only 
 destroy communications, but to join 
 Hunter near Lynchburg, or to push on 
 and unite with Sherman in Georgia, if 
 the obstacles met were not too formid- 
 able 
 
 All this time General Grant was mak- 
 ing his position stronger and weaving 
 the net around Petersburg that could 
 not be broken through. To encourage 
 him still more, he heard of Sherman's 
 success in taking .Ktlanta, and he knew 
 that the invincible old warrior, with 
 his hundred thousand men, would soon 
 be thundering toward the sea in his 
 march of destruction, and if he only 
 hurried in his Northern march, he 
 
 would doubtless be in at the death of 
 the rebellion. Sherman's march had 
 been one of the most remarkable and 
 destructive in military history, and had 
 been as irresistible as that of the old 
 Roman legions. He had carried the 
 war home to the South, and had not 
 only cut the Confederacy in two, but 
 had cut their communications and de- 
 stroyed their supplies by sweeping a 
 path of desolation sixty miles wide and 
 three hundred miles long, in which rail- 
 roads and everything that could aid the 
 rebellion were destroyed, and beef, cat- 
 tle, sheep, hogs, fowl, horses and mules 
 captured for use of the army. 
 
 At this time it was evident that Lee 
 v.as contemplating the evacuation of 
 Petersburg and uniting with Johnston ; 
 but General Grant was on the alert for 
 such a movement and ready to pounce 
 on the enemy. He fully realized that 
 if Lee was permitted to escape and 
 form a junction with Johnston's army 
 they would attempt to crush Sherman, 
 and he was resolved to give Lee no 
 rest or opportunity to strike another 
 blow. 
 
 At the first movement of Lee which 
 indicated that he had commenced the 
 evacuation of Petersburg, Grant hurled 
 his forces upon him and stormed his 
 intrenchments in a terrific contest which 
 lasted for three days. On the night 
 of the third day, w'hich was the 3d of 
 April, 1865, Lee abandoned Petersburg 
 and fled in the vain attempt to save his 
 fated army. This retreat gave us Rich- 
 mond and Petersburg; but Lee was yet 
 to be taken, and as he fled down the 
 north bank of the Appomattox he was 
 vigorously pursued by the victorious 
 army of the Union. With splendid 
 military skill General Grant had sent 
 Sheridan by a shorter route to throw 
 the Fifth Army Corps across the path 
 of the rebel retreat, and to the con- 
 sternation of Lee he found himself sur- 
 rounded and cut off from his supplies. 
 In every direction Sheridan, Meade, 
 Ord, Humphrey and other Generals 
 of divisions were driving the rebels in 
 at every attempt to escape, capturing 
 prisoners, arms, militarj' stores at al- 
 most every charge. The very rations 
 
THE HOME AUXILIARY AND REFERENCE 
 
 for the rebels had been captured, and 
 in their half famished condition they 
 lacked strength to make further resist- 
 ance. Lee had evidently given up hope 
 when he abandoned Petersburg, and 
 in anticipation of surrender he allowed 
 his soldiers to drop out of line along 
 his entire route and return to their 
 homes, until at the time he was com- 
 pletely surrounded at Appamattox 
 Court House his army did not contain 
 over ten thousand men in line. 
 
 General Grant, at this point, with real 
 sympathy for the miserable remnant 
 of the once proud army, and to save 
 them from slaughter, sent the follow- 
 ing dispatch to General Lee: 
 
 "General : — The result of the last 
 week must convince you of the hope- 
 lessness of further resistance on the 
 part of the Army of Northern Virginia 
 in this struggle. I feel that it is so, 
 and regard it my duty to shift from 
 myself the responsibility of any further 
 eflusion of blood, by asking of you the 
 surrender of that portion of the Con- 
 federate States Army known as the 
 Army of Northern Virginia." 
 
 To this note Lee replied at once ask- 
 ing for the terms that would be offered 
 on condition of surrender. 
 
 In reply General Grant insisted upon 
 but one condition, namely: "That the 
 men and officers surrendered shall be 
 disqualified for taking up arms against 
 the Government of the LTnited States 
 until properly exchanged." To this Lee 
 replied in a manner that indicated his 
 desire to delay the unpleasnat matter 
 of surrender as long as possible, and 
 he expressed his wish to meet with 
 General Grant rather more to arrange 
 for terms of peace than for a surrender. 
 
 General Grant, after putting his 
 troops in motion around Appomattox 
 Court House, so that Lee could not 
 mistake the alternative, sent the fol- 
 lowing note: 
 
 "Gener.vl: Your note of yesterday 
 is received. I have no authority to 
 treat on the subject of peace; the meet- 
 ing proposed for ten o'clock a. m. to- 
 day could do no good. I will state, 
 however. General, that I am equally 
 anxious for peace with yourself, and 
 
 the whole North entertains the same 
 feeling. The terms upon which peace 
 can be had are well understood. By the 
 South laying down their arms they will 
 hasten that most desirable event, save 
 thousands of human lives and hundreds 
 of millions of property not yet de- 
 stroyed. Seriously hoping that all our 
 difficulties may be settled without the 
 loss of another life, I subscribe my- 
 self," etc. 
 
 Lee, knowing that the surrender was 
 inevitable, no longer parlied for delay, 
 but sought for definite terms of sur- 
 render and accepted them. 
 
 Never before was a surrender con- 
 ducted on more honorable terms or with 
 kinder regard for the feelings of the 
 vanquished, and the exhausted rebel 
 soldiers were the first to raise the wild 
 cheer of joy at the news of the sur- 
 render; then one united shout arose 
 from the throats of the L^nion army, 
 which was caught up in a imiversal hur- 
 rah of triump throughout the land as 
 soon as the joyful news was heralded 
 over the wires. Peace at last ! What 
 glorious significance there was in the 
 news ! 
 
 The great rebellion was crushed, and 
 it only remained for Johnston to sur- 
 render to Sherman, which he did on 
 the 25th of April, and the other rebel 
 commands throughout the country 
 either to surrender to the Union troops 
 in their front or to disband and return 
 to their homes, to release our great 
 army from further duty in the field. 
 
 The world had never before wit- 
 nessed such a spectacle as the quiet, 
 orderly and peaceful disbanding and 
 dispersing of such an immense army, 
 and it gave an additional guarantee of 
 the stability of our republican institu- 
 tions to realize that fierce soldiers could 
 so quickly be returned to the arts of 
 peace. 
 
 In token of the high appreciation 
 of the country for the noble and pa- 
 triotic services of Lieutenant-General 
 Grant, he was on the 25th of July, 
 1866, promoted to the rank of General, 
 the highest military grade possible in 
 our army. 
 
 A still further compliment to his abil- 
 
BIOGRAPHY—ULYSSES S. GRANT 
 
 ity was paid h\- his appointment as 
 Secretary of War ad interim, on the 
 1 2th of August. 1867. By the recon- 
 struction acts of Alarch, 1867, military 
 commanders were appointed for the 
 several districts into which the South 
 was divided by the acts. These com- 
 manders General Grant advised, in his 
 official instructions, to use great mod- 
 eration and kindness toward the people 
 of the South, and in all his duties, both 
 as General of the army and as Secre- 
 tary of War, he acted with excellent 
 discretion and ability. 
 
 It must be said, in justice to Gen- 
 eral Grant, that he did not wish to 
 accept the office of Secretary of War, 
 and counseled the retaining of Mr. 
 Stanton, and it was only when he saw 
 that President Johnson was determined 
 upon Stanton's removal that he ac- 
 cepted it, that it might not, in his own 
 language, fall into the hands of some 
 incompetent or unpatriotic person. 
 
 When President Johnson, without 
 any reasonable pretext, removed Gen- 
 erals Sheridan, Sickles and Pope from 
 their commands in the South, General 
 Grant earnestly advised the President 
 against the unwise act, but when John- 
 son persisted in his removal of the 
 very men whom General Grant had 
 recommended for the positions, he 
 quietly accjuiesced, and earnestly co- 
 operated with the newly appointed com- 
 manders in the work of reconstruction. 
 
 One of the most beneficial services 
 he rendered the country during his 
 exercise of the office was the reduction 
 of various expenses, by cutting down 
 the number of employes in the Freed- 
 man's Bureau, also by transferring the 
 duties of the Bureaus of Rebel Archives 
 and of exchange of prisoners to the 
 office of the Adjutant-General, besides 
 closing many departments and offices 
 which were the outgrowth of the war 
 and whose sphere of usefulness had 
 ceased with the war. In various other 
 ways he cut down expenses connected 
 with the War Department. 
 
 When the Senate met and refused to 
 concur in the removal of Mr. Stan- 
 ton, and decided that he be rein.stated, 
 General Grant at once quietly acqui- 
 
 esced and relinquished the office. 
 President Johnson asserted that General 
 Grant had promised that he would in 
 this event either resign the Secretary- 
 ship or remain and resist the reinstate- 
 ment of Mr. Stanton. This promise 
 General Grant denied having made, and 
 this was the question of veracity be- 
 tween the President and General Grant, 
 on which the country generally stood 
 by the General of the army. 
 
 On the 2ist of May, 1868, the Na- 
 tional Republican Convention, which 
 met in Chicago, by acclamation nomi- 
 nated General Grant as their candidate 
 for President of the United States. 
 Just two days previous to the meeting 
 of the convention, there had been held 
 also in Chicago a convention of soldiers 
 and _ sailors, who had unanimously 
 nominated General Grant as their can- 
 didate for the presidency, which was a 
 double indorsement of his sterling quali- 
 ties and fitness for the position, more 
 especially as many of the soldiers and 
 sailors were War Democrats. 
 
 To the committee notifying General 
 Grant of his nomination, he expressed 
 the following sentiments in the conclud- 
 ing portion of his speech : 
 
 "If elected to the office of President 
 of the United States it will be my en- 
 deavor to administer all the laws in 
 good faith, with economy, and with 
 the view of giving peace, quiet and 
 protection everywhere. In times like 
 the present it is impossible, or at least 
 eminently improper, to lay down a 
 policy to be adhered to, right or wrong, 
 through an administration of four 
 years. New political issues, not fore- 
 seen, are constantly arising: the views 
 of the public on old ones are constantly 
 changing; and a purely administrative 
 officer should always be left free to 
 execute the will of the people. I always 
 have respected that will, and always 
 shall. Peace and universal prosperity, 
 its sequence, with economy of adminis- 
 tration, will lighten the burden of taxa- 
 tion, while it constantly reduces the 
 national debt. Let us have peace!"' 
 
 The Democratic party nominated 
 Horatio Seymour, a very popular man 
 and an able statesman, as their candi- 
 
THE HOME AUXILIARY AND REFEREXXE 
 
 date, and the contest was naturally an 
 exciting one. General Grant received 
 at the election 3,016,353 of the popular 
 vote and Seymour 2,906,631. The elec- 
 toral \ote stood 214 for Grant and 80 
 for Seymour. 
 
 On the 4th of March, 1869, General 
 Grant made his inaugural address and 
 took the oath of office, upon which he 
 entered with the confidence and highest 
 respect of the entire country, regard- 
 less of party. In the sentiment he had 
 previously uttered, "Let us have peace," 
 the white wings of peace were hovering 
 over the land, and the swords had been 
 beaten into plowshares. 
 
 There were, however, many difficul- 
 ties presenting themselves in his admin- 
 istration. Some of the Southern States 
 were still undergoing reconstruction, 
 while many political difficulties were 
 constantly presenting themselves. One 
 very important question was that of the 
 w^elfare of the freedmen who had been 
 cast upon the generosity of the gov- 
 ernment to work out political equality 
 in the land, and to educate them and 
 prepare them for self-support. Besides 
 there were the usual intricacies of for- 
 eign relations, and many issues of a 
 local and sectional as well as general 
 interest to be disposed of, which have 
 puzzled many a wise statesman. 
 
 But such was General Grant's uni- 
 form and satisfactory administration 
 of the executive office that he was nomi- 
 nated for re-election by the National 
 Republican Convention in 1872, and at 
 the election he received 292 electoral 
 votes, which placed him in the executive 
 chair for a second term. 
 
 General Grant had long desired to 
 make an extensive tour of foreign coun- 
 tries, and at the close of his second 
 term he resolved to put his plans into 
 execution. Starting soon after on a 
 tour around the world, he visited Eng- 
 land. France, Germany, Austria, Russia, 
 Switzerland, Belgium, Italy, Spain, 
 Turkey, India and China. 
 
 Everywhere he traveled he received 
 the highest courtesies and most perfect 
 ovations. His fame had reached the 
 remotest ends of the earth, and men 
 
 who could not speak a word of our lan- 
 guage gathered to do him honor. 
 
 On his return he again became one 
 of the citizens of our great Republic, 
 and has since been engaged in various 
 business pursuits, having been one of 
 the most active promoters of the pro- 
 posed lines of railroads in !\Iexico. 
 
 He died at ]Mount McGregor, N. Y., 
 July 23, 1885. 
 
 THOMAS JONATHAN JACKSON. 
 
 (Stonew.\ll J.\ckson.) 
 
 1824-1863. 
 
 Thomas Jonathan Jackson (1824- 
 1863), "Stonewall Jackson," a distin- 
 guished Confederate General in the 
 American Civil War, was born in Har- 
 rison County, ^'irginia, 21st of January, 
 1824, and came of the Scotch-Irish 
 stock to whose hardy virtues the Middle 
 States of America are largely indebted 
 for the pure and resolute virtues of 
 their people. His early education was 
 only such as could be furnished by an 
 obscure country school. Thence he 
 passed to West Point JMilitary Aca- 
 demy, where, though he was at first 
 impeded by his meagre acquirements, 
 his indomitable courage and conscien- 
 tious diligence eventually raised him to 
 a foremost place. At West Point he 
 exhibited the qualities by which he was 
 distinguished in the splendor of his 
 career — courage, patience, constancy of 
 purpose, inflexible fidelity to duty, and 
 an artless simplicity of character which 
 engaged instant and universal confi- 
 dence. Graduating at twenty-two, he 
 was appointed Lieutenant of Artillery 
 in the army of the L'nited States, and 
 participated with distinction in several 
 of the most important battles in ]\Iexico. 
 After the war he resigned his commis- 
 sion and accepted the professorship of 
 natural philosophy in the Mrginia 
 ^Military Institute at Lexington, a posi- 
 tion which he held until the outbreak 
 of hostilities between the L^nion and 
 the Confederate States. During his 
 sojourn at Le.xington he entered the 
 Presbyterian communion, and was re- 
 
BIOGRAPHY— THOMAS JONATHAN JACKSON 
 
 markable ever after for the fervor of 
 his religious devotion. In pohtical 
 discussions or agitations, Major Jack- 
 son — such was his title by brevet — had 
 never engaged ; but in principle and by 
 profession he was a State-right Demo- 
 crat of the Virginia school. In other 
 words, he maintained the legitimacy of 
 negro slavery and the sovereign right 
 of a State to withdraw from the Union, 
 and therefore to the secession move- 
 ment of 1861 he at once accorded his 
 sympathy. On the organization of the 
 Virginia troops he was commissioned 
 Colonel of Infantry by Governor 
 Letcher, who, long intimate with him, 
 adequately appreciated his yet undis- 
 closed military genius. 
 
 Jackson's first exploit in the war of 
 secession was the capture on May 3, 
 1861, of the Federal arsenal at Harper's 
 Ferry. .Soon afterward he received the 
 command of a brigade — the brigade 
 which by its immovable fortitude at 
 Bull Run turned the tide of battle in 
 that long-doubtful struggle, and from 
 the admiration of its comrades extorted 
 for itself and its chief the now historic 
 name of "Stonewall." 
 
 Detached from the army at Manassas 
 for separate service in the Shenandoah 
 \ alley, Jackson soon signalized his 
 genius for war. Placing himself be- 
 tween the converging columns of 
 Shields, Milroy and Banks, he struck 
 one after the other, and with a force 
 inferior to his adversaries separately, 
 he eventually drove them back upon 
 Washington in utter defeat. In this 
 "campaign of the valley" Jackson dis- 
 played true military instinct and the 
 highest military art. By vigilance, 
 sagacity, celerity and secrecy of move- 
 ment, and faultless, tactful skill on the 
 field of battle, he achieved the greatest 
 possible results with the smallest pos- 
 sible means. Flis reputation was now 
 fixed in the estimation alike of friend 
 and foe; and, while the Confederate 
 States were filled with the renown of 
 his achievements, the Federal forces 
 were in constant terror of his prowess. 
 Having stayed the invasion of Virginia 
 along the line of the valley, Jackson 
 
 repaired to Richmond to concert with 
 Lee the deliverance of the Confederate 
 capital, then closely pressed by Mc- 
 Clellan. Appointed meanwhile to the 
 command of a corps he suddenly re- 
 vealed himself on the right flank of the 
 Federal army at Mechanicsville, and in 
 a series of desperately fought engage- 
 ments he routed the besieging army and 
 drove McClellan to shelter at Harri- 
 son's Landing. Richmond relieved, 
 Jackson, without pause, hastened to 
 confront Pope, who was menacing the 
 city from the north. In the battle of 
 Cedar Run he inflicted signal defeat 
 upon that General and compelled him 
 to retrace his steps across the Rappa- 
 hannock. 
 
 Reinforced by McClellan's army and 
 fresh troops from the Northern States, 
 Pope made a stand at Manassas, but 
 in the second battle on that field he 
 suffered an overthrow as decisive as 
 that sustained by McDowell in the first 
 fight at Bull Run. As usual, Jackson's 
 corps bore the brunt of the battle, and, 
 as usual, to his skill and courage the 
 Confederate army was mainly in- 
 debted for its successes. Following up 
 the victory by the invasion of Mary- 
 land, Lee detached Jackson for an at- 
 tack on Harper's Ferry, again in the 
 hands of the Federalists, and garrisoned 
 by 12,000 troops. In a few days the 
 surrender of the place, with all its force 
 and munitions of war, was announced 
 to Lee. who, slowly retiring before Mc- 
 Clellan, anxiously expected the arrival 
 of Jackson, that he might turn and 
 crush his pursuer. But before he could 
 effect the desired junction Lee was 
 brought to bay at Antietam and com- 
 pelled to accept battle under every dis- 
 advantage. Jackson now arrived, how- 
 ever, with two of his divisions, and his 
 presence not only averted an otherwise 
 inevitable disaster, but rescued the Con- 
 federate army from the destruction 
 which awaited it if defeated with its 
 rear resting on the river. Henceforth 
 Jackson's operations were under the 
 immediate eye and command of Lee, 
 and while at Fredericksburg and Chan- 
 cellorsville his gallantry was as con- 
 spicious as ever; to his illustrious chief 
 
THE HOME AUXILIARY AND REFERENCE 
 
 belongs the glory of those liard-fought 
 fields. 
 
 On the afternoon of May 2, 1863, 
 Jackson fought his last battle. Exe- 
 cuting a plan of his own conception, he 
 suddenly struck the flank of the nth 
 Federal corps and drove it pellmell be- 
 fore him. Night fell with the hostile 
 forces in close proximity ; and, while 
 Jackson was making a reconnaisance 
 with a view to pressing the pursuit, he 
 was fired on in the dark by men of his 
 own command, and received wounds of 
 which he died OJi ]\Iay 10, 1863. His 
 death smote the Confederates with a 
 pang of unspeakable anguish. The fall 
 of their foremost chieftain was be- 
 wailed as the omen of the fall of the 
 party. 
 
 In deportment Jackson was grave 
 and measured ; but he relaxed on ap- 
 proach and his address was bland and 
 
 gracious. In conversation he con- 
 veyed the impression of a frank, firm 
 character and of an intellect clear and 
 direct, but in no wise of superior order. 
 No opinion floated languidly in his un- 
 derstanding; he held all his beliefs with 
 an intense earnestness of conviction, 
 and he was prompt and resolute in 
 carrying his convictions into action. 
 He engaged in the war of secession 
 with an unfaltering faith in the justice 
 of the cause and an unhesitating per- 
 suasion of its triumph. He was the 
 idol of his troops. At his command 
 they would cheerfully endure any sac- 
 rifice or confront any peril. On the 
 field of battle he was never known to 
 lose his self-possession, or to be sur- 
 prised by any fluctuation of fortune ; 
 his quick eye would detect the exigent 
 moment, and his unerring judgment di- 
 rect the decisive maneuver. 
 
GEOGRAPHY AND ACHIEVEMENTS— THE EARTH 435 
 
 BOOK III 
 
 GEOGRAPHY AND ACHIEVEMENTS 
 
 THE EARTH, THE SUN, THE MOON 
 THE PLANETS 
 
 TPIE EARTH. 
 
 To a spectator so placed as to have 
 an unobstructed view all round, the 
 earth appears a circular plain, on whose 
 circumference the vault of heaven 
 seems to rest. Accordingly, in ancient 
 times, even philosophers long looked 
 upon the earth as a flat disc swimming 
 upon the water. But many appearances 
 were soon observed to be at variance 
 with this idea, and even in antiquity, 
 the spherical form of the earth began 
 to be suspected by individuals. It is 
 only by assuming the earth to be spher- 
 ical, that we can explain how our circle 
 of vision becomes wider as our posi- 
 tion is more elevated ; and how the tops 
 of towers, mountains, masts of ships, 
 and the like come first into view as 
 we approach them. There are many 
 other proofs that the earth is a globe. 
 Thus, as we advance from the poles 
 towards the equator, new stars, former- 
 ly invisible, come gradually into view ; 
 the shadow of the earth upon the moon 
 during an eclipse is always round ; the 
 same momentary appearance in the 
 heavens is seen at different hours of the 
 day in different places on the earth's 
 surface ; and lastly, the earth, since 
 1 5 19, has been circumnavigated innu- 
 merable times. The objection to this 
 view that readily arises from our un- 
 thinking impressions of up and down, 
 which immediately suggests the picture 
 of the inhabitants of the opposite side 
 of the earth — our antipodes — with their 
 heads downwards, is easily got over by 
 considering that on all parts of the 
 earth's surface, down is towards the 
 earth's center. 
 
 It is not, however, strictly true that 
 the earth is a sphere; it is slightly Bat- 
 tened or compressed at two opposite 
 points — the poles — as has been proved 
 by actual measurement of degrees of 
 latitude, and by obserxations of the 
 pendulum. It is found that a degree of 
 a meridian is not everywhere of the 
 same length as it would be if the earth 
 were a perfect sphere, but increases 
 from the equator to the poles ; from 
 which it is rightly inferred that the 
 earth is flattened there. A pendulum, 
 again, of a given length is found to 
 move faster when carried towards the 
 poles, and slower when carried towards 
 the equator, which shows that the force 
 of gravity is less at the equator than 
 at the poles, or, in other words, that 
 the center, the seat of gravity, is more 
 distant at the former than at the latter. 
 The diminished force of gravity at the 
 equator has, it is true, another cause, 
 namely, the centrifugal force arising 
 from the rotation of the earth, which 
 acts counter to gravitation, and is 
 necessarily greatest at the equator, and 
 gradually lessens as we move north- 
 wards or southwards, till at the poles it 
 is nothing. But the diminution of the 
 force of gravity at the equator arising 
 from the centrifugal force amounts to 
 only 1,289 oi the whole force; while 
 the diminution indicated by the pendu- 
 lum is 1-194. The difference, or 1-580 
 nearly, remains assignable to the 
 greater distance of the surface from 
 the center at the equator than at the 
 poles. 
 
 We have now seen that the earth is 
 a sphere slightly flattened at its poles 
 — what is called by geometers an ellip- 
 
436 
 
 THE HOME AUXILIARY AND REFEREXCE 
 
 tical spheroid — of a mean radius of 
 somewhat less than four thousand 
 miles. We have next to consider its 
 mass and density. Nothing astonishes 
 the young student more than the idea 
 of weighing the earth ; but there are 
 several ways of doing it ; and unless 
 we could do it, we never could know 
 its densit)'. (i.) The first niethocl is 
 by observing how much the attraction 
 of a mountain deflects a plummet from 
 the vertical line. This being observed, 
 if we can ascertain the actual weight 
 of the mountain, we can calculate that 
 of the earth. In this way, Dr. Maske- 
 lyne, in the years of 1774-1776, by ex- 
 periments at Schihallion, in Perthshire, 
 a large mountain mass lying east and 
 west, and steep on both sides — calcu- 
 lated the earth's mean density to be 
 five times greater than that of water. 
 The observed deflection of the plummet 
 in these experiments was between four 
 to five inches. (2.) In the method just 
 described, there must always be uncer- 
 tainty, however accurate the observa- 
 tions, in regard to the mass or weight 
 of the mountain. The method known 
 as Cavendish's experiment is much 
 freer from liability to error. This ex- 
 periment was first made by f-fenry Cav- 
 endish on the suggestion of Michel, and 
 has since been repeated by Reich of 
 Freyberg, and Mr. Francis F)aily. The 
 apparatus used by Mr. I'>ai1y was two 
 small balls at the exiremities of a fine 
 rod suspended by a wire, and their posi- 
 tion carefully observed by the aid of 
 a telescope. Farge balls of lead, placed 
 on a turning-frame, are then brought 
 near them in such a way that they can 
 affect them only by the force of their 
 attraction. On the large balls being so 
 placed, the small ones move towards 
 them through a small space, which is 
 carefully measured. The position of 
 the large balls is then reversed, and 
 the change of position of the small 
 balls is again observed. Many obser- 
 vations are made, till the exact amount 
 of the deviation of the small balls is 
 ascertained beyond doubt. Then by 
 calculation the amount of attraction of 
 the large balls to produce this devia- 
 tion is easily obtained. Having reached 
 
 this, the next question is, what would 
 their attraction be if they were as large 
 as the earth ? This is easily answered, 
 and hence, as we know the attractive 
 force of the earth, we can at once com- 
 pare its mean density with that of lead. 
 Mr. Rally's experiments lead to the re- 
 sult that the earth's mean density is 
 5.67 times that of water. (3.) A third 
 mode has lately been adopted by the 
 Astronomer-royal, by comparison of 
 two invariable pendulums, one at the 
 earth's surface, the other at the bottom 
 of a pit at ITarton Colliery, near New- 
 castle, one thousand two hundred and 
 fifty feet below the surface. The den- 
 sity of the earth, as ascertained from 
 this experiment, is between si.x and 
 seven times that of water; but for va- 
 rious reasons this result is not to be.- 
 accepted as against that of the Caven- 
 dish experiment, and it is said that the 
 Astronomer-royal was himself dissatis- 
 fied with it, and meant to repeat the ex- 
 ])criment with new precautions. The 
 density of the earth being known, its 
 mass is easily calculated, and made a 
 unit of mass for measuring that of the 
 other bodies in the sy.stem. It is found 
 that the mass of the earth compared 
 with that of the sun is .0000028173. 
 
 The earth, as a member of the solar 
 system, moves along with the other 
 planets round the sun from west to 
 east. This is contrary to our sensible 
 impressions, according to which the sun 
 seems to move round the earth ; and it 
 was not till a few centuries ago that 
 men were able to get over this illusion. 
 This journey round the sun is per- 
 formed in about three hundred and 
 sixty-five and a quarter days, which we 
 call a year (solar year). The earth's 
 path or orbit is not strictly a circle, 
 but an ellipse of small eccentricity, in 
 one of the foci of which is the sun. 
 It follows that the earth is not equally 
 distant from the sun at all times of the 
 year; it is nearest or in perihelion, at 
 the beginning of the year, or when the 
 northern hemisphere has winter; and at 
 its greatest distance, or aphelion, about 
 the middle of the year, or during the 
 summer of the northern hemisphere. 
 The difiference of distance, however, is 
 
GEOGRAPHY AND ACIIIEVEMEXTS— THE EARTH 
 
 437 
 
 comparativelj' too small to exercise any 
 perceptible influence on the heat de- 
 rived from the sun, and the variation of 
 the seasons has a quite different cause. 
 The least distance of the sun from the 
 earth is over ninety-four millions of 
 miles, and the greatest over ninety-six 
 millions ; the mean distance is com- 
 monly stated at ninety-five millions. If 
 the mean distance be taken as unity, 
 then the greatest and least are respect- 
 ively represented by 1.01679 antl 
 0.98321. It follows that the earth 
 yearly describes a path of upwards of 
 five hundred and ninety-six millions of 
 miles, so that its \elocity in its orbit is 
 about ninety-nine thousand feet or 
 nineteen miles in a second. 
 
 Besides its annual motion round the 
 sun the earth has a daily motion or ro- 
 tation on its axis, or shorter diameter, 
 which is performed from west to east, 
 and occupies exactly twenty-three 
 hours, fifty-six minutes, four seconds 
 of mean time. On this motion depend 
 the rising and setting of the sun. or the 
 vicissitudes of day and night. The rel- 
 ative lengths of day and night depend 
 upon the angle formed by the earth's 
 axis with the plane of its orbit. If the 
 axis were perpendicular to the plane of 
 the orbit, day and night would be equal 
 during the whole year over all the 
 earth, and there would be no change 
 of seasons ; but the axis makes with 
 the orbit an angle of 23! S^, and the 
 consequence of this is all that variety of 
 seasons and of climates that we find on 
 the earth's surface: for it is only for 
 a small strip (theoretically, for a mere 
 line) lying under the equator that the 
 days and nights are equal all the year; 
 at all other places, this equality only 
 occurs on the two days in each year 
 when the sun seems to pass through the 
 celestial equator, /. c, about the 21st of 
 March and 23d of September. From 
 March 21, the sun departs from the 
 equator towards the north, till, about 
 June 21, he has reached a north declina- 
 tion of 23^^, when he again ap- 
 proaches the equator, which he reaches 
 about September 23. He then advances 
 southward, and about December 21 has 
 reached a south declination of 233^^". 
 
 when he turns once more towards the 
 equator, at which he arrives ]\Iarch 21. 
 The 2ist of June is the longest day in 
 the northern hemisphere, and the 
 shortest in the southern; with the 21st 
 of December it is the reverse. 
 
 The velocity of the earth's rotation 
 on its axis evidently increases grad- 
 ually from the poles to the equator, 
 where it is about equal to that of a 
 musket-ball, being at the rate of 
 twenty-four thousand eight hundreti 
 and forty miles a day, or about one 
 thousand four hundred and forty feet 
 in a second. 
 
 A direct proof of the rotation of 
 the earth is furnished by its compres- 
 sion at the poles. There are indubit- 
 able indications that the earth was or- 
 iginally fluid, or at least soft ; and in 
 that condition it must have assumed 
 the spherical shape. The only cause, 
 then, that can be assigned for the fact 
 that it has not done so, is its rotation 
 on its axis. Calculation also shows that 
 the amount of compression which the 
 earth actually has, corres])onds exactly 
 to what its known velocity and mass 
 must have produced. Experiments 
 with the pendulum, too, show a de- 
 crease of the force of gra\ity from the 
 poles toward the equator: and though a 
 part of this decrease is owing to the 
 want of perfect sphericity, the greatest 
 part arises from the centrifugal force 
 caused by the motion of rotation. An- 
 other direct proof of the same hypo- 
 thesis may be drawn from the obser- 
 vation, that bodies dropped from a con- 
 siderable height deviate towards the 
 east from the vertical line. This fact 
 has been established by the experiments 
 of Benzenberg and others. In former 
 times, it was believed that if the earth 
 actually revolved in the direction of the 
 east, a stone dropped from the top of 
 a tower would fall, not exactly at the 
 foot of the tower, but to the west of it. 
 Now, as experience, it was argued, 
 shows that this is not the case — that 
 the stone, in fact, does fall at the bot- 
 tom — we have here a proof that the 
 pretended rotation of the earth does not 
 take place. Even Tycho Brahe and 
 Riccioli held this objection to tile doc- 
 
438 
 
 THE HOME AUXILIARY AND REFERENCE 
 
 trine to be unanswerable. But the facts 
 of the case were just the reverse. 
 Newton, with his wonted clearness of 
 vision, saw that, in consequence of the 
 earth's motion from west to east, bodies 
 descending from a height must decline 
 from the perpendicular, not westward, 
 but eastward.; since, by their greater 
 distance from the earth's center, they 
 acquire at the top a greater eastward 
 velocity than the surface of the earth 
 has at the bottom, and retain that ve- 
 locity during their descent. He there- 
 fore proposed that more e.xact observa- 
 tions should be made to ascertain the 
 fact ; but it was not till more than a 
 century afterwards that experiments of 
 sufficient delicacy were made to bring 
 out the ex])ected result satisfactorily. 
 It is difficult to find an elevation suf- 
 ficiently great for the purpose, as sev- 
 eral hundred feet give merely a slight 
 deviation, which it requires great ac- 
 curacy to observe. If a height of ten 
 thousand feet could be made available, 
 the deviation would be not less than 
 seven and one-half feet. The analogy 
 of our earth to the other planets may 
 also be adduced, the rotation of which 
 with the exception of the smallest and 
 the most distant is distinctly discern- 
 ible. Finally, an additional proof of 
 the earth's rotation was lately given 
 by Leon Foucault's striking experiment 
 with the ])endulum. The principle of 
 the experiment is this : That a pendu- 
 lum once set in motion, and swinging 
 freely, continues to swing in the same 
 plane, while at any place at a distance 
 from the equator the plane of the mer- 
 idian continues to change its position 
 relative to this fixed plane. The ob- 
 jection taken to the doctrine of rota- 
 tion from the fact that we are uncon- 
 scious of any motion, has little weight. 
 The movement of a vessel in smooth 
 water is not felt, though far less uni- 
 form than that of the earth : and as the 
 atmosphere accompanies the earth in 
 its motion, there is no feeling of cut- 
 ting through it to break the illusion of 
 rest. 
 
 If the turning of the earth on its 
 a.xis is thus proved to be the cause of 
 the apparent daily motion of the heav- 
 
 ens, it is an easy step to consider the 
 annual motion of the sun through the 
 constellations of the zodiac as also ap- 
 parent, and arising from a revolution 
 of the earth about the sun in the same 
 direction of west to east. If we con- 
 sider that the mass of the sun is about 
 three hundred and fifty-nine thousand 
 times greater than that of the earth, 
 and that by the laws of mechanics, two 
 bodies that revolve round each other, 
 must revolve about their common cen- 
 ter of gravity, the idea of the sun re- 
 \ol\ing about the earth is seen to be 
 sim])Iy impossible. The common cen- 
 ter of gravity of the two bodies being 
 distant from the center of each in- 
 versely as their respective masses, is 
 calculated to be only two hundred and 
 sixty-seven miles from the center of the 
 sun, and therefore far within his body, 
 which has a diameter of eight hundred 
 and eighty-two thousand miles. But by 
 help of a figure, it is easy to show that 
 the apparent motion of the sun on the 
 ecliptic naturally arises from a motion 
 of the earth about the sun. The mo- 
 tions of the planets also, that appear 
 so complicated and irregular as seen by 
 us, can only be satisfactorily explained 
 by assuming that they too revolve 
 round the sun in the same direction as 
 the earth. 
 
 That the interior of the earth is the 
 seat of intense heat is a familiar truth. 
 Volcanic phenomena give us ocular 
 demonstration of it. Mining experi- 
 ences, moreover, have furnished us 
 with an almost ttniform rate at which 
 the heat increases, and this is generally 
 computed to be about one degree F"ah- 
 renheit for every fifty-five feet of de- 
 scent. But mining experiences are 
 necessarily very limited. The deepest 
 mine in England, that of the Rose- 
 bridge colliery, near Wigan, takes us 
 down only two thousand four hundred 
 and forty-five feet, and to a tempera- 
 ture not much exceeding ninety degrees 
 Fahrenheit. It is hot enough to make 
 the work exceedingly trying to the 
 miners, but that is all. This, however, 
 is (so to speak) scarcely traversing the 
 earth's epidermis. But if we may as- 
 sume a uniform increase of heat in de- 
 
GEOGRAPHY AND ACH1E\EME\"TS— THE SUN 
 
 scending, the temperature at a depth 
 of fifty miles may be expressed in fig- 
 ures as four thousand eight hundred 
 degrees Fahrenheit. In other words, 
 at less than an eighth of the distance 
 which lies between the circumference 
 of the earth and its center, the heat 
 would be about twenty-two times the 
 heat of boiling water at the sea level. 
 Proportionate figinxs might, of course, 
 express the heat at greater depths still, 
 but figures fail to convey any idea to 
 the mind of that which must neces- 
 sarily transcend all imagination. Suf- 
 fice it so say that in a descending series 
 we must eventually come to a heat so 
 great that no substance with which we 
 are acquainted could, under any condi- 
 tions which we can imagine, exist in it 
 in either solid or lluid form. And we 
 conclude, therefore, that if the earth's 
 center be not itself in a gaseous con- 
 dition (and there is reason to think 
 that it may not be so) there must be a 
 gaseous zone somewhere between a 
 solid center and a solid circumference. 
 Nor can the all-powerful imagination 
 accomplish the descent with any ap- 
 proach to ease. The distance we may 
 suppose to be nearly four thousand 
 three hundred miles; but along a line 
 of this length connecting the surface 
 of the earth with its center, we may 
 safely assume that conditions would 
 vary greatly, and ( since heat and pres- 
 sure have to be balanced one against 
 the other) probably by no means uni- 
 formly. We can measure the power 
 of pressure upon the surface, but in 
 the nether depths its power is in part 
 open to conjecture, nor can we say how 
 soon we may reach a debatable zone, 
 at which the expansiveness of heat 
 may overcome the compressive force of 
 gravitation. Nor, again, could we ven- 
 ture to expect to find that zone itself 
 always at a uniform depth. Here and 
 there it seems to approach the surface. 
 The volcano is nature's safety-valve, 
 and the cavernous rumbles of the earth- 
 quake warn us that there are im- 
 prisoned gases beneath our feet, which 
 pressure but imperfectly prevents from 
 escaping. Upon other grounds, also, it 
 is quite evident that our experience, 
 
 limited as it is to the surface of the 
 earth, may tend to mislead us in regard 
 fo what lies beneath the surface ; for, 
 if pressure increased uniformly with 
 depth, the average density of the earth 
 would be much greater than what, upon 
 astronomical data, we know it to be. 
 The earth as a whole, is about five and 
 a half times as heavy as it would be 
 if it were entirely composed of water ; 
 or, technically expressed, the density of 
 water is one, and the mean density of 
 the globe is five and a half. But five 
 and a half is only about double the den- 
 sity of rock matter upon the surface; 
 whereas, if nothing but steadily in- 
 creasing pressure be supposed, it would 
 vastly exceed this. There is, therefore, 
 only one possible explanation. Heat, 
 intense heat, somewhere or other, over- 
 comes pressure and converts everything 
 into gas ; and if it were in our power 
 to try experiments, and to feed the sub- 
 terranean crucible with the most intrac- 
 table substance — asbestos, fire-proof 
 safes, or what we will — all would there 
 share the same fate — instant evanes- 
 cence. 
 
 THE SUN. 
 
 No one probably knows how grand a 
 planet the sun is. Its size camiot be 
 conceived. But let us weigh it and get 
 some idea of its great dimensions. Put 
 the sun and earth in the scales and 
 add the planet Jupiter to the latter and 
 the sun would weigh more, and yet Ju- 
 piter weighs three times as much as 
 all the other planets put together. W'e 
 will then throw all the other planets in 
 the scale with the earth, and yet the 
 sun will not move. Aladdin's wonder- 
 ful lamp would not make the sun 
 budge. Don't let us give it up, how- 
 e\er, but throw in one hundred thou- 
 sand globes and then altogether we will 
 have three hundred thousand globes, 
 but still the sun would not budge. 
 We'll add thirty thousand more worlds 
 and the sun then moves until it just 
 balances the enormous weight of three 
 hundred and thirty thousand worlds. 
 By this it will be seen that the attrac- 
 tive power of the sun must be very 
 
THE HOME AUXILIARY AND REFERENCE 
 
 great to keep such an enormous mass 
 in control. The earth weighs six sex- 
 tilHons of tons. If a man possessed 
 the same number of dollars and began 
 counting them out at the rate of ten 
 dollars a minute, the time which would 
 have elapsed since the time of Adam 
 and Eve, nearly six thousand years, 
 would be a mere incident in comparison 
 to the period during which the calcu- 
 lation would have to continue. The 
 weight of the earth is so great that it is 
 flying through the air only controlled 
 by the laws of gravitation. The ve- 
 locity of this globe is so great that it 
 goes through space at the rate of eigh- 
 teen miles a second. The distance of 
 the sun from the earth is estimated at 
 about ninety-five millions miles, and yet 
 it is held secure by the resistless arms 
 of gravitation. The earth cannot get 
 away, for the sun holds it in its power. 
 Look at Jupiter, the gigantic; it is fif- 
 teen times larger than the earth, and 
 yet the sun holds Jupiter. The planets 
 are the slaves of the sun, which by the 
 wonderful power of gravitation holds 
 everything in the power of the great 
 orbit. The sun is the source of all life, 
 and the heat from it is so great that 
 we are able to live only on account of 
 it. If the sun was to lose its heat for 
 one month, the earth would die. Dur- 
 ing the past three years the surface of 
 the sun has been covered with spots, 
 commonly called "sun spots." They 
 have been so large in some instances 
 that they have been seen without the 
 aid of a telescope. Some of these 
 spots are larger than the earth. They 
 a])pear on the surface like holes into 
 which streams of molten metal seemed 
 to continually pour. The sun is simply 
 a ball of gases, and the matter found 
 in it is composed of iron, gold and 
 silver, copper and granite. Indeed 
 these substances are so great that they 
 would make three hundred thousand 
 globes like that in which we live and 
 work. The spots are like vapors, which 
 appear and disappear at times. Last 
 year the sun was full of these spots. 
 It has been noticed that they appear 
 about once in every eleven years. The 
 cavity is so enormous in some of the 
 
 spots that the earth could be dropped 
 into it and disappear like a billiard ball. 
 On the i6th of .April, 1S82, these spots 
 were watched and it was found that the 
 surface of the great body was changing 
 in a most wonderful manner. They 
 gave a terror to the scene. Just as the 
 sun disappeared below the horizon it 
 was noticed that a pale green arch of 
 light appeared above the horizon, just 
 over the point where the sun had gone 
 down. This was followed in time by 
 bright streams of light shooting up to 
 the zenith, after which the atirora bore- 
 alis was visible in the sky. There was 
 no sound, and the flaming heavens were 
 as silent as death. It was a pantomime 
 played by ghosts of fire. Attention was 
 then called to the corona of the sun. 
 It appeared to be a shell of scarlet fire, 
 and was only to be seen at a total 
 eclipse; but it had lately been seen by 
 aid of powerful telescopes in the day- 
 light. The sun is a globe of matter 
 heated to a gaseous condition. The 
 sheet of scarlet fire is supposed to have 
 been caused by long ago and constant 
 eruptions, sending up showers of red 
 flames and heat from the inside of 
 the sun. The sun will doubtless die in 
 the course of the next ten million years. 
 We will wait till that time and see what 
 happens. It is now going through a 
 process of cooling. All life would cease 
 throughout the solar system and the 
 earth would be lighted only by the 
 stars. At present an envelope or crust 
 is being seen on the edge of the great 
 orbit of day. This will in time cover 
 the entire surface and then the radiant 
 splendors of the sun will be invisible. 
 
 THE MOON 
 The moon is a .satellite of the earth, 
 around which it revolves from west to 
 east in a period of one month, and in 
 consequence accompanying the earth in 
 its motion round the sun. As the 
 moon, to an observer on the earth, ad- 
 vances more than 13° to the east daily, 
 whilst the corresponding advance of 
 the sun is barely 1°, her progress 
 among the stars is much more notable 
 than that of the latter. This rapid 
 angular motion, the continued and 
 
GEOGRAPHY AND ACHIEVEMENTS— THE MOON 
 
 regular variation of her illuminated 
 surface, and her large apparent size 
 ( heing nearly equal to that of the sun), 
 have rendered the moon an object of 
 general interest ; while her importance 
 as the principal nocturnal substitute 
 for the sun, and her special value to 
 navigators and geographers in the de- 
 termination of longitudes, have ren- 
 dered the liinor theory the object of the 
 most thorough and careful investiga- 
 tion. 
 
 The first peculiarity about the moon 
 that strikes a casual observer, is the 
 constant and regular change of her 
 illuminated surface from a thin cres- 
 cent to a circle, and vice versa, and a 
 corresponding change in the time of 
 her appearance above the horizon. 
 These changes depend upon the posi- 
 tion of the moon relative to the earth 
 and the sun, for it is only the half of 
 the moon facing the sun that is illumi- 
 nated by his rays, and the whole of this 
 illuminated portion can only be seen 
 from the earth when the sun, earth and 
 moon are in a straight line ( the line of 
 sycygies), and the earth is between the 
 sun and moon. When the moon is in 
 the line of syzygies, but between the 
 earth and the sun, no part of her illumi- 
 nated disc can be seen from the earth. 
 In the former case, the moon is said to 
 be /)(//, and in the latter, nezv. A few 
 hours after the "new moon," the moon 
 appears a little to the east of the sun as 
 a thin crescent, with the horns pointing 
 toward the east, and as she increases 
 her angular distance from the sun at 
 the rate of about 12° daily, the crescent 
 of light becomes broader, till, after the 
 lapse of a little more than seven days, 
 at which time she is 90° in advance of 
 the sun, she presents the appearance 
 of a semi-circle of light. The moon is 
 then said to have completed her first 
 quarter. Continuing her course, she 
 becomes "gibbous ;" and at the fifteenth 
 or sixteenth day from new moon, at- 
 tains a position 180° in advance of the 
 sun, and now presents the apjiearanee 
 known as full moon. From this point 
 she begins to approach the sun, again 
 appearing gibbous, and after a third 
 period of more than seven days. 
 
 reaches a point 90^ west of him, and 
 enters her last quarter. Here, again, 
 she appears as a semi-circle of light, 
 the illuminated portion being that which 
 was not illuminated at the end of the 
 first quarter. The moon now rapidly 
 approaching the sun, resumes the cres- 
 cent form, but this time with horns 
 pointing zi'estward, the crescent becom- 
 ing thinner and thinner, till the moon 
 reaches the position of new moon, and 
 disappears. From "full moon" to "new 
 moon," the moon is said to be zvaning; 
 and from "new moon" to "full moon," 
 zcaxing. The earth as seen from the 
 moon presents similar phases, and has, 
 consequently, at the time of new moon, 
 the appearance of a round illuminated 
 disc, and at full moon, is invisible. 
 This explains the peculiar phenomenon 
 occasionally observed when the moon is 
 near the sun (either before or after 
 new moon), of the part of the moon's 
 face which is unilluminated by the sun 
 appearing faintly visible, owing to the 
 reflection upon it of strong earth-light. 
 This ])henomenon is designated by the 
 Scottish peasantry as "the new mune 
 wi' the auld mune in her airms." At 
 new moon the moon of course comes 
 above the horizon about the same time 
 as the sun, and sets with him, but rises 
 each day about fifty minutes later than 
 on the day previous, and at the end of 
 the first quarter, rises at midday, and 
 sets at midnight, continuing to lag be- 
 hind the sun. When at the full, she 
 rises about sunset, and sets about sun- 
 rise, and at the commencement of her 
 last quarter, she rises at midnight and 
 set at midday. From repeated obser- 
 vations of the moon's horizontal paral- 
 lax, and of the occulation by her of the 
 fixed stars, her mean distance from the 
 earth has been estimated at 237,600 
 miles, and as her angular diameter 
 averages 31 minutes 26 seconds, her 
 actual diameter is 2,153 miles, or a 
 little less than three-fifths of the earth's 
 diameter. Her volume is, therefore, 
 about i-49th of that of the earth, and 
 her destiny being only .577 (that of the 
 earth being taken as unity), her mass is 
 only i-88th of the earth's mass; con- 
 sequently, the force of gravity at her 
 
442 
 
 THE HOME AUXILIARY AND REFERENCE 
 
 surface is so much less than it is at the 
 surface of the earth, that a body which 
 weighs one thousand pounds here, 
 would at the moon weigh only one 
 hundred and sixty-three pounds. 
 
 The moon revolves round the earth 
 in an elliptic orbit, with the earth in the 
 focus ; the eccentricity of the ellipse be- 
 ing equal to .05491 or half its major axis 
 or more than three and one-quarter 
 times that of the earth's orbit. The 
 plane of her orbit does not coincide 
 with the ecliptic, but is inclined to it 
 at an angle of 5° 8' 47-9"' and inter- 
 sects it in two opposite points, which 
 are called the Nodes. The point at 
 which the moon is nearest to the earth 
 is called her perigee, and that at which 
 she is farthest from it her apogee, and 
 the line joining these two points is 
 called the line of apsides. Were the 
 moon's orbit a true ellipse, which, ow- 
 ing to various irregularities known as 
 perturbations, it is not, the lunar theory 
 would be exceedingly simple ; but these 
 perturbations, which, in the case of the 
 planets, produce a sensible variation in 
 their orbit only after many revolutions, 
 cause, in the case of the moon, a dis- 
 tinct and well-marked deviation from 
 her previous course in a single revolu- 
 tion. The retrogradation of her nodes 
 along the elliptic causes a continual 
 change in the plane of her orbit, so that 
 if, during one revolution around the 
 earth, she occults certain stars, at the 
 next revolution she will pass to one 
 side of them, and will remove farther 
 and farther from them in each succes- 
 sive revolution. A little consideration 
 will show that by this continual change 
 of her orbit, the moon will, in course of 
 time, pass over or occult every star 
 situated within 5° 24' 30" of the eclip- 
 tic. The motion of the nodes is so 
 rapid that they perform a complete cir- 
 cuit of the orbit in 6793.39 mean solar 
 days, or 18.6 years. Another impor- 
 tant change in the moon's orbit is the 
 revolution of the line of apsides, by 
 which the perigee and apogee are con- 
 tinually changing their position rela- 
 tive to the earth and sun. This revolu- 
 tion is more than twice as rapid as that 
 (jf the nodes, being performed in 
 
 3232.57 mean solar days, or 8.85 solar 
 years. 
 
 The moon, like all other satellites, as 
 far as at present known, revolves round 
 her own axis in precisely the same time 
 that she revolves round the earth ; she 
 thus presents always the same face to 
 us, and consequently, though her com- 
 parative proximity has enabled us to 
 become better acquainted with her sur- 
 face than with that of any other 
 heavenly body, our knowledge is con- 
 fined to one-half of her surface, with 
 the slight exception of the knowledge 
 obtained from her libration. To the 
 inhabitants of the side of the moon 
 next the earth — if the moon had in- 
 habitants, which is very improbable — 
 the latter would appear as a luminary 
 about 2° in diameter, immovably fixed 
 in their sky, or at least changing its 
 position only to the extent due to the 
 moon's libration. The earth would 
 thus seem to them to have a disc about 
 fifteen times larger than that of the 
 sun. 
 
 The surface of the moon, as seen 
 from the earth, presents a most irregu- 
 lar grouping of light and shade. The 
 dark portions were named by the earl- 
 ier astronomers as seas, lakes, etc., and 
 still retain these names, although there 
 is strong evidence against the suppo- 
 sition that the moon, or at least that 
 portion of it presented to us, contains 
 any water. The brighter parts of the 
 moon are mountains, as is proved by 
 the fact of their casting shadows when 
 the sun's rays fall upon them obliquely, 
 and also by the ragged appearance 
 presented by the interior illuminated 
 border of the moon, an appearance 
 which can only be satisfactorily ac- 
 counted for on the supposition that the 
 surface of the moon is not level, in 
 which case the higher portions will be 
 illuminated some time before the light 
 reaches the level parts ; and it is ob- 
 served that as the illumination pro- 
 ceeds, bright spots start up in advance 
 of it, and when the moon is on the 
 wane, these same spots continue to 
 shine for some time after the surround- 
 ing surface is immersed in gloom. The 
 mountains occur either singly, when 
 
GEOGRAPHY AND ACHIEVEMENTS^THE PLANETS 
 
 443 
 
 they are generally of a circular form, 
 and are called craters, or in groups, 
 which are mostly annular, and form a 
 sort of wall enclosing a deep depres- 
 sion or plain, in which are situated one 
 or more conical mountains. The 
 craters are not unfrequently eight or 
 ten miles in diameter, and some of the 
 walled plains measure more than one 
 hundred miles across. The principal 
 mountain range is the Appenines, which 
 crosses the surface from northeast to 
 southwest, and attains, according to 
 some authorities, an altitude of about 
 twenty thousand feet, though Sir John 
 Herschel gives about two miles as the 
 probable limit of elevation above the 
 moon's surface. The heights are esti- 
 mated from a micrometric measure- 
 ment of the length of their shadows, a 
 method not, in this case, susceptible of 
 much accuracy. The moon everywhere 
 presents traces of volcanic agency, but 
 no active volcanoes have yet been dis- 
 covered, nor is there any sign of re- 
 cent volcanic action. Seen through the 
 telescope she presents a bleak, desolate 
 ap])earance, without indications of ani- 
 mal or vegetable existence. She ap- 
 ]iears to be devoid of an atmosphere, or 
 if one exists, it must be of exceeding 
 rarity. 
 
 The influence of the moon in causing 
 tides has long been well known, and 
 there is some reason for supposing that 
 she produces a similar effect on the 
 atmosphere, combining with other 
 causes in the generation of winds. 
 Those winds which prevail about the 
 time of new and full moon, and at the 
 vernal and autumnal equinoxes, are 
 particularly ascribed to her influence. 
 On the supposition that the moon might 
 also affect organic nature, experiments 
 were instituted by Mead, Hoffman 
 and others ; but no certain results were 
 attained. The periodicity which has 
 often been noticed in certain diseases, 
 especially in insanity (hence called lun- 
 acy), was long supposed to have some 
 connection with lunar influence, and 
 this opinion is held to some extent at 
 the present day. The chemical effects 
 of the moon's rays are, so far as is at 
 present known, feeble, though in par- 
 
 ticular instances they exhibit an actin- 
 ism as powerful as that of the sun. 
 Decomposition of animal matter takes 
 place more rapidly in moonshine than 
 in darkness, and the moon's rays, when 
 concentrated, have a sensible effect on 
 the thermometer. 
 
 THE PLANETS. 
 
 The planets are those heavenly bodies 
 (including the Earth) which belong to 
 our solar system, and revolve in eclip- 
 tic orbits round the sun. They are of- 
 ten denominated primarx planets, to 
 distinguish them from their moons or 
 satellites, which are called secondarv 
 planets. The name planet is of con- 
 siderable antiquity, and was applied to 
 these dependants of the sun to distin- 
 guish them from the myriads of lu- 
 minous bodies which stud the sky, and 
 which present to the naked eye no in- 
 dication of change of place. The plan- 
 ets at present known are, in the order 
 of their distance from the sun. Mer- 
 cury, Venus, the Earth, Mars, the Plan- 
 etoids, Jupiter, Saturn, Uranus and 
 Neptune. Six of these, Mercury, 
 \'enus, the Earth ( which was not, 
 however, then reckoned a planet). 
 Mars, Jupiter, and Saturn, were known 
 to the ancients ; Uranus was discov- 
 ered by Sir William Herschel in 1781 ; 
 and Neptune, after having its position 
 and elements determined theoretically 
 by Leverrier and Adams, was discov- 
 ered by M. Challis, and afterwards bv 
 Dr. Galle, in 1846. The Planetoids, of 
 which more than two hundred and 
 twenty are now known, have all been 
 discovered during the last century. Six 
 of the planets, the Earth, Mars, Jupiter, 
 Saturn, Uranus and Neptune, are at- 
 tended by one or more satellites ; Ura- 
 nus (generally). Neptune, almost the 
 whole of the Planetoids, and all the 
 satellites except the Moon, are invisible 
 to the naked eye. The visible planets 
 can be at once distinguished from the 
 fixed stars by their clear, steady light, 
 while the latter have a sparking or 
 twinkling appearance. The compara- 
 tive proximity of the planets may be 
 
THE HOME AUXILIARY AND REFERENCE 
 
 proved by examining them tlirough a 
 telescope of moderate power, when they 
 appear as round kiminous disks, while 
 the fixed stars exhibit no increase of 
 magnitude. The planets, as observed 
 from the Earth, move sometimes from 
 west to east, sometimes from east to 
 west, and for some time remain sta- 
 tionary at the point where progression 
 ends and retrogression commences. 
 This irregularity in th*ir movements 
 was very puzzling to the ancient astron- 
 omers, who invented various hypothe- 
 ses to account for it. The system of 
 Copernicus, by assuming the sun, and 
 not the Earth, as the center of the 
 system, explained with admirable sim- 
 plicity what seemed before a maze of 
 confusion. 
 
 The planetary orbits differ consider- 
 ably in their degrees of eccentricity, the 
 Planetoids, Mars and Mercury being 
 most, and the larger planets least ec- 
 centric. No two planets move exactly 
 in the same plane, though, as a gen- 
 eral rule, the planes of the larger 
 planets most nearly coincide with that 
 of the ecliptic. The later are conse- 
 quently always to be found within a 
 small strip of the heavens extending 
 on both sides of the ecliptic, while the 
 others have a far wider range. Ac- 
 cording to Kepler's Laws, the nearer 
 the planet is to the sun the shorter is 
 the time of its revolution. The ar- 
 rangement of the planets in the solar 
 system bears no k-nown relation to their 
 relative size or weight, for though Aler- 
 cury, Venus and the Earth follow the 
 same order in size and distance from 
 the sun, yet Mars, which is farther 
 from the sun, is much less than either 
 the Earth or Venus, and the Planetoids, 
 which are still farther off, are the least 
 of all. Jupiter, which is next in order, 
 is by far the largest, being about one 
 and one-half times as large as all the 
 others together ; and as we proceed far- 
 ther outwards, the planets become 
 smaller and smaller, Saturn being less 
 than Jupiter, Uranus than Saturn, and 
 Neptune than Uranus. 
 
 With reference to their distance from 
 the sun, as compared with that of the 
 Earth, the planets are divided into su- 
 
 perior and inferior; Mercury and 
 Venus are consequently the only "in- 
 ferior" planets, all the others being "su- 
 perior." The inferior planets must al- 
 ways be on the same side of the Earth 
 as the sun is, and can never be above 
 the horizon of any place ( not in a very 
 high latitude) at midnight; they are 
 always invisible at their superior and 
 inferior conjunctions, except when, at 
 the latter, a transit takes place. The 
 superior planets are likewise invisible 
 at conjunction, but when in opposition 
 they are seen with greatest distinctness, 
 being then due south at midnight. The 
 time which elapses from one conjunc- 
 tion to its corresponding conjunction is 
 called the synodic period of a planet, 
 and in the case of the inferior planets 
 must always be greater than the true 
 period of revolution. 
 
 Mercury, the planet which is nearest 
 the sun, is also, with the exception of 
 the Planetoids, the smallest (being only 
 three times the size of the moon ) and 
 performs its revolution round the sun 
 in the shortest time. Its greatest elong- 
 ation is never more than 28° 45', and 
 consequently it is never above the hor- 
 izon more than two hours after sun- 
 set, or the same time before sunrise ; on 
 this account, and from its small ap- 
 parent size (5" to 12"), it is seldom 
 distinctly observable by the naked eye. 
 It shines with a peculiarly vivid white 
 or rose-colored light, and exhibits no 
 spots. 
 
 Fen US, the next in order of distance 
 and period, is to us the most brilliant of 
 all the planets. Its orbit is more nearly 
 a circle than any of the others, and 
 when at its inferior conjunction, it ap- 
 proaches nearer the Earth than any 
 other planet. Its apparent angular di- 
 mensions thence carry from lo" at the 
 superior, 70" at the inferior conjunc- 
 tion. Its greatest elongation varies 
 from 45° to 47° 12', and therefore it 
 can never be above the horizon for 
 much more than three hours after sun- 
 set, or the same time before sunrise. 
 While moving from the inferior to the 
 superior conjunction, \'enus is a morn- 
 ing star; and during the other half of 
 its synodic period, an evening star. 
 
GEOGRAPHY AXn ACHIEXEMENTS— THE PLANETS 
 
 445 
 
 When this planet is at an elongation of 
 40°, its brillancy is greatest, far sur- 
 passing that of the other planets. 
 and rendering a minute examination 
 through the telescope impossible. .At 
 this period it sometimes becomes visible 
 in the daytime, and after sunset is so 
 bright as to throw a distinct shadow. 
 Astronomers have repeatedly attempted 
 to ascertain the nature and characteris- 
 tics of its surface, but its brightness so 
 dazzles the eyes as to render the correct- 
 ness of their observations at best doubt- 
 ful. From the changes in the position 
 of dusky patches on its surface, which 
 have been frequently noticed, it is con- 
 cluded that it revolves on its axis, and 
 that its equator is inclined to the plane 
 of its orbit at an angle of 75° : but many 
 astronomers (Sir John Herschel in- 
 cluded) profess to doubt these conclu- 
 sions. Both ^'enus and ]\Iercury neces- 
 sarily exhibit phases like the moon. 
 
 The Earth, the next planet in order, 
 is described elsewhere ; it has a single 
 satellite, the Moon. 
 
 Mars, the first of the superior planets, 
 is nnich inferior in size to the two pre- 
 \ious. its \olume being about one-half 
 of the Earth's, and, after Mercury, its 
 orbit is much more eccentric than those 
 of the other planets. When it is near- 
 est to the Earth (('. e., in opposition), 
 its apparent angular diameter is 30" ; 
 but when farthest from it (;'. e., in con- 
 junction), its diameter is not more than 
 4". It shines with a fiery red light, and 
 is a brilliant object in the heavens at 
 midnight when near opposition ; when 
 seen through the telescope its surface 
 appears to be covered with irregular 
 blotches, some of dazzling white. The 
 red spots are surmised to be land ; the 
 green, water, while the white spots at 
 the poles are with some reason supposed 
 to be snow, since they decrease when 
 most exposed to the sun, and increase 
 under the contrary circumstances. Two 
 small satellites of this planet were dis- 
 covered in August, 1877. 
 
 The Planetoids. — After Mars in or- 
 der come the Planetoids, formerly, but 
 improperly, called Asteroids. They are 
 a numerous group of very small planets 
 situated in the solar system between 
 
 Mars and Jupiter. The number now 
 known is two hundred and twenty. 
 They are believed to be fragments of 
 one older planet ; their distances from 
 the sun are from 200,000,000 to 300,- 
 000,000 miles, and the largest is not over 
 three hundred miles in diameter. 
 
 Jupiter, the next in order, is the larg- 
 est of all the planets, its bulk being 
 more than one thousand four hundrecl 
 times that of the Earth, though, from 
 its small density, its mass is only three 
 hundred and thirty-eight times more. 
 After A^enus it is the brightest of all 
 the planets and the largest in apparent 
 size, its angular diameter varying from 
 30" to 45". When looked at through 
 a telescope, it is seen to be considerably 
 flattened at the poles, owing to its rapid 
 revolution on its own axis ; and its sur- 
 face is crossed in a direction parallel to 
 its equator by three or four distinct and 
 strongly marked belts, and a few others 
 of a varying nature. Spots also appear 
 and remain for some time on its sur- 
 face, by means of which its revolution 
 on its axis has been ascertained. This 
 planet is attended by four satellites, 
 which are easily observable through an 
 ordinary telescope, and which have ren- 
 dered an immense service in the deter- 
 mination of longitudes at sea, and of 
 the motion and velocity of light. The 
 satellites, which were discovered by 
 Galileo, were proved by Sir William 
 Herschel to revolve on their own axis 
 in the same time they revolve round 
 their primary. The smallest is about 
 the same size as our moon, the others 
 are considerably larger. 
 
 Saturn, next in position, is about 
 seven hundred and thirty-five times 
 larger in volume, though only about one 
 hundred times greater in mass than the 
 Earth. Its apparent diameter when in 
 opposition is 18", and there is a con- 
 siderable flattening towards the poles. 
 Its surface is traversed by dusky belts 
 much less distinctly marked than those 
 of Jupiter, owing doubtless in great part 
 to its inferior brightness ; its general 
 color is a dull white or yellowish, but 
 the shaded portions, when seen dis- 
 tinctly, arc of a glaucous color. The 
 most remarkable peculiarity of Saturn 
 
446 
 
 THE HOME AUXILIARY AND REFERENCE 
 
 is its ring, or series of concentric rings, 
 each one parallel and in the same plane 
 with the others and with the planet's 
 equator; the rings are at present sup- 
 posed to be three in number, the two 
 outermost are bright, Mke the planet 
 itself, while the innermost is of a pur- 
 plish color, and is only discernabic 
 through a powerful telescope. The 
 rings are not always visible when 
 Saturn is in the "opposite" half of its 
 orbit, for when the plane of the rings 
 is intermediate between that of the 
 Earth's orbit and of the ecliptic, their 
 dark surface is turned toward us, and 
 when the sun is in their plane only the 
 narrow edge is illumined ; in both of 
 these cases the ring is invisible from 
 the Earth. Its plane being inclined at 
 an angle of 28° to the ecliptic, we see 
 the two surfaces of the ring alternately 
 for periods of fifteen years at a time ; 
 and at the middle of each period, the 
 rings attain their maximum obliquity to 
 the ecliptic, and are then best seen from 
 the Earth. It is hardly necessary to 
 remark that at the end of each period 
 they become invisible. Saturn has also 
 no less than eight satellites, seven of 
 which revolve round it in orbits little re- 
 moved from the plane of the ring, while 
 the eighth, which is the second in size, 
 is considerably inclined to it. The satel- 
 lites are all situated outside of the ring, 
 and the largest of them is nearly equal 
 to the planet Mars in size. 
 
 Uranus, the next planet in position, 
 was discovered accidentally by the elder 
 Herschel, on March 13, 1781, and was 
 named "the Georgium Sidus" and 
 "Herschel," but these names soon fell 
 into disuse. It is about ninety-six 
 (some astronomers say eighty-two) 
 times greater than the Earth in volume 
 and twenty (according to others, fif- 
 teen) times in mass; but though so 
 large, its distance is so much greater in 
 proportion that astronomers have been 
 unable to gain much information con- 
 cerning it. No spots or belts have 
 hitherto been discovered on its surface, 
 and consequently its time of rotation 
 and the position of its axis are un- 
 known. It is attended by a number of 
 satellites, but so minute do these bodies 
 
 appear, that astronomers hitherto have 
 been unable to agree as to their exact 
 number ; Sir William Herschel reckoned 
 six, while other astronomers believe in 
 the existence of four, five and eight, 
 respectively. That there are at least 
 four is without doubt. 
 
