Class _IlJlii:2 Book P Copyright N^. COPYRIGHT DEPOSIT. X^«J%^ — m^ - ■ y-^ rsiaigrgfSjgjafgiaiafaigJBiaiSiB]grBigfiaEna'g="'^^3"^^^ ^pn=in=af^f^j^3 CHRISTOPHER COLUMBUS. 03 {=) pq o o o 1—1 Q < STORY OF THE NEW WORLD. BEING A COMPLETE 4^T0RY^UmTED^ATES PROM THE Discovery of the American Continent to the Present Time, CONTAINING ACCOUNTS OF THE DISCOVERIES AND EXPLORATIONS OF THE NORSEMEN. SPANIARDS, ENGLISH AND FRENCH ; THE MOUND BUILDERS ; THE AMERICAN INDIANS; THE SETTLEMENT OF THE NEW WORLD; THE FRENCH AND INDIAN WARS; THE STRUGGLE OF THE REVOLUTION; The Establishment of the American Republic; THE SECOND WAR WITH ENGLx\ND ; THE MEXICAN WAR; THE LONG PERIOD OF PEACE ; THE HISTORY OF THE GREAT CIVIL WAR ; THE CENTENNIAL OF AMERICAN INDEPENDENCE, AND ALL IMPORTANT EVENTS, DOWN TO THE PRESENT TIME, WITH VALUABLE STATISTICS FROM THE LATEvST CENSUS. BY ; ' REV. HENRY DAVENPORT NORTHROP, D.D., THE WELL-KNOWN HISTORIAN. EMBELLISHED WITH NEARLY 500 SUPERB ENGRAVINGS. .1 PHILADELPHIA: ^-—OO ^/ NATIONAL PUBLISHING CO,, ^"^7/ 239 Levant Street. Entered according to Act of Congress, in the year I S92. by J. K: JONES. 1,1 tlir Office of the Librarian of Congress, at Washington. D. (' PREFACE. THERE is nothing more worthy of a man's study than the history of his country. In our own land, how- ever, the means of pursuing such a 5tudy are Hmited. Our great cities contain large and valuable public libraries, and the collections of our historical societies are rich and very complete ; but these are accessible only to the communities in which they are located, and are practically useless to the majority of the American people. The great works of Bancroft and Hildreth cover but a portion of our history, and are removed from the r^ch of the masses by reason of their costliness. Besides these, the larger number of the works treating of American history are compendiums, or outlines intended, for the use of schools, and are therefore unsatisfac- tory to the adult reader. The demand for a popular History of the United States which shall fill a place between these greater and smaller works has led the author to the preparation of this volume. He has endeavored to popularize the story of the nation, and at the same time to neglect noth- ing that could in the least contribute to a clear and comprehensive understanding of the subject. He has sought to trace the his- tory of the Republic from the discovery of the American continent to the present day, and has endeavored especially to fix the attention of the reader upon the various influ- ences which have aided in moulding our national character, and have produced our distinctive political and moral national traits. He has endeavored to write from a broad national standpoint, and to cultivate in the minds of his readers that feeling ot national patriotism which must ever be the safeguard of our country. It is a fitting time to consider the story of the past, to learn the lessons which it teaches, and to ponder the warnings which it conveys for the future. Four hundred years ago America was an unknown wilderness. Less than three centuries ago it passed into the hands of England, and was thus secured for the language and the free influences of the all-conquering Anglo-Saxon race. It was a precious heritage which was thus secured for liberty ; a land stretching from the frozen regions of the north to the sunny skies of the tropics, from the stormy Atlantic to the calm Pacific ; a land embracing every variety of climate, and a soil capable of producing almost every product of the earth, from the stunted herbage of the frozen regions to the luxuriant fruits of the tropics. The earth is rich in mineral deposits, from the homely, but invaluable, veins of coal, to beds of the most brilliant and precious minerals. It pours out in streams, oil for burning, gas that may be used fresh from the natural springs, salt that requires but the heat of the sun for its perfection, and beds of pure soda that cover the earth like the dust in the high- ways. In short, all that is needed for the pres- ervation and comfort of animal and human life exists, in this favored land in the greatest profusion. V VI PREFACE. Such is the land designed by God for the home of liberty. The people to whom He has intrusted it have not abused His good- ness. In the short space of two centuries, the American people have grown from a small handful of hardy adventurers to a " mighty continental nation," increasing with a rapidity that is almost marvellous. They have built up their country on a scale of magnificence of which they are justly proud. They have covered it with powerful and free States, and splendid cities, connected by a network of railways, telegraphs, navigable rivers, and canals, which bind all the scat- tered parts into one solid whole. They have made a commerce and a system of manufac- tures before which the fabled wealth of Tyre sinks into insignificance. They have created a literature which commands the respect of the world; they have illustrated their history witfi deeds of arms not less splendid than their more peaceful achievements, and have given to the world names in every walk of life that will never die. They have shown that liberty and power can go hand in hand; they have made themselves a nation in which God is feared, and of which Christianity is the basis, in which ignorance and vice are des- pised, and in which the great lesson that lib- erty is possible only to an educated and virtuous people is being practically demon- strated. This is a grand history — a record of the highest achievement of humanity — the noblest, most thrilling, and glorious story ever penned on earth. Yet the fact remains that the great mass of the American people are but imperfectly acquainted with it. There is a real need that we should know better than we do what we have done. It is only by a thoughtful study of our past that we can safely provide for the perils of the future. We have triumphed over adversity, and we are now called upon to bear the test of suc- cess. He can be no good citizen who is ignorant of his country's history. In the preparation of this volume, no authority of importance has been overlooked; the author has carefully searched every source of information open to him ; and has availed himself of every fact that could throw new light upon, or impart additional interest to, the subject under consideration. In the narration of military events, he has preferred to give each campaign as a whole rather than to mingle several by pre^nting the events in chronological order. At the same time he has sought to preserve the inter-relation of events in one field of opera- tions to those in the others. The book is offered to the public in the sincere hope that it may induce its readers to take to heart the lessons which our history teaches, and to set' a higher value upon the precious heritage of constitutional liberty which our fathers won for us with their blood, and handed down to us in trust for our chil- dren's children. CONTENTS. BOOK I. Discovery of the W^estern Continent. CHAPTER I. Strange People in a Strange Land. PAGE Earliest Inhabitants of the United States — The Mound Builders — Remarkable Works Constructed by Them — Evidences of a Primitive Civilization — Indications of the Antiquity of this Period — A Re- markable Cherokee — Who Were the Mound Build- ers — Ancient Phoenicians — False Assumption — The American Indians — Divisions of the Country Among the Tribes — Names and Location of the Various Tribes — Organization and Government of the In- dians — Their Dress, Manners and Customs — Vil- lages — Indian Inventions — The War Dance — Le- gends of the Norsemen Respecting the Discovery of America . . > 17 CHAPTER II. The Voyages of Columbus. Maritime Enterprise in the Fifteenth Century — The- ories Respecting the Earth's Surface— Christopher Columbus — His Early Life — His Theory of a West- ern Passage to India — His Struggles to Obtain the Means of Making a Voyage — Is Aided by Ferdi- nand and Isabella of Spain — His First Voyage — Discovery of America — Reception in Spain — His Second Voyage — Settlement of Hayti — Third Voy- age of Columbus — He Reaches the Mainland — Dis- covery of Gold in Hayti — Troubles in the Colony — Columbus Sent to Spain in Irons — Indignation of the Queen — Last Voyage of Columbus — His Ship- wreck — Returns to Spain — Refusal of Ferdinand to Comply with His Promises — Death of Columbus — Amerigo Vespucci — Origin of the Name America 32 CHAPTER III. English and French Discoveries. Discovery of the North American Continent by John Cabot — Voyages of Sebastian Cabot — The English Fail to Follow Up these Discoveries — Efforts of the French to Explore America — Voyage and Discov- eries of Verrazzani — Cartier Explores the St. Law- rence — Reaches Montreal — Efforts to Found a Col- ony on the St. Lawrence — Failure — Roberval's Colony — Trading Voyages — Explorations of Cham- plain — Colonization of Nova Scotia — Founding of Quebec — Discovery of Lake Champlain — Arrival of the Jesuits in Canada — Death of Cliamplain ... 43 CHAPTER IV. The Spaniards in America. Settlement of the West Indies — Discovery of the Pa- cific Ocean — Voyage of Magellan — Discovery of Florida — Ponce de Leon's Search for the Fountain of Youth — Vasquez de Ayllon Kidnaps a Cargo of Indians — Effort of Pamphilo de Narvaez to Con- quer Florida — A Terrible March — The Voyage on the Gulf of Mexico — F'ate of the Fleet — Escape of Cabeza de Vaca and His Comrades — Discovery of New Mexico — Ferdinand de Soto — Obtains Leave to Conquer Florida — Sails from Spain — Arrival in Cuba — Departure for Florida — Landing at Tampa Bay — Events of the First Year — De Soto Enters Georgia — Descends the Alabama — Battle of Ma- villa — Destruction of Chickasaw — Sufferings of the Spaniards — Discovery of the Mississippi — The Spaniards Cross the Great River — De Soto in Ar- kansas — Reaches the Mississippi Again — Sickness and Death of De Soto — His Burial — Escape of His Followers to Mexico — The Huguenot Colony in Carolina — Its Failure — The French Settle in Florida — Wrath of Philip II. — Melendez Ordered to Exterminate the Huguenots — Foundation of St. Augustine — Massacre of the French at Fort Caro- lina — The Vengeance of De (iourges 50 CHAPTER V. The First English Colony. The English Claim to America — Voyages of Fro- bisher — Exploits of Sir Francis Drake — Sir Humph- rey Gilbert — Intends to found a Colony in America — Is lost at Sea — Sir Walter Raleigh obtains a Pat- ent of Colonization — Discoveries of Aniidas and vii Vlll CONTENTS. ISarlow — Ralcit^h sends out a Colony to Virginia — Settlement on Roanoke Island — Its 1-ailure — Arri- val of Grenville — Second Effort of Raleigh to Colo- nize Virginia — Roanoke Island again Settled — The "City of Raleigh" — Virginia Dare — Fate of the Colony — Death of Raleigh — Other Voyages of the English 63 BOOK II. Settlement of America. CHAPTER VI. Captain John Smith and Pocahontas. Formation of the London Company — Conditions of its Charter — Departure of the first Colony — Quarrels during the Voyage — Arrival in the Chesapeake — Settlement of Jamestown — Formation of the Gov- ernment — Character of Captain John Smith — Ex- ploration of the James River — Newport and Smith visit Powhatan — Smith Admitted to the Govern- ment — Explores the Chickahominy — Is Captured and Sentenced to Death — Is Saved by Pocahontas — Gains the Friendship of Powhatan for the Colony — Returns to Jamestown — His Decisive Measures — Return of Newport — Smith Explores the Chesa- peake Bay — The new Emigrants — Smith compels them to Labor — Smith is Wounded and compelled to return to England — Disasters to the Colony — Ar- rival of Sir Thomas Gates — Jamestown Abandoned — Arrival of Lord Delaware — The Return to James- town — A Change for the Better — New Settlements — Sir Thomas Gates arrives with Reinforcements — Capture of Pocahontas by Captain Argall — She is Baptized — Marries John Rolfe — Sir Thomas Dale's Administration — Yeardley Governor — The first Leg- islative Assembly — Representative Government es- tablished in America — The Colonists obtain Wives — Changes in the Government 7_: CHAPTER VII. Progress of the Virginia Colony. Introduction of Negro Slavery into Virginia — Efforts of the Assembly to Restrict Slavery — The Indians At- tempt the Destruction of the Colony — Terrible Suf- ferings of the Whites — Aid from England — The Indian War Begun — King James Revokes the Char- ter of the London Company — Charles I. Desires a Monopoly of the Tobacco Trade — Action of the Assembly — Sir William Berkeley's First Adminis- tration — Severe Measures against Dissenters — Close of the Indian War — Death of Opechancanough — Emigration of Royalists to Virginia — Virginia and and the Commonwealth — Treaty with England — The Assembly Asserts its Independence of the Gov- ernor — The Restoration — Berkeley Chosen Gover- nor by the Assembly — His Hypocrisy 8g CHAPTER VIII. Virginia After the Restoration. Characteristics of the Virginians — Causes of the Suc- cess of the Royalists — Growth of the Aristocratic Class — Berkeley decides against the People — The Aristocratic Assembly Claims the Right to sit Per- petually — Deprives the Common People of their Liberties-rRevival of the Navigation Act by Charles II. — The King bestows Virginia as a Gift upon his Favorites — Protests of the Assembly — Growing Hos- tility of the Virginians to the Colonial Government — The Indian War — The Governor Refuses to allow the Colonists to Defend themselves — Nathaniel Ba- con — He Marches against the Indians — Rebellion of the People against Berkeley and the Assembly — The Convention — Repeal of the Obnoxious Laws — Berkeley's Duplicity — The People take up Arms — Flight of Berkeley — Destruction of Jamestown — Death of Bacon — Causes of the Failure of the Rebel- lion — Berkeley's Triumph — Execution of the Patriot Leaders — Berkeley's Course Condemned by the King — Death of Berkeley — The Unjust Laws Re- enacted — Lord Culpepper Governor — His Extor- tions — James II. and Virginia — Effects upon Vir- ginia of the Revolution of 1688 — William and Mary College Founded 98 CHAPTER IX. The Colonization of Maryland. Extent of the Territory of Virginia — Clayborn's Trad- ing-Posts established — Sir George Calvert, Lord Baltimore — Becomes interested in American coloni- zation — Obtains a Grant of Maryland — Terms of the Charter — A Colony sent out — Arrival in the Chesapeake — St. Mary's Founded — Charter of the Colony — Friendly Relations established with the Indians — First Legislature of Maryland — Trouble with Clayborne — Rapid Growth of the Colony — Progress of Popular Liberty — Policy respecting the Treatment of the Indians — Clayborne's Rebellion — Law granting Religious toleration enacted — Condi- tion of Maryland under the Commonwealth — The People declared Supreme — Lord Baltimore re- covers his Proprietary Rights — Characteristics of the Colony — Rapid Increase in Population — Charles Calvert, Governor — Death of the second Lord CONTENTS. IX Baltimore — Roman Catholics disfranchised — Maiy- land becomes a Royal Province — Triumph of the Protestants — Annapolis made the Seat of Govern- ment — Restoration of the Proprietary Government — Continued Prosperity of Maryland Ill CHAPTER X. The Pilgrim Fathers. Rise of the Puritans — Their Increase in England — They are Persecuted by the English Church and Government — Conduct of James I. — His Hatred of Puritanism — Puritans take Refuge in Holland — The Congregation of John Robinson — They Escape to Holland— The Pilgrims — their Sojourn at Leyden — They wi.sh to Emigrate to Virginia — -Failure of their Negotiations with the London Company — They form a Partnership in England — -A Hard Bargain — Departure of the Pilgrims from Holland — Voyage of the " Mayflower " — Arrival in New England — The Agreement on board the " Mayflower" — Car- ver chosen Governoi- — Settlement of Plymouth — The first Winter in New England — Sufferings of the Pilgrims — Arrival of new Emigrants — Continued Suffering — -Assignment of Lands — Friendly In- tercourse with Indians — Samoset and Squanto — Visit of Massasoit — A Threat of War — Bradford's Defiance — Weston's Men — A Narrow Escape — -The Colonists Purchase the Interests of their English Partners — Lands Assigned in Fee Simple — The Colony Benefited by the Change — Government of Plymouth — Steady Growth of the Colony .... 121 CHAPTER XI. Settlement of Massachusetts and Rhode Island. Settlement of New Hampshire — The EngHsh Puritans determine to form a new Colony in America — The Plymouth Council — A Colony sent out to Salem under Endicott — Colonization of Massachusetts Bay begun — A Charter obtained — Concessions of the King — Progress of the Salem Colony — The Charter and Government of the Col<'ny removed to New England — Arrival of Governor Winthrop — Settlement of Boston — Sufferings ofthS Colonists — Roger Williams — His Opinions give offence to the Authorities — The Success of the Bay Colony Estab- lished — Growth of Popular Liberty — The Ballot Box — Banishment of Roger Williams — He goes into the Wilderness — Founds Providence — Growth of Williams's Colony — C nued Growth of Massa- chusetts — Arrival of Sir Henry Vane — Is elected Governor — Mrs. Anne Hutchinson — The Antino- mian Controversy — Mrs. Hutchinson banished — Settlement of Rhode Island — Murder of Mrs. Hutchinson . 1 38 CHAPTER XH. Colonization of Connecticut. PAGE The Dutch claim the Connecticut Valley — They build a Fort at Hartford — Governor W'inslow makes a Lodgment in Connecticut for the English — With- drawal of the Dutch — The First Efforts of the Eng- lish to Settle Connecticut — Emigration of Hooker and his Congregation — They Settle at Hartford — Winthrop builds a Fort at Saybrook — Hostility of the Indians — Visit of Roger Williams to Miantono- moh — A Brave Deed — The Pequod War — Capture of the Indian Fort — Destruction of the Pequod Tribe — Effect of this War upon the other Tribes — Connecticut Adopts a Constitution — Its Peculiar Features — Settlement of New Haven 150 CHAPTER Xni. The Union of the New England Colonies. Feeling of the Colonies towards England — Hostility of the English Government to New England — Efforts to Introduce Episcopacy — Massachusetts Threatens Resistance— The Revolution in England — Estab- lishment of Free Schools in New England — Har- vard College — The Printing Press — The Long Par- liament Friendly to New England — The United Colonies of New England — Rhode Island obtains a Charter — Maine Annexed to Massachusetts — The Quakers are Persecuted — Efforts to Christianize the Indians — John Eliot, the Apostle to the Indians . . 157 CHAPTER XIV. New England After the Restoration. Arrival of the News of the Restoration of Charles II. — The Regicides in New England — They are Pro- tected — Revival of the Navigation Acts — Effect of this Measure upon the New England Colonies^ Massachusetts delays the Proclamation of the King —Connecticut obtains a Charter — Union of New Haven with the Connecticut Colony — Rhode Island given a new Charter — Massachusetts settles her diffi- culties with the Crown — Changes in the Govern- ment — High-handed acts of the Royal Commission- ers — Troubles with the Indians — Injustice of the Whites — King Philip's War — A Forest Hero — An Incident in the Attack upon Hadley — Sufferings of the Colonies — Destruction of the Narraganseits — Death of Philip — Close of the War — England asserts her right to Tax the Colonies — Massachusetts buys Gorges' claims to Maine — New Hampshire made a separate Piovince — James II. Revokes the Charter of Massachusetts — Dudley and Randolph in New England — Andros appointed Governor-General — ■ CONTENTS. His Tyranny — He demands the Charter of Connect- icut — It is carried away and Hidden — The Charter Oak— Fall of James II.— The people of Massachu- setts take up Arras — Andros arrested — Effects of the Revolution upon New England 1 66 CHAPTER XV. Witchcraft in Massachusetts. Results of the Failure of Massachusetts to Resume her Charter — The New Charter — Loss of the Liberties of the Colony — Union of Plymouth with Massachu- setts Bay — Belief in Witchcraft — The History of Witchcraft in Massachusetts — The Case of the Good- win Children — Cotton Mather espouses the Cause of the Witches — Samuel Parris — He Originates the Sa- lem Delusion — A Strange History — A Special Court Appointed for the Tiial of the Witches — The Vic- tims — Execution of the Rev. George Burroughs — Cotton Mather's Part in the Tragedies — The Gen- eral Court takes Action in behalf of the People — End of the Persecution — Failure of Cotton Mather's Attempt to Save his Credit 182 CHAPTER XVr. Tiuc Settlement of New York. Voyages of Henry Hudson — He is Employed by the Dutch — Discovery of the Hudson River — Early Dutch \'oyages — Adrian lUock — Fate of Hudson — The Dutch build a Foit on Manhattan Island — Set- tlement of New Amsterdam — The Province named New Netherlands — Fort Nassau — Peter Minuits Governor — The Dutch Settlement of Delaware — Wouter Van Twiller— Kieft Governor — His Unjust Treatment of the Indians — Massacre of the Indians at Hoboken — The Indian War — Stuyvesant Ap- pointed Governor — Disputes with the English in Connecticut — The Swedes Settle Delaware — Stuy- vesant Captures the Swedish Forts — Growth of New Amsterdam — Disputes between the Peo]ileand Gov- ernor — Growing .Spirit of Popular I.i'.^erty — The People Appeal to the .States General — Capture of New Netherlands by the English — The Name of the Province changed to New York — Results of the P'nglish Conquest — Progress of New Jersey — An- dros Governor of New York — He Fails to Establish his Authority over Connecticut — New York allowed an Assembly — Discontents of the People — Leisler's Rebellion — Execution of Leisler and Milbourne — lletcher Governor — His Attempt to obtain Com- mand of the Connecticut Militia — Episcopacy Es- tablished in New York — The Freedom of the Press Sustained — New Jersey a Royal I'rovince .... 193 CHAPTER XVn. Colonization of Pennsylvania. PAGE The Quakers — Their Origin and Doctrines — William Penn — Becomes a Quaker — Is Persecuted for his Religious Opinions — Becomes interested in Ameri- can Colonization — Purchases West Jersey from the Proprietor — Conceives the Idea of Founding a P'ree State in America — Purchases Pennsylvania from Charles II. — Conditions of his Charter — Sends out a Colony — Arrival of Penn in America — Philadel- phia Founded — Penn's Treaty with the Indians — Religious Toleration Guaranteed — Penn's Relations with his Colonists — Rapid Growth of Pennsylvania in Population and Prosperity — William Penn and James II. — Renewal of Penn's Troubles — William HI. Declares Pennsylvania a Royal Province — Penn is Vindicated and Restored to his Proprietary Rights — His Return to Pennsylvania — Character of the Settlers of the Province — Penn Goes Back to P^ngland — Efforts to deprive him of his Possessions — Ilis Death 215 CHAPTER XVni. Settlement of the Carolinas. Gradual Settlement of North Carolina from Virginia — Charles II. gi'ants Carolina to Clarendon and others — The " Grand Model " — An Ideal Aristocracy Proposed for Carolina — The Authority of the Pro- prietaries Established in North Carolina — Con- tinued Settlement of that Region — Characteristics of the Early Settlers of North Carolina — The People Reject the Grand Model — Hostility of England to the Colonial Commerce — Insurrection in North Carolina — Slothel Governor — Settlement of South Carolina — Charleston Founded — The Proprietary Constitutions Rejected by South Carolina — Rapid Growth of the Colony — Introduction of Slavery — Chracteristicsof the Early Settlers of South Carolina — Efforts to Enforce the Navigation Acts — Resis- tance of the People — The Proprietaries Abandon their Constitutions — Archdale's Reforms — Religious Intolerance — Eatablishment of the Church of Eng- land in South Carolina — Action of the Crown — Continued Prosperity of South Carolina — Governor Moore Attacks St. Augustine — Failure of the Effort — The Spaniards are Repulsed in an Attempt to Capture Charleston — Indian War in North Caro- lina — The Tuscaroras Driven Northward — War with the Yemmassees — Destruction of their Power — Separation of the Carolinas 227 CONTENTS. XI CHAPTER XIX. Settlement of Georgia. PAGE General James Edward Oglethorpe — His Efforts to Reform Prison Discipline of England — Proposes to Found a Colony in America for the Poor and for Prisoners for Debt — A Charter Obtained from the King — Colonization of Georgia — Savannah Settled — First Years of the Colony — Labors of Oglethorpe — Arrival of New Emigrants — Augusta Founded — The Moravian Settlements — The Wesleys in Amer- ica — George Whitefield — War between England and Spain — Oglethorpe Invades Florida — Failure of the Attack upon St. Augustine — The Spaniards In- vade Georgia — Oglethorpe's Stratagem — Its Success — Battle of" Bloody Marsh " — Close of the War — Charges against Oglethorpe — His Vindication — His Return to Europe — Changes in the Colonial Government — Introduction of Slavery into Georgia — Prosperity of the Colony 241 CHAPTER XX. The French in the Valley of the Mississippi. Origin of the Hostility of the Iriquois to the French — Settlement of Canada — Plans of the French res- pecting the Indians — The Jesuits — Their Work in America — Success of their Missions — The Early Missionaries — Foundation of a College at Quebec — Efforts of the Jesuits to Convert the Iroquois — Father Jogues — Death of Ahasistari — Father Allouez — The Missions on the Upper Lakes — Father Marquette — His Exploration of the Upper . Mississippi — Death of Marquette^ — La Salle — Eftbrts of France to Secure the Valley of the Missis- sippi — La Salle Descends the Mississippi to its Mouth — His Effort to Colonize the Lower Missis- sippi — The First Colony in Texas — Its Failure Death of La Salle — Lemoine d'Ibberville — Settle- ment of Louisiana — Colony of Biloxi — Settlement Mobile — Crozat's Monopoly — Founding of New Orleans — Detroit Founded — Slow Growth of the French Colonies — Occupation of the Ohio Valley by the French — Wars with the Indians — Exter- mination of the Natchez Tribe — War with the Chickasaws 251 CHAPTER XXI. Conflicts Between the English and French. Relations Between the English and the Five Nations — The Hostility of the Latter to the French — King William's War — Destruction of Dover — The Jesuit Missionaries Incite the Indians to Attack the Eng- lish — Expedition against Quebec — Attack on Dus- tin's Farm — Peace of Ryswick — Hostility of the English to Roman Catholics — Queen Anne's War — Burning of Deerfield — Eunice Williams — Cruel- ties of the French — Effort of New England to Con- quer Acadia — Capture of Port Royal — Failure of the Expedition against Quebec — King George's War — Expedition against Louisburg — Its Composi- tion — Arrival of the Fleet at Cape Breton — Good Conduct of the Provincials — Capture of Louisburg — Treaty of Aix-la-Chapelle — Unjust Treatment of the Colonies by England — Sentiment of the Ameri- cans towards England 267 BOOK III. The French and Indian V/ar. CHAPTER XXII. Outbreak of Hostilities. England Claims the Valley of the Ohio — Organiza- tion of the Ohio Company — The French Extend their Posts into the Ohio Country — Washington's Mission to the French at Fort Duquesne — His Jour- ney — Reception by the French — His Journey Home — A Perilous Undertaking — Organization of the Virginia Forces — Washington Made Second in Command — The French Drive the English from the Head of the Ohio — Fort Duquesne Built by Them — Washington Crosses the Mountains — TheFightat Great Meadows— Beginning of the French and In- dian W^ar — Surrender of Fort Necessity to the French — Unjust Treatment of the Colonial Officers — Congress of the Colonies at New York — Frank- lin's Plan of a Union of the Colonies — Its Failure — Reasons of the British Government for Rejecting It — England Assumes the Direction of the War — Ar- rival of General Braddock — Plan of Campaign — Obstinacy of Braddock — He Passes the Mountains — Defeat of Braddock — Heroism of Washington — Retreat of Dunbar beyond the Mountains — Vigor- ous Action of Pennsylvania — Armstrong Defeats the Indians and Burns the Town of Kittanning . . . 278 CHAPTER XXIII. Sanguniary Struggles on the Frontier. Expedition against Acadia — Brutal Treatment of the Acadians — They Are Expelled from their Country — A Sad Story — Fate of the Acadians — ^Johnson at Lake George — March of Dieskau — Battle of Lake George — Failure of Shirley's Expedition — Arrival of the Earl of Loudon — Montcalm in Canada — Xll CONTENTS. Capture of Oswego by the French — Outrages of the Earl of Loudon upon New York and I'hiladelpliia — Expedition against Louisburg — How the Eail of Loudon Beat the French — Capture of Fort William Henry by Montcalm — Massacre of the Prisoners by the Indians — Efforts of Montcalm to Save Them — The Royal Officers Attempt to Cover Their Failures by Outraging the Colonies 298 CHAPTER XXIV. End ok the French and Indian War. A Change for the Better — William Pitt Prime Minister — Vigorous Measures Adopted — Recall of the Earl of Loudon — Capture of Louisburg — Abercrombie on Lake George — Advances against Ticonderoga— Death of Lord Howe — Failure of the English At- tack upon Ticonderoga — Disgraceful Conduct of Abercrombie — His Retreat — Capture of Fort Fron- tenac — Advance of General Forbes — Grant's Defeat — TheVirginians Again Save the Regulars— Capture of Fort Duquesne — Washington Retires from the Army — Ticonderoga and Crown Point Occupied by the English — Capture of Fort Niagara — The Expe- dition against Quebec — Failure of the First Opera- tions — Despondency of Wolfe — He Discovers a Landing-place — The Army Scales the Heights of Abraham— Montcalm's Surprise— Battle of the Plains of Abraham — Death of Wolfe — Defeat of the French — Death of Montcalm — Surrender of Quebec — Capture of Montreal — Treaty of Paris — Canada Ceded to England — France Loses all Her American Possessions — The Cherokee War — Hostility of the Indians to the English — Pontiac's War — Death of Pontiac — Bouquet Relieves Fort Duquesne — Results of the War 309 BOOK IV. The American Revolution. CHAPTER XXV. Causes OF THE Struggle ior Independence. injustice of Great Britain towards Her Colonies — The Navigation Acts — Effects of these Laws upon the Colonies — Great Britain Seeks to Destroy the Man- ufactures of America — Writs of Assistance — They Are Opposed — Home Manufactures Encouraged by the Americans — Ignorance of Englishmen Concern- ing America — Great Britain Claims the Right to Tax America — Resistance of the Colonists — Samuel Adams — The Parsons' Cause — Patrick Henry — England Persists in Her Determination to Tax Amer- ica — Passage of the Stamp Act — Resistance of the Colonists — Meeting of the First Colonial Congress — Its Action — William Pitt — Repeal of the Stamp Act — Franklin before the House of Commons — New Taxes Imposed upon America — Increased Re- sistance of the Colonies — Troops Quartered in Bos- ton — The " Massacre " — The Non-Importation As- sociation — Growtli of Hostility to England — Burn- ing of the " Gaspe" — The Tax on Tea Retained by the King — Destruction of Tea at Boston — Wrath of the British Government — Boston Harbor Closed —Troops Quartered in Boston— The Colonists Come to the Assistance of Boston — Action of the Virginia Assembly — General Gage in Boston — The Regulat- ing Act — Its Failure — Gage Seizes the Massachu- setts Powder — Uprising of the Colony — Meeting of the Continental Congress — Its Action — Addresses to the King and People of England — The Earl of Chatham'slndorsement of Congress — The King Re- mains Stubborn 327 CHAPTER XXVI. Progress of the War. Gage fortifies Boston Neck — Pie Summons the Gen- eral Court — Recalls his Proclamation — The Provin- cial Congress of Massachusetts — It takes Measures for Defence — The Militia Organized — The Minute Men — Friends of America in England — Gage re- solves to seize the Stores at Concord — Midnight March of the British Troops — The Alarm given — Skirmishes at Lexington and Concord — Retreat of the British — A Terrible March — Uprising of New- England — Boston Invested — Dunmore seizes the Virginia Powder — Is made to pay for it — Uprising of the Middle and wSouthern Colonies — The Meck- lenburg Declaration of Independence — Capture of Ticonderoga and Crown Point — Meeting of the Sec- ond Cantinental Congress — Congress resolves to sus- tain Massachusetts — Renewed Efforts for Peace — Congress Assumes the General Government of the Colonies — A Federal Union Organized — Its Charac- ter — A Continental Army formed — George Wash- ington Appointed Commander-in-chief — General Officers Appointed — Condition of the Army before Boston — Inaction of Gage — Battle of Breed's Hill — A Glorious Defence — The Battle Equivalent to a Victory in its Effects upon the Country — Arrival of Washington at Cambridge — He takes Command o( the Army — He Reorganizes the Army — Difficulties of the Undertaking — The Invasion of Canada Re- solved upon — March of Montgomery and Arnold — Rapid Successes of Montgomery — He Captures CONTENTS. Xlll Montreal — March of Arnold through the Wilder- ness — Arrival before Quebec- -Forms a Junction with Montgomery — The Siege of Quebec — The Ice Forts — Failure of the Attack — Death of Montgom- ery — Retreat of the Americans from Canada — Lord Dunmore's War in Virginia — Destruction of Nor- folk — The Thirteen United Colonies — Burning of Falmouth — Naval Matters — Action of Great Britain — The War to be carried on — The Hessians . . . 354 CHAPTER XXYII. The Declaration of Independence. The Siege of Boston — Difficulties of the American Army — Activity of the Privateers — Clinton's Expe- tion — Colonel Knox arrives from Ticonderoga with Cannon — Seizure of Dorchester Heights by Wash- ington — The British Evacuate Bostori — Royalist Plots in New York — Paper Money Issued by Con- gress — Gates sent to the North — The British Attack Charleston — Battle of Fort Moultrie — The Plowes in New York Bay — Change in the Character of the War — Growing Sentiment in Favor of Independence — — Virginia Proposes the Colonies Assert their Inde- pendence — Action of Congress — The Declaration of Independence — Articles of Confederation Adopted by Congress — Lord Howe's Efforts at Conciliation — Addresses a Letter to Washington — Battle of Long Island — Defeat of the Americans — Retreat from Long Island — Evacuation of New York by the Americans — Loss of Fort Washington— Washington Retreats through New Jersey — He Crosses the Del- aware — Darkest Period of the War — Washington's Determination to Continue the War — Lord Howe's Proclamation — Its Effect — Congress at Baltimore — Carleton invades New York — Defeats Arnold on Lake Champlain — Carleton Retires into Canada — Battle of Trenton — Happy Effects of the Victory — Congress confers Dictatiorial Powers upon Wash- ington — Commissioners sent to France 377 CHAPTER XXVin. The Year 1777. Howe Attempts to Crush Washington — Battle 01 Princeton — The British Confined to the Seaboard — Recovery of New Jersey — The American Army in Winter Quarters at Morristown — Effects of the American Successes — Difficulty of Procuring Troops — Washington Pefuses to Exchange Prisoners — His Course Approved by Congress — Measures of Con- gress — Naval Affairs — Tryon Burns Danbury — Gal- lantry of Arnold — Troubles in the Northern Depart- ment — Congress Adopts a National Flag: — "The Stars and Stripes" — Course of France towards the United States — I'rance Decides to Assist the Amer icans — Lafayette — His Arrival in America — Capture of the British General Prescott — Howe Threatens Philadelphia — Washington Moves Southward — Battle of the Brandy wine — Washington Retreats to the Schuylkill — Wayne's Defeat at Paoli — Philadel- phia Exacuated by the Americans — It Is Occupied by the British — Battle of Germantown- -The British Attack the Forts on the Delaware — They Are Aban- doned by the Americans — Burgoyne's Army in Canada — Advance of Burgoyne into New York — Investment of Ticonderoga — It Is Abandoned by the Americans — The Retreat to Fort Edward — Burgoyne Reaches the Hudson — Murder of Miss McCrea — Siege of Fort Schuyler — Battle of Ben- nington — Critical Situation of Burgoyne — Gates in Command of the American Army — Battles of Beh- mus' Heights and Stillwater — Surrender of Bur- goyne's Army — Clinton in the Highlands .... 405. CHAPTER XXIX. Aid From Abroad. Sufferings of the Army at Valley Forge — Appeals of Washington to Congress — The British in Philadel- phia — The Conway Cabal — Its Disgraceful Failure — Efforts to Improve the Army — Worthlessness of Continental Bills — General Lee Exchanged — Effect of Burgoyne's Surrender upon England — The King Is Forced to Agree to Measures of Conciliation — Action of France — Louis XVI. Recognizes the In- dependence of the United States — Alliance Between the United States and France — Failure of the Brit- ish Measures of Conciliation — Clinton Evacuates Philadelphia — Battle of Monmouth — General Lee Dismissed from the Army — Attack upon Newport — Its Failure — Withdrawal of the French Fleet to the West Indies — Outrages of the British on Long Island Sound — Massacre of Wyoming — ihe Winter of 1779-80 — The Army in Winter Quarters — Robert Morris — Condition of Congress — Georgia Subdued by the British — Prevost Attempts to Take Charleston — Siege of Savannah — Its Failure — Cap- ture of Stony Point — Capture of. Paulus Hook — The Indians Punished — Naval Affairs — Exploits of John Paul Jones — Evacuation of Newport — Settle- ment of Kentucky — Conquest of the Illinois Country bv George Rogers Clarke — Settlement of Tennessee. 429 CHAPTER XXX. The Close of the War. Severity of the Winter of 1779-80 — Sufferings of the American Army — Clinton Sails for the Caroli- nas — Colonel Tarleton — Capture of Charleston — Conquest of South Carolina — Gates in Command of the Southern Army — Battle of Camden — Exploits XIV CONTENTS. of Marion and Sumter — Advance of Cornwallis — Battle of King's Mountain — Gates Succeeded by General Greene — Knyphausen's Expeditions into New Jersey — Arrival of the French Fleet and Ai-my — Arnold's Treason — The Plot for the Be- trayal of West Point — Arrest of Major Andr6 — Flight of Arnold — Execution of Andre — Mutiny of the Pennsylvania and New Jersey Troops — Meas- ures of Congress — Arnold Captures Richmond, Vir- ginia — Battle of the Cowpens — Masterly Retreat of General Greene — Cornwallis BatTled^Battle of Guilford Court House — Cornwallis at Wilmington — Battle of Hobkirk's Hill — Siege of Ninety-Six — Execution of Colonel Hayne — Battle of Eutaw Springs — Washington Decides to Attack New York — The French Army on the Hudson — Financial Affairs — Resumption of Specie Payments — Message from the Count De Grasse— Cornwallis at York- town — The American Army Moves Southward — Siege of Vorktown — Surrender of Cornwallis — Ef- fect of the News in England — Indian Troubles — Efforts in England for Peace — Negotiations Opened — Treaty of Paris — End of the War — The Army Disbanded — Washington Resigns His Commission 450 BOOK V. From the Close of the Revolution to the Civil War. CHAPTER XXXI. The Adoption of the Constitution — Washington's Administration. Unsettled Condition of the Country — Failure of the Articles of Confederation — Desire for Reform — Meeting of the Federal Convention at Philadelphia — The Constitution of the United States — Adoption of a Decimal Currency — The Northwest Territory — Washington Elected President — His Journey to New York — Establishment of the New Government — The First Cabinet — Financial Measures — Re- moval of the Capital Agreed Upon — The Govern- ment at Philadelphia — The First Census — The In- dians of the Northwest Conquered — Re-electioji of Washington — Division of Parties — The French Revolution — The United States Neutral — Citizen Genet — Eflorts to Commit the United States to the French Alliance — Genet's Recall Demanded — The " Whiskey Insurrection" — Jay's Treaty with Eng- land — Opix)sition to It — Negotiations with Algiers — Political Disputes — Hostility to Washington — His Farewell Address — Its Effect upon the Country — Election of John Adams to the Presidency — Admis- sion cT Vermont, Kentucky and Tennessee — Retire- ment of W'asliington — His Administration . . . 481 CHAPTER XXXH. The Administrations of John Adams and Thomas Jefferson. PAGS Inauguration of John Adams — Aggressions of France upon the United States — The American Commis- sioners Insulted by the French Government — The Alien and Sedition Laws — The United States Pre- pare for War with France — France Signifies her Willingness to Treat — New Commissioners Ap- pointed — Settlement of the Dispute — Hostilities at Sea — Capture of the " Insurgente " and " Ven- geance" — Death of Washington — Removal of the Capital to Washington City — The Second Census — Inauguration of Thomas Jefferson — The President's Message — His First Measures — Admission of Ohio — Ixjuisiana Purchased by the United States — War with the Barbary Powers — Burning of the " Phila- delphia " — Re-election of Mr. Jefferson — Aaron Burr Kills Alexander Hamilton in a Duel — Burr's Subse- quent Career — Fulton's Steamboat — Outrages of England and France upon American Commerce — American Vessels Searched and American Seamen Impressed by England — Efforts to Settle these Questions — Aflair of the " Chesapeake " and " Leop- ard" — The Embargo — Results of this Measure — Losses of the Eastern States — Election of James Madison to the Presidency — Repeal of the Embargo. 496 CHAPTER XXXni. The Administration of James Madison — The Second W^AR WITH England. Inauguration of Mr. Madison — Negotiations with Mr. Erskine — Their Failure — Seizure of American Ves- sels in France — Sufferings of American Ship-owners — Great Britain Stations her Ships of W'ar off Amer- caa Ports — Affair of the "President" and "Little Belt " — Trouble with the Northwestern Indians — Tecumseh — Battle of Tippecanoe — Meeting of the Twelfth Congress — Measures for Defence — Admis- sion of Louisiana into the Union — Death of George Clinton — The British Ultimatum — War Declared Against Great Britain — Opposition to the War — The British Offer of Settlement Rejected — The War for "Free Trade and the Sailors' Rights" — Mr. Madi- son Re-elected — Campaign cf 1S12 — Preparations for the Invasion ( f Canada General Hull Sur- renders Detroit to the Brilish — Loss of the North- western Frontier — Failure of the Attack on Queens- town — Exploits of the Navy — Capture of the " Guer- riere" by the "Constitution" — The Privateers — Russia Offers to Mediate between the United States and England — Financial Affairs — Harrison's Cam- paign — Massacre at the River Basin — Defence of Forts Meigs and Stephenson- Perry's \'ictory on Lake CONTENTS. XV Erie — Battle of the Thames — Death of Tecumseh — Recovery of the Northwest — Capture of York- British Attack on Sackett's Harbor Repulsed — Removal of General Dearborn — Failure of the Cam- paign on the Lower Lakes — The Creek War — Jackson's Victories — Naval Affairs — The British Outrages in Chesapeake Bay — Negotiations for Peace — Capture of Fort Erie — Battles of Chippewa and Lundy's Lane — Siege of Fort Erie — Successes of the Americans — Advance of Prevost — Battle of riattsburgh — Macdonough's Victory on Lake Cham- plain — Battle of Bladensburg — Capture of Wash- ington — Destruction of the Public Buildings by the British — Attack on Baltimore — Death of General Ross—" The Star- Spangled Bunner "—The British Attack on the New England Coast — Opposition of New England to the War — The Hartford Conven- tion — The British in Florida — General Jackson Expels Them — Jackson at New Orleans — Arrival of the British Expedition off the Coast — Vigorous Measures of Jackson — Battle of New Orleans — Defeat of the British— Naval Affairs— The Treaty of Peace — The Barbary Powers Plumbled — The Tariff" — The Bank of the United States — Admis- sion of Indiana — James Monroe Elected President . 512 CHAPTER XXXIV. Administrations of James Monroe and John Quincy Adams. Inauguration of Mr. Monroe — His Tour through the Eastern Stjites — Admission of Mississippi into the Union — Troubles with the Indians — General Jack- son's Vigorous Measures against the Spaniards in Florida — Purchase of Floridadiy the United States — Illinois Becomes a State — -The First Steamship — Maine Admitted into the Union — The Slavery Question — The Missouri Compromise — Admission of Missouri as a State — The Fourth Census — Re- flection of Mr. Monroe — The Tariff — Protective Policy of the Government — Recognition of the Spanish Republics — The Monroe Doctrine — Visit of Lafayette to the United States — Retirement of Mr. Monroe — John Quincy Adams Elected President — His Inauguration — Rapid Improvement of the Coun- try — Increase of Wealth and Prosperity — Internal Improvements — The Creek Lands in Georgia Ceded to the United States — Death of Thomas Jefferson and John Adams — The Anti-Masons — The Tariff of 1828 — Andrew Jackson Elected President . . . 548 CHAPTER XXXV. Administrations of Andrew Jackson and Martin Van Buren. Character of Andrew Jackson — Indian Policy of this Administration — The President Vetoes the Bill to Renew the Charter of the United States Bank — De- bate Between Hayne and Webster — Jackson's Quar- rel with Calhourn — Death of ex-President Monroe — The Cholera — Black Hawk's War — Re-election of President Jackson — The Tariff"— Action of South Carolina — The Nullification Ordinance — Firmness of the President — The Matter Settled by Compro- mise — Patriotism of Henry Clay — The Removal of the Deposits — The Seminole War Begun — Great Fire in New York — Settlement of the French Claims — Arkansas Admitted into the Union — The National Debt Paid — Death of ex-President Madi- son — Martin Van Buren Elected President — Michi- gan Admitted into the Union — The Panic of 1837 — Causes of It — Suspension of Specie Payments — Great Distress throughout the Union — The Sub- Treasury — Repudiation of State Debts — The Can- adian Rebellion — The President's Course — The Seminole War Ended — The Anti-Slavery Party — Resolutions of Congress Respecting Slavery- William Henry Harrison Elected President — The Sixth Census 561 CHAPTER XXXVI. Administrations of William Henry Harrison and John Tyler. An Extra Session of Congress Summoned — Death of President Harrison — John Tyler Becomes President of the United States — Meeting of Congress — The Bankrupt Law — President Tyler Vetoes the Bills to Revive the United States Bank — His Quarrel with his Party — The " Tyler Whigs " — The Tariff" of 1842 — The Treaty of Washington — The United States Will Not Tolerate the Exercise of the Right of Search — Dorr's Rebellion — The Mormons — In- vention of the Electric Telegraph — Explosion on the " Princeton " — Eff"orts to Secure the Annexation of Texas — Early History of Texas — The Texan War of Independence — Battle of San Jacinto — Texan Independence Established — Texas Applies for Admission into the Union — Opposition to the Measure — Significance of the Vote at the Presiden- tial Election — James K. Polk Elected President — Texas Admitted into the Union — Iowa and Florida Become States Jjp CHAPTER XXXVII. Administration of James K. Polk — The Wak WITH Mexico. The Oregon Question — Position of President Polk Respecting It — The Question Settled — Treaty for Settlement of Claims against Mexico — Mexico Re- sents the Annexation of Texas — General Taylor Ordered to Texas — He Advances to the Rio Grande XVI CONTENTS. — Battles of Talo Alto and Resaca de la Talma — The War with Mexico Begun — Invasion of Mexico — Occupation of Matamoras — Action of the United States Government — Taylor Advances into the Interior — The Storming and Capture of Monterey — The Armistice — Return of Santa Anna to Mexico — President Polk Duped — Santa Anna Seizes the Mexican Government — General Wool Joins General Taylor — Troops Taken from Taylor's Army — Ad- — vance of the Mexicans — Battle of Buena Vista — Conquest of California by Fremont and Stockton — Occupation of Santa Fe — New Mexico Conquered — Doniphan's March — Occupation of Chihuahua — Sailing of Scott's Expedition — Reduction of Vera Cruz — Santa Anna Collects a New Army — Battle of of Cerro Gordo — Occupation of Puebla by Scott — Trouble with Mr. Trist — Vigorous Measures of Santa Anna — Scott Advances upon the City of Mexico — El Penon Turned — Battles of Contreras and Cliurubusco — Capture of Molino del Key — Storming of Chapultepec — Capture of the City of Mexico — Siege of Puebla Raised — Flight of Santa Anna — Treaty of Peace Negotiated — Close of the War — Acquisition of California and New Mexico — Discovery of Gold in California — Rapid Emigration to the Pacific — Death of John Quincy Adams — The Wilmot Proviso — Revival of the Slavery Question >— General Taylor Elected President 593 CHAPTER XXXVIII. Administrations of Zachary Taylor and Millard Fillmore. Character of General Taylor — Department of the Inte- rior — Death of ex-President Polk — The Slavery \gitation — Views of Clay and Webster — California asks admission into the Union — Message of President Taylor — The Omnibus Bill — Efforts of Henry Clay — A Memorable Debale — Webster's " Great Union Speech " — Death of John C. Calhoun — Death of President Taylor — Millard P'illmore becomes Pres- ident — Passage of the Compromise Measures of 1850 — Death of Henry Clay — Dissa'isfaction with the Compromise — The Fugitive Slave Law Nul- lified, by the Northern States — The Nashville Con- vention — Organization of Utah Territory — The Seventh Census — The Expedition of Lopez against Cuba — The Search for Sir John Franklin — The Grinnell Expedition — Dr. Kane's Voyages — Inaug- uration of Cheap Postage — Laying the Corner- stone of the new Capitol — Death of Daniel W'ebster — Arrival of Kossuth — The President Rejects the Tripartite Trea'y — Franklin Pierce elected Pres- ident — Death of William R. King 626 CHAPTER XXXIX. The Administration of Franklin Pierce. , rAc;B Dispute with Mexico — The Gadsden Purchase — Sur- veys for a Pacific Railway — The Japan Expedition — Treaty with Japan — The Koszta Affair — The " Black Warrior " seized by the Cuban Officials — The "Ostend Conference" — Dismissal of the British Minister — The Kansas-Nebraska Bill — History of the Bill — Its Passage by Congress — History of the Struggle in Kansas — Conflict between the Pro- Slavery and Free Soil Settlers — Lawrence Sacked — - Civil War — The Presidential Campaign of 1856 — James Buchanan elected President of the United States — Rapid Increase of the Republican Party . 639 CHAPTER XL. The Administration of James Buchanan. Inauguration of Mr. Buchanan — The Mormon Re- bellion — The Financial Crisis of 1857 — Laying of the Atlantic Telegraphic Cable — Minnesota admit- ted into the Union — The San Juan Affair — Admis- sion of Oregon into the Union — The Kansas Ques- tion — The Lecompton Constitution — Its Defeat — The Wyandotte Constitution — Admission of Kansas into the Union — The John Brown Raid — Prompt Action of the Government — Brown and his Com- panions Surrendeaed to the State of Virginia — Their Trial and Execution — Presidential Campaign of 1S60 — Rupture of the Democratic Party — Abra- ham Lincoln elected President of the United Stales — Secession of South Carolina — Reasons for this Act — Secession of the other Cotton States — Major An- derson Occupies Fort Sumter — Trying Position of the General Government — Course of Mr. Buchanan — The " Star of the West " fired upon by the South Carolina Batteries — Organization of the Confeder- ate States of America — Jefferson Davis elected President of the Southern Republic — The Peace Congress — Its Failure 649 BOOK VI. The Civil War. CHAPTER XLI. The Administration of Abraham Lincoln.. Inauguration of President Lincoln — His History — The Confederate Commi.ssioners at Washington — Attack ujion Fort Sumter by the Confederates — The Pres- ident calls for Troops — Response of the North and West — Secession of the Border States — Opening Events of the War in Virginia — Withdrawal of West Virginia — Admitted into the Union as a Separate State — Meeting of Congress — The W'est Virginia CONTENTS. xvu Campaign — Battle of Bull Run — The War in Mis- souri — Kentucky Occupied — The Blockade — Cap- ture of Port Royal — The "Trent" Affair — Insur- rection in East Tennessee — State of Affairs at the Opening of the Year 1S62 — Edwin M. Stanton made Secretaiy of War — Capture of Forts Henry and Don- elson — The Confederates fall back from Kentucky — Battle of Shiloh — Capture of Island No. 10 — Evac- uation of Corinth — Capture of Memphis — Bragg's Kentucky Campaign — His Retreat into Tennessee — Battles of luka and Corinth — Battle of Murfrees- boro', or Stone River — Grant's Campaign against Vicksburg — Its Failure — The War beyond the Mis- sissippi — Battle of Pea Ridge — Capture of Roanoke Island — Capture of New Orleans— Surrender of Fort Pulaski — The War in Virginia — Johnston's Retreat from Centreville — Battle betv/een the "Monitor" and " Virginia " — The Move to the Peninsula — Johnston Retreats to the Chickahominy — Battle of Seven Pines — Jackson's Successes in the Valley of Virginia — The Seven Days' Battles before Richmond — Battle of Cedar Mountain — Defeat of General Pope's Army — Lee Invades Maryland — Capture of Harper's Ferry — Battles of South Mountain and Antietam — Retreat of Lee into Virginia — McClellan Removed — Battle of Fredericksburg 666 CHAPTER XLII. The Administration of Abraham Lincoln — the Civil War — Concluded. The Emancipation Proclamation — Battle of Chancel- lorsville — Death of Stonewall Jackson — Invasion of the North by Lee's Array — Battle of Gettysburg — Retreat of Lee into Virginia — Grant's Army crosses the Mississippi — Battle of Champion Hills — Invest- ment of Vicksburg — Surrender of Vicksburg and Port Hudson — Battle of Chickamauga— Rosecrans ' shut up in Chattanooga — Grant in command of the Western Armies — Battles of Lookout Mountain and Mission Ridge — Defeat of Bragg's Army — The Cam- paign in East Tennessee — Retreat of Longstreet — Capture of Galveston — Attack on Charleston — Cap- ture of Fort W^agner — Charleston Bombarded — State of Affairs in the Spring of 1864 — The Red River Expedition — Grant made Lieutenant-General — Advance of the Army of the Potomac — Battles of the Wilderness, Spottsylvania and Cold Harbor — Sheri- dan's Raid — Death of General J. E. B. Stuart — Bat- tle of New Market — Early sent into the Valley of Virginia — Butler's Army at Bermuda Hundreds — Grant crosses the James River — The Siege of Peters- burg begun — Early's Raid upon Washington — Sheri- dan defeats Early at Winchester and Fisher's Hill — Battle of Cedar Creek — The final Defeat of Early's Army — Sherman's Advance to Atlanta — ^Johnston Removed — Defeat of Hood before Atlanta — Evacu- ation of Atlanta — Hood's Invasion of Tennessee — Battle of Franklin — Siege of Nashville — Hood Defeated at Nashville — His Retreat — Sherman's "March to the Sea" — Capture of Savannah — Battle of Mobile Bay — Attack on Fort Fisher — The Confederate Cruisers — Sinking of the "Ala- bama" by the " Kearsarge" — Re-election of Pres- ident Lincoln — Admission of Nevada into the Union — The Hampton Roads Peace Conference — Capture of Fort Fisher — Occupation of Wilmington — Sher- man advances through South Carolina — Evacuation of Charleston — Battles of Averasboro' and Benton- ville— Sherman at Goldsboro' — Critical Situation of Lee's Army — Attack on Port Steadman — Sheridan joins Grant — Advance of Grant's Army — Battle of Five Forks — Attack on Petersburg — Evacuation of Richmond and Petersburg — Retreat of Lee's Army — Richmond Occupied — Surrender of General Lee's Army — Rejoicings in the North — Assas- sination of President Lincoln — Death of Booth — Execution of the Conspirators — Johnston Sur- renders — Surrender of the other Confederate Forces — Capture of Jefferson Davis — Close of the War 7ig CHAPTER XLIII. The Administration of Andrew Johnson. The New President — Return of the Army to Civil Life — The Public Debt — The Reconstruction Ques- tion — Action of the President — He declares the Southern States Readmitted into the Union — The Fifteenth Amendment — Meeting of Congress — The President's Acts Annulled — Reconstruction Policy of Congress — The Fourteenth Amendment — The Freedman's Bureau and Civil Rights Bill — The Tenure of Office Act — Admission of Nebraska into the Union — The Southern States Organized as Mil- itary Districts — Admission of Southern States into the Union — The Fourteenth Amendment Ratified — President Johnson's Quarrel with Secretary Stanton — Impeachment of the President — His Acquittal — Release of Jefferson Davis — Indian War — The French in Mexico — Fall of the Mexican Empire — Laying of the Atlantic Telegraph — Purchase of Alaska — Naturlization Treaty with Germany — Treaty with China — Death of General Scott — Death of ex-President Buchanan — General Grant Elected President — The Fifteenth Amendment 790 CHAPTER XLIV. The Administration of Ulysses S. Grant. Early Life of President Grant — Completion of the Pacific Railway — Death of ex-President Pierce — XVlll CONTENTS. The Fifteenth Amendment Ratifie 1 — Prosperity of the Country — The Enforcement Act — The Test Oath AboUshecl — The Constitutionality of the Legal- Tender Act Affirmed — Death of Admiral Farragut Death of General Lee — The Income Tax Repealed — The Alabama Claims — Treaty of Washington — The Geneva Conference — Award in Favor of the United States — The San Juan Boundary Question Settled — Efforts to Annex St. Domingo — Burning of Chicago — Forest Fires — The Civil Disabilities Removed from the Southern People — Re-election of of General Grant — Death of Horace Greeley — Great Fire at Boston — The Modoc War — Murder of Gen- eral Canby ard the Peace Commissioners — Execu- tion of the Modoc Chiefs — The Cuban Revolution — Capture of the " Virginius " — Execution of thi; Prisoners — Action of the Federal Government— The Panic of 1S73 — Bill for the Resumption of Specie Payments — The Centennial Exhibition — The Sioux War — Death of General Custer — Presi- dential Election — Controversy over it — The Elec- toral Commission — Count of the Vote — Hayes Declared Elected Sot CHAPTER XLV. The Administration of Rutherford B. Hayes. Inauguration of President Hayes — Sketch of the New President — Civil Service Reform — Troops in South Carolina — Two Legis'atures in Session — Investiga- tion by President Hayes — Prompt Action — Settle- ment of the Troubles in South Carolina and Louisi- ana — General Grant's Tour Around the World — Enthusiastic Reception by the Crowned Heads of Other Nations — Tenth Census of the United States — Election of General Garfield as President — Arctic Expedition of Lieutenant De Long — Hardy Adven- turers Two Winters in the Ice- Pack — Destruction of the '-Jeannette" — Relief Expeditions — Death from Starvation 841 CHAPTER XLVL The Administration of James A. Garfield. General Garfield Declared President — Inaugural Cere- monies — Sketch of the New President — Contest with the Stalwarts — The Star Route Cases — Assassin- ation of President Garfield — His Illness — Removal to Long Branch — Death of President Garfield — Removal of the Remains to Washington and Cleve- land — Interment at Cleveland — Inauguration of President Arthur — Indictment of Guitcau for Murder — Trial and Execution of Garfield's Assassin — Re- markable Scene upon the Scaffold — The Greeley FACiB Arctic Expedition — Reaching a point beyond the Eighty-first Parallel — Lieutenant Lockwood's Heroic Exploit — Return of the Exploring Party — Valuable Records — Three Relief Expeditions — Terrible Sufferings and Privations — A Crew Chargjd with Cannibalism — Celebration of the Landing of William Penn — Great Suspension Bridge between New Vork and Brooklyn — Dimensions of the Biidge and Cost 8-4^ CHAPTER XLVII. The Administration of Grover Cleveland Mr. Cleveland's Early Life — Governor of New York — Elected President — Inauguration Ceremonies — Civil Service and Revenue Reform —The New Cabinet — Death of General Grant — Imposing Ob- sequies — Honors to the Illustrious Dead — Death of General George B. McClellan — Free Trade Con- ference at Chicago — Death of Vice-President Thomas B. Hendricks — Pension Granted to the Widow of President Grant — President Cleveland's Message — Bill Regulating the Presidential Succes- sion — Labor Agitations — Riot at Chicago Instigated by " Anarchists " — Statue of Liberty Enlightening the World — President Cleveland's Marriage — Soldiers' Pensions — Capital and Labor — Centennial Anniversary of the Adoption of the Constitution — Nomination of President Cleveland — Nomination of Benjamin Harrison — Harrison's Election .... 864 CHAPTER XLVin. The Administration of Benjamin Harrison. Inauguration of President Harrison — Imposing Scene at Washington — Vast Assembly — Civic and Military Parade — President Harrison's Inaugural Address — Celebration of the Centennial Anniversary of Wash- ington's Inauguration — Fine Naval Parade — Relig- ious and Literary Exercises^— Military Display — President Harrison at the Banquet — The President's Address — The New Cabinet — Terrible Calamity at Johnstown — Admission of New States — President's Message to the Fifty-first Congress — Legislation of the First Session of the Fifty-first Congress — The New Tariff Law — Indian W' ar in the Northwest — Death of Sitting Bull — Restriction of Immigration — Mob Law in New Orleans — Trouble in Chile — Political Conventions of 1892 — Labor Contest at Homestead — Defeat of the Silver Bill 878 CHAPTER XLIX. THE WORLD'S COLUMBIAN EXPOSITION. LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS. PAGE Frontispif.ce. Mounds at Marrietta, Ohio 19 A Dead Town of the Moquis Indians 21 Indian Village in Winter 24 Navajo Boy 25 Pueblo Indian at Prayer 26 Civilized Indian Woman 27 Thorvald W'ounded by the Red Men 30 Christopher Columbus ^^ Columbus Watching for Land 37 Landing of Columbus 38 Reception of Columbus by Ferdinand and Isabella . 39 Norse Sea-king 41 Sebastian Cabot 44 Samuel Champlain 47 Cabot on the Shores of Labrador 48 The Coast of Florida 51 Hernando Cortez 52 Fernando De Soto 55 The Spaniards Descending the Mississippi after the Death of De Soto . 59 The Renowned Explorer, Sir Martin Frobisher . . 64 Sir Walter Raleigh 65 Frobisher and His Ships Passing Greenwich .... 66 Queen Elizabeth 67 Murder of WHiite's Assistant 70 Captain John Smith 76 Pocahontas Interceding for the Life of Captain John Smith 78 Pocahontas 80 Building the First House in Jamestown 82 Types of North American Indians 85 Massacre of Settlers by Indians 90 Flight of the Indians after the Massacre 92 Indian Weapons 94 King Charles II 99 Indians Making a Midnight Attack upon Settlers . . 103 Bacon Demands the Commission of Berkley .... 105 Cecil, Second Lord Baltimore 113 A Civilized Indian 115 Oliver Cromwell 116 William III 118 Chained Bible, Time of James I 122 The Puritans in Conference with James I 124 The Pilgrims at Plymouth 126 The" Mayflower" at Plymouth Harbor 12S Governor Brewster's Chair 129 Landing of the Pilgrims 131 The First Church in New England 133 The Treaty between Plymouth Colony and Massasoit 135 John Endicott 139 John Winthrop 141 Roger Williams Seeking Refuge Among the Indians . 145 Landing of Roger Williams at Providence 147 John Hampden 151 A Group of Indians 153 Yale College 155 An American Free School 159 John Eliot Preaching to the Indians 162 Indian Medicine Man 164 Indian Life in Their Native Forests 170 King Philip 172 The Burning of Brooktield by the Indians 173 Mrs. Rowlandson Captured by the Indians 175 Sir Edmund Andros 178 The Charter Oak 180 The Rev. Cotton Mather • • . . 183 Execution of the Rev. George Burroughs ..... 189 Nova Zembla — From an Old Print 194 Mock Suns Seen by Early Explorers 195 Henry Hudson 196 Hudson Strait • . . 197 Mutiny on Hudson's Ship 198 First Settlement of New\ork 199 Peter Stuyvesant 203 Gustavus Adolphus 205 Queen Anne . ; 212 William Penn 217 W'illiam Penn's Treaty with the Indians 220 Penn Treaty Monument 221 The Old Swedes' Church, Built in 1641 222 Indian Amusements — Canoe Race between Squaws . 223 The Coast of North Carolina 229 A Settler's Cabin 231 Birds' -Eye View of Charleston, South Carolina . . . 233 Scene on a Tributary of the St. John's River .... 235 xix XX LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS. PACE King George 1 239 Oeneral Oglethorpe 243 A Southern Plantation 244 John Wesley 245 George Whitefield 246 University and Normal School Buildings at Toronto in 1892 254 Falls of St. Anthony 261 Murder of La Salle 263 View of Montreal from Mount Royal 268 Return of the Daughter of Eunice Williams . . . . 272 Cruel Murder of Rasle 274 French Explorers Buying Eeaden Plates 279 Scenes in the Allegheny Mountains 281 The Half King 285 Benjamin Franklin 289 Wills' Creek Meadows 291 Disastrous^Defeat of General Braddock 294 Burning of Kittaning by General Armstrong .... 296 The Palisades of the Hudson 302 Site of Fort William Henry on Lake George .... 305 Montcalm 306 Arrival of Indian Allies at the French Camp . . . . 307 William Pitt 310 Washington Planting the Flag on Fort Duquesne . . 315 Niagara Falls 317 General James Wolfe 318 Death of General Wolfe before Quebec 320 King George HI 321 Visit of Pontiac and the Indians to Major Gladwin . . 324 Scene near the Source of the Raritan River 329 Samuel Adams 332 Patrick Henry 333 Colonel Barr6 . . . • 335 Hanging a Stamp Act Official in Effigy 337 Stamp Act Official Beaten by the People 339 British Troops in Boston 342 Throwing the Tea Overboard in Boston Harbor . . 347 John Hancock 349 Carpenter's Hall, Philadelphia • . . . . 351 The Minute Man . 355 The Battle of Lexington, April 19, 1775 35^ Death of Isaac Davis 358 Capture of Ticonderoga by Ethan Allen 360 Signers of the Mecklenburg Declaration 361 General Israel Putnam 364 General Burgoyne 365 Battle of Bunker Hill . . • 368 Death of Major Pitcairn 370 Bunker Hill Monument •^72 General Richard Montgomery 374 General Henry Knox 378 Medal Struck by Congress in Honor of the Recapture of Boston 380 PAc:x Continental Bills 381 Sergeant Jasper at Fort Moultrie 383 Independence Hall, Philadelphia 385 House in which the Declaration of Independence was Written, Philadelphia 386 Signing the Declaration of Independence 387 Old Bell of Independence Hall 388 Signatures of the Signers of the Declaration of Inde- pendence 390 General John Sullivan 393 The Declaration of Independence Read to the Army 396. General Charles Lee 398 Washington Crossing the Delaware . 401 Washington Calls on Colonel Rahl 403 American Marksman in a Tree 406 Washington's Quarters at Morristown 408 General Philip Schuyler 411 Flag and Shield 412 Seal of the United States — Obverse 412 Seal of the United States — Reverse 412 The Marquis de Lafayette 413 Arrest of General Prescott 415 Lafayette and Washington 417 General Burgoyne Addressing the Indians 420 Ruins of Fort Ticonderoga 421 Herkimer Mortally Wounded • .... 423 General John Stark 424 General Horatio Gates 426 An American Rifleman 431 Louis XVI 434 Sir Henry Clinton 435 Indian Scalp Dance • 439 General Benjamin Lincoln 441 Gallant Charge of Count Pulaski • • • . 442 General Anthony Wayne 443 Lieutenant-Colonel Henry Lee 444 Paul Jones Seizing the Silver Plate of Lady Sjlkirk . 445 John Paul Jones 446 Medal Struck in Honor of Paul Jones — Obverse . . 447 Medal Struck in Honor of Paul Jones — Reverse . . 447 Daniel Boone 448 Lord Cornwallis 453 Total Rout of the Loyal Recruits 454 General Francis Marion 455 General Nathaniel Greene . . • 457 " Now Put Watts into them. Boys," 458 Benedict Arnold 460 Major Andre 461 Escape of Benedict Arnold 463 General Daniel Morgan 466 Lord Rawden, afterwards Marquis of Hastings . . 468 Scene in the Highlands of the Hudson 471 View of Yorktown 473 Surrender of Lord Cornwallis 474 LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS. XXI Captain Huddy led from Prison to be Hanged ... 477 Washington's Headquarters at Newburg, New York . 479 The Room with Seven Doors and One Window . . 479 Oliver Ellsworth 482 Washington's Reception at Trenton 483 Rufus King 484 C. C. Pinckney 485 The Inauguration of Washington 486 George Washington 487 Indian Child in Cradle 488 Alexander Hamilton 489 Rufus Putman 490 John Jay 491 Fisher Ames 492 Scene in the Mammoth Cave, Kentucky 493 Washington's Home at Mount Vernon 494 John Adams 497 John Marshall 498 Washington's Grave, Mount Vernon 500 Thomas Jefferson 5°^ Aaron Burr 502 Robert R. Livingston 503 Napoleon 1 504 Captain (afterward Commodore) Bainbridge and the Dey of Algiers 505 Duel between Burr and Hamilton 506 Fulton's First Steamboat 507 William Pinkney 509 Officers of the " Chesapeake " Surrendering their Swords 510 James Madison 513 A Pioneer Hero's Fight with the Savages 516 John Randolph 517 Stephen Van Rensselaer 519 Massacre by Indians at Fort Dearborn 520 Capture of the " Guerriere" by the "Constitution" . 522 Commodore Hull 523 The" Wasp" Boarding the "Frolic" 524 Indians Torturing Prisoners 526 Commodore Perry 527 Perry's Victory on Lake Erie 528 Battle of the Thames — Death of Tecumsch .... 529 Captain (afterward Sir Philip) Broke 531 Fight between the " Chesapeake" and the ".Shannon" 533 Sceneof the Battle of Lake Champlain 536 Commodore MacDonough 537 A New England Farm-house 539 Joseph Story 540 The Plain ofChalmette — Scene of the Battle of New Orleans 541 Pakenham Leading the Attack on New Orleans . . . 543 Commodore Decatur 544 Decatur and the Dey of Algiers 545 William C. C. Claiborne 546 PACK James Monroe 549 Old Way of Picking Cotton 551 Henry Clay • • • • 553 Unique Cotton Harvester 555 John Quincy Adams 557 Steamboat Loading with Cotton 558 Statue of Jefferson at Washington 559 Daniel Webster 560 Andrew Jackson 562 Robert Y. Hayne 563 A Lumberman's Camp in the Woods of Maine . . . 564 John C. Calhourn 565 Edward Livingston 566 The United States Treasury at Washington, D. C. . • 567 Osceola, Chief of the Seminoles 566 Martin Van Buren 571 Canadian Trappers 574 The Smithsonian Institution, Washington, D. C. . . 575 View of the National Capitol at Washington . . . . 577 William Henry Harrison .580 John Tyler 581 Fac-Simile, According to Joe Smith, of the Writing on the Original Plates of the " Book Mormon " . . 583 Murder of the Smiths , . . . 584 The Mormon Hand-cart Company Crossing the Plains 585 Mormon Tabernacle at Salt Lake, Utah 586 Professor Morse 587 A Village in Texas 588 Santa Anna 589 General Houston 590 General Post Office, Washington 591 James K. Polk 594 Columbia River, Oregon 595 Battle of Palo Alto 598 Major Ringgold Mortally Wounded 599 Charge of the Dragoons 600 General Winfield Scoit 601 Capture of a Battery at Monterey 603 Lieutenant Grant Going for Ammunition at Mon- terey 604 Mexican Cart and Oxen 607 Battle of Buena Vista 609 General View of the Yosemite Valley 6ii The Cheat Canon and Lower Falls, Yellowstone . . 613 East Side of Plaza — Santa Fe 614 Bombardment of Vera Cruz 616 Battle of Cerro Gordo 617 Storming of Chapultepec 621 General Scott Entering the City of Mexico 622 A Mexican Cathedral 623 Hydraulic Mining 624 Zachary Taylor 627 The White House, Washington, D. C 62S LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS. PAGE Robert Toombs 629 Millard Fillmore 631 Portraits of Leading Mormons 632 Culian Fillibusters on the March 633 Sir John F lin 635 •Relics of Franklin's Polar Voyage 636 Dr. E. K. Kane and his Companions 637 Franklin Pierce 640 Stephen A Douglas 642 Salmon P. Chase 644 Scene on the Allegheny River 645 Charles Sumner 647 James Buchanan 650 The Mormon Temple, Salt Lake City, Utah .... 651 Mountain Meadow Massacre 652 Washington Irving 655 Edward Everett 658 IJridge Crossing the Susquehanna River at Harris- burg 660 Jefferson Davis 663 Inaugiu-ation of Jefferson Davis 664 Abraham Lincoln 666 William H. Seward 667 Arrival of President Lincoln at the Capitol 668 Fort Prickens 669 Major Anderson 670 Fort Sumter in 1861 671 Forts Sumter and Moultrie 672 Fort Moultrie, Charleston Harbor 673 The Confederate Flag 674 The Sixth Massachusetts Regiment Passing through Baltimore 675 Fortifications in and around Washington 676 Portraits of Prominent Federal Generals 677 Map Showing the Shenandoah Valley 678 The Battle of Manassas, or Bull Run 680 Capitol at Richmond, Virginia 681 Portraits of Prominent Federal Generals 682 The ♦' Nashville" Destroying a Federal " Merchant- man " 684 Lieutenant-General Polk 685 John M. Mason 686 John Slidell 686 The Arrest of Mason and Slidell on the British Steamer "Trent " 687 Grant's Headquarters near Fort Donelson 688 A View of the Country, Showing Fort Donelson in the Distance 689 Map Showing Pittsburg Landing and Corinth .... 690 Charge of the Federals at Corinth 691 Iron-clad Gunboat 692 Island No. 10 694 Burning Horses at Shiloh 695 Massacre of the Morrisites 696 PAGB Portraits of Prominent Confederate Generals .... 697 General Sherman at the Outbreak of the War . . . . 699 Burnside's Expedition Crossing Hatteras Bar .... 700 Portraits of the Principal Naval Commanders during the War 702 The "Merrimac " Sinking the "Cumberland" .... 704 General George B. McClellan 706 View of the Chickahominy near Mechanicsville . . . 707 Map of Northern Virginia 708 Lieutenant-General T. J. Jackson 709 Portraits of Prominent Confederate Generals . . . . 711 Portraits of Prominent Federal Generals 714 Major-General Philip Kearney 715 McClellan at the Battle of Antietam 717 View of Antietara Battle Ground 718 Portraits of Some of the Generals of the Army of the Potomac 720 General John Sedgwick 721 General George G. Meade 722 Battle of Gettysburg 724 Positions during the First Day's Fight at Gettys- burg 727 Positions during the Second and Third Days' Fight at Gettysburg 727 Map Showing Vicksburg and Its Approaches .... 730 Vicksburg, Mississippi 731 Gunboats Running Past Vicksburg at Night .... 732 General John C. Pemberton 733 Grant's Headquarters near Vicksburg 734 Map of the Chickamauga and Chattanooga Cam- paigns • 735 Positions of the Armies at the Battle of Missionary Ridge 736 Grant's Headquarters at Chattanooga 737 Capture of Lookout Mountain 738 Missionary Ridge from the Cemetery at Chattanooga 739 The Attack on Fort Sumter by the Monitor Fleet . . 740 Portraits of Prominent Federal Generals 721 Fort De Russy 742 Bailey's Red River Dam 743 Grant Writing Dispatches before Crossing the Ripadan 744 General James Longstreet 745 The Place where Sedgwick was Killed 746 General Fitzhugh Lee 747 Battle of Cold Harbor 748 Battle of Spottsylvania Court-house 749 General J. E. B. Stuart 750 General Winfield S. Hancock 751 Stuart's Cavalry Cutting Telegraph Wires 752 Pontoon Bridge at Deep Bottom 753 General Philip H. Sheridan 754 Portraits of Federal Cavalry Commanders 755 Sheridan's Cavalry Charge at Cedar Creek .... 756 LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS. XXlll PAGE 'Country between Chattanooga and Atlanta 757 General Joseph E. Johnston 758 General James B. McPherson 761 General George H. Thomas 762 Portraits of Sherman and some of his Commanders . 763 The Country Traversed by Sherman in His March through Georgia 764 Map Showing the City of Mobile and Its Defences . . 765 Commodore David G. Farragut 766 Cape Fear River and Approaches to Wilmington, N. C 767 Boat of the "Deerhound " Rescuing Captain Semmes 768 Sinking of the " Alabama" by the " Kearsarge " . . 769 Raphael Semmes 770 Portraits of Prominent Federal Generals 771 Major-General J. M. Schofield 772 Portraits of Federal Cavalry Commanders 773 Interior of Fort Steadm an 774 Positions of the Annies near Petersburg, Va 775 General Robert E. Lee 776 The Last Cavalry Charge of the War 777 General John B. Gordon 780 The McLean House 781 Surrender of General Lee 782 General Lee's Farewell to His Soldiers 783 Assassination of President Lincoln 785 The Grave of President Lincoln 786 Interview between Generals Sherman and Johns- ton 788 Andrew Johnson 791 Ruins of Richmond after the War 792 Fort Warren, Boston Harbor 793 Lincoln Monument in Fairmount Park, Philadel- pJiia 795 Emperor Maximilian 798 Natives of Alaska Building Houses 799 Ulysses S. Grant 802 View on the Greene River at the Crossing of the Union Pacific.Railroad, Wyoming 803 President Grant on his way to the Inauguration. . . 804 Humboldt Palisades, Pacific Railway 805 Cheyenne Indians Reconnoitering the First Train on the Pacific Railroad 806 The Geneva Board of Arbitration Settling the Ala- bama Claims 807 The Burning of Chicago 808 Horace Greeley 809 President Grant Passing Through the Rotunda to take the Oath of Office 810 Mrs. U. S. Grant 811 The Lava Beds — Scene of the Modoc War . . . . 812 Scene in the New York Stock Exchange During the Panic of 1873 814 Scene on the Colorado River 815 PAGB View in the Grand Canyon of the Colorado River . 81S Memorial Hall, Fairmount Park, Philadelphia . . . 820 View of the Main Building of the International Cen- tennial Exhibition 822 General J. R. Hawley 824 Intersection of Ninth and Chestnut Streets, Philadel- phia 826 Obverse of Centennial Medal • • • . . 827 Reverse of Centennial Medal 827 Shoshone Falls, Idaho 828 General George Crook 829 Indians Surprised and Defeated 830 Horseshoe Bend on the Pennsylvania Railroad near Altoona 831 Canyon of the Lodore and Greene Rivers, Wyoming . 832 Samuel J. Tilden S;^^ Thomas A. Hendricks 834 Point Pleasant, Ohio, the Birthplace of General Grant 835 Samuel J. Randall 8^6 The New Department of State, Washington, D. C . . 837 George F. Edmunds 838 Thomas F. Bayard 839 Rutherford B. Hayes 842 William A. Wheeler 843 Arrival of General Grant at San Francisco in the Steamer " City of Tokio " 844 William H. English 845 The " Jeannette " Crushed by the Ice 846 The Mirage — A Scene in the Arctic Regions .... 847 James A. Garfield 850 Mrs. Lucretia R. Garfield 851 James G. Blaine 852 The Assassination of James A. Garfield 853 Death-bed of James A. Garfield 854 The Catafalque at Cleveland, Ohio 855 James A. Garfield Lying in State in the Rotunda of the Capitol at Washington 856 Chester A. Arthur 857 John A. Logan 858 John G. Carlisle 859 Sanderson's Hope, Upernavik, Baffin Bay 860 Arctic Region — Beechey Head 861 Scene in the Arctic Region — Among the Icebergs . . 862 The Brooklyn Suspension Bridge 863 Grover Cleveland 865 Chief Justice Waite Administering the Oath of Office to President Cleveland 866 Death of General Grant 867 Cottage in which Grant Died at Mount McGregor . . 868 General Grant's Temporary Tomb, Riverside Park, New York 869 Mrs. Frances Folsom Cleveland 872 The New Post Office Building, Philadelphia .... 873 LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS. PAGE The New City Hall, Philadelphia 874 Steamship Docks on the Delaware River, Philadel- phia 875 Allen G. Thurnian 876 Levi P. Morton 877 Benjamin Harrison 879 Bird's-eye View of New York City 880 The Post Office, New York S81 The Battery and Castle Garden, New York .... 882 The Harbor of New York 883 The Break in the South Forks Dam, Johnstown, Pa. 884 William McKinley 885 Charles F. Crisp 886 Sitting Bull in his War- Dress. . 8S7 Chief American Horse 888 PAGE General Nelson A. Miles 889 Captain Wallace Found After the Wounded Knee Fight 890 Scene on the Yellowstone River 892 Bird's-eye View of the World's Columbian Exposi- tion at Jackson Park 900 Map of Jackson Park Showing Site of theWorld's Fair 901 Manufactures and Arts — the Main Building .... 903 United States Government Building 905 Administration Building 907 The Electrical Building 909 Agricultural Building 910 Machinery Hall 912 View Looking South over the Lagoon 914 Horticultural Building 917 'm:^ LoDgltude Weal O-f D i.L.f/the Woods ^ M VortClwrlottsT ^ „ rr p M ^ ^"o-i . 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CaplUlB Longitude Wpet lo? from Qr^enwlcb Story of the New World OR Thrilling Events of American History BOOK I Discovery of the Western Continent CHAPTER I Strange People in a Strange Land Tlarliest Inhabitants of the United States— The Mound Builders— Remarkable Works Constructed by them— Evidences of a Primitive Civilization — Indications of the Antiquity of this Period — The American Indians — Division of the Country Among the Tribes — Names and Location of the Various Tribes — Organization and Government of the Indians — Their Dress, Manners and Customs — Villages — Indian Inventions — The War Dance — Legends of the Norsemen Respecting the Discovery of America. E do not know who were the inhabitants, or what was the his- tory of North America previous to its discov- ery and settlement by the Europeans. That it was at some remote period occupied by a more civilized and powerful race than the Indians, found by the first explorers, is very certain ; but who they were, what was their history, or what the cause of their extinction, are among the profoundest mysteries of the past. Traces as distinct as those which mark the various physical changes which the continent has undergone, exist to show that these primitive inhabitants were both numerous and far advanced in civilization ; but this is all that we know concerning them. In various parts of the country, and especi- ally in the valley of the Mississippi, large mounds and other structures of earth and stone, but chiefly of earth, remain to show the magnitude of the works constructed by these people, to whom the name " Mound Builders " is generally applied. Some of these earth-works embrace as much as fifteen or sixteen miles of embankment. As no domestic animals existed in this country at that period, these works must have been constructed by bringing the earth used in them by hand ; a fact which shows that the primitive population was a large one. The construction of the works proves that they had considerable engineering skill. The square, the circle, the ellipse, and the octagon are all used in these structures; being all combined in a single system of works in some places. The proportions are always perfect. The square is always a true square, and the circle a true circle. Many implements and ornaments of copper, silver, and precious stones — such as axes, chisels, knives, bracelets, beads, and pieces of thread and cloth, and well-shaped vases of pottery have been found in these mounds, and show i8 DISCOVERY OF THE WESTERN CONTINENT. the extent of the civilization ot the " Mound Builders " and their knowledge of the arts. In the region of Lake Superior are found old copper mines worked by these ancient people. In one of these mines there was discovered an immense block of copper weighing nearly six tons. It had been left in the process of removal to the top of the mine, nearly thirty feet above, and was sup- ported on logs of wood which were partly petrified. The stone and copper tools used by the miners were discovered lying about as they had been left by their owners ages before. At the mouth of this mine are piles of earth thrown out in digging it, and out of these embankments trees are growing which are nearly four hundred years old. Who were the "Mound Builders"? The following interesting account of the mounds and their builders is from the pen of Mr. J. H. Beadle, who has kindly given us permission to quote from his valuable work, entitled The Undeveloped West'. In his description, Mr. Beadle says : A people for whom we have no name, vaguely included under the general term of Mound Builders, have left evidences of exten- sive works in the vicinity of the Mississippi and Ohio Rivers and their tributaries. These are of three kinds : mounds, square and circular inclosures, and raised embank- ments of various forms. Of mounds, the following are most important and best known : One at Grave Creek, West Virginia, 70 feet high and 1,000 feet in circumference at the base ; one near Miamisburg, Ohio, 68 feet high and 852 feet in circumference ; the great truncated pyramid at Cahokia, Illinois, 700 feet long, 500 wide, and 90 in height ; the immense square mound, with face of 188 feet, near Marietta, Ohio ; and some hun- dreds of inferior mounds from 60 to 30 feet in height, in different States, from Wisconsin to the mouth of the Mississippi. Unlike- all the mounds in Mexico and Central and South America, those in our country have no trace of buildings on them. W^hy?' Until I visited Arizona I had no answer. There the solution was easy. In those regions stone was abundant and timber was scarce ; here the reverse was the case. Our predecessors built of wood, the others of stone ; the works of the latter remain to this day, while wooden buildings would leave no trace after one or two centuries, if indeed they were not burnt by the savages as soon as abandoned. Immense Structures. Of the second class the best known are : the square fortification at Cedar Bank, Scioto River, Ohio, with face of 800 feet, inclosing a mound 245 feet long by 150 broad ; the works four miles north of Chilli- cothe, Ohio, a square and a circular fortifica- tion inclosing twenty acres each ; the graded' way near Piketon, Ohio ; about a hundred mounds and inclosures in Ross County, Ohio ; the pyramid at Seltzertown, Missis- sippi, 600 feet long and 40 feet high, and a vast number of mounds, inclosures, squares and pyramids on the upper lakes, and scat- tered through the Southern and Western States. Every State in this great region contains these ancient structures. By far the greatest division is in Central and South America ; and here we find our- selves at the point where our ancient civiliza- tion reached its height, among works which are the astonishment of explorers and per- plexity of scholars. Yucatan is a vast field for antiquarian research, dotted from one end to the other with the ruins of cities, temples and palaces. But in the great forest which covers the northern half of Guatemala, the southern half of Yucatan, and parts of other States, covering an area larger than Ohio, is- STRANGE PEOPLE IN A STRANGE LAND. 19 to be found the key to our ancient history. Within a few years past cities have been dis- covered which must have contained a popu- lation of a quarter of a million, in an advanced condition of civilization ; and yet, owing to the jealousy of the natives and the indiffer- ence of modern scholars, next to nothing is known, and few scientific researches have been made upon this intensely interesting subject. In my limited space I confine this inquiry mostly to the remains in our own country. 2. They were an agricultural people. The barbarous state requires many times as large an area for the same number of people as the civilized state ; and the savage condi- tion a much larger. The State of Ohio will support an agricultural population of many millions; yet it never contained fifty thousand savages. It is easily proven that that portion of the United States east of the Mississippi never contained half a million Indians. It follows, also, that a very large portion of the country around their works MOUNDS AT MARIETTA, OHIO. From what we see in the Western and Southern States, the following conclusions are evident : I. The Mound Builders constituted a considerable population, under one govern- ment. No wandering and feeble tribes could have erected such works ; and the extent of the works, evidently many years in erection, as well as their completeness and scientific exactness, show the controlling energy of one directing central power, Avhich alone can account for their uniform character. must have been cleared of timber and in cultivated fields. 3. They left our country a long time ago. Nature does not give a forest growth at once to abandoned fields ; a preparatory growth of shrubs and softer timber comes first. But forest trees have been found upon the summit of their mounds, which show, by annual rings and other signs, at least six hundred years of growth. There could be no better proof of their great antiquity. Their works are never found upon the 20 DISCOVERY OF THE WESTERN CONTINENT. lowest terrace of the formation on the rivers ; though many signs indicate that they built some as nearly on a level with the streams as possible. Their " covered ways," leading down to water, now terminate on the second terrace above. It is demonstrable that of the various terraces — " second bottoms " — on our streams, the lowest was longest in form- ing. From these and many other signs, it is proved that the last of the Mound Builders left the Ohio valley at least a thousand years ago. How Long were they Here ? 4. They occupied the country, at least the southern part of it, where their popula- tion was densest, a very long time. This is shown by the extent of their works, the evidences of their working the copper-mines of the Superior region, and many other proofs. The best judges estimate that nearly a thousand years elapsed from the time of their entrance till their departure from the Mississippi valley. 5. At the south they were at peace ; but as they advanced northward, they came more and more into contact with the wild tribes, before whom they finally retired — again towards the south. These facts are clearly proved by the increase of fortifica- tions northward, and broad flat mounds, suitable only for buildings, southward. So much for proof; and, connecting these with other proofs, the latest antiquarians are of the opinion that the Toltecs — the civilized race preceding the Aztecs — were our Mound Builders. This opinion is the only reason- able one that can be formed under all the circumstances. When we pass to the more southern ruins the proofs of great antiquity, large population and long occupation are vastly increased. Some of them have been alluded to. The great forest of Guatemala and Yucatan is nearly as large as Ohio and Indiana combined, and could easily have sustained a civilized population of ten mil- lions. The Aztecs, whom the Spaniards found, were the last of at least three civilized races, and much inferior to the Toltecs immediately preceding them. Their history indicates that they were merely one of the original races, who overthrew and mingled with the Toltecs, adopting part of their reli- gion and civilization. The Peruvian Incas, found by Pizarro, seemed to have been the second in the series of races. But civiliza- tion is not spontaneous ; it must have re- quired nearly a thousand years for the first of the three dynasties to have developed art and learning far enough to erect the build- ings we find. To that race before the Incas, the authors of the original civilization, De Bourbourg and others have given the name of Colhuas. What may Reasonably be Conjectured. Thus we have the series : a thousand years since the Mound Builders left our country; a previous thousand years of set- tlement and occupation, and a thousand ♦ years for the precedent civilization to develop. Or, beginning in Mexico, etc. : a thousand years of Spaniard and Aztec ; a previous thousand years for Toltec migration and settlement, and a thousand years before that for the Colhuas to develop, flourish and decline. This carries us back to the time when the same course of events was inaugu- rated on the Eastern Continent. We know that it has required so long to produce all we see in Europe and Asia; all reasoning, by analogy, goes to show that at least as long a time has been required to produce equally great evidences in America. Besides a host of surmises there have been at least nine theories promulgated, and strenuously defended, in regard to the origin of this civilization. STRANGE PEOPLE IN A STRANGE LAND. 21 I. The Jewish theory. Some sixty years since Major Noah maintained that the " Lost Tribes " were the ancestors of the American Indians and the builders of the ruins de- such a people as the Jews could, in a few centuries, lose all trace of their language, religion, laws, form of government, art, science and general knowledge, and sink into A DEAD TOWN OF THE MOQUIS INDIANS. scribed ; and a few others held that, if not the Ten Tribes, there was a Jewish Colony. It would certainly be an amazing thing if a tribe of barbarians. But when we add that their bodily shape must have completely changed, their skulls lengthened, the beard 22 DISCOVERY OF THE WESTERN CONTINENT. dropped from their faces, and their lan- guage undergone a reversion from a deriv- ative to a primitive type — a thing unknown in any human tongue — the supposition be- comes too monstrous even to be discussed. 2. The Malay theory is that a great Malay Empire, once existing in the island of Malaysia, planted colonies here ; but this is easily disproved. Works of the Phcenicians. 3. The Phoenician theory : that those ancient navigators planted colonies in Amer- ica. If correct, this would be certain of demonstration ; for they were preeminently a people of letters and monuments. The Phoenician alphabet is the parent of all the alphabets of Europe except the Turkish. They must have left some trace of their lan- guage. But none has been found. Nor can any similarity be traced in the ruins with the works of the Phoenicians. 4, 5 , 6. The Assyrian, Egyptian and Roman theories fell for the same reasons as the Phoenician. The works of none of these people have any marked resemblance to those found in America. A pyramid or temple here is no more like an Egyptian or Assyrian one than a Chinese pagoda is like an American church. 7. The Northmen in America have been credited with these works. It is barely possible the remains in the United States might be thus accounted for ; but how about the far more extensive and elaborate works in Mexico, Central and South America? The cause ascribed is utterly inadequate for the effect. 8. The Chinese or Tartary theory is, that about the year 1.250 Kublai Khan sent Tartar colonies to America; that among them were some Nestorian Christians, which accounts for the crosses found. The time is utterly inadequate. Palenque and Copan were built and abandoned before the year 1250. 9. The Atlantean theory is, by far, the most brilliant and fascinating of all proposed, and appeals with subtle power to the imagi- nation. It is propounded by Brasseur de Bourbourg, who maintains that the Island of Atlantis, often mentioned by ancient poets, had a real existence ; that it extended nearly across the Atlantic, and was the cradle of civilization ; that it actually sank in the sea as the Greek poets tell us, and that the West India Islands are the only portions that remain above water. He conjectures that from this common centre civilization spread east and west, and supports this view by numerous traditions from both sides of the Atlantic. Of this theory we m ust regretfully say, " Not proven." A False Assumption. To dispose of so many theories to make way for my own opinion, is scarcely in keeping with the modesty I had proposed to myself; but, in my humble judgment, these theorists all start from one fatal assumption : that this civilhation was necessarily an exotic. Why not a civilization native to America as well as to any other country ? I would sug- gest that a good basis might be laid by analogy with the course of civilization in Europe. There it began in the South, spread slowly by successive developments towards the North, where it was overwhelmed and driven back, as it were, by an irruption of barbarians ; it again revived in the South, and slowly extended to the North, where it is now advanced beyond the original. Similarly here the Colhuas originated civilization in the South ; their successors the Toltecs, carried it towards the North, about the line of Ohio, they encountered the irruption of northern barbarians, and slowly retired towards the South ; there civilization STRANGE PEOPLE IN A STRANGE LAND. 23 again revived, and was steadily advancing towards the North when the Spaniards came and destroyed it. On each continent the full cycle required a period of about three thousand years. On this basis I should place the Moquis and other Pueblo races the last in a series of four, the second the greatest, and a decline thence to the last : Colhuas, Toltecs, Aztecs, Pueblos. In summing up, why are we reduced to the necessity of adopting any hypothesis of an Eastern origin ? Is it unreasonable to believe that self-improve- ment began among savages in America, as it did three thousand years ago among savages in Egypt and Greece ? Does sound philos- ophy forbid the theory of a spontaneous civilization in America ? We are, perhaps, too much in the habit of thinking that everything really good originated with our branch of the human race. To my mind, the evidences are many — though a profound American archaeologist might smile at the supposition — that this civilization was sui generis, native and not derived. A Remarkable Indian. We now know that in China a civiliza- tion developed spontaneously, totally unlike and receiving no aid from that of Europe. Two starting points proved, what is there to forbid the idea of a third? This is as dis- tinct from the European as is the Chinese ; it shows no signs of derivation, and facts indicate clearly that the native mind of Amer- ica is naturally equal to either of the others. Within the memory of man a Cherokee has invented a complete alphabet, one serving the purpose in his language better than ours does in the English. (Better because each letter represents invariably one and the same sound.) This fact is worth a volume of con- jecture. It shows that the human mind was slowly working toward something better in America, the same as in Europe, the only difference being that, from reasons of race or climate, it there got an earlier start. Outgrowing Barbarism. And as to the northern barbarians who destroyed this civilization, why are we driven to inventing a plausible theory as to how they crossed from Asia? On the whole, I incline to flank all the difficulties of the main question thus : America, as shown by geo- logy, is the oldest of the continents, and it is quite reasonable, therefore, to suppose was early inhabited. This race had a native genius peculiarly its own, totally unlike that which developed in Asia the Chinese civili- zation, or that in Europe which created that of the Greek and Roman and the later nations. Like them, many hundreds of years passed in barbarism before even a start was apparent. But civilization did begin in Amer- ica, and was reviving from its first over- throw when the whites came. Mexico had advanced through the savage and barbarous to the half-civilized state ; the New England tribes had taken the first steps toward improvement, and the New York Indians had already a political organization, code of laws, national confederacy and sys- tem of representative council and govern- ment. Had the whites discovered America a thousand years later, they might have found on the Atlantic coast a completed native civilization as perfect as that of China to-day. The innate power of the Indian mind among the superior tribes is evident. The inferior ones would have perished as did inferior aboriginal races before Asiatic and European civilization. The foregoing theories, by Mr. Beadle, are doubtless the best solution to this problem. At the time of its discovery by the whites the Indians were the sole human occupants of the continent, which was covered with vast 24 DISCOVERY OF THE WESTERN CONTINENT. woods and plains abounding with game of every description. Though nominally divided into tribes and "nations," the Indians were really one great family in physical appearance, manners, cus- toms, religion, and in the observance of their social and political systems. The division and Pennsylvania, New Jersey, Delaware, Maryland, Virginia, North Carolina as far south as Cape Fear, a large part of Kentucky and Tennessee, and nearly all of Ohio, Indi- ana, Illinois, Michigan, Wisconsin and Min- nesota. This nation was subdivided into the following tribes : the Ottawas, Chippewas into tribes was the result of their difference in language. Each tribe had a dialect pecu- liar to itself and distinct from those of the others. The tribes were for the most part hostile to and were constantly engaged in war with each other. They were generally divided into eight nations, speaking eight radically distinct languages. These were : I. The Algonqidns, who inhabited the ter- ritory now comprised in the six New 'Eng- land States, the eastern part of New York INDIAN VILLAGE IN WINTER. Sacs and Foxes, Miamis, Potawatomies, Shawnees, Powhatans, Delawares, Mohegans, Narragansetts and Pequods. The Famous " Five Nations." II. Iroquois, who occupied almost all of that part of Canada south of the Ottawa, and between lakes Ontario, Erie and Huron, the greater part of New York, and the country lying along the south shore of Lake Erie, now included in the States of Ohio and Penn- sylvania. This territory, it will be seen. m~^4^ UNITED STATES. (I U. S. COMMODOBB PENNANT. A ^m ^^ " C' S ^ UNION JACK. U. S. REVENUE. U. S. TACHT. U. S. ADMIRAL. GERMANT. PENNSYLVANIA STATE. GERMAN MBBOHANT. ^^ FLAGS OF ALL NATIONS. -•►-« •-4^ VENEZUELA. BOUADOB. INDIA. DENMARK. PARAGUAY. HANOVBR. -"*8*" FLAGS OF ALL NATIONS. — ^ t FLAGS OF ALL NATIONS. _— — a [^ — ^ — M^ » — —•►Hb SWITZERLAND. NORWAY. ^-> <*- CHINA. OTTTTiT. nl iI/f^_X ^^jBI 1 ■^lIFl 1 ■SSBSi't^^ PORTUQAIi. URUGUAY. SIAM. NEW aRANAQA. FLAGS OF ALL NATIONS. ^ STRANGE PEOPLE IN A STRANGE LAND. 25 bordered on the domains of their powerful and bitter enemies, the Algonquins. The nation was subdivided into the following tribes : the Senecas, Cayugas, Onondagas, Oneidas and Mohawks. These five were afterwards called by the English the " Five Nations." In 1722 they admitted the Tus- caroras into their confederation, and were afterwards called the " Six Nations." Tribes of the South. III. The Catawbas, who dwelt along the banks of the Yadkin and Catawba rivers, near the line which at present separates the States of North and South Carolina. IV. The Cherokees, whose lands were bounded on the east by the Broad river of the Carolinas, including all of north- ern Georgia. V. The Uchees, who dwelt south of the Cherokees, along the Savannah, the Oconee, and the head-waters of the Chattahoochee. They spoke a harsh and singular language, and are believed to have been the remnant of a once powerful nation. VI. The Mobilian Nation, who inhabi- ted all of Georgia and South Carolina not mentioned in the above statements, a part of Kentucky, Tennessee and Mis- sissippi and all of Florida and Alabama. Their territory was next in extent to that of the Algonquins, and extended along the Gulf of Mexico from the Atlantic Ocean to the Mississippi River. The nation was divided into three great confederations — the Creeks or Muscogees, the Choctaws and the Chickasaws — and was subdivided into a number of smaller tribes, the principal of which were the Seminoles and Yemassees, who were members of the Creek Confed- eration. VII. The Natchez, who dwelt in a small territory east of the Mississippi, and along the banks of the Pearl River. They were almost surrounded by the tribes of the Mobilian language, yet remained until their extinction a separate nation, speaking a distinct lan- guage peculiar to themselves, and worship- ping the sun as their God. They are believed to have been the most civilized of all the savage tribes of North America. VIII. The Dacotahs or Sioux, whose terri- tory was bounded on the north by Lake Winnipeg, on the south by the Arkansas River, on the east by the Mississippi, and on NAVAJO BOY. the west by the Rocky Mountains. The nation was divided into the following branches : the Winnebagoes, living between Lake Michigan and the Mississippi ; the Southern Sioux, living between the Arkan- sas and the Platte ; and the Mandans and Crows, who lived north of them. The great plains, the Rocky Mountains and Pacific coast were held by the powerful tribes of the Pawnees, Comanches, Apaches, Utahs, Black Feet, Snakes, Nezperces, Flat- heads, Navajos and CaHfornia Indians. 26 DISCOVERY OF THE WESTERN CONTINENT. Each tribe was divided into classes or clans, which wore distinguished by a mark tattooed on the breast. This mark was called the totem, and was generally the representation of an animal or bird. The Indians believed that all animals had protect- ing spirits, and each class was supposed to be protected by the spirit of the animal it chose for its totem. Over each class was a chief, and the head of the tribe was a chief or sachem, who was usually a man, but some- PUEBLO INDIAN AT PRAYER. times a woman. The Indians had no writ- ten laws, but the customs and traditions of the tribe took the place of these. The reli- gious belief of the Indians was simple. They adored a Great Spirit — some tribes had many gods — and believed in a future state. The brave were admitted to the happy hunt- ing-grounds of the spirit-world, but cowards were excluded from them. The weapons of a warrior were buried with him that he might use them in his spirit home, and pursue the -occupations of his earthly life. Their heaven lay far beyond the mountains of the setting sun. It was a land rich in game, and abounding in fertile meadows and sparkling streams. There the warrior, re- leased from the cares and hardships of life, passed the ages of eternity in the chase ; and there parting from friends, suffering, fatigue, hunger and thirst were unknown. The Indian heard voices of spirits in the wind, and saw them in the stars. The shades of his ancestors were constantly hovering over him, stimulating him to brave deeds, keep- ing fresh in his mind the duty of avehging them upon the enemies they had left behind, and of proving himself a true warrior. Grotesque Dress of the Savages. The dress of the savages consisted of the skins of animals, which were prepared by smoking them. After the settlement of the colonies they added a blanket to this dress. Their garments were decorated with skins and feathers, and on special occasions they painted their faces with various bright colors. In the warm weather they wore scarcely any clothing. Their houses or wigwams were formed of poles set firmly in the ground and bent toward each other at the top. These were covered with chestnut or birch bark. Some of the tribes had large houses, often thirty feet high and over two hundred feet long, which accommodated a number of families. Some of the Indian villages were laid off regularly and were permanent; others were broken up with each migration of the tribe. All the Indians, however, pursued a roving life, passing from point to point in search of game and the means of subsist- ence. Some of the tribes lived by hunting only ; others added to this pursuit the culti- vation of maize or Indian corn, beans, hemp, tobacco and pumpkins. The food of the Indians was coarser and less nourishing than that of the Europeans, and they were conse- STRANGE PEOPLE IN A STRANGE LAND. 27 quently inferior to the latter in bodily strength. They surpassed them in endur- ance, however, and could bear tests which the whites could not. They were swift run- ners, and could accomplish long distances in this way. It was a common thing for a good runner to run seventy or eighty miles in a single day. They were thoroughly proficient in the craft of the woodsman. Sounds and sights which had no meaning to the white man were eloquent to them ; and they sur- passed the latter in keenness of hearing and of vision. They communicated with each ■other by signs or marks on rocks and trees. For money they used wampum beads ; and belts made of this wampum were used to record treaties and other important events. They had no intoxicating drinks before the arrival of the whites ; but used tobacco, which they smoked in pipes made of clay. They were expert marksmen with the bow until they learned the use of firearms from the whites, when they lost much of their ancient skill with this weapon. Canoes and Snow-shoes. " The most ingenious inventions of the In- dians," says Colonel Higginson, " were the snow-shoe and the birch canoe. The snow- shoe was made of a maple-wood frame three or four feet long, curved and tapering, and filled in with a network of deer's hide. This network was fastened to the foot by thongs, only a light, elastic moccasin being worn. Thus the foot was supported on the surface of the snow ; and an Indian could travel forty miles a day upon snow-shoes, and could easily overtake the deer and moose whose pointed hoofs cut through the crust. The peculiar pattern varied with almost every tribe, as did also that of the birch canoe. This was made of the bark of the white birch, stretched over a very light frame of white cedar. The whole bark of a birch tree was stripped off and put around the frame without being torn. The edges were sewed with thongs cut from the roots of the cedar, and were then covered with pitch made from the gum of trees. If torn, the canoe could be mended with pieces of bark, fastened in the same way. The largest of these canoes was thirty feet long, and would carry ten or twelve Indians. They were very light and could be paddled with ease. They were often very gracefully shaped, and drew very little water. "The Indians had great courage, self-con- trol, and patience. They were grave and CIVILIZED INDIAN WOMAN. dignified in their manners on important occa- sions ; in their councils they were courteous to one another, and discussed all important questions at great length. They were often kind and generous, and sometimes even for- giving ; but they generally held sternness to be a virtue, and forgiveness a weakness. They were especially cruel to captives, putting them to death with all manner of tortures, in which women took an active part. It was the custom among them for wom^n to do most of the hard work, in orclfci- that the 28 DISCOVERY OF THE WESTERN CONTINENT. bodies of the men might be kept supple and active for the pursuits of the chase and war. Great Power of Endurance. " When employed on these pursuits, the Indian men seemed incapable of fatigue ; but in the camp or in travelling the women carried the burdens ; and when a hunter had carried a slain deer on his shoulders for a longdistance, he would throw it down within sight of the village, that his squaw might go and bring it in. *' Most of the Indian tribes lived in a state of constant warfare with one another. When there was a quarrel between tribes, and war seemed ready to break out, strange cere- monies were used. Some leading chief would paint his body black from head to foot, and would hide himself in the woods or in a cavern. There he would fast and pray, and call upon the Great Spirit; and would observe his dreams to see if they promised good or evil. If he could dream of a great war-eagle hovering before him it would be a sign of triumph. After a time he would come forth from the woods and return among; his people. Then he would address them, summon them to war, and assure them that the Great Spirit was on their side. Then he would bid the warriors to a feast at his wig- wam. There they would find him no longer painted in black, but in bright and gaudy colors, called * war paint' The guests would also be dressed in paint and feathers, and would seat themselves in a circle around the wigwam. Then wooden trenchers, contain- ing the flesh of dogs, would be placed before them, while the chief would sit quietly smok- ing his pipe, and would not yet break his long and wearisome fast. " After the feast, the war-dance would fol- low, perhaps at night, amid the blaze of fires and lighted pine knots. A painted post would be driven into the ground, and the crowd would form a wide circle round it. The war chief would leap into the open space, brandishing his hatchet, and would chant his own deeds and those of his fathers, acting outall that he described and striking at the post as if it were an enemy. Warrior after warrior would follow, till at last the whole band would be dancing, shouting, and brandishing their weapons, striking and stab- bing at the air, making hideous grimaces and filling the forest with their yells. Making the Attack. " Much of the night would pass in this way. In the morning the warriors would leave the camp in single file, still decorated with paint and feathers and ornaments ; and, as they entered the woods, the chief would fire his gun, and each in turn would do the same. Then they would halt near the vil- lage, would take off their ornaments and their finery, and would give all these to the women, who had followed them for this pur- pose. Then the warriors would go silently and stealthily through the forest to the appointed place of attack. Much of their skill consisted in these silent approaches, and in surprises and stratagems, and long and patient watchings. They attached no shame to killing an unarmed enemy, or to private deceit and treachery, though to their public treaties they were always faithful. They were desperately brave, and yet they saw no dis- grace in running away when there was no chance of success." At the time of the discovery of America the Indians were rapidly disappearing. Their, relentless wars and frequent pestilences were sweeping them away. Contact with the white race has hastened the work of destruc- tion. Many of the tribes exist now but in name, and those which remain are growing smaller in numbers with each generation ; and it would seem that the time is not far STRANGE PEOPLE IN A STRANGE LAND. 29 distant when the last trace left of the red man in America will be his memory. Old Traditions. Whether any white men ever trod the shores of America previous to the coming of Columbus is a disputed question. It would seem, however, that, several centuries previ- ous to his discovery, a Norwegian vessel from Iceland to Greenland was driven out of her course by storms to the coast of Labrador or Newfoundland. The national pride of the Icelanders and the Danes has led them to accept as literal history the traditions of their race concerning this voyage, and they have given it a definite date. According to them this voyage took place in A. D. 986, and was followed in looi by a voyage of Lief Erick- son, an Icelandic navigator, who is said to have discovered America, reaching Labrador first, and then sailing southward to Newport and New York harbors. This voyage is said to have led the way to the further exploration of the coast as far south as the capes of Virginia, and to the planting of colonies, which soon perished, in Newfound- land and Nova Scotia. That some Icelandic voyagers visited the American continent pre- vious to the expedition of Columbus is most likely ; but we cannot accept the definite and explicit statements of the writers in ques- tion ; at least in the present state of our knowledge upon this subject. We must con- tent ourselves with the bare fact, without admitting all the details narrated. Among the strange, stirring and wonder- ful stories of early voyages there was none which excited such interest as that of Bjarni, a native of Iceland, who had cruised along the coast of an unknown world, and looked upon hills, woods and mountains, of whose existence no one had ever dreamed. It naturally occurred to the hardy sailors who discussed the question, that they could do what Bjarni had done, and indeed far more, for he had not set foot on the shores he had seen at the west. The oldest son of Eric the Red was Lief — Lief the Lucky, he was afterward called. In the year lOOO he set sail from Herjulfness with a crew of thirty-five men, Bjarni being among them. Heading boldly out to sea, the sailors ploughed through the icy waters until land, supposed to be Newfoundland, was reached. They went ashore and examined it, but there was little to please the eye and they soon left. The next place visited was probably Nova Scotia, as it is now called. It was found to correspond with the account given by Bjarni. Two days further sail, before a favoring wind, carried the explorers so far south that when land was once more descried, it must have been New England. The main facts of the remarkable voyage of Lief the Northman have been proven beyond all dispute, but the accounts themselves are so confused in minor details that it can never be positively known where it was these navigators first landed. There is good rea- son, however, to believe it was on the coast of Rhode Island, and probably at some point on the Narragansett Bay. A Bold Navigator. The Northmen were astonished and delighted when they came to explore the woods to find luscious grapes in abundance. To the Northmen, the climate seemed won- derfully mild. Lief gave the country the name of Vinland, and when he sailed north- ward, his vessel was loaded with grapes and valuable timber, as proof of the fertility of the region he had visited. The Northmen were not men to rest con- tent with the voyage and discoveries made by Lief. Eric the Red had another son, a brave and skillful navigator named Thorvald, who was eager to visit the new country* .30 STRANGE PEOPLE IN A STRANGE LAND. 31 Lief gave him much help, and in 1003 he set sail with a crew of thirty men. Good fortune attended them, and they found the rough houses left by Lief still strong and secure. The men spent the winter in hunting and fishing, but, so far as is known, never saw the face of any native of the New World. When spring came, part of the company went on an exploring tour along the coast of Rhode Island, Connecticut and Long Island. There is good reason to believe they entered the harbor of New York, but not a living person beside themselves was to be seen, and where stands to-day the most populous city in the New World, there was not so much as an Indian wigwam. The records show that in the spring of 1004 Thorvald entered on a more extended voyage of exploration. He sailed slowly northward along the coast of Cape Cod, and was driven ashore by a tempest. It took the crew a long time to repair damages, but when everything was ready, they resumed their voyage, keeping close, no doubt, along the south shore of Massachusetts Bay. Being favorably impressed with the appear- ance of a certain spot, they dropped anchor and went ashore. When they had done so, they saw for the first time some of the natives of the new country. Under a couple of rude tents they dis- covered nine quietly lolling on the ground with no suspicion of the presence of the strangers who had landed near them. Who would think that the Northmen could offer harm to the poor savages ? There was not the slightest excuse for the dreadful cruelty of the white men, and yet, no sooner did they see the natives, than they resolved to kill them all. Creeping silently forward, they made a sudden rush, and with their heavy swords killed all but one. Having completed the massacre, "the triumphant Northmen lay down under the trees to sleep ; but they had hardly closed their eyes when the woods resounded with shouts and yells, and the natives rushed upon them from every side. The single survivor of the slaughter had made haste to tell what had been done by the visitors, who were now compelled to flee to their ship, fighting as they went. Under the shelter of the vessel, however, they were able to beat back the natives, only one of the Northmen receiving a wound : he was Thorvald, who had been pierced so deeply by an arrow that he was past help. He died and was buried near the shore, the grave covered with stones and a cross placed both at the head and foot. Then the survivors sailed back toVinland and told their countrymen the sad tidings. The next spring the whole colony returned to Green- land. Thus ends all authentic history of the dis- covery and settlement of America by the Northmen. Having found one of the great continents of the world, it may be said they lost it, and, during nearly five centuries afterward there is no positive proof that it was known to Europeans. CHAPTER II The Voyages of Columbus Maritime Enterprise in the Fifteenth Century — Theories Respecting the Earth's Surface — Christopher Columbus— His Early Life — His Theory of a Western Passage to India — His Struggles to Obtain the Means of Making a Voyage — Is Aided by Ferdinand and Isabella of Spain — His First Voyage — Discovery of America — Reception in Spain — His Second Voyage — Settlement of Ilayti — Third Voyage of Columbus — He Reaches the Mainland — Discovery of Gold in Hayti — Troubles in^the Colony — Columbus Sent to Spain in Irons — Indignation of the Queen — Last Voyage of Columbus — His Ship- wreck — Returns to Spain — Refusal of Ferdinand to Comply with his Promises — Decth of Columbus — Amerigo Vespucci — Origin of the Name America. could be reached. Among those who held this opinion was Christopher Columbus. He was a native of Genoa, in Italy, was born about the year 1435, and was the son of a weaver of cloth. His ancestors had been sailors, for which calling he at an early age evinced a preference. He received a com- mon school education, and afterwards went to the University of Pavia, where he studied geometry, astronomy, geography and navi- gation. He stayed at Pavia but a short time ; only long enough to gain a decided relish for mathematical studies. At the early age of fourteen he went on a voyage with a relative, and followed the calling of a sailor until he had completed his thirtieth year. During this period he had married, and by this marriage he had become possessed of the papers of the former hus- band of his wife, who had been a distinguished Portuguese navigator. He had learned but little at school, but he had been a close stu- dent all his life, and had stored his mind with a valuable fund of information. This habit of study he never abandoned, and his extensive knowledge, added to his years of practical experience, made him one of the most learned navigators of his day. In 1470, being then about thirty years old, Columbua HE fifteenth century witnessed a remarkable awakening of human thought and enterprise, one of the most important features of which was the activity in mari- time undertakings which led to the discovery of lands until then unknown to the civilized world. The invention, and the application to navigation, of the mariner's compass, had enabled the seamen of Europe to undertake long and distant voyages. The Portuguese took the lead in the maritime enterprises of this period, the chief object of which was to find a route by water from Europe to the Indies. The equator had been passed ; Bartholomew Diaz had even •doubled the Cape of Storms, and had estab- lished the course of the eastern coast of Af- rica ; and it was hoped by some of the most daring thinkers that the ports of India could be reached by sailing around this cape. Others, still bolder, believed that although the earth was a sphere, it was much smaller than it is, and that the central portion of its surface was occupied by a vast ocean which washed the shores of what they regarded as its solitary continent, on either side, and that by sailing due west from Eu- rope, the shores of India, China or Japan 32 H PQ < m h-l P < Q <1 I— I Q 0^ O PQ CO P PQ O O THE VOYAGES OF COLUMBUS. took up his residence in Portugal, which was then the centre of maritime enterprise in Europe. Here his spirit of discovery was quickened, and he became convinced that there were continents still unknown. He continued to make voyages to the then known parts of the world, and while on 33 fortified by his experience, induced him to believe that there was land beyond the western seas, which could be reached by sailing in that direction. This land he believed to be the eastern shores of Asia. He was confirmed in his belief by his corres- pondence with the learned Italian Toscanelh', CHRISTOPHER COLUMBUS. shore engaged in the work of making and selling maps and charts. The papers given him by his wife were now of the greatest service to him. He entered eagerly into the speculations of the day concerning the short- est passage to the Indies, and his studies. 