 Neptune is the next and outermost 
 member of the solar system, and, at a 
 distance of nearly 3,000,000,000 miles 
 from the center of the system, slowly 
 performs its revolution around the sun, 
 accomplishing the complete circuit in 
 about 165 solar years. It is about 84 
 times larger than the Earth, but from 
 its extreme remoteness is of almost in- 
 appreciable magnitude when seen 
 through an ordinary telescope. It was 
 the disturbance in the motion of Uranus 
 caused by the attractive force of this 
 planet which led Leverrier and Adams 
 to a calculation of its size and position, 
 on the supposition of its existence ; and 
 the directions which were given by the 
 former to Dr. Galle, of Berlin, specify- 
 ing its exact position in the heavens, 
 led that astronomer to its discovery on 
 September 23, 1846. ]\Ir. Lassell, of 
 Liverpool, has discovered that Neptune 
 is attended by one satellite. The satel- 
 lites of Uranus and Neptune dififer 
 from the other planets, primary and 
 secondary, in the direction of their 
 motion, which is from east to west, and 
 in the case of the former, in planes 
 nearly perpendicular to the ecliptic. 
 Both Uranus and Neptune were ob- 
 served long before the times of Her- 
 schel and Leverrier, but they were 
 always supposed to be stars. Uranus 
 is known to have been observed by 
 Flamsteed between 1690 and 1714, and 
 Neptune by Lalande in 1795. 
 
 AGRICULTURE. 
 
 The ancient Egyptians attained a pro- 
 ficiency in the pursuit of the art far in 
 advance of anything seen in Europe 
 until the end of the Seventeenth Cen- 
 tury, if we except the work of the 
 Saracens in Spain, who revived agricul- 
 ture, as they did other arts and sciences. 
 The Egyptian inscriptures and frescoes 
 testify to an amazing state of enlighten- 
 
GEOGRAPHY AND ACHIEVEMENTS— AGRICULTURE 
 
 447 
 
 meiit among the farmers on the banks 
 of the Nile thousands of years ago. 
 Not only did Egypt produce corn 
 enough for her own teeming population, 
 but she annually exported millions of 
 bushels of breadstuffs. Egyptian culti- 
 vators of the soil were familiar with 
 the value of rotation of crops, and 
 adapted their crops to the season and 
 soil. They were expert breeders of 
 poultry, and made a practice of artificial 
 hatching. Their sheep and cattle were 
 admirably cared for, being fed hay dur- 
 ing the yearly inundation and pastured 
 in meadows of green clover at other 
 times. Their paintings which illustrate 
 rural affairs show advanced methods 
 oi plowing, sowing and harvesting, with 
 well kept farms and farm buildings. 
 
 The Saracens and their successors, 
 the Moors, practiced husbandry as an 
 art. To this day remains of their noble 
 works testify to their wonderful sys- 
 tem of irrigation and to their enlight- 
 ened cultivation of the soil. In the rest 
 of Europe numerous wars and the 
 feudal system made agricultural prog- 
 ress scarcely possible. The condition 
 of the masses was such that they had 
 neither the means nor the will to im- 
 prove their holdings. All that they 
 raised beyond the barest necessities 
 of life was taken by those above them. 
 Rye, barley and oats afforded food and 
 drink. Even the aristocracy of Europe 
 had few edibles other than these and 
 wheat. It is said that until the end of 
 the reign of Henry V'lII, there were no 
 salads or edible roots raised in England 
 and that Queen Catherine, if she wished 
 a salad, was obliged to send to Holland 
 or Inlanders to get it. 
 
 Agriculture partook of the general 
 improvement which resulted from the 
 invention of printing and the revival of 
 learning, but its progress was slow. 
 During the Nineteenth Century more 
 advancement has been made in the prac- 
 tice and science of agriculture than dur- 
 ing the whole preceding period of his- 
 tory, although at the beginning of the 
 century the study of agriculture and 
 the improvement of its methods had 
 already received a considerable impetus. 
 
 In the United States, in 1862, Con- 
 
 gress passed a bill providing for the 
 "endowment, support and maintenance" 
 of colleges of agriculture and the me- 
 chanic arts in the several States. The 
 course of instruction covers a period 
 of four years. The curriculum is com- 
 prehensive, and includes besides lan- 
 guage, literature, history and general 
 science, botany, geology, zoology, ento- 
 mology, horticulture, veterinary science 
 and the various interests associated with 
 theoretical and applied agriculture. As 
 a rule, the tuition is free, so that any 
 student who is able to pay his living 
 expenses may take advantage of the 
 opportunities offered. 
 
 The English Parliament in i88g cre- 
 ated a Board of Agriculture, whose 
 duties in many respects resemble those 
 of the Agricultural Department of the 
 United States. Since then experimental 
 farms under the auspices of the Gov- 
 ernment and the various agricultural 
 colleges are conducted with success. 
 France and Germany have long carried 
 on experiment farms. One of the best 
 Government experiment farms in the 
 world is in Germany, at Mockern, near 
 Leipsic, in Saxony. It was established 
 in 1851. 
 
 The Governmental experiment sta- 
 tions in the United States date from 
 the establishment of the agricultural 
 colleges in 1862. Each college endeav- 
 ored to teach the practice of husbandry 
 as well as the theory. Farms were 
 bought and cultivated under the direc- 
 tion of the colleges. These became 
 experiment stations. Recent legislation 
 has syslemized the work of these farms ; 
 regular reports are required from them 
 by the Department of Agriculture and 
 copies of such reports are sent to every 
 other such station. There are now one 
 or more experiment stations in each 
 State and Territory of the Union. The 
 Department of Agriculture itself in- 
 vestigates and experiments in both lab- 
 oratory and farm. Useful information 
 has been collected and recorded on a 
 multitude of subjects, and all of this 
 valuable luatter is at the service of 
 every farmer in the land. The com- 
 missionership of agriculture was estab- 
 lished in 1862. In i88q it was made 
 
448 
 
 THE HOME AUXILIARY AND REFERENCE 
 
 a department of the Government, and 
 its chief became an officer of the 
 Cabinet. The department embraces the 
 weather bureau; also the bureaus of 
 forestry, agricultural chemistry, botany, 
 entomology, pomology, animal industry, 
 vegetable pathology, and of experiment 
 stations. It pays particular attention 
 to overcoming the enemies of crops, 
 both insects and diseases, having sent 
 costly expeditions to foreign lands in 
 order that they might be studied in their 
 native haunts. 
 
 The motto of the British Royal Agri- 
 cultural Society is "Science with Prac- 
 tice." It is typical of the agricultural 
 progress of the century. Science has 
 been applied to farming in innumerable 
 ways. Geologists, chemists, physiolo- 
 gists, statisticians, architects and me- 
 chanists have helped the farmer solve 
 his problems. At first the tillers of 
 the soil would have nothing to do with 
 scientific aid, and opposed all innova- 
 tions. But as capital and skill were 
 brought to bear on farming by wealthy 
 and enlightened cultivators of the soil, 
 wonderful results were obtained ; and, 
 gradually, such object lessons had their 
 effect on the masses. At the end of 
 the Eighteenth Century, in England, 
 millions of acres of wastes, commons 
 and open field farms were enclosed and 
 the present system of British farming, 
 by which the land is owned by landlords 
 occupied by tenants, and farmed by 
 laborers, came into general use. 
 Through long misuse or neglect the land 
 had become impoverished and it was 
 necessary to expand much ingenuity 
 and capital on restoring its fertility. 
 Men addressed themselves to the prob- 
 lem with zest. Attention was given 
 to the best methods of draining, manur- 
 ing, and to the rotation of crops. Earm 
 buildings were better planned and con- 
 structed, live stock was improved and 
 better cared for. 
 
 The system of thorough drainage and 
 deep plowing introduced by Smith, of 
 Deanston, about 1834, is, with modifica- 
 tions, the one in use to-day. Good 
 drainage has restored the prosperity 
 of clay farms and made them sometimes 
 
 more productive than the best naturally 
 drained ones. 
 
 Agricultural chemists have made a 
 science of manuring. At the begin- 
 ning of the century, as a rule, little 
 attention was paid to this necessary part 
 of farming. Half-rotted straw was 
 the usual fertilizer, although many sub- 
 stances have been used to enrich the 
 soil from time immemorial. Until the 
 present day the feeding of plants had 
 not been really understood and manur- 
 ing had been done almost blindly. 
 Chemistry and geology have demon- 
 strated what is necessary to plant life 
 and what stimulates growth. Besides 
 water, carbonic acid and ammonia, 
 plants feed on certain mineral sub- 
 stances, such as lime, potash, magnesia, 
 soda, sulphate and phosphates. Cer- 
 tain crops exhaust the resources of the 
 soil, and these must then be restored 
 artificially. Davy, Sprengel and Liebig 
 led the way in the study of agricultural 
 chemistry with valuable results. From 
 1835 onwards the use of nitrate of 
 soda, guano, bones and superphosphate 
 spread. j\Ianufactured guano proved 
 almost as valuable as the natural Peru- 
 vian supply. Science has taught the 
 farmer to use for enriching the land 
 many things which were formerly 
 wasted. Almost every vegetable and 
 animal substance, in one state or an- 
 other, can be used as manure, and 
 properly applied supply the needs of 
 plants. There is to-day no lack of 
 materials and guides to the farmer who 
 would improve and preserve the fertil- 
 ity of the soil. So thoroughly has the 
 science of fertilizing been studied and 
 set forth by competent men that the 
 ignorance and blindness of a century 
 ago seem incredible. 
 
 In the United States the farmer has 
 had a virgin soil to deal with. For 
 years he used it wastefully, but of late 
 he is realizing the wisdom of more 
 careful husbandry, especially in the 
 East, where worn out land has testified 
 to the fact that the supplies stored 
 in the soil by nature throughout ages 
 can be exhausted soon by unthrifty 
 use. 
 
GEOGRAPHY AND ACHIEVEMENTS— AGRICULTURE 
 
 440 
 
 Irrigation is not a product of the 
 Nineteentli Century, for it seems to be 
 almost as old as agriculture itself. The 
 irrigation works of Egypt, Babylonia, 
 Assyria and China were built so long 
 ago that no one can name the dates 
 of their construction. Yet irrigation 
 plays an important part in the agri- 
 culttire of to-day. In India an elaborate 
 system of irrigation works has been 
 built to prevent terrible famines, which 
 cause tmtold suffering in arid but 
 densely populated sections of that 
 crowded land. In Madras alone 6,000,- 
 000 acres are watered. Great Britain 
 has found these irrigation works profit- 
 able investments, returning from 6 to 
 30 per cent, per annum on the money 
 invested, and resulting in annual crops 
 \alues of millions of pounds. France 
 has blossomed like a garden with her 
 small, well-tilled irrigated farms and 
 her thrifty agricultural population has 
 grown rich. In the western part of the 
 United States hot and arid lands have 
 been made to bear luxuriant vegetation ; 
 water has been brought from far under 
 the earth's crust and by means of ar- 
 tesian wells and windmills distributed 
 over the thirsty land. The irrigation of 
 orchards and fruit lands in California 
 has resulted in fruit unrivaled in size 
 and beauty, which, by means of cold 
 storage and refrigerating processes, is 
 sent all over the world. 
 
 During the Nineteenth Centtiry much 
 attention has been paid to the breeding 
 of li\e stock. Great improvements have 
 been made in all breeds of domesticated 
 animals. Not only have individual 
 specimens of high merit been produced, 
 but all over the civilized world there 
 is a much better quality to be found. 
 Contagious diseases, such as pleuro- 
 pneumonia and rinderpest, have been 
 combatted successfully and by quaran- 
 tine have been limited to small districts, 
 preventing the spreading of the plague. 
 
 Agricultural fairs have done miich to 
 improve and encourage the improve- 
 ment of live stock, as has the fashion of 
 bleeding pedigree animals. Among 
 wealthy landowners in England, about 
 the middle of the last century, there 
 was a "pedigree mania," and fabulous 
 
 prices were paid for cattle of particular 
 breeds. This drew attention lo the good 
 points of the animals and resulted in 
 a general distribution of offshoots from 
 line stock. Inspired by the success of 
 British stock breeders, Americans im- 
 ported cattle from the best herds, and 
 the effect u]3on the cattle in the United 
 States was instantaneous. In 1867 J. 
 O. Sheldon, of Geneva, New York, sold 
 forty head of shorthorns, known as 
 the "Duchess," for $42,300. In 1873 
 a single scion of the same family 
 brought $40,600 at public auction, and 
 an eight months' old calf sold for $27,- 
 000. These extraordinary prices at- 
 tracted the attention of farmers all over 
 the country to the importance of the 
 selection and breeding of cattle. As 
 often happens, the pupil has distanced 
 the teacher, and the average animal in 
 the herds of the United States is to-day 
 above that of Great Britain. The 
 Jersey was imported in 1850. Having 
 become acclimated and improved in 
 strength, size and quality, she is now 
 one of our best dairy breeds. About 
 1857 the IIolstein-Friesian breed was 
 introduced. 
 
 Horses, sheep and pigs also have been 
 much improved during the century. 
 The trotting horse is a product of 
 New England. The Puritans regarded 
 the race course as a snare of the devil 
 and taught their horses to trot instead 
 of to run, little dreaming that the trot- 
 ting match in years to come would be 
 the cause of gambling like any other 
 trial of speed on the turf. Lady Suf- 
 folk made the first trotting record below 
 2.30 less than sixty years ago. In the 
 United States to-day there are thou- 
 sands of horses who can trot a mile 
 in less time. The trotting horse affected 
 materially the art of the wagon and 
 carriage builder in the Northern States. 
 Carriage wagons and even agricultural 
 machines have been constructed more 
 and more with regard to lightness and 
 beauty, and it is said that the average 
 farm wagon of New England is prettier 
 and lighter in draft than the carriages 
 used by the nobility and gentry of 
 Europe. 
 
THE HOME AUXILIARY AND REFERENCE 
 
 Spanish merino sheep were first im- 
 ported to the United States in 1809. 
 The extremely high price of wool at 
 this period induced farmers to pay espe- 
 cial attention to the breeding of sheep 
 and the production of wool. In 1812 
 unwashed wool sold for ?2.50 a pound 
 and merino lambs brought as much as 
 $i,ooo apiece. This was practically the 
 beginning of the enormous sheep in- 
 dustry of the United States. 
 
 The American hog is another de- 
 velopment of the century. The swine 
 brought from the Old World throve 
 and multiplied abundantly in the forests 
 of the New World, with their plentiful 
 mast. The Western farmer had only 
 to turn his hogs into the woods in the 
 early spring and herd them with their 
 progeny ; at the first approach of winter 
 to fatten for a few weeks on corn 
 before killing. Huge droves of them 
 bred in this way were sent yearly 
 through the Southern States, where the 
 planters bought them as food for their 
 slaves. Since clearing the forests, the 
 enormous corn crops of the West have 
 rendered easy the production of much 
 finer pork, and the American hog, the 
 result of judicious crossing of improved 
 English breeds, is as nearly perfect as 
 possible. 
 
 During the three-year drought in the 
 States west of the Mississippi the 
 Kansas hens saved Kansas. That the 
 suffering in that State was far less than 
 that in Nebraska and Iowa was due 
 to the hens. Living on sunflower seed, 
 a plant that required little or no water, 
 they produced their crop of eggs with 
 unfailing regularity, the only crop which 
 was unaffected by the terrible drought. 
 
 In the middle of the last century 
 there were not more than half a dozen 
 breeds of poultry in the United States ; 
 now there are over one hundred gen- 
 erally distributed through the country. 
 Many inventions have made artificial 
 hatching easy and profitable, and hens 
 go on laying, while chicks are hatched 
 and cared for by machinery. The 
 average number of eggs laid by one hen 
 has been increased, by original methods 
 discovered in the United States, to from 
 
 seventy-five to one hundred and sev- 
 enty-five per annum. 
 
 Dairy farming during the last quar- 
 ter century has grown greatly in Great 
 Britain and her colonies, but the United 
 States has made far more progress in 
 the art. Germany, Denmark and Scan- 
 dinavia have long paid much attention 
 to dairying, but conducted on a scientific 
 basis, it is a comparatively new depar- 
 ture for the Anglo-Saxon. Dairy 
 schools, literature, exhibitions and so- 
 cieties and new and improved imple- 
 ments have all contributed to progress. 
 In 1877 the centrifugal cream separator 
 was invented by Lefeldt, and, since 
 then, there have been introduced won- 
 derful churns, butter-driers, milk-test- 
 ers, refrigerators, heaters and cheese- 
 making apparatus. Creameries or but- 
 ter factories have become common, and 
 almost all of their work is done by 
 machinery, much of which is operated 
 by steam. 
 
 Bee culture has undergone marvelous 
 changes during the century of progress 
 and invention. Adjustable hives, ex- 
 tractors and comb foundations are 
 among the aids to raisers of honey. 
 
 Agricultural machinery is almost en- 
 tirely a Nineteenth Century product, 
 and it is American invention which has 
 made the marvelous changes which have 
 lightened the labor of the farmer all 
 over the world. For thousands of 
 years there was but little improvement 
 in agricultural implements. The tools 
 for the cultivation of the soil at the 
 beginning of the century were but little 
 better than those in use in the days of 
 the Pharaohs. Indeed, during the 
 Middle Ages so much that man had 
 formerly possessed or known was for- 
 gotten or lost that it is doubtful if the 
 period between the revival of learning 
 and the dawn of the Nineteenth Cen- 
 tury had brought things to a state equal 
 to that in Egypt four thousand years 
 ago. In the first half of the Eighteenth 
 Century that agricultural genius, Jethro 
 Tull, applied irons to his plows, but few 
 were the people who followed his ex- 
 cellent example. His own laborers re- 
 belled against his innovations and 
 will full}- broke his implements. Early 
 
GEOGRAPHY AND ACHIE\EMENTS— AGRICULTURE 
 
 in the Nineteeth Century the plow used 
 in the United States had a wooden 
 mold board, sometimes covered with 
 sheet iron, while the share was of 
 wrought iron. This was succeeded by 
 the cast iron plow, which has been grad- 
 ually developed into an efficient ma- 
 chine made of greatly lessened weight 
 and draft and made almost entirely of 
 polished steel. The improved plow of 
 to-day cuts the soil to a depth of several 
 inches and turns it over, exposing it to 
 the air, thus pulverizing and loosening 
 it and fitting it for the reception of seed 
 and for a vigorous and healthy growth 
 of crops. There are plows which free 
 rich soil from stone, plows for making 
 surface drains, mole-plows, which bur- 
 row under the surface without turning 
 a furrow, and others for regulating the 
 depth of furrows. There are also plows 
 \\hich cut off a thin slice of land for 
 the purpose of killing weeds, and spe- 
 cial plows for use on hill sides. Indeed, 
 so infinite is the variety of modern 
 plows that it is impossible to enumerate 
 them here. 
 
 Steam plows seem to have been in 
 general use in England before they were 
 operated to any extent in the United 
 States, but the first cultivation of grow- 
 ing crops by steam was carried on in 
 Louisiana in 1871 on a sugar plantation 
 belonging to Effingham Lawrence. 
 
 Axes, scythes, hoes, spades and al- 
 most every tool for manual labor on 
 the farm has been vastly improved by 
 American ingenuity, but a greater gain 
 has been the substitution of beast for 
 man in performing farm work and the 
 frequent application of steam to agri- 
 cultural machinery. In harvesting, first 
 the sickle gave way to the cradle, and 
 then the cradle to the reaper drawn by 
 horses, which is on large farms being 
 superseded by the steam reaper. 
 
 In 1822 Henry Ogle, of Alnwick, 
 England, is said to have invented the 
 foundation of the mowing and reaping 
 machines of to-day when he brought 
 forth the finger-bar. His machine was 
 received with angry prejudice by the 
 working people, who threatened to kill 
 its manufacture if it was not with- 
 drawn. In 1826 Rev. Patrick Bell built 
 
 a machine which was used for a few 
 years and then discarded. At last, in 
 1831, Cyrus McCormick, of Virginia, 
 invented a successful grain harvesting 
 machine, built from that day to this. 
 It was first successfully operated on 
 the farm of John Steele, near Steele's 
 Tavern, Virginia. Two years later 
 Obed Hussey built a machine which 
 was much like the McCormick reaper, 
 except that it had no heel and no divider 
 and no platform on which the cut grain 
 could accumulate. Both of these ma- 
 chines were shown in 185 1 at the Great 
 Exhibition of the Industry of All Na- 
 tions in London. Under the auspices 
 of the Royal Agricultural Society of 
 England they were tested in the field, 
 and the "Grand Council Medal" was 
 awarded to the McCormick one, which 
 was referred to by judges as being 
 worth to the people of England "the 
 whole cost of the exposition." 
 
 Step by step the reaper was improved. 
 L'ntil 1849 it was used just as it was 
 for cutting grass, as well as for harvest- 
 ing grain, but in that year A. J. Pur- 
 viance, of Ohio, obtained patents for 
 inventions which made a more suitable 
 machine for the double use. The list 
 of inventions which made harvesting 
 and mowing machines the perfect auto- 
 matons that they are to-day is a long 
 one. Numerous attachments have been 
 added, and reaping machines now not 
 only cut grain, but gather it and com- 
 press it into bundles, holding it while 
 a mechanical binder draws twine around 
 it, fastening it securely and discharging 
 sheaf after sheaf. 
 
 The McCormick reaper is to-day used 
 all over the world, harvesting grain in 
 every civilized country, and the French 
 Government decorated its inventor with 
 the Legion of Honor for "having done 
 more for the cause of agriculture than 
 any living man." 
 
 Many interesting stories are told of 
 the difficulties with which ]\IcCormick 
 had to contend when he was struggling 
 to introduce his machine. The reapers, 
 which he made in a small blacksmith 
 shop on his farm, were taken by team 
 from Rockbridge County, \'irginia, 
 across the Blue Ridge, thence by boat 
 
THE HO.ME AUXILIARY AND REFERENCE 
 
 down the James River to Norfolk, 
 shipped from Norfolk to New Orleans, 
 b}' river to distributing points in Ohio, 
 Illinois and ^lissouri. He had not the 
 means to manufacture the machines at 
 his own cost, and it was not until he 
 had traveled as an agent among the 
 farmers of the West and obtained 
 orders for his machines in four States 
 that a firm in Cincinnati could be per- 
 suaded to undertake their manufacture. 
 Mr. ]\IcCormick had still to go with 
 his machines to his customers and, ex- 
 plaining their operation, prove that they 
 would do their work satisfactorily be- 
 fore the buyers would pay for them. 
 He perseveringly continued his toil as 
 agent and instructor until his reapers 
 had won their own way to popularity 
 and needed no booming. 
 
 It is estimated that nearly a million 
 harvesting and mowing machines to- 
 gether were used in the fields of the 
 Ignited States during the summer of 
 1898. Thousands of these machines 
 are exported annually, but their chief 
 beneficiary is the American farmer. It 
 is through their powerful aid that he 
 has cultivated the great grain fields of 
 the West and that he is able to compete 
 with the cheap labor of the Old World. 
 
 Less than fifty years ago the square- 
 tooth harrow was universally used, but 
 to-day there is an infinite variety of 
 harrows, clod-mashers and kindred 
 machines. In 1857 Share's harrow 
 appeared. It was followed by the disk 
 harrow, the smoothing harrows, spring- 
 tooth and rotary harrows. 
 
 Among the greatest economizers of 
 labor in agricultural machinery are the 
 drills and sowing machines. There are 
 different sorts for different kinds of 
 seed, and they deposit the seed in the 
 ground with more exactness and pre- 
 cision than is possible with the most 
 careful sowing by hand, the drill being 
 adjusted to measure spaces and quanti- 
 ties with unfailing regularity; whether 
 operated by hand, horse or steam, the 
 same result is accomplished with differ- 
 ent degrees of speed. Manure dis- 
 tributers take the place of the dis- 
 agreeable work with cart and shovel, 
 avoiding all danger of unequal distribu- 
 
 tion; and there are hoes which can be 
 operated by horse power without injury 
 to the growing crop; turnip-thinners, 
 which automatically thin out the rows 
 where the plants are too thick, leav- 
 ing tufts growing at the proper dis- 
 tances ; haymakers, which enable the 
 farmer to make hay while the sun 
 shines faster than he dreamed of a 
 quarter of a century ago, scattering it 
 so as to expose it to the sun and air, 
 and yet others by means of which the 
 new mown hay can be cured and dried 
 without taking the sun into considera- 
 tion or caring whether he shines or not. 
 A successful horse-fork appeared in 
 Pennsylvania in 1848. Since then great 
 improvements have been made in hay 
 forking and carrying machinery, so that 
 the farmer is saved the severe labor of 
 pitching the hay to the back of the 
 mow by hand. Hay can be cut, raked, 
 cured, pitched and unloaded by ma- 
 chinery. 
 
 As early as 1858, at a show in Eng- 
 land, there were exhibited over forty- 
 eight threshing machines, most of which 
 were worked by steam. Experimental 
 threshing machines were made as long 
 ago as the first quarter of the Eigh- 
 teenth Century, but none that was 
 practical seems to have appeared until 
 in 1786, when Meikle, of Scotland, in- 
 vented one which contained some of 
 the essential features of those of to- 
 day, so that with m'any modifications 
 and alterations, of course, the complex 
 modern threshing machine, comprising 
 straw-carriers or elevators, separators 
 and winnowing apparatus, is a direct 
 evolution of it. The threshing machine 
 has been carried to such a state of 
 perfection that it is capable of perform- 
 ing a whole series of operations, from 
 feeding the grain to delivering, stacked 
 or sorted and weighed, the straw, grain 
 and chaff. There are various modifi- 
 cations of the threshing machine, such 
 as cloverhullers, cornshellers and other 
 seed separators. Some threshers are 
 fixtures in barns or mills, but as a rule 
 they are portable. 
 
 The cotton gin of to-day does not 
 differ substantially from that invented 
 in 1793 by Eli Whitney. 
 
GEOGRAPHY AND ACHIEVEMENTS— AGRICULTURE 
 
 Eli Whitney, the inventor of the cot- 
 ton gin, was born at Westborough, Mas- 
 sachusetts, December 8, 1765, and was 
 educated at Yale College, where he paid 
 his expenses partly by school teaching, 
 partly by mechanical labor. Having 
 graduated in 1792, he went to Georgia 
 as a teacher, but finding a generous 
 patron in the widow of General Greene, 
 of the Revolutionary Army, he resided 
 upon her estate and studied law. The 
 cotton culture at this period, especially 
 that of the best kind, the "green seed." 
 was limited by the slow and difficult 
 work of separating the cotton from the 
 seed by hand ; but Mrs. Greene told her 
 complaining neighbors that she was sure 
 Whitney could help them out of their 
 trouble, for he could make anything. 
 At their desire, he set to work under 
 great disadvantages, for he had to make 
 his own tools, and even draw his own 
 wire ; but the reports of his success 
 ]irompted some lawless people to break 
 into his workshop and steal his machine 
 and get others made before he could 
 secure a patent. He, however, formed 
 a partnership with a Mr. Miller in 1793, 
 and went to Connecticut to manufacture 
 cotton gins ; but the lawsuits in defense 
 of his rights took all his profits, like- 
 wise $50,000 voted him by the State of 
 South Carolina. He afterward amassed 
 a fortune in the manufacture of fire- 
 arms, but received but barren honor 
 from the gin. one of the most important 
 of the whole series of inventions con- 
 nected with the cotton manufacture. 
 The machinery invented by ]\Ir. Whit- 
 ney is composed of a hopper, having 
 one side formed of strong parallel wires 
 placed so close together as to exclude 
 the passage of the seeds from within. 
 The cotton is dragged through the ap- 
 pertures by means of circular saws 
 attached to a large roller, and made to 
 revolve between the wires, the seeds 
 sinking to the bottom of the hopper. 
 
 Steam has revolutionized many agri- 
 cultural processes, as it has so many 
 other departments of industry. There 
 are now hundreds of manufacturers 
 who turn out annually thousands of 
 farm-engines. The farm-engine is often 
 stationary, but there are many which 
 
 can travel from farm to farm, chief 
 among them being the itinerant thresh- 
 ing machine. Steam and water and 
 wind are all used to supply motive 
 power for numerous operations, such 
 as grinding feed, sawing wood, shelling 
 corn, cutting fodder, churning and 
 pumping. 
 
 Agriculture has remained during the 
 century, as in all probability it will for 
 man}' centuries to come, the chief 
 source of livelihood of the world's 
 workers. 
 
 It is only within recent times that 
 the world has awakened to the impor- 
 tance of scientific forestry. In this 
 work the United States has been lag- 
 gard, the vast tracts of timber in this 
 country having been regarded as prac- 
 tically inexhaustible. Yet it is estimated 
 that at the present rate of cutting forest 
 land the United States cannot long 
 meet the demand made upon it. By 
 far the greater part of the white pine 
 has been cut, and vast inroads have 
 been made into the supply of other 
 timbers. The State of New Jersey 
 afl'ords a painful illustration of the 
 waste caused by wanton destruction of 
 forests. Long ago it was "lumbered 
 out," yet 2,750,000 acres, or sixty per 
 cent, of the whole land area, are fit for 
 nothing but growing wood. From a 
 commercial standpoint, as well as be- 
 cause of the efl:'ect of trees on climate 
 and waterflow, men ha\e come to see 
 that the preservation of the forests and 
 their replenishing is of importance. 
 The decay of Spain, once the granary 
 of the world, is ascribed by some 
 authorities as due in part to the destruc- 
 tion of the forests, and that sections of 
 Asia no longer "flow with milk and 
 honey" as in Biblical times, but furnish 
 havens for hordes of bandits, is alleged 
 to be due to the same cause. 
 
 Forests were disposed of to private 
 individuals in wasteful fashion in 
 Europe until about fifty years ago, when 
 the reaction came. In France, since 
 1870, no sales have been made, but a 
 policy of increasing forest land has been 
 pursued, and $40,000,000 has been spent 
 for re-foresting dunes and devastated 
 mountain sides. In Prussia, since 1831, 
 
454 
 
 THE HOME AUXM.L\RV AND REFERENCE 
 
 trees have been planted to take the place 
 of those cut down. Austria began the 
 policy in 1872. and England inaug- 
 urated a reserve forestry scheme in 
 India in 1873. In America New York 
 has led, having first instituted a forest 
 commission in 1885, and Maine, New 
 Hampshire, Pennsylvania and Wiscon- 
 sin have since established special com- 
 missions in charge of the enforcement 
 of forestry laws. The President was 
 authorized by act of j\Iarch 3, 1891, 
 to make public forest reservations, and 
 seventeen such, with an area of 17,500.- 
 000 acres, were established in Colorado, 
 New Mexico, California, Arizona, 
 Wyoming, Washington and Oregon 
 previous to 1897. In February 22, 
 1897, President Cleveland proclaimed 
 thirteen additional reserves, comprising 
 21,379,000 acres. Since then other re- 
 serves have been made. 
 
 Arbor Day has been established, and 
 in this way the importance of forestry 
 has been impressed upon the people. 
 
 A factor of importance to the farmer 
 and a development of the latter part 
 of the Nineteenth Century is the 
 Weather Bureau, which, established in 
 nearly every civilized country, has re- 
 sulted in saving millions of dollars 
 worth of farm products, and also has 
 been of great service to mariners, warn- 
 ing them of impending storms and 
 enabling them to save not only their 
 ships, but their lives. The science of 
 meteorology has reached such an ad- 
 vanced stage that it is possible for the 
 forecaster to predict the weather thirty- 
 six hours in advance with dependable 
 accuracy. The popular impression as 
 to the unreliability of the Weather 
 Bureau is due to the fact that the er- 
 roneous predictions attract most atten- 
 tion. As a matter of fact, this forecaster 
 is right, as statistics show, in eighty-five 
 cases out of a hundred. 
 
 Meteorology, or the science of the 
 weather, is a new study. Of course, 
 . rudimentary myths, relating to the 
 weather have been current since the 
 earliest days, and farmers' almanacs 
 are nothing new. The first instance of 
 the principles of natural philosophy be- 
 ing brought to bear on the explanation 
 
 of the complex phenomena of the 
 weather was in the publication of Dal- 
 ton's meteorological essays in 1793. 
 Since then meteorology has become 
 more nearly an exact science, succes- 
 sive discoveries having placed the 
 weather philosophy of the untutored on 
 a scientific basis. Beginning in 1854, 
 meteorological reports were collected 
 and sent out daily by Professor Joseph 
 Henry, of the Smithsonian Institution. 
 This was made possible by the tele- 
 graph, and with its expansion the 
 weather service in various nations be- 
 gan to improve. The meteorological 
 department of the English Board of 
 Trade was established by Admiral Fitz- 
 roy in 1857. 
 
 These services were, however, on a 
 small scale, and were principally for 
 the use of mariners. But with the de- 
 velopment of the science it was thought 
 that a wider service might be estab- 
 lished. Through the efforts of Dr. I. 
 A. Lapham, of Wisconsin, a resolution 
 officially creating a weather service for 
 the United States was passed, and on 
 November 4, 1870, the first weather 
 bulletins, based on simultaneous obser- 
 vations, were sent out to twenty cities 
 from Washington. The work was put 
 in charge of the Signal Service of the 
 War Department, and Professor Cleve- 
 land Abbe originated the present system 
 of weather forecasts. The popularity 
 and success of the predictions and their 
 benefit to the farmer led to the bureau 
 being placed under the direction of the 
 Agricultural Department July i, 1891. 
 The success of the Weather Bureau 
 under the Agricultural Department has 
 been phenomenal. In his report for 
 1895 the Secretary of Agriculture de- 
 :lares that warnings of cold waves alone 
 secured from freezing more than 
 $2,275,000 worth of perishable agricul- 
 tural products, which otherwise would 
 have been lost. That report has also 
 this to say concerning the Weather 
 Bureau : "The possibilities of useful- 
 ness to agriculture, manufacture and 
 commerce are almost without limit in 
 the increasing accuracy and capabilities 
 of the Weather Bureau. The time is 
 not probably far distant when its rec- 
 
GEOGRAPHY AND ACHIEVEMENTS— MINING AND METALS 
 
 ords, warnings and forecasts will be 
 constantly in demand as evidence in 
 the courts of justice and also by those 
 purposing large investments in certain 
 kinds of agricultural crops, in perish- 
 able fruits, in commercial ventures, and 
 in manufacturing plants. Weather 
 Bureau forecasts in the not distant fu- 
 ture will, no doubt, be consulted and 
 awarded credibility just as thermome- 
 ters are to-day. The usefulness of the 
 meteorological branch of the service, 
 wisely and economically administered, 
 is beyond computation." 
 
 MINING AND METALS. 
 
 Seventy per cent, of the total weight 
 of minerals mined is coal. Yet the 
 grimy black substance which we have 
 come to regard as an absolute necessity 
 to our very existence was practically 
 unknown to our forefathers except as 
 an obnoxious and unwelcome substitute 
 for fire-wood. The opening of the last 
 century found the world in comparative 
 ignorance of its industrial value. 
 
 In 1239 a charter was granted the 
 freemen of Newcastle, giving them per- 
 mission to dig and gather coal in the 
 Castle fields, and here the history of 
 coal as a commercial product may be 
 said to have begun. When Newcastle 
 coal was offered for sale in London 
 it was indignantly rejected by the city 
 fathers as an innovation inimical to the 
 health and happiness of the city, and 
 it was not until after much persuasion 
 that permission was given to unload it. 
 In 1300 a proclamation was issued by 
 the King prohibiting its use within the 
 city walls, and imposing a fine upon 
 those who persisted in burning it. The 
 license granted the freemen of New- 
 castle was revoked, and the coal ques- 
 tion was supposed to have been settled 
 forever. During the reign of Edward 
 III the prohibitive law was repealed 
 and the Newcastle freemen were again 
 allowed to dig and gather coals and 
 ship them to London. During the reign 
 of Elizabeth its use was again pro- 
 hibited in London during the sitting of 
 Parliament, as it was claimed to be 
 injurious to the health of the country 
 
 squires during their sojourn in the 
 city. But notwithstanding the many 
 obstacles placed in the course of its 
 progress, the use of coal spread rapid- 
 ly, and the middle of the Eighteenth 
 Century found it used almost exclu- 
 sively in the smelting of iron and for 
 other industrial purposes all over Eng- 
 land. 
 
 Although the early history of coal is 
 thus distinctly linked with the history 
 of England, its later history is common 
 to nearly all the great nations of the 
 world. 
 
 The first discovery of coal in America 
 was made at Ottawa, Illinois, as is 
 chronicled by Father Hennepin, a Jesuit 
 ^explorer, who visited that section in 
 1679. The first coal mine was exca- 
 vated near Richmond, \'irginia, the 
 discovery having been made by a small 
 boy while fishing on the James River, 
 the bituminous vein being exposed along 
 the shores of the stream. Ten years 
 later the famous strata of bituminous 
 coal was discovered around Pittsburgh, 
 and at the beginning of the Nineteenth 
 Century shipments were made to Phila- 
 delphia. Anthracite coal was discovered 
 by a hunter, Nicho Allen, near Wilkes- 
 barre. Pa., in 1792. Like many other 
 important discoveries, it was accidental. 
 Allen encamped one night and built his 
 fire upon some small black stones that 
 lay scattered about in profusion. Hav- 
 ing cooked his supper, he went to sleep 
 as usual, and when he awoke in the 
 middle of the night he found himself 
 lying in a bed of flames. The stones 
 were all on fire, and he barely escaped 
 with his life. He told the story of his 
 adventure far and wide, and shortly 
 afterwards a company v/as organized to 
 mine and ship the black stones to Phila- 
 delphia. Colonel Shoemaker, a worthy 
 Colonial gentleman, was at the head of 
 the enterprise, and upon his recom- 
 mendation most of the first consignment 
 was sold. The people, however, did 
 not understand how to use the coal, 
 and there was a popular feeling of in- 
 dignation against Colonel Shoemaker, 
 who was denounced by the city authori- 
 ties as a rascal for having palmed off 
 rocks upon them as coal. Since then 
 
4S6 
 
 THE HOME AUXILIARY AND REFERENCE 
 
 Philadelphia has grown to be a great 
 city largely through the agency of those 
 same black rocks, and the anthracite 
 coal fields of Pennsylvania yield over 
 70,000,000 tons annually. 
 
 It would be hard to estimate the 
 amount of money the United States has 
 made out of coal. One small region 
 in Eastern Pennsylvania produces every 
 year coal to a greater value than all the 
 gold mines of the Rockies, Canada and 
 Alaska. Adding to this the value of 
 our annual production of two hundred 
 and seventy odd million tons of bitu- 
 minous coal, it can be said safely that 
 we get more than three times as much 
 wealth out of our coal mines as out of 
 our gold mines. The great Appalachian' 
 field produces 200,000,000 tons annu- 
 ally. Indiana, Kentucky and Illinois 
 have an immense output. Utah, Mon- 
 tana, Colorado, Washington and Wyo- 
 ming are also rich in coal deposits, 
 and fields of incalculable value have 
 been in late years discovered in Alaska. 
 There is scarcely a country on earth 
 where coal has not been discovered in 
 greater or less quantities. The follow- 
 ing table is the latest estimate of geol- 
 ogists regarding the world's coal pro- 
 ducting territory : China, 200,000 
 square miles ; United States, east of the 
 Rockies, 192,000 square miles; Canada, 
 65,000; India, 35,000; Xew South 
 Wales, 24,000; Russia, 20,000; United 
 Kingdom, 11,500; Spain, 5,500; Japan, 
 5.000; France, 2,080; Austria-Hungary, 
 1,790; Germany, 1,770; Belgium, 510. 
 
 Although the English coal area is 
 comparatively small, nevertheless that 
 country was for years the center of the 
 coal production of the world, and for 
 many years mined more than half the 
 total amount used by the world. But 
 her coal production is being gradually 
 overshadowed by that of the United 
 States. The English coal veins are 
 shallow. The Newcastle coal fields, her 
 richest, have veins from three to six 
 feet thick, while the Pennsylvania an- 
 thracite veins run from thirty to sixty 
 feet in thickness, and the Pittsburgh 
 bituminous veins from ten to sixteen 
 feet. Some of the English veins are 
 already worked down 3,887 feet, and 
 
 at the present rate of mining it is esti- 
 mated that if it is worked down to 
 4,000 feet, English coal will be ex- 
 hausted in about 200 years. It is there- 
 fore possible that England's glory as a 
 manufacturing nation must soon be on 
 the wane. It is also self-evident that 
 the United States, with its vast supplies 
 of that mineral, and the magnificent 
 facilities for transportation, already 
 the chief manufacturing nation of the 
 world, is destined to increase its leail 
 enormously. The coal mining systems 
 perfected during the Nineteenth Cen- 
 tury, and their equipment of colossal 
 machiner)', are among the wonders of 
 the engineering and mechanical world. 
 The modern coal mine of a large scale 
 is really an underground city, with ave- 
 nues and streets extending for many 
 miles. One of the largest of these 
 subterranean towns is near Newcastle, 
 England, and contains not less than fifty 
 miles of passages, the result of excava- 
 tions wrought by human hands. 
 
 The mode of working the coal mines 
 has undergone a complete revolution. 
 The older process was, after reaching 
 the strata to be operated, to take out 
 as much of the material in stalls as 
 was considered safe. This left a pillar 
 to support the roof of the mine, and 
 thus only a portion of the material was 
 available. In 1816, by the introduction 
 of the Davy Safety lamp, it was ren- 
 dered possible to work in what were 
 very dangerous circumstances, and less 
 and less wall was left in the form of 
 pillars. This was called the "long 
 wall working," and is the method in 
 use at the present day. The system 
 consists in the excavating first of long 
 roadways through the strata, the super- 
 incumbent strata sinking down on the 
 top of the wastes left behind by the 
 miners. 
 
 The ventilation of mines had long 
 engrossed the attention of engineers 
 and legislatures. The first radical im- 
 provement brought about in this direc- 
 tion occurred in the year 1820, when 
 the workings were divided into distinct 
 portions or panels so as to insure a 
 direct passage of air from the down- 
 cast to the upcast shaft. These shafts 
 
GEOGRAPHY AND ACHIEVEMENTS— MIXING AND METALS 
 
 are, in reality, very deep wells sunk 
 at either end of the mine. The air 
 from the downcast rushes through the 
 passage and seeks egress by way of the 
 upcast. The draught of air thus cre- 
 ated, while it carried away a certain 
 amount of impurities, was insufficient 
 to provide air for inhalation by the 
 army of workers. To accomplish this 
 a large furnace was placed at the foot 
 of the upcast shaft, the intense heat 
 arising from this furnace rarified the 
 column of foul air admitted above it, 
 thus causing it to ascend and make 
 room for the colder air from the down- 
 cast shaft. For many years this method 
 •was without a rival. \'arious pumps, 
 fans and pneumatic screws were tried 
 without success. But in 1849 ^^i Eng- 
 lish mine owner named Powell put into 
 his mine a large centrifugal fan, de- 
 signed by Brunton. It operated on a 
 vertical axis and was placed at the 
 surface. Although it was a marked 
 improvement on the old furnace sys- 
 tem, the new ventilator made slow 
 progress until Guibal introduced an- 
 other large fan at the London Exhibi- 
 tion. Since then the many advantages 
 to be derived from mechanical means 
 of ventilation at the surface have be- 
 come more fully recognized, and fans, 
 some of which run at terrific speed, are 
 in use at all modern coUeries. 
 
 The haulage of coal from the dig- 
 gings through the devious passages to 
 the foot of the mine shaft is another 
 item in coal mining which has been 
 greatly improved. The use of cast iron 
 tramways dates back to 1767, and about 
 1820 George Stephenson introduced me- 
 chanical haulage underground, al- 
 though its success was not ultimate 
 until the use of wire ropes became 
 general. Until 1845, or thereabouts, 
 the underground haulage was accom- 
 plished chiefly by women and children, 
 who were treated by their overseers as 
 veritable beasts of burden. The pas- 
 sage of the legislative acts about this 
 time compelled proprietors to use ponies 
 and horses underground. For many 
 years chains and ropes were used for 
 mechanical hauling and winding, a 
 practice which entailed great danger — 
 
 so much so that the chains had to be 
 abandoned altogether. Until the year 
 1862 flat hempen ropes were used ex- 
 clusively. Then Xewell brought his 
 metallic wire ropes to such a state of 
 perfection that they were substituted 
 for the hempen ones. Up to the present 
 day the steel rope is without a rival, 
 and it has done much to make mechan- 
 ical haulage both possible and general. 
 The rope is usually driven by an engine 
 at the surface, but sometimes the engine 
 is placed underground and run by steam 
 or compressed air. The speed of hoist- 
 ing or winding, as it is termed, com- 
 pares favorably with that of railway 
 trains. At many of the large mines 
 the coal is lifted a depth of half a 
 mile in less than a minute. Owing to 
 greatly improved appliances in shaft 
 machinery accidents are very rare. In 
 the best regulated coal mines there are 
 automatic appliances, in case of the 
 cage becoming liberated from the rope, 
 to prevent its falling down the shaft 
 again. 
 
 The greatest danger to which the 
 coal miner's life is, and always has been, 
 exposed is that which awaits him in 
 the form of explosions of inflammable 
 gases. In the early years of the century 
 these explosions received the attention 
 of all the leading scientists. Until the 
 introduction of Sir Humphrey Davy's 
 safety lamp in 1816. coal mines were 
 tested before the men entered them by 
 "trying the candle" ; the presence of the 
 deadly fire-damp being shown by the 
 flame assuming a bluish color, and 
 other gases by various peculiarities in 
 the tint and shape of the flame. Com- 
 plicated improvements which have since 
 been made on the Davy lamp, together 
 with the introduction of electric light 
 wherever available, have in recent years 
 combined to reduce this danger to a 
 minimum. 
 
 Next to coal, iron has been the great- 
 est factor in the phenomenal industrial 
 progress attained by the genius and 
 wisdom of the Nineteenth Century. 
 The history of iron and the manufac- 
 ture and use of steel are as old as 
 civilization itself. The Chinese were 
 familiar with steel fully 2600 B. C, 
 
458 
 
 THE HOME AUXILIARY AND REFERENCE 
 
 ancient Chinese writings containing 
 descriptions of the processes used in its 
 conversion. The Phoenicians were also 
 acquainted with the use of extremely 
 hardened iron (properly speaking, 
 steel), as their numerous and beautiful 
 works in ornamental metallurgy, and 
 the cutting and engraving of precious 
 stones, for which they were conspicuous 
 among the nations of antiquity, neces- 
 sarily involved. During the jMiddle 
 Ages the strength and durability of iron 
 led to its extensive manufacture and use 
 for defensive purposes, and the iron- 
 monger and blacksmith occupied promi- 
 nent positions among the craftmen of 
 that darkened period of the world's 
 history. 
 
 Crude casts or "Pig" iron is the most 
 widely used metal of modern times, 
 and the most indispensable in the in- 
 dustrial arts, either as the material out 
 of which articles may be formed by 
 the operation of casting, or as the sub- 
 stance from which the purer forms of 
 the metal may be obtained. 
 
 The history of the metallurgy of iron 
 and steel during the Nineteenth Cen- 
 tury is marked by four epoch-making 
 inventions, beside which all others sink 
 into comparative obscurity. These four 
 inventions, which completely revolu- 
 tionized the industry to which they were 
 applied are : The hot blast for blast 
 furnaces, invented by James Neilson 
 in 1828, which doubled the output of 
 the blast furnace without any extra 
 fuel ; the Bessemer process for the con- 
 version of steel, invented in 1856: the 
 Siemens regenerating furnace in 1862; 
 and the Gilchrist-Thomas or basic proc- 
 ess of making steel from iron contain- 
 ing phorphorus, invented in 1880. In 
 following the development of the iron 
 industry it is well to remember that the 
 blast furnace producing cast iron has 
 two offices to perform. It has to re- 
 duce the ore to a state of metal, which 
 process is eflfected in the central and 
 upper part of the furnace by the action 
 of carbon and carbonic monoxide. The 
 reduced metal is then melted, and in 
 this operation it absorbs carbon and 
 becomes cast iron, while the foreign 
 matters of the ore fuse with the coke- 
 
 ash and are withdrawn in the form of 
 slag. 
 
 The very early iron furnaces did not 
 produce cast iron, unless by accident ; 
 they produced a steely wrought iron 
 that did not melt, but had to be picked 
 out of the furnace. This was due to 
 the fact that the furnaces, being very 
 small, used charcoal as fuel, which had 
 great power of reduction, but would not 
 make sufficient heat to melt the iron. 
 In 1828 Neilson conceived the idea of 
 feeding all kinds of furnaces with 
 blasts of hot air. The invention proved 
 a great success and effected a great 
 saving in fuel, with a phenomenal in- 
 crease in the production of the English ■ 
 furnaces. No further notable improve- 
 ments were made until 1845, when 
 Budd conceived the idea of utilizing the 
 gas which escaped from the mouth of 
 the furnace by drawing it below and 
 heating the air for the hot blast with 
 it. Soon after this the closed top to 
 the furnace was invented. 
 
 With the exception of some special 
 processes, entailing endless toil and 
 great expense, the majority of steel in 
 early days was converted from cast iron 
 by the puddling process. This consisted 
 in melting the cast iron in the form of 
 pigs on the hearth of a reverbatory 
 furnace, in contact with iron cinder 
 and iron ore, accompanied by a con- 
 stant stirring of the melted metal, or 
 "puddling," as it is termed. After be- 
 ing worked into shape by hammers and 
 rolls it was closed in cases of horn 
 shavings and heated to a high tempera- 
 ture for many hours, \^'hen removed 
 from the casting the metal showed a 
 blistered surface, and was called blister 
 steel. Puddling in this fashion neces- 
 sarily involved a great amount of hard 
 manual labor, and various attempts 
 were made to get rid of it. ^lany minor 
 inventions were made for the produc- 
 tion of steel before the great revolu- 
 tionary one of Sir Henry Bessemer put 
 in its appearance in 1856. This is 
 regarded one of the greatest inventions 
 the world has ever seen, and has done 
 more than almost anything else to 
 revolutionize industry. Bessemer began 
 his experiments in the production of 
 
GEOGRAPHY AND ACHIEVEMENTS— MINING AND METALS 
 
 459 
 
 steel from pig iron by use of the air 
 blast. Cast iron was melted in a rever- 
 batory furnace, from which it ran into 
 a vessel in whose bottom were a num- 
 ber of blow holes through which a blast 
 of air was maintained. As the hot iron 
 ran into the vessel, and as the blast 
 was forced through it, its carbon and 
 silicon were burned out and such com- 
 bustion taking place heated the iron to 
 an exceedingly high temperature. It 
 was originally intended to withdraw the 
 metal when the carbon was sufficiently 
 reduced. But this was impracticable, 
 except in rare cases, as the least trace 
 of phosphorus impaired the quality of 
 the steel. The system of blowing the 
 metal to the complete exhaustion of the 
 carbon, and afterwards adding a cer- 
 tain quantity of cast iron, was gener- 
 ally adopted. By varying the proportion 
 of the materials added, it was possible 
 to produce steel of any required per- 
 centage of carbon. Shortly after it 
 was introduced into this country, Holley 
 developed a system of hydraulic ma- 
 chinery for the operation of the proc- 
 ess. The metal is now treated in an 
 egg-shaped converter, mounted on trun- 
 nions, and large enough to treat at 
 once from one to twenty tons of melted 
 iron. It is automatically turned on its 
 side to receive the charge, the blast is 
 turned on and it is brought in an up- 
 right position to receive the blow. As 
 the air passes through the melted mass, 
 a vivid flame bursts from its mouth. 
 The carbon and silicon having been 
 burned out, the converter is turned 
 again on its side to receive the carbon- 
 izing charge of ferro-manganese or 
 sjjiegeleisen, and the effect of any trace 
 of phosphorus is partly overcome by 
 the manganese thus added. The steel, 
 which has been reduced to the consist- 
 ency of water by the intense heat, is 
 poured from the converter into moulds. 
 Under the old steel processes these units 
 were of but a few pounds weight, 
 whereas the Bessemer process converts 
 the steel into units of many tons. But 
 thus far steel could only be made out 
 of very pure iron, the presence of any 
 considerable trace of phosphorus being 
 ruinous. In 1878 Sidney Gilchrist 
 
 Thomas announced that he had suc- 
 ceeded in reducing the phosphorus in 
 the Bessemer process by the use of 
 lime. After exhaustive experiments the 
 basic Bessemer process was evolved by 
 Thomas and his cousin, Gilchrist. This 
 process consists in lining the converter 
 with specially made bricks composed 
 largely of lime and magnesia, and in 
 throwing a quantity of lime into the 
 converter before it receives the charge 
 of iron. After the blow- is given, there 
 is a period of some minutes of after- 
 blow after the carbon is all gone. The 
 etTect of this after-blow in the presence 
 of the basic material is to remove the 
 phosphorus almost entirely. In i860 
 Sir William Siemen's regenerative fur- 
 nace was completed. 
 
 The principal peculiarity of this in- 
 vention is the way in which the heat- 
 ing is efifected. The gas from the pro- 
 ducer and the air for its combustion 
 are made to pass through chambers of 
 intensely heated fire-brick piled up 
 loosely. Before they leave the furnace 
 the products of combustion pass 
 through two other such chambers. By 
 the manipulation of valves, the course 
 of the gas and air is changed. A sort 
 of cumulative efifect is produced by 
 the process, and a most intense heat is 
 developed at the expense of a com- 
 paratively small amount of fuel. Appli- 
 cations of the Siemens, or open hearth 
 furnace, to making steel at once be- 
 came obvious. By the Martin process 
 a steel of any desired percentage of 
 carbon is produced by melting pig iron 
 and wrought iron together on the 
 hearth. The Siemens process produces 
 steel on the open hearth by the melting 
 of pig iron and iron oxide. In the 
 Siemens-AIartin process both methods 
 are combined, the product of the opera- 
 tion being the famous open-hearth 
 steel. A description, or even a brief 
 mention of the many valuable modifica- 
 tions and improvements that have been 
 added to these four great epoch-making 
 inventions would necessitate the writing 
 of a volume devoted exclusively to the 
 history of the iron and steel industry. 
 
 The discovery of aluminum, the light- 
 est metal known, is probably the most 
 
460 
 
 THE HOME AUXILIARY AND REEERENCE 
 
 novel and notable attainment of Xinc- 
 teenth Century metallurgy. The al- 
 chemists of the Middle Ages speculated 
 on the composition of alum, and de- 
 cided that it must have an earthy base. 
 About 1600 Stahl said this base was 
 similar to lime. In 1724 Fr. Hoffman 
 first announced the correct idea that 
 the base of alum is a substance distinct 
 from all earthy bases. This was 
 demonstrated by Marggraf in 1754, and 
 in 1760 Professor Baron, of Paris, an- 
 nounced that he had tried without 
 success to reduce it to metal. Yet the 
 belief that it would ere long be isolated 
 was so strong that in 1762 this earthy 
 base was named alumine. The dis- 
 coveries by Lavoiser and Priestly, about 
 1780, led directly to the idea that alum- 
 ina is the oxide of a metal that had not 
 been isolated, and during the next forty 
 years all imaginable methods of reduc- 
 ing it were tried without success. In 
 1824 a Swede named Oersted discov- 
 ered a method of making from alumina 
 a combination of aluminum with chlo- 
 rine, the first being an element of clay 
 and the latter of common salt. 
 
 In 1827 Frederick Wohler, a Ger- 
 man professor, found that metallic po- 
 tassium had such a strong affinity for 
 chlorine that it would take it from the 
 aluminum chloride and leave the metal 
 free. The aluminum obtained by Woh- 
 ler was, however, only as a fine powder, 
 which resisted all efforts to make it 
 amalgamate. The trouble was to find 
 an element with such a strong affinity 
 for oxygen that it would take it away 
 from the aluminum, leaving the latter 
 free. In 1854 Ste. Clair Deville ex- 
 perimented with potassium with the 
 much-desired result, but the product 
 when obtained cost more than its weight 
 in gold, the actual cost of a pound of 
 the metal being about $200. Then De- 
 ville tried the mixing of aluminum 
 chloride with common salt, subjecting 
 the liquid to the decomposing force of 
 a strong electric current. The product 
 so obtained cost but little less than the 
 first. Then he tried metallic sodium in- 
 stead of potassium, by which process 
 he was able to manufacture aluminum 
 at a cost of $8 per pound. No cheaper 
 
 method was discovered until 1886. In 
 that year a new process for making 
 sodium reduced the cost of that chem- 
 ical from $1 per pound to less than 25 
 cents. This had the eft'ect of materially 
 reducing the price of aluminum produc- 
 tion, and by 1888 the metal was sell- 
 ing for $5 per pound, the total output 
 being one ton weekly. But the sodium 
 process was soon to be a thing of the 
 past, for in 1889 Charles M. Hall, of 
 Oberlin, Ohio, patented an electrolytic 
 process, and started a small plant for 
 the manufacture of aluminum on the 
 bank of the Allegheny River, about 
 eighteen miles above Pittsburgh. The 
 process consisted of a bath of alu- 
 minum fluoride and sodium fluoride, in 
 which alumina has been dissolved. This 
 mixture is kept melted by the heat of a 
 stiong electric current, which decom- 
 poses the alumina in the solution with- 
 out decomposing the bath in which it 
 is dissolved. By this process the metal 
 is now \ery cheaply made, and nu- 
 merous factories for its manufacture 
 and that of its alloys have been estab- 
 lished both in this country and abroad. 
 The possibilities of aluminum are in- 
 finite. It is about as light as oak wood, 
 being about one-fourth as light as iron 
 and has greater resistance than the very 
 best steel. It stands high in the list 
 of malleable metals and can be drawn 
 into a wire i -250th of an inch in thick- 
 ness. It is an excellent conductor of 
 eUctricity. and would at 20 cents per 
 pound take the place of copper for all 
 electrical purposes. In shipbuilding, 
 where lightness is demanded, aluminum 
 meets every requirement. France and 
 Germany have several aluminum tor- 
 pedo boats, and pleasure yachts are be- 
 ing built every year of this metal. In 
 Germany two army corps are equipped 
 with aluminum, the equipment includ- 
 ing every article of metal carried on the 
 person. Paris has several aluminum 
 cabs, and aluminum horseshoes and alu- 
 minum sulkies are made for some of 
 the great racers. The Twentieth Cen- 
 tury will no doubt see it supplant iron 
 and steel to a great extent, as the time 
 is certain to come when it can be manu- 
 factured as cheaply as those products. 
 
GEOGRAPHY AND ACHIEVEMENTS— MINING AND METALS 
 
 461 
 
 It is well known that aluminum is 
 jjresent in every clay bank, and it would 
 be difficult to say more plainly how 
 common it is. The only question is how 
 to separate it from the clay at a cost 
 that will put it within reach of the me- 
 chanic and the manufacturer, and as it 
 is believed that discovery is not far 
 olf, the predicted "Aluminum Age" may 
 be near at hand. 
 
 There is so much of the romantic 
 and picturesque in the history of the 
 past sixty years' developments in the 
 mining of the precious metals and gems, 
 that the recounting of it would seem 
 to be more within the province of the 
 novelist than of the sober chronicler of 
 ordinary events. In that short period 
 the two richest gold fields of modern 
 times have been discovered, and dia- 
 monds and other precious stones have 
 been found in such profusion as to 
 cause a depreciation of at least one- 
 third in the value of some of them, as, 
 for instance, diamonds. 
 
 Probably the most contagious gold 
 iever that ever spread over an adven- 
 ture-loving world was that which broke 
 out in May, 1848, when Sam Brannan, 
 the leader of the Mormons in Cali- 
 fornia, pranced through the streets of 
 San Francisco, swinging his hat and 
 brandishing a bottle of gold and shout- 
 ing at the top of his voice, "Gold, Gold, 
 Gold from the Amercian River." On 
 the 19th of January of that year James 
 \\'ilson Marshall, a carpenter, while at 
 work on the tail race of Sutter's Mill, 
 in Eldorado County, had made the dis- 
 covery of the precious yellow metal. 
 The outcry of Sam Brannan was as 
 the touching of flame to tow. The 
 whole town became ablaze with excite- 
 ment. Everybody left his shop, store, 
 or office and made a mad rush for Sut- 
 ter's Mill, where the ^lormon told them 
 they would find the very river beds 
 filled with golden gravel. The cry of 
 Sam Brannan went all over the world, 
 and the wonderful tale of an El Dorado 
 was transported Xorth, East. South and 
 West. It reached Hawaii first, and 
 twenty-seven vessels, loaded with 
 whites and natives, set sail before Oc- 
 tober I. Two-thirds of the population 
 
 of Oregon deserted hearth and home 
 and sought the gold fields. From six 
 cities, New York, Boston, Salem, Phila- 
 delphia and Baltimore, sixty-one ves- 
 sels, averaging fifty passengers each, 
 set sail for California between the mid- 
 dle of December and the middle of 
 January, 1849. Sixty vessels cleared 
 for the same voyage around Cape Horn 
 from New York alone. During the 
 winter and spring 250 vessels sailed 
 from Eastern ports. The long five 
 month's trip around Cape Horn was a 
 wearisome outlook to the feverish gold 
 seekers. There was a mad scramble for 
 passage on any kind of craft that would 
 float. The California, a side-wheel 
 steamer of 1,050 tons, was the first of 
 these ships to pass through the Straits 
 of Magellan. At the South American 
 ports competition was so fierce that 
 steerage tickets were eagerly snatched up 
 at $1,000 each. When the ship ar- 
 rived at San Francisco and the passen- 
 gers had swarmed off into the jubilat- 
 ing town, every one of the officers and 
 crew ran awaj' except the captain and 
 the assistant engineer. It was impos- 
 sible to man the vessel for the return 
 trip and she drifted helplessly about in 
 the bay for a long time. Before the 
 middle of January. 1849, there was not 
 an important shipping port in the world 
 that did not contain at least two or three 
 vessels that were fitting out for the 
 Golden Gate. Even the farthest East 
 was not beyond the stretch of the con- 
 tagion. China began to throw a stream 
 across the Pacific, and Australia pla- 
 carded the streets of her chief cities 
 with glowing signs: "Gold, gold, gold, 
 gold in California." In the early part 
 of the year 316 vessels from foreign 
 ports sailed through the Golden Gate. 
 Most of these vessels were deserted by 
 their crews as soon as they touched 
 the land. At one time more than 500 
 ships were counted in the bay, and not 
 one could boast a crew or guard. On 
 a par with this great migration by 
 water was the grand overland move- 
 ment that began in the spring of 1849, 
 as soon as passage over the plains and 
 mountains was feasible. The story of 
 the overland route is one long tragedy. 
 
462 
 
 THE HOME AUXILIARY AND REFERENCE 
 
 The rallying points of this migration 
 were St. Joseph, Mo., and Indepen- 
 dence, Mo., on the Missouri River, 
 from which stretched the two long, 
 weary trails. Thousands and thou- 
 sands of vehicles of every description 
 rolled into these headquarters early in 
 April. In May the great caravans set 
 out, and before June lo, 5,095 wagons 
 liad passed a certain point on the Hum- 
 boldt River trail, and it was reckoned 
 that a thousand more were left be- 
 hind on account of sickness and death, 
 or, as often happened, massacres by the 
 Indians. The rear ranks of the long 
 processions of that year were overtaken 
 by a terrible scourge of cholera, and 
 5,000 died on the march, while other 
 thousands were prevented from con- 
 tinuing the trail. 
 
 Considering the crude processes then 
 in vogue for the mining of gold, the 
 yield that rewarded the brave argon- 
 auts was truly phenomenal. In the first 
 year $10,000,000 worth was taken out; 
 this increased to $40,000,000 in 1849; 
 $50,000,000 in 1850; $55,000,000 in 
 1851 ; $60,000,000 in 1852, and it 
 reached its highest point in 1853, when 
 a total value of $65,000,000 was dis- 
 covered. During these first six years 
 the methods of extracting gold were 
 very crude, and therefore very waste- 
 ful. The mining was carried on in 
 what was termed placer deposits, and 
 the favorite tools of the forty-niner 
 were the pan, the rocker, the Long Tom 
 and the sluice box. The rich alluvial 
 deposits becoming worked out in the 
 course of time, the miner turned his at- 
 tention to the gold-bearing rock. Then 
 the mining of gold became a more dif- 
 ficult and costly matter. Science, skill 
 and capital were demanded, and chem- 
 istry was called in to determine the 
 composition of the various ores. The 
 pan, the rocker and the Long Tom gave 
 place to the highly organized machinery 
 of the stamp mill, with its costly stamp 
 batteries, amalgamating pans, and con- 
 centrating tables. In due time the re- 
 bellious ores were treated by roasting, 
 and the various leaching processes were 
 introduced, by which practically the last 
 trace ol eold could be recovered from 
 
 the tailings. There were also perfected 
 a number of systems of hydraulic min- 
 ing, whereby enormous deposits of 
 gold-bearing gravel can be worked to 
 advantage. As its name indicates, the 
 mining is done by the action of water, 
 which is discharged under enormous 
 pressure against the gravel bank or 
 bowlder, thoroughly seggregating it and 
 washing it into sluices, where the gold 
 is deposited. 
 
 During the first flush of the gold ex- 
 citement there was little or no attention 
 paid to the mining of the less valuable 
 metal silver, although it abounded in 
 close proximity to the gold diggings. 
 To the two and a half million ounces 
 of gold taken out in 1850, there were 
 only 38,000 ounces of silver. This rose 
 to 12,375,360 ounces in 1870, and 
 reached the maximum in i8go, when it 
 amounted to 54,517,440. 
 
 Since the discovery of gold in Cali- 
 fornia, rich deposits have been located 
 and worked in all the Rocky .Mountain 
 states and in the Black Hills of Dakota, 
 but with the exception of the Cripple 
 Creek Colorado excitement of 1895- 
 1896, nothing approaching the frenzy 
 of '49 occurred until the news was 
 spread that treasure of untold value 
 had been found in Alaska. Then the 
 scenes of the early fifties were enacted 
 all over again. The excitement reached 
 its height in 1898, and men and women, 
 too, flocked from the uttermost parts 
 of the earth to the frozen and barren 
 regions of the Yukon and the Klondike. 
 The tragedies of the overland, or "back- 
 door route," as it is called in this case, 
 were repeated. Bleached bones strewed 
 the way over the Canadian Rockies and 
 through the mountains of Eastern 
 Alaska for thousands of miles, and the 
 name of Chilkoot Pass became synony- 
 mous with that of death. During the 
 winter of 1897-98 and the following 
 summer every available vessel in the 
 Pacific ports was put into requisition, 
 and hundred of thousands made the 
 long sea journey to St. Michels, thence 
 up the Yukon, sixteen hundred miles 
 to Dawson City, the metropolis of the 
 New El Dorado. Owing to climatic re- 
 straints, it has been impossible to de- 
 
GEOGRAPHY AND ACHIKVEMENTS— MINING AND METALS 
 
 4t>j 
 
 tcrniinc the richness of the new treas- 
 ure land, or to even make a conjecture 
 regarding its possibilities. 
 
 There is not space here to even 
 briefly describe the wonderful and cost- 
 ly mechanisms that have been intro- 
 ciuced into the gold-mining industry in 
 \ery recent years. The principal in- 
 novations, however, are the steam 
 dredge, used for scraping up the gravel 
 from the rivers, and the peripatetic 
 mining machine on wheels, built by the 
 Pullman Company for the smelting and 
 testing of ores. 
 
 The development of copper mining 
 industry has been no less remarkable 
 than that of gold. The discovery of the 
 famous Clifl^ copper mine on the shores 
 of Lake Michigan in 1844 opened up 
 one of the richest deposits of this min- 
 eral that has even been known. The 
 first recorded production was one of 12 
 tons, taken from this mine in 1845, 
 which increased to 150 tons in 1848. 
 Within the last twenty years the in- 
 crease of production has been without a 
 parallel. From 27.000 tons in 1880 it 
 had attained to more than 200,000 tons 
 in 1897, an amount which is greater 
 than the total production of all the 
 other countries of the world combined. 
 Although copper is worth to-day only 
 one-half what it was twenty-five years 
 ago, the output is more than thirteen 
 times as great. This success has been 
 achieved entirely by the introduction of 
 improved machinery for the mining of 
 the raw material and in efficient pro- 
 cesses of metallurgy in the division and 
 refining of the ore. The great Calumet 
 and Hecla mines in Michigan each treat 
 not less than 1,000 tons, and often as 
 much as 3,000 tons of rock daily. The 
 machinery used in handling this ma- 
 terial is the most powerful of its kind — 
 compressors and rock drills, pumps for 
 lifting water from the mines; huge en- 
 gines for hoisting the rocks and enor- 
 mous steam stamp mills where the ore 
 is prepared for the hydraulic processes 
 of concentration which separate it from 
 tlie copper. An immense quantity of 
 water is required by these mills — not 
 less than thirty tons for each ton of 
 rock treated — and in the pumping of 
 
 the water from the lake some of the 
 lai'gcst pumping engines in the world 
 arc used. 
 
 The mining and metallurgy of the 
 baser metals — zince, lead and tin, and 
 the manufacture of tin plate, have in re- 
 cent years become pre-eminently Amer- 
 ican industries. The extraordinary 
 large deposits of zinc and lead which 
 have been found in Kansas and Mis- 
 souri have led to some notable improve- 
 ments in the methods of smelting, one 
 of the most notable being the adoption 
 of the electro-magnet. .A new process 
 for the manufacture of paint is one of 
 the important outgrowths of the Kan- 
 sas lead industry. The old process of 
 manufacturing white lead by the slow 
 corrosion of pig lead has been done 
 away with entirely. The intent of the 
 new process is to turn the ore directly 
 into white lead, and to manufacture that 
 into paint. This process started with 
 the idea of saving white lead from the 
 smoke and fumes of the smelter. It has 
 reached such economical development 
 that the ability of the workmen to 
 stand before the furnace is the measure 
 of the amount of lead which shall pass 
 into the more valuable product. The 
 heat to make the new process efifective 
 must be of the most intense character, 
 the furnace being fed with broken car 
 wheels or anything that will produce 
 sufficient heat to turn the lead into 
 smoke and fumes, from which the 
 white lead is extracted. 
 
 There have been no industrial phe- 
 nomena so distinctly characteristic of 
 the Nineteenth Century as the sudden 
 discovery and development of the utili- 
 ties of the oil and natural gas fields of 
 Pennsylvania, ^^^est \'irginia and Ohio. 
 The rapidity with which advantage has 
 been taken of the newly discovered 
 resources, and the manner with which 
 they have been applied to the widest 
 variety of manufacturing purposes, 
 have resulted in important modifica- 
 tions in a number of industries. Al- 
 though petroleum had been known from 
 the earliest times, the history of the 
 industry really dates from August 28, 
 185CJ, when oil was struck at a depth 
 of 69}^ feet along the banks of Oil 
 
464 
 
 THE HO.MK AUXILtAK^■ AND RKKERENCE 
 
 Creek, \'enaiigo County, Fa. This well 
 flowed a thousand gallons a day and 
 the excitement that followed the dis- 
 covery rivaled the gold stampede of 
 ten years before. Before the close of 
 the year i860, 2,000 flowing wells had 
 been sunk, and the daily output of 
 seventy-four of them was 1,165 barrels 
 of 40 gallons each. Oil Creek below 
 Titusyille, the valley of the Allegheny 
 from Franklin to Warren County, and 
 the banks of French Creek, became one 
 bustling city of derricks. I'oor. hard- 
 working farmers were made multi-mil- 
 lionaires in the course of a night. Small 
 villages reared themselves into veritable 
 metropolises, and a period of reckless- 
 ness and wild extravagance ensued, 
 which has never been equalled in the 
 history of any mining camp. Although 
 the abnormal features of the early de- 
 velopment of this particular territory 
 have since disappeared, it is still con- 
 sidered one of the richest oil-produc- 
 ing localities in the world.. More re- 
 cent but equally fruitful discoveries of 
 oil and natural gas have been made in 
 West Mrginia and Ohio and a small 
 district near Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, 
 while the fields of Siberia have been 
 opened to the world. 
 
 The development of natural gas, al- 
 \\ays to be found in greater or less 
 quantities in petroleum territory, dates 
 back to 1878, but it did not come into 
 general use for domestic and manufac- 
 turing purposes until 1884. It was then 
 piped to Pittsburgh and for a few years 
 the Smoky City lost its right to that 
 time-honored pseudonym. In 1887 ex- 
 tensive gas fields were discovered in 
 Indiana, but now, after a dozen years, 
 they, too, ha\e become partially ex- 
 hausted, although the economy of to- 
 day may in part atone for the e.xtrava- 
 gance of the past and make them avail- 
 able for a generation to come. The 
 towns and cities that have sprung up 
 around the natural gas centers show 
 evidence that they may hold and in- 
 crease their prosperity, even should the 
 supply of gas become exhausted. 
 
 For many years it was thought im- 
 practicable for .'America to even attempt 
 the manufacture of tin plate, and that 
 
 industry, which has now reached con- 
 siderable proportions, really dates its 
 birth to the passage of the tariflf act of 
 1890. Since then American tin plate 
 competes successfully with the very 
 best Cornwall product. The Black 
 Hills of Dakota contain 500 square 
 miles of tin-producing district, con- 
 taining more tin than all the other tin 
 mines of the world put together, but 
 up to the present time no means of 
 working this ore have been discovered. 
 Improved methods employed in the 
 treatment of the plates are all the re- 
 sults of the past forty years. With the 
 exception of a few of the Cornwall 
 factories, hand-made tin plate is a 
 thing of the past. Briefly described, the 
 jjresent process consists, first, in plac- 
 ing the iron or steel sheet to be coated 
 i;i a solution of sulphuric acid or "black 
 pickle" for the removal of the scale. 
 Washed of the "black pickle" they are 
 then annealed in cast-iron bo.xes filled 
 with sand to exclude the air. After 
 ten or twelve hours' roasting, the plates 
 are passed through cold rolls and an- 
 nealed a second time, when they are 
 ready for the second, or "white pickle." 
 After this they are dipped in the tinning 
 pot, where they receive the necessary 
 coating. 
 
 As has already been mentioned, the 
 value of diamonds has in recent years 
 depreciated fully one-third. This is due 
 partly to improved methods of cutting 
 and partly to the discovery of enor- 
 mous quantities of the gem in South 
 Africa in 1869 and 1870. In the be- 
 ginning of the Nineteenth Century dia- 
 monds were extremely scarce, because 
 of the primitive way of working the 
 mines, there being no machinery for 
 the purpose of excavation. The South 
 African diamonds were at first found 
 in gravel surface and entailed scarcely 
 any expense in mining. At that time 
 the seat of the diamond-cutting in- 
 dustry was at Amsterdam, and the 
 number of establishments did not ex- 
 ceed eight. The development of the 
 African mines so increased the trade, 
 however, that at present there are be- 
 tween fifty and sixty large diamond- 
 cutting houses in Amsterdam alone. 
 
GEOGRAPHY AND ACHIEVEMENTS—EXPLORATIONS 
 
 Antwerp in 1870 liad four establish- 
 nicnts and 200 diamond workers ; now 
 it has eighty establishments and 4,000 
 workers. Large diamond-cutting estab- 
 Hshments have also been founded in 
 London, Paris, Geneva and Berlin, with 
 smaller ones in several of the minor 
 cities of France and Germany, and it 
 is estimated that there are now 16,500 
 persons engaged in the diamond in- 
 dustry in Europe. 
 
 Although the discoveries of precious 
 stones in America have thus far not 
 been such as to warrant high expecta- 
 tions, nevertheless gems of exceeding 
 value have been found in various states. 
 Sapphires of extreme beauty and 
 great intrinsic value have been mined in 
 Idaho : New Mexico has in late years 
 produced some magnificent turquoises, 
 together with opals, emeralds and gar- 
 nets. Diamonds are met within well 
 defined districts of California. North 
 Carolina, Georgia, and Wisconsin. Ex- 
 quisite beryls have been found in Colo- 
 rado, Connecticut, Mrginia and North 
 Carolina. 
 
 With the marvelous facilities for 
 quarrying and shipping, the production 
 of building stones has become one of 
 the most thoroughly organized indus- 
 tries peculiar to the present century. 
 
 EXPLORATIONS. 
 
 The first man to attempt the solution 
 of the "polar problem'' in the Nine- 
 teenth Century was Captain William 
 .Scoresby, an Englishman, who pushed 
 his way through terrible difficulties 
 until he reached a latitude of 81 de- 
 grees 12 minutes, 42 seconds, on the 
 tiorth of Spitzbergen. In 18 18 the 
 P)ritish Government sent out two ex- 
 peditions. One, under Captain James 
 Ross and Lieutenant Edward Parry, 
 was dispatched to Davis Straits, and 
 the other, under Captain Fuichan and 
 r^ieutenant John Franklin, to Spitz- 
 bergen. The latter expedition met with 
 misfortune before it had reached the 
 latitude attained by Captain Scoresby, 
 but the former, with the utmost exer- 
 tion, succeeded in rediscovering F>affin's 
 Bay, passing by way of Lancaster 
 
 Sound 400 miles westward, or about 
 half way to Behring Strait. In 1821-3 
 Parry made a second journey, discover- 
 ing the Fury and Hecla Straits. In a 
 third attempt (1827) he succeeded in 
 attaining the latitude of 82 degrees 45 
 minutes north of Spitzbergen, which 
 was no farther than whalers had pene- 
 trated in former years, with scarcely a 
 hindrance. He quit his ship, the llecla. 
 on the northern coast of Spitzbergen 
 and betook himself to his boats. When 
 he had reached 81 degrees, 13 minutes, 
 he encountered difificulties that com- 
 pelled him to convert his boats into 
 sledges. After a long, perilous journey 
 toward the North he discovered that 
 the ice on which he was traveling was 
 moving Southward as rapidly as he was 
 advancing North, and that he was in 
 the very same latitude as when he 
 started. In the meantime Lieutenant 
 Franklin had started on another e.x- 
 pedition, in 1819, and had succeeded in 
 traversing a long stretch of the coast 
 of Arctic America, passing by the Sas- 
 katchewan and the Barren Ground as 
 far as the Coppermine River, which he 
 followed and explored for 500 miles. 
 In 1826, accompanied by Dr. Richard- 
 son, his companion in the former ex- 
 pedition, he descended the Mackenzie 
 River and explored the coast of the 
 continent through 2>7 degrees of longi- 
 tude, pushing as far West as 160 miles 
 from Point Barrow, which had been 
 reached from the West in 1826 by Cap- 
 tain Beechey. Meanwhile the viking 
 spirit of Captain Scoresby had not been 
 slumbering. In 1822 he had penetrated 
 the ice-barriers of Eastern Greenland, 
 and had surveyed the coast line from 
 "/^ degrees to 69. 
 
 The most important of the early 
 Arctic expeditions was that com- 
 manded by Captain John Ross and his 
 nephew, James C. Ross. The ship \'ic- 
 tory, which carried the party, left Eng- 
 land in 1829, entered Barrow Strait. 
 and into the Gulf of Boothia — named 
 in honor of Felix Booth, the patron of 
 the expedition. The projecting penin- 
 sula on the left, also named Boothia, 
 was thoroughly explored, as was also 
 King William's Land. On June I, 
 
466 
 
 THE HOME AUXILIARY AND REFERENCE 
 
 183 1, a wonderful discovery was made. 
 The Magnetic Pole, the ancient mys- 
 tery of mariners, was located in the 
 western part of Boothia. For a long 
 time the Rosses were thought to have 
 perished, and in 1833 a relief expe- 
 dition was sent to their rescue, but be- 
 fore reaching them they had been 
 picked up by a whaling vessel in Bar- 
 row Strait, having had to abandon their 
 own ships. In 1837-39 Simpson & 
 Dease, of the Hudson Bay Company, 
 completed the tracing of the coast line 
 westward as far as Point Barrow and 
 eastward to the Castor and Pollux 
 River. The entire outline of the 
 Northern coast of America was not 
 known, however, until 1853, when Dr. 
 John Rae took up and completed the 
 work begun by the Hudson Bay Com- 
 pany people and discovered King Wil- 
 liam's Land to be an island. 
 
 In June, 1845, the indefatigible John 
 Franklin, who had been knighted in 
 1829 in recognition of his distinguished 
 services as an explorer, was given com- 
 mand of the Erebus and the Terror, 
 and instructed to attempt to discover a 
 practicable northwest passage to India. 
 With the blare of trumpets and the ad- 
 ulations of a whole nation ringing in 
 their ears, the expedition left England 
 to meet one of the most tragic fates 
 of modern times. The last that was 
 seen of the vessels was in July of the 
 same year. No news of the party hav- 
 ing reached England, a relief expedi- 
 tion was sent out which returned with- 
 out finding a trace of the lost ones. 
 Between that and 1854, twenty sep- 
 arate expeditions, at the cost of a mil- 
 lion pounds sterling, were sent from 
 England and America in hope of 
 finding — if not survivors — at least 
 traces of the missing crews. The task 
 seemed hopeless, but after long and 
 persistent endeavors on the part of the 
 British Government, of Lady Franklin 
 and of private explorers, the mystery 
 was finally solved by the expedition of 
 McClintock, in 1857. This steamer 
 made the melancholy discovery that Sir 
 John Franklin died June 11, 1847, o" 
 the Northwest coast of King William's 
 Land, and that on April 22, 1848, the 
 
 Erebus and the Terror were abandoned 
 in the ice. The officers and crew, 105 
 souls in all, under Captain Crozier, 
 reached King William's Island, whence 
 they attempted to make their way to 
 the Hudson Bay Company's stations. 
 From information gleaned from the 
 Esquimaux, and by subsequently dis- 
 covered relics of the party, it appears 
 that the poor men fell, one by one, on 
 the way, dying of cold and starvation, 
 and that very few of them ever reached 
 the mainland. The relief expeditions 
 that were sent out with the hope of 
 succoring the ill-fated Franklin party 
 have indirectly led to the richest geo- 
 graphical results. Among the most im- 
 portant of these expeditions is that of 
 Dr. Kane, who sailed from New York, 
 May 30, 1853. Dr. Kane, three years 
 previously, had accompanied Lieu- 
 tenant De Haven in an expedition for 
 the same purpose. The disappointment 
 that had attended the return of the un- 
 successful American and English expe- 
 ditions only increased the public desire 
 to ascertain the fate of Franklin, and 
 Dr. Kane shared in this anxiety to the 
 extent of contributing his entire fortune 
 to the fitting out of the Advance. The 
 brave officers and crew were unsuccess- 
 ful in obtaining any trace of Franklin 
 and had to abandon their ship in the 
 ice and travel with sledges and boats 
 for eighty-four days, until they reached 
 the Danish settlements of Greenland. 
 The stories of the suffering and discov- 
 eries of this little band of adventurers 
 are among the most thrilling in the his- 
 tory of Arctic exploration. On his re- 
 turn, in 1855, Dr. Kane was awarded 
 gold medals by Congress, by the Legis- 
 lature of New York and by the Royal 
 Geographical Society of London. He 
 also received the Queen's Medal given 
 to Arctic explorers. 
 
 Previous to 1879 Arctic expeditions 
 had left the region north of Behring 
 Strait comparatively unexplored and on 
 the 8th day of July of that year, the 
 ill-fated Jeannette sailed out of the 
 Golden Gate at San Francisco bound 
 "for that strange land from whose 
 bourne," it may almost be said, "no 
 traveler returns." The Jeannette, for- 
 
GEOGRAPHY AND ACHIEVEMENTS— EXPLORATIONS 
 
 4^7 
 
 merly the Pandora, a gunboat, was of- 
 ficered and manned from the United 
 States Navy. There were thirty-two 
 souls on board, under the command of 
 Captain De Long, and the ship was 
 provisioned for a three years' cruise. 
 The ship proceeded by way of St. 
 Michaels, Alaska, and thence to 
 Wrangle Land, where the ship was 
 frozen in on the night of September 20. 
 Then came a period of twenty-one 
 months drift in the ice pack, and dur- 
 ing the first five months only forty 
 miles was made. Yet several islands 
 were discovered and named. On May 
 16, 1880, Jeannette Island was sighted 
 in latitude 76 degrees, 47 minutes X, ; 
 on May 27, Henrietta Island, JJ de- 
 grees, 8 minutes N. ; also Bennet Island, 
 in latitude 76 degrees 38 minutes N. 
 For two long years nothing was heard 
 of the Jeannette, and during all this 
 time she was drifting helplessly and 
 surely to destruction. On the nth of 
 June, 1881, the end came, and the ship 
 was crushed to dust beneath a mountain 
 of ice from one of those sudden up- 
 heavals that had so often threatened 
 her during her long sojourn upon this 
 floating island. Fortunately, the catas- 
 trophe had been anticipated, and the 
 crew had been divided into three par- 
 ties, which put out in small boats. They 
 were then in latitude "j"/ degrees north, 
 near New Siberia Island, 500 miles 
 from the mouth of the Lena river. The 
 boats succeeded in keeping together un- 
 til the night of September 12, when a 
 terrible storm sent them drifting in dif- 
 ferent directions toward the Siberian 
 coast. The boat containing Lieutenant 
 Chipp and his crew was never heard 
 from, but the boats of Captain De Long 
 and Chief Engineer ^Melville landed at 
 points near the mouth of the Lena. It 
 was a barren, desolate shore that De 
 Long stepped upon, with no trace of 
 its evet before having been trodden by 
 a human being. !\Ielville's crew was 
 more fortunate in finding a landing 
 place, and they immediately instituted 
 a search for their superior officer. 
 Many weeks afterward tracks were dis- 
 covered, and with the assistance of na- 
 tive guides, the searching party were at 
 
 I last successful in finding the location 
 of the last bivouac. The bodies of De 
 Long and his companions were found 
 lying about the charred embers of the 
 fire they had built. De Long's diary 
 was by his side, his pencil grasped in 
 his frozen fingers, showing that the de- 
 licious rest of that sleep which pre- 
 cedes death by freezing had overtaken 
 him in the act of making an entry in 
 the sad record of his sufi^erings. On 
 April 7, 1882, the remains of the whole 
 party were laid in one grave, with a 
 pile of stone and a wooden cross to 
 mark the spot. During the winters of 
 1882-3 and 1883-4 the bodies were 
 transported across Siberia on dog sleds, 
 a distance of 5,761 miles, to the eastern 
 terminus of the railroad to Moscow, 
 whence the funeral cortege moved on 
 to .\merica, special honors being paid 
 to it all along the route. 
 
 The next important Arctic expedition 
 was that undertaken by K. W. Greely 
 (then a lieutenant in the United States 
 Army), who started in the ship Proteus 
 in the summer of i88r, with twenty- 
 five explorers and provisions to last a 
 little over two years. Headquarters 
 were made in Discovery Harbor in 
 August of that year, and the Proteus 
 returned to the Lhiited States. The 
 chief object of the expedition was to 
 establish a scientific international polar 
 station in Lady Franklin Bay, as recom- 
 mended by the Hamburg International 
 Polar Commission of two years before, 
 and to this end excursions were made 
 into the surrounding country to obtain 
 the true position and outline of Grinnel! 
 Land. Captain James Lockwood was 
 entrusted with the most important work 
 of the expedition. In March, 1882, in 
 company with Sergeant Brainard, they 
 set out on a journey that fixed Lock- 
 wood's fame as an Arctic explorer. 
 They crossed Robeson channel to New- 
 man Bay on dog sleds with the ther- 
 mometer ranging from 30 to 55 degrees 
 below zero. After reaching Cape Bry- 
 ant, on the north coast, they sent back 
 all their attejidants except one Esqui- 
 maux servant, and proceeded northward 
 to an island in latitude 83.20, less than 
 350 miles from the pole, where, on May 
 
468 
 
 THE HOME AUXILIARY AND REFERENCE 
 
 15, Lockvvood unfurled to the breeze the 
 United States flag, exultant in the 
 thought that it waved in a higher lati- 
 tude than had any flag before. The 
 little party returned to Fort Conger 
 June 17, the journey having occupied 
 sixty days and covering a distance of 
 1,069 miles. The expedition was rich 
 in scientific and geographical results. 
 The recorded boundary of known land 
 had been extended twenty-eight miles 
 nearer the pole and 125 miles hith- 
 erto undiscovered coast line mapped 
 out. As previously arranged with the 
 Government, the Neptune was sent out 
 with fresh supplies in 1882 and the 
 Proteus in 1883. Neither of these ves- 
 sels reached Discovery Harbor, and the 
 Proteus was crushed by the ice and 
 sunk. Their supplies running low, the 
 expedition abandoned their quarters and 
 reached Cape Sabine in October with 
 supplies for only two months. Their 
 sufferings during the succeeding year 
 were intense. Sixteen died of starva- 
 tion, among them the brave Lockwood, 
 one was drowned and one shot to death 
 for stealing food from the commissary 
 stores. In the meantime the public 
 anxiety had grown intense, and the 
 United States fitted out another relief 
 expedition. Captain Schley (since the 
 famous commodore of the American- 
 Spanish war), with three ships, Thetis, 
 Bear and Aleft, reached Cape Sabine 
 June 22, 1884, and took ofif seven sur- 
 vivors, then at the point of death. 
 Lieutenant Greely was unable to appear 
 in public for some time after his rescue, 
 but as soon as he was able, he was re- 
 ceived with enthusiasm, not only in his 
 own country, but abroad. 
 
 The next American to strive for the 
 honors of Arctic discovery was Lieu- 
 tenant Robert E. Peary, United States 
 Navy, who was sent out in June, 1891, 
 by the Academy of Natural Sciences 
 of Philadelphia. The object of the 
 expedition was to explore the north 
 and northwest coasts of Greenland 
 from the land side. Lieutenant Peary 
 was accompanied by his wife and a 
 number of scientists detailed by the 
 Academy. The expedition sailed June 
 6, on the Arctic whaler Kite, Captain 
 
 Richard Pike commander. The jour- 
 ney was unmarked by fatalities, and 
 the explorers succeeded in attaining 81 
 degrees, 2i7 niinutes, a lower latitude 
 than that reached by Lockwood and 
 Brainard. In 1893 I'eary made a sec- 
 ond expedition, accompanied again by 
 his wife and a party of scientists. 
 After sending home the vessel, the 
 party went into camp on the west coast 
 of Greenland, where a daughter was 
 born in September. The winter of 
 1893-94 was spent in preparations for 
 sledge exploring. On I\Iarch 6 they 
 set out on a journey which resulted in 
 the survey and mapping of 150 miles 
 of coast line hitherto unknown. A re- 
 lief auxiliary expedition opened com- 
 munication with Peary on August i, 
 and reached Falcon ]3ay August 20. 
 They returned August 26, leaving only 
 Lieutenant Peary and his two volun- 
 teers, Lee and Henson, to complete 
 their explorations next season. A 
 second relief party brought back the 
 explorers to the United States in 1895. 
 Peary made a third expedition in 1898, 
 remaining until 1902, and reaching the 
 high latitude of 84 degrees, i" minutes, 
 the highest attained to that time in 
 American waters. He went north again 
 in 1905, and on this occasion with re- 
 markable success. His ship was the 
 Roosevelt, a steamship expressly de- 
 signed for Arctic navigation, and in the 
 spring of 1906 he made a sledge journey 
 over the northern ice. Though delayed 
 by the breaking of the ice and imperiled 
 by the loss of provisions, he made the 
 highest northing yet attained, reaching 
 the latitude of 9,"/ degrees 4 minutes, N., 
 about 200 miles from the pole, and 38 
 miles farther north than the point 
 reached by the Duke of Abruzzi expe- 
 dition. He also extended the survey of 
 the northern islands, and added con- 
 siderably to our knowledge of Arctic 
 geography. 
 
 Tlie Jackson-Harmsworth expedition 
 of 1894-97, which left England in the 
 whaler Windward, solved some most 
 interesting geographical problems. The 
 northern coasts of Franz Joseph Land 
 were accurately determined, and the 
 nuich vexed problem of Gillies Land 
 
GEOGRAPHY AND ACHIEVEMENTS— EXPLORATIONS 
 
 469 
 
 was decided. It is now quite clear that 
 this land does not lie where geographers 
 have been in the habit of putting it. 
 The map of British Franz Joseph Land 
 was practically completed, and the new 
 map entirely revolutionizes old ideas of 
 the territory. Instead of a continental 
 mass of land, as was long supposed, 
 there is a vast number of small islands, 
 to the north of which is an open sea, 
 the most northerly open sea in the whole 
 world, and which has been named the 
 Queen Victoria Sea. 
 
 This long catalogue of daring Arctic 
 adventures was brought to a fitting cli- 
 max by the return of Dr. Fridjof Nan- 
 sen, the Norwegian explorer, whose 
 triumph it is to have gone nearer the 
 pole by 200 miles than any of his prede- 
 cessors. On June 24, 1893, ^^'^^ wonder- 
 fully constructed Pram left Kristiana. 
 The success of the expedition was no 
 doubt due largely to this vessel, which 
 was built on a plan calculated to resist 
 the stupendous power of crushing ice 
 floes. On the loth of September the 
 northern point of Siberia had been 
 safely rounded, and the Fram pushed 
 eastward toward the New Siberian 
 Islands. On September 25, at a latitude 
 of 78 degrees 45 minutes, the vessel was 
 frozen in about 150 miles north of the 
 western part of these islands. Then 
 began the routine of the drift. The ship 
 was arranged for the winter, and a 
 windmill erected for electric service. 
 This drift continued until September, 
 1894, when Dr. Nansen concluded that 
 he and a companion would attempt a 
 sledge journey over the ice by which 
 he could explore further to the north- 
 ward. On Alarch 14th a start was made 
 with three sledges and nine dogs each. 
 On the first day only nine miles was 
 made, the temperature ranging from 40 
 to 45 below zero. They pushed on by 
 these slow stages until April 8, when a 
 chaos of ice blocks barred the way. The 
 latitude attained was 83 degrees 13 
 minutes 6 seconds, in east longitude 05 
 degrees. Progress was so slow and with 
 no sign of improvement, that the gigan- 
 tic task of covering the 200 miles inter- 
 vening between that point and the pole 
 had to be abandoned, and it was decided 
 
 to turn to the southward. Then began 
 a terrible struggle for life. Exhausted 
 nature began to assert itself, and on the 
 i2th of the month the pair slept so long 
 that their watches ran down. As the 
 dogs began to die from exhaustion they 
 were killed and fed to the survivors. 
 At first some of them refused to eat 
 it, but hunger soon destroyed all 
 scruples against canine diet. Not until 
 the 24th of the following July did the 
 sight of land gladden the eyes of the 
 weary travelers, and then it was but a 
 barren snow-covered shore ; yet twenty- 
 two days of terrible struggle elapsed 
 before the land was reached. Almost 
 impossible ice, lanes and pools had to 
 be crossed on short rations, and Nansen 
 writes: "Inconceivable toil. We never 
 could go on with it if it were not for 
 the fact that we must. On the "th open 
 water was reached. The two surviving 
 dogs were regretfully killed, and after 
 many struggles with the ice along shore, 
 on the 15th of August the pair set foot 
 on the solid earth for the first time in 
 two years. It was now too late for 
 them to attempt to travel further south, 
 and winter quarters were made on one 
 of the islands of the Franz Joseph 
 archipelago. Here in dull misery and 
 squalor, the winter was passed in a half 
 comatose condition. They ate and slept 
 and kept a few observations going." 
 Nansen's journal shows no complaints 
 or repinings, although for more than 
 two years no food except whale blubber 
 had passed his lips. On the 19th of 
 May they left their winter lair. After 
 many vicissitudes and dangers, on June 
 17 Nansen heard the bark of a dog. and 
 in a few moments was shaking hands 
 with the members of the Jackson- 
 Harmsworth expedition. Their task 
 was ended and the victory won. The 
 journey of Nansen and Johansen from 
 the Fram to their winter quarters was. 
 in round numbers, about 500 nautical 
 miles, and the distance made averaged 
 three miles a day. The distance from 
 their winter quarters to the nearest fre- 
 quented harbor in Spitzbcrgen was 540 
 miles. Had Nansen not met with the 
 English expedition, the result in the end 
 must have been disastrous to him and 
 
470 
 
 THE HOME AUXILIARY AND REFERENCE 
 
 his companion. Truly fortune favors 
 the brave. 
 
 Of the daring Professor A. S. An- 
 drea, of Stockholm, there can nothing 
 be said. Under the patronage of the 
 King of Sweden and the endorsement 
 of the Czar of Russia, he started for 
 the pole in a huge balloon in May, 1897, 
 and up to the present time nothing 
 authentic has been seen of or heard 
 from him. 
 
 On April 6, 1909, Commodore R. E. 
 Peary reached the north pole by sledge 
 journey from Cape Columbia, Grant 
 Land. Peary's surroundings appear to 
 show that he passed the edge of the 
 Continental shelf about fifty miles from 
 land, in the neighborhood of the pole. 
 No bottom was reached, the depth of 
 the ocean there exceeding 9,000 feet. 
 
 Dr. Cook, returning from Greenland, 
 advanced the claim that he had reached 
 the north pole in the spring of 1908, 
 but the evidence he adduced was de- 
 clared by expert geographers to be un- 
 substantial, and his claim has not been 
 allowed. 
 
 In this great international race for 
 the north pole, the search for the south 
 pole has not been neglected. Antarctic 
 e.xploration began with the year 1820, 
 when the Russian expedition, under 
 Eellinghausen, discovered the islets of 
 Petra and Alexandria. In 1821 Cap- 
 tain George Powell discovered the 
 South Orkneys. In 1831 Captain John 
 Biscoe discovered Enderby's Land, but 
 did not get within twenty miles of it by 
 reason of the ice. He also discovered 
 Adelaide Island and landed on it. In 
 1838 Captain John Bellew and Captain 
 Freena discovered a group of volcanic 
 islands, one peak of which rose to a 
 height of 12,000 feet. In 1839 Dumont 
 d'Urville discovered Terre Adelie and 
 Cote Clair, two islands. It remained, 
 however, for Captain Charles Wilkes, 
 commanding the United States explora- 
 tion during the years 1838-42 to really 
 discover, explore and make certain the 
 existence of land around the southern 
 pole. Towards the close of December, 
 1839, Captain Wilkes and his squadron, 
 consisting of the United States flagship 
 Vincennes, the Peacock, the schooner 
 
 Flying Fish and the brig Porpoise, set 
 out for New South Wales, and by 
 January i had reached latitude 43 de- 
 grees south. It was midsummer 
 weather for that region and prepara- 
 tions were made to secure the interior 
 of the vessels from cold and wet, which 
 inevitably lay in store for them. The 
 bold navigators were sailing into a sea 
 of mystery and doubt, and no one knew 
 what was before them. On January 3 
 the fog became so thick that the flag- 
 ship's horns were not heard by the 
 other vessels and they became scat- 
 tered. On the loth the first icebergs 
 were met by the Mncennes, and on the 
 nth she was unable to proceed for the 
 impassable barrier of bergs before her. 
 In the meantime the Peacock had 
 reached Macquerie Island, and the Por- 
 poise was sighted not far off. For 
 many days thereafter the three vessels 
 of the squadron skirted westward along 
 the ice barrier. On the 19th the officers 
 of the flagship distinctly saw high land, 
 leaving no possible doubt of the dis- 
 covery of the Antarctic continent. 
 Soundings brought up mud, and great 
 bowlders were found on the icebergs. 
 All efforts, however, to pass the great 
 perpendicular, wall of crystal were 
 futile, and after many narrow escapes 
 from being ground to powder by the 
 ice, days of slow creeping through mist 
 and fog, the three ships pointed for 
 the Auckland Islands. 
 
 The expedition sent out by the 
 British Government in 1839-43 in the 
 Erebus and Terror, under Captain 
 (afterward Sir) James Ross, was rich 
 in geographical results. The two ves- 
 sels, which were destined a few years 
 later to carry the ill-fated Franklin 
 ]iarty to its doom, succeeded in reach- 
 ing the latitude of 78 degrees 11 min- 
 utes S. in February, 1842, without 
 mishap. In the first year Kerguelen 
 Island was surveyed, and in the fol- 
 lowing year \'ictoria Land was sighted 
 in 70 degrees S. latitude. Proceeding 
 southward along the coast capped with 
 lofty mountains, an active volcano, Mt. 
 Erebus, 12,400 feet, was sighted in lati- 
 tude "JJ degrees 30 minutes ; also an 
 extinct volcano, Mt. Terror, lo.tpo feet, 
 
GEOGRAPHY AND ACHIEVEMENTS— EXPLORATIONS 
 
 471 
 
 but owing to impenetrable ice barriers, 
 further progress was impossible. What 
 was immediately beyond this high, per- 
 pendicular cliff of crystal could not be 
 imagined, and to the present day re- 
 mains a sublime mystery. With the 
 departure of Captain Ross from that 
 terra incognita of the South Polar Sea, 
 more than half a century ago, its dark- 
 ness and desolation become a memory 
 only, although an expedition under 
 Horchegevink in 1898 and several later 
 ones attempted the solution of the 
 problem. 
 
 The most interesting feat of explora- 
 tion on the North American continent 
 recorded in the Xineteeth Century is 
 the expedition headed by Captain l\Ieri- 
 wether Lewis and Captain William 
 Clarke, which was sent out by President 
 Jefferson in the summer of 1803 for the 
 purpose of exploring the country lying 
 between the Missouri Ri\er and the 
 Pacific Ocean. This vast stretch of 
 territory was then in absolute posses- 
 sion of the Indians, and no travelers 
 ever set out upon a more dangerous 
 journey. In the spring of 1804 they 
 began the ascent of the Missouri River, 
 having passed the previous winter on 
 the banks at its confluence with the 
 ^Mississippi. They could travel only by 
 slow stages, owing to frequent surprises 
 from the Indians, who showed them- 
 selves extremely hostile to the encroach- 
 ments of the whites. The second win- 
 ter was passed in the Mandans, and 
 not until the middle of June did they 
 reach the great falls. A short distance 
 above this point they discovered the 
 three concurring streams, which they 
 named Jefferson, Madison and Gallatin, 
 in honor of the President, Secretary of 
 State and Secretary of the Treasury. 
 They ascended the Jeft'erson to its 
 source, and, accompanied by a guide 
 from the Shonshone tribe of Indians, 
 they traveled through the fastness of 
 the mountains until September 22, 
 when they entered the plains of the 
 great western slope. On October 7 
 they embarked in canoes on the Koon- 
 koosky, which proved to be a branch 
 of the Columbia River, and by Xo- 
 vember 15th, after many thrilling 
 
 escapes from death, they met the tide 
 of the great Pacific, having traveled 
 more than four thousand miles from 
 the confluence of the Missouri and the 
 Mississippi. The third winter was 
 passed on the south bank of the Co- 
 lumbia River, tlie explorers devoting 
 every moment of their time to survey- 
 ing and investigating the surrounding 
 territory. The homeward journey, 
 with all its dangers, was begun on 
 March 23, 1806, and they reached St. 
 Louis September 23, after an absence 
 of two years and four months. In 
 return for the invaluable services ren- 
 dered the nation in opening this im- 
 mense territory. Congress made grants 
 of land to all the members of the 
 expedition. Lewis was made Governor 
 of Missouri, and Clarke was appointed 
 a member of his staff. 
 
 Few explorers have begun the careers 
 for which they were destined under 
 such romantic circumstances as did 
 the "Pathfinder," as John Charles Fre- 
 mont is commonly called. As a young 
 topographical engineer in 1840 he was 
 engaged in Washington in preparing a 
 report of some minor expedition which 
 he had made a couple of years before. 
 Here he became engaged to Miss Jessie 
 Renton, the daughter of a Missouri 
 Senator, much against the wishes of 
 her parents. Through the potent influ- 
 ence of Colonel Benton, the unwelcome 
 suitor received peremptory orders to go 
 to the western frontier and make an 
 examination of the Des Moines River. 
 The commands were instantly complied 
 with, the young officer returned, and 
 after secretly marrying the young lady, 
 projected a geographical survey of the 
 entire United States from the Missouri 
 River to the Pacific Ocean. This gi- 
 gantic task begun May 2, 1842. was 
 successfully accomplished in the in- 
 credibly short time of four months. 
 As soon as his reports had been sub- 
 mitted to Congress he planned another 
 and still more extensive expedition, 
 and in May. 1843, h^ commenced a 
 journey, the ultimate object of which 
 was to explore and survey the terra 
 incognita lying between the Rocky 
 Mountains and the Pacific Ocean, On 
 
472 
 
 THE HOME AUXILIARY AND REFERENCE 
 
 September 6, after traveling 1,700 
 miles, Great Salt Lake was seen shim- 
 mering in the distance. Up to that 
 time nothing accurate had been known 
 about this great inland sea. The upper 
 tiibutarics of the Columbia were ne.xt 
 accurately surveyed, and the journey 
 extended to Vancouver. Returning by 
 the southeast route, leading from the 
 Columbia to the Colorado River, he 
 found himself in an unknown region 
 encompassed by lofty mountain peaks. 
 It was now late in November, and death 
 confronted the whole party, forty in 
 all. The beautiful summer land of 
 California lay beyond the rugged, snow- 
 clad mountain chains, but the Indians 
 declared that no man could pass. Ex- 
 orbitant rewards were offered, but none 
 were great enough to induce an Indian 
 to attempt to guide the party. At this 
 juncture Fremont won his famous 
 sobriquet of the "Pathfinder." He led 
 his company out and began one of the 
 most thrilling feats in history. With- 
 out a guide he crossed the terrible bar- 
 riers that stood between life and death, 
 and in forty days from beginning the 
 ascent the party was at Sutter's Fort on 
 the Sacremento. \\'hen his half perish- 
 ing men had been restored sufficiently 
 the homeward journey was made. The 
 Sierra Nevadas were crossed, Salt Lake 
 revisited, and in July, 1844, Kansas 
 was entered from the South Pass. In 
 the spring of 1845 the "Pathfinder" 
 set out with a third expedition to ex- 
 plore the great basin of the Rocky 
 Mountains and the coast of Oregon and 
 California. The skirmishing prelimi- 
 nary to the breaking out of the Mexican 
 war prompted him to now defend the 
 territory he had discovered and ex- 
 plored, and under his leadership in less 
 than a month all Northern California 
 was freed from Mexican authority. On 
 July 4, 1846, he was elected Governor 
 of California. During the progress of 
 the Mexican war he got into difficulties 
 with his superior military officers, was 
 ordered to Washington, court-martialed 
 and relieved of his command. Un- 
 daunted and undiscouraged, he started 
 out on a fourth expedition across the 
 continent in October. This time the 
 
 route was along the Rio Grande, 
 through the then unknown country of 
 the fierce Apaches, Comanches and 
 Utes. Of all his expeditions this was 
 the only unfortunate one. His guide 
 lost his way, and they were stranded 
 far in the Sierra Nevada Mountains in 
 dead of winter. One by one the horses 
 and mules began to die, and finally the 
 men. Their sufferings were horrible, 
 and finally cannibalism was resorted to. 
 I'^remont, with a remnant of emaciated 
 and half delirious men, succeeded in 
 finding their way back to Sante Fe. No 
 sooner had he recovered from the 
 efl'ects of his terrible experiences than 
 he started out again with a party of 
 thirty, who succeeded in reaching Cali- 
 fornia in the spring of 1849 without 
 serious difficulty. 
 
 AFRICAN EXPLORATIONS. 
 
 In 1816 Captain Tuckey succeeded 
 in exploring the Congo as far as the 
 first rapids. In August, 1827, Clapper- 
 to!i, in company with Denham, made 
 his famous journey from Tripoli to 
 Lake Chad, and crossed Africa from 
 the Bight of Benin to Sokoto. In 1820- 
 27 a survey of nearly all the west and 
 east coast was made by Captain F. 
 W. Owen, and the north coast by the 
 Beecheys. In 1840 Abyssinia was ex- 
 plored by Dr. Beke, and in 1843-6 
 Mansfield Parkyns and Chichele Plow- 
 den made egress into this forbidden 
 land by way of the Nile. In 1846 John 
 Petherick traversed the territory from 
 Keneh to Kosseir, and in 1853 entered 
 the land of the Jur. James Richard- 
 son was the first European to enter 
 Ghat, and after exploring Fezzan 
 turned to Tripoli in 1850. An expedi- 
 tion, 185 1-4, under Dr. Barth, explored 
 the Central Sudan States, the Niger, 
 Shari and Binue and the territory 
 watered by them, and visited Timbuktu. 
 In 1850 Francis Galton made a 2,000 
 mile journey through the country of 
 Damara and the Ovampo. 
 
 In 1840 the immortal Livingstone, 
 with whose name African exploration 
 is probably more closely associated than 
 with that of any other traveler, went 
 
GEOGRAPHY AND ACHIEVEMENTS— AFRICAN EXPLORATIONS 473 
 
 to Soulli Africa as a missionary. The 
 year 1847 found him settled in the very 
 interior, whence, in 1849, he accom- 
 panied Oswell and Murray on an expe- 
 dition in search of Lake Xgami, about 
 which he had obtained some informa- 
 tion from the natives. On August ist 
 he discovered the magnificent sheet of 
 water, and during the few days fol- 
 lowing explored its borders, afterward 
 making an extended voyage down its 
 outlet, the Zouga. In 1852, after hav- 
 ing sent his family to England, Living- 
 stone commenced a journey of dis- 
 covery that won for him the plaudits 
 of the entire world. For four long 
 years he traversed South Africa from 
 the Cape of Good Hope, passing 
 through Tete, descending the Zambesi 
 to the sea, traveling in all an estimated 
 distance of 11,000 miles. For this great 
 achievement he received the \'ictoria 
 Gold Medal of the Geographical So- 
 ciety, and when he visited England in 
 1S56 he was received with distinguished 
 honors. In the spring of 1858 he re- 
 turned to Africa and (accompanied by 
 Mrs. Livingstone) began his famous 
 Zambesi expedition, which continued 
 until 1864. After following the course 
 of the great stream for a long distance 
 he turned off toward the north and 
 explored the beautiful Lake Nyassa, 
 which he discovered in September, 185Q. 
 The death of Mrs. Livingstone at 
 Shupanga, April 27, 1862, was a sad 
 ending for a long succession of bril- 
 liant accomplishments, and in 1864 Dr. 
 Livingstone returned to England. He 
 immediately made preparations for 
 another expedition, and in April, 1865, 
 he left his native land, never to return. 
 Nothing was heard from him for a 
 year, and in March, 1867, it was re- 
 ported that he had been assassinated 
 l)y the natives. Only occasional stray 
 bits of news regarding his movements 
 were received by the outside world 
 until 1869. Then followed a long 
 silence of two years' duration. Public 
 anxiety had by this time reached a 
 fever heat, and the Xew York Herald 
 sent out its correspondent, Henry M. 
 Stanley, to search for the missing man. 
 He there found the lost Livingstone 
 
 alive and well, and received from him 
 an account of his long wanderings and 
 marvelous discoveries. ■ Livingstone and 
 Stanley together now made an explora- 
 tion of the north end of Tanganyka. In 
 March, 1872, Stanley returned to Eng- 
 land, and Livingstone proceeded south 
 to Bangweolo, where he died. In his 
 career as an explorer Livingstone trav- 
 ersed some 29,000 miles of .\frican 
 soil, most of it new, and he laid open 
 nearly one million square miles of terri- 
 tory that was previously unknown and 
 which had appeared on the map as an 
 absolute blank. 
 
 While Livingstone was at work in 
 South Africa, Burton and Speke, Grant 
 and Baker, were exploring the mag- 
 nificent domains of the Upper Xile 
 country. In 1861 Speke and Grant 
 reached L'nyanyembe, and the two suc- 
 ceeding years were spent in a march 
 northward to the Victoria Nyanza, the 
 vast inland fresh water lake discovered 
 by Speke in his expedition with Bur- 
 ton in 1857. The outlet of the Xile 
 at Ripon Falls was discovered, and in 
 February, 1863, they met Sir Samuel 
 Baker at Gondokora on the White Xile. 
 There was great joy among the trav- 
 elers when they met on the shores of 
 this classic stream, and there were many 
 congratula; ions exchanged. Speke and 
 Grant by iheir discovery of the main 
 source of the Xile had solved a puzzle 
 that had been exercising the imagina- 
 tions of geographers since the dawn of 
 history. Sir Samuel related his re- 
 discovery of the Muta Nzige of Speke 
 and of a second vast sheet of water, to 
 which he gave the name of .\lbert 
 Nyanza. In 1874-79 Gordon Pasha 
 cleared up still further the mystery of 
 the Upper Nile, and obtained much 
 valuable knowledge of the territory on 
 either side of the river. In 1887-0 
 Stanley headed an English expedition 
 sent out to the relief of Emin Pasha, 
 which resulted in further knowledge 
 regarding the hydrography of the Nile 
 and the Congo. 
 
 The expedition which fixed .Stanley's 
 fame as one of the greatest explorers 
 the world has ever known was that 
 which began in 1873, when he circum- 
 
474 
 
 THE HOME AUXILIARY AND REFERENCE 
 
 navigated the Victoria Nyanza, visited 
 Uganda, marched across an unknown 
 countr}' to the rrver Lualaba, on which 
 he embarked in November, 1876, not 
 knowing where the mighty torrent 
 would lead him. He traveled a distance 
 of 1,800 miles, and when he reached 
 the mouth of the river, in August, 
 1877, it proved to be the Congo. This 
 was the most important discovery that 
 had ever been made in the exploration 
 of the dark continent. Its consequences 
 were of vast political and commercial 
 importance, among them the founding 
 of the Congo Free State. 
 
 Although the opening of Africa has 
 been pre-eminently an English under- 
 taking, much work has been done by 
 French and German expeditions. One 
 of the most remarkable exploits is that 
 of Commander Monteil, a Frenchman, 
 who early in 1893 completed a journey 
 of 4,400 miles, three-fifths of it in 
 humid tropical Africa, and two-fifths 
 in the thirsty desert. He is the first 
 white man to cross from ocean to ocean 
 the country lying below the great north- 
 ern bend of the Niger River, and he 
 is the second white man to reach Lake 
 Tchad from the Atlantic Ocean. The 
 expedition in 1893 of Lieutenant Von 
 Gotzen across the forests of Central 
 Africa, from sea to sea, was a note- 
 worthy one from a geographical stand- 
 point. In the year 1861 Gerhard Rohlfs 
 began his explorations. Disguised as 
 a Moorish physician, he entered the 
 Kingdom of Morocco, practiced for a 
 time with great success at Fez, and 
 subsequently visited all parts of the 
 country north of the Great Sahara. 
 During a journey to the oasis of Tafilit, 
 in the Sahara, he was attacked by the 
 leaders of the caravan he had joined, 
 robbed, severely wounded and left as 
 dead by the maurauders. A band of 
 passing dervishes found him nearly dy- 
 ing with thirst and loss of blood, and, 
 binding his wounds and giving him a 
 supply of water, left him to continue 
 his journey unmolested. Undaunted 
 by this terrible experience he under- 
 took to reach the oasis of Tuat, which 
 had never been visited by a European. 
 He succeeded in this remarkable ven- 
 
 ture, secretly measured and mapped it, 
 and then made his way to Tripoli by 
 way of the more northerly Oasis of 
 Chadames. This- journey counts among 
 the most important and daring explora- 
 tions of the Dark Continent. 
 
 To name all the men who have within 
 the past fifty years de\'oted their lives, 
 and in many cases sacrificed them, to 
 the details of African exploration, 
 would be an impossible task, and to 
 make a selection would be invidious. 
 Scores of scientists and brave mission- 
 aries have laid down their lives in at- 
 tempts to probe the mysteries of the 
 interior, and countless minor expedi- 
 tions have gone into the heart of the 
 Dark Continent never to be seen or 
 heard of again. 
 
 AUSTRALIAN EXPLORATIONS. 
 
 The exploration of Australia has 
 been a strictly English enterprise. The 
 exploration of the interior was begim 
 immediately after the founding of the 
 convict settlement in Botany Bay in 
 1815. The first important expedition 
 was that led by Edward John Eyre 
 in 1841 from Adelaide to King George's 
 Sound, 1,040 miles distant. The Dar- 
 ling and Murray Rivers were explored 
 by Captain Stuart in 1844-45, ^'id he 
 succeeded in reaching a point within 
 a short distance of the interior of the 
 continent. After this development was 
 rapid. Augustus Gregory in 1856 
 ascended the \^ictoria River to its 
 source, made a long and painful jour- 
 ney to the Gulf of Carpentaria and ar- 
 rived at Brisbane, having marched a 
 distance of 6,500 miles through abso- 
 lutely new territory. Queensland was 
 explored in 1843-6 by Leichardt, and , 
 in 1857-60 the great lakes and mountain 
 ranges of West Australia were explored 
 by ^Varburton, McDouall, Stuart, Swin- 
 don and a host of others. South 
 Australia received a careful survey and 
 exploration at the hands of the McKin- 
 ley expedition of 1861-2. From 1875 
 until the present time expeditions have 
 been constantly in the field, opening 
 new territory, and discovering lakes 
 and rivers theretofore unknown. 
 
GEOGRAPHY AND ACHIEVEMENTS— MARVELOUS MACHINERY 475 
 
 MARVELOUS MACHINERY. 
 
 There is a constant multiplcation of 
 labor-saving machines. Patents are be- 
 ing applied for and issued daily on 
 mechanical constructions designed 
 cither to aid or supplant man-power. 
 There is no field of industry, however 
 unimportant, which has not been in- 
 vaded by the inventor with a view to 
 minimizing the human effort required 
 tlierein to produce its quota of ma- 
 terial. 
 
 The sewing machine is probably the 
 most familiar as well as one of the most 
 important of labor-saving devices. Its 
 value as a labor saver is incalculable 
 when one considers that in the United 
 States alone there are 700.000 manu- 
 factured annually. America is the 
 sewing machine center of 'the world. 
 The tenth day of September, 1846, may 
 justly be considered the birthday of the 
 sewing machine — that is, the machine 
 as we know it to-day. On that date 
 Elias Howe, to whom has been ac- 
 corded the title of father of the sewing 
 machine, took out patents on a practical 
 invention, to which have been con- 
 stantly added improvements, until there 
 now seems nothing lacking to its per- 
 fection. It is a remarkable fact that 
 notwithstanding the sewing machine's 
 being originally the idea of an English- 
 man, Americans, and .-Xmericans alone, 
 have developed that idea. The records 
 of the English Patent Office show that 
 Thomas Saint patented a sewing ma- 
 chine in the latter part of the Eighteenth 
 Century. A clumsy and archaic de- 
 vice was this initial effort as compared 
 with the beautiful mechanism of the 
 modern machine. Saint's machine 
 sewed with a chain stitch, an awl form- 
 ing the hole, and a needle with a notch 
 in its pointed end carried the thread 
 through the cloth and formed a loop. 
 An equally crude attempt was made by 
 Tliimonnier, a Frenchman, in 1830. 
 Walter Hunt, of New York, invented 
 p. machine in 1834, but his application 
 for patent was rejected on the ground 
 of abandonment. 
 
 Howe's struggle against adversity 
 while perfecting the priceless secret 
 
 which lay hidden in his brain, and his 
 final triumph, read like a page of 
 romance. When the father of the sew- 
 ing machine first conceived the idea 
 of his invention he was absolutely ig- 
 norant of the early attempts of his 
 predecessors. Plad he known of the 
 attempts of Saint and Thimonnier his 
 road to success might have been many 
 years shorter. Howe's first device was 
 a needle pointed at both ends, and hav- 
 ing an eye in the center. He soon 
 abandoned this idea. Then there came 
 to him the happy thought, all his own, 
 of using two separate threads, one in 
 the needle and the other under the cloth, 
 and forming a stitch by the co-operation 
 of the shuttle. This was in 1844, and 
 in 1845 lie had constructed a machine 
 along these lines, on which he sewed 
 two complete suits of clothes for him- 
 self. Flushed with triumph, the in- 
 ventor submitted his machine to the 
 inspection of the tailors, to be met not 
 with encouragement, but with suspicion 
 and derision, although the machine beat 
 five of the swiftest sewers. After se- 
 curing his patent, Howe, discouraged 
 by the treatment which his countrymen 
 had accorded him, betook himself to 
 London with his "hobby." Here he 
 fared no better, and several years later 
 returned to America, penniless, to dis- 
 cover that in his absence the mechanical 
 world had awakened to its possibilities 
 and that his shuttle machine was being 
 built and sold right and left. After a 
 bitter contest Howe was given the cus- 
 tody and control of the child of his 
 brain. In pronouncing the verdict in 
 Howe's suit against I. M. Singer & 
 Company, decreed in 1854, Judge 
 Sprague, of Massachusetts, observed 
 that "there is no evidence in this case 
 that leaves the shadow of a doubt that, 
 for all the benefit bestowed upon the 
 public by the introduction of the sew- 
 ing machine, the public is indebted to 
 Mr. Howe." 
 
 Some idea of the patient investiga- 
 tion, deep thought, time and money that 
 have been spent in perfecting the mod- 
 ern sewing machine may be gained from 
 the fact that from 1842 to i8q8 more 
 than 7,000 patents have been granted 
 
476 
 
 THE HOME AUXILIARY AND REFERENCE 
 
 on its various improvements and modi- 
 fications. 
 
 It is in the use of sewing machines 
 in factories that the greatest revolution 
 has been eiifected. The manufactures 
 in which sewing machines are essential 
 are awnings, tents, sails, bags, book- 
 binding, boots and shoes, clothing for 
 men and women, corsets, flags, banners, 
 men's furnishing goods, gloves, mittens, 
 hats, caps, pocketbooks, rubber and elas- 
 tic goods, shirts, saddlery and harness. 
 The largest sewing machine in the 
 world is in operation in Leeds. It 
 weighs 6,500 pounds and sews cotton 
 belting. One of the most beneficial 
 effects of the sewing machine, next in 
 importance to its value as a labor saver, 
 is the cheapening of clothing. The 
 enormous increase during the last 
 twenty years in the factory production 
 of ready-made clothing has been coin- 
 cident with and largely the result of 
 the invention of special appliances and 
 attachments adapting the sewing ma- 
 chine to factory operation in the per- 
 formance of all stitching processes, in- 
 cluding buttonhole and eyelet making, 
 attaching buttons, staying seams, insert- 
 ing whalebones, etc., etc. 
 
 The evolution of the textile industry 
 has been as rapid as it is picturesque. 
 It is almost impossible to associate the 
 whirr of the spinning wheel of the 
 olden time with the terrific roar of the 
 modern textile factory, and yet less than 
 a hundred years ago the spinning wheel 
 was found in the house of every thrifty 
 man or woman. The labor-saving ma- 
 chines which have contributed to make 
 the industry what it is to-day have all 
 been inventions of the past sixty years. 
 Before then the various processes of 
 manufacture were in a transitory state 
 of existence. In 1851 mechanical 
 methods, systems and comparative per- 
 fections of product became known to 
 the world at the London International 
 Exhibit, and from that time down to 
 the present there has been a succes- 
 sion of clever inventions, the ultimate 
 object of which was the saving of 
 human labor. No manufacture offers 
 a more striking illustration of this ap- 
 parent displacement of man by machine. 
 
 \\ ith the power loom the weaver now 
 weaves 180 picks per minute, whereas 
 with the old hand loom he could weave 
 but sixty. When the power loom was 
 first introduced one weaver was re- 
 quired for each loom, and still more 
 recent improvements have made it pos- 
 sible for one operative to attend to ten 
 looms. The ring frame improvements 
 in the spinning process have displaced 
 that line of labor to such an extent that 
 but one-third the number of operatives 
 formerly required is now necessary. 
 \\ ith the single spindle hand wheel one 
 spinner could spin five skeins of num- 
 ber ^2 twist in fifty-six hours. The 
 modern mule spinning machine, con- 
 taining 2,214 spindles, produces 55,098 
 skeins of the same thread in the same 
 time. With the old hand loom one 
 weaver could weave forty-two yards 
 of coarse cotton per week ; now a single 
 operator can turn out 3,000 yards of 
 the same product in the same time. 
 It is computed that in the manufacture 
 of cotton goods alone improved ma- 
 chinery has reduced muscular labor 50 
 per cent, in the production of the same 
 quality of goods. 
 
 So perfect is the equipment of the 
 modern cotton factory throughout that 
 the first processes through which a bale 
 of cotton must pass are entirely auto- 
 matic. The bale is broken open by 
 machinery, thrown upon an endless 
 chain, which carries it up through the 
 mill and breaks and picks it to pieces. 
 It then passes through machines that 
 take out the dirt, and is run through 
 great rollers, which separate the strands 
 and joins them together again almost in 
 the form of yarn. It then passes into 
 a machine which converts the soft mass 
 into what resembles cotton batting, 
 whence it goes to the carding machine. 
 This mechanism contains teeth so fine 
 that thousands of them are on a square 
 foot of surface. These brush and comb 
 the cotton as it passes through them, 
 and turn it out in a great soft white 
 rope, which is seized by a series of 
 machines which twist it tighter and 
 tighter as it passes from one to another 
 until it has been drawn out to the re- 
 quired fineness. It is now ready for 
 
GEOGRAPHY AND ACHIEVEMENTS— MARVELOUS MACHINERY 477 
 
 the weaving room, and in five minutes 
 the soulless machine has done an 
 amount of work which would require 
 the old time spinner long years of 
 patient, unceasing toil. The thread 
 comes to the weaving room wound 
 on spindles, and another set of threads 
 are wound upon rollers of the width of 
 the cloth. These are to make the warp 
 of the cloth. The spindles which mo\e 
 in and out with beautiful precision form 
 the warp. The only human agency 
 required in the actual process of weav- 
 ing a piece of cotton is a girl or man 
 to attend the loom and keep an eye 
 on the shuttle, which flies back and 
 forth about 150 times every minute. 
 So great has been the improvement of 
 modern machinery over that used sixty 
 years ago that the productive capacity 
 of a spindle to-day is 44 per cent, 
 greater that it was then, and the indus- 
 try itself has increased in production 
 almost 900 per cent. 
 
 What is true of the cotton manufac- 
 ture is likewise so of the wool-weav- 
 ing industry. Improvements in ma- 
 chinery and labor-saving methods have 
 expanded the annual product from $70,- 
 000,000 in 1850 to nearly $300,000,000. 
 The chief mechanical factors respon- 
 sible for this vast increase are the loom 
 and the comb, now brought to a re- 
 markable state of efficiency. The 
 combing machine, which is almost iden- 
 tical to that used in cotton making, is 
 of comparative recent development. 
 The introduction of the improved ma- 
 chine about twenty-seven years ago 
 completely revolutionized the wool 
 industry, with a consequent increase in 
 productiveness of about .'^ 100,000,000 
 and a proportionately infinite decrease 
 of labor. 
 
 The inventive genius of mankind has 
 not despised the plebeian, but useful, 
 nail, and labor-saving mechanisms for 
 its output are so successful that the cost 
 of production of a single keg of nails is 
 infinitesimal. Indeed so cheap have 
 wire nails become that if a carpenter 
 drops one it is cheaper for him to let 
 it lie than to stop and pick it up. It 
 is claimed that one keg out of five is 
 never used, but goes to waste. A statis- 
 
 tician who recently figured this out, on 
 the assumption that it takes a carpenter 
 ten seconds to pick up a nail, and his 
 time is worth thirty cents an hour, com- 
 putes that the recovery of the dropped 
 nail would cost 0.083 cent ; while the 
 cost of an individual sixpenny nail is 
 0.0077. Such a calculation brings out 
 clearly the marvelous reduction in 
 prices due to inventive genius. This is 
 true of every item which would come 
 under the cover of a hardware dealer's 
 catalogue. There are in machine shops 
 all over the country grey-haired me- 
 chanics who well remember the time 
 when the ideas of machine-made files 
 were held up to scorn, and when all 
 first-class, well-known makes of files 
 were hand cut. It would be difficult 
 for them to now tell the difference be- 
 tween a hand-made and a machine- 
 made file. Within the past few years 
 machines have been making files which 
 cannot be approached by the most ex- 
 pert file cutters of Sheffield. The great 
 difficulty in perfecting the file-cutting 
 machine was the inability to cut uneven 
 teeth, for the teeth of a file are not so 
 even as they look. This irregularity in 
 the case of hand-made files, was the 
 evidence of extraordinary skill, and it 
 was on this point that the hand work- 
 ers considered their position unassail- 
 able. The successful machine cuts the 
 teeth with a loose chisel, and the feed 
 is such that the gradation of width and 
 depth gives the teeth that unevenness 
 so desirable. Equally incredulous were 
 the old-school mechanics over the pos- 
 sibilities of the machine-made rasp, 
 which late years have seen brought to 
 a high state of mechanical perfection. 
 Pins, like nails, are such a cheap 
 commodity that it is an extravagant 
 waste of time to pick up a dropped 
 one from the floor. And yet not so 
 very long ago it took twelve to four- 
 teen men to make a pin — that is, there 
 were twelve or fourteen processes in 
 its manufacture, each requiring per- 
 formance separately and by a different 
 hand. Now one machine turns out a 
 steady stream of pins at the rate of 
 more than two hundred a minute. Until 
 the Nineteenth Century, particularly 
 
478 
 
 THE HOME AUXILIARY AND REFERENCE 
 
 the latter half of it, pins have been 
 esteemed almost as dearly as jewels 
 and fine laces. The term "pin money" 
 is significant of the value attached to 
 the article. One of the laws of the 
 ancient pin makers of Paris was that 
 no maker should open more than one 
 shop for the sale of his ware, except 
 on New Year's Eve and New Year's 
 Day. Then the court ladies obtained 
 money from their husbands and rushed 
 to the pin shops to lay in their yearly 
 supply. Even so late as 1761 John 
 and Thomas Stevenson inserted a 
 modest advertisement in a Boston news- 
 paper informing their customers that 
 among other elegancies they had im- 
 ported pins and needles. 
 
 Simple and insignificant as is the pin 
 in appearance, its manufacture involves 
 a most complicated process, and much 
 intelligent thought and ingenuity has 
 been expended upon the perfection of 
 mechanism that contributes to its im- 
 mense production. The wire is pre- 
 pared by drawing it from an immense 
 coil through an aperture the size of the 
 pin wanted. It then passes into a ma- 
 chine through a hole and between a 
 series of iron pegs, which straighten it 
 and hold it in place. A pair of pincers 
 pulls it along and thrusts the end of 
 the wire through a hole in an iron plate, 
 on the other side of which a little 
 hammer beats on the end of the wire 
 and thus forms the head of the pin. 
 Then a knife descends and cuts if off 
 to the required length. The pin falls 
 into a groove, from which it hangs 
 suspended by the head and with the 
 lower end exposed to the action of a 
 cylinder by which process the pin is 
 pointed. These processes are all per- 
 formed with such rapidity that there 
 is an endless stream of pins falling 
 from the end of the machine. They 
 next pass between two grinding wheels 
 and are forced against a rapidly moving 
 band faced with emery cloth, which 
 gives them a still sharper point. After 
 they are dipped in the polishing tub 
 of oil, where they receive a brilliant 
 polish and finish, they are ready for 
 the sticker, where they fall from a hop- 
 per on an inclined plane containing a 
 
 number of slits. The pins are caught 
 in these slits, point downward, and slide 
 along an apparatus which iserts them 
 in paper. This mechanism is perhaps 
 the most beautiful and ingenious of all 
 the complicated contrivances that help 
 in the making and manipulation of the 
 pin. It does its work at the rate of 
 100,000 pins per hour, and yet so deli- 
 cate is its construction that a single 
 bent or imperfect pin will cause it to 
 stop feeding until the obstruction is re- 
 moved by the attendant. 
 