3 who sent him a map of his own projection,, in which the eastern coast of Asia was laid down opposite the western coast of Europe,' with only the broad Atlantic between them. Other things also confirmed him in what had now become the profoundest conviction of 34 DISCOVERY OF THE WESTERN CONTINENT. his life. Sailors who had been to the Canary- Islands told him they had seen land far to the westward of those islands. A piece of wood strangely carved had been thrown by the waves upon the Portuguese coast after a long westerly gale, and had been seen by the brother-in-law of Columbus. Seven Years of Disappointment. An old pilot related to him the finding of a carved paddle at sea, a thousand miles to the westward of Europe. Pine trees had been cast ashore at Madeira, and at the Azores he learned that the bodies of two men, whose features and dress showed that they belonged to no nation of Europe, had been thrown on the land by the waves. Having settled it in his own mind that there was land to the westward, Columbus was eager to go in search of it. He was not possessed of suffi- cient means to accomplish this at his own expense, and began his efforts to interest some European state in the enterprise. His first application was addressed to his native country, the Republic of Genoa. He met with a refusal, and then turned to Venice, with a like result. His next effort was to enlist the Portuguese king, John II., in his scheme. Here he was subjected to delays and vexations innumerable, and once the Portuguese sovereign attempted to make a dishonorable use of the information given by Columbus in support of his theory. Disgusted with the conduct of this sover- eign, Columbus, after years of waiting, aban- doned the hope of obtaining his assistance, and applied to Henry VII. of England, from whom he received a decided refusal. Quitting Lisbon in 1484, Columbus went to Spain, intending to lay his plans before Fer- dinand and Isabella, the sovereigns of that country. He could scarcely have chosen a more unpropitious time. The Spanish nation was engaged in the Moorish war, which had exhausted the treasury, and which absorbed the attention of the sovereigns to the exclu- sion of every other matter. He spent seven years in endeavoring to interest the govern- ment in his plans. " During this time Columbus appears to have remained in attend- ance on the court, bearing arms occasionally in the campaigns, and experiencing from the sovereigns an unusual degree of deference and personal attention." At last,' wearied with the long delay to which he had been subjected, he pressed the court for an answer, and was told by the sovereigns that, " although they were too much occupied at present to embark in his undertaking, yet, at the conclusion of the war, they should find time to treat with him." He accepted this answer as a refusal, and prepared to go to France to ask the assistance of the king of that country, from whom he had received a friendly letter. Travelling on foot, he stopped at the monas- tery of Santa Maria de Rabida, near Palos, to visit the Prior Juan Perez de Marchena, who had befriended him when he first came to Spain. The prior, learning his intention to quit Spain, persuaded him to remain until one more effort could be made to enlist the government in his plans. Leaving Columbus at the convent, Juan Perez, who had formerly been the queen's confessor, mounted his mule and set off for the Spanish camp before Granada. He was readily granted an inter- view by Queen Isabella, and he urged the suit of Columbus with all the force of elo- quence and reasoning of which he was master. Columbus at the Royal Court. His appeal was supported by several eminent persons whom Columbus, during his residence at the court, had interested in his project, and these represented to the queen the impolicy of allowing Columbus to secure the aid of a foreign power which THE VOYAGES OF COLUMBUS. 35 would reap the benefits of his discoveries, if he were successful. The result was that the sovereigns consented to reopen the negotia- tion, and Columbus was invited to return to the court, and was furnished with a sum of money to enable him to do so. Columbus promptly complied with the royal mandate, and reached the camp in time to witness the surrender of Granada. Amidst the rejoic- ings which attended this event he was admit- ted to an audience with the king and queen, and submitted to them the arguments upon which he based his theory. Isabella was favorably disposed toward the undertaking, but Ferdinand looked coldly upon it. Co- lumbus demanded, as the reward of his suc- cess, the title and authority of admiral and viceroy over all lands discovered by him, with one-tenth of the profits, and that this dignity should be hereditary in his family. The archbishop of Granada advised the king to reject the demands of Columbus, which, he said, " savored of the highest degree of arrogance, and would be unbecoming in their highnesses to grant to a needy foreign adventurer." Columbus firmly refused to abate his pretensions, and abruptly left the court, " resolved rather to forego his splendid anti- cipations of discovery, at the very moment when the career so long sought was thrown open to him, than surrender one of the hon- orable distinctions due to his services." His friends, however, remonstrated with the queen, and reminded her that if his claims were high, they were at least contingent on success. By representing to her the certainty of his being employed by some other poten- tate, and his peculiar qualifications for success, and by reminding her of her past generous support of great and daring enterprises, they roused her to listen to the impulses of her own noble heart. " I will assume the under- taking," she exclaimed, " for my own crown of Castile, and am ready to pawn my jewels to defray the expenses of it, if the funds of the treasury shall be found inadequate." Louis de St. Angel, the receiver who had been chiefly instrumental in bringing about this decision of the queen, offered to ad- vance the necessary funds from the reve- nues of Aragon. That kingdom, however, was indemnified against loss, and all the charges and profits of the expedition were reserved exclusively for Castile. A messen- ger was despatched in haste after Columbus. He overtook him a few leagues from Granada, and delivered the royal order to return. Three Ships of Renown. On the seventeenth of April, 1492, a formal agreement was signed between Columbus and the Spanish sovereigns. Fer- dinand and Isabella, " as lords of the ocean- seas, constituted Christopher Columbus their admiral, viceroy and governor-general of all such islands and continents as he should discover in the Western Ocean, with the privilege of nominating three candidates, for the selection of one by the crown, for the government of each of these territories. He was to be vested with the exclusive right of jurisdiction over all commercial trans- actions within his admiralty. He was to be entitled to one-tenth of all the products and profits within the limits of his discoveries, and an additional eighth, provided he should contribute one-eighth part of the expense. By a subsequent ordinance, the official digni- ties above enumerated were settled on him and his heirs forever, with the privilege of prefixing the title of Don to their names, which had not then degenerated into an appellation of mere courtesy." A fleet of three vessels was assembled in the little harbor of Palos in Andalusia, 3^ DISCOVERY OF THE WESTERN CONTINENT. Two of these were furnished by the govern- ment, and one by Columbus, aided by his friend, the Prior of La Rabida, and the Pin- zons, " a family in Palos, long distinguished for irs enterprise among the mariners of that active community." The admiral had some difficulty in equipping his vessels, for his voyage was regarded by the sailors of the country as rash and perilous in the extreme. At length, however, a sufficient crew was obtained. One hundred and twenty per- sons were enlisted in the expedition. The three vessels were all small. The Santa Maria, the largest, was ninety feet lon-g, was decked all over, had four masts, and carried a crew of sixty-six seamen. The Pi?tta and Nina were smaller, and were without decks. All the vessels were provisioned for a year. The admiral was instructed to keep clear of the African coast, and other maritime posses- sions of Portugal. The Fleet Sails. At length all things were in readiness, and, Columbus and his whole crew having confessed themselves and received the sacra- ment, the fleet sailed from Palos on the morning of Friday, the third of August, 1492. A month later the Canary Islands were reached. A brief delay was made there to refit, and then the vessels turned their prows to the westward, and sailed out into the unknown seas. As the night came on the sailors, imagining they had seen the land for the last time, gave way to tears. Columbus soothed their fears, and held his course. At length he fell in with the trade- winds, which wafted him steadily towards the west. The sailors were greatly alarmed at this, and declared, that if the wind did not change it would be impossible for them to reach home again. The variation of the compass also alarmed them, and their mur- murs increased to almost open mutiny. It required all the firmness of the admiral to restrain them, and to keep them from aban- doning the enterprise and returning to Europe. Ten weeks of anxiety and disappoint- ment had passed since the departure of the fleet from Palos ; but still no land was seen. There were unmistakable signs that land was was near, such as the flight of land birds around the ship, the finding of a bush floating on the waters with fresh berries upon it, and the frequent discovery of land weeds upon the waves. Often the lookout would startle the fleet by the cry of land, but as often the sup- posed shore would prove to be only a bank of clouds low down upon the western horizon, Still the ships held their westward course, and at length the sailors broke into open mutiny, and demanded that the fleet should return home. They were even ready to throw the admiral overboard if he refused to grant their demands. The Torch that Lighted up a New Continent. Columbus alone had been calm and hope- ful throughout the voyage. He was resolved to succeed or perish in the attempt to find the land. The success of the mutiny would have destroyed alt his hopes, and as the events of each succeeding day strength- ened him in his conviction that they were rapidly approaching land, he condescended to plead with his men, and obtained from them a promise to obey him for a few days longer. The next night the land breeze, laden with the rich perfumes of tropical flowers, con- vinced the weary crews that the admiral was right, and that the long wished-for shore was indeed near. The ships were ordered to lie to for the night lest they should go ashore in the darkness. No one slept on board that night. About ten o'clock, Columbus saw a light moving along the shore, as if it were a THE VOYAGES OF COLUMBUS. 37 torch carried in a man's hand. He called Martin Alonzo Pinzon, one of his captains, and pointed it out to him. Pinzon confirmed the admiral's opinion, and all waited in the most in- tense eager- ness for the approach of the morning. With the first hght, on the morning of Friday, the twelfth of Oc- tober, 1492, a gun from one of the vessels announced that land was indeed in sight, and the rising sun re- vealed to the delighted sea- men a large island, luxu- riant in foliage and of very beautiful ap- pearance, ly- ing about six miles away, with crowds of natives run - ningalongthe beach. As the great admiral stood with folded arms, and heaving breast, gazing upon the world which his genius had discovered, the penitent sailors crowded about him, and, kissing his garments, im- plored his pardon for their rebellious conduct. COLUMBUS WATCHING FOR LAND. Orders to land were promptly issued and the fleet stood in and anchored near the shore. The boats were manned, and the admiral, clad in rich scarlet, and bearing the royal ban- ner of Spain, and accompa- nied by his captains, each of whom bore a green ban- ner inscribed with a cross, went ashore. As he set foot on the land, Columbus knelt rever- ently and kissed the ground, and then rising and drawing his sword, took posses- sion of the island in the name of Fer- dinand and Isabella, king and queen of Spain. The island was one of the Bahama ■group, and was called by the natives Guanahani. Columbus named it San Sal- vador. He explored the island, and then sailing on discovered Cuba, Hayti,and other West India islands. He believed these islands to lie off the coast of Asia and to 38 DISCOVERY OF THE WESTERN CONTINENT. form a part of the Indies. For this reason he called the natives Indians, a name which they have since borne. Having built a gar- rison, a small fort in Hayti, Columbus took on board seven of the natives, and laid in a stock of fruits, plants and a number of ani- mals as specimens of the products of the country, and set sail on his return to Spain. The voyage was a very tempestuous one. He arrived at Palos on the fifteenth of March, 1493. His arrival was greeted with enthusi- asm. From Palos he set out for the court covered Jamaica, and many of the Caribbee Islands. In 1498 Columbus made a third voyage, and in this expedition he discovered the mainland of the American Continent near the mouth of the Orinoco, and explored the coast of the provinces, since called Para and Cumana. He was not aware of the true nature of his discovery, but supposed that the South American coast was a part of a large island belonging to Cathay or Farther India. In the meantime, gold had been discov- LANDING OF of Barcelona. Every step of the journey was a triumphal progress. He was received with the most distinguished honors by the sovereigns, and the whole court joined in a Te Deiitn of thankfulness for the success of his voyage. A second expedition, consisting of seven- teen ships and fifteen hundred men, was now fitted out, and sailed from Cadiz under the command of Columbus on the twenty-fifth of September, 1493. On this voyage he dis- COLUMBUS, ered in Hayti, and crowds of adventurers were drawn hither from Spain. They in- flicted great hardships upon the natives, and when Columbus arrived he found the affairs of the colony in a most deplor- able state. The sovereigns at length sent over a commissioner named Boba- dilla to investigate the affairs of the co- lony. He was a narrow-minded, incom- petent man, and instead of investigating the charges against the admiral, arrested him. RECEPTION OF COLUMBUS BY FERDINAND AND ISABELLA. 39 40 DISCOVERY OF THE WESTERN CONTINENT. and sent hitn back to Spain in irons. When the officers of the ship which bore him back home wished to remove his fetters, he refused to allow them to do so, saying, " I will wear them as a memento of the gratitude of princes." The news of this outrage filled the people of Spain with honest indignation. " All seemed to feel it as a national dis- honor," says Prescott, "that such indignities should be heaped upon the man, who, wliat- ever might be his indiscretions, had done so much for Spain, and for the civilized world." The Fetters Stricken Off. Queen Isabella at once ordered his fetters to be struck off, and he was summoned to court, reinstated in all his honors, and treated with the highest consideration. Isabella gained from the king a promise to aid her in doing justice to the admiral, and in punish- ing his enemies ; but Ferdinand, who could never bear to do a generous or noble act, evaded his promise, and the admiral failed to receive his just recompense. In 1504 Columbus sailed on his fourth voyage ; his object this time being to find a passage from the Atlantic to the Pacific Ocean, by which he might reach India. He explored the Gulf of Honduras, and saw the continent of North America, but was com- pelled by the mutiny of his crew and by severe storms to abandon his attempt and return to the northward. He was ship- wrecked on the coast of Jamaica, where he remained more than a year. Returning to Spain in November, 1505, he found his best friend. Queen Isabella, on her death-bed. The enemies whom his great success had raised up for him were numerous and power- ful, while he was now old and broken in health. He vainly sought from Ferdinand a faithful execution of the original compact between them ; but though he received fair words and promises in abundance from the king, Ferdinand steadily refused to comply with the just demands of the admiral. The Great Navigator's Death. At last, worn out with care and disap- pointments, Columbus died at Valladolid, on the twentieth of May, 1506, being about seventy years old. He was buried with great pomp in the Convent of St. Francis, at Valla- dolid, In 1 5 13 his remains were removed to the monastery of Las Cuevas, at Seville, and Ferdinand caused thisinscription, which cost him nothing and expressed his excuse for his conduct towards the dead man, to be placed upon his tomb : '' To Castile and Leon Columbus gave a New World!" In 1536 the body of the great admiral was conveyed with appropriate honors to St. Domingo. Upon the cession of that island to France in 1795, the body was removed to Cuba, and buried in the Cathedral of Havana. Not yet have the ashes of the Discoverer of America found their true resting place. That place is under the great dome of the Capitol of the Republic, for whose existence he prepared the way. Though Columbus reached the continent of South America on his third voyage, he was not the first European who beheld the mainland of the western world. In the winter of 1497-98, Amerigo Vespucci, or Americus Vespucius, a Florentine navigator, made a voyage to the West Indies and the South American coast, thus reaching the mainland of the continent nearly a year before Columbus. Returning to Europe he published an account of his discoveries. This was the first account of the new world published in Europe, and some years later a German geographer gave to the continent the name of " Americi Terra'' or the land discovered by Americus. From this time the name America was applied to the west- ern continent. THE VOYAGES OF COLUMBUS. 41 Columbus was a man of great and invent- ive genius. The operations of his mind were energetic but irregular ; bursting forth at times with that irresistible force which characterizes intellects of such an order. His mind had grasped all kinds of knowl- edge connected with his pursuits ; and though his information may appear limited at the present day, and some of his errors palpable, it is because that knowledge, in his peculiar department of science, was but scantily developed in his time. His own discoveries enlightened the ignorance of that age ; guided conjecture to certainty ; and dispelled numerous errors with which he himself had been obliged to struggle. Character of Columbus. His ambition was lofty and noble. He was full of high thoughts, and anxious to distinguish himself by great achievements. It has been said that a mercenary feeling mingled with his views, and that his stipula- tions 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 ; but they were to arise from the territories he should discover, and be com- mensurate in importance. No condition could be more just. He asked nothing of the sovereigns but a command of the countries he hoped to give them, and a share of the profits to support the dignity of his command. If there should be no country discovered, his stipulated viceroyalty would be of no avail ; and if no revenues should be produced, his labor and peril would produce no gain. If his com- mand and revenues ultimately proved mag- nificent, it was from the magnificence of the regions he had attached to the Castilian crown. What monarch would not rejoice to gain empire on such conditions ? But he did not merely risk a loss of labor and a disappointment of ambition in the enterprise ; on his motives being questioned, he voluntarily undertook, and, with the assist- ance of his coadjutors, actually defrayed one-eighth of the whole charge of the first expedition. This shows that his fiith in the new enterprise was unbounded, and he was willing to stake everything on its success. A peculiar trait in his rich and varied character was that ardent and enthusiastic imagination which threw a magnificence over A NORSE SEA-KING. his whole course of thought. Herrera inti- mates that he had a talent for poetry, and some slight traces of it are on record, in the book of prophecies which he presented to the Catholic sovereigns. But his poetical temperament is discernible throughout all his writings, and in all his actions. It spread a golden and glorious world around him, and tinged every thing with its own gorgeous colors. It betrayed him into visionary spec- ulations, which subjected him to the sneers 42 DISCOVERY OF THE WESTERN CONTINENT. and cavillings of men of cooler and safer, but more grovelling minds. Such were the conjectures formed on the coast of Paria about the form of the earth and the situation of the terrestrial paradise ; about the mines of Ophir in Hispaniola, and of the Aurea Chersonesus in Veragua ; and such was the heroic scheme of a crusade for the recovery of the holy sepulchre. It min- gled with his religion, and filled his mind with solemn and visionary meditations on mystic passages of the scriptures, and the shadowy portents of the prophecies. It ex- alted his office in his eyes, and made him conceive himself an agent sent forth upon a sublime and awful mission, subject to im- pulses and supernatural intimations from the deity ; such as the voice which he imagined spoke to him in comfort, amidst the troubles of Hispaniola, and in the silence of the night on the disastrous coast of Veragua. A Man in Advance of His Time. He was decidedly a visionary, but a vision- ary of an uncommon and successful kind. The manner in which his ardent, imaginative and mercurial nature were controlled by a powerful judgment, and directed by an acute sagacity, is the most extraordinary feature in his character. Thus governed, his imagina- tion, instead of exhausting itself in idle flights, lent aid to his judgment, and enabled him to form conclusions, at which common minds could never have arrived, nay, which they could not perceive when pointed out. To his intellectual vision it was given to read in the signs of the times, and to trace in the conjectures and reveries of past ages, the indications of an unknown world ; as sooth- sayers were said to read predictions in the stars, and to foretell events from the visions of the night. " His soul," observes a Spanish writer, " was superior to the age in which he lived. For him was reserved the great en- terprise of traversing a sea which had given rise to so many fables, and of deciphering the mystery of his time." With all the visionary fervor of his imagi- nation, its fondest dreams fell short of the reality. He died in ignorance of the real grandeur of his discovery. Until his last breath, he entertained the idea that he had merely opened a new way to the old resorts of opulent commerce, and had discovered some of the wild regions of the east. He supposed Hispaniola to be the ancient Ophir, which had been visited by the ships of Solo- mon, and that Cuba and Terra Firma were but remote parts of Asia. What visions of glory would have broken upon his mind, could he have known that he had indeed dis- covered a new continent, equal to the whole of the old world in magnitude, and separated by two vast oceans from all the earth hither- to known by civilized man ! And how would his magnanimous spirit have been consoled amidst the afflictions of age and the cares of penury, the neglect of a fickle public, and the injustice of an ungrateful king, could he have anticipated the splendid empires which were to spread over the beautiful world he had discovered, and the nations, and tongues, and languages which were to fill its lands with his renown, and to revere and bless his name to the latest posterity ! It may be questioned whether any old Norse Sea-King, who braved the storms and billows of the North Atlantic, ever exhibited a purpose more resolute, a courage more daring, or a self-sacrifice more complete than characterized Columbus. Our illustration of the royal Norseman shows him to have been a man born to command and achieve ; the hero of 1492 was no less illustrious. CHAPTER III English and French Discoveries Discovery of the North American Continent by John Cabot — Voyages of Sebastian Cabot — The Enghsh fail to follow up these Discoveries — Efforts of the French to Explore America — Voyage and Discoveries of Veirazzani — Cartier Explores the St. Lawrence — Reaches Montreal — Efforts to Found a Colony on the St. Lawrence — Failure — Roberval's Colony — Trading Voyages — Explorations of Champlain — Colonization of Nova Scotia — Founding of Quebec — Dis- covery of Lake Champlain — Arrival of the Jesuits in Canada — Death of Champlain. N the meantime the success of the first voyage of Columbus had stimulated other nations to similar exertions. The Eng- lish court had experienced a feeling of keen regret that the petition of Columbus had been refused, and when John Cabot, a native of Venice, then residing at Bristol, applied for leave to undertake a voy- age of exploration his request was readily granted. On the fifth of March, 1496, a patent or commission was granted to him and his three sons by Henry VII., authorizing either of them, their heirs or their agents, to under- take with a fleet of five ships, at their own expense, a voyage of discovery in the east- ern, western or northern seas. Though they were to make the attempt at their own cost, they were to take possession of the countries they should discover for the king of Eng- land. They were to have the exclusive pri- vilege of trading to these countries, but were bound to return to the port of Bristol, and to pay to the king one-fifth of the profits of their trade. Early in 1497 Cabot sailed from Bristol, accompanied by his son, Sebastian. The object of his voyage was not only the dis- covery of new lands, but the finding of a northwest passage to Asia. He sailed due west, and on the twenty-fourth of June, 1497, reached the coast of Labrador. He thus discovered the mainland of the North Amer- ican continent, fully fourteen months before Columbus reached the coast of South America, and nearly a year before Amerigo Vespucci made his discovery. He explored the coast to the southward for over a thou- sand miles, made frequent landings, and took possession of the country in the name of the English king. Returning home, he was received with many marks of honor by Henry VII., and was called the " Great Admiral " by the people. Towards the close of the year 1497, the Cabots undertook a new voyage, and the king, pleased with the success of the first venture, became a partner in the enterprise, and assumed a portion of the expense. The object of this voyage was to trade with the natives, and to ascertain if the country was suited to colonization. The expedition sailed from Bristol in May, 1498, and was com- manded by Sebastian Cabot, who reached the Labrador coast about four hundred miles north of the point discovered by his father. He found the country cold and barren, though it was but the beginning of the sum- mer, and sailed southward. " The coast to 43 DISCOVERY OF THE WESTERN CONTINENT. 44 which he was now borne was unobstructed by frost. He saw there stags larger than those of England, and bears that plunged into the water to take fish with their claws. "The fish swarmed innumerably in such shoals they seemed to affect even the speed of his " Continuing his voyage, according to the line of the shore, he found the natives of those regions clad in skins of beasts, but they were not without the faculty of reason, and in many places were acquainted with the use of copper. In the early part of his SEBASTIAN CABOT. vessels, so that h'e gave to the country the name of Bacallaos, which still linger, on the cast side of Newfoundland, and has passed into the language of the Germans and the Italians, as well as the Portuguese and Spanish, to designate the cod. voyage he had been so far to the north that in the month of July the light of day was almost continuous ; before he turned home- wards, in the late autumn, he believed he had attained the latitude of the Straits of Gibraltar and the longitude of Cuba."* On * Bancroft. ENGLISH AND FRENCH DISCOVERIES. 45 his homeward voyage he noticed the Gulf Stream. This was the last voyage from England made by Sebastian Cabot. On the death of Henry VII., he took service with Ferdinand of Spain, and under him and his grandson, Charles V., he made many voyages, and was for nearly sixty years the foremost man in Europe in maritimeenterprises. A Renowned Explorer. He explored the eastern coast of South America, and in his efforts to find the north- west passage sailed within twenty degrees of the North Pole, and explored the eastern coast of North America from Hudson's Straits to Albemarle Sound. He was in many things one of the most remarkable men of his day, and besides his own discoveries contributed generously by his advice and encouragement to those of others. " He gave England a continent, and no one knows his burial place." The English made no effort to take advan- tage of the discoveries of the Cabots. They sent a few vessels every year to fish on the banks of Newfoundland, but pursued even this industry without vigor. The other nations were more energetic, and showed a keener appreciation of the value of the new lands. The French were especially active in this respect. Their vessels engaged in the fisheries far outnumbered those of the Eng- lish, and many plans were proposed in France for the colonization of those regions. In 1523 F'rancis I. employed a Florentine named John Verrazzani, an experienced navigator, to undertake the discovery of a northwest passage to India. Verrazzani sailed on the seventeenth of January, 1524, and, after a stormy voyage of fifty days, reached the American coast in the latitude of Wilming- ton, North Carolina. Failing to find a good harbor, he sailed southward for 150 miles, and then turned northward, examining the coast as he proceeded on his journey. An Earthly Paradise. Verrazzani was surprised and delighted by the appearance of the new country and its inhabitants. The latter welcomed with hos- pitality the strangers whom they had not yet learned to fear, and the Europeans, on their part, regarded with wonder the " russet "- colored natives in their dress of skins orna- mented with feathers. Judging from the accounts which they carried to Europe, the voyagers regarded the country as a sort of terrestrial paradise. " Their imagination could not conceive of more delightful fields and forests ; the groves spreading perfumes far from the shore, gave promise of the spices of the East; and the color of the earth argued an abundance of gold." The harbors of New York and Newport were carefully explored, and in the latter the voyagers remained fifteen days. They then proceeded along the New England coast to Nova Scotia, and still farther to the north. They found the natives here less friendly than those farther south. A Portu- guese commander, Caspar Cortereal, had visited their coast a few years before, and had carried away some of their number and sold them into slavery. Returning to France, Verrazzani published an account of his voyage. This narrative forms the earliest original description now in existence of the American coast, and added very much to the knowledge of the Euro- peans concerning this country. France at a subsequentperiod based, upon Verrazzani's discoveries, her claim to the whole coast of America from Newfoundland to South Car- olina. The French, however, were not des- tined to obtain a foothold in the new world. The struggle in which Francis I. was engaged with the Emperor Charles V, pre- 46 DISCOVERY OF THE WESTERN CONTINENT. vented him from taking advantage of these discoveries, and nothing was done with regard to them by the French until ten years later, when Chabot, Admiral of France, induced King Francis to make another effort to explore and colonize America. An expedi- tion was fitted out, placed under the com- mand of James Cartier, a mariner of St. Malo, and despatched in April, 1534, for the pur- pose of exploring the American coast with a view to colonizing it. A quick voyage of twenty days carried Cartier to Newfound- land. Having passed through the straits of Belleisle, he crossed the gulf and entered a bay which he named Des Chaleurs, from the extreme heats he experienced there. France Sends Out a Colony. He proceeded along the coast as far as the small inlet called Gaspe, where he landed and took formal possession of the country in the name of the king of France. Leaving Gaspe Bay, Cartier discovered the great river of Canada, and sailed up the stream until he could see the land on either side. His explorations consumed the months of May, June and July. Being unprepared to pass the winter in America, the fleet sailed for Europe- The reports of Cartier concerning America aroused the deepest interest in France, and it was determined by the government to pro- ceed at once to the founding of a colony in the new world. A fleet of three well-equipped ships was fitted out, and volunteers from some of the noblest families in France were not lacking. The whole company repaired to the cathedral, where they received the bishop's blessing, and on the nineteenth of May, 1535, the expedition sailed from St. Malo. The voyage was long and stormy, but Newfoundland was reached at length. Passing through the straits of Belleisle, they entered the gulf lying west of Newfoundland on the tenth of August, the festival of St, Lawrence the Martyr, and gave to the gulf the name of that saint, which was subsequently applied to the great river emptying into it. A Beautiful Country. The voyagers ascended the stream to the island since called Orleans. There the fleet anchored, while Cartier proceeded farther up the river to the chief Indian settlement on the island of Hochelega. It was the delightful season of September, and the country was beautiful and inviting. Cartier ascended a hill at the foot of which the Indian settle- ment lay, and gazed with admiration at the magnificent region which spread out before him. He named the hill Mont Real, or Royal Mount, a name which is now borne by the island and by the great city which marks the site of Indian village. The balminess of the autumn induced Cartier to hope that the climate would prove as mild as that of France ; but a rigorous winter, which was rendered horrible by the prevalence of scurvy among the ships' crews, disheartened the whole expedition. The winter was spent at the Isle of Orleans, and in the early spring Cartier erected a cross on the shore, to which was affixed a shield inscribed with the arms of France and a legend declaring Francis I. the true and rightful king of the country. The fleet then sailed for France, and arrived at St. Malo on the sixth of July, 1536. Cartier published a truthful account of his voyage, setting forth the severity of the Canadian climate and the absence of mines of precious metals. His report checked for the time the enthu- siasm with which the French had regarded America, and for four years the plan of col- onizing the new country was laid aside, and all attempts were abandoned until a more favorable opportunity should present itself. Some ardent spirits, however, still believed in the possibility of planting successful col- onies in the new world and brincfinGf that ENGLISH AND FRENCH DISCOVERIES. 47 vast region under the dominion of France. Among these was Francis de la Roque, lord of Roberval, a nobleman of Picardy. He was appointed, by King Francis, Viceroy of the territories on or near the gulf and river of St. Lawrence, to which the high-sounding name of Norimbega was given, and was empowered to colonize it. The assistance of Cartier was necessary to such an undertak- ing, and he had the additional advantage of possessing the entire confidence of his royal master the king. Roberval was forced to employ him, and Cartier was given author- ity by the king to search the prisons . and take from them such persons as he needed for the expedition. Roberval and Cartier, however, failed to agree, and their dissensions defeated the object of the under- taking. Cartier sailed from St. Malo in May, 1541, and ascended the St, Lawrence to a point near the pres- ent city of Quebec, where he built a fort. The winter was passed in idleness and discord, and in the spring of 1542 Cartier abandoned the attempt, and sailed away for France with his ships just as Rob- erval arrived with a large reinforce- ment, prepared to render aid. Roberval was unable to accom- plish more than Cartier. His new subjects had been largely drawn from the prisons, and they gave him con- siderable trouble, if we may judge from the efforts resorted to to keep them quiet. One of them was hanged for theft during the winter, several were put in irons, and a num- ber of men and women were whipped. After remaining in Canada for a year, Roberval became disheartened, and re-embarked his subjects and returned to France. Thus ended the attempt to colonize Canada. Nearly thirty years passed away, during which the French made no effort to secure to themselves the region of the St. Law- rence. Their fishermen, however, continued to frequent the American waters. By the close of the sixteenth century one hundred and fifty vessels were engaged in the fisheries of Newfoundland, and voyages for the pur- pose of trading with the Indians had become common. In 1 598 the Marquis de la Roche, £J^ONj\T SAMUEL CHAMPLAIN. a nobleman of Brittany, attempted to plant a colony on the Isle of Sable. The colonists consisted of criminals from the prisons of France, and the effort proved a failure, as might have been expected from the outset. In 1600, Chauvin obtained a patent from the crown, conferring upon him a monopoly of the fur trade, and Pontgrave, a merchant of St, Malo, became his partner in the enter- prise. Two successful voyages were made 48 DISCOVERY OF THE WESTERN CONTINENT. to Canada, and Chaiivin intended founding a colony there. His death, in 1602, prevented the execution of tiiis phin. In 1603, a company of merchants of Rouen \vas organized, and Samuel Champlain, an able and experienced officer of the French navy, was placed in charge of an expedition, CABOT ON THE SHORES OF LABRADOR and sent to Canada to explore the country. He was in every way qualified for the task committed to him, and after making a thor- ough and systematic examination of the region of the St. Eawrence, and fixing upon Quebec as the proper site for a fort, returned to France, and laid before his employers his report, which is still valuable for its accurate description of the country and the manners of the natives. Soon after Champlain's return to France, a patent was issued to Des Monts, conferring upon him the sole right to colonize the vast region lying between the fortieth and forty-sixth parallels of latitude. As this territory embraced the St. Lawrence region, the Rouen com- pany were unable for the present to accomplish anything. Des Monts proceeded with his preparations, and in March, 1604, an expedition, consisting of two ships, was sent out to Acadie or Nova Scotia, The summer was passed in trading with the Indians and exploring the coast, and in the autumn the col- onists made a settlement on the island of St. Croix, at the mouth of the river of the same name. In the spring of 1605, they aban- doned this settlement and removed to Port Royal, now known as An- napolis. Efforts were made to find a more southern location in the latter part of 1605 and 1606, but the ex- peditions sent out for this purpose were driven back by storms or wrecked among the shoals of Cape Cod, and the colonists decided to remain at Port Royal. Thus the permanency of the colony was estab- lished. Some years later a number of Jesuit missionaries were sent out to Port Royal. These labored dili- gently among the tribes between the Penob- scot and the Kennebec, and not only spread the Christian faith among them, but won for the F'rench the constant affection of the savages. During all her contests with the English in America, these tribes remained THE VOYAGES OF COLUMBUS. 49 the faithful and unwavering allies of France. In 1613 a French colony was planted on the eastern shore of Mount Desert. The settle- ment was named St. Sauveur, and became another centre of missionary enterprise among the savages of Maine. In the meantime the French merchants had succeeded in obtaining a revocation of the impolitic monopoly of Des Monts. A company of merchants of St. Malo and Dieppe was formed, and an expedition was sent out to Canada under Champlain, who " aimed not at the profits of trade, but at the glory of founding a state." On the third of July, 1608, the city of Quebec was begun by the erection of one or two cottages. In 1609, Champlain, with but two Euro- peans, joined a party of Hurons from Mon- treal, and Algonquins from Quebec, in an expedition against the Five Nations. He ascended the Sorel, explored the lake which is now called by his name, and exam- ined a considerable part of northern New York. The religious disputes of France spread to the colony, and Champlain was obliged to use all his energy and authority to overcome the evils which these inflicted upon the infant settlement. He succeeded in overcoming them, and by his energy and perseverance the fortunes of Quebec were placed beyond the reach of failure. Cham- plain died in 1635, and was buried in " New France," of which he is called " the father." CHAPTER IV The Spaniards in America Settlement of the West Indies — Discovery of the Pacific Ocean — Voyage of Magellan — Discovery of Florida — Ponce de Leon's Search for the Fountain of Youth — Vasquez de Ayllon Kidnaps a Cargo of Indians — Effort of Pamphilo de Narvaez to Conquer Florida — A Terrible March — The Voyage on the Gulf of Mexico — Fate of the Fleet — Escape ot Cabeza de Vaca and his Comrades — Discovery of New Mexico — Fernando de Soto — Obtains leave to Conquer Florida — Sails from Spain — Arrival in Cuba — Departure for Florida — Landing at Tampa Bay — Events of the First Year — De Soto enters Georgia — Decendsthe Alabama — Battle of Mavilla — Destruction of Chickasaw — Sufferings of the Spaniards — Discovery of the Mississippi — The Spaniards Cross the Great River — De Soto in Arkansas — Reaches the Mississippi again — Sickness and Death of De Soto — His Burial — Escape of his Followers to Mexico — The Huguenot Colony in Carolina — Its Failure — The French Settle in Florida — Wrath of Philip II. — Melendez ordered to Exterminate the Huguenots — Foundation of St. Augustine — Massacre of the French at Fort Carolina — The Vengeance of De Gourges. were in the south. In the sixteenth century the WHILE the French were seek- ing to obtain a footing in the north, the Spaniards busy first years of the more important of the West India Islands were subdued and colonized, and from these, expeditions were from time to time sent out to explore the shores of the Gulf of Mexico. The southern part of the peninsula of Yucatan was explored, and a colony was established on the Isthmus of Darien. One of the governors of this colony was Vasco Nunez de Balboa. In 15 13, while searching the Isthmus for gold, he discovered the Pacific Ocean, and took possession of it in the name of the king of Spain. In 1520, a Portuguese navigator named Magellan, employed by the king of Spain, passed through the straits south of Cape Horn, which bears his name, and entered the Western ocean, which he named the Pacific, because it was so calm and free from storms. He died on the voyage, but his ship reached the coast of Asia, and returned thence to Spain by the Cape of Good Hope, thus 5° making the first voyage around the world, and establishing its spherical form beyond dispute. In 1 5 13, Juan Ponce de Leon, who had been a companion of Columbus on his sec- ond voyage, and had been governor of Porto Rico, fitted out three ships at his own expense to make a voyage of discovery. He had heard the reports which were then com monly believed by his countrymen, tha'; somewhere in the new world was a fountain flowing in the midst of a country sparkling with gold and gems, whose waters would give perpetual youth to the man who should drink of and bathe in them. Ponce de Leon was an old man, and he longed to taste again the pleasures and the dreams of youth. He gave a willing ear to the stories of this wonderful fountain, and in March, 15 13, set sail from Porto Rico in search of it. He sailed among the Bahamas, but failed to find it, and on Easter Sunday, which the Spaniards call Pascua Florida, land was discovered. It was supposed to be an island, but was in reality the long south- ern peninsula of the United States. Ponce THE SPANIARDS IN AMERICA. SI de Leon gave it the name of Florida — which it has since borne — partly in honor of the day, and partly because of the beauty of its flowers and foliage. The weather was very bad, and it was some days before he could go ashore. He landed near the site of St. Augustine, and took possession of the coun- try for Spain on the eighth of April, 15 13. He remained many weeks on the coast, exploring it, and sailing southward, doubled Cape Florida, and cruised among the Tor- tugas. He failed to find the fountain of youth and returned in despair to Porto Rico. The king of Spain rewarded his discov- ery by appointing him governor of Florida, on condition that he should colonize the country. A few years later he attempted to plant a colony in Florida, but was attacked by the Indians, who were very hostile, and driv- en to his ships with the loss of a number of his men. Ponce de Leon himself received a painful wound, and returned to Cuba to die. He had staked his life upon the search for perpetual youth ; he found only a grave. Between the years 15 18 and 1521, the expeditions of Hernando Cortez against Mexico, and of Francesco Pizarro against Peru, were despatched from Cuba. They resulted in the conquest of those countries and their colonization by Spain. These expe- ditions, however, form no part of this narra- tive, and we cannot dwell upon them. The native population of the West Indies died out rapidly under the cruel rule of the Spaniards, and it soon became necessary to look elsewhere for a supply of laborers for the plantations and the mines. In 1520, Lucas Vasquez de Ayllon, at the head of a company of seven Spaniards, fitted out a fleet of two slave-ships from St. Domingo or His- paniola, for the deliberate purpose of seizing the natives of the mainland and selling them as slaves. The vessels went first to the THE COAST OF FLORI'DA. Bahamas, from which they sailed to the North American coast, reaching it at or near St. Helena sound, in the present State of South Carolina. The Indians had not yet learned to fear the whites, and were utterly unsus- picious of the fate which awaited them. They were timid at first, but this feeling was soon overcome by the distribution of presents among them. Their confidence being won, they received the Spaniards with kindness, and at their request visited the ships. 52 DISCOVERY OF THE WESTERN CONTINENT. When the decks of the vessels were cov- ered with the unsuspecting natives Vasquez made sail, and standing out to sea steered for the West Indies, regardless of the entreaties of the natives who were thus torn from their friends and relatives on the shore, A retrib- utive justice speedily avenged this crime. A violent storm arose and one of the ships foundered with all on board, A pestilence broke out in the remaining vessel, and swept away many of the captives. Returning to HERNANDO CORTEZ. Spain, Vasquez boasted of his infamous deed, and even claimed a reward for it at the hands of the Emperor Charles V,, who acknow- ledged his claim, and appointed him governor of Chicora, as South Carolina was called, with authority to conquer that country. Vasquez spent his entire fortune in fitting out an expe- dition, and reached the coast of Chicora in 1525- There he met with nothing but misfortune. His largest ship was stranded in the Com- bahee River, then called by the whites the River Jordan, and so many of his men were killed by the Indians that he was obliged to abandon the undertaking. He returned to Europe to die of grief and mortification for his failure. " It may be," says Bancroft, " that ships sailing under his authority made the discovery of the Chesapeake and named it the Bay of St, Mary ; and perhaps even en- tered the Bay of Delaware, which in Spanish geography was called Saint Christopher's." Adventurers Seeking Fortune. In 1526, Pamphilo de Narvaez obtained from the Emperor Charles V, authority to explore and conquer all the country be- tween the Atlantic and the River of Palms. He was very wealthy, and spent his entire estate in preparation for the expedition. There was no lack of volunteers, and many younger sons of nobles joined him, hoping to find fame and fortune in the new world. Among the adventurers was Cabezade Vaca, the historians of the expedition, who held the second place in it as treasurer. Narvaez sailed from the Guadalquivir- in June, 1527, touched at St. Domingo, and passed the winter in Cuba. In the spring of 1528, he was driven by a strong south wind to the American coast, and on the fourteenth of April his fleet cast anchor in Tampa Bay. A week later he landed and took possession of the peninsula of Florida in the name of Spain. The natives showed unmistakable signs of hostility, but they exhibited to the governor samples of gold, which he believed, from their signs, came from the north. In spite of the earnest advice of Cabeza de Vaca, he determined to go in search of the precious metal. He directed his ships to meet him at a harbor with which his pilot pretended to be acquainted, and then, at the head of three hundred men, forty of whom were mounted^ THE SPANIARDS IN AMERICA. 53 set off into the interior of the country. No one knew whither he was going, but all be- lieved that each step led them nearer to the land ot gold. The beauty of the forest, the richness of its vegetation, and the size of its gigantic live- oaks, filled them with wonder and admira- tion, and the variety and abundance of the birds and wild beasts of the country excited their surprise ; but they found neither the gold nor the splendid cities they had fondly believed they were about to discover. The forest grew denser and more intricate at every step, and the rivers were broad and deep, with swift currents, and could be crossed only by means of rafts, which were con- structed with great difficulty. The march lay through swamps, in which the Indian warriors harassed the strangers painfully, and, their provisions becoming exhausted, they began to suffer with hunger. Late in June they reached Appalachee, which they had supposed was a large and wealthy city. They found it only a hamlet of some forty poor wigwams ; but remained there twenty- five days, searching the neighboring country for gold and silver, and finding none. A Perilous Voyage. It was plain now even to the governor that there was no gold to be found in this region, and every nerve was strained to hasten the march to the harbor where they had ap- pointed to meet the ships. There was but one impulse now in the whole expedition — to escape from the terrible country which was proving so fatal to them. After a painful march they reached a bay which they called the Baia de Caballos, now the harbor of St. Marks. The ships could not be seen, and it was resolved at once to build boats and attempt to reach some of the Spanish pos- sessions by sea. The horses were slain to furnish food, and several hundred bushels of corn were seized from the Indians. Subsist- ing upon these supplies, the Spaniards beat their spurs, stirrups, cross-bows, and other implements into saws and axes and nails, and in sixteen days built five boats, each more than thirty feet long. Pitch for the calking of the boats was made from the pine trees, and the fibre of the palmetto served as oakum. Ropes were made of twisted horse- hair and palmetto fibres, and the shirts of the men were pieced together for sails. Fifty men had been lost on the march, and on the twenty-second of September the survivors, two hundred and fifty in number, began their perilous voyage. The Fleet Scattered by a Storm. They followed the shore, encountering many dangers, and suffering greatly from hunger and thirst. On the thirtieth of October they discovered one of the mouths of the Mississippi, and on the fifth of Novem- ber a storm scattered the little fleet, Cabeza de Vaca's boat was wrecked upon an island which is believed to be that of Galveston. Castillo's boat was driven ashore farther to the east, but he and his crew were saved alive. Of the fate of the other boats noth- ing is known with certainty. Of those who were cast ashore, all but Cabeza de Vaca, Dorantes, Castillo, and Estevanico, a negro, died of exposure and hardship. These four were detained captives among the Indians for nearly six years. At the end of this period, Cabeza induced his companions to join him in an attempt to escape. In September, 1534, they set out, naked, ignorant of the way, and without any means of sustaining life. In this , condition these men accomplished the wonderful feat of traversing the continent. The journey occupied upwards of twenty months, and extended from the coast of Texas to the Canadian River, and thence into New 54 DISCOVERY OF THE WESTERN CONTINENT. Mexico, from which they continued their way to the village of San Miguel, in Sonora, near the Pacific Ocean. They reached this village in May, 1536, and found themselves again among their countrymen. They were escorted to Compostella by Spanish soldiers, and from that place were forwarded to the City of Mexico by the authorities. Fabulous Tales of Gold. The reports of Cabeza and his compan- ions made the Viceroy Mendoza anxious to send out an expedition to explore New Mexico, which was believed to be richer in wealth and splendid cities than Mexico itself. A Franciscan friar boasted that he had vis- ited a region in the interior named Cibola, the Land of Buffaloes, in which were seven splendid cities. He declared that the land was rich in silver and gold, and that his In- dian guides had described to him a region still wealthier. The friar's story was religi- ously believed, and an expedition set out in 1539, under command of Francisco Vasquez Coronado, the governor of New Galicia. The expedition explored the region of the Colorado, examined the country now known as New Mexico, and penetrated as far east as the present State of Kansas. Coronado found neither gold nor precious stones, and the only cities he discovered were the towns of the Zuni Indians of New Mexico. He reported to the viceroy on his return to Mexico that the region was not fit to be col- onized, and his description of the country through which he marched is so accurate as to challenge the admiration of every suc- ceeding traveler. Still the Spaniards refused to abandon the belief that fabulous wealth was to be found in the interior of the continent ; and even those who had borne a part in the conquest of Mexico and Peru gave credit to the wild stories that were told concerning the undis- covered regions. Among those who gave such implicit faith to these stories was Fer- nando de Soto, of Xeres, a veteran soldier, who had served with distinction with Pizarro in the conquest of Peru, and had amassed a considerable fortune from the spoils of that province. The fame and wealth acquired by him in this expedition opened the way to other successes in Europe. He was honored with the favor of the Emperor Charles V., and received the hand of a noble lady in marriage. Eager to distinguish himself still further, he determined to attempt the con- quest of Florida. He demanded and re- ceived from the emperor permission to undertake this at his own cost, and was also made governor of Cuba and all the terri- tories he should conquer. As soon as he made known his intentions applications for leave to serve in the expedition poured in upon him. Many of the volunteers were of noble birth, and sold their lands and other property to equip themselves for the undertaking. Adventures of De Soto. De Soto selected six hundred well- equipped men from the number who had volunteered, and in 1538 sailed from Spain to Cuba, where he was welcomed with great rejoicings. A vessel was despatched from Cuba to find a harbor in Florida suitable for the landing of the expedition. On its return it brought two Indian captives, who per- ceiving what was wanted of them, told by signs such stories of the wealth of the country as greatly delighted the governor and his companions. Volunteers in Cuba swelled the ranks of the expedition to nearly one thousand men, of whom three hundred were horsemen. In May, 1 539, leaving his wife to govern the island, De Soto sailed with his fleet for Florida, and a fortnight later landed at Espi- THE SPANIARDS IN AMERICA. 55 ritu Santo, now Tampa Bay. Everything had been pi ovided which the foresight of an experienced commander deemed necessary, and De Soto, in order to remove any tempta- tion to retreat, sent his ships back to Cuba. He never dreamed of failure, for he believed that at the most the task before him would not be more difficult than those which had been accomplished by Cortez and Pizarro. After a brief halt at Tampa Bay the march into the interior was begun. It was long and tedious, and was full of danger. The Indians were hostile, and the guides con- stantly led the Spaniards astray, and plunged them into difficult swamps. The guides were instantly given to the bloodhounds, and torn in pieces by the ferocious animals ; but not even this dreadful punishment was sufficient to prevent a renewal of such acts. Before the close of the first season the whole com- pany, save the governor, had become con- vinced that their hope of finding gold was vain, and they besought De Soto to return to Cuba. He sternly refused to abandon the effort, and pushed on to the country of the Appalachians, east of the Flint River, and not far from the Bay of Appalachee. The winter was passed in this region, and a scouting party during this season discovered Pensacola. In the spring of 1540 the march was resumed. An Indian guide promised to con- duct the Spaniards to a country abounding in gold and governed by a woman, and he described the process of refining gold so ac- curately that De Soto believed his story. It is possible that the Indian may have referred to the gold region of North Carolina. One of the guides told the governor plainly that he knew of no such country as his companion had described, and De Soto had him burned for what he supposed was his falsehood. The Indians, terrified by his fate, from this time invented all manner of fabulous stories to excite the cupidity of the Spaniards. De Soto, with a singular perversity, held to his belief that he would yet realize his hopes, and continued to push on long after his men had become disheartened ; and so great was his influence over them that in their deepest despondency he managed to inspire them with something of his own courage and hopefulness. FERNANDO DE SOTO. Instead of conciliating the Indians, the Spaniards seized their provisions, and pro- voked their hostility in numberless ways They treated their captives with the greatest cruelty. They cut off the hands of the poor Indians, burned them at the stake, or turned them over to the bloodhounds, who tore them in pieces. They were chained together by the neck, and forced to carry the baggage and provisions of the troops. The march was now into the interior of Georgia, as far as the headwaters of the Chattahoochee, from which the Spaniards passed to the head- waters of the Coosa. Here they turned to 56 DISCOVERY OF THE WESTERN CONTINENT. the southwest, and marched through Ala- bama to the junction of the Alabama and Tombigbee Rivers. At til is point there was a large and strongly fortified town called Mavilla, or Mobile, a name which has since been given to the river and ba\'. The town consisted of" eighty handsome houses, each sufficiently capacious to contain a thousand men. They were encompassed by a high wall, made of immense trunks of trees, set deep in the ground and close together, strengthened with cross-timbers and interwoven with large vines." It was the middle of October when Mavilla was reached, and the Spaniards tired of living in the open country so long, wished to occupy the town. The Indians resisted them, and a desperate battle ensued, which was won by the Spanish cavalry. The vic- tory cost the whites dear, however, for the town was burned during the battle, and with it all the baggage of the Spaniards was con- sumed. The Indians fought with a desperate bravery, and numbers of them were slain and burned to death in the town. The Spaniards had eighteen killed and one hundred and fifty wounded ; twelve horses were killed and seventy-two wounded. De Soto Presses On. Ships had arrived in the meantime, accord- ing to appointment, at Pensacola, and by them Ue Soto received letters from his wife. He would send no news home, however. He had not yet realized the objects of the expe- dition, and he determined to send no news of himself to his countrymen until he had found or conquered some rich country. Turning his back resolutely upon the ships, the gov- ernor resumed his march to the northwest. By the middle of December he reached the northwestern part of the State of Mississippi, and finding a deserted village in the country of the Chickasaws, occupied it as the winter quarters of the expedition. December, 1540, the winter was severe, and the ground was covered with snow, but the corn was still standing in the fields, and this furnished the Spaniards with food. Their force was now reduced to five hundred men, and it was evi- dent to all, except the governor, that they would never find the cities or the wealth they had set out to seek. Discovery of the Mississippi, With the opening of the spring of 1541 a new disaster befell the Spaniards. De Soto, as had been his custom with the other tribes, demanded of the Chickasaw chief two hun- dred men to carry the baggage of the troops. The demand was refused, and that night the Indians, deceiving the sentinels, set fire to the village. The bewildered Spaniards were aroused from their slumbers to meet a fierce attack of the savages. The latter were re- pulsed after a hard fight, but the whites were left in an almost helpless condition. The little they had saved from the flames at Mavilla was destroyed in the burning village. Armor and weapons were rendered worth- less, and scarcely any clothing was saved. The troops were forced to resort to dresses of skins and the long moss of the country woven into mats. In this condition, they suffered greatly from the cold. To supply the weapons destroyed forges Avere erected, and the swords were retempered and new lances made. Renewing their march the Spaniards pushed on still farther west, and about the second of May reached the banks of the Mississippi, at a point a short distance below the present city of Memphis. They were the first white men to gaze upon the mighty flood of this noble river, but De Soto had no admiration to express for it. It was only an obstacle in his westward march, and would require greater efforts for its passage than 1—1 CO m m m c5 I— I > o o CO 1—1 n o o CO P THE SPANIARDS IN AMERICA. 57 any stream he had yet encountered. A month was passed on the banks of the river in constructing barges large enough to hold three horsemen each. At length they were completed, and the Spaniards were trans- ported in safety to the opposite shore. The natives received them kindly, and presented them with food, and regarding them as the children of their god, the sun, brought to them their sick to be healed, and their blind to be restored to sight. The blunt soldier, cruel as he had been to the savages, shrank from claiming the power of heaven. " Pray only to God, who is in heaven, for whatso- ever ye need," he answered. Exploring the Country. De Soto remained forty days on the west- ern bank of the Mississippi, and during this time an exploring party was sent to examine the country to the north. They reported that this region was thinly inhabited by hunters, who lived by chasing the bison, which abounded in this region. The gover- nor then turned to the west and northwest, and advanced two hundred miles farther into the interior of the continent, probably to the highlands of the White River. Then turning southward, he passed through a succession of Indian tribes who ♦ lived by cultivating the soil, and who enjoy- ed a civilization superior to that of their nomadic brethren. The winter was passed near the Hot Springs of Arkansas. The Indians west of the Mississippi were treated with the same cruelties that had marked the conduct of the Spaniards towards the sav- ages east of that stream. " Any trifling consideration of safety would induce the governor to set fire to a hamlet. He did not delight in cruelty, but the happiness, the life and the rights of the Indians were held of no account." In the spring of 1542, De Soto determined to descend the Washita to its mouth, and endeavor to reach the sea. At last, after a most arduous march, in which he frequently lost his way amid the swamps and bayous of the region, he reached the Mississippi. The chieftain of this region could not tell him the distance to the sea, but informed him that the country along the lower river was a vast and uninhabited swamp. An exploring party was sent to descend the banks of the river, and returned, after penetrating about thirty miles in eight days, to confirm the Indian's report. Reaching the vicinity of Natchez, the governor found the Indians prepared to con- test his occupation of that town. He at- tempted to overawe them by claiming to be the child of the sun, their chief deity. The chieftain answered him scornfully: "You say you are the child of the sun. Dry up the river, and I will believe you. Do you desire to see me ? Visit the town where I dwell. If you come in peace, I will receive you with special good will ; if in war, I will not shrink one foot back." The savages were becoming more dangerous every day, and the Spaniards less able to resist their assaults. Burial of De Soto. De Soto was now conquered. It was at last as plain to him as it had been all along to his followers thatthe expedition was a failure. He had spent three years in roaming over the continent, and he had found neither the cities nor the wealth he had hoped for. His magnificent anticipations had disappeared; his little army was reduced to a mere hand- ful of the splendid force that had left Cuba ; and he was in the midst of a region from which he could see no escape. A deep mel- ancholy took the place of the stern pride that had hithereto marked his demeanor, and his heart was torn by a conflict of 58 DISCOVERY OF THE WESTERN CONTINENT. emotions. His health gave way rapidly, and he was seized with a violent fever. When informed by his medical attendant that his end was at hand, he expressed his resignation to the will of God, and at the request of his men appointed Louis de AIocoso his successor, and advised him to continue the expedition. He died on the fifth of June, 1542. In order to conceal his death from the savages, who had come to regard him as immortal, his body was wrapped in a mantle, and in the silence of midnight was rowed out into the middle of the Mississippi. There, amid the darkness and the wailing requiems of the priests, the mortal remains of Fernando de Soto were committed to the great river he had dis- covered. Harrassed by the Indians. The Spaniards at once prepared to disre- gard the advice of their dead leader, and resolved to set out across the country for Mexico, believing it less dangerous to go by land than by sea. They roused the whole country against them by their barbarous treatment of the people, and, having pro- ceeded upwards of three hundred miles west of the Mississippi, were driven back to that stream by the savages. It now became necessary to build vessels and descend the river. Seven of these were constructed with great difficulty, and amidst the constant hostility of the Indians. They were frail barks, without decks, and in order to con- struct them the Spaniards were obliged to beat their weapons, and even their stirrups, spurs and bridles into saws, axes and nails. During this period they suffered greatly from the lack of clothing, for it was the winter season. They obtained provisions by plundering the granaries of the neighboring tribes, and thus dooming many of the sav- ages to death by starvation. On the first of July, 1543, they embarked in their vessels, their number being now reduced to about two hundred and fifty, and began the descent of the river. Their progress was harassed at every mile by the Indians, who covered the stream with their canoes and kept up an almost constant assault upon the fleet. On the eighteenth of July, the vessels entered the Gulf of Mexico, and by the tenth of Septem- ber the Mexican coast was reached. The vessels succeeded in gaining the Spanish set- tlement of Panuco, where the survivors were hospitably received by their countrymen. Ribault's Expedition. The failure of Narvaez and De Soto pre- vented the Spaniards from making any further attempt for many years to colonize the Florida coast. The next effort to found a settlement in that region was by the French. The religious wars which had distracted France for so many years made the great Huguenot leader, Coligny, Admiral of France, anxious to provide in the new world a refuge to which his persecuted brethren of the faith might fly in times of danger, and be free to worship God after the dictates of their own conscience. He succeeded in obtaining authority for this undertaking from Charles IX., and in 1 562 an expedition was despatched to America under the command of Jean ♦ Ribault, a Protestant. Ribault was instructed to avoid the more rigorous climate of Cana- da, and to select a southern location for the colony. Land was made in May, 1562, in the vicinity of St. Augustine, Florida, and the fleet anchored in Port Royal Harbor. Ribault was delighted with the noble har- bor, which he believed to be the outlet of a large river, and with the beauty and richness of the country. A fort was built on an island in the harbor, and called Carolina, which name was also applied to the country in honor of Charles IX. of France. A force THE SPANIARDS IN AMERICA. 59 of twenty-five men was left to garrison the fort, and Ribault returned to France to report his success and bring out reinforcements for the colony. He reached France in the midst of the civil war, which prevented any attention being paid to the colony. The garrison of Fort Carolina waited in vain for the promised reinforcements and supplies, and at last, becoming disheartened, built a In 1564 there was a lull in the struggle between the contending parties in France, and Coligny took advantage of it to renew his efforts to colonize America. Three ships were furnished by the king, and were placed in command of Laudonniere,who had accom- panied Ribault in the first expedition. Emi- grants volunteered readily, and the required number was soon completed. In order to THE SPANIARDS DESCENDING THE MISSISSIPPI AFTER THE DEATH OF DE SOTO. brigantine and set sail for their own country. Their provisions soon gave out, and they began to suffer the horrors of famine. When they were nearly exhausted, they were res- cued by an English vessel, which set the most feeble upon the coast of France, but carried the remainder to England. In both countries the colonists spread their accounts of the beauty and fertility of Carolina. obtain reliable information concerning the country, Coligny sent out with the expedi- tion a skillful painter, James le Moyne, called Des Morgues, with orders to make accurate colored sketches of the region. The fleet sailed on the twenty-second of April, 1564, and on the twenty-second of June reached the coast of Florida. Avoiding Port Royal, the site of the first colony, the colonists chose a location in Florida, on the banks of the 6o DISCOVERY OF THE WESTERN CONTINENT. St. John's then called the River May- A fort was built, and called, like the first, Caro- lina. The colony was begun with prayers and songs of thanksgiving, but the bulk of the colonists were by no means religious men. Their true character soon began to appear. They wasted the supplies they had brought with them, as well as those they succeeded in extorting from the Indians, whom they alienated by their cruelties. Mutinies were frequent. The majority of the men had joined the enterprise in the hope of acquiring sudden wealth, and, finding their hopes vain, resolved to abandon the colony. They com- pelled Laudonniere to sign an order allowing them to embark for New Spain, under the pretext of wishing to avoid a famine, and at once equipped two vessels and began a career of piracy against the Spaniards. Their ves- sels were soon captured, and the pirates were sold as slaves. A few escaped in a boat and took refuge at Fort Carolina. Laudonniere caused them to be hanged; but their out- rages had already drawn upon the colony the bitter hostility of the Spaniards. Beginning of the Slave-Traffic. Famine now began to be felt by the lit- tle settlement, and as month after month passed by the sufferings of the colonists in- creased. The natives, who were at first friendly, had been rendered hostile by the cruel treatment they had received from the French, and no provisions could be obtained from them. On the third of August, 1565, Sir John Hawkins, an English commander, arrived with several ships from the West Indies, where he had just sold a cargo of negro slaves whom he had kidnapped in their native Africa. He is said to have been the first Englishman who engaged in this infamous traffic. He proved himself a generous friend to the suffering colonists, however, and supplied them with provisions and gave them one of his own ships. They had suffered too much to be content with this, and were resolved to adandon the settle- ment. They were on the point of embark- ing in the ship furnished them by Sir John, when a fleet of several vessels was discovered standing into the river. It was the squadron of Ribault, with reinforcements and all the supplies necessary for founding a permanent settlement. The despair of the colonists was changed to rejoicing, and all were now will- ing to remain in the colony. Thrilling Events in Florida. When the news of the planting of the French colony in Florida •reached Philip II. of Spain, he was greatly incensed. Florida was a part of his dominions, and he not only resented the intrusion of the French, but could not tolerate the idea of allowing a Protestant colony to enjoy its settlement in peace. He determined at once to exterminate the heretics, and for this purpose employed Pedro Melendez de Aviles, an officer who had rendered himself notorious for his cruelty when engaged against the pirates and in the wars of Spanish America. His son and heir having been shipwrecked among the Ber- mudas, Melendez desired to return to America to search for him. Philip, who knew his desperate character, suggested to him the conquest of Florida, and an agreement was entered into between the king and Melendez, by which the latter was to invade and conquer Florida within three* years, and establish in that region a colony of not less than five hundred persons, of whom one hundred should be married men, twelve priests of the Catholic Church and four members of the order of the Jesuits. Melendez also agreed to transport to Florida all kinds of domestic animals, and five hun- dred negro slaves. All this was to be done THE SPANIARDS IN AMERICA. 6e by Melendez at his own cost, and he was secured by the king in the government of the province for hfe with the privilege of naming his successor, and was granted large estates in the province and a comfortable salary. Though the destruction of the French colony was not named in the agreement, Philip and Melendez understood each other on that point. The cry was at once raised in Spain that the heretics must be extermin- ated, and Melandez had no trouble in obtain- ing recruits. Twenty-five hundred persons gathered under his orders, " soldiers, sailors, priests, Jesuits, married men with their fami- lies, laborers and mechanics, and, with the exception of three hundred soldiers, all at the cost of Melendez." Escape of the French Fleet. The expedition sailed in June, 1565, but the vessels were parted by a storm, and Mel- endez reached Porto Rico in August with but a third of his force. Unwilling to lose time, however, he sailed at once to the main- land, and arrived off the coast of Florida on the twenty-eighth of August. On the second of September, he discovered a fine harbor and river, and selected this place as the site of his colony. He named the river and bay in honor of St. Augustine, on whose festival he had arrived off the Florida coast. Ascer- taining from the Indians the position of the French, he sailed to the northward, and on the fourth of September arrived off Fort Carolina, where a portion of Ribault's fleet lay anchored in the roadstead. The French commander demanded his name and the object of his visit. He was answered : " I am Melendez of Spain, sent Avith strict orders from my king to gibbet and behead all the Protestants in these regions. The French- man who is a Catholic I will spare ; every heretic shall die." The French fleet being unprepared for battle, cut its cables and stood out to sea. Melendez gave chase, but failed to overtake it. Returning to the har- bor of St. Augustine, he went on shore on the eighth of September, and took possession of the country in the name of Phillip II. of Spain, who was proclaimed monarch of all North America. A solemn mass was said,, and the foundations of the town of St. Augus- tine were laid. Thus was established the first permanent town within the limits of the United States. This task accomplished, Melendez prepared to attack Fort Carolina by land. Ribault had returned with his ships to Fort Carolina after escaping from the Span- iards. A council of war was held, and it was debated among the French whether they should strengthen their works and await the approach of the enemy, or proceed to St. Augustine and attack them with the fleet. Ribault supposed that Melendez would attack the fort by sea, and favored the latter plan, but his officers opposed his design. Disre- garding their advice, Ribault put to sea, but had scarcely cleared the harbor when a violent storm wrecked his entire fleet on the Florida coast. Nearly all the men reached the shore unharmed, about one hundred and fifty miles south of Fort Carolina. Terrible Massacre. The wreck of the French fleet was known to Melendez, and he resolved to strike a blow a once at the fort, which he knew to be in a defenceless state. Leading his men. through the forests and swamps, which lay between the two settlements, he surprised and captured the fort on the twenty-first of September. Every soul within the walls including the aged, the women and children, was put to death. A few escaped to the woods before the capture of the fort, among whom were Laudonniere, Challus and Le Moyne. Their condition was pitiable. They 62 DISCOVERY OF THE WESTERN CONTINENT. could expect no mercy from the Spaniards, and death awaited them in the forest. A few gave themselves up to the Spaniards, and were at once murdered ; the remainder suc- ceeded in gaining the sea-shore, where they were rescued by two French vessels which had remained in the harbor and escaped the storm. These immediately sailed for France. The number of persons massacred by the Spaniards at Fort Carolina amounted to nearly two hundred. When the victims were all dead, mass was said, a cross raised, and a site selected for a church. Then Melendez set out to find the survivors of the shipwrecked fleet. They were discovered in a helpless condition, worn out with fatigue, hunger and thirst. Melendez promised to treat them with kindness if they would sur- render to him, and trusting to his plighted word, they placed themselves in his hands. They were at once seized and bound, and marched towards St. Augustine. As they approached the settlement a signal was given, and the Spaniards fell upon them and mas- sacred all but a few Catholics and some mechanics, who were reserved as slaves. French writers place the number of those who perished in the two massacres at nine hundred. The Spaniards gave a smaller number. On the scene of his barbarity, Melendez set up this inscription : " I do not this as unto Frenchmen, but as unto Lu- therans." In 1 566 Melendez attempted to plant a col- ony on the shores of the Chesapeake Bay, but the vessel despatched for this purpose met such contrary winds that the crew abandoned the effort to reach the bay, and sailed for Spain. Melendez, the next year, returned to Spain, having spent his fortune in establish- ing the colony of St. Augustine, from which he had derived no benefit. The massacre of the French and the destruction of the colony at Fort Carolina excited not even a remonstrance from the French court, which was blinded to its true interests by its religious bigotry. The Hu- guenots and the better part of the nation felt keenly the wrong the country had suffered, and Dominic de Gourges, a gallant gentle- man of Gascony, determined to avenge it. Selling his ancestral estate, he equipped three vessels, and with one hundred and fifty men sailed for Florida, in August, 1567. He surprised and captured a Spanish fort near the site of Fort Carolina, and took the garri- son prisoners. He spent the winter here, and finding himself too weak to maintain his position, sailed for France in May, 1568. Before doing so, however, he hanged his prisoners, and set up over them the inscription : " I do not this as unto Spaniards or mariners, but as unto traitors, robbers and murderers." His expedition was disavowed by the French government, and he was obliged to conceal himself to escape arrest after his return to France. France now abandoned her efforts to col- onize the southern part of North America, and relinquished her pretensions to Florida. Spain, on the other hand, gave more attention to this region, and emigrants from her domin- ions were encouraged to settle, and new colonies were formed within its limits. In the West Indies, and in Mexico, Central and South America, Spain, during the sixteenth and seventeenth centuries, was supreme. CHAPTER V The First English Colony I'he English Claim to America — Voyages of Frobisher — Exploits of Sir Francis Drake — Sir Humphrey Gilbert — In- tends to Found a Colony in America — Is Lost at Sea — Sir Walter Raleigh Obtains a Patent of Colonization — Dis- coveries of Amidas and Barlow — Raleigh Sends Out a Colony to Virginia — Settlement on Roanoke Island — Its Failure — Arrival of Grenville — Second Effort of Raleigh to Colonize Virginia — Roanoke Island Again Settled — The "City of Raleigh" — Virginia Dare — Fate of the Colony — Death of Raleigh — Other Voyages of the English. THOUGH England had made no effort to colonize America during the long period we have been con- sidering, she never abandoned her claims to that region, claims which were based upon the discoveries and explorations of John and Sebastian Cabot. The voy- ages of her fishermen to Newfoundland kept the country fresh in the minds of the sea- faring Englishmen, and from time to time voyages were made to the American coast for the purpose of trading with the savages. Under Elizabeth, who pursued the wise pol- icy of fostering her navy, a race of hardy and daring sailors grew up in England, and car- ried the flag of their country into every sea. In this reign Martin Frobisher with two small ships made a voyage to the frozen regions of Labrador in search of the north- west passage. He failed to find it, but pene- trated farther north than any European had yet gone, A. D. 1576. His second voyage was made the next year, and was undertaken in the hope of finding gold, as one of the stones he had brought home on his first cruise had been pronounced by the refiners of London to contain the precious metal. The fleet did not advance as far north as Frobisher had done on his first attempt, as a 63 large mass of yellow earth was found which was believed to contain gold. The ships were loaded with this, and all sail was made for home, only to find on reaching England that their cargo was but a heap of worthless dirt. A third voyage with fifteen ships was attempted in 1578, but no gold was found, and the extreme northern latitudes were ascertained to be too bleak for colonization. Between the years 1577 and 1580 Sir Francis Drake sailed to the Pacific, and by levying exactions upon the Spanish settle- ments on the western coast of America acquired an immense treasure. As Bancroft well observes, this part of Drake's career "was but a splendid piracy against a nation with which his sovereign and his country professed to be at peace." Having acquired this enormous wealth Drake applied himself to the more useful task of discovery. Cross- ing the equator he sailed northward, as far as the southern part of Oregon, in the hope of finding a northern passage between the oceans. The cold seemed very great to voy- agers just from the tropics, and he abandoned his attempt and returned southward to a harbor on the coast of Mexico. Here he refitted his ship, and then returned to Eng- land through the seas of Asia, having 04 DISCOVERY OF THE WESTERN CONTINENT. circumnavigated the globe, a feat which had been accomplished only by the ship of Magellan. It was not the splendid but demoralizing achievements of Drake which led the way to lieved that a lucrative trade might be opened with the new world by the planting of a col- ony within its limits. He obtained authority from Queen Elizabeth to establish such a colony in the vicinity of the fisheries. THE RENOWNED EXPLORER, SIR MARTIN FROBISHER. the establishment of the English power in America. That was the work of the hum- ble fishermen who sailed on their yearly voyages to the banks of Newfoundland. The progress of this valuable industry was closely watched by Sir Humphrey Gilbert, who be- In 1578 he sailed to America on a voy- age of discovery, and in August of that year landed at St. Johns, Newfoundland, and took formal possession of the country for England. He then sailed to the southward, exploring the coast, but lost his largest ship with all THE FIRST ENGLISH COLONY. 65 on board. This made it necessary for him to return home, as the two vessels which re- mained to him were too small to attempt a protracted voyage. One of them, called the "Squirrel," was a mere boat of ten tons. Unwilling to expose his men to a danger which he would not face, Sir Humphrey took passage in the " Squirrel " instead of in the larger and safer vessel. Terrific Storm. On the homeward voyage the ships en- countered a terrific storm. In the midst of the gale the people on the " Hind," the larger ship, saw Sir Humphrey sitting at the stern of his little vessel, which was laboring pain- fully in the heavy seas. He was calmly reading a book, perhaps that sublimest of books, from which he had drawn the pure principles that guided his whole life. As the "Hind" passed him he called out to those on board of her, " We are as near to heaven by sea as by land." That night the lights of the " Squirrel " suddenly disap- peared, and the good Sir Humphrey was seen no more. The " Hind " continued her voyage, and reached Falmouth in safety. Sir Walter Raleigh, Gilbert's half brother, had been interested in this expedition, but its ill success did not dishearten him. He was one of the noblest spirits of his age, and has laid the world under heavy obligations to him by his many noble services in the cause of humanity. He had served in the army of the Huguenots of France under Coligni, and had heard from the voyagers sent out by that leader of the richness and beauty of Carolina. Undaunted by the sad fate of Sir Hum- phrey Gilbert, Raleigh determined to plant a colony in the region from which the Huguenots had been driven. He had no difficulty in obtaining from the queen a pat- ent as liberal as that which had been granted 5 Sir Humphrey Gilbert. He was given ample powers over the region he proposed to col- onize, as its feudal lord, and was bound to maintain the authority of the queen and church of England in his possessions. An Inviting Country. He fitted out two vessels, commanded re- spectively by Philip Amidas and Arthur Bar- low, and sent them to explore the region granted to him, and to obtain accurate infor- mation concerning it. They reached the coast of North Carolina at Ocracock Inlet, and took formal possession of the country. They partially explored Albemarle and Pam- lico Sounds, together with the neighboring SIR WALTER RALEIGH. coast and islands. It was the month of July, and the climate was delightful, the sea was calm, the atmosphere clear, and the heat was tempered by the delicious sea-breeze. The woods abounded with birds and echoed with their carols, and wild grapes were found in the greatest profusion. 66 DISCOVERY OF THE WESTERN CONTINENT. The explorers were enchanted with this dehghtful region, and returning to England published glowing accounts of it. They took with them two Indians, named Wan- chese and Manteo, the latter of whom after- wards did good service to the colonists as an interpreter. Queen Elizabeth deemed her reign honored by the discoveries of Amidas mand of the fleet, and Ralph Lane, who was also a man of considerable distinction, was made governor of the colony. The fleet sailed from Plymouth on the ninth of April, 1585, and after a long and trying voyage reached Ocracock Inlet in June. Passing through the inlet, a settle- ment was established on Roanoke Island, FROBISHER AND HIS SHIPS PASSING GREENWICH. and Barlow, and gave to the new region the name of Virginia in honor of England's vir- gin queen. Raleigh at once set to work to organize a colony. Emigrants volunteered readily, and in a short time a fleet of seven vessels, con- taining one hundred and eight persons, apart from the crews, was in readiness. Sir Rich- ard Grenville, a friend of Raleigh, and a man of tried skill and bravery, was given the com- lyingbetweenAlbemarleand Pamlico Sounds. Expeditions were sent out to explore the surrounding country, and in one of these a silver cup was stolen by an Indian, and its restoration was delayed. With thoughtless cruelty Grenville punished this fault by the destruction of the village to which the culprit belonged, and also of all the standing corn. This inconsiderate revenge made the Indians the enemies of the whites, and brought great THE FIRST ENGLISH COLONY. 67 future suffering upon the colony. A little later, having seen the colonists successfully- established on Roanoke Island, Grenville returned to England with the fleet, captur- the inhabitants. Many of the plants were strange to them. Among these were the Indian corn, tobacco and the sweet potato. Hariot, "the inventor of the system of nota- OUEEN ELIZABETH. ing a rich Spanish prize on the voyage home. Left to themselves the colonists began to explore the country, and to observe the productions of the soil, and the character of tion in modern algebra, the historian of the expedition," observed these plants and their culture with great minuteness, and became a firm believer in the healing virtues of tobacco. He has left an interesting- account 68 DISCOVERY OF THE WESTERN CONTINENT. of the natives of the country and their man- ners and customs. The Indians, alarmed by the superiority of the whites, began to plot their destruction, as they believed their entire country would be overrun by the new comers. Lane on his part became suspicious of the savages, and this feeling of mutual distrust had the most unhappy consequences. Being informed by the savages that there was a splendid city, whose walls glittered with gold and pearls, on the upper waters of the Roanoke, Gov- ernor Lane made a boat voyage up that stream, but failed to find anything. He returned to the colony just in time to discon- cert the plan of the savages for attacking the whites during the absence of the exploring party. Inhuman Butchery. Lane now determined to outrival the savages in perfidy. He visited Wingina, one of the most active of the neighboring chiefs, and professing to come as a friend, was received with confidence by the Indians. At a given signal from the governor the whites fell upon the chief and his warriors, and put them to death. Lane proved himself utterly unfit to govern such a colony, and his people soon lost confidence in him. Their discon- tent was increased by the failure of their provisions, and they began to entertain the idea of abandoning the colony and returning home. On the eighth of June, 1586, Sir Francis Drake, with a fleet of twenty-three ships, anchored in the roadstead off Roanoke Island. He had been cruising in the West Indies, and had called on his homeward voyage to visit the plantation of his friend Raleigh. He at once set to work to remedy the wants of the colony, and supplied the settlers with such things as they needed. They were thoroughly disheartened, how- ever, with their year's experience, and begged Drake so earnestly to take them back to England that he received them on board his ships and put to sea. Thus the first effort of the English to settle America resulted in failure. Drake's fleet had scarcely disappeared when a ship loaded with supplies, which had been des- patched by Raleigh, reached the island. Finding the place deserted, the commander returned to England. A fortnight later, Grenville arrived with three ships. Finding the colonists had gone, he too returned to England, leaving fifteen men to hold the island. Another Colony and Its Fate. Raleigh was greatly disappointed by the failure of his colony, but he did not despair of success ; for notwithstanding the gloomy stories of Lane and his followers, the con- clusive testimony of Hariot convinced him that the country could be made to yield a rich return for the trouble and expense of its settlement ; and he set to work to form another colony. With the hope of giving the settlers a permanent interest in the plan- tation, he selected emigrants with wives and families, who should regard the new world as their future home, and endeavor to found a permanent State in that region. Every- thing was provided which could contribute to the success of the colony, and agricult- ural implements were furnished for the proper cultivation of the soil. All the expense of the undertaking was borne by Raleigh, for though Queen Elizabeth greatly favored the venture, she declined to con- tribute anything toward it. John White was appointed governor of the colony. A fleet of transport vessels was equipped, also at Raleigh's expense, and on the twenty- sixth of April, 1587, the expedition sailed from England. The coast of North Caro- lina was reached in July. THE FIRST ENGLISH COLONY. 69 The approach to Roanoke Island was both difficult and dangerous, and Raleigh ordered the new settlers to select a site for their col- ony on the shores of the Chesapeake Bay. The expedition proceeded first, however, to Roanoke Island to search for the men left there by Grenville. They could not be found. The island was deserted, the fort was in ruins, and the human bones which lay scattered over the field told plainly that the unfortunate garrison left by Grenville had been murdered by the Indians. Governor White was now anxious to sail to the Chesa- peake, but Fernando, the commander of the fleet, refused to proceed any farther, as he wished to go to the West Indies for purposes of trade. The instructions of Raleigh were thus disregarded, and the colonists were com- pelled to go ashore on Roanoke Island. Dangers of the First Settlers. The old settlement of Governor Lane was rebuilt, and another effort was made to estab- lish the " City of Raleigh.'* The Indians were bitterly hostile to the settlers, and a friendly tribe was offended by an unfortunate attack upon them, made upon the supposi- tion that they were hostile Indians. The settlers becoming alarmed, implored the gov- ernor to return to England and exert him- self to hasten the sending out of reinforce- ments and supplies to them. He was un- willing to do this, as he deemed it his duty to remain among them, but at length yielded to their unanimous appeal. Just before his departure his daughter, Mrs. Dare, the wife of one of his lieutenants, gave birth to a daughter, the first child born of English parents within the limits of the United States, and the little one was named Virginia from the place of its birth. White sailed for England in August, 1587. He found the mother country greatly excited over the threatened invasion of the Spaniards. Raleigh, who was energetically engaged in the efforts for the defence of the country, did not neglect his colony. He fitted out two ships with the needed supplies, and dis- patched them under White's orders in April, 1 5 88. The commanders, instead of proceed- ing direct to the colony, undertook to make prizes. No Traces of the Colony. At last one of them fell in with a man-of- war from Rochelle, and after a sharp fight was plundered of her stores. Both ships were obliged to return to England, to the anger and disgust of Raleigh. The approach of the Invincible Armada and the exertions demanded of the nation for its defeat, made it impossible for anything more to be done for the colonists at Roanoke until after the Spanish fleet had been destroyed. Even then Raleigh, who had spent over forty thou- sand pounds without return, was unable to send aid at once to the colony, and a year elapsed before a vessel could be sent out un- der White. In 1590, the governor reached Roanoke, but no trace of the colony could be found. The settlers had either died, been massacred, or taken prisoners. " The conjecture has been hazarded," savs Bancroft, " that the deserted colony, neglected by their own countrymen, were hospitably adopted into the tribe of Hatteras Indians, and became amalgamated with the sons of the forest. This was the tradition of the natives at a later day, and was thought to be confirmed by the physical character of the tribe, in which the English and the Indian race seemed to have been blended." The generous heart of Raleigh could not bear to leave his countrymen unaided while a single hope of finding them remained, and he is said to have sent to America as many as five expeditions at his own cost to search for them. 70 MURDER OF WHITE'S ASSISTANT. THE FIRST ENGLISH COLONY. 71 With the failure of the settlement at Roanoke Raleigh relinquished his hope of colonizing Virginia. He had expended nearly his entire fortune in the undertaking, and the remainder of his life was passed un- der the cloud of undeserved misfortune. His career as a statesman was honorable to him- self and to his country, and he proved him- self in all his acts a loyal subject and a de- voted patriot. His zeal in behalf of knowl- edge made him a generous friend of the learned, and he merits the gratitude of the American people, not only for his efforts to colonize our shores with his countrymen, but for the liberality with which he spread a knowledge of America throughout Eng- land by his publication of the reports of Hariot and Hakluyt. He opened the way for the dominion of the English in the new world, and his memory is preserved in the name of the capital city of the great State which he sought to make the seat of an Eng- lish empire. Accused of High Treason. Upon the accession of James I., Raleigh, broken in health and fortune, but still the most illustrious Englishman of his day, was arraigned on a charge of high treason, of which not even his enemies believed him guilty, and was sentenced to the Tower, as the king did not yet dare to order his execu- tion. During this period Sir Walter beguiled the weariness of his imprisonment by com- posing his " History of the World." He re- mained a prisoner for thirteen years, and was then released on condition of making a voy- age to Guiana in search of gold. His failure to accomplish the object of the voyage sealed his doom, and on his return to England he was beheaded, not upon any fresh charge, but on his old sentence. His real fault was that he was too true an Englishman to sus- tain the sacrifice of the national honor by King James to the demands of Spain, and he was generally regarded by the nation as the victim of the king's cowardice. He met his fate with the calm bravery which had marked his whole life. Kidnapping Indians. Until now the voyage from England to America had been made by way of the Canary Islands and the West Indies. In 1602, Bartholomew Gosnold conceived the idea of proceeding direct from England to Virginia, as the whole region north of Flor- ida was called by the English. Sailing directly across the Atlantic he reached Cape Elizabeth, on the coast of Maine, after a voy- age of seven weeks. Proceeding southward along the coast he reached Cape Cod, to which he gave the name on the fifteenth of May, and went ashore there. He was thus the first Englishman to set foot in New Eng- land. He continued his voyage along the coast and entered Buzzard's Bay. To the westernmost of the islands of this stately sound he gave the name of Eliza- beth — a name which has since been applied to the entire group. Loading his ship with sassafras root, which was then highly esteemed for its medicinal virtues, Gosnold sailed for England, and arrived home safely after a voyage of less than four weeks. He gave the most favorable accounts of the region he had visited, and other adventurers were induced by his reports to undertake voyages for the purpose of trading with the natives. Among these was George Way- mouth, who reached and explored the coast of Maine in 1605. On his return voyage Waymouth kidnapped five Indians and car- ried them to England, "to be instructed in English, and to serve as guides in some future expedition." The voyages of Gosnold and Waymouth to the coast of New England were followed 72 DISCOVERY OF THE WESTERN CONTINENT. by those of numerous other English adven- turers. In 1614, Captain John Smith, who had already distinguished himself by his services in Virginia, made a voyage to Amer- ica with two ships, furnished at the expense of himself and four merchants of London. The voyage was for the purpose of trading with the natives, and was very successful. Smith took advantage of the opportunity to explore the coast from Penobscot to Cape Cod. He prepared a map of the coast, and named the country New England — a title which was confirmed by the Prince of Wales, afterwards Charles I. After Smith's return to England, Hunt, the commander of the other vessel, suc- ceeded in inducing twenty of the natives, with their chief, Squanto, to visit his ship, and as soon as they were on board put to sea. He sold the savages as slaves in Spain. A few of them, Squanto among the number, were purchased by some kind-hearted monks, who instructed them in the Christian faith in order to send them back to their own people as missionaries of the cross. Squanto escaped to England in 1619, and there learned the language, and was afterward an interpreter between the English settlers and his people. JAMES I. BOOK II Settlement of America CHAPTER VI Captain John Smith and Pocahontas Formation of the London Company — Conditions of its Charter — Departure of the First Colony — Quarrels During the Voyage — Arrival in the Chesapeake — Settlement of Jamestown — Formation of the Government — Character of Cap- tain John Smith — Exploration of the James River — Newport and Smith Visit Powhatan — Smith Admitted to the Government — Explores the Chickahominy — Is Captured and Sentenced to Death — Is Saved by Pocahontas — Gains the Friendship of Powhatan for the Colony — Returns to Jamestown — His Decisive Measures — Return of Newport — Smith Explores the Chesapeake Bay — The New Emigrants — Smith Compels Them to Labor — Smith is Wounded and Com- pelled to Return to England — Disasters to the Colony — Arrival of Sir Thomas Gates — Jamestown Abandoned — Ar- rival of Lord Delaware — The Return to Jamestown — A Change for the Better — New Settlements — Sir T Iiomas Gates Arrives With Reinforcements — Capture of Pocahontas by Captain Argall — She is Baptized — Marries John Rolfe — Sir Thomas Dale's Administration — Yeardley Governor — The First Legislative Assembly — Representative Government Established in America — The Colonists Obtain Wives — Changes in the Government. THE favorable reports which had been brought back to England by the voyagers to the new world had pre- vented the interest of Englishmen in America from entirely dying out, and some ardent spirits still believed it possible to make that continent the seat of a pros- perous dominion dependent upon England. The former assistants of Raleigh, in particu- lar, held to the convictions which their chief had entertained to the day of his death. The selfish and timid policy of King James hav- ing made it impossible for men to acquire distinction by naval exploits, as in the days of Elizabeth, the more adventurous classes lent a willing ear to the plans for colonizing America, which were discussed in various parts of the kingdom, Bartholomew Gos- nold, who had explored the New England coast, was especially active in seeking to induce capitalists to send out a colony to it. His glowing accounts of the New World awakened a good deal of enthu- siasm, and men who had money to invest, and were somewhat inclined to indulge in speculation, were ready to aid any scheme that promised to be lucrative and advan- tageous to themselves. Sir Ferdinand Gorges, a wealthy gentle- man and Governor of Plymouth, had been greatly interested in America by the accounts of Waymouth, who had given him two of the Indians he had brought to England. These succeeded in interesting others in their plans, and the result was that early in the reign of King James two companies were formed in England for the colonization of America, One of these was the " London Company," composed chiefly of noblemen and merchants residing in London. The other was the " Plymouth Company," com- posed of " knights, gentlemen and mer- chants," residing in the west of England. King James divided Virginia into two parts. To the London Company he granted " South Virginia," extending from Cape Fear, in 71 74 SETTLEMENT OF AMERICA. North Carolina, to the Potomac. To the Plymouth Company he gave " North Vir- ginia," stretching from the Hudson to New- foundland. The region between the Potomac and the Hudson he left as a broad belt of neutral land to keep the companies from en- croaching upon each other's domains. Either was at liberty to form settlements in this region within fifty miles of its own border. The London Company was the first to settle the country assigned it. A liberal charter was granted the company : the lands in the new world were to be held by it on the simple conditions of homage and the pay- ment to the crown of one-fifth of the gold and silver and one-fifteenth of the copper that should be discovered. A general coun- cil, residing in England, was to have author- ity over the whole province, and the mem- bers of this council were to be appointed and removed by the king at his good pleasure. Each separate colony was to be under the control of a colonial council residing within its own limits, and the king retained the right to direct the appointment or removal of the members of these councils at his pleasure. Laws of the London Company. The king also reserved the supreme legis- lative authority over the colonies, and framed for their government a code of laws — " an exercise of royal legislation which has been pronounced in itself illegal." The colonists were placed by this code under the rule of the superior and local councils we have named, in the choice of which they had no voice. The religion of the Church of Eng- land was established as that of the colony, and conformity to it was secured by severe penalties. Death was the punishment for murder, manslaughter, adultery, dangerous seditions and tumults. In all cases not affecting life and' limb offenders might be tried by a magistrate, but for capital offences trial by jury was secured. In the former cases the punishment of the offender was at the discretion of the president and council. The Indians were to be treated with kind- ness, and efforts were to be made for their conversion to Christianity. For five years at least the affairs of the colonists Vv'ere to be conducted in a joint stock. The right to impose future legislation upon the province was reserved by the king. The Settlers Oppressed. Such was the form of government first pre- scribed for Virginia by England, in which, as Bancroft truly says, there was " not an ele- ment of popular liberty." " To the emi- grants themselves it conceded not one elect- ive franchise, not one of the rights of self- government. They were to be subjected to the ordinances of a commercial corporation, of which they could not be members; to the dominion of a domestic council, in ap- pointing which they had no voice ; to the control of a superior council in England, which had no sympathy with their rights ; and finally, to the arbitrary legislation of the sovereign." Under this charter the London Company prepared to send out a colony to Virginia. It was to be a commercial settlement, and the emigrants were composed altogether of men. One hundred and five persons, exclu- sive of the crews of the vessels, joined the expedition. Of these not twenty were farm- ers or mechanics. The remainder were " gentlemen," or men who had ruined them- selves at home by idleness and dissipation. A fleet of three small ships, under command of Captain Newport, was assembled, and on the nineteenth of December, 1606, sailed for America. The emigrants sailed without having per- fected any organization. The king had fool- ishly placed the names of those who were to CAPTAIN JOHN SMITH AND POCAHONTAS. 