 Machinery for the cheap and rapid 
 production of buttons of all kinds is 
 a notable acquisition to Nineteenth Cen- 
 tury industry. Two hundred years ago 
 there were not so many buttons in the 
 w-hole world as one will find to-day in 
 the smallest country "general" store, 
 and each one of these buttons was made 
 by hand. Less than fifty years ago 
 there was not a single button factory 
 in the United States and practically no 
 machinery for its production in Europe. 
 Buttons were strictly an imported lux- 
 ury, and the common people had to put 
 up with very common grades, and not 
 many of such kinds, for buttons were 
 an expensive convenience. Now they 
 are so cheap as to justify the use of the 
 phrase "not worth a button." It is com- 
 puted that the people of the United 
 States alone unbutton one billion four 
 hundred million buttons every night, 
 when they get ready to go to bed. 
 Samuel Williston, of Easthampton, 
 i\Iass., started the button industry in 
 the United States in 1848. Williston 
 was a country storekeeper who failed 
 in business, and whose wife covered 
 buttons to eke out a miserable existence. 
 W'illiston's attention being drawn to the 
 subject, he soon invented a machine to 
 do the work of covering the old-fash- 
 ioned wooden button molds, which in- 
 vention not only brought him a fortune, 
 but excited the ambition of other in- 
 ventors in the same direction. The 
 machines used in making buttons are 
 necessarily multitudinous, and although 
 their product is simple the machines 
 themselves are of the most clever 
 mechanism. 
 
GEOGRAPHY AND ACHIEVEMENTS— MARVELOUS MACHINERY 
 
 This liistory of American progress is 
 contemporaneous with the growth of 
 the paper trade, and that growth owes 
 its evolution entirely to the labor-sav- 
 ing machinery which has been intro- 
 duced into the industry. Chief among 
 these mechanisms was the invention of 
 Louis Robert, which revolutionized the 
 paper business. This machine was per- 
 fected and patented early in the century 
 by Fourdrinier, and it remains to-day, 
 Vi'ith multitudinous improvements, the 
 standard paper maker of the world. In 
 i860 a German named \'oelter per- 
 fected a system whereby wood fibre 
 was substituted for rags, and the prob- 
 lem of still cheaper paper was solved. 
 To such perfection has this process of 
 Voelter's been carried that if the dis- 
 tance were destroyed, the tall spruce 
 tree of to-day might supply the fibre 
 for to-morrow's newspaper. The ma- 
 terial out of which wood fibre paper is 
 made is usually spruce timber. The 
 huge circular saws of this machine cut 
 the logs into the proper length for the 
 splitting machine ; another machine re- 
 moves the knots, after which it is but 
 a short journey to the grinders, which 
 reduce the wood into a pulp by huge 
 revolving grindstones. From the mo- 
 ment the log leaves the hands of the 
 grindstone feeder the work of man is 
 finished. From that point until the 
 huge white roll of paper is put into 
 the packers' hands the machinery has 
 done all the work. The pulp, in either 
 its raw state as it leaves the pulp mill, 
 or in the storage condition, is fed into 
 the engine, which is a simple contri- 
 vance resembling the threshing machine 
 in its construction. A cylinder covered 
 with steel teeth revolves in a tub of 
 pulp, which has been thinned with 
 water. In opposition to this cylindrical 
 motion is a bed of steel teeth, so ar- 
 ranged that those in the revolving 
 cylinder will pass those in the bed. This 
 process breaks the pulp into fibre of 
 proper length and at the same time 
 mixes the pulp with water. When the 
 large vat of pulp has been reduced to 
 the proper consistency the mash is 
 transferred to a receptacle, where it 
 awaits the call of the ])aper machine. 
 
 The thoroughly mixed pulp is then fed 
 on to an endless brass wire cloth, the 
 meshes of which allow the water to 
 escape as it moves. The wire cloth is 
 kept in a vibrating motion, thus accel- 
 erating the flow of water and assisting 
 in the knitting of the fibre. An end- 
 less web of felt takes the soft mass of 
 refined pulp, and conducts it through 
 several large, cold rollers. This opera- 
 tion removes much of the latent mois- 
 ture and presses the beds of fibre into 
 closely knit strips, which are carried 
 through a succession of hot rollers, 
 w-hence the paper comes out dry and 
 firm. The calender process completes 
 the operation, and the paper is auto- 
 matically wound into immense rolls 
 measuring three feet in diameter. But 
 the product turned out by the fore- 
 going process is simply paper in its 
 most primitive form, e. g., for wrapping 
 or common printing uses. Inventors 
 have not been contented to allow this 
 commodity to remain in such a com- 
 paratively narrow field of utility. They 
 have devised processes whereby we 
 have paper car wheels, and to some 
 extent, in Russia and Germany, railroad 
 trains are run on paper rails. We have 
 paper horseshoes, paper dress materials, 
 trunks and dishes. In Japan paper 
 houses are said to be common, and in 
 this country paper boats are in daily 
 use, as are also paper pipes for carry- 
 ing water, steam and sewage. 
 
 The story of the hat is but an unceas- 
 ing buzz of marvelous machinery from 
 the moment the fur is deposited in the 
 "devil," until it is ready for the wearer's 
 head. The ordinary felt hat of the 
 present day is made almost entirely of 
 animal matter, the only vegetable ma- 
 terial entering into its construction be- 
 ing the cotton back of the satin of 
 which the linings are made. The fur 
 which has been cut from the hide by 
 a mechanical process is thoroughly 
 sifted by the teeth of the "devil," "a 
 cone-shaped box through which a cur- 
 rent of air passes. The fur is then 
 ready for the blowing machine, the 
 latest of which is an English invention. 
 This machine consists of a box forty 
 feet long and about four feet square. 
 
48o 
 
 THE HO^IE AUXILIARY AND REFERENCE 
 
 This process sorts the hair from the 
 fur. The fur, being ligliter than the 
 hair, floats into one compartment, while 
 the hair remains in another. Next is 
 the forming macliine, which consists of 
 a wide oil cloth apron, a pair of feed 
 rolls, picker, a metallic drum, an open 
 turn table and a powerful exhaust fan. 
 The fan creates a current of air into 
 which the fur is thrown from the drum 
 to the cone. When the fur is all on the 
 cone, just enough for one hat, it is 
 wrapped in wet cloths and immersed in 
 hot water, where it remains a moment 
 before going to the hands of the hard- 
 ener. Thence it goes to the "sizing" 
 machine, the shaving machine and the 
 "second sizing" machine, by which time 
 it is ready for the stiffening process. 
 Not until it has been blocked, however, 
 does the cone of fur bear the least re- 
 semblance to a hat. The blocking, 
 which is entirely mechanical, is done by 
 immersing the bodies in hot water and 
 shaping them, one at a time, over blocks 
 suited to the hat's final style and shape. 
 The dyeing process which follows that 
 of blocking is also purely mechanical. 
 Then follows the finishing. In this pro- 
 cess the hat is taken to a steaming table 
 where it is held in live steam until it 
 becomes soft enough to pull over the 
 block which gives the crown its final 
 shape. After this follows the stiffen- 
 ing, curling and trimming operations, 
 if it be a derby hat. Soft hats are 
 treated essentially the same as stiff, ex- 
 cept some details of the stiffening pro- 
 cess. While there is still some hand 
 work done in the later stages of the 
 making of a felt hat in an American 
 factory, such a thing is almost unknown 
 in an English factory. During the last 
 twenty-five years there has been more 
 machinery introduced into American 
 hat factories than in any prior period. 
 The honors for the invention of the 
 improved machinery are about equally 
 divided between England and America. 
 While the English machines and sys- 
 tems have greatly improved the quality, 
 the Yankee machines have made the 
 present product possible, for without 
 the forming machine, an American in- 
 
 vention, the present output at present 
 prices would be absolutely impossible. 
 
 A unique piece of automatic machin- 
 ery invented for practical purposes is 
 the slot machine. So numerous are 
 they and so varied are the needs which 
 they fill — and fill successfully— that 
 they may justly be regarded as one of 
 the great labor-saving devices of the 
 age. 
 
 Although restricted solely to the use 
 of physicists, by far the most remark- 
 able labor-saving mechanism in the 
 world is the ruling machine in the phy- 
 sical laboratory of the John Hopkins 
 University, at Baltimore. This mar- 
 velous machine, with its diamond point, 
 rules 15,000, 40,000 or 125,000 lines to 
 the square inch ; which figures repre- 
 sent an amount of human labor not only 
 infinite in duration, but absolutely im- 
 possible of attainment. This machine, 
 designed by Prof. Henry A. Rowland, 
 of the University, and constructed by 
 Theodore Schneider, the machinist of 
 the University, is for the purpose of 
 ruling lines on polished pieces of metal 
 so as to form what physicists call a 
 "grating." All physicists and investi- 
 gators of the sun's rays are dependent 
 upon this little machine for their grat- 
 ings, it being the only one in the world. 
 The purpose of the grating is the divid- 
 ing of a ray of sunlight into its com- 
 ponent parts the ordinary prism, which 
 divides the ray intq the seven primary 
 colors being the simplest method. But 
 the limit of research with the old-fash- 
 ioned prism has long passed, physicists 
 being able to get further into the sub- 
 ject by means of the gratings, and the 
 larger the number of gratings the better 
 the ray is reflected. These lines are so 
 close together that they cannot be seen 
 with the naked eye. but under the mi- 
 croscope every line is perfectly distinct 
 and absolutely accurate. Were there 
 the slightest variation in the parallelism 
 the grating would be entirely useless 
 for scientific purposes. It is claimed 
 for Prof. Rowland's machine that if 
 a diamond of sufficient strength could 
 be secured a grating of a million lines 
 to the inch could be procured. The ma- 
 chine sits on three legs and has a stout 
 
GEOGRAPHY AND ACHIEVEMENTS— MARVELOUS MACHINERY 
 
 frame, the motive power being a little 
 hydraulic engine. It is driven by a belt 
 attached to a driving wheel of solid 
 steel, a crank being turned at'the same 
 time on the other end of the shaft. 
 This crank moves the carriage that 
 pushes the diamond point back and for- 
 ward over the surface of the grating. 
 E\ery time the diamond makes a stroke 
 the metal plate beneath moves an in- 
 finitesimal space. The carriage which 
 carries the plate is moved by a steel 
 screw. In order that this screw might 
 be absolutely perfect it was ground un- 
 der water kept at a certain tempera- 
 ture. If made in the air, or had the 
 temperature of the water varied, the 
 expansion would have caused the 
 threads to vary slightly. This would 
 have caused the carriage to vary, and 
 as a consequence the spaces between 
 the grooves would not be equal. For- 
 eign universities have tried to make as 
 good a machine, but without success. 
 So the Rowland "gratings" supply the 
 spectroscopes for all the universities of 
 the world. 
 
 One of the most phenomenal labor 
 savers in the world is the giant crane 
 that was used in lifting stone on the 
 sea wall, constructed at Peterhead on 
 the north coast of Scotland. It was 
 capable of lifting one hundred tons, and 
 could pick up a modern locomotive with 
 as much ease as the same locomotive 
 would draw a train of cars. It could 
 lift the cubic contents of lOO car loads, 
 and scatter the material over a wide 
 section of the landscape. So long and 
 powerful was its arms that it could set 
 a si.xty-ton block in the sea loo feet 
 deep and seventy-two feet from the 
 outer edge of the masonry wall. The 
 work of this machine alone displaced 
 two thousand men, who otherwise 
 would have been daily employed on the 
 building of the wall at Peterhead. 
 
 The perfection of mechanism ob- 
 tained in very recent years has re- 
 duced the manufacture of sugar to a 
 point where it becomes almost entirely 
 automatic. The early part of the last 
 century the life of the sugar-maker was 
 synonomous with that of the traditional 
 galley slave. Under a burning sky he 
 
 cut the cane, stalk by stalk, with a com- 
 mon knife, a long and tedious task; 
 then he piled it in tumbrels and carted 
 it away to the "sugar house," where by 
 a medieval process, and with much 
 waste, it was converted into sugar and 
 molasses. Now the cane is dumped on 
 a cane-carrier, an endless traveling con- 
 veyor of wooden slats. This feeds into 
 the cutter, consisting of two large, cor- 
 rugated iron rolls, which crush and cut 
 the cane into strips six inches long. 
 This process extracts 60 per cent, of 
 the cane. The juice which has escaped 
 into a tank below, is automatically 
 pumped and strained into a higher tank, 
 whence it flows into a large open cal- 
 dron. Then the juice is boiled to evap- 
 orate the water. The vacuum-process 
 pan, invented by Norbert Rillieux, of 
 New Orleans, has completely super- 
 seded the old method of doing this, 
 which method consisted of running the 
 liquid through a series of open pans. 
 The Rillieux vacuum pans are cylindri- 
 cal tanks, with facilities for conveying 
 the steam to the next pan. Inside each 
 pan is a huge drum with copper tubes, 
 through which the juice circulates. Ex- 
 haust steam of a temperature all the 
 way from 190 to 208 degrees Fahr. is 
 admitted into the drum and around the 
 pipes. But the syrup does not boil, as 
 a partial vacuum is maintained in that 
 portion of the pan in which the juice 
 circulates. The fluid is thus kept just 
 below the boiling point suiflcient to 
 evaporate in the form of steam. The 
 steam coming off the first vacuum pan 
 boils the juice brought in from the first 
 pan, because a better vacuum is main- 
 tained in the second pan. From the 
 second pan the exhaust steam passes 
 on to the third pan in the same way, 
 and if the process is of the "quadruple 
 effect," it will in turn .pass on to the 
 fourth pan, each pan maintaining a bet- 
 ter vacuum than the preceding. In the 
 last pan the juice has attained the con- 
 sistency of a thick-syrup, when it passes 
 into receptacles for cooling and crystal- 
 lization. A machine which works with 
 a centrifugal motion at the rate of 
 about one thousand revolutions per 
 minute stirs this mass. By centrifu- 
 
482 
 
 THE HOME AUXILIARY AND REFERENCE 
 
 gal force the molasses is thrown out in 
 three or four minutes. Centrifugal 
 force entirely eliminates the molasses, 
 while the grains of sugar have been re- 
 tained in a rotating basket. The pull- 
 ing of a lever puts this basket in mo- 
 tion, and it whirls about at a speed of 
 one thousand revolutions per minute. 
 The sugar when it comes out of this 
 basket, after three of four minutes' 
 whirling, is white and ready for the re- 
 fining process, in which there have also 
 been many improvements and inven- 
 tions. The sugar is first dissolved in 
 hot water, and then pumped into tanks, 
 whence it flows through a series of 
 cylindrical filters. A vacuum pan op- 
 eration, similar in principle to the first 
 evaporation process, renders the com- 
 position absolutely dry. And after 
 passing through another centrifugal 
 machine it emerges as granulated white 
 sugar. Machinery for the reduction of 
 beet juice to sugar is on nearly the 
 same principle as that used for the 
 cane-sugar industry. The most popular 
 of these machines is that which works 
 on the diffusion process. By this 
 method the beets are sliced and circu- 
 lated in water until the saccharine mat- 
 ter is removed. The juice so obtained 
 is then strained and put through a pro- 
 cess of carbonic acid saturation, after 
 which it is filtered and evaporated. 
 
 There is indeed scarcely any industry 
 of any magnitude or importance what- 
 ever to which labor-saving machinery 
 has not been applied. In the manufac- 
 ture of brooms there have been such 
 great improvements of methods in va- 
 rious departments that the number of 
 broom-makers of the United States has 
 been reduced more than one-half, al- 
 thought the product has more than 
 doubled in quantity. In the manufac- 
 ture of carpets recent processes have 
 displaced twenty times the number of 
 persons now necessary. By the old 
 methods of spinning the carpet material 
 it required seventy-five to a hundred 
 times the number of operatives now em- 
 ployed to do the same amount of work. 
 By the invention of the carpet-meas- 
 uring machine, which measures and 
 brushes the product simultaneously, one 
 
 operator does the work formerly re- 
 quired of fifteen men. Carriages and 
 wagons have also been aflected by im- 
 proved m'achinery. The one-time inde- 
 pendent wagonmaker has suffered the 
 same eclipse as has the shoemaker. In 
 the instance of agricultural implements, 
 labor-saving machinery has displaced 
 fully 50 per cent, of the muscular effort 
 formerly employed ; also in the im- 
 proved method of brick-making, in the 
 making of fire-brick, in the cutlery in- 
 dustry and also in the manufacture of 
 small arms. A bread kneading machine 
 put into operation in San Francisco is 
 doing the work formerly done by a hun- 
 dred men. The painting machine used 
 to whitewash the buildings at the 
 World's Fair was operated by two men, 
 who by its aid, did as much work as 
 200 men working by hand. The 
 mimeograph, the patent letter-press, 
 and a host of other office conveniences 
 have dispensed with an immense 
 amount of clerical help in the business 
 world. 
 
 The remarkable machinery that has 
 been invented for all manner of work 
 is not more wonderful than the ma- 
 chinery, or machine tools which make 
 the building of such mechanisms pos- 
 sible. The forming of a hole for a 
 screw, a bolt or a rivet is apparently a 
 very simple operation, but to do this 
 work accurately and rapidly has en- 
 gaged the attention of the most inge- 
 nious minds of the day, and as a result 
 there are drilling machines, boring ma- 
 chines, punching machines and riveting 
 machines innumerable. .'\s a labor-sav- 
 ing mechanism nothing can be more 
 efficient than the multiple drills that 
 ha\e made their appearance only in re- 
 cent years. Among these are the two 
 and three-spindle drills which makes 
 the holes by which railroad ties are con- 
 nected. There are the four, six and 
 eight-spindle drilling machines for bor- 
 ing holes in rows at spaced distances. 
 A universal drilling machine, built by 
 ■ William Sellers & Company, drills a 
 hole in any direction. A radial drilling 
 machine, built by the same firm, will 
 make a hole anywhere in any direction 
 within a radius of eighty-three inches. 
 
GEOGRArHY AND ACHIEVEMENTS— ENGINEERING 
 
 483 
 
 Boring machines, of both horizontal 
 and vertical form, have done much to- 
 wards the production of cheap machin- 
 ery. Punching machines, capable of 
 exerting a punching force of half a 
 million pounds, multiple punching ma- 
 chines, capable of making six holes at 
 once, and punching machines combined 
 with machinery for shearing, are some 
 of the colossal examples of recently in- 
 vented machinery. Shearing machines 
 designed for trimming the edges of iron 
 l>lates can cut off an edge sixty inches 
 long and an inch thick. Riveting ma- 
 chines, of a strength and capacity suf- 
 ficient to fasten a rivet in the center 
 of a plate thirty-two feet square, are 
 a leading factor in the making of 
 boilers. There is also the wheel-press, 
 which exerts a pressure of thirty tons 
 when employed to put a car wheel on 
 its axle. There are planing machines to 
 reduce a level surface by shaving paral- 
 lel Irnes. Rotary planers, having all 
 the way from twenty-five to seventy- 
 fi\e tools affixed on a wheel, are much 
 used in bridge-building. The mortis- 
 ing of door frames is done by means 
 of the slotting machine, which is in- 
 \aluable as a labor saver. F"or finish- 
 ing and shaping the parts of machinery 
 there is employed what is called a mill- 
 ing machine, which operates by means 
 of rotating cutters. Stamping presses, 
 used to shape parts of metal, all almost 
 indispensable in all branches of machin- 
 ery making : a special machine of this 
 kind is that used in the Philadelphia 
 mint. This exerts a pressure of two 
 million pounds. Machines for the 
 bending and straightening of plates, for 
 forging and for grinding drills are 
 other mechanical triumphs in this cate- 
 gory. 
 
 There are few branches of mechan- 
 ical construction which do not employ 
 their own peculiar lathe, but they are 
 all constructed on the same principle — 
 that of a frame having a pointed center 
 at each end. One of these is called the 
 live center, because it has a rotary mo- 
 tion, the other is the dead center, it hav- 
 ing no motion. The work to be turned 
 is hung between these centers. The 
 mandrel of the live center is propelled 
 
 by pulleys, and the cutting tool is 
 mounted on a carriage in such mannner 
 that the operator can guide it back and 
 forth over the surface of the material, 
 cutting it in almost any circular or conic 
 form. The greatest achievement in the 
 way of such a tool is the Blanchard 
 lathe, so-called from its inventor, and 
 which is so perfect in its mechanism 
 as to be able to cut material into al- 
 most any desired shape. Strange as 
 it may seem, by its use articles in shape 
 so unlike in geometrical forms, as gun- 
 barrels, shoemakers' lasts, etc., can be 
 turned on a lathe. It is as simple a 
 contrivance as it is wonderful. In or- 
 dinary lathe the work revolves rapidly 
 and the cutting tool is stationary or 
 only shifts its postion slowly to accom- 
 modate fresh portions of the work, 
 while in the Blanchard lathe the work 
 is made slowly to rotate and the cutting 
 tools revolve with great rapidity. The 
 pattern and work being fixed in similar 
 and parallel positions they always con- 
 tinue so at every revolution. The 
 whole arrangement is self-acting so that 
 when once the pattern and the rough 
 block of wood are placed in position 
 the machine completes the work and 
 reproduces an exact duplicate of the 
 shape of the pattern. 
 
 ENGIXEERIXG. 
 
 "Give me a fulcrum on which to rest, 
 and I will move the earth," said Archi- 
 medes when he discovered the lever. 
 The modern engineer has found a 
 standing point and he literally moves the 
 earth. 
 
 To no industry has the engineer given 
 a greater share of his art than to that of 
 perfecting everything connected with 
 railroading, and it is chiefly in the 
 I'nited States that this development has 
 taken place. The steel rail as we know 
 it to-day is in itself a wonderful piece 
 of engineering. Fifty years ago the rail 
 was of wrought-iron and shaped like 
 a pear-head, but its evolution under the 
 hands of the engineer has made it of 
 steel and fitted it in every way for the 
 work that it has to perform. Simple 
 as it is, there is a reason for every 
 
THE HOME AUXILIARY AND REFERENCE 
 
 curve, dimension and angle. It is made 
 expressly for the purpose of sustaining 
 its heavy loads and standing the impact 
 of the countless blows its receives. 
 
 So, too, the location of the railroad 
 and the determination of exactly where 
 every foot of the track shall be laid is 
 an engineering feat. In the early days 
 it was thought impossible for a locomo- 
 tive to climb grades. The engineer has 
 found just what grades the locomotive 
 will climb and locates his track accord- 
 ingly. Tunnels and great rivers were 
 supposed to present practically unsur- 
 mountable obstacles, but the patient 
 work of the engineer has shown that the 
 greatest mountains might be pierced and 
 the greatest chasms bridged. Railways 
 can be built wherever it is profitable to 
 build them. 
 
 Engineers of the olden time worked 
 with stone, while those of to-day use 
 steel. Fifty years ago bridges were 
 built almost entirely of wood and stone. 
 As long ago as 1779 the first iron bridge 
 in England was built, and with 100- 
 foot span and 370 tons of iron used in 
 construction, it was the wonder of a 
 generation, although it seems puny 
 enough compared to the great Forth 
 bridge of to-day, with 51,000 tons of 
 steel. How conditions have changed 
 since 1779 is shown by the fact that 
 since 1870 it has been a law in Russia 
 that no bridges shall be made of wood. 
 Yet the Howe wooden truss bridge 
 of 1840 was regarded as a wonder in 
 its days, and some of them are still 
 doing excellent service, the most famous 
 being W'ernberg's "Colossus," with 240 
 feet span over the Schuylkill. 
 
 Small streams were bridged at first 
 and then the larger rivers were crossed, 
 until now there is talk of bridging the 
 English Channel, making a railway 
 journey possible from London to Paris, 
 and the bridge would probably be built 
 were it not that it would destroy the 
 military advantages possessed by Eng- 
 land through its insular position. In 
 the United States alone there are now 
 over 3,000 miles of bridgcwork, enough 
 to form a highway across the Continent. 
 Tliis progress has been made possible 
 by the use of iron and steel, the applica- 
 
 tion of new theories of forces. The 
 first attempt to use iron exclusi\'ely for 
 long spans was tubular bridge. Stephen- 
 son and Harrison had finished in 1849 
 the high-level bridge at Xewcastle-on- 
 Tyne. The first iron bridge in the 
 United States was built at Frankfort, 
 X. Y., in 1840. 
 
 By the introduction of the suspension 
 bridge a great stride was made in 
 bridge-building. Telford, a Scotch en- 
 gineer, designed the first bridge across 
 the Menai Straits in 1818, and it was 
 opened in 1826, with a span of 579 feet 
 and a roadway 100 feet above the water 
 level. Other suspension bridges fol- 
 lowed of increasing size. The general 
 principle of the suspension bridge is 
 exemplified in a chain hanging between 
 two fi.xed points on the same level. If 
 two chains were placed parallel to each 
 other a roadway for a bridge might be 
 formed by laying planks across it, but 
 the ascent and descent would be nec- 
 essarily steep. No amount of force 
 could stretch the chains perfectly level, 
 as even a small piece of straight cord 
 cannot be stretched horizontally in a 
 perfectly straight line. It was a happy 
 idea to hang the roadway from chains, 
 for then the roadway would remain 
 perfectly level if built so as to be level 
 after the curve had been figured. The 
 suspension bridge built by Roebling in 
 1852 had a span of 800 feet. It was 
 followed by the Clifton bridge, opened 
 in 1864. The Clifton bridge at Niagara 
 Falls, and the bridges at Pittsburg and 
 Cincinnati are of this type. The largest 
 of all is the Brooklyn bridge, erected 
 at a cost of $15,500,000, and having a 
 clear water-way of 1.595 i'2 feet. It 
 was begun in 1870 and opened May 24, 
 1883. Each cable contains 5,296 paral- 
 lel (not twisted) galvanized steel oil- 
 coated wire, closely wrapped into a solid 
 c\linder 15 3-4 inches in diameter, and 
 the permanent weight suspended from 
 these gigantic cables is 14,680 tons. 
 
 The favorite form of bridge-building 
 at present is the cantilever system, the 
 first metal bridge of that type being 
 Shaler Smith's cantilever over the Ken- 
 tucky River, erected in 1877. The prin- 
 ciple of the cantilever is very simple. 
 
GEOGRAPHY AND ACHIEVEMliNTS— ENGINEERING 
 
 48s 
 
 A powerful structure of steel, in shape 
 not unlike the walking-beam of a paddle 
 steamer, rests upon a pier. The weight 
 on one side balances that on the other, 
 but the arms of the two cantilevers do 
 not meet. Imagine an engine's walking 
 beam thirteen hundred feet long — al- 
 most a quarter of a mile — resting u])on 
 its center so that it projects in either 
 direction 675 feet. Next fancy two 
 such cantilevers so placed that their 
 ends leave an abyss of 350 feet between 
 them. This space is filled with an 
 ordinary girder bridge, the ends of the 
 two cantilevers serving as piers. The 
 I'^orth bridge, built on this principle 
 and opened in 1890, is the largest span- 
 ned bridge, having a length of 8,098 
 feet. It is composed of three double 
 cantilevers; a central one of 1,620 feet 
 resting on a pier built on the Island of 
 Inchgarvie, two 1,514 feet in length 
 joined to the central cantilever by gird- 
 ers of 350 feet span. The highest eleva- 
 tion of the bridge is 361 feet over the 
 piers. Fifty-one thousand tons of steel 
 were used in the construction of the 
 bridge and fifty-six lives were lost dur- 
 ing its erection, which occupied seven 
 years and gave employment to as many 
 as 5,000 men at one time. The total 
 cost of this bridge, which is across the 
 Firth of Forth at Oueensbury, Scotland, 
 was $16,000,000. The bridge at ]\Iem- 
 phis, Tenn., is the longest cantilever 
 bridge in the United States, the great- 
 est of its three spans being 720 feet. 
 
 Improvements in sinking the founda- 
 tions have been nearly as great as those 
 in raising the superstructure. The 
 caisson is an application of the diving- 
 bell that has simplified the work of sink- 
 ing piers, and a German inventor has 
 recently devised a process by which soft 
 earth can be frozen and then dug out 
 as if it were solid rock. 
 
 Modern engineering has made tun- 
 neling a comparatively simple operation. 
 The tunnel is as old as the bridge, but 
 its development has been no less re- 
 markable. The early tunnels in the 
 century required the expenditure of an 
 enormous amount of time, but new de- 
 vices for rock-boring and the removal 
 of soft earth have simplified matters. 
 
 One of the earliest known tunnels, said 
 to have been constructed to drain the 
 plateau on which stands the City of 
 Mexico, pierced the Nochistengo ridge 
 for six miles. It was destroyed during 
 a flood and was replaced by an open 
 cut in 1608. But it required more than 
 a century to build that tunnel with the 
 devices then in the possession of engin- 
 eers. The work was done almost en- 
 tirely by hand and although the work- 
 men were paid only 9 cents a day, the 
 cost was $6,000,000. Aside from the 
 free workmen all convicts sentenced to 
 hard labor were put to work on the 
 tunnel, which cost the lives of more 
 than 100,000 workmen. 
 
 Nowadays machinery has replaced 
 hand labor to a great extent, and there 
 is no such great sacrifice of men re- 
 quired. This has made possible the 
 building of tunnels of great length. 
 The machine rock drill, invented by J. 
 J. Couch, an American, in 1849, was 
 first used in tunneling Mont Cenis, and 
 made possible the Hoosac tunnel. Mont 
 Cenis tunnel was long one of the wond- 
 ers Okf the world. Nearly eight miles in 
 length, it extends from ^ladane to Bar- 
 donneche under the Col de Frejus. The 
 work was begun in 1857, with rock- 
 boring machines, but these proving im- 
 practical, for four years the workmen 
 drilled holes and blasted the rock by 
 manual labor. Improvements in the 
 machinery invented by Couch then 
 made possible the use of machinery. 
 Before the machines were employed 
 progress could be made at the rate of 
 eighteen inches per day; towards the 
 close, when the rock-boring machinery 
 was in full working order, as much as 
 400 feet per month was excavated. 
 P'rom 1857 to i860 by hand labor alone 
 1,646 meters were excavated; from 
 1861 to 1870 the remaining 10,587 
 meters were completed by machine. 
 
 Most remarkable of tunnels up to 
 1900 was the St. Gothard, piercing the 
 Alps. Work was begun in September, 
 1872, at each end, and it is a remark- 
 able feat of civil engineering that the 
 two openings met, in spite of the dif- 
 ficulty of the survey, with a variation 
 of only 2 inches horizontally and 13 
 
THE HOME AUXILIARY AND REFERENCE 
 
 inches laterally. The tunnel is 9 1-2 
 miles long and cost about $700 per 
 lineal yard. The first passenger train 
 ran through the tunnel on November i, 
 1 88 1, thus making possible the passing 
 of the Alps at a point where before it 
 had been possible only to mountaineers. 
 Hannibal himself could not have led 
 an army over the Alps at that point. 
 The motive power of the rock-drilling 
 machines was actuated, as was the case 
 with the JNIont Cenis tunnel, by com- 
 pressed air, and the power used for 
 compressing the air was a head of 
 water. 
 
 The Simplon tunnel, though begun 
 in the igth Century, was not completed 
 until the 20th. It superseded the Simp- 
 Ion Pass road, begun in 1800 by Napo- 
 leon, who wished a military road to 
 Italy, and built it in six years, at an 
 expenditure of $4,000,000 and the loss 
 of numerous lives. The Simplon tun- 
 nel is I2l:i miles long, making it the 
 longest in the world. Brandt rotary 
 hydraulic drilling machines were used 
 in its construction with a pressure of 
 from 1,000 to 1,500 pounds to. the 
 square inch. Six or eight machines 
 were used at each heading. The Brandt 
 machine has three cutting points like 
 claws, with a rotary movement, and 
 works by hydraulic pressure. 
 
 The rock-boring machine known as 
 the Burleigh, perfected in 1873, gave 
 a great impetus to tunneling. It looks 
 like a big syringe, supported upon a tri- 
 pod, and is worked by compressed air. 
 It eats holes two inches in diameter in 
 solid granite, and makes honeycomb of 
 it as easily as a schoolboy would de- 
 molish a small sponge cake. It pounds 
 away at the rate of 200 strokes a min- 
 ute, in which time it progresses for- 
 ward about twelve inches, keeping the 
 holes free of the pounded rock. The 
 principal feature of the machine is that 
 it imitates in every way the action of 
 the quarryman in boring a rock. An- 
 other type of rock-boring machine is 
 the diamond drill, which surpasses all 
 others in the rapidity with which it eats 
 its way through solid rock. 
 
 Rock-boring is comparatively easy 
 nowadays. When soft material is en- 
 
 countered the work is more difficult, it 
 being necessary to keep the material 
 from clogging the excavation already 
 made. A device has been invented to 
 overcome this, and it was used in the 
 railroad tunnel under the St. Clair 
 River at Port Huron. It is called a 
 sh-ield, and is generally used in cities 
 for smaller tunnels. In the St. Clair 
 tunnel a great cylinder weighing more 
 than 60 tons, 20 feet in diameter, and 
 16 feet long, was driven into the blue 
 clay, which constituted the entire bot- 
 tom of the river, with as great ease as 
 cakes of soap can be carved out of a 
 general mass. Inside this "shield" 
 twenty-two men worked removing the 
 dirt. As fast as the shield was pushed 
 forward, which was 2 feet at a time, 
 the clay thus brought inside was dug 
 out to the end of the cylinder. Then 
 the hydraulic jacks were again started 
 and slowly but irresistibly the immense 
 iron tube moved another two feet into 
 the solid earth ahead of it. Each jack 
 had a power of 3,000 tons and the com- 
 bined power behind the shield was 
 more than 400,000 tons. 
 
 When water floods the work there 
 is great risk. It was necessary to pump 
 2,000 gallons of water a minute to pre- 
 vent the flooding of the Kilsby tunnel, 
 and in the construction of the Severn 
 tunnel in England (1873-83), which has 
 a length of 4 I -3 miles, the tumiel was 
 flooded for a year by the tapping of a 
 large spring, and the erection of per- 
 manent pumping engines was made 
 necessary. 
 
 The canals of the century are not 
 the greatest in length. There is one in 
 China nearly 700 miles long, the long- 
 est in the world, that dates back to the 
 Thirteenth Century. The era of canal 
 opening in the United States began 
 early, and the Erie canal running from 
 Albany to Buffalo is 351.8 miles in 
 length, and was opened in 1825. But 
 these canal enterprises have been 
 dwarfed as engineering enterprises and 
 in importance by the Suez canal, which 
 is regarded by many as the greatest en- 
 gineering feat of the world. While the 
 ancient Egyptians did not cut directly 
 through the isthmus, Herodotus de- 
 
GEOGRAPHY AND ACHIEVEMENTS— ENGINEERING 
 
 scribes a canal from Suez to the Nile, 
 but it became clogged with sand, and 
 until DeLesseps dug his great ditch it 
 was regarded as necessary for all ships 
 to make the journey around Africa to 
 reach the Indies. The isthmus made 
 necessary a journey of 15.000 miles, and 
 a glance at the map of Africa will show 
 the enormous saving in time which it 
 effects. The journey around Africa 
 was so great that it was to avoid this 
 that Columbus, ignorant of the size 
 of the world, made his journey west- 
 ward that led to the discovery of 
 America. 
 
 The story of the canal is a thrilling 
 romance. It was conceived by De- 
 Lesseps in 1834, twenty years before be 
 got his concession. Thea followed in- 
 trigues and diplomacy with Turkey and 
 foreign powers before he could get per- 
 mission to work. Then it became neces- 
 sary to raise the enormous capital of 
 $92,000,000 which it cost. In spite of 
 the obstacles the objections were finally 
 overcome and the canal built, being 
 opened in November, 1869. 
 
 The Suez canal is 88 geographical or 
 about 100 statute miles long. The en- 
 gineering difficulties were enormous. 
 The minimum depth is 26 feet, and this 
 was necessary because of the size of 
 the vessels which would use it. Its 
 average width is 25 yards. It had to 
 be dug through sand, and it was made 
 possible only by the invention of 
 dredges to do the work. But for these 
 the canal would never have been built 
 through the sand. These dredges were 
 the contrivance of one of the contrac- 
 tors. The use of the dredging machines 
 was prepared for by digging out a 
 rough trough by spade work and as 
 soon as it had been dug to the depth 
 of from six to twelve feet, the water 
 was let in. After the water was let in 
 the steam dredges were floated down 
 the stream, moored against the bank 
 and set to work. There were two kinds 
 nf dredges. One, known as couloir, 
 was a large barge of wood supporting 
 an endless chain of heavy iron buckets 
 which scooped up the mud and sand 
 which was discharged through pipes 
 onto tlie embankment Smaller mov- 
 
 able dredges were also used which dis- 
 charged the mud and sand on barges, 
 which were divided into compartments 
 fixed on trucks, and, raised by steam, 
 were placed on an inclined plane that 
 carried the mud to the shore. Many 
 were the problems of engineering which 
 were solved during the construction of 
 the canal. 
 
 Another great canal is the one con- 
 necting the North Sea and the Baltic, 
 running from the mouth of the Elbe to 
 the gulf of Kiel. Begun in 1887, it was 
 opened in 1895. It is 60 miles long and 
 has a depth of 28 feet and a width of 
 197 feet, being sufficient to fioat the 
 largest vessels of the German navy. 
 The working plant consisted of ninety 
 locomotives, 2,473 cars, 133 lighters, 55 
 steam-engines, and 8,600 men. The 
 Manchester canal, which has made 
 Manchester a seaport, is another great 
 canal enterprise of the century. Thirty- 
 five and a half miles in length, it was 
 opened in 1893, and has a depth of 
 26 feet and a width of 172 feet. 
 
 By the use of shields and dredges 
 the engineers sunk great piers, effected 
 wonders in sanitary engineering, built 
 sewers and jetties, using marvelous ma- 
 chinery, often invented expressly for 
 the purpose. The levees built along the 
 banks of the ^Mississippi and other 
 rivers have been triumphs of engineer- 
 ing skill, and have save thousands of 
 liyes from floods, although the loss of 
 life is still great. 
 
 By the skill of the engineer, aided by 
 the architect, tall buildings, rivaling 
 the tower of Babel, rear their heads 
 skyward in the great cities. Buildings 
 of eighteen and twenty stories have 
 ceased to be uncommon. They have 
 been made necessary by the congestion 
 of the great cities, for when from Si 50 
 to $300 a square foot is paid for land 
 it is necessary to build tall structures in 
 order to pay interest on the ground and 
 the cost of the building. There was a 
 limit beyond which structures of brick 
 and wood might be built, but the use 
 of iron and steel made it possible to 
 build taller structures, two or three 
 times the height of those possible by the 
 
THE HOME AUXILIARY AND REFERENCE 
 
 old method. The new method of con- 
 struction known as the skeleton frame 
 construction, does away with the use of 
 brick and masonry except as a thin 
 shell. Steel beams support the walls of 
 each story and these are framed be- 
 tween columns, permitting thin walls 
 even at the base. The frame work of 
 iron and steel being erected, the masons 
 and carpenters can work on all floors 
 at once and build from top and bottom. 
 Great as have been the improvements in 
 construction, the erection of these build- 
 ings calls for the highest engineering 
 skill. The Manhattan Life building in 
 New York, which is twenty-three 
 stories high, weigl;is 21,000 tons, and 
 there is a pressure of wind estimated at 
 2,400 tons against its exposed sides, 
 while the total weight, including tenants 
 and furniture, is not far from 31,000 
 tons. It is necessary to so construct 
 these buildings that the settling from 
 the weight may be accurately estimated. 
 A twenty-story structure will have six- 
 teen elevators that will travel 120,000 
 miles in a year on 14 miles of wire 
 ropes. From 30 to 50 miles of elec- 
 trical wire serve to light the building 
 and supply telephone connections for 
 the two or three thousand people who 
 live in the great edifices, while miles 
 upon miles of steam pipes supply the 
 tenants with water. In such buildings 
 one may attend to every want without 
 budging from them, there being post- 
 office, express offices, telegraph offices, 
 and other such conveniences, as well as 
 restaurants and every kind of shop, ex- 
 cept, perhaps, livery stables and feed 
 stores. 
 
 It is difficult to foretell the future of 
 the construction of such buildings, but 
 it is predicted that within a score of 
 years they may reach thirty and forty 
 stories in height. 
 
 Two of the most interesting pieces of 
 engineering of the century are the Eiffel 
 tower and the Ferris wheel. The first, 
 erected in 1889 as the crowning glory 
 of the Paris Exposition antl a triumph 
 of French skill, was the idea of Gustav 
 Eiffel. It is 985 feet high, contains 
 7,300 tons of iron, and cost $1,000,000. 
 The appearance of the Eiffel tower is 
 
 familiar to every one, and it is scarcely 
 possible to convey any adequate idea 
 of the great network of bracings by 
 which each standard of the columns is 
 united to form the loftiest structure in 
 the world. 
 
 The engineering feat of the World's 
 Columbian Exposition held at Chicago 
 was the Ferris wheel, the invention of 
 G. W. Ferris, of Pittsburg. It is an 
 enormous "merry-go-round," as the ma- 
 chine at country fairs is called, and the 
 novelty consisted in its magnitude, 
 which called for the highest engineering 
 skill. The great wheel is 250 feet in 
 diameter, and to its periphery were 
 hung thirty-six carriages, each seating 
 forty persons. At each revolution 1,440 
 people may be raised into the air and 
 from that elevation afforded a splendid 
 prospect, besides an experience of the 
 peculiar sensation, like that of being in 
 a balloon, when the spectator has no per- 
 ception of his motion, but the objects 
 beneath him appear to have the con- 
 trary motion : that is to say, they seem 
 to be sinking when he is rising and vice 
 versa. Begun in March, 1893, the 
 structure was completed in three 
 months at a cost of $325,000. 
 
 Though the steam-engine itself is an 
 invention of the previous century, its 
 application to everything under the sun 
 is an achievement of the Nineteenth 
 Century. The century has also been 
 remarkable for the attempts to get the 
 greatest possible return from the fuel 
 employed with the least possible waste, 
 which followed the general recognition 
 of the principle of the conservation of 
 energy- — allusion to which is made in 
 another part of this volume. The en- 
 ergy stored vip in coal is converted into 
 heat energy in the process of combus- 
 tion, and transferred with various 
 losses to steam. This is made by suit- 
 able engines to yield up some proportion 
 of its heat energy for conversion into 
 mechanical motion. More energy than 
 the coal supplies it is impossible to ob- 
 tain as energy of motion, and engineers 
 with a clear realization of this principle 
 have abandoned all schemes for the 
 solution of the perpetual motion prob- 
 lem. The criticism of an engine is 
 
GEOGRAPHY AND ACHIEVEMENTS— ENGINEERING 
 
 489 
 
 therefore on the returns which it yields 
 for the expenditure of fuel. The in- 
 ventions of the century have been in the 
 direction of the elimination of friction 
 from the working parts and the employ- 
 ment of methods of construction that 
 give greater power for a small total 
 weight. 
 
 As Watt in the i8th Century found 
 the steam engine an imperfect and 
 wasteful arrangement for utilizing only 
 a small portion of the energy of the 
 steam supplied to it and by the inven- 
 tion of his condenser and then by mak- 
 ing the engine double acting, made it 
 really a steam engine; so a great step 
 forward was taken by \\'oolf in 1804, 
 when he developed the compound 
 engine from the crude ideas of Horn- 
 blower of 1 78 1. Using steam of fairly 
 high pressure, W'oolf expanded it to 
 several times its original volume by cut- 
 ting off the supply before the end of the 
 stroke in a small cylinder. Its chief 
 advantage is that it limits to a great ex- 
 tent the waste which results from the 
 heating and cooling of the metal by con- 
 tact with hot and cooler steam. This 
 is the greatest improvement in the 
 steam engine since the time of Watt, 
 but its advantage was not recognized 
 until about the middle of the century. 
 when the discoveries of IMcXaugh in 
 1845 ^"d Cowper in 1857, made pos- 
 sible the use of high-pressure steam, 
 and compound expansion became more 
 and more general. In marine engineer- 
 ing, where economy of fuel is of great- 
 est importance, we find triple and even 
 quadruple expansion engines, while the 
 idea is recognized even in the locomo- 
 tive engines of to-day. The first triple- 
 expansion engine was made bv Kirk in 
 
 1874. 
 
 In other directions the progress of 
 the steam-engine has been in features 
 of mechanical detail and its growing 
 application to nearly every use. 
 
 The higher pressure of engines gave 
 rise to a new problem, that of the 
 strength of boiler, cylinders, and acces- 
 sory connections necessary to withstand 
 the enormous internal pressure of the 
 steam. Improved quality of adapta- 
 bility of iron and steel have made this 
 
 possible, and steam boilers step by step 
 have developed to their present form. 
 Manual labor was used almost exclu- 
 sively in this work until 1885, the 
 boilers being of wrought iron and riv- 
 eted by hand. ]\Iild steel boiler plates 
 and machine riveting have to a great ex- 
 tent succeeded these, although, in spite 
 of the fact that hand-riveting is much 
 slower, there are those who contend that 
 it is better. 
 
 During the last few years the tubular 
 boiler has been introduced. This is 
 made so that it has no large internal 
 space and can thus be used for heat at 
 high temperatures. It more nearly 
 approaches the theory of Sadi-Carnot, 
 evolved in 1824, which is that the effi- 
 ciency of any heat engine has its maxi- 
 mum limit fixed by the range of tem- 
 perature employed with the working 
 substance. 
 
 Gas and petroleum engines gained 
 their development during the 19th Cen- 
 tury. Street's engine in 1794 was on 
 the principle of internal combustion, to 
 v.hich they owe their origin, and was 
 worked by the combustion of vaporized 
 oil and turpentine. In engines of this 
 type the working substance is heated 
 by its own combustion in the motor 
 cylinder, and because of the greater 
 range of temperature employed they 
 are of higher efficiency. The water 
 jacket introduced by Brown in 1823, 
 to keep the cylinder cool and prevent 
 the rapid degradation due to heat, and 
 the improvements of Lenoir have made 
 them practicable. The Otto gas engine, 
 introduced in 1863. was noisy and me- 
 chanically defective, but the Otto silent 
 of 1876 has proved a powerful rival to 
 small steam-engines. Air sufficient for 
 combustion is mixed with gas and a 
 temperature of about 1,600 centigrade, 
 with a pressure of 100 pounds per 
 square inch is obtained, with the expen- 
 diture of only twenty-four cubic feet of 
 gas per horse power per hour. This is 
 more economical than any small steam 
 engine. But with larger engines the 
 advantage is with the coal engine, ex- 
 cept where natural gas is used. Gas 
 is used in engines just as it is used in 
 grates, stoves, and ranges, always on a 
 
THE HOME AUXH.IARY AND REl'EREXCE 
 
 comparatively small scale, where the 
 high price is offset by cleanliness and 
 convenience. A gas engine means only 
 the turning on of a stop-cock and it 
 comes to full speed in a minute or two 
 and hence where small power is used 
 or the large power is intermittent, the 
 gas-engine is most economical. 
 
 Petroleum and gasoline engines, 
 which have been successfully applied to 
 horseless carriages, being the favorite 
 method of propulsion for these vehicles 
 — work on the same principle as the 
 gas engine. Instead of the simple ad- 
 mission of gas a sprayed jet of oil is 
 broken up by compressed air playing on 
 it in a nozzle. It is then further heated 
 and fully vaporized by the hot products 
 of the exhaust. The chief objection to 
 the oil engine is its odor. 
 
 During the last half century the im- 
 provements in steam-power have in- 
 creased its use nearly fifty-fold. The 
 growth of the use of steam has been 
 from an effective horse power of 1,650, 
 000,000 tons horse power in 1840 to 
 9,850,000,000 in i860 to 55,580,000,000 
 horse power in 1895, according to Mul- 
 hall's estimates. Of this total steam 
 power, the United States and Great 
 Britain together possses more than half 
 that of the world, the horse power of 
 the engines of the United States being 
 16,940,000,000 and that of the British 
 engines 12,970,000,000. 
 
 An interesting and important illustra- 
 tion of the economy in the application 
 of steam-power to mechanical contri- 
 vances is the steam-hammer. Large 
 forge hammers had been in use actuated 
 by steam before Nasmyth's invention 
 in 1842, but they were worked in an 
 indirect manner, the hammer having 
 been lifted by cams and other exped- 
 ients, which rendered the apparatus 
 cumbersome, costly, and wasteful of 
 power on account of the indirect way 
 in which the original source of the force 
 — namely, the pressure of steam — had 
 to reach its point of application by giv- 
 ing its blows to the hammer. The 
 range of the fall of the hammer being 
 only eighteen inches, there was a rapid 
 decrease in the energy of blows in pro- 
 
 portion to the size of the piece of iron. 
 There was no means of controlfing the 
 force of the blow. Nasmyth hit upon 
 the idea, when he received an order for 
 the forging of a shaft for the paddle 
 wheels of a steamer, the shaft to be 
 3 feet in diameter, a greater size than 
 could be accommodated in any forge 
 hammer in England. In a few minutes 
 he hit upon the idea which has done 
 more to revolutionize the manufacture 
 of iron and steel than any other inven- 
 tions that could be named, excepting 
 those of Cort and Bessemer. F"or four 
 years the hammer was not used outside 
 of his shop, although now it is an ab- 
 solute necessity in every engineering 
 workshop. Owing to its vast range of 
 power, forged iron-work, by its means, 
 can now be executed with a perfection 
 not previously possible. Anything can 
 be done with it, for the strength of the 
 blow is regulated at will and the most 
 minute details of machinery as well as 
 the most gigantic parts are forged with 
 its aid. At Woolwich arsenal there is 
 a steam hammer, built in 1874. the fall- 
 ing portion of which weighs forty tons 
 and which can strike a blow with a 
 force of ninety-one tons. 
 
 The main feature of the steam-ham- 
 mer is the direct manner by which the 
 elastic power of steam is employed to 
 lift up and let fall the mass of iron 
 constituting the hammer, which is at- 
 tached direct to the end of a piston-rod 
 passing through the bottom of an in- 
 verted steam cylinder placed directly 
 over the anvil. The steam is admitted 
 below the piston, which is thus raised 
 to any required height within the limits 
 of the stroke. When the communica- 
 tion with the boiler is shut off and the 
 steam below the piston is allowed to 
 escape, the piston with the mass of 
 iron forming the hammer attached to 
 the piston-rod falls by its own weight. 
 This weight in large steam-hammers 
 amounts to several tons, and the force 
 of the blow will depend jointly upon 
 the weight of the hammer and upon the 
 height from which it is allowed to fall. 
 The steam is admitted and allowed to 
 escape by valves moved by a lever 
 
GEOGRAPHY AND ACHrEVEMENTS— MODERN WARFARE 
 
 under the control of the workman. By 
 allowing the hammer to be raised to a 
 greater or less height, and by regula- 
 ting the escape of the steam from be- 
 neath the piston, the operator has it in 
 his power to vary the force of the blow. 
 Men who are accustomed to this tool 
 exhibit their perfect control with such 
 accuracy that a watch may be placed 
 face upwards on the anvil and a mois- 
 tened wafer on it. The hammer v>'ill 
 descend and pick up the wafer without 
 cracking the crystal. Yet it may be 
 a hammer capable of striking a blow 
 of eighty tons. 
 
 Water-power has been used for thou- 
 sands of years as a motive power, but 
 its practical development has come 
 within the last century. The utilization 
 of the vast forces has been greater, 
 especially since water-power has been 
 used as means for the furnishing of 
 electricity, yet at the present time not 
 5 per cent of the water-power of the 
 world has been rendered available for 
 use, and the great Niagara Falls was 
 not made to work until the last decade 
 of the Nineteenth Century. While the 
 modern turbine is the evolution of ages 
 the principal developments were made 
 during this century. J. Fourneyron in 
 1827 and St. Blasien in 1837 made 
 great improvements, but in 1855 A. M. 
 Swain, a mechanic who had been em- 
 ployed at the Lowell machine shop, con- 
 ceived the idea which is the prototype 
 of all the modern turbines; by com- 
 bining the inward and downward flow 
 wheels, curving the buckets both later- 
 ally and vertically he increased the effi- 
 ciency of the water-wheel by 50 per 
 cent. The gradual improvements since 
 the time of Fourneyron in 1827 have 
 served to furnish turbines of equal 
 power in one-half the space and at one- 
 fifth the cost, an enormous economy 
 of power. The cumbersome mechanism 
 required to use the water of a high 
 fall has been replaced by simple me- 
 chanism that makes use of a small fall. 
 Of water as a means of the generation 
 of electricity allusion will be made in 
 the story of miscellaneous electrical 
 achievements. 
 
 MODERN WARFARE. 
 
 In all the long history of warfare, 
 which is in reality the narrative of the 
 world's progress from earliest time, 
 there is no similar period in which 
 changes so vast and far-reaching have 
 taken place as during the latter half of 
 the Nineteenth Century. There is much 
 less difference between the naval and 
 military methods of the Sixth Century 
 before Christ and those of the Eigh- 
 teenth Century than there is between 
 the latter and those of our own day. 
 Until the middle of the Nineteenth Cen- 
 tury the dift'erence that existed between 
 the ancient war galley and the modern 
 battleship was so slight as to justify the 
 remark common among naval construc- 
 tors of the day, that "naval architecture, 
 like history, repeats itself." Until the 
 introduction of steam, which was first 
 attempted in 1815, in the double-hulled 
 vessel designed by Robert Fulton, but 
 which did not become practical for 
 naval purposes until 1846, our men-o'- 
 war were but a trifling improvement 
 upon the galleys of Diodorus Siculus. 
 The old galleys were queer looking 
 craft. They were built with keels and 
 frames, and contained a stem and stern 
 post. Near the water line the stem 
 curved outward, gradually taking the 
 form of a ram — a weapon still used in 
 modern warfare. They also had one or 
 more masts, and were propelled by oars, 
 or sails whenever the wind was favor- 
 able. Going into action was a gorgeous 
 sight in the Middle Ages. Falcons and 
 broad banners of gaudy hue were flung 
 to the breezes, the sunlight flashing 
 upon the breast-plates of the warriors 
 drawn up in fighting order, and upon 
 a sort of bridge or castle amidships 
 stood a band of richly caparisoned 
 musicians, playing with all their might. 
 At the bow was the battery, consisting 
 of manogels and great cross-bows, with 
 winding-gear that shot showers of huge 
 stones and arrows and red-hot iron and 
 carts of Greek fire at the enemy. Fore 
 and aft small towers were erected, from 
 which archers shot arrows. 
 
 Gunpowder led to the abolition of the 
 towers, and artillery was substituted. 
 
492 
 
 THE HOME AUXILIARY AND REFERENCE 
 
 Gradually, with the perfection of the art 
 of sailing, the tactics of warfare were 
 changed. During the early part of the 
 Sixteenth Century the low galley was 
 replaced by the sailing war vessel, and 
 the size of the guns, which were 
 mounted in broadside on these ships, 
 constantly increased. With this in- 
 crease there came also an increase in 
 the size of the vessels, until, during the 
 Seventeenth and Eighteenth Centuries, 
 the warships became formidable affairs, 
 with three decks and a hundred or so 
 guns. The most deadly of these wea- 
 pons was the carronade — a light piece 
 first constructed at Carron, in Scotland. 
 This gun was of a large caliber, short 
 length and light weight, and its destruc- 
 tive effect was supposed to exist not so 
 much in its power of penetration as in 
 its ability for splintering. With a re- 
 duced charge of powder, and slow in- 
 itial velocity, the projectile from the 
 carronade created havoc wherever it 
 pierced the side of the enemy. With 
 these developments came a gradual 
 change in naval methods, and at the be- 
 ginning of the Nineteenth Century war- 
 fare was well organized for the first 
 time in history, the crew being divided 
 into little companies, each of which had 
 certain duties. Besides the crew, each 
 frigate had thirty or forty marines, 
 whose duty it was to police the ship and 
 prevent mutiny, which was very com- 
 mon until fifty years ago, owing to 
 the extreme cruelty practiced upon the 
 sailors. These marines were kept care- 
 fully apart from the crew, and ani- 
 mosity between them encouraged. At 
 the time of battle they were placed in 
 tops, where it was their duty to pick off 
 the enemy with their muskets. In case 
 they were able to engage the enemy in 
 close quarters, they were expected to 
 board the ship of the combatant, as- 
 sisted by two or three seamen from each 
 gun, the latter being armed with pistols, 
 cutlasses and boarding pikes. These 
 were known as boarders, and when thev 
 were called for, just so many men. and 
 no more, ran from each gun. When the 
 boarders took possession of a ship a 
 fearful carnage followed. When a 
 battle was about to be fought the decks 
 
 were sanded to make them less slippery 
 when the blood should begin to flow, 
 and ammunition, small arms, guns and 
 pikes were stacked conveniently near 
 the masts and out of reach of the rivers 
 of gore with which, each bold sailor 
 well knew, the good ship would soon 
 be drenched. The sailors for the most 
 part led hard li\es, and were treated 
 little better than their predecessors, the 
 galley slaves. Flogging was common, 
 and many men died under the lash. The 
 crews were generally secured through 
 impressment, and kidnaping was ex- 
 tremely common, as the romances of 
 that period attest. 
 
 Such were the ships used and such 
 the methods of warfare generally in 
 vogue when, less than a hundred years 
 ago. Nelson fought and won Trafalgar, 
 the greatest battle in British history, 
 and the most famous of all battles 
 fought between sailing vessels. Al- 
 though neither so large nor so formid- 
 able as the frigates used by Nelson, 
 sailing ships of the same type were used 
 in the memorable naval engagements of 
 our own glorious War of 1812. 
 
 The year 1840 saw the sailing ship 
 at the very zenith of its glory. Naval 
 authorities all agreed that further im- 
 provement in fighting craft was impos- 
 sible, and all the great maritime powers 
 of the world were constantly increas- 
 ing their fleets. In 1841, however, the 
 death-knell of the sail began to sound, 
 when the Mississippi, a bark-rigged, 
 steam-propelled frigate was launched 
 and met the approval of the experts. 
 Up to this time steam had been applied 
 only to side-wheel vessels, though 
 Stevens had advocated the screw as 
 early as 1804. Ericsson, however, was 
 the first to make a practical demonstra- 
 tion of its utility in 1837. The screw 
 frigate Princeton was launched in 1844, 
 and the advantages of the propeller be- 
 came too obvious to be disregarded, 
 however much sentiment might cling to 
 the romance and glory that seemed to 
 cluster around the old-time craft. It 
 was not an easy task for the sailors to 
 give up their graceful, shapely frigates 
 for the modern "tea kettle," as the new 
 craft were contemptuously called, and 
 
GEOGRAPHY AND ACHIEVEMENTS— MODERN WARFARE 
 
 the fight between steam and sails was a 
 long and bitter one. 
 
 In 1857 came the era of iron ships, 
 and the only thing now in common be- 
 tween the wooden vessels of Trafalgar 
 and the modern battle ship of the 
 Spanish-American war is that each is 
 a water-borne structure, armed with 
 guns and propelled in some manner 
 from point to point. The application 
 of armor to ships and its great value 
 was understood by Admiral Mackau, 
 Louis Phillippe's minister of marine, as 
 early as 1840, but was kept by him a 
 profound secret, he intending to employ 
 it against England should occasion 
 arise. Ericsson, about the same date, 
 conceived the general idea of the Moni- 
 tor. In 1842 Stevens had commenced 
 in the United States a ship plated with 
 four and one-half inches of iron, 
 though the ship was never laimched. 
 In the Crimean war both England and 
 France built armored batteries of in- 
 different seaworthiness. These early 
 European iron-clads were simply line 
 of battle ships cut down, with one tier 
 of guns, and armored on the water line 
 and over the battery. They were no 
 radical departure from the established 
 type. In 1857 Dupuy de Lome com- 
 pleted his famous La Gloire, the first 
 sea-going iron-clad. But the first really 
 effective vessel of this kind was the 
 Confederate cruiser Merrimac, and her 
 famous conflict with the Monitor has 
 been called the most important naval 
 battle in the world. The ]\Ierrimac was 
 a cruiser that had burned to the water's 
 edge and sunk. The Confederates 
 raised and rebuilt her, enclosing her 
 vitals with iron plates two inches thick. 
 A bulwark was built, and similarly cov- 
 ered, and a cast-iron ram was attached 
 to the bow about two feet under water. 
 On ]\Iarch 8, 1862, the Merrimac 
 steamed out of Norfolk harbor and en- 
 countered the wooden ship, Cumber- 
 land. The huge projectiles from the 
 L^nion vessel glanced harmlessly into 
 the water, not so much as denting the 
 stout iron sides of the Confederate 
 ship. The Merrimac meanwhile sent 
 four shots into the wooden ship, and, 
 moving right under the muzzles of her 
 
 thirty guns, struck the Cumberland a 
 terrific blow with her iron prow. The 
 Cumberland began to sink, while the 
 guns of the Merrimac did frightful 
 havoc. More than one hundred of the 
 crew were quicklj' killed. The water 
 drove the men from the lower guns, but 
 they rushed to the upper and desper- 
 ately fired their harmless shots at the 
 great mass of iron. At last, with colors 
 flying, the Cumberland sank. Having 
 ended one adversary, the Merrimac 
 turned upon the Congress, which had 
 been peppering at her, and, although 
 the crew of the latter fought desper- 
 ately, they were soon forced to sur- 
 render. The whole world was electri- 
 fied by the news that flashed over the 
 wires that night, and the North was in 
 a panic. The ne.xt day a great surprise 
 \\ s in store for the Merrimac. A 
 strange looking craft that had been 
 derisively called the "Yankee cheese- 
 box," steamed forth and challenged the 
 jubilant Confederate. The monitor had 
 been built after a design of John Erics- 
 son, who for twenty years had been en- 
 deavoring to secure its adoption. It 
 was an iron-plated raft, 172 feet over 
 all, 41 feet beam and 11 1-3 feet depth, 
 and with a revolving iron turret con- 
 taining two guns. The target surface 
 was reduced to a minimum, the hull 
 being less than two feet high and 
 plated with five inches of iron. The 
 turret was nine feet high, and covered 
 wnth eight inches of iron. It was a 
 floating fortress. 
 
 It seemed at the time impracticable, 
 but in desperation the L^nited States 
 was willing to try the experiment. 
 Naval experts believed that the first 
 shot fired by her own guns would send 
 her to the bottom. The Merrimac had 
 ten guns to the Monitor's two, and her 
 crew was six times as numerous, so 
 the people who watched the battle from 
 the shore expected the Confederate 
 cruiser to sink the audacious little craft 
 with one volley from her big guns. 
 The advantage was with the Monitor, 
 however, throughout the entire fight, 
 for the Merrimac could not easily reach 
 her enemy through the narrow port 
 holes, but the Monitor with her revolv- 
 
THE HOME AUXILIARY AND REFERENCE 
 
 ing turret could fire in any direction. 
 The Monitor's size prevented her from 
 being struck by many balls, and most 
 of those which did hit her turret 
 glanced harmlessly into the water. 
 Though the Alerrimac fired twice as 
 many shots, those of the Monitor did 
 the greatest execution. When the Mer- 
 rimac tried to ram the Monitor she did 
 no damage to the enemy, but opened 
 her own bow and made an alarming 
 leak. Not until the AJerrimac's shots 
 were directed against the Monitor's 
 pilot house did the latter ship with- 
 draw, and the Merrimac, leaking badly, 
 and supposing the fight was over, also 
 withdrew. Although the fight was un- 
 decided, the purpose of the Merrimac 
 was defeated. The most important ef- 
 fect of the battle, aside from its being 
 a virtual victory for the Union, was the 
 establishment of the value of the iron- 
 clad. Ericsson's despised plan was re- 
 cei\ed with enthusiasm, and a dozen 
 monitors were quickly constructed, 
 which were of great assistance to the 
 Federal forces. A revolution instantly 
 took place, not only in the navy of the 
 United States, but in those of all the 
 foreign powers. The building of iron- 
 clads became imperative and the great 
 wooden men-o'-war, once the boast and 
 pride of maritime nations, were now 
 consigned to the past, along with the 
 galley and the sailing vessel. 
 
 As soon as the iron-clad became an 
 assured success, the nations began to 
 look for a more formidable weapon 
 than the ordinary cannon. This has 
 been found in the torpedo, the most 
 terrible engine of destruction that the 
 mind of man has conceived for the 
 purpose of warfare. From the floating 
 kegs loaded with charges of gunpowder, 
 which Captain David Bushnell set 
 adrift in New York harbor to the con- 
 sternation of the British during the 
 Revolution, the torpedo has advanced 
 by rapid stages to the dignity of a ma- 
 chine capable of demolishing in an in- 
 stant the largest and most powerful 
 battle ship afloat. The torpedo prop- 
 erly dates back to 1846, when Professor 
 Schoenbein, of Basel, Switzerland, pro- 
 duced the powerful explosive known as 
 
 nitric acid. For a long time, however, 
 this terrible explosive was impractical 
 for military purposes, owing to the peril 
 attendant on its transportation, but at 
 last F. A. Abel devised a process for its 
 manufacture in compressed solid cylin- 
 ders, which can be stored and transmit- 
 ted with safety, and which explode with 
 great power when ignited under the 
 confinement of a detonating powder. 
 The torpedoes of modern warfare are 
 of two kinds : They are either con- 
 trivances propelled through the water 
 so as to strike the enemy's vessels, or 
 are more or less stationary, submerged 
 mines, so arranged as to explode when 
 a ship passes over them. During the 
 last two years of the Civil War, the 
 torpedo service of both forces was re- 
 sponsible for tremendous destruction. 
 Seven United States iron-clads, thir- 
 teen wooden war vessels, and several 
 army transports were destroyed by tor- 
 pedoes, and eight more vessels were 
 iDadly injured. Four of the Confeder- 
 ate vessels were destroyed by their own 
 mines. In the Russo-Turkish war of 
 1877-1878, the torpedo played a great 
 part. Through their agency the armor- 
 ed fleet on the Danube was held in 
 check without the aid of a single Rus- 
 sian war ship. At Batoum a steamer 
 was blown up and sunk by a White- 
 head torpedo, which is the first re- 
 corded triumph of that now celebrated 
 weapon. In the Chilian revolution of 
 1891, the battleship Blanco Encalada 
 was sunk with a crew of 150 by a 
 ^Vhitehead torpedo. The right to use 
 this torpedo has been purchased by the 
 leading maritime nations of the world. 
 The torpedo consists of a cigar-shaped 
 case of phosphor bronze. The dimen- 
 sions vary in different countries, but 
 the average length is 14 feet and the 
 average diameter 14 inches. The de- 
 structive effect is accomplished entirely 
 by a head, wherein lies all the way from 
 sixty to seventy to 250 pounds of gun 
 cotton. There are many types of the 
 offensive torpedo similar to the White- 
 head, but the complexity of their con- 
 struction, and the large percentage of 
 failures in their attempted runs, as con- 
 spicuously demonstrated in our late 
 
GEOGRAn-IV AND ACMI EVEMENTS— MODI' R.\ WARFARE 
 
 495 
 
 Spanish-American war, do not justify 
 their being considered so much a de- 
 structive as a demoralizing power. 
 
 During the progress of hostilities be- 
 tween the United States and Spain, the 
 whole naval world looked forward 
 with breathless anxiety to see a practi- 
 cal test of the terror-insi)iring torpedo 
 boats. But opportunity for a demon- 
 stration of their destructiveness did not 
 come. The Spanish craft that sped 
 out on their death-dealing missions at 
 the battles of Manila and Santiago 
 were not alert enough to escape the 
 vigilance of the expeil gunners, who 
 hammered them with shot and shell be- 
 fore they approached near enough to 
 discharge their doom-sealing weapons. 
 The torpedo boat has been likened to 
 the race horse of the steamer world, 
 built for short dashes at high speed. 
 The first qualification is that it shall be 
 built as small and light as possible, and 
 that it shall be painted a color that will 
 blend with sea and sky at night. Five- 
 sevenths of the boat is taken up by ma- 
 chinery and coal, and in the other two- 
 sevenths, the extreme ends, the boat's 
 crew are huddled like sheep in a pen — 
 officers forward, men aft. The hard- 
 ships that are undergone by the crew 
 of a torpedo boat during an engage- 
 ment are inconceivable to anyone not 
 in the service. The heat from the en- 
 gines is terrific, and when the weary 
 sailor is overcome by the fatigue and 
 excitement of the battle, there is no 
 place for him to lay his head except be- 
 tween two boilers or torpedo tubes. 
 
 The defensive torpedo, however, has 
 become the essential auxiliary of the 
 land gun for the defense of harbors. 
 The modern submarine mine has reach- 
 ed a stage of perfection that guarantees 
 the safety of almost any city that is 
 under its protection, notwithstanding 
 the fact that Admiral Dewey sailed into 
 INIanila Bay over a veritable nest of 
 deadly torpedoes. The mines are usu- 
 ally arranged to be fired at will or 
 automatically at touch of the vessel. 
 The blowing up of the United States 
 battle ship Maine in Havana harbor on 
 the night of February 15, i8q8, and the 
 killing of 268 brave American sailors, 
 
 is the most notable example of the de- 
 structiveness of the submarine mine. 
 
 The use of solid shot in warfare has 
 been practically given up. The projec- 
 tile of to-day is a conical shell of steel, 
 hollow, and sometimes loaded witii 
 powder, so as to explode on striking, or 
 by a time fuse. It is wonderfully dif- 
 ferent from the shell of twenty-five 
 years ago. In those days one could 
 watch the shell as it sailed through the 
 air in a graceful curve, and there was 
 time, under faxorable circumstances, to 
 get out of the way before it bursted. 
 But the new style of shell moves at the 
 rate of a mile a second, and when it 
 strikes a metal target, its energy being 
 transformed instantaneously into heat, 
 it becomes red hot, and a flame bursts 
 forth from the point struck. The pro- 
 jectile of to-day moves almost in a 
 straight line, and its impact at a dis- 
 tance of a mile seems almost simul- 
 taneous with the discharge of the gun. 
 When such a shell passes near a man, 
 it will tear his clothes off, merely from 
 the windage, and if it comes too near 
 him, though not hitting him, it will kill 
 him. The concussions from there own 
 shots destroyed the aural membranes 
 of a number of gunners in our late 
 war. who had not properly protected 
 their ears against such danger. 
 
 The first real and complete test of 
 the ordnance developed by modern naval 
 science since the Rebellion was given 
 during the war between the United 
 States and Spain. Each of the contend- 
 ing nations had navies that included 
 some of the best battle ships in the 
 world, and each was splendidly equip- 
 ped with all the latest improvements in 
 ammunition and armanent. The only 
 fault with the test is tiiat the Americans 
 were so much superior to the .Spanish 
 in tlie skill with which they manoeuvred 
 their ships and handled their weapons 
 of destruction, that it cannot after all 
 be taken as a wholly fair test. One 
 thing sufficiently established, however, 
 was the effectiveness of the modern war 
 vessel and its death-dealing power. 
 
 Improvement in modern warfare is 
 not confined solely to naval methods 
 and equipment. There has been a vast 
 
496 
 
 THE HOME AUXILIARY AND REFERENCE 
 
 change in army ordnance within the 
 past century. Napoleon, greatest of 
 modern warriors, would be no more 
 astonished than Admiral Nelson were 
 he to return to earth and see with what 
 strides the science of war has advanced 
 during his absence. He would find that 
 his heavy columns could not be 
 launched in all their imposing pagean- 
 try ; and that Murat, his daring cavalry 
 leader, could not ride over an army 
 with his horsemen. The grand and 
 picturesque bayonet charge is a thing 
 of the past. We have in its place the 
 thin skirmish lines, seeking to crush 
 the enemy with their fire alone, and it 
 is probable that cavalry will never again 
 charge on the battlefield. The simple 
 artillery pieces that were used at the 
 battle of Waterloo were mere toys as 
 compared to the rapid fire machine 
 guns of the present day. The modern 
 machine gun is the outcome of a series 
 of evolutions in armament. The "mi- 
 trailleuse" came first, and soon showed 
 its capabilities. Then the Hotchkiss 
 showed the possibility of using heavier 
 and larger projectiles. The modern 
 rapid-fire gun was merely a product 
 evolved from the "mitrailleuse" and the 
 Hotchkiss, and the rapid-fire guns difi^er 
 from each other in detail rather than in 
 results. All carry heavy projectiles and 
 discharge such shot with a rapidity that 
 depends largely upon the caliber of the 
 barrels, the larger the caliber and the 
 longer the barrels, the slower the dis- 
 charge. In this country the multi- 
 barrel has been the most familiar type, 
 owing to the use of the Catling gun in 
 the army. Besides the Catling, there 
 are the Cardner, the Maxim-Norden- 
 feldt, the Accles and the Robinson, 
 among the leading multi-barrels, while 
 the best known single-barrels are the 
 Maxim and the Skode. Tests with the 
 jMa.xim gun have scored records of 
 775 shots to the minute. 
 
 The practical test to which "smoke- 
 less powder" was put in the Spanish- 
 American war demonstrated so obvious 
 a superiority for it over the best of the 
 old style composition, that it will doubt- 
 less hereafter serve all branches of 
 military service, including vessels of 
 
 war. The party using the ordinary 
 powder could not discern the attacking 
 foe, using the new explosive, with any 
 certainty, till it had ad\ anced within 200 
 yards of the defending line. With 
 rifles that kill at two miles, as an Aus- 
 trian improved rifle is said to have done 
 recently, and smokeless powder in cart- 
 ridges for "magazine" or rapid-fire" 
 rifles, with Catling machine guns, and 
 revolving cannon, the land forces are 
 certainly as well equipped for war as 
 are the marines. 
 
 Cun cotton, which made the torpedo 
 effective, was first used for artillery 
 purposes by the Austrian ariuy, and is 
 now an indispensible agent in the con- 
 duct of military and naval operations 
 among all nations. In 1847 another 
 and more terrible explosive than gun 
 cotton was discovered by Sombrero. 
 This was nitro-glycerine, and was pro- 
 duced by subjecting common glycerine 
 to a treatment of concentrated sul- 
 phuric and nitric acid. The clear, oily, 
 colorless, sweetish liquid thus obtained 
 would burn without detonation, but 
 when an infinitesimal quanity was ex- 
 posed to the open air a jar or shock 
 was sufficient to produce an explosion 
 of such terrific force as to blow to 
 atoms everything in the vicinity. In the 
 same year Alfred Nobel, a Swedish 
 resident of Hamburg, became greatly 
 interested in the perilous discovery, 
 and, assisted by his brother, began its 
 manufacture on a large scale. Al- 
 though the life of the brother was sacri- 
 ficed in one of the earliest experiments, 
 Nobel persevered until he had devised 
 a process whereby nitro-glycerine could 
 be manufactured with comparative 
 safety. In 1863 he introduced the prac- 
 tice of soaking common gunpowder in 
 it for blasting, and in 1867 he conceived 
 the idea of mi.xing it with some solid, 
 inert substance, such as silicious ashes 
 or infusorial earth. The product re- 
 sulting from the latter process was 
 called dynamite, now regarded to be the 
 safest of all explosives, as neither elec- 
 tricity, light nor ordinary shocks 
 causes it to explode. 
 
 Of the many e.xplosivebodiesthat have 
 been discovered during the Nineteenth 
 
GEOGRATHY AND ACHIEVEM ENTS— MODERN WAREARE 
 
 Century, the only one that can be con- 
 sidered a rival of gunpowder is the 
 substance known as cordite. This is a 
 smokeless powder, and consists of a 
 mixture of gun cotton, nitro-glycerinc 
 and vaseline. In the manufacture of 
 old-fashioned gunpowder many changes 
 h.ave taken place within the past forty 
 years, both in process and general 
 composition. By increasing the den- 
 sity of the grains, thus closing more 
 tightly the pores through which igni- 
 tion penetrates their mass, the energy 
 of gunpowder has been increased and 
 the velocity of the projectile propelled 
 thereby is proportionately increased. 
 Another improvement of great advan- 
 tage consists of molding the grains into 
 definite geometrical forms. Instead 
 of the more or less coarsely pulverized 
 substance of a half century ago the gun- 
 powder of to-day is made into pris- 
 matic, lenticular, pellet and hexagonal 
 forms. One of the most popular va- 
 rieties of these forms is the hexagonal 
 ])rism. It was chosen for the same 
 reason that the honey bee chooses to 
 build hexagon cells in its comb — to 
 economize space. In building cartridges 
 for big guns out of this powder the 
 pieces fit snugly together, every pos- 
 sible ounce of force being put into the 
 prism by compression. There is ac- 
 cordingly no loss of space in the load 
 chamber of the gun. The concentra- 
 tion of power by means of the liy- 
 draulic press used in the manufacture 
 of these prisms is so great that solid 
 prisms of this powder loaded into a 
 gun would burst it. To obviate this 
 each prisms is perforated with a num- 
 ber of small holes running parallel to 
 its axis, thereby securing expansion 
 equally in all directions and insuring 
 the combustion of all the explosive. 
 
 One of the most marvelous institu- 
 tions of modern warfare is the trans- 
 mitting of intelligence by means of sun- 
 light signals or heliographing. The 
 system of the heliograph is extremely 
 simple. It employs a mirror much 
 more carefully prepared, but not much 
 bigger than the bit of looking-glass 
 wherewith the mischievous schoolboy 
 throws flashes of sunlight into other 
 
 people's faces, and it works on the same 
 general principle. A great deal has 
 been done in late years to adapt the 
 telephone and telegraph to troops in the 
 field, but time and opportunity for con- 
 structing even a temporary line across 
 a stretch of hostile country or regions 
 exposed to the fire of the enemy is of- 
 ten lacking. It was formerly custom- 
 ary to resort to the flag by day and the 
 torch by night, a certain signal code 
 being brought into requisition. But the 
 torch and flag were unavailable for 
 greater distances than ten to fifteen 
 miles, and in rainy weather or dark 
 weather their use is limited to five miles 
 or less. Sometimes two mirrors are 
 necessary in order to work a helio- 
 graph. This is called the duplex sys- 
 tem. When the sun is behind the sig- 
 naller, a second mirror is placed at 
 such an angle that the reflections are 
 thrown on the first, or working mirror. 
 At night the instrument is rendered 
 equally effective by adjusting the mir- 
 rors so that they reflect the light pro- 
 duced by a powerful electric arc. The 
 heliograph first demonstrated its ef- 
 ficiency and utility for field intercom- 
 munication in the Indian wars of the 
 ^Vestern frontier, beginning in 1886. 
 Three years later Major W. J. Volk- 
 man, U. S. A., demonstrated in Ari- 
 zona and New Mexico the possibility 
 of carrying on communication by helio- 
 graph over a range of 200 miles. He 
 was assisted by 33 officers and 129 op- 
 erators, and 3,787 messages were ex- 
 changed, comprising 92,406 words. The 
 network of communication begun by 
 General Miles in 1886 and continued 
 by Lieutenant W. A. Glassford, was 
 perfected in 1889 ^t ranges of 85, 88, 
 95 and 125 miles, over a country incon- 
 ceivably rugged and broken, the strong- 
 hold of the Apache and other hostile 
 Indian tribes. 
 
 The use of the balloon in warfare 
 is another distinctly Nineteenth Cen- 
 tury institution, its first recorded ap- 
 plication to such purpose taking place 
 during the Civil War. In 1862 General 
 McClellan organized a balloon corps, 
 with Thaddeus S. C. Lowe at its head. 
 The innovation soon became a compo- 
 
498 
 
 THE HOME AUXILIARY AND KKFEREXXI': 
 
 iiciit part of the Anny of the rotomac, 
 as it did good service in disclosing the 
 niiHtary operations of the Confederates. 
 Now all the leading military nations of 
 the world have their balloon corps, spe- 
 cially trained and equipped for recon- 
 noitering purposes. At the battle of 
 Santiago on July i, 1898, the move- 
 ments of the enemy were observed 
 from a balloon by Sergeant Thomas 
 Carroll Boone. A telegraph wire con- 
 nected the basket of the balloon with 
 the ground, and observations, trans- 
 mitted in that manner to the officers 
 below. 
 
 The bicycle has also been brought into 
 requisition as a piece of army equip- 
 ment in recent years, and a number of 
 the leading military powers of the 
 world have fully equipped bicycle corps 
 attached to their regular armies. 
 
 The practical abolishment of priva- 
 teering constitutes one of the most 
 wholesome and radical changes that has 
 taken place in modern warfare during 
 the Nineteenth Century. This marked 
 a long step in progress, for as a matter 
 of course privateering is but a legalized 
 form of piracy. Although privateer- 
 ing in some form or other goes back to 
 ancient times, the "sea beggars" have 
 flourished especially as a recognized in- 
 stitution of civilized nations from the 
 middle of the Sixteenth Century to the 
 close of the Rebellion. The privateer 
 was an armed vessel belonging to a 
 private owner, the subject of a bellig- 
 erant power, and bearing a commission 
 from that power to "sink, burn or de- 
 stroy" the commerce of an enemy. 
 With its abolishment by the Treaty of 
 Paris, in 1856, the last vestige of poetry 
 and romance has departed from mod- 
 ern warfare. The day of smart 
 maneuvers under sail, of yard-arm to 
 yard-arm conflicts, of the carronade, 
 swivel and boarding pike, is now a 
 thing forgotten. The dare-devil style 
 of climbing over a stranger's bulwarks, 
 clearing his decks with naked cutlass 
 and spitting pistols, and then asking his 
 nationality and destination, is also for- 
 gotten, although it is but comparatively 
 few years since such practices were ex- 
 tremely common. The Eighteenth Cen- 
 
 tury and the early years of the present 
 were halcyon times for the privateer. 
 The New York newspapers of the Col- 
 onial period abound in advertisements 
 inviting "gentlemen and others" to en- 
 list with this or that vessel fitting out 
 inider the commission of "His Ma- 
 jesty." England encouraged privateer- 
 ing by ordering that prizes taken should 
 be di\ided between the owner and the 
 captors, the rights of the crown be- 
 ing especially excluded in numerous 
 prize acts. The United States, as a na- 
 tion, also greatly encouraged privateer- 
 ing up to and during the War of 1812. 
 Not less than 1,367 public and private 
 armed vessels were commissioned by 
 the colonies to prey upon British com- 
 merce during the Revolution. In spite 
 of its prevalence and immeasurable ad- 
 vantage to the United States during the 
 War of 18 1 2, privateering soon fell into 
 disfavor, as shown by the fact that 
 Congress in 181 8 passed a law for- 
 bidding the enlistment in this country 
 of men for foreign privateering. Great 
 Britain was more than fifty years be- 
 hind us in passing such a law. In 1824 
 the United States vainly urged Great 
 Britain to assist us in the abolition of 
 legalized sea robbery. Thirty years 
 later Lord Clarendon advised that it be 
 abolished by international agreement, 
 but James Buchanan, then United 
 States minister to England, was in- 
 structed to reply that his country could 
 not assent to the proposal unless all the 
 naval powers should declare that war 
 should never be waged upon private 
 property on the high seas. In April, 
 1856, at the termination of the Crimean 
 ^\'ar, Great Britain, France, Austria, 
 Russia and Turkey held a congress at 
 Paris, at which it was decided to abol- 
 ish privateering under the agreement 
 known as the Declaration of Paris. 
 This notable congress was brought 
 about by Great Britain because it was 
 feared that Russia would issue letters 
 of marque to the fleets of the United 
 States merchant ships, commissioning 
 them to prey upon English and French 
 commerce. All the important Euro- 
 pean powers save Spain signed this 
 treaty, and all the American powers ex- 
 
GEOGRAPHY AND ACHIEVEMENTS-MODERN WARFARE 
 
 499 
 
 cept tlie United States and Mexico. 
 This country, through William L. 
 jNlarcy, offered to sign the agreement if 
 the clause as to privateering should be 
 amended by the declaration that the 
 private property of subjects or citizens 
 should be exempt from seizure on the 
 high seas by the public armed vessels 
 of other belligerents. The great pow- 
 ers refused assent to the proposed 
 amendment, and the United States did 
 not become a party to the treaty. When 
 the Civil War broke out in 1861 Mr. 
 Seward, then Secretary of State, of- 
 fered to sign the treaty of 1856 with- 
 out insisting upon the amendment, but 
 Great Britain and b'rance replied that 
 the signature could not be accepted if 
 it was to be coupled with the condition 
 that the provisions of this treaty were 
 to be made applicable to the use of 
 privateers by the Southern Confeder- 
 acy. As that was the wish of the ad- 
 ministration Mr. Seward did not sign 
 the treaty. The story of Confederate 
 privateering, and especially the damage 
 done to commerce by Confederate 
 cruisers, was still fresh in the memory 
 of the world when the American- 
 Spanish war broke out. The fact that 
 neither of the contending nations had 
 signed the Declaration of Paris, and 
 were therefore at perfect liberty to is- 
 sue letters of marque and reprisal to 
 privateers, was looked upon with grave 
 foreboding by all the great maritime 
 powers of the world. y\lthough Spain 
 threatened at the outbreak of hostilities 
 to resort to such method of warfare, it 
 was never carried into execution. Civ- 
 ilized opinion was too strong against 
 such barbarous and illicit practice to 
 warrant its being carried on with any 
 success, and the opportunity for dis- 
 posing of prizes would have been 
 greatly restricted by the almost un- 
 doubted refusal of neutral nations to 
 permit such spoils of war to be sold in 
 their ports. Trade relations have be- 
 come so much more important than 
 they were in the days of active priva- 
 teering that the day has long gone past 
 when the world would stand by and see 
 two belligerent nations preying upon 
 each other's commerce to the annoyance 
 
 and inconvenience of all their neigh- 
 bors. 
 
 Up to the Nineteenth Century the 
 most inhuman method of punishment 
 for breaches of discipline were in 
 vogue both in the army and the navy. 
 The military punisiiments in the Eng- 
 lish army were of infamous severity. 
 Instances were numerous where a thou- 
 sand lashes were given to offenders, 
 while riding the wooden horse, being 
 strung up by the thumbs and other 
 equally cruel punishments were very 
 common. All these brutal chastise- 
 ments have been done away with, and 
 only in very rare cases is any physical 
 punishment administered to the modern 
 soldier or sailor. In the year 1850 flog- 
 ging was abolished by act of Congress 
 in the navy of the United States. Up 
 to that time the captain of any of our 
 national vessels had the authority, at 
 his discretion, to order any man in his 
 coinmand to be stripped and lashed 
 with the cat-o-nine-tails. This instru- 
 ment of torture, once so familiar to all 
 sea-faring men, is now only known to 
 them by tradition. Old officers thought 
 the navy itself as good as abolished 
 with the cat-o-nine-tails. But subse- 
 quent events proved how utterly mis- 
 taken they were. The record made by 
 the naval forces under Farragut in the 
 Civil War and under Dewey at Manila 
 are proof positive that the fighting 
 qualities of the American Jack Tar 
 have not been spoiled in the least by 
 the sparing of the cruel and barbarous 
 weapon. 
 
 Since the introduction of more hu- 
 mane methods of treatment, statistics 
 show that both the sailors and the 
 soldiers of the world are gradually 
 growing better, and that there is a 
 gradual decrease in the number of 
 court-martials. The last report of the 
 Judge Advocate of the United States 
 Army shows a marked decrease in the 
 number of court-martial trials since 
 1893. With the improvement of the 
 morale of the army it is interesting to 
 note that the desertions have fallen off 
 wonderfully. In 1894 there were 518 
 deserters; in i8c>5 the number fell to 
 255; in 1897 it dropped to 244; and in 
 
500 
 
 THE HOME AUXILIARY AND REFERENCE 
 
 1898, when there was real fighting to 
 be done, it fell to 176 — and that out of 
 an army that was nearly twice as large 
 as it had been in 1894. 
 
 However paradoxical it may appear, 
 it is nevertheless a fact that the im- 
 proved destructiveness of weapons of 
 war has made a less destruction. The 
 modern conception of war with the 
 more advanced nations includes the fac- 
 tor of fighting with the least possible 
 sulifering, and to meet the demands of 
 the accepted standard of humanity has 
 been the purpose of the newer engines 
 of destruction. It was with this hu- 
 mane intent that the Mauser bullet was 
 invented. The old-fashioned bullet 
 usually whirled round and round, tear- 
 ing the tissues, arteries, muscles and 
 fiesh, and on coming in contact with a 
 bone shattered it to splinters. The 
 wound of exit left a hole large enough 
 to insert a man's fist. Whenever a man 
 was hit in the arm or leg with one of 
 these bullets it was almost always 
 necessary to perform amputation, if the 
 victim did not die beforehand from 
 hemorrhage. With the Mauser bullet 
 all this is different. Experience in the 
 Cuban war has demonstrated that only 
 very infrequently does a wound caused 
 by a Alauser bullet result in a hemor- 
 rhage which might be fatal. Men 
 struck by the Mauser bullets have been 
 known to continue fighting to the end 
 of the battle after receiving what is 
 generally supposed to be a mortal 
 wound. In almost every case this bul- 
 let passes clear through the victim's 
 body, and the wound of exit is no larger 
 than that of entrance, and there is no 
 splintering of bone or tearing up of 
 tissues. 
 
 All the changes that might be sup- 
 posed to make war more cruel and 
 bloody have really operated in the in- 
 terest of humanity. The old-fashioned 
 arms, because they were fired at close 
 quarters, killed and wounded sixty per 
 cent of the combatants. The improved 
 arms of modern warfare, in the blood- 
 iest battle noted in history, killed and 
 wounded but little more than 25 per 
 cent. The "laws of war" show a mag- 
 nanimous consideration for the enemy 
 and a humane regard for the weak and 
 
 defenseless. According to the code at 
 present formulated by civilized nations 
 these laws forbid the use of poison 
 against the enemy ; murder by treach- 
 ery, as for example, assuming the uni- 
 form or flag of the foe; the murder 
 of those who have surrendered ; the use 
 of such weapons as will cause unneces- 
 sary pain to an enemy ; the abuse of 
 a flag of truce ; all unnecessary destruc- 
 tion of property, whether public or 
 private; that only fortified places shall 
 be beseiged ; that women and children 
 and non-combatants be allowed to de- 
 part before the bombardment of a city 
 begins ; that plundering by private sold- 
 iers or officers shall be considered in- 
 admissible ; that prisoners shall be 
 treated with common humanity ; that 
 personal and family honor and the 
 religious convictions of an invaded peo- 
 ple must be respected by the invaders 
 and all pillage by regular troops or their 
 followers be strictly forbidden. 
 
 Considering the marvelous strides 
 which modern warfare has made in the 
 Century, it may appear to some that 
 the universal brotherhood of man is but 
 an empty dream, and that the day is yet 
 far distant when the nations of the 
 earth shall beat their swords into plow- 
 shares, and their spears into pruning- 
 hooks. Paradoxical as it looks, we are 
 rapidly tending toward a ]3ractical mil- 
 lennium. On account of the enormous 
 expense necessary to conduct cam- 
 paigns in these advanced stages of 
 equipment, wars are m.uch shorter in 
 duration and more infrequent of occur- 
 rence than they have ever been in the 
 history of the world. In fact war has 
 come to be regarded as such a terrible 
 ordeal that it is only resorted to after 
 every available effort has been ex- 
 pended to settle the dispute by arbitra- 
 tion. This method has been gradually 
 growing in favor among all nations, and 
 as a result more than eighty interna- 
 tional disputes have been settled by ar- 
 bitration during the Nineteenth Cen- 
 tury. The people of the world have 
 risen up in revolt against the tyranny 
 of needless conflicts, and war is now 
 compelled to give a strict account of 
 itself and to answer a thoughtful and 
 stern challenge for its reason for being. 
 
GEOGRAPHY AND ACHIEVEMENTS— TRANSPORTATION 
 
 SOI 
 
 TRANSPORTATION. 
 
 Many are the methods of transporta- 
 tion which have been in use through- 
 out the centuries. At the beginning of 
 the last century land journeys were 
 made by stage coach and the sedan 
 chair ; the pack-horse, clumsy wagons, 
 and the canal boat were generally used 
 for the transportation of merchandise, 
 while people in the main, performed 
 their long journeys by stage coach or 
 the carrier's cart. 
 
 In the year 1804 Obadiah Elliot, a 
 coachmaker, patented a plan for hang- 
 ing vehicles upon elliptical springs, thus 
 dispensing with the heavy iron and 
 wood beds that had been invariably 
 used in four wheel carriages up to that 
 time. 
 
 In 1829 the first public omnibus ap- 
 peared in London. \'ictorias became 
 popular in 1869. The buggy is an Am- 
 erican invention of the first part of 
 the last century. It gained much ad- 
 miration from English coachmakers, 
 who were surprised at the extreme 
 lightness, ease and durability with 
 which it could travel over rough roads. 
 
 The coaches, landaus, broughams, 
 spiders, runabouts, game carts and dog- 
 carts of to-day show to what extent the 
 carriage manufacturer has developed 
 his art. Wagons have undergone as 
 many improvements as carriages dur- 
 ing the last century. There are appro- 
 priate wagons for every use in city or 
 country. The use of steam and ma- 
 chinery in their mantifacture has cheap- 
 ened the price of vehicles. 
 
 In 1769, Nicolas Joseph Cugnot, a 
 French engineer, had invented a self- 
 propelling steam carriage. A later en- 
 gineer, Oliver Evans, of Philadelphia, 
 in 1804 built a steam dredge which ran 
 on wheels one and a half miles through 
 the streets. On Christmas Eve, 1801, 
 according to some authorities, Richard 
 Trevithick made the first trial of his 
 locomotive at Cambourne, carrying the 
 first passengers to travel by steam. 
 There is confusion, however, as to the 
 dates of the trial trips of Trevithick's 
 engine, although it was certainly ex- 
 hibited both in London and Wales prior 
 
 to 1809, attracting much attention on 
 the ]\lerthyr Tydvil line. To quote a 
 newspaper of the time, it "traveled with 
 ease at the rate of five miles an hour," 
 and conveyed "along the tramroad ten 
 tons long weight of bar iron from 
 Penydarren iron works to the place 
 where it joins the Glarmorganshire 
 canal, upwards of nine miles distant ; 
 and it is necessary to observe that the 
 weight of the load was soon increased 
 by about seventy persons riding on the 
 trams, who, drawn thither by curiosity, 
 were eager to ride." Trevithick's loco- 
 motive was but little more than a model. 
 It was full of imperfections and, being 
 unable to make steam, could not travel 
 fast or draw a heavy load. It remained 
 for the Stephensons, father and son, to 
 produce the modern locomotive. 
 George Stephenson's first locomotive 
 was made in 1814, and from that year 
 the invention of the locomotives is gen- 
 erally said to date. 
 
 The first public steam railway in the 
 world was formally opened in England. 
 September 27, 1825. The Stockton and 
 Darlington was thirty-eight miles in 
 length. The line was laid with both 
 malleable and cast iron rails, and cost 
 250,000 pounds. Its opening was at- 
 tended with great curiosity and excite- 
 ment. There was to be a competition 
 between various kind of motive power ; 
 horses, stationary engines and a loco- 
 motive being tried. The train consisted 
 of six loaded wagons, a passenger 
 carriage, twenty-one trucks fitted with 
 seats and six wagons filled with coal. 
 George Stephenson drove the locomo- 
 tive. "The signal being given," says a 
 writer of the time, "the engine started 
 off with this immense train of carriages, 
 and such was its velocity that in some 
 parts the speed was frequently twelve 
 miles an hour, and the number of pas- 
 sengers was counted to be 450, which, 
 together with the coals, merchandise 
 and carriages, would amount to near 
 ninety tons. The engine, with its load, 
 arrived at Darlington, travelling the 
 last eight and three-quarter miles in 
 sixty-five minutes. The six wagons 
 loaded with coals, intended for Dar- 
 lington, were then left behind, and ob- 
 
502 
 
 THE HOME AUXILIARY AND REFERENCE 
 
 taining a fresh supply of water, and 
 arranging the procession to accommo- 
 date a band of music, and numerous 
 passengers from DarHngton, the engine 
 set off again and arrived at Stockton in 
 three hours and seven minutes, includ- 
 ing stoppages, the distance being nearly 
 twelve miles." 
 
 In 1829 the Stephensons invented 
 the steam blast, which, continually feed- 
 ing the flame with a fresh supply of 
 oxygen, enabled the "Rocket." their 
 prize engine, to make steam enough to 
 draw ten passenger cars, at the rate of 
 ten miles an hour. 
 
 In 1830 the Liverpool and Manches- 
 ter Railway was opened, despite great 
 opposition by the people. 
 
 The writers of the day denounced the 
 railway in magazines and newspapers, 
 and it was even opposed in Parliament. 
 But George Stephenson was strong 
 enough to withstand all attacks. It was 
 while he was undergoing examination 
 from a Parliamentary committee that 
 the familiar anecdote about the relative 
 strength of the locomotive and the cow 
 originated. 
 
 "But suppose, now, ]\lr. Stephenson, 
 one of these engines, going along a rail- 
 road at the rate of nine or ten miles an 
 hour, should encounter a cow ; would 
 not that be bad, think you ?" 
 
 "Yes," replied the Scotch engineer, 
 with a smile, "varra bad — for the coo." 
 
 Even after the building of the rail- 
 way the directors hesitated about em- 
 ploying steam locomotives ; but after 
 the triumph of the "Rocket," in 1829, 
 the power to be used for tractive pur- 
 poses was finally settled, and the Liver- 
 pool and ^Manchester Railway became 
 a success beyond the wildest dreams of 
 its promoters. Many other lines were 
 built, and the British people soon be- 
 came accustomed to railway traveling. 
 ^'ery odd were the chimsy cars of those 
 times. Most of them were open at the 
 sides and protected only by rude awn- 
 ings. Some of them contained benches, 
 but in others it was necessary to sit on 
 the floor. The first-class and mail train 
 was entirely covered in. and was toler- 
 ably well seated, but the most comfort- 
 able way of traveling was in one's own 
 
 family coach, hoisted on a truck at- 
 tached to the rear end of a train. This 
 method of journeying became very 
 fashionable with aristocratic folk. 
 
 The Stephenson locomotives, hav- 
 ing but little side play to their wheels, 
 were unable to go around sharp curves. 
 Lines were, accordingly, made as 
 straight as possible, and vast sums of 
 money were spent in making easy 
 grades. Deep cuts, costly tunnels and 
 bridges were necessary, and all lines 
 in England were made with easy grades 
 and slight curves. 
 
 Belgium is credited with being the 
 first country on the European Conti- 
 nent to have a railroad. In conform- 
 ity with a go\-ernment decree, issued 
 in July, 1834, Pierre Simin prepared 
 plans for railway communication 
 throughout the kingdom, and the Brus- 
 sels and Mechlin Railway was opened 
 for traffic on JMay 6, 1837. Railroads 
 for general traffic were introduced in 
 France in 1839, nearly ten years after 
 the opening of the Manchester and 
 Liverpool line. 
 
 While the period between 1825 and 
 i'S30 was pregnant with railway move- 
 ments, it can scarcely be said that any 
 railway was successfully operated in 
 the Americas before 1830, when the 
 Baltimore and Ohio Railroad opened its 
 first section of fifteen miles from Bal- 
 timore to Ellicotts Alills, The first 
 genuine locomotive in use in the United 
 States was the "Stourbridge Lion," 
 which made its trial trip several months 
 before the opening of the Baltimore 
 and Ohio road, on a railway connect- 
 ing the coal mines of northeastern 
 Pennsylvania with the Delaware and 
 Hudson Canal. From 1830 to 1835 
 many lines were projected, and at the 
 end of 1835 there were over a thou- 
 smid miles of railway in use in the 
 United States. In 1831 the Baltimore 
 and Ohio Railroad offered a premium 
 of $4,000 "for the most approved en- 
 gine which shall be delivered for trial 
 upon the road on or before the first of 
 June, 1831 ; and $3,500 for the engine 
 which shall be adjudged the next best." 
 The first prize was won by the "York," 
 built at York, Pennsylvania, after plans 
 
GEOGRAPHV AiVn ACHI EVEM ENTS~TRA\SrORTATIOX 
 
 drawn by Plieneas Davis, a watch and 
 clock maker. 
 
 The celebrated locomotive "John 
 Bull" was built by George and Robert 
 Stephenson and Company, and was im- 
 ported from England in 1831. 
 
 Many locomotives were imported 
 from England, but owing to the dif- 
 ferent conditions in the United States, 
 the American locomotive soon acqtiired 
 a distinct individuality. To-day Ameri- 
 can locomotives are acknowledged su- 
 perior to all others, and are exported 
 to every country which the railway has 
 penetrated. 
 
 Necessity was the mother of inven- 
 tion ; the money which Great Britain 
 lavished on deep cuts and expensive 
 tunnels was not forthcoming in the 
 young republic, so the engineers of the 
 United States put their wits to work 
 and devised flexible locomotives which 
 will round any curve, and ascend steep 
 grades without difficulty. The chief 
 and most important of these inventions 
 is the swivel truck, which, placed un- 
 der the front of the car, enables the 
 driver to make a sharp turn with per- 
 fect safety. By means of the equalizing 
 Ie\er, another great invention, the 
 weight of the engine is always borne 
 by three out of four or more driving 
 wheels. This prevents the locomotive 
 from running oiif the rails, even when 
 the track is a rough one, and the road- 
 bed is uncompleted. Of late years 
 swiveling trucks have been applied to 
 cars as well as to engines, so that the 
 modern train of a score of cars follows 
 the locomotive with exactness and 
 safety, and hugs the side of a mountain, 
 where the track is laid actually on a 
 shelf hewn in the rock, with utter dis- 
 regard of the law of centrifugal force. 
 During a period of less than seventy 
 years, our railways have grown from 
 small beginnings to rank among the 
 wonders of the world, and the improve- 
 ment in their equipment has kept pace 
 with their rapid growth. 
 
 Peter Cooper's locomotive, built in 
 1830, had great difficulty in exceeding 
 the speed of a good horse : the loco- 
 motive of to-day. which pulls the 
 limited express, makes sixty miles an 
 
 hour as a regular thing, and can in- 
 crease it to seventy upon occasion. 
 
 The old iron track with its dangerous 
 tlat rail has given place to Bessemer 
 rails, which nothing but time or fire 
 can loosen from their place. The anti- 
 quated method of signaling by the fran- 
 tic waving of flags has been superseded 
 by electricity, which displays the sig- 
 nals high in the air. Double and quad- 
 ruple tracks, so that no two trains on 
 crowded roads run in opposite direc- 
 tions, do away with all danger of col- 
 lision. 
 
 The railway mileage of the United 
 States in 1830 was less than sixty miles, 
 including tracks for all purposes ; to- 
 day it amounts to considerably more 
 than 200,000 miles, about two-fifths the 
 total mileage of the world. 
 
 The cost of building the railroads 
 of this country has been enormous, and 
 they represent a vast sum of money. 
 
 The remainder of the railways of the 
 world are distributed through almost 
 every corner of the globe : the enter- 
 prising Anglo-Saxon has introduced his 
 chariot of fire wherever he himself has 
 penetrated. It is quite in opposition to 
 the fitness of things to fancy the jour- 
 ney to Jericho as made by railway, but 
 not only does the modern tourist go 
 from Jerusalem to that ancient city of 
 the Bible, in a steam-car, but there is 
 also a railway which runs from Joppa 
 to Jerusalem. This last, the Jaffa-Jeru- 
 salem Railway, was opened August 27, 
 1S92, when the first train ran from the 
 ancient seaport to the City of David. 
 This road is fifty-three miles long. 
 The Hindoo railway system, as might 
 be expected under British rule, is the 
 most complete and best stocked of all 
 the Asiatic railway systems. Japan 
 comes in a good second, with Ameri- 
 can locomotives, Bessemer rails and en- 
 gineers who have learned their trade 
 in the United States. 
 
 The street railway company is a re- 
 cent institution and has been in gen- 
 eral use for comparatively only a few 
 years. The first application of the rail- 
 way track to short-distance passenger 
 traffic was not made until 1831, when 
 John Stephenson tried the experiment 
 
THE HOME AUXILIARY AND REFERENCE 
 
 in New York. The track was of flat 
 bars, spiked to timbers laid on stone, 
 and the car. one onl}'. resembled an 
 omnibus, built in three sections, with 
 thirty seats inside, and thirty on the 
 roof, making sixty altogether. Horse- 
 power propelled it, and its route was 
 from Prince Street to the Harlem 
 River, along the Bowery and Fourth 
 Avenue. In 1852, the Second, Third, 
 Sixth and Eighth Avenue lines in New 
 York were begun. Boston had no 
 street-cars until 1856, nor Philadelphia 
 until a year later, in 1857. Horse-cars 
 were introduced into Paris in 1858, but 
 it was not until 1870 that a tramway 
 was permitted in London, and even 
 now they are not allowed in the center 
 of the city. To-day there are street- 
 cars in operation in every country in 
 Europe, and also in Africa, Asia, in 
 Japan, India and Ceylon, Australia, 
 New Zealand, and in various parts of 
 South America, as well as Manila and 
 in Honolulu. 
 
 It was not until 1873 that cable-cars 
 were introduced. Prior to that date all 
 street-cars were drawn by horses. The 
 first cable-car was used in San Fran- 
 cisco in 1873. The experiment was 
 abundantly ridiculed. 
 
 The new departure proved a trium- 
 phant success, and street-railways be- 
 came possible on the steep hills which 
 had been insurmountable to horse-cars 
 — another instance of the manner in 
 which American inventors always rise 
 to the emergency. 
 
 The first city to follow suit was Chi- 
 cago, in 1 88 1, and in 1883 Philadel- 
 phia ran her first cable-cars on IVIarket 
 Street. The franchise in both cities be- 
 longed to the same company, and it 
 has made its owners multi-millionaires. 
 New York fought their introduction 
 fiercely, and did not yield until 1886, 
 while there were no cables in Baltimore 
 until 1893. London built its first cable 
 road in 1884, and New Zealand pre- 
 ceded the mother-country by a year, in 
 the uses of the new means of locomo- 
 tion. 
 
 The trolley-car is a yet more recent 
 innovation. As early as 1835, Thomas 
 Davenport, of Brandon, Vermont, con- 
 
 structed an electric car, operated on 
 a circular track, but he made no more 
 than the model. In 1851 an electric 
 locomotive, which attained a speed of 
 19 miles an hour, was tested on the 
 Baltimore and Washington Railway, 
 but the first electric railway to prove 
 a financial success was not built until 
 1881, when Siemiens and Halaske op- 
 erated one in Germany. There was in- 
 tense prejudice against the electric rail- 
 way in the United States on account of 
 the danger from live wires, a prejudice 
 fully justified by the number of casual- 
 ties which occurred during the first 
 years of their use ; but experience 
 taught the safe management of the 
 deadly fluid, and the trolley-car is now 
 among the institutions in every town 
 in the country. Elevated and under- 
 ground railways are successfully op- 
 crated in various European and Ameri- 
 can cities, whenever the problem of 
 rapid transit through crowded streets 
 renders surface tramways dangerous, 
 not to say deadly, and electricity is be- 
 coming more and more general as their 
 motive power. 
 
 Experiments have proved that a 
 greater rate of speed is possible to both 
 locomotives and steamships, by the use 
 of electricity, than by that of steam, and 
 that it is possible to obtain more elec- 
 tric power than steam power from the 
 same amount of coal, while the water- 
 falls have been utilized so that in all 
 probability electricity will be the motive 
 power of the future. Still there is talk 
 of a coming rival. Compressed air is 
 another propeller successfully used for 
 locomotives and engines. It is kept 
 both in storage batteries and in tanks, 
 and is much liked not only for its re- 
 sults as to speed, but on the grounds of 
 economy, cleanliness and safety. 
 
 It is said that the progenitor of the 
 modern bicycle existed nearly two hun- 
 dred years ago. for there is a figure of 
 a two-wheeled hobby-horse on a 
 stained-glass window in Stoke-Pogis 
 Church, Bucks County. England, which 
 window is over 200 years old. Back 
 in the beginning of the eighteenth cen- 
 tury, a strange device, called a hobby- 
 horse, was introduced among novelties 
 
GEOGRAPHY AND ACHIEVrLMENTS-TRANSPORTATIOX 
 
 in vehicles. It was constructed with 
 two wheels, joined tandem, by a frame 
 of wood. The saddle for the rider was 
 on this midway between the wheels. 
 He, the rider, propelled the machine by 
 means of long strides taken on the 
 ground. Its motion was restricted to 
 a straight line, and locomotion there- 
 with was tiresome, and chiefly valuable 
 for purposes of exercise. 
 
 Still the earliest velocipede worthy of 
 the name was a clumsy contrivance, 
 which was patented in 1816, in France, 
 by one Baron von Drais, under the 
 name of the pedestrian curricle. Two 
 years later, an improved form of the 
 "Draismene" was introduced into Eng- 
 land, but being impractical and clumsy, 
 it met with ridicule rather than success. 
 When it crossed the Atlantic in 1819, 
 it met with more success in the United 
 .States, and was quite the fashion for 
 a while, although the fancy for it soon 
 died out. The next step in the evolu- 
 tion of the bicycle was not made until 
 1846, when a Scotchman named Dal- 
 zell invented a wooden safety bicycle, 
 which, though a great improvement 
 upon anything which had preceded it. 
 was not sufficiently practical to be 
 adopted to any extent. \"elocipedes and 
 tricycles of various patterns were pa- 
 tented in the United tSates, and were 
 popular, chiefly for children and crip- 
 ples. In 1869 I\I. Michaux, of Paris, 
 invented a bicycle in which the front, or 
 driving wheel was very much larger 
 than the rear wheel. Just about this 
 time velocipede-riding was the rage in 
 the United States. Rinks and riding- 
 schools were opened in all the larger 
 cities, and the fashion was almost as 
 great as that for roller-skating a few 
 years later. The fast youth of the pe- 
 riod called the popular velocipede of the 
 day, the "bone-shaker" and it required 
 some dexterity to manage it. This had 
 wheels of nearly equal size, the pedals 
 being applied directly to the front 
 wheels. The rider's position between 
 the two front wheels was an uncomfort- 
 able one, and the clumsy machine well 
 deserved its name. 
 
 The first bicycle of iron and steel was 
 invented by another Frenchman , M. 
 Mayer, also of Paris. Later on the 
 principle of crank action, as applied to 
 revolving wheels, becoming understood, 
 the era of the bicycle was fairly inau- 
 gurated. Rubber tires and strong 
 brakes rendered the motion easy, and 
 one by one clever mechanicians dis- 
 covered improvements which have ra- 
 pidly made the machine the beneficent 
 institution which it is to-day — an actual 
 comfort to thousands of men and 
 women, who find in it a pleasant means 
 of e.^iercise and recreation. The low 
 safety wheel made its appearance in 
 1883. The girl of the period soon 
 found that she could ride her brother's 
 wheel as well as he could, and the ob- 
 liging American manufacturer forth- 
 with made one specially adapted to her 
 use, to be rewarded by the sale of as 
 many as he could make. No one now 
 doubts that the bicycle has come to 
 stay. Its use has spread all over the 
 world, and the prejudice against it 
 which at first existed has almost dis- 
 appeared. Its popularity, however, has 
 declined, notably in the United States, 
 where the number in use has fallen 
 off enormously within recent years. It 
 is now chiefly used for business pur- 
 poses. 
 
 The motor-cycle, or automobile, is 
 yet another astonishing product of the 
 Nineteenth Century. Although its 
 germ was evolved as long ago as 1769, 
 when a French army surgeon rigged 
 up a gun-carriage and a big copper 
 boiler in such wise that it was dri\en 
 by its own power. In 1784 a road en- 
 gine was invented by a Cornishman, 
 and in 1786 William Wymington de- 
 signed a carriage which was propelled 
 by a locomotive behind. The Orleton 
 Amphibolus was a curiosity in Phila- 
 delphia in 1804. This was an odd sort 
 of vehicle, mounted on wheels, and run 
 by its own steam engine, which was 
 part of the structure. When finished 
 it was driven successfully to the Dela- 
 ware Ri\er, where it was used for 
 dredging the Philadelphia docks. In- 
 ventive mechanics produced more or 
 less successful road-engines, until the 
 
So6 
 
 THE HOME AUXILIARY AND REFERENCE 
 
 appearance and perfection of the loco- 
 motive brought railways into general 
 use, and the need for them no longer 
 seemed apparent. 
 
 The development of electricity and 
 the perfection of the steam-engine have 
 set inventors to devising new uses for 
 them, especially for applications of that 
 wonderful invention, the storage bat- 
 tery. The undertaking has met with 
 fair success, and the motor-carriage is 
 a common sight on the Parisian boule- 
 vards, and their use in American cities 
 is rapidly increasing. Bicycles are fre- 
 quently run in the same manner, and 
 the use of the automobile is constantly 
 becoming more general. Some of the 
 electric trams are run by means of 
 storage batteries without wires over- 
 head. 
 
 For general use the petroleum gas 
 engine is considered the best and most 
 practical. This can be kept running, 
 at a fair rate of speed, for three hun- 
 dred miles with a few gallons of gaso- 
 line. In the United States the motor- 
 carriage has reached a high degree of 
 perfection. 
 
 The steamship is a child of the last 
 century, and a wonderful change has 
 been wrought since the day, less than 
 a hundred years ago, when the Ameri- 
 can clipper ship was the queen of tiie 
 seas, a greater change than had been 
 brought about from the days of Noah's 
 ark down to the beginning of the cen- 
 tury. The changes have been due first 
 to the application of steam as a mo- 
 tive power to vessels and then to a 
 change of construction from wood to 
 iron and steel. The application of 
 steam to ships is. however, of earlier 
 creation than the railroad. As with so 
 many other things the germ of the idea 
 is to be found in the discoveries of a 
 previous century. There are many 
 claimants to the honor, and although 
 James Rumsey and John Fitch were the 
 pioneers in this country, yet the first 
 practicable steamboat was the Cler- 
 mont, constructed by Robert Fulton in 
 1807. The Clermont, originally a canal 
 boat, was built to run on the Hudson. 
 In order of construction the Clermont 
 was the sixteenth steamboat, but it was 
 
 the first to be used permanently. The 
 trial was made August 7, while throngs 
 of people crowded the banks to watch 
 the sight, a few praying for success, 
 but most of them certain that it would 
 be a failure. There was a slight delay, 
 but the boat went ahead on her trip 
 and steam navigation was an accom- 
 plished fact. 
 
 The Clermont was a crude boat. She 
 was 133 feet long, 18 feet beam and 
 160 tons and made only five miles an 
 hour. But within a year two other 
 boats built by Fulton were running be- 
 tween New York and Albany, the time 
 being thirty-two hours, with a fare of 
 $7. The success of the experiment led 
 to its imitation jn England. The Comet 
 was launched upon the Clyde in 1812. 
 It was forty feet long and had a three 
 horsepower engine. 
 
 These steamships were an important 
 factor in the development of the 
 newly settled portions of the United 
 States. Before the days of the steam- 
 boat, methods of transportation were 
 primitive. Four months were required 
 for the journey from St. Louis to New 
 Orleans. At Pittsburg in 181 1 the first 
 boat for Western rivers was built, and 
 she made the trip to New Orleans. 
 Great enthusiasm was aroused when, 
 with the construction of the Enterprise 
 in 1815, St. Louis was reached in 
 twenty-five days from New Orleans. 
 
 It was not until 1826 that the first 
 steamer ran up the Allegheny River, 
 and in the same year the ship Illinois 
 reached St. Louis from New York via 
 New Orleans, 3,000 miles, in twenty- 
 nine days and a half. From that time 
 dates the palmy day of steamboating. 
 In 1823 the time between St. Louis and 
 New Orleans had been reduced to 
 twelve days, in 1828 the General Brown 
 made it in nine days and four hours, 
 and in i860 the running time had been 
 reduced to three days. Now the steam- 
 boat has practically vanished from the 
 Western rivers. The railroad has taken 
 its place. But it survives on the great 
 lakes of the North, where there is an 
 enormous traffic. 
 
 The first steamer to cross the At- 
 lantic was an American built siiip. the 
 
GEOGRAPHY AND ACHIEVEMENTS— TRANSPORTATION 
 
 Savannah. The vessel had been built 
 in New York as a sailing ship. She 
 was 350 tons burden, clipper built, full- 
 rigged and propelled by one inclined 
 direct-acting low pressure engine, sim- 
 ilar to those now in use. She had pad- 
 dle wheels that could be taken out and 
 put on deck. The Savannah steamed to 
 the city in whose honor she was named 
 and from there started for Liverpool 
 Way 24, 1819, making the voyage in 
 twenty-five days, being under steam 
 eighteen days. She used pitch pine 
 as fuel, the use of coal in American 
 steamers not having been introduced at 
 that day. From Liverpool she went to 
 St. Petersburg. For some years she 
 ran between Savannah and New York, 
 and finally ran aground in a storm off 
 Long Island and went to pieces. 
 
 A ship wholly dependent upon steam 
 was regarded for a long time as vision- 
 ary. Nautical experts insisted that no 
 vessel could carry fuel enough to supply 
 her engines on a long voyage, and this 
 was long accepted without dispute. The 
 first vessel to make the journey with- 
 out the use of sails and by steam alone 
 was a Canadian vessel, the Royal Wil- 
 liam, built at Three Rivers in the 
 Province of Quebec. She sailed from 
 Quebec August 5, 183 1, for London, 
 putting into Picton en route and ar- 
 rived at Gravesend September 16, af- 
 ter a voyage of 25 days from Picton. 
 
 Y'et in spite of this Dr. Dionysius 
 Lardner declared that "As well might 
 they attempt a voyage to the moon, as 
 to run regularly between England and 
 Xew Y'ork." This feat was accom- 
 jilished by two British vessels in 1838 — 
 the Sirius and the Great Western. The 
 former was 178 feet long and of 703 
 tens, and the latter 256 feet and of 
 1,340 tons. The average speed of the 
 former was seven knots and the latter 
 8.2 knots an hour. 
 
 America lagged behind England in 
 the steam Atlantic trade. It was not 
 until 1847 that the first American 
 steamer was built expressly for the 
 transatlantic trade. She was the United 
 States, built at New York for the Black 
 Ball line. The United States was a 
 wonderful vessel in those days, being 
 
 25G feet long and of 2,000 tons burden. 
 Her first voyage, made to Liverpool, 
 occupied thirteen days. Seven years 
 before, in 1840, Samuel Cunard be- 
 gan running ships from Liverpool to 
 Boston, the Britannia, the first of the 
 line, making the trip in fourteen days 
 and eight hours. 
 
 In 1840 began the use of the screw 
 propeller, and the construction of ships 
 of iron. Captain John Ericsson is 
 gi\en the credit for the invention, but 
 although he was the first to succeed in 
 the application of the principle, it had 
 been suggested and attempted by others 
 in previous years. Ericsson built a 
 small screw steamer in 1837 and invited 
 tile English lords of the admiralty to 
 make a trip in his boat, which made 
 ten miles an hour. But the board gave 
 him no encouragement. Paddle wheels 
 were universally used then, although 
 now they are seldom or never seen on 
 the ocean, and are used merely in rivers 
 and other places where the paddle wheel 
 is more satisfactory because of the 
 shoals. Ericsson built a small steamer, 
 seventy feet long, in 1839; he then 
 came to America to develop his idea, 
 and in 1841 designed the Princeton, the 
 first man-of-war with a screw propel- 
 ler. In the same year he designed the 
 \'aiiadalia, the first screw propeller ves- 
 sel constructed for business purposes, 
 which was built at Oswego, N. Y., and 
 navigated the Great Lakes. Gradually 
 the principle of the screw propeller es- 
 tablished itself and screw steamers 
 were built both in America and Eng- 
 land and employed in the coasting trade 
 and in short sea voyages. But it was 
 deemed a hazardous experiment to try 
 aiul cross the Atlantic, especially in the 
 winter months. The Great Britain, 
 launched on the Mersey in 1843, was 
 the first transatlantic steamer on which 
 the principle of the screw propeller was 
 applied. The Great Britain was de- 
 signed by Brunei and was 332 feet long 
 and of 3,200 tons. 
 
 The Great Britain is also remarkable 
 in that Brunei substituted iron for 
 wood. The metal had been used for 
 hulls of river steamers as far back as 
 1820, but had not come into general use. 
 
So8 
 
 THE HO.AIE AUXILIARY AND REFKRKNCE 
 
 To-day over 90 per cent, of the steam- 
 ers built in Great Britain each year 
 are or iron, and the wooden ship is a 
 relic of the past. This substitution of 
 iron for wood gave a severe blow to the 
 American merchant marine, and in fact 
 one from which it has not yet fully re- 
 covered. When ships were made of 
 wood the forests along our coasts fur- 
 nished unusual opportunity for ship- 
 building, and America indeed became 
 queen of the seas. But the mineral 
 resources of the United States were 
 not sufficiently developed when the 
 change came from wood to iron and 
 the merchant marine of the United 
 States suffered. This is, however, also 
 due to the fact that the United States 
 was occupied chiefly in internal devel- 
 opment and railroads, manufactures 
 and mining absorbed our attention, to 
 the exclusion of foreign commerce. In 
 recent years, however, there has been 
 a great increase in shipbuilding, al- 
 though this is still one of the few things 
 in which the United States lags behind 
 in the march of progress. With the im- 
 provements in steel it supplanted iron, 
 it being better for every purpose. 
 
 Water-tight compartments had been 
 used in wooden ships, but they were not 
 practicable. The use of iron, however, 
 made it possible to make use of this 
 device by which the vessel is divided 
 by bulkheads, and thus, while two or 
 even three of the compartments may be 
 open to the sea, the vessel will still 
 float. The Royal William was the first 
 important steamer to use water-tight 
 compartments. 
 
 The increase in speed of steamships 
 has been due chiefly to improvements 
 in the marine engine. There has been 
 great economy in fuel and steel has 
 made engines stronger. 
 
 With these improvements came in- 
 crease in the size of vessels, this being 
 because large vessels are relatively 
 more economical in fuel. 
 
 The introduction of steamships has 
 brought forth inventions of all sorts 
 for the improvement of their navigation 
 and manipulation. So perfect are the 
 liners now in use that the ocean grey- 
 hound may be stopped or reversed by 
 
 a child, while a single man is able to 
 execute the order "hard a-helm" on a 
 man-of-war going at full speed. Be- 
 fore the new hydraulic machinery was 
 invented, three score men were barely 
 sufficient to stop a fast steamer in full 
 career. Thirty feet a minute is the 
 usual rate at which model anchor en- 
 gines raise the heaviest anchors in use. 
 The hold of the vessel is illuminated 
 to its farthest recesses by electric light, 
 and the constant risk of fire from lan- 
 terns or lamps upset by the rolling of 
 the ship is entirely done away with. 
 Science balances the compasses so as 
 to avoid all danger of their variation, 
 that variation which previous to the 
 discovery of the modern method of 
 compensation wrecked so many stout 
 vessels upon unexpected reefs. 
 Steamers at full speed take soundings 
 to the depth of 100 fathoms as a mat- 
 ter of course. The steam siren shrieks 
 automatically at regular intervals in a 
 heavy fog, and, last, but not least, when 
 the good ship makes port, steam rings 
 her bells, winds her cables around the 
 capstan and runs the derricks which un- 
 load her cargo. 
 
 Safety has been of first considera- 
 tion from the first, and statistics are 
 quoted to prove that ocean travel is 
 now no more dangerous than a railroad 
 journey. 
 
 Comfort as well as speed and safety 
 are results sought by the builders of 
 ocean-going steamers, and the great 
 vessels on the lakes that cater to the 
 traveling public. In 1838 even the best 
 kind of ocean traveling was excessive- 
 ly disagreeable. The supply of fresh 
 food became exhausted a few days af- 
 ter leaving port. But there is now a 
 complete revolution in this respect. 
 Even the steerage passengers fare bet- 
 ter than did the cabin passengers of the 
 early days. The employment of cold 
 storage and artificial refrigeration, to- 
 gether with the adaption of every im- 
 provement in life ashore, have arranged 
 it so that a voyage on the ocean may 
 be as comfortable as life at a first-class 
 hotel. Only the motion remains to 
 worry the person who is addicted to 
 sea-sickness. 
 
GEOGRAPHY AND ACHIEVEMENTS— COMMUNICATION 
 
 The problem of traversing space by 
 means of apparatus under navigable 
 control has for many years occupied 
 the minds of inventors. Success in this 
 direction has not been great, but the 
 way has been made easier for those 
 who are striving to attain the end. 
 Ballooning, which involves the use of 
 machines lighter than the air, does not 
 present insuperable difficulties. Since 
 the Brother Montgolfier ascended in 
 1783 by means of a fire balloon at An- 
 nonay, there has been no difficulty in 
 making ascents of as great as five miles. 
 The first successful attempt at propell- 
 ing balloons was made by Giffard in 
 1852, the car being little more than a 
 wooden platform with wheels to allow 
 its running along on descending. More 
 difficult has been the problem of avia- 
 tion or the use of flying-machines, be- 
 cause of the necessity of using appa- 
 ratus heavier than the air. One of the 
 characteristics of aviation is a large 
 supporting surface, either in the form 
 of wings or an aeroplane which is used 
 to carry the weight. Distinguished 
 scientists, believe that the problem will 
 be solved before many years shall have 
 passed. 
 
 As fascinating is the subject of sub- 
 marine navigation. Many attempts 
 have been made to solve this problem, 
 and the great naval powers have de- 
 signed submarine war vessels. The 
 nearest to success was the Holland sub- 
 marine boat. Submarine navigation is 
 not yet an accomplished fact. 
 
 COMMUXICATION 
 
 A man in Florida may now send a 
 letter to his friend in the Klondike gold 
 fields for two cents, or for five cents 
 he may send a letter to his friend in 
 Australia. The development of the 
 post-office has made this possible. 
 Sixty years ago, even if communica- 
 tion had been open between these dis- 
 tricts, such a feat and such a price 
 was an impossibility. There are those 
 who say that penny postage, as it is 
 called from the English coin of the value 
 
 of two cents, is one of the greatest 
 achievements of the last century. There 
 is certainly nothing that has conduced 
 more to the comfort of the people. 
 
 Post-offices are as old as history. 
 Communications were sent either by 
 couriers, pedestrians or in vehicles, but 
 the splendid postal organization which 
 now exists was then beyond the im- 
 agination of the man who lived at the 
 beginning of the last century. There 
 had been little development since the 
 dawn of civilization. Relays of fast 
 post horses shortened the distance, but 
 in Washington's first term as President, 
 the mails traveled at the rate of only 
 four and a half miles an hour. 
 
 The development of the post-office 
 has kept pace with the improvements 
 of the means of communication, al- 
 though perhaps this is not strictly true 
 of the United States, where the tele- 
 graphs and telephones, unlike in most 
 other civilized countries, are not un- 
 der the control of the post-office de- 
 partment. 
 
 To England the world is indebted for 
 the placing of correspondence by mail 
 within the means of everyone. Sir 
 Rowland Hill noticed that, although the 
 population of England had increased 
 6,000,000 during the twenty years from 
 1815 to 1835, the postal receipts were 
 slowly diminishing. To overcome this 
 the postal authorities had increased the 
 postal rates, but this led to a further 
 decrease in receipts, and means were 
 found to defraud the post-office. As 
 the charge on the letter could not be 
 paid by the sender, those away from 
 home arranged codes of signals which 
 sh.ould tell their friends of their wel- 
 fare. All that was necessary was to 
 send an empty envelope, which would 
 be refused at the door. Newspapers 
 v,-ith words underscored were also used, 
 as they were sent through the mails 
 free, a stamp tax being levied upon 
 them. The finance account for the year 
 showed that about one-fifth of the let- 
 ters transported were "refused" by the 
 persons to whom they were addressed. 
 Hill found that the average cost of a 
 letter was less than one penny, and he 
 
Sio 
 
 THE HOME AUXILIARY AND REI'EKENCE 
 
 urged that a uniform charge of id (2 
 cents) be made for the carriage of a 
 letter, claiming that there would be an 
 enormous increase in correspondence. 
 
 Penny postage finally became a fact 
 and was in operation on January 10, 
 1S40. In respect to the distance for 
 which a letter is conveyed for two cents 
 the United States is now the cheapest 
 postal system in the world, but in the 
 matter of cheap postage the United 
 States was far behind Great Britain. 
 Until 1863 the distances over which 
 the mails were carried was the basis 
 of the rates of postage. In 1845 'he 
 rates were: Not exceeding 300 miles, 
 five cents ; exceeding 300 miles, ten 
 cents. By a law of 1851 the distance for 
 which the minimum rate was charged 
 was increased to 3,000 miles. The 
 uniform rate of three cents was made 
 in 1863, and in 1883 it was reduced to 
 two Cents, the rate which had been in 
 force in Great Britain for forty-three 
 years. The weight carried for the two- 
 cent stamp was increased from a half 
 ounce to one ounce in a few years, mak- 
 ing a further reduction in the cost of 
 communication by mail. 
 
 The money order system introduced 
 in England in 1792 by a private com- 
 pany was adopted by the British post- 
 office in 1838. The system was not em- 
 ployed in the United States until 1864. 
 There has been a gradual reduction of 
 fees. 
 
 The little bits of colored paper that 
 are one of the principal adjimcts to 
 the postal business were first used in 
 England in July, 1840, and came into 
 use in this country in July, 1847. There 
 are now said to be as many as 9,300 
 varieties- — some, of course, obsolete, 
 and including the stamps on newsbands 
 and those used as revenue stamps. 
 Postal cards were first issued by Aus- 
 tria, and in the year 1870. They were 
 adopted by the United States in 1873. 
 
 In the United States the free delivery 
 system was authorized in 1885. Rail- 
 ways were first used by the United 
 States for postal purposes in 1834. 
 Other reforms have been the introduc- 
 tion of railway post-offices, electric 
 street cars and pneumatic tubes. 
 
 The post-office does many things in 
 other countries that it does not do in 
 the United States. The parcels post 
 was introduced in Great Britain in 
 1883, and transports small packages at 
 a small charge. Most European coun- 
 tries now have a system of sending 
 packages by mail cash on delivery, sim- 
 ilar to our express companies. The 
 telegraph business is a part of the 
 post-ofifice abroad. Free delivery now 
 extends even into the rural districts. 
 The United States has introduced the 
 postal savings bank, which institution, 
 for the benefit of small depositors, espe- 
 cially in the rural districts, was intro- 
 duced by England in 1861. The pneu- 
 matic tul)e was first used in London in 
 1858, and in Boston in 1896. 
 
 The crowning triumph of the postal 
 service was the establishment in 1874 
 of the Universal Postal Union, which 
 includes nearly every nation with a 
 post-office. Five cents is now all that 
 is necessary to carry a letter to the 
 tittermost part of the earth. An idea 
 of tlie extension of the post-office may 
 be obtained by a glance at the Congo 
 Free State. The post-office department 
 of that vast country was organized in 
 1885, and ten post-offices have since 
 been established, making it possible to 
 send a letter at a cost of five cents to 
 the wilds of Central Africa. The can- 
 nibals who reside on the banks of the 
 Arumwi River enjoy all the advantages 
 of the Postal Union if they so desire. 
 
 P'ost-offices are now scattered over 
 the various countries of the world, of 
 which the largest number in any one 
 country is in the United States. Fig- 
 ures scarcely convey an idea of the 
 magnitude of the business that is an- 
 nually transacted through the world's 
 post-offices. The postal savings bank 
 business has reached its highest devel- 
 opment in Great Britain. 
 
 Long a dream of the imagination, 
 the telegraph found its realization in 
 the Nineteenth Century. Laplace sug- 
 gested the idea of signaling by means 
 of breaks in electrical currents. His 
 idea was seized by others, and in 1832 
 Schilling, a Russian, devised a system 
 of telegraphy in which thirty-six 
 
GEOGRAPHY AND ACHIEVEMENTS— COMMUNICATION 
 
 needles were used. Gauss and Weber, 
 two German physicists, established a 
 line about three miles long at GiJttingen ; 
 and Steinheil, working on their ideas, 
 constructed several telegraph lines, ra- 
 diating from Munich. Steinheil was 
 the first to make use of the earth as 
 a return current, thus using a single 
 wire to carry each current, and con- 
 nected to the earth at both the sending 
 and receiving stations. Wheatstone, an 
 English inventor, together with Wil- 
 liam F. Gooke, in 1836 took out a pa- 
 tent for a needle telegraph. The 
 Wheatstone telegraph was tried suc- 
 cessfully between Euston and Gamden 
 Town stations on the London & North- 
 western railways, on July 25, 1837. 
 