75 constitute the government in a sealed box, which the adventurers were ordered not to open until they had selected a site for their settlement and were ready to form a govern- ment. This was most unfortunate, for during the long voyage dissensions arose, and there was no one in the expedition who could control the unruly spirits. These quarrels grew more intense with the lapse of time, and when the shores of Virginia were reached the seeds of many of the evils from which the colony afterwards suffered severely had been thoroughly sown. There were among the number several who were well qualified to direct the affairs of the expedition, but they were without the proper authority to do so, and there was no such thing as voluntary submission to be seen among the adventurers. The merits of the deserving merely excited the jealousy of their companions, and the great master spirit of the enterprise found from the first his disinterested efforts for the good of the expedition met by a jealous opposition. Point Comfort Named. Newport was not acquainted with the direct route, and made the old passage by way of the Canaries and the West Indies. He thus consumed the whole of the winter, and while searching for the island of Roanoke, the scene of Raleigh's colony, his fleet was driven northward by a severe storm, and forced to take refuge in the Chesapeake Bay on the twenty-sixth of April, 1607. He named the headlands of this bay Cape Henry and Cape Charles, in honor of the two sons of James I., and because of the comfortable anchorage which he obtained in the splendid roadstead which enters the bay opposite its mouth, he gave to the northern point the name of Point Comfort, which it has since borne. Passing this, a noble river was dis- covered comine from the westward, and was named the James, in honor of the English king. The country was explored with energy, and though one small tribe of Indians was found to be hostile, a treaty of peace and friendship was made with another at Hamp- ton. The fleet ascended the river and ex- plored it for fifty miles. A pleasant penin- sula, on the left bank of the stream was selected as the site of the colony, and on the thirteenth of May, 1607, the settlement was definitely begun, and was named Jamestown, in honor of the king. Smith's Daring Deeds. The leading spirit of the enterprise was John Smith, one of the truest heroes of his- tory, who has been deservedly called " the father of Virginia." He was still a young man, being but thirty years of age, but he was old in experience and knightly deeds. While yet a youth he had served in Holland in the ranks of the army of freedom, and had travelled through France, Egypt and Italy. Burning to distinguish himself, he had re- paired to Hungary, and had won a brilliant reputation by his exploits in the ranks of the Christian army engaged in the defence of that country against the Mohammedans. He repeatedly defeated the chosen champions of the Turks in single combat, but being at length captured was sent to Constantinople and sold as a slave. The wife of his master, pitying his misfortunes, sent him to a rela- tive in the Crimea, with a request to treat him with kindness, but contrary to her wishes he was subjected to the greatest harshness. Rendered desperate by this experience, he rose against his task-master, slew him, and seizing his horse escaped to the border of the Russian territory, where he was kindly received. He wandered across the country to Transylvania, and rejoined his old com- panions in arms. Then, filled with a longing 76 SETTLEMENT OF AMERICA. to see his "own sweet country" once more, he returned to England. He arrived just as the plans for the colonization of Virginia were being matured. He readily engaged in the expedition organized by the London Company, and exerted himself in a marked degree to make it a success. He was in all respects the most capable man in the whole colony, for his natural abilities were fully equal to his experience. He had studied human nature under many forms in CAPTAIN JOHN SMITH. many lands, and in adversity and danger had learned patience and fortitude. His calm, cool courage, his resolute will, and his intuitive per- ception of the necessities of a new settlement, were destined to make him the main stay of the colony of Virginia, but as yet these high quali- ties had only excited the malicious envy of his associates, and the efforts he had made to heal the dissensions which had broken out during the voyage had made him many enemies. When the box containing the names of those who were to constitute the colonial government was opened, it was found that the king had appointed John Smith one of the council. Smith was at this time in con- finement, having been arrested on the voy- age upon the frivolous charges of sedition and treason against the crown, and his enemies, notwithstanding the royal appointment, ex- cluded him from the council. Edward Wingfield, " a grovelling merchant of the west of England," was chosen president of the council and governor of the colony. The services of Smith could not be dispensed with, however, and he was released from his confinement, and sent with Newport and twenty others to explore the river. They ascended the James to the falls, where the city of Richmond now stands, and visited Powhatan, the principal chief of the Indian nation holding the country into which they had come. He was then dwelling at his favorite seat on the left bank of the river, a few miles below the falls. Powhatan received them kindly, and silenced the remonstrances of his people by saying: "They hurt you not; they only want a little land." The chief was a man of powerful sta- ture, " tall, sour and athletic." He was sixty years of age, and had under him a population of six or eight thousand souls, two thousand being warriors. Having carefully observed the river, Smith and Newport returned to Jamestown. Their presence there was needed, for Wingfield had proved himself utterly unfit to govern the colony. He would not allow the colonists to build either houses for them- selves or a fortification for the common de- fence against the savages. While they were in this helpless condition, they were suddenly CAPTAIN JOHN SMITH AND POCAHONTAS. 77 attacked by a force of four hundred Indians, and were saved from destruction only by the fire of the shipping, which filled the savages with terror and put them to flight. It is believed that the cause of Wingfield's singular conduct was his jealousy of Smith whose talents he feared would attract the support of the settlers. Tried and Acquitted. The fort was now built without delay, cannon were mounted, and the men trained in the exercise of arms. When the ships were in readiness to sail to England, it was intimated to Smith that he would consult his own interests by returning in them, but he refused to do so, and boldly demanded a trial upon the charges which had been pre- ferred against him. The council did not dare to refuse him this trial, and the result was his triumphant acquittal. More than this, he succeeded so well in exposing the malice of his enemies that the president, as the originator of the charges against him, was compelled to pay him two hundred pounds damages, which sum Smith gener- ously applied to the needs of the colony. His seat in the council could no longer be denied him, and he took his place at the board to the great gain of the colony. Newport sailed for England about the middle of June, leaving the settlement in a most pitiable condition. The provisions sent out from England had been spoiled on the voyage, and the colonists were too indo- lent to cultivate the land, or to seek to obtain supplies from the Indians. Sickness broke out among them, owing to the malarious character of their location, and by the begin- ning of the winter more than half their num- ber had died. Among these was Bartholo- mew Gosnold, the originator of the London Company, who had come out to Virginia to risk his life in the effort to settle the country. He was a man of rare merits, and, togethef with Mr. 'Hunt, "the preacher," who was also one of the projectors of the company, had contributed successfully to the preserva- tion of harmony in the colony. In the midst of these sufferings it was found that Wingfield was preparing to load the pinnace with the remainder of the stores and escape to the West Indies. He was deposed by the council, who appointed John Ratcliffe in his place. The newpresident was not much better than his predecessor. He was incapable of discharg- ing the duties of his office, and was perfectly satisfied that Smith should direct the affairs of the settlement for him. From this time Smith was the actual head of the govern- ment. Food was the prime necessity of the colony, and as it was now too late to raise it. Smith exerted himself to obtain it from the Indians. He purchased a supply, and towards the close of the autumn the wild fowl which frequent the region furnished an additional means of subsistence. Danger of Famine. The danger of a famine thus removed, Smith proceeded to explore the country. In one of these expeditions he ascended the Chickahominy as far as he could penetrate in his boat, and then leaving it in charg-e of two men, struck into the interior with an Indian guide. His men disobeyed his in- structions, and were surprised and put to death by the Indians. Smith himself was taken prisoner, and deeply impressed his captors by his cool courage and self-posses- sion. Instead of begging for his life, he set to work to convince them of his superiority over them, and succeeded so well that they regarded him with a sort of awe. He aston- ished them by showing them his pocket com- pass and explaining to them its uses, and excited their admiration by writing a letter ^i^^'^^Z'^^ilfi^i^'Sff^ -^y Aiii^i 78 POCAHONTAS INTERCEDING FOR THE LIFE OF CAPTAIN JOHN SMITH. CAPTAIN JOHN SMITH AND POCAHONTAS. 79 to his friends at Jamestown informing them of his situation, and of the danger to which they were exposed from a contemplated attack of the Indians. One of the savages bore the letter to its destination. A Grand Reception. Smith had been captured by Opechan- canough, a powerful chieftain of the Pamun- key Indians : but as the curiosity of the neighboring tribes was greatly aroused by his presence, he was led in triumph from the Chickahominy to the villages on the Rappa- hannock and the Potomac, and then taken through other towns to the residence of Opechancanough, on the Pamunkey. Here the medicine men of the tribe held a three days' incantation over him to ascertain his character and design. All this while his de- meanor was calm and fearless, as if he enter- tained no apprehension for his safety. He was regarded by the savages as a superior being, and was treated with kindness, though kept a close prisoner. His fate was referred to Powhatan for de- cision, as the other tribes feared to bring the blood of such an extraordinary being upon their heads. Powhatan was then residing at Werowocomoco, which lay on the north side of Fork River, in what is now Gloucester County, Virginia. He received the captive in great state, surrounded by his warriors. " Hfe wore," says Smith, " such a grave and majestical countenance as drove me into admiration to see." Brought into the presence of Powhatan, Smith was received with a shout from the assembled warriors. A handsome young squaw brought him water to wash his hands, and another gave him a bunch of feathers to dry them. Food was then set before him, and while he applied himself to the repast a consultation was held by the savages as to his fate. Smith watched the proceedings closely, and was aware from the gestures of the council that his death had been determined upon. Two great stones were then brought into the assembly and laid before the king. The captive was seized and dragged to the stones, forced down, and his head laid upon them. Two brawny savages stood by to beat out his brains with their clubs. During these proceedings Pocahontas, a child often or twelve years, " dearly loved daughter " of Powhatan, touched with pity for the unfortu- nate stranger, had been earnestly pleading with her father to spare his life. Failing in this, she sprang forward at the moment the executioners were about to despatch their victim, and throwing herself by his side, clasped her arms about his neck and laid her head upon his to protect him from the im- pending stroke. This remarkable action in a child so young moved the savages with profound astonishment. They regarded it as a manifestation of the will of Heaven in favor of the captive, and it was determined to spare his life and seek his friendship. The Captive Released. Smith was released from his bonds, and was given to Pocahontas to make beads and bells for her, and to weave for her ornaments of copper. The friendship which the inno- cent child of the forest conceived for him grew stronger every day, and ceased only with her life. Powhatan took him into his favor, and endeavored to induce him to abandon the English and cast his lot with him. He even sought to obtain his aid in an attack upon the colony. Smith declined these offers, and by his decision of character succeeded in averting the hostility of the savages from his friends at Jamestown, and in winning their good-will for the English. In a short while the Indians allowed him to return to Jamestown, upon his promise to send to King Powhatan two cannon and a 8o SETTLEMENT OF AMERICA. grindstone. Upon arriving at Jamestown he showed the Indians who had accompanied him two of the largest cannon, and asked them to lift them. This was impossible ; nor could they succeed any better with the grindstone. Smith then discharged the cannon in their presence, which so frightened them that they refused to have anything to do with them. Having evaded his promise in this manner, Smith bestowed more suit- able presents upon his guides, and sent them POCAHONTAS. home with gifts for Powhatan and Poca- hontas, The savage king was doubtless well satisfied to let the " great guns " alone after hearing the report of his messengers concerning them, and was greatly pleased with the gifts sent him. Pocahontas Brings Food. Smith found the colony at Jamestown re- duced to forty men and affairs in great con- fusion. His companions had believed that he had fallen a victim to the hostility of the Indians, and he was greeted with delight, as the need of his firm hand had been sadly felt. He found that a party of malcontents were preparing to run away from the colony with the pinnace, and he at once rallied his supporters and trained the guns of the fort upon the little vessel, and avowed his de- termination to fire upon the mutineers if they sought to depart. His firmness put an end to this danger, and the friendly relations which he had managed to establish with the Indians now enabled him to buy from the savages the food- necessary to sustain the colonists through the winter. In many ways his captivity proved a great blessing to the settlement. He had not only explored the country between the James and Potomac, and gained considerable knowledge of the language and customs of the natives, but had disposed the Indian tribes subject to Powhatan to regard the colony with friendship at the most criti- cal period of its existence. Had the savages been hostile during this winter the James- town colony must have perished of starva- tion ; but now, every few days throughout this season, Pocahontas came to the fort ac- companied by a number of her countrymen bearing baskets of corn for the whites. Exploring Chesapeake Bay. In the spring of 1608, Newport arrived from England, bringing with him a reinforce- ment of one hundred and twenty emigrants. The newcomers were joyfully welcomed by the colonists but they proved of no real ad- vantage to the settlement. They were either idlers or goldsmiths who had come out to America in the hope of finding gold. The refiners of the party believed they had found the precious metal in a heap of glittering earth, of which there was an abundance near Jamestown, and in spite of the remonstrances of Smith, would do nothing but dig gold. Newport, who shared the delusion, loaded CAPTAIN JOHN SMITH AND POCAHONTAS. his ships with the worthless earth and sailed for England after a sojourn in the colony of fourteen weeks. While these fruitless labors were in pro- gress, Smith, thoroughly disgusted with the folly of the emigrants, undertook the explora- tion of the Chesapeake Bay. He spent the summer of 1608 in visiting the shores of the bay and ascending its tributaries in an open boat, accompanied by a few men. He ex- plored the Chesapeake to the Susquehanna, ascended the Potomac to the falls, and explored the Patapsco. This voyage em- braced a total distance of nearly three thou- sand miles, and resulted not only in the gain- ing of accurate information respecting the country bordering the Chesapeake, but also in establishing friendly relations with the tribes along its shores, and preparing the way for future friendly intercourse with them. The energetic explorer prepared a map of the Chesapeake and its tributaries, and sent it to his employers in England, by whom it was published. It is yet in existence, and its accuracy and minuteness have often elic- ited the praise of subsequent topographers. Idlers Must Not Eat. Smith returned to Jamestown on the seventh of September, and three days later was made president of the council. The good effects of his administration were soon felt. In the autumn, however, another rein- forcement of idle and useless men arrived. Smith, indignant at the continual arrival of such worthless persons, wrote to the com- pany : " When you send again, I entreat you rather send but thirty carpenters, husband- men, gardeners, fishermen, blacksmiths, ma- sons, and diggers up of trees' roots, well pro- vided, than a thousand cf such as we have." Upon the return of the fleet to England the governor exerted his authority to compel the idlers to go to work. It was ordered that six hours in each day should be spent in useful labor by each person, and that " he who would not work might not eat." In a short while the settlement began to assume the appearance of a regular habitation ; but still so little land had been cultivated — only about thirty or forty acres in all — that during the winter of 1608-9, the settlers were com- pelled to depend upon the Indians for food. Yet the prudent management of Smith kept the colony in good health. Infamous La^vs. In the spring of 1609, great changes were made in the London Company, and a more earnest interest was manifested in the colony by all classes of the English people. Sub- scriptions were made to the stock of the company by many noblemen as well as mer- chants, and a new charter was obtained. By this charter the stockholders had the power to appoint the supreme council in England, and to this council were confided the powers of legislation and government, which were relinquished by the king. The council ap- pointed the governor of the cofony, who was to rule the settlement with absolute au- thority according to the instructions of the council. He was made master of the lives and liberties of the settlers by being author- ized to declare martial law whenever in his judgment the necessity for that measure should arise, and was made the sole execu- tive officer in its administration. Thus the emigrants were deprived of every civil right, and were placed at the mercy of a governor appointed by a corpo- ration whose only object was to make money. The company, however, defeated this object by the manner in which it se- lected emigrants. Instead of sending out honest and industrious laborers who were capable of building up a state, they sent only idlers and vagabonds, men who were 82 SETTLEMENT OF AMERICA. neither willing nor fit to work. The com- mon stock feature Avas maintained, and thus the greatest obstacle to industry that could be devised was placed in the way of the success of the colony. Still there were many who were willing to seek the new BUILDING THE FIRST HOUSE IN JAMESTOWN world even under these conditions, and many others whose friends desired to get them out of the country. The company was soon able to equip a fleet of nine vessels containing more than five hundred emigrants, and a stock of do- mestic animals and fowls was included in the outfit of the expedition. Lord Delaware, a nobleman, whose character commanded the confidence of his countrymen, was made governor of the colony for life. As he was not able to sail with the expedition, he dele- gated his authority during his absence to Newport, who was admiral of the fleet, Sir Thomas Gates, and Sir George Somers, who were to govern the col- ony until his arrival. The fleet sailed in the spring of 1609, but when off the American coast was overtaken by a se- vere storm, and two ves- sels — on one of which the admiral and the commissioners had sailed — were wrecked on one of the Bermuda islands. Seven ships reached Virginia, and brought the worst lot of emi- grants that had yet been sent out to the colony. Smith was still acting president, and as the commissioners had not arrived, was determined to hold his position until relieved by his lawful successors. The new emigrants at first refused to recognize his author- ity, but he compelled them to submit, and in order to lessen the evil of their presence, divided them into bodies sufficiently numer- ous for safety, and sent them to make settle- ments in other parts of Virginia. These settlements proved so many failures, and, unfortunately for the colony, Smith was so severely wounded by an accidental explosion of gunpowder, in the autumn of 1609, that CAPTAIN JOHN SMITH AND POCAHONTAS. 83 he was obliged to relinquish the government and return to England for surgical treatment. He delegated his authority to George Percy, and sailed for England, never to return to Virginia again. It was to him alone that the success of the colony was due, but he received in return nothing but ingratitude. Pocahontas Saves the Colony. The departure of Smith was followed by the most disastrous, consequences. There was no longer an acknowledged government in Virginia, and the settlers gave themselves up to the most reckless idleness. Their pro- visions were quickly consumed, and the In- dians refused to furnish them with anymore. The friendship of the savages had been due to their personal regard for Smith, who had compelled the colonists to respect their rights and to refrain from maltreating them. Now that Smith was no longer at the head of affairs, the Indians regarded the settlers with the contempt they fully merited, and hostili- ties soon began. Stragglers from the town were cut off, and parties who went out to seek food among the savages were deliber- ately murdered. On one occasion a plan was laid to surprise the town and massacre the colonists. The danger was averted by Pocahontas, who stole from her father's camp, through night and storm, to give warning to the settlers. Fail- ing in this effort the Indians resolved to starve the colony, and soon the whites began to experience the sufferings of a famine. Thirty of them seized one of the ships, escaped to sea, and began a course of piracy. In six months the four hundred and ninety persons left by Smith in the colony at his departure had dwindled down to sixty ; and this wretched remnant would have perished speedily had not aid reached them. On the twenty-fourth of May, 16 10, Sir Thomas Gates and the members of the expe- dition who had been wrecked on the Ber- mudas reached Jamestown after a stay of nine months on those islands, during which time they had built two vessels from the wreck of their ship and the wood found on the island. In these they managed to reach Virginia, expecting to find the colony in a prosperous condition. They found instead the sixty men already mentioned, so feeble and full of despair as to be helpless. In the general despondency it was determined to abandon the colony, sail to Newfoundland, and join the fishing vessels which came an- nually from England to that island. A "Welcome Arrival. Some of the emigrants wished to burn the town, but this was prevented by the resolute conduct of Sir Thomas Gates. On the seventh of June the settlers embarked, and that night dropped down the James with the tide. The next morning they were aston- ished to meet a fleet of vessels entering the river. It was Lord Delaware, who had arrived with fresh emigrants and supplies. The fugitives hailed the arrival of the gover- nor with delight, and put about and ascended the stream with him. A fair wind enabled them to reach Jamestown the same night. On the tenth of June, 1610, the founda- tions of the colony were solemnly relaid with prayer and supplication to Almighty God for success in the effort to establish a state. The authority of Lord Delaware silenced all dissensions, and his equitable but firm administration soon placed the settle- ment on a more successful basis than it had yet occupied. The labors of each day were opened with prayer in the little church, after which, from six in the morning till ten, and from two in the afternoon until four, all en""a""ed in the tasks demanded of them. The good effects of the new system were soon manifest in the increased comfort and H SETTLEMENT OF AMERICA. prosperity of the colony. In about a year the health of Lord Delaware gave way, and he delegated his authority to G^jorge Percy, whom Smith had chosen as his successor, and returned to England. Fortunately for the colony, the company, before the arrival of Lord Delaware in Eng- land, had sent out Sir Thomas Dale with supplies. He reached Jamestown in May, i6ii, and finding Lord Delaware gone, assumed the government. He brought with him a code of laws, prepared and sent out by Sir Thomas Smith, the treasurer of the com- pany, without the order or sanction of the council, and which established martial law as the rule of the colony. Though he ruled with such a stern hand, Dale rendered good service to Virginia by recommending to the company to maintain the settlement at all hazards as certain of yielding them a rich reward in the end. The New Settlers. This energetic appeal so greatly encour- aged the council, which had been consider- ably disheartened by Lord Delaware's return, that in the summer of 1611 Sir Thomas Gates was sent out to Virginia with six ships and three hundred emigrants. He carried also a stock of cattle and abundant supplies. The emigrants sent out with him were of a better character and more industrious than any that had yet left England for Virginia. Gates assumed the government, and matters began to prosper again. The colony now numbered seven hundred persons, and was deemed so prosperous that Dale, with the approval of the governor, led a number of the men to the vicinity of the falls of the James, and there established another settle- ment, which was called Henrico, in honor of the, Prince of Wales. Among the changes for the better was the assignment to each settler of a few acres of land for his own cultivation. This " incipient establishment of private property" produced the happiest results, and from this time there was no scarcity of provisions in the colony, which became so powerful and prosperous as to be no longer exposed to the mercy of the savages. The Indians themselves were quick to notice this change, and some of the neighboring tribes by formal treaty acknowl- edged themselves subjects of King James. The whites, however, did not always respect the rights of the Indians. Late in 161 3, Pocahontas was betrayed into the hands of a foraging party under Captain Argall. Argall kept her a prisoner, and demanded of Powhatan a ransom. For three months Powhatan did not deign to re- ply to this demand, but prepared for war. In the meantime Pocahontas was instructed in the faith of the Christians, and at length openly embraced it, and was baptized. Her conversion was hastened by a powerful senti- ment, which had taken possession of her heart. She had always regarded the English as superior to her own race, and now her affections were won by a young Englishman of good character, named John Rolfe. Marriage of Pocahontas. Rolfe, with the approval of the governor, asked her hand of her father in marriage. Powhatan consented to the union, but re- fused to be present at the marriage, as he was too shrewd to place his person in the hands of the English. He sent his brother Opachisco and two of his sons to witness the marriage, which was solemnized in the little church at Jamestown, in the presence of Sir Thomas Dale, the acting governor. The marriage conciliated Powhatan and his tribe, who continued their peaceful relations with the colony. King James, however, was greatly displeased at what he deemed the presumption of a subject in wedding a TYPES OF NORTH AMERICAN INDIANS. S6 SETTLEMENT OF AMERICA. princess. Pocahontas was soon after taken to England by her husband, and was re- ceived there with great attention and ivernor. They responded to this call withenthusiasm, and a convention of the mos- eminent men in the colony assembled at "fiddle Plantations, now Williamsburg, on t'S third of August, 1676. It was resolvedly the convention to sustain Bacon with th whole power of the colony in the campaipi against the Indians. If the governor persist'J in his attempt to hunt him as a traitor, the^embers of the convention pledged themseK'S to defend Bacon with arms, even again*^ the royal troops, until an appeal could bf'^acle to the king in person. The people o^V'irginia were fully resolved to protect th'"selves against the tyranny of Berkeley, a^ Bacon, strengthened by their indorseme*- of his course, finished his cam- paign agp'^t the Indians. Governor Berke- ley with-^w across the bay to the eastern shore, r^^ there collected a force of sailors belonp^g *o some English vessels and a band of ^jrthless Indians. With this force, «< ipi of a base and cowardly disposition, VIRGINIA AFTER THE RESTORATION. 107 allured by the passion for plunder," he pre- pared to return to Jamestown. The people decided to regard the retreat of the governor as an abdication on his part of his office. The ten years for which he had been appointed had expired, and the colonial records afforded a precedent for his removal. Bacon and four others, who had been members of the council, issued writs for the election of a representative conven- tion to which the management of the affairs of the colony was to be committed. With the exception of a few royalists the whole people of Virginia indorsed the move- ment ; the women were enthusiastic, and urged their husbands to risk everything, even life, in defence of their liberties. Early in September Sir William Berkeley reached Jamestown with the rabble which he called his army. He took possession of the town without resistance, and was joined by a number of royalists. He offered freedom to the slaves of the Virginians who were opposed to him on the condition of their joining his ranks. Bacon and his party were again pro- claimed traitors and rebels. The People Fly to Arms. The people at once flew to arms, and Bacon soon found himself at the head of the little army that had been so successful against the Indians. Without delay they marched to Jamestown. The resistance attempted by Berkeley's cowardly followers was feeble, and the whole force, including their leader, retreated to their ships, and dropped down the river by night. The next morning the army of the people entered Jamestown. It was rumored that a party of royalists was marching from the northern counties to the support of Berkeley, and a council was held to decide upon the fate of the capital. It was agreed that it should be burned to pre- vent it from being used as a stronghold for their enemies. The torch was applied ; Drummond and Lawrence, leaders of the popular party, set fire to their dwellings with their own hands ; and in a few hours only a heap of smouldering ruins marked the site of the first capital of Virginia. Its destruction left the colony without a single town within its limits. From the ruins of Jamestown Bacon marched promptly to meet the royalist force advancing from the Rappahannock region. The latter in a body joined the army of the people, and even the county of Gloucester, the stronghold of royalty, gave its adhesion to the patriotic movement. With the excep- tion of the eastern shore the entire colony was united in support of the cause of popular liberty. Untimely Death of Bacon. Unhappily, at this critical juncture. Bacon was seized with a fatal fever, of which he died on the first of October, 1676. His followers grieved for him with passionate sorrow, and with good cause. It has been the good fortune of Virginia to give many great names to the cause of liberty, but in all the immortal roll there are none who sur- passed Nathaniel Bacon in pure and disin- terested patriotism. Others were permitted to accomplish more, but none cherished loftier aims or desired more earnestly the good of their fellow-citizens. The death of Bacon left the popular party without a head ; and now began to be seen for the first time in Virginia the evils which the neglect of education must produce in a community. The Virginians were not lack- ing in courage, determination, or devotion to their liberties, and their cause was one cal- culated to succeed without leaders. In an educated community there would have been no lack of union or perseverance because of the death of one man, and the people would io8 SETTLEMENT OF AMERICA. have found the means to continue their struggle until successful. In the uneducated Virginian community of 1676 the presence of a bold, capable, and resolute leader was a necessity, and his sudden removal left the popular party helpless. The grand struggle degenerated into a series of petty insurrec- tions ; the royalists took heart, and Robert Beverley, their most competent leader, was able to destroy in detail the resistance of the patriots and to restore the supremacy of Berkeley. A Woman's Self-Sacrifice. The governor now proceeded to take a summary vengeance upon the patriots, and more than twenty of the best men of the colony gave their lives on the scaffold for the liberties of their country. The first of these martyrs for freedom — the first Ameri- can to die for the right of the people to govern themselves — was Thomas Hansford, a Vir- ginian born, and a noble specimen of the chivalrous sons of the Old Dominion. The wife of Edmund Cheesman, upon the capture of her husband, flung herself at the governor's feet, and declaring that her ex- hortations had induced her husband to join Bacon, begged to be allowed to die in his place. The brutal Berkeley repelled the heroic woman with a gross insult. When Urummond was taken and brought before him the governor received him with mock courtesy. " I am more glad to see you," he said, "than any man in Virginia; you shall be hanged in half an hour." The royalist assembly, horrified at the cruelty of the gov- ernor, appealed to him to " spill no more blood." The property of the victims was confiscated, and their helpless families were turned out upon the charities of the people for whom the martyrs had died. Not con- tent with these cruelties Berkeley attempted to silence the people, and prevent them from either censuring him or vindicating the memory of their dead heroes. Whoever should speak ill of Berkeley or his friends was to be whipped. At last the end came, and Berkeley re- turned to England. His departure was celebrated with rejoicings throughout the colony; bells were rung, guns were fired, and bonfires blazed. Berkeley hoped to be able to justify his conduct in England, but upon his arrival in that country he found his course sternly condemned by the voice of public opinion. Even Charles II. censured him with all the energy that soulless monarch was master of " The old fool," said the king, " has taken away more lives in that naked land than I for the murder of my father." His disappointment and mortifica- tion were too much for the proud man, and he died soon after his arrival in England. Revival of Abuses. The failure of Bacon's rebellion brought many serious misfortunes to Virginia. The insurrection was made the excuse by the king for refusing a liberal charter, and the colony was made dependent for its rights and privileges entirely upon the royal will. The assembly was composed almost ex- clusively of royalists, and at once proceeded to undo the work of the popular party. All the laws of Bacon's assembly were repealed; the right of suffrage was restricted to free- holders, and the iniquitous taxes were re- imposed. All the abuses that had led to the rebellion were revived. In 1677 Lord Culpepper, one of the favor- ites to whom Charles II. had granted Vir- ginia, was appointed governor of the colony for life. The new governor regarded his office as a sinecure, and while receiving its emoluments desired to remain in England to enjoy them. In 1680, however, the king compelled him to repair to his government VIRGINIA AFTER THE RESTORATION. 109 in person. He brought with him authority from the sovereign to settle all past griev- ances, but he used this power for his own profit. He extorted money from all parties, and when he had acquired a considerable sum returned to England, having spent less than a year in Virginia. He left the colony in the greatest distress. The Virginians, robbed of the profits of their labors for the enrichment of their rulers, were reduced to despair. Riots took place in various places, and the whole colony was on the verge of insurrection. A Plunderer. Rumors of these disturbances having reached England the king ordered Culpepper to return and reduce the colony to obedience. He did so, and caused several influential men to be hanged as traitors, and used the power intrusted to him to wrest from the council the last remnant of its authority to control his outrages upon the people. This accom- plished, he proceeded to force the settlers of the Northern Neck to surrender their planta- tions to him, or pay him the sums he de- manded for the privilege of retaining them. He found his residence among a people he had come to plunder very disagreeable, and in the course of a few months returned to England amid the bitter curses of the Vir- ginians. The council reported the distress of the province to the king, and appealed to him to recall the grant to Culpepper and Arlington. Arlington surrendered his rights to Culpepper, whose patent was rendered void by a process of law, and in July, 1684, Virginia became once more a royal province. Lord Howard, of Effingham, was appointed to succeed Culpepper, but he was a poorer and more grasping man than his predecessor, and the change afforded no relief to Virginia. In 1685 James II. came to the throne of England, and in the same year occurred the insurrection in England known as Mon- mouth's rebellion. A number of prisoners were taken in this struggle by the royal forces, and many of these were sent out to the colonies of Virginia and Maryland to be sold as servants for a term of ten years. Many of them were men of education and family. The general assembly of Virginia refused to sanction this infamous measure, and, in spite of the prohibition of King James, passed a law declaring all such per- sons free. Indeed at this time the practice of selling white servants in America had be- come so profitable that quite a thriving business was carried on between the west of England and Virginia and Maryland. Not only persons condemned for crime, but innocent people were kidnapped and sold in the colonies for a term of years for money. " At Bristol," says Bancroft, " the mayor and justices would intimidate small rogues and pilferers, who, under the terror of being hanged, prayed for transportation as the only avenue to safety, and were then divided among the members of the court. The trade was exceedingly profitable — far more so than the slave trade — and had been conducted for years." Uprising for Freedom. One of the last acts of Charles II. with reference to Virginia was to forbid the set- ting up of a printing press within the limits of the colony ; James II. continued this pro- hibition. Effingham endeavored to take from the colony the few privileges left to it. The result was that the party of freedom increased rapidly. Many of the aristocratic party seeing that the king and the governor menaced every right and privilege they pos- sessed went over to the popular side. The assembly began to assert the popular demand for self-government, and became so unman- ageable that in November, 1686, it was dis- solved by royal proclamation. no SETTLEMENT OF AMERICA. A new assembly was convened, which met in April, 1688, a few months before the British revolution. The governor and coun- cil found this body more indisposed to submit to the aggressions of the crown than its pre- decessor had been. The people sustained their delegates, and a new insurrection was threatened. Effingham was in the midst of a hostile population, without troops to enforce his will, and was obliged to conduct himself with moderation. The royal authority was never stronger in Virginia than during this reign, but it was found impossible to establish it upon the ruins of the liberties of the colony. The result of all the long years of oppression we have been considering was simply to confirm the Virginians in their attachment to their liberties, and in their determination to maintain them at any cost. Virginia remained to the end an aristocratic colony, but it was none the less " a land of liberty." Founding a College, The revolution of 1688 in England did not change affairs in Virginia materially as regarded the forms of the colonial govern- ment. The liberties of the colony were established by law too securely to be any longer at the mercy of an individual, but the power of the governor was still very great. Every department of the colonial administra- tion, the finances, and even the management of the church, was made subject to his con- trol. He had the power to dissolve the assembly at pleasure, and was sure to exer- cise it if that body manifested too great a spirit of independence. He also appointed the clerk of the assembly, who was for this reason a check upon its freedom of debate. The only means of resistance to the meas- ures of the government which the assembly retained was to refuse to vote supplies in excess of the permanent revenue. This right was sometimes exercised, and the governor was prevented from carrying out unpopular measures by the lack of the necessary funds. Soon after the accession of William and Mary to the throne an effort was made to establish a college in Virginia, although the printing press was still forbidden. Donations were made by a number of persons in England, and the king bestowed several liberal grants upon the proposed institution. The measure was carried through to success by the energy of the Rev. James Blair, who was sent out by the Bishop of London as commissary, " to supply the office and juris- diction of the bishop in the outplaces of the diocese." The college was established in 1691, and was named WiUiam and Mary, in honor of the king and queen. Mr. Blair was its first president, and held that office for fifty years. The ministry did not approve the action of the king in granting even the very moderate endowments which he bestowed upon the college. They regarded Virginia merely as a place in which to raise tobacco for the English market, and cared nothing for the interests of the people. They treated the colony with injustice and neglect in every- thing. The planters could sell their tobacco only to an English purchaser, who regulated the price to suit himself, and supplied the planters in return with the wares they needed at his own prices. CHAPTER IX The Colonization of Maryland Extent of the Territory of Virginia — Clayborne's Trading Posts Established — Sir George Calvert, Lord Baltimore — Be- comes Interested in American Colonization — Obtains a Grant of Maryland — Terms of the Charter — A Colony Sent Out — Arrival in the Chesapeake — St. Mary's Founded — Character of the Colony — Friendly Relations Established with the Indians — First Legislature of Maryland — Trouble with Clayborne — Rapid Growth of the Colony — Progress of Popular Liberty — Policy Respecting the Treatment of the Indians — Clayborne's Rebellion — Law Granting Religious Toleration Enacted — Condition of Maryland Under the Commonwealth — The People Declared Supreme— Lord Baltimore Recovers His Proprietary Rights — Characteristics of the Colony — Rapid Increase in Population — Charles Calvert, Governor — Death of the Second Lord Baltimore — Roman Catholics Disfranchised — Maryland Becomes a Royal Province — Triumph of the Protestants — Annapolis Made the Seat of Government — Restoration of the Proprietary Government — Continued Prosperity of Maryland. THE second charter of Virginia granted to that province the country- north of the Potomac as far as the headwaters of the Chesapeake Bay. This grant included the territory of the present State of Maryland. The discoveries of Captain John Smith had brought the region along the head of the bay into notice, and other explorers had confirmed his state- ments as to its value. A very profitable trade was established with the Indians of this section, and, in order to develop its advantages, William Clayborne, a man of great resolution and of no fnean abilities, a surveyor by profession, was employed by the Governor of Virginia to explore the region of the upper Chesapeake. His report was so favorable that a company was formed in England for the purpose of trading with the Indians. Under authority from this company, Clayborne obtained a license from the colonial government of Virginia, and established two trading stations on the bay ; one on Kent Island, opposite the present city of Annapolis, and one at the mouth of the Susquehanna. These posts were established in the spring of 163 1. In the meantime efforts were being made in England to secure the settlement of the same region. Sir George Calvert, a man of noble character, liberal education and great political experience, had become at an early day deeply interested in the question of colonizing America. Having embraced the Roman Catholic faith, he relinquished his ofifice of Secretary of State, and made a pub- lic acknowledgment of his conversion. His noble character commanded the confidence of King James, and he was retained as a mem- ber of the Privy Council, and was made Lord Baltimore in the Irish peerage. He was anxious to found a colony in America, which might serve as a place of refuge for persons of the Catholic faith, and obtained a patent for the southern part of Newfoundland. That region was too bleak and rugged to admit of the success of the enterprise, and the attempt to settle it was soon abandoned. Lord Baltimore next contemplated a set- tlement in some portion of Virginia, and in October, 1629, visited that colony with a view to making arrangements for his planta- tion. The laws of Virginia against Roman Catholics were very severe, and immediately upon the arrival of so distinguished a Cath- olic the assembly ordered the oaths of allegiance and supremacy to be tendered him. Lord Baltimore proposed a form III 112 SETTLEMENT OF AMERICA. which he was willing to subscribe, but the colonial government insisted upon that which had been ordered by the English Par- liament, and which was of such a character that no Catholic could accept it. There was nothing left for Calvert but to withdraw from Virginia, and his reception there con- vinced him that that province was not the place for the plantation he wished to estab- lish. Large Grant to Lord Baltimore. The region north of the Potomac was still uninhabited, and seemed to promise advan- tages equal to Virginia. Calvert applied to Charles I. for a patent for this region, and was given a territory corresponding very nearly to the present State of Maryland in extent. The king granted him a liberal charter, which, while it provided for his interests as proprietor, secured the liberties of the colonists. In this it was simply the expression of the wishes of 'Lord Baltimore, who desired to establish a settlement of freemen. The country embraced in the grant was given to Lord Baltimore, his heirs and assigns, in absolute possession. They were required to pay an annual tribute to the crown of two Indian arrows and one- fifth of all the gold and silver which might be found. The colonists were to have a voice in making their own laws, and they were to be entitled to all the rights and privileges of Englishmen. No taxes were to be imposed upon them without their consent, nor was the authority of the proprietor to extend to their lives or property. It was enjoined that the exercise of the faith and worship of the established Church of England should be protected in the colony, but no uniform standard of faith or worship was imposed by the charter. The new province was carefully separated from Virginia and made independ- ent of it. The colony was left free from the supervision of the crown, and the propri- etor was not obliged to obtain the royal assent to the appointments or legislation of his province. The king also renounced for himself, his heirs and his successors, the right to tax the colony, thus leaving it entirely free from English taxation. These were vast powers to intrust to one man ; but they were placed in safe hands. The first Lord Baltimore was- a man who hated tyranny of all kinds, and who had carefully observed the effects of intolerance and arbitrary rule upon the efforts that had already been made to establish successful colonies in America. He designed his col- ony as an asylum in which men of all creeds could meet upon a common basis of a faith in Jesus Christ, and his conviction that relig- icus freedom is necessary to the success of a state confirmed in him his attachment to the principles of civil liberty. Practical Charity. He invited both Protestants and Catholics to join him in his enterprise, and adopted a form of government, based upon popular representation, well calculated to secure them in the possession of all their privileges. In honor of the queen of Charles L, he named the region granted to him Maryland. Before the patent was issued, Lord Baltimore died, on the fifteenth of April, 1632, leaving his son, Cecil, heir to his designs as well as to his title. The charter granted to his father was issued to him, and he proceeded at once to collect a colony for the settlement of Maryland. Lord Baltimore delegated the task of con- ducting the emigrants to Maryland to his brother, Leonard Calvert. On Friday, No- vember 22, 1632, a company of two hun- dred, chiefly Roman Catholics of good birth, with their families and servants, sailed from. THE COLONIZATION OF MARYLAND. 113 England in the " Ark " and the " Dove," the former a ship of large burthen, the latter a small pinnace. The voyage was made by- way of the West Indies, and the Chesapeake was not reached until the twenty-fourth of February, 1634. The ships anchored off Old Point Comfort, and were visited by Sir John Harvey, Governor of Vir- ginia, who had been commanded by the king to welcome the new colony with kfndness. Resting in Hampton roads for a few days the emigrants ascended the bay and entered the stately Potomac. Deeming it unsafe to plant his first settle- ment high up the river, Calvert chose a site on a small tributaiy of the Potomac, not far from its mouth. This stream, now known as the St. Mary's, he named the St. George's. An Indian village, called Yoacomoco, was selected as the site of the colony. The place was being deserted by the natives, who had suffered severely from the superior power of the Susequehannahs, and were removing farther into the interior for greater security. They readily sold their town and the surround- ing lands to the English.andmade with them a treaty of peace and friendship ; and on the twenty- seventh of March, 1634, the col- onists landed and laid the founda- tions of the town of St. Mary's. A few days later. Sir John Harvey arrived from Virginia on a friendly visit. His orders from the king were to treat the settlers with friendship, and to aid them as far as lay in his power. About the same time the native chiefs came in to visit the colony, and were so well received that they established friendly relations with the settlers. The Indian women taught their English sisters how to make bread from the meal of the Indian corn, and the warriors instructed the Eng- lishmen in the simple arts of the chase. The colonists obtained provisions and cattle for a while from Virginia ; but, as they went to CECIL, SECOND LORD BALTIMORE. work at once and with energy to cultivate their land, the first year's harvest gave them an abundance of supplies. The proprietor sent out from England such things as were necessary to the success and comfort of the colony, treating the new settlement with a wise liberality. Thus were 114 SETTLEMENT OF AMERICA. the foundations of Maryland laid amid peace and prosperity. The colony was successful from the first. Roman Catholic settlers fol- lowed the first emigrants in considerable numbers, and even Protestants sought the shores of Maryland, which the liberality of Lord Baltimore had made a refuge to them from the persecutions of their own brethren. New settlements were formed, and within six months the colony " had advanced more than Virginia had done in as many years." Piracy and Murder. In February, 1635, the first legislative assembly of Maryland met. Legislation had become necessary by this time. Clay- borne, who had established trading posts in the upper Chesapeake, had met the first set- tlers under Leonard Calvert at their anchor- age at Old Point Comfort, and had endeav- ored to dissuade them from settling along the bay by exaggerating the dangers to be apprehended from the hostility of the In- dians. Failing in this effort, he became the evil genius of Maryland, as the grant to Lord Baltimore made void his license to trade with the Indians along the bay. He re- fused to acknowledge the authority of the proprietor of Maryland, and attempted to retain his trading post by force of arms. Within a year or two after the settlement of the colony, a bloody skirmish occurred in one of the rivers of the eastern shore, in which Clayborne's men were defeated. In 1638, Leonard Calvert took forcible posses- sion of Kent Island, and hanged one or two of Clayborne's people on a charge of piracy and murder. Clayborne was in England at the time prosecuting his claims before the king. Governor Harvey of Virginia had given the weight of his influence in this contest to the cause of Lord Baltimore, but the people of Virginia, who resented the grant of Maryland as an invasion of their rights, sympathized with Clayborne, and caused Harvey to be impeached and sent to England for trial. The English courts de- cided that Clayborne's license was not valid against the charter granted to Lord Balti- more, and Harvey was sent back to Virginia as governor in April, 1639. In the meantime the colony continued to grow and prosper. The assembly, while acknowledging the allegiance of the people of Maryland to the king, and making ample provisions for the rights of Lord Baltimore as proprietor, took care to secure the liberties of the people, and claimed for itself the exercise in the province of all the powers belonging to the British House of Commons. Representative government was definitely established, and the colonists were secured in all the liberties granted to the people of England by the common law of that country. Tobacco became, as in Vir- ginia, the staple of the colony. Maryland Contented. In 1642, in gratitude for the great ex- pense which Lord Baltimore had volun- tarily incurred for them, the people of Maryland granted him " such a subsidy as the young and poor estate of the colony could bear." As far as the people themselves were concerned, the condition of Maryland was one of marked happiness and content- ment. Harmony prevailed between all classes of the people and the government ; the settlers were blessed with complete toler- ation in religion ; emigration was rapidly increasing, and the commerce of the colony was growing in extent and value. Maryland had its troubles, however. The Indians, alarmed by its rapid growth, began in 1642 a series of aggressions which led to a frontier war. This struggle continued for some time, but was productive of no decisive results, and in 1644 peace was restored. The THE COLONIZATION OF MARYLAND. 115 Indians promised submission, and the whites, on their part, agreed to treat them with friendship and justice. Laws were enacted compelling the settlers to refrain from in- justice toward the savages, and humanity to the red man was made the policy of the colony. The kidnapping of an Indian was punish- able with death, and the sale of arms to the savages was constituted a felony. Efforts were also made to convert the natives to Christianity. Four missions were established among them by the priests of the Catholic church, and the effects of their devoted la- bors were soon manifest. A chief, named Tayac, and his wife were baptized, he tak- ing the name of Charles and she that of Mary. About one hundred and thirty other converts were afterwards added to the Chris- tian fold among the Indians, and many of these sent their children to receive instruction at the hands of the priests. Though the ef- fort to Christianize the savages failed, as it has ever done, the good effects of these en- deavors were not lost, as the friendship for the whites aroused by them continued to influence these tribes in their policy toward the colony, Clayborne's Rebellion. Clayborne, who had certainly cause for thinking himself wronged in being deprived of his property without just compensation, returned to Maryland to revenge himself upon the colonists. The civil war in Eng- land furnished him with an admirable oppor- tunity for his attempt. He was able to se- cure a number of followers in Maryland, and in 1644 began an insurrection. The next year the governor was drjven out of the col- ony and obliged to take refuge in Virginia, and Clayborne was triumphant. For more than a year the rebels held possession of the government, and this whole time was a period of disorder and misrule, during which the greater part of the colonial records were lost or stolen. At the end of this time, the better classes of the people of Maryland drove out the rebels, and recalled the pro- prietary government. A general amnesty was proclaimed to all offenders, and peace was restored to the colony. The year 1649 was marked in England by the execution of Charles I., and the complete; A CIVILIZED INDIAN. establishment of the authority of the Parlia- ment. It seemed to the people of Maryland that this triumph of the popular party was to usher in a new war upon the Roman Catholic faith, which was professed by a large major- ity of the colonists. Dreading a war of religion as the greatest of evils, they deter- mined to secure the colony from it, by pla- cing the freedom of conscience within their limits upon as secure a basis as possible. In doing this they gave expression to the popular will, and aimed to secure their future welfare. On the twenty-first of April, 1649, the assembly of Maryland adopted the following il6 SETTLEMENT OF AMERICA. act: "And, whereas, the enforcing of con- science in matters of religion hath frequently fallen out to be of dangerous consequence in those commonwealths where it has been practiced, and for the more quiet and peace- Christ, shall be anyways troubled, molested, or discountenanced for his or her religion, or in the free exercise thereof, or be compelled to the belief or practice of any other religion acrainst their consent." OLIVER CROMWELL. able government of this province, and the better to preserve mutual love and amity among the inhabitants, no person within this province, professing to believe in Jesus This statute, noble as it was, applied only to Christians. It was provided that" What- soever person shall blaspheme God, or shall deny or reproach the Holy Trinity, or any THE COLONIZATION OF MARYLAND. 117 of the three persons thereof, shall be pun- ished with death." Maryland had taken a great stride in advance in making her soil a sanctuary for Christians of all beliefs, but she had not yet accorded to her people a tolera- tion equal to that of Rhode Island, which colony, in 1647, granted liberty to all opinions, infidel as well as Christian. CromweH's Blunt Order. During the existence of the common- wealth, the colony was troubled with an unsettled government. It submitted to the authority of Cromwell, and the Puritans, regardless of the example of their brethren of the Catholic faith, attempted by an act of assembly, in 1654, to disfranchise the whole Roman Catholic population on the ground of their religious belief Cromwell disap- proved this action, and bluntly ordered his commissioners " not to busy themselves about religion, but to settle the civil govern- ment." In 1660, without waiting to hear the issue of matters in England, the assembly repudiated the authority of both the com- monwealth and the proprietor, and asserted the sovereignty of the people as the supreme authority in Maryland. Upon the restoration of Charles 11. , Lord Baltimore made his peace with the king for having yielded to the power of Cromwell, and received back all the rights he had enjoyed in Maryland. He at once proceeded to re-establish his authority in the province, but being a man of humanity and of liberal views, he made a generous use of his power. A general pardon was granted to all offenders against him, Jiis rule was once more submitted to, and fur thirty years the colony was at peace. " Like Virginia, Maryland was a colony of planters ; its staple was tobacco, and its prosperity was equally checked by the pressure of the navigation acts. Like Virginia, it possessed no considerable village ; its inhabitants were scattered among the woods and along the rivers ; each plantation was a little world within itself, and legislation vainly attempted the creation of towns by statute. Like Virginia, its laborers were in part indentured servants, whose term of service was limited by persevering legislation; in part negro slaves, who were employed in the colony from an early period, and whose importation was favored both by English cupidity and provincial statutes." " As in Virginia, the appointing power to nearly every office in the counties as well as in the province was not with the people ; and the judiciary was placed beyond their control. As in Virginia, the party of the proprietary, which possessed the government, was animated by a jealous regard for preroga- tive, and by the royalist principles, which derive the sanction of authority from the will of Heaven. As in Virginia, the taxes levied by the county officers were not conceded by the direct vote of the people, and were, therefore, burdensome alike from their excessive amount and the manner of their levy. But though the administration of Maryland did not favor the increasing spirit of popular liberty, it was marked by con- ciliation and humanity. To foster industry, to promote union, to cherish religious peace, ****** these were the honest pur- poses of Lord Baltimore during his long supremacy." * Arrival of Immigrants. Yet the colony continued to prosper. Emigrants came to it from almost every country of western Europe, and even from Sweden and Finland. The only persons who had cause for complaint in Maryland were the Quakers, who were treated with *H:sto7y of the United States. By George Bancroft, vol, ii., p. 235. ii8 SETTLEMENT 6F AMERICA. considerable harshness for their refusal to perform military duty ; but no effort was made to interfere with the exercise of their religion. In 1662, Charles Calvert, the son and heir of Lord Baltimore, came to reside in the thousand dollars. By numerous acts of compromise between Lord Baltimore and the assembly the question of taxation was ad- justed upon a satisfactory basis. The people assumed the expense of the provincial gov- ernment, and agreed to the imposition of an WILLIAM III. colony. Money was coined at a colonial mint, a tonnage duty was imposed upon all vessels trading with the colony, and a state house was built in 1674, at a cost of forty thousand pounds of tobacco, or about five export duty of two shillings per hogshead upon all the tobacco sent out of the colony. One-half of this duty was appropriated to the support of the government, and the re- mainder was assigned unconditionally to the THE COLONIZATION OF MARYLAND. 119 uses of Lord Baltimore, as " an act of grati- tude " for his care of the colony. On the thirtieth of November, 1675, Cecil Calvert, second Lord Baltimore, died. He had been for fourteen years the earnest and devoted friend, as well as the generous lord of the province, and had lived long enough to enjoy the gratitude with which the colony sought to repay his judicious care. His memory is perpetuated by the chief city of Maryland, which bears his name, and which is already the largest city on the Atlantic coast, south of the Susequehanna, and the seventh in population in the United States. Charles Calvert, who had been for fourteen years governor of Maryland, succeeded to his father's titles and possessions, and in 1676 returned to England. Previous to his de- parture from Maryland he gave his sanction to the colonial code of laws, which had been thoroughly revised. One of these laws pro- hibited the "importation of convicted per- sons" into the colony without regard to the will of the king or Parliament of England. Roman Catholics Disfranchised. Notwithstanding the mild and equitable government of the third Lord Baltimore, the spirit of popular liberty was becoming too strong in the colony for the rule of the proprietor to be cheerfully acquiesced in much longer. The rebellion of Bacon in Virginia affected the Maryland colony pro- foundly, and when Lord Baltimore returned to the province in 1681, he found a large part of the people hostile to him. An at- tempt at insurrection was suppressed, but the seeds of trouble were too deeply sown not to spring up again. The increase of the population had left the Roman Catholics in a small minority, so that Maryland was now to all intents and purposes a Protestant colony. During the latter part of the reign of Charles II. the Protestants, regardless of the wise policy of toleration which had hitherto marked the history of the province, endeavored to secure the establishment by law of the Church of England in Maryland. Lord Baltimore steadfastly resisted this unwise course, and maintained the freedom of conscience as the right of the people. He thus added to the existing opposition to his proprietary rule the hostility of the Protestant bigots. A little later, the English ministry struck the first blow at his proprietary rights and at the religious freedom of Maryland by ordering that all the offices of the colonial govern- ment should be bestowed upon Protestants alone. " Roman Catholics were disfranchised in the province which they had planted." An Insurrection. Lord Baltimore hoped that the succession of James II., a Catholic sovereign, would restore him the rights of which he had been deprived in his province ; but he was soon undeceived, for the king, who intended to bring all the American colonies directly under the control of the crown, would make no exception in favor of Maryland, and measures were put in force for the abolition of the proprietary government. The revolu- tion which placed William and Mary on the throne prevented the execution of these plans. The troubles of Lord Baltimore were in- creased by the failure of the deputy-governor, whom he had left in Maryland, to acknowl- edge William and Mary promptly. In August, 1689, occurred an insurrection led by " The association in arms for the defence of the Protestant religion." The deputy- governor was driven from office, the pro- prietary government was overturned, and William and Mary were proclaimed sov- ereigns of Maryland. The party in power appealed to the king to annul the proprietary I20 SETTLEMENT OF AMERICA. charter, and governed the colony by means of a convention until the royal pleasure should be known. Lord Baltimore endeav- ored to defend his rights in spite of his struggles, William III., in June, 1691, annulled the charter of Maryland, and by the exercise of his own power constituted that colony a royal province. In 1692, the king appointed Sir Lionel Copley Governor of Maryland. Upon his arrival in the colony he dissolved the con- vention and assumed the government. He at once summoned an assembly, which, recognizing William and Mary as the lawful sovereigns of Maryland, established the •Church of England as the religion of the •colony, and imposed taxes for its support. The capital was removed from St. Mary's to Annapolis, both because the old seat of gov- ernment had become inconvenient and because it was desired to remove the govern- ment to the centre of Protestant influence. The disfranchisement of the Catholics ad- vanced step by step. At first the dissenters from the established church were granted toleration and protection, but in 1704 the triumph of bigotry was complete. All the dissenting bodies were tolerated, but Roman Catholics were forbidden the exercise of their faith. Mass was not allowed to be said in public, nor was any bishop or clergyman of the Roman Catholic church to be permitted to seek to make converts for his faith. Other severe measures were enacted, and in the land which Catholics had settled, the members of that communion alone were de- nied the rights which in the day of their power they had offered to others. Nor did the royalist assembly manifest any care for the true interests of the province. Education was neglected ; the establishment of printing was prohibited : and the domestic manufac- tures which the necessities of the colony had brought into existence were discouraged. In 17 10 the population numbered over 30,000, free and slave. In 171$ Benedict Charles Calvert, the fourth Lord Baltimore, succeeded in obtain- ing the restoration of his rights in Maryland, and the province passed into his hands. The people had been so disgusted with the rule of the royal governors that no opposition was made to this change. The new Lord Baltimore, unlike the rest of his family, was a Protestant, which was the cause of his restoration to his hereditary rights. After his restoration the colony increased with still greater rapidity. The establishment of a post route in 1695, between the Potomac and Philadelphia, had brought it into com- munication with the Northern colonies. In 1729 the town of Baltimore was founded. Frederick City was settled in 1745, and in 175 1 was followed by Georgetown, now in the District of Columbia. In 1756 the pop- ulation of the colony had increased to 154,188 souls, of whom over 40.000 were negroes. The increase in material prosperity was equally marked. By the last-mentioned year the annual export of tobacco was 30,000 hogsheads, and, in spite of the efforts of the home government to prevent it, there were eight furnaces and nine forges for smelting copper in operation in the province. CHAPTER X The Pilgrim Fathers Rise of the Puritans — Their Increase in England — Tliey Are Persecuted by the English Church and Government — Conduct of James I. — His Hatred of Puritanism — Puritans Take Refuge in Holland — The Congregation of John Robinson — They Escape to Holland — The Pilgrims — Their Sojourn at Leyden — They Wish to Emigrate to Virginia — Failure of Their Negotiations with the London Company — They Form a Partnership in England — A Hard Bargain — Departure of the Pilgrims from Holland — Voyage of the " Mayflower" — Arrival in New England — The Agreement on Board the " Mayflower" — Carver Chosen Governor — Settlement of Plymouth — The First Winter in New England — Suff^erings of the Pilgrims — Arrival of New Emigrants — Continued Suffering — Assignment of Lands — Friendly In- tercourse with Indians — Samoset and Squanto — Visit of Massasoit — A Threat of War — Bradford's Defiance — West- on's Men — A Narrow Escape — The Colonists Purchase the Interests of Their English Partners — Lands Assigned in Fee Simple — The Colony Benefited by the Change — Government of Plymouth — Steady Growth of the Colony. THE persecutions with which Queen Mary afflicted the reformers of Ens^land in her bloody effort to re- store the Roman Catholic faith in that country caused many of the most emi- nent men of the English church to seek safety on the continent of Europe. Upon the accession of Elizabeth the Church of England became once more the religion of the state, and the reformers were free to re- turn to their own country. They came back with broader and more liberal views than they had carried away with them, and there sprang up in the English church a party which demanded a purer and more spiritual form of worship than that of the church. These persons were called in derision Puri- tans. They adopted the name without hesi- tation, and soon made it an honorable dis- tinction. The queen, however, was determined to compel her subjects to conform to the estab- lished church, and was especially resolved to make them acknowledge her supremacy over the church. To the Puritan the worship of the Church of England was only less sinful than that of Rome, and to acknowledge the queen as the head of the church was to com- mit blasphemy. He claimed that the queen had no control over him in matters of relig- ion, and that it was his right to worship God in his own way, without interference. The Puritans gradually came to embrace in their number some of the best men in the Eng- lish church. These sincerely deprecated a separation from the church, and earnestly desired to carry the reformation to the extent of remedying the abuses of which they complained, and to remain in communion with the church. One of the reforms which they wished to inaugurate was the abolition of Episcopacy. Failing in their efforts, they desired to be let alone to form their own or- ganizations and to worship God according to their own ideas, without the pale of the Church of England. The queen and the bishops were not con- tent to allow them this freedom. England had not yet learned the lesson of toleration, and severe measures were inaugurated to compel the dissenters to conform to the established church. All persons in the kingdom were required to conform to the ceremonies of the church. A refusal to do so was punished with banishment. Should any person so banished return to the king- dom without permission he was to be put to death. Accused persons were obliged to 121 122 SETTLEMENT OF AMERICA. answer upon oath all questions concerning themselves and their acquaintance, respect- ing their attendance upon public worship. Ministers refusing to conform to the estab- lished usage were deprived of their parishes; and if they persisted in preaching to their congregations, or if the congregations were detected in listening to their deposed pastors, the offenders were fined or subjected to some severe punishment. Absence from the ser- vices of the church for a certain length of time was also punished. The persecution thus inaugurated drove many of the noncon- formists, as they were termed, into exile from England. They fled to Holland and Swit- CHAIXED niBLE, TIME OF JAMES I. zerland, where alone they found " freedom to worship God." In spite of the severe meas- ures and determined efforts of Elizabeth, the Puritans increased steadily in numbers and importance in England. Persecution only served to multiply them. They were hopeful that James I. would prove a more lenient sovereign to them than Elizabeth had been, and they had good ground for this hope. The real character of James was unknown in England, and while King of Scotland he had shown great favor to the Presbyterians of that kingdom, whom it was his interest to conciliate. He had once publicly thanked God " that he was king of such a kirk — the purest kirk in all the world. As for the Kirk of England," he added, " its servn'ce is an evil-said mass." This most contemptible of monarchs had scarcely become King of England when he uttered the famous maxim, " No bishop, no king ! " Interest had made him the foe of Episcopacy in Scotland ; the same motive made him its champion in England. A Royal Demagogue. Upon his entrance into his new kingdom, the Puritans met him with an humble peti- tion for a redress of their grievances. James quickly saw that the majority of the E^nglish people favored a support of the church as it was, and had no sympathy with the Puri- tans, and he at once constituted himself the enemy of the petitioners. Still, in order to cover his desertion of the party to which he had belonged in Scotland, he appointed a conference at Hampton Court. The conference was held in January, 1604, and the king, silencing all real debate, made the meeting merely the occasion of display- ing what he regarded as his talents for theo- logical controversy, and for announcing the decision he had resolved upon from the first. He demanded entire obedience to the church in matters of faith and worship. " I will have none of that liberty as to ceremonies," he declared. " I will have one doctrine, one discipline, one religion in substance and in ceremony. Never speak more as to how far you are bound to obey." THE PILGRIM FATHERS. 123 The Puritans then demanded permission to hold occasional ceremonies of their own, with the right of free discussions in them ; but James, who could never tolerate the ex- pression of any opinion adverse to his own, replied : " You are aiming at a Scot's presby- tery, which agrees with monarchy as well as God and the devil. Then Jack and Tom and Will and Dick shall meet, and at their pleasure censure me and my council and all our proceedings. Then Will shall stand up and say. It must be thus. Then Dick shall reply and say, Nay, marry, but we will have it thus. And, therefore, here I must once more reiterate my former speech, and say, The king forbids." Then turning to the bishops, he added : " I Avill make them con- form, or I will harry them out of the land, or else worse ; only hang them ; that's all." Champions of Popular Liberty. The king kept his word. The severe laws against the nonconformists were enforced that year with such energy that three hun- dred Puritan ministers are said to have been silenced, imprisoned or exiled. The church party proceeded in the next few years to still more rigorous measures, and were willing even to place the liberties of the nation at the mercy of the crown in order to compel the submission of the Puritans. The intro- duction of foreign publications into the king- dom was greatly restricted, and the press was placed under a severe censorship. The Puritans were thus forced to become the champions of popular liberty against the tyranny of the crown and the ecclesiastical party. There was a congregation of Puritans in the north of England, composed of people of Lincolnshire and Nottinghamshire, with some from Yorkshire. The pastor was John Robinson, " a man not easily to be parallel- ed," who possessed in an unusual degree the love and confidence of his people. They were greatly harassed by the agents of the king and the bishops, and were subjected to such serious annoyances that it was with dif- ficulty that they could hold their meetings. Finding it impossible to live in peace at home without doing violence to their con- sciences, they determined to leave England and seek refuge from persecution in Holland. That country was friendly to the English, and the Dutch had learned from their own sufferings to respect the rights of conscience in others. It was not an easy matter to leave Eng- land, however, for it was held by the govern- ment to be almost a crime to attempt to escape from persecution. A vessel was hired to convey the refugees to Holland ; but the royal ofificers were informed of the intended voyage, and seized the whole com- pany as they were about to embark. Their persons were searched, their small posses- sions seized, and the whole church — men, women, and children — thrown into prison. In a short while all but seven were released. These were brought to trial, but it was found impossible to prove any crime against them, and they also were discharged. A Boat Stranded. This action of the government, so far from intimidating the sufferers, but increased their resolve to leave England, and in the spring of 1608 the effort was renewed. A Dutch captain consented to convey them to Hol- land, and it was agreed that the refugees should assemble upon a lonely heath in Lincolnshire, near the mouth of the H umber, and be taken on board by the Dutch skipper. The men of the party went to the rendezvous by land, and got safely on board the ship ; but the boat conveying the women and children was stranded and captured by a party of horsemen sent in pursuit. 124 THE PURITANS IN CONFERENCE WITH JAMES THE PILGRIM FATHERS. 125 The Dutch skipper, fearful of becoming in- volved in trouble with the English author- ities, at once put to sea, and the exiles were separated from their families, who were left helpless in the hands of their oppressors. The women and children were treated with great harshness by their captors, and were taken before the magistrates, who found it impossible to punish them for an attempt to follow the fortunes of their husbands and fathers. They were at loss to know what to do with the prisoners, who no longer had homes in England, and at last released them unconditionally, and permitted them to rejoin their natural protectors in Holland. The Pilgrims Discontented. The exiles reached Amsterdam in the spring of 1608. They were well pleased to be safe in this peaceful refuge, but they did not deceive themselves with the hope that it could ever be a home to them. " They knew they were Pilgrims, and looked not much on those things, but lifted up their eyes to Heaven, their dearest country, and quieted their spirits." They found it hard to earn a support in Amsterdam, and in 1609 removed to Leyden, where, by their industry and frugality, they managed to live in com- parative comfort. Their piety and exemplary conduct won for them the respect of the Dutch, who would have openly shown them marked favor but for their fear of offending the king of England. The magistrates of Leyden bore ready witness to their purity of life. " Never," said they, " did we have any suit or accusation against any of them.'' In the course of time the Pilgrims were joined by a number of their brethren from England. They were nearly all accustomed to agricultural pursuits, and in Holland they were obliged to earn their bread by mechan- ical labors. It was with difficulty that they could do this, and they never formed any attachment to the place of their exile. They preserved, through all their trials, their affec- tion for their native land, and cherished the hope that they might continue Englishmen to the close of their lives. They viewed with alarm the prospect of raising their children in Holland, where they would necessarily be thrown in constant contact with, and be in- fluenced by, the manners and customs of the country. Above all they dreaded the effect upon their children of the dissolute example of the disbanded soldiers and sailors who filled the country. These and other things made them unwilling to look upon Holland as their permanent home. But whither should the}'' go in case of their departure from Hol- land? Their own country was closed against them, and the nations of continental Europe could offer them no asylum. As their conviction, that it was their duty to seek some other home, deepened, their thoughts became more irresistibly directed towards the new world. In the vast soli- tudes of the American continent, and there alone, they could establish a home in which they could worship God without fear or molestation, and rear their children in the ways that seemed to them good. Thither would they go. Seeking a New Home. They were anxious to make their venture- under the protection of England, and de- clined the offers made them by the Dutch, who wished them to establish their colony as a dependency of Holland. They had heard of the excellent climate and fertile soil of Virginia, and it seemed best to them to choose that promising region as the scene of their experiment. It was necessary to obtain the consent of the London Company to their settlement, as Virginia had been granted to that body by the king of England ; and in 126 THE PILGRIMS AT PLYMOUTH. THE PILGRIM FATHERS. 127 1617 two of the leading members of the congregation — John Carver and Robert Cushman — went to England to lay their ap- plication before the company. They were kindly received by Sir Edwin Sandys, the secretary of the company. They laid before the directors the request for per- mission to form a settlement in Virginia, with which they had been charged by their breth- ren. The application was signed by the greater part of the congregation, and con- tained a statement of their principles, and their reasons for desiring to emigrate to America. " We verily believe that God is with "js," said the petitioners,' " and will pros- per us in our endeavors; we are weaned from our mother country, and have learned patience in a hard and strange land. We are industrious and frugal ; we are bound together by a sacred bond of the Lord, whereof we make great conscience, holding ourselves to each other's 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." Efforts to Reach America. The appeal of the Pilgrims was received with such favor by the London Company that Carver and Cushman ventured to peti- tion the king to grant them liberty to exer- cise their religion unmolested in the wilds of America. The most that James would con- sent to grant them, however, was a half promise to pay no attention to them in their new home. The London Company agreed to grant them permission to settle in Vir- ginia, but the dissensions of that body pre- vented anything from being done in their behalf. The Pilgrims were too poor to defray the cost of their emigration, and they set to work to find persons of means willing to assist them. At length they were successful, and a company was formed consisting of them- selves and several merchants of London. The latter were to advance the funds neces- sary for the enterprise, while the former were to contribute their entire services for a period of seven years as their share of the stock of the company. At the end of seven years the profits of the enterprise were to be divided according to the amount of each one's investment ; and it was agreed that a contribution of ten pounds in money by a merchant should be entitled to as great a share of the profits as seven years of labor on the part of the emigrant. Departure for the Ne"W World. These were hard terms for the Pilgrims, but they were the best they could obtain, and they were accepted, as the exiles were will- ing to suffer any sacrifice in order to be able to found a community of their own in which they could bring up their children in the fear of God. The main thing with them was to reach the shores of America. Once there these men who had learned the lessons ol' self-denial and endurance did not doubt their ability to succeed even in the face of the heavy disadvantages they were obliged to assume. With the funds thus obtained the Pilgrims began to prepare for their departure. A ship of sixty tons, called the " Speedwell," was purchased, and another, of one hundred and eighty tons, called the " Mayflower," was chartered. These, however, could trans- port but a part of the congregation, and it was resolved to send out at first only " such of the youngest and strongest as freely offered themselves." The pastor, Robinson, and the aged and infirm were to remain at Leyden until their brethren could send for them, and the colony was placed under the guidance of William Brewster, the governing elder, who was an able teacher and much 128 SETTLEMENT OF AMERICA. respected and beloved for his noble char- acter. When all was in readiness, a day of fasting and prayer was held, in order that at the very beginning of their enterprise the Pilgrims might invoke the guidance and protection of God. " Let us seek of God," they said, " a " I charge you before God and his blessed angels," he said, in tones of deep emotion, "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 re- ceive it ; for I am verily persuaded that the Lord has more truth yet to break out of his holy word. I beseech THE MAYFLOWER IN PLYMOUTH HARBOR right way for us, and for our little ones, and for all of our substance." The venerable pastor made this solemn season the occasion of delivering a tender farewell to the mem- bers of his charge who were about to depart, and of appealing to them to be true to the principles of their religion in their new home. you, remember that it is an article of your church covenant, that you be ready to re- ceive whatever truth shall be made known to you from the writ- ten word of God. Take heed what ye receive as truth ; examine it, consider it, and com- pare it with other scriptures of truth be- fore you receive it ; the Christian world has not yet come to the perfection of knowledge." From Leyden a number of the breth- ren accompanied the emigrants to Delft Haven, from which port they were to sail. The night before their departure, they all as- sembled in prayer and religious exercises, which were continued until the dawn, when they prepared to go on board the ship. Arrived at the shore, they knelt again, and the pastor, Robinson, led them in prayer — the emigrants listening to his voice for the last time on earth. "And so," says Edward Winslow, " lifting up our hands to each other, and THE PILGRIM FATHERS. 129 our hearts to the Lord our God, we de- parted." Southampton was soon reached, and the voyagers were transferred to the " May- flower "and the " Speedwell." On the fifth of August, 1620, those vessels sailed from Southampton for America. Soon after get- ting to sea, it was discovered that the " Speedwell " was in need of repairs, and that they must return to England. They put about and reached the port of Dartmouth, where the smaller vessel was repaired. Eight days were consumed in this undertak- ing, and the voyage was resumed. One Ship Abandoned. They were scarcely out of sight of land when the commander of the "Speedwell,'" alarmed by the dangers of the voyage, de- clared that his ship was not strong enough to cross the ocean. The vessels at once put back to Plymouth, where the smaller ship was discharged. At the same time those who had grown faint-hearted were permitted to withdraw from the expedition. The re- mainder of the company, to the number of one hundred and one, sailed from Plymouth in the " Mayflower," on the sixth of Septem- ber, 1620. Some of these were women well advanced in pregnancy, and some were children. Their little vessel was but a frail barque compared with the ships that now navigate the sea ; but a band of braver and more resolute souls never trusted themselves to the mercies of the stormy Atlantic. The leading man in the little band of Pilgrims was the ruling elder, William Brew- ster, who was to be their preacher until the arrival of a regularly chosen pastor. He was a man of fine education, refined and scholarly tastes, and of pure and lofty Chris- tian character. " He laid his hand," says Elliott, "to the daily tasks of life, as well as spent his soul in trying to benefit his fellows 9 — so bringing himself as near as possible 'lo the early Christian practices ; he was worthy of being the first minister of New England." He was well advanced in life, and was looked up to with affectionate regard by his associates. Another was John Carver, also a man of years and ripe experience, who had sacrificed^ his fortune to the cause, and whose dignified and benevolent character won him the honor of being chosen the first chief magistrate of the colony. GOVERNOR BREWSTER S CHAIR. Prominent among the leaders was William Bradford. He was only thirty-two, but was, a man of earnest and resolute character, firm and true, "a man of nerve and public spirit." He had begun life as a farmer's boy in Eng- land, and in Holland had supported himself by practising tlie art of dyeing; but, in spite of his constant labors, he had educated him self and had managed to accumulate books of his own. He systematically devoted a large I30 SETTLEMENT OF AMERICA. part of his time to study, and thus carefully trained his great natural abilities. Edward Winsiow, a man of sweet and amiable disposition, was twenty-six years old. He was a gentleman by birtli, and had been well educated, and had acquired consider- able information and experience by travel. Miles Standish • had attained the manly age of thirty-six, and was a veteran soldier. He had seen service in the wars of the con- tinent of Europe, and had gained an honor- able distinction in them. He was not a member of the church, but was strongly at- tached to its institutions. " With the people of God he had chosen to suffer affliction ; Jn return for his zeal, they made him Captain of Plymouth ; He was a man of honor, of noble and generous na- ture ; Though he was rough, he was kindly .... Somewhat hasty and hot .... and headstrong, Stern as a soldier might be, but hearty and placable always. Not to be laughed at and scorned, because he was little of stature ; For he was great of heart, magnanimous, courtly, courageous." Tempestuous Voyage, The voyage of the " Mayflower " was long and stormy. The Pilgrims had selected the country near the mouth of the Hudson as the best region for their settlement, but a severe storm drove them northward to the coast of New England. Sixty-three days were con- sumed in the passage, during which, one of their number had died, and at length land was made, and two days later, the " May- flower " cast anchor in the harbor of Cape Cod. The Pilgrims had come to America at their own risk and without the sanction of, or a charter from, the king or any lawful organization in England. They were thrown upon their own resources, and could look to no quarter for protection or support. Appre- ciating the necessity of an organized govern- ment, their first acts after anchoring in Cape Cod bay were to organize themselves into a body politic and to form a government. The First Compact. The following compact was drawn up m the cabin of the " Mayflower," and was signed by all the men of the colony, to the number of forty-one : " In the name of God, amen ; we whose names are underwritten, the loyal subjects of our dread sovereign King James, having undertaken, for the glory of God and advancement of the Christian faith, and honor of our king and country, a voyage to plant the first colony in the north- ern parts of Virginia, do, by these presents, solemnly and mutually, in the presence of God and of one another, covenant and com- bine ourselves together, in a civil body politic, for our better ordering and preserva- tion, and furtherance of the ends aforesaid; and by virtue hereof, to enact, constitute and frame such just and equal laws, ordinances, acts, constitutions and offices, from time to time, as shall be thought most convenient for the general good of the colony, unto which we promise all due submission and obedience." This was the first constitution of New England, democratic in form, and resting upon the consent of the governed. It at once established the new commonwealth upon the basis of constitutional liberty, and secured to the people "just and equal laws " for the " general good." In virtue of the compact, John Carver was chosen governor of the colony for the ensuing year. The prospect which presented itself to the Pilgrims upon their arrival at Cape Cod might well have daunted even their resolute souls. It was the opening of the winter, and they had come to a barren and rugged coast. THE PILGRIM FATHERS. i^.i The climate was severe, and the land was a wilderness. The English colony in Virginia was five hundred miles distant, and to the north of them the nearest white settlement was the French colony at Port Royal. The " Mayflower " was only chartered to convey them to America, and must return to Eng- land as soon as they had chosen a site and established a settlement. Yet no one fal- tered. The new land was reached, the diffi- culties and dangers were such as could be overcome by patience and fortitude, and the Pilgrims without hesitation addressed them- selves to the task before them. Planting the Colony. The first thing to be done was to explore the coast and choose a site for the colony, for it was important to begin their settlement before the severity of the winter should ren- der such an effort impossible. The shallop was gotten out, but unfortunately it was found to need repairs. The ship's carpenter worked so slowly that nearly three weeks were spent in this task. This delay was a great misfortune at this advanced season of the year, and, some of the party becoming impatient, it was resolved to go ashore in the ship's boat and explore the country by land. A party of sixteen men was detailed for this purpose, and placed under the command of Captain Miles Standish. William Bradford, Stephen Hopkins and Edward Tilly were included in the party as a council of war. The explorers were given numerous instruc- tions, and were rather permitted than ordered to go upon their journey, which was regarded as perilous, and the time of their absence was limited to two days. Upon reaching the shore they followed it for about a mile, when they discovered sev- eral Indians watching them from a distance. The savages fled as soon as they saw they were observed, and the whites followed in pursuit. They struck the trail of the retreat- ing Indians, and followed it until nightfall, but being encumbered by the weight of their armor and impeded by the tangled thickets through which they had to pass, they were unable to overtake the Indians. The explorers bivouacked that night by a clear LANDING OF THE PILGRIMS. spring, whose waters refreshed them after their fatiguing march. They made few dis- coveries, but the expedition was not entirely unprofitable. An Indian Graveyard. In one place they found a deer-trap, made by bending a young tree to the earth, with a noose underground covered with acorns. Mr. Bradford was caught by the foot in this snare, which occasioned much merriment. n2 SETTLEMENT OF AMERICA. An Indian graveyard was discovered in another place, and in one of the graves there was an earthen pot, a mortar, a bow and some arrows, and other rude implements. T liese were carefully replaced by the whites, \\ho respected the resting-place of the dead. The most important discovery was the find- ing of a cellar or pit carefully lined with bark, and covered over with a heap of sand, and containing about four bushels of seed corn in ears. As much of this as the men could carry was secured, and it was deter- mined to pay the owners of the corn for it as soon as they could be found. Searching the Neighborhood. The shallop being finished at length, a party, consisting of Carver, Bradford, Wins- low, Standish and others, with eight or ten seamen, was sent out on a second expedition on the sixth of December. The weather was very cold, and their clothing, drenched with spray, froze as stiff as iron armor. They reached the bottom of Cape Cod bay that day, and landed, instructing the people in the shallop to follow them along the shore. The next day they divided, and searched the neighborhood. They found a number of Indian graves, and some deserted wigwams, but saw no signs of the inhabitants of the country. That night they encamped near Namtasket, or Great Meadow Creek. On the morning of the eighth of December, just as they had finished their prayers, the explorers were startled by a war-whoop and a flight of Arrows. The Indians, who were of the tribe of the Nausites, were put to flight by the dis- charge of a few guns. Some of their people had been kidnapped by the English a few years before, and hence they regarded the new-comers as bent on the same errand. The day Avas spent in searching for a safe harbor for the siiip, and at nightfall a violent storm of rain and snow drove them through the breakers into a small cove sheltered from the gale by a hill. They were so wet and chilled that they landed at once, and, regardless of the danger of drawing the sav- ages upon them, built a fire with great diffi- culty, in order to keep from perishing with the cold. When the morning dawned they found that they were on an island at the entrance to a harbor. The day was spent in rest and preparations. The next day, December loth, was the Sabbath, and, notwithstanding the need of prompt action, they s[)cnt it in rest and religious exercises. The next day, Decem- ber II, 1620, old style, or December 22d, according to our present system, the explor- ing party of the Pilgrims landed at the head of the harbor they had discovered. The rock upon which their footsteps were first planted is still preserved by their descendants. The place was explored and chosen as the site of the settlement, and was named Plymouth, in memory of the last English town from which the Pilgrims had sailed. Anchored at Plymouth. The adventurers hastened back to the ship, which stood across the bay, and four days later cast anchor in Plymouth harbor. No time was to be lost; the " Mayflower " must soon return to England, and the emigrants must have some shelter over their heads be- fore her departure. To save time each man was allowed to build his own house. This was a most arduous task. Many of the men were almost broken down by their ex- posure to the cold, and some had alread}' contracted the fatal diseases which were to carry them to the grave before the close c f the winter. Still they persevered, working bravely when the absence of rain and snow would permit them to do so. As the winter deepened, the sickness and mortality of the colony increased. At one THE PILGRIM FATHERS. 133 time there were but seven well men in the company. More than forty of the settlers died during the winter. John Carver, the good governor of the colony, buried his son, and himself soon succumbed to the hardships from which he had never shrunk, though never able to endure them. He was followed by his heart-broken widow. The wives of Bradford and Winslow, and Rose Standish, the sweet young bride of "the Captain of Plymouth" were also among the victims. They were all buried on the shore near the rock on which they had landed, and lest their graves should tell the Indians of the sufferings and weak- ness of the settlement, their resting-place was levelled and sown with grass. William Brad- ford was chosen gov- ernor in the place of Carver, and the work went on with firm- ness and without re- pining. At last the long win- ter drew to a close, and the balmy spring came to cheer the settlers with its bright skies and warm breezes. The sick began to recover, and the building of the settlement was completed. In course of time a large shed was erected for the public stores, and a small hospital for the sick. A church was also built. It was made stronger than the other buildings, as it was to serve as a fortress as well as a place of worship, and four cannon were mounted on top of it for defence against the savages. Here they assembled on the Sabbath for religious worship, and to hear the word of God from the lips of their pastor, the good Elder Brewster. In the spring the ground was prepared for cultivation, but until the harvest was grown the colonists lived by fishing and hunting. No Wish to Leave the Wilderness. In March, 1 621, the " Mayflower " sailed for England. Not one of the Pilgrims wished to return in her. They had their trials, and these were sore and heavy, but they had also made a home and a govern- HE FIRST CHURCH IN NEW ENGLAND. ment for themselves, where they could enjoy the benefits and protection of their own laws, and worship God in safety and in peace. They did not doubt that they would some day triumph over their difficulties, and that God would in His own good time crown their labors and their patience with success. In the autumn of 1621, a reinforcement of new emigrants arrived. They brought no provisions, and were dependent upon the scanty stock of the colony, and the increased 134 SETTLEMENT OF AMERICA. demand upon this soon brought the settlers face to face with the danger of famine. For six months no one received more than half allowance, and this was frequently reduced. "'I have seen men," says Winslow, " stagger by reason of faintness for want of food." On one occasion the whole company would have perished but for the kindness of some fishermen, who relieved their wants. Every Man for Himself. This .scarcity of provisions continued for several years, and it was not until the end of the fourth year of the settlement that the colonists had anything like a proper supply of food. In that year neat cattle were intro- duced into Plymouth. None of the colonies were called upon to endure such privations as were suffered by the Pilgrims. Yet they bore them with unshaken fortitude, still trusting that God would give them a pleas- anter lot in the end. The conditions of the contract with the English merchants had required the labor of the colonists to be thrown into the common stock. This was found to be an unprofitable arrangement, and in 1623 it was agreed that each settler should plant for himself, and each family was assigned a parcel of land in pro- portion to its numbers, to cultivate, but " not for an inheritance." This arrangement gave great satisfaction and the colonists went to work with such a will that after this season there was no scarcity of food. In the spring of 1624 each colonist was given a little land in fee. The very existence of the colony de- manded this departure from the hard bargain with the English merchants, and the result justified the measure. Abundant harvests rewarded the labors of the settlers, and corn soon became so plentiful that the colonists were able to supply the savages with it. These, preferring the chase to the labor of the field, brought in game and skins to Plymouth and received corn in return. In the meantime a friendly intercourse had sprung up between the settlers and the Indians. In the first year of the settlement the red men were seen hovering upon the outskirts of the village, but they fled upon the approach of the whites. Distant columns of smoke, rising beyond the woods, told that the savages were close at hand, and it was deemed best to organize the settlers into a military company, the command of which was given to Miles Standish. One day, in March, 162 1, the whole village was startled by the appearance of an Indian, who boldly entered the settlement, and greeted the whites with the friendly words, " Welcome, English- men ! Welcome, Englishmen ! " A Romantic History. He was kindly received, and it was found that he was Samoset, and had learned a little English of the fishermen at Penobscot. He belonged to the Wampanoags, a tribe oc- cupying the country north of Narragansett Bay and between the rivers of Providence and Taunton. He told them that they might possess the lands they had taken in peace, as the tribe to which they had belonged had been swept away by a pestilence the year be- fore the arrival of the Pilgrims. He re- mained one night with the settlers, who gave him a knife, a ring, and a bracelet, and then went back to his people, promising to return soon and bring other Indians to trade with them. In a few days he came back, bring- ing with him Squanto, the Indian who had been kidnapped by Hunt and sold in Spain. From that country Squanto had escaped to England, where he had learned the lan- guage. He had managed to return to his own country, and now appeared to act as interpreter to the English in their inter- course with his people. They announced THE PILGRIM FATHERS. 135 that Massasoit, the sachem of the Wampa- noags, desired to visit the colony. The chieftain was received with all the ceremony the little settlement could afford. Squanto acted as interpreter, and a treaty of friendship was arranged between Massasoit on behalf of his people and the English. Friendly Agreement. The parties to the agreement promised to treat each other with kindness and justice, to deliver up offenders, and to assist each other when attacked by their enemies. This treaty was faithfully observ- ed by both parties for fifty years. The Pil- grims expressed their willingness to pay for the baskets of corn that had been taken by their first explor- ing party, and this they did six months later, when the right- ful owners presented themselves. A trade with the Indians was established and furs were brought into Plymouth by them and sold for articles of European manu- facture. Squanto was the faithful friend of the col- ony to the end of his life, and was regarded by the Pilgrims as " a special instrument sent of God for their good beyond their expecta- tion." He taught them the Indian method of planting corn and putting fish with it to fer- tilize the ground, and where to find and how to catch fish and game. He showed them his friendship in many ways, and was during liis lifetime the interpreter of the colony. The Pilgrims on their part were not ungrate- ful to him. On one occasion it was rumored in Ply- fnouth that Squanto had been seized by the Narragansetts, and had been put to death. A party of ten men at once marched into the forest, and surprised the hut where the chief of the Narragansetts was. Although the tribe could bring five thousand war- riors into the field, the chief was overawed by the determined action of the English, whose firearms gave them a great superi- ority, and Squanto was released unharmed. On his death-bed Squanto, who had been THE TREATY BETWEEN PLYMOUTH COLONY AND MASSASOIT. carefully nursed by his white friends, asked the governor to pray that he might go to "the Englishman's God in Heaven." His death was regarded as a serious misfortune to the colony. The Great Chief Massasoit. Massasoit, whose tribe had been greatly reduced by pestilence, desired the alliance of the English as a protection against the Nar- ragansetts, who had escaped the scourge, and whose chief, Canonicus, was hostile to him. 136 SETTLEMENT OF AMERICA. The Narragansetts lived upon the shores of the beautiful bay to which they have given their name, and were a powerful and warlike race. Canonicus regarded the English with hostility, and in 1622 sent them as a defiance a bundle of arrows wrapped in the skin of a rattlesnake. Governor Bradford received the challenge from the hands of the chieftain's messenger, and stuffing the skin with powder and ball re- turned it to him, and sternly bade him bear it back to his master. The Indians regarded the mysterious contents of the skin with ter- ror and dread, and passed it from tribe to tribe. None dared either keep or destroy it, as it was regarded as possessed of some mys- terious but powerful influence for harm. It was finally returned to the colony, and in a short while Canonicus, who had been cowed by the spirited answer of Bradford, offered to make a treaty of peace and alliance with the colony. The Pilgrims endeavored to treat the Indians with justice. Severe penalties were denounced against those who should deprive the savages of their property without paying for it, or should treat them with violence. Yet the colonists were to have trouble with the red men, and that through no fault of their own. It happened on this wise. A Timely \Varning. Among the merchants of London who had invested money in the planting of the Ply- mouth colony was Thomas Weston. Envi- ous of the advance made by the colony in the fur trade, he desired to secure all the profits of that traffic by establishing a trading- post of his own. He obtained a patent for a small tract on Boston harbor, near Wey- mouth, and settled there a colony of sixty men, the greater number of whom were in- dentured servants. These men, disregarding the warnings of the people of Plymouth, gave themselves up to a dissolute life, and drew upon themselves the wrath of the Indians by maltreating them, and stealing their corn. The Indians, unable to distinguish between the guilty and the innocent, resolved to avenge the misconduct of Weston's men by a massacre of every white settler in thecoun- try. Before the plot could be put in execution Massasoit fell sick. Winslow visited him, and found his lodge full of medicine-men and jugglers, who were killing him with the noise they made to drive away the disease. The kind-hearted Englishman turned the Indian doctors out of the lodge, and by giv- ing Massasoit rest, and administering such remedies as his case required, restored him to health. The grateful chief revealed the plot of his people for the extermination of the English. The Plymouth settlers were greatly alarmed, and measures were promptly taken to avert the danger. Nine White Braves. Standish, with eight armed men, was sent to the assistance of the settlement at Wey- mouth. They arrived in time to prevent the attack. The Indians, who had begun to collect for the massacre, were surprised and defeated in a brief engagement, and the chief, who was the leader of the conspiracy, was slain, with a number of his men. This gallant exploit established the supremacy of the English in New England, and many of the native tribes sought their friendship and alliance. The Weymouth men were unwill- ing to continue their colony after their nar- row escape. Some went to Plymouth where they became a source of trouble, and others returned to England. The spring of 1623 saw the last of this settlement. In the autumn of 1623 the best harvest was gathered in that had yet blessed the labors of the Pilgrims. It was an abundant THI': PILGRIM FATHERS. 137 yield, and put an end to alf fears of a re- newal of the danger of famine. When the labors of the harvest were over Governor 'Bradford sent out men to collect game, in order that the people might enjoy a thanks- giving feast. On the appointed day the people " met together and thanked God with all their hearts for the good world and the good things in it." Thus was established the custom of an annual thanksgiving to God for the blessings of the year, which though at first a celebration peculiar to New England has at length become a national festival. Each Settler a Land Owner. The colonists themselves were satisfied with the progress they had made, but their merchant partners in England were greatly displeased with the smallness of the profits they had received from their investments, and in many ways made the colony feel their dissatisfaction. Robinson and his congrega- tion at Leyden were anxious to join their friends in America, but the merchant partners refused to send them across the Atlantic, and not content with this endeavored to force upon the Plymouth people a pastor friendly to the Church of England. They soon got rid of this individual, however, whose con- duct quickly enabled them to expel him from Plymouth as an evil liver. The merchants also sent a vessel to New England to oppose the colonists in the fur trade ; and demanded exorbitant prices for the goods they sold the settlers, charging them the enormous profit of seventy per cent. It was not possible, however, to destroy the results of the industry and self-denial of the Pilgrims. Seeing that their association with their English partners would continue to operate merely as a drag upon the advance of the colony, they managed in 1627, at con- siderable sacrifice, tc^ purchase the entire interest of their partners. The stock and the land of the colony were then divided equitably among the settlers, and the share of each man became his own private prop- erty. Each settler was thus made the owner of a piece of land which it was to his in- terest to improve to the highest degree pos- sible. Freed from the burdens under which it had labored for so long, the colony began to increase in prosperity and in population. The government of the Pilgrims was sim- ple, but effective. They had no charter, and were from the first driven upon their own resources. They had a governor who was chosen by the votes of all the settlers. In 1624 a council of five was given him, and in 1633 this number was increased to seven. The council assisted the governor in the ex- ercise of his duties, and imposed a check upon his authority, as in its meetings he had merely a double vote. The whole number of male settlers for eighteen years constituted the legislative body. They met at stated times, and enacted such laws as were neces- sary for the welfare of the colony. The people were frequently convened by the gov- ernor, in the earlier years of the settlement, to aid him with their advice upon difficult questions brought before them. When the colony increased in population, and a number of towns were included within its limits, each town sent representatives to a general court at Plymouth. If the colony grew slowly, it grew steadily, and at length the Pilgrims had their reward in seeing their little settlement expand into a flourishing province, in which the principles of civil freedom were cherished, religion honored, and industry and economy made the basis of the Vv'ealth of the little state. CHAPTER XI Settlement of Massachusetts and Rhode Island Settlement of New Hampshire — T le English Puritans Determine to Form a New Colony in America — The Plymouth Council — A Colony Sent Out to Salem under Endicott — Colonization of Massachusetts Bay Begun — A Charter Obtained — Concessions of the King — Progress of the Salem Colony — The Charter and Government of the Colony Removed to New England — Arrival of Governor Winthrop — Settlement of Boston — Sufferings of the Colonists — Roger Williams — His Opinions Give Offence to the Authorities — The Success of the Bay Colony Established — Growth of Popular Liberty — The Ballot Box — Banishment of Roger Williams — He Goes into the Wilderness — Founds Providence — Growth of Williams' Colony — Continued Growth of Massachusetts — Arrival of Sir Henry Vane — Is Elected Governor — Mrs. Anne Hutchinson — The Antinomian Controversy — Mrs. Hutchinson Banished — Settlement of Rhode Island — Murder of Mrs. Hutchinson. THE success of the Pilgrims in es- tablishing the Plymouth colony aroused a feeling of deep interest in England, and some of those who had watched the effort were encouraged to attempt ventures of their own. Sir Ferdi- nand Gorges, who had taken a deep interest in the schemes to settle the new world, and John Mason, the secretary of the council of Plymouth, obtained a patent for the region called Laconia, which comprised the whole country between the sea, the St. Lawrence, the Merrimac and the Kennebec, and now embraced partly in Maine and partly in New Hampshire. A company of English mer- chants was formed, and in 1623 permanent colonies were established at Portsmouth, Dover and one or two other places near the mouth of the Piscataqua. These were small, feeble settlements, and were more trading- posts than towns. . For many years their growth was slow, and it was not until other parts of New England were well peopled and advanced far beyond their early trials that they began to show signs of prosperity. In 1653, thirty years after its settlement, Portsmouth con- tained only "between fifty and sixty families." The settlers of these towns were not all 138 Puritans, and their colonies had not the re- ligious character of those of the rest of New England. In 1641, they were annexed at their own request to the province of Massa- chusetts, the general court having agreed not to require the freemen and deputies to be church members. In the meantime the news of the successful planting of Plymouth was producing other and more important results in England. The persecutions of the Non-conformists,, which marked the entire refgn of James I., were continued through that of his son and successor, Charles I. The Puritans, sorely distressed by the tyranny to which they were subjected, listened with eagerness to the ac- counts of America which were sent over by the members of the Plymouth colony, and published from time to time in England. The descriptions of the Pilgrims were not exaggerated. They did not promise either fame or sudden wealth to settlers in their province, but clearly set forth the cares and labors which were to be the price of success in America. They dwelt with especial emphasis, how- ever, upon that which was in their eyes the chief reward of all their toil and suffering — the ability to exercise their religion without SETTLEMENT OF MASSACHUSETTS AND RHODE ISLAND. 139 restraint. Their brethren in England heard their accounts with a longing to be with them to enjoy the freedom with which they were blessed, and it was not long before a number of English Non-conformists began to concert measures for making New Eng- land a place of refuge for the persecuted members of their faith. The leading spirit in these enterprises was the Rev. Mr. White, a minister of Dorsetshire, a Puritan, but not a Separatist. Re- garding the vicinity of the present town of Salem as the most suitable place for colonization, he exerted himself with energy to se- cure it for his brethren. In the meantime the Plymouth Company had ceased to exist, and its place had been taken by the council of Plymouth. That body cared for New England only as a source of profit, and soJd the ter- ritory of that region to a number of purchasers, assigning the same district to different people, and thus paving the way for vexa- tious litigation. In 1628, it sold to a company of gentlemen of Dorchester, which White's energy had succeeded in bringing into existence, a district extending from three miles south of Massachusetts Bay to three miles north of the Merrimac River. As was usual in all grants of the day, the Pacific was made the western boundary of this region. This company was at once prepared to send out a colony, and in the early summer of that year one hundred persons under John Endicott, as governor, were despatched to New England. Endicott took his family with him, and in September, 1628, reached New England, and established the settlement of Salem, the site of which was already occu- pied by a few men whom White had placed there to hold 't. Endicott, who was a man JOHN ENDICOTT. of undaunted courage and acknowledged in- tegrity of character, soon established his authority over the few settlements that had sprung up along the shores of the bay. At this time the site of Charlestown was occupied by an Englishman named Thomas Walford, a blacksmith, who had fortified his cabin with a palisade. The only dweller on the 140 SETTLEMENT OF AMERICA. tri-mountain peninsula of Shawmi-.t was the Rev. William Blackstone, a clergyman of the Church of England ; the island now known as East Boston was occupied by Samuel Maverick. At Nantasket and a few places farther south some Englishmen had located themselves, and lived by fishing and trading in skins : and on the site of Quincy was the wreck of a colony which had nearly perished in consequence of its evils ways. These, with the settlement at Salem, constituted the colony of Massachusetts Bay. Arrivals at Salem. Soon after the departure of Endicott's colony from England, the company, acting upon the advice of their counsel, obtained from the king a confimation of their grant. In March, 1629, the king granted to the colony of Massachusetts Bay a charter under which it conducted its affairs for more than fifty years. By the terms of this charter the governor was to be elected by the free- men for the term of one year, provision was made for the assembling at stated times of a general court, which was to have the power to make all the needed laws for the colony, and it was not necessary that these laws should receive the royal signature in order to be valid. This was conceding practical inde- pendence to the colony. In the spring of 1629, a second company of emigrants sailed from England for Massa- chusetts. They were, like the first, all Puri- tans, and took with them, as their minister, the Rev. Francis Higginson, formerly of Jesus College, Cambridge, a man of learn- ing and deep piety. The colonists were instructed to do no violence to the Indians. •" If any of the salvages," so read the com- pany's orders, " pretend right of inheritance to all or any part of the lands granted in our patent, endeavor to purchase their tytle, that we may avoid the least scruple of intrusion." Six shipwrights were sent over for the use of the colony, an experienced engineer to lay out a fortified town, and a master gun- ner, who was to teach the men of the colony the use of arms and military exercises. Cattle and horses and goats were sent out also. The voyage was prosperous, and the new settlers reached Salem about the last of June. They found the settlement in a feeble con- dition, and greatly in need of their assistance. The old and the new colonists numbered about three hundred. The majority of these remained at Salem, and the rest were sent by Endicott to establish a colony at Charles- town, in order to secure that place from occupation by the partisans of Sir Ferdi- nand Gorges, who claimed the region. The emigrants were scrupulous to acquire from the Indians the right to the lands they occu- pied. The twelfth of July was observed as a day of fasting and prayer " for the choice of a pastor and teacher at Salem." No one advanced any claim founded on his ordination in England ; personal fitness was the only qualification recognized by the Puritans. Samuel Skelton was chosen pastor, and Francis Higginson teacher. The Brownes Cast Out. Three or four of the gravest members of the church laid their hands upon the heads of these men, with prayer, and solemn- ly appointed them to their respective offices. " Thus the church, like that of Plymouth, was self-constituted, on the principle of the independence of each religious community. It did not ask the assent of the king, or recognize him as its head; its ofificers were set apart and ordained among themselves ; it used no liturgy; it rejected unnecessary ceremonies, and reduced the simplicity of Calvin to a still plainer standard. The motives which controlled its decisions were SETTLEMENT OF MASSACHUSETTS AND RHODE ISLAND. 141 so deeply seated that its practices were repeated spontaneously by Puritan New England." An opposition to the organiza- tion of the church was attempted by a party led by John and Samuel Browne, men of ability; but this was treated as a mutiny and put down, and the Brownes were sent back to England. The charter of Massachusetts, though it made liberal concessions to the colony, contained no provision for the rights of the people, who were left at the mercy of the company. For the proper government of the colony, it was necessary to re- move the charter to Massachusetts, and such a removal was advisable on another ground. The charter contained no guar- antee for the reglious freedom of the co- lony, and the king might at any moment seek to interfere with this, the most pre- cious right of the Puritans. The only way to escape the evils which the com- pany had reason to dread was for the governing council to change its place of meeting from England to Massachu- setts, which the provisions of the charter gave it authority to do. An Independent Colony. On the twenty-sixth of August, 1629, John Winthrop, Isaac Johnson, Thomas Dudley, Richard Saltonstall and eight others, men of fortune and education, met at Cambridge and bound them- selves by a solemn agreement to settle in New England if the whole government of the colony, together with the patent, should be legally transferred to that region before the end of September. On the twenty- ninth of the month, the court took the de- cisive step and ordered that " the govern- ment and patent should be settled in New England." This was a bold step, but its legality was not contested by any one, and it made the government of the colony independ- ent of control by any power in England. The officers of the colony were to be a governor and eighteen assistants. On the twentieth of October, a meeting of the court was held to choose them, and John Winthrop was elected governor for one year. It was a fortunate selection, for Winthrop proved himself for many years the very mainstay of the colony, sustaining his companions by his calm courage, and setting them a noble ex- JOHN WINTHROP. ample in his patience, his quiet heroism and his devotion to the welfare of others. He seemed to find his greatest pleasure in doing good, and his liberality acted as a check upon the bigotry of his associates and kept them in paths of greater moderation. Efforts were made to send over new settlers to Massachusetts, and about a thousand emigrants, with cattle, horses and goats, were transported thither in the season of 1630. 142 SETTLEMENT OF AMERICA. Early in April, Governor Winthrop and about seven hundred emigrants sailed from England in a fleet of eleven ships. Many of them were " men of high endowments and large fortune; scholars, well versed in the learning of the times ; clergymen who ranked among the best educated and most pious in the realm." Death Among the Settlers. They reached Salem on the twelfth of June, after a voyage of sixty-one days, and were gladly welcomed by the settlers, whom they found in great distress from sickness and a scarcity of provisions. About eighty had died during the winter, and many were sick. There was scarcely a fortnight's sup- ply of food in the settlement, and it was nec- essary to send one of the ships back to Eng- land at once for a supply of provisions. Salem did not please the new-comers, and settlements were made at Lynn, Charles- town, Newtown, Dorchester, Roxbury, Mai- den and Watertown. The governor and a large part of the emigrants settled first at Charlestown,but at length, in order to obtain better water, crossed over and occupied the little tri-mountain peninsula of Shawmut. To this settlement was given the name of Boston, in honor of the town in Lincolnshire in England, which had been the homeofthe Rev. John Wilson, who became the pastor of the first church of Boston. The location was central to the whole province, and Bos- ton became the seat of government. When the year for which the first colonial officers had been chosen expired a new election was held, and Governor Winlhrop and all the old officials were re-elected. Terrible Sufferings. The colonists now began to feel the effects of their new life. The change of climate was very trying to them, and many of them fell victims to its rigors, and to the hardships of their position. A large number ofthem had been brought up in ease and refinement, and were unaccustomed to privation or exposure. They sank beneath the severe trials to which they were subjected. By December, 1630, at least two hundred had died. Among these were the Lady Arbella Johnson and her husband, among the most liberal and de- voted supporters of the colony, and a son of Governor Winthrop, who left a widow and children in England. Others became dis- heartened, and more than a hundred returned to England, Avhere they endeavored to ex- cuse their desertion of their companions by grossly exaggerated accounts of the hard- ships of the colony. Patient Endurance. Yet among the colonists themselves there was no repining. They exhibited in their deep distress a fortitude and heroism worthy of thefr lofty character. " Honor is due," says Bancroft, " not less to those who per- ished than to those who survived ; to the martyrs the hour of death was the hour of triumph ; such as is never witnessed in more tranquil seasons. ***** Even children caught the spirit of the place ; awaited the impending change in the tranquil confidence of faith, and went to the grave full of immor- tality. The survivors bore all things meekly, ' remembering the end of their coming hither.'" Winthrop wrote to his wife, who had been detained in England by sickness: " We enjoy here God and Jesus Christ, and is not this enough? I thank God I like so well to be here, as I do not repent my com- ing. I would not have altered my course though I had foreseen all these afflictions. I never had more content of mind." Another danger which threatened the colony arose from the scarcity of provisions, but this was removed on the fifth of February, i63i,by the timely arrival of the "Lyon" from England, laden with provisions. This relief was greeted with public thanksgivings SETTLEMENT OF MASSACHUSETTS AND RHODE ISLAND. 143 in all the settlements. The " Lyon," how- ever, brought only twenty passengers, and in 163 1 only ninety persons came out from England. The number of arrivals in 1632 was only two hundred and fifty. Thus the colony grew very slowly. By the close of the latter year the total population of Massa- chusetts was only a little over one thousand souls. Sketch of Roger Williams. Among the passengers of the "Lyon" was a young minister, described in the old records as " lovely in his carriage, godly and zealous, having precious gifts," Roger Williams by name. He had been a favorite pupil of the great Sir Edward Coke, and had learned from him precious lessons of liberty and toleration. He had been carefully edu- cated at Pembroke College, in the University of Cambridge, and had entered the ministry. His opposition to the laws requiring con- formity to the established church had drawn upon him the wrath of Archbishop Laud, and he had been driven out of England. The great doctrine which he had em- braced as the result of his studies and ex- perience was the freedom of conscience from secular control. " The civil magistrate should restrain crime, but never control opinion; should punish guilt, but never violate inward freedom." He would place all forms of religion upon an equality, and would refuse to the government the power to com- pel conformity to, or attendance upon, any of them, leaving such matters to the con- science of the individual. He also favored the abolition of tithes, and the enforced con- tribution to the support of the church. Such views were far in advance of the age, and when Williams landed in Boston he found himself unable to join the church in that place, because of its adoption of prin- ciples the opposite of his own. Upon his arrival the church had intended engaging him to fill Mr. Wilson's place, while that minister returned to England to bring over his wife, but upon learning his views the idea was abandoned. A little later the church in Salem, which had been deprived of its teacher by the death of the Rev. Francis Higginson, called Williams to be his successor, Williams accepted the call ; but Governor Winthrop and the assistants warned the people of Salem to beware how they placed in so important a position a man already at such variance with the established order of things. The warning had the de- sired effect upon the people of Salem, who withdrew their invitation. Williams then went to Plymouth, where he lived for two years in peace. An Oath of Fidelity. But though unwilling to accord to Williams the liberty he desired, the colonial govern- ment was careful to take every precaution against the anticipated efforts of the Church of England to extend its authority over Massachusetts. A general court held in May, 163 1, ordered an oath of fidelity to be tendered to the freemen of the colony, which bound them " to be obedient and conform- able to the laws and constitutions of this commonwealth, to advance its peace, and not to suffer any attempt at making any change or alteration of the government con- trary to its laws." The same general court took a still more decided stand by the adoption of a law which limited the citizen- ship of the colony to " such as are members of some of the churches within the limits of the same." This was practically making the state a theocracy. Yet the people were not prepared to sur- render their political rights, even when alarmed by the danger which seemed to 144 SETTLEMENT OF AMERICA. threaten their religious establishment. Until now the assistants could hold office for life and they also possessed the power of elect- ing the governor. They were thus inde- pendent of' the people. The right of the freemen to choose their magistrates was now distinctly asserted, and in May, 1632, was conceded. The governor and assistants were to be elected annually, and by the votes of the freemen ; none but church members being entitled to the privileges of freemen. Another important change was brought about at the same time by the hostility of the people to levying of taxes by the board of assistants. Each town was ordered to send two of its best men to represent it at a general court " to concert a plan for a public treasury." Friendly Mohegan Chief. The colonists had faithfully obeyed their instructions to treat the Indians with fair- ness, and to seek to cultivate their friend- ship. Many of the native tribes sought their alliance, and the sachem of the Mohegans came from the banks of the Connecticut to make a treaty with the colony, and to urge the English •to settle in his country, which he described as exceedingly fertile and inviting. In the autumn of 1632 a pleasant intercourse was opened with the Plymouth colony ; and in the same year a trade in corn was begun with Virginia, and commercial relations were established with the Dutch, who had settled along the Hudson River. The colony of Massachusetts Bay was slowly entering upon a more prosperous period. Emigrants now began to come over in greater numbers, and among them were John Haynes, " the acute and subtile Cotton," and Thomas Hooker, who have been called the " Light of the Western Churches." The freemen by the middle of the year 1634 numbered between three and four hundred. and these were bent upon establishing their political power in the state. Great advances were made in the direction of representative government, and the ballot-box was intro- duced in elections, which had been formerly conducted by an erection of hands. As a guard against arbitrary taxation by magis- trates it was enacted that none but the properly chosen representatives of the people might dispose of lands, or raise money. A Long Controversy. In the spring of 1635 the people went a step further, and demanded a written con- stitution for the purpose of still more per- fectly securing their liberties. This demand opened a controversy which continued for ten years. The general court was com- posed of assistants and deputies. The first were elected by the people of the whole colony ; the latter by the towns. The two bodies acted together in meetings of the assembly, but the assistants claimed the exclusive privilege of meeting and exercising a separate negative upon the proceedings of the court. This claim was energetically denied by the deputies, who were sustained by the body of the people; while the magistrates and the ministers upheld the pretensions of the assistants. In 1644 the matter was compromised by the division of the general court into two branches, each of which was given a negative upon the proceedings of the other. All parties were agreed, however, in the work of connecting the religion and the government of the colony so closely that they should mutually sustain each other against the attacks of the Church of England. While these measures were in course of adjustment other matters were engaging the attention of the colony. After Roger Will- iams had been a little more than two years in Plymouth, he was called again to Salem,, 10 RCGER WILLIAMS SEEKING REFUGE AMONG THE INDIANS. H5 146 SETTLEMENT OF AMERICA. and accepted the invitation. This gave offence to many persons, and in January, 1634, complaints were made against Williams because of a paper he had written while at Plymouth, denying that the king had any power to grant lands in America to his sub- jects, since the lands were the property of the Indians. In this Williams was wrong, as the settlers in New England had been care- ful to obtain the consent of the natives to their occupation of the lands they had pos- sessed. He made a proper explanation of his paper, when he understood the true state of the case, and consented that it should be burned. Williams will not Retract. Still the jealousy and dislike of the Puri- tans was aroused by the radical opposition of Williams to their system, although he conducted himself with a forbearance and amiableness that should have won him the love of those with whom he was thrown. Williams strongly condemned the law enforc- ing the attendance of the people upon reli- gious services, declaring that a man had a right to stay away if he wished to do so. He also censured the practice of selecting the colonial officials exclusively from the mem- bers of the church, and said that a physician or a pilot might with equal propriety be chosen because of his piety, his skill in theology, or his standing in the church. These and other similar views were drawn from him in a series of controversies, held with him by a committee of ministers, for the purpose of inducing him to retract his radical sentiments. He lemained firm in them, however, and his opponents declared that his principles were calculated not only to destroy religion, but also to subvert all forms of civil government. It was resolved to banish him from the colony, and as the people of Salem warmly supported Williams, they were admonished by the court, and a tract of land, which was rightfully theirs, was withheld from them as a punishment. Williams and the church at Salem appealed to the people against the in- justice of the magistrates, and asked the other churches of the colony to " admonish the magistrates of their injustice." This was regarded as treason by the colonial govern- ment, and at the next general court Salem was disfranchised until the town should make ample apology for its offence. Will- iams was summoned before the general court in October, 1635, and maintained his opinions with firmness, though with mod- eration. He was sentenced to banishment from the colony, not, as it was declared, because of his religious views, but because the magistrates averred his principles, if carried out, would destroy all civil govern- ment. A Fugitive in the Wilderness. The season was so far advanced that it would have been barbarous to drive any one out of the colony at that time, and Williams obtained leave to remain in the province until the spring, when he intended forming a settlement on Narragansett Bay. The affection of his people at Salem, which had seemed to grow cold when the town began to feel the weight of the punishment inflicted by the general court, now revived, and they thronged to his house in great numbers to hear him, and his opinions spread rapidly. The magistrates were alarmed, and it was resolved to send him at once to England in a ship that was just about to sail from Boston. He was ordered to come to Boston and embark there, but refused to obey the summons. A boat's crew was then sent to arrest him and bring him to Boston by force ; but when the officers reached Salem he had disappeared. SETTLEMENT OF MASSACHUSETTS AND RHODE ISLAND. 147 Three days before their arrival Roger WiUiams had left Salem, a wanderer for con- science sake. It was the depth of winter, the snow lay thickly over the country, and the weather was cold and inclement. For fourteen weeks, he says, he" was sorely tost in a bitter season, not knowing what bread or bed did mean." Banished from the set- tlements of his own race the exile went out into the wilderness, and sought the country of the Indians, whose friendship he had won during his stay in the colony. He had ac- quired their language during his residence at Plymouth, and could speak it fluently. He went from lodge to lodge, kindly wel- comed by the sav- ages, and lodging sometimes in a hol- low tree, until he reached Mount Hope, the residence of Mas- sasoit, who was his friend. Canonicus.the great chieftain of the Narragansetts, loved him with a strong af- fection, which ceased only with his life ; and in the country of these friendly chiefs Williams passed the winter in peace and safety. He never ceased to be grateful for their aid in his distress, and during his whole life he was the especial friend and champion of the Indians in New England. It was the intention of Williams to settle at Seekonk, on the Pawtucket River ; but that place was found to be within the limits of the Plymouth colony. Governor Winslow wrote to Williams advising him to remove to the region of Narragansett Bay, which was beyond the jurisdiction of the English, and would render any misunderstanding be- tween the Plymouth and Bay colonies on his account impossible " I took his prudent motion," says Williams, " as a voice from God." Providence Founded. Being joined by five companions, Williams embarked in a canoe in June, 1635, and pass- ing over to the west arm of Narragansett Bay, landed at an attractive spot, where he found a spring of pure water. He chose the place as the site of a new settlement, and in gratitude for his deliverance from the many LANDING OF ROGER WILLIAMS AT PROVIDENCE. dangers through which he had passed, named it Providence. He sought to purchase enough land for a settlement, but Canonicus refused to sell the land, and gave it to his friend " to enjoy forever." This grant was made to Williams alone, and constituted him absolute owner of the lands included in it. He might have sold them to settlers on terms advantageous to himself; but he declined to do so. In the next two years he was joined by a number of his old followers from Massachu- 148 SETTLEMENT OF AMERICA. setts, and by others who f.cd to his asylum. He gave a share of land to all who came to settle, and admitted them to an equality with himself in the political administration of the colony. The government was administered by the whole people. The voice of the majority decided all public measures ; but in matters of conscience every man was left an- swerable to God alone. All forms of relig- ious belief were tolerated and protected. Even infidelity was safe here from punish- ment by the civil or ecclesiastical power. Praiseworthy Charity. Williams was anxious to establish friendly relations with the Massachusetts colony ; for though he felt keenly the injustice of his per- secutors, he cherished no bitterness or resent- ment towards them. He condemned only what he considered the delusions of the magistrates of Massachusetts, but never at- tacked his persecutors. "I did ever from my soul," he wrote with simple magnanimity, " honor and love them, even when their judg- ment led them to afflict me." Winslow, touched with his true Christian forbearance, came from Plymouth to visit him, and left with his wifi; some money for their support; and some of the leaders of the Bay colony began to bear tardy witness to his virtues. The settlement at Providence continued to grow slowly, and was blessed with peace and an increasing prosperity. Massachusetts in the meantime continued to receive numerous additions to her popula- tion by emigration from England. In the autumn of 1635, twelve families left Boston, and journeying into the interior, founded the town of Concord. They had a hard struggle to establish their little settlement, but per- severed, and at length their labors were crowned with success. Three thousand people came over to Massachusetts this year. Among them were Hugh Peters, a man of great eloquence and ability and a devoted republican, who had been pastor to a church of exiles at Rotterdam, and Henry Vane the younger, "a man of the purest mind; a statesman of spotless integrity ; whose name the progress of intelligence and liberty will erase from the rubic of fanatics and traitors, and insert high among the aspirants after truth and the martyrs for liberty." * In the following spring (1636) Vane was elected governor of the colony. The people were dazzled by his high birth and pleasing qualities, and committed an error in choos- ing him, for neither his age nor his experi- ence fitted him for the distinguished position conferred upon him. The arrival of Vane seemed to promise an emigration of a num- ber of the English nobility, and an effort was made by several of them in England to pro- cure the division of the general court into two branches, and the establishment of an hereditary nobility in the colony which should possess a right to scats in the upper branch of the court. The magistrates of the colony were anxious to conciliate these val- uable friends, but they firmly refused to establish hereditary nobility in their new state. Trouble in the Church. Religious discussions formed a large part of the life of the colony. Meetings were held by the men, and passages of Scripture were discussed, and the sermons of the min- isters made the subject of searching criticism. The women might attend these meetings, but were not allowed to take part in the discus- sions. Mrs. Anne Hutchinson, a woman of talent and eloquence, claimed for her sex the right to participate equally with the men in these meetings ; but as this was not possible, she began to hold meetings for the benefit of the women at her own house. At these, * Bancroft, SETTLEMENT OF MASSACHUSETTS AND RHODE ISLAND. 149 religious doctrines were discussed and advo- cated, which were at variance with the prin- ciples of the magistrates. Mrs. Hutchinson and her followers held that the authority of private judgment was superior to that of the church, and con- demned the efforts of the colony to enforce conformity to the established system as viola- tive of the inherent rights of Christians. She was encouraged by John Wheelwright, a silenced minister, who had married her sister, and by Gov^ernor Vane, and her opinions were adopted by a large number of the people, and by members of the general court and some of the magistrates. The ministers saw their authority menaced by the new belief, and made common cause against Mrs. Hutchinson and her protector, Governor Vane- The colony was divided into two parties, and the religious question became a matter of great political import- ance. Under the established system the ministers formed almost a distinct estate of the government, and political privileges were entirely dependent upon theological conformity. Feeling sure that they would not receive justice at the hands of their opponents, the friends of Mrs. Hutchinson declared their intention to appeal to the king. This aroused a storm of indignation in the colony, and " it was accounted perjury and treason to speak of appeals to the king." This threat changed the whole character of the question, and was fatal to the party which made it. The Puritans had come to Massachusetts to escape the interference of the crown with their religious belief, and to appeal to the king in this case would be simply to place the liber- ties of the colony at his mercy. When the elections were held, in the spring of 1637, Governor Winthrop and the old magistrates we/e chosen by a large majority. Vane soon after returned to England. The church party being now in power resolved to silence Mrs. Hutchinson. She was admonished to cease her teachings, and upon her refusal to obey this order, she and her followers were exiled from the colony. Wheelwright and a number of his friends went to New Hampshire, and founded the town of Exeter, at the head of tide-water on the Piscataqua. Mrs. Hutchinson and the majority of her followers removed, in the spring of 1638, to the southward, intending to settle on Long Island or on the Delaware. Roger Williams induced them to remain near his plantation, and obtained for them from Miantonomoh, the chief of the Narra- gansett tribe, the gift of the beautiful island in the lower part of Narragansett Bay, which they called the island of Rhodes, or Rhode Island. Sad Fate of Mrs. Hutchinson. The number of settlers was scarcely more than twenty, but they proceeded to form a government upon a plan agreeable to the principles they professed. It was a pure democracy, founded upon the universal consent of the people, who signed a social compact pledging themselves to obey the - laws made by the majority, and to respect the rights of conscience. William Codding- ton, who had been a magistrate in the Bay colony, was elected judge or ruler, and three elders were chosen as his assistants. The settlement grew rapidly, and by 1641 the population had become so numerous as to require a written constitution. Mrs. Hutchinson remained in Rhode Island for several years ; but fearing that the hostility of the magistrates of Massa- chusetts would reach her even there, removed beyond New Haven into the territory of the Dutch, where, in 1643, she and all her family who were with her, except one child, who was taken prisoner, were murdered by the Indians. CHAPTER XII Colonization of Connecticut 1 he Dutch Claim the Connecticut Valley — They Build a Fort at Hartford — Governor Winslow Makes a Lodgment in Connecticut for the English — Withdrawal of the Dutch — The First Efforts of the English to Settle Connecticut — Emi- gration of Hooker and His Congregation — They Settle at Hartford — Winthrop Builds a Fort at Saybrooke — Hostility cf the Indians — Visit of Roger Williams to Miantonomoh — A Brave Deed — The Pequod War — Capture of the Indian Fort — Destraction of the Pequod Tribe — Effect of This War Upon the Other Tribes — Connecticut Adopts a Constitu- tion — Its Peculiar Features — Settlement of New Haven. THE fertile region of the Connecticut had attracted the attention of the English at an early day ; but before they could make any effort to occupy it the Dutch sent an exploring party from Manhattan Island, in 1614, and exam- ined the river and the country through which it flowed. They built and fortified a trading-post on the site of the present city of Hartford, but soon excited the ill-will of the Indians by their cruel treatment of them. The Dutch found themselves unable to occupy the country, and, being unwilling to lose it, endeavored, but without success, to induce the Pilgrims to remove from Plymouth to the Connecticut, and settle in that region under their protection. In 1630 the council of Plymouth granted the Connecticut region to the Earl of War- wick, who, in 1 63 1, assigned his claim to Lords Say and Brooke, John Hampden, and others. As soon as this grant was known to the Dutch they sent a party to the site of Hartford and re-established their trading- post, and began a profitable trade with the Indians. They mounted two cannon on their fort for the purpose of preventing the English from ascending the river. Towards the latter part of the year 1633, Governor Winslow, of Plymouth, in order to secure a foothold for the English in this valuable region, sent Captain William Holmes to the 150 Connecticut with a sloop and a number 01 men to make a settlement. Upon ascending the river to the site of Hartford, Holmes found his progress barred by the Dutch fort, the commander of which threatened to fire upon him if he attempted to continue his voyage. Undaunted by this threat, Holmes passed by the fort without harm, and ascended the stream to Windsor, where he erected a fortified post. In 1634, the Dutch made an unsuccessful attempt to drive him away. Failing in this, and seeing that it was the deliberate purpose of the English to occupy the Connecticut valley, the Dutch relinquished all claim to that region, and a boundary line was arranged between their possessions and those of the English, cor- responding very nearly to that between the states of Connecticut and New York. In 1635, the Pilgrims determined to make settlements in this inviting region, and late in the fall of that year a company of sixty persons, men, women and children, set out from Plymouth by land, sending a sloop laden with provisions and their household goods around by sea, with orders to join them upon the Connecticut River. They began their journey too late in the season, and their sufferings were very great in con- sequence. Upon reaching the river they found the ground covered with snow, and their sloop was delayed by storms and ice. COLONIZATION OF CONNECTICUT. 151 Their cattle died from cold and exposure, and but for a little corn which they obtained from the Indians, and such acorns as they could gather, the whole company must have starved to death. Many of them abandoned their new home and returned by land to the settlements on the coast. The Puritans Avere resolved to continue the effort to settle Connecticut, and in the spring of 1636 several com- panies emigrated to that re- gion. The principal party set out in June, led by the Rev. Thomas Hooker. It comprised about one hundred persons, and consisted prin- cipally of Hooker's congrega- tion, who followed their pastor with enthusiasm. They drove before them a considerable number of cattle, which fur- nished them with milk on the march. The emigrants were largely made up of persons of refine- ment and culture, and com- prised many of the oldest and most valued citizens of the Bay colony. They were at- tracted to the valley of the Connecticut by the superior advantages which it offered for the prosecution of the fur trade, and by the great fertil- ity of its soil. They had no guide but a compass, and their route lay through an unbroken wilderness. The journey was long and fatiguing. The emigrants accom- plished scarcely more than ten miles a day, carrying their sick on litters, and making the forests ring with their holy hymns. At length the site of Hartford, whei e it was pro- posed to establish the settlement, was reached by the first of July. The greater number remained there; some went higher up the river and founded Springfield, and the rest went to Wethersfield, where there was already a small settlement. In the same year the younger John Win- throp arrived from England, with orders fro 'i Lords Say and Brooke to establish a fort a: the mouth of the Connecticut River. This JOHN HAMPDEN. he accomplished, naming the new settlement Saybrooke, in honor of the proprietors. The settlements in Connecticut grew rapidly,, the excellent soil and pleasant climate attract^, ing many emigrants to them. The existence of these settlements was precarious, however. The region in which 152 SETTLEMENT OF AMERICA. they had been planted was the country of the Pequods, who inhabited it in large numbers. They were the most powerful and warlike tribe in New England, and could bring nearly two thousand warriors into the field. They occupied the southwestern part of Connect- icut, and their territory extended almost to the Hudson on the west, where it joined that of the Mohegans. On the east their territory bordered that of the Narragansetts. Both of these tribes were the enemies of the Pequods and the friends of the English. This friend- ship was resented by the Pequods, who were already jealous of the English because of their occupation of the lands along the Connecticut. The tribe bore a bad name, and had already manifested their hostility by murdering, a few years before, a Virginia trader named Stone, together with the crew of his vessel, who were engaged in a trading expedition on the Connecticut River. Blood Shed on Both Sides. Somewhat later Captain Oldham and his crew, while exploring the river, were also murdered by Indians living on Block Island. The Pequods justified the murder of Stone by alleging that he had attacked them. Wishing to make a treaty with the English, they sent their chiefs to Boston for that pur- pose, and promised — as the magistrates understood them — to deliver up the two men who had killed Stone. Captain John Endicott was sent with a vessel, in 1636, to punish the Block Island Indians for the murder of Old- ham, and was ordered to call on his return at the Pequod town, and demand the surrender of the murderers of Stone. The Pequods declined to surrender these men, but offered to ransom them. This was in accordance with their customs. But Endicott refused to accept any compensation for the crime that had been committed, and to punish the Indians destroyed their corn and burned two of their villages. This made open hostilities inevitable. The Pequods began to hang around the Connecticut settlements and cut off stragglers from them. By the close of the winter more than thirty persons had fallen victims to their vengeance. A Dangerous Mission. The settlements in the Connecticut valley were now greatly alarmed. They could not muster over two hundred fighting men, and the Indians in their immediate vicinity could bring into the field at least seven hundred warriors. War was certain, and it was not known at what moment the savages would attack the settlements in overwhelming force. Connecticut called upon Massachu- setts for aid, but only twenty men under Captain Underbill, were sent to their aid. The energies and attention of the Bay colony were engrossed by the Hutchinson quarrel. The Pequods, notwithstanding their im- mense numerical superiority, were unwilling to make war upon the English without the support of another tribe. They accordingly sent envoys to Miantonomoh, the chief of the Narragansetts, to endeavor to engage that tribe in the effort against the whites. Such a union would have menaced all New England, and as soon as the news of the negotiation reached Boston the government of the Bay colony prepared to prevent the alliance. Governor Vane at once wrote to Roger Williams, the friend of Miantonomoh, urging him to seek that chieftain and prevent him from joining the Pequods. It was a dangerous mission, and certainly a great service for the magistrates of Massa- chusetts to ask of the man whom they had driven into exile. They did not ask in vain, however. All of Williams' generous nature was aroused by the danger which threatened his brethren, and he embarked in a frail COLONIZATION OF CONNECTICUT. 153 canoe, and braving the danger of a severe gale, sought the quarters of Miantonomoh, He found the Pequod chiefs already there, and the Narragansetts v;avering. Knowing the errand on which he had come, the hostile chieftains were ready at any moment to des- patch him, and had Miantonomoh shown the least fa- vor to the project, Williams would have paid for his boldness with his life. He spent three days and nights in the company of the savages, and suc- ceeded in inducing Miantonomoh not only to refuse to join the war against the English, but to promise the colo- nists his assistance against the Pe- quods. In the meantime he sent a messenger to Bos- ton to inform the governor of the de- signs of the In- dians. The Pequods, left to continue the struggle alone, flat- tered themselves that their superi- ority in numbers would give them the vic- tory, and continued their aggressions upon the Connecticut settlements to such an extent that in May, 1637, the general court of that province resolved to begin the war at once. A force of eighty men, including those sent from Massachusetts, was assembled at Hart- ford, and the command was conferred by A GROUP OF INDIANS. Hooker upon Captain John Mason. The night previous to their departure was spent in prayer, and on the twentieth of May the little force embarked in boats and descended 154 SETTLEMENT OF AMERICA. the river to the sound, and passed around to Narragansett Bay, intending to approach the Pequod town from that quarter. As the boats sailed by the mouth of the Thames, the savages supposed the English were abandoning the Connecticut valley. The day after the arrival of the English in Narragansett Bay was the Sabbath, and was scrupulously observed. On the following day they repaired to the quarters of Canonicus, the old chief and principal ruler of the Narragansett tribe, and asked his assistance against the Pequods. Mian- tonomoh, the nephew and prospective suc- cessor of Canonicus, hesitated to join in the doubtful enterprise, but two hundred war- riors agreed to accompany the English, who could not, however, count upon the fidelity of these reinforcements. Seventy Mohe- gans, under Uncas, their chief, also joined Mason. With this force the English com- mander marched across the country toward the Pequod towns on the Thames, and halted on the night of the twenty-fifth of May within hearing of them. A Sudden Attack. In the meantime the Pequods, convinced that the English had fled from the Connecti- cut region, and never dreading an attack in their fort, which they considered impreg- nable, had given themselves up to rejoicing. The night, passed by the English in waiting the signal for the attack, was spent by the Pequods in revelry and songs, which could be plainly heard in the English camp. Two hours before dawn, on the morning of the twenty-sixth of May, the order was given to the little band under Mason lo advance. They knew they would have to decide the battle by their own efforts, and were by no means certain that their Indian allies would not turn against them. The Pequods were posted in two strong forts made of palisades driven into the ground and strengthened with rush-work, an excel- lent defence against a foe of their own race, but worthless when assailed by Europeans. The principal fort stood on the summit of a considerable hill, and was regarded by Sassa- cus, the Pequod chief, as impregnable. The tramp of the advancing force aroused a dog, whose fierce bark awoke the Indian sentinel. The keen eye of the savage detected the enemy in the gloom of the morning, and he rushed into the fort, shouting, " The English I The English ! " The next moment the English were through the palisades. On all sides they beheld the Indians pouring out of their lodges to take part in the hand-to-hand fight. The odds were too great. " We must burn them," cried Mason, and, suiting the action to the word, he applied a torch to a wigwam constructed of dry reeds. The flames sprang up instantly, and spread with the rapidity of lightning. The Indians vainly endeavored to extinguish the fire, and the English, with- drawing to a greater distance, began to pick off the savages, who were doubly exposed by the light of the blazing fort. Wherever a Pequod appeared, he was shot down. The Narragansetts and Mohegans now joined in the conflict, and the victory was complete. More than six hundred Pequods, men, women and children, perished, the majority of them in the flames. The English lost only two men ; and the battle was over in an hour. Indians in a Rage. As the sun rose, a body of three hundred Pequod warriors were seen advancing from their second fort. They came expecting to rejoice with their comrades in the destruc- tion of the English. When they beheld the ruined fort and the remains of its defenders, they screamed, stamped on the ground and tore their hair with rage and despair. Mason held them in check with twenty men, while COLONIZATION OF CONNECTICUT. the rest of the EngHsh embarked in their boats, which had come round from Narra- gansett Bay, and hastened home to protect the settlements against a sudden attack. Mason, with the party mentioned, marched across the country to the fort at Saybrooke, where he was received with the honors due to his successful exploit. In a few days a body of one hundred men arrived from Massachusetts, under Captain Stoughton, and the cam- paign against the Pe- quods was resumed. Their pride was crushed, and they made but a feeble resistance. They fled to the west, closely pursued by the English, who destroyed their cornfields, burned their villages and put their women and children to death without mercy. They made a last des- perate effort at resist- ance in the fastnesses of a swamp, but were de- feated with great slaugh- ter. Sassacus, their chief^ with a k\v of his men took refuge with the Mohawks, where he was soon after put to death by one of his own people. The remainder of the tribe, about two hundred in number, surrendered to the English, and were reduced to slavery. Some were given to their enemies, the Narragansetts and Mo- hegans ; others were sent to the West Indies and sold as slaves. The Pequod nation was utterly destroyed. The thoroughness and remorselessness of the work struck terror to the neighboring tribes. If the Pequods, the most powerful 155 of all their race, had been exterminated by a. mere handful of Englishmen, what could they expect in a contest with them but a similar fate ? For forty years the horror of this dreadful deed remained fresh in the savage mind, and protected the young settlements more effectually than the most vigilant watchfulness on the part of the whites could have done. Relieved from the fear of the Indians, the YALE COLLEGE. people of Connecticut prepared to establish a civil government for the colony, and in Jan- uary, 1639, a constitution was adopted. It was more liberal, and therefor^ more lasting, than that framed by any of the other colo- nies. It provided for the government of the colony by a governor, a legislature and the usual magistrates of an English province, who were to be chosen annually by ballot. Every settler who should take the oath of 156 SETTLEMENT OF AMERICA. allegiance to the commonwealth was to have the right of suffrage. The members of the legislature were apportioned among the towns according to the population. The colony was held to be supreme within its own limits, and no recognition was made of the sovereignty of the king or Parliament. When Connecticut took her place among the states of the American Union, at the opening of the war of the Revolution, her constitution needed no change to adapt her to her new position. It remained in force for one hun- dred and fifty years. The Celebrated John Davenport. In the year of the Pequod war (1637), John Davenport, a celebrated clergyman of London, and Theophilus Eaton, a merchant of wealth, and a number of their associates, who had been exiled from England for their religious opinions, reached Boston. They were warmly welcomed, and were urged to stay in the Bay colony, but the theological disputes were so high there that they pre- ferred to go into the wilderness and found a settlement where they could be at peace. Eaton with a few men was sent to explore the region west of the Connecticut, which had been discovered by the pursuers of the Pequods. He examined the coast of Long Island Sound, and spent the winter at a place which he selected as a settlement. In April, 1638, Davenport and the rest of the company sailed from Boston and established a settle- ment on the spot chosen by Eaton. The settlers obtained a title to their lands from the natives, and agreed in return to protect them against the Mohawks. They named their settlement New Haven. In 1639 a form of government was adopted, and Eaton was elected governor. He was annually chosen to this position until his death, twenty years later. The colonists pledged themselves " to be governed in all things by the rules which the Scriptures held forth to them." The right of suffrage was restricted to church members. " Thus New Haven made the Bible its statute book, and the elect its freemen." In the next ten years settlements spread along the sound and ex- tended to the opposite shores of Long Island. The colony was distinct from and independ- ent of the Connecticut colony, with which friendly relations were- soon established. CHAPTER XIII The Union of the New England Colonies Feeling of the Colonies Towards England — Hostility of the English Government to New England — Efforts to Intro- duce Episcopacy — Massachusetts Threatens Resistance — The Revolution in England — Establishment of Free School? in New England — Harvard College — The Printing Press — The Long Parliament Friendly to New England — The United Colonies of New England — Rhode Island Obtains a Charter — Maine Annexed to Massachusetts — The Quakers are Persecuted — Efforts to Christianize the Indians — John Eliot, the Apostle to the Indians. THE sentiments with which the people of the New England colonies regarded the mother country may- be briefly stated. They were proud of the name of Englishmen, and took a deep interest in the welfare of their old home. They regarded the British constitution as the supreme law of their new states, and claimed to be true and loyal subjects of the King of England. Nevertheless, they looked upon the success of their colonies as their own work, accomplished by their own patience and heroism, and they were fully aware that they owed nothing to the mother country. They had been driven forth from her shores by persecution, and left in neglect to struggle up to the successful position they now occu- pied. They owed nothing to England ; in their deepest distress they had never asked aid of her, and they were willing to undergo any hardship rather than do so. They had made laws and established institutions under which they had surmounted their early trials, and they regarded their paramount allegiance as due to their respective provinces. They acknowledged the right of no power beyond the Atlantic to interfere with or change their work. They would acknowledge their alle- giance to the king as long as he respected the system they had built up at such great cost, and without assistance from him, but would resist any effort from him, or any one else, to interfere with it. They had made New Eng- land what she was, and they meant to retain the possession and control of their new home at any cost. They had made themselves a free people, and they meant to preserve their liberties as a precious heritage for their children. This was the general sentiment of New England. There were some discontented persons, however, in the midst of these deter- mined people. They had found the stern discipline of the Massachusetts colony too oppressive, and some had been severely pun- ished by the fiery Endicott. Upon returning to England they endeavored to induce the king to exert his power and remedy what they termed the distraction and disorder of the province of Massachusetts. Their com- plaints were echoed by a strong party in England. Burdett wrote to Archbishop Laud that " The colonists aimed not at a new dis- cipline, but at sovereignty; that it was accounted treason in their general court to speak of appeals to the king;" in which assertion he was right. The English archbishop began to regard the departure of so many " faithful and free- born EngUshmen and good Christians " to join a new communion as a serious matter, and i'mpediments were thrown in the way of emigration. In February, 1634, a requisi- tion was addressed to the colony of Massa- chusetts ordering the colonial officials to produce the patent of the company irt- 157 158 SETTLEMENT OF AMERICA. England. The colony took no notice of this demand. A little later the king appointed the Archbishop of Canterbury and some others a special commission, with full power over the American colonies. They were authorized to make such changes in church and state as they deemed necessary; to enforce them with heavy penalties ; and even to revoke all charters that contained privi- leges inconsistent with the royal prerogative. Massachusetts Indignant. The news of the appointment of this com- mission reached Boston in September, 1634, .and it was also rumored that a governor- general for the colonies had been appointed, and had sailed from England. All Massa- chusetts burned with indignation, and the colony resolved to resist the attempt upon its liberties. It was very poor, but in a short space of time the large sum of six hundred pounds was raised for the public defence, and fortifications were begun and pushed forward with energy. In January, 1635, the ministers were assembled at Boston and their opinion was asked upon the question whether the colony should receive a governor-general. They answered boldly : " We ought to defend our lawful possessions if we are able ; if not, to avoid and protract." In April, 1638, the privy council demanded the surrender of the charter of Massachu- setts, threatening in case of refusal that the king would take the management of the colony into his own hands. The colonial authorities were firmly resolved to give the king no pretext for interference with their affairs, and instead of complying witii the order of the privy council,, they addressed a remonstrance to that body against the surrender required of them, thus seeking to gain time. They were fully determined not to give up their charter ; but before their remonstrance could reach Eng- land the troubles which encompassed Charles at home made it impossible for him to carry out his designs against Massachusetts. The breaking out of the civil war in Eng- land put a stop to the emigration to New England. At the opening of the year 1640 the population of New England numbered twenty thousand. Some fifty towns and between thirty and forty churches had been built, and the most desponding could no longer doubt the ultimate success and prosperity of the country. The wretched cabins of the fir.st settlers were rapidly giving way to fair and comfortable houses, and the colonists were beginning to gather about them many of the comforts and much of the refinement they had been accustomed to in England. The Puritans. Nor were the Puritans mindful of material success only. Many of them were persons of education, and they were anxious that their children should have the opportunity of enjoying the blessings of knowledge in their new homes. In 1636 the general court made provision for the establishment at New- town of a high school. The name of the town was changed to Cambridge as a token that the people meant that it should yet be the seat of a university. In 1637 the school was formally opened. The next year the Rev. John Harvard, of Charlestown, bequeathed to the infant insti- tution his library and the half of his fortune, and in gratitude for this assistance the school took the name of "Harvard College." In 1647 the general court ordered that in every town or district of fifty families there should be a common school ; and that in every town or district of one hundred families there should be a grammar school, conducted by teachers competent to prepare young men for college. This system rapidly found its way into the other New England colonies, with the excep- tion of Rhode Island. THE UNION OF THE NEW ENGLAND COLONIES. 159 Thus was founded the American system of common schools. Until now education had been the task of the church, or had been confided to private individuals; but now, for the first time in the history of the world, the state took the task of educating its young citizens into its own hands, and established the schools in which it was to be conducted. Henceforth Icmwledge was to be restricted to no favored class ; educadon was made f cj more for posterity than this, they would still deserve to be held'in grateful remembrance as the founders of our public schools. Gen- erations yet unborn shall rise up to call them blessed, and to acknowledge the truth of their conviction that ignorant men cannot make good citizens. In 1639 a printing press, presented to the colony by some friends iii Holland, was set up in Massachusetts. Stephen Daye was the AN AMERICAN FREE SCHOOL. to every child, and every parent being taxed for the support of the public schools was made to feel interested in their proper con- duct. From the little beginning thus made a vast and noble system has been developed, the beneficial results of which must be felt to the latest period of our national existence. Had the fathers of New England done nothing printer, and in that year printed an almanac calculated for New England, and in 1640 a metrical version of the Psalms, made " by Thomas Welde and John Eliot, ministers of Roxbury, assisted by Richard Mather, min- ister of Dorchester." It was the first book printed in the English language in America, and continued to be used for a long time in the worship of the New England churches. i6o SETTLEMENT OF AMERICA. Many of the settlers went back to England at the outset of the civil war to take part in the struggle, among whom were Governor Henry Vane and Hugh Peters, and very few emigrants arrived in New England during the existence of the commonwealth. Yet the colonies continued to prosper. Ship- building, which had been introduced by the first settlers of. Salem, was carried on with activity, and vessels of four hundred tons were constructed. A little later the manu- facture of woollen and linen cloth was begun by order of the general court. The colonial churches were invited to send their representatives to the assembly of divines at Westminster, but they wisely neglected to do so, judging it better to remain in their obscurity than to give the English people a pretext for future interference by joining in their affairs. Religious Liberty. The Long Parliament was friendly to New England, and granted to the colonies an exemption from all duties upon their com- merce " until the House of Commons should take order to the contrary." Massachusetts took advantage of the security afforded by the friendship of the Long Parliament to establish a written constitution, or " body of liberties," which placed the rights and privi- leges of her people upon a more stable basis. It contained some of the severest laws of the Mosaic code, such as those against witch- craft, blasphemy, and sins against nature, but secured the freedom of the citizen, the right of representative government, and the indepen- dence of the state and the municipality. The rights of property, the freedom of inheritance, and the independence of each church from control by the others were also placed beyond dispute. " This constitution," says Bancroft, " for its liberality and comprehensiveness, may vie with any similar record from the days of Magna Charta." m April, 1642, the towns on the Piscata- qua, now embraced within the limits of the state of New Hampshire, were annexed at their own request to Massachusetts. As the people of this region were not Puritans, and many of them were attached to the forms and faith of the Church of England, the gen- eral court in September adopted a measure providing that neither the freemen nor the deputies of New Hampshire should be required to be church members. This act of justice removed all danger of political dis-^ cord. In the same year Massachusetts made a less creditable and an unsuccessful effort to annex Rhode Island to her dominions. The United Colonies. Though relieved of the interference of the mother country, the dangers of New Eng- land were not yet at an end. The Indians were still powerful upon their narrow border, the French were beginning to threaten them from the direction of Canada, and the Dutch from the Hudson. The colonies had so many interests in common that it was of vital im- portance that they should act in concert for their defence. After several ineffectual attempts, a league was formed in 1643 between the colonies of Massachusetts, Ply- mouth, Connecticut, and New Haven, under the title of " The United Colonics of New England." Each colony was to retain its. freedom in the management of its own affairs ; the authority of the union, which was intrusted to a commission of two members from each province, being limited to objects which concerned the general welfare of the colonies. Provision was made for the pres- ervation of the purity of the gospel, the com- missioners were required to be church mem- bers, and the expenses of the confederacy were to be assessed upon the colonies according to population. This union lasted for forty years. THE UNION OF THE NEW ENGLAND COLONIES. i6i The colony of Rhode Island desired to be admitted into the union, but its petition was refused, as it would not acknowledge the jurisdiction of Plymouth, The people of the two settlements on Narragansett Bay, dread- ing an attempt to absorb them into some of the other colonies, now determined to apply to Parliament for an independent charter. Roger Williams was despatched to England for that purpose in 1643, and reached that country soon after the death of Hampden. The fame of his labors among the Indians secured for him a cordial welcome. The Charter Confirmed Assisted by Sir Henry Vane, a charter was obtained in March, 1644, organizing the settlements on Narragansett Bay as an inde- pendent colony under the name of " The Providence Plantations," " with full power and authority to rule themselves." The ex- ecutive council of state in England, in 165 1, made some grants to Coddington which would have dismembered the little state, and Williams was obliged to make a second voy- age to England to have these grants vacated. He succeeded in his efforts, and the charter was confirmed. He received in this, as in his former mission, the cordial co-operation of Sir Henry Vane, whose name should be ever dear to the people of Rhode Island, since but for him her territory would have been divided among the neighboring col- onies. In the interval between his first and second voyages Roger Williams became a Baptist, and founded the first church of that denomination in America. The country between the Piscataqua and the Kennebec was assigned to Sir Ferdinand Gorges, who, in 1639, was confirmed in his possession by a formal charter from Charles L, who called the territory the Province of Maine. In 1640, Gorges sent his son Thomas to Maine as his representative. II Thomas Gorges took up his residence at the settlement of Agamcnticus, now the town of York, and in 1642 changed the name of the lace to Gorgeana. Maine Comes Into the Union. Since the settlement of the colony the French had claimed the region between the St. Croix and the Penobscot, which they had settled under the name of Acadia, as has been stated elsewhere. After the death of Sir Ferdinand Gorges Maine was divided among his heirs. These cut it up into four weak communities, whose helplessness laid them open to the encroachments of the French in Canada. Apprehensive of the results of this, Massachusetts, to whom many of the inhabitants of the province had appealed to take such a course, in 165 1 claimed the province of Maine as a part of the territory which had been granted to the colony by the original charter of Massa- chusetts. Commissioners were sent to establish the authority of the Bay colony over the prov- ince, but the magistrates of Maine resisted them, and appealed to the English govern- ment for protection. The people of Maine were the adherents of the king and the estab- lished church, and England was now ruled by the Puritans ; consequently Massachusetts won her cause, and Maine was declared a part of that province. Massachusetts made a generous use of her power, and allowed the towns of Maine very much the same govern- ment and privileges they now enjoy, and in religious matters treated them with the same leniency she had shown to New Hampshire.. In 1646, a dispute in the Bay colony in- duced one of the parties to it to appeal to Parliament to sustain his claims, and an order was sent out to Boston in his behalf" couched in terms which involved the right of Parlia- ment to reverse the decisions and control the JOHN ELIOT PREACHING TO THE INDIANS. THE UNION OF THE NEW ENGLAND COLONIES. 163 government of Massachusetts." In plainer terms, Parliament claimed the right to revoke the charter of the colony, as the king had done at the outset of the civil war. The danger was great, and Massachusetts met it with firmness. The general court met on the fourth of November, and sat with closed doors to discuss the claim of the English government. It was resolved " that Massa- chusetts owed to England the same allegi- ance as the free Hanse towns had rendered to the empire ; as Normandy, when its dukes were kings of England, paid to the monarchs of France." Parliament Must Keep Hands Off. The court also refused to accept a new charter from Parliament, as that action might imply a surrender of the original instrument, or to allow Parliament to ccfntrol in any way the independence of the colony. Great as this claim was, it was admitted by the Eng- lish Parliament, in which the rights of the colony were stoutly maintained by Sir Henry Vane and others ; and in reply to a respectful address of the general court setting forth the views of that body, a committee of Parlia- ment declared : " We encourage no appeals from your justice. We leave you with all the freedom and latitude that may, in any respect, be duly claimed by you." Later on, upon the establishment of the common- wealth. Parliament invited the people of Massachusetts to receive a new patent from that body ; but the colonial authorities wisely declined to do this, or to allow the home government any hold upon the administra- tion of the affairs of the province. In 165 1, Cromwell, who had subdued Ireland, offered that island to the Puritans of New England as a new home; but they declined to leave America. Cromwell proved himself in many ways a judicious friend of New England, and the people of that country treasured his memory with the gratitude and respect it so richly deserved. Though so successful in asserting her own liberties, Massachusetts had not yet learned the lesson of religious tolerance. When the Baptists began to appear in the colony, severe measures were inaugurated to crush them, and one of their number — Holmes — a resident of Lynn, was whipped unmercifully. Still greater were the severities practised towards the Quakers. This sect had grown out of the Protestant Reformation, and con- stituted at this day the most advanced thinkers upon religious matters to be found in England. They claimed a perfect freedom in matters of faith and worship, and regarded all laws for enforcing religious systems as works of the devil. They were persons of pure lives, and even their most inveterate enemies could not charge them with wrong- doing. Previous to their appearance in Massachusetts exaggerated reports reached the colony concerning them. They were represented as making war upon all forms of religion and government. Intolerance Toward Quakers. The first of this creed who came to New England were Mary Fisher and Ann Austin, who reached Boston in July, 1656. In the absence of a special law against Quakers, they were arrested under the provisions of the general statute against heresy; their trunks were searched and their books burned by the hangman. Their persons were exam- ined for marks of witchcraft, but nothing could be found against them, and after being kept close prisoners for five weeks, they were sent back to England. During the year eight others were also sent back to England. Laws which were a dis- grace to an enlightened community were now passed prohibiting the Quakers from entering the colony. Such as came were 164 SETTLEMENT OF AMERICA. imprisoned, cruelly whipped, and sent away. In 1657 a woman was whipped with twenty stripes for this offence. In 1658 a law was enacted that if any Quaker should return after being banished, his or her offence should be punished with death. It was hoped that this barbarous measure would rid the colony of their presence ; but they came in still greater numbers, to reprove the magis- trates for their persecuting spirit, and to call INDIAN MEDICINE-MAN. them to repentance. In 1659 Marmaduke Stephenson, William Robinson, Mary Dyar and William Leddro were hanged on Boston Common for returning to the colony after being banished. These cruelties were regarded with great discontent by the people of the colony , whose humanity was shocked by the barbarity of the magistrates. Their opposition grew stronger every day, and at last it became evi- dent to the macfistrates themselves that their severities were of no avail. When William Leddro was being sentenced to death, the magistrates were startled by the entrance into the court-room of Wenlock Christison, a Quaker who had been banished and forbid- den to return on pain of death. Christison was arrested, but the complaints of the people became so loud that the magistrates were obliged to pause in their bloody work. Christison and twenty-seven of his com- panions were released from custody, the persecution of the Quakers was discon- tinued, and the general court, in obedi- ence to the will of the people, repealed the barbarous laws against that sect. The Apostle to the Indians. In pleasing contrast with these sever- ities were the efforts of the Puritans to spread a knowledge of the gospel among the savages. Chief among those engaged in the good work was John Eliot, the min- ister of Roxbury, whose labors won him the name of "the apostle Eliot." He went among the red men in the forests, and ac- quired a knowledge of their language that he might preach to them in their own tongue. When he had become suffi- ciently proficient in it, he translated the Bible into the Indian language. This translation was printed at Cambridge, and a part of the type was set by an Indian compositor. He spent many years in the preparation of his Bible, and made a good use of it during his life; but it is now valu- able only as a literary curiosity and as the evidence of the devotion of the translator to his noble work. The destruction of the race for which it was intended has made it a sealed book. Eliot gathered his savage converts into a settlement at Natick, and taught the men the art of agriculture and the women to spin and to weave cloth. He had to encounter the THE UNION OF THE NEW ENGLAND COLONIES. 165 opposition of the chiefs and medicine men or priests, who resented his efforts to win their people from the worship and habits of their ancestors, but he persevered. He was greatly beloved by his disciples, and continued his labors among them far into old age, and to a limited extent to the day of his death, which took place when he had attained the ripe age of eighty-six years. " My memory, my utter- ance fails me," he said near the close of his life; " but I thank God my charity holds out still." When Walton, a brother minister, visited him on his death-bed, he greeted him with the words ; " Brother, you are welcome ; but retire to your study and pray that I may be gone." His last words on earth were the triumphal shout with which he entered upon his reward : " Welcome joy ! " . Many of the Quakers, after the persecu- tion against them was over, joined Eliot in his labors. He had other fellow-workers. The two Mayhews, father and son, Cotton, and Brainerd thought it a privilege to labor for the souls of the poor savages. Native preachers were ordained, and at last there were thirty churches of "praying Indians" under such preachers. CHAPTER XIV New England after the Restoration Arrival of the News of the Restoration of Charles II. — The Regicides in New England — They are Protected — Revival of the Navigation Acts— Effect of this Measure upon the New England Colonies — Massachusetts Delays the Proclama- tion of the King — Connecticut Obtains a Charter — Union of New Haven with the Connecticut Colony — Rhode Island Given a New Charter — Massachusetts Settles her Difficulties with the Crown — Changes in the Government — High- handed Acts ol the Royal Commissioners — Troubles with the Indians — Injustice of the Whites— King Philip's War — A Forest Hero — An Incident in the Attack upon Hadley — Sufferings of the Colonies — Destruction of the Narragansetts — Death of Philip — Close of the War — England Asserts her Right to Tax the Colonies — Massachusetts buys Gorges' claims to Maine — New Hampshire Made a Separate Province — James II. Revokes the Charter of Massachusetts — Dudley and Randolph in New England — Andros Appointed Governor-General — His Tyranny — He Demands the Charter of Con- necticut — It is Carried Away and Hidden — The Charter Oak — Fall of James II. — The People of Massachusetts take up Arms — Andros Arrested — Effects of the Revolution upon New England. THE news of the restoration of Charles II. to the EngHsh throne was brought to Boston by Edward Whalley, and WiUiam Goffe, two of the judges of Charles I, They came to seek refuge from the vengeance of the king, having offended him beyond forgiveness by their share in the death of his father. They remained about a year in Massachusetts, protected by the people, and preaching to them. A few months after their arrival, warrants for their arrest and transportation to England for trial arrived from the king, and to escape this danger they took refuge in New Haven. The royal officers instituted a diligent search for them, and they were obliged to change their place of concealment frequently. Great rewards were offered for their betrayal, and even the Indians were urged to search the woods for their hiding-places. The peo- ple whom they trusted protected them, and aided them to escape the royal officers until the vigor of the search was exhausted. They then conducted them to a secure refuge in the vicinity of Hadley, where they remained in seclusion and peace until the close of their lives. 1 66 ' News was constantly arriving in the colo- nies of the execution of the men who had been the friends of America in the Parlia- ment, and a general sadness was cast over the settlements by the tidings of the death of Hugh Peters and the noble Sir Henry Vane. From the first the people of New England saw plainly that they had little reason to expect justice at the hands of the royal gov- ernment, and there was little rejoicing in that region at the return of the king to " his own again." One of Charles's first acts was to revive in a more odious form the navigation act of the Long Parliament. We have spoken of the effect of this measure upon the colonies of Virginia and Maryland. This act closed the harbors of America against the vessels of every European nation save England, and forbade the exportation of certain American productions to any country but England or her possessions. This was a very serious blow to New England, and was intended as such. The colonies of that region had already built up a growing commerce, and this, together with their activity in ship- building, excited the envy and the hostility of the British merchants, who hoped, by NEW ENGLAND AFTER THE RESTORATION. 167 inducing the king to place these restrictions upon the colonies, to compel the Americans to depend upon them for the supply of all their wants. Later on, America was forbidden not only to manufacture any articles which might compete with English manufactures in foreign markets, but to supply her own wants with her own manufactures. At the same time Parliament endeavored to destroy the trade that had grown up between New England and the southern colonies by imposing upon the articles exported from one colony to another a duty equal to that imposed upon the consumption of these articles in England. Foul Injustice. Thus did Great Britain lay the foundation of that system of commercial injustice toward her colonies which eventually deprived her of them, and which her greatest writer on political economy declared to be " a manifest violation of the rights of mankind." The policy thus established in the reign of Charles IL was never departed from. Each succeed- ing administration remained true to the prin- ciples of the navigation act, and consistently declined to admit the claim of the colonies to just and honorable treatment at the hands of the mother country. Charles IL was promptly proclaimed in the colonies of Plymouth, Connecticut, New Haven and Rhode Island, and those provinces were administered in his name. Massachu- setts, distrusting his purposes towards her, held back, and waited until he should show his intentions more plainly, Connecticut had purchased the claims of the assigns of the Earl of Warwick to the region occupied by her, and had bought the territory of the Mohegans from Uncas, their sachem. The colony sent the younger Win- throp to England in 1661 to obtain a charter from the king. The noble character of Gov- ernor Winthrop was well known in England, and impressed even the profligate Charles. His reception was cordial and his mission entirely successful. In 1662, the king granted to the colony a charter incorporating Hart- ford and New Haven in one province under the name of Connecticut, and extending its limits from Long Island Sound westward to the Pacific Ocean, thus bestowing upon the colony those rich western lands which were subsequently made the basis of the magnifi- cent school fund of Connecticut. The charter was substantially the same in its provisions as the constitution adopted by the Hartford colony. By it the king conferred upon the colonists the right to elect their own officers and to make and administer their own laws without interference from England in any event whatever. Connecticut was made independent in all but name, and the charter continued in force as the constitution of the state after the period of independence until 1818. Good Fortune of Connecticut. The colony of New Haven was much opposed to the union with Connecticut, and it required all Governor Winthrop's efforts to induce the people of that colony to accept it. The matter was adjusted in 1665, when the union was finally accomplished. The labors of Governor Winthrop were rewarded by his annual election as governor of Con- necticut for fourteen years. Connecticut was a fortunate colony. Its government was ably and honestly administered ; no persecutions marred its peace, and its course was uniformly prosperous and happy. It was always one of the most peaceful and orderly colonies of New England, and for a century its popula- tion doubled once in twenty years, notwith- standing frequent emigrations of its people to other parts of the country. The colony at an early day made a liberal provision for i68 SETTLEMENT OF AMERICA. education, and in 1700 Yale College was founded. It was originally located at Say- brooke, but in 17 18 was removed to New Haven. Rhode Island was equally fortunate. Through its resident agent at London, John Clarke, it made application to the king for a new charter, and after some delay, caused by the difficulty of arranging satisfactorily the limits of the province, a charter was granted in 1663, formerly establishing the colony of " Rhode Island and Providence Plantations " This charter continued to be the sole constitution of Rhode Island until the year 1842. By its provisions the govern- ment of the colony was to consist of a gov- ernor, deputy-governor, ten assistants, and representatives from the towns. Equal Rights to All. The laws were to be agreeable to those of England, but no oath of allegiance was required of the colony, and in matters of religion the charter declared that " no person within the said colony, at any time hereafter, shall be anywise molested, punished, dis- quieted, or called in any question for any difference in opinion in matters of religion ; every person may at all times freely and fully enjoy his own judgment and conscience in matters of religious concernments." Free- dom of conscience was not restricted to Christians ; it was extended by the charter to infidels and pagans as well. This charter made the little colony secure against the attempts of Massachusetts to absorb her, and its reception by the people was joyful and enthusiastic. At this period the population of Rhode Island was about twenty-five hundred. It increased rapidly and steadily ; the excellent harbors of the province encouraged com- merce, and the little state soon began to rival her larger associates in prosperity. Massachusetts was from the first regarded with disfavor by the royal government. It delayed its acknowledgment of Charles II. for over a year, and the king was not pro- claimed at Boston until the seventh of August, 1661. Even then the general court forbade all manifestations of joy. These signs of the independent spirit of the people had been observed in England, and the col- ony had been watched by the government with anything but favor. The enemies of the young state hurried their complaints be- fore the king, and Massachusets at length found it to her interest to send commission- ers to London, as, indeed, the express orders of the king required her to do. Among the agents sent over were John Norton and Simon Bradstreet, men of ability and mod- eration, who commanded the confidence of all classes of the colonists. Their instruc- tions were to assure the king of the loyalty of Massachusetts, to engage his favor for the colony; but to agree to " nothing preju- dicial to their present standing according to their patent, and to endeavor the establish- ment of the rights and privileges then enjoyed." Two Parties in Massachusetts. The commissioners reached London in January, 1662, and were graciously received by the king, who confirmed the charter, and granted a complete amnesty for all past offences against his majesty. He required, however, that all laws derogatory to his authority should be repealed ; that the col- onists should take the oath of allegiance to him ; that justice should be administered in his name : that the right of suffrage should be thrown open to all freeholders of com- petent estates ; and that all who wished to do so should be free to use " the book of com- mon prayer, and perform their devotion in the manner established in England." NEW ENGLAND AFTER THE RESTORATION. 169 These were better terms than the commis- sioners had reason to expect, and were not in themselves objectionable, as Massachu- setts was growing beyond its early preju- dices; but the acceptance of them would have implied an acknowledgment by the colony of the king's right to change its fun- damental law, and to interfere with its affairs at pleasure. Massachusetts was at once divided into two parties, the larger of which maintained the independence of the colony ■of royal control ; the smaller party supported the claims of the king. Under other circum- stances no opposition would have been made to the toleration of the practices of the Church of England in the colony; but now that it seemed that episcopacy was to be in- troduced as the ally of the royal power, the people of Massachusetts resolved to prevent it from obtaining a foothold in their midst. The general court resolved to maintain their political independence, and their religious establishment as well. As a measure of pre- caution, the charter was secretly intrusted for safe-keeping to a committee of four, ap- pointed by the general court ; and it was ordered that only small bodies of officers and men should be allowed to land from ships, and should be required to yield a strict obedience to the laws of the province while on shore. Contempt for Puritan Customs. These last measures were adopted because of the appointment by the king of commis- sioners to regulate the affairs of New Eng- land. The commissioners reached Boston in July, 1664, escorted by the fleet sent out from England for the reduction of New Amsterdam. They were ordered to investi- gate the manner in which the charters of the New England colonies had been exercised, and had " full authority to provide for the peace of the country, according to the royal instructions, and their own discretion " — a power which Massachusetts was justified in regarding as dangerous to her liberties. The People Redress their "Wrongs. The commissioners cared very little for the prejudices of the people of Massachu- setts, and from the first proceeded to outrage their feelings. They introduced the services of the Church of England into Boston to the great disgust of the people. The Puritans had always observed the old Jewish custom of beginning their Sabbath at sunset. The commissioners contemptuously disregarded this custom, and spent Saturday evening in merry-making. They soon gave cause for more serious alarm by exercising the powers with which they had been intrusted, and pro- ceeding to redress the grievances of the people. All persons who had complaints against Massachusetts were called upon to lay them before the commissioners, and Rhode Island and the Narragansett chiefs promptly availed themselves of the invita- tion. The general court now cut the matter short by a decisive step, and sternly ordered the commissioners to discontinue their pro- ceedings, as contrary to the charter. The commissioners obeyed the order, and though the firmness of the colony aroused the indig- nation of the king, he was not able to shake the determination of a free people. Nor was this the only opposition shown by New England to the injustice of the mother country. The navigation acts were generally disregarded; they could not be enforced; and Boston and the other New England ports continued to enjoy their grow- ing commerce as freely as before the passage of these infamous acts. Vessels from all the other colonies, and from France, Spain, Hol- land and Italy, as well as from England, were to be seen at all seasons in the port of Boston. I/O SETTLEMENT OF AMERICA. Massachusetts owned the greater number of vessels built and operated in America, and was the principal carrier for the other colonies. Its ships sailed to the most dis- tant lands beyond the sea, and the commerce of the colony was rapidly becoming a source of great wealth. So marked indeed was the prosperity of New England, that upon the receipt of the news of the great fire in Lon- don the colonists were able to send large sums to the assistance of the sufferers. The 14,000; Massachusetts, about 22,000; Maine, about 4,000; New Hampshire, about 4,000; Rhode Island, about 4,000. The settlements lay principally along the coast, from New Haven to the northeastern border of Maine. Little progress had been made towards pene- trating the interior. Haverhill, Deerfield, Northfield and Westfield were towns on the remote frontier. This rapid growth alarmed the Indians, who had already begun to regard the whites. N LIFE IN THEIR NATIVE FORESTS. people of New England were industrious and frugal. Villages multiplied rapidly, and wherever a village sprang up a common school accompanied it. The villages began to assume a more tasteful and pleasing ap- pearance, and men gave more care to the adornment and beautifying of their homes. The population of New England in 1675 has been estimated at about 55,000 souls, divided among the colonies as follows : Plymouth, about 7,000; Connecticut, about as enemies bent on their destruction. Though there had been peace for forty years in New England, the savages saw that the policy pursued by the settlers was meant to force them back from the lands of their fathers. The whites had gradually absorbed the best lands in New England, and the red men had been as gradually crowded down upon the narrow necks and bays of the southern shores of the Plymouth and Rhode Island colonies. This had been done in pursuance NEW ENGLAND AFTER THE RESTORATION. 171 of a settled policy, as the savages could be more carefully watched, and more easily managed in these localities than if left to roam at will over the country. The Indians on their part sullenly resented the course of the whites, and they had cause for complaint. They were ignorant of the art of cultivating the soil, and unwilling to practice it, and in their restricted limits it was difficult for them to obtain the means of supporting life. The game had been almost entirely driven from the forests, and the savages were forced to depend upon fish for their food ; and these were obtained in scanty and uncertain quan- tities. Thus the very success of New Eng- land was about to bring upon it the most serious misfortunes it had yet sustained. The Chief Entrapped. Massasoit, who had been the early friend of the English, left two sons at his death, Wamsuttaand Metacom, who had long been reckoned among the friends of the Plymouth colony. They were frequent visitors at Plymouth, and had received from the English the names of Alexander and Philip. At the death of Massasoit, Wamsutta, or Alexander, became chief of the Wampanoags. He and his brother Philip were men of more than ordinary abilities, and felt deeply the wrongs which were beginning to fall thickly upon their race. Uncas, the chief of the Mohe- gans, the determined enemy of Wamsutta, exerted himself, with success, to fill the minds of the English with suspicions of the intentions of the Wampanoag chieftain, and it was resolved to arrest him and bring him to Plymouth. Winslow was sent at the head of an armed force, and succeeded in surprising the chief in his hunting-lodge, together with eighty of his followers. The proud spirit of Wamsutta chafed with such fury at the indignity thus put upon him that he was seized with a dan- gerous fever, and the English were obliged to permit him to return home. " He died on his way," says Elliott. " He was carried home on the shoulders of men, and borne to his silent grave near Mount Hope, in the evening of the day, and in the prime of his life, between lines of sad, quick-minded Indians, who well believed him the victim of injustice and ingratitude ; for his father had been the ally, not the subject, of England, and so was he, and the like indignity had not before been put upon any sachem." By the death of his brother, Metacom, or Philip, became chief of the Wampanoags. He kept his own council, but the whites soon had cause to believe that he meditated a des- perate vengeance upon them for the death of Wamsutta and the wrongs of his race. To make the sense of injury deeper in his mind, the Plymouth authorities treated him with great harshness and compelled him to give up his arms. A "praying Indian" who lived among his people informed the colonists that the chief meditated harm against them, and his dead body was soon after found. Three of Philip's men were suspected of the murder. They were arrested, tried at Ply- mouth, and found guilty by a jury composed of whites and Indians, and were put to death. This was early in 1675. Cry for Revenge. The execution of these men awoke a wild thirst for revenge among the tribe to which they belonged, and the young warriors clam- ored loudly for war against the English. Philip, whose vigorous mind enabled him to judge more clearly of the issue of such a strucrpfle. entered into the contest with reluct- ance, for he saw that it must end in the destruction of his race. He was powerless to resist the universal sentiment of his people, and like a true hero resolved to make the best of the situation in which he was placed. 1/2 SETTLEMENT OF AMERICA. and to share the fate of his nation. The Indians were tolerably well provided with fire-arms, for, in spite of the severe punish- ments denounced against the sale of weapons to the savages, the colonists had not been proof against the temptations of gain held out to them by this traffic. Their chief dependence, however, was upon their primitive weapons. The English, on the other hand, were well armed, and were provided with forts and towns which fur- nished them with secure places of refuge. KING PHILIPo They might have averted the war by concil- iating the savages, but they persisted in their unjust treatment of them, regarding them as " bloody heathen," who it was their duty to drive back into the wilderness. Philip was able to bring seven hundred desperate warriors into the field. They had no hope of success, and they fought only for vengeance. They knew every nook and hiding-place of the forest, and in these nat- ural defences could hope to continue the struggle as long as the leaves remamed on the trees to conceal their lurking-places from the white man's search. War Breaks Out, Immediately after the execution of the three Indians at Plymouth, Philip's men had begun to rob exposed houses and carry off cattle, but the war did not actually begin until the twenty-fourth of June, 1675, the day of fasting and prayer appointed by the gov- ernment as a preparation for the struggle. On that day the people of Swanzey, in Ply- mouth colony, while returning home from church, were attacked by the Wampanoags, and eight or nine were killed. Philip burst into tears when the news of this attack was brought to him, but he threw himself with energy into the hopeless struggle, now that it had come. Reinforcements were sent from Massachu- setts to the aid of the Plymouth colony, and on the twenty-ninth of June the united forces made an attack upon the Wampanoags, killed six or seven of their men and drove them to a swamp in which they took refuge. The English surrounded this swamp, determined to starve the Indians into submission, but Philip and his warriors escaped and took refuge among the Nipmucks, a small tribe occupying what is now Worcester county, Massachusetts. The English then marched into the territory of the Narragansetts and compelled them to agree to remain neutral, and to deliver up the fugitive Indians who should take refuge among them. This accomplished, the colonists hoped they had put an end to the war. Philip succeeded in inducing the Nipmucks to join him in the struggle, and his warriors began to hang around the English settle- ments. The whites were murdered wherever they ventured to expose themselves, and a feeling of general terror spread through the NEW ENGLAND AFTER THE RESTORATION. 173 colonies. No one knew the extent of the hostility of the savage tribes, or how many allies Philip had gained ; nor was it certain when or where the next great blow of the savages would be struck. Strange Stories. Some of the colonists began to give way to superstitious fears. It was asserted that an Indian bow, a sign of impending evil, had been seen clearly defined against the heavens, and that at the eclipse which occurred at this time the moon bore the figure of an Indian scalp on its face. The northern heavens glowed with auroral lights of unusual brilliancy; troops of phantom horsemen were heard to dash through the air; the sighing of the night wind was like the sound of whistling bullets ; and the howling of the wolves ^ was fiercer and more con- stant than usual. These things, the superstitious declared, were warnings that the colonies were about to be severely pun- ished for their sins, among which they named profane swearing, the neglect of bringing up their children in more rigid observances, the licensing of ale houses, and the wearing of long hair by the men, and of gay apparel by the women. The more extreme even declared that they were about to be "judged " for not exterminating the Quakers. In the meantime, Philip, with a party of Nipmucks and his own people, carried the war into the valley of the Connecticut, and spread death along the line of settlements from Springfield to Northfield, then the most remote inland town. With the hope of with- drawing the Nipmucks, v;ho could muster fifteen hundred warriors, from the confed- eracy, Captain Hutchinson, with twenty men, was sent to treat with them. His party was ambushed and murdered at Brookfield early in August. The Indians then attacked THE BURNING OF BROOKFIELD BY THE INDIANS. Brookfield, and burned the village with the exception of one strong house to which the colonists retreated. After a siege of two days, during which they kept up a constant fire upon the build- ing, they attempted to burn the house, but were prevented by a shower of rain which 174 SETTLEMENT OF AMERICA. extinguished the flames. At the same moment a reinforcement of fifty men arrived to the aid of the whites, and the savages were driven off with the loss of several of their number. Philip succeeded in drawing to his support nearly all the tribes of New England, and it was resolved by the savages to make a general effort for the destruction of the whites. A concerted attack was to be made upon a large number of settlements at the same day and hour, and the Sabbath was chosen as the day most favorable for the movement. King Philip a Refugee. Deerfield in Massachusetts and Hadley in Connecticut were among the places attacked. The former was burned. Hadley was as- sailed while the congregation were worship- ing in the church, and the whites were hard pressed by their antagonists. Suddenly in the midst of the battle there appeared a tall and venerable man with a flowing beard, and clad in a strange dress. With sword in hand he rallied the settlers, and led them to a new effort, in which the savages were beaten back and put to flight. When the battle was over, the stranger could not be found, and the wondering people declared that he was an angel sent by God for their deliv^erance. It was Goffe, the regicide, who had suddenly lelt his place of concealment to aid his coun- trymen in their struggle with the savages. He had been lying in concealment at the house of Russell, the minister of Hadley, and returned to his place of refuge when the danger was over. On the whole, the Indians, though they succeeded in causing great suffering to the colonies, were unsuccessful in their efforts during the summer and autumn of 1675. In October, Philip returned to his old home, but, finding Mount Hope in ruins, took shel- ter among the Narragansetts, who protected him notwithstanding their promise to deliver up all fugitives to the linglish. The colonial authorities seeing that the tribe had no inten- tion of fulfilling their promise, and being fearful that Philip would succeed in winning them over to his side, resolved to anticipate the danger and treat them as enemies. A force was collected and sent into the Narragansett country in December, 1675. This tribe, numbering about three thousand souls, had erected a strong fort of palisades, in the midst of a swamp near the present town of Kingston, Rhode Island. It was almost inaccessible, and had but a single entrance, defended by a morass, which could be passed only by means of a fallen tree. The English were led to the fort by an Indian traitor, and attacked it on the nine- teenth of December, After a severe fight of two hours they succeeded in forcing an en- trance into the fort. The wigwams were then fired, and the whole place was soon in flames. The defeat of the savages was complete, but it was purchased by the loss of six captains and two hundred and fifty men, killed and wounded, on the part of the English. Fury of the Savages. About one thousand of the Narragansetts were slain, their provisions were destroyed and numbers were made prisoners. Those who escaped wandered through the frozen woods without shelter, and for food were compelled to dig for nuts and acorns under the snow. Many died during the winter. Canonchet, the Narragansett chief, was among the survivors. *' We will fight to the last man rather than become servants to the English," said the undaunted chieftain. He was taken prisoner in April, 1676, near Blackstone, and was offered his life if he would induce the Indians to make peace. He refused the offer with scorn, and, when MKS. KOWLANDSON CAPTURED BY THE INDIANS. 175 176 SETTLEiMENT OF AMERICA. sentenced to death, answered proudly : " I like it well ; I shall die before I speak any- thing unworthy of myself." In the spring- of 1676, Philip, who had been to the west to endeavor to induce the Mohawks to join the war against the Eng- lish, returned to place himself at the head of his countrymen in New England. The work of murdering and burning was resumed with renewed fury. The Indians seemed to be everywhere and innumerable, and the whites could find safety only in their forts. The surviving Narragansetts scourged the Rhode Island and Plymouth colonies with fire and axe, and even the aged Roger Williams was obliged to take up arms for the defence of his home Lancaster, Medford, Weymouth, Groton, Springfield, Sudbury and Marl- borough, in Massachusetts, and Providence and Warwick, in Rhode Island, were de- stroyed either wholly or in part, and numer- ous other settlements were attacked and made to suffer more or less severely. Mother and Child Wounded. Among the prisoners carried away by the sav^ages was Mrs. Rowlandson, wife of the resident minister, and her little girl six years old. A single bullet fired during the attack wounded both mother and child. With that devotion which is part of the nature of a mother, she carried and nursed the little one for nine days, when it died in her arms. The parent endured many hardships, and was a captive among the Indians for three months, when she was ransomed for twenty pounds. As the season advanced the cause of the Indians became more hopeless, and they began to quarrel among themselves. In June the Nipmucks submitted, and the tribes on the Connecticut refused to shelter Philip any longer. He then appealed to the Mohawks to take up the hatchet, but seeing that his cause was hopeless, they refused to join him. In proud despair Philip went back to Mount Hope to die. One of his people urged him to make peace with the whites, and was struck dead by the chief for daring to mention such a humiliation. •* I Ana Ready to Die!" It became known that Philip had returned to his old home, and Captain Church marched against him, dispersed his followers, and took the chiefs wife and little son pris- oners. Philip, who had borne the reverses and the reproaches of his nation with the firmness of a hero, was conquered by this misfortune. " My heart breaks," he cried, despairingly, " I am ready to die ! " He was soon attacked by Church in his place of concealment, and in attempting to escape was shot by an Indian who was serving in the ranks of his enemies. Philip's little son was sold as a slave in Bermuda, and the grandson of Massasoit, who had welcomed and befriended the English, was condemned to pass his days in bondage in a foreign clime. The death of Philip was soon followed by the close of hostilities. The power of the Indians was completely broken. Of the Narragansetts scarcely one hundred men were left alive, and the other tribes had suf- fered severely. The Mohegans had remained faithful to the English, and Connecticut had been happily spared the sufferings experi- enced by the other colonies, which were very severe. Twelve or thirteen towns were destroyed, and many others were seriously crippled. Six hundred houses were burned, and the pecuniary losses amounted to the then enormous sum of half a million of dollars. Over six hundred men, chiefly young men, fell in the war, and there was scarcely a family which did not mourn some loved one who had given his life for the country. NEW ENGLAND AFTER THE RESTORATION. 