 These early telegraphs were imprac- 
 ticable, and the credit of the invention 
 of the electro-magnetic telegraph, which 
 is the basis of the one used to-day, be- 
 longs to Samuel F. B. Morse, who be- 
 gan his experiments as early as 1832. 
 His first practical instrument was per- 
 fected in 1836. It was a clumsy affair. 
 His friends laughed at him, as inven- 
 tors have always been laughed at, and 
 he received no encouragement, but was 
 ridiculed for spending all of his meager 
 income on the useless toy. A caveat 
 was filed at Washington, and in Feb- 
 ruary, 1838, he. with Alfred Vail and 
 Professor Gail, took the instrument to 
 Washington and exhibited the telegraph 
 on a ten-mile circuit to President Van 
 Buren. They then asked an appropria- 
 tion of thirty thousand dollars for an 
 experimental line of fifty miles, but the 
 appeal was not acted upon by Gongress. 
 Foi two years he wandered about 
 Europe, trying to secure patents and 
 aid. On his return he found that his 
 partners had met with financial reverses 
 and were unable to help him. He went 
 to Washington in 1841, and set up his 
 instrument and strung his wires. In 
 the direst poverty, he explained his in- 
 vention to Gongressmen, who were 
 amused, but regarded it merely as a toy. 
 Finally, when he had only 37 cents left 
 in his pockets, he secured the influ- 
 ence of a classmate, who undertook to 
 get the appropriation through Gongress. 
 It was passed on the last day o"f the 
 
 session, at a few moments before mid- 
 night, and after eight years of waiting, 
 Morse had what he had sought — an 
 opportunity to show the world what he 
 could do. Then began the construction 
 of the line from Washington to Balti- 
 more. When ten miles had been laid 
 in pipes, it was found that the current 
 grew weaker. The fault was due to in- 
 duction, the carrying away of the elec- 
 tricity by the earth, and it was after 
 much discussion that Vail's idea of 
 stringing the wires on poles was 
 adopted. On May, 1844, Morse was 
 able to fulfill the promise he had made 
 to Miss Annie G. Ellsworth, that her 
 message should be the first sent over 
 the line. In the presence of distin- 
 guished officials of the government, the 
 message was sent. It was "What hath 
 God wrought?" It became famous, and 
 we are not yet sure of the answer. 
 
 The telegraph devised by Morse was 
 crude. To his partners is due much 
 of the development of the idea. Morse 
 knew nothing of what is known as the 
 Morse alphabet. Vail invented the dot 
 and dash alphabet, which is now in 
 universal use. 
 
 In the very beginning the recording 
 instrument was replaced by the sounder, 
 which was also of X'ail's invention. 
 
 During the month of May, 1844, an- 
 other opportunity for conspicuously 
 demonstrating the value of the tele- 
 graph occurred when three important 
 national conventions were held in Balti- 
 niore, and the news of their proceed- 
 ings was instantaneously transmitted by 
 the electric current to eager crowds of 
 congressmen and others at the national 
 capital. For one year the telegraph line 
 was operated gratuitously, and then a 
 small charge was made for messages by 
 the postmaster-general, under whose di- 
 rection it was. The government was 
 ofTered the invention for $100,000, but 
 declined to buy it, and the develop- 
 ment of the telegraph was left to pri- 
 vate enterprise. 
 
 The improvement of the telegraph 
 was rapid during the next decade. By 
 1847 a telegraph line ran from Wash- 
 ington to Albany, with many branches. 
 
THE HOME AUXILIARY AND REFERENCE 
 
 Lines were built on the Morse system 
 in every part of Europe. 
 
 To-day the telegraph has developed 
 to an enormous extent, and is used in 
 every part of the world. 
 
 An interesting development of the 
 telegraph which has been utilized in the 
 United States and Great Britain, is the 
 ability to send messages from moving 
 trains. 
 
 Since the beginning of telegraphy, at- 
 tempts have been made by various in- 
 ventors to communicate without wires. 
 Joseph Henry, of Washington, found 
 in 1842 that when he threw an elec- 
 tric spark an inch long on a wide cir- 
 cuit in a room at the top of his house, 
 electrical action was instantly set up 
 in another circuit in the cellar. Visible 
 means of communication between the 
 two circuits being absent, he reasoned 
 that the electric spark produced some 
 kind of action in the other, and, pass- 
 ing through two fluids and ceilings 14 
 inches thick, caused induction in the 
 wires in the cellar. 
 
 Edison's application of induction to 
 telegraphy from moving trains, and 
 Hertz's discovery that electric waves 
 penetrate wood and brick, but not 
 metal, are the bases upon which in- 
 ventors of wireless telegraphy have 
 worked. This was carried to its early 
 stage of promise by an Italian elec- 
 trician, Guiglielmo Marconi, while at 
 work in the laboratory of Prof. Riglio, 
 of Bologna. He was mainly indebted 
 for the success of his experiment to 
 W. H. Preece, Director of the English 
 Postal System, whose official position 
 enabled him to test it in the British 
 Post-Office Department, these tests 
 proving successful. The Marconi 
 system of telegraphy depends not upon 
 an electrical magnet, but on electrical 
 vibrations — that is to say, on electrical 
 waves — set up at a rate of 250,000,000 
 to the second. These vibrations travel 
 through space in straight lines, and can 
 be reflected and refracted like light — 
 indeed, they are capable of all the phe- 
 nomena of which light is susceptible. 
 
 The invention which dealt with the 
 method of receiving and sending mes- 
 
 sages by this means was first experi- 
 mented with on the roof of the post- 
 office, and then for three-quarters of 
 a mile on Salisbury Plain. Marconi 
 vvas present that night, and this was 
 the first occasion on which the appar- 
 atus was shown, except to government 
 officials. The great difference between 
 the systems, which had already been 
 tried, and that of Mr. Marconi, was 
 that in the former a wire on each side 
 Vv-as necessary, while in the latter no 
 wire was required. Vibrations were 
 simply set up by one apparatus and re- 
 ceived by the other, the secret being 
 that the receiver must respond to the 
 number of vibrations of the sender. 
 The apparatus was then exhibited. 
 What appeared to be just two ordinary 
 boxes were stationed at each end of 
 the room, the current set in motion at 
 one, and a bell was immediately rung 
 in the other. "To show that there was 
 no deception," ]Mr. Marconi held the re- 
 ceiver and carried it about, the bell 
 ringing whenever the vibrations at the 
 other box were set up. 
 
 The most valuable use to which teleg- 
 raphy without wires has up to the pres- 
 ent time been put is communicating 
 from ship to ship at sea, or between 
 lightships and lighthouses ; which not 
 only adds to the convenience of navi- 
 gation, but renders it more safe. 
 
 Practical use has not yet been made 
 of the telautograph, which is the name 
 given to the apparatus for the trans- 
 mission of sketches and drawings by 
 wire. The most successful of these in- 
 ventions is that of Elisha Gray, of Chi- 
 cago, which was put to practical use 
 by the Chicago Times-Herald, on June 
 22, 1895. Using the ordinary telegraph 
 wires, the Times-Herald was enabled 
 to receive exact facsimilies of letters 
 written in Cleveland by men in attend- 
 ance at the national convention of Re- 
 publican clubs. The fact that teleg- 
 raphic sketches have not since come 
 into general use shows that the telau- 
 tograph has not yet reached a condi- 
 tion of real usefulness. An invention 
 called the Telegraph Pen, devised by E. 
 A. Cooper, of England, is somewhat 
 similar, though less reliable. 
 
GEOGRAPHY AND ACHIEVEMENTS— COMMUNICATION 
 
 Even before Morse had succeeded in 
 obtaining connection between Baltimore 
 and Washington, inventors were at 
 work upon methods for estabhshing 
 communication through bodies of 
 water as well as over stretches of land. 
 The two banks on the Hoogly River 
 in India had been connected as early 
 as 1839 by a Mr. O'Shaughnessy, who 
 made use of an insulated wire plunged 
 into the stream. Wheatstone proposed 
 to connect Dover and Calais by sub- 
 marine telegraph cable in 1840, but it 
 was ten years before the plan was 
 realized, and then the cable broke, after 
 transmitting only a few signals. In 
 185 1 a new cable was laid. The devel- 
 opment of submarine telegraphy was 
 chiefly delayed by the difficulty of devis- 
 ing protection and insulation for the 
 wire. Gutta-percha was used for this 
 purpose in 1848, and the cable was laid 
 across the Hudson River from Jersey 
 City to New York. The cable was 
 strengthened by a covering not only of 
 gutta-percha, but by a layer of tarred 
 hemp, which in its turn is covered and 
 protected by galvanized iron wire 
 twisted around the core. 
 
 Cables of increasing length were laid 
 but the Atlantic Ocean still seemed an 
 insuperable barrier between Europe and 
 America. To Cyrus W. Field was due 
 the realization of what had long ap- 
 peared an impossible project. He or- 
 ganized a company for the purpose in 
 1854, but it was twelve years before 
 they succeeded. These twelve years 
 were filled with disappointing failures, 
 which, however, did not daunt the in- 
 domitable pluck and energy of Mr. 
 Field and his associates. The first at- 
 tempt was made on August 7, 1857, by 
 the United States frigate Niagara, 
 which sailed from \^alencia, Ireland, in 
 the direction of Heart's Content, New- 
 foundland. The cable broke when 
 about 400 miles had been laid, and the 
 steamer returned. The next year an- 
 other attempt was made. This time 
 two ships separating in mid-ocean, pro- 
 ceeding shoreward, one to the east and 
 one to the west, each laying cable as 
 they separated. Again the cable broke ; 
 but a third attempt was made later in 
 
 the year, which saw the whole distance 
 successfully spanned, and on August 16, 
 1858, Queen Victoria and President Bu- 
 chanan exchanged congratulatory 
 messages. Great was the joy over this 
 triumph, but it was of short duration. 
 Day by day the messages by the cable 
 grew more indistinct, and finally ceased. 
 Though laid, the cable was a failure. 
 
 Field was not discouraged, but his 
 associates were, and for eight years the 
 cable remained useless at the bottom of 
 the sea. During this period the Lfnited 
 States was torn with civil war, and the 
 sympathy of Great Britain for the Con- 
 federate states aroused an enmity in 
 the hearts of Americans which checked 
 any desire for closer communication be- 
 tween the two countries. In spite of 
 discouragement and previous failures, 
 Field succeeded in reorganizing his 
 company and making a new cable. The 
 steamship Great Eastern, which was 
 unavailable for ordinary uses of com- 
 merce, was chartered, and in this giant 
 vessel a cable 2,273 nautical miles long, 
 and weighing 300 pounds per mile, was 
 stowed. More than half of it had been 
 laid when the cable parted, and the 
 broken end disappeared from view. At- 
 tempts to secure it proved futile, and 
 the Great Eastern returned to Europe. 
 Five cables were now at the bottom 
 of the Atlantic Ocean, and they repre- 
 sented an expenditure of millions of 
 dollars. Still Mr. Field did not despair, 
 and he persuaded his associates to in- 
 vest a still larger sum. Again the Great 
 Eastern made another journey with a 
 new cable, equal in length to the old. 
 She started from Queensland, and 
 without further serious misadventure, 
 accomplished the whole distance on 
 July 27, 1866. Telegraphic communica- 
 tion with Europe has been uninter- 
 rupted since that time. No greater tri- 
 umph of engineering skill has ever been 
 accomplished, nor can there be pointed 
 out a more forceful object lesson in 
 pluck and perseverance. 
 
 Since then the world has been girdled 
 by cables. Communication has been 
 made possible to the uttermost parts of 
 the earth. When all the lines are clear 
 it takes about 15 seconds to send a sin- 
 
THE HOME AUXILIARY AND REFERENCE 
 
 gle sign from London to New York. 
 The great Pacific Ocean has been 
 crossed and there is telegraphic com- 
 munication between America and Asia. 
 
 Great as the telegraph is, still greater 
 is the telephone. By it articulate 
 speech, with all its shades of tone and 
 quality, is so accurately transmitted and 
 reproduced that the voice of a friend 
 speaking at a great distance can be 
 easily recognized. In the United States 
 alone the use of the long distance tele- 
 phone has brought forty million within 
 speaking distance of each other. There 
 is no more remarkable achievement of 
 science than this. The speech of the 
 telephone is as great an improvement 
 over that of the telegraph as is the con- 
 versation of men over the chatter of 
 monkeys. 
 
 But the telegraph did not suggest the 
 telephone, and the two inventions have 
 run along entirely different lines. Its 
 first basis was the discovery of Page in 
 1837, that when substances are mag- 
 netized they emit sound. Philip Reis, 
 a German schoolteacher, in i860, utiliz- 
 ing this principle, managed to trans- 
 mit both words and music over a short 
 distance. Reis's experiment set several 
 inventors at work along these lines, and 
 the present electro-magnetic telephone 
 was invented at about the same time 
 by Graham Bell and Elisha Gray, both 
 Americans. Bell's telephone is the one 
 now in use. He exhibited his invention 
 at the Philadelphia Centennial in 1876. 
 By this it was made possible for two 
 people to talk over a single wire for a 
 distance of ten miles. Its principle was 
 not the transmission of speech, but the 
 mechanical reproduction thereof by 
 means of the vibration of a thin sheet 
 of iron near the listener's ear. The 
 transmitter has a membrane, bearing on 
 its center a small piece of iron placed op- 
 posite the poles of the electro-magnet. 
 The receiver, in which is enclosed an 
 electro-magnet, has fi.xed in the top a 
 thin disc of iron, left free to vibrate. 
 Sounds are produced by the vibration 
 of this disc corresponding to currents 
 of electricity from the other end. 
 
 Many improvements have been made 
 in the arrangement of the receiver and 
 
 transmitter since Bell's instrument was 
 invented, with a view to intensifying 
 the effect in the receiver. Most impor- 
 tant of these improvements is that of 
 Prof. Hughes, who in 1878 discovered 
 that if one piece of carbon be allowed 
 to rest upon another and an electrical 
 current be passed from one to the other 
 in a circuit containing a Bell receiver, 
 the lines will respond to very minute 
 sounds in the vicinity of the carbons. 
 This is called the microphone, and is in 
 most transmitters. Copper wire instead 
 of iron is used for trunk lines of tele- 
 phones, because it is inductive, and the 
 Bell telephone is extremely sensitive — 
 so much so that conversation over one 
 wire can often be heard on a neigh- 
 boring wire. 
 
 The original telephone which made 
 possible conversation between one per- 
 son and another at a distance of ten 
 miles, has been improved so that large 
 numbers of persons are enabled to in- 
 ter-communicate at will. This is due 
 to the switchboard. The use of the 
 telephone, like the telegraph, is univer- 
 sal. 
 
 LIGHT AND PHOTOGRAPHY 
 
 The history of fire as a light is both 
 picturesque and interesting. It is 
 thought to have been first utilized in 
 volcanic districts, where sticks of wood 
 can sometimes be ignited by thrusting 
 them into subterranean cavitfes. The 
 theory has also been advanced that 
 primitive man came into possession 
 through the agency of the electric. 
 storm, when trees might have been set 
 on fire by lightning strokes. Or, as 
 it is known that trees are sometimes 
 fired by friction of dry branches, it is 
 not impossible that prehistoric man be- 
 came acquainted with the fierce element 
 in that way. But by whatever means he 
 did become familiar with fire — and it 
 may have been any or all of these phe- 
 nomena — the astute savage recognized 
 its usefulness and the necessity for its 
 preservation, and, at a presumably later 
 age, discovered that he could produce 
 it himself by friction. 
 
GEOGRAPHY AND ACHIEVEMENTS— LIGHT AND PHOTOGRAPHY 515 
 
 This iMiniitive custom, descending to 
 civilized peoples, in time evolved into 
 tlie more convenient tlint and steel pro- 
 cess, which probably did not originate 
 until after iron was made. Thus the 
 method of fire-getting by the rubbing 
 of one substance on another continued 
 in use from the days of prehistoric 
 man, through all the ages of barbarism 
 and civilization until early in the Nine- 
 teenth Century, with practically no im- 
 provement in all that period. 
 
 And then a great discovery was 
 made. In April, 1827, John \Valker, 
 a chemist and druggist of Stockton-on- 
 Tees, invented a fire-getting implement 
 which consisted of a splint of wood 
 tipped with a solution of chlorate of 
 potash, sulphur, starch and gum, which 
 ignited by friction on sandpaper or 
 glass, and to which he gave the name of 
 congreve, in honor of Sir William Con- 
 greve, inventor of the rocket. Another 
 chemical discovery at the beginning of 
 the last century gave further impetus to 
 such an invention and ultimately led 
 to the match as we know it to-day. The 
 chemist Berthollet accidently discov- 
 ered what he termed the "principle of 
 the oxidation of combustible bodies by 
 chlorates in the presence of strong 
 acids." Chancel, in 1805, made prac- 
 tical application of Berthollet's discov- 
 ery and produced his so-called "oxy- 
 mariate" matches. These consisted of 
 strips of wood dipped in a mi.xture of 
 chlorate of potash, sugar and gum, and 
 were ignited by contact with sulphuric 
 acid. As early as 1780 there had been 
 in use an "electro-pneumatic fire pro- 
 ducer," in which a jet of hydrogen was 
 lighted by an electric spark. The Do- 
 bereiner "platinum lamp" came into ex- 
 istence in 1823. In this hydrogen gas 
 was ignited by contact with spongy plat- 
 inum. During the use of the platinum 
 lamp there had also appeared in parts 
 of Prussia a device consisting of a 
 small glass tube, containing equal parts 
 of phosphorus and sulphur carefully 
 mixed together. Splints of wood were 
 thrust into this, and the friction caused 
 ignition. 
 
 John Walker's invention, modeled af- 
 ter the idea advanced by Berthollet, 
 
 was, however, the real precursor of our 
 present day match, and even that had 
 to be greatly improved upon before it 
 was rendered practical or satisfactory. 
 The Walker match contained no phos- 
 phorus, the absence of which was re- 
 sponsible for its not being a success 
 commercially. In 1833 wooden fric- 
 tion matches containing phosphorus 
 were manufactured in \'ienna, Darm- 
 stadt and other European cities, and the 
 use of the new implement spread ra- 
 pidly. On October 24, 1836, A. D. 
 Phillips, of Springfield, Mass., took out 
 the first patent in the United States for 
 a phosphorus match, the igniting com- 
 position being a mixture of sulphur. 
 By this time the people commenced to 
 gain sufficient confidence in the innova- 
 tion to throw away their ill-smelling 
 and clumsy old tinder boxes, and 
 matches came into use all over the civ- 
 ilized world. Lundstrom, of Jonkop- 
 ing, Sweden, invented the first safety 
 match in 1855. His process consisted 
 in putting the oxiding mixture on the 
 splint and what is known as red phos- 
 phorus (a safe form of that chemical) 
 on the box. The new match was a 
 great improvement on the original, and 
 led to the discovery of other non-dan- 
 gerous igniting mi.xtures. The use of 
 the safety match was enforced by law 
 in various countries of Europe, and to 
 this day the use of Swedish safety 
 matches only is allowed in Denmark 
 and Switzerland. In late years, how- 
 ever, by the enforcement of regulations 
 regarding ventilation, cleanliness, and 
 the impiegnation of the air of the fac- 
 tory with turpentine fumes, m-^tch- 
 making has been relieved of almost 
 every element of danger to its work- 
 ers, and the match itself is quite as 
 harmless as its cumbrous predecessor. 
 
 Rivaling in importance the improve- 
 ment in the process of fire-producing, 
 are the advances that have been made 
 in the methods for its utilization for il- 
 luminating purposes. From a tallow- 
 candle to an arc light is a far cry, and 
 yet less than a century ago even the 
 common oil lamp as we know it to-day 
 was unheard of. The nearest approach 
 to the modern kerosene lamp was a 
 
Si6 
 
 THE HOME AUXILIARY AND REFERENCE 
 
 rudely constructed vessel filled with 
 melted animal oil and enclosed in a 
 glass case, and which was really the or- 
 iginal prototype of our modern lantern. 
 What was called a lamp consisted of a 
 small earthenware cup and contained 
 melted animal fat or vegetable oil, into 
 which a wick was introduced. The 
 wealth and nobility of the world had no 
 better means of illumination than had 
 the simplest laborer. The gold and sil- 
 ver vessels in the palace were the ex- 
 act counterparts of the crude clay lamps 
 in the peasant's cottage. For out-of- 
 door lights torches were used almost 
 exclusively in the cities, and their mode 
 of preparation differed very little from 
 that employed in the middle ages. They 
 were made of the twigs of resinous 
 woods tied together in a bundle and 
 mounted on a tall sapling or post. For 
 all practical purposes the tallow candle 
 and the more elegant wax taper stood 
 paramount at the beginning of the 
 Nineteenth Century. It is almost im- 
 possible to realize that we have been 
 using lamp chimneys not quite one 
 hundred years, and that the Argand 
 burner, althought invented late in the 
 Eighteneth Century, was not sufficiently 
 improved and cheapened to come into 
 general use until 1830. While not so 
 glorious as the discovery of electric 
 light and of coal gas, the invention of 
 the Argand burner and the subsequent 
 application of the glass chimney as a 
 means of supplying a regular current 
 of air to the flame, marked a distinct 
 epoch in civilization. 
 
 So perfect has the common oil lamp 
 now become that with the use of the 
 cheap mineral oils, its light in many in- 
 stances rivals that of the gas jet or the 
 incandescent lamp. And yet these very 
 mineral oils, almost, as plentiful as 
 water to the present generation, were 
 practically unknown to the people of 
 the Eighteenth Century. 
 
 Next in importance to the improve- 
 ment of the oil lamp as a means of il- 
 lumination was the discovery and intro- 
 duction of coal gas, which belongs al- 
 most exclusively to the category of 
 Nineteenth Century achievements. Al- 
 though his first experiment took place 
 
 in 1792. it was not until 1802, on the 
 occasion of the celebration of the Peace 
 of Amiens, that Murdock, a Redmuth 
 engineer, made a public display of his 
 process of utilizing the gaseous pro- 
 ducts of coal for illumination. Though 
 Murdock was the first to put gas to a 
 practical use, he was not its original 
 discoverer. So far as can be learned, 
 that distinction beloags to a Dr. Clay- 
 ton, who, about a hundred years be- 
 fore, had conceived the idea of heating 
 coal in such a manner as to force out 
 and retain its gaseous constituents. He 
 left an interesting description of his 
 experiment, which he evidently con- 
 sidered more in the nature of a huge 
 joke than enything else. 
 
 And so it remained until Murdock's 
 time — a chemical wonder — a myste- 
 rious and evil-smelling "spirit." In 
 1807 a few gas lamps were placed in 
 the streets of London, but not until 
 18 1 3 did its use become at all general. 
 In that year Westminster Bridge was 
 illuminated with it, and then it came 
 rapidly into use, not only for lighting 
 private houses, but for dwellings and 
 public buildings. Like all innovations, 
 it met wih fierce opposition in every di- 
 rection. Peale, in his museum in the 
 State House at Philadelphia, had as 
 early as 1816 or 1817 produced a fine 
 illumination through the use of gas ob- 
 tained from a private plant belonging 
 to a man on Lombard Street, whose 
 dwelling was probably the first in 
 America to be lighted with gas. 
 
 The Council of Philadelphia, with 
 much misgiving, reluctantly granted an 
 ordinance for the use of gas. After 
 the victory in Philadelphia, the use of 
 gas spread rapidly all over the country, 
 with the result that now every great 
 coal region has its corresponding area 
 of coke ovens, or gas retorts. 
 
 The discovery of oil pools of fabu- 
 lous contents in America not only had 
 a great influence in bringing about bet- 
 ter illumination for the great middle 
 class, but it introduced a new kind of 
 fuel, which, for a time, appeared to be 
 inexhaustible. The same territory 
 which produces petroleum also abounds 
 in greater or less deposits of natural 
 
GEOGRAPDV AND ACHIEVEMENTS— LIGHT AND PHOTOGRAPHY 517 
 
 gas, which for a number of years now 
 has served the purpose of fuel to a 
 large part of the ]iopulation of the 
 L'nited States. 
 
 But the use of gas for heating pur- 
 poses is not restricted to the radius of 
 territory fortunate enough to produce 
 the natural element. The manufac- 
 tured product is fast taking the place 
 of coal all over the country, for cook- 
 ing purposes at least. It has been 
 proved to be the best and often the 
 most economical cooking powder in ex- 
 istence, as there is no waste to it as 
 with coal. With the development of 
 improved and inexpensive processes for 
 the manufacture of gas, who shall say 
 that the day may not come when the 
 coal fire will have entirely disappeared? 
 \\'ho knows but that a few generations 
 hence the use of the begriming mineral 
 as a fuel in its natural state will be as 
 archaic as would be to us the use of 
 the flint and steel ? 
 
 The story of the discovery of acety- 
 lene gas might be called one of the ro- 
 mances of science. The new illuminant 
 liad been known to chemists for years, 
 but the difficulty of its manufacture 
 prevented them from using it. In 1895 
 T. L. Wilson, of North Carolina, while 
 superintending the production of alu- 
 minum by the electric smelting process, 
 noticed a by-product of the operation, 
 the nature and character of which was 
 unknown to him. Upon throwing the 
 substance into a bucket of water a gas 
 was given off, whose chief character- 
 istic seemed to be its penetrating and 
 disagreeable odor. On applying a light 
 Mr. Wilson discovered that the gas 
 burned freely with a luminous flame. 
 A repetition of the experiment proved 
 I he unknown substance to be calcic car- 
 bide. It was found that a pound of 
 this calcic carbide would yield 5.3 cu- 
 bic feet of acetylene gas, and a com- 
 ])any was formed to manufacture the 
 gas on a large scale. From an economic 
 point of view this gas is of great value, 
 for it can be generated in a house as 
 needed, by a very simple apparatus. 
 Perhaps the most remarkable quality of 
 the gas is the fact that it can be liqui- 
 fied by pressure and put in cans that can 
 
 be tapped when the gas is needed. A 
 very simple device has been arranged 
 by which the pressure of the gas can 
 be regulated while changing from its 
 liquified condition, and then pass into 
 the various pipes. Acetylene is a most 
 powerful illuminant. It is dazzling in 
 the brightness and steadfastness of its 
 flame, and for this reason is much used 
 in the illumination of bicycles and car- 
 riages. It has been conjectured that it 
 may in time supplant coal gas in the 
 illumination of streets, thereby doing 
 away with gas piping, for it is said that 
 lamps can be made in such manner as 
 to generate the gas on the spot. It has 
 been proved that the acetylene can be 
 manufactured at one-third the present 
 cost of coal gas, and in view of this 
 fact it is entirely possible that if the 
 discovery proves as practical as 
 claimed, it will revolutionize tlie manu- 
 facture of gas. 
 
 The electric spark had been familiar 
 to the earlier experimenters with elec- 
 tricity, but not much more familiar than 
 it had been to the ancient philosophers. 
 But it remained for Sir Humphrey 
 Davy, the Cornish philosopher, to seize 
 the evanescent spark and make it burn 
 into a brilliant glow by passing it be- 
 tween two points of carbon. 
 
 Arc lamps constructed on the prin- 
 ciple discovered by Davy constitute the 
 most luminous artificial light of the 
 present time. Many ingenious lamps 
 have been invented, all embodying the 
 one original idea. Those devised by 
 Serrin, Siemens, Brockie and Duboscq 
 are probably the best known. Some of 
 them regulate the arc by clockwork and 
 electro-magnetism, and others by ther- 
 mal effects of the electric current. 
 They are used principally for out-of- 
 door illumination, for large areas, 
 streets, railway stations and lighthouses. 
 In the latter instance the arc is placed 
 exactly in the focus of the condensing 
 lenses of a parabolic mirror, which pro- 
 jects the rays all in any one direction, 
 the beam being visible for thirty miles 
 on clear nights. Specially constructed 
 arc lights, equivalent to hundred of 
 thousands of candles, can cast a beam 
 
Si8 
 
 THE HOME AUXILIARY AND REFERENCE 
 
 of light a distance of one hundred and 
 fifty miles. 
 
 In 1880 Thomas Edison constructed 
 an incandescent lamp of commercial 
 value that has now reached a state of 
 apparent perfection. 
 
 Since electric light has proved to be 
 so great a success, electric heating for 
 all purposes bids fair to soon become 
 fully as important as electric illumina- 
 tion. The electric arc is now applied 
 freely in the iron and steel industries 
 for the welding of boiler plates, wires, 
 rails and indeed all kinds of metal 
 work. It is also used with great suc- 
 cess in the heating of railroad trains, 
 carriages and dwelling houses. Cook- 
 ing by electricity is coming more and, 
 more into favor. Kitchen ranges, en- 
 tirely heated by the electric current, are 
 used in many of the best hotels and 
 line dwellings of the country. There 
 have also been invented a number of 
 cooking utensils equipped individually 
 with batteries for the generation of the 
 electric current. The principle on 
 which all such articles are based is that 
 of incandescence, the current flowing 
 through a network of fine wires of plat- 
 inum covered with fire-proof insulating 
 cement at its bottom. The electric rad- 
 iator is constructed pretty much after 
 the fashion of the steam radiator, 
 which it resembles in appearance, the 
 heat from a strong current being dif- 
 fused over an area of highly resisting 
 metal. The devices for the utilization 
 of electric heat that have been patented 
 in the past few years are unique and 
 numerous. It is now possible to have 
 bed clothing heated to any degree and 
 a constant temperature maintained, by 
 means of a fine wire network enclosed 
 between the quilts and connecting with 
 an electric current. 
 
 One of the most curious properties 
 of light is its ability to trace images un- 
 der certain conditions, called photog- 
 raphy. 
 
 From the early history of photog- 
 raphy it would appear that it was the 
 amusement of all the great philosoph- 
 ers, and it remained for M. Xiepce, a 
 French scientist, to continue with so 
 much success that he is justly entitled 
 
 to the honor pf making the most sug- 
 gestive developments in connection with 
 the discovery of photography. From 
 1801 until the end of his life, Xiepce 
 devoted himself to his idea of heliog- 
 raphy (from helios, the sun). Niepce 
 discovered that asphalt will become sol- 
 uble in certain oils. Rli.xing the asphalt 
 with oil of lavender, he poured the sol- 
 ution over a metal plate, allowing it to 
 dry and form a film. When placed 
 where the image of the camera obscura 
 fell upon it, the result was that the 
 asphalt remained soluble where the 
 shadows had fallen, but became insol- 
 uble where the light had struck the film. 
 By several hours exposure in the cam- 
 era, and a subsequent application of 
 essential oils, Niepce secured a helio- 
 giaph traced upon the metal plate in 
 lines of asphalt. 
 
 The name that is most familiar in the 
 history of early photograhpy is that of 
 Louis Jacques Daguerre, to whom for 
 many years was accorded the chief 
 honor of the invention of photography. 
 The discovery of the daguerreotype 
 was purely accidental. Several plates 
 that had been under-exposed were 
 placed in a dark room in which were 
 various chemicals. The plates were 
 thought to be useless, as no images had 
 ai)peared. Some time afterwards, in 
 searching for something else, Daguerre 
 discovered the discarded plates, and, 
 to his ' amazement, there was a 
 picture on each one of them. He 
 accounted for the phenomenon only 
 by the fact that the plates must have 
 been exposed to the action of some 
 chemical lying in pro.ximity to the 
 plates. Removing the chemicals one by 
 one, he discovered that the secret of the 
 art was concealed in a vessel of mer- 
 cury, which evaporates at an ordinary 
 temperature. This incident occurred 
 some years subsequent to Niepce's 
 death, and according to the term of the 
 agreement he made with Daguerre, his 
 name would also have been attached to 
 the discovery, had it not been that after 
 Niepce's death his son relinquished this 
 right for material considerations. 
 
 Thus far photography had only been 
 employed upon metal. Henry Fo.x- 
 
GEOGRAPHY AND ACHIEVEMENTS— LIGHT AND PHOTOGRAPHY 519 
 
 Talbot, after years of faithful experi- 
 ment, solved the problem of "fixing" a 
 photograph on sensitized paper. In the 
 year 1850, the collodion-film on glass 
 was perfected and came into use as 
 a sensitizing material. This method 
 produced as beautiful a likeness as the 
 daguerreotype itself and at much less 
 cost. Shortly afterward positives 
 were printed from the transparent neg- 
 atives on properly prepared paper, and 
 thus the process now in use was in- 
 itiated. There have been endless mod- 
 ifications and improvements upon the 
 original method, mainly to the end of 
 increasing the sensitiveness of the 
 plates so that quickly moving objects 
 could be photographed with lifelike ac- 
 curacy. 
 
 It has long been the dream of pho- 
 tographers to discover some method by 
 which they could produce photographs 
 in all the colors of nature. Thus far 
 the process has not been perfected, but 
 the developments of the past few years 
 are extremely encouraging. 
 
 It would be difficult to name a branch 
 of industry or science which has not 
 been benefited by photography. The 
 applications to which it has been put are 
 quite as marvelous as the art itself. 
 Late in the year 1895 a great sensation 
 was caused throughout the civilized 
 world by the announcement that a Ger- 
 man scientist, Professor Roentgen, of 
 Wiirzburg, had succeeded in photog- 
 raphing the bones of the hand through 
 its covering of flesh by the agency of 
 rays known as X-rays proceeding from 
 a spherical glass tube. The instrument 
 by which the New Photography was 
 first observed is known to scientists as 
 the Crookes' tube, so called from the 
 fact of its first experiment in England 
 being made by Professor Crookes. 
 
 Scarcely less of a surprise than the 
 X-rays to the world was the develop- 
 ment of photography in the form of the 
 Cinematograph, the Kinetoscope, the 
 Theatrograph, etc.. all of which might 
 be properly termed "animated photog- 
 raphy." The first patentee of this in- 
 teresting application of the photog- 
 raphers' art was W. Friese-Greene, 
 who invented a camera in 1889 for the 
 
 rapid taking of consecutive photo- 
 graphic views ; combined with the 
 camera was an optical lantern which 
 threw the images of the camera upon 
 a screen, and by means of a handle the 
 successive pictures were moved so ra- 
 pidly as to give the appearance of life. 
 The idea was not exactly new. It had 
 been experimented with before by both 
 Marey and JNIuybridge, and was known 
 as the zootrope or the wheel-of-life. 
 But Friese-Greene was the first to con- 
 struct a machine for popular purposes. 
 About the same time that Friese-Greene 
 was taking out his patent Edison came 
 forth with his Kinetoscope, con- 
 structed on the same principle. The 
 Kinetoscope was soon followed by the 
 Cinematograph and various other in- 
 ventions, all embodying the same idea, 
 and designed for the same purpose — 
 that of amusement. These apparati 
 have since become so perfected that 
 they can present a moving scene with 
 almost lifelike fidelity. 
 
 The application of photography to the 
 printing industry has been in incalcul- 
 able value to civilization, in that it has 
 had a tendency to materially decrease 
 the price of books and engravings. 
 These applications have been many, but 
 the chief one is the process of photo- 
 block printing, invented by Walter B. 
 Woodbury in 1866, which he followed 
 up a few years later with the stanno- 
 type. By these inventions photo-en- 
 graving has become one of the fine arts. 
 The sy.stem of letter press printing, by 
 which an author's own manuscript may 
 be printed from in his own chirog- 
 raphy, is another application of the art 
 of photography which is as marvelous 
 as the Kinetoscope or the X-rays. This 
 process is the invention of Mr. Friese- 
 Greene, and was suggested to him while 
 experimenting with another invention. 
 
 MOUND BUILDERS AND CLIFF 
 DWELLERS 
 
 The Mound Builders are supposed 
 to have lived over two thousand years 
 ago, but, to-day, their earthworks still 
 exist in large numbers in the river val- 
 leys and plain which they inhabited. In 
 
520 
 
 THE HOME AUXILIARY AND REFERENCE 
 
 Ohio alone there are nearly ten thou- 
 sand artificially constructed mounds, 
 and in the neighborhood of Trempea- 
 leau, Wisconsin, almost two thousand. 
 But the mounds are not confined to a 
 few states, being found in almost every 
 section of the Union, and in Mexico. 
 They are rarer in British America. 
 They vary vastly in size and shape. 
 Many of them exhibit mathematical 
 regularity, being built in geometrical 
 figures, others are shaped to resemble 
 animals, including man. The "Ser- 
 pent Mound" in Ohio is gigantic, being 
 more than one thousand feet long, and 
 is regarded by archaeologists as the most 
 remarkable of all the structures built 
 by this singular people. Through the 
 efforts of F. W. Putnam, the eminent 
 archaeologist, the Serpent Mound was 
 purchased by the American Associa- 
 tion for the Advancement of Science 
 and presented to the Peabody Museum 
 of Harvard University. Soon after- 
 wards, the trustees of the museum 
 made the additional purchase of sev- 
 enty acres of land immediately sur- 
 rounding the mound, and the whole was 
 laid out as a public park. The ser- 
 pent measures 1,254 feet in length from 
 the tip of the upper jaw to the end of 
 the tail. The jaws are open as if to 
 swallow the oval commonly known as 
 the egg. Viewed as a whole, it ap- 
 pears as though the huge python were 
 creeping forward to seize the oval, 
 which gives it a wierd lifelike appear- 
 ance. Such structures as the Serpent 
 Mound are called "effigy mounds." 
 Many curious "effigy mounds" have 
 been discovered, some of them repre- 
 seenting men, panthers, wild cats, liz- 
 ards, raccoons, tortoises, spiders, and 
 squirrels. 
 
 Many of the earthworks of the 
 Mound Builders are breastworks and 
 fortresses, and it has been found that 
 their builders, who lived so long ago, 
 were .skilful enough to erect defence 
 walls, redoubts and other fortifications, 
 choosing their sites with the acumen 
 of trained engineers. Archaeologists 
 have lately discovered that their fortifi- 
 cations are connected by deep trenches 
 and admirably constructed secret pas- 
 
 sages. Some of the high mounds built 
 on hill tops were evidently used as ob- 
 servation posts from which to signal or 
 to spy on the movements of enemies. 
 E.xcavation and exploration are reveal- 
 ing more and more about these inter- 
 esting people, but, in spite of the nu- 
 merous relics unearthed from their 
 mounds and the patient investigations 
 of archaeologists, many of their secrets 
 seem to be lost forever. 
 
 The wonderful structures of Colo- 
 rado, Arizona, New Mexico and tJtah, 
 known as the cliff-dwellings, are still 
 a puzzle to archceologists. Why did 
 these prehistoric people build so high ? 
 Science has no better answer than that 
 they builded because they found the 
 caverns in which to build. However, 
 this answer seems insufficient, since the 
 Pueblos, who seem to be descended 
 from them, are much nearer the level 
 of the ordinary habitations of men. 
 Traditions in all tribes from Oregon to 
 Mexico agree in the story of a great 
 flood, ages and ages ago, which but few 
 escaped, and the question arises whe- 
 ther the Cliff Dwellers, like the build- 
 ers of the Tower of Babel, may not 
 have intended to build so high as to 
 avoid such danger in future. 
 
 These singular habitations are found 
 within an area of three hundred miles 
 square in the steep cliffs which border 
 the canyons of that region. The rock 
 of the cliffs runs in layers with ledges 
 and galleries varying from a few feet 
 in extent to a thousand and fifty feet 
 wide. On these ledges the Cliff' Dwel- 
 lers erected their homes. The houses 
 vary much, as do human dwellings 
 everywhere, some being small adobe 
 structures like huge swallows' nests, 
 other substantial stone houses with 
 three or four stories, though the sto- 
 ries are rarely more than six feet in 
 height, others yet show the ruins of 
 towers. The stone edifices are built of 
 blocks of stone cut into regular shape 
 and held together by adobe cement. 
 The roofs are constructed of a layer of 
 pine or cedar poles crossed by another 
 of small sticks and covered with adobe 
 cement into Vv-hich vegetable fiber was 
 pressed. Six by eight to eight by ten 
 
GEOGRAPHV AND ACHIEVEMENTS— LIGHT AND PHOTOGRAPHY s-'i 
 
 was the usual size of the rooms. 
 
 Estimates place t'.^e period at which 
 the dwellings of the Cliff Dwellers 
 were abandoned at thousands of years 
 ago, but the relics found in their graves, 
 their dwellings, and refuse heaps show 
 them to have attained a degree of civil- 
 ization as high as that of the Moquis, 
 or even the Aztecs. The skulls show 
 fully average brain capacity. The 
 mummies prove that the men reached a 
 height of six feet, while some of the 
 women stood five feet, seven inches. 
 The skull of one woman has soft red- 
 dish-brown hair still adhering, which 
 is neither wiry like the Indian's nor 
 woolly like the negro's, but is as fine 
 and as straight as that of a Caucasian. 
 Among the relics of the Cliff Dwellers 
 are spear-heads, arrows and throwing- 
 sticks, basket work which equals any- 
 thing done by modern workmen and, 
 most wonderful of all, a robe of feath- 
 ers and fur in quaint pattern and color- 
 ing. Their wooden vessels were 
 painted with a resinous substance 
 which filled the pores of the wood and 
 hardened, rendering them waterproof. 
 In the grave of one woman were found 
 several bracelets of turquoise beads and 
 a small pouch of skin containing 
 yucca fiber with two finely pointed 
 prickers. Their bone needles and 
 spoons show clever workmanship, and 
 their pottery closely resembled that of 
 the Pueblo Indians of New Mexico. 
 
 From their eyrie-like adobes the Cliff 
 Dwellers are supposed to have de- 
 scended after their number became 
 much greater. Then were built the 
 rounded towns on plains or table lands. 
 To them were applied the ancient ar- 
 chitecture of their forefathers. High, 
 perpendicular walls, artificially con- 
 structed, took the place of the sheer 
 walls of the canyons, and from them 
 houses were built, descending in ter- 
 raced stories exactly as houses had been 
 built from the natural walls of canyons. 
 
 All the dwellings faced the open court. 
 Thus the court took the place of the 
 canyon which the ancient dwellings 
 overlooked. Not only were the main 
 features of the cliff-dwellings trans- 
 ferred to the rounded towns of the 
 plains, but inconspicuous details which 
 had been admirably suited to the ex- 
 igencies of the cliffs were exactly 
 copied on the plains with no apparent 
 reason except the prompting of long 
 usage. 
 
 The great difference in the houses of 
 the Cliff Dwellers gives rise to the be- 
 lief that there were two distinct races 
 of these peoples. Frank Hamilton 
 Cushing, who has lived among the Zuni 
 Indians for years, says that the "cave 
 dwellings," usually further down on the 
 cliffs, are of an older type than the 
 "cliff-dwellings." The "cliff-dwellings" 
 are rounded, while the "cave-dwellings" 
 are rectangular. The Zuni Indians are 
 supposed to be descended from a union 
 of the two kinds of Cliff Dwellers who 
 came together after they had built their 
 towns on the plains. This is attested 
 by the fact that the Zunis have among 
 their wealth of legends one in which is 
 told of the coming together of the 
 "People of the jNIidmost" and the 
 "Dwellers-in-the-towns-builded-round." 
 Gradually the building customs of the 
 "People of the Midmost" who builded 
 "square" superceded the customs of the 
 people who builded "round." So. when 
 the white man came to America, he 
 found the Zunis dwelling in square 
 towns, and only ruins bore witness to 
 the round ones. 
 
 The Zunis are particularly interest- 
 ing to study, being more like the ar- 
 chaic peoples of America than any other 
 of the Indians, even among the 
 Pueblos. Although more highly de- 
 veloped in many ways than any of the 
 aborigines, they retain many of the 
 ancient myths and customs of their 
 ancestors. 
 
CIVIL GOVERNMENT 
 
 THE NATIONAL CONSTITUTION' 
 
 Objects. 
 We the People of the United States, ' in 
 order to form a more perfect Union ,estab- 
 hsh justice, insure domestic Tranquility, 
 provide for the common defence, promote 
 Ihe general Welfare, and secure the Bless- 
 ings of Liberty to ourselves and our Pos- 
 terity, ' do ordain and establish this Consti- 
 tution for the United States of America. 
 
 ARTICLE I 
 
 Legislative Powers. 
 
 Section i. All legislative Powers herein 
 
 granted shall be vested in a Congress of the 
 
 United States, which shall consiste of a 
 
 Senate and House of Representatives.* 
 
 House of Rcfrcsciitativcs. 
 Sfxtion 2. The House of Representatives 
 shall be composed of Members chosen every 
 second Year by the People of the several 
 States, and the Electors in each State shall 
 have the Qualifications requisite for Electors 
 of the most numerous Branch of the State 
 Legislature. ° 
 
 Qualifications of Rcj'rcscntativcs. 
 
 No Person shall be a Representative who 
 shall not have attained to the Age of twenty- 
 five Years, and been seven Years a Citizen 
 of the United States, and who shall not, 
 when elected, be an Inhabitant of that State 
 in which he shall be chosen. " 
 
 Apporlionincnt of Representatives. 
 
 Representatives and direct Taxes shall be 
 apportioned among the several States which 
 may be included within this Union, accord- 
 ing to their respective Numbers, which shall 
 be determined by adding to the whole Num- 
 ber of free Persons, including those bound to 
 Service for a term of Years, and excluding In- 
 dians not taxed, three-fifths of all other 
 Persons. ' The actual Enumeration shall be 
 made within three Years after the first Meet- 
 ing of the Congress of the United States, 
 and within every subsequent Term of ten 
 Years, in such Manner as they shall by Law 
 direct. The Number of Representatives shall 
 not exceed one for every thirty Thousand: 
 
 ' 111 1853, the writer made a very careful copy 
 of the Constitution of the United States, from the 
 original in the State Department at Washington 
 City, together with the autographs of the members 
 of the Convention who signed it. In orthography, 
 capital letters, and punctuation, the copy here given 
 may be relied upon as correct, it having been sub- 
 'leq'uently carefully compared with a copy published 
 by Mr. Hickey, in his useful little volume, entitled 
 Tlie Constitution of the United States of .4merica. 
 etc., and attested, on the 20th of July, 1846, by 
 Nicholas P. Trist, Chief Clerk of the State De- 
 partment. 
 
 - Previous to the Revolution, there were three 
 forms of government in the Colonies, namely. Cliar- 
 tcr. Proprietary, and Provincial. The charter gov- 
 ernments were Massachusetts. Connecticut, and 
 Rhode Island. They had power to make laws not 
 inconsistent with those of England. The proprietary 
 governments were Maryland. Pennsylvania, and 
 Delaware. Their governors were appointed by their 
 lircprietdVs. and these and the proprietors usually 
 made the laws. The provincial were New Ha^mp■ 
 shire. New York. New Tersey, Virginia. North 
 Carolina. South Carolina, ajid Georgia. In these 
 the governor and his council were appointed by the 
 crown, and these, with chosen representatives of 
 the people, made the laws. 
 
 The Union is older than the Constitution. It 
 was formed in the first Continental Congress by the 
 representatives of thirteen separate but not in- 
 dependent nor sovereign provinces, for they had 
 ever been subject to the British crown. Then the 
 inhabitants of those colonies were solemnly leagued 
 as one people, and two years later they declared 
 themselves collectively independent of Great tJritain. 
 and recognized the supremacy of the Continental 
 Congreso as a central government. See Curtis's 
 History of tlie Constitution, i. 39. 40. The plan of 
 
 independent State governments then adopted hav- 
 ing failed, a national one was formed, and the 
 framers of the Constitution, to give emphasis to the 
 fact, said in the preamble of the instrument, "We 
 the people of the United States." instead of "We 
 the people of Massachusetts, New York." etcetera. 
 So argued the Supreme Court. See ll'heaton's S. 
 C. Reports, i. 304. 
 
 ^ Six objects, it is seen, were to be obtained, each 
 hyving a national breadth of purpose. 
 
 ♦ The members of the House of Representatives 
 are elected to seats therein for two years and they 
 hold two regular sessions or sittings during that 
 time. Each full term is called a Congress. Sena- 
 tors are elected by the State legislatures, to serve 
 for six years. 
 
 ® There is a Senate and House of Representatives, 
 or Assembly, in each State. .\ny person qualified 
 t'l vote for a member of his State .\ssembly. mav 
 vote for a member of the National House of Repre- 
 sentatives. 
 
 ® .-\ person born in a foreign country, may be 
 elected a representative after he has been for seven 
 years a citizen of the United States. 
 
 ' It has been decided that this does not restrict 
 the power of imposing direct taxes, to States only. 
 The Congress of the United States has power to do 
 so, but only for the purpose of paying the national 
 debts and providing for the national welfare. See 
 Kent's Commentaries on the Constitution, abridged 
 edition, page 330. Direct taxes had been laid three 
 times by the National Congress, previous to the 
 Great Civil War that broke out in 1S61. namely, in 
 1798, 1S13, and 1815. The "other persons" here 
 mentioned were slaves. In making the apportion- 
 ment, every five slaves were accounted three per- 
 sons. The Thirteenth .-\mendment of the Constitu- 
 tion renders this sentence a doad letter. 
 
CIVIL GOVERNMENT— THE NATIONAL CONSTITUTION 
 
 52J 
 
 but each State shall have at Least one 
 Representative ; and until such enumera- 
 tion shall be made, the State of New 
 Hampshire shall be entitled to choose three. 
 Massachusetts eight, Rhode Island and 
 Providence Plantations one, Connecticut 
 five, Delaware one, Maryland six, Vir- 
 ginia ten. North Carolina five. South Caro- 
 lina five, and Georgia three. ' 
 
 Vacancies, How Filled. 
 
 When vacancies happen in the Representa- 
 tion from any State, the Executive Authority 
 thereof shall issue Writs of Election to fill 
 such V'acancies. 
 
 Speaker, How Affointed. 
 
 The House of Representatives shall choose 
 their Speaker and other Officers ; and shall 
 have the sole Powder of Impeachment. 
 
 Number of Senators From Each Slate. 
 
 Section 3. The Senate of the United 
 States shall be composed of two Senators 
 from each State, chosen by the Legislature 
 thereof, for six Years; and each Senator 
 shall have one Vote. * 
 
 Classification of Senators. 
 
 Immediately after they shall be assembled 
 in Consequence of the first election, they 
 shall be divided as equally as mav be into 
 three Classes. The Seats of the Senators of 
 the first Class shall be vacated at the Ex- 
 piration of the Second Year, of the second 
 Class at the Expiration of the fourth Year, 
 and of the third Class at the Expiration of 
 the sixth Year, so that one-third may be 
 chosen every second year ; '° and if Vacan- 
 cies happen by Resignation or otherwise, 
 during the Recess of the Legislature of any 
 State, the Executive thereof may make tem- 
 porary Appointments until the next Meet- 
 ing of the Legislature, which shall then fill 
 such Vacancies. 
 
 Qualification of Senators. 
 
 No person shall be a Senator who shall 
 not have attained to the age of thirty Years, 
 and been nine Years a Citizen of the Unitetl 
 States, " and who shall not, when elected, 
 be an inhabitant of that State for which he 
 shall be chosen. 
 
 Presiding Officer of tlic Senate. 
 
 The Vice-President of the United States 
 shall be President of the Senate, but shall 
 have no vote, unless they be equally 
 divided. '" 
 
 The Senate shall chose their other Offi- 
 cers, " and also a President pro tempore, in 
 the absence of the Vice-President, or when 
 he shall exercise the Ofiice of President of 
 the United States. 
 
 Senate a Court For Trial of 
 Impeachments. 
 
 The Senate shall have the sole Power to 
 try all Impeachments : " When sitting for 
 that Purpose, they shall be on Oath, or Af- 
 firmation. When the President of the 
 Lhiited States is tried, the Chief-Justice shall 
 preside : and no Person shall be convicted 
 without the Concurrence of two tliirds of the 
 Members present. 
 
 Judgment in Case of Conviction. 
 
 Judgment in Cases of Impeachment shall 
 not extend further than to removal from 
 Office, and Disqualification to hold and en- 
 joy any Office of Honor, Trust, or Profit 
 under the United States: but the party con- 
 victed shall nevertheless be liable and sub- 
 ject to Indictment. Trial. Judgment, and 
 Punishment, according to Law. '" 
 
 Flections of Senators and Representatives. 
 
 Section 4. The Times, Places, and Man- 
 ner of holding Elections for Senators and 
 Representatives, shall be prescribed in each 
 State by the Legislature thereof ; but the 
 Congress may at any time by Law make or 
 alter such Regulations, except as to the 
 places of choosing Senators. '° 
 
 ** The apportionment is made as 
 able after each enumeration of th 
 completed. The ratio based on the 
 was one Representative for every 33 
 The ratio according to the census of i 
 
 as practic- 
 habitants is 
 of .790, 
 persons, 
 was one 
 
 ery 137, < 
 
 per 
 
 " This gives perfect equality to the States, in one 
 portion of the legislature branch of the Govern- 
 ment. The small States of Rhode Island and Dela- 
 ware have as much power in the National Senate as 
 the large ones of New York and Ohio. 
 
 "This is a wise provision. It leaves representa- 
 tives of the people in that branch, at all times, 
 familiar with the legislation thereof, and therefore 
 more efficient than if an entirely new delegation 
 should be chosen at the end of six years. 
 
 "i' This was to allow a foreign-born citizen to 
 make himself familiar with our institutions, before 
 he should be eligible to a seat in that highest legis- 
 lative hall. 
 
 '2 He is not a representative of any State. By 
 this arrangement, the equality of the States is pre- 
 served. 
 
 '^ Secretary, clerk, sergeant-at-arms. door-keeper, 
 and postmaster. 
 
 '■^ The House of Representatives, it will be ob- 
 served, accuse the alleged offender, and the Senate- 
 constitutes the court wherein he is tried. 
 
 '^This was a modification of the British Consti 
 tution, giving exclusive jurisdiction to the National 
 Judiciary. In Great Britain, the House of Com 
 mons accuses, and the House of Lords fanswering 
 to our SenateJ tries the otfender. The latter i^ 
 also invested with power to punish in every form 
 known to the laws, bv ordering the infliction of 
 fines, imprisonments, forfeiture of goods, banish 
 ment, and death. 
 
 '" This provision was to prevent the mischief 
 that might arise at a time of intense party ex 
 citement, when the very existence of the National 
 Congress might be at the mercy of the State 
 Legislatures. The place of choosing the Senators 
 is where the State Legislatures shall be in session 
 
524 
 
 THE HOME AUXILIARY AND REFERENCE 
 
 Meeting of Congress. 
 
 The Congress shall assemble at least once 
 in every Year, and such meeting shall be on 
 the first Monday in December, unless they 
 shall by Law appoint a different day. " 
 
 Orgcmization of Congress. 
 
 StCTioN 5. Each House shall be the Judge 
 of the Elections, Returns, and Qualifications 
 of it own Members, and a Majority of each 
 shall constitute a quorum to do Business; 
 but a small Number may adjourn from day 
 to day, and may be authorized to compel the 
 Attendance of absent Members, in such man- 
 ner, and under such Penalties as each House 
 may provide. 
 
 Rules of Proceeding. 
 
 Each House may determine the Rules of 
 its Proceedings, punish its Members for dis- 
 orderly Behavior, and, with the Concur- 
 rence of two thirds, expel a Member. 
 
 Journal of Congress. 
 
 Each House shall keep a Journal of its 
 Proceedings, and from time to time publish 
 the same, " excepting such Parts as may in 
 their Judgment require Secrecy ; '° and the 
 Yeas and Nays of the Members of either 
 House on any question shall, at the Desire 
 of one fifth of those Present, be entered on 
 the Journal. "" 
 
 Adjournment of Congress. 
 
 Neither House, during the Session of Con- 
 gress, shall, without the Consent of the 
 other, adjourn for more than three days, nor 
 to any other Place than that in which the 
 two Houses shall be sitting. "' 
 
 Compensation and Privileges of Members. 
 
 Section 6. The Senators and Representa- 
 tives shall receive a Compensation for their 
 Services, to be ascertained by Law, and paid 
 out of the Treasury of the United States. "' 
 
 They shall in all cases, except Treason, 
 Felony, and Breach of the Peace, be privi- 
 leged from Arrest during their Attendance 
 at the Session of their respective Houses, 
 and in going to and returning from the 
 same ; and for any Speech or Debate in 
 either House, thej; shall not be questioned in 
 any other place. "" 
 
 Plurality of Omces Prohibited. 
 
 No Senator or Representative shall, dur- 
 ing the time for which he was elected, be 
 appointed to any civil Office under the Au- 
 thority of the United States, which shall 
 have been created, or the Emoluments 
 whereof shall have been increased during 
 such time ; and no Person holding any office 
 under the United States, shall be a Member 
 of either House during his Continuance in 
 office. "* 
 
 Bills. Hozc Originated. 
 
 Section 7. All Bills for raising Revenue 
 shall originate in the House of Representa- 
 tives: but the Senate may propose or concur 
 with .-Xmendments as on other Bills. -^^ 
 
 How Bills Become Laws. 
 
 Every Bill which shall have passed the 
 House of Representatives and the Senate, 
 shall, before it become a Law, be presented 
 to the President of the United States; if 
 he approve he shall sign it, but if not he 
 shall return it, with his Objections, to that 
 House in which it shall have originated, who 
 shall enter the Objections at large on their 
 Journal, and proceed to reconsider it. "° If, 
 after such Reconsideration, two thirds of 
 that House shall agree to pass the Bill, it 
 shall be sent, together with the Objections, 
 to the other House, by which it shall like- 
 wise be reconsidered, and if approved by 
 two thirds of that House, it shall become a 
 L;iw. But in all such Cases the Votes of 
 both Houses shall be determined by Yeas 
 and Nays, and the Names of the Persons 
 
 '' This secured an annual meeting of the National 
 Legislature beyond the control of State legislation. 
 The second, or last session of every Congress, ex- 
 pires at twelve o'clock at noon on the 4th of 
 March. 
 
 '^ The object is to preserve, for the use of the 
 sovereign people, and make public for their benefit, 
 every act of Congress. 
 
 "* There are occasions v.'hen the public good re- 
 quires secret legislation, and a withholding from 
 the people a knowledge of measures discussed aiul 
 adopted in Congress, as in a time of war, of in- 
 surrection, or of very important diplomatic ne- 
 gotiations. 
 
 -"The object of this is to make a permanent 
 record of the votes of members, so that the con- 
 stituents of each may know their action on im- 
 portant questions. It is a salutary regulation. 
 
 -"^ This is to prevent a majority, in either House, 
 from interrupting, for more than three days, the 
 legislation of Congress. 
 
 " Formerly the members were paid a certain 
 amount per day, with a specified amount for each 
 mile traveled in going to and returning from the 
 National capital. The present compensation is a 
 fixed sum for each Congress, with mileage. 
 
 ^ This was to prevent the interruption of their 
 duties, during the session of Congress, and to give 
 them perfect freedom of speech. 
 
 -^ This serves as a check to the increase of the 
 power of the executive over the legislative depart- 
 ment of the Government, by the means of ap- 
 pointment to office. It prevents wide-spread politi- 
 cal corruption. A person holding an office, when 
 elected to Congress, is compelled to resign it be- 
 fore he can take his seat. 
 
 -^ The members of the House of Representatives 
 are more immediately elected by the people, and 
 are supposed to better understand the wishes and 
 wants of their constituents, than those of the 
 Senate. The Senate, being the representative of 
 the equality of the States, stands as a check to 
 legislation that might impose too heavy taxation 
 on the smaller States. 
 
 -•^ This power is given to the President to arrest 
 hasty or unconstitutional legislation, and to operate 
 as a check on the encroachment on the rights and 
 powers of one department over another, by legis- 
 lation. It is not absolitte, as the context shows, 
 as it may be set aside by a vote of two-thirds of 
 the members of the Senate and House of Repre- 
 sentatives, who passed it. 
 
CIVIL GOVERNMENT— THE NATIONAL CONSTITUTION 
 
 525 
 
 voting for and against the Bill shall be en- 
 tered on the Journal of each House respec- 
 tively. If any Bill shall not be returned by 
 the President within ten Days (Sunday ex- 
 cepted) after it shall have been presented to 
 him, the Same shall be a Law, in like Man- 
 ner as if he had signed it, unless the Con- 
 gress by their Adjournment prevent its Re- 
 turn, in which Case it shall not be a Law. 
 
 Approval and Veto Powers of President. 
 
 Every Order, Resolution, or Vote to which 
 the Concurrence of the Senate and House of 
 Ivepresentatives may be necessary (except on 
 a question of adjournment), shall be pre- 
 sented to the President of the United States ; 
 and before the Same shall take Effect, shall 
 be approved by him, or being disapproved 
 by him, shall be repassed by two thirds of 
 the Senate and House of Representatives, 
 according to the Rules and Limitations pre- 
 scribed in the Case of a Bill. "' 
 
 Pozvcrs Invested in Congress. 
 
 Section 8. The Congress shall have 
 power — 
 
 To lay and collect Taxes, Duties, Imposts, 
 and Excises ; to pay the Debts and provide 
 for the common Defence and general Wel- 
 fare of the United States ; but all Duties. 
 Imposts, and Excises shall be uniform 
 throughout the Lhiited States;"^ 
 
 To borrow Money on the credit of the 
 L'nited States ; "" 
 
 To regulate Commerce with foreign Na- 
 tions, and among the several States, and with 
 the Indian tribes ; ™ 
 
 To establish an uniform Rule of Naturali- 
 zation, '" and uniform Laws on the subject of 
 Bankruptcies^^ throughout the United States; 
 
 To coin Money, regulate the Value thereof, 
 and of foreign Coin, and fix the Standard of 
 Weights and Measures ; ^' 
 
 To provide for the Punishment of counter- 
 feiting the Securities and current Coin of 
 the United States ; 
 
 To establish Post Offices and Post Roads ; 
 
 To promote the progress of Science and 
 useful Arts, by securing for limited Times 
 to Authors and Inventors the exclusive 
 Right to their respective Writings and Dis- 
 coveries ; " 
 
 To constitute Tribunals inferior to the 
 Supreme Court ; 
 
 To define and punish Piracies and Felonies 
 committed on the high Seas, and Offences 
 against the Law of Nations ; "^ 
 
 To declare War, grant Letters of Marque 
 and Reprisal, and make Rules concernriig 
 Captures on Land and Water ; 
 
 To raise and support Armies ; but no Ap- 
 propriation of Money to that use shall be 
 for a longer Term than two Years ; 
 
 To provide and maintain a Navy ; 
 
 To make Rules for the Government and 
 Regulation of the Land and Naval Forces; 
 
 To provide for the calling forth the 
 Militia to execute the Laws of the Union, 
 suppress Insurrections, and repel Invasions ; 
 
 To provide for organizing, arming, and 
 disciplining the Militia, and for governing 
 such Part of them as may be employed in 
 the Service of the United States — reserving 
 to the States respectively, the Appointment 
 of the Officers, and the Authority of training 
 the Militia according to the Discipline pre- 
 scribed by Congress ; ^ 
 
 -' This requirement is made that Congress may 
 not pass, with the name of order, resolution, or 
 vote, what, as a bill, the President has already 
 vcloed. as his method of returning a bill, with his 
 objections, is called. 
 
 =* The power of Congress to lay and collect 
 ditties, etc., for national purposes, extends to the 
 District of Columbia, and to the Territories of the 
 United States, as well as to the States; but Con- 
 gress is not bound to extend a direct tax to the 
 District and Territories. The stipulation that the 
 taxes, etc., shall be uniform throughout the United 
 States, is to prevent favors being shown to one 
 State or section of the Republic, and not to an- 
 other. 
 
 -® This was to enable the Government to provide 
 for its expenses at a time of domestic insurrection 
 or a foreign war, when the sources of revenue by 
 taxation and impost might be obstructed. 
 
 »This power was lacking, under the Articles of 
 Confederation. It is one of the most important 
 powers delegated by the people to their representa- 
 tives, for it involves national development and 
 inosperity. 
 
 =' The power of naturalization was possessed by 
 each State under the Confederation. There was 
 such want of uniformity of laws on the subject, 
 that confusion was already manifested, when the 
 people, by the Constitution, vested the power ex- 
 clusively in Congress, Thus a State is prohibited 
 fiom discouraging emigration, or casting hindrances 
 in the way of obtaining citizenship- By a decision 
 of the Attorney-General of the Republic, every 
 person born within its borders is entitled to the 
 rights of citizenship. It is a birthright. 
 
 '-' Since the adoption of the Constitution of the 
 United States, a State has authority to pass a 
 bankrupt law, provided such law does not impair 
 the obligations of contracts within the meaning of 
 the Constitution (Art. i., Sec.io), and provided 
 there be no act of Congress in force to establish 
 a uniform system of bankruptcy conflicting with 
 such law. 
 
 '•^ This was to insure uniformity in the metallic 
 currency of the Republic, and of weights and 
 measures, for the benefit of the people in commer- 
 cial operations. 
 
 ^* The first copy-right law was enacted in 1790, 
 on the petition of David Ramsay, the historian, 
 anfl others. .-X copy-right, or patent-right to an in- 
 vention is given for a specified time. A copy-riglit 
 is granted for twenty-eight years, and a renewal 
 for fourteen years. Patents are granted for seven- 
 teen years, without the right of extension. 
 
 ^•^ Congress has power to provide for the punish- 
 ment of offences committed by persons on board 
 of an American ship, wherever that ship may be. 
 
 ^ Clauses eleven to sixteen inclusive, define the 
 war powers of the Government, such as granting 
 licenses to privateers, raising and supporting armed 
 forces on land and sea, calling out the militia, 
 etc. See Article II of the .Amendments to this 
 Constitution. These powers, used by the hand of 
 an efficient and judicious Executive, are quite suffi- 
 cient. The President cannot exercise any of them, 
 until the power is given him by Congress, when he 
 is bound by his oath to take care that all the laws 
 shall be executed. 
 