177 In all their distress the colonies received no aid from England. The mother country- left them to fight out their struggle of life and death alone. The English people and government were indifferent to their fate. One generous Non-conformist church in Dublin sent a contribution of five hundred pounds to the sufferers. This relief Avas gratefully acknowledged ; but to the credit of New England it should be remembered that her colonies never asked assistance from England, The king was very careful, however, to exact every penny he could wring from the colonies, and towards the close of the Indian war established a royal custom-house at Boston for the collection of duties. Duties were imposed upon the com- merce of the colonies, and the royal govern- ment endeavored to enforce their payment by threatening to refuse the New England ships the protection which enabled them to escape the outrages of the African pirates of the Mediterranean. The province of Maine had been restored by Charles II. to the heirs of Sir Ferdinand Gorges, and in 1677 Massachusetts pur- chased their claims for the sum of twelve hundred and fifty pounds, and thus confirmed her possession of the region between the Piscataqua and the Kennebec. The region between the Kennebec and the Penobscot was held by the Duke of York, and that from the Penobscot to the St. Croix was occupied by the French. In July, 1679, King Charles detached New Hampshire from Massachusetts, and organ- ized it as a royal province; the first ever erected in New England. The province at once asserted its rights, and a controversy was begun with the crown, which was con- tinued for several years. The people resisted the effort to force upon them the observances of the English church, and the collection of taxes assessed by the royal officials, and 12 Cranfield, the royal governor, finding it impossible to continue his arbitrary rule, wrote to the British government, " I shall esteem it the greatest happiness in the world to remove from these unreasonable people. They cavil at the royal commission, and not at my person. No one will be accepted by them who puts the king's commands in' execution." Conflict With the King. In the last years of his reign Charles II. made a determined effort to destroy the charter of Massachusetts. Commissioners were sent by the colony to England to endeavor to defend its rights, but the royal government was resolved upon its course, and the people of Massachusetts were equally determined not to consent to the surrender of their liberties. At length, in 1684, the general court having in the name of the people distinctly refused to make a surrender of the charter to the king, the English courts declared the charter forfeited. A copy of the judgment was sent to Boston, and was received there on the second of July, 1685. The colony was full of appre- hension. The charter under which it had grown and prospered, and which secured its liberties to it without the interference of the crown, had been stricken down by the sub- servient courts of the mother country, and there was now no defence between the liber- ties of Massachusetts and the arbitrary will of the king, who had given the colony good cause to fear his hostility. James II. came to the English throne in 1685. He was even more hostile to New England than his brother Charles. He was a bigoted Roman Catholic, and was resolved to introduce that faith, not only into Eng- land, but also into the colonies. He attempted to accomplish this by proclaiming an indul- gence or toleration of all creeds. As he 178 SETTLEMENT OF AMERICA. dared not proceed openly to violate his cor- onation oath, he hoped by this underhanded scheme to place his own religion upon such a footing in England that he would soon be in a position to compel its adoption by his subjects. He had greatly mistaken the temper of both England and America. Joseph Dudley, who had been sent to England as one of the agents of Massachu- SIR EDMUND ANDKOS. setts in the last controversy between the colony and King Charles, now found it to his interest to become as ardent a defender as he had formerly been an opponent of the royal prerogative, and James finding him a willing abettor of his designs, appointed him president of Massachusetts until a royal governor should arrive, for the king was resolved to take away the charters of all the colonies and make them royal provinces. At the same time, being determined to curtail the liberty of the press, the king appointed Edward Randolph its censor. Dudley was regarded by the people as the betrayer of the liberties of his country, and both he and Randolph were cordially despised by them. The king in appointing Dudley made no provision for an assembly or general court, as he meant to govern the colonies without reference to the people. He regarded the American pro- vinces as so many possessions of the crown, possessed of no rights, and entitled to no privi- leges save what he chose to allow them. In pursuance of this plan. Sir Edmund Andros, whom the king had appointed governor of New York, was made governor-gen- eral of all New England. He reached Boston in December, 1686. Dudley was made chief justice, and Randolph colonial secretary. The governor-general was empowered by the king to appoint his own council, impose such taxes as he should think fit, command the militia of the colonies, enforce the naviga- tion acts, prohibit printing, and establish episcopacy in New England ; and in order to enable him to enforce his will, two companies of soldiers were sent over with him and quartered in Boston. Thus were the liberties of New England placed at the mercy of a tyrant, and thus was inaugu- rated a despotisfn the most galling that was ever imposed upon men of English descent. NEW ENGLAND AFTER THE RESTORATION. 179 Andros promptly put in force a series of the most arbitrary measures. The public schools, which had been fostered with such care by the colonial governments, were allowed to fall into decay. The support which had been granted to the churches was withdrawn. The people were forbidden to assemble for the discussion of any public matter, though they were allowed the poor privilege of electing their town officers. The form of oath in use in New England was an appeal to Heaven with uplifted hand. The governor now ordered the substitution of a form which required the person to place his hand on the Bible. This was particularly repugnant to the Puritans, who regarded it as a " Popish practice." Probate fees were increased twenty-fold. The holders of lands were told that their titles were invalid because obtained under a charter which had been declared forfeited. Tyrannical Proceedings. No person was allowed to leave the colony without a pass signed by the governor. The Puritan magistrates and ministers were refused authority to unite persons in mar- riage. The clergyman of the Church of England, stationed at Boston, was the only person in New England who could perform a legal marriage. Episcopacy was formally established, and the people were required to build a church for its uses. At the com- mand of the king, a tax of a penny in the pound, and a poll-tax of twenty pence, was imposed upon every person in the colony. Some of the towns had the boldness to refuse to pay this tax, and John Wise, the minister of Ipswich, advised his fellow- townsmen to resist it. He and a number of others were arrested and fined. When they pleaded their privileges under the laws of England, they were told by one of the coun- cil : " You have no privilege left you but not to be sold as slaves." " Do you think,'* asked one ot the judges, "that the laws of England follow you to the ends of the earth ? " The iniquitous exactions of Andros and his associates threatened the country with ruin. When the magistrates mentioned this, they were told, " It is not for his majesty's interest you should thrive." " The governor invaded liberty and property after such a manner," wrote Increase Mather, " as no man could say anything was his own." The Old " Charter Oak." The other colonies came in for their share of bad treatment. Soon after he reached Boston, Andros demanded of the authorities of Rhode Island the surrender of their char- ter. Governor Clarke declined to comply with this demand, and Andros went to Providence, broke the seal of the colony, and declared its government dissolved. He appointed a com- mission irresponsible to the people for the government of Rhode Island, and then had the effrontery to declare that the people of that colony were satisfied with what he had done. In October, Andros went to Connecticut with an armed guard to take possession of the government of that colony. He reached Hartford on the thirty-first of the month, and found the legislature in session, and de- manded ot that body the surrender of the charter. The discussion was prolonged until evening, and then candles were brought, and the charter was placed on the table. Sud- denly the lights were extinguished, and when they were relighted the charter could not be found. It had been secured by Joseph Wadsworth of Hartford, and carried to the southern part of the city, where it was con- cealed in a hollow oak tree, which was after- wards known as the " Charter Oak." Andros, furious at the disappearance of the charter, was not to be balked of his purpose i8o SETTLEMENT OF AMERICA. of seizing the colonial government, and taking the record book of the assembly, he ^vrote the word "Finis" at the end of the last day's proceedings. He then declared the colonial government at an end, and proceeded to administer the affairs of the province in the spirit in which he had governed Massachusetts and Rhode Island. The people of New England had borne these outrages with a patience which no one had expected of them. They were a law- abiding people, and wished to exhaust all legal means of redress before proceeding to extreme measures for their protection ; but THE CHARTER OAK. the party in favor of driving Andros and his fellow-plunderers out of the country was rapidly growing stronger, and it was not certain how much longer the policy of for- bearance would be continued. Increase Mather was appointed to go to England and endeavor to procure a redress of the grievances of the colonies. It was a danger- ous mission, for the king was in full sympa- thy with the men whom he had placed over the liberties of New England. It was also difficult to leave America without the knowl- edge of Andros and his colleagues, but Mather succeeded in escaping their vigilance, and was on his way to the old world when relief arrived from a most unexpected quarter. ^ The efforts of James to bring about the re-establishment of the Roman Catholic religion in England roused the whole Eng- lish nation against him, and in 1689 the nation invited William, Prince of Orange, the husband of James' eldest daughter, Mary, to come over to England and assume the throne. James, left without any adher- ents, fled to France, and William and Mary were securely seated upon the throne. The news of the landing of William in England and the flight of King James reached Boston on the fourth of April, 1689. The messenger was at once imprisoned by Andros, but his tidings soon became known to the citizens. On the morning of the eight- eenth the people of Boston took up arms, and having secured the person of the com- mander of the royal frigate in the harbor, seized the royalist sheriff. Sent to England for Trial. The militia were assembled, and Andros and his companions were obliged to take refuge in the fort. Simon Bradstreet, the governor who had held office at the time of the abrogation of the charter, was called upon by the people to resume his post, and the old magistrates were reinstated and organized as a council of safety. Andros and his creatures attempted to escape to the frigate, but were prevented and were com- pelled to surrender. The next day rein- forcements came pouring into Boston from the other settlements, and the fort was taken and the frigate mastered. Town meetings were now held throughout the colony, and it was voted to resume the former charter. The people were almost unanimous in favor of this course, but the counsels of a more timid minority prevailed, and the council, which had appointed itself to the control of NEW ENGLAND AFTER THE RESTORATION. i8i affairs, decided to solicit a new charter from William and Mary. A general court was convened on the twenty-second of May. The people of the colony were anxious that Andres, Dudley and Randolph should receive prompt punishment for their offences, but the authorities wisely determined to send them to England for trial, Plymouth, upon receipt of the news from Boston, seized the agent of Andros, impris- oned him, and re-established the government which Andros had overthrown, under the constitution signed on board the " May- flower." There were none of the old Pil- grim fathers living to witness this event, but their children were none the less determined to maintain unimpaired the liberties they had inherited from them. The Charter Safe. Rhode Island promptly resumed her charter and reinstated the officers whom Andros had displaced. Connecticut, upon hearing of the downfall of the governor- general, brought out her charter from its hiding place, and restored the old officers to their positions. Thus the work of James II. was over- thrown, and the destinies of New England were once more in the hands of her own people. The generation that had settled New England had nearly all been gathered to their rest, and their children were in some respects different from the fathers. They had learned lessons of toleration, and had acquired many of the refining graces that the elder Puritans regarded as mere vanity. They retained, however, the earnest and lofty virtues which had made the first gen- eration superior to hardships and trials of all kinds, and which had enabled them in the face of every discouragement to lay the foundations of the great commonwealths which to-day cherish their memories as their most precious legacies. The fathers of New England richly merited the honor which succeeding generations have delighted to bestow upon their memories. However they may have erred, they were men who earnestly sought to do right in all things, and who did their duty fearlessly according to the light before them. In the first generation we have noticed an extraordinary degree of influence exerted by the ministers. This was due to no desire of the Puritans to connect church and state, but was owing to the fact that the ministers represented the best educated and most in- tellectual class of that day, and the people regarded them as the best qualified guides in the community. As New England ad- vanced in prosperity her schools and col- leges were able to turn out numbers of edu- cated men, who embraced the other learned professions, and divided the influence with the ministers. New England always chose its leaders from among its most intelligent men, and its people always yielded a willing homage to the claims of intellect At the downfall of Andros there were about two hundred thousand white inhabi- tants in the English colonies of North America. Of these, Massachusetts, includ- ing Plymouth and ' Maine, had about forty- four thousand ; New Hampshire and Rhode Island about six thousand each ; Connecticut about twenty thousand ; making the total population of New England about seventy- six thousand. CHAPTER XV Witchcraft in Massachusetts Results of the Failure of Massachusetts to Resume her Charter — The New Charter — Loss of the Liberties of the Colony — Union of Plymouth with Massachusetts Bay — Belief in Witchcraft — The History of Witchcraft in Massachusetts — The Case of the CJoodwin Children — Cotton Mather Espouses the Cause of the Witches — Samuel Parris — He Origi- nates the Salem Delusion — A Strange History — A Special Court Appointed for the Trial of the Witches — The Victims — Execution of the Rev. George Burroughs — Cotton Mather's Part in the Tragedies — The General Coart takes Action in Behalf of the People — End of the Persecution — Failure of Cotton Mather's Attempt to- Save his Credit. THE decision of the magistrates of Massachusetts to disregard the wishes of a majority of the people of the colony, who desired an imme- diate restoration of the government under the old charter, and to wait for a new charter from William and Mary, gave great offence to the popular party. Had the wish of this party been complied with, Massachusetts might have recovered every liberty and priv- ilege of which she had been deprived by King James. Increase Mather distinctly declares that " had they at that time entered upon the full exercise of their charter government, as their undoubted right, wise men in England were of opinion that they might have gone on without disturbance." The self-constituted government hesitated, however, and the op- portunity was lost. When the convention of the people met, in May, 1689, they refused to acknowledge the council that had taken charge of affairs upon the downfall of Andros, and demanded that the governor, deputy governor and assist- ants elected in 1686 should be restored to office. The council refused to comply with this demand, and the matter was referred to the people, who sustained their representa- tives. A compromise was effected, and the council agreed to permit the officers of 1686 to resume their places until instructions could be received from England. Agents were 182 sent to England to solicit a restoration of the charter, and their appeal was supported by the English Presbyterians with great unani- mity. Even the Archbishop of Canterbury urged the king " not to take away from the people of New England any of the privileges which Charles I. had granted them." In spite of the pressure exerted upon him in behalf of the colony. King William granted to Massachusetts a charter which placed the liberties of the province so entirely at the mercy of the crown that the colonial agent refused to accept it. There was no help for it, however, and the charter became the fundamental law of Massachusetts. Under the old charter the governor of Mas- sachusetts had been elected annually by the votes of the freemen ; he was now to be appointed by the king and to serve during the royal pleasure. He was given power to summon the general court, and to adjourn or dissolve that body. The election of magistrates of all kinds, which had been confided to the people by the old charter, was taken from them, and henceforth these officials were to be appointed by the governor with the consent of the council. The old charter had made the decision of the colonial courts final ; the new permitted appeals from these tribunals to the privy council in England. The old charter had given to the general court full WITCHCRAFT IN MASSACHUSETTS. powers of legislation ; the new conferred upon the governor the right to veto any of its measures, and reserved to the crown the power of cancelling any act of colonial legislation within three years after its pass- age. The council was at first appointed by the king, but was subsequently elected by the joint ballot of the two branches of the gen- eral court. To compensate the people for the loss of their political power the king greatly enlarged the limits of the colony. Massachusetts and Ply- mouth were united in one province, the name of the former being given to the whole. The Eli- zabeth Islands were also added to the province, and its northern bound- ary was extended to the St. Lawrence. Toleration was granted to every religious sect except the Roman Catholics. New Hampshire was separ- ated from the jurisdic- tion of Massachusetts and made a separate province ; but Maine and the vast wilderness beyond it were confirmed to the Bay colony. The charter bore the date of October 7, 1691. Upon the nomination of Increase Mather, one of the colonial agents, Sir William Phipps, a native of New England, a well-meaning but mcompetent man, who was in religious matters strongly inclined to superstition, was 183 appointed governor of Massachusetts, Will- iam Stoughton, " a man of cold affections, proud, self-willed, and covetous of distinction" — a man universally hated by the people — was appointed deputy governor to please Cotton Mather. The members of the council THE REV. COTTON MATHER. were chosen entirely for their devotion " to the interests of the churches. " While these matters were in progress of settlement, there occurred in Massachusetts one of the most singular delusions recorded 1 84 SETTLEMENT OF AMERICA. in history, and which was in some respects the last expiring" effort of ecclesiastical am- bition to control the political affairs of the colony. The clergy had always sought in New England, as in other lands, to fight their political enemies with spiritual weapons. They now carried this to an extreme which taught the people of New England a lesson that was not soon forgotten. ' Witches and "Witchcraft. The belief in witchcraft has not been con- fined to any single nation, and at this time was common to America and Europe. " The people did not rally to the error ; they accepted the superstition only because it had not yet been disengaged from religion." It "was believed that as Christians were united with God by a solemn covenant, so were witches leagued with the devil by a tie which, once formed, they could not dissolve. Those who thus placed themselves in the arch- fiend's power were used by him as instru- ments to torment their fellow-men. They were given power to annoy them by pinch- ing them, thrusting invisible pins into them, pulling their hair, afflicting them with disease, killing their cattle and chickens with myste- rious ailments, upsetting their wagons and carts ; and by practising upon them many other puerile and ludicrous tricks. The witches generally exerted their arts upon those whom they hated, but it was a matter of doubt how many persons were included in their dislikes. One of the most popular superstitions was that of the *' Witches' sacrament," a gathering at which the devil, in the form of " a small black man," presided, and required his followers to renounce their Christian baptism and to sign their n^mes in his book. They were then re-baptised by the devil, and the meet- ing was closed with horrid rites which varied in different narratives according to the im- agination of the relators. The belief in the existence o( witchcraft was held by some of the leading minds of this period. Sir Matthew Hale, Lord Chief Justice of England, was firmly convinced of the truth of the doctrine, and it was advo- cated by many of the clergy of England. In New England the clergy held it to be heresy to deny the existence of witches, which, they claimed was clearly taught in the Scriptures. It was evidently to their interest to maintain this belief, as it made them the chief authorities in such cases, and furnished them with a powerful weapon against their adversaries. Devils and Wizards. By the early settlers of New England the Indians were supposed to be worshipers of the devil, and their medicine-men to be wizards. Governor Hutchinson, in his " History of Massachusetts," thus sums up the cases of supposed witchcraft that had occurred in the colony previous to the time or which we are now writing : " The first suspicion of witchcraft among the English was about the year 1645, at Springfield, upon Connecticut River ; several persons were supposed to be under an evil hand, and among the rest two of the min- ister's children. Great pains were taken to prove the facts upon several of the persons charged with the crime, but either the nature of the evidence was not satisfactory, or the fraud was suspected, and so no person was convicted until the year 1650, when a poor wretch, Mary Oliver, probably weary of her life from the general reputation of being a witch, after long examination, was brought to confession of her guilt, but I do not find that she was executed. " Whilst this inquiry was making, Mar- garet Jones was executed at Charlestown ; and Mr. Hale mentions a woman at Dor- chester, and another at Cambridge about the WITCHCRAFT IN MASSACHUSETTS. 1 85 same time, who all at their death asserted their innocence. Soon after, Hugh Parsons was tried at Springfield, and escaped death. In 1655 Mrs. Hibbins, the assistant's widow, was hanged at Boston. " In 1662, at Hartford, in Connecticut, one Ann Cole, a young woman who lived next door to a Dutch family, and no doubt had learned something of the language, was supposed to be possessed with demons, who sometimes spoke Dutch and sometimes English, and sometimes a language which nobody understood, and who held a con- ference with one another. Several ministers who were present took down the conference in writing and the names of several per- sons, mentioned in the course of the con- ference, as actors or bearing parts in it , par- ticularly a woman, then in prison upon suspicion of witchcraft, one Greensmith, who upon examination, confessed and appeared to be surprised at the discovery. She owned that she and the others named had been familiar with a demon, who had carnal knowledge of her, and although she had not made a formal covenant, yet she had promised to be ready at his call, and was to have had a high frolic at Christmas, when the agreement was to have been signed. Upon this confession she was executed, and two more of the company were condemned. In 1669 Susanna Martin, of Salisbury, was bound over to the court upon suspicion of witchcraft, but escaped at that time. A Fortunate Escape. "In 1671 Elizabeth Knap, another ven- triloqua, alarmed the people of Groton in much the same manner as Ann Cole had done those of Hartford ; but her demon was not so cunning, for, instead of confining him- self to old women, he railed at the good minister of the town and other people of good character, and the people could not then be prevailed on to believe him, but believed the girl when she confessed that she had been deluded, and that the devil had tormented her in the shape of good persons ; so she escaped the punishment due to her fraud and imposture. " In 1673 Eunice Cole, of Hampton, was tried, and the jury found her not legally guilty, but that there were strong grounds to suspect her of familiarity with the devil. An Invisible Hand. " In 1679 William Morse's house, at New- bury, was troubled with the throwing of bricks, stones, etc., and a boy of the family was supposed to be bewitched, who accused one of the neighbors; and in 1682 the house of George Walton, a Quaker, at Portsmouth, and another at Salmon Falls (in New Hamp- shire), were attacked after the same manner. " In 1683 the demons removed to Con- necticut River again, where one Desborough's house was molested by an invisible hand, and a fire kindled, nobody knew how, which burnt up a great part of his estate ; and in 1684 Philip Smith, a judge of the court, a military officer and a representative of the town of Hadley, upon the same river (a hypochondriac person), fancied himself under an evil hand, and suspected a woman, one of his neighbors, and languished and pined away, and was generally supposed to be be- witched to death. While he lay ill, a num-' ber of brisk lads tried an experiment upon the old woman. Having dragged her out of her house, they hung her up until she was near dead, let her down, rolled her some time in the snow, and at last buried her in it and left her there, but it happened that she survived and the melancholy man died." These cases, which were not generally regarded in the enlightened spirit of the writer we have quoted, served to confirm the common belief in witchcraft. Increase Mather published a work in 1684 containing 1 86 SETTLEMENT OF AMERICA. an account of the cases which had already occurred in the colony, and giving detailed descriptions of the manner in which the afflicted persons had exhibited their " devil- try." The publication of this work seemed to revive the trouble, and in a more aggra- vated form, for it is a singular fact that the general discussion of delusions of this kind rarely fails to produce an increase of the evil. A Child Bewitched. In 1688 a case occurred which excited general interest, and was the beginning of one of the saddest periods in the history of New England. The daughter of John Goodwin, a child of thirteen years, accused the daughter of an Irish laundress of stealing some linen. The mother of the laundress, a friendless emigrant, succeeded in disproving the charge, and abused the girl soundly for making a false accusation. Soon after this, the accuser was seized with a fit, and pre- tended to be bewitched in order to be revenged upon the poor Irish woman. Her younger sister and two of her brothers fol- lowed her example. They pretended to be dumb, then deaf, then blind, and then all three at once. " They were struck dead at the sight of the * Assembly's Catechism,' " says Governor Hutchinson, dryly, '"Cot- ton's Milk for Babes,' and some other good books, but could read in Oxford jests, Popish ^nd Quaker books, and the Common Prayer without any difficulty." Nevertheless their appetite was good, and they slept soundly at night. The youngest of these little im- postors was less than five years old. It was at once given out that the Goodwin children were bewitched, and no one suspected or hinted at the fraud. They would bark like dogs and mew like cats, and a physician who was called in to treat them solemnly declared that they were possessed by devils, as he discovered many of the symptoms laid down in Increase Mather's book. A conference of the four ministers of Boston, and one from Charlestown, was held at Goodwin's house, where they observed a day of fasting and prayer. As a result of their efforts, the youngest child, a boy of less than five years, was delivered of his evil spirit. The ministers now had no doubt that the children had been bewitched, and as the little ones accused the Irish woman of their misfortune, she was arrested, tried for witchcraft, convicted and hanged, notwith- standing that many persons thought the poor creature a lunatic. Among the ministers who had investigated this case and had procured the execution of the woman was Cotton Mather, the son of Increase Mather, then president of Harvard College. He was a young man who had but recently entered the ministry, and was- regarded as one of the most learned and gifted preachers in the colony. He was- withal a man of overweening vanity and full of ambition. He could not bear contradic- tion, and was devoted to the maintenance of the political power of the clergy. He was superstitious by nature, and was firmly con- vinced of the reality of witchcraft. He had become deeply interested in the case of the Goodwin children, and in order to study it more deeply took the eldest girl to his house, where he could observe and experi- ment upon her devil at his leisure. She was a cunning creature, and soon found that it was to her interest to humor the young pas- tor in his views, and she played upon his weakness with a shrewdness and skill which were remarkable in one so young, and exhibit the credulity of the investigator in a most pitiable light, " All Devils are Not Alike." Mather carried on his experiments with a diligence which would have seemed ludi- crous had its object been less baneful to the WITCHCRAFT IN MASSACHUSETTS. 187 community. He read the Bible, and prayed aloud in the presence of the girl, who would pretend to be thrown into a fit by the pious exercise. At the same time she read the Book of Common Prayer, or Quaker or Popish treatises, without any interruption from her familiar spirits. The minister then tested the proficiency of the devil in lan- guages, by reading aloud passages of the Bible in Hebrew, Greek and Latin, which the girl professed to understand. When he tried her with an Indian dialect, however, she could not comprehend him. By other exper- iments, designed to ascertain if the spirits could read the thoughts of others, Mather came to the sage conclusion that " all devils are not alike sagacious." The girl flattered his vanity, and lulled his suspicion of fraud by telling him that his own person was especially protected against the evil spirits by the power of God, and that the devils did not dare to enter his study. Pious Belief in AVitchcraft. The vanity of Cotton Mather was elated to the highest pitch by what he deemed his successful experiments, and he wrote a book upon witchcraft, in which he endeavored to prove the truth of his theories, and declared that he should esteem it a personal insult if any one should hereafter venture to deny the existence of witchcraft. His book was reprinted in London, with a preface by Richard Baxter, the well-known author of " The Saints' Rest," warmly indorsing it. It was very generally read in New England, and had a most pernicious effect upon the people by inducing them to give credit to the stories of the writer rather than to listen to the promptings of their own good sense. Still there were some in Boston who had the boldness to differ with Mather, and these the indignant divine denounced as "sad- ducees." Mather supported his views by his sermons. " There are multitudes of sad- ducees in our day," he declared. "A devil in the apprehension of these mighty acute philosophers is no more than a quality or a distemper. Men counted it wisdom to credit nothing but what they say and feel. They never saw any witches ; therefore there are none." The ministers of Boston and Charlestown gave their young colleague their hearty support, and declared that those who doubted the existence of witchcraft were guilty of atheism, and indorsed Mather's book as proving clearly that " there is both a God and a devil, and witchcraft." Thus did the clergy of Massachusetts set themselves to the task of forcing their own narrow views upon the people. It was a needed lesson. New England had passed the time when clerical rule in political affairs could be pro- ductive of good, and was now to be taught the danger of permitting it to extend beyond this period. At this juncture Mather's power was greatly strengthened by the appointment of his friend and parishioner, Sir William Phipps, as governor of the province, and the nomination of his father-in-law and many of his intimate friends to the council. The ambitious Stoughton, the deputy governor, was also subject to his influence. Here was a fine opportunity to endeavor to establish the power of the clergy upon the old founda- tions, which were being destroyed by the growing intelligence and independence of the people. Many of the ministers, under the lead of Cotton Mather, had committed themselves to the doctrine of witchcraft, and the people must accept it upon their simple assertion. No inquiry must be allowed into- the matter, the opinions of the ministers must be adopted by the laity. And so Mather and his followers resorted to the usual weapons of superstition to accomplish the success of their plans. i88 SETTLEMENT OF AMERICA. In 1692, a new case of witchcraft occurred in Salem village, now the town of Danvers. The minister of this place was Samuel Parris, between whom and a number of his people there had for some time existed dissensions of such a bitter nature that the attention of the general court had been directed to them. In February, 1692, the daughter and niece of Parris, the former a child of nine years, and the latter of less than twelve, gave signs of being bewitched. Parris at once recognized the opportunity which was thus offered him for vengeance upon his enemies, and delib- erately availed himself of it. He demanded of the children the names of the persons who had bewitched them, and then proceeded to accuse those whom he succeeded in inducing the girls to denounce. The first victim was Rebecca Nurse. She was known in the community as a woman of exemplary Chris- tian character ; but she was one of the most resolute opponents of Parris. Upon his accusation she was arrested and imprisoned. The next Sunday Parris preached a sermon from the text, " Have I not chosen you twelve, and one of you is a devil." As his remarks were directed against Mistress Nurse, Sarah Cloyce, her sister, at once left the church. A Hundred in Prison. This in itself was a serious offence in those days, and Parris took advantage of it to accuse the offender of witchcraft, and she was sent to join her sister in prison. Mather, who deemed his credit at stake, lent his active aid to the persecution of these unfortunate people, and had the vanity to declare that he regarded the efforts of " the evil angels upon the country as a particular defiance unto himself" Parris scattered his accusations right and left, becoming both informer and witness against those whom he meant to destroy for their opposition to him. In a few weeks nearly one hundred per- sons were in prison upon the charge of witchcraft. Abigail Williams, Parris's niece, aided her uncle with her tales, which the least examination would have shown to be absurd. George Burroughs, one of the min- isters of Salem, had long been regarded by Parris as a rival, and he now openly expressed his disbelief in witchcraft, and his disapproval of the measures against those charged with that offence. This boldness sealed his doom. He was accused by Parris and committed to prison " with the rest of the witches." "The gallows was to be set up, not for those who professed them- selves witches, but for those who rebuked the delusion." Hanging a "Witch. Governor Bradstreet, who had been chosen by the people, was unwilling to proceed to extreme measures against the accused, as he had no faith in the evidence against them. The arrival of the royal governor and the new charter in Boston in May, 1692, placed Cotton Mather and his fellow-persecutors in a position to carry out their bloody designs. The general court alone had authority to appoint special courts, but Governor Phipps did not hesitate to appoint one himself for the trial of the accused persons at Salem, and this illegal tribunal, with Stoughton as its chief judge, met at Salem on the second of June. In this court Parris acted as pros- ecutor, keeping back some witnesses, and pushing others forward as suited his plans. The first victim of the court was Bridget Bishop, "a poor, friendless old woman." Parris, who had examined her at the time of her commitment, was the principal witness against her. Deliverance Hobbs being also accused, a natural infirmity of her body was taken as a proof of her guilt, and she was hanged, protesting her innocence. Rebecca Nurse was at first acquitted of the WITCHCRAFT IN MASSACHUSETTS. 189 charges against her, but the court refused to receive the verdict of the jury, and Parris was determined that the woman against whom he had preached and prayed should not escape him, and the jury were induced to convict her, and she was hanged. John tion. He was immediately denounced, tried and hanged. When George Burroughs, the minister, was placed on trial, the witnesses produced against him pretended to be dumb. " Who hinders these witnesses from giving their testi- EXECUTION OF THE REV. GEORGE BURROUGHS. Willard, who had been compelled by his duty as a constable to arrest the accused, now refused to serve in this capacity any longer, as he had become convinced of the hypocrisy of the instigators of the persecu- monies ?" asked Stoughton, the chief judge. "I suppose the devil," replied Burroughs, con- temptuously. " How comes the devil," cried Stoughton, exultingly, " so loath to have any testimony borne against you ? " The words 190 SETTLEMENT OF AMERICA. of the prisoner were regarded as a confes- sion, and his remarkable bodily strength was made an evidence of his guilt. He was con- victed and sentenced to be hanged. He was executed on the nineteenth of August with four others. As he ascended the scaffold, Burroughs made an appeal to the people assembled to witness the execution, and effectually vindicated himself from the absurd charges against him, and repeated the Lord's prayer, which was regarded as a test of inno- cence. The spectators seemed about to interfere in favor of the victim. An Innocent Man Hanged. Cotton Mather, who was present on horse- back, now exerted himself to complete the judicial murder. He harangued the people, insisted on the guilt of Burroughs, remind- ing them that the devil could sometimes assume the form of an angel of lig-ht. and even descended to the falsehood of declaring that Burroughs was no true minister, as his ordination was not valid. His appeal was successful and the execution was completed. Giles Cory, an old man over eighty years of age, seeing that no denial of guilt availed anything, refused to plead, and was pressed .to death, in accordance with an old English law, long obsolete, which was revived to meet his case. Samuel Wardwell confessed his guilt, and escaped the gallows. Over- come with shame for his cowardice, he retracted his confession, and was hanged for denying witchcraft. A reign of terror pre- vailed in Salem ; the prisons were full ; and no one could feel sure how long he would ■escape accusation and arrest. Many persons confessed their guilt to save their lives. Children accused their parents, parents their children, and husbands and wives each other of the most impossible offences, in the hope of escaping the persecution themselves. Hale, the minister of Beverley, was a zealous advocate of the persecution until the bitter cup was presented to his own lips by the accusation of his wife. Many persons were obliged to fly the colony, and the magistrates, conscious that they were exceeding their powers, did not demand their surrender. Crime Added to Crime. We have mentioned only some of the principal cases to show the character of the persecution, as our limits forbid the relation of all. The total number hanged was twenty ; fifty-five were tortured or terrified into confessions of guilt. The accusations were at first lodged against persons of humble station, but at length reached the higher classes. Governor Phipps' wife and two sons of Governor Bradford are said to have been among the accused. " Insanity," says Judge Story, " could hardly devise more refinements in barbarity, or profligacy execute them with more malignant coolness." Every principle of English justice was vio- lated to secure the condemnation of the accused, and people were encouraged by the magistrates to accuse others as a means of securing the favor of the authorities. These terrible deeds were not the work of the people of Massachusetts, and under a popular government would have been im- possible ; for though the belief in witchcraft was general, the sentiment of the people was against the barbarity of the court. The Salem tragedies were the work of a iQ\v men, not one of whom was responsible in any way to the people. " Of the magistrates at that time, not one held office by the suf- frage of the people ; the tribunal, essentially despotic in its origin, as in its character, had no sanction but an extraordinary and an illegal commission ; and Stoughton, the chief judge, a partisan of Andros, had been re- jected by the people of Massachusetts. The responsibility of the tragedy, far from attach- WITCHCRAFT IN MASSACHUSETTS. 191 ing to the people of the colony, rests with the very few, hardly five or six, in whose hands the transition state of the government left for a season unlimited influence. Into the in- terior of the colony the delusion did not spread at all." * Public Indignation. Stoughton's court, having hanged twenty of its victims, adjourned about the last of September, 1692, until November, and on the •eighteenth of October the general court met. The indignation of the people had been gathering force, and men were determined to put a stop to the judicial murders and tor- tures which had disgraced them so long. Remonstrances were at once presented to the assembly against " the doings of the witch tribunals," the people of Andover leading the way in this effort. The assembly abolished the special court, and established a tribunal by public law. It was ordered that this court should not meet until the fol- lowing January. The governor attempted to undo the work of the assembly by ap- pointing Stoughton chief judge of the new ■court. When that tribunal met at Salem in Jan- uary, 1693, it was evident that the public mind had undergone a marked change. The influence of the leaders of the delusion was at an end. The grand jury rejected the ma- jority of the presentments offered to it, and when those who were indicted were put on trial, the jury brought in verdicts of acquittal in all but three cases. The governor, now alive to the force of public sentiment, re- prieved all who were under sentence to the great disgust of Stoughton, who left the bench in a rage when informed of this action. The persecutors, anxious to cover their defeat by the execution of one more victim, employed all their arts to procure Bancroft's History of the United States, vol. iii., p. the conviction of a woman of Charlestown, who was commonly believed to be a witch. They supported their charge by more im- portant evidence than had been presented in any case at Salem, but the jury at once returned a verdict of " not guilty." Cotton Mather was intensely mortified by the failure of his efforts to force the people into a general acceptance of his views. He got up a case of witchcraft in Boston, but was careful to caution his possessed people to refrain from accusing any one of bewitching them. Robert Calef, an unlettered man, but one whose common sense could not be led astray by Mather, promptly exposed the im- posture in a pamphlet, which effectually destroyed Mather's influence for harm. Mather, unable to reply to him, denounced him as an enemy of religion, and complained that Calef 's book was " a libel tlpon the whole government and ministry of the land," forgetting that only seven or eight ministers, and no magistrate commanding the confi- dence of the people, had any share in the tragedies. Calef continued his writings, however, undismayed by the indignation of his adversary, and his book was finally pub- lished in England, where it attracted con- siderable attention. The Danger Past. The danger was now over. It was no longer possible to procure a conviction for witchcraft. The indignant people of Salem village at once drove the wretched Parris and his family from the place. Noyes, the minister of Salem, who had been active in the persecutions, was compelled to ask the forgiveness of the people, after a public con- fession of his error. The devotion of the rest of his life to works of charity won him the pardon he sought. Sewall, one of the judges, struck with horror at the part he had played in the persecution, made an open and 192 SETTLEMENT OF AMERICA. frank confession of his error, and implored the forgiveness of his fellow-citizens. His sincerity was so evident that he soon regained the favor he had lost. Stoughton passed the remainder of his life in proud and haughty- disregard of the opinion of his fellow-men, scorning to make any acknowledgment of error, and evincing no remorse for his cruel- ties. Cotton Mather Duped. As for the prime mover of the delusion, the Rev. Cotton Mather, nothing could induce him to admit that he could by any possibility have been in error ; not even the recollection of the sorrow he had brought upon some of the best people in the colony could shake his impenetrable self-conceit or humble him. When it was plain to him that he was the object oPthe indignation of all good men in New England, he had the hardihood to endeavor to persuade them that after all he had not been specially active in the sad affair. " Was Cotton Mather honestly credu- lous ? " asks Bancroft. " Ever ready to dupe himself, he limited his credulity only by the probable credulity of others. He changes. or omits to repeat, his statements, without acknowledging error, and with a clear inten- tion of conveying false impressions. He is an example how far selfishness, under the form of vanity and ambition, can blind the higher faculties, stupefy the judgment, and dupe consciousness itself His self-right- eousness was complete till he was resisted." And yet this man was not to die without rendering to the country a genuine service. In 1 72 1, having become satisfied that inocu- lation was a sure preventive of small-pox, he advocated the introduction of it into the colony. He was opposed by the whole body of the clergy, who declared that it was an attempt to defeat the plans of the Almighty, who " sent the small-pox as a punishment for sins, and whose vengeance would thus be only provoked the more." The people of the colony were also bitterly opposed to inoculation, and threatened to hang Mather if he did not cease his advocacy of it. His life was at one time in serious danger, but he persevered, and at length had the satisfaction of seeing the practice of inoculation gener- ally adopted by the people who had so hotly opposed it. CHAPTER XVI The Settlement of New York Voyages of Henry Hudson — He is Employed by the Dutch — Discovery of the Hudson River — Early Dutch Voyages — Adrian Block — Fate of Hudson — The Dutch Build a Fort on Manhattan Island — Settlement of New Amsterdam — The Province Named New Netherlands — Fort Nassau — Peter Minuits Governor — The Dutch Settlement of Dela- ware — Wouter Van Twiller — Kieft Governor — His Unjust Treatment of the Indians — Massacre of the Indians at Hoboken — The Indian War — Stuyvesant Appointed Governor — Disputes with the English in Connecticut — The Swedes Settle Delaware — Stuyvesant Captures the Swedish Forts — Growth of New Amsterdam — Disputes Between the People and Governor — Growing Spirit of Popular Liberty — The People Appeal to the States General — Capture of New Netherlands by the English — The Name of the Province Changed to New York — Results of the English Con- quest — Progress of New Jersey — Andros Governor of New York — He Fails to Establish His Authority Over Connecticut — New York Allowed an Assembly — Discontents of the People — Teisler's Rebellion — Execution of Leisler and Milboume — Fletcher Governor — His Attempt to Obtain Command of the Connecticut Militia — Episcopacy Established in New York — The Freedom of the Press Sustained — New Jersey a Royal Province. WHEN the hope of finding a northwest passage to India began to die out, a company of " certain worshipful mer- chants " of London employed Henry Hud- son, an Englishman and an experienced navigator, to go in search of a northeast passage to India, around the Arctic shores of Europe, between Lapland and Nova Zembla and frozen Spitzbergen. These worthy gentlemen were convinced that since the effort to find a northzt'est passage had failed, nothing remained but to search for a north^^^y^ passage, and they were sure that if human skill or energy could find it, Hudson would succeed in his mission. They were not mistaken in their man, for in two suc- cessive voyages he did all that mortal could do to penetrate the ice-fields beyond the North Cape, but without success. An impassable barrier of ice held him back, and he was forced to return to London to confess his failure. With unconquerable hope, he suggested new means of overcoming the difficulties; but while his employers praised his zeal and skill, they declined to go to further expense in an undertaking which 13 promised so little, and the " bold Englishman, the expert pilot and the famous navigator" found himself out of employment. Every effort to secure aid in England failed him, and, thoroughly disheartened, he passed over to Holland, whither his fame had preceded him. The Dutch, who were more enterprising and more hopeful than his own countrymen, lent a ready ear to his statement of his plans, and the Dutch East India Company at once employed him and placed him in command of a yacht of ninety tons, called the " Half Moon," manned by a picked crew. On the twenty-fifth of March, 1609, Hudson set sail in this vessel from Amster- dam and steered directly for the coast of Nova Zembla. He succeeded in reaching the meridian of Spitzbergen, but here the ice, the fogs and the fierce tempests of the north drove him back, and turning to the west- ward, he sailed past the capes of Greenland, and on the second of July was on the banks, of Newfoundland. He passed down the coast as far as Charleston Harbor, vainly hoping to find the northze^^'i-/ passage, and then in despair turned to the northward, dis- covering Delaware Bay on his voyage. 194 SETTLEMENT OF AMERICA. On the third of September he arrived off* a large bay to the north of the Delaware, and passing into it, dropped anchor " at two cables' length from the shore," within Sandy Hook. Devoting some days to rest, and to the exploration of tlie bay, he passed through The Narrows on the eleventh of September, and then the broad and beautiful " inner bay " burst upon him in all its the natives who came out to the "Half Moon" in their canoes, that the river came from far beyond the mountains, convinced him that the stream flowed from ocean to ocean, and that by sailing on he would at length reach India — the golden land of his dreams. Thus encouraged, he pursued his way up the river, gazing with wondering delight upon its glorious scenery, and listening with NOVA ZEMBLA FROM AN OLD PRINT. splendor, and from the deck of his ship he watched the swift current of the mighty river rolling from the north to the sea. He was full of hope now, and the next day con- tinued his progress up the river, and at nightfall cast anchor at Yonkers. During the night the current of the river turned his ship around, placing her head down stream ; an,d this fact, coupled with the assurances of gradually fading hope to the stories of the natives who flocked to the water to greet him. The stream narrowed, and the water grew fresh, and long before he anchored below Albany, Hudson had abandoned the belief that he was in the northwest passage. From the anchorage a boat's crew continued the voyage to the mouth of the Mohawk. Hudson was satisfied that he had made a THE SETTLEMENT OF NEW YORK. 195 great discovery — one that was worth fully as much as finding the new route to India. He was in a region upon which the white man's eye had never rested before, and which offered the richest returns to the commercial ventures. He hastened back to New York Bay, took possession of the country in the name of Holland, and then set sail for Europe. He put into Dartmouth, in Eng- land, on his way back, where he told the The discovery of Hudson was particularly acceptable to the Dutch, for the new country was rich in fur-bearing animals, and Russia offered a ready market for all the furs that could be sent there. The East India Com- pany, therefore, refitted the " Half Moon " after her return to Holland, and despatched her to the region discovered by Hudson on a fur trading expedition, which was highly successful. Private persons also embarked MOCK SUNS, SEEN BY EARLY EXPLORERS. story of his discovery. King James I. pre- vented his continuing his voyage, hoping to deprive the Dutch of its fruits ; but Hudson took care to send his log-book and all the ship's papers over to Holland.and thus placed his employers in full possession of the know- ledge he had gained. The English at length released the " Half Moon," and she continued her voyage to the Texel, but without her commander. in similar enterprises, and within two years a prosperous and important fur trade was established between Holland and the country along the Mauritius, as the great river dis- covered by Hudson had been named, in honor of the Stadtholder of Holland. No government took any notice of the trade for a while and all persons were free to engage m it. Among the adventurers employed in this trade was one Adrian Block, noted as one of 196 SETTLEiMENT OF AMERICA. the boldest navigators of his time. He made a voyage to Manhattan Island in 16 14, then the site of a Dutch trading-post, and secured a cargo of skins, with which he was about to return to Holland, when a fire con- sumed both his vessel and her cargo, and obliged him to pass the winter with his crew on the island. They built them log huts on the site of the present Beaver Street — the first houses erected on the island — and dur- ing the winter constructed a yacht of sixteen HENRY HUDSON. tons, which Block called the "Onrust" — the " Restless." In this yacht Block made several voyages of discovery, and explored the coasts of Long Island Sound, and gave his name to the small island near the eastern end of the sound. He soon after went back to Europe. In the meantime Hudson had not been permitted by the English king to take service again with the Dutch, and after apprising his employers in Holland of his discoveries, he was engaged by an English company to make further explorations in their behalf. He sailed to the north of his former route, reached the coast of Labrador, and passing through the straits, entered the bay which bears his name. He spent the remainder of the season in exploring its coasts, and re- solved to winter there, hoping to push his discoveries still further northward in the spring. In the spring of 161 1 he found it impossible to continue his voyage, as his provisions had begun to run low, and with tears turned his vessel's prow homeward. His men now broke out into mutiny, and seizing Hudson and his son and four others, who were sick, they placed them in the shallop and set them adrift. And so the great navi- gator, whose memory is perpetuated by one of the noblest of the rivers of America, and whose genius gave the resfion throue^h which it flows to civili- zation, perished amid the northern seas. " The gloomy waste of waters which bears his name is his tomb and his monument." Forts Along the Hudson. In 16 14 the Dutch built a fort on. the lower end of Manhattan Island, and in the next few years established forts or trading hou.ses along the river as far as Fort Orange, on the site of Albany. These were merely trading-posts, no effort being yet made to occupy the country with a permanent col- ony. In 1 62 1 the Dutch West India Com- pany was organized for the purpose of trad- ing with America, and took possession of the country along the Hudson, intending'to hold it merely as temporary occupants. The States General of Holland granted them the monopoly of trade from Cape May to Nova Scotia, and named the whole region New Netherland. The Dutch thus extended their THE SETTLEMENT OF NEW YORK. 197 claims into regions already claimed by the English and French, and prepared the way for future quarrels and complica- tions. The English, now awake to the import- ance of Hudson's discoveries, warned the Dutch government to refrain from making further settlements on " Hudson's River," as they called the Mauritius; but the latter, relying upon the justice of their claim, paid no attention to these warnings, and in the spring of 1623 the Dutch West India Com- pany sent over thirty families of Walloons, or one hundred and ten persons in all, to found a permanent colony. These Walloons were Protestants from the frontier between France and Flanders, and had fled to Amster- dam to escape re- ligious persecution in their own coun- try. They were sound, healthy, vigorous and pious people, and could be relied upon to make homes in the new world. The majority of them settled around the fort on the lower end of Manhattan Island, and the colony was named New Amsterdam. The remainder established themselves on Long Island, about where the Brooklyn navy yard now stands, and there Sarah de Rapelje, the first white child born in the province of New Netherlands, saw the light. Eighteen fami- lies ascended the river and settled around Fort Orange, In the same year (1623) a party under command of Cornells Jacobsen May, who gave his name to the southern cape of New Jersey, ascended the Delaware, then called the South River, «^and built Fort Nas- sau, on the east side of the river, a few miles below the present city of Cam- den. This w^as done in order to estab- lish the claim of the Dutch to this re- gion. In 1626 the West India Company sent out to New Amsterdam the first regular governor of the province, Peter Minuits by name. He brought with him a koopman, or general commissary, who was also the secretary of the province, and a schout, or sheriff, to assist him in his government. The only laws prescribed for the colony were the HUDSON STRAIT. instructions of the West India Company. The colonists, on their part, were to regard the orders of the governor as their law. He was authorized to punish minor offences at his discretion, but cases requiring severe or capital punishment were to be sent to Hol- land for trial. Minuits set to work with great vigor to lay the foundations of the colony. He called a council of the Indian chiefs, and purchased the island of Manhat- tan from them for presents valued at about twenty-four dollars in American money. He thus secured an equitable title to the island 198 MUTINY ON HUDSON'S SHIP. THE SETTLEMENT OF NEW YORK. 199 and won the friendship of the Indians. To encourage emigration, the company granted to each emigrant as much land as he could properly cultivate, and it was ordered that any member of the company who in four years should induce fifty persons to settle anywhere within the limits of New Netherland, the island of Manhattan alone excepted, should be termed " Patroon," or " Lord of the Manor," and should be en- titled to purchase a tract of land sixteen miles in length by eight in width for the support of this dignity. A number of persons availed themselves of this privilege and secured from the In- dians by purchase the best lands and the most valuable trading places in the prov- ince. Those who were in- ferior to them in wealth were of necessity compelled to become the tenants of the patroons, and thus a check was placed upon the improvement of the colony. In order to compel the col- onists to purchase their supplies from Holland, the company forbade them to manufacture even the sim- plest fabrics for clothing, on pain of banishment. The patroons were enjoined to provide a minister and a schoolmaster for their tenants, but no pro- vision was made for them by the company, which was careful, however, to offer to fur- nish the patroons with African slaves if their use should be found desirable. In 1629 Samuel Godyn and Samuel Blom- maert purchased from the Indians the region between Cape Henlopen and the mouth of the Delaware River, and in 1631 a col- ony of thirty souls was planted on Lewes Creek, in the present state of Delaware. " That Delaware exists as a separate com- monwealth is due to this colony. Accord- ing to English rule, occupancy was neces- FIRST SETTLEMENT OF NEW YORK. sary to complete a title to the wilderness, and the Dutch now occupied Delaware." Less than a year later De Vries came over from Holland with a reinforcement, and found only the ruins of the settlement, the people of which had been massacred by the *■ Indians. 200 SETTLEMENT OF AMERICA. Under the vigorous administration of Minuits, New Netherland prospered; houses were built, farms laid off; the population was largely increased by new arrivals from Europe. During this period New Amster- dam fairly entered upon its career as one of the most important places in America. It was a happy settlement as well ; the rights of the people were respected, and they were practically as free as they had been in Hol- land, Troubles with the Indians marked the close of Minuit's administration. The latter were provoked by the murder of some of their number by the whites, and by the aid rendered by the commander at Fort Orange to the Mohegans in one of their forays upon the Mohawks. Alarmed by the hostility of the savages, many of the families at Fort Orange, and from the region between the Hudson and the Delaware, abandoned their settlements and came to New Amsterdam for safety, thus adding to the population of that town. Minuits was recalled in 1632 and left the province in a prosperous condition. During the last year of his government New Amsterdam sent over ^60,000 worth of furs to Holland. The Renowned Van Twiller. Minuits was succeeded by Wouter Van Twiller, a clerk in the company's warehouse at Amsterdam, who owed his appointment to his being the husband of the niece of Killian Van Rensselaer, the patroon of Alba- ny. Irving has thus sketched this redoubt- able governor : " He was exactly five feet six inches in height, and six feet five inches in circumference. His head was a perfect sphere, and of such stupendous dimensions that dame Nature, with all her sex's ingenu- ity, would have been puzzled to construct a neck capable of supporting it ; wherefore she wisely declined the attempt, and settled it firmly on top of his back-bone just between the shoulders. His body was oblong and particularly capacious at bottom, which was wisely ordered by Providence, seeing that he was a man of sedentary habits and very averse to the idle labor of walking. "A Beer Barrel on Skids." " His legs were very short, but sturdy in proportion to the weight they had to sustain ; so that, when erect, he had not a little the appearance of a beer barrel on skids. His face — that infallible index of the mind — pre- sented a vast expanse, unfurrowed by any of those lines and angles which disfigure the human countenance with what is termed expression. Two small gray eyes twinkled feebly in the midst, like two stars of lesser magnitude in a hazy firmament ; and his full- fed cheeks, which seemed to have taken toll of everything that went into his mouth, were curiously mottled and streaked with dusky red, like a Spitzenberg apple. His habits were as regular as his person. He daily took his four stated meals, appropriating exactly an hour to each ; he smoked and doubted eight hours, and he slept the remaining twelve of the four-and-twenty." Van Twiller ruled the province seven years, and, in spite of his stupidity, it prospered. In 1633, Adam Roelantsen, the first school- master, arrived — for the fruitful Walloons had opened the way by this time for his labors — and in the same year a wooden church was built in the present Bridge Street, and placed in charge of the famous Dominie EverardusBogardus. In i635,the fort, which marked the site of the present Bowling Green, and which had been begun in 1614, was finished, and in the same year the first English settlers at New Amsterdam came into the town. The English in New England also began to give the Dutch trouble during this admin- THE SETTLEMENT OF NEW YORK. 20 1 istration, and even sent a ship into " Hud- son's River " to trade with the Indians. In- fluenced by De Vries,the commander of the fort, the governor sent an expedition up the river after the audacious EngHsh vessel, seized her, brought her back to New York, and sent her to sea with a warning not to repeat her attempt. The disputes between the Enghsh and the Dutch about the Con- necticut settlements also began to make trouble for New Amsterdam. Van Twiller possessed no influence in the colony, was laughed at and snubbed on every side, and was at length recalled by the company in 1638. The only memorial of Van Twiller left to us is the Isle of Nuts, which lies in the bay between New York and Brooklyn, and which he purchased as his private domain. It is still called the *' Governor's Island." Van Twiller was succeeded by William Kieft, a man of greater abilities, but unscru- pulous and avaricious. He had become a bankrupt in Holland, and hoped to find in America the means of restoring his fortunes. His administration of the province was full of troubles, the greater part of which were due to his recklessness and rapacity. Mohav^rk Braves. The colonists were forbidden to sell fire- arms to the Indians, but some of the traders along the Hudson had violated this order, and it was estimated that the Mohawks had at least four hundred warriors armed with muskets. They were willing to pay large prices for the guns, as these weapons enabled them to meet on equal terms their enemies, the Canada Indians, who had been armed by the French. During Van Twiller's admin- istration the colony had been on good terms with the Mohegans and other tribes of the Algonquin race, who were generally known as the river Indians. Kieft, soon after his arrival, demanded of them the payment of a tribute, which he pretended he had been ordered by the company to levy upon them. They refused his demand with contempt, and from this time the friendship which they had entertained for the Dutch began to disappear. A year or two later the Raritans, a tribe living on the river of that name, were accused of stealing some hogs from the colony. The animals had been taken by some Dutch traders ; but Kieft, instead of investigating the matter, sent a party of soldiers among the Raritans and destroyed their corn and killed several of their number. The savages determined upon revenge, and with their usual unreasoning fury attacked the settle- ment which De Vries — who was always a friend of the Indians — had founded on Staten Island, and killed four men. The people of the colony now urged the governor to con- ciliate the savages by kind treatment, but he refused to do so. An Avenger of Blood. Another cause of trouble soon arose. Twenty years before a Dutch trader had killed an Indian chief in the presence of a little nephew of the warrior. That child, now grown to manhood, came into the colony in 1641, and avenged his uncle by killing an innocent settler. Kieft ordered the Indians to surrender the young man that he might be punished for his crime ; but the savages refused to give him up, but offered to ransom him. Kieft refiised their proposition, and the matter remained an open source of trouble. With the hope of finding a remedy for the Indian difficulty, the people obtained from the governor, in 1642, permission to hold a meeting of the heads of families at New Amsterdam. These appointed twelve of their numberto investigate the affairs of the colony. This was the first representative assembly of New Netherland, and its career was short. 202 SETTLEMENT OF AMERICA. Venturing to pass beyond the Indian ques- tion, and to criticise the administration of the governor in other matters, it was dissolved. Near the end of the year 1642 the Mohawks sent a band of warriors armed with muskets to demand tribute of the river tribes. These, too weak to contend with their enemies, fled to the Dutch for protection. Kieft was at this time angry with the Indians for refusing to surrender to him one of their number who had killed a Dutchman who had made him drunk and then ill-treated him, and he resolved to take a signal vengeance upon them, and exterminate them. De Vries, to whom he communicated his plan, remon- strated with him in the hope of inducing him to abandon it. "If you murder these poor creatures who have put themselves under your protection, you will involve the whole colony in ruin, and their blood, and the blood of your own people, will be required at your hands," said De Vries. Nothing, however, could move the governor from his purpose. Attack Upon the Savages. The Indians who had sought the protec- tion of the Dutch were encamped with the Hackensack tribe just above Hoboken. On the night of the twenty-fifth of February, the garrison of the fort at New Amsterdam, rein- forced by the crews of some Dutch privateers in the river, crossed the Hudson and attacked the unsuspecting savages. Nearly a hundred were killed, and when the morning came many of the poor wretches were seen crowd- ing along the shore of the river in the vain attempt to cross over to their supposed friends at New Amsterdam. They were forced into the stream and drowned. A company of Indians, trusting to the friendship of the Dutch, had encamped on Manhattan Island, near the fort. They were put to death almost to a man. The massacre was regarded by the colo- nists with horror and detestation, and they took no part in the joy with which the gov- ernor greeted the troops on their return from their bloody work. He was not allowed to rejoice long, however. When it became known among the Algonquins that their brethren had been murdered, not by the Mo- hawks, but by the Dutch, every tribe took up the hatchet to avenge them, and a general warfare began along the entire line of the Dutch settlements. Several villages were destroyed, and a number of settlers were mur- dered or carried into captivity. The colony was threatened with ruin, and Kieft was obliged to open negotiations for peace. It was in this war that Mrs. Anne Hutchinson and her family, who had taken refuge in the territory of the Dutch, were murdered by the savages. Treaty of Peace Negotiated. On the fifth of March, 1643, a conference was held at Rockaway, between sixteen Indian chiefs and De Vries and two other envoys from the colony. One of the principal sachems arose, holding in his hands a bundle of small sticks. " When you first arrived on our shores," said the Indian, addressing the whites, " you were destitute of food. We gave you our beans and our corn ; we fed you with oysters and fish ; and now, for our recom- pense, you murder our people." He then laid down one of the little sticks and pro- ceeded : " The traders whom your first ships left on our shores to traffic till their return, were cherished by us as the apple of our eye. We gave them our daughters for their wives. Among those whom you have murdered were children of your own blood." " I know all," said Do Vries, interruptipg his recital of wrongs. I fe then invited the chiefs to go with him to the fort. They accompanied him to New Amsterdam, where THE SETTLEMENT OF NEW YORK. presents were exchanged and a treaty of peace negotiated. The younger warriors were not satisfied. Kieft's presents were niggardly. They were not regarded by the savages as a sufficient compensation for the wrongs they had suffered, and the war was renewed. The leader of the Dutch in this cam- paign was Captain John Underhill, who had served in the Pequod war in New England, and had removed to New Amsterdam in conse- quence of having been made to do penance in public at Boston in 1640. The war con- tinued for two years, and though the col- ony suffered severely, the Dutch were able to inflict such heavy losses upon the sav- ages that the latter were at length as anxious for peace as the whites. Sixteen hundred of the In- dians had fallen, but the colony had been brought to the verge of ruin, and the popu- lation of New Ams- terdam was reduced to one hundred souls. On the thirtieth of August, 1645, the chiefs of the Algonquins and a deputation from their old enemies, the Mohawks, who came as mediators, met the whites on the spot now known as the Battery, and concluded a peace. The close of the war was hailed with re- joicings throughout the colony. Kieft was 203 regarded with universal hatred as the author of the terrible sufferings of the struggle, and his barbarous conduct was censured and disavowed by the company, and he was recalled. Hated throughout the colony, he at length determined to return to Europe. ' PETER STUYVESANT. Freighting a vessel with his ill-gotten gains, he sailed from Manhattan in 1647. As he neared the shores of the old world his ship was wrecked on the coast of Wales, and all on board perished. Kieft, in the vain hope of conciliating the people, appointed, immediately after the 204 SETTLEMENT OF AMERICA. close of the war, a new municipal council of eight members. The first act of this council was to demand of the States General of Hol- land the removal of Kieft. Their demand was complied with, as we have seen, and in 1647 Peter Stuyvesant was made governor of New Netherlands, and reached New Am- sterdam in the same year. " Vain as a Peacock.' Stuyvesant was essentially a strong man. A soldier by education and of long experi- ence, he was accustomed to regard rigid discipline as the one thing needful in every relation of life, and he was not slow to intro- duce that system into his government of New Amsterdam. He had served gallantly in the wars against the Portuguese, and had lost a leg in one of his numerous encounters with them. He was as vain as a peacock, as fond of display as a child, and thoroughly imbued with the most aristocratic ideas — qualities not exactly the best for a governor of New Amsterdam. Yet he was, with all his faults, an honest man, he had deeply at heart the interests of the colony, and his ad- ministration was mainly a prosperous one. He energetically opposed from the first all manifestations in favor of popular govern- ment. His will was to be the law of the province. " If any one," said he, " during my administration shall appeal, I will make him a foot shorter, and send the pieces to Holland, and let him appeal in that way." He went to work with vigor to reform mat- ters in the colony, extending his efforts to even the morals and domestic affairs of the people. He soon brought about a reign of material prosperity greater than had ever been known before, and exerted himself to check the encroachments of the English on the east, and the Swedes on the south. He inaugurated a policy of kindness and justice toward the Indians, and soon changed their enmity to sincere friendship. One thing, however, he dared not do — he could not levy ta.xes upon the people without their consent, for fear of offending the States Gen- eral of Holland. This forced him to appoint ■ a council of nine prominent citizens, and, although he endeavored to hedge round their powers by numerous conditions, the nine ever afterwards served as a salutary check upon the action of the governor. Opposition to Stuyvesant. The English in Connecticut made great efforts to extend their territories westward at the expense of New Netherland, and gave Stuyvesant no little annoyance by their aggressions. During his administration the colony received large accessions of English emigrants from New England, who came to New Netherland " to enjoy that liberty de- nied to them by their own countrymen." They settled in New Amsterdam, on Long Island, and in Westchester County. Being admitted to an equality with the Dutch set- tlers, they exercised considerable influence in the affairs of the colony, and towards the close of his administration gave the governor considerable trouble by their opposition to his despotic acts. Stuyvesant entered into an arrangement with Connecticut for the proper adjustment of the boundaries of the two colonies, and left the English in posses- sion of half of Long Island. Upon his removal from his place as gover- nor of New Amsterdam Peter Minuits offered his services to Gustavus Adolphus, king of Sweden, who was anxious to found in America a colony which might prove a place of refuge for the persecuted Protestants of Europe. The offer was accepted by the king, and the shores of the Delaware were chosen as the site of the new settlement. Near the close of 1637 a little company of Swedes and Fins embarked in two vessels THE SETTLEMENT OF NEW YORK. 205 under the direction of Minuits,and sailed for America. The Delaware was reached early in 1638, and the new-comers purchased from the natives the country on the west side of the river from Cape Henlopen to Trenton. A fort was built within the limits of the present state of Delaware, on the site of the present city of Wilmington, and named Fort Christiana, in honor of the youthful queen of Sweden, the daughter of Gustavus. Swedish Immigrants. Kieft,the Dutch governor of New Nether- land, protested against this occupation of the country by the Swedes, as Holland claimed the region along the Delaware. Sweden was too formidable a power for her colony to be attacked, however, and Kieft contented him- self with his protest. Fresh emigrants came out from Scandinavia, and New Sweden grew rapidly. The Dutch Fort Nassau was re- newed, but the Swedes succeeded in main- taining their ascendency along the Delaware in spite of it. Their plantations were extended along the river, and the smallest of the American commonwealths was per- manently settled by Europeans. When Stuyvesant was made governor of New Netherland the Dutch West India Com- pany resolved to enforce their claim to Delaware, and in 165 i built Fort Casimir on the site of Newcastle. The Swedes regarded this as an encroachment upon their domain, and in 1654 captured the Fort. Upon the receipt of this news the Dutch Company indignantly ordered Stuyvesant " to drive the Swedes from the river, or compel their submission." In September, 1655, Stuyve- sant, with a force of six hundred men, sailed from Manhattan into the Delaware. The Swedish forts were compelled to surrender one after another, and the colonists were forced to submit to the establishment of the rule of the Dutch. They were allowed to retain their possessions, and on the whole were treated well. Many of them, however, were dissatisfied with their new rulers, and in the next few years emigrated to Maryland and Virginia. The territory now included in the state of New Jersey was also claimed by the Dutch. They built Fort Nassau on the Delaware to establish this claim, but the Swedes were the first to settle the country. Soon after, estab- lishing themselves in Delaware, they crossed over to the eastern side of the river, and built a line of trading-posts extending from Cape May to Burlington. GUSTAVUS ADOLPHUS. New Amsterdam continued to prosper,. and was even at this early day rapidly becom- ing an important commercial town. Stuy- vesant's arbitrary temper was held in check to a considerable extent by the more liberal policy of the company, who sincerely desired the prosperity of the colony. " Let ev^ery peaceful citizen," wrote the directors, "enjoy freedom of conscience ; this maxim has made our city the asylum for fugitives from every land ; tread in its steps, and you shall be blessed." The infant metropolis from the 2o6 SETTLEMENT OF AMERICA. first acquired a cosmopolitan character. It contained settlers from every nation of Europe, and even from Africa ; for the Dutch at an early day introduced negro slavery into the colony. The people of New Netherland had no political rights, and the West India Com- pany, with every disposition to treat the colony with fairness, did not mean to allow the settlers to have any voice in govern- ing themselves. Town meetings were posi- tively forbidden, and every care was taken to discourage any manifestation of public spirit. Nevertheless the colonists were beginning to feel the promptings of the spirit of democ- racy, and the English settlers who had come into the province were by no means content to remain without the privileges of freemen. A series of disputes at once arose with the fiery old governor, who entertained the most profound contempt for the people, and laughed in scorn at the assertion of their ability to govern themselves. Rights of the People Disregarded. The discontents went on increasing, how- ever, and at length the people appointed a convention of two delegates from each settle- ment for the purpose of deliberating on the affairs of the colony. Stuyvesant was bit- terly opposed to this assembly, but deemed it best not to seek to prevent its meeting, as such a step would have brought about a collision with the people. The convention addressed the governor as follows ; " The States General of the United Provinces are our liege lords ; we submit to the laws of the United Provinces ; and our rights and priv- ileges ought to be in harmony with those of the fatherland, for we are a member of the state, and not a subjugated people. We, who have come together from various parts of the world, and arc a blended community of various lineage; we, who have, at our own expense, exchanged our native lands for the protection of the United Provinces ; we, who have transformed the wilderness into fruitful farms, demand that no new laws shall be enacted but with the consent of the people ; that none shall be appointed to office but with the approbation of the people ; that obscure and obsolete laws shall never be revived." This was too much for the governor. He attempted to reason with the deputies, who had the temerity to demand the right of self-government, and finding them firm, dis- solved the convention with the haughty declaration : " We' derive our authority from God and the West India Company, not from the pleasure of a few ignorant subjects." The West India Company entirely approved the course of the governor. " We approve the taxes you propose," they wrote to Stuy- vesant ; " have no regard to the consent of the people. Let them indulge no longer the visionary dream that taxes can be imposed only with their consent." Neither the company nor the governor could understand that this persistent disre- gard of the rights of the people was aliena- ting all classes of the colonists and making them long for the conquest of New Nether- land by the English as the only means of obtaining the privileges of the freemen of the English colonies. Large Land Grant. Nor was this an idle hope. For a long time past the English government had seri- ously entertained the idea of driving out the Dutch, and adding New Netherland to its American possessions. The English claim extended to the entire Atlantic coast as far south as Florida, and the Dutch were regarded as intruders. Cromwell and his son had each contemplated making such an effort, and at the return of Charles II. to the THE SETTLEMENT OF NEW YORK. 207 throne the plan was more seriously discussed, and at length put in operation. Charles, although at peace with Holland, and in spite of the charter which he had granted to Connecti- cut, bestowed upon his brother, the Duke of York, afterwards James n.,the entire region between the Connecticut and Delaware rivers. This was in February, 1664. A squadron was at once fitted out for the pur- pose of seizing the Dutch colony, and was placed in command of Richard Nicolls, an officer of the Duke of York's household. The fleet touched at Boston to land the com- missioners sent out by Charles to the New England colonies and to receive reinforce- ments. Governor Winthrop, of Connecticut also embarked on board of it. The first intimation Stuyvesant had of the intended robbery was the appearance of the fleet within the Narrows on the twenty- eighth of August, 1664. The next day Nicolls demanded the surrender of the town and fort of New Amsterdam. Stuyvesant, who had made preparations for defending the place, endeavored to resist the demand, but the citizens refused to sustain him and he was obliged to submit. On the eighth of September he embarked his troops for Hol- land and put to sea. The English at once took possession of the fort and town, and their vessels ascending the Hudson, received the submission of the other Dutch forts and settlements along the river. A few weeks later the Dutch and the Swedes along the Delaware submitted to the English, and the entire province was in their hands. The name of New Amsterdam was changed to New York, which name was also bestowed upon the province, and Fort Orange was called Albany, all in honor of the new pro- prietor. Nicolls was appointed governor. The English set themselves to work to conciliate the Dutch residents, a task not very difficult, as the English settlers in the province had already prepared the way for the change, and the treatment the colony had received from the West India Company had prevented the formation of any decided attachment to the rule of Holland. The English system of government was intro- duced, the towns were allowed to elect their own magistrates, and the desires of the people for representative government seemed about to be gratified. A Strong Alliance. The Mohawks had been the friends of the Dutch, and they now readily entered into an alliance with the English as their successors. This alliance remained unbroken all through the colonial period, and during the war of the Revolution ; and in the first-named period proved of the greatest advantage to the colonies, as the Mohawks, whose hatred of the French was deep and unrelenting, proved a formidable obstacle in the way of invading parties from Canada. Immediately upon becoming master of the province, the Duke of York proceeded to divide it. He sold to Lord Berkeley and Sir George Cartaret, both of whom were already proprietaries of Carolina, the country between the Hudson and the Delaware. This purchase was named New Jersey, in honor of the island of Jersey, of which Cartaret was governor, and corresponded in size very nearly to the present state of that name. The new proprietors made liberal oflers to induce emigrants to settle in their territory, and among other things offered them lands free of rent for five years. They granted to the province a political establishment con- sisting of a governor, a council, and assembly of representatives of the people, who were given the power to make the laws necessary for their government. The proprietors reserved the right to appoint the governor and judicial officers, 208 SETTLEMENT OF AMERICA. and to veto the proceedings of the assembly. Negro slavery was also introduced. These offers drew a large number of settlers to New Jersey, and many families came over from Long Island to the new province. The principal settlement was named Elizabeth- town, in honor of Cartaret's wife. The colony prospered ; no trouble was experi- enced from the neighboring Indians, whose power had been thoroughly broken by the Dutch, and everything went on happily until the year 1670, when the proprietaries demanded the rents due for the lands held by the settlers. The demand was refused. Many of the colonists had lived in the province under the rule of the Dutch, and had bought their lands from the Indians, and they claimed that the grant of the province to Cartaret could not invalidate these pur- chases, as the king had no claim to the lands which he so lavishly bestowed upon his favorites. Others refused to pay rent because they had made their plantations without any assistance from the proprietaries and did not acknowledge any debt to them. The representative of the proprietaries was obliged to fly for safety, and went to England for assistance in enforcing his demands. Insult Added to Injury. The Duke of York heard the complaints of the proprietaries, but the only attention he paid to them was to appoint Sir Edmund Andros, who subsequently became infamous for his tyranny in New England, governor of New Jersey. This was a flagrant violation of the rights of Cartaret and Berkeley, and an act thoroughly characteristic of the last of the Stuarts. Berkeley in disgust sold his half of the province, known as West Jersey, to an English Quaker named Edward Byllinge, who subsequently made over his claim to William Penn, who made an ar- rangement with Cartaret to divide the Jer- seys. Cartaret retained East Jersey, and the line of division was drawn from the north- west corner of the province to the sea at Little Egg Harbor. This purchase became the cause of considerable litigation in after years, and West Jersey was claimed by Penn- sylvania until the next century, when, as we shall see, the dispute was settled. Scotch Covenanters. New Jersey received a considerable acces- sion to her population in consequence of the re-establishment of episcopacy in Scotland. The Cameronians or Covenanters refused to submit to the authority of the church, and thus became the objects of a cruel persecu- tion. As so many of their faith had done before them, they sought refuge from their persecutors in America, and in 1683 and the following years large numbers of them came over and settled in East Jersey. This portion of the state was the cradle of Presbyter- ianism in America. In the meantime matters in New York had not been conducted to the satisfaction of the people. The promises made to the colonists by the English authorities were not kept. The province was treated as the absolute property of the Duke of York, and the governor and his council were consti- tuted the highest authority for both the making and execution of the laws. Repre- sentative government was denied them, arbi- trary taxes were imposed by Governor Nicolls, and the titles to the lands held by the settlers, not even excepting the Dutch patents, were declared invalid, in order that by issuing new title-deeds Nicolls might gain enormous fees, Lovelace, the successor of Nicolls, carried his tyranny to a still greater extent. His system of government is thus summed up : " The method for keeping the people in order is severity, and laying such taxes as may give them liberty for no THE SETTLEMENT OF NEW YORK. 209 thought but how to discharge them." When the people of a number of the towns ventured to remonstrate with the governor, he ordered their petition for the redress of their grievances to be publicly burned before the town house in New York. The settle- ments in Delaware were treated with equal injustice. Peace Between England and Holland. In 1673, war having broken out between Holland and England, a Dutch squadron entered the harbor of New York. The peo- ple, thoroughly cured of their partiality for English rule by the injustice they had suf- fered, made no resistance and surrendered the town. Its name was changed to New Orange, and the authority of the Dutch was again extended over the province, and also over Long Island, New Jersey and Delaware. The Mohawks sent a deputation of their chiefs to congratulate the Dutch upon the recovery of their colony. The ne.\t year, however, peace was made between England and Holland, and the Dutch surrendered their conquests in America. New York passed once more into the hands of the Duke of York, and East Jersey into those of Car- taret. In the same year the Duke of York ap- pointed Sir Edmund Andros governor of New York. The eastern settlements of Long Island were anxious to adhere to Con- necticut, but the governor compelled them on pain of being declared rebels to acknowl- edge themselves a part of New York. The claim of the duke extended within the limits of Connecticut as far as the river of that name, and in the summer of 1675 Andros sailed with several armed sloops for that col- ony to establish his authority as far as the river. The government of Connecticut, warned of his purpose, determined to resist him, and Captain Bull, the commander of the 14 fort at Saybrooke, was ordered to pay no at- tention to his claim. Andros, arriving off Saybrooke, hoisted the royal standard and demanded the surrender of the fort. A Connecticut Captain. Bull instantly ran up the English colors, and refused to comply with the demand. Andros, who was a coward at heart, quailed before the firmness of the Connecticut cap- tain, and abandoned his undertaking and sailed for Long Island. Thus ended the at- tempt of the Duke of York to dismember Connecticut. Andros returned to New York to disgust the people of that province with his tyranny. When James II. became king he com- pelled the proprietaries of New Jersey to surrender their claim to the jurisdiction of that province to him, and annexed it to New York. In 1683 the grievances of the people of New York had become so unendurable that James, then Duke of York, deemed it best to conciliate them, and allowed the free- holders to send representatives to an assem- bly. This assembly met in October, 1683, and its first act was to demand the rights of Englishmen. " Supreme legislative power," they declared, " shall forever be and reside in the governor, '.-ouncil and people, met in gen- eral assembly. Every freeholder and freeman shall vote for representation without restraint. No freeman shall suffer but by the judgment of his peers ; and all trials shall be by a jury of twelve men. No tax shall be assessed, on any pretence whatever, but by the consent of the assembly. No seaman or soldier shall be quartered on the inhabitants against their will. No martial law shall exist. No person professing faith in God by Jesus Christ shall at any time be any ways disquieted or ques- tioned for any difference of opinion." These privileges were conceded by the Duke of York, who solemnly promised not to change. 2IO SETTLEMENT OF AMERICA. them except for the dvantage of the colony ; but he had scarcely become king when he overturned the liberties he had conceded and made New York a royal province, dependent entirely upon his unrestrained will for its privileges. Leisler Holds the Fort. The people of New York were Protestants, many of whom had had cause to dread the restoration of the Roman Catholic religion in England. When James gave evidence of his intention to compel the acceptance of that faith by all his subjects, the colonies included, they were greatly discontented. Their fears were increased by the appointment by the king of a Roman Catholic as collector of cus- toms at New York. Nicholson, the royal governor, was also exceedingly unpopular. As soon as the news of the overthrow of James II. in England reached New York, Jacob Leisler, the senior captain of the mili- tary companies, was requested by his men to take possession of the fort and assume the management of affairs until the government should be settled by the orders of King William. Leisler was a prominent merchant and was very popular with the common people, but he was opposed by the great land- holders, who were principally Dutch, and by the party devoted to the Church of England. He found himself at the head of about five hundred armed men, and taking possession of the fort avowed his intention to hold it until the will of King William should be known. He was sustained by a large ma- jority of the people of New York, but the aristocratic party, and the churchmen, who hated him, as he was a Presbyterian, de- nounced him as a rebel, and sustained the council of Nicholson, the last governor appointed by King James, which withdrew to Albany in August, 1689. Leisler appointed his son-in-law. Mil- bourne, his secretary. Later in the year the people of Albany, being in danger of an attack from the French from Canada, asked aid from New York. Leisler sent Milbourne with a body of troops to their assistance, but the old council refused to acknowledge his authority, or to allow him to assume the command of the fort, and he went back with his men to New York, leaving the people of Albany to depend upon their own exertions for the defeat of the French. In their neces- sity they asked for and received aid from Connecticut. Blood Runs High. In December letters from the English government were received, addressed to Nicholson, or, in his absence, to " such as, for the time being, take care for preserving the peace and administering the law " in New York. A commission for Nicholson accompanied these documents ; but he was on his way to England, and Leisler, who was temporarily in authority in New York, regarded his position as confirmed by the letters from England, and caused himself to be proclaimed governor. He ordered the members of the old council at Albany to be arrested, and summoned an assembly to pro- vide for the wants of the colony. Upon first taking charge of affairs Leisler had addressed a letter to King William set- ting forth his reasons for his action, and ask- ing the king to make known his royal pleasure concerning the colony. No answer was sent by the king to this communication, but on the thirtieth of January, 1691, a ship suddenly arrived in the harbor having on board a com- pany of English soldiers, commanded by a Captain Ingoldsby, who had been sent by Colonel Henry Sloughter, whom King Wil- liam had appointed governor of New York. The aristocratic party at once rallied around Ingoldsby as their leader, and that officer demanded of Leisler the surrender of the THE SETTLEMENT OF NEW YORK. 211 fort. Leisler insisted that he should produce his authority for such a demand, and, as none could be shown, refused to give up the fort, but offered Ingoldsby every assistance for himself and his men, and avowed his intention to submit to Sloughter upon his arrival. In the time which elapsed between the arrivals of Ingoldsby and the new gov- ernor party spirit ran so high that a collision occurred between the soldiers and the people, in which one man was wounded. Charged with Treason. Sloughter reached New York on the nine- teenth of March, 1691. Leisler at once sent messengers to receive his orders, but the mes- sengers were detained. The next morning Leisler addressed a letter to Sloughter, ask- ing to whom he should deliver up the fort. Sloughter returned no answer to this letter, but ordered Ingoldsby to " arrest Leisler and the persons called his council." Leisler, Milbourne, and six others were arrested and immediately arraigned before a tribunal composed of their inveterate enemies, on a charge of treason. This was a frivolous pretence, for it was well known that Leisler, who was an enthusiastic admirer of King William, had never dreamed of denying his authority ; but it was as good a charge as any other, as the fate of the prisoners was decided from the first. The prisoners denied the authority of the court, and refusing to plead before it, appealed to the king. The presiding officer of the court was the chief justice of New York, the infamous Joseph Dudley, who had been driven out of New England by the people whose liberties he had outraged. The prisoners, in spite of their appeal, were condemned to death. Sloughter was unwilling to disregard their appeal as entirely as the court had done, and wished to leave the matter to the king ; but the enemies of Leisler were resolved upon his death. Taking advantage of the known weakness of the governor, they made him drunk at a dinner party, and in this state induced him to sign the death warrant ofthe prisoners. The next morning at daybreak (May i6th) Leisler and Milbourne were hur- ried from their weeping families to the gal- lows, to be executed for treason. Judicial Murder. In spite of a pouring rain, the people who had gotten news of the tragedy crowded around the place of execution to cheer their martyrs in their last moments. " Weep not for us, who are departing to our God," said Leisler to the multitude. Milbourne saw standing among the crowd one of the men who had been prominent in their con- demnation, and cried out to him : " Robert Livingston, I will implead thee for this at the bar of God." Then turning to the peo- ple, he said : " I die for the king and queen, and for the Protestant religion, in which I was born and bred. Father, into thy hands I commend my spirit." The judicial murder was then completed, and New York's first martyrs laid down their lives in behalf of the rights of the people. The popular party was now more than ever embittered against the aristocratic class, and the principles which Leisler and Milbourne upheld were more than ever insisted upon. Their friends, " who were distinguished always by their zeal for popular power, for toleration, for opposition to the doctrine of legitimacy," continued the struggle, and at length succeeded in making their principles the law of the colony. The royalist assembly, while denying to the people an equality with themselves in political matters, were yet indisposed to sur- render to the crown the independence of the colony, and, with their successors, insisted upon the right of self-government, and the 212 SETTLEMENT OF AMERICA. regulation of taxation by the assembly, with such firmness that in 1705 Queen Anne yielded so far as to permit the assembly to appoint " its own treasurer to take charge of extraordinary supplies." arts to prevent this act of justice. As for Governor Sloughter, who was at the best but a poor weak adventurer, he died of the effects of his dissipation six months after the execu- tion of his victims. * QUEEN The memory of Leisler and Milbourne was vindicated after their death. The son of the former made the appeal to the king which had been denied his father, and Parliament at length reversed the attainder under the charge of treason, and restored their estates to their families. Dudley exerted all his ANNE. In 1692 Benjamin Fletcher was appointed to succeed Sloughter. He was an officer of the royal army, and was as passionate and avaricious as he was incompetent in other respects. He was a firm ally of the aristo- cratic party, and a bitter foe to popular lib- erty. In 1693, in order to assist New York THE SETTLEMENT OF NEW YORK. 213 against the attacks of the French in Canada, all the colonies were required to contribute their quota of troops to her defence. An effort was also made to place the militia of New Jersey and Connecticut under the orders of the governor of New York. The authorities of Connecticut, however, were resolved not to relinquish the control of their militia, which would have been to sacrifice their rights secured by the charter. In order to enforce his authority. Gov- ernor Fletcher repaired to Hartford, where the assembly of Connecticut was in session. At the time of his arrival a company of militia was engaged in training in the town. Governor Fletcher rode up to this force ; but its commander, Captain Wadsworth, paid no attention to him, and did not even acknowl- edge his presence. Fletcher, who had boasted that he would not stir from the colony until he was obeyed, ordered his secretary to read his commission in the hearing of the troops. " Silence ! " " Music ! Music ! " As the secretary commenced to read, Wadsworth ordered the drums to be beaten, and the secretary's voice was drowned. " Silence ! " cried Fletcher ; " begin again with the commission." " Music ! music ! " ordered Wadsworth, the same man who had hid the charter from Governor Andros. The drummers began again, and the governor, in a rage, ordered them to cease their music. Wadsworth sharply commanded the bewil- dered musicians to go on with their drum- ming, and then turning upon Fletcher, said to him fiercely : '' If I am interrupted again, I will make daylight shine through you." The voice and manner of the man con- vinced the governor that he was in earnest, and he went back to New York, satisfied of the impossrbility of bringing the Connecticut militia under his orders. New York was the most northern colony in which the authority of the Church of England was established. A number of its people were members of that communion, and in the colonial government the influence of that church was predominant. The vast majority of the people, however, were hostile to it, and it was not until 1695 that Governor Fletcher was able to obtain for it anything like favor from the assembly. The repre- sentatives of the people were fearful that if it obtained a firm footing among them, the British government might bestow upon it a power which would be dangerous to the other denominations. Naturally it enjoyed the favor of the home government, and engrossed all the provision made by England for religious matters in the colony. Struggle for Liberty. Lord Cornbury, the royal governor, at- tempted in 1705 to silence a Presbyterian minister for preaching without a license from the governor ; but a jury, composed of Episcopalians, acquitted the prisoner. The same governor connived at the seizure by the Episcopalians of a church in Jamaica, which had been built by the whole town ; but the colonial court restored it to its rightful owners. The spirit of popular lib- erty and toleration was growing rapidly in New York, and its colonial history is the story of a constant struggle between the people and the royal governors for the asser- tion and maintenanceof their rights.' Nearly all the governors regarded their position as but a means of enriching themselves, and systematically defrauded both the king and the colony. By 1732 the population of New York City numbered a little less than nine thousand souls. In that year a case of the deepest interest occurred in that city. John Peter Zenger had established a newspaper called 214 SETTLEMENT OF AMERICA. the Weekly Journal, which ventured to cen- sure the arbitrary action of the governor and assembly in levying illegal taxes upon the colony. This was a bold step, for until now no newspaper had dared to criticise the action of the government. Cosby, the gov- ernor of New York, resolving to make an example of the offender, arrested Zenger on the charge of libel and caused his paper to be publicly burned. Zenger employed two lawyers to defend him, and these increased the anger of the government by denying the competency of the court, inasmuch as the appointment of the chief justice, Delancy, had been made by Cosby without the con- sent of the council, and was therefore illegal. The court at once struck their names from its list of attorneys, and this arbitrary action so intimidated the remaining members of the bar that Zenger found it impossible to procure counsel. Famous "Quaker Lawyer. In this helpless condition he was put on trial, and the court had actually begun its proceedings when a stranger, a venerable and noble-looking man, entered the room and took his seat at the bar. He announced his name to the court, and stated that he had come to act as counsel for the prisoner. A murmur of admiration greeted the announce- ment of his name. He was Andrew Hamilton, speaker of the assembly of Pennsylvania, the famous "Quaker lawyer" of Philadelphia. In the trial which ensued, Hamilton offered to prove the truth of the alleged libel, but was not allowed to do so ; the chief justice quoting English precedents in support of his decision. Hamilton then made an eloquent appeal to the jury, declaring that they of their own knowledge knew the statements of Zenger's paper to be true, and urged them to maintain the great principles of the free- dom of the press and liberty of speech throughout the colonies, which principles, and not John Peter Zenger, he solemnly declared were on trial before them. In spite of the unfavorable charge of the judge, the jury brought in a unanimous verdict of ac- quittal, which was announced amid the cheers of the people. Thus while the freedom of the press was still in doubt in England, and thirty-seven years before the famous trial for libel of the publisher of the Letters Junius established it in the mother country, the people of New York declared themselves its guardians, and struck down the effort of the royal power to impose shackles upon their most vigilant defender. In 1702 the proprietaries of New Jersey surrendered their rights of jurisdiction to the crown, and Queen Anne united tlie two Jer- seys in one province, and placed it under the governor of New York. It was given a sep- arate assembly, but this concession of partial independence of its neighbor did not suit the province, and after many protests it was given its own governor in the person of Lewis Morris, in 1708. During the rest of the colonial period it remained a loyal province. CHAPTER XVII Colonization of Pennsylvania The Quakers — Their Origin and Doctrines — William Penn — Becomes a Quaker — Is Persecuted for His Religious Opinions — Becomes Interested in American Colonization — Purchases "West Jersey from the Proprietor — Conceives the Idea of Founding a Free State in America — Purchases Pennsylvania from Charles II. — Conditions of His Charter — Sends Out a Colony — Arrival of Penn in America — Philadelphia Founded — Penn's Treaty with the Indians — Religious Toleration Guaranteed — Penn's Relations with His Colonists— Rapid Growth of Pennsylvania in Population and Prosperity — William Penn and James II. — Renewal of Penn's Troubles — William III. Declares Pennsylvania a Royal Province — Penn is "Vindicated and Restored to His Proprietary Rights — His Return to Pennsylvania — Character of the Settlers of the Province — Penn Goes Back to England — Efforts to Deprive Him of His Possessions — His Death. ONE of the most remarkable results of the English Reformation was the rise and growth of the Society of Friends, or Quakers, as they came to be called. Discarding what seemed to them superfluous and unnecessary forms in religion, they confined themselves to a simpler and more primitive expression of their faith. Believing that the only evil a Christian should resist is the evil of his own heart, they opposed no resistance to perse- cution or to ill-treatment from their fellow- men ; and as servants of the Prince of Peace, were unchangeably opposed to war and bloodshed. They held the doctrine of the Trinity : that we obtain salvation by the atoning blood of Christ ; that man was cre- ated a free and responsible agent ; that he forfeited his right to the blessings of the Creator by his fall, and will owe his restor- ation to his lost estate to the mercy of God and the blood of Christ; that the Holy Scriptures are the work of inspiration, and a good rule of life and faith. With them the test of Christianity was not a man's standing in the church, but the answer of a good conscience ; the sense of true inward communion between the soul of the individual and God. They conducted their worship in silence, and regarded all their members as sent by God to preach His Gospel ; therefore, any one, even women, was free to speak in their meetings the message which came to him from the Holy Spirit. They denied that the right to preach was restricted to any particular class, and refused to acknowledge the authority of the regular clergy. Oaths were regarded as unlawful for Christian men, and temperance and the utmost simplicity in all things were enjoined upon their people. They refused to recog- nize the social distinctions which prevailed in the world, though they admitted the power of the magistrates to enforce the laws, and regarded all men as equals. Their dress was simple and in proportion to the means of the wearer, and their lives were blame- less. They admitted the right of all men to worship God in their own way, and thus extended to all others the perfect toleration they claimed for themselves. The founder of this sect was the good George Fox, the son of a weaver of Leices- tershire, and " by his mother descended from the stock of the martyrs." He began to teach his doctrines about the middle of the seventeenth century, and at first his converts were people of the humbler classes of England. He was met with a determined opposition from both the established church 215 2l6 SETTLEMENT OF AMERICA. and the Presbyterians, and was imprisoned, set in the stocks, cruelly beaten and other- wise persecuted, and driven from place to place. Yet he persevered, and his doctrines began to spread. Distressed by the perse- cutions to which his followers were sub- jected, he visited America after the restora- tion of Charles II., in the hope of finding there a place of refuge for his people, but could find none. Puritan New England was hostile to -his doctrines, and the power of the Church of England was strong enough in the southern colonies to defeat his object. The Founder of Pennsylvania. Among Fox's converts were a few from the higher classes of English society. One of these was destined to be, next to its founder, the greatest benefactor of his faith, and one of the choice instruments of the Almighty in the settlement and Christianiza- tion of America. This was William Penn. He was the son and heir of Admiral Sir William Penn, one of the most distinguished naval commanders of England. The admiral desired for his son the advantages which his high position would readily secure to him, but the young man at an early day, happening to converse with a simple-minded Quaker, became so deeply impressed with his prin- ciples that he adopted them as his own. This greatly annoyed the father, but suppos- ing that it was a mere boyish notion which his son would outgrow, William was sent to study at the University of Oxford, and after leaving that institution was made to travel through Europe to improve his mind and to remove his tendency to Quakerism. William returned to England, after an absence of two years, greatly improved in mind, but still true to his religious convic- tions. In 1666, while traveling in Ireland, Penn met his old friend, Thomas Loe, and heard him speak of the glorious triumph of the faith of a Christian over the adversities of the world. His enthusiasm was once more awakened to such an extent that he from that moment began to seek to draw others into the communion which had given him so much happiness. His course gave offence to the authorities and he was impris- oned. He addressed a remonstrance to the viceroy of Ireland, in which he declared : " Religion is my crime and my innocence ; it makes me a prisoner to malice, but my own freeman." Being liberated, he went back home, but only to meet with mockery and persecution. He was ridiculed by his companions of his own rank in life, and it was a common jest in society, says Pepys, that " William Penn was a Quaker again, or some very melan- choly thing." His father, disappointed and indignant at the failure of his hopes, turned him out of his house without a penny; but his mother, truer to her nature, supplied him with sufficient funds to relieve his most pressing wants. Thrust Into Prison. Penn now began to defend his doctrines through the press, and thus brought them into greater prominence. This soon made him the victim of the ecclesiastical authori- ties, and the Bishop of London threatened him with imprisonment for life if he did not recant his doctrines. He answered firmly : " Then my prison shall be my grave." He was committed to the Tower on a charge of heresy and kept in close confinement. Charles II., naturally kind-hearted, was touched by his firmness, and sent the learned Stillingfleet, himself a man of humanity, to reason with him. " The Tower," said Penn, " is to me the worst argument in the world." At the end of a year his father's friend, the Duke of York, procured his release, for the consistency of the young man had won back COLONIZATION OF PENNSYLVANIA. 217 for him the affection and sympathy of the stern old admiral. Every effort was now made to draw William Penn away from his faith. A high rank in the royal navy, the favor of the king, and many other inducements were held out •to him, but he refused them all and remained true to his principles. In less than a year after his release from the Tower he was arrested for hav- ing spoken at a Quaker meeting. He protested his right to do this and declared that no power on earth should prevent him from worshiping the God who made him. He was placed on trial foi his offence, and bold- ly demanded to know on what law the indictment against him was founded. " On the common law," replied the recorder. "Where is that law?" asked Penn, " The law which is not in being, far from being common, is no law at all." He con- ducted his own defence, and as he was pleading earnestly for his rights as an Englishman, was hurried out of court. He appealed to the jury to remember that they were his judges. The jury, in spite of an unfavor- able charge from the judge, brought in a verdict of acquittal. The court ordered them back to their room, with the angry declaration : " We will have a verdict, by the help of God, or ypu shall starve for it." " You are Englishmen," cried Penn to the jurors, as they were retiring: "mind your privilege; give not away your right." At last, after being kept two days and nights without food, the jury repeated their verdict of " not guilty," and were fined by the court for daring to assert their inde- WILLIAM PENN. pendence. Penn was fined for contempt of court, and sent back to prison. His fine was soon discharged by his father, who died shortly afterwards. " Son William," said the dying admiral, to whom earthly honors 2l8 SETTLEMENT OF AMERICA. now appeared in their true light, " if you and your friends keep to your plain way of preaching and living, you will make an end of the priests." Penn was now nearly twenty-six years old, and had inherited from his father a handsome estate. He continued to explain and defend his doctrines through the press, and in 1671 was arrested and sentenced to six months' imprisonment in Newgate. From his prison he addressed a noble plea to Parliament and to the nation for tolera- tion in all matters of faith. The Wife of Penn. Upon his release from prison, Penn trav- elled in Holland and Germany, and upon his return to England, in 1673, married a woman of great beauty, whose noble character ren- dered her a fitting companion to him. He took no part in public affairs until the imprisonment of George Fox, upon his return to England to America, called him once more to the defence of his brethren. Fox being released, he and Penn and several others travelled through Holland and a part of Germany, seeking to make converts to their faith — an effort in which they were very successful among the Dutch and Ger- man peasantry. Returning to England, he once more appealed to Parliament, but with- out success, to do justice to the Quakers, and grant them the toleration to which they were entitled. Despairing of success in England, Penn now directed the whole of his energies to securing a home for his persecuted brethren in the new world. A number of Quakers were already settled along the banks of the Delaware and in New Jersey, and in 1675 the embarrassments of Edward By Hinge, who had purchased Lord Berkeley's mterest in New Jersey, obliged him to sell his share of that province. It was purchased by William Penn, Gawen Lourie and Nicholas Lucas, for the benefit of the Quakers. This placed the Friends in possession of an asylum, but it left them more at the mercy of the English government and church than they desired to be, and New Jersey was divided into two equal parts ; Cartaret, Berkeley's former partner, retaining East Jersey, and West Jersey becoming the property of the Quakers. The People Rule. This was accomplished in 1676, and in March of the following year a government resting upon the will of the people, and securing to the inhabitants protection and equality in all their political and religious rights and privileges, was set up in West Jersey. The English Quakers came over to the new province in great numbers, with the good wishes of Charles II., and peaceful relations were established with the Indians. Byllinge, who had retained some interest in the province, now began to be troublesome, and claimed the right to nominate the deputy governor. The people denied his claim, and at the instigation of William Penn, amended their constitution so as to place the choice of all their officers in their, own hands, and then elected a governor. Penn had now become deeply interested in the colonization of America, and wished to secure for his faith a wider domain than West Jersey. He had inherited from his father a claim against the English govern- ment amounting to sixteen thousand pounds. He now proposed to exchange this claim for a grant of territory in America. Charles II., who was always in want of money, and who never set much value upon the lands of the new world, readily accepted his offer, as it was urged by Lords North, Halifax and Sunderland, and the Duke of York, who were firm friends of William Penn. The COLONIZATION OF PENNSYLVANIA. 219 king, in 168 1, granted to Penn a district lying west of the Delaware River, and corre- sponding very nearly to territory embraced in the present state of Pennsylvania, which name the king bestowed upon it in honor of the proprietor. The Duke of York claimed Delaware as his own property, and Penn, who wished to have free access to the sea, purchased it of him the next year. The territory was granted to Penn as absolute proprietor; the people were secured in the right of self-government ; religious equality was guaranteed to all ; the acts of the colonial legislature were to be submitted to the king and council, who had the power to annul them if contrary to the law of England ; the power of levying customs was reserved to Parliament ; and no taxes were to be imposed upon the people save by the colonial legislature or by Parlia- ment. Settlers Throng the \A^ilderness. Penn then invited all persons who desired to do so to settle in Pennsylvania, and in a proclamation declared his intention to leave the settlers free to make their own laws. *' I propose," he said, " to leave myself and suc- cessors no power of doing mischief, that the will of no one man may hinder the good of a whole country." " God," he declared, "has furnished me with a better resolution, and has given me His grace to keep it." His resolution was soon tested. Soon after he obtained his patent a company of traders offered him six thousand pounds and an annual payment of a stipulated sum for the monopoly of the Indian traffic between the Delaware and the Susquehanna. He had already straitened himself very much by his expenditures for his colony, and his family had been obliged to endure some deprivations in consequence. The offer was tempting, but he declined it firmly. What was free to him should be free to every inhabitant of Pennsylvania, and he would derive no advantage at the expense of his people. Liberal Education. A company was collected and sent out to Pennsylvania, under William Markham, Penn's nephew, and the personal character of the proprietor of the colony was deemed by all a sufficient guarantee for the protec- tion of their liberties. Penn intended fol- lowing this company as soon as he could, and in the meantime enjoined Markham to continue the establishment already existing along the Delaware, and to govern in accord- ance with the laws of England. In 1682 he prepared to go out to America to superin- tend the formal establishment of his colony. As he was about to sail, he wrote to his wife, to whom he was devoted with all the ardor of his youth : " Live low and spar- ingly till my debts be paid ; I desire not riches, but to owe nothing ; be liberal to the poor and kind to all." With regard to their children, he wrote : " Let their learning be liberal ; spare no cost, for by such parsimony all is lost that is saved." Penn took out with him one hundred emigrants, and reached Newcastle on the twenty-seventh of October, 1682, after a long and trying voyage. In the presence of the Swedish, Dutch and English settlers, who welcomed him with joy, he took formal pos- session of the province, which was surren- dered to him by the agents of the Duke of York. He pledged himself to the people to grant them liberty of conscience and all their civil privileges. From Newcastle Penn went up the river to Chester, where a settlement had been formed by emigrants from the north of England, who had preceded him. Early in November, accompanied by a few friends, Penn ascended the Delaware in an 220 COLONIZATION OF PENNSYLVANIA. 221 Open boat to the mouth of the Schuylkill, and passing a little distance beyond this, landed on the beautiful site now occupied by the city of Philadelphia. The place at which he landed was long known as the " Blue Anchor Landing," from a tavern of that name which stood there. A little later, under a spreading elm, Penn met the chiefs of the neighboring Indian tribes and entered into a treaty of peace and friendship with them. This treaty was confirmed by no oath, but it remained unbroken for fifty years, and as neither side sought to evade its obligations, which were simply of peace and good will, the colony of Pennsylvania escaped iii its earlier years the horrors of a savage warfare from which the other settlers suffered. " We will live," said the Indian sachems, " in love with William Penn and his children as long as the moon and the sun shall endure." They kept their word. " Penn came without arms ; he declared his purpose to abstain from violence ; he had no message but peace ; and not a drop of Quaker blood was ever shed by an Indian." The scene of the treaty was at Shacka- maxon, now Kensington, in the city of Phil- adelphia. Philadelphia Laid Out. On the pleasant tract lying between the Delaware and the Schuylkill, which was purchased from the Swedes, who had on their part purchased it from the Indians, Penn in 1683 laid out the capital of his province, which he named Philadelphia, the City of Brotherly Love, in token of the principles which he meant should constitute the common law of his possessions. If was abundantly supplied with streams of pure water and was admirably situated for pur- poses of trade. He did not wish it to be built after the manner of European cities, but designed it to be a " ereene country town, gardens round each house, that it might never be burned, and always be wholesome." The streets were laid off by marking their course through the primitive forest by blazing the trees, and the building of dwellings was begun. In the first year of Penn's arrival in the colony twenty-three ships with emigrants arrived in Pennsylvania. In three years after its foundation Philadel- phia contained upwards of six hundred houses, and the colony had a population of ten thousand. The Indians proved the firm friends of the colonists and supplied them with wild fowl and venison in return for articles of European manufacture. PENN TREATY MONUMENT. Penn from the first refused to retain m his- hands the exercise of the vast powers with which the charter granted him by the king invested him. As early as December, 1682, he convened a general convention of the people and gave them a charter of liberties which Bancroft thus sums up : " God was declared the only Lord of conscience ; the first day of the week was reserved as a day of leisure, for the ease of the creation. The rule of equality was introduced into families by abrogating the privileges of primogeni- ture. The word of an honest man was 222 SETTLEMENT OF AMERICA. evidence without an oath. The mad spirit of speculation was checked by a system of strict accountabiUty, applied to factors and agents. " Every man liable to civil burdens pos- sessed the right of suffrage; and, without regard to sect, every Christian was eligible to office. No tax or custom could be levied but by law. The Quaker is a spiritualist; the pleasures of the senses, masks, revels and THE OLD swedes' CHURCH, BUILT IN 164I stage plays, not less than bull-baits and cock-fights, were prohibited. Murder was the only crime punishable by death. Mar- riage was esteemed a civil contract ; adultery a felony. The Quakers had suffered wrong from imprisonment ; the false accuser was liable to double damages. Every prison for convicts was made a workhouse. There were neither poor-rates nor tithes. The Swedes, and Finns, and Dutch were invested with the liberties of Englishmen." * In March, 1683, the first general assembly of Pennsylvania met at Philadelphia. " I am ready," said Penn to this body, " to settle such foundations as may be for your happi- ness." Under the guidance of the founder of the colony, the assembly established a constitu- tion which made Pennsylvania emphatically a free state. A government was es- tablished, consisting of a governor, a legislative council and an assembly composed of representatives of the people. As the charter made the pro- prietor responsible to the king for the legislation of the colony, no act of legislation was to be valid until it had passed the great seal of the province. With this exception, the entire power of the province was left in the hands of the people. " But for the hereditary office of proprietary, Penn- sylvania had been a representative democracy. In Maryland the council was named by Lord Baltimore ; in Pennsylvania, by the people. In Maryland, the power of appointing magistrates, and all, even the subor- dinate executive officers, rested solely with the proprietary; in PennsyK^ania, William Penn could not appoint a justice or a constable; every executive officer, except the highest, was elected by the people or their representatives ; and the governor could perform no public act but with the consent of the council. Lord Baltimore had a revenue derived from the export of tobacco, the staple of Maryland; and his colony was burdened with taxes; a similar revenue was offered to William Penn and declined, and tax-gatherers were un- known in his province." * Bancroft's History of the United States, vol. ii., p. 385. COLONIZATION OF PENNSYLVANIA. 223 Thus did the "Quaker King" complete one of the sublimest surrenders of poh'tical power in all the annals of history. " I de- sired," he said, in his grand simplicity, " to show men as free and happy as they can be." The colony improved rapidly. Men were attracted from all parts of Great Britain, from Ireland, the Low countries, from Ger- many and Sweden, to Pennsylvania. The personal character of William Penn, not less than the advantaj^es afforded them, induced Lord Baltimore claimed Delaware as a part of the country granted to him. Penn sus- tained his claim to that region by pleading the actual settlement of the Dutch previous to the grant to Lord Baltimore, and his pur- chase of the rights which the Duke of York had derived from the Dutch. The English courts decided, in 1685, that Delaware did not constitute a part of Maryland and sus- tained Penn's claim. The boundaries of the two colonies were settled by a compromise. — ^<^\?i« S.'i'- INDIAN AMUSEMENTS CANOE-RACE BETWEEN SQUAWS. them to settle in the happy colony. Phila- delphia especially grew with rapidity, and already gave promise of becoming the prin- cipal city of colonial America. Schools were opened and liberally encouraged, for ignorance had no advocates in this thrifty community. The printing press was also set up and put to work. In August, 1684, Penn, having successfully established his colony, took leave of his people and returned to England. During Penn's absence in England the people of Delaware began to be restless. They presented to the proprietary a list of grievances, and were granted by Penn a sep- arate government. The fall of James II., who continued the friend of William Penn, though so widely opposed to him in religion, was the beginning of trouble for the proprietor of Pennsylvania. Penn did not relinquish his friendship for the dethroned king, and his enemies made this 224 SETTLEMENT OF AMERICA. constancy, which in no way interfered with his loyahy to William and Mary, the means of injuring him in the estimation of the new king. William was induced to believe the charges of disloyalty which were brought against Penn, and deprived him of his patent and proprietorship of Pennsylvania. Penn was also imprisoned several times for dis- loyalty. Absurd Teachings. During this period the colony was much annoyed by a disturbance led by one George Keith, who pushed the Quaker doctrine of non-resistance to the verge of absurdity. He argued that no Quaker could with consist- ency take part in public affairs as a magis- trate or legislator. As the liberties of the colony were the work of Quakers the infer- ence was plain. If Keith Avas right, then Pennsylvania had no lawful government, and must apply to the king for one. Keith pro- duced such trouble in the colony that even the tolerant Quakers were at length obliged to lay hands on him. He was tried and fined for using seditious language ; but lest their action should seem to be a punish- ment of opinion the Quaker magistrates remitted the fine. He subsequently became a clergyman of the English church. This disturbance gave the king a pretext for declaring Pennsylvania a royal province, and in April, 1693, Benjamin Fletcher was appointed by William and Mary governor of Pennsylvania, to which province Delaware was reunited. The people, indignant at this invasion of their rights, attempted no resist- ance, but refused to recognize the royalist governor. Some of the magistrates resigned their offices upon his arrival. Upon the meeting of the assembly the hostility to Fletcher increased. The members of the assembly declared the laws they had made under the charter granted to Penn to be valid, and refused to have new ones, or recognize any other authority. A charter granted by King Charles was, they maintained, as valid as one granted by King William, and they refused to re-enact their old laws, as such a course would be to brand them as illegal. Fletcher de- manded that the assembly should appropriate a sum for the defence of New York against the Indians. His demand was flatly refused.. The assembly was willing, however, to make an appropriation for the relief of the people of New York who had suffered by this war,, but only upon condition that this sum should be disbursed by officers of its own appoint- ment. Fletcher refused to consent to this condition, as he regarded it as an infringe- ment of the king's prerogative, and the assembly was dissolved, A. D. 1694. Penn's Misfortunes. In the meantime Penn had been restored to his proprietary rights. The king ex- pressed himself satisfied of his innocence, which was established before the council, and in August, 1694, the patent for his restoration was formally issued. Penn was anxious to return to Pennsylvania, but was detained in England by his inability to raise the funds necessary for the voyage. He had spent a large part of his fortune in planting the colony, and the persecutions and annoy- ances to which he had been subjected in England had caused him great loss. Nor was this his only trouble. His wife and eldest son had died during his trials, and some whom he had imagined his friends in his prosperity had in his adversity shown themselves his enemies. He retained his serenity of mind, however, and persevered in the good work to which he had devoted his life. Being unable to go to Pennsylvania he sent his nephew, Markham, as his deputy. Markham summoned an assembly, and this body, alarmed at the recent changes in COLONIZATION OF PENNSYLVANIA. 225 their charter, which had threatened to deprive them of their political rights, en- deavored to provide against a recurrence of the danger by assuming the power of fram- ing a constitution for themselves. The assem- bly of 1696 made still further changes, and placed the control of the colonial govern- ment entirely in the hands of the people by giving them the election of all the officials of the province. Old Charter Discarded. Penn returned to Pennsylvania in Novem- ber, 1699, and sanctioned the action of the people. One of the members of the council proposed that they should make a constitu- tion that should be "firm and lasting" to them and to their descendants. " Keep what is good in the charter and frame of govern- ment," said Penn ; " and lay aside what is burdensome, and add what may best suit the common good." It was agreed by all par- ties that it would be best to surrender the old charter and frame a new constitution. This was attended with considerable diffi- culty, as Delaware dreaded the loss of its independence. It was conciliated by being given its own legislature, but was under the administration of the governor of Pennsyl- vania. The two colonies were never again united. The constitution secured to the people all the political privileges they claimed. Penn, whose sole desire was for the welfare of the colony, held back nothing for himself. Among the earliest emigrants to Pennsyl- vania were many Germans, who had been converted to the Quaker doctrines by Will- iam Penn during his missionary labors on the continent of Europe. They settled at Germantown, to which they gave its name. Towards the close of the seventeenth century the severe wars in Europe drove out large numbers of Germans from the Rhine valley. IS They sought refuge in England at first, and from that country passed over to Pennsyl- vania. They were chiefly Lutherans, and members of the German Reformed church. They settled chiefly in the southern part of Pennsylvania, and clung together instead of separating, thus giving to this part of the state the peculiar characteristics which dis- tinguish it to the present day. They held aloof from the English, and allowed the German language alone to be taught to their children. They attracted other settlers from their native country, and the region occupied by them was soon thickly settled, and was noted as one of the best cultivated sections of the province. Industrious Settlers. About the beginning of the eighteenth century a large emigration from the north of Ireland and from Scotland began to set in, and continued for some years. These people were nearly all Presbyterians and located themselves chiefly in the eastern and central sections of the province. They were an energetic, industrious and intelligent com- munity, and set to work with a will to improve their new home. They advanced the frontier of Pennsylvania steadily west- ward by their new plantations, and proved themselves among the most desirable settlers that had yet come into the province. William Penn had come to Pennsylvania with the intention of passing the remainder of his life there ; but rumors now began to reach the colony that it was the intention of the crown to deprive Pennsylvania of its charter and make it a royal province. These reports made it necessary for Penn to return to England, a step to which nothing but the importance of being near the home govern-, ment to defend the liberties of his people' could have forced him. He had done his work in America well, and could go back to 226 SETTLEMENT OF AMERICA. his native land with the satisfaction that he had successfully laid the foundations of a great and rapidly-growing state, and had placed the liberties of its people upon such a secure basis that they would endure for all time. He had founded a democracy, and had proved by the most generous surrender of his truly regal powers that his chief aim in life was the good of his fellow-men. After making such arrangements as he deemed best for the welfare of his " young countrie," he went back to England in 1701. Penn's Honorable Poverty. There were not wanting efforts after his arrival in England to deprive him of his proprietary rights and to convert Pennsyl- vania into a royal province; but the deep reverence with which the English people had now come to regard the virtues of Will- iam Penn prevented the consummation of these designs, and saved the people of Penn- sylvania from the rule of royal governors, such as plundered the sister province of New York. The crown could never be persuaded to rob the man whose pure life was an honor to the nation. In his last years Penn was so poor that he was for a while an inmate of a debtors' prison. He had bought the prov- ince of Pennsylvania from Charles II., and had confirmed his claim by purchasing the lands from the Indians, so that he was abso- lute owner of the unoccupied lands of the colony. He thus had it in his power to relieve his distress by selling his claims, but in his deepest poverty he refused to part with Pennsylvania, except upon terms which would secure to his people the full and per- fect enjoyment of the liberties he had guar- anteed them. He died in 171 8, peacefully and amid the sympathy of his countrymen in England, and the sorrow of those whom he had befriended in his beloved Pennsyl- vania. By his pure life he won for the peo- ple of his faith the respect of all candid men, and by his fidelity to the principles he pro- fessed he became the benefactor of millions who will ever count it a privilege tp honor his name. Penn left three sons, who were all minors at the time of his death. They succeeded to his rights as proprietary of Pennsylvania, and the government of the colony was ad- ministered for them by deputies until the Revolution, when their claims were pur- chased by the state. CHAPTER XVIII Settlement of the Carolinas Gradual Settlement of North Carolina from Virginia — Charles II. Grants Carolina to Clarendon and Others — The "Grand Model " — An Ideal Aristocracy Proposed for Carolina — The Authority of the Proprietaries Established in North Caro- lina — Continued Settlement of that Region — Characteristics of the Early Settlers of North Carolina — The People Reject the Grand Model — Hostility of England to the Colonial Commerce — Insurrection in North Carolina — Slothel Governor — Settlement of South Carolina — Charleston Founded — The Proprietary Constitutions Rejected by South Carolina — Rapid Growth of the Colony — Introduction of Slavery — Characteristics of the Early Settlers of South Carolina — Efforts to Enforce the Navigation Acts — Resistance of the People — The Proprietaries Abandon their Constitutions — Archdale's Reforms — Religious Intolerance — Establishment of the Church of England in South Carolina — Action of the Crown — Continued Prosperity of South Carolina — Governor Moore Attacks St. Augustine — Failure of the Effort — The Spaniards are Repulsed in an Attempt to Capture Charleston — Indian War in North Carolina — The Tuscaroras Driven Northward — War with the Yemmassees — Destruction of their Power — Separation of the Carolinas. WE have related the efforts of the French to colonize the shores of the beautiful region which they named Carolina, and the failure of Raleigh's attempt to found a city upon Roanoke Island. We have now to consider the successful planting of this same region with English settlements. After the settlement of Virginia the atten- tion of the English was frequently drawn to the fertile region south of the James, and as their plantations spread in that direction ad- venturous explorers went into this region, and returned with reports of its great beauty and fertility. When the severe measures of the Virginia colony for enforcing conformity to the established church were put in opera- tion, many dissenters withdrew from the limits of the colony and settled in what are now the northeastern counties of North Carolina. Among these were a company of Presbyterians, who settled upon the Chowan. Others followed them, and by the year 1663 these counties contained a prosperous and growing community of English-speaking people. In 1663, Charles II., who always displayed the most remarkable liberality in his gifts of American lands, granted to eight of his favorites the vast region extending from the present southern boundary of Virginia to the St. John's River in Florida, and from the Atlantic to the Pacific. Those upon whom this rich gift was bestowed were the Earl of Clarendon, the prime minister, Lord Ashley Cooper, who was afterwards Earl of Shaftes- bury, the Duke of Albemarle, Lord Craven, Sir John Colleton, Lord John Berkeley, his brother. Sir William Berkeley, the governor of Virginia, and Sir George Cartaret. They were given absolute power over their terri- tory, the king reserving only a claim upon their allegiance. The country had been called Carolina by the first French settlers in honor of Charles IX. of France; the old name was retained in honor of Charles II. of England. The proprietors had but one object in view: to enrich themselves ; but they claimed to be influenced by a " pious zeal for the propaga- tion of the gospel." They at once set to work to prepare a code of laws for the govern- ment of their province. This task was com- mitted to Ashley Cooper, Earl of Shaftesbury, and the great philosopher, John Locke, then an almost unknown man. These produced 227 228 SETTLEMENT OF AMERICA. a code known as " The Grand Model," or " Fundamental Constitutions." This was a system which might have been successful if the people for whom it was intended had been some European community of the Middle Ages, but it was utterly unsuited to a colony in the woods of America, composed of men whose personal independence and sturdy love of freedom were the indispensable conditions of the success of their enterprise. By the terms of the " Grand Model " an order of nobility was created, into whose hands the sole right to rule was committed. Earls, barons, and squires were made the natural heads of the various classes of society, and the common people were attached to the soil as tenants. A Mockery of Freedom. A simple tenant could never rise above his humble position, and was denied the right of suffrage ; only those who possessed fifty acres of land were allowed this right, or were entitled to the name of freemen. The freemen were allowed an assembly, but that body was placed entirely under the control of the nobility. Religious freedom was promised to all persons, but the constitution expressly declared that the only orthodox establishment was the Church of England. Trial by jury was guaranteed, but with the destructive provision that a majority should decide the verdict of the jury. It was very clear that this magnificent constitution would not suit the settlers in the log cabins of North Carolina, but the proprie- tors, ignorant of the people they had to deal with, proceeded to organize their govern- ment in England by electing the Duke of Albemarle to the rank of Palatine, as the head of their system was termed. Sir Wil- liam Berkeley, then governor of Virginia, was ordered to establish the authority of the pro- prietors over the settlers on Albemarle Sound. This he did, and appointed William Drum- mond, a Scotchman and one of the settlers, governor. This was the same Drummond who afterwards took part in Bacon's rebellion in Virginia, and was hanged by Berkeley, as has been related. A simple form of govern- ment was established, and the people of North Carolina were left in peace until it should be time to collect the quit-rents which the proprietors claimed as due for their occu- pation of their lands. In i66l, a few years previous to this action of Berkeley, a company from New England had made a settlement on the Cape Fear River. The colony did not prosper, how- ever, though liberal inducements were held out to it, and many of the emigrants returned home. In 1664 a colony from the Barbadoes joined the settlers on the Cape Fear. The new-comers had been sent out by a company at the Barbadoes, who pur- chased from the Indians a tract of land thirty- two miles square on the Cape Fear, and asked of the proprietors of Carolina a confir- mation of their purchase and a separate char- ter of government. A liberal charter was granted them, the country was named Clar- endon, and Sir John Yeamans, a resident of Barbadoes, was appointed governor. He was instructed to " make things easy to the people of New England ; from thence the greatest supplies are expected." Lumber Trade. In 1665 he led a company of emigrants from Barbadoes, and formed a settlement on the Cape Fear. The effort to found a town was unsuccessful, and the emigrants found great difficulty in contending against the natural barrenness and poverty of the region in which they had located. They devoted themselves to the cutting and export of lum- ber, and established a trade in boards, staves and shingles to the West Indies, which is SETTLEMENT OF THE CAROLINAS. 229 still carried on by their descendants. This trade was found to be profitable, and emi- gration increased. In 1666 the colony is said to have had a population of eight hundred souls. In the meantime the settlements on Albe- marle Sound and the Chowan had prospered, and had increased steadily in population, under the simple government established over them. This government consisted of a council of six persons named by the proprie- taries and six chosen by the assembly, and an assembly consist- ing of the governor, the council and twelve representatives chos- en by the freeholders of the colony. The proprietaries had con- firmed the colonists in the possession of their lands, and had solemnly promised them religious tolera- tion and exemption from taxation except by the colonial legis- lature. In 1669 the assembly, feeling se- cure in these guaran- tees, enacted a series of laws for the govern- ment of the colony, which remained in force in North Carolina until near the close of the next century. It was enacted that no emigrant should be sued for a debt contracted before his settle- ment in the colony until he had been a resident of the province for five years. Marriage was made a civil contract, and for its validity required simply the consent of the contracting parties before a magistrate in the presence of witnesses. No emigrant could be taxed during his first year's resi- dence in the colony. New settlers were invited by the offer of large bounties in lands, but no title to these lands could be obtained until after a two years' residence in the colony. The governor's salary and the other expenses of the province were secured by the imposition of a fee of thirty pounds of tobacco in every lawsuit. The members of the assembly served without compensa- tion, seeking no emoluments from office. THE COAST OF NORTH CAROLINA. In 1670 the constitution of Shaftesbury and Locke was sent over by the proprie- taries, and the governor was ordered to establish it in the colony. It met with a determined resistance from both legislature and people, who could never be induced to submit to it. The people upon whom the proprietaries endeavored to enforce their " Grand Model " were in many respects the most singular 230 SETTLEMENT OF AMERICA. community in America. Many of them had fled from injustice and persecution in other colonies, and in the solitude of the forests of North Carolina had become possessed of an independence which scorned any control but that of the government established by their own consent. The plantations were chiefly along the rivers and the shores of Albe- marle Sound ; there were no roads but the paths marked through the forests by the blazing of the trees ; the inhabitants visited each other and travelled through the country in their boats, scarcely any, even among the women and children, being unacquainted with the use of the oar. A Happy Community. The people were attached to their beauti- ful " summer land," and to the freedom which they enjoyed in it. They had little use for laws, for they were mainly a simple- hearted and virtuous race, who, by pursuing the paths of right, gave no cause for restraint. They had no court-house until 1722. Their first church was not built until 1705, and the freedom of conscience which they enjoyed was perfect. Yet they were a God-fearing people, and George Fox, who visited them in 1672, testifies to their readiness to hear the word of God and to their homely virtues. They were cut off from the world, careless of the struggles which rocked Europe to its foundations, and anxious only to live in the peaceful enjoyment of the good things God had given them, and to rear their children in the ways which they deemed conformable to His will. There were no towns in the colony, and in power and importance North Carolina could not compare with any of her more northern sisters ; but there were no com- munities in which the people were happier or more contented than in this one. When the cruelties of Berkeley drove many of the Virginians from their province, they fled to North Carolina, and were kindly received by the people, who treated Berke- ley's demands to surrender the refugees for punishment with contempt. "Are there any who doubt man's capacity for self-govern- ment, let them study the early history of North Carolina ; its inhabitants were restless and turbulent in their imperfect submission to a government imposed on them from abroad ; the administration of the colony was firm, humane and tranquil when they were left to take care of themselves. Any government but one of their own institution was oppressive." * These were the people for whom the " Grand Model " was designed, and who successfully resisted its imposition. The proprietaries had withdrawn the government they had first established, at the time when the constitutions of Shaftesbury and Locke were offered to the colony, and the refusal of these constitutions by the colonists left North Carolina without any regularly estab- lished system of government. In this state of affairs Stevens, the governor, continued to administer the old system until a settlement of the matter in dispute could be had. He died in 1674, and the assembly elected Cart- wright, their speaker, as his successor, by whom the government was administered for two years. Another Appeal to England. Eastchurch, the new speaker, was sent to England to explain the grievances of the colony to the proprietaries and to endeavor to secure the withdrawal of the obnoxious constitution. Without withdrawing their favorite system, the proprietaries, who were disposed to conciliate the colony, thought best to leave matters in their present condi- tion and appointed Eastchurch governor * Bancroft's History of the United States, vol. ii., p. 158. SETTLEMENT OF THE CAROLINAS. 231 They did away with much of the good effect of this measure by coupHng this appointment with that of Miller as collector of customs. He had been driven out of the colony by the people some time before, and he was now sent to compel the payment of the revenues claimed by the proprietaries, and to enforce the navigation acts in North Carolina. England's Iniquitous Policy. The enforcement of the navigation acts meant simply the certain crippling and the probable ruin of the industry of North Caro- lina. The commerce of the colony was small and was already struggling against natural difficulties. The whole province contained a little less than four thousand inhabitants, and its exports consisted of about eight hundred hogsheads of tobacco, a small quantity of Indian corn and a few cattle. These were shipped in a few small vessels which came for them from New England, and brought in return the few articles of foreign manufacture which the planters could afford to purchase. Yet this humble trade was made the object of the e-nvy of the English merchants, and it was resolved by a vigorous enforcement of the navigation acts to cut the North Carolinians off from the use of the New England markets and to compel them to send their products to England for sale. Never was the iniquitous policy of England toward her colonies more strikingly and per- fectly illustrated than in her treatment of North Carolina at this period. The effort to enforce the navigation act was met by a deliberately planned and exe- cuted insurrection of the people, who pub- lished to the world a declaration of the causes which had impelled them to this action, and which were chiefly the loss of their liberties by the changes in the govern- ment, the imposition of excessive taxes, and the interruption of their commerce by the burdens laid upon it by the navigation acts. The leader of the movement was John Culpepper. One of the members of the council joined the insurrection ; but the rest, with Miller, who, in addition to his office of collector, had been acting as gov- ernor in the absence of Eastchurch, were arrested and imprisoned. When Eastchurch arrived the colonists refused either to A SETTLER S CABIN. acknowledge his authority or to allow him to enter the colony. In the meantime they arranged matters upon the old popular sys- tem, and sent Culpepper and another of their number to England to negotiate a settlement with the proprietaries. Miller escaped from confinement and re- paired to England to oppose the efforts ot Culpepper. By cunningly making himselt 232 sf:ttlement of America. the champion of the navigation acts, Miller succeeded in arousing a strong sentiment against Culpepper, who was arrested on a charge of resisting the collection of the rev- enue and embezzling the public funds. In support of this arbitrary act the government pleaded an old statute of Henry VIII., by which a colonist could be arraigned in Eng- land for an offence committed in a colony. Culpepper demanded to be tried in North Car- olina, upon the scene ol his alleged crinv^ ; but this was refused him, and he was put on trial in England. The Earl of Shaftesbury, shrewdly perceiving that such a course was repugnant to the real sentiment of the English people, and that it offered him an opportunity to increase his popularity, undertook the de- fence of Culpepper, and procured his acquittal. Captured by Pirates. The proprietaries now appointed as gov- ernor one of their number, Seth Slothel, who had purchased the rights of Lord Clarendon. Slothel on his voyage out was captured by the Algerine pirates, and during his absence the government of North Carolina was admin- istered by governors appointed by the in- surgents, who seem to have acted with the consent, or at least without the opposition of the proprietaries, who were much at a loss to know how to enforce their authority in the province. They instructed the colonists to " settle order among themselves," and appear to have left them very much to their own devices. The government was well and fairly administered, and order was main- tained ; an act of amnesty was published; and when Slothel reached the colony, in 1683, after his release from his captivity, he found it peaceful and orderly. The administration of Slothel was un- fortunate for the province. He could enforce neither the constitutions of the proprietaries nor the navigation acts, as he was expected to do ; so he devoted his energies to the task of enriching himself, which he accomp- lished by robbing the colonists and defraud- ing his proprietary associates in England. In 1688 the colonists, greatly exasperated by his exactions, to which they had submitted for about five years, drove him out of the prov- ince by condemning him to an exile of a year, and forever disqualifying him from holding the office of governor. This was their boldest act yet and was an open defi- ance of the proprietaries. Charleston Founded. In the meantime the southern portion of Carolina had been brought under English rule. In 1670 a company of emigrants was sent out by the proprietaries, under the direction of William Sayle and Joseph West, the latter of whom was the commercial agent of the proprietaries. They went by way of Barbadoes and landed at Port Royal, where the ruins of Fort Carolina, which had been erected by the French, were still to be seen. After a short delay here, they removed to a more favorable location farther northward, between two rivers, which they named the Ashley and Cooper, in honor of the Earl of Shaftesbury, one of the proprietaries. In 1680 this settlement was abandoned for a better situation nearer the harbor. This last settlement was the foundation of the city of Charleston. The first plantation on the Ashley River was afterwards known as Old Charleston. At present not even a log cabin remains to mark the site. The emigrants to South Carolina had been furnished with a copy of the constitu- tions of Shaftesbury and Locke, but they were as averse to the acceptance of them as were the people of North Carolina, for they perceived that such a system as that devised by the proprietaries could not be put in SETTLEMENT OF THE CAROLINAS. 233 operation in America. Immediately upon their arrival they proceeded to establish a form of government suited to their needs. It consisted of a governor, a council com- posed of five members appointed by the proprietaries and five by the assembly, and an assembly of twenty delegates chosen by the people. Thus was representative gov- ernment established as the basis of the political life of the province, and throughout all her subsequent history it was cherished by South Caro- lina as her most precious posses- sion. . The colony grew rapidly in population ; the delightful cli- mate, the rich soil and the li- beral offers of lands by the proprietaries at- tracting settlers in considerable numbers. In 167 1 Sir John Yea- mans brought over African slaves from Bar- badoes, thus in- troducing negro slavery into the colony at the very outset of its existence. This species of labor being found well suited to the necessi- ties of the province, was generally adopted in the remaining years of the century, and became the basis of the industry of South Carolina, which was from the first a purely agricultural state. The negroes multiplied rapidly by natural increase and by fresh importations; "so rapidly," says Bancroft, " that in a few years, we are told, the blacks were to the whites in the proportion of twenty-two to twelve, a proportion that had no parallel north of the West Indies." The white population also increased rapidly. The dissenters, as all the Protestant sects who differed from the Church of England were called, came over to the colony in large numbers, hoping to find there the toleration they were denied at home. They consisted of Dutch and German Protestants, and Presbyterians from the north of Ireland and from Scotland. The last were generally BIRDS-EYE VIEW OF CHARLESTON, SOUTH CAROLINA. people of culture and gave to the colony many clergymen, physicians, lawyers and schoolmasters. Churchmen from England also emigrated in considerable numbers, as the " Grand Model " established their church as the orthodox faith of the province. Dutch emigrants came also from New York to escape the outrages of the English governors of that province. Last of all were the Huguenots, who were induced to settle in South Carolina by Charles II., who was sincerely anxious to give them 234 SETTLEMENT OF AMERICA. a refuge from their persecutions in Europe, and who wished them to estabHsh in Carolina the culture of the vine, the olive and the silk-worm. The revocation of the Edict of Nantes drove thousands of the Huguenots from France. Large numbers of them joined their brethren in South Carolina. They were almost invariably persons of education and refinement. In France they had consti- tuted the most useful and intelligent part of the population. They had almost monopo- lized the mechanical skill and mercantile enterprise of their native land, and their loss was severely felt by it for many genera- tions. In South Carolina they soon became suffi- ciently numerous to constitute an important part of the population, and their influence was felt in a marked degree and for the good of the colony. They brought with them the virtues which had won them the respect and confidence of the people of Europe, and the industry which could not fail to place them among the most prosperous citizens of the new state. They mingled freely and inter- married- with the other classes of the people of the province, and thus became the ances- tors of a splendid race who did honor to their country and upheld her cause with their valor in her hour of trial in the next century. A Settlement Ruined. The early years of South Carolina were marked by a constant struggle between the colonists and the proprietaries. The latter vainly attempted to introduce the " Grand Model " as the law of the province, and the former steadily resisted it. A little later the proprietaries offered to make some modifica- tions in their constitutions, but these conces- sions were rejected also. The governor, Sir John Yeamans, regarded his office solely as a means of repairing his fortunes at the expense of both proprietaries and colonists, and was dismissed by his employers. West, who was a man of ability and liberality, was appointed his successor, and under him the colony prospered, but as he was too friendly to the people, he was removed also. In 1684 a small colony under Lord Card- ross, a Presbyterian, settled at Port Royal. These settlers had fled to America to escape persecution in England, but their effort to find an abiding place in the new world was not des- tined to be successful. Lord Cardross return- ed to Europe in a year or two, and in 1 686 the Spaniards from St. Augustine, who claimed the region as a dependency of their own, invaded the little settlement and laid it waste. Of the ten families which had con- stituted the colony, some returned to Scot- land, while the remainder disappeared among the colonists in the vicinity of the Cooper and Ashley rivers. Stubborn Resistance. In 1685, the proprietaries ordered the colo- nial authorities to enforce the navigation acts in the ports of the province. A rigid execu- tion of this order would have been as fatal to the feeble commerce of South Carolina as to that of the settlements in the northern part of the province, and it was resisted by the colonists as a violation of their natural rights and of the promises made to them at the time of their emigration. In order to establish their authority more firmly the proprietaries appointed James Colleton governor, with the rank of landgrave. He was brother of one of the proprietaries, and it was supposed that this fact and his aristocratic rank would give him a moral power which his predecessors had not pos- sessed. The new governor attempted to enforce the constitutions, but was met with a determined resistance, and when he under- took to collect the rents claimed by the 236 SETTLEMENT OF AMERICA. proprietaries, and the taxes he had been ordered to levy, the assembly seized the records of the province, imprisoned the colonial secretary, and defied the governor to execute his orders. In 1690, they went still further, and having proclaimed Wil- liam and Mary, disfranchised Colleton and banished him from South Carolina. Disputes now ran high in the colony, chiefly in regard to rents and land tenures. The " cavaliers and ill-livers." as the party devoted to the interests of the pro- prietaries was termed, endeavored to compel the remainder of the settlers — the Presbyterians, Quakers and Huguenots, the last of whom had recently been ad- mitted to all the privileges of citizenship — to submit to their high-handed measures. They hoped among other things to secure the supremacy of the Church of England in the colony, notwithstanding the fact that a majority of the people were dissenters. The troubles went on increasing, and at length the proprietors, in the hope of putting an end to them, consented to abandon their effort to force upon the Carolinas the legisla- tion of Shaftesbury and Locke. In April, 1693, they abolished the fundamental consti- tutions by a formal vote, and decided to allow the government of the province to be conducted according to the terms of the charter. A Wise Governor. Thomas Smith was appointed governor, but in spite of his many virtues he was unac- ceptable to the people, and the proprietaries determined to send out to Carolina one of their own number with full powers to inves- tigate and remedy the grievances of the colony. John Archdale, " an honest member of the Society of Friends," was chosen, and at once repaired to Carolina. He was a man of great moderation, and was well suited to the task before him. He succeeded in har- monizing the hostile factions which divided the province, and in the formation of the council selected two men of the moderate party to one high churchman, an arrange- ment which fairly represented the actual state of parties, and gave satisfaction to the mass of the people. He remitted the quit-rents for three and four years, and arranged the price of lands and the system of conveyances upon an equitable basis, and gave the colonists the privilege of paying their dues to the propri- etaries either in money or in produce. He established peaceful relations with the Indians, and put an end to the infamous practice of kidnapping them, which had prevailed since the establishment of the colony. The savages in the Cape Fear region had suffered especially from this, and now showed their gratitude by treating with kindness the sailors who were cast away on their coast. Friendly relations were also begun with the Spaniards at St. Augustine. Several Yemmassee Indians, who had been con- verted by the missionaries, having been captured and exposed for sale in Carolina, were ransomed by Archdale, who sent them to the governor of St. Augustine. The Spaniards gratefully acknowledged this kindness, and returned it by forwarding to South Carolina the crew of an English vessel which had gone ashore on the coast of Florida. The colonial government was organized by Arch- dale, on a plan similar to that of Maryland. The council was appointed by the proprie- taries, and the assembly elected by the peo- ple ; and the militia were charged with the defence of the colony. Archdale's adminis- tration was so satisfactory to all parties that upon his withdrawal from the province the assembly declared that he had, " by his wis- dom, patience and labor, laid a firm founda- tion for a most glorious superstructure." SETTLEMENT OF THE CAROLINAS. 237 Archdale went back to England in 1697, and the proprietaries, failing to profit by the lesson of his success, attempted to introduce a measure which would give the political power of the colony exclusively into the hands of the landowners. This measure was resolutely rejected by the colonial assembly. The majority of the people of the colony were, as has been stated, dissenters, Presby- terians, Quakers and Huguenots. They had consented, in order to pacify the high church party, that one minister of the Church of England should be maintained at the pub- lic expense, but the churchmen were re- solved to force their system upon them. The Assembly's Intolerance. In 1704 the churchmen had a majority of one in the assembly ; the governor was favor- able to them, and the council was no longer arranged upon the just plan of Archdale. The assembly, in violation of the plainest principles of justice, disfranchised the dis- senters, and established the Church of Eng- land as the religion of the colony. This action was approved by the council and gov- ernor, and was sustained by the proprietaries in spite of the earnest opposition of Arch- dale. The disfranchised people appealed for justice to the queen and the House of Lords. The committee of the lords declared that the proprietaries had forfeited their charter, and advised its recall, and the house pronounced the intolerant acts null and void, which de- cision was proclaimed by the queen in June, 1706. In November of the same year the colonial legislature repealed its acts, and restored to the dissenters their political rights, but the laws establishing the Church of England as the religion of the province remained unrepealed until the Revolution. The disputes in the colony went on, but in spite of them South Carolina continued to prosper, and its population increased rapidly. During Archdale's residence in the colony the captain of a ship from Madagascar gave him some rice, which he distributed among the planters for the purpose of ascertaining whether it could be cultivated in the mari- time regions of the province, which were unsuited to the culture of wheat. The experi- ment was entirely successful, and the colony at once embarked in the culture of rice, which has ever since been one of its principal indus- tries. Carolina rice soon took rank as the best grown in any country. The fur trade was also carried on with great activity, and the manufacture of tar and the export of lum- ber also became prominent sources of wealth. It was believed that the colony could suc- cessfully manufacture a large part of the woollen fabrics necessary to the supply of its wants, and the attempt was made. It was struck down by the British government in pursuance of its plan to compel the colonies to depend upon England for all their supplies. Parliament forbade the several colonies to export woollen goods to any other province or to any foreign port. They were to ship their products to England alone, and to receive their supplies from her only. Eng- lish merchants were to be privileged to set a price to suit their own interests upon the products of the colonies and also upon the articles of European manufacture sold them in return. The effect of this iniquitous law upon Carolina was to drive her back into agricultural pursuits, and thus to increase the demand for slaves, which was promptly sup- plied by British traders. A Reckless Adventurer. In 1702, England was at war with France and Spain, and James Moore was governor of Carolina. He was a needy adventurer, who endeavored to fill his purse by kidnap- ping Indians and selling them as slaves. This being too slow a process, he determined to 238 SETTLEMENT OF AMERICA. plunder the Spanish settlement of St. Augus- tine, He attacked that place with a force of whites and Indians. The town was readily- taken, but he could make no impression upon the citadel, and despatched a vessel to Jamaica for cannon to reduce the fort. The garrison in the meantime sent an Indian runner to Mobile with news of their situa- tion, and word was sent from Mobile to Havana. In a short while two Spanish ships of war arrived at St. Augustine to the relief of the garrison, and Moore was obliged to raise the siege. He abandoned his stores and retreated overland to Charleston. The only- result of his expedition was the accumula- tion of a debt which the colony was obliged to carry for many years. Brutal Butchery. Moore's next effort was directed against the Appalachee Indians of Florida. These had been converted to the Roman Catholic faith by the Spanish missionaries, and had begun to adopt habits of civilization ; they lived in villages, and supported themselves by cultivating the soil. They were also very friendly to the French, who had settled Louisiana. Moore professed to be very ap- prehensive of the effects of the Spanish and French influence upon the Appalachees, and declared his intention to cripple them before they could do any harm to the English set- tlements. His real motive was the hope of plunder. The only crime of the poor sav- ages was their adoption of the Roman faith. In 1705, with a force of about fifty white men and one thousand Seminole warriors, Moore invaded the settlements of the Appa- lachees, destroyed them, killed many of the natives, and made prisoners of large num- bers, who were removed to the region of the Altamaha. The churches were plundered and destroyed, and the country of the Appa- lachees was given to the Seminoles as a reward for their services. They at once occupied it, and thus became a barrier be- tween their English friends and the Spanish settlements. In 1706, the Spaniards and French sent a combined fleet to Charleston to avenge the attacks upon St. Augustine and the Appa- lachees. The attack of the fleet was repulsed by the people, who were led by William Rhet and Sir Nathaniel Johnson, and the assailants were forced to withdraw with the loss of one ship belonging to the French and upwards of thrce hundred men. North Carolina continued to prosper. Her people were happy and contented under their simple system of government, which was described by Spotswood as " scarce any gov- ernment at all." In 1704, the proprietaries attempted to establish the Church of England in this part of their province, the people of which were nearly all Presbyterians, Quakers and Lutherans. It was ordered that all who refused to submit to the laws for the estab- lishment and support of the Enghsh church should be disfranchised. Open Rebellion. The people opposed a general and deter- mined resistance to this measure, and at the end of a year there was but one clergyman of the English church within the limits of the colony. The resistance finally culmin- ated in open rebellion. The colony was divided into two parties, one of which sus- tained the authority of the proprietors, the other the rights of the people. Each party had its governor and assembly, and for six years the colony remained in a state of anarchy. The Quakers were the leading spirits of the popular party and maintained their rights with a steadfastness characteristic of their race. Thus far North Carolina had escaped a war with the Indians. The Tuscaroras, who SETTLEMENT OF THE CAROLINAS. 239 occupied the central and northwestern por- tions of the present state, had emigrated at some remote period from the north, and they now viewed with jealousy and distrust the encroachments of the whites upon their lands. About 171 1 the proprietaries assigned large tracts in the country of this tribe to a company of Germans from the region of the Neckar and the Rhine, who had fled to America to escape religious persecution. A company of these exiles had come out under the direction of De Graffenreid, and in Sep- tember, 171 1, De Graffenreid accompanied Lawson, the surveyor-general of the prov- ince, in an expedition up the Neuse for the purpose of locating these lands and of ascertaining how far the river was navigable. They were captured by a party of sixty Indians and hurried to a distant village of the Tuscaroras. Lawson was regarded with bitter hostility by the Lidians, who looked upon him as responsible above all others for the loss of their lands, as he had been com- pelled by his duties to locate the grants of the proprietaries, and he was put to death with cruel torments. Condemned to Death. De Graffenreid was also condemned to die, but he told the savages that he had been but a short time in the country, and that he was the " chief of a different tribe from the English," and promised that he would take no more of their land. The Indians kept him a prisoner for five weeks, and then permitted him to return to his friends. During this time the Tuscaroras and Corees, whom they had drawn into an alliance with them, attacked the settlements of the 'whites on the Roanoke and Pamlico Sound, and for three days spread death and devastation all along the frontier of the col- ony. A large number of the unoffending settlers were slain and many homesteads were destroyed. The people of North Carolina appealed to Virginia and South Carolina for assistance. South Carolina sent a small body of troops and a force of friendly Indians ; and Gov- ernor Spotswood, of Virginia, unable to send assistance, engaged one tribe of the Tusca- roras in a treaty of peace. The people of North Carolina, divided by their internal dissensions, took scarcely any part in the struggle. The South Carolina forces attacked KING GEORGE I. the Tuscaroras in their fort and compelled them to make peace. The troops, however, on their return home, violated the treaty by seizing some of the Indians for the purpose of selling them as slaves. The war broke out again and was prosecuted with vigor for about a year, and resulted in the expulsion of the Tuscaroras from North Carolina. The Yemmassees had for some time been hostile to the Spaniards, as they resented the efforts of the priests to convert them 240 SETTLEMENT OF AMERICA. to Christianity. They had acted as the allies of the English in the war with the Tuscaroras, but after the close of that struggle the unscrupulous traders, who re- garded them as "a tame and peaceable people," had treated them so badly, and plundered them so systematically, that they were driven into hostility to the English. They thereupon renewed their friendship with the Spaniards, and induced the Cataw- bas, the Creeks and Cherokees, who had also been friendly to the English, to join them against their former allies. Indian Depredations. In 17 1 5 the savages, suddenly, and with- out warning, attacked the settlements on the frontier. The alarm was sent to Port Royal and Charleston, and the assailed people fled towards the settlements along the coast. The Indians continued their depredations, and the colony prepared as rapidly as pos- sible to resist them. Aid was sent from North Carolina, whose government had now been placed on a more stable footing. Gov- ernor Craven took the field without delay, with such troops as he could raise, and a long and bloody struggle ensued. The power of the savages was broken, however. The Yemmassees were compelled to take refuge in Florida, where they were provided for by the Spaniards, and the other tribes were driven farther westward. The contests between the proprietaries and the colonists now came to an end. The proprietaries had made no effort to help the colonists during their struggle with the In- dians, and the latter determined to have no more to do with their former lords. The dispute was carried before Parliament, which body declared that the proprietaries had for- feited their charter. In 1720 King George I. appointed Francis Nicholson provisional governor of Carolina. In 1729 the contro- versy was ended by the purchase of the pro- prietaries' interests by the crown for the sum of one hundred and ten thousand dollars. Carolina thus became a royal province, and was divided by the king into two separate states, known respectively as North and South Carolina, to each of which a royal governor was appointed. CHAPTER XIX Settlement of Georgia General James Edward Oglethorpe — His Efforts to Reform Prison Discipline of England — Proposes to Found a Colony in America for the Poor and for Prisoners for Debt — A Charter Obtained from the King — Colonization of Georgia — Savannah Settled — First Years of the Colony — Labors of Oglethorpe — Arrival of New Emigrants — Augusta Founded — ■ The Moravian Settlements — The Wesleys in America — George Whitefield — War Between England and Spain — Ogle- thorpe Invades Florida — Failure of the Attack upon St. Augustine — The Spaniards Invade Georgia — Oglethorpe's Stratagem — Its Success — Battle of " Bloody Marsh " — Close of the War — Charges Against Oglethorpe — His Vindica- tion — His Return to Europe — Changes in the Colonial Government — Introduction of Slavery into Georgia — Prosperity of the Colony. THE severe laws in force in England in the last century against debtors aroused the opposition of many philanthropists, who strove to pro- cure their abolition or amelioration. Among these was General James Edward Oglethorpe, an officer of the English army and a member of Parliament. He was a man of fortune, and of generous nature, and devoted himself with energy to reform not only the laws against debtors but the entire prison disci- pline of England. There were at this time upwards of four thousand men in prison for debt. Their condition was most pitiful. They had no hope of relief save through the mercy of the creditors who had consigned them to their prisons, and were treated with a severity due only to criminals. It seemed an outrage to the generous Oglethorpe to visit such heavy punishments upon persons whose only crimes were their misfortunes, and he endeavored to have the laws authorizing imprisonment for debt re- pealed, and failing in this conceived the plan of establishing in America a place of refuge to which the poor and unfortunate might resort, and earn a support by their own industry'. He succeeded in interesting others in his benevolent scheme, and in 1732 a petition, signed by a number of men of rank 16 and influence, was presented to George II., praying him to grant to the petitioners a tract of unoccupied land in America for the purpose of founding such an asylum as that proposed by Oglethorpe. The king re- sponded favorably to this appeal, and granted to Oglethorpe and twenty other persons the region between the Savannah and the Alta- maha rivers. This region was to be held " in trust for the poor," for a period of twenty-one years, by the trustees named in the charter, and was to constitute a home for unfortunate debtors and Protestants from the continent of Europe, who might wish to seek safety there from persecution. The territory thus assigned formed a part of South Carolina, but was formally separated from it and named Georgia, in honor of the king. The " free exercise of religion " was secured to all sects " except Papists." No grant of land to any single settler was to exceed five hun- dred acres, a condition which it was hoped would prevent the rich from securing the best lands, and give to the poor an oppor- tunity to become landowners. It was be- lieved that the climate and soil of the new province were specially adapted to the rais- ing of silk-worms and the cultivation of the vine. 241 242 SETTLEMENT OF AMERICA. The scheme of Oglethorpe enlisted the sympathies of all classes of the English peo- ple. Liberal donations were made in its be- half, and its benevolent projector exerted himself with energy to secure a colony with which to lay the foundations of the new state. It was determined to take none but the poorest and most helpless, and Ogle- thorpe himself decided to accompany them, and give his personal care to the planting of the colony. Settlement of Savannah. One hundred and fifty persons, comprising thirty-five families, were embarked, and they sailed from England in November, 1732. They reached Charleston in fifty-seven days, and were formally welcomed by the assembly of South Carolina and presented with a sup- ply of cattle and rice. From Charleston the company sailed to Port Royal, while Ogle- thorpe hastened to explore the Savannah and select a site for the settlement. He chose a location at Yamacraw Bluff, on the right bank of the river, about twenty miles from its mouth. He purchased the land from the Yamacraw Indians, and the foundations of a town were laid. The place was named Savannah, from the river on which it stood. Oglethorpe has- tened forward the clearing of the land and the building of houses, but for nearly a year contented himself with a tent which was erected under four wide-spreading pines. *' The streets were laid out with the greatest regularity; in each quarter a public square was reserved ; the houses were planned and constructed on one model — each a frame of sawed timber, twenty-four feet by sixteen, floored with rough deals, the sides with feather-edged boards, unplaned, and the roof shingled." A garden was laid off by the river-side, to be the nursery of European fruits and other productions. Friendly relations were cultivated with the Indians. The chief of the Yamacraws came in bringing a buffalo skin, on the inner side of which was painted the head and feathers of an eagle. " Here is a little present," said Tomo-chichi, as the chief was named. " The feathers of the eagle are soft and signify love; the buffalo skin is warm, and is the emblem of protection; therefore love and protect our little families." The Muscogees, Creeks, Cherokees andOconees also senttheir chiefs to Savannah to make an alliance with the English. The savages were well pleased with the noble and commanding appearance of Oglethorpe and his frank and kind manner of dealing with them, and trusted implicitly in the promises he made them. The distant Choctaws also sent messengers to open friendly relations with the new settlers, and a profitable trade was established with the tribes as far west as the Mississippi. Grand Old German Hymns. |l Thus far the colony of Georgia was a success, and the friends of the movement in England were not slow to make public the accounts which came to them of its delightful climate and fertile soil, and all who were oppressed or in need were invited to seek the protection and advantages which the new land offered. The fame of the colony attracted the attention of a number of German Prot- estants in and around Salzburg, who were undergoing a severe persecution for the sake of their religion. Their sufferings enlisted the sympathy of the people of England, and the " Society for the Propagation of the Gospel " invited them to emigrate to Georgia and secured for them the means of doing so. The Germans readily accepted the offer, and rejoiced greatly that they were thus afforded an opportunity of spreading the gospel among the Indians. Nearly one hundred persons SETTLEMENT OF GEORGIA. 243 set out from Salzburg, taking with them their wives and little ones in wagons, and journeyed across the country to Frankfort- on-the-Main. They carried with them their Bibles and books of devotion, and as they journeyed lightened their fatigues with those grand old German hymns which they were to make as precious in the new world as they were to the people of God in the old. From Frank- fort they proceeded to the Rhine and floated down that stream to Rotterdam, where, being joined by two clergymen — Bolzius and Gronau — they sailed to England. They were warmly received by a com- mittee of the trustees of the colony and forwarded to Georgia. A stormy passage of fifty-seven days brought them to Charleston, in March, 1734, where they were met by Ogle- thorpe, who led them to their destina- tion. They were assigned a location on the Savannah, a short distance above the town of Savannah, where they began without delay to lay off a town, which they named Ebenezer, in gratitude to God for his guidance of them into a land of plenty and of rest from persecution. Others of their countrymen joined them from time to time, and their settlement grew rapidly and became noted as one of the most orderly, thrifty and moral communities in the new world. In 1734 the town of Augusta was laid out at the head of boat navigation on the Sa- vannah, and soon became an important trad- ing-post. Emigrants came over from England in large numbers, and Oglethorpe had the satisfaction of seeing his colony fairly started upon the road to prosperity. He was justly proud of the success of the colony, for it was mainly due to his disinterested efforts. Governor Johnson, of South Carolina, who had watched the labors of Oglethorpe with the deepest interest, wrote : " His under- taking will succeed, for he nobly devotes all his powers to serve the poor and rescue them from their wretchedness." The pastor of Ebenezer bore equally emphatic testimony to his devotion. " He has taken care of us to the best of his ability," said the pastor. " God has so blessed his presence and his regulations in the land that others would not in many years have accomplished what he has brougrht about in one." GENERAL OGLETHORPE. In April, 1734, Oglethorpe, whose pres- ence was required in Europe, sailed from Savannah, taking with him several Indians, and enough of the raw silk which had been produced in the colony to make a dress for the queen. Georgia was left to manage its own affairs during the absence of its founder. As the colonists regarded the use of ardent spirits as the sure cause of the debt and misery from which they had fled, they 244 SETTLEMENT OF AMERICA. prohibited their introduction into the colony ; but it was found impossible to enforce this law. The importation of negro slaves was also forbidden. The colony was a refuge for the distressed and oppressed of all nations, and it seemed a violation of the spirit in which it was founded to hold men in bond- age. " Slavery," said Oglethorpe, " is against the gospel as well as the fundamental law of England. We refused, as trustees, to make a law permitting such a horrid crime." with the intention of becoming missionaries of the gospel among the savage tribes, and under their leader, Spangenberg, formed a new settlement on the Ogeechee, south of the Savannah. They claimed and received a grant of fifty acres of land for each of their number, in accordance with a law which had been passed for the encourage- ment of emigration. In the same year a company of Scotch Highlanders, under their minister, John McLeod, arrived and founded A SOUTHERN PLANTATION. The visit of Oglethorpe to England was productive of great benefit to Georgia. Par- liament was induced to grant it assistance, and the king became deeply interested in the province which had been called by his name. Emigrants from England continued to seek its hospitable shores, and the trustees induced a band of Moravians, or United Brethren, to emigrate to the colony. They came in 1735, the town of Darien, on the Altamaha. In 1736 Oglethorpe himself returned, bringing with him three hundred emigrants. Among the new-comers were two broth- ers, men of eminent piety, who were destined to exercise a powerful influence upon the world. They were John and Charles Wes- ley, sons of a clergyman of the Church of England, and themselves ministers of that SETTLEMENT OF GEORGIA. 245 communion. Charles Wesley had been selected by Oglethorpe as his secretary, and John Wesley came with the hope of becom- ing the means of converting the Indians to Christianity. He did not succeed in realiz- ing his noble ambition, but we cannot doubt that his experience in America formed a very important part of the training by which God was pre- paring him for the great work he meant to intrust to him at a later day. The preaching of Wesley had a marked effect upon the col- ony. Crowds flocked to hear him, neglect- ing their usual amuse- ments in their eager- ness to listen to him. His austerity of life, however, involved him in troubles with the people, and his popularity at length disappeared. His brother Charles was too tenderly moulded for so rough a life as that of the infant col- ony, and his health sank under it. The brothers remained in Georgia only two years, and then went back to their labors in Europe, never to return to America. Soon after the departure of the Wesleys came to the colony George Whitefield, their friend and associate, the " golden-mouthed " preacher of the century. In his own land he had begun to preach the message of his Mas- ter when but a mere youth, and had pro- claimed it to the inmates of the prisons and to the poor in the fields, and now he had come to bring the gospel to the people of the new world. He visited the Lutherans at JOHN WESLEY. Ebenezer, and was deeply impressed with tht care with which they protected the orphan and helpless children of their community. He determined to establish an institution similar to the orphan house at Halle, in 246 SETTLEMENT OF AMERICA. Germany, and by his personal exertions suc- ceeded in raising in England and America the funds necessary for the success of his enterprise. He thereupon established near Savannah the first orphan asylum in America. He GEORGE WHITEFIELD. watched it with unceasing care during his life, but after his death it languished and was at length discontinued. Whitefield did not confine his labors to Georgia. He visited every colony in America, and finally died and was buried in New England. The memory of his wonderful eloquence is still retained in this country by the children of those who listened to him. Immediately upon his return to Georgia, Oglethorpe proceeded to visit the Lutheran settlement at Ebenezer, to encourage the people and lay out their town. The Germans repaid nis care by their industry, and in a few years their total annual product of raw silk amounted to ten thousand pounds. The culture of indigo* was also carried on by them with marked success, Oglethorpe, having visited the Scotch set- tlement at Darien, now resolved to come to a definite understanding with the Spaniards at St. Augustine respect- ing the southern border of Georgia, and to sus- tain the pretensions of Great Britain to the country as far south as the St. John's. Proceed- ing with a detachment of Highlanders to Cumber- land Island, he marked out the location for a fort, to be called St. Andrew's, and on the southern end of Amelia Island, at the mouth of the St. John's, built Fort St. George. The Spaniards on their part claimed the whole coast as far north as St. Helena's Sound, and Oglethorpe, a little later, decided to abandon Fort St. George, but strengthened Fort St. SETTLEMENT OF GEORGIA. 247 Andrew, as it defended the entrance to the St. Mary's, which stream was finally settled upon as the boundary between Georgia and Florida. Oglethorpe was commissioned a brigadier-general by the king, and was charged with the defence of Georgia and South Carolina. He repaired to England and raised a regiment of troops, with which he returned to Georgia in 1738. Spain and England were rapidly drifting into war. The system of restrictions by which the European governments sought to retain the exclusive possession of the com- merce of their respective colonies was always a fruitful source of trouble. It now operated to bring England and Spain to open hostili- ties. The Spanish colonies were forbidden by law to trade with any port but that of Cadiz. The merchants of this place, being given a monopoly of the colonial commerce, were enabled to fix their prices without fear of competition, and thus earned large fortunes. Grasping Smugglers. The trade of the Spanish-American col- onies, however, was too tempting not to pro- duce rivals to the merchants of Cadiz. The English, who had watched its growth with eager eyes, determined to gain a share of it. By the terms of a treaty between the two nations, an English vessel was allowed to visit Portobello, in the West Indies, once a year, and dispose of its cargo. This vessel was followed by smaller ones, which in the night replaced with their cargoes the bales of goods that had been discharged during the day. An active smuggling trade sprang up between the English and Spanish-American ports, and English vessels repeatedly sought these ports, under the pretence of distress, and sold their goods. These enterprises' were carried to such an extent that the Spanish merchants were unable to compete with the English smugglers in the colonial markets, and the tonnage of the port of Cadiz fell from fifteen thousand to two thou- sand tons. The Spaniards visited with severe punish- ments all who were detected in engaging in this illicit traffic. Some of the ofifenders were imprisoned, and others were deprived of their ears. The English people resented the pun- ishment of these traders as an infringement of the freedom of trade, and regarded the smugglers who had suffered at the hands of Spanish justice as martyrs. The popular sentiment was therefore in favor of a war with Spain, and the English government^ which had all along connived at this illicit trade, which was rapidly crippling a rival power, shared the national feeling. Grievances of the Settlers. The English colonists, who had watched the growth of the trouble between the two European countries, had grievances of their own. South Carolina was a sufferer by the loss of numerous runaway negro slaves, who escaped to the Spaniards at St. Augustine. The return of these fugitives was demanded, and was refused, not because the Spaniards were opposed to slavery, but because they were always ready to injure the English col- onies by any means in their power. More- over, the Spanish authorities of Florida had ordered the English to withdraw from Georgia, and it was not certain that they would refrain from seeking to enforce this order. Oglethorpe had become convinced that war was inevitable, and in order to be prepared for it had visited Europe and raised a regiment of six hundred men, as has been related. War was declared against Spain by Eng- land in October, 1739. Admiral Vernon was sent against Portobello with his fleet, and captured that town and its fortifications, and gained some other successes over the 248 SETTLEMENT OF AMERICA. Spaniards in Central America. In 1740, the American colonies were ordered by the British government to contribute each its quota to a grand expedition against the Spanish possessions in the West Indies. Each colony made its contribution promptly, and Pennsylvania, in the place of troops, voted a sum of money. Fleet of a Hundred Vessels. The expedition reached Jamaica in Janu- ary, 1 74 1, but instead of proceeding at once to attack Havana, which was only three days distant, and the conquest of which would have made England supreme in the West Indies, the fleet was detained for over a month at Jamaica by the dissensions be- tween Wentworth, the incompetent com- mander of the land forces, and Vernon, the admiral of the fleet. The expedition num- bered over one hundred vessels, of which twenty-nine were ships of the line, and was manned with fifteen thousand sailors and twelve thousand troops, and supplied with every requisite for a successful siege. Havana might have been taken, and England have gained a hold upon the southern waters of America which could never have been wrested from her. Instead of undertaking this important measure, the expedition attacked Cartha- gena, the strongest fortress in Spanish America. The Spaniards defended it with obstinacy and held the English in check until the besieging force, decimated by the ravages of the climate, was compelled to withdraw. The war continued through the next year, but England gained no advan- tage in the West Indies which could at all compensate her for her losses in the struggle. In the autumn of 1739, upon the breaking out of the war, Oglethorpe was ordered to invade Florida, and attack St. Augustine. He hastened to Charleston and urged upon the authorities of South Carolina, which formed a part of his military command, the necessity of acting with promptness and de- cision. He was granted supplies and a force of four hundred men, which, added to his own regiment, gave him a force of one thousand white troops. He was also fur- nished with a body of Indian warriors by the friendly tribes, and with his little army in- vaded Florida in the spring of 1741, and laid siege to St. Augustine. He found the gar- rison more numerous and the fortifications stronger than he had been led to believe. The Indians soon became disheartened and began to desert, and the troops from South Carolina, " enfeebled by the heat, dispirited by sickness and fatigued by fruitless efforts, marched away in large bodies." Spanish Settlers Protected. The small naval force also became dissat- isfied, and Oglethorpe, left with only his own regiment, was obliged to withdraw into Georgia after a siege of five weeks. During this campaign Oglethorpe made a few pris- oners, whom he treated with kindness. He prevented the Indians from maltreating the Spanish settlers, and, throughout the inva- sion, " endured more fatigues than any of his soldiers ; and in spite of ill-health, he was at the head in every important action." The invasion of Florida was a misfortune for Georgia in every way. Not only were some of the inhabitants lost to the colony by death, and the industry of the province greatly interfered with by the calling off of the troops from their ordinary avocations, but a serious misfortune was sustained in the withdrawal of the Moravians from the prov- ince. Uncompromisingly opposed to war, they withdrew from Georgia in a body and settled in Pennsylvania, where they founded the towns of Bethlehem and Nazareth. SETTLEMENT OF GEORGIA. 249 In the last year of the war, 1742, the Spaniards resolved to avenge the attack upon Florida by driving the English out of Georgia. A strong fleet with a considerable land force was sent from Cuba to St. Augus- tine, from which it proceeded to the mouth of the St. Mary's. Oglethorpe had con- structed a strong work called Fort William, on the southern end of Cumberland Island, for the defence of this river. With no aid from Carolina, and with less than a thousand men, Oglethorpe was left to defend this position as well as he could. He posted his main force at Frederica, a small village on St. Simon's Island. The Spanish fleet attacked Fort William in June and succeeded in passing it and entering the harbor of St. Simon's. The troops were landed and ar- rangements were made for a combined attack upon Frederica. Entrapped and Defeated. Oglethorpe now resolved to anticipate the attack of the enemy by a night assault upon their position, but as his forces were approach- ing the Spanish camp, under cover of dark- ness, one of his soldiers, a Frenchman, betrayed the movement by firing his gun, and escaping into the enemy's lines, where he gave the alarm. Oglethorpe, by a happy stratagem, now induced the enemy to with- draw, and drew upon the deserter the pun- ishment he merited. He bribed a Spanish prisoner to carry a letter to the deserter, in which he addressed the Frenchman as a spy of the English, and urged him to use every effort to detain the Spaniards before Fred- erica for several days longer, until a fleet of six English ships of war, which had sailed from Charleston, could reach and destroy St. Augustine. The letter was delivered by the released prisoner to the Spanish com- mander, as Oglethorpe had known would be the case, and the deserter was placed in con- finement. Fortunately, at this moment, some vessels from South Carolina, laden with supplies for Oglethorpe, appeared in the ofiing. These the Spanish commander was confident were the ships on their way to attack St. Augus- tine. He determined to strike a vigorous blow at Frederica before sailing to the relief of his countrymen in Florida. On his march towards the English position he was ambus- caded and defeated, with great loss, at a place since called " Bloody Marsh." The next night he embarked his forces and sailed for St. Augustine to defend it from the attack which had no existence save in the fertile brain of Oglethorpe, whose stratagem was thus entirely successful. On their withdrawal the Spaniards renewed their attempt to cap- ture Fort William, but without success. The firmness and vigor of Oglethorpe had saved Georgia and Carolina from the ruin which the Spaniards, who had no intention of occupying the country, had designed for them. Oglethorpe Acquitted. Yet the founder and brave defender of Georgia was not to escape the experience of those who seek with disinterested zeal to serve their fellow-men. The disaffected settlers sent an agent to England to lodge complaints against him with the government. In July, 1743, having made sure of the tran- quility and safety of the colony, Oglethorpe sailed for England to meet his accuser, and upon arriving in his native country demanded an investigation of his conduct in the land for which he had sacrificed so much. The result of the inquiry was the trium- phant acquittal of Oglethorpe and the pun- ishment of his accuser for making false charges. Oglethorpe was promoted to the grade of major-general in the English army. He did not return to Georgia again, but he had the satisfaction of knowing that during 250 SETTLEMENT OF AMERICA. his ten years of sacrifice and toil in America he had successfully laid the foundations of a vigorous state and had placed it far beyond the possibility of failure, and that his name was honored and loved by the people for whom he had given his best efforts without any personal reward. He died at the age of ninety years. After the departure of Ogle- thorpe many improvements were made in the government of Georgia, which was changed from a military rule to a civil establishment. The forms and customs of the English law were introduced and the usual magistrates appointed. Human Cargoes from Africa. Slavery had been forbidden by the trus- tees, but the majority of the people were dissatisfied with this prohibition. The Ger- mans and the Scotch were opposed to the introduction of slave labor, but the greater number of the English, many of whom had been reduced to poverty by their idleness and wastefulness, were of the opinion that the agricultural wealth of the colony could not be properly developed by white labor alone. " They were unwilling to labor, but were clamorous for privileges to which they had no right." They declared that the use of strong liquors was rendered absolutely necessary by the climate and demanded the repeal of the laws against their introduction. Negro slaves were hired from the Carolina planters at first for a few years, and finally for a term of one hundred years, which was a practical establishment of slavery in the colony. Within seven years after Oglethorpe's departure slave-ships from Africa brought their cargoes direct to Savannah and sold them there. The scruples of the Germans were at length overcome, and they were induced to believe that negroes might be led into the Christian fold by their proper treat- ment by Christian masters, and that in this way their change of country might result in benefit to them. " If you take slaves in faith," wrote their friends from Germany, " and with the intent of conducting them to Christ, the action will not be a sin, but may prove a benediction." Even the pious White- field took this view of the subject and urged the trustees to grant permission to the colo- nists to hold slaves, as indispensable to the prosperity of Georgia. The trustees were so strongly urged to this step by all classes of the colony, and so overrun with complaints, that the twenty-one years of their guardianship having expired, they were glad to surrender their trust, which they did in 1752, and Georgia became a royal province. Privileges similar to those granted the other colonies were allowed it. The king appointed the governor and some of the other higher officials, and the assembly dis- charged the duties, and enjoyed the rights appertaining to similar bodies in the other provinces. Georgia was always a favored colony. Among the most important privileges be- stowed upon it was the right to import and hold negro slaves, which was conferred upon it by Parliament after a careful examination into the matter. After this the colony grew rapidly, and cotton and rice were largely cultivated. In 1752, at the time of the re- linquishment of the colony to the crown, Georgia contained a population less than twenty-five hundred whites and about four hundred negroes. In 1775, at the outbreak of the Revolution, the popu- lation numbered about seventy-five thousand souls, and its exports were valued at over half a million of dollars. CHAPTER XX The French in the Valley of the Mississippi Origin of the Hostility of the Iroquois to the French — Settlement of Canada— Plans of the French Respecting the Indians —The Jesuits — Their Work in America — Success of their Missions — The Early Missionaries— Foundation of a College at Quebec — Efforts of the Jesuits to Convert the Iroquois — Father Jogues — Death of Ahasistari — Father Allouez — The Missions on the Upper Lakes — Father Marquette — His Exploration of the Upper Mississippi — Death of Marquette — La Salle — Efforts of France to Secure the Valley of the Mississippi — La Salle Descends the Mississippi to its Mouth His Effort to Colonize the Lower Mississippi — The First Colony in Texas— lis Failure — Death of La Salle — Lemoine d'lbberville — Settlement of Louisiana — Colony of Biloxi — Settlement of Mobile — Crozat's Monopoly — FoundiHg of New Orleans — Detroit Founded — Slow Growth of the French Colonies — Occupation of the Ohio Valley by the French — Wars with the Indians — Extermination of the Natchez Tribe — War with the Chickasaws. WE have already spoken of the explorations of Samuel Cham- plain in Canada and in the northern part of New York. It is necessary now, in order to obtain a proper comprehension of the period at which we have arrived, to go back to the time of his discoveries and trace the efforts of France to extend her dominion over the great valley of the Mississippi. We have seen Cham- plain in one of his last expeditions accom- panying a war party of the Hurons and Al- gonquins against their inveterate enemies, the Iroquois or Five Nations. By his aid the former were enabled to defeat the Iro- quois, and that great confederacy thus be- came the bitter and uncompromising enemies of the French nation. They cherished this hostility to the latest period of the dominion of France in Canada, and no effort of the French governors was ever able to over- come it. The efforts of Champlain established the settlement of Canada upon a sure basis of success, and after his death settlers came over to Canada from France in considerable numbers. Quebec became an important place, and other settlements were founded. It was apparent from the first that the French colo- nies must occupy a very different footing from those of England. The soil and the climate were both unfavorable to agriculture, and the French settlements were of necessity organized chiefly as trading-posts. The trade in furs was immensely valuable, and the French sought to secure the exclusive possession of it. To this end it was indis- pensable to secure the friendship of the In- dians, especially of those tribes inhabiting the country to the north and west of the great lakes. In 1634, three years before the death of Champlain, Louis XIII. granted a charter to a company of French nobles and mer- chants, bestowing upon them the entire region embraced in the valley of the St. Lawrence, then known as New France. Richelieu and Champlain, who were mem- bers of this company, were wise enough to understand that their countrymen were not suited to the task of colonization, and that if France was to found an empire in the new world, it must be by civilizing and Chris- tianizing the Indians and bringing them under the rule of her king, and not by seek- ing to people Canada with Frenchmen. From this time it became the policy of France to bring the savages under her sway. The efforts of the settlers in Canada were mainly devoted to trading with the Indians, 251 252 SETTLEMENT OF AMERICA. and no attempt was made to found an agri- cultural state. Champlain had conceived a sincere desire for the conversion of the savages to Chris- tianity, and had employed several priests of the order of St. Francis as his companions, and these had gained sufficient success among the savages to give ground for the hope that the red men might yet be brought into the fold of Christ. Father Le Caron, one of this order, had penetrated far up the St. Law- rence, had explored the southern coast of Lake Ontario, and had even entered Lake Huron. He brought back tidings of thou- sands of the sons of the forest living in darkness and superstition, ignorant of the gospel, and dying " in the bondage of their sins." In France a sudden enthusiasm was awakened in behalf of the savages, and at court zeal for the conversion of the Indians became the sure road to distinction. Much of this was the result of genuine disinterested regard for the welfare of the red men, but much also was due to the conviction that by such a course the power of France would be most surely established in Canada. Work of the Jesuits. The missions were placed entirely in the hands of the Jesuits, an order well suited to the task demanded of it. It had been estab- lished by its founder for the express design of defeating the influences and the work of the Reformation, and its members were chosen with especial regard to their fitness for the duties required of them. They were to meet and refute the arguments by which the Reformers justified their withdrawal from the Roman church, to beat back the advanc- ing wave of Protestantism, and bring all Christendom once more in humble submis- sion to the feet of the Roman pontiff. The Reformers had made a most successful use of education in winning men from Rome ; tlie Jesuits would take their own weapons against the Protestants. They would no longer command absolute and unquestioning submission to their church ; but would edu- cate the people to accept the faith of Rome as the result of study and investigation ; and in order that study and investigation should lead to this desired result, the control of these processes should be placed exclusively in the hands of the members of the Jesuit order, who should direct them as they deemed best. Such a task required a band of de- voted men, carefully trained for their special work ; and such an order the Jesuits became. Surrendering his conscience and will to the direction of his superiors, and sinking his personality in that of his order, the Jesuit became a mere intellectual machine in the hands of his superior. A Solemn Oath. Bound by a most solemn oath to obey without inquiry or hesitation the commands of the Pope, or the superiors of the order, the Jesuit holds himself in readiness to execute instantly, and to the best of his ability, any task imposed upon him. Neither fatigue, danger, hunger nor suffering was to stand in his way of perfect and unhesitating obedi- ence. No distance was to be considered an obstacle, and no lack of ordinary facilities of travel was to prevent him from attempting to reach the fields in which he was ordered to labor. The merit of obedience in his eyes atoned for every other short-coming ; devo- tion to the church, the glory of making proselytes, made even suffering pleasure and death a triumph, if met in the discharge of duty. Such an order was in every way qualified for the work of Christianizing the savages, and America offered the noblest field to which its energies had yet been invited. There, cut off from the ambitious schemes THE FRENCH IN THE VALLEY OF THE MISSISSIPPI. 