526 
 
 THE HOME AUXILIARY AND REFERENCE 
 
 To exercise exclusive Legislation in all 
 Cases whatsoever, over such District (not 
 exceeding ten Miles square) as may, by 
 Session of particular States, and the Ac- 
 ceptance of Congress, become the Seat of the 
 Government of the United States, " and to 
 exercise like Authority over all Places pur- 
 chased by the Consent of the Legislature of 
 the State in which the Same shall be, for 
 the Erection of Forts, Magazines. Arsenals. 
 Dockyards, and other needful Buildings;— 
 And 
 
 To make all Laws which shall be necessary 
 and proper for carrying into Execution the 
 foregoing Powers, and all other Powers 
 vested bv this Constitution in the Govern- 
 ment of 'the United States, or in any De- 
 partment or Officer thereof. 
 
 Immigrants, How Admitted. 
 
 Section 9. The Migration or Importation 
 of such Persons as any of the States now ex- 
 isting shall think proper to admit, shall not 
 be prohibited bv the Congress prior to the 
 Year one thousand eight hundred and eight, 
 but a Tax or Duty may be imposed on such 
 Importation, not exceeding ten dollars for 
 each Person. ^ 
 
 Habeas Corpus. 
 
 The Privilege of the Writ of Habeas Cor- 
 pus^' shall not be suspended, unless when in 
 Cases of Rebellion or Invasion the public 
 Safety may require it. 
 
 Attainer. 
 
 No Bill of .-\ttainer " or ex post Facto law 
 shall be passed. " 
 
 Ta.res. 
 
 No Capitation, or other direct, Tax shall 
 be laid, unless in Proportion to the Census 
 or Enumeration herein before directed to be 
 taken. '" 
 
 No Tax or Duty shall be laid on articles 
 exported from any State. 
 
 Regulations Regarding Duties. 
 
 No Preference shall be given by any Regu- 
 lation of Commerce or Revenue to the Ports 
 of one State over those of another ; nor shall 
 vessels bound to, or from, one State, be 
 obliged to enter, clear, or pay Duties in an- 
 (,ther. " 
 
 Money, How Drawn. 
 
 No Money shall be drawn from the Treas- 
 ury, but in Consequence of .Appropriations 
 made by law ; and a regular Statement and 
 Account of the Receipts and Expenditures 
 of all public Money shall be published from 
 time to time. " 
 
 Titles of Nobility. 
 
 No Title of Nobility shall be granted by 
 the United States : And no Person holding 
 any Office of Profit or Trust under them, 
 shall, without the Consent of the Congress, 
 accept of any Present. Emolument, Office, or 
 Title, of any kind whatever, from any King, 
 Prince, or Foreign State. *^ 
 
 Section 10. No State shall enter into any 
 Treaty, Alliance, or Confederation ; grant 
 Letters of Marque and Reprisal ; coin 
 Money ; emit Bills of Credit ; make any 
 Thing but gold and silver Coin a Tender in 
 Payment of Debts; pass any Bill of Attainer, 
 ex post facto Law, or Law impairing the 
 Obligation of Contracts, or grant any Title 
 of Nobility. 
 
 No State shall, without the Consent of the 
 Congress, lay any Imposts or Duties on Im- 
 ports or Exports, except what may be abso- 
 lutely necessary for executing its inspec- 
 tion Laws : and the net Produce of all 
 Duties and Imposts, laid by any State on 
 Imports or Exports, shall be for the Use of 
 the Treasury of the United States; and all 
 such Laws shall be subject to the Revision 
 and Control of the Congress. 
 
 " Congress has authority to impose a direct tax 
 on the District of Columbia, in proportion to the 
 census directed by the Constitution to be taken. 
 
 =i» The object of this clause was to end the slave- 
 trade, or the importation of negroes from .■\frica. 
 to become slaves in the United States, after the 
 ist of January, iSo8. The Articles of Confedera- 
 ton allowed any State to continue the trafhc m- 
 definitcly, for the States were independent of each 
 other, and the organic law was silent on the sub- 
 ject. The importation of slaves after the beginning 
 of 1808 was prohibited under severe penalties by 
 the .'\ct of March 2, 1807. Acts on the subject 
 have since been passed by Congress from time to 
 time. That of 1820 declared the foreign slave- 
 trade to be piracy. In Tuly, 1862. Congress made 
 provisions for carrying into effect a treaty with 
 Great Britain for the suppression of the slave- 
 trade. .\ domestic slave-trade was kept up until 
 the beginning of the Civil War, in 1861. It was 
 Virginia's largest source of revenue. 
 
 " This is a writ for delivering a person from 
 false imprisonment, or for renioviug a person from 
 
 one court to another. The act of suspending the 
 privilege of the writ must be done by the Execu- 
 tive, in the cases specified, under the authority of 
 an Act of Congress. 
 
 ^'* .\ deprivation of power to inherit or transmit 
 property, a loss of civil rights, etc. 
 
 *^ Declaring an act criminal or penal, which was 
 innocent when committed. 
 
 *- This was to secure uniformity in taxes laid on 
 persons or on lands. 
 
 ^' To secure free trade between the States, that 
 one might not have an advantage over another, 
 was the object of these two clauses. 
 
 *' This gives to Congress the control of the money 
 belonging to the Republic, and places it beyond the 
 reach of the Kxecutive. 
 
 ^ This was to secure equality of rights and 
 privileges among the citizens, and to check the bad 
 effects of foreign influences in the form of aristo- 
 cratic distinctions. 
 
CIVIL GOVERNMENT— THK NATIONAL CONSTITUTION 
 
 S-27 
 
 Powers of Stati-s Defined. 
 
 No State shall, without the Consent of 
 Congress, lay any Duty of Tonnage, keep 
 Troops, or Ships-of-War in time of Peace, 
 enter into any Argument or Compact with 
 another State, or with a foreign Power, or 
 engage in War, unless actually invaded, or 
 in such imminent Danger as will not admit 
 of Delay." 
 
 ARTICLE II. 
 Executive Power, in ll'hoin Vested. 
 
 Section i. The Executive Power shall be 
 vested in a President of the United States of 
 America. He shall hold his Office during the 
 Term of four Years, " and together with 
 the Vice President, chosen for the same 
 Term, be elected, as follows : 
 
 Presidential Electors. 
 
 Each State shall appoint, in such Manner 
 as the Legislature thereof may direct, a 
 Number of Electors, equal to the whole 
 Number of Senators and Representatives to 
 which the State may be entitled in the Con- 
 gress : but no Senator or Representative, or 
 Person holding an Office of Trust or Profit 
 under the United States, shall be appointed 
 an Elector. 
 
 President and Vice-President, Hoiv Elected. 
 [The electors shall meet in their respective 
 States, and vote by ballot for two persons, ot 
 whom one at least shall not be an inhabitant 
 of the same State with themselves. And 
 they shall make a list of all the persons 
 voted for. and of the number of votes for 
 each ; which list they shall sign and certify, 
 and transmit sealed to the seat of the gov- 
 ernment of the United States, directed to the 
 President of the Senate. The President of 
 the Senate shall, in the presence of the 
 Senate and House of Representatives, open 
 all the certificates, and the votes shall then 
 be counted. The person having the greatest 
 number of votes shall be the President, if 
 such number be a majority of the whole 
 number of electors appointed; and if there be 
 more than one who have such majority, and 
 
 have an equal number of votes, then the 
 House of Representatives shall immediately 
 choose by ballot one of them for President ; 
 and if no person have a majority, then from 
 the five highest on the list the said House 
 shall in like manner choose the President. 
 But in choosing the President, the votes shall 
 be taken by States — the representative from 
 each State having one vote; a quorum for 
 this purpose shall consist of a member or 
 members from two thirds of the States, and 
 a majority of all the States shall be neces- 
 sar_v to a choice. In every case, after the 
 choice of the President, the person having 
 the greatest number of votes of the electors 
 shall be the Vice-President. But if there 
 should remain two or more who have equal 
 votes, the Senate shall choose from them by 
 ballot the Vice President. "] 
 
 Time of Choosing Electors. 
 
 The Congress may determine the Time of 
 choosing the Electors, and the Day on 
 which they shall give their Votes; which 
 Day shall be the same throughout the 
 United States.*" 
 
 Qualifications of the President. 
 
 No Person except a natural born Citizen, 
 or a Citizen of the United States at the 
 time of the Adoption of this Constitution, 
 shall be eligible to the Office of President; 
 neither shall any person be eligible to that 
 Office who shall not have attained to the 
 Age of thirty-five Years, and been fourteen 
 Years a Resident within the United States. 
 
 Resort in Case of His Disability. 
 
 In Case of the Removal of the President 
 from Office, or his Death, Resignation, or 
 Inability to discharge the Powers and 
 Duties of the said office, the same shall de- 
 volve on the Vice President, and the Con- 
 gress may by Law provide for the Case of 
 Removal, Death, Resignation or Inaljility, 
 both of the President and Vice President, 
 declaring what Officer shall then act as 
 President, and such officer shall act accord- 
 ingly, until the Disability be removed, or a 
 President shall be elected. " 
 
 "^ Uy this section the people of the several States 
 who, in conventions, ratified the National Consti- 
 tution, invested the General Government with the 
 supieme attributes of sovereignty exclusively, while 
 reserving to themselves, or their respective com- 
 monwealths, the powers peculiar to the municipal 
 authority of a State, which are essential to the 
 regulation of its internal affairs, and the preserva- 
 tion of its domestic institutions from interference 
 by another State, or by the National Government 
 in a time of domestic tranquillity. The National 
 Government is hereby empowered to act for the 
 people of the whole Republic as a nation. Having 
 no superior it is sovereign. See Story's Com- 
 mentaries on the Constitution. Chapter XXXV. 
 
 ■*^ The Executive is a co-ordinate but not coequal 
 branch of the Government with the legislative, 
 for he is the agent provided in the Constitution 
 for executing the laws of a superior, the Congress 
 or legislature. 
 
 "• This clause was afterward annulled, and Article 
 
 XII of the Amendments to this Constitution was 
 substituted for it. Originally the electors voted 
 by ballot, for two persons, one of whom, at least, 
 should not be an ir.habitant of the same State 
 with themselves. The one who received the high- 
 est number of votes was declared to be President, 
 and the one receiving the next highest number was 
 declared to be Vice-President. 
 
 ■'" See Amendments to the Constitution, Article 
 XII. By an Act passed in 184s (January ^3). the 
 electors must be chosen, in each State, on the 
 Tuesday next after the first Monday in the month 
 of November of the year in which they are to be 
 elected. In the preceding portion of this history, 
 when the election of a President is spoken of. it is 
 meant that electors favorable to such candidates 
 were chosen at that time. 
 
 =" Provision has been made for the President of 
 the Senate, for the time being, or if there shall be 
 no such officer, the Speaker of the House of Repre- 
 sentatives shall perform the executive functions. 
 
THE HOME AUXILIARY AND REFERENCE 
 
 Said I Y 0/ I he President. 
 
 The President shall, at stated Times, re- 
 ceive for his Services, a Compensation, which 
 shall neither be increased nor diminished 
 during the Period for which ht shall have 
 been elected, and he shall not receive within 
 that Period any other Emolument from the 
 United States, or any of them."' 
 
 Oath of OMcc. 
 
 Before he enter on the Execution of his 
 Office, he shall take the following Oath or 
 Affirmation : 
 
 "I do solemnly swear (or affirm) that I 
 will faithfully execute the Office of Presi- 
 dent of the United States, and will to the 
 best of my Ability, preserve, protect, and de- 
 fend the Constitution of the United States." 
 
 Duties of the President. 
 
 Sectiox 2. The President shall be the 
 Commander in chief of the Army and Navy 
 of the United States, and of the Militia of 
 the several States, when called into the actual 
 Service of the United States;'" he may re- 
 quire the Opinion, in writing, of the prin- 
 cipal Officer in each of the executive Depart- 
 ments, upon any Subject relating to the 
 Duties of their respective Offices, and he 
 shall have Power to grant Reprieves and 
 Pardons for Offences against the United 
 States, except in Cases of Impeachment. ^ 
 
 and by the Advice and Consent of the 
 Senate, shall appoint Ambassadors, other 
 public Ministers and Consuls, Judges of the 
 supreiue Court, and all other Officers of the 
 United States, whose appointments are not 
 herein hitherto provided for, and which shall 
 be established by Law ; " but the Congress 
 may by Law vest the Appointment of such 
 inferior Officers, as they think proper, in the 
 President alone, in the Courts of Law, or in 
 the Heads of Departments. 
 
 May Fill Vaeancies. 
 
 The President shall have the Power to fill 
 up all Vacancies that may happen during the 
 Recess of the Senate, by granting Cotnmis- 
 sions which shall expire at the End of their 
 next Session. '''" 
 
 Power to Convene Congress. 
 
 Section ,■;. He shall from time to time give 
 to the Congress Information of the State of 
 the Union, and recommend to their Consid- 
 eration such Measures as he shall judge 
 necessary and expedient;"* he may, on extra 
 ordinary Occasions, convene both Houses, or 
 either of them, " and in Case of Disagree- 
 ment between them, with Respect to the 
 Time of Adjournment, he may adjourn them 
 to such Time as he shall think proper ; he 
 shall receive Ambassadors and other public 
 Ministers :°* he shall take Care that the Laws 
 be faithfully executed, and shall Commission 
 all the officers of the United States. 
 
 His Power to Make Treaties. Apfoint 
 Embassadors, Judges, etc. 
 
 He shall have Power, by and with the 
 Advice and Consent of the Senate, to make 
 Treaties, provided two thirds of the Sena- 
 tors present concur ; and he shall nominate. 
 
 Hozv Officers May Be Removed. 
 
 Section 4. The President, Vice Presidert. 
 and all civil Officers of the United States, 
 shall be removed from Office on Impeach- 
 ment for, and Conviction of. Treason. Brib- 
 ery, or other high Crimes or Misdemeanors. 
 
 salary of the President was fixed 
 
 bv the 
 
 igress at $.>s,ooo a year, and that 
 
 of the 
 
 sident at $8,000. Now the salary 
 
 of tlie 
 
 5^ Tht 
 first Cc 
 
 Vice-President at $8.0 
 
 President is $50,000. and the Vice-President, $10- 
 000. The salary for each entire term was so fixed, 
 that the executive might be independent of the 
 legislative department for it. 
 
 ^- This was to insure unity and efficiency in 
 action, when foreign war or domestic insurrection 
 should call for the services of the army and navy. 
 His large powers as Executive are directed by 
 constitutional provisions. He is the arm of the 
 nation to execute its bidding. 
 
 ^ It is presumed that the Executive is above the 
 personal, local, or sectional influences that might 
 be brought to bear, in these cases, on the courts or 
 on legislative bodies. The Executive, according to 
 a decision of the Supreme Court, has power to 
 grant a pardon before trial or conviction. See 
 Brightley's Analytical Digest of the Laws of the 
 United States, page 7, note ie). 
 
 5* The President is presumed to be more fully 
 informed concerning the foreign relations of the 
 
 chments on 
 
 Republic, and the fitness of men for the highest 
 offices. The Senate represents the legislative de- 
 partment of the Government in treaty-making and 
 the appointment of high officers, am' ' 
 on the Eexecutive against any encn 
 the rights of Congress in the matter 
 
 •■^ This limitation to executive appointments i<; 
 to prevent the President from neutralizing the 
 action of the Senate as a co-ordinate power. 
 
 5s It is the practice of the President to submit 
 to Congress, at the opening of each session, a state- 
 ment of national affairs. This is called his Annual 
 Message. Washington and John Adams read their 
 messages in person to the assembled Congress. 
 Jefferson first sent his message to them by his 
 private secretary. That practice is still kept up. 
 
 ''^ The President, with his better information con- 
 cerning national affairs, can best judge when an 
 extraordinary session of Congress may be necessary. 
 
 ^ He may also refuse to receive them, and 
 thereby annul or prevent diplomatic relations be- 
 tween the United States and any country. 
 
CIVIL GOVERNMENT— THE NATIONAL CONSTITUTION 
 
 529 
 
 ARTICLE III. 
 Judicial Pozvcr, How Vested. 
 
 'Section i. The judicial Power of the 
 LTnited States, shall be vested in one supreme 
 Court, and in such .inferior Courts as the 
 Congress may from time to time ordain and 
 establish. The Judges both of the supreme 
 and inferior Courts, shall hold their Offices 
 during good Behavior, and shall, at stated 
 Times, receive for their Services, a Compen- 
 sation, which shall not be diminished during 
 their Continuance in Office. 
 
 To What Cases It Extends. 
 
 Section 2. The judicial Power shall ex- 
 tend to all Cases in Law and Equity, arising 
 under this Constitution, the Laws of the 
 L'nited States, and Treaties made, or which 
 shall be made, under their Authority; — to all 
 cases afifecting .Ambassadors, other public 
 Ministers and Consuls ; — to all Cases of ad- 
 miralty and maritime Jurisdiction ; to Con- 
 troversies to which the L^nited States shall 
 be a party ; to Controversies between two or 
 more States; — between a State and Citizens 
 of another State ; — between Citizens of differ- 
 ent States ;™ — between citizens of the same 
 State claiming Lands under Grants of differ- 
 ent States, and between a State, or the Citi- 
 zens thereof, and foreign States, Citizens or 
 Subjects. 
 
 Jurisdiction of the Suf'rcme Court. 
 
 In all Cases affecting .Embassadors, other 
 public Ministers and Consuls, and those in 
 which a State shall be a Party, the supreme 
 Court shall have original Jurisdiction. In all 
 the other Cases before mentioned, the su- 
 preme Court shall have appellate Jurisdiction, 
 
 both as to Law and Fact, with .-uch Excep- 
 tions, and under such Regulations as the 
 Congress shall make. 
 
 Rules Respecting Trials. 
 
 The Trial of all Crimes, except in Cases of 
 Impeachment, shall be by Jury ; and such 
 Trial shall be held in the State where the 
 said Crimes shall have been committed; but 
 when not committed within any State, the 
 trial shall be at such Place or Places as the 
 Congress may by Law have directed. " 
 
 Treason Defined. 
 
 Section 3. Treason against the United 
 States, shall consist only in levying War 
 against them, or in adhering to their Enemies, 
 giving them .\\d and Comfort. *' 
 
 No Person shall be convicted of Treason, 
 unless on the Testimony of two Witnesses 
 to the same overt Act, or on Confession in 
 open Court. 
 
 How Punished. 
 
 The Congress shall have Power to declare 
 the Punishment of Treason, but no .■\ttainer 
 of Treason shall work Corruption of Blood, 
 or Forfeiture except during the Life of the 
 Person attained. ^ 
 
 ARTICLE IV. 
 
 Rights of States Defined. 
 
 Section i. Full Faith and Credit shall be 
 given in each State to the public Acts. 
 Records, and judicial Proceedings of every 
 other State. " And the Congress may by 
 general Laws prescribe the Manner in which 
 such Acts, Records and Proceedings shall be 
 proved, and the Effect thereof. "' 
 
 ^* This section provides that the Supreme Court 
 shall be a co-ordinate branch of the National Gov- 
 ernment, yet independent of and distinct from both 
 the legislative and executive departments. The 
 pouers of the National Government, it will be seen, 
 are threefold, namely. It'aisializ-e. Judicial, and 
 i-.recutive. The tirst enacts laws, the second in- 
 terprets them, and the third enforces them. The 
 Supreme Court consists of one Chief Justice and 
 several .\ssociate Justices, who hold an annual ses- 
 sion at the national capital, commencing on the day 
 when Congress meets — first Wednesday in Decem- 
 ber. 
 
 «» .\ citizen of the District of Columbia is not a 
 citizen of a State, within the meaning of this 
 Constitution. The District is under the immediate 
 control of Congress, and has neither a legislature 
 or governor. 
 
 ^ See .Amendments to the Constitution, Articles 
 V, VI, VII. VIII. 
 
 ^ .-\t the trial of .Aaron Burr, Chief Justice Mar- 
 shall said: *..\ny combination to subvert by force 
 the Government of the United States; violently to 
 dismember the Union; to compel a change in the 
 
 administration, to coerce the repeal or adoption of 
 a general law. is a conspiracy to Ic-.'V -war. ,\nd if 
 conspiracy be carried into effect by the actual em 
 ployment of force, by the embodying and assembling 
 of men for the purpose of executing the treasonable 
 design which was previously conceived, it amounts 
 to levying war." 
 
 ^ The limit as to forfeiture applies only to the 
 real estate of the criminal, which, at his death, 
 must be restored to his heirs or assigns. The 
 dcwer right of his wife also remains untouched. 
 See Kent's Commentaries on .American Law. ii. 
 464. This is more humane than the English law of 
 treason. It does not punish the innocent wife and 
 children of a criminal on account of his crimes. 
 
 " .\ judgment of a State court has the same 
 credit, validity, and effect, in everv other court 
 within the United States, which it had in the court 
 where it was rendered; and whatever pleas would 
 be good to a suit thereon in such State, and none 
 others, can be pleaded in any other court within 
 the United States.— Hampton v. McConnell, 3 
 li heaton, 23^. 
 
 *^ On the 26th of May. 1790, Congress, by act, 
 gave effect to this section. 
 
THE HOME AUXILIARY AND REFERENCE 
 
 Privileges of Citizens. 
 
 Section 2. The Citizens of each State 
 shall be entitled to all Privileges and Im- 
 munities of Citizens in the several States."'' 
 
 Executive Requisition. 
 
 A person charged in any State with Trea- 
 son, Fclon\'. of other Crime, who shall flee 
 from Justice, and be found in another State, 
 shall on Demand of the executive authority 
 of the State from which he fled, be delivered 
 up, to be removed to the State having Juris- 
 diction of the Crime. " 
 
 Laiv Regulating Service or Labor. 
 
 No Person held to Service or Labor in 
 one State, under the Laws thereof escaping 
 to another, shall, in Consequence of any Law 
 or Regulation therein, be discharged from 
 such Service or Labor, but shall be de- 
 livered up on Claim of the Party to whom 
 such Service or Labor may be due. " 
 
 Neiv States, How Formed and Admitted. 
 
 Section 3. New States may be admitted 
 by the Congress into this Union ; "" but no 
 new State shall be formed or erected within 
 the jurisdiction of any other State; nor any 
 State be formed by the Junction of two or 
 more States, or the States concerned as well 
 as of the Congress. '" 
 
 Power of Congress Over Public Lands. 
 
 The Congress shall have Power to dispose 
 of and make all needful Rules and Regula- 
 
 tions respecting the Territory or other 
 Property belonging to the United States; and 
 nothing in this Constitution shall be so con- 
 strued as to Prejudice any Claims of the 
 United States, or of any particular State. " 
 
 Republican Government Guaranteed. 
 
 Section 4. The Constitution shall guarantee 
 to every State in this Union a Republican 
 Form of Government. '' and shall protect 
 eacli of them against Invasion; and on .Ap- 
 plication of the Legislature, or of the E.x- 
 ecutive (when the Legislature can not be 
 convened) against domestic violence." 
 
 ARTICLE V. 
 
 Constitution, Hoiij to be Amended. 
 
 The Congress, whenever two thirds of both 
 Houses shall deem it necessary, shall pro- 
 pose Amendments to this Constitution, or. 
 on the Application of the Legislatures of two 
 thirds of the several States, shall call a Con- 
 vention for proposing Amendments, which, 
 in either Case, shall be valid to all Intents 
 and Purposes, as part of this Constitution, 
 when ratified by the Legislatures of three 
 fourths thereof, as the one or the other 
 Mode of Ratification may be proposed by the 
 Congress ; " Provided that no Amendment 
 which may be made prior to the Year one 
 thousand eight hundred and eight shall in 
 any Manner affect the first and fourth 
 Clauses in the Ninth Section of the first 
 Article;" and that no State, without its 
 Consent, shall be deprived of its equal Suf- 
 frage in the .Senate. "' 
 
 "This is a recognition of nationality — tVie su- 
 preme rights of the peopie as citizens of the United 
 States. It decrees the right to all fundamental 
 privileges and immunities which any State grants 
 to its citizens, excepting those granted to cor- 
 porations, or conferred by special local legis- 
 lation. It is intended to secure and perpetuate a 
 friendly intercourse throughout the Republic. It 
 sets aside the erroneous assumption that National 
 citizenship is subordinate to State citizenship. 
 
 «' This is to aid the claims of justice, by pre- 
 venting one portion of the Republic becoming an 
 asylum for the criminal;^ of another portion. 
 
 "* This is the clause of the Constitution on which 
 was based the provisions of the Fugitive- Slave 
 Law of 1850. It applied to runaway slaves and ap 
 prentices. Congress gave eflect to it by an act on 
 the 1 2th of February, 1793. and another on the 
 iSth of September. 1850. .^t the time when the 
 Constitution was framed, slavery existed in all the 
 States of the Union, excepting Massachusetts. By 
 the operation of the Thirteenth .Amendment of the 
 Constitution, this clause has no relation to any 
 other persons excepting fugitive indentured ap- 
 prentices. 
 
 ■^^ The Congress is not compelled to admit a new 
 State. It is left to the option of that body, 
 whether anv new State shall be admitted. 
 
 "States have been admitted in three ways: i. 
 By joint action of the Congress and a State, by 
 which a portion of a State has been made a sepa- 
 rate commonwealth as in the case of Vermont 
 Kentucky. Maine, and Virginia. 2. By an act of 
 Congress, creating a State directly from a Terri- 
 tnrv of the United States, as in the case of Tennes- 
 see' 3 By a joint resolution of Congress and a 
 foreign St'ate. such State may be admitted, as in 
 the case of Texas. 
 
 ^1 This provides for the establishment, under the 
 authority of Congress, of Territorial governments, 
 which is the first step toward the formation of a 
 State or States. The first government of the kind 
 was that of the Northwestern Territory, established 
 in 1787, and adopted by Congress under the National 
 Constitution of the 7th of .August. 1789. 
 
 '- No other form of government could exist 
 within the United States, without peril to the Re- 
 public. By this section, the National Government 
 is empowered to assume positive sovereignty as to 
 the fundamental character of the State Govern- 
 ment, leaving to the State territorial sovereignty, 
 as to its municipal laws and domestic institutions, 
 so long as they are consonant with a republican 
 form of goveri -neiit. 
 
 "The States are prohibited from keeping troops 
 as a standing army, or ships of war. in time o-f 
 peace, individually; therefore it is made the duty 
 of the sovereign power of the United States to 
 protect the States against invasion and "domestic 
 violence." such as treason, rebellion, or insurrec- 
 tion. When these exist in any State, it is the duty 
 of the National Government to use its power in 
 suppressing it. 
 
 ^1 This article eflectually checks any fundamental 
 change in the Constitution, excepting in a_ way 
 whicli recognizes the source of all true sovereignty, 
 the "People, unless it be by sudden and violent 
 revolution. 
 
 " See Section 9. page 747. The adoption of the 
 Thirteenth .Amendment of the Constitution renders 
 this section a dead letter. 
 
 'Her 
 
 agaii 
 
 States from 
 by the larger States. 
 
 prov 
 
 ision for securing the 
 hments on their rights 
 
CIVIL GOVERNMENT— THE NATIONAL CONSTITUTION 
 
 ARTICLE VI. 
 
 MASSACHUSETTS. 
 
 Validity of Debts Recognized. 
 
 All Debts contracted and Engagements en- 
 tered into, before the Adoption of this Con- 
 stitution, shall be as valid against tlie United 
 States under this Constitution, as under the 
 Confederation. " 
 
 Supreme Laiv of the Land Defined. 
 
 This Constitution and the Laws of the 
 United States which shall be made in Pur- 
 suance thereof; and all Treaties made, or 
 which shall be made, under the authority of 
 the LTnited States, shall be the supreme Law 
 of the Land; and the Judges in every State 
 shall be bound thereby, any thing in the 
 Constitution or Laws of any State to the 
 Contrary notwithstanding. " 
 
 Oath, of Whom Required, And What For. 
 
 The Senators and Representatives before 
 mentioned, and the Members of the several 
 State Legislatures, and all executive and 
 judicial Officers, both of the United States 
 and of the several States, shall be bound by 
 Oath or .Affirmation, to support this Consti- 
 tution;" but no religious Test shall ever be 
 required as a Qualification to any Office or 
 public Trust under the United States. '" 
 
 ARTICLE VII. 
 
 Ratification. 
 
 The Ratification of the Conventions of nine 
 States shall be sufficient for the Establish- 
 ment of this Constitution between the States 
 so ratifying the Same. 
 
 Done in Convention by the LTnaninious Con- 
 sent of the States present, the Seventeenth 
 Day of September, in the Year of our 
 Lord one thousand seven hundred and 
 Eighty-seven, and of the Independence of 
 the Linited States the Twelfth. In Wit- 
 ness whereof We have hereunto sub- 
 scribed our Names. 
 
 GEO. WASHINGTON, 
 President, and deputy from yirginia. 
 
 NEW HAMPSHIRE. 
 
 John L.xkcdon. 
 Nicholas Gilm.vn. 
 
 Nathaniel Gorham, 
 RuFus King. 
 
 CONNECTICUT. 
 
 William Samuel Johnson, 
 Roger Sherman. 
 
 NEW YORK. 
 
 Alexander Hamilton. 
 
 NEW JERSEY. 
 
 William Livingston, 
 David Brearley, 
 William P.\tterson, 
 Jon.\than Davton. 
 
 PENNSYLVANIA. 
 
 Benjamin Franklin, 
 Thomas Mifflin, 
 Robert Morris, 
 George Clymer, 
 Thomas Fitzsimons, 
 Jarf.d Ingersoll, 
 James Wilson, 
 GouvENEUR Morris 
 
 DELAWARE. 
 
 George Reed, 
 Gunning Bedford, Jr., 
 John Dickinson, 
 Richard Bassett, 
 Jacob Broom. 
 
 MARYLAND. 
 
 James McHenry, 
 
 Daniel of St. Thomas Jenifer, 
 
 Daniel C.\reoll. 
 
 VIRGINIA. 
 
 John Blair, 
 James Madison, Jr. 
 
 NORTH CAROLINA. 
 
 William Blount, 
 Richard Dobbs Spaight. 
 Hugh Williamson 
 
 '' This was for the security to the creditors of 
 e United States, of the payment of debts in- 
 irred during the Revolution. It was a national 
 id positive recognition of the postulate in inter- 
 
 national law, that 
 obligations to otlie 
 the Government." 
 
 -■' .\ clear and . 
 premacy of the National Co 
 which is treason. 
 
 due to foreigne 
 
 change 
 
 and 
 
 "* State officers are bound 
 stitution because they m.ay 
 form some service in giving 
 law of the land," in other v 
 
 to support the Con- 
 be required to per- 
 fffect to that "supreme 
 ords. of the Republic. 
 
 '''' This is to prevent a political union of Church 
 and State, which is always prejudicial to the best 
 interests of both. 
 
THE HOME AUXILIARY AND REFERENCE 
 
 SOUTH CAROLINA. 
 
 Charles C. Pinckney, 
 Charles Pinckney, 
 John Rutledge, 
 Pierce Butlr. 
 
 GEORGIA. 
 
 William Few. 
 Abraham Baldwin. 
 
 Attest: WILLIAM JACKSON, Secretary. 
 
 AMENDMENTS. " 
 
 TO THE CONSTITUTION OF THE 
 UNITED STATES, RATIFIED AC- 
 CORDING TO THE PROVISIONS 
 OF THE FIFTH ARTICLE OF THE 
 FOREGOING CONSTITUTION. 
 
 ARTICLE I. 
 
 Freedom in Religion and Sfeech. and 
 of the Press. 
 
 Congress shall make no law respecting an 
 establishment of religion, or prohibiting the 
 free exercise thereof; or abridging the free- 
 dom of speech, or of the press; or the right 
 of the people peaceably to assemble, and to 
 petition the Government for a redress of 
 grievances. " 
 
 ARTICLE IL 
 Militia. 
 
 A well-regulated Militia being necessary 
 to the security of a free State, the right of 
 the people to keep and bear .Arms, shall not 
 be infringed. 
 
 ARTICLE III. 
 
 Soldiers. 
 
 No Soldier shall, in time of peace be quar- 
 tered in any house, without the consent of 
 the Owner, nor in a time of war, but in a 
 manner to be prescribed by law. ' 
 
 ARTICLE IV. 
 
 Search-lVarrants. 
 
 The right of the people to be secure in 
 their persons, houses, papers and effects, 
 against unreasonable searches and seizures, 
 shall not be violated, and no Warrants shall 
 issue, but upon probable cause, supported by 
 Oath or affirmation, and particularly describ- 
 ing the place to be searched, and the person 
 or things to be seized. ' 
 
 ARTICLE V. 
 
 Capital Crimes. 
 
 No person shall be held to answer for a 
 capital, or otherwise infamous crime, unless 
 on a presentment or indictment of a Grand 
 Jury, except in cases arising in the land or 
 naval forces, or in the Militia, when in 
 actual service in time of War or public 
 danger ;° nor shall any person be subject for 
 
 ' At the first session of the First Congress, be- 
 gun and held in the city of New York, on Wednes- 
 day, the 4th of March, 1789, many amendments to 
 the National Constitution were offered for con- 
 sideration. The Congress proposed ten of them 
 to the legislatures of the several States. These 
 were ratified by the constitutional number of State 
 Legislatures in the middle of December, 1791. An- 
 other was proposed on the 5th of March, 1794. 
 and was ratified in 1798, and still another on the 
 12th of December, 1803. which was ratified in 1804. 
 These, with the other ten, became a part of the 
 National Constitution. A thirteenth amendment 
 was proposed by Congress on the ist of May, 1810, 
 but has never been ratified. It was to prohibit 
 citizens of the United States accepting, claiming, 
 receiving, or retaining any title of nobility or honor, 
 or any present, pension, office, or emolument of 
 any kind whatever, from any "person, king, prince, 
 or foreign Power," without the consent of Con- 
 gress, under the penalty of disfranchisement, or 
 ceasing to be a citizen of the United States. 
 
 The Thirteenth Amendment was adopted by Con- 
 gress on the 31st of January, 1865, and its ratifi- 
 cation by the requisite number of State f^egisla- 
 tures was announced on the i8th of December fol- 
 lowing. .\ Fourteenth .Amendment was proposed 
 by a joint resolution adopted on the 13th of June. 
 1866. the object of which was to complete the work 
 done by the Thirteenth Amendment, by guarantee- 
 ing all citizens an equality of civil and political 
 rights, and the payment of the public debt; also to 
 forbid the payment, by the general or any State 
 
 government, of any debt or obligation incurred in 
 aid of the rebellion, or any claim for the loss or 
 emancipation of any slave. This amendment was 
 ratified, and on the 20th of July, 1868, the Secre- 
 tary of State proclaimed it to be a part of the 
 National Constitution. A Fifteenth Amendment 
 was adopted by Congress on the 26th of February, 
 1869, and subsequently ratified. This was to se- 
 cure the elective franchise for the colored race in 
 our country, and is the crown of the Emancipation 
 Act. 
 
 The Amendments to the Constitution, excepting 
 the Twelfth, are authoritative declarations securing 
 to the people and the several States certain rights, 
 against any possible encroachments of Congress. 
 They form a Bill of Rights. 
 
 " This article gives an additional assurance of 
 religious freedom. See clause 3d, Article VI, of 
 the Constitution. It also secures the invaluable 
 right of the freedom of speech and of the press: 
 and the privilege for the people of making their 
 grievances known to the National Government. 
 
 * This is to protect citizens, in time of peace, 
 from the oppressions of military power, and to 
 secure uniformity in the rules for quartering sol- 
 diers upon citizens in time of war. 
 
 * The security of the private citizen from an in- 
 fringement of his rights by public officers, herein 
 guaranteed, is in accordance with the English 
 maxim that "Every man's house is his castle." 
 
 '' In such cases offences are within the juris- 
 diction of the military and naval courts-martial. 
 
CIVIL GOVERNMENT— AxMEXDMENTS 
 
 the same offence to be twice put in jeopardy 
 of life or limb; nor shall be compelled in 
 any Criminal Case to be a witness against 
 himself, nor be deprived of life, liberty, or 
 property, without due process of law ; nor 
 shall private property be taken for public 
 use, without just compensation. ° 
 
 ARTICLE X. 
 Rights Reserved. 
 
 The powers not delegated to the United 
 States, by the Constitution, nor prohibited 
 by it to the States, are reserved to the States 
 respectively, or to the people. * 
 
 ARTICLE VI. 
 
 Trial by Jury. 
 
 In all criminal prosecutions, the accused 
 shall enjoy the right to a speedy and public 
 trial, by an impartial jury of the State and 
 district wherein the crime shall have been 
 committed, which district shall have been 
 previously ascertained by law, and to be in- 
 formed nf the nature and cause of the ac- 
 cusation ; to be confronted with the witnesses 
 against him ; to have Compulsory process 
 for obtaining Witnesses in his favor, and 
 to have the Assistance of Counsel for his 
 defence. 
 
 ARTICLE Vn. 
 
 Suits at Common Law. 
 
 In Suits at common law, where the value 
 in controversy shall exceed twenty dollar-;, 
 the right of trial by jury shall be preserved, 
 and no fact tried by a jury, shall be other- 
 wise re-examined in any court of the Lhiited 
 States, than according to the rules of the 
 common law. 
 
 ARTICLE VIIL 
 
 3ail. 
 
 Excessive bail shall not be required, nor 
 excessive fines imposed, nor cruel and un- 
 usual punishments inflicted. ' 
 
 ARTICLE IX. 
 
 Certain Rights Defined. 
 
 The enumeration, in the Constitution, of 
 certain rights, shall not be construed to 
 deny or disparage others retained by the 
 people. 
 
 ARTICLE XI. 
 
 Judicial Power Limited. 
 
 The judicial power of the L'nited States 
 shall not be construed to exfend to any suit 
 in law or equity, commenced or prosecuted 
 against one of the United States by Citizens 
 of another State, or by Citizens or Subjects 
 of any foreign State. '° 
 
 ARTICLE XII. 
 
 Amendment Rcsf'ecting tlie Election 
 of President and ricc-Prc.^ident. 
 
 The Electors shall meet in their respective 
 States, and vote by ballot for President and 
 Vice President, one of whom at least, shall 
 not be an inhabitant of the same State with 
 themselves; they shall name in their ballots 
 the person voted for as President, and in 
 distinct ballots the person voted for as Vice 
 President, and they shall make distinct lists 
 of all persons voted for as President, and of 
 all persons voted for Vice President, and of 
 the number of votes for each, which lists 
 they shall sign and certify, and transmit 
 sealed to the seat of the government of the 
 L'nited States, directed to The President of 
 the Senate ; — The President of the Senate 
 shall, in the presence of the Senate and 
 House of Representatives, open all the cer- 
 tificates and the votes shall then be counted ; 
 — the person having the greatest number of 
 votes for President, shall be the President, 
 if such number be a majority of the whole 
 number of electors appointed ; and if no per- 
 son have such majority, then from the per- 
 sons having the highest numbers, not ex- 
 ceeding three on the list of those voted for 
 as President, the House of Representatives 
 shall choose immediately, by ballot, the Presi- 
 dent. But in choosing the President, the 
 votes shall be taken by states, the representa- 
 tion from each state having one vote ; a 
 
 ' These prohibitions do i 
 to the Na 
 
 relate 
 
 al <;. 
 
 .state gov- 
 the National dovernment, ae- 
 decision of -he Supreme Court. The 
 several States make their own laws on these sub- 
 jects. 
 
 ' These several amendments, concerning the op- 
 erations of law through the instrumentality of the 
 courts, are al! intended to secure the citizen against 
 the arbitrary exercise of power on the part of the 
 
 * That is to say, because certain rights and pov 
 uf the people are not enumerated in the Const 
 tion. it is not to be inferred that thev are den 
 
 simply an enunciation 
 principle, that the people 
 all political power. 
 
 ' Thi: 
 
 . J limit the judicial p 
 National courts. Previous to the acl( 
 amendment, the Supreme Court had 
 the power of the National judiciary 
 suits brought by or against a State 
 public. Now. no person has a right 
 a personal suit against a State, in 
 Court of the United States, 
 property seized and sold by 
 
 the 
 
 Dwer of the 
 ption of this 
 decided that 
 extended to 
 of the Re- 
 
 the Supreme 
 
534 
 
 THE HOME AUXTLTARY AND REFERENCE 
 
 quorum for this purpose shall consist of a 
 member or members from two thirds of the 
 States, and a majority of all the states shall 
 be necessary to a choice. And if the House 
 of Representatives shall not chose a Presi- 
 dent whenever the right of choice shall de- 
 volve upon them, before the fourth day of 
 March next following, then the Vice Presi- 
 dent shall act as President, as in the case of 
 the death or other constitutional disability 
 of the President. The person having the 
 greatest number of votes as Vice President 
 shall be the Vice President, if such number 
 be a majority, then from the two highest 
 numbers on the list, the Senate shall choose 
 the Vice President ; a quorum for the pur- 
 pose shall consist of two thirds of the whole 
 number of Senators, and a majority of the 
 whole number shall be necessary to a choice. 
 But no person constitutionally ineligible to 
 the office of President shall be eligible to 
 that of Vice President of the United States. 
 
 ARTICLE Xni. 
 Slavery Forbidden. 
 
 Section i. Neither slavery nor involun- 
 tary servitude, except as a punishment for 
 crime, whereof the party shall have been 
 dulv convicted, shall exist within the United 
 States, or in any place subject to their juris- 
 diction. 
 
 Section 2. Congress shall have power to 
 enforce this Article by appropriate legisla- 
 tion. 
 
 ARTICLE XIV. 
 
 Citicensliil'. 
 
 Section i. All persons born or naturalized 
 in the United States, and subject to the 
 jurisdiction thereof, are citizens of the 
 United States and of the State wherein they 
 reside. No State shall make or enforce any 
 law which shall abridge the privileges or 
 immunities of citizens of the United States; 
 nor shall any State deprive any person of 
 life, liberty, or property without due process 
 of iaw ; nor deny to any person within its 
 jurisdiction the equal protection of the laws. 
 
 Apportionment Regulated by the 
 Elective Franchise. 
 
 Section 2. Representatives shall be ap- 
 portioned among the several States accord- 
 ing to their respective numbers, counting the 
 whole number of persons in each State, ex- 
 cluding Indians not taxed; but when the 
 right to vote at any election for the choice of 
 electors for President and Vice-President of 
 the United States, Representatives in Con- 
 gress, the executive and judicial officers of 
 a State, or the members of the Legislature 
 
 thereof, is denied to any of the male in- 
 habitants of such State, (being twenty-one 
 years of age and citizens of the United 
 States), or in any way abridged except for 
 participation in rebellion or other crime, the 
 basis of representation therein shall be re- 
 duced in the proportion which the nimiber 
 of such male citizens shall be."r to the whole 
 number of male citizens twenty-one years of 
 age in such State. 
 
 Disabling Conditions. 
 
 Section 3. No person shall be a Senator 
 or Representative in Congress, or Elector of 
 President and Vice President, or hold any 
 office, civil or military under the United 
 States, or under any State, who, having pre- 
 viously taken an oath as a member of Con- 
 gress, or as an officer of the United States, 
 or as a member of any State Legislature, or 
 as an executive or judicial officer of any 
 State, to support the Constitution of the 
 United States, shall have engaged in insur- 
 rection or rebellion against the same, or 
 given aid or comfort to the enemies thereof. 
 But Congress may, by a vote of two thirds 
 of each House, remove such disability. " 
 
 Treatment of the Public Debts. 
 
 Section 4. The validity of the public debt 
 of the United States, authorized by law, in- 
 cluding debts incurred for payment of pen- 
 sions and bounties, for services in suppress- 
 ing insurrection or rebellion, shall not be 
 questioned. But neither the United States. 
 or any State, shall assume or pay any debt 
 or obligation, incurred in aid of insurrection 
 or rebellion against the United States, or any 
 claim for the loss or emancipation of rmy 
 slave; but all such debts, obligations and 
 claims shall be held illegal and void. 
 
 Section 5. Congress shall have power to 
 enforce, by appropriate legislation, the pro- 
 visions of this Article. 
 
 ARTICLE XV. 
 
 Section i. The right of the citizens of the 
 United States to vote shall not be denied or 
 abridged bv the United States, or by any 
 State, on account of race, color, or previous 
 condition of servitude. 
 
 Section 2. The Congress shall have power 
 to enforce this Article by appropriate legisla- 
 tion. 
 
 " Under the provisions of the Amnesty Act, 
 passed May 22, 1872, the political disabilities have 
 been removed from all persons excepting members 
 of the Thirty-sixth Congr-ess, heads of depart 
 ments. members ot diplomatic corps, and ofticers 
 of the Army and Navy engaged in rebellion. 
 
INDEX 
 
 ABENAKES defend their terri- 
 tory, io6. 
 Abercrombie, General Jas., 
 commands Britsh troops in Am- 
 erica, 133; expedition against 
 Ticonderoga, 136. 
 
 Abraham, Plains of, events on, 137. 
 
 Acadie, region of, 54; English con- 
 quest of, 105 ; cruel acts in, 126; 
 military events in, 132. 
 
 Acadiens, the, cruel treatment of, 
 133: treatment of the, in the 
 English colonies, 135. 
 
 Acetylene gas, discovery of, 517. 
 
 Adams, Abigail, 352. 
 
 Adams, John, a self-made man, 
 351; marries, defends Capt. Pres- 
 ton, 3S~', appointed Chief Justice 
 of Massachusetts, 353: visits 
 England. 184; visits France, 353; 
 installed as minister at the 
 Hague, 354; elected President of 
 the United States, 195, 354; re- 
 commends war with France, 197; 
 death of, 354-^ 
 
 Adams. John Qumcy, birth and 
 youth of, his life abroad, diary 
 of, minister to Prussia. V. S. 
 Senator, appointed to Russia, 382. 
 Elected President, supports Jack- 
 son, relation to Congress, ap- 
 pearance and habits of, elected 
 to Congress, his fight against 
 slavery, death of. 383. 
 
 Adams. Samuel. 140, 143. 147, 149. 
 
 Aeronautics, balloons, 497; flying 
 machines, 509. 
 
 Africa, circumnavigation of, 33, 34; 
 early discovery, Livingstone, lost, 
 Stanley's explorations. 472. 473; 
 lost expeditions, Gerhard 
 Rohlfe's. colonization of. political 
 divisions of. -Abyssinia and Trans- 
 vall. Liberia and Morrocco. 474- 
 
 Agricultural experiment farms. 447. 
 
 Agricultural machinery, 450; vari- 
 ety of plows, other tools, evolu- 
 tion of. 451. 
 
 Agricultural schools. 452. 
 
 Agriculture, history of. 446 im- 
 provement of. agricultural societ- 
 ies, first agricultural school. 447; 
 board of. and agricultural dept., 
 448; chemistry and geology ap- 
 plied to. agricultural implements 
 made light and pretty by. 449. 
 
 Aguinaldo. insurgent leader. 312. 
 
 .Mx-la-Chapelle. treaty of. 106; ef- 
 fects of the treaty. 126. 
 
 Alabama. De Soto in. 45. 
 
 Albany, colonial convention at. 1 26. 
 
 Albermarle County Colony organ- 
 ized. 81. 
 
 .\lden. John, diplomacy and mar- 
 riage of. 65. 
 
 -Alger-Miles Controversy. 310. 
 
 Algonquins. 13. 
 
 Alien and Sedition laws, action on 
 the. 200. 
 
 Allen, Colonel Ethan, at Ticonder- 
 oga, 159. 
 
 -Mliquippi, Queen, visited by Wash- 
 ington, 130. 
 
 Aluminum. 459; experiments in 
 producing. by whom. Hall's 
 cheap method of producing, fut- 
 ure of, supplantmg iron and 
 steel, 460. 
 
 .America, early discoverers of, 22. 
 
 Americus V'espuccius. 36. 
 
 .Amherst. General Jeffrey, at Al- 
 bany, 737; captures Montreal, 
 138. 
 
 Ames, Oakes, scandal of, 271. 
 
 Ames, Oliver. 271. 
 ,\msterdam. New, fort at. 68. 
 .Anderson, Major, at Fort Sumter, 
 
 AndVe, Major Tohn, and General 
 -Arnold, 179-81; trial and execu- 
 tion of. 182. 
 
 .Andros. Edmund, governor of New 
 York, career of. 93; in New Eng- 
 land. 102; performance of at 
 Hartford, no; seizes charter ot 
 R. I. Ill, governor of New Jer- 
 sey. 112. 
 
 .\ndree's balloon expedition, 470. 
 .\nnapolis. Md.. seat of govern- 
 ment removed to. 114; destruc- 
 tion of tea at. 147. 
 
 .Animated photography. 519. 
 
 Anne. Queen, accession of. declares 
 war against France. 105. 
 
 Antarctic Explorations — minor dis- 
 coveries — W i I k e s expedition — 
 Ross expedition. 470. 
 
 -\ppomattox Court House, surren- 
 der of Lee near the. 264. 
 
 Archdale. John, governor of North 
 Carolina. .16. 
 
 .Argall. Samuel, kidnaps Pocohontas. 
 
 .Arkansas, admission of. 226. 
 
 .Army reorganization bill. 311. 
 
 Arnold. Benedict, march through 
 the wilderness, besieges Quebec. 
 102; in command at Philadelphia, 
 treason of. 179. 
 
 .Arthur. Chester A., elected vice- 
 President. 281. becomes Presi- 
 dent. 283; his administration. 
 284. 
 
 .Articles of Confederation. 185. 
 
 .Artillery, modern. Hotchkiss gun. 
 Catling gun. Maxim gim. 496. 
 
 .Ashburton Treaty, the. 91. 
 
 Astronomy, progress in. 435; dis- 
 covery of Neptune. 443. spectro- 
 scope, 445. 
 
 .Atlanta. Sherman's march to. 2114- 
 
 Austria, unpleasant relations with. 
 J40. 
 
 .Australia, exploration of. 474. 
 
 .Automobiles, in France. 505; pe- 
 troleum gas engine for, '506. 
 
 -Aztecs, 18. 
 
 B.VCON. NATHANIEL, rebel- 
 lion of. 87. 
 Bagelv. Worth. 306. 
 
 r.alboa. Vasco Nunez de. in Cen- 
 tral America, discovers the Pa- 
 cific Ocean, 40. 
 
 Balloon, use of in warfare. 497; at 
 Battle of Santiago. 498; see also 
 .\eronautics. 
 
 Baltimore. Cecil, I^ord, 70; easy 
 politics of, restoration of rights 
 to, judicious conduct of, death 
 of, 108. 
 
 Baltimore, great fire at, 31S. 
 
 Bank of the United States es- 
 tablished. 193; second, war upon 
 the. by the President of the U. 
 S.. 223; destruction of the. 224. 
 
 Bank. National, established, 225. 
 
 Banking in the U. S.. 273. 
 
 Banks suspend specie payments. 
 225. 
 
 Barbary powers, troubles with the, 
 201-03. 
 
 Barclay. Robert, in West Jersey. 
 
 Barre', Colonel, in the British Par- 
 liament, in debate, 140. 
 
 Barrett. Colonel. James, at Coti- 
 cord, 155. 
 
 Barron. Commodore Tames, block- 
 ades Tripoli, 203; commands the 
 Chesapeake. 207. 
 
 Bastile, key of. 333. 
 
 Beaumarchais. Caron de, and the 
 French government, 171. 
 
 Bee culture. 450. 
 
 Behring Strait.' exploration of, 465, 
 
 Belle Isle, straits of, 47. 
 
 Bellemont. Earl of, governor of 
 New York, 94; partner with 
 Captain Kidd, 94; governor of 
 Massachusetts. 105. 
 
 Bennington, battle hear, 173. 
 
 Bellinghausen. expedition. 470. 
 
 Bell's telephone, description of. 
 514. 
 
 Bebring Seal controversy, 394, 
 
 Berkeley, Lord, sells West Jersey. 
 
 Berke'ly. Sir William, goven.or of 
 Virginia. 86; becomes tyrannical, 
 an advocate of popular ignor- 
 ance, cruelty of. 86. 
 
 Bernard. Governor, perfidy of. 141- 
 letter of, to Lord Hillsborough. 
 '43-44- 
 
 Bicycle, origin; 504. patented in 
 France, in U. S. (1819). first of 
 iron. 505. 
 
 Biscoe, J., discovers Enderby's 
 Land and Adelaide Island. 470. 
 
 Black Hawk War. 224. 
 
 P.lennerhassett. Harraan. fate of. 
 204. 
 
 Bliss. Cornelius N., 298. 
 
 Block. .Adrain. Dutch navigator at 
 Manhattan. 66. 
 
 Bonaparte. Napoleon, victories of. 
 197- 
 
 Bonhomme Richard and Serapis. 
 battle between. 350. 
 
 Boone. Daniel. 145.' 
 
 Boone. T.. uses balloon at battle of 
 Santiago, 498. 
 
 Booth, Wilkes. assassinates the 
 President: fate of. 265. 
 
 Boston, founded, disturbance in. 
 143; action of the people of. 147: 
 landing of British troops at. 143; 
 massacre in, 144; Tea Party at, 
 147; great town meeting in; cir- 
 cular letter of committee. 143: 
 port of. closed, 147; sufferings 
 of inhabitants of. 148; conven- 
 tion at. 149; gathering of an 
 army near. 158; British soldiers 
 and officers in. 159; siege of. by 
 Continental .Army. 160: Bom- 
 bardment of. i6i. evacuation of. 
 162. 
 
 Boston Neck, fortifications on, 149. 
 
 Boxer outbreak in China. 314. 
 
 Braddock. Gen. Edward, in .Amer- 
 ica. 132; career of. in .America. 
 i3'-34; his defeat, 322. 
 
 Bradford. William. Governor of 
 Plymouth. 65-95; visited by Hol- 
 landers. 71; complains of Gov- 
 ernor Winthrop. 72. 
 
 Bradford. William, first printer in 
 New A'ork. 95; first printer in 
 Philadelphia. 113. 
 
 Bradstreet. Simon, in Boston, loo- 
 103. 
 
 Bragg, General Braxton, 2';9. 
 
 Brandywine Creek, battle at the. 
 174. 326- 
 
 Breed's Hill, naval attack upon, 
 redoubts on. defences of. 161; 
 British troops in. 161. 
 
 Brewster. Elder. William, in Hol- 
 land, 63; goes to .America, 64. 
 
II 
 
 Bridges, early, built of wood and 
 stone, modern steel bridges in 
 U. S.. first suspension bridges, 
 dimensions of. cantilever bridges. 
 Forth bridge, 485. 
 
 British dominion, strife for, in 
 
 British navy, strength of. 209. 
 
 British Royal Agricultural Society, 
 448; prize for steam plow offered 
 by. 451- . , - 
 
 British troops, collision with, m 
 New York, 14^; numbers of, in 
 Boston, 161. conduct of, in Bos- 
 ton, 162. 
 
 Broke. Captain, commands the 
 Shannon, 214. 
 
 Brooks, Preston S., beats Sumner 
 with a stick. 411. 
 
 Brown. General Jacob, in Northern 
 New York, at Buffalo, at Lundy's 
 Lane, ji 5. 
 
 Brown, John, plans raid of, in Vir- 
 ginia, 248; fate of. 249. 
 
 Bryan, Wm. J., 297-98. , 
 
 Buchanan. James. President of the 
 U. S.. his cabinet, 145. 
 
 Buckner, S. B., at Fort Donelson, 
 
 Buell, General D. C. moves toward 
 Tennessee, 257; battle of Peny- 
 ville. JS9. 
 
 Bull's Run, battle of. retreat from, 
 effect of battle, 255. 
 
 Bunker's Hill ordered to be forti- 
 fied, IS9- 
 
 Bunker's (Breed's) Hill, battle on. 
 159- 
 
 Burgesses, boldness of Virginia 
 House of, 87. 
 
 Burgoyne. General John, 172; sur- 
 render of, to Gates, 326. 
 
 Burke, Edmund, description of 
 Pitt's cabinet by, 141. 
 
 Burnet. Governor William, admin- 
 istration of. 95. 
 
 Burnside. General A. E., 259. 
 
 Burr. Aaron, elected Vice-President 
 of the U. S., 200. Burr and 
 Hamilton, 373; duel of, 374. 
 
 Burrington, George, Governor of 
 North Carolina. 118. 
 
 Bush, Sally. 395. 
 
 Bute. Earl of, royal favorite, i39'. 
 bad advice of. 1 40. 
 
 Butler, James, becomes wife of 
 Augusl'ine Washington. 319. 
 
 Buttons, cheap and rapid produc- 
 tion of, 478. 
 
 ^ABECA DE VACA, career of. 
 
 ^ cM'e cars in the U. S., 504- 
 
 Cables, submarine, early attempts 
 at. Field organizes company, first 
 trial, repeated failures of. Great 
 Eastern lays cable, present ex- 
 lent of. cost of, durability of, 
 system used, 513. 
 
 Cabot. John and Sebastian, dis- 
 covers* North America, services 
 in Spain, 38. 
 
 Calhoun, John C. 388; his ideas, 
 education, marries, his public 
 career, Vice-President. 389; 
 nominated for Presidency, 390; 
 death of, 391. 
 
 Calvert. Cecil. (Lord Baltimore), 
 receives charter for Maryland, 
 send settlers to, 70. 
 
 Calvert. George, created Lord Balti- 
 more, and goes to America, 69; 
 death of, in Virginia, 70. 
 
 Calvert, Leonard. Governor of 
 Maryland, dealings with the In- 
 dians, 70. 
 
 Cambridge, volunteers at. 156. 
 
 Camden, battle near, 179. 
 
 Canada. British invasion of. failure 
 of invasion of, 104; conquest of. 
 attempted by the British, 105; 
 conquest of effected; 128. 
 
 Canals, length of Chinese, in the 
 U. S., Egyptian, mentioned by 
 Herodotus. 486. 
 
 Cape Breton, British at, 47 ; sur- 
 render of. 106. 
 
 Cape Cod, discovery of, 34. 
 
 Cape Fear, settlement on. 51. 
 
 Cape May. purchase of. yy. 
 
 Cape Sable Islands, settlement on, 
 54. 
 
 Capital, location of, 191 ; burned, 
 
 215- 
 
 Carleton, Governor Guy, on the St. 
 Lawrence, at Crown Point, 17-'; 
 See also, 329. 
 
 Carlisle. John G., 292. 
 
 Carolina, North, condition of. re- 
 bellion in, 115. 
 
 Carolinas. scheme of government 
 for the. us; social condition of 
 the. 116; separatipn of the, 118. 
 
 Carpets, old and new methods in 
 manufacturing. 4S2. 
 
 Carriages and Wagons, 501. 
 
 Carteret, Sir George, proprietor of 
 New Jersey, 78. 
 
 Carteret. Philip, Governor of New 
 Jersey, en*ry of into the pro- 
 
 Carteret County Colony estab- 
 lished, 81. 
 
 Cartier, Jacques, voyages and dis- 
 coveries of. 46. 
 
 Carver, John, first governor of 
 New Plvmouth, death of, 65. 
 
 Castle, William, in Boston harbor, 
 M3- 
 
 Catawbas, 14. 
 
 Cervera. defeat of, 311. 
 
 Champlain, Samuel, on the St. 
 Lawrence, 54 ; makes war on 
 the Iroquois, discovers a lake, 
 governor of Canada, founds 
 French empire in America, 55. 
 
 Chancel's invention. 515. 
 
 Chancellorsville, battle at, 262. 
 
 Charleston, city of, founded, 81-115. 
 
 Charter Oak, the, 1 10. 
 
 Chase, Salmon P., American States- 
 man, education of, marriages of, 
 his compilation of **Statutes of 
 Ohio," 408; feelings toward 
 slavery, elected Senator, gover- 
 nor of Ohio, 409; Secretary of 
 the Treasury, greenbacks and 
 national banking under, resigns 
 as secretary, appointed chief Jus- 
 tice of LT. S. Supreme Court, 
 personal traits of, death of, 410. 
 
 Chattanooga, battle at. 203. 
 
 Cheputepec, capture of, 235. 
 
 Cherokees. 14. 
 
 Cherokee country, DeSoto in, 44; 
 Indian. French emissaries among 
 the, 138. 
 
 Cherokees. make war on the Eng- 
 lish, chastised. 138; troubles with 
 the, 224. 
 
 Chesapeake and Leopard, encounter 
 between the, 206. 
 
 Chickamauga, battle of, 263. 
 
 (i'hickasaws, attack of, on De Soto, 
 48. 
 
 Chinese exclusion act of 1888, 294. 
 
 Churubusco, capture of, 235. 
 
 Civil War, beginning of the, 259; 
 last conflict in, 264. 
 
 Clarke. W.. with Lewis, expedition, 
 rewarded by Congress, 471. 
 
 Clay. Henry, family and early life 
 of, 384; on the peace commission, 
 elected speaker in Congress, his 
 connection with Missouri Com- 
 promise, retires from public life, 
 nominated President, is defeated 
 for President, illness and death 
 of. 385. 
 
 Clayborne, William, in Maryland. 
 
 Clermont, first steamboat, soi. 
 
 Cliff-dwellers, traditions of,' descrip- 
 tion of dwellings, towns of. two 
 races of, 521. 
 
 Clinton, George, colonial governor 
 of New York. 128; governor of 
 State of New York, 189; Vice- 
 President of the U. S., 208. 
 
 Clinton, Commander of British 
 forces, ^jy. 
 
 Coal, 455; how many tons an- 
 nually, 450-56; formation of. 457. 
 
 Coal Gas. 516. 
 
 Coal Mines, old and new process of 
 working, 455; ventilation of, ex- 
 plosions, prevented, 456. 
 
 Colfax, Schuyler, elected Vice- 
 President. 269. 
 
 Coligni, Admiral, and Katherine 
 de Medici, sends Huguenots to 
 America, 47. 
 
 Colleton, John, Governor of South 
 Carolina. 116. 
 
 Collins. Anna, carried to New Am- 
 sterdam, 99. 
 
 Colonial assemblies, action of, 139. 
 
 Colonization, scheme of, proposed, 
 
 Colorado, admission of. 276. 
 
 "Colossus." Bridge over Schuylkill, 
 484. 
 
 Columbus, Christopher, early days 
 — appears in Spain — influence of 
 traditions upon, 25; in Portugal, 
 career of, in Portugal, in Spain, 
 26 ; in the Royal presence, at 
 Grenada, 28; commission of, 29; 
 voyage of discovery, undertaken 
 by, 31 ; discovers Cuba, 32; re- 
 turns to Europe, 33; another 
 voyage of, discovers South Am- 
 erica, sent in irons to Spain, an- 
 other voyage of, 34; death of. 
 monument to, 35. 
 
 Common schools in the colonies. 
 126. 
 
 "Conciliatory Bills," fate of the, 
 162. 
 
 Concord, British troops at, stores 
 received from, events at, retreat 
 of British from. 155. 
 
 Congo, explored, 474. 
 
 Congo Free State, founded, 474. 
 
 Congress, a general, proposed, 148. 
 
 Congress, Continental, choice of 
 delegates to, approved, meeting 
 of, 149; proceedings in, letter ol, 
 to Gage, State papers of, 150; 
 the second. 159; determines to 
 invade Canada, 162. 
 
 Conkling, J. S., Lincoln's letter to, 
 401. 
 
 Connecticut, valley of. the Dutch 
 in, coveted possession, 71 ; Eng- 
 lish settlers in, emigrants to, 
 founding the colony of. colonists 
 of, 72 ; excited by war rumors, 
 73; charter obtained by, 139. 
 
 Constellation, the frigate, captures 
 L'Insurgente, 199. 
 
 Constitution, the National adopted, 
 signed, and ratified, 187. 
 
 Constitution, the frigate, at sea, 
 202; captures the Guerriere. 311. 
 
 Constitution, the fundamental, for 
 the Carolinas, 81. 
 
 Constitutional Convention, 330. 
 
 Continental army, adopted, generals 
 of, 1 59 ; retreats into New Jer- 
 sey, 173; discontents in, 185. 
 
 Continental Congress, first, 323. 
 
 "Conways Cabal," 174. 
 
 Coode, William, foments Civil War 
 in Marvland, Governor of Mary- 
 land. 108. 
 
 Cool Harbor, battle at, 428. 
 
 Copley, Sir Lionel. Royal Governor 
 of Maryland. 108. 
 
 Cooper's locomotive. 503. 
 
 Cooper's telautograph, 512. 
 
INDEX 
 
 Copp*s Hill, Boston, battery on. 
 1 60. 
 
 Cordite, rival of gun powder. 496; 
 advantages of, destructiveness, 
 497- 
 
 Cornwallis, Colonel, in Acadie, 132. 
 
 Cornwallis, Lord, pursues Wash- 
 ington, disappointment of, in 
 New Jersey, 173; attempts to re- 
 capture Trenton, driven north- 
 ward by Greene. 3js; Yorktown. 
 surrender of. 328. 
 
 Cortereal, Caspar, voyages of, to 
 America. 38- 
 
 Cosby, Governor William, disputes 
 of. with Van Dam, 95; death of. 
 96; 
 
 "Cradle of Liberty," the, 143. 
 
 Cotton factory, modern processes 
 in. 476. 
 
 (. otton industry, growth of, 476. 
 
 'Couch's rock drill. 485. 
 
 Court martial trials, decrease in 
 army.^ 499. 
 
 ( ow per's high pressure engine, 489. 
 
 "Crime against Kansas," Sumner's. 
 411. 
 
 Crooke's tube, 519. 
 
 Crown Point, expedition against, 
 r?;9; sufferings of troops at, 166. 
 
 Ciilia, insurrection of, Garcia, Go- 
 mez, and Maceo, 299; independ- 
 ent republic. 317. 
 
 Currency, printing of, 410. 
 
 Cutlerv. industry, 482. 
 
 D 
 
 DAGUERRE. L., his photo- 
 graphic process, 519, 
 Dagworthy, Capt., 322, 
 
 Dairy farming, 450. 
 
 Dakotahs, 17. 
 
 Dale. Sir Thomas, marshal of Vir- 
 ginia, 61. 
 
 Dalzell's safety, 505. 
 
 Danbury burnt, incident at, 52. 
 
 Dandridge, Dorthea, marries Pat- 
 rick Henry, 359. 
 
 Dandridge, Martha, marries George 
 Washington, 322. 
 