253 and corrupt influences which had enlisted their powers in Europe, the Jesuits could achieve and did achieve their noblest and most useful triumphs. There, their influ- ence was for good alone, and their labors stand in striking contrast with those which won for the order the universal execration of Europe. Not only did they win the honor of gaining many converts to the Christian faith, but they were the means of extending the dominion of their country far beyond the boundaries of Canada, and of bringing the great valley of the Mississippi under the authority of France. Marriage of Whites and Indians. By the year 1536 there were thirteen Jesuit missionaries in Canada laboring among the Indians. Not content with re- maining around the posts, they pushed out beyond the frontier settlements into the boundless forest, making new converts and important discoveries. Each convert was regarded as a subject of France, and the equal of the whites, and the kindliest rela- tions were established between the French and the natives. Many of the traders took them Indian wives, and from these marriages sprang the class of half-breeds afterwards so numerous in Canada. The limits of Canada were too narrow for the ambition of the Jesuits ; they burned to carry Christianity to the tribes in the more distant regions beyond the lakes. In the autumn of 1634 Fathers Brabeuf and Daniel accompanied a party of Hurons, who had come to Quebec on a trading expedition, to their home on the shores of the lake which bears their name. It was a long and difficult journey of nine hundred miles, and it taxed the endurance of the missionaries to the ut- most, but they persevered, and finally gained a resting-place at the Huron villages on Georgian Bay and Lake Simcoe There they erected a rude chapel in a little grove, and celebrated the mysteries of their religion in the midst of the wondering red men, who looked on with awe and not without interest. Nev^ Missions. Six missions were soon established among the Indian villages in this part of the lake, and converts began to reward the labors of the devoted priests. Father Brabeuf had not an idle monient. The first four hours of the day were passed in prayer and in the flagel- lation of his body ; he wore a shirt of hair, and his fasts were frequent and severe. The remainder of the day was given to catechis- ing and teaching the Indians. As he passed along the streets of the village he would ring his little bell, and in this way summon the warriors to converse with him upon the mysteries of the Christian faith. He spent fifteen years in his labors among the Indians, and hundreds of converts were by means of him gained to Christ among the dusky chil- dren of the forest. The great Huron chief, Ahasistari, was among the converts of Father Brabeuf. " Before you came to this country," he said to the missionary, " when I have incurred the greatest perils and have alone escaped, I have said to myself, ' Some powerful Spirit has the guardianship of my days.' " That Spirit he now declared was Jesus Christ, and as he had before adored him in ignorance, he now became his acknowledged servant. Being satisfied of his sincerity, Father Brabeuf baptized him, and the chief, in the enthusi- asm of his new belief, exclaimed, " Let us strive to make the whole world embrace the faith in Jesus." The report of the successful efforts of the missionaries gave great satisfaction in France, and the king and queen and the nobles made liberal donations in support of the missions and for the assistance of the converts. A 254 UNIVERSITY AND NORMAL SCHOOL BUILDINGS AT TORONTO, IN 1 892. THE FRENCH IN THE VALLEY OF THE MISSLSSIPPL 255 college for the education of missionaries was founded at Quebec in 1635. This was the first institution of learning established in America, and preceded the founding of Har- vard College by two years. Madame de la Peltrie, a wealthy young widow of Alencon, with the aid of three nuns, established in 1639 the Ursuline Convent for the education of Indian girls. The three nuns came out from France to take charge of it, and were received with enthusiasm, especially by the Indians. Montreal being regarded as a more suit- able place, the institution was removed to that island and permanently established there. The Powerful Mohawks. The labors of the missionaries had thus far been confined to the Huron and Algon- quin tribes, whom they found very willing to listen to them, and among whom they counted their converts by thousands. They had encountered but little hostility from them, and the dangers of the enterprise were merely those inseparable from the unsettled condition of the country. They were anxious to extend their efforts to the fiercer and more powerful Iroquois, as the conver- sion of the tribes of this confederacy would not only swell the number of their converts, but would extend the influence of France to the very borders of the English settlements on the Atlantic coast. The Iroquois, or Five Nations, consisted, as has been said, of the Seneca, Cayuga, Onondaga, Oneida and Mohawk tribes. They occupied almost all that part of Canada south of the Ottawa, and between Lakes Ontario, Erie and Huron, the greater part of New York and the country lying along the south shore of Lake Erie, now included in the states of Ohio and Pennsylvania. They were generally called by the English the Mohawks. They were the most intelligent, as well as the most powerful, of the tribes with whom the French missionaries came in contact. Their traditions related that their confed- eracy had been formed in accordance with the instructions of Hiawatha, the greatest and wisest of their chiefs, who had been blessed by the Great Spirit with more than human beauty and wisdom and courage. He had made his people great, united and prosperous ; had then taken a solemn leave of them, and had sailed out into the distant sunset in a snow-white canoe, amid the sweetest music from the spirit land. They were regarded with dread by the sur- rounding tribes, many of which were tribu- tary to them. Their influence extended eastward as far as New England, and west- ward as far as the countries of the Illinois and the Miamis. They regarded the Hurons as their hereditary enemies, and the French, as allies of the Hurons, now shared this hos- tility. The savages long remembered, and never forgave, the alliance of Champlain with the Hurons and Algonquins, to which reference has been made. Enmity of the Red Men. The Jesuit missionaries vainly endeavored to add the tribes of the Five Nations to their converts. The latter, regarding the French as enemies, could never be made to look upon 'the missionaries of that race as friends, and considered the efforts of the good fathers in their behalf as a species of incantation designed for their destruction. They closed the region south of Lake Ontario to the French traders and priests and kept a vigilant watch over the passes of the St. Lawrence for the purpose of breaking up the trade of the French at Montreal with the tribes on the lakes. The only route by which the lakes could be reached in safety was by the Ottawa and 256 SETTLEMENT OF AMERICA. through the wilderness beyond. Yet occa- sionally a trading party would slip through the blockade established by the Iroquois, and, descending the lakes and the St. Law- rence, reach Montreal and Quebec in safety. These expeditions constituted the only means by which the Jesuit missionaries in the remote regions could communicate with their principal establishment at Montreal. In the summer of 1642, Father Jogues, who had labored with great success in the country now embraced in the state of Michi- gan, left the Sault Sainte Marie under the escort of the great Huron war chief Ahasis- tari and a number of his braves, and, descend- ing the Ottawa and the St. Lawrence, reached Montreal and Quebec in safety. On the first of August he set out on his return, ac- companied by a larger fleet of Huron canoes. Before the mouth of the Ottawa was reached the party was attacked by a band of Mo- hawks, and the canoes were so much dam- aged that the occupants were forced to make for the opposite shore. The greater number escaped, but a few, among whom were Father Jogues and Father Goupil, a fellow-priest, were taken prisoners. Died at the Stake. Ahasistari had succeeded in reaching aplace of safety, and from his concealment saw the missionaries prisoners in the hands of their enemies. He knew the fate that awaited them, and resolved to share it with them. Father Jogues might have escaped, but as there were among the prisoners several con- verts who had not yet received baptism, he decided to remain with them in the hope of being able to administer the sacred rite to them before their execution. Ahasistari strode through the midst of the astonished Mohawks to the side of the priest. " My brother," said the chief, " I made oath to thee that I would share thy fortune, whether death or life ; here am I to keep my vow." He received absolution from the hands of his teacher, and died at the stake with the firm- ness of a Christian and a hero. Jogues and Goupil were carried to the Mohawk, and in each village through which they were led were compelled to run the gauntlet. On an ear of corn which was thrown to them for food a few drops of the dew had remained, and with these Father Jogues baptized two of his converts. Peace with the Five Nations. Goupil was not so fortunate. He was seen in the act of making the sign of the cross over an Indian child, and was struck dead by a blow from the toma- hawk of the child's father, who sup- posed he was working a spell for the little one's harm. Father Jogues had expected the same fate, but he was spared, and even allowed to erect a large cross near the village at which he was detained, and to worship before it at pleasure. He escaped at length and reached Albany, where he was kindly received by the Dutch, who enabled him to return to France, from which country he sailed again for Canada. He went boldly into the Mohawk country and began again the efforts which he had made during his captivity to convert his enemies to the true faith, but his labors were soon cut short by his murder by a Mohawk warrior. Other missionaries sought the country of these tribes, but only to meet torture and death at their hands. In 1645, the French, who desired to secure their possessions, made a treaty of peace with the Five Nations. The latter professed to forget and bury the wrongs of the past, and agreed to be the true friends of the French. The Algonquins joined in the peace, but neither tribe was sincere in its professions of friendship. THE FRENCH IN THE VALLEY OF THE MISSISSIPPL 257 The Abenakis of Maine, who had heard of the good deeds of the Jesuit fathers, sent messengers to Montreal asking that mission- aries might be sent to dwell among them. Their appeal was favorably considered, and Father Dreuilettes made his way across the wilderness to the head of the Kennebec, and descended that stream to a point within a few miles of its mouth, where he established his mission. Large numbers of the savages came to him for religious instruction, and he found them ready to embrace the truths he taught them. He entered heartily into all the modes of Indian life, hunting and fishing with them, and winning their confidence and affection. After remaining with them about a year he returned to Quebec, escorted by a band of his converts. He gave such favora- ble accounts of the disposition of the Maine Indians that a permanent mission was estab- lished among them. Uncivilized Wild Men. By the close of the year 1646 the French had established a line of missions extending across the continent from Lake Superior to Nova Scotia, and between sixty and seventy missionaries were actively engaged in in- structing and preaching to the savages. How far the labors of these devoted men were actually successful will never be known, as their work was of a character which can- not be submitted to any human test. They did not succeed, however, in changing either the character or the habits of their converts. They were still wild men, who scorned to engage in the labor of cultivating their lands, and lived by hunting and fishing. They learned to engage in the religious services of the missionaries, to chant matins and ves- pers, but they made no approach to civiliza- tion. When, in after years, the zeal of the whites for their conversion became less act- ive, and the missionaries less numerous, they fell back into their old ways. 17 In 1648 the peace between the Mohawks and the Hurons was broken, and the war blazed up again fiercer than ever. Bands of Mohawk warriors invaded the territory of the Hurons, and both the savage and the missionary fell victims to their fury. On the morning of the fourth of July the village of St. Joseph, on Lake Simcoe, was attacked by a war party of the Mohawks. Pierced With Arrows. The Huron braves were absent on a hunt- ing expedition, and only the old men and the women and children of the tribe were left in the village. This was the village founded by the missionaries Brabeuf and Daniel, the latter of whom, now an old m'an,. was still dwelling with his converts. At the opening of the attack the good priest has- tened to baptize such as he could, and to- give absolution to all whom he could reach.. Then, as the Mohawks forced the stockade which protected the village and swarmed in among the wigwams, he advanced calmly from the chapel to meet them, and fell pierced with numerous arrows. During the next year the Jesuit missions in Upper Canada were broken up. At the capture of the village Father Brabeuf and his companion, Gabriel Lallemand, were made prisoners, and were subsequently put to death with the crudest tortures. They bore their sufferings with a firmness which astonished their persecutors. The Hurons were scattered and their country was added to the dominion of the Five Nations. Many of the captive Hurons were adopted into the conquering tribes. A large number of these- had embraced Christianity — so many, indeed, that the Jesuits, who had been in nowise discouraged by the terrible scenes which had; marked the war, began to cherish the hope that the presence of these converts would induce the Iroquois to receive a missionary 258 SETTLEMENT OF AMERICA. among- them. It was decided to make the attempt among the Onondagas, and Oswego, which was their principal village, was chosen as the site of the mission. Useless Efforts. The Iroquois made no effort to disturb the missionaries, and priests were sent among the other tribes of the confederacy. Encour- aged by this reception, the French undertook to secure a firm footing in this inviting region by establishing a colony at the mouth of the Oswego, and fifty persons were des- patched to that point to begin a settlement there. This aroused the alarm of the Indians, who compelled the colonists to withdraw and forced the missionaries to de- 'part with them. This was the last effort of •the French to obtain possession of New York. The Five Nations were not to be reconciled with them on any terms, and their hostility made it useless to attempt the col- onization of that fertile region. Defeated in their hope of obtaining a footing in the country of the Five Nations, the Jesuit fathers turned their attention more energetically to the vast region beyond the lakes. In 1654 two young fur-traders had penetrated into the country beyond Lake Superior, and after an absence of two years had returned to Quebec, bringing with them accounts of the powerful and numerous tribes occupying that region. They brought with them a number of Indians, who urged the French to open commercial relations with and send missionaries among these ti*ibes. Their request was promptly granted, and missionaries were soon on the ground. One of these, the aged Father Mesnard, while journeying through the forests, wan- dered off from his attendants and was never seen again. His cassock and breviary were found by the Sioux, and were long retained .by them as a protection against evil. In 1665 Father Claude Alloiiez ascended the Ottawa and crossed the wilderness to the Sault Ste-Marie, on a mission to the tribes of the far west. In October he reached the principal town of the Chippewas at the head of Lake Superior. He found the tribe in great excitement ; the young warriors were eager to engage in a war against the formid- able Sioux, and the old men were seeking to restrain them. A grand council was in progress, which was attended by the chiefs of ten or twelve of the neighboring tribes for the purpose of preserving peace if possible. Father Alloiiez was admitted to this assembly and exhorted the warriors to abandon their hostile intentions, and urged them to join the French in an alliance against the Five Nations. His appeal was successful ; the war against the Sioux was abandoned, and the savages came in from all parts of the surrounding country to listen to the words of the mis- sionary. A chapel was built on the shore of the lake and the mission of the Holy Spirit was founded. The fame of the missionary spread far to the west and north, and the tribes dwelling north of Lake Superior, the Pottawatomies from Lake Michigan, who worshiped the sun, and the Sioux and the Illinois from the distant prairies of the west, came to the mission to hear the teachings of the missionary. They told him of their country, an unbroken expanse of level land, without trees, but covered with long rich grass, upon which grazed innumerable herds of buffalo and deer ; of the rice which grew wild in their distant homes ; of the rich yield of maize which their fields produced ; of the copper mines of which they but dimly comprehended the value ; and of the great river which flowed through their country from the far north to the unknown regions of the south, and which Alloiiez understood them to call the " Messipi." THE FRENCH IN THE VALLEY OF THE MISSISSIPPL 259 After remaining at his mission for two years, Alloiiez returned to Quebec to ask for other laborers in the great field around him, and to urge the French to establish per- manent settlements of emigrants or traders in the Lake Superior country. He remained at Quebec two days, was given an assistant, and at once returned to his post, where he continued his labors for many years. " Dur- ing his long sojourn he lighted the torch of faith for more than twenty different nations." In 1668 the French West India Company, under whose auspices the settlement of Canada had been conducted, relinquished their monopoly of the fur trade, and a great improvement in the condition and prospects of Canada ensued. In the same year Fathers Claude Dablon and James Marquette estab- lished the mission ofSte-Marie at the rapids through which the waters of Lake Superior rush into those of Huron. " For the suc- ceeding years," says Bancroft, " the illus- trious triumvirate, Alloiiez, Dablon and Marquette, were employed in confirming the influence of France in the vast regions that extend from Green Bay to the head of Lake Superior, mingling happiness with suffering, and winning enduring glory by their fearless perseverance." Wonderful Scene. In 1669, Father Alloiiez went to establish a mission at Green Bay, and Father Mar- quette took his place at the mission of the Holy Spirit. Marquette had heard so much of the Mississippi that he resolved to under- take the discovery of the upper waters of that stream. He employed a young Illinois warrior as his companion, and from him learned the dialect of that tribe. In 1673, accompanied by a fellow-priest named Joliet, five French boatmen, and some Indian guides and interpreters, bearing their canoes on their backs, Marquette set out from his mission, and crossing the narrow portage which divides the Fox River from the Wisconsin, reached the headwaters of the latter stream. There the guides left them, wondering at their rashness in seeking to venture into a region which the simple imagination of the savages filled with vague terrors. The adventurers floated down the Wisconsin, and in seven days entered the Mississippi, " with a joy that could not be expressed." Raising the sails of their canoes they glided down the mighty father of waters, gazing with wonder upon the magnificent forests which lined its shores, and which swarmed with game, and admiring the boundless prairies which stretched away from either bank to the horizon. The Pipe of Peace. One hundred and eighty miles below the mouth of the Wisconsin the voyagers for the first time discovered signs of human beings. They landed, and found an Indian village a few miles distant from the river. They were kindly received by the inhabitants, who spoke the language of the Indians who had come with Marquette, and a week was passed at this hospitable village. The villagers told the travellers that the lower river extended far to the south, where the heat was deadly, and that in those latitudes the stream abounded with monsters which destroyed both men and canoes. At the departure of the whites the chief of the tribe hung around Marquette's neck the peace-pipe, and ex- plained to him that it would prove a safe- guard to him among the tribes into whose territory his journey would lead him. Continuing their voyage the explorers reached the mouth of the Missouri, and noticed the strong, muddy stream which it poured into the Mississippi. "When I return," said Marquette, " I will ascend that river and pass beyond its headwaters, and 26o SETTLEMENT OF AMERICA. proclaim the gospel." One hundred and twenty miles farther south they passed the mouth of the Ohio, of which river they had heard from the Illinois at the village they had visited. As they proceeded farther south the heat became more intense, for it was the month of July. They met with Indians, whose hostility was disarmed by the peace- pipe which Marquette bore. Some of these Indians were armed with axes of European manufacture, which they had obtained either from the Spaniards in the far south, or from the English in Virginia. The voyage was continued to the mouth of the Arkansas. Marquette was now satisfied that the great river flowed into the Gulf of Mexico, and as he was fearful of falling into the hands of the Spaniards in that region, he decided to bring his voyage to an end, and return to the lakes. The Dying Missionary. The task of ascending the river was accom- plished with great difficulty, and at length the mouth of the Illinois was reached. As they supposed this stream would lead them to the lakes the voyagers ascended it to its headwaters, and then crossed the country to the site of Chicago, from which they con- tinued the voyage by way of Lake Michigan to Green Bay. Marquette despatched JoHet to Quebec to report the results of the voyage, but himself remained at Green Bay. It was his purpose to preach the gospel among the Illinois, who had begged him during his voyage to come back to them. He was detained at Green Bay for some time by feeble health, but in 1675 went back to the Illinois, and began his labors among them. Feeling that his end was near he undertook to return to the mis- sion of St. Mary's, but fell ill on the way. He gave absolution to all his companions, and retired to pray. An hour afterwards, uneasy at his absence, his people went to seek him, and found him kneeling, but pray- ing no longer, for his spirit had gone to receive its reward. He was buried on the banks of the river that bears his name, and his memory was long cherished with affec- tion by the Indians. The work of exploration which Marquette had begun was taken up by a bolder and firmer hand. Robert Cavalier de la Salle, a man of good family, had been educated for the service of the Jesuits, but had abandoned his design of entering that order after com- pleting his education. In 1667 he had emi- grated to Canada to seek his fortune, and had established himself as a fur-trader on Lake Ontario. Encouraged by the governor of Canada he had explored Lake Ontario, and had ascended to Lake Erie. When the French governor a few years later built Fort Frontenac to guard the outlet of Lake Ontario, La Salle was granted an extensive domain, including Fort Frontenac, now the town of Kingston, on condition that he would maintain the fort. He thus obtained the monopoly of the fur-trade with the Five Nations. Here he was residing at the time of the death of Marquette. On the Road to Fortune. The news of Marquette's discoveries filled him with the deepest interest, and he was eager to continue the exploration of the river at the point at which Marquette had discontinued it, and to trace it to its mouth. He was already on the road to fortune, but the prospect of winning greater fame was too tempting to be resisted, and, leaving his pos- sessions on Lake Ontario, he sailed for France and laid before Colbert, the minister, the schemes he had for the exploration and colonization of the valley of the Mississippi. He obtained a grant of valuable privileges and received permission to attempt the task THE FRENCH IN THE VALLEY OF THE MISSISSIPPI. 261 of adding that vast region to the dominions of France. He returned to Fort Frontenac in the autumn of 1678, bringing with him as his lieutenant aft Italian veteran named Tonti and a number of mechanics and seamen, to- gether with the materials for rigging a ship. Before the winter had set in he ascended Lake Ontario to the Niagara River, where he built a trading-post. Then passing around the falls he constructed a vessel of sixty tons at the foot of Lake Erie. Tonti and Father Hennepin, a Franciscan, went among the Senecas during the construction of the ship and estab- lished friendly relations with them, and La Salle exerted himself to pro- cure furs with which to freight his vessel. The vessel completed, he as- cended Lake Erie, passed through the straits into Lakes Huron and Michi- gan, and entered Green Bay. Then loading his vessel with a cargo of valuable furs, he sent her to the Niagara, with orders to return with supplies as soon as pos- sible. During her absence La Salle and his com- panions ascended Lake Michigan in canoes as far as the mouth of the St. Joseph's, where they built a fort. Then crossing over to the valley of the Illinois, he built a fort on a bluff near the site of Peoria, and awaited the re- turn of the " Griffin." The vessel had been wrecked on the voyage to Niagara, and when it became evident that she would not return. La Salle named his fort Crevecoeur (" Heart- break.") Supplies were necessary to the exploration of the Mississippi, and La Salle being deter- mined to obtain them, took with him three companions and crossed the wilderness to Fort Frontenac, which he reached in the spring of 1680. During his absenqe, Father Hennepin, by his orders, explored the Upper Mississippi as far as the falls, which he named in honor of St. Anthony, the patron saint of the expedition. In the summer of 1680 La Salle returned to the Illinois, but various FALLS OF ST. ANTHONY. causes intervening to delay him, he was not able to undertake his exploration of the Mississippi until 1682. In that year he built a barge on the upper Illinois, and embarking with his companions, floated down that stream to the Mississippi, which he descended to the Gulf of Mexico. He named the country along the banks of the river Louis- iana, in honor of Louis XIV., King of France. Then ascending the Mississippi, he returned 262 SETTLEMENT OF AMERICA. by the Lakes to Quebec, and in 1683 sailed for France to enlist the government and peo- ple in his project for colonizing the country along the lower Mississippi. An Unfortunate Wreck. His design was encouraged by the king, and emigrants were readily found. In 1684, he sailed from France with four ships and two . hundred and eighty per- sons to plant a colony at the mouth of the Mississippi. Unhappily the command- er of the fleet was not in sympathy with La Salle, and being jealous of his authority, man- ifested a degree of stubbornness which was fatal to the expedition. One hundred of the colonists were soldiers ; of the rest, some were volunteers, some mechanics, some women, and some priests. After a long voy- age they entered the Gulf of Mexico in Jan- uary, 1685. They sailed past the mouth of the Mississippi, and when La Salle perceived his error, Beaujeu, the commander of the fleet, refused to return, but continued his western course until the bay of Matagorda was reached. There La Salle, weary of his disputes with Beaujeu, resolved to land, hoping that he might yet find the mouth of the Mississippi. A careless pilot, in attempt- ing to get the store-ship into the harbor, wrecked her, and all the supplies which Louis XIV. had provided with a lavish hand were lost. The colony, which was named Fort St. Louis, was from the first doomed to misfor- tune, and in a little more than two years was reduced by disease and suffering to thirty- six persons. In January, 1687, La Salle, leaving twenty men at Fort St. Louis, set out with sixteen men to march across the conti- nent to Canada to obtain aid for the settle- ment. His remarkable courage and deter- mination would doubtless have accomplished this feat, but on the way he was murdered by two of his men, who regarded him as the author of their sufferings. Of the rest of his companions, five who kept together reached a small French post near the mouth of the Arkansas, after a journey of six months. The twenty men left at Fort St. Louis were never heard of again. The effort to colonize Texas completely failed, and all that was accomplished by La Salle's enterprise was the establishment of the claim of France to this region. Searching for La Salle. To La Salle is due the credit of having been the first to comprehend the importance of securing to France the great region watered by the Mississippi and its tributaries, and it was through his efforts that the atten- tion of France was seriously directed to its colonization. His remarkable qualities must always command the admiration and his sad fate elicit the sympathy of all generous hearts. While La Salle was vainly striving to ac- complish some good result with the Texas colony, his friend and lieutenant, Tonti, in obedience to his instructions, started from the Illinois and descended the Mississippi almost to its mouth, hoping to meet him. At length, despairing of seeing him, Tonti engraved a cross and the arms of France upon a tree on the banks of the river, and returned to the Illinois. In 1699, twelve years after the death of La Salle, another and this time a successful effort was made to secure Louisiana to France. Lemoine d'lbberville, a native of Canada and a man of ability and courage, resolved to plant a colony near the mouth of the Missis- sippi. With four vessels and two hundred emigrants, some of whom were women and children, he sailed from Canada for the mouth of the Mississippi. He landed at the mouth of the river Pascagoula, and with two barges MURDER OF LA SALLE 264 SETTLEMENT OF AMERICA. manned by forty-eight men searched the coast for the mouth of the Mississippi. He found it and ascended as high as the mouth of the Red River. Here he was met by the Indians, who, to his astonishment, gave him a letter which had been placed in their charge fourteen years before. It was from Tonti, and was addressed to La Salle. He had given it to the Indians, and had charged them to deliver it to the first Frenchman they met. Shiftless Colonists. D'Ibberville returned to the gulf by way of Lakes Maurepas and Pontchartrain, which he named after two of the ministers of Louis XIV. Deeming the shores of the Mississippi too marshy for colonization, D'Ibberville formed a settlement at Biloxi, at the mouth of the Pascagoula, within the limits of the present state of Mississippi, and soon afterwards sailed for France to obtain rein- forcements and supplies, leaving one of his brothers, Sauville by name, as governor, and the other, Bienville, to explore the Missis- sippi and the country along its banks. Early in 1700 D'Ibberville returned from France, and about the same time Tonti, La Salle's former lieutenant, now an aged man, arrived from the country of the Illinois. Acting upon Tonti's advice, D'Ibberville ascended the Mississippi for four hundred miles, and on the site of the present city of Natchez built a fort which he named Rosalie, in honor of the Duchess of Pontchartrain. Neither the settlement at Biloxi nor Rosalie prospered, however. The colonists were a shiftless set, and instead of seeking to culti- vate the soil and establish homes for them- selves, went farther west to seek for gold. In 1702 D'Ibberville removed the colony from Biloxi to Mobile, which was founded in that year, and became the capital of Louis- iana and the centre of the French influence in the south. This settlement languished, however, and in ten years only two hundred emigrants were added to its population. It was forced to depend upon the French colonies in the West Indies for subsistence. New Orleans Founded. In 1 7 14 the French government, becoming convinced that it was necessary to make a more vigorous effort to colonize Louisiana if it meant to hold that country, granted a monopoly of trade to Arthur Crozat, who agreed to send over every year two ships laden with emigrants 'and supplies, and also a cargo of African slaves. The king, on his part, agreed to furnish the sum of ten thou- sand dollars annually for the protection of the colony. In the same year a trading- house was established at Natchitoches on the Red River, and another on the Alabama, near the present site of Montgomery. Fort Rosalie was made the centre of an important trade, and matters bep^an to wear a new aspect in Louisiana. In 17 1 8 Bienville, who had become satis- fied of the propriety of removing the seat of government from Mobile to the more produc- tive region of the lower Mississippi, put the convicts to work to clear up the thicket of cane which covered the site on which he meant to locate his new city, and upon the ground thus prepared erected a few huts, the germ of the great city of New Orleans. It grew more rapidly than any of the settlements in Louisiana. In 1722 it contained about one hundred log huts, and a population of seven hundred. In 1723 the seat of govern- ment was removed from Mobile to New Orleans; and 1727 the construction of the levee was begun. While these efforts were in progress in the lower Mississippi, the French were even more active in the west. Detroit was founded in 1 70 1, and the villages of Kaskaskin and c5 tD pq CO I— I o Hq o w H m m Eh Fh <1 y^ Ph Ph pL, THE FRENCH IN THE VALLEY OF THE MISSISSIPPL 265 Cabokia were formed around the stations of the missionaries on the east bank of the Mis- sissippi, above the mouth of the Ohio. The French population in America grew very slowly, however. In 1690 the population of Canada was only twelve hundred ; that, of Acadia, or Nova Scotia, less than one thou- sand ; and that of Louisiana less than five hundred. France had formed a deliberate and mag- nificent plan with respect to her American possessions. She meant to build up a mighty empire in the valley of the Mississippi, extending from the great lakes to the Gulf of Mexico, and touching Canada. Her efforts to accomplish this were lavish and persistent, but the unhealthiness of the climate, and the almost constant wars with the Natchez and Chickasaw Indians disheartened the settlers, and the French population grew so slowly that it could not accomplish the destiny demanded of it by the government at home. As late as 1740 Louisiana contained only about five thousand whites and less than two thousand five hundred negroes. The slow increase of the population made it necessary to hold the country by a series of military posts. By the year 1750 more than sixty of these posts had been built between Lake Ontario and the Gulf of Mexico, by way of Green Bay, the Illinois, the Wabash, and the Maumee rivers, and along the Mississippi to New Orleans. French Claims in America. The most important of these forts were held by garrisons of regular troops, who were relieved once in six years. They accomplished this in the face of the constant hostility of their old enemies, the tribes of the Five Nations, and the Natchez and Chickasaws. In 1748 the French extended their claim to the country south of Lake Erie, as far east as the mountains, which they explored, and took formal possession of by burying at the most important points leaden plates engraved with the arms of France. According to the ideas of the times, their claim was a valid one. In the meantime the settlements of Louis- iana had been obliged to struggle against the constant hostility of the Natchez Indians, who occupied the country around the present city which bears their name. They were not very numerous, but were more intelligent and civilized than the tribes among whom they dwelt. They worshiped the sun, from which deity their principal chief claimed to be descended. They watched the growing power of the French with alarm, and at length resolved to put a stop to the progress of the whites by a general massacre. Seven Hundred Murders. On the twenty-eighth of November, 1729, they fell upon the settlement at Fort Rosalie and massacred the garrison and settlers, seven hundred in number. They were not long permitted to exult over their success. When the news of the massacre reached New Orleans, Bienville resolved to retaliate severely upon the aggressors. He applied to the Choctaws, the hereditary enemies of the Natchez, for assistance, and was furnished by them with sixteen hundred warriors. With these and his own troops Bienville besieged the Natchez in their fort ; but they escaped under the cover of the night and fled west of the Mississippi. They were followed by the French and forced to surrender, after which they were taken to New Or- leans and sent to St. Domingo, where they were sold as slaves. The Great Sun was among the captives, and the tribe of the Natchez was completely destroyed. It was well known to the French that the Chickasaws,a powerful tribe dwelling between the territory of the Natchez and the Ohio on 266 SETTLEMENT OF AMERICA. the north, and as far as the country of the Cherokees on the east, had incited the Natchez against them. Bienville therefore resolved to turn his arms against them. They had also given great trouble to the French by attacking and plundering their trading-boats descending the Mississippi from the posts on the Illinois. Bienville con- certed measures for a combined attack upon the Chickasaws with D'Artaguette, governor of the Illinois country, and two expeditions were despatched against the Indians. Bienville, with a strong force of French troops and twelve hundred Choctaw warriors, sailed in boats from New Orleans to Mobile and ascended the Tombigbee five hundred miles, to the place now known as Cotton Gin point. He landed here and marched twenty-five miles overland to the principal fort of the Chickasaws, which he at once attacked. He was repulsed with the loss of one hundred men, and was so discouraged that he returned to New Orleans. DArta- guette entered the Chickasaw country with fifty Frenchmen and one thousand Indians. He was defeated and taken prisoner, and was burned at the stake in May, 1735. In 1740 another effort was made by the French to crush the Chickasaws, but was equally un- successful. CHAPTER XXI. Conflicts Between the Enorlish and French. Relations Between the English and the Five Nations — The Hostility of the Latter to the French — King William's War — Destruction of Dover— The Jesuit Missionaries Incite the Indians to Attack the English — Expedition Against Que- bec — Attack on Dustin's Farm — Peace of Ryswick — Hostility of the English to Roman Catholics — Queen Anne's War — Burning of Deerfield — Eunice Williams — Cruelties to the French — Effort of New England to Conquer Acadia — Capture of Port Royal — Failure of the Expedition Against Quebec — King George's War — Expedition Against Louis- burg — Its Composition — Arrival of the Fleet at Cape Breton — Good Conduct of the Provincials — Capture of Louis- burg— Treaty of Aix-la-Chapelle— Unjust Treatment of the Colonies by England— Sentiment of the Americans Towards England. THE territory of the Five Nations lay between the English and French colonies. The friendship which these tribes had borne to the Dutch was transferred to the English upon the con- quest of New Netherlands by the latter, and they remained the faithful and devoted allies of Great Britain until after the Revolution. Though they remained at peace with the French for some years after the treaty, which has been mentioned in the preceding chap- ter, they regarded a renewal of hostilities with them as certain, and were on the whole anxious to resume the struggle at the earliest mom'^nt. James II., eager to establish the Roman Catholic religion in America, instructed the governor of New York to cultivate friendly relations with the French, and to exert all his influence to induce the Five Nations to receive Jesuit missionaries. The governor, however, saw that the French were rapidly monopolizing the fur trade, and he encour- aged the Five Nations to regard them with suspicion and dislike. The French by their own bad treatment of the Mohawks put an end to the hope of a lasting peace with them. Upon the escape of James II. to France, Louis XIV. warmly espoused the cause of the dethroned king, which he declared was the cause of legitimate monarchy as opposed to the right of the people to self-government ; and the war which was thus begun in Europe spread to the possessions of the rival powers in America. The objects of the two parties in America were very different. That of the people of New England, who were princi- pally interested in the struggle, was to secure their northern frontier against invasion from Canada, and to get possession of the fisheries. The French, on the other hand, wished to obtain entire control of the valley of the Mississippi, which would make them sole masters of the fur trade, and to extend their power over the valley of the St. Lawrence, and thus obtain control of the fisheries also. To accomplish their first object the friend- ship of the Indian tribes in the valley the of Mississippi was indispensable, and they exerted every means of which they were possessed to gain it. They renewed their efforts to win over the Five Nations, but without success. The war between these tribes and the French was soon renewed, as has been related, and on the twenty-fifth of August, 1689, a band of fifteen hundred Mo- hawk warriors surprised and captured Mon- treal, and put two hundred of the inhabitants to death with horrible cruelty. An equal number of whites were made prisoners. 267 268 SETTLEMENT OF AMERICA. In the same year Count Frontenac was appointed governor of Canada for the second time. He came resolved to break the power -of the English, and reached Canada just in time to hear of the capture of Montreal. He at once set to work to incite the Indians to a series of incursions against the English set- tlements which should thoroughly establish his influence over the savage warriors, who would obey none but a successful chief, and at the same time strike terror to the enemies of France. VIEW OF MONTREAL FROM MOUNT ROYAL. The first blow was struck at Dover, in New Hampshire. The commander of the garrison at this place was Major Richard Waldron. Thirteen years before, during King Philip's war, two hundred eastern Indians came to Dover to treat of peace. Waldron treacherously seized them and sent them to Boston, where some of them were hanged, and the remainder sold into slavery. The savages had neither forgotten nor for- given the wrongs of their brothers, and now they resolved to meet the whites with their •own weapons of deceit and treachery. On the evening of the twenty-seventh of June, 1689, two Indian squaws came to Dover and asked for a night's lodging. Waldron, now an old man of eighty, was unsuspicious of harm. Their request was granted and the squaws were lodged in his house. In the dead of the night the women arose, unbarred the gates and admitted the warriors, who had lain in ambush near the town. Waldron's house was first entered, the first duty of the savages being to discharge their debt of vengeance by a cold-blooded murder. The brave old man seized his sword and defended himself un- til he was felled to the floor by a blow which stunned him. He was then seated in a chair and placed on a table, and the savages sa- luted him with jeers. " Who will judge In- dians now?" they asked. "Who will hang our brothers? Will the pale-face Waldron give us life for life ?" As they spoke they gashed him across the breast with their knives, inflicting wounds equal in number to their friends whom he had be- trayed. The old man bore his tortures firmly until he died ; the Indians then set fire to the house and burned the rest of the settlement. Nearly half the inhabitants were murdered and the remainder were carried into captivity. The other frontier towns suffered severely from Maine to New York. A band of French and Indians, in February, 1690^ toiled across the wilderness from Montreal to central New York on snow-shoes and CONFLICTS BETWEEN THE ENGLISH AND FRENCH. 269 surprised Schenectady. The place was burned, the majority of the settlers were killed, and many women and children were carried into captivity. A few escaped through the snow to Albany. Deerfield and Haverhill in Massachusetts, Salmon Falls in New Hampshire, and Casco in Maine met a similar fate. The French had resolved to make the war one of extermination, and neither they nor their savage allies showed any mercy to the English in their hour of triumph. Failure to Capture Montreal. The savages were incited to their bloody task by the Jesuit missionaries. The first race of missionaries, whose good deeds we have chronicled in the last chapter, had died out, and their successors could conceive of no higher standard of duty than the exter- mination of the English heretics. They roused the fury of their dusky converts against the English as the enemies of the Roman religion, and then confessing and absolving the savage warriors, sent them forth to murder and destroy, with the solemn assurance that such acts on their part would win them the favor of their Father in Heaven. When peace was made two Jesuit priests, Thury and Bigot, induced the Eastern Indians to break the treaty and renew the war, and even took pride in acknowledging themselves the instigators of the atrocities of the savages. These things were well under- stood among the English, and they came to regard the Jesuit missionaries as the enemies of mankind. In May, 1690, a congress of delegates from Massachusetts, Connecticut and New York was held at New York for the purpose of concerting a plan for an invasion of Can- ada. It was resolved to send an army against Montreal by way of Lake Champlain, while Massachusetts should despatch a fleet to attack Quebec. The first expedition, com- posed of the troops of New York and Con- necticut, advanced to Lake Champlain, attended by a strong force of Mohawk allies. Frontenac promptly assembled his French and Indians for the defence of Montreal, and succeeded in inflicting a sharp defeat upon the Mohawks, under Colonel Philip Schuyler, who led the advance of the English army. The Mohawks were unable to regain their lost ground and the provincial troops were delayed by the dissensions of their leaders until the provisions ran short and the small- pox broke out among the men. It then became necessary to abandon the attempt. Death and Desolation. In the meantime Massachusetts equipped a fleet of thirty-two vessels and two thou- sand men and despatched it to the St. Law- rence under the command of the governor. Sir William Phipps, whose incompetency produced the failure of the expedition. Frontenac was promptly informed of the departure of the fleet by an Indian runner from the Piscataqua, who reached Montreal in twelve days. Frontenac at once set out for Quebec and arrived there three days in advance of the English fleet, which was obliged to feel its way cautiously up the St. Lawrence. When the hostile vessels arrived off the city, Quebec was prepared to offer a determined resistance. After a few harmless demonstrations, Sir William Phipps withdrew and returned to Boston, to the great disap- pointment of the colony. A large debt had been incurred in this enterprise and a num- ber of valuable lives had been lost, but noth- ing had been gained. The Eastern Indians continued their ag- gressions, but were severely punished by Captain Samuel Church, who had served with distinction in King Philip's war. On one occasion he was so exasperated by the 2/0 SETTLEMENT OF AMERICA. cruelties of the savages that he put a number of his prisoners, including some women and children, to death. The savages mercilessly avenged the murder of their friends and car- ried death and desolation along the borders of New England. Nearly every settlement in Maine was destroyed by them or aban- doned by the inhabitants, who fled to the other colonies for protection. The Indians prowled around the frontier, posts. They had been well armed by the French, and shot down the men without mercy. The women and children were generally spared and carried to Canada, where they were sold to the French as slaves. In 1693 peace was made with the Abenakis, or Eastern Indians, but within a year the Jesuits had succeeded in inducing the savages to resume hostilities. A Daring Escape. A party of Indians attacked the house of a farmer named Dustin, residing near Haver- hill. He was at work in the field when the shouts of the savages warned him of the danger of his wife and children. Throwing himself on his horse, he hastened to their rescue, and on the way met his children fly- ing for safety pursued by the savages. He threw himself in front of the little ones, and by a few well-aimed shots kept the pursuers back until the children reached a place of safety. Hannah Dustin, her youngest child — only a few days old — her nurse, and a boy from Worcester, unable to fly, were made prisoners by the Indians. The little one was killed, and the two women and the boy were carried away by the savages to their village, situated on an island in the Merrimac, just above Concord. Hannah Dustin resolved to escape, and communicated her plan to her companions. Each secured a tomahawk, and at night be- gan the destruction of their captors, twelve in number. Ten Indians were killed and one squaw was wounded. The twelfth, a child, was purposely spared. Then collecting the gun and tomahawk of the murderer of her infant, and a bag full of scalps, the heroic women secured a canoe, and embarking in it with her companions, floated down the Mer- rimac and soon reached Haverhill, where they were received with astonishment and delight by their friends. This struggle, which is known in Ameri- can history as "King William's War," was brought to a close in September, 1697, by the Peace of Ryswick. It had lasted seven years, and had caused severe suffering to the northern colonies, without yielding them any compensating advantages. The Five Nations were also severe suffer- ers. Failing to win them from their alliance with the English, Frontenac several times invaded their country with an army of French troops and Indians, and ravaged it with great cruelty. Frontenac led these expeditions in person, though he was seventy-four years old. The people of New York, regarding the Jesuits as the true authors of the miseries endured by the English and their allies, en- acted a law in 1700, that every Romish priest who voluntarily came into the province should be hanged. Butchery at Deerfield. Five years after the Peace of Ryswick, the War of the Spanish Succession, or, as it is known in American history, " Queen Anne's War," began in Europe. It soon extended to America, and embroiled the English and French in this country. The English settle- ments on the western frontier of New Eng- land were almost annihilated by the Indians, and the French were unusually active. The people of Deerfield were warned by the friendly Mohawks that the French and Indians were meditating an attack upon their CONFLICTS BETWEEN THE ENGLISH AND FRENCH. 271 settlements and through the winter of 1703-4 a vigilant watch was kept by night and day. The winter was very severe; the snow lay four feet deep, and the clear, cold atmosphere made it almost' as hard as ice. Profiting by this, a war party of about two hundred French and one hundred and forty-two In- dians, under the command of Hertel de Rou- ville, set out from Canada, and by the aid of snow-shoes crossed the country on the snow and reached the vicinity of Deerfield on the last night of February, 1704. Towards day- break on the first of March the sentinels, supposing that all was safe, left their posts at Deerfield, and the enemy at once silently mounted on the snow-drifts to the top of the palisades and entered the enclosure, which had an area of twenty acres. A general massacre followed. The town was destroyed, forty persons were killed, and one hundred and twelve were carried away into Canada. Fate of Eunice Williams. Among the captives were the minister Williams, his wife Eunice, and their five chil- dren. The sufferings of the prisoners on the inarch to Canada were fearful. Two men starved to death. The infant, whose cries disturbed the captors, was tossed out into the snow to die ; and the mother who faltered from fatigue or anguish was despatched by a blow from the tomahawk. Eunice Williams had brought her Bible along with her, and in the brief intervals afforded by the halts of the savages for rest, drew from its sacred pages the consolations she so sorely needed. Her strength soon failed, as she had but recently recovered from her confinement. Her hus- band sought to cheer her by pointing her to " the house not made with hands," and she assured him that she was satisfied to endure any suffering, counting it gain for Christ's sake. Perceiving that her end was near, she commended her children to God and to their father's care, and was immediately killed by the savages, as she could go no farther. The Williams family were taken to Can- ada, and a few years later were ransomed, with the exception of the youngest daughter, with whom the savages refused to part. She was adopted into a village of Christian In- dians near Montreal, and became a convert to the Roman Catholic faith, and subse- quently married a Mohawk chief. Years afterwards she appeared at Deerfield clad in the dress of her tribe. She had come to visit her relatives; but no entreaties could induce her to remain with them, and she went back to her adopted people and to her children. Slaughter of the Helpless. The war was conducted with brutal ferocity by the French. Hertel de Rouville gained eternal infamy by his butcheries of helpless women and children. Vaudreuil, the gov- ernor of Canada, urged on his forces to deeds of fresh atrocity, but at length the savages became disgusted with their bloody work and refused to murder any more English. The French succeeded, however, in inducing some of them to continue their assistance, and in 1708 Haverhill was surprised by the French and Indians under Rouville, and its inhabitants massacred with the most fiendish cruelty. None of them escaped death or captivity. Filled with horror and indignation, Colonel Peter' Schuyler, of New York, wrote to the Marquis de Vaudreuil : " I hold it my duty towards God and my neighbor, to prevent, if possible, these barbarous and heathen cruel- ties. My heart swells with indignation when I think that a war between Christian princes, bound to the exactest laws of honor and gen- erosity, which their noble ancestors have illustrated by brilliant examples, is degene- rating into a savage and boundless butchery. 2/2 SETTLEMENT OF AMERICA. These are not the methods for terminating the war." "Such fruitless cruelties," says Bancroft, " inspired our fathers with a deep hatred of the French missionaries ; they compelled the employment of a large part of the inhabitants as soldiers, so that there was one year during this war when even a fifth part of all who were capable of bearing arms were in active service. They gave birth also to a willing- ness to exterminate the natives. The Indians RETURN OF THE DAUGHTER OF EUNICE WILLIAMS. vanished when their homes were invaded ; they could not be reduced by usual methods of warfare ; hence a bounty was offered for every Indian scalp ; to regular forces under pay the grant was ten pounds — to volunteers in actual service, twice that sum ; but if men would, of themselves, without pay, make up parties and patrol the forests in search of Indians, as of old the woods Avere scoured for wild beasts, the chase was invigorated by the promised ' encourgement of fifty pounds per scalp. ' " In 1707 Massachusetts, New Hampshire and Rhode Island made a combined attempt to conquer Acadia. A fleet was despatched against Port Royal, but without success. In 1 7 10 a second expedition was sent from Boston against Port Royal, aided this time by an English fleet. Port Royal was taken, the French were driven out of the greater part of Acadia, and that province was an- nexed to the English do- minions and called Nova Scotia. The name of Port Royal was changed to An- napolis, in honor of the Queen of England. Encouraged by this suc- cess, the English Govern- ment the next year at- tempted the conquest of Canada by two expeditions, one by land and the other by sea. A powerful fleet and a strong army was des- patched from England to co-operate with the colo- nists. The effort was un- successful. The fleet, which was badly handled by the admiral in attempting to ascend the St. Lawrence, was wrecked with the loss of eight vessels and eight eighty-four men, and was The failure of hundred and obliged to return to Boston. the fleet to accomplish anything compelled the abandonment of the land expedition against Montreal. In 171 3 the war was brought to an end by the treaty of Utrecht, by which Acadia was ceded permanently to Great Britain and became a province of the English crown. The third Indian war broke out in 1722 CONFLICTS BETWEEN THE ENGLISH AND FRENCH. 275 in the northern colonies, and spread from the disputed border on the east to Maine and New Hampshire, where the scenes which we have so often described were enacted over again. The crack of the rifle, the war-whoop of the Indian, the crash of the tomahawk, and the smoke of the cabin played their dreadful part, as they had done so many times before, and have done so often since. Father Sebastien Rasle had dwelt among Indians for nearly forty years, living so thor- oughly their life, while he preached and ministered to them, that his influence was un- bounded. He possessed great learning, and, being a French Jesuit, sympathized so strongly with the views of the governor of Canada that he was worth a whole regiment of troops. The Indian settlement at Norridgewock, where it may be said this French chief was sole ruler, was highly prosperous. Two attempts were made to break it by capturing Rasle, but he escaped each time. Peace at Last. In August, 1724, however, it was attacked by a force of two hundred men, when most of the warriors were gone from home. Those who escaped fled to the woods, and Father Rasle was killed while trying to divert attention from the flying fugitives. When the assailants departed and the Indians re- turned, they found the dead body of Rasle, scalped, hacked and mutilated. They gave it tender burial under the altar of the pil- laged chapel, and uttered many a wild vow of vengeance on those who had robbed them of their beloved leader. In the hope of checking the shocking brutalities, the provinces sent representatives to Governor Vaudreuil at Montreal. He treated them with much courtesy, but it took a long time to bring him to terms. He finally promised to advise the Indians to i8 stop hostilities. The eastern tribe learned shortly after that preparations were on foot to press them more than ever, and they con- sented to make peace, which, with now and then a slight interruption, continued down to the French and Indian war. In 1744 the disputes in Europe concerning the succession of the Austrian throne cul- minated in a war, which is known in Euro- pean history as the War of the Austrian Succession, and in America as King George's war. As usual, England and France were arrayed on opposite sides, and their colonies in America soon became involved in hostili- ties. The French were the first to receive information from Europe of the existence of war, and began the struggle by attacking and capturing the English fort at Canso and carrying the garrison prisoners to Louisburg. Louisburg, the principal port of the island of Cape Breton, was at this time the strongest fortress in America, and from its secure har- bor the French were constantly despatching privateers against the merchant vessels and fishermen of New England. These depre- dations caused such serious loss to the eastern colonies that at length Governor Shirley proposed to the general court of Massachusetts to undertake the capture of Louisburg as the only means of putting a stop to them, and this measure was laid by the general court before the other colonies. Another Appeal to Arms. It was understood that no aid was to be expected from the mother country, which was too busily engaged in conducting the war in Europe, and that the colonies would be obliged to depend entirely upon their own resources for their success. Neverthe- less, the measure was popular, and the enthu- siasm of the colonists was aroused to the highest point. Nearly all the northern col- onies had suffered severely at the hands of 274 CRUET. MURDER OF RASLE. CONFLICTS BETWEEN THE ENGLISH AND FRENCH. 275 the French and Indians, and in every ship- ping port were to be found scores of men who had been robbed and otherwise mal- treated by the French privateers. Pennsyl- vania and New Jersey, under the influence of the Quaker dislike of war, declined to send troops, but furnished a fair supply of money to defray their share of the expenses of the expedition ; New York made a con- tribution of money and of a number of pieces of artillery; Connecticut gave five hundred men, and New Hampshire and Rhode Island each contributed a regiment. Moving Against the Enemy. Massachusetts, being the most interested in the success of the expedition by reason of being the largest owner of shipping, under- took the principal part of the expense and agreed to furnish a majority of the troops and the vessels. There was no difficulty in procuring volunteers, but those who offered themselves were civilians, ignorant of military discipline, and utterly unprepared to attempt the reduction of such a fortress as that against which the expedition was directed. These disadvantages, however, were lost sight of in the enthusiasm aroused by the hope of destroying the ability of the French to prey upon the commerce of the colonies. Sir William Pepperell,a wealthy merchant of Maine, was elected commander of the ex- pedition, which rendezvoused at Boston in the early spring of 1745. One hundred vessels and a force of over three thousand men were assembled, and about the first of April sailed for Canso, which was reached on the seventh. The ice was drifting in such quantities that the fleet could not enter the harbor of Louisburg, and was obliged to remain at Canso for more than two weeks. Admiral Warren, commanding the West India squadron, had been invited to join the expedition, but in the absence of instructions from. England had declined to do so. Al- most immediately afterwards he received orders from home to render Massachusetts every aid in his power, and at once joined the New England fleet at Canso with four ships of war and a detachment of regular troops. At length, the ice having moved south- ward, the New England fleet entered the harbor of Louisburg on the thirtieth of April. The fortress was built on a neck of land on the south side of the harbor, and its walls were from twenty to thirty feet high and forty feet thick at the base, and were surrounded with a ditch eighty feet in width. Outlying forts protected the main work, and there was not a foot of the walls that was not swept by the fire of the artillery. Nearly two hundred and fifty cannon of all sizes constituted the armament of the fortress, and the principal outwork, the " royal battery," was deemed capable of withstanding an attack of five thousand men. The garrison numbered six- teen hundred men. To attack this fortress the New England troops brought with them eighteen cannon and three mortars. The French Driven to the ^Voods. As the fleet drew near the town the French marched down to the beach to op- pose the landing of the troops. Immediately the whale-boats of the ships were lowered and manned, and at a signal from the flag- ship darted for the shore with a speed which astonished and struck terror to the French, who were quickly driven to the woods. The landing was secured, and the next day a de- tachment of four hundred men marched by the town, giving it three cheers as they passed, and took position near the northeast harbor, completely cutting off the fortress from communication with the country in its rear. This completed the investment, as the fleet closed the harbor, and prevented the approach of relief by sea. 276 SETTLEMENT OF AMERICA. That night the troops in the royal battery spiked the guns of that work, abandoned it, and retreated into the town. It was imme- diately occupied by the New Englanders, who drilled the spikes out of the vent-holes of the guns, and turned them against the town. Batteries were erected by the colonial troops, and their fire opened upon Louis- burg. The volunteers proved admirable soldiers, exciting the surprise of the English naval officers by the readiness and facility with which they discharged the various duties required of them. Numbers of them were mechanics by profession, and their skill was of the greatest service in this emergency. A New Hampshire colonel, who was a carpenter, constructed sledges with which to drag the artillery across a morass to the positions assigned the batteries. The weather was mild and singularly dry, and the men were healthy. " All day long the men, if not on duty, were busy with amuse- ments — firing at marks, fishing, fowling, wrestling, racing or running after balls shot from the enemy's guns." An Important Capture. In the meantime the ships of Admiral Warren blockaded the harbor, and not only prevented French vessels from entering the port, but succeeded in decoying into the midst of the English fleet the French frigate " Vigilante," of sixty guns, which was cap- tured after a sharp engagement of several hours. She was loaded with stores for the fortress, and these fell into the hands of the victors. The French commander, who had shown but little energy during the siege, was now so thoroughly disheartened that on the sev- enteenth of June, just seven weeks after the commencement of the investment, he surren- dered the town and fortifications. As the colonial troops entered the place to take pos- session of it they were astonished at the strength of the works. " God has gone out of the way of His common providence, in a remarkable and miraculous manner," they said, " to incline the hearts of the French to give up, and deliver this strong city into our hands." The capture of Louisburg by the undisciplined volunteers of America was the greatest success achieved by England during the war. The colonists were justly proud of it. Bells were rung and bonfires lighted in all the colonies, and the people rejoiced greatly at the success of their brethren and friends. England, with characteristic selfish- ness, claimed the glory exclusively for the squadron of Admiral Warren. Humiliating Treaty. France was greatly alarmed at the capture of Louisburg, which seriously threatened her dominion in America, and measures were at once begun for its recovery, and for the de- struction of the English colonies. In 1746, a large fleet was despatched to America under the Duke d'Anville, but many of the vessels were lost at sea, and the fleet was greatly weakened by pestilence. In the midst of these misfortunes the Duke d'An- ville suddenly died, and his successor lost his mind, and committed suicide. The expedi- tion made no serious demonstration against the English, and resulted in total failure. In 1 747, another fleet was sent out from France for the same purpose, but was captured after a severe fight by an English fleet under Admirals Anson and Warren. In spite of these successes, however, the frontiers of the northern colonies suffered considerably, and the English government resolved to attempt once more the conquest of Canada. All the colonies were required to furnish men or money to this enterprise, and eight thousand men were enlisted. The British governqjent delayed, however, and CONFLICTS BETWEEN THE ENGLISH AND FRENCH. 277 finally abandoned the enterprise. On the eighteenth of October, 1748, the treaty of Aix-la-Chapelle closed the war. The treaty required that all places taken by either party during the war should be restored, and Louisburg was delivered up to the French, to the great disgust of the New England colonies, who saw all the results of their sacrifices thrown away, and their com- merce and fisheries once more placed at the mercy of the French. England had never regarded the interests of her colonies as worth considering, however, and it was not to be expected that she should manifest any concern for them now. Dangerous Neighbors. It was commonly believed in America, and with good reason, that the king did not desire that New England should enjoy the security necessary to her prosperity. His majesty was beginning to be jealous of his American subjects, who had, as Admiral Warren ex- pressed it, " the highest notion of the rights and liberties of an Englishman," and he was resolved to keep them so weak that they should not forget their dependence upon him. Peter Kalm, a Swedish traveller, who visited New York in 1748, thus records the prevailing sentiment in America at this period : " The English colonies in this part of the world have increased so much in wealth and population that they will vie with European England. But to maintain the commerce and the power of the metropo- lis they are forbid to establish new manufac- tures, which might compete with the English ; they may dig for gold and silver only on con- dition of shipping them immediately to Eng- land ; they have, with the exception of a few fixed places, no liberty to trade to any ports not belonging to the English dominions, and foreigners are not allowed the least com- merce with these American colonies. And there are many similar restrictions. " These oppressions have made the inhab- itants of the English colonies less tender to their motherland. This coldness is increased by the many foreigners who are settled among them ; for Dutch, Germans and French are here blended with England, and have no special love for old England. Besides, some people are always discontented and love change; and exceeding freedom and pros- perity nurse an untamable spirit. I have been told, not only by native Americans, but by English emigrants, publicly, that within thirty or fifty years the English colo- nies in North America may constitute a separate state entirely independent of Eng- land. But as this whole country is towards the sea unguarded, and on the frontier is kept uneasy by the French, these dangerous neighbors are the reason why the love of these colonies for their metropolis does not utterly decline. The English government has, therefore, reason to regard the French in North America as the chief power that urges their colonies to submission." During the last year of the war an incident occurred at Boston which might have opened the eyes of the ministry to the growing de- termination of the Americans to resist any interference with their liberties. Desertions from the English ships-of-war in Boston har- bor had become so frequent that Sir Charles Knowles, the commanding officer, sent his boats up to Boston one morning and seized a number of seamen in the vessels at the wharves, and a number of mechanics and laborers engaged in work on shore. The people of Boston indignantly demanded of the governor the release of the impressed men. As his excellency declined to inter- fere in the matter, the people seized the com- manders and officers of the ships who hap- pened to be in the town, and kept them pris- oners until they agreed to release the men they had unlawfully seized. BOOK III The French and Indian War CHAPTER XXri Outbreak of Hostilities England Claims the Valley of the Ohio — Organization of the Ohio Company — The French Extend Their Posts Into the- Ohio Country — Washington's Mission to the French at Fort Duquesne — His Journey — Reception by the French — His. Journey Home — A Perilous Undertaking — Organization of the Virginia Forces — Washington Made Second in Com- mand — The French Drive the English from the Head of the Ohio — Fort Duquesne Built by Them — Washington CroGses the Mountains — The Fight at Great Meadows — Beginning of the French and Indian War — Surrender of Fort Necessity to the French — Unjust Treatment of the Colonial Officers — Congress of the Colonies at New York — Frank- hn's Plan of a Union of the Colonies — Its Failure— Reasons ot the British Government for Rejecting It — England Assumes the Direction of the War — Amval of General Braddock — Plan of Campaign — Obstinacy of Braddock — He Passes the Mountains — Defeat of Braddock — Heroism of Washington — Retreat of Dunbar Beyond the Mountains — Vigorous Action of Pennsylvania — Armstrong Defeats the Indians and Burns the Town of Kittanning. THE wars between the English and French in America which we have just considered were but a prelude to the great struggle which was to decide which of these powers should con- trol the destinies of the new world. The English, as we have seen, were growing stronger and more numerous along the At- lantic coast, and were directing their new settlements farther into the interior with each succeeding year. The French held Canada and the valley of the Mississippi, but their tenure was that of a military occu- pation rather than a colonization. Between the possessions of these hostile nations lay the valley of the Ohio, a beauti- ful and fertile region, claimed by both, but occupied as yet by neither. The French had explored the country, and had caused leaden plates engraved with the arms of France to be deposited at its principal points to attest their claim ; and had opened friendly rela- tions with the Indians. 278 The region had been frequently visited by the traders, who brought back reports of its remarkable beauty and fertility and of its excellent climate. The British government regarded this region as a portion of Virginia, and one of the chief desires of the Earl of Halifax, the prime minister of England, was to secure the Ohio valley by planting an English colony in it. A company was or- ganized in Virginia and Maryland for this purpose and for the purpose of trading with the Indians, and was warmly supported by the Earl of Halifax. It was named the Ohio Company, and at length succeeded in obtain- ing a favorable charter from the king, who, in March, 1749, ordered the governor of Virginia to assign to the Ohio Company five hundred thousand acres of land lying be- tween the Monongahela and Kanawha rivers, and along the Ohio The company were required to despatch, within seven years at least, one hundred fam- ilies to the territory granted them, to locate OUTBREAK OF HOSTILITIES. 279 without delay at least two-fifths of the lands they desired to occupy, and to build and gar- rison a fort at their own cost. They were granted an exemption from quit-rents and other dues for ten years, and this freedom needed for their traffic with the Indians, the Ohio Company built a trading-post at Wills' Creek, within the limits of Maryland, on the site of the present city of Cumberland. Here one of the easiest of the passes over the FRENCH EXPLORERS BURYING LEADEN PLATES. from taxation was extended by the company to all who would settle in their domain. A number of Indian traders had located themselves west of the Alleghanies, and in order to supply these with the articles Alleghanies began, and by means of it the traders could easily transport their goods to the Indian country west of the mountains and return with the furs their traffic enabled them to collect. 28o THE FRENCH AND INDIAN WAR. Being anxious to explore the countrywest of the mountains, the company employed Christopher Gist, one of the most experi- enced Indian traders, and instructed him " to examine the western country as far as the falls of the Ohio, to look for a large tract of good level land to mark the passes in the mountains, to trace the courses of the rivers, to count the falls, to observe the strength and numbers of the Indian nations." A Land of Beauty. Gist set out on his perilous mission on the last day of October, 1750, and crossing the mountains reached the Delaware towns on the Alleghany River, from which he passed down to Logstown, a short distance below the head of the Ohio. " You are come to rsettle the Indians' lands ; you shall never go home safe," said the jealous people ; but in spite of their threats they suffered him to proceed without molestation. He traversed the country to the Muskingum and the Scioto, and then crossing the Ohio explored the Kentucky to its source, and returned to Wills' Creek in safety. He reported that the region he had traversed merited all the praise that had been bestowed upon it ; that it pos- sessed a pleasant and healthy climate, and was a land of great beauty. The soil was fertile and the streams abundant and excel- lent. The land was covered with a rich growth of the most valuable and beautiful trees, and abounded in small level districts and meadows covered with long grass and white clover, on which the elk, the deer, and the buffalo grazed in herds. Wild turkeys and other game abounded, and the country offered every attraction to settlers who were willing to improve it. Gist also reported that the agents of the French were actively engaged in seeking to induce the western tribes to make war upon the English and prevent them from obtain- ing a footing west of the mountains. The purposes of the English were well known to the French, who viewed them with alarm, as the successful occupation of the Ohio valley by the English would cut off the communi- cation established by the French between Canada and the Mississippi. This the French were resolved to prevent at any cost. The Indiarts regarded both of the white nations as intruders in their country. They were willing to trade with both, but were averse to giving up their lands to either. " If the French," said they, " take possession of the north side of the Ohio, and the English of the south, where is the Indian's land ? " A Line of Forts. The possession of the Ohio valley was thus of the highest importance to the French, Their fortified post of Fort Front- enac gave them the command of Lake On- tario, which they further secured by con- structing armed vessels for the navigation of the lake. They retained their hold upon Lake Erie by strengthening Fort Niagara, which La Salle had built at the foot of that lake. They entered into treaties with the Shawnees, the Delawares and other powerful tribes between the lake and the Ohio, and steadily pushed their way eastward towards the mountains. They began their advance into the valley of the Ohio by building a fort at Presque Isle, now the city of Erie; in Pennsylvania, another on French Creek, on the site of the present town of Waterford, and a third on the site of the present town of Franklin, at the confluence of French Creek with the Alleghany. These rapid advances eastward alarmed the English government, which instructed the governor of Virginia to address a remon- strance to the French authorities and to warn them of the consequences which mus' result from their intrusion into the territory SCENE IN THE ALLEGHENY MOUNTAINS. 281 282 THE FRENCH AND INDIAN WAR. of the English. To do this it was necessary for the governor to despatch his communica- tion to the nearest French post by the hands of some messenger of sufficient resolution to overcome .the natural dangers of such an undertaking, and of sufficient intelligence to gain information respecting the designs and strength of the French ; and Governor Din- widdle was somewhat at loss to find such a person. Fortunately the man needed was at hand, and the attention of the governor being called to him, his excellency decided to intrust him with the delicate and danger- ous mission. The Coming Hero. The person selected for this task was a young man in the twenty-second year of his age, George Washington by name. He was a native of Westmoreland County, Virginia, where he was born on the twenty-second of February, 1732. He was a great-grandson of the Colonel John Washington, whom we have noticed as the leader of an expedition against the Indians in the time of Sir William Berkeley. His father, Augustine Washington, was a wealthy planter, but his death, when George was eleven years old, deprived his son of his care, and also of the means of acquiring an education. He soon acquired all the learning that it was possible to gain at a country school, from which he passed to an academy of somewhat higher grade, where he devoted himself principally to the study of mathematics. His half- brother, Lawrence, who was fourteen years older than himself, had received a careful education and directed the studies of his younger brother, to whom he was devotedly attached. Though deprived of the care of his father at such an early age, it was the good fortune of George Washington to possess in his mother a guide well qualified to fill the place of both parents to her fatherless child- ren. She was a woman of rare good sense,, of great decision of character, and one whose- life was guided by the most earnest Chris- tian principle. Her tenderness and sweet womanly qualities won the devoted love of her children, and her firmness enforced their obedience. From her George inherited a quick and ardent temper, and from her he learned the lesson of self-control which en- abled him to govern it. Washington's BOsVhood. As a boy, Washington was noted for his truthfulness, his courage and his generosity. He was both liked and respected by his schoolmates, and such was their confidence in his fairness and good judgment that he was usually chosen the arbiter of their boy- ish disputes. He joined heartily in their sports and was noted for his skill in athletic exercises. He was a fearless rider and a f^ood hunter, and by his fondness for manly sports developed his naturally vigorous body to a high degree of strength. He was cheer- ful and genial in temper, though reserved and grave m manner. He early acquired habits of industry and order, and there are still existing many evidences of the careful and systematic manner in which he discharged every duty assigned him at this early age. At the age of fourteen it was decided that he should enter the navy, and his brother Lawrence, who had served with credit in that branch of the royal service, had no difficulty in obtaining for him a midshipman's war- rant. The ship he was to join lay in the Po- tomac, and his trunk was sent on board; but at the last moment his mother, dreading the effect of the temptations of a seaman's life upon a boy so young, appealed to him by his affection for her to remain with her Washington was sorely disappointed, but he yielded cheerfully to his mother's wish. OUTBREAK OF HOSTILITIES. 283 The marriage of his brother Lawrence gave to the young man a second home at Mount Vernon, where he passed a large part of his time. Here he was brought into con- stant contact with the most cultivated and refined society of Virginia, an association which had a happy influence upon the forma- tion of his character. There also he formed the acquaintance and won the friendship of Lord Fairfax, the grandson of Lord Culpep- per, and the inheritor of Culpepper's vast estates in Virginia, which comprised about one-seventh of the area of the state of Vir- ginia as it existed prior to the separation of West Virginia in 1861. Lord Fairfax con- ceived a great fondness for the young man, and took a deep interest in his future welfare. Industry and Diligence. Washington, upon leaving school, had chosen the profession of a surveyor as his future avocation, and soon after his first meeting with Lord Fairfax was employed by that nobleman to survey the lands belonging to him, many of which had been occupied by settlers without right or title. It was an arduous and responsible task, and Washing- ton, who was just entering his seventeenth year, seemed almost too young for it; but " Lord Thomas " had satisfied himself of his young friend's capability for it, and the result justified the opinion he had formed. His work was done with care and accuracy, and his measurements were so exact that they are still relied upon. His life as a surveyor was in many respects a hard one, but he enjoyed it. It gave new vigor to his naturally robust constitution and his splendid figure, and while yet a youth he acquired the appearance and habits of mature manhood. He also learned forest life in all its various phases, and by his constant intercourse with the hunters and Indians, gained a knowledge of the character and habits of these wild men which in after years was of infinite value to him. During his surveying expeditions Wash- ington was a frequent visitor at Greenway Court, the seat of Lord Fairfax, where, in addition to the other attractions, there was a well-selected library, of which the young man regularly availed himself His reading was of a serious and useful nature ; " Addi- son's Spectator " and the " History of Eng- land " were among his favorite works. Though the heir to a considerable estate, Washington supported himself during this period by his earnings as a surveyor. " His father had bequeathed to the eldest son, Lawrence, the estate afterwards called Mount Vernon. To Augustine, the second son, he had given the old homstead in Westmoreland County. And George, at the age of twenty- one years, was to inherit the house and lands in Suffolk County. As yet, however, he derived no benefit from this landed property. But his industry and diligence in 'his labor- ious occupation supplied him with abundant pecuniary means. His habits of life were simple and economical ; he indulged in no gay and expensive pleasures." Military Education. In 1 75 1, in order to prepare for any emergency to which the hostility of the French and Indians might give rise, the col- ony of Virginia was divided into military districts, each of which was placed in charge of an adjutant and inspector, with the rank of major, whose duty it was to keep the militia in readiness for instant service. Washington had at an early day evinced a great fondness for military exercises, and as a boy had often drilled his school-fellows in the simplest manoeuvres of the troops. As he advanced towards manhood, his brother Lawrence, Adjutant Muse, of West- moreland, and Jacob Vanbraam, a fencing- master, and others, had given him numerous 284 THE FRENCH AND INDIAN WAR. lessons in the art of war. Though but nine- teen years old, he was regarded by his acquaintance as one of the best-informed persons upon military matters in the colony, and at the general desire of those who knew him he was commissioned a major in the colonial forces, and placed in command of one of the military districts. He discharged his duties with ability and zeal, and gave such satisfaction that when Governor Din- widdle, in 1752, divided the province into four military districts, Major Washington was placed in command of the northern dis- trict. " The counties comprehended in this division he promptly and statedly traversed, and he soon effected the thorough discipline of their militia for warlike operations." He was discharging the duties of this position when selected by the governor of Virginia to bear his message to the commander of the French forces on the Ohio. Governor Dinwiddle intrusted to his young envoy a letter addressed to the commander of the French forces on the Ohio, in which he demanded of him his reasons for invading the territory of England while Great Britain and France were at peace with each other. Washington was instructed to observe care- fully the numbers and positions of the French, the strength of their forts, the na- ture of their communications with Canada and with their various posts, and to endeavor to ascertain the real designs of the French in occupying the Ohio valley, and the proba- bilities of their being vigorously supported from Canada. Perilous Journey. " Ye're a braw lad," said the governor, as he delivered his instructions to the young major, " and gin you play your cards weel, my boy, ye shall hae nae cause to rue your bargain." Washington received his instructions on the thirtieth of October, 1753, and on the same day set out for Winchester, then a frontier post, from which he proceeded to Wills' Creek, where he was to cross the mountains. Having secured the services of Christopher Gist as guide, and of two inter- preters and four others, Washington set out on his journey about the middle of Novem- ber. . They crossed the mountains and jour- neyed through an unbroken country, with no paths save the Indian trails to serve as guides, across rugged ravines, over steep hills, and across streams swollen with the recent rains, until in nine days they reached the point where the Alleghany and Monon- gahela unite and form the Ohio. Washing- ton carefully examined the place and was greatly impressed with the advantages offered for the location of a fort by the point of land at the junction of the two rivers. The judg- ment expressed by him at the time was sub- sequently confirmed by the choice of this spot by the French for one of their most important posts — Fort Duquesne. Interview With " Half-King." Washington had been ordered by the gov- ernor to proceed direct to Logstown, where he was to hold an interview with the Dela- ware chief known as the Half King, to acquaint the Indians with the nature of his mission and ascertain their disposition to- wards the English. While he was at this place he met several French deserters from the posts on the lower Ohio, Vv^ho told him the location, number and strength of the French posts between Quebec and New Orleans by way of the Wabash and the Maumee, and informed him of the intention of the French to occupy the Ohio from its head to its mouth with a similar chain of forts. The Half King confirmed the story of the deserters. He had heard that the French were coming with a strong force to drive the OUTBREAK OF HOSTILITIES. 285 English out of the land. A " grand talk " was held with the chiefs in council by Wash- ington, and they answered him, by the Half King, that what he had said was true ; they were brothers, and would guard him on his way to the nearest French post. They wished neither the English nor the French to settle in their country ; but as the French were the first intruders, they were willing to aid the English in their efforts to expel them. They agreed to break off friendly relations with the French ; but Washington, who knew the Indian character well, was not altogether satisfied with their promises. On the thirtieth of November he set out from Logstown with his companions, at- tended by the Half King and three other Indians, and on the fourth arrived at the French post at Venango. The officer in command of this fort had no authority to receive his letter and referred him to the Chevalier St. Pierre, the commander of the next post. They treated the English with courtesy and invited Washington to sup with them. When the wine was passed around they drank deeply and soon lost their discretion. Loud Boasting. The sober and vigilant Washington noted their words with great attention and recorded them in his diary. " They told me," he writes, " that it was their absolute design to take possession of the Ohio, and, by G — d, they would do it; for, that although they were sensible the English could raise two men for their one, they knew their motions were too slow and dilatory to prevent any undertaking of theirs. They pretend to have an undoubted right to the river, from a discovery made by one La Salle sixty years ago; and the rise of this expedition is to prevent our settling on the river or waters of it, as they heard of some families moving out in order thereto." The French officers then informed Washington of their strength south of the lakes, and of the number and location of their posts between Montreal and Venango. The French exerted every stratagem to detach the Indians from Washington's party, and they met with enough success to justify Washington's distrust of them. All had come to deliver up the French speech-belts, or, in other words, to break off friendly rela- tions with the French. The Delaware chiefs wavered and failed to fulfill their promise; THE HALF KING. " but the Half King clung to Washington like a brother, and delivered up his belt as- he had promised." The party left Venango on the seventh of December, and reached Fort Le Boeuf, the next post, on the eleventh. It was a strong work, defended by cannon, and near by Washington saw a number of canoes and boats, and the materials for building others, sure indications that an expedition down the river was about to be attempted. He ob- tained an interview ^^'ith St. Pierre, the com- mander, an officer of experience and integri- ty, greatly beloved as well as feared by the Indians. He received the young envoy with 286 THE ^FRENCH AND INDIAN WAR. courtesy, but refused to discuss questions of right with him. " I am here," he said, " by the orders of my general, to which I shall conform with exactness and resolu- tion." On the fourteenth, St. Pierre delivered to Washington his answer to the letter of Gov- ernor Dinwiddle, and next day the party set out on its return. They descended French Creek in canoes, at no little risk, as the stream was full of ice. At Venango, which was reached on the twenty-second, they found their horses, which were so feeble that it was doubtful whether they would be able to make the journey home. " I put myself in an Indian walking-dress," says Washington, " and continued with them three days, until I found there was no possi- bility of their getting home in any reason- able time. The horses became less able to travel every day ; the cold increased very fast, and the roads were becoming much worse by a deep snow continually freezing ; therefore, as I was uneasy to get back to make report of my proceedings to his honor the governor, I determined to prosecute my journey the nearest way through the woods on foot." A Shot that Missed. Taking Gist as his only companion, and directing their way by the compass, Wash- ington set out on the twenty-sixth, by the nearest way across the country, for the head of the Ohio. The next day an Indian who had lain in wait for them fired at Washington at a distance of only fifteen steps, but missed him, and was made a prisoner by him. Gist was anxious to kill the savage on the spot, but Washington would not allow this, and they kept the fellow until dark, and then released him. They travelled all night and all the next day in order to make sure of escaping from the enemies they felt certain their freed captive would set upon their trail. At dark on the twenty-eighth they reached the Alleghany, and spent the night on the banks of that stream. The next morning they set to work with one poor hatchet to construct a raft, on which to pass the river, , which was full of floating ice. They com- pleted their raft about sunset and launched it upon the stream. It was caught in the floating ice, and Washington was hurled off into the water and nearly drowned. Unable to reach the opposite shore, they made for an island in mid-stream and passed the night there. The cold was intense, and Gist had all his fingers and several of his toes frozen. The next morning the river was a solid mass of ice, hard enough to bear their weight. They at once crossed to the opposite bank and continued their journey, and on the sixteenth of January, 1754, were at Williams- burg, where Washington delivered to the governor of Virginia the reply of the French commander, and reported the results of his journey. Eager for New Territory. The French commander returned a cour- teous but evasive answer to Governor Din- widdle's communication, and referred him for a definite settlement of the matter to the Marquis Duquesne, the governor of Canada. It was clear from the tone of his letter that he meant to hold on to the territory he had occupied, and the governor of Virginia was satisfied from Major Washington's report of his observations that St. Pierre was about to extend the line of French posts down the Ohio. The authorities of Virginia resolved to anticipate him, and in the spring of 1754 the Ohio Company stnt a force of about forty men to build a fort at the head of the Ohio, on the site to which Washington had called attention. In the meantime, measures were set on foot" in Virginia for the protection of the OUTBREAK OF HOSTILITIES. 287 frontiers. A regiment of troops was ordered to be raised, and it was the general wish that Major Washington should be appointed to the command. He declined the commission when tendered him, on the ground of his youth and inexperience, and was made lieu- tenant-colonel, the command of the regiment being conferred upon Colonel Joshua Fry. Washington was ordered to repair to the west to take charge of the defence of the frontiers, and in April, 1754, reached Wills' Creek with three companies of his regiment. Washington Pushes Forward. Just at this moment news arrived that the party sent to build a fort at the head of the Ohio had been driven away by the French. A force of one thousand men, with artillery, under Captain Coutrecoeur, had descended the Alleghany and had surrounded the Eng- lish. One hour was given them to surren- der, and being utterly unable to offer any resistance, they capitulated upon condition of being ailowed to retire to Virginia. Imme- diately upon the withdrawal of the English, the French forces occupied the unfinished work, completed it, and named it Fort Du- quesne. This was a more important act than either party believed it at the time. It was the beginning of the final struggle by which the power of France in America was broken. In the history of Europe this struggle is known as the " Seven Years' War;" in our own history as the " French and Indian War." Hostilities were now inevitable, and Wash- ington, who was on his march to the Ohio when the news of the aggression of the French was received, resolved to push for- ward without delay. Colonel Fry had fallen sick, and the direction of affairs on the bor- der had passed entirely intot he hands of the young lieutenant-colonel. He intended to proceed to the junction of Red Stone Creek and the Monongahela, the site occupied by the present town of Brownsville, to erect a fort there and hold it until he could be rein- forced. His force was poorly provided with clothing and tents, and was deficient in mili- tary supplies of all kinds. The country to be traversed was a wild, unbroken region, without roads or bridges, and through it the artillery and wagons were to be transported. The little force moved slowly and with diffi- culty, and Washington pushed on in ad- vance with a small detachment, intending to secure the position on the Monongahela and await the arrival of the main body, when the whole force could descend the river in flat- boats to Fort Duquesne. On the twentieth of May he reached the Youghiogheny and there received a message from his ally, the Half King, telling him that the French were in heavy force at Fort Duquesne, This report was confirmed at the Little Meadows by the traders, and by another message from the Half King on the twenty-fifth of May, warning Washington that a force of French and Indians had left Fort Duquesne on a secret expedition. Washington was sure that this expedition was destined to attack him, and advanced to the Great Meadows and took position there. The First Blood Shed. On the morning of the twenty-seventh Gist arrived and reported that he had seen the trail of the French within five miles of the Great Meadows. In the evening of the same day a runner came in from the Half King-, and with a message that the French were close at hand. Taking with him forty men, Washington set off for the Half King's camp, and by a difficult night march through a tangled forest, in the midst of a driving rain, reached it about daylight. The runners of the Half King found the French encamped in a deep glen not far distant, and it was 288 THE FRENCH AND INDIAN WAR. decided to attack them at once. The Half King and his warriors placed themselves under Washington's orders, and the march was resumed towards the French camp. The French were surprised, and an action of about a quarter of an hour ensued. The French lost ten men killed, among whom was their commander, Jumonville, and twenty-one prisoners. This was the first blood shed on the American continent in the long struggle which won America for the free institutions of the Anglo-Saxon race. Washington was very anxious to follow up the advantage he had gained, and had already appealed to the governors of Mary- land and Pennsylvania for assistance, but no aid reached him. Unable to advance in the face of the rapidly increasing forces of the French, he threw up a stockade fort at Great Meadows, which he named Fort Necessity, from the fact that the provisions of the troops were so nearly exhausted that the danger of a famine was imminent. A Dutchman's Blunder. On the third of July six hundred French and one hundred Indians suddenly appeared before the fort and occupied the hills sur- rounding it. The attacking party were able to shelter themselves behind trees and could command the fort from their safe position, while the English were greatly exposed, and it was evident to the most inexperienced that the fort was untenable. Nevertheless, the work was held for nine hours under a heavy fire, and amid the discomforts of a severe rain-storm. At length De Villiers, the French commander, fearing that his am- munition would be exhausted, proposed a parley and offered terms to Washington. The English had lost thirty killed, and the French but three. The terms of capitulation proposed by De Villiers were interpreted to Washington, who did not understand French, and in consequence of the interpretation, which was made by " a Dutchman little acquainted with the English tongue," Wash- ington and his officers " were betrayed into a pledge which they would never have con- sented to give, and an act of moral suicide which they could never have deliberately committed. " They understood from Vanbraam's inter- pretation, that no fort was to be built beyond the mountains on lands belo7iging to the King of France ; but the terms of the articles are, ' neither in this place or beyond the mountains.'" The Virginians were allowed to march out of the fort with the honors of war, retaining their arms and all their stores, but leaving their artillery. This they did on the next morning, July fourth, 1754. The march across the mountains was rendered painful by the lack of provisions, and after much suffering the troops arrived at Fort Cumberland in Maryland. Although the expedition had been unsuccessful, the con- duct of Washington had been marked by so much prudence and good judgment that he received the thanks of the general assembly of Virginia. Washington's Cutting Reply. Governor Dinwiddle had already thrown many obstacles in the way of the defence of the colony, and he now refused to reward the provincial officers with the promotions they had so well earned. In order to avoid this he dissolved the Virginia regiment, and re- organized it into independent companies, no officer of which was to have a higher rank than that of captain. It was also ordered that officers holding commissions from the king should take precedence of those holding commissions from the colonial gov- ernment. Washington, feeling that he could no longer remain in the service with self-respect, OUTBREAK OF HOSTILITIES. 289 resigned his commission and withdrew to Mount Vernon. Soon afterwards Governor Sharpe, of Maryland, having been appointed by the king commander-in-chief of the forces of the southern colonies, proposed to Wash- ington, through a friend, to return to the army and accept the rank of colonel, but with the actual authority of captain. Washington declined the offer with characteristic dignity. " If you think me," he wrote, " capable of holding a commission that has neither rank nor emolument annexed to it, you must maintain a very contemptible opinion of my weakness, and believe me more empty than the commission itself." In the meantime, although peace still remained nominally unbroken between Eng- land and France, each nation was perfectly convinced of the certainty of a conflict in America, and each began to prepare for it. France sent large reinforcements to Canada, and the English went on rapidly with their plans for the conquest of that country. The British government was very anxious that the colonies should bear the brunt of the struggle, though it was fully determined to send a royal army to their assistance, and urged upon them to unite in some plan for their common defence. Alliance with the Six Nations. For the purpose of carrying out the wishes of the home government, a convention of delegates from seven of the colonies assem- bled at Albany, New York, on the nineteenth of June, 1754. " The Virginia government was represented by the presiding officer, Delan- cey, the lieutenant-governor of New York ; " but New Hampshire, Massachusetts, Rhode Island, Connecticut, New York and Mary- land were represented by their own delegates. The first object of this convention was to secure the friendship of the powerful con- federacy of the Six Nations, on the northern 19 border, and this was successfully accom- plished. The leading man of this convention was Benjamin Franklin. He was a native of Bos- ton, and the son of a tallow chandler. While still a youth he had removed to Philadelphia, and by the force of his own genius had risen from poverty and obscurity to great prom- inence among the public men of Pennsylva- nia, and the literary and scientific men of his day. BEN'JAMIN FRANKLIN. He had chosen the avocation of a printer ; and by his industry, energy and integrity had accumulated property enough to make him independent. He was among the most active men in America in promoting the advance- ment of literary, scientific and benevolent institutions, and had already won a world- wide reputation by his discoveries in science, and especially by his investigations in elec- tricity and lightning. He was not inexperi- enced in public affairs. He had served as. 290 THE FRENCH AND INDIAN WAR. clerk to the general assembly of Pennsylva- nia, as postmaster of Philadelphia, as a mem- ber of the provincial assembly of Pennsylvania, and in 1753 had been appointed by the king postmaster-general of the American colonies. In each of these positions he had served with distinction, and now, at the ripe age of forty- eight, he had come to take part in the most important convention ever held in America. Franklin had long been of the opinion that the true interests of the colonies required their union in all measures relating to their common welfare. Believing that the force of circumstances would soon drive them into such a union, he sought to accomplish that end through the medium of this convention. Accordingly he presented to the convention a plan for the union of all the American colonies, which union he intended should be perpetual. Proposed Confederacy. He proposed that while each colony should retain the separate and independent control of its own affairs, all should unite in a per- petual union for the management of their general affairs. This confederacy was to be controlled by a general government, to consist of a governor-general an J a council. The seat of the federal government was to be Philadelphia,which city he regarded as central to all the colonies. Th2 governor-general was to be appointed and paid by the king, and was to have thepower of vetoing all laws which should seem to him objectionable. The members of the council were to be elected triennially by the colonial legisla- tures, and were to be apportioned among the colonies according to their respective popula- tion. " The governor-general was to nominate military officers, subject to the advice of the council, which, in turn, was to nominate all civil officers. No money was to be issued but by their joint order. Each colony was to retain its domestic constitution ; the federal government was to regulate all rela- tions of peace or war with the Indians, affairs of trade, and purchases of lands not within the bounds of particular colonies ; to estab- lish, organize and temporarily to govern new settlements ; to raise soldiers, and equip ves- sels of force on the seas, rivers or lakes; to make laws, and lev^y just and equal taxes. The grand council were to meet once a year to choose their own speaker, and neither to be dissolved nor prorogued, nor continue sitting longer than six weeks at any one time, but by their own consent." The Union Opposed. This plan met with considerable opposi- tion, was thoroughly discussed, and was finally adopted by the convention. It was not altogether acceptable to the colonies, each of which dreaded that the establishment of a central government would result in the destruction of the liberties of the individual provinces. Connecticut promptly rejected it. New York received it with coldness, and Massachusetts showed a more active opposi- tion to it. Upon its reception in England it was at once thrown aside by the royal gov- ernment. The Union proposed by the plan was too perfect and would make America practically independent of Great Britain, and so the board of trade did not even bring it before the notice of the king. Franklin regarded the failure of his plan of union with great regret. In after years he wrote : " The colonies so united would have been sufficiently strong to defend themselves. There would then have been no need of troops from England; of course the subse- quent pretext for taxing America, and the bloody contest it occasioned, would have been avoided. But such mistakes are not new ; history is full of the errors of states and princes." OUTBREAK OF HOSTILITIES. 291 The plan for the union of the colonies having failed, the British government re- solved to take into its own hands the task of carrying on the war, with such assistance as the colonies might be willing to afford. A million of pounds was voted for the defence of the British possessions in America, and four strong fleets were sent to sea, together with numerous privateers, which nearly de- stroyed the French West Indian trade. In 1755, Major General Edw^ard Braddock was ap- pointed comman- der-in-chief of the English forces in America, He had served under the Duke of Cumber- land, in his expe- dition into Scot- land against the Pretender Charles ^Edward, in 1746, and was regarded as one of the most promising officers in his majesty's service. Braddock sailed from Cork, in Ireland, early in January, 1755, and on the twentieth of February arrived at Alexandria, in Virginia. He was soon followed by two regiments of infantry, consisting of five hundred men each, the largest force of regulars Great Britain had ever assembled in America. A conference of the colonial governors with the new commander-in-chief was held at Alexandria, and a plan of campaign was decided upon. Four expeditions were to be despatched against the French. The first, under Braddock in person, was to advance upon Fort Duquesne ; the second, under Governor Shirley of Massachusetts, was to attempt the capture of Fort Niagara; the third, under William John, the Indian agent among the Mohawks, and a man of great influence over them, was to be directed against Crown Point ; and the fourth was to capture the French posts near the head of the Bay of Fundy, and expel the French from Acadia. WILLS CREEK NARROWS, MD. It was now evident that the war was about to commence in good earnest, and the colo- nies exerted themselves to support the efforts of the mother country to the extent of their ability. General Braddock was thoroughly pro- ficient in the theory of his profession, but his experience of actual warfare had been limited to a single campaign, and that a brief one. He possessed the entire confidence of his superiors in England, and his faith in 292 THE FRENCH AND INDIAN WAR. himself was boundless. He believed that the regulars of the British army were capable of accomplishing any task assigned them, and entertained a thorough contempt for the pro- vincial troops that were to form a part of his command. Soon after his arrival in Virginia he offered Washington a position on his staff as aid-de-camp, with the rank of colonel, which was promptly accepted. Had General Braddock been a different man the presence of Washington in his mili tary family might have been of the greatest service to him, for the experience of the young colonel would have made him an in- valuable counselor. Braddock was in a strange country, and was charged with the conduct of a campaign in which the ordinary rules of warfare as practiced in Europe could not be adhered to. He knew nothing of the difficulties of marching his army through a tangled wilderness and over a mountain range of the first magnitude. Unfortunately for him, he was not aware of his ignorance, and would neither ask for nor listen to advice or information upon the subject. Franklin's Opinion of Braddock. " He was, I think, a brave man," says Franklin, " and might probably have made a figure as a good officer in some European war. But he had too much self-confidence, too high an opinion of the validity of regular troops, and too mean a one of both Ameri- cans and Indians." During one of his inter- views with him Franklin undertook to im- press upon him the necessity of guarding against the danger of Indian ambuscades. " He smiled at my ignorance," says Frank- lin, " and replied : ' These savages may in- deed be a formidable enemy to your raw American militia; but upon the king's regular and disciplined troops, sir, it is impossible they should make any impres- sion.' " The army assembled at Wills' Creek, to which place General Braddock repaired in his coach. The bad roads had put him in a passion, and had broken his coach, and he was in no mood upon his arrival to pursue a sensible course. He was advised to employ Indians' as scouts on the march, or to use them to protect a force of Pennsylvanians who were making a road over the mountains for the passage of the army, but he refused to do either. Washington urged him to aban- don his wagon-train, to use pack-horses in place of these vehicles, and to move with as little baggage as possible. Braddock ridiculed this suggestion. Neither he nor any of his officers would consent to be separated from their cumbrous baggage, or to dispense with any of the luxuries they had been used to. Famous " Captain Jack." A month was lost at Wills' Creek, and in June the army began its march. It was greatly impeded by the difficulty of drag- ging the wagons and artillery over roads filled with the stumps of trees and with rocks. Such little progress was made that Braddock, greatly disheartened, privately asked Washington to advise him what to do. As it was known that the garrison at Fort Duquesne was small, Washington advised him to hasten forward with a division of the army, in light marching order, and seize the fort before reinforcements could arrive from Canada. Braddock accordingly detached a division of twelve hundred men and ten pieces of cannon, with a train of pack-horses to carry the baggage, and pushed on in advance with them, leaving Colonel Dunbar to bring up the main division as promptly as possible. A famous hunter and Indian fighter named Captain Jack, who was regarded as the most experienced man in savage warfare in the OUTBREAK OF HOSTILITIES. 293 colonies, now offered his services and those of his men to Braddock to act as scouts. Braddock received him with frigid courtesy, and refused his offer, saying that he " had experienced troops upon whom he could rely for all purposes." Braddock's Blunder. Instead of pushing on with energy with his advance division, Braddock moved very slowly, gaining but a little more than three miles a day. " They halt," wrote Washing- ton, " to level every mole hill and to erect a bridge over every brook." On the eighth of July the army reached the east bank of the Monongahela, about fifteen miles above Fort Duquesne, having taken about double the necessary time in the march from Wills' Creek. On the same day Washington, who had been ill for some days, and was still un- well, rejoined Braddock. Early on the morning of the ninth of July the march was resumed. The Monongahela was forded a short distance below the mouth of the Youghiogheny, and the advance con- tinued along the southern bank of that river. About noon the Monongahela was forded again, and the army was planted upon the strip of land between the rivers which form the Ohio. Washington was well convinced that the French and Indians were informed of the movements of the army and would seek to interfere with it before its arrival before the fort, which was only ten miles distant, and urged Braddock to throw in advance the Virginia Rangers, three hundred strong, as they were experienced Indian fighters. Braddock angrily rebuked his aide, and as if to make the rebuke more pointed, ordered the Virginia troops and other provincials to take position in the rear of the regulars. The general was fully convinced of the ability of his trained troops to take care of them- selves. They made a gallant show as they marched along with their gay uniforms, their burnished arms and flying colors, and their drums beating a lively march. Wash- ington could not repress his admiration at the brilliant sight, nor his anxiety for the result. In the meantime the French at Fort Du- quesne had been informed by their scouts of Braddock's movements, and had resolved to ambuscade him on his march. Early on the morning of the ninth a force of about two hundred and thirty French and Canadians and six hundred and thirty-seven Indians, under De Beaujeu, the commandant at Fort Duquesne, was despatched with orders to occupy a designated spot and attack the enemy upon their approach. Before reach- ing it, about two o'clock in the afternoon, they encountered the advanced force of the English army, under Lieutenant-Colonel Thomas Gage, and at once attacked them with spirit. Galling Fire. The English army at this moment was moving along a narrow road, about twelve feet in width, with scarcely a scout thrown out in advance or upon the flanks. The engineer wh© was locating the road was the first to discover the enemy, and called out : " French and Indians ! " Instantly a heavy fire was opened upon Gage's force, and his indecision allowed the French and Indians to seize a commanding ridge, from which they maintained their attack with spirit. There, concealed among the trees, they were almost invisible to the English, who were fully exposed to their fire, as they occupied a broad ravine, covered with low shrubs, im- mediately below the eminence held by the French. The regulars were quickly thrown into confusion by the heavy fire and the fierce yells of the Indians, who could nowhere be 294 THE FRENCH AND INDIAN WAR. seen, and their losses were so severe and sudden that they became panic-stricken. They were ordered to charge up the hill and drive the French from their cgver, but re- fused to move, and in their terror fired at random into the woods. In the meantime the Indians were rapidly spreading along the sides of the ravine and continuing their fire from their cover among the trees with fear- ful accuracy. that not one of his commands was obeyed, and his defeat was complete. The only semblance of resistance main- tained by the English was by the Virginia Rangers, whom Braddock had insulted at the beginning of the day's march. Immedi- ately upon the commencement of the battle, they had adopted the tactics of the Indians, and had thrown themselves behind trees, from which shelter they were rapidly picking DISASTROUS DEFEAT OF GENERAL BRADDOCK. The advance of the English was driven back, and it crowded upon the second divi- sion in utter disorder. A reinforcement of eight hundred men, under Colonel Burton, arrived at this moment, but only to add to the confusion. The French pushed their lines forward now and increased the disorder of the English, who had by this time lost nearly all their officers. Braddock now came up and gallantly exerted himself to restore order, but " the king's regulars and discip- lined troops " were so utterly demoralized off the Indians. Washington entreated Braddock to allow the regulars to follow the example of the Virginians, but he refused, and stubbornly endeavored to form them in platoons under the fatal fire that was being poured upon them by their hidden assailants. Thus through his obstinacy many useful lives were needlessly thrown away before he would admit his defeat. The officers did not share the panic of the men, but behaved with the greatest gallantry. They were the especial marks of the Indian OUTBREAK OF HOSTILITIES. 