 Dare. Virginia, born at Roanoke 
 Island, fate of, 150. 
 
 Dartmouth, colonial secretary, 342. 
 
 Davenport, Rev. John. founds 
 New Haven. 74. 
 
 Dami. Marshal, compared to Wash- 
 ington, 319. 
 
 Davie, William R., envoy to 
 France, 198. 
 
 Davis. Jefferson, President of the 
 Confederacy, 252. 
 
 Davy, Humphrey, discovers elec- 
 tric light. 517. 
 
 Daw, safety lamp, 4^6, 
 
 Day. Wm. R.. 310. 
 
 Dayton, Wm., 195. 
 
 Deane. Silas, sent to Europe, 171. 
 
 Debt, at close of war, 266. 
 
 Decatur, S., at Tripoli, 202. 
 
 Declaration of Independence, 356; 
 action on, 169. 
 
 Delft Haven. Embarkation Act, O4. 
 
 Deerfield. desolation of, 105. 
 
 De la Ware. Lord, Governor ot 
 Virginia, 60; arrival of, 61. 
 
 De Long's Polar expedition, 467. 
 
 De Lome letter, 290. 
 
 De Monte, visits America, plants a 
 colony in Canada, 54. 
 
 D'Estaing's fleet, 347. 
 
 Dewey. George, at Manila, 309. 
 
 Diamonds, African mines, 464; 
 improved methods of cutting. 
 465- 
 
 Dieskau. Baron, leads French 
 troops. 1 33 ; wounded, 1 3 s. 
 
 Digges, North's envoy, Franklin's 
 opinion of him, 348. 
 
 Dingley, Nelson, 312. 
 
 Dingley, Bill, 312. 
 
 Dinwiddie, governor of Virginia, 
 sends Washington to French 
 posts, 128; appeal of, to other 
 
 Dix, General John A.. 252. 
 Dobereiner platinum lamp. 515, 
 Don estic animals, 449. 
 Dongan, Thomas, governor, 93. 
 Dorchester Heights, 159- 
 Douglas, Stephen A., 248-395. 
 Dover, New Hampshire, sufferings 
 
 at. 103. 
 Drainage, 448. 
 Drais, Baron von, 505. 
 Drills, multiple, two, three, four. 
 
 six, eight spindle; Wm. Sellers 
 
 & Co., 482. 
 Du Coudray, jealousy of, 102. 
 Dunmore, F.ord, Governor of Va., 
 
 323; conduct of, is8. 
 Dutch, intercourse of. with the 
 
 English, visit New Plymouth. 71. 
 Dynamite, invention of, 496. 
 
 EAKER. G. J.. & Hamilton. 374. 
 Earth, 435- 
 Eaton, Wm., Consul at Tunis, 
 203. 
 East India Company, the Dutch, 67; 
 send ships with tea to America, 
 1 46 ; tea of. to be paid for, 1 47. 
 East Jersey settlers, 1 1 1. 
 Edison, Th. A., his incandescent 
 lamp, his kinetoscope, cinemato- 
 graph, 51S. 
 Eitfel Tower. 48S. 
 Electric Railways, in the U. S., 504. 
 Electricity, for heating, for cook- 
 ing, 518. 
 Elizabeth, Queen of England, 
 Huguenots before, 47 ; promotes 
 voyage and discovery, 49. 
 Elizabeth Islands, discovered by 
 
 Gosnold, 53. 
 Elizabethtown, origin of name of. 78. 
 Elkswatawa, Indian chief, 209. 
 Elliott. Obadiah, patents, spring 
 
 vehicles, 501. 
 Elliott, Commodore Jesse E., re- 
 inforces Perry, 364 ; exploit of, 
 near Fort Erie. 363. 
 Ellsworth, Oliver, envoy to France, 
 
 198. _ 
 Emancipation, proclamation of the, 
 
 of the slaves, 260. 
 Endicott, Governor John, at Salem. 
 
 97- 
 English-American colonists, 125. 
 Engineering, civil, power of, rail- 
 roading, stone vs. steel, 483; 
 bridges, tunneling, 485 ; caisson 
 for sinking piers, rock-drill, 486. 
 Era of good feeling, 218. 
 Eric the Red, 22. 
 Ericsson, launches screw frigate 
 "Princeton." 492 ; conceives idea 
 of "Monitor." 493; builds it, 494; 
 his propeller, 497. 
 Erie Canal, 222. 
 
 Europe, political and social changes 
 in. Western merchants of, state 
 of society in, 24. 
 Exploration. 465; opening of 
 Africa, 472; Livingstone. 473; 
 discovery of source of Nile. 473; 
 polar expedition, 465; De Long 
 expedition, 467; Greely, Peary, 
 468; Nansen, 469; Andree, South 
 Pole expeditions, 470; Australia, 
 474- 
 Explosives, improvement in, smoke- 
 less ijowder, gun cotton, nitro- 
 glycerine, dynamite, cordite, 496. 
 Eyre, J., explores Australia, 474. 
 
 FAIRFAX. GEORGE, accom- 
 panies Washington on sur- 
 veying expedition, 320. 
 
 Fairfax, W.. 320. 
 
 Faneuil Hall, meeting in, 143. 
 
 Farming, scientific, 447 ; compared 
 with earlier methods, 448. 
 
 Farragut, Admiral, an expedition 
 of, 264. 
 
 "Federalist," Hamilton's, 373. 
 
 Federalists, in John Adams* ad- 
 ministration. 355; in Thomas 
 TetTerson's administration, 200. 
 
 Fendall, Governor fosiah, of Mary- 
 land, 108. 
 
 Ferris Wheel, dimensions of, 448. 
 
 Field. C, organizes cable company, 
 repeated failures of, sends first 
 message. 513. 
 
 Fillmore, Millard. Vice-President. 
 2,^7; Acting President. 23S. 
 
 Fire, history of. 5 1 5. 
 
 First Inhabitants, 11'. 
 
 Fletcher, Governor Benjamin, 94; 
 
 Fletcher. Grace, married to Daniel 
 
 Webster. 380. 
 Flint and Steel process, s'S- 
 Floridians, j 5. 
 
 Florida, discovery of and naming. 
 39; Huguenots in. 47; purchase 
 of, 376. 
 Flying Camp, Mercer's, 169. 
 Flying machines, 509. 
 Folsom, Colonel, leads New Hamp- 
 shire troops, 157. 
 Fort Carolina, in Florida, attacked 
 
 by Spaniards, 48. 
 Fort Charles, South Carolina. 47. 
 Fort Christiana, Delaware, 77. 
 Fort Donelson, siege and capture 
 
 of, 2S7. 
 Fort Edward, on the Hudson, 136. 
 Fort Henry, capture of, 421. 
 Fort Le Boeuf. 128. 
 Fort Niagara, expedition against, 
 
 132; capture of, 137. 
 Fort Sullivan. 167. 
 Fort Washington, 171. 
 Fort William Henry, events at, 135. 
 "Fowey." Dunmore takes refuge in 
 
 the, 158. 
 Fourth Bridge, principle of, dimen- 
 sions of, cost of, 485. 
 Fourdrinier's paper making ma- 
 chine, 479. 
 Fox. George, founder of the So- 
 ciety of Friends or Quakers, 78. 
 Fox-Talbot, IT., his method in pro- 
 ducing positive pictures in photo- 
 graphy, 518. 
 Franklin. B., 333; youth of, 334; 
 "Poor Richard's Almanac," tirst 
 public services, 335; in French 
 Indian wars, 336; mission to 
 England. 338 ; signs Declaration 
 of Independence. 345 ; goes to 
 France, his negotiations. 346; re- 
 turns home, 349; his death, 350. 
 Franklin, James, 333. 
 Franklin, William. 334; last royal 
 
 governor of New Jersey. 112. 
 Free Delivery, in Europe, 509. 
 Free soil party, 409. 
 Fremont. "The path-finder," 471; 
 explores California, terrible ex- 
 perience of, 472. 
 French, the, in America, 123; ex- 
 tension of dominion of the, 129; 
 in the Ohio country, 130; emis- 
 saries among the Indians. 131; 
 lose their dominion in America, 
 138; government and the Ameri- 
 cans, 142. 
 Friese-Greene, W., his hammer, 519. 
 Frobisher, Martin, seeks Northwest 
 
 Frontenac. Governor of Canada, 94. 
 Fulton, Robert, 506. 
 
IV 
 
 GADSDEN, CHRISTOPHER, 
 doubts of. patriotism ot. 
 
 Gage, General, Governor of Mon- 
 treal, 138; Governor of Massa- 
 chusetts, 149; letter of, to Dart- 
 mouth, succeeded by General 
 Howe, 152. 
 
 Gage, Lyman J., 298. 
 
 Gail, Professor, Morses partner. 
 
 Ga'Uatin, Albert, secretary of treas 
 
 Galton. .African explorer, 472, 
 Gama. Vasco D., discoveries of, 33- 
 
 (iates. General, 324; ambition of. 
 
 Catling gun, 496. 
 
 Gauss' telegraphic Inie. 511. 
 
 General Congress, proposed, 148. 
 
 Genet, Citizen, embassador from 
 France, 194-33'- . , 
 
 Genoa and Venice, rivals, 25. 
 
 George III, of England, accession 
 of, 139. 
 
 Georgia, founding of colony, 82; 
 condition of settlers in, Morav- 
 ians and Methodists in, social 
 condition of, slavery prohibited 
 in; 119; slavery introduced in. 
 becomes a Royal province, I2i; 
 end ot Royal rule in, 165. 
 
 Gerard, French Embassador, 346. 
 
 Germantown, battle at, 326. 
 
 Giffard's propelling balloon, 509. 
 
 Girard, Stephen, and U. S. Treas- 
 ury, 260, 
 
 Gettysburg, battle at, Lee's retreat 
 from, decisive character of battle 
 at, 262. 
 
 Gilbert, Sir Humphrey, patent 
 granted to, sails for America, 50. 
 
 Gist, Christopher, in the Ohio 
 country, 128. 
 
 Glassford, W.. perfects heliographic 
 communication, 497. 
 
 Goffe and Wahlley, in New Eng- 
 land, 100. ^ ,.r 
 
 Gold, first found in California, 
 other discoveries, 461; output of. 
 crude and improved methods of 
 extracting. 462. 
 Gorges. Ferdinando, plan of coloni- 
 zation, governor general over 
 New England. 69. 
 Gosnold, Bartholomew, on the Am- 
 erican coast, in Virginia, 53'. 
 death of, 58. , ,, - 
 
 Gotzen. von, his Central African 
 
 expedition, 474. 
 Grant. African explorer, 473. 
 Grant, General U. S., youth of, 
 418; in Mexican War, marries, 
 419: Forts Henry and Donaldson, 
 421: Vicksburg, 424; Wilderness 
 Campaign, 425; Richmond sur- 
 render, 430; elected President, 
 tour of the world, death, 432. 
 Grasse, Count de, on American 
 shores, honored by Congress, 183. 
 Graves, Admiral, at Boston, 159. 
 Great Bridge, battle at the, 163. 
 "Great Britain." first iron ship, 507. 
 .'Great Eastern," largest vessel 
 
 built, lavs Atlantic cable, 513- 
 Greely, A.. Arctic explorer, 467. 
 Greene, General Nathaniel, leads 
 Rhode Island troops, 157; com- 
 mands troops in the South, fa- 
 mous retreat of. battle at Guil- 
 ford C. H.. 182. 
 Granville. Sir Richard, commands 
 Raleigh's ships, 50; at Roanoke 
 Island, 52. , .^ 
 
 Granville. Prime Minister of Eng- 
 land, and Franklin, 339. 
 
 INDEX 
 
 Gridley. and John Adams. 351. 
 Griffin. General, 324. 
 Guam, taken by the Americans, 305. 
 Guerriere. capture of the frigate. 
 
 Guilford Court House, battle at. 
 
 H 
 
 H. 
 
 \LE, CAPT. NATHAN, 
 story of. 170. 
 Half-king, Indian chief. 129; 
 sends message to Washington, 
 
 Half-moon. Hudson's exploring 
 ship. 55- , , , 
 
 Halifax, town of. planted, 132. 
 
 Hall, C. M., his process of manu- 
 facturing aluminum, 460. 
 
 Hall. David. Franklin's partner. 
 
 Hall, Lyman, representative of 
 Georgia, 165. 
 
 Hamilton, A., his education, enters 
 Army. marries, 371; becomes 
 member of Congress, work in the 
 Constitutional Convention, his 
 plan, 372; becomes secretary of 
 the Treasury, 373; on the Alien 
 and Sedition laws, 200; contest 
 with Burr, and John Adams. 374; 
 shot by Burr. 204, 374. 
 
 Hamilton, Philip, 374- 
 
 Hammond. George, embassador 
 from England, 197. 
 
 Hancock, John, slooj) of, seized, re- 
 sentment of, 143; in peril at Lex- 
 ington, 152. 
 
 Handloom, old, 476. 
 
 Handwheel, single spindle, 476. 
 
 "Hard Cider" campaign, the, 228. 
 
 Harriott, Thomas, account of Vir- 
 ginia by, 50. 
 
 Harrison, Benjamin, elected Presi- 
 dent, 292; his administration, 
 
 Harrison, Wm. Henry, 228. 
 
 Hartford convention, the, 214, 379. 
 386. 
 
 Harvard, Rev. John, founds a col- 
 lege. 126. 
 
 Harvesting machines. 451. 
 
 Hats, process of making, 479. 
 
 Hawaii, 296. 
 
 Hayes, Rutherford B., elected 
 President, 278; inauguration and 
 cabinet of, action of. order of. 
 concerning the Civil Service, 279. 
 
 Hayne-Webster debate. 387. 
 
 Havti. conduct of Spaniards at, 32. 
 
 Heliograph, in Modern Warfare, 
 
 Hennepin, Father, on the Missis- 
 sippi, 123. 
 
 Henry, John, disclosures of, 140. 
 
 Henry, Patrick, marries, defeats 
 "Parsons' cause," elected to 
 House of Burgess, his great 
 speech. 356: made commander nf 
 Virginia troops, second marriage. 
 359; elected governor, his legal 
 triumph. 369; opens the business 
 of Congress, in convention at 
 Richmond. 1S7; death of. 362. 
 
 Henry VII. of England, gives a 
 charter to the Cabots, commis- 
 sions Sebastian Cabot. 37. 
 
 Henry VIII, of England, sends out 
 exploring ships, 46. 
 
 Henry, Prince, of Portugal, 24. 
 
 Herbert. Hilary A., secretary of 
 the Navy, 295. 
 
 Herndon, Wm. H., 39' 
 
 Heyes. Peter, on Delaware Bay, 77. 
 
 Hill, R., advocates penny postage, 
 509, 
 
 Hillsborough. N. C, convention. 
 .64. 
 
 ■ceeds 
 
 Hobson. Richmond P.. his exploit, 
 
 Hog industry of V. S., 4.S0. 
 
 Holland submarine boat. 509. 
 
 Holt. John, printing office of. des- 
 troyed. 163. 
 
 Hood. General, J. I 
 Johnson, 259. 
 
 Hooker. Joseph. 259. 
 
 Hopkins. Esek. Commodore, career 
 of. 175- 
 
 Hornblower s steam engine. 489. 
 
 Hotchkiss gun. 496. 
 
 Howe, assumes command in 4'.oston. 
 323; battles with Washington, re- 
 turns to New York, 324. 
 
 Howe, E., 475. 
 
 Howe, truss bridge, 484. 
 
 Hudson. Henry, voyages, discover- 
 ies, and fate of. 55. 
 
 Hudson Bay. how named, s^'- 
 
 Hudson River, 56. 
 
 Hughes' telephone, description. 514. 
 
 Huguenots, in South Carolina, in 
 Florida, 47; massacre of, notice 
 'of, 48. 
 
 Hulsemann. .Austrian diplomat, 388. 
 
 Hunt's sewing machine, 425. 
 
 Hunt, Captain, kidnaps Indians. 63. 
 
 Hunter. Governor Robert. and 
 "Palatines;" political contests 
 with. 94- , . 
 
 Hutchinson. .Anne, career of, in 
 Massachusetts, 76: banishment 
 of, fate of. 99. 
 
 Hutchinson, chief justice, house of, 
 attacked, 146; acting governor, 
 petition for removal of. 147. 
 
 Hyde. Sir Edward (Lord Corn- 
 bury), in New York. 94. 
 
 Hydraulic machines for tunneling, 
 486. 
 
 I 
 
 ILLUMINATION, improvement 
 in methods of, 51 t. 
 Inaugural Day, i88. 
 
 Incandescent lamps, 518. 
 
 India, commerce of, contended 
 for, 25. 
 
 Indians, the, considered, 12; geo- 
 graphical distribution of the, 
 tribes and nations of, 13: mas- 
 sacre by, in Virginia. 8=;; troub- 
 les with, in New Netherland. 68; 
 on the Mississippi. 118: treat- 
 ment of. in Nova Scotia. 118. 
 
 Internal revenue. 408. 
 
 Inter-State commerce. 408. 
 
 Iron and Steel, 458. 
 
 Ironclads, value of established. 494, 
 
 Iroquois (Indian), Confederacy, 
 13, 66. , ., 
 
 Irrigation, ancient and modern, 
 449- 
 
 Isabella and Ferdinand, of Spain, 
 27. 28. 
 
 Island No. 10. Johnson at, 422. 
 
 J. 
 
 JACKSON. ANDREW, birth of, 
 marriage, 377; elected U. S. 
 Senator, 378; Aaron Burr 
 and, 205; at New Orleans, 215; 
 his duel with Dickinson, 378: 
 military record of, popularity of, 
 379; presidential campaigns of. 
 his wife's death, 380; elec-ie.l 
 President. 22s also 380; opposed 
 to financial power, parties under, 
 retirement of, character and 
 death of, 381. 
 
 Jackson, Harmsworth, polar expedi 
 tion, determines Franz Joseph 
 Land coast, rescues Nansen, 4(18 
 
 Jackson, Thomas J., education ot. 
 
 ' in Mexican War, 432; in the 
 Civil War, 433; '" the Shenan 
 doah Valley. 262; his title ot 
 Stonewall. 433; death of, 262 and 
 434- 
 
INDEX 
 
 Jamp«; I.. of England, grants 
 diallers for settlements, action 
 of, folly of, 57- 
 
 Jamestown, founding of, abandon- 
 ment of, 58; rejoicing at, settle- 
 ment at. saved, 59; destroyed by 
 Bacon, 88. 
 
 Jay, John, 184. 354- 
 
 Jefferson, Martha, 366. 
 
 Jefferson, Peter, 365. 
 
 Jefferson, Thomas, education, 
 
 elected to house of Burgesses, 
 3(15; writes Declaration of In- 
 dependence. 170 and 367; mar- 
 ries, 366; President of the U. S., 
 joo; personal appearance of, 
 policy of. death of. 368. 
 
 Jesuits, order of, 103-05, 122. 
 
 John I., of Portugal, and Colum- 
 bus. 27. 
 
 "John Bull." locomotive, imported 
 "to America, 1831, 503. 
 
 Johnson. Andrew, elected Vice- 
 President, 266; acting President, 
 cabinet of, 267; impeachment of, 
 j68. 
 
 Johnson, Reverdv, in England, 270. 
 
 Johnston. General Jos. E.. in the 
 Shenandoah Valley. 263; forces 
 of, surrenders his army, 264. 
 
 Johnstown flood. 294. 
 
 joncaire. French commander, 129. 
 
 Jones. John Paul. American Naval 
 officef. earlv life, military career 
 of. daring 'deeds, his report of 
 battle, appointed rear admiral. 
 350; in Russian service, death, 
 personal traits, 351. 
 
 Jupiter, 445. 
 
 KAI.R. P..\RON DE, sent to 
 America, arrival of. 142. 
 Kane relief expedition, medals 
 awarded to. 466. 
 Kansas, admission of, 244. 
 Keith, Sir W., 334; aids Franklin. 
 
 Kidd." Capt. William, career and 
 fate of, 94. 
 
 Kieft, Governor William, 89; policy 
 of. toward the Indians, 90; re- 
 called. 91. 
 
 Kilsby tunnel, 486. 
 
 King George's War, 106. 
 
 King William's War, 103. 
 
 Kinnison. David, survivor of Bos- 
 ton *'Tea Party," 147. 
 
 Klondike, discovery of gold in, 462. 
 
 Knowlton, Colonel, on Breed's Hill, 
 ■ 59. 
 
 Kossuth. J-ouis. visits America, 240. 
 
 L. 
 
 LABRADOR, visited by Cortor- 
 eal. I^adrone Islands, taken by 
 America, 307- 
 Lafayette, 327; joins the American 
 Army, in the battle at the 
 Brandy wine. 174; visit to Am- 
 erica. 376 
 "La Gloire, first sea-going iron- 
 clad. 494. 
 Lake Erie, battle on, 213, 363. 
 Lamont, Daniel, secretary of war. 
 
 Lamps, various kinds of, 5i(>. 
 
 Lane. Ralph. Governor of Virginia, 
 the Indians and, 51. 
 
 Langdon. Dr. prayer of, 159- 
 
 Lands. the public. 193. 
 
 Laplace, his suggestion, 510. 
 
 La Salle, Robert de. In the Wilder- 
 ness, vovage of. on the Missis- 
 sippi, names Louisiana. 123; at- 
 tempts to colonize Louisiana, ad- 
 ventures of. in Texas and New 
 Mexico, and death of, 124. 
 
 Laudonniere, sails for America, 47. 
 
 Lawrence. Captain Tames. 213; 
 death of, J14. 
 
 Le Moyne. Jacob. artist and 
 geographer, 48. 
 
 Lee, Arthur, and Beaumarchais, 
 171. 
 
 Lee, General Charles, at Charles- 
 ton, 171 ; conduct of, capture of, 
 173; court-martialed, 327. 
 
 Lee, Robert E.. education, assumes 
 command of army of Virginia. 
 412; in Mexican War, in Civil 
 War. invades Maryland, at Get- 
 tysburg, death of. 413. 
 
 Lee, Richard Henry, offers resolu- 
 tion for independence, 189. 
 
 Leichardt, explores Queensland, 
 474- 
 
 Lief. (Eric's son), 22. 
 
 Leisler, Jacob, made Governor of 
 New York by the people, conduct 
 of, 93 ; execution of, 94. 
 
 Lev/is and Clark, explorations of, 
 204; World's Fair in honor of. 
 318. 
 
 Lewis. Wm.. 380. 
 
 Lexingtoti and Concord, news of 
 skirmishes at, in America and 
 England. 153 and 154. 
 
 Liberty, Sons of. in New York, 142. 
 
 Liberty party, 409. 
 
 Light, revolution in production, in 
 Nineteenth century, 51 5. 
 
 Lincoln. Abraham, his youth, rivalry 
 with Douglas. 391; character, ap- 
 pearance. 392 ; nomination for 
 President. 253; elected, 253 and 
 397: administration. 398; issues 
 Emancipation Proclamation. 260 
 and 401; re-elected, 264 and 402; 
 assassination. 404, funeral ser- 
 vices, 405. 
 
 Lincoln, Douglas, debates, 248. 
 
 Livingstone. Robert, partner of 
 Capt. Kidd. 94. 
 
 Livingston, Edward, minister to 
 France. 203. 
 
 Lockwood. J., with Greely expedi- 
 tion. 467. 
 
 Logan, John A,, 291. 
 
 Logan, Stephen T.. 391. 
 
 Lome, completes his La Gloire. 403. 
 
 London Company, charter of, do- 
 main of the. 54; members of the. 
 send settlers to America. 57; de- 
 mands of the. 59 ; new charter, 
 60; written constitution given by. 
 84; patent of the. cancelled, 85. 
 
 Long Island, incidents of battle on, 
 
 IhS. 
 
 Long. John D., 298. 
 
 Louisburg. expedition against, 106: 
 
 seige of, 136. 
 Louisiana, purchase of, from 
 
 France, 203. 
 Lovlace, Governor of Nev- York. 
 
 Ludwell, Philip. Governor, 116. 
 Lundy's Lane, battle at, 215. 
 Lyman. General Phineas, builds 
 
 Fort Edward; in battle at Lake 
 
 George, 135. 
 
 M. 
 
 MARS. 445. 
 McClellan. George B.. in 
 West Virginia, report of. 
 254 ; made Commander-in-chief. 
 255; President Lincoln's re- 
 proof of, 258; organizes balloon 
 corps, 497: candidate for the 
 Presidency, 264. 
 McCIintock. expedition, ascertains 
 
 Franklin's fate. 4''6. 
 McCormick. C. his harvesting ma- 
 
 MacDonalri^. Donald, in North Car- 
 olina. 164. 
 
 MacDonald, Flora, story of, 164. 
 
 MacDowell. General, leads troops 
 to Bull's Run, 254. 
 
 McLaue. Lonis, in Jackson's 
 cabinet, 2^3. 
 
 McKinley, Wm., elected President, 
 his cabinet. 298; his administra- 
 tion, 299; assassination oi, 317. 
 
 McKinley Bill, 293. 
 
 McKinley expedition. South Aus- 
 tralia, 474. 
 
 Machines, boring, punching, shear- 
 ing, riveting, planing, milling, 
 stamping, bending, straightening, 
 forging, grinding. 483. 
 
 Machine guns. 4.96. 
 
 Mackau's belief in armored vessels, 
 493. 
 
 McNaught s high pressure engine, 
 489. 
 
 Madison, James, education, 368; 
 delegate to Virginia convention, 
 his part in formation of the 
 L^nion, 369; becomes secretary of 
 State, elected President, adminis- 
 tration, 370; re-elected. 210; on 
 battle-field near Washington, 215; 
 retires to Montpelier, death of, 
 370. 
 
 Madoc, story of Pruice. 23. 
 
 Mafia, crimes of, in New Orleans. 
 293. 
 
 Magnetic pole, located by Ross, 
 465. 
 
 Maine, squatters in, first govern- 
 ment, 69. 
 
 '■Maine," destruction of the. 495. 
 
 Malvern Hill, battle at, 258. 
 
 Manassas, Confederate army at, 
 
 --55- 
 
 red by 
 dimen- 
 
 Manhattan 
 Hudson. 56. 
 
 Manhattan Life building, 
 sions of. 488. 
 
 Manilla, battle at. 306. 
 
 Manteo, chief. 51. 
 
 Marchena, Friar, helps Columbus, 
 28. 
 
 Marconi's sys^'-m, 512. 
 
 Marion. Francis. 179. 
 
 Marquette. Father, on the Missis- 
 sippi, 122; labors and death, 123. 
 
 Maryland, origin of name, voyage 
 of emigrants. Indian Emperor in. 
 movements in. 70; representative 
 government in, war in. Tolera- 
 tion act. 107; popular government 
 in, political convention in, loS. 
 
 Massachusetts, commonwealth of, 
 founded, 63; charter for, repre- 
 sentative government in, theo- 
 logical dsputes in. 97. 
 
 Massasoit, a friend of the white 
 people. 65. 
 
 Mason, John, grant of territory to, 
 69. 
 
 Mason, Capt. John, fights the Pe- 
 quods, exploits of. 74. 
 
 Mason and Slidell. capture of, ac- 
 tion of U. S. and British govern- 
 ments concerning, 2fio. 
 
 Matches, invented by Chancel. 5i5- 
 
 Mauser bullet, wound made by, 500. 
 
 Maxim, H.. his gun, 496. 
 
 May, Cornelius J., sails for New 
 Netherland. 67. 
 
 Mayflower, sails for America, chief 
 passengers in the. landing of the 
 passengers of the. 64. 
 Meade. General, George G.. suc- 
 ceeds Hooker, pursues Lee in 
 Virginia, at Gettysburg. ^62. 
 Mecklenberg, declaration of Inde- 
 pendence. 158. 
 Mendoza. Cardinal, favors Colum- 
 bus. 20. 
 
 " ' Pedro, in Florida, death 
 
 of. 48. 
 Mercer, G 
 
 169. 
 Mercury, 444. 
 Merrimac, battle ■ 
 
 493- 
 Metals, precious, 
 
 baser metals, 4 
 
 1 I'., flying 
 
 np of. 
 
VI 
 
 Mexico, war with. 238. 
 
 Milborne. Jacob, at Albany, q.^ ; 
 cbarges against, execution. 04. 
 
 Miles. Nelson A., in Spanish-Am- 
 erican War, 308. 
 
 Minuit. Peter. Governor of New 
 Netherlands, 68. 
 
 Minute Men. 158. 
 
 Mirabeau. his eulogy of Franklin. 
 358. 
 
 ilississippi River, discovery of, by 
 De Soto, 45; navigation of, free, 
 
 Missouri, admission of, 376; Mis- 
 souri Compromise, 220; 385. 
 
 Mobilians. is. 
 
 Modoc. Indians, war with the, 27s. 
 
 Money Order, introduced into Eng- 
 land, in U. S., 510. 
 
 Monitor, victory of the, in Hamp- 
 ton Roads. 261, 493. 
 
 Montcalm. Marquis de. Governor 
 of Canada, at Ticonderoga and 
 Fort William Henry, at Quebec, 
 136. 
 
 Monroe. James, public career of, 
 marriage of, U. S. Senator, his 
 administration. 375; his cabinet, 
 Monroe Doctrine. 376; retires 
 from public life, death of, 377. 
 
 Monroe Doctrine, the. 221. 
 
 Monteil, African explorer, 473. 
 
 Monterey, capture of, by Taylor, 
 -35- 
 
 Montgomery, John, Governor of 
 New York, 95. 
 
 Montgomery, General Richard, 
 commands an expedition into 
 Canada, besieges Quebec, death 
 of, 1 6 J. 
 
 Montgolfier, Brothers, their fire bal- 
 
 509. 
 
 Montreal, captured by Montgom- 
 ery. 162. 
 
 Moon, The, 440. 
 
 Moore, governor James, of South 
 Carolina, 117. 
 
 Morris, Robert, ' 1 86. 
 
 Morse. F. B., his telegraph. 511. 
 
 Motley, J. Lothrop, in England. 
 270. 
 
 Moultrie. William, chosen Colonel, 
 ordered to build Fort Sullivan. 
 165. 
 
 Morton, Levi P., elected Vice- 
 President, 292. 
 
 Mound Builders, their mounds. 
 5^0. 
 
 Mowing and reaping machines, 451. 
 
 Muhlenberg. Frederick A., 194. 
 
 ^Inle. spinning machine, modern, 
 4;"- 
 
 Murfreesboro. battle at, 261. 
 
 N. 
 
 NANSEN. F., expedition of. at- 
 tempts sledge journey 
 Northward, 469; rescued 
 by Jackson-Harmsworth expedi- 
 tion. 4f)8. 
 
 Narragansetts, the» assist King 
 I'hilip, 43. 
 
 Xasmyth's forgehammer, 490. 
 
 Natchez, 14. 
 
 National Army, disbanding of the. 
 number of troops in the. 264. 
 
 National banking system, 410. 
 
 National bankruptcy law, 312. 
 
 National debt, the U. S., 191. 222. 
 
 National Greenback party, 410. 
 
 National Republican party, 406. 
 
 National Government, plan of, 190. 
 
 National Gas, development of. 3 1 7, 
 464. 
 
 Necessity, Fort, events at, 131. 
 
 Neptune, 466. 
 
 Netherland, New. territory of set- 
 tlers in, 06; granted to Duke of 
 York. change of name, 92; 
 change in policy of, first popular 
 Assembly in, government ()f, 
 changed. 9 1 ; republicans in. 
 conquered by the English. 92. 
 
 Neutrality laws, violation of. 227. 
 
 New England, confederacy of. 9g; 
 towns burnt in, 103; desolation 
 in, by French and Indians. 105. 
 
 New Englanders, encroachments, of 
 the. 190. 
 
 Newfoundland, English suffer at. 
 47- 
 
 New^ Hampshire founded, Massa- 
 chusetts and, 69. 
 
 New Haven founded, 74. 
 
 New Tersev, first settlers in. 
 foundations of the State, of. 78; 
 settlements in, iii. 
 
 New Orleans, battle at, 215. taken 
 by Farragut, 264. 
 
 Newport, Captain, sent to Virginia, 
 57. 59. 60. 
 
 Newport, tower at, 22. 
 
 New York. commonwealth of, 
 founded. 68; government of. re- 
 captured bv the Dutch, restored 
 to the English, (General Assem- 
 bly of, "Charter of Liberties" 
 for, 93. 
 
 Ngani Lake, discovered, 473. 
 
 "Niagara." U. S.. frigate, lays first 
 cable, 513. 
 
 Nicholson, Colonel, in Acadie and 
 Canada, 105. 
 
 Nicholson, Francis, Governor of 
 South Carolina, 118. 
 
 Nicholls, Richard, Governor of New 
 York. Colonel in New Nether- 
 lands, 78, 92 ! commissioner of 
 New England, 100. 
 
 Nicola's letter to Washington. 320. 
 
 Nicpce. J., inventor of photography, 
 collaborates with Daguerre, 51 8. 
 
 Nile. Upper, explored. Burton and 
 Spike. Grant, and Raker, outlet 
 at Ripon Falls discovered, Gor- 
 don Pasha. Stanley. 473. 
 
 Nitro-glycerine. manufactured with 
 safety, dynamite produced from 
 it. Noble. A., experiments with. 
 496. 
 
 North Carolina, settlements in. 80; 
 character of proprietors of, 81 ; 
 emigration to. 114; first paper 
 money isssiied in. 117; insurrec- 
 tion in, ravages on the coasts of. 
 164. 
 
 North, Lord, premier, 144; on the 
 Tea Act. 14s. 
 
 North Pole, discovery of. 470. 
 
 North Sea Canal, 487. 
 
 Norwegian discoveries. 22. 
 
 Nullifiers in South Carolina. 224. 
 
 Nullification, 390. 
 
 Nyassa, Lake, discovered. 473. 
 
 O. 
 
 OGLETHORPE. TAMES ED- 
 WARD, benevolent plan 
 of, leads settlers to Geor- 
 gia, 82; return of. to Georgia 
 with, troops, dealings of. with 
 Spaniards. military movements 
 of. in Florida, 119. 
 
 Ohio, organized as a State, 127. 
 
 Ohio slavery cases, 408. 
 
 Oil pools, discovered, si?. 
 
 Old town (South Carolina), settle- 
 ment at, 81. 
 
 Oliver, Andrew, property of, de- 
 stroyed, 141. 
 
 Olnev, Richard, secretary of State. 
 296. 
 
 Omnibus Bill, the, 237. 
 
 Opechancanough, and Captain 
 Smith. 59. 
 
 Ordnance, naval tests of, 40^; ma- 
 chine guns, description of, 49(j. 
 
 Oregon, disputes concerning hnun 
 dary of. 232. 
 
 Osceola, career of, 225. 
 
 Oswego, Army at. expedition 
 against. 135. 
 
 Otis, James, opposes Writs of As- 
 sistance, 139, 
 
 Otto gas engine, 480. 
 
 Owen's survey of Western Africa. 
 472. 
 
 P. 
 
 PACIFIC OCEAN, discovery of 
 the, 4-'. 
 Page's discovery, si4- 
 
 Paine. Thomas, writes^ "Common 
 Sense," 162. 
 
 Paint, new process for the manu 
 facture of, 4(13. 
 
 Painting machine, operated by com- 
 pressed air. description of, 482. 
 
 Pakenham, Henry, 215. 
 
 Palo Alto, battle of, 30. 
 
 Panic of 1857. ^47. 
 
 Panic of 1893, 296. 
 
 Parcel post, in Europe. 510. 
 
 Park, a public, set apart, 274. 
 
 Parker, Admiral Sir Peter, off the 
 Carolina coast. 168. 
 
 Paper, manufacture of, 479. 
 
 l^aper trade, growth of American. 
 479- 
 
 Parkyns, M., explores Abyssinia. 
 47.:;. 
 
 Parliament of Religions. 296. 
 
 Parry, E., discoveries of, his peril- 
 ous journey, 465. 
 
 * Parsons' cause, ' defeated by 
 Patrick Henry, 356. 
 
 Patroons, privileges and possessions 
 of, 76; ambition of the. 80. 
 
 Pearson, Captain, of the Serapis. 
 177. 
 
 Peace conference. 309. 
 
 Peary, R. E.. sent by Academy of 
 Sciences, other expeditions. 468; 
 discovers North Pole. 470. 
 
 Pendelton, Hamilton's second. 374. 
 
 Penn. Wm.. early career of. 78; 
 and others buy East Jersey. lays 
 out Philadelphia, house built for. 
 gives good laws. 112; persecution 
 of, in England, 113; sails tn 
 America, death of. 114. 
 
 Pennsylvania, colonized by Quakers, 
 origin of name of, 79. 
 
 Penny postage, greatest achieve- 
 ment of century, first advocated, 
 success of, 510. 
 
 Pequods, troubles with, 73 ; de- 
 struction of the, 74. 
 
 Perry. Oliver H., Commodore, per- 
 sonal traits of, family of. in the 
 war with Barbary States, military 
 career of, 362 ; marriage of. in 
 the War of 1812. on Lake Erie. 
 363; his victory, famous report 
 of, 364; goes to Venezuela, 
 death of, 365. 
 
 Perryville. National victory at, 259, 
 
 Peru, conquest of, 42. 
 
 Petersburg, fall of, 429. 
 
 Pethrick, African explorer, 305. 
 
 Petroleum engines, 489. 
 
 Philadelphia founded, 80: origin 
 and growth of, 113. 
 
 "Philadelphia.'* capture and de- 
 struction of the, 202. 
 
 Philip, King, patriotism of. the 
 English War with, 100; death of, 
 
 Philip, King of Spain, orders of. 
 to Menendez. demands the head 
 of Gorges, 48. 
 
 Philippines, Americans in. 302, 312. 
 
 Phillips, A. D., patent for phos- 
 phorous match, S15. 
 
 Phipps. Sir William, expedition 
 against Port Royal and Quebec. 
 Governor of Massachusetts, 103; 
 sails for England, 1 04. 
 
VII 
 
 Pierce. Franklin, President. ^40. 
 Pierre, M. de, French commander. 
 
 ijo; letter of. to Dinwiddie. i.^o. 
 Pigot. General, at Charlestown, 157. 
 "Pilgrims." embark for America. 
 
 government of the. 64; snfferings 
 
 of the, mode of worship of the. 
 
 bs ; London merchants and the. 
 
 enterprise of the, 66. 
 Pinckney, Charles C, envoy to 
 
 Fr 
 
 Martin A., and Columbus. 
 
 Pirates, dispersion of, 217. 
 Phosphorus, discovered by Brand, 
 
 5>5- 
 Photo-block printing, 519. 
 Photography, uses of, in printing. 
 
 518. 
 Pike. R., commander Peary expedi- 
 
 of in U. S.. and Great Britai 
 479- 
 
 Pitcairn. Major, at Lexington, 153. 
 
 Pitt. Wm.. and American colonies, 
 338; uise conduct of, scheme of. 
 for conquest, 136; proposes re- 
 peal of Stamp Act, 141. 
 
 Pittsburg Landing, Battle at, 423. 
 
 Pizarro, Francisco. sails from 
 Hayti, 4-. 
 
 Planets, the, 443. 
 
 Plowden, C., explores Abyssinia, 
 472. 
 
 Plows, primitive, improvements of. 
 450. 451. 
 
 Plymouth Company, charter of. do- 
 main of, members of the, 54. 
 
 Plymouth, New, founded, 64; ap- 
 pearance of, 65. 
 
 Pneumatic dispatch tubes, 510. 
 
 Pocohontas saves Captain Smith. 
 59; saves the Jamestown colony, 
 60; kidnapped, 61 ; baptized, 
 married, in England. 62. 
 
 Point Pleasant, battle at. 154. 
 
 Polk. James K., President. 232; 
 administration of, 236. 
 
 Polo Marco, journey of. 24. 
 
 Ponce de Leon, voyage, discover- 
 ies and death of, 38, 39. 
 
 Pontiac, conspiracy and death of, 
 138. 
 
 "Poor Richard's Almanac," 335. 
 
 Pope. General John, 257. 
 
 Port Royal, S. C, Huguenots at, 
 47; settlements at. 118. 
 
 Port Royal, Nova Scotia, founded, 
 54. 
 
 Porto Rico, taken by the Ameri- 
 cans, 309. 
 
 Postal savings banks, in Europe, 
 
 Post office, development of, in Eng- 
 land, evading charges. Hill's in- 
 vestigation, proposes penny post- 
 age, various functions of. par- 
 cel post, free delivery, universal 
 postal union. 509, 510. 
 
 Poultry industry, 450. 
 
 Powder, smokeless, its superiority, 
 496. 
 
 Power looms, 476. 
 
 Preece, W., tests Marconi system. 
 Si 2. 
 
 President, and the electro college. 
 187. 
 
 Poutrincourt in Acadie, =;4. 
 
 Powhatan and the English. Captain 
 Smith and. =;o. 
 
 Preble. Commodore, in the Medit- 
 erranean, before Tripoli, 202. 
 
 President, the frigate, fights the 
 Little Belt, 208. 
 
 Press, freedom of the, vindicated. 
 
 Prideaux, General, at Fort Niagara. 
 
 137- 
 Priestley. J., and Franklin, 343. 
 Pring. Martin, on the coast of 
 
 New England, 53, 
 
 Princeton, battle of, 173. 
 Prison ships, the British, 172. 
 Privateering, history of, method of, 
 
 abolished. 498; maintained by 
 
 U. S.. during Spanish Americ"n 
 
 War. 499. 
 Projectile, modern, description of, 
 
 velocity of, destructiveness of. 
 496. 
 Price. R., Franklin's letter to. 345- 
 Protection. early debates on, 190. 
 Protestants and Romanists. in 
 
 Maryland, 107. 
 Providence, founding the colony of. 
 
 76. 
 Punishments, military, abolition of. 
 
 flogging, court-martials, statistics 
 
 of, 499. 
 Puritans, in England, immigrate to 
 
 Holland, and to America, 63. 
 Putnam, leads Connecticut troops. 
 
 157; on Bunker's Hill, 159; be- 
 fore Boston, 160. 
 
 Q- 
 
 QUAKERS." or Friends, ori- 
 gin of name of. 78; in the 
 Revolution, 329. 
 Quay, M. .S.. 293- 
 Quebec, Cartier at, s-,\ Ursuline 
 convent at, 122; strength of, 
 second seige of, 127, 
 Quebec Act, 150. 
 
 RAILRO.\DS, steam, Trevith- 
 ick's locomotive, iirst in 
 England, formal opening 
 of "Experiment," description of, 
 early opposition of. locomotive 
 and cow, introduced on conti- 
 nent, into the United States, 501; 
 "Jolin Bull" imported, swivel 
 truck, other improvements, Trans- 
 Siberian, 502. 
 
 Railroading, evolution of, evolu- 
 tion of steel rail, climbing grades, 
 483. 
 
 Rails, steel, improvement of, 485. 
 
 Randolph, Edward, in New Eng- 
 land. 102. 
 
 Randolph, John, and Patrick Henry, 
 356. 
 
 Randolph, John, of Roanoke, 361. 
 
 Raleigh. Walter, in France, char- 
 acter of, 48; gallantry of, 'fits 
 out vessels for America, secures 
 a charter, 50. 
 
 Ratcliffe, President of Virginia 
 Colony, 58. 
 
 Reconstruction, period of, 432. 
 
 Reed, Thomas E., 293. 
 
 "Regulators," doings of the, 144. 
 
 Reid. Whitelaw, 295. 
 
 Reis, P., experiments with tele- 
 phone, 514. 
 
 Republican party, 409. 
 
 Revere. Paul, sent to New York, 
 distributes copies of the Port 
 Bill, 143; vigilance of, 153. 
 
 Rhode Island, society in, charter 
 for. troubles in, no. 
 
 Ribault, John, in America, 47. 
 
 Richardson, explorer. 472. 
 
 Richmond, operations before, at- 
 tempts to capture frustrated, 258; 
 l^nion troops take possession of. 
 264. 
 
 Rillieux. vacuum-process pan, 481. 
 
 Roanoke Island. discovered. by 
 Amidas and Barlow, 50; settlers 
 on, return to England, 51. 
 
 Robert. Louis, his paper making 
 machine, 479. 
 
 Robertson. Donald. Madison's 
 teacher, ^68. 
 
 Robinson, Tohn, emigrates to Hol- 
 land, 64; his coming to America 
 opposed, 97. 
 
 Rochambeau. disagrees with Wash- 
 ington, 328, 
 
 Roche, De la, expedition of. 54. 
 Rock-drills, worked by compressed 
 
 air, delicacy of. power of, pneu- - 
 
 matic breast-drill, 485. 
 "Rocket." .Stephenson's prize en- 
 
 Rodgers, Commodore John, and 
 Little Belt. 208. 
 
 Roebling's suspension bridge, 484. 
 
 Roentgen rays, in surgery, 519. 
 
 Rohlfs, G., his explorations, terri- 
 ble experience of, oasis of Tual, 
 474- 
 
 Rolfe, John, marries Pocohontas. 
 Thomas, son of, Thomas, son of, 
 in Virginia, 62. 
 
 Koque, Francis de la, Viceroy of 
 Canada, 47. 
 
 Roosevelt. Theodore. in Cuban 
 War, 304; Governor of New 
 York, 311; Vice-President and 
 succeeds as President, 317; 
 elected President. 318. 
 
 Ross, General, British commander, 
 215. 
 
 Ross expedition, 465. 
 
 Ruling machine in Johns Hopkins' 
 University, constructed by Theo- 
 dore Schneider. designed hy 
 Henry A. Rowland, 48(3. 
 
 Rusk, J. M., secretary of agricult- 
 ure, 293. 
 
 Rutledge, Anna. 391. 
 
 SACO, Maine, government es- 
 tablished at, 60. 
 Sadi-Carnot's efficiency theory, 
 489. 
 
 .Safety bicycle, 505. 
 
 Safety match, invented, 51^, (by 
 Lundstrom). 
 
 St. Augustine, founding of. 48. 
 
 St. Blaisen's turbine. 491. 
 
 St. Clair. General, in Northwestern 
 Territory, defeated by the In- 
 dians, blamed by Washington. 
 192. 
 
 St. Clair River tunnel. 486. 
 
 St. Gothard tunnel, 485. 
 
 St. Louis, World's Fair in, 317. 
 
 St. Lawrence, Gulf of. River of. 
 discovered, 47. 
 
 St. Mary's, first settlement in 
 Maryland at, 71. 
 
 St. Pierre. M. de. notices of. 129. 
 
 Saint's sewing machine. 47=;. 
 
 " " action of Council of. 
 
 "Sam Adams' Regiments." 352. 
 Saraoset, welcomes the English, 65. 
 Sampson, Wm. T.. 300. 
 Sampson-Schley controversy, 311. 
 -San Francisco, great eathquake at. 
 
 San Tuan, claims to the Island of. 
 settled, 273. 
 
 San Juan Hill, capture of, 308. 
 
 San Salvador, first landing place of 
 Columbus, 3r. 
 
 Sandys' Sir Edwin, and the Plym- 
 outh Company's charter, bene- 
 factor of Virginia, 84. 
 
 Santa -Xnna. defeated by Scott, 275. 
 
 Santa Maria, shipwreck of. ^j, 
 
 Saratoga, battle at, 174, 326. 
 
 Sassacus. war with, 74- 
 
 Saturn, 445. 
 
 Savannah, steamer, crosses the At- 
 lantic. 506-07. 
 
 Saybrook, Fort at. 74. 
 
 Savle and West, in South Carolina. 
 81. 
 
 Schenectady, attack on, 1 03. 
 
 Schilling's telegraphic system, 510. 
 
 Schley. W. S., relieves Greely ex- 
 pedition. 468. 
 
 Schuyler. Major Peter, beats back 
 the Indians. 94; leads troops to 
 Canada. 10^. 
 
 Scott, Dred, 246. 
 
VIII 
 
 Scott. Winfield, in Mexican War. 
 
 235; in Civ>l War, ^54- 
 Scoresby, W., first Arctic explorer. 
 
 465. 
 Serpent Mound, 5 jo. 
 Settlements West of the Mountains. 
 
 Seward. William H., abolitionist. 
 405; youth, friend of Weed, de- 
 scription of, visits Lafayette, gov- 
 ernor of N. Y., 406; secretary of 
 State, attempted assassination of, 
 407, J65. 
 
 Sewing machines, manufacture of, 
 in U. S., date of invention, first 
 patented in England, 475. 
 
 Shafter, at Santiago. 307. 
 
 Sharpe, Governor of Maryland, 
 132; Genera!, 3^1. 
 
 Sheldon, Sarah, marries Patrick 
 Henry, 356. 
 
 Shenandoah Valley, troops in, 263. 
 
 Sherman, W. T., education, mar- 
 riage, beginning of Civil War, 
 414; with Grant, 415. his march 
 to Atlanta, 416; after the war 
 and death of, 417. 
 
 Sherman Act, passed, 293. 
 
 Shoemaking, use of machines in. 
 476. 
 
 Sigsbee, Cbas. D., 299. 
 
 Silver, output of. compared with 
 gold, 4^2. 
 
 Silver coinage authorized. 275. 
 
 Simplon tunnel, 4S6. 
 
 Singer sewing machine. 475. 
 
 Sioux, 17; war with the, 275. 
 
 Six Nations, power of the, 131; 
 warriors of the, 137; French 
 emmissaries among, 138. 
 
 Skelton. Martha, iSf'. 
 
 Slot machines, various kinds of, 
 480. 
 
 Slidell. Tohn. with Mason. 260. 
 
 Sloughter. Governor of New York, 
 and Leisler, 93, 
 
 Smith, Caleb, secretary of the in- 
 terior, 253- 
 
 Smith. Hoke, secretary of the in- 
 terior. 295- 
 
 Smith. John, career of, in Virginia, 
 59; explores New England, 63; 
 made Admiral of New England. 
 63. 
 
 Smith's cantilever bridge, 484. 
 
 Sons of IJberty, 352. 
 
 South Carolina, settlers in, com- 
 monwealth of. founded. 81; first 
 popular assembly in. 11=;: repulse 
 of the Spaniards at Charleston. 
 117; becomes a royal province, 
 doings in. 165, ordinance of se- 
 cession. 251. 
 
 South Sea exploring expedition, 
 230, 
 
 Spanish- American War. prepara- 
 tions, 301; battle of Manila. 306; 
 Santiago, destruction of Cervera's 
 fleet. 308; torpedo boats in. naval 
 battles of. 495; smokeless powder 
 tested. 4q6; peace declared, 309; 
 results, 310. 
 
 '"Specie circular," the, 226. 
 
 Speke, African explorer, discovers 
 Muta Nzige. 473. 
 
 Spencer, Colonel, leads Connecticut 
 troops. 157. 
 
 Spy, of Sir Henry Clinton, hanged. 
 182. 
 
 Stamp Act, proposed and adopted, 
 ^39 ; opposition and resistance to 
 the, 141; repeal of the, 144; cele- 
 bration of the repeal of the, 145. 
 
 Stamp Act Congress, meeting of, 
 141. 
 
 Standish, Captain Miles, at Plym- 
 outh, wooes and looses a maiden. 
 65; chastises the Indians, 68. 
 
 Stanley, H.. sent by New York 
 Herald, finds Livingston, re- 
 lieves Emin Pachiu his Congo 
 
 expedition, results of, 473. 
 
 Stanton, Edwin M,, secretary of 
 War, General Lorenzo Thomas 
 and, 268. 
 
 Star Spangled Banner, origin of 
 the song of the, 215. 
 
 Stark, Major John, exploits of, 
 137; Colonel leads New Hamp- 
 shire troops. 157; General, vic- 
 tory of, near Bennington, 178. 
 
 "Starving Time," the, in Virginia, 
 
 States general of Holland, action 
 of the, by. 
 
 Steam engine, saving fuel of, in- 
 vention of, high pressure, triple 
 expansion, 488, 489. 
 
 Steam hammer, 405. 
 
 Steam power, increase in use of, 
 488, 489. 
 
 Steamships, Fitch's claim, Fulton's 
 Clermont, first trial of, dimen- 
 sions of, infiuence of on inland 
 transportation, first steamer on 
 Allegheny River, first Atlantic, 
 screw propeller, '"Great Britain," 
 built of iron, water tight com- 
 partments, increase of speed, 
 size, improvements in, 506. 
 
 Steele, Richard, 334. 
 
 Steinheil's telegraphic line, 511. 
 
 Stephens, Alexander, 400. 
 
 Stepiienson, G., his first locomo- 
 tive, 501. 
 
 Stevens, advocates screw vessels, 
 492; build armor plated vessels 
 493. 
 
 Stevenson, Alai E., 295. 
 
 Steuben, Baron de, inspector gen- 
 eral, 174; drills American troops, 
 
 Stock breeding, its good results, 
 extraordinary prices follow, value 
 of milch cow in the U. S., other 
 domestic animals improved by 
 breeding, 449. 
 
 Stone, Governor of Maryland, loS. 
 
 Stone lifting crane, Peternead. 
 
 Scotland, 481. 
 
 Stones, precious, discoveries of in 
 America, 465. 
 
 Stony Point, events at, 174. 
 
 Stormont, Lord, and Franklin. 345. 
 
 Stoughton, Governor, administra- 
 tion of, 104. 
 
 Street's engine, 489. 
 
 Street railways, early horse cars, 
 cable cars, electric cars, 503. 
 
 Stuart, John T., 391. 
 
 Stuyvesant, Peter, Governor of 
 New Netherlands, 91; disputes of, 
 with the Indians and republicans, 
 wrath and stubbornness, goes to 
 Holland, 92; death of, 93. 
 
 Submarine navigation, 509. 
 
 Suez Canal. Lesseps Canal, saving 
 in time by history of, dimensions, 
 487. 
 
 Sugar making, old and new, use of 
 centrifugal in, 481. 
 
 Sumner, Charles, birth and educa- 
 tion, 410; description of. his 
 stay abroad, anti-slavery fight of, 
 joins free soilers. elected L^ S. 
 Senator, 411; attacked in Senate, 
 sufferings of, his theory of State 
 suicide, death of, 41-'. 
 
 Swayne's turbine, 491. 
 
 Swedes on the Delaware, 91; sub- 
 jection of the, 92. 
 
 Swedish colny in America, 77. 
 
 Swept, Leonard, 399. 
 
 T. 
 
 TACTICS, military. improve- 
 ment in, skirmish line, ma- 
 chine guns, 496. 
 Taney, Chief Justice, extra-judicial 
 
 opinion of, 246. 
 Tariff bill of 1824. 386. 
 Tarleton, Lieutenant Colonel, 179: 
 
 defeated at Cowpens, 182. 
 Taxation of the Americans, 139. 
 Taylor, Zachary, in Texas and 
 
 Mexico, 234; reinforces Scott in 
 
 Mexico, 235; elected President, 
 
 236; death of. 238. 
 Tea Act, the, 145; how regarded 
 
 in America, 147. 
 Tea ships, landing of, opposed, 147. 
 
 Telautograph, description of, 512. 
 
 Telegraph, iirst experiments with. 
 510; Gauss establishes a line, 
 Morse experiments, rapid move- 
 ment in, multiple transmission, 
 511; wireless, Marconi system," 
 used in navigation, 5 1 2. 
 
 Telephone, a wonderful achieve- 
 ment, Reis' experiment, develop- 
 ment of. Bell's telephone, exhi- 
 bited at Philadelphia centennial, 
 principle of, description of, mi- 
 crophone, switch-board, extension 
 of service, long distance -tele- 
 phone, 514. 
 
 Telford's Bridge, 484. 
 
 Tenure of Office Act, 208. 
 
 Texas, declares her independence, 
 390. 
 
 Textile industry, evolution of. 47b. 
 
 Thomas. General John, at Cam- 
 
 Thimonnier's sewing machine, 475. 
 bridge, 168. 
 
 Thomas, Lorenzo, appointed secre- 
 
 _ tary of War, 268. 
 
 I, Charles, 357. 
 
 Charles, secretary of 
 Congress, seconi^s the vote for 
 independence, 136. 
 
 Threshing machinCi 452. 
 
 Tilden, S. J., nominated for Presi- 
 dent, zyy. 
 
 Tilden-Hayes contest, 277. 
 
 Tin plate industry, how affected by 
 tariff, 464. 
 
 Tippecanoe, battle at. 209. 
 
 Tobacco, cultivation of, in Vir- 
 ginia, 51. 
 
 Todd, Dorothea, becomes "Dolly 
 Madison." 370. 
 
 Todd, Mary, married to Lincoln. 
 391- 
 
 Toleration act in Maryland, the, 
 107. 
 
 To-mo-chi-chi, and the English. 82; 
 in England. 83. 
 
 Tools, cheapened by improved ma- 
 chinery, primitive, 482. 
 
 Torches, what made of. 516. 
 
 Tories in the revolution, and 
 George Washington. 324. 
 
 Torpedoes, development of. White- 
 head, description of, defensive. 
 Torpedo boats. 494. 
 
 Torpedo boats, in Spanish -Ameri- 
 can War, qualifications nf, de- 
 scription of. 494. 49S. 
 
 1 own meeting. New Englanrl. 340. 
 
 Townshend. Charles, proposes a 
 Stamp Act, 139. 
 
 Townshend Acts, 341. 
 
 Trafalgar, battle of, 492. 
 
 Transportation, 501. 
 
 Treaty of Paris. 138. 310. 
 
 Treaty of Alliance with France. 
 
 Treaty of Portsmouth. 318. 
 
 Trent affair. 260. 
 
 Trevithick's locomotive, 501. 
 
 Triana, de, first discovers land. 31. 
 
 Trenton. Battle of, taken by Wash- 
 ington. 324. 
 
 Trolley line, trolley car, 504. 
 
 Trotting horse, 449. 
 
 Trusts in America, 312. 
 
 Tuckey, explores Congo, 472. 
 
 Tunneling, simplified by modern 
 engineering, Mont Cenis tunnel. 
 Couch's rock drill. statistics, 
 rock boring machines, hydraulic 
 machines, danger of flooding, 487. 
 
 Turbines, 491. 
 
IX 
 
 V 
 
 Tufgot. minister of France, on 
 
 Franklin. 345. 
 Tryon. (jovernor William, tyranny 
 
 of. conduct of. in North Carolina. 
 
 Tuscaloosa. and the Spaniards, 
 death of. 45. 
 
 Tuscaroras, in North Carolina; 
 joins the five nations, 46. 
 
 Tyler, Tohn, 360; his administra- 
 tion, 387. 
 
 U. 
 
 UCHEES, 14. 
 Uncas, the Mohegan, rebel-- 
 lion of. 74. 
 Underhill. Captain rolin. ys- 
 Union Pacific Railroad. 270; scan- 
 dals connected with. J71; cost of, 
 272. 
 Universal postal nnion, established. 
 
 extension of. 5 ro. 
 University of Pennsylvania, 335. 
 Uranus. 446. 
 
 V. 
 
 AIL, ALFRED. Morses's part- 
 ner, 511. 
 Van Braam, J., teaches 
 Washington military tactics, 3^1. 
 
 Van Buren. Martin, President, 22(1; 
 chief events of administration, 
 227, 409. 
 
 Van Dan, Rip, acting Governor of 
 New York. 95. 
 
 Van Ness, W. P.. and the Hamil- 
 ton-Biirr controversy. 374. 
 
 Van TwiUer, Wouter. Governor of 
 New Netherland, wrath of. 89. 
 
 Vane, Sir Henry. Governor of 
 Massachusetts, notice of, execu- 
 tion of, 94. 
 
 Venus, 443. 
 
 Vera Cruz, capture of, 275. 
 
 Vergennes, C. French Minister, 
 outwitted by Franklin, 346, 348. 
 
 Vergennes. C. G., Statesman, and 
 John Adams. 324. 
 
 Vernon, Admiral. 320. 
 
 Verplanck's Point. 46. 
 
 Vicksburg, SeJge of, 424. 
 
 Vineland, discovery of, settlement 
 of. 22. 23. 
 
 Virginia, origin of name of, settlers 
 in. 57; sufferings in, emigrants 
 in, 58; colonization of. introduc- 
 tion of slavery in, marriages in. 
 education in, new government 
 for 84; sufferings in. 85: parlia- 
 mentary forces in. Charles, 
 Prince, invited to he King of, 
 republicans and society in, in- 
 vaded by Indians, 86; important 
 events in, end of Royal rule in. 
 163. 
 
 "Virginia resolves," moved by 
 Patrick Henry, 357. 
 
 Voelter's improvement of paper in- 
 dustry, 479. 
 
 Volkman. W., experiments with 
 heliograph. 497. 
 
 W. 
 
 WALKER, T.. Cbemist, in- 
 ventor of fire getting 
 implement (congreve) . 62. 
 Walloons in New Netherland, (.7- 
 Wampole, H., and Franklin, 344. 
 
 Wanton, gov., acts of, concerning 
 the "Gaspe," 146. 
 
 Wanamaker. John, 293. 
 
 War, evolution of science of, 491; 
 in the middle ages, 494; Naval, 
 iron-clads, torpedoes, 495 ; army 
 ordnance, explosives, heliography. 
 496; privateering, military pun- 
 ishment. 497 ; destructiveness of 
 modern. 498; abolition of, laws 
 of, 499. 500. 
 
 Ward. General Artemas. at Cam- 
 bidge. 158. 
 
 Washington City, in 1800. 191; de- 
 struction of property at. 215. 
 
 Washington, Augustine, father of 
 George Washington, marries 
 Mary Ball, death of, 319. 
 
 \\'ashington, George, his greatness, 
 319; parentage, schooling, 320 ; 
 appointed adjutant general, 321 ; 
 131 ; leads troops to the Ohio, 
 leaves the army, 132; accompan- 
 ies Braddock, 322. 133; com- 
 mands a stockade, 134; captures 
 Fort Duquesne. in the Virginia 
 Assembly. 135; marries Martha 
 Dandridge, 322 ; takes command 
 of American troops, 159. 323; 
 besieges Boston, on Dorchester 
 Heights, drives Howe from Bos- 
 ton, 162; in New York and Phila- 
 delphia, plot to murder. the 
 battle on Long Island. 168; aided 
 bv the French, 327; at Yorktown. 
 183; surrender of Cornwallis, 
 328; resigns his commission, 329; 
 elected President, his administra- 
 tion, 330; death of. 333; his per 
 sonal appearance, 325. 
 
 Washington. Lawrence, half-brother 
 of George, leaves Mount Vernon 
 to him. marries Miss Fairfax. 
 320; death of, 3-'i. 
 
 Washington, Mary, mother of 
 George, death of. 189. 
 
 Washington, John, opposes the" In- 
 dians, 87. 
 
 Water-power, utilization of, 491. 
 
 Watson, Thomas, nominated for 
 Vice-President, 298. 
 
 Watt. James, 489. 
 
 Wayne, General, captures Stony 
 Point, 174. 
 
 Weather-bureau, importance of to 
 farmers, established in U. S., 
 stations sorting under. 454. 
 
 Webb, General, at Fort Edward. 
 136. 
 
 Weber's telegraphic line. 51 1. 
 
 Webster. Daniel, his youth, mar- 
 ries, early practice, in Congress. 
 386; debate with Hayne, Secre- 
 tary of State, 387; death of. 388. 
 
 Webster. Ezekiel, 387. 
 
 Webster, Fletcher, 386. 
 
 Wedderburn, solicitor general, 343. 
 
 Weed, Thurlow, 397, 406. 
 
 Wernberg's "CoUosus" bridge over 
 Schuylkill, 484. 
 
 Wesley, Charles and John, in Geor- 
 gia, 83. 118. 
 
 West Cambridge, fight at. 67. 
 
 Western continent, 11. 
 
 West India Company. Dutch, sends 
 
 settlers to New Netherlands, 67. 
 West Jersey, purchaser of, i 1 1 ; 
 
 Friends or Quakers settle in. 
 
 Penn assignee of, 112, 
 Westminster, first blood of the 
 
 Revolution shed at, 155. 
 Weston, colony of, in Massachu- 
 setts, 90. 
 Weymouth. Captain George, on the 
 
 coast of New England, 53. 
 Wheatstone's telegraph, 511. 
 Whig party and Tyler, course of. 
 
 406, 409. 
 Whipple, Abraham. and the 
 
 "Gaspe," at Charleston, 17^. 
 Whiskey Rebellion. 331. 
 White, John. attempts of, to 
 
 found a colony. 52. 
 Wilderness, battle of the. 21,2. 
 Wilkes, C, his expedition, sight 
 
 Antarctic continent, 470. 
 William of Orange, marriage of. 
 
 93- 
 W illiam and Mary, sovereigns, ac- 
 
 W'illiam and 'Mary, college of, 84. 
 Williams. Roger, conduct of, at 
 
 Salem, banishment. 75; founds a 
 
 colony, honors to, 7O. 
 Williams, Washington's teacher. 
 
 320. 
 Williston's button machine, 478. 
 Wilson, Robert L., 398. 
 Windom, William, 393. 
 Wingfield, Edward, president of 
 
 Virginia council, conduct of, 58. 
 Winslow, Captain Josiah, expedi- 
 
 Winthrop, John, message of. to 
 Governor Van Twiller, 72; gov- 
 ernor of Massachusetts, 97 ; 
 founds Boston, 98. 
 
 Winthrop, John, Governor of Con- 
 necticut Territory, 72; in com- 
 mand of an invading army. 103; 
 obtains a charter for Connecti- 
 cut, 109. 
 
 W^olfe, General James, at Louis- 
 burg, 136; before Quebec, 138. 
 
 Women, first European, in Vir- 
 ginia, 62. 
 
 Wool weaving industry, improve- 
 ments, 477. 
 
 Woolf's steam engine. 489. 
 
 Wright, Governor of Georgia, op 
 position to, 165. 
 
 Wyatt. Governor, Sir Francis, 85. 
 
 YALE, ELIHU. founds Yale 
 College. 126. 
 Yeardley. Governor George. 62. 
 Veamans, Governor Sir John, 81. 
 York. Duke of. is presented with 
 New Netherland, 78; new charter 
 to. 89. 
 ^'o^ktown, siec of, 183. 
 
 ^ENGER. J. P.. 
 trial of, 95. 
 
 ■Journal" of 
 
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