295 sharpshooters, and many of them were killed [ or wounded. Two of Braddock's aides were seriously wounded, and their duties devolved upon Washington in addition to his own. He passed repeatedly over the field, carrying the orders of the commander and encourag- ing the men. When sent to bring up the artillery, he found it surrounded by Indians, its commander, Sir Peter Halket, killed, and the men standing helpless from fear. Spring- ing from his horse, he appealed to the men to save the guns, pointed a field-piece and discharged it at the savages, and entreated the gunners to rally. He could accomplish nothing by either his words or example. The men deserted the guns and fled. In a letter to his brother, Washington wrote : " I had four bullets through my coat, two horses shot under me,- yet escaped unhurt, though death was levelling my companions on every side around me." * Braddock had five horses shot under him, and at length himself received a mortal wound. As he fell, Captain Stewart, of the Virginia troops, caught him in his arms. He was borne from the field, though he begged to be left to die on the scene of his defeat. His fall was fortunate for the army, which it saved from destruction. A Fatal Rout. The order was given to fall back, and the " regulars fled like sheep before the hounds." The French and Indians pressed forward in pursuit, and all would have been lost had not the Virginia Rangers themselves been in the rear, and covered the flight of the regu- lars with a determination which checked the pursuers. The artillery, wagons, and all the camp train was abandoned, and the savages, stopping to plunder these, allowed the fugi- tives to recross the river in safety. Having seen the general as comfortable as circumstances would permit, Washington rode all that night and the next day to Dun- bar's camp to procure wagons for the wounded and soldiers to guard them. With these he hastened back to the fugi- tives. The Engl sh General's Death. Braddock, Enable to ride or to endure the jolting of a wagon, was carried m a litter as far as the Great Meadows. He seemed to be heart-broken and rarely spoke. Occa- sionally he would say, as if speaking to him- self, with a deep sigh, " Who would have thought it?" It is said that he warmly thanked Captain Stewart for his care and kindness, and apologized to Washington for the manner in which he had received his advice. He had no wish to live, and he died at Fort Necessity on the night of the thir- teenth of July. He was buried the next morning before daybreak as secretly as pos- sible for fear that the savages might find and violate his grave. Close by the national road, about a mile west of Fort Necessity, a pile of stones still marks his resting- place. The losses of the English in the battle were terrible. Out of eighty-six officers, twenty-six were killed and thirty-six wounded. Upward of seven hundred of the regulars were killed and wounded. The Virginia Rangers had suffered terrible losses, for they had not only borne the brunt of the battle, but had lost many of their number by the random fire of the frightened regulars. Dunbar, who succeeded Braddock in the com- mand, still had fifteen hundred effective men * Washington attributed his wonderful escape from even a wound to the overruling providence of God. The Indians regarded the matter in the same light. About fifteen years after the battle, while examining some lands near the mouth of the Great Kanawha River, Washington was visited by an old chief. The chief told hmi " he was present at the 296 THE FRENCH AND INDIAN WAR. left to him ; but he was too badly frightened to attempt to retrieve the disaster, which a com- petent officer might have done with such a force. He broke up his camp, destroyed his stores, and retreated beyond the mountains. Disregarding the entreaties of the colonists not to leave the frontiers exposed to the savages, he continued his retreat to Phila- delphia, and went into winter quarters there, to get ready for future operations. BURNING OF KITTANNING BY GENERAL ARMSTRONG The effect of these reverses upon the colonists was most marked. When they understood that Braddock's splendid force of disciplined regulars had been routed by a mere handful of French and Indians, their respect for the invincibility of British troops was destroyed ; and their confidence in their own prowess was greatly increased by the proud reflection that the only thing that had been done to save the army of Braddock from total destruction had been accomp- lished by the provincials. Washington's conduct was a subject of praise in all the colonies and brought his name conspicuously before the whole people of America. In a sermon preached a few months after Brad- dock's defeat, the Rev. Samuel Davies, a learned clergyman, spoke of him as " that heroic youth, Colonel Wash- ington, whom I cannot but hope Providence has hitherto preserved in so signal a man- ner for some important service to his country." The retreat of Dunbar left the frontiers of Virginia and Pennsylvania at the mercy of the savages, who maintained a desultory but destructive warfare along the entire bor- der. The defence of this ex- posed region was intrusted to Colonel Washington ; but he had so few men as to make his undertaking a hopeless one. The frontier settlements of Virginia were destroyed; the beautiful valley of the Shenandoah was ravaged with merciless fury, and the more protected regions were kept in a state of constant uneasiness and alarm. Governor Dinwiddle was repeatedly appealed to to furnish more men, but refused, and endea- vored to excuse his delinquency by saying : " We dare not part with any of our white men to any distance, as we must have a watchful eye over our negro slaves." battle, and among the Indian allies of the French; that he singled him out and repeatedly fired his rifle at him ; that he also ordered his young warriors to make him their only mark ; but that on finding all their bullets turned aside by some invisible and inscrutable interposition, he was convinced that the hero at whom he had so often and so truly aimed must be, for some wise purpose, specially protected by the Great Spirit. He now came, therefore, to testify his veneration." OUTBREAK OF HOSTILITIES. 297 Pennsylvania met the troubles with greater -vigor and resolution. About thirty miles -above Fort Duquesne, on the Alleghany River, was the Indian village of Kittanning, the home of a noted chief named Captain Jacobs. Together with the Delaware chief Shingis, he had, at the instigation of the French, kept up a continual warfare upon the frontier settlements. A military force for the defence of the frontier was raised by the colony and placed under the command of Benjamin Franklin as colonel. He soon resigned, and was succeeded by Colonel John Armstrong, a man better suited to the posi- tion, and who subsequently became a major general in the war of the Revolution. Armstrong resolved to destroy Kittanning and the tribe inhabiting- it as the best means of putting a stop to their outrages, and called for volunteers for the enterprise. Three hundred men responded. Toward the last of September, 1756, they crossed the moun- tains on horseback, and in a few days reached the vicinity of Kittanning. Dismounting and leaving their horses in charge of a guard, they silently surrounded the village. The Indians spent the night in carousing within hearing of the whites, and retired to rest at a very late hour. Just before daybreak the whites attacked the village and set it on fire. It was completely destroyed, and Jacobs and all but a handful of his men were slain. The few survivors fled farther west, and the Pennsylvania frontier was re- lieved of the sufferings it had so long endured. CHAPTER XXIII Sanguinary Struggles on the Frontier Expedition Against Acadia — Brutal Treatment of the Acadians — They Are Expelled from Their Country — A Sad Story — Fate of the Acadians — Johnson at Lake George — March of Dieskau — Battle of Lake George — Failure of Shirley's Expedition — Arrival of the Earl of Loudon — Montcalm in Canada — Capture of Oswego by the French — Outrages of the Earl of Loudon Upon New York and Philadelphia— Expedition Against Louisburg — How the Earl of Loudon Beat the French — Capture of Fort William Henry by Montcalm — Massacre of the Prisoners by the Indians — Efforts of Montcalm to Save Them — The Royal Officers Attempt to Cover Their Failures by Outraging the Colonies. WHILE the events we have re- lated were transpiring in the Ohio valley other expeditions were despatched against the French. One of these was directed against that part of Acadia, or Nova Scotia, which still remained in the hands of the French. It lay at the head of the Bay of Fundy, and was defended by two French , forts. This region was the oldest French colony in North America, having been settled sixteen years before the landing of the Pilgrims, but was regarded by the English as within their jurisdiction. In May, 1755, an expedition of three thou- sand New England troops was despatched from Boston, under Colonel John Winslow, to attack these forts and establish the Eng- lish authority over the French settlements. Upon reaching the Bay of Fundy Winslow was joined by three hundred English regulars under Colonel Monckton, who assumed the command. The forts were taken with com- paratively little effort, and the authority of England was extended over the whole of Nova Scotia. The Acadians agreed to acknowledge the authority of their new masters, and to observe a strict neutrality between France and England in the war ; and the English on their part promised not to require of them the usual oaths of allegi- ance, to excuse them from bearing arms 298 against France, and to protect them in the exercise of the Catholic religion. - The Acadians numbered about seventeen thousand souls. They were a simple and harmless people, and were enjoying in a marked degree the blessings of industry and thrift. They had begun their settlements by depending upon the fur trade and the fish- eries for their support, but had abandoned these pursuits for that of agriculture, which was already yielding them rich rewards for their skill and labor. They were proud of their farms, and took but little interest in public affairs, scarcely knowing what was transpiring in the world around them. It is hard to imagine a more peaceful or a happier community than this one at the time they passed under the baleful rule of England. Crime was unknown among them, and they seldom carried their disputes before the Eng- lish magistrates, but settled them by the arbitration of their old men. They en- couraged early marriages as the best means of preserving the morality of their people ; and when a young man married, his neigh- bors turned out in force and built him a house, and for the first year of his marriage aided him to establish himself firmly, while the bride's relatives helped her to furnish the home thus prepared. Thus the people were taught to regard and practice neighborly kindness as one of the SANGUINARY STRUGGLES ON THE FRONTIER. 299 cardinal Christian virtues. They were de- voted Catholics, and practiced their relitjion without bigotry. They were attached to the rule of France by language and religion, and would have been glad to see her authority re-established over them ; but they submitted peacefully to the rule of the English and faithfully observed the terms of their sur- render. Unfortunately for the Acadians their pos- sessions soon began to excite the envy of the English. Lawrence, the governor of Nova Scotia, expressed this feeling in his letter to Lord Halifax, the English premier. ".They possess the best and largest tract of land in this province," he wrote ; " if they refuse the oaths, it would be much better that they were away." The English authorities had prepared a cunningly devised scheme for dis- possessing these simplepeople of their homes, and they now proceeded to put it in execu- tion. The usual oaths of allegiance had not been tendered to the Acadians upon their surrender, as it was known that as French- men and Catholics they could not take them, as they required them to bear arms against their own brethren in Canada, and to make war upon their religion. Cruel Treatment. It was resolved now to offer the oaths to them, and thus either drive them into rebel- lion or force them to abandon their homes. When this intention was known, the priests urged them to refuse the oaths. " Better surrender your meadows to the sea," they declared, " and your houses to the flames, than, at the peril of your souls, take the oath of allegiance to the British government." As for the Acadians themselves, " they, from their very simplicity and anxious sincerity, were uncertain in their resolves ; now gath- ering courage to flee beyond the isthmus, for ether homes in New France, and now yearn- ing for their own houses and fields, their herds and pastures." The officers sent by the English authori- ties to enforce their demands conducted themselves with a haughtiness and cruelty which added greatly to the sorrows of the Acadians. Their titles to their lands were declared null and void, and all their papers and title-deeds were taken from them. Their property was taken for the public service without compensation, and if they failed to furnish wood at the times required, the Eng- lish soldiers " might take their houses for fuel." Their guns were seized, and they were deprived of their boats on the pretext that they might be used to communicate with the French in Canada. At last, wearied out with these oppressions, the Acadians offered to swear allegiance to Great Britain. This, however, formed no part of the plan of their persecutors, and they were answered that by a British statute persons who had been once offered the oaths, and who had refused them, could not be permitted to take them, but must be treated as Popish recu- sants. This brought matters to a crisis, and the English now resolved to strike the decisive blow. A proclamation was issued, requiring " the old men, and young men, as well as all lads over ten years of age," to assemble on the fifth of September, 1755, at a certain hour, at designated places in their respective districts, to hear the " wishes of the king." In the greater number of places the order was obeyed. What happened at the village of Grand Pre, the principal settlement, will show the course pursued by the English in all the districts. Four hundred and eighteen of the men of the place assembled. They were unarmed, and were marched into the church, which was securely guarded. Winslow, the New England commander, then addressed them as follows : " You are 300 THE FRENCH AND INDIAN WAR. convened together to manifest to you his majesty's final resolution to the French in- habitants of this his province. Your lands and tenements, cattle of all kinds, and live stock of all sorts, are forfeited to the crown, and you yourselves are to be removed from this his province. I am, through his majes- ty's goodness, directed to allow you liberty to carry off your money and household goods, as many as you can, without discom- moding the vessels you go in." He then declared them, together with their wives and children, a total of nineteen hundred and twenty-three souls, the king's prisoners, English Barbarity. The announcement took the unfortunate men by surprise, and filled them with the deepest indignation ; but they were unarmed and unable to resist. They were held close prisoners in the church, and their homes, which they had left in the morning full of hope, were to see them no' more. They were kept without food for themselves or their children that day, and were poorly fed during the remainder of their captivity. They were held in confinement until the tenth of September, when it was announced that the vessels were in readiness to carry them away. They were not to be allowed to join their brethren in Canada lest they should serve as a reinforcement to the French in that province, but were to be scattered as paupers through the English colonies, among people of another race and a different faith. On the morning of the tenth the captives were drawn up six deep. The English, in- tending to make their trial as bitter and as painful as possible, had resolved upon the barbarous measure of separating the families of their victims. The young men and boys were driven at the point of the bayonet from the church to the ship and compelled to embark. They passed amid the rows of their mothers and sisters, who, kneeling, prayed Heaven to bless and keep them. Then the fathers and husbands were forced by the bayonet on board of another ship, and as the vessels were now full, the women and* child- ren were left behind until more ships could come for them. They were kept for weeks near the sea, suffering greatly from lack of proper shelter and food, and it was December before the last of them were removed. Those who tried to escape were ruthlessly shot down by the sentinels. " Our soldiers hate them," wrote an English officer, " and if they can but find a pretext to kill them, they will." In some of the settlements the designs of the English were suspected and the procla- mation was not heeded. Some of the people fled to Canada; others sought shelter with the Indians, who received them with kind- ness ; others still fled to the woods, hoping to hide there till the storm was over. The English at once proceeded to lay waste their homes ; the country was made desolate in order that the fugitives might be compelled through starvation to surrender themselves. Families Scattered. Seven thousand Acadians were torn from their homes and scattered among the Eng- lish colonies on the Atlantic coast, from New Hampshire to Georgia. Families were ut- terly broken up, never to be reunited. The colonial newspapers for many years were filled with mournful advertisements, inquir- ing for a lo-st husband or wife; parents sought their missing children, and children their parents in this way. But of all these inquiries few were answered. The exiles were doomed to a parting worse than death, and their captors had done their work so well that human ingenuity could not undo it. Some of those who had been carried to Georgia attempted to return to their homes. SANGUINARY STRUGGLES ON THE FRONTIER. 301 They escaped to sea in boats, and coasted from point to point northward until they reached New England, when they were sternly ordered back. Their homes were their own no longer. More than three thousand Acadians fled to Canada, and of these about fifteen hundred settled south of the Ristigouche. Upon the surrender of Canada they were again sub- jected to the persecutions of the English, " Once those who dwelt in Pennsylvania presented a humble petition to the Earl of Loudon, then the British commander-in- chief in America, and the cold-hearted peer, offended that the prayer was made in French, seized their five principal men, who in their own land had been persons of dignity and substance, and shipped them to England, with the request that they might be kept from ever again becoming troublesome by being consigned to service as common sailors on board ships of war. Unparalleled Oppression. " No doubt existed of the king's approba- tion. The lords of trade, more merciless than the savages and than the wilderness in Avinter, wished very much that every one of the Acadians should be driven out; and when it seemed that the work was done, congratulated the king that ' the zealous endeavors of Lawrence had been crowned with an entire success.' I know not if the annals of the human race keep the record of sorrows so wantonly inflicted, so bitter and so perennial, as fell upon the French inhab- itants of Acadia. ' We have been true,' they said of themselves, * to our religion, and true to ourselves ; yet nature appears to con- sider us only as the objects of public ven- geance.' The hand of the English official seemed under a spell with regard to them ; and was never uplifted but to curse them." * * Bancroft's History of the United State', vol. iv., p. 206. While these sorrows were being heaped upon the helpless Acadians by England, the provincial forces were serving the cause else- where with more credit to their manhood. As has been stated, the expedition against the French fort at Crown Point, on Lake Champlain, had been intrusted to General William Johnson. His army consisted prin- cipally of troops from Massachusetts and Connecticut. They were joined at Albany by a regiment from New Hampshire. The troops rendezvoused at the head of boat navigation, on the Hudson, in July, 1755, under the command of General Lyman. They numbered about six thousand men. A fort was built and named by the troops, in honor of their commander, Fort Lyman. Johnson's Expedition. In August Johnson arrived with the stores and artillery, and assumed the command of the expedition. He ungenerously changed the name of the fort to Fort Edward. Leav- ing a strong force to garrison it, he moved with five thousand men to the head of Lake George, from which he intended to descend the lake in boats. The French had been informed of John- son's movements by their scouts. Baron Dieskau, the governor of Canada, placed the entire arms-bearing population of the Mon- treal district in the field and resolved to prevent Johnson from reaching Crown Point by attackmg him in his own country. With a force of two hundred French regulars and about one thousand two hundred Indians, he set out across the country to attack Fort Edward. Upon arriving in the vicinity of the fort the Indians learned that it was de- fended by artillery, of which they were greatly afraid, and refused to attack it. Dies- kau was, therefore, compelled to change his plan, and resolved to strike a blow at John- son's camp, which he was informed was without cannon. 302 THE FRENCH AND INDIAN WAR. In the meantime the scouts of the English had detected the movement against Fort Edward. Ignorant of the change in Dies- kau's plans Johnson sent a force of one thousand men, under Colonel Ephraim Will- iams of Massachusetts, and two hundred Mohawks, under their famous chief Hen- drick, to the relief of the fort. Their march was reported to the French, who placed THE PALISADES OF THE HUDSON. themselves in ambush along the road they were pursuing, and attacked them as soon as they had fairly entered the defile. The Eng- lish were at once thrown into confusion. Hendrick was shot down at the first fire, and Williams fell a few moments later. The English and Mohawks then began a rapid retreat to their camp, closely pursued by their assailants. The sound of the firlncr was soon heard in Johnson's camp, and as it drew nearer it became apparent that the detachment was retreating. The troops were gotten under arms, and the trees in front of the camp were hurriedly felled to form a rude breastwork. A few cannon had just arrived from the Hudson, and these were placed to command the road by which the French Avere ap- proaching. These arrangements were just completed when the fugitives of Williams' command appeared in full retreat, with the French and Indians but a few hundred yards behind them. Dieskau urged his men for- ward with the greatest energy, intending to force his way into the English camp along with the fugitives. The artillery was care- fully trained upon the road by which he was advancing, and the moment the fugitives were past the guns they opened with a ter- rific fire of grape, which caused the Canadians and Indians to break in confusion, and take to the woods for shelter. Stolen Honors. The regulars held their ground, and main- tained a determined contest of five hours, in which they were nearly all slain. The In- dians and Canadians did little execution, as they stood in dread of the artillery. At lencfth Dieskau, seeing that his effort had failed, drew off his men, and retreated. He was pursued for some distance by the Eng- lish. Towards evening he was suddenly at- tacked by the New Hampshire regiment, which was marching from Fort Edward to Johnson's assistance. The French were seized with a panic at this new attack, and abandoning their brave commander fled for their lives. Dieskau, who had been severely wounded several times, was taken prisoner. He was kindly treated, and was subsequently sent to England, where he died. General Johnson was slightly wounded at the commencement of the battle, and with- SANGUINARY STRUGGLES ON THE FRONTIER. 303 drew from the field, leaving the command to General Lyman, to whom the victory was really due. Notwithstanding this Johnson did not even mention Lyman's name in his report of the battle, but claimed all the honor for himself He was rewarded by the king with a baronetcy, and the gift of twenty-five thousand dollars. General Lyman was not even thanked for his services. Great Military Preparations. Johnson made no effort to improve his victory. The expedition against Crown Point, which might now have been under- taken with a better prospect of success, was abandoned, and Johnson contented himself with building a useless log fort at the head of Lake George, which he named Fort Will- iam Henry. Late in the fall he placed a garrison in this fort, and then returned to Albany, where he disbanded his army. The expedition under Governor Shirley, against Fort Niagara, was equally unsuccess- ful. By the month of August Shirley had advanced no farther than Oswego. Here he received the news of Braddock's defeat, which so disheartened him that, after building and garrisoning two forts at Oswego, he returned to Albany. By the death of Braddock Shir- ley succeeded to the chief command of all the royal forces in America. In December, 1755, Shirley held a con- ference with the colonial governors, at New York, to decide upon the campaign for the next year. It was agreed that three expedi- tions should be undertaken in 1756: one against Niagara ; a second against Fort Du- quesne, and a third against Crown Point. In the meantime Lord Loudon was appointed by the king commander-in-chief of the forces in America. He sent over General Aber- crombie as his lieutenant. Abercrombie ar- rived in June with several regiments of British regulars. He relieved General Shir- ley from command, but nothing was to be done until the arrival of the commander-in- chief, who did not reach America until July. Lord Loudon was a more pompous and a slower man than Braddock, and more incom- petent. A force of seven thousand men was assembled at Albany for the expedition against Ticonderoga and Crown Point, and Loudon at once repaired thither, and as- sumed the command. The colonists were confident that something of importance would now be accomplished ; but they were destined to disappointment. The com- mander-in-chief and his subordinates spent their time in settling the relative rank of the royal and provincial officers. Notwithstanding the fact that all that had been accomplished during the war had been gained by the colonial forces, there was an iniquitous regulation which gave the pre- cedence to the lowest ofificer holding a royal commission over one holding a higher rank from any of the colonies. This led to many disputes, and the colonists saw themselves robbed of the honors they had so fairly won. This was only one of the many wrongs by which Great Britain succeeded in alienating the people of America from their attachment to her. Successes of Montcalm. In the meantime Dieskau had been suc- ceeded as governor of Canada by the Marquis de Montcalm, the ablest of the rulers of New France. He was a man of genuine ability and of indomitable energy. He reached Quebec in 1756, and at once set out for Ticonderoga, which he placed in a state of defence. Perceiving the exposed condition of the English forts at Oswego he resolved to capture them. Collecting a force of five thousand Frenchmen, Canadians and Indians, he crossed the lake from Frontenac, and reached Oswego on the fifth of August. 304 THE FRENCH AND INDIAN WAR. He soon drove the English out of Fort Oswego ; but Fort Ontario, the second work, opposed a more vigorous resistance to him. The garrison held out until their com- mander, Colonel Mercer, was killed, and they had lost all hope of receiving aid from Albany, when they capitulated. An immense amount of military stores, one hundred and thirty-five pieces of cannon, and all the boats and vessels Shirley had prepared for the ex- pedition against Niagara fell into the hands of Montcalm. The Iroquois had viewed the erection of the forts at Oswego by the Eng- lish with great jealousy, and in order to con- ciliate them Montcalm wisely destroyed the works, and withdrew into Canada. Master of Twenty Legions. Loudon had detached a force under Colonel Webb to the assistance of the Oswego forts, but it was sent so late that it was met on the way by the news of the cap- ture of the forts. Colonel Webb, in dismay, fell back rapidly, and obstructed the road to Albany. Having failed to accomplish anything against the enemy Lord Loudon now under- took to subjugate the colonies of New York and Pennsylvania. He was firmly convinced that the colonists needed to be taught sub- mission to the will of the royal commander, and as he had been made a sort of viceroy of all the colonies, he thought the present a fitting occasion to teach them this lesson. He demanded of the cities of Albany, New York and Philadelphia free quarters for his troops during the winter. The mayor of New York refused the demand " as contrary to the laws of England and the liberties of America." " G — d d — n my blood," said the viceroy to the mayor ; " if you do not billet my officers upon free quarters this day, I'll order here all the troops in North America under my command, and billet them myself upon the city." There was no reasoning with " the master of twenty legions," and the magistrates were obliged to get up a subscription' for the free support, during the winter, of an army that had passed a whole campaign without com- ing in sight of the enemy. In Philadelphia the matter was settled very much in the same way. Albany was also obliged to sub- mit, but the magistrates took occasion to tell the royal officers that they did not want their services, as they could defend their frontiers themselves. " The frontier was left open to the French ; this quartering troops in the principal towns, at the expense of the inhabitants, by the illegal authority of a military chief, was the great result of the campaign." It was becoming clear to the colonists that their safety from the depreda- tions of the French and savages was not to be gained by the royal troops, but by their own efforts. Mock Battles and Sieges. A congress of governors was held at Boston in January, 1757, and it was resolved that there should be but one expedition this year, and that this should be sent under the Earl of Loudon against Louisburg. The frontier posts, especially Forts Edward and William Henry, were to be defended, and Washington, with the Virginia troops, was to guard the border of that colony against the expeditions of the French from Fort Du- quesne. The last was a difficult and almost impossible duty, for the French from Fort Duquesne could choose their point of attack anywhere on the long and exposed frontier, while the force under Washington was utterly inadequate to the task of watching the entire line. Leaving Bouquet to guard the frontier of Carolina against the Cherokees, and Webb to SANGUINARY STRUGGLES ON THE FRONTIER. 305 hold the country between Lake George and the Hudson, Lord Loudon, on the twentieth of June, 1757, sailed from New York with six thousand regulars to attack Louisburg. He proceeded to Halifax, where he was joined by a fleet of eleven ships of war and four thousand troops, bringing his whole force to ten thousand regulars and six- teen ships of the line and a number of frigates. The campaign of this redoubtable warrior is thus des- cribed by Bancroft: "He landed (at Ha- . lifax). levelled the uneven ground for a parade, planted a vegetable garden as a precaution against the scurvy, exercised the men in mock battles and sieges and storm- ings of fortresses, and when August came, and the spirit of the army was broken, and Hay, a major-general, ex- pressed contempt so loudly as to be arrested, the troops were embarked, as if for Louisburg. But ere the ships sailed, the reconnoitring vessels came with the news that the French at Cape Breton had one more ship than the English, and the plan of campaign was changed. Part of the soldiers landed again at Halifax, and the Earl of Loudon., leaving his garden to the weeds, and his place of arms to briars, sailed for New York. 20 The Marquis of Montcalm was a very different man from the Earl of Loudon. As a man he was superior to him in every way; as a commander he was active, quick and resolute ; while Loudon was incompetent, slow and pompous. Montcalm had stationed himself at Ticonderoga, in order to be able to watch the English, and he resolved to take advantage of Lord Loudon's absence to attack F'ort William Henry, at the head of SITE OF FORT WILLIAM HENRY ON LAKE GEORGE. Lake George. In the first place, previous to starting on this enterprise, he made his court to the Oneidas, the Senecas and other sav- age tribes, and gained them over to his interests. These native warriors crossed the waters of Lake Champlain in two hundred canoes with pennons flying, and all the pomp of savage warfare. Assembling beneath the 3o6 THE FRENCH AND INDIAN WAR. battlements of Ticonderoga, in the midst of woods and mountains, they sang the war- song, danced the war-dance, and listened to the eloquence of their orators. On the sec- ond of August Montcalm appeared before the fort with a force of about six thousand French and Canadians and seventeen hun- dred Indians, and laid siege to it. The MONTCALM. garrison consisted of about three thousand men, under Colonel Monroe, a gallant offi- cer. Montcalm summoned him to surrender the fort, but Monroe returned an indignant refusal to this demand, and sent to General Webbe, at Fort Edward, fifteen miles dis- tant, to ask for assistance. Webbe might ei'^ily have saved the fort, as he had four thousand men under his command, but he made no effort to do so. Colonel Putnam, afterwards famous in the Revolution, eagerly sought ^nd at last re- ceived permission to march with his regi- ment to Monroe's assistance, but he had proceeded Only a few miles when Webbe commanded him to return to Fort Edward. In the place of assistance, the timid Webbe then sent to Mon- roe a letter greatly exaggerating the force of the French and ad- vising him to surrender. This letter was intercepted by Mont- calm, who was on the point of raising the siege, and he for- warded it to Monroe, with a renewed demand for his sur- render. The brave veteran held out, however, until nearly all his guns were disabled and his am- munition nearly exhausted. He then hung out a flag of truce, and Montcalm, who was too true a hero not to appreciate valor in a foe, granted him liberal terms. The garrison were allowed to march out with the honors of war upon giving their parole not to serve against France for eight- een months. They were to re- tain their private property and were to liberate all their pris- oners. On the ninth of August the fort was surrendered to the French. Montcalm had kept the savages from liquor, in order to be able to restrain them in the hour of victory. They now sought and obtained rum from the English, and spent the night in dancing and singing. The next morning, as the English marched out of their camp, the Indians fell upon them and began to plunder them. From robbery the 307 308 THE FRENCH AND INDIAN WAR. excited savages soon passed to murder, and many of the English were killed and others made prisoners. The French officers threw themselves into the melee and exerted themselves gallantly to control the Indians. Many of them were wounded in these efforts. Montcalm in an agony implored the Indians to respect the treaty. " Kill me," he cried, as he struggled to restrain the savages, "but spare the English, who are under my protec- tion." He called to the English soldiers to defend themselves. The retreat to Fort Edward became a disorderly fight. Only about six hundred men reached there in a body. More than four hundred had sought shelter in the French camp, and were sent by Montcalm to their friends under the pro- tection of a strong escort. He also sent one of his officers to ransom those who had been taken prisoners by the Indians. The vast stores accumulated at Fort William Henry were carried away by the French, and the work itself demolished. Triumph of the French. The loss of Fort William Henry greatly frightened General Webbe at Fort Edward. In spite of his forceof six thousand men, and the withdrawal of the French to Lake Cham- plain, he seriously contemplated a retreat to beyond Albany. Lord Loudon, who had arrived at New York, was equally impressed with the danger, and proposed to take posi- tion with his army on Long Island, for the defence of the continent. The campaign was over, and the French were everywhere triumphant. With the ex- ception of Acadia, they held all the country they had occupied at the beginning of the war. The English had lost the forts at Oswego and William Henry, and immense quantities of supplies. They had been en- tirely expelled from the valleys of the Ohio and the St. Lawrence, and the hostile parties of the Indians were enabled to extend their ravages far into the interior of the colonies. America was thoroughly disgusted with the incompetency and cowardice of the royal commanders. The old spell of British invin- cibility was broken, and the colonists were rapidly losing their respect for the troops sent over from England to protect them. Men were coming to the conclusion that their connection with Great Britain was sim- ply a curse to the colonies. They regarded the conduct of the war thus far by the royal officials as simply " a mixture of ignorance and cowardice," and were satisfied that they were amply able to defend themselves against the French and Indians without any assist- ance whatever from England. Attempts to Force Submission. The royal officials sought to cover their failures by complaints against the Ameri- cans. The hearty disgust and contempt with which the colonists regarded their pusillanimous conduct was reported by them to the home goverment as evidence of a mutinous spirit on the part of the Americans. Throughout the colonies they pursued one uniform system of seeking to force the prov- inces into submission to their own illegal acts, and to compel them to an acknowledg- ment of the arbitrary power of the crown. " Everywhere," says Bancroft, " the royal officers actively asserted the authority of the king and the British nation over America. Did the increase of population lead the leg- islature to enlarge the representative body? The right to do so was denied, and represen- tation was held to be a privilege conceded by the king as a boon, and limited by his will. Did the British commander believe that the French colonies through the neutral islands derived provisions from the continent ? By his own authority he proclaimed an embargo in every American port." CHAPTER XXIV • End of the French and Indian War A Change for the Better — William Pitt, Prime Minister — Vigorous Measures Adopted — Recall of the Earl of Loudon — Capture of i.ouisburg — Abercrombie on Lake George — Advances Against Ticonderoga — Death of Lord Howe — Failure of the English Attack Upon Ticonderoga — Disgraceful Conduct of Abercrombie — His Retreat — Capture of Fort Froritenac — Advance of General Forbes — Grant's Defeat — The Virginians Again Save the Regulars — Capture of Fort Duquesne — Washington Retires from the Army — Ticonderoga and Crown Point Occupied by the English — Capture of Fort Niagara — The Expedition Against Quebec — Failure of the First Operations — Despondency of Wolfe — He Discovers a Landing Place — The Army Scales the Heights of Abraham — Montcalm's Surprise — Battle of the Plains of Abraham — Death of Wolfe — Defeat of the French — Death of Montcalm — Surrender of Quebec — Capture of Montreal — Treaty of Paris — Canada Ceded to England — France Loses All Her American Possessions — The Cherokee War — Hostility of the Indians to the English — Pontiac's War — Death of Pontiac — Bouquet Relieves Fort Duquesne — Results of the War. THE gross mismanagement of affairs in America aroused a storm of in- dignation in England, and King George was obliged to yield to the popular sentiment and change his ministers. At the head of the new ministry he placed William Pitt, the leader of the popular party, who was destined to become one of the greatest of English statesmen. His great talents had raised him from the insignificant position of ensign in the guards to the lead- ership of the government of Great Britain, and were now to be the means of retrieving the disasters of his country and regaining for her her lost power and pi"estige. A truly great man, Pitt knew how to ad- mire and sympathize with merit in others, and was not blinded by the glitter of rank, nor hampered by an aristocratic faith in the divinity of royalty. He appreciated and sympathized with the Americans more per- fectly than any of his predecessors in office, and began his career with the wise determi- nation to encourage and develop their patri- otism by a generous and systematic assist- ance of their efforts. He caused the government of Great Britain to assume the expenses of the war, and announced that the sums expended by the colonies for the public defence, since the commencement of hostili- ties, would be refunded, and that henceforth the British government would provide the funds for the prosecution of the war. The colonies were each required to furnish troops, but Pitt " stipulated that the colonial troops raised for this purpose should be sup- plied with arms, ammunition, tents and provi- sions in the same manner as the regular troops and at the king's expense ; so that the only charge to the colonies would be that of levy- ing, clothing, and paying the men. The governors were also authorized to issue com- missions to provincial officers, from colonels downwards, and these officers were to hold rank in the united army according to their commissions. Had this liberal and just sys- tem been adopted at the outset, it would have put a very different face upon the affairs of the colonies."* These energetic and just measures were promptly responded to by the colonies, which placed a force of . twenty- eight thousand men in the field. To these Pitt added twenty-two thousand British reg- ulars, making a total of fifty thousand men, * Sparks' Writings of Washington, vol. ii., p. 289 — Note. 3IO THE FRENCH AND INDIAN WAR. the largest army that had ever been assem- bled in America, and exceeding in number the entire male population of Canada. The Earl of Loudon was recalled, and in- stead of a single supreme command three separate expeditions were organized under different officers. An expedition against WILLIAM PITT. Louisburg was placed under the orders of Lord Jeffrey Amherst, an able and upright soldier, assisted by Brigadier General James Wolfe ; who, though only thirty-one years old, had spent eighteen years in the army, and had served at Dettingen, Fontenoy and Laffeldt. He was considered* one of the ablest commanders in the English service, and Avas universally beloved. To General Forbes the task of conquering the Ohio val- ley was assigned ; and the expedition against Ticonderoga and Crown Point was intrusted to General Abercrombie. Pitt had little faith in Abercrombie, who had been Lord Loudon's most trusted lieutenant; but retained him to please Lord Bute, and associated with him, as his second in command, the young and gifted Lord George Howe, in the hope that Howe's genius would redeem Abercrombie's faults, and lead him to victory. The expedition against Louisburg consisted of a fleet of twenty ships of the line and eighteen frigates, under Admiral Boscawen, and an army of fou rteen thousand men, under General Am- herst. The fleet reached Cabarus Bay on the se- cond of June, 1758. The fortifications of Louis- burg were somewhat di- lapidated, but were held by a garrison of thirty- two hundred men, com- manded by Chevalier Drucour, an ofificer of experience and determination. These frigates were sunk across the mouth of the harbor to close it against the English, and within the basin lay five ships of the line, one fifty-gun ship and two frigates, which took part in the defence of the place. END OF THE FRENCH AND INDIAN WAR. 311 The surf was so heavy that Amherst was unable to land his troops until the eighth. The first division was led by Wolfe, under the cover of the fire of the fleet. He forbade a gun to be fired from his command, and, upon nearing the shore, leaped into the water, followed by his men, and in the face of a sharp resistance, drove the French from their outposts into the town. The place was now regularly invested, and, after a bombard- ment of fifty days, during which the shipping in the harbor was destroyed, the town and fortifications were surrendered to the English on the twenty-seventh of July. With Louis- burg the French gave up the islands of Cape : Breton and Prince Edward. Five thousand prisoners and an immense quantity of mili- tary supplies were secured by the English. Halifax being already the chief naval sta- tion of the English in these waters, Louis- burg was abandoned. Amherst, Wolfe and Boscawen were honored by the English gov- ernment for their victory. The season was too far advanced after the capture of Louis - burg to admit of the commencement of operations against Quebec, and Amherst was suddenly called away from the coast to take charge of the army on Lake George. Down Lake George. Abercrombie had assembled a force of seven thousand English regulars and nine thousand Americans at the head of Lake George. Among the American troops were Stark and Putnam, afterwards famous in the war for independence, the former serving as a captain in the New Hampshire regiment, the latter as a major of Connecticut troops, Abercrombie was commander-in-chief, but the troops had little confidence in him. They were devoted to Lord Howe, who was the real leader of the expedition. On the fifth of July the army broke up its camp, and embarking in ten hundred and thirty-five boats, with the artillery on rafts, descended the lake to its lower end, from which they were to advance overland upon Fort Carillon, which the French had erected on the pro- montory of Ticonderoga. The next morning Lord Howe pushed forward with the ad- vanced guard, and encountered a scouting party of the French. A sharp conflict en- sued. The French were easily driven back, but Lord Howe was killed almost at the first fire. His death cast a gloom over the army, which promisecj ill for the success of the undertaking. Gallant Attack. Abercrombie continued to advance, and on the morning of the ninth sent Clerk, his chief engineer, to reconnoitre the French position at Ticonderoga. Clerk reported that the French works were feeble, and im- perfectly armed. Stark, of New Hampshire, and some of the English officers saw that they were both strong and well provided with artillery. They so reported to Aber- crombie, but he accepted the statement of his engineer, and, without waiting for his artil- lery, ordered an assault upon the French lines that very day. The Marquis of Montcalm was command- ing in person at Ticonderoga, and had dis- posed his small force of thirty-six hundred and fifty men in a line of breastworks thrown up about half a mile beyond the fort, and extending across the promontory on ^^•hich that work stood. The death of Lord Howe had deprived the English of their only leader capable of contending against this accom- plished commander, and the incompetency of Abercrombie was to render easy what might have been, under other circumstances, a most difficult undertaking. Abercrombie could have brought up his artillery by the next day, but he was un- willing to wait for it, as he anticipated an 312 THE FRENCH AND INDIAN WAR. easy victory. He stationed himself in a place of safety about two miles from the field, and ordered his troops to assail the French in- trenchments with the bayonet. The attack was made in gallant style, and was continued with energy during the afternoon. The English performed prodigies of valor, but were not able to overcome the strength of the French works, or the activity with which the defenders maintained their position. Un- like the English commander, Montcalm was everywhere along his line, (*heering his men with his presence and example, and distribut- ing refreshments to them with his own hands. Without a commander who dared place himself under fire, with no one on the spot to direct their movements, the valor of the English was thrown away. A volley from an advanced party of their own men com- pleted their confusion, and they broke help- lessly and fell back in disorder towards Lake George. Abercrombie made no effort to rally them ; he was too badly frightened for that; and led the army towards the landing- place, on Lake George, with such haste that but for the energetic action of Colonel Brad- street the troops would have rushed pell-mell into the boats, without any semblance of order, and with a still greater loss of life. The English Retreat. The English lost nearly two thousand men in the attack upon the French works, but they still had left a force of more than four times the strength of the French, and their artillery had not been engaged. With this force they might have taken Ticonderoga, but Abercrombie was too much terrified to attempt anything of the kind. On the morn- ing of the ninth he embarked his troops and hastened to the head of Lake George. Montcalm was astounded at his retreat, but as he had too small a force, and his men were exhausted, he made no effort at pur- suit. Arrived at the head of Lake George, the frightened Abercrombie sent the artillery and ammunition back to Albany for safety, and occupied his army with the erection of Fort George, liear the ruins of Fort William Henry. The news of this disaster caused General Amherst to hasten with four regi- ments and a battalion from Louisburg to Lake George. He reached the camp of Abercrombie on the fifth of October. In November orders arrived from England ap- pointing Amherst commander-in-chief of the royal forces in America, and recalling Aber- crombie, who returned to England to attempt to excuse his cowardice by villifying Amer- ica and the Americans. He could not de- ceive Pitt, however, whose indignation at his pusillanimous conduct was only restrained by the influence of Lord Bute in the royal councils. Sudden Flight. After Abercrombie's retreat. Colonel Brad- street, of New York, at his earnest solicita- tion, obtained leave from the council of war to undertake an expedition against Fort Frontenac, which, being situated at the foot of Lake Ontario, commanded both the lake and the St. Lawrence. Its possession was of the highest importance to the French, as it was their main depot for the supply of the posts on the upper lakes and the Ohio with military stores. Collecting a force of twenty- seven hundred men, all Americans, consist- ing chiefly of troops from New York and Massachusetts, Bradstreet hastened to Os- wego before his movements were known to the enemy. From Oswego he crossed the lake in open boats, and landed on the Can- ada side within a mile of Fort Frontenac. His sudden arrival struck terror to the garrison, and the greater part secured their safety by an instantaneous flight. The next day the fort surrendered. The victors cap- END OF THE FRENCH AND INDIAN WAR. 313 tured with it a vast quantity of military stores destined for the forts in the interior, and a fleet of nine armed vessels, with which the French controlled the lake. Two of the vessels were laden with a part of the stores and sent to Oswego, and the remainder of the vessels and stores, together with the fort, were destroyed. The English then re- crossed the lake to Oswego. The capture of Fort Frontenac was an event of great im- portance, as it led, as we shall see further on, to the abandonment by the French of their posts in the valley of the Ohio, For the reduction of Fort Duquesne a force of seven thousand men was assembled under General Forbes. Of these, five thou- sand were from Pennsylvania and Virginia, the troops from the latter colony being under the command of Colonel Washington. The Pennsylvania troops assembled at Raystown, on the Juniata, and the Virginians at Fort Cumberland. Washington urged upon Forbes the advantages of adopting the old road cut by Braddock's army in his advance to the Ohio, but Forbes, at the suggestion of some land-speculators, decided to construct a new and a better road farther to the north. As regarded the future settlement of the west this was an excellent plan, but as far as it concerned the immediate object of the campaign it was a mistake, as it involved a large expenditure of labor and a great waste of time. Whife this road was being constructed General Bouquet, with the advanced guard, crossed Laurel Hill and established a post at Loyal Hanna. The new road progressed very slowly, only forty-five miles being con- structed in six weeks. Bouquet had with him a force of about two thousand men, chiefly Highlanders and Virginians. Learn- ing from his scouts that Fort Duquesne was held by a garrison of only eight hundred men, of whom three hundred were Indians, Bouquet, without orders from General Forbes, resolved to attempt the capture of the fort by a sudden blow. He detached a force of eight hundred Highlanders and a company of Virginians, under Major Grant, to reconnoitre Fort Duquesne. The French were fully informed of all of Grant's movements, but they allowed him to approach unmolested, intending to disarm his vigilance and then attack him. Grant affected the usual contempt for the provincial troops, and upon arriving before the fort, placed Major Lewis with the Vir- ginians to guard the baggage, and sent his regulars forward to reconnoitre and make a sketch of the work. He was greatly en- couraged by the fact that the French allowed him to approach without firing a gun at him, and in his self-complacency marched right into an ambuscade which the enemy had prepared for him. The Regulars' Narrow Escape. The French commander had posted the Indians along the sides of the defile by which Grant was advancing, and at a given signal the garrison made a sudden sally from the fort against the Highlanders, while the In- dians opened a heavy fire upon them from their place of concealment. The regulars were quickly thrown into confusion, and their officers were found incapable of con- ducting such a mode of warfare. Attracted by the firing. Major Lewis, with a company of Virginians, hastened to the scene of the encounter, and by engaging the enemy hand- to-hand enabled the regulars to save them- selves from a general massacre. The de- tachment was routed with heavy loss, and both Grant and Lewis were taken prisoners. The fugitives retreated to the point where the baggage had been left. It was guarded by Captain Bullit, whom Lewis had left there with one company of Virginians. 314 THE FRENCH AND INDIAN WAR. By the gallant and skillful resistance of this little force the French and Indians were checked, and finally driven back in confusion. The English then continued their retreat with all speed to Loyal Hanna. Again the provincials had saved the regulars from total destruction. General Forbes had the mag- nanimity to acknowledge and compliment the Virginians for their services, and Cap- tain BuUit was promoted to the rank of major. General Forbes was greatly disheartened by the news of Grant's disaster. A council of war was called to deliberate upon the future operations of the army, and decided that as it was now November, and they were still fifty miles from Fort Duquesne, with an unbroken forest between them and the fort, nothing more could be accomplished until the spring. The enterprise was on the point of being abandoned when fortunately three prisoners were brought in, from whom Wash- ington drew the information that the garri- son of Fort Duquesne was reduced to a very small force, that the Indians had all deserted the French, and that the expected reinforce- ments and supplies from Canada had not arrived. It was evident that a well-executed effort would result in the capture of the fort. The Fort Abandoned. This information decided General Forbes to continue the expedition. A force of twenty-five hundred picked troops was placed under Washington's command, and he was ordered to push forward as rapidly as possible, and prepare the road for the ad- vance of the main army. Washington was ably seconded in his movements by the en- ergetic Armstrong, and the march was pressed with such vigor that in ten days the army arrived in the vicinity of Fort Duquesne. The French now saw that the fall of the fort was inevitable. They had but five hun- dred men, and Bradstreet's capture of Fort Frontenac had cut them off from the rein- forcements and supplies they had expected from Canada. Unwilling to stand a siege, the result of which was certain, they aban- doned the fort on the night of the twenty- fourth of November, and embarking in flat boats, floated down the Ohio to join their countrymen in the valley of the Mississippi. On the morning of the twenty-fifth, Wash- ington, with his gallant band, entered the fort and planted the British flag on the ram- parts just abandoned by the French. At the universal desire of the army, Forbes named the place Fort Pitt, which has since been changed to Pittsburgh. The splendid city which occupies the site is the proudest monument that has been built to the memory of the " Great Commoner." Two regiments, composed of Pennsyl- vanians, Virginians and Marylanders, under Mercer, were left to garrison Fort Pitt, which was restored to its former strength. General Forbes then returned east of the mountains, and Washington resigned his commission and retired to private life. The object of the campaign was accomplished, and he could now enjoy the rest to which five years of constant service had entitled him. The capture of Fort Duquesne was the most important event of the war. It put an end to the French occupation of the valley of the Ohio and settled the claim of Great Britain to that valuable region. The Indians, having no longer the support and encour- agement which they had derived from the French at this post, ceased their hostile efforts, and during the remainder of the war the frontiers of Virginia and Pennsylvania were at peace. The capture of the fort was followed by a large emigration west of the mountains, which, beginning the next spring, WASHINGTON PLANTING THE FLAG ON FORT DUQUESNE. 315 3i6 THE FRENCH AND INDIAN WAR. soon placed a large and energetic population of Englishmen and their families in the val- ley of the Ohio. The Indians, disheartened by the defeat of the French, began to form treaties of peace or neutrality with the Eng- lish. Washington's Valor. Washington's services in this campaign were acknowledged with pride throughout the colonies, but the British government took no notice of them. Not even Pitt, with all his appreciation of America, thought it worth while to offer him any promotion or reward, as had been done in the case of other meritorious provincial commanders. Soon after his withdrawal from the army he took his seat in the house of burgesses, to which he had been elected. That body ordered its speaker to publicly thank Colonel Washington in the name of the house and of the people of Virginia for his services to his country. The speaker discharged this duty with ease and dignity, but when Washington attempted to reply he blushed and stam- mered and was unable to speak a word. The speaker relieved his confusion by coming to his assistance with the kind remark : " Sit down, Mr, Washington ; your modesty equals your valor, and that surpasses the power of any language I possess."' The English cause was now more success- ful than it had ever been, and Canada was exhausted by the efforts she had put forth for her defence. This was clear to Mont- calm, who had no hope of holding New France against the attacks of Great Britain, and it was also clear to the far-seeing mind ol Pitt. The British minister, therefore, re- solved that the next campaign should be decisive of the war. He promptly reim- bursed the colonies for the expenses incurred by them during the past year, and found no difficulty in enlisting them heartily in his schemes. Three expeditions were ordered for the year 1759. Amherst was to advance by way of Lake Champlain, and after capturing Ticonderoga and Crown Point, was to lay siege to Montreal ; Wolfe was to ascend the St. Lawrence and attack Quebec, and was to be joined by Amherst if the latter should be successful in his efforts against Montreal ; and General Prideaux was to proceed by way of Oswego to capture Fort Niagara, and then descend Lake Ontario and join Amherst at Montreal. Amherst moved promptly against Ticon- deroga, which post was abandoned by the French upon his approach. Crown Point fell into his hands in the same manner, but here the advance of the English was stayed. No boats had bejn provided to transport the army down Lake Champlain, and Amherst was forced to halt until these could be pro- cured. He was thus able to invest Mon- treal, or to co-operate with Wolfe in the movement against Quebec. The American Gibraltar. General Prideaux began his march to Os- wego about the same time, and proceeding from Oswego, laid siege to Fort Niagara. He was killed by the bursting of a gun soon after the commencement of the siege, and the command devolved upon Sir William Johnson, who pressed the attack with vigor. On the twenty-third of July, 1758, the fort capitulated ; but Johnson was obliged to abandon the attempt to descend the St. Law- rence to Wolfe's assistance from a lack of boats and provisions. The expedition against Quebec assembled in June, 1758, at Louisburg, under the com- mand of General Wolfe. It consisted of eight thousand troops and a fleet of twenty- two ships of the line, besides frigates and some smaller vessels. On the twenty-sixth of June the Isle of Orleans was reached, and END OF THE FRENCH AND INDIAN WAR. 317 the troops were imme- diately landed. A short distance up the riyer Quebec rose defiantly, its seemingly impregna- ble citadel of St. Louis crowning the lofty hills that rose from the river's brink. For the defence of the place Montcalm had six greatly reduced bat- talions of regulars and a force of Canadian militia. A few Indians remained faithful to him; but the majority of the tribes, doubtful of the issue of the contest, preferred to remain neutral. The French commander, see- ing the inferiority of his force to that of the Eng- lish, put his trust chiefly in the natural strength of his position, which he believed would enable him to hold it even with his small force. The situation of Que- bec was peculiar. It lay on a peninsula, between the river St. Charles on the north and the St. Lawrence on the south and east. On these sides it was perfectly protected by the river, leaving the west side alone exposed. The lower town was situated on the beach, while the upper stood on the cliffs two hundred feet above the water, and above this still rose the castle of St. Louis. Above the city the high pro- montory on which the upper town was built NIAGARA FALLS. stretched away for several miles in an elevated plain, and from the river to this plain the rocks rose almost perpendicularly. Every landing-place was carefully guard- ed, and the whole range of cliffs seemed 3i8 THE FRENCH AND INDIAN WAR. bristling with cannon. The French com- mander did not believe it possible for an army to scale these cliffs. Montcalm located his camp below the city, between the St. Charles and the Montmorenci rivers, and covered the river front of his position with many floating batteries and ships of war, which presented a formidable appearance. GENERAL JAMES WOLFE. The naval superiority of the English at once gave them the command of the river. The French were driven from Point Levi, opposite the city, and upon it Wolfe erected batteries, from which he bombarded the lower town and soon laid it in ashes. The upper town and the citadel were beyond the range of his guns, and could not be injured by this fire. Wolfe now decided to storm the French camp on the opposite side of the St. Law- lence, and in the month of July attacked them from the direction of the Montmorenci, but owing to the haste of the first division, which advanced to the assault before it could be properly supported by the second, the attack was repulsed with a loss of five hun- dred men. This repulse greatly dis- heartened the English commander, whose sensitive spirit suffered keenly under the dread that his enterprise was doomed to failure. He obtained news of the capture of Fort Niagara and the occupation of Ticonder- oga and Crown Point, and eagerly watched for the approach of the promised assistance from Amherst. It never came, and Wolfe saw that he must take Quebec by his own efforts or not at all. He attempted several diversions above the city in the hope of drawing Montcalm from his intrenchments into the open field, but the latter merely sent De Bougainville with fifteen hundred men to watch the shore above Quebec and prevent a landing. Wolfe fell into a fever, caused by his anxiety, and his despatches to his government created the gravest uneasiness in England for the suc- cess of his enterprise. Though ill, Wolfe examined the river with eagle eyes to detect some place at which a landing could be attempted. His energy was rewarded by his discovery of the cove which now bears his name. From the shore at the head of this cove a steep and difficult pathway, along which two men could scarcely march abreast, wound up to the summit of the heights and was guarded by a small force of Canadians. Wolfe at once resolved to effect a landing here and ascend END OF THE FRENCH AND INDIAN WAR. 319 the heights by this path. The greatest secrecy was necessary to the success of the undertaking, and in order to deceive the French as to his real design. Captain Cook, afterwards famous as a great navigator, was sent to take soundings and place buoys opposite Montcalm's camp, as if that were to be the real point of attack. The morning of the thirteenth of September was chosen for the movement, and the day and night of the twelfth were spent in preparations for it. ''To Conquer or Die." At one o'clock on the morning of the thir- teenth a force of about five thousand men under Wolfe, with Monckton and Murray, set off in boats from the fleet, which had ascended the river several days before, and dropped down to the point designated for the land- ing. Each officer was thoroughly informed of the duties required of him, and each shared the resolution of the gallant young commander, to conquer or die. As the boats floated down the stream, in the clear, cool starlight, Wolfe spoke to his officers of the poet Gray, and of his " Elegy in a Country Churchyard." " I would prefer," said he, " being the author of that poem to the glory of beating the French to-morrow." Then in a musing voice he repeated the lines : " The boast of heraldy, the pomp of power, And all that beauty, all that wealth e'er gave, Await alike the inexorable hour; The paths of glory lead but to the grave." In a short while the landing-place was reached, and the fleet, following silently, took position to cover the landing if neces- sary. Wolfe and his immediate command leaped ashore and secured the pathway. The light infantry, who were carried by the tide a little below the path, clambered up the side of the heights, sustaining themselves by clinging to the roots and shrubs which lined the precipitous face of the hill. They reached the summit and drove off the picket- guard after a slight skirmish. The rest of the troops ascended in safety by the path- way, and a battery of two guns was aban- doned on the left to Colonel Howe. Having gained the heights, Wolfe moved forward rapidly to clear the forest, and by daybreak his army was drawn up on the Heights of Abraham, in the rear of the city. Montcalm was speedily informed of the presence of the English. " It can be but a small party come to burn a few houses and retire," he answered incredulously. A brief examination satisfied him of his danger, and he exclaimed in amazement : " Then they have at last got to the weak side of this miserable garrison. We must give battle and crush them before mid-day." He at once despatched a messenger for De Bou- gainville, who was fifteen miles up the river, and marched from his camp opposite the city to the Heights of Abraham to drive the English from them. The opposing forces were about equal in numbers, though the English troops were superior to their adver- saries in steadiness and determination. Death of a Hero. The battle began about ten o'clock and was stubbornly contested. It was at length decided in favor of the English. Wolfe, though wounded several times, continued to direct his army until, as he was leading them to the final charge, he received a musket ball in the breast. He tottered and called to an officer near him : " Support me ; let not my brave fellows see me drop." He was borne tenderly to the rear, and water was brought him to quench his thirst. At this moment the officer upon whom he was leaning cried out: "They run! they run ! " "Who run?" asked the dying hero, eagerly. " The French," said 320 THE FRENCH AND INDIAN WAR. the officer, " give way everywhere." " What ?" said Wolfe, summoning up his remaining strength, " do they run already ? Go, one of you, to Colonel Burton; bid him march Webb's regiment with all speed to Charles River to cut off the fugitives." Then, a smile of contentment overspreading his pale features, he murmured : " Now, God be praised, I die happy,"' and expired. He had De Bougainville arrived with his division, but Townshend declined to renew the en- gagement. Montcalm had borne himself heroically during the battle, and had done all that a brave and skillful commander could do to win the victory. As he was endeavoring to rally his troops at their final repulse, he was wounded for the second time, and was car- DEATH OF GENERAL WOLFE BEFORE QUEBEC. done his whole duty, and with his life had purchased an empire for his country. Monckton, the second in rank, having been wounded, the command devolved upon General Townshend, a brave officer, but incapable of following up such a success with vigor. He recalled the troops from the pursuit and contented himself with the pos- session of the battle-field. At this moment ried into the city. The surgeon informed him that his wound was mortal. " So much the better," he answered cheerfully ; " I shall not live to see the surrender of Quebec." De Ramsay, the commandant of the post asked his advice about the defence of the city. " To your keeping," answered Mont- calm, " I commend the honor of France. I will neither give orders nor interfere any END OF THE FRENCH AND INDIAN WAR. 321 further. I have business of greater moment to attend to. My time is short. I shall pass the night with God, and prepare myself for death." He then wrote a letter to the English com- mander, commending the French prisoners to his generosity, and at five o'clock on the morn- ing of the fourteenth his spirit passed away. Suc- ceeding generations have paid to his memory the honors it deserves, and on the spot where the fate of Quebec was de- cided the people of Ca- nada have erected, to commemorate the hero- ism of the conqueror and the conquered, a noble monument inscribed with the names of Wolfe and Montcalm. The French lost five hundred killed and one thousand prisoners,while the loss of the English was six hundred in killed and wounded. Five days afterward, on the eight- eenth of September, the city and garrison of Que- bec surrendered to Gen- eral Townshend. The capture of this great stronghold was hailed w^ith rejoicings in both America and England. Congratulations were showered upon Pitt, who modestly put them aside with the reverent remark : " I will aim to serve my country ; but the more a man is versed in business, the more he finds the hand of Providence everywhere." 21 In April, 1760, De Levi, the French com- mander at Montreal, attacked Quebec wntha force often thousand men, hoping to reduce it before the arrival of reinforcements from England. Murray, the English commander, marched out with three thousand men to KING GEORGE III. attack him, and in a severe battle on the- twenty-sixth of April was defeated and driven back to the city with a loss of one thousand men. The French then laid sieo-e o to Quebec, but on the ninth of May an 322 THE FRENCH AND INDIAN WAR. English fleet arrived to its relief, and De Levi was obliged to withdraw to Montreal. In September, Montreal itself was invested by a powerful force under General Amherst. Seeing that there was no hope of resistance, the French commander surrendered the town on the eighth of September, 1760. With this capture Canada passed entirely into the hands of the English. Detroit and the other posts on the lakes were soon given up by the French, and the dominion of France in America was confined to the valley of the Mississippi. There were no further hostili- ties between the English and French. Important Treaty. The French and Indian war was closed by the treaty of Paris, on the tenth of February, 1763. By this treaty Great Britain obtained all the French territory east of the Missis- sippi, with the exception of the island of New Orleans, the northern boundary of which was the rivers Iberville and Amite, and Lakes Maurepas and Pontchartrain. Florida was ceded to England by Spain in exchange for Havana. France ceded to Spain the island of New Orleans and all Louisiana west of the Mississippi. Thus Great Britain was mistress of the whole of the vast region east of the Mississippi, with the exception of the island of New Orleans, from the Arctic Ocean to the Gulf of Mexi- co. The region west of the Mississippi was claimed by Spain. In all the vast continent of America France retained not one foot of ground. In the meantime the Indians of the south- west had become involved in war with the whites. The Cherokees, who had always been friendly to the English, had done good service during the early part of the war by protecting the frontiers of Virginia, and had served also in Forbes' expedition against Fort Duquesne. They received for their services no reward or pay from any source, and as they were setting out for their homes neither General Forbes nor the colonial au- thorities supplied them with either food or money. To avoid starvation on their march they were compelled to plunder the barns of some of the settlers, and this led to a conflict which rapidly spread into a border war. The Cherokees Driven to Arms. Lyttleton, the governor of South Carolina, exerted himself to prevent the restoration of peace, and with success, as he desired the credit of exterminating the Cherokees. He was opposed by the legislature and people of the colony, but in 1759 he sent a force into their country, which committed such ravages that the Cherokees, driven to despair, re- solved upon a war of extermination. They made a league with the Muscogees, and sent to the French in Louisiana for military stores. The Carolinians asked aid of General Am- herst, who sent them a force of twelve hun- dred men, principally highlanders, under General Montgomery. Reinforced by a body of Carolinians, Montgomery invaded the Cherokee country in 1760, and laid it waste. This tribe had made great advances in civil- ization, and had settled in villages, and en- gaged in the cultivation of their lands. Their homes were made desolate, and they were driven to the mountains. Montgomery then rejoined Amherst, in the north, in obedience to orders ; but the Indians for many years maintained a desultory warfare along the southwestern border. The surrender of Canada to the , English was viewed with the greatest disfavor by the Indians of the north and west, who were attached to the French, and were unwilling to submit to the rule of the English. Im- mediately after the surrender the English occupied all the French posts along the lakes, and in the Ohio valley, with small END OF THE FRENCH AND INDIAN WAR. 323 garrisons. The contrast between these and the French, who had formerly held these forts, soon impressed itself forcibly upon the minds of the savages. The French had been friendly and kind to the Indians, and had sought to convert them to Christianity; the English were haughty and domineering, and insulted their priests, and denounced their religion. " King Pontiac." The French had prohibited the sale of rum to the Indians ; the English introduced it, and finding It profitable continued it, with a recklessness of consequences which did not escape the keen observation of the savages. The demoralization of the red men was rapid, and drunkenness and its attendant vices wrought sad changes in them. The tribes were bitterly hostile to the men who were ruining their people, and all were alarmed by the rapidity with which emigration had been pouring over the mountains since the capture of Fort Duquesne. They saw that they were about to be driven from their homes, and forced westward, before the advancing tide of the whites. The most determined opponent of the English rule was Pontiac, a chief of the Ottawas. He was a Catawba by birth, had been brought from his native country as a prisoner, and had been adopted into the Ot- tawa tribe, whose chief he had become by his bravery and skill. He was the idol of his own people, and his influence over the neigh- boring tribes was boundless. He was styled "the king and lord of all the country of the northwest," and bitterly resented the English occupation of his dominions. The first Eng- lish officer who came to take possession of the French forts was received by him with the stern demand, " How dare you come to visit my country without my leave ?" This " forest hero " now resolved to unite all the tribes of the northwest in a last de- termined effort to drive out the English, and regain the independence of the red man. The plan of operations which he adopted was most comprehensive, and was the most remarkable exhibition of genuine leadership ever given by an Indian. He began negotia- tions with the neighboring tribes, and in- duced the Delawares,Shawnees, the Senecas, Miamis, and many of the smaller tribes, oc- cupying the great region of the upper lakes, the valley of the Ohio, and a portion of the Mississippi valley, to join his people in their effort against the English. He sent a prophet to all the tribes to declare to them that the Great Spirit had revealed to him "that if the English were permitted to dwell in their midst, then the white man's diseases and poisons would utterly destroy them." The conspiracy was pressed forward with energy, and though it was more than a year in forming, it was kept a profound secret. The Plot Revealed. The principal post on the upper lakes was Detroit. It was surrounded by a numerous French population engaged in agriculture and trading. It was the centre of the trade of this region, and its possession was of the highest importance to the English. Pontiac was anxious to obtain possession of this fort and sent word to Major Gladwin, the commandant, that he was coming on a cer- tain day, with his warriors, to have a talk with him. The chief was resolved to make this visit the occasion of seizing the fort and massacring the garrison, and he and his warriors selected for the attempt cut down their rifles to a length which enabled them to conceal them under their blankets, in order to enter the fort with their arms. The plot was revealed to Gladwin by an Indian girl, whose affections had been won by one of the English officers, and when Pontiac and his warriors repaired to the fort 324 END OF THE FRENCH AND INDIAN WAR. 325 for their " talk " Gladwin made him aware that his conspiracy was discovered, and very unwisely permitted him to leave the fort in safety. Pontiac now threw off the mask of friendship and boldly attacked Detroit. Wholesale Slaughter. This was the signal for a general war. In about three weeks' time the savages sur- prised and captured every fort west of Ni- agara, with the exception of Detroit and Pittsburgh. The garrisons were, with a few exceptions, put to death. Over one hundred traders were killed and scalped in the woods, and more than five hundred families were driven, with the loss of many of their numbers, from their settlements on the fron- tier. Pontiac endeavored, without success, to capture Detroit, and a large force of the warriors of several of the tribes laid siege to Pittsburgh, the most important post in the valley of the Ohio. The ravages of the Indians were extended over the wide terri- tory between the Ohio and the Mississippi, and the settlements in that region were for the time completely broken up. General Bouquet, with a force of five hundred men, consisting chiefly of Scotch Highlanders, was sent from eastern Penn- sylvania to the relief of Fort Ligonier, which was located at the western base of the mountains, and of Pittsburgh. Their march lay through a region which had been deso- lated by the Indians, and they were obliged to depend upon the stores they carried with them. Upon reaching Fort Ligonier, Bou- quet found the communication with Pitts- burgh cut off, and could learn nothing of the fate of the fort or garrison. Leaving his cattle and wagons at Ligo- nier, he pushed forward with his men in light marching order, determined to ascer- tain if Pittsburgh still held out. He had to fight his way through the Indians, who turned aside from the siege of the fort and ambushed the Highlanders at nearly every step. They were overwhelmingly defeated by the gallant Highlanders, for Bouquet was now a veteran Indian fighter, and had learned to fight the savages with their own tactics. Their rout was complete, and Bouquet reach- ed Pittsburgh in safety, to the great joy of the garrison. Victory Over the Indians. Bouquet's victory was decisive. The In- dians were utterly disheartened and fled westward ; and from that day the Ohio val- ley was freed from their violence. The tide of emigration once more began to flow over the mountains, and this time it was to know no cessation. The tribes concerned in Pon- tiac's conspiracy lost hope, and were over- awed by the preparations of the English for their destruction, and began to withdraw from the confederacy and make peace with the whites. Pontiac soon found himself de- serted by all his followers, even by his own people ; but his proud spirit would not brook the thought of submission. He would make no treaty ; he was the mortal foe of the English, and would never acknowledge their rule. Leaving his home and his people, he set out for the country of the Illinois, for purpose of stirring up the more distant tribes to war. A proclamation from Lord Amherst offered a reward for his murder, and he soon fell, the victim of the hired assassin. The long war was over. It had brought both loss and gain to the colonies. It had involved them in an expenditure of sixteen million dollars, of which sum but five milhon dollars had been refunded by the Enghsh government. Thus the debts of the colonies were greatly increased. Thirty thousand men had been killed, or had died from wounds or disease during the war, and the sufferings of the settlers along the extended 326 THE FRENCH AND INDIAN WAR. and exposed frontiers had been almost incal- culable. On the other hand, the war had greatly increased the business of the colonies, es- pecially in those of the north. Large sums had been spent in America by Great Britain for the support of her armies and fleets, and many fortunes were built up by enterprising men during this period. Above all the Americans had been taught their own strength, and the value of united action. They had often proved their superiority to the regular troops of the English army, and had learned valuable lessons in the art of war. In the long struggle Washington, Gates, Morgan, Montgomery, Stark, Putnam and others were trained for the great work which was to be required of them in future years. The colonies were bound together by a common grievance, arising out of the haughty contempt with which the royal commanders treated the provincial troops, and sacrificed their interests to those of the regulars. The lesson that the colonies could do without the assistance of England, and that their true interests demanded a separation from her, was deeply implanted in the minds of many of the leading men. Another gain for the colonies was a posi- tive increase in their liberties resulting from the war. The necessity of securing the cor- dial co-operation of the Americans during the struggle caused the royal governors to cease their efforts to enforce arbitrary laws, during the existence of hostilities, as the en- forcement of such measures would have alienated the colonists, and have prevented them from raising the needed supplies of men and money. The colonial assemblies were careful to take advantage of this state of affairs. They made their grants of sup- plies with great caution, and retained in their own hands all the disbursements of the pub- lic funds. They thus accustomed the people to the practices of free government, and taught them their rights in the matter, so that when the war closed the royal governors found that they were no longer able to prac- tice their accustomed tyranny. BOOK IV The American Revolution CHAPTER XXV Causes of the Struggle for Independence Injusiice of Great Britain Towards Her Colonies — The Navigation Acts — Effects of These Laws Upon the Colonies — Great Britain Seeks to Destroy the Manufactures of America — Writs of Assistance — They Are Opposed — Home ivlanufactures Encouraged by the Americans — Ignorance of Englishmen Concerning America — Great Britain Claims the Right to Tax America — Resistance of ihe Colonists — Samuel Adams — The Parsons' Cause — Patrick Henry — England Persists in Her Determination to Tax America — Passage of the Stamp Act — Resistance of the Colonies — Meeting of the First Colonial Congress — Its Action — William Pitt — Repeal of the Stamp Act — Franklin Before the House of Commons — New Taxes Imposed Upon America — Increased Resistance of the Colonies — Troops Quartered in Boston — The " Massacre'" — The Non-Importation Associations — Growth of Hostility to England — Burning of the "Gaspe"— The Tax on Tea Retained by the King — Destruction of Tea at Boston — Wrath of the British Govern- ment — Boston Harbor Closed — Troops Quartered in Boston — The Colonies Come to the Assistance of Boston — Action of the Virginia Assembly — General Gage in Boston — The Regulating Act — Its Failure — Gage Seizes the Massachusetts Powder — Uprising of the Colony — Meeting of the Continental Congress — Its Action — Addresses to the King and People of England — The Earl of Chatham's Indorsement of Congress — The King Remains Stubborn. THE treaty of Paris placed England in control of the North American con- tinent east of the Mississippi, and the English government was of the opinion that this possession brought with it the right to treat America as it pleased, with- out regard to the rights or liberties of her people. We have already considered some of the many acts of injustice by which Great Britain drove the colonies into rebellion against her. We have now to relate those bearing more immediately on the separation. The navigation acts of 1660 and 1663 were passed, as we have seen, for the purpose of crippling the commerce of the colonies, and confirming their dependence upon England. They were severely felt throughout all the col- onies, and especially in New England, which was largely dependent upon its commerce. These acts were the beginning of a policy deliberately adopted by England, and per- sisted in by her for more than a century, for the purpose of enriching her mercantile class by depriving the colonists of the just rewards of their labors. The Americans were re- garded by the mother country as inferiors, and as dependents, who had been planted by her in " settlements established in distant parts of the world for the benefit of trade." The natural right of all men to acquire property and wealth by the exercise of their industry was denied to them ; they were to labor only that the British merchant might grow rich at their expense. Every species of industry in America, save the mere culti- vation of the soil, was to be heavily taxed that it might be crushed out of existence. The Americans were to be obliged to ship their products to England for sale, and to be compelled to purchase in her markets the supplies they needed. No foreign country might trade directly with the colonies. Such articles of foreign production as were needed must be shipped to England, and thea 327 328 THE AMERICAN REVOLUTION. transferred to British vessels for transporta- tion to the colonies, in order that they might yield a profit to the English ship-owner. The only direct trade which was allowed, and was not taxed, was the infamous traffic in negro slaves, against which every colony protested, and which Great Britain compelled them to accept. Even the trees in the " free woods," suitable for masts, were claimed by the king, and marked by his " surveyor-general of woods." It was a criminal offence to cut one of them after being so marked. Restrictions upon Trade. In spite of these outrages the colonies persisted in their efforts to establish manu- factures and a commerce of their own. As early as 1643 iron works were established in Massachusetts, and in 172 1 the New England colonies contained six furnaces and nineteen forges. Pennsylvania was still more largely engaged in the manufacture of this metal, and exported large quantities of it to other colonies. By the year 1756 there were eight furnaces and nine forges, for smelting copper, in oper- ation in Maryland. In 1721 the British iron- masters endeavored to induce Parliament to put a stop to the production of iron in America, but without success. In 1750 they were more successful. In that year an act of Parliament forbade, under heavy penalties, the exportation of pig-iron from America to England, and the manufacture by the Ameri- cans of bar-iron or steel for their own use. All the iron works in the colonies were ordered to be closed, and any that might afterwards be erected were to be destroyed as " nuisances." Some of the colonies had engaged in the manufacture of woolen goods, and the mak- ing of hats had become a very large and profitable business. In 1732 Parliament for- bade the transportation of woolen goods of American manufacture from one colony to, another, and the same restriction was placed upon the trade in hats. As an excuse for this outrage it was argued that as the Ameri- cans had an unlimited supply of beaver and other furs open to them, they would soon be able to supply all Europe, as well as them- selves, with hats. England was unwilling that America should manufacture a single article which she could supply, and in order to cripple the industry of the colonies still further it was enacted by Parliament that no manufacturer should employ more than two apprentices. In 1733 the famous " Molasses Act " was passed, imposing a duty on sugar, molasses, or rum, imported into any of the British possessions from any foreign colony. The object of this act was to benefit the British West India possessions by compell- ing- the North American colonies to trade with them. Thrilling Speech of James Otis. In order to enforce the various restrictions upon the trade of the colonies Great Britain established in America a large force of cus- toms officers, who were given unlawful powers for this purpose. Parliament enacted that any sheriff or officer of the customs, who susj>ecied that merchandise imported into the colony in which he was stationed had not paid the duty required by law, might apply to the colonial courts for a search warrant, or " writ of assistance," and enter a store or private dwelling and search for the goods he suspected of being unlawfully imported. These writs were first used in Massachu- setts in 1 76 1, and aroused a storm of indig- nation from the people, who felt that their most sacred rights were being violated by them. They were resisted, and the case was carried before the courts in order to test their validity. James Otis, the attorney for the crown, resigned his office rather than argue SCENE NEAR THE SOURCE OF THE RARITAN RIVER. 329 330 THE AMERICAN REVOLUTION. in behalf of them, and with great eloquence pleaded the cause of the people. His speech created a profound impression throughout the colonies, and aroused a determination in the hearts of his fellow-citizens to oppose the other enactments of Parliament which they felt to be unjust. This trial was fatal to the writs, which were scarcely ever used after- wards. " Then and there," says John Adams, " was the first opposition to arbi- trary acts of Great Britain. Then and there American Independence was born." Taxing the Colonies. The ■ spirit of opposition soon manifested itself in the New England colonies. The manufactures, trade and fisheries of that sec- tion were almost ruined, and the people had no choice but to defend themselves. Asso- ciations were formed in all the colonies pledging themselves not to purchase of Eng- lish manufacturers anything but the absolute necessities of life. Families began to make their own linen and woolen cloths, and to preserve sheep for their wool. Homespun garments became the dress of the patriot party, and foreign cloths were almost driven out of use. It was resolved to encourage home manufactures in every possible way and associations were formed for this pur- pose. These measures became very pop- ular, and were adopted by the other colonies in rapid succession. England was blind to these signs of alien- ation and danger, and such of her public men as saw them regarded them as of no importance. It was resolved to go still further, and levy direct taxes upon the col- onies. In 1763 such a proposition was brought forward by the ministers. It was claimed by them that as the debt of England had been largely increased by the French war, which had been fought in their defence, it was but right that they should help to de- fray the expense by paying a tax to the English government. In the meantime the colonies had warmly discussed the intentions of Great Britain re- specting them, and all strenuously denied the right of the mother country to tax them without granting them some form of repre- sentation in her government. They claimed the right to have a voice in the disposal of their property, and they regarded the design of Parliament as but a newproof of the indis- position of the mother country to treat them with justice. The feeling of the Americans towards England at this period has been aptly de- scribed as " distrust and suspicion, strangely mixed up with filial reverence — an instinctive sense of injury, instantly met by the in- stinctive suggestion that there must be some constitutional reason for doing it, or it would not be done." In spite of the injuries they had received at her hands, the Americans were warmly attached to England. They gloried in her triumphs, were proud to trace their descent from her, and claimed a share in her great history and grand achievements. Had England been wise she might have strength- ened this attachment to such an extent that the ties which bound the two countries could never have been sundered. But England was not only careless of the rights of Amer- icans, she was grossly ignorant of their country and of their character. Ignorant Rulers. " Few Englishmen had accurate ideas of the nature, the extent, or even the position of the colonies. And when the Duke of Newcastle hurried to the king with the in- formation that Cape Breton was an island, he did what perhaps half his colleagues in the ministry, and more than half his colleagues in Parliament, would have done in his place. They knew that the colonies were of vast CAUSES OF THE STRUGGLE FOR INDEPENDENCE. 331 extent ; that they lay far away beyond the sea ; that they produced many things which Englishmen wanted to buy, and consumed many things which Englishmen wanted to sell ; that English soldiers had met Eng- land's hereditary enemies, the French, in their forests ; that English sailors had beaten French sailors on their coasts. But they did not know that the most flourishing of these colonies had been planted by men who, prizing freedom above all other blessings, had planted them in order to secure for themselves and their children a home in which they could worship God according to their own idea of worship, and put forth the strength of their minds and of their bodies, according to their own conception of what was best for them here and hereafter."* The few Americans who visited Great Britain found themselves looked upon as aliens and inferiors ; their affection for the land of their fathers was met with contempt, and they were ridiculed as barbarians. The English colonial officials made this feeling apparent to those Americans who remained at home. Everywhere the colonists saw themselves treated with injustice. The hard- earned glories of their troops in the colonial wars were denied them and claimed for the English regulars, and there was scarcely a provincial who had borne arms but had some petty insult or injury, at the hands of the royal authorities, to complain of. Looking back over their history, the Americans could not remember a time when they had not been treated with injustice by Great Britain, They owed that country nothing for the planting of the colonies ; that was the work of their ancestors, who had been forced to fly from England to escape wrong and injury. They had been left to "^Historical Vieiu of the American Revolution. By G. W. Greene, p. 15. conquer their early difficulties without aid, and with scanty sympathy from England, who had taken no notice of them until they were sufficiently prosperous to be profitable to her. Injustice of the Mother Country. Then she had rarely laid her hand upon them but to wrong them. She had pur- sued such a uniformly unjust policy towards them that their affection for her was rapidly giving way to a general desire to separate from her. They owed her nothing ; they were resolved to maintain their liberties against her. Some of the leading men of the colony had already begun to dream of the future greatness of America, and had become convinced that the true interests of their country required a separation from England. In spite of this feeling England persisted in her course of folly. In March, 1764, the House of Commons resolved, " that Parlia- ment had a right to tax America." The next month (April) witnessed the enforce- ment of this claim in the passage of an act of Parliament levying duties upon certain articles imported into America. By the same act iron and lumber were added to the " enumerated articles " which could be ex- ported only to England. The preamble to this measure declared that its purpose was to raise " a revenue for the expenses of defend- ing, protecting and securing his majesty's dominions in America." The colonists protested against this act as a violation of their liberties, and declared that they had borne their full share of the expense of the wars for their defence, that they were now able to protect themselves without assistance from the king, and added the significant warning that " taxation with- out representation was tyranny." No one yet thought of armed resistance ; the colo- nists were resolved to exhaust every peaceful 332 THE AMERICAN REVOLUTION. means of redress before proceeding to extreme measures. As yet the desire for separation was confined to a few far-seeing men. Prominent among these was Samuel Adams, of Boston, a man in whom the loftiest virtues of the old Puritans were min- SAMUEL ADAMS. gled with the graces of more modern times. Modest and unassuming in manner, a man of incorruptible integrity and sincere piety, he was insensible to fear in the discharge of his duty. He was a deep student of constitu- tional law, and was gifted with an eloquence "which could move multitudes. His clear vision had already discerned the dangers which threatened his country, and had dis- covered the only path by which she could emerge from them in safety. His plan was simple : resistance, peaceable at first ; forci- ble if necessary. Under his guidance the people of Boston met and protested against the new plan of taxation, and instructed their repre- sentatives in the general court to oppose it. "We claim British rights, not by charter only," said the Boston resolves; "we are born to them. If we are taxed without our con- sent, our property is taken without our consent, and then we are no more free- men, but slaves." The gen- eral court of Massachusetts declared " that the imposi- tion of duties and taxes by the Parliament of Great Britain upon a people not represented in the House of Commons is absolutely irreconcilable with their rights." A committee was appointed to correspond with the other colonies, with a view to bringing about a concerted action for the redress of griev- ances. In Virginia, New York, Connecticut and the Carolinas equally vigorous measures were taken. In Virginia the first indication of the in- tention of the people to resist the arbitrary measures of the crown was given in a matter insignificant in itself, but clearly involving the great principle at issue. In that colony tobacco was the lawful currency, and the CAUSES OF THE STRUGGLE FOR INDEPENDENCE. 333 failure of a crop, or a rise in the price of to- bacco, made such payments often very bur- densome. In the winter of 1763 the legisla- ture passed a law authorizing the people of the colony to pay their taxes and other public dues in money, at the rate of twopence a pound for the tobacco due. The clergymen of the established church had each a salary fixed by law at a certain number of pounds of tobacco, and as this measure involved them in a loss they refused to acquiesce in it and induced Sherlock, the bishop of London, to persuade the king to refuse the law his signature. " The rights of the clergy and the luthority of the king must stand or fall together," was the sound argument of the bishop. Failing of the royal signature the law was inoperative. The matter was soon brought to an issue in Virginia. The Rev. Mr. Maury, one of the clergymen affected by the law, brought a suit to recover damages, or the difference between twopence per pound and the current market price of tobacco, which was much higher. This was popularly known as the " Parsons' Cause." It was a clearly joined issue between the right of the people to make their own laws on the one side, and the king's prerogative on the other. The Man for the Hour. The " parsons " secured the best talent in the colony for the prosecution of their claims ; the cause of the "people" was confided to a young man of twenty-seven, whose youth was supplemented by the additional disad- vantages of being poor and unknown. He was Patrick Henry, the son of a plain far- mer, and a native of the county of Hanover. He had received but little education, as his father's straitened circumstances had com pelled him to put his son to the task of earning his bread at the early age of fifteen years. He entered a country store, and the next year went into business with his elder brother, William, who, being too indolent to attend to business, left the store to the man- agement or rather the mismanagement of Patrick. The young man was brimming over with good nature, and could never find it in his heart to refuse any one credit, and was too kind-hearted to press unwilling debtors to payment. He let the store " manage itself,'^ and amused himself by studying the charac- ter of his customers, and with his flute and violin. He was also a great reader, and read PATRICK HENRY. every work he could buy or borrow. The store survived about a year, and the next two or mree years were passed by Patrick in settling its affairs. At the age of eighteen he married, and began life as a farmer. He soon grew tired of this pursuit, and selling his farm once more engaged in mercantile life. It was not suited to him, nor he to it. He passed his days in reading, this time giving his attention to works of history and philosophy. Li vy was his favorite, and he read it through at least once a year for many years. 334 THE AMERICAN REVOLUTION. His second mercantile enterprise ended in bankruptcy in a few years, and in extreme want he determined to try the law. He ob- tained a license to practice after a six weeks' course of study, and entered upon his new career utterly ignorant of its duties. It is said that he could not then draw up the simplest legal paper without assistance. He was then twenty-four years old, but it was not until he had reached the age of twenty- seven that he obtained a case worthy of his powers , for he had genius, and it only re- quired the proper circumstances to draw it out. He had passed days in communion with nature in his frequent hunting and fish- ing excursions, and had drunk deeply of the wisdom she imparts to her votaries. He had studied men with the eye of a master, and he had at last fallen into the position from, which he could rise to his true place among the eading spirits of the age. In the case with which he was now intrusted, a decision of the court on a demurrer, in favor of the claims of the clergy, had left nothing unde- termined but the amount of damages in the cause which was pending. Argument for Damages. " The array before Mr. Henry's eyes," says his biographer, William Wirt, " was now most fearful. On the bench sat more than twenty clergymen, the most learned men in the colony, and the most capable, as well as the severest critics before whom it was possible for him to nave made his debut. The court house was crowded with an over- whelming multitude, and surrounded with an immense and anxious throng, who, not finding room to enter, were endeavoring to listen without, in the deepest attention. But there was something still more awfully dis- concerting than all this for in the chair of the presiding magistrate sat no other person than his own father. Mr. Lyons opened the cause very briefly : in the way of argument he did nothing more than explain to the jury that the decision upon the demurrer had put the act of 1750 entirely out of the way, and left the law of 1748 as the only standard of their damages ; he then concluded with a highly wrought eulogium on the benevo- lence of the clergy." When it came Patrick Henry's turn to speak, he rose awkwardly, amid a profound silence. No one had ever heard him speak, and all were anxious to see how he would acquit himself. He clutched nervously at his papers, and faltered out his opening sen- tences with a degree of confusion which threatened every moment to put an end to his effort. The people watched their cham- pion in sorrow and indignation ; the clergy exchanged glances of triumph, and eyed the speaker with contempt ; while his father, overcome with shame, seemed ready to drop from his chair. But suddenly there came a change over the young advocate. Warming with his subject, he threw off his embarrass- ment and awkwardness, and stood erect and confident. His look of timidity gave place to one of command; his countenance glowed with the fire of genius, and startled the gazers by the aspect of majesty which it assumed for the first time. "He Has Spoken Treason." His tones grew clear and bold, his action graceful and commanding, and the astounded jury and audience were given a display of eloquence such as was without a parallel in the history of the colony. Henry knew that the case was against him, but he pleaded the natural right of Virginia to make her own laws independently of the king and Parlia- ment. He proved the justness of the law; he drew a striking picture of the character of a good king, who should be the father of his people, but who becomes their tyrant and CAUSES OF THE STRUGGLE FOR INDEPENDENCE. 335 oppressor, and forfeits his claim to obedience when he annuls just and good laws. The opposing counsel cried out at this bold declaration, " He has spoken treason," but was silenced by the excited throng. "They say," says Mr. Wirt, "that the people, whose countenances had fallen as he arose, had heard but a very few sentences before they began to look up ; then to look at each other in sur- prise, as if doubting the evidence of their own senses ; then, at- tracted by some ges- ture, struck by some majestic attitude, fas- cinated by the spell of his eye, the charm of his emphasis, and the varied and com- from the bench in precipitation and terror. As for the father, such was his surprise, such his amazement, such his rapture, that, forget- ting where he was, and the character which he was filling, tears of ecstacy streamed down his cheeks without the power or inclination to repress them." manding expression of his countenance, they could look away no more. In less than twenty minutes they might be seen in every part of the house, on every bench, in every window, stooping for- ward from their stands, in death-like silence; their features fixed in amazement and awe, all their senses listening and riveted upon the speaker, as if to catch the last strain of some heavenly visitant. " The mockery of the clergy was soon turned into alarm, their triumph into con- fusion and despair, and at one burst of his rapid and overwhelming invective, they fled COLONEL BARRE. The jury brought in penny damages for the " a verdict of one parsons," and the court overruled the motion of their counsel for a new trial. Henry from that moment took his place among the leaders of the patriot party in Virginia. He had struck a 336 THE AMERICAN REVOLUTION. chord which responded in every American heart ; he had denied the right of the king to make laws for the colonies. The remonstrance of Massachusetts was followed by similar appeals from Connecti- cut, New York, Rhode Island and Virginia. The petition of New York was couched in such strong terms that no member of Par- liament could be found bold enough to pre- sent it. These remonstrances were unheeded by Parliament, which pronounced them "ab- surd " and " insolent." That body persisted in its determination to tax the colonies, and Grenville, the prime minister, warned the Americans that in a contest with Great Britain they could expect nothing but defeat. He announced the intention of the English government to levy the taxes, and graciously added that if the colonies preferred any spe- cial form of taxation, their wishes would be met as far as possible. In March, 1765, the measure known as the " Stamp Act " passed the House of Commons by a vote of five to one, and was adopted almost unanimously by the House of Lords. An Insane King. It met with a warm opposition i.i the Commons from the friends of America, pro- minent among whom was Colonel Barre, who had served with Wolfe in America, and had learned to appreciate the American character. The measure received the royal signature at once. The poor king would have signed anything he was bidden — Jie tvas insane. The act imposed a duty on all paper, vellum and parchment used in the colonies, and required that all writings of a legal or business nature should be made on "stamped paper;" otherwise they were de- clared null and void. In order to enforce the " Stamp Act," Parliament, two months later, passed " the Quartering Act." It authorized the minis- ters to send as many troops as they should' see fit to America, to enforce submission to the acts of Parliament. Wherever these troops should be stationed, it should be the duty of the people, at their own expense, to furnish them with quarters, fuel, bedding, cider or rum, candles, soap " and other necessaries." Exciting Scene. The news of the passage of these acts pro- duced the most intense excitement in Amer- ica. The general assembly of Virginia was- in session when the news was received in May. The royalist leaders were amazed at the folly of the ministry, but deemed it best to take no action in the matter. Patrick Henry, now a member of the assembly, rose- in his place and offered a series of resolu- tions, declaring that the people of Virginia were bound to pay only such taxes as- should be levied by their own assembly, and that all who maintained the contrary should' be regarded as enemies of the liberties of the colony. These resolutions provoked an exciting debate, in which Henry, in a magnificent oration, exposed the tyranny of the British government, and stirred the hearts of the burgesses with a determination to resist. " Caesar had his Brutus," exclaimed the ora- tor in one of his loftiest flights, " Charles- the First his Cromwell, and George the Third — ." The assembly was in an uproar. "Treason! treason!" shouted the speaker. A few joined in the cry, but the majority waited in breathless suspense the comple- tion of the sentence of Henry, who, fixing his eye upon the speaker, added in a tone which was peculiar to himself, " may profit by their exam.ple. If that be treason, make the most of it." The resolutions were adopted by a large majority. The next day, during Henry's absence, the timid assembly rescinded some of the- CAUSES OF THE STRUGGLE FOR INDEPENDENCE. 33r resolves and modified the others. The assembly, for thus daring to exercise its right of expressing its opinion, was at once dis- solved by the governor, but too late to pre- vent its action from producing its effect. Copies of the resolutions of Henry were forwarded to Philadelphia, where they were printed and circulated through the colonies. the colonies to send delegates to a congress to be held at New York in October. In the meantime associations were organized i:i all the colonies as far south as Maryland, called " Sons of Liberty," for the purpose of stopping the use of stamps. The people were resolved to take the matter in their own hands. HANGING A STAMP ACT OFFICIAL IN EFFIGY. They aroused the drooping spirits of the people, and it was resolved everywhere that the stamps should not be used in America. The general court of Massachusetts or- dered that the courts should not require the use of stamps in conducting their business ; and in June, before the Virginia resolutions reached Boston, issued a circular inviting all 22 In Boston the mob attacked the house of Oliver, the secretary of the colony, who had been appointed to distribute the stamps, and compelled him to resign. They also attacked the houses of some of the most prominent supporters of the ministry, but the patriots sincerely deplored and condemned these violent proceedings. At Wethersfield, 338 THE AMERICAN REVOLUTION. Connecticut, five hundred farmers seized Jared Ingersol, the stamp officer for that colony, compelled him to resign, and then to remove his hat and give " three cheers for liberty, property, and no stamps." Similar scenes were enacted in the other colonies. Rights and Grievances. On the seventh of October, 1765, the First Colonial Congress met at New York. It was composed of delegates from the col- onies of Massachusetts, Rhode Island, Con- necticut, Pennsylvania, Maryland, South Carolina, New York and New Jersey. New Hampshire, though not represented by a delegate, gave her support to its measures, and Georgia formally signified her accept- ance of the work of this body. Timothy Ruggles, of Massachusetts, was chosen president. The session extended over three weeks, and resulted in the adoption of a " Declaration of the Rights and Grievances of the Colonies ; " a petition to the king ; and a memorial to both Houses of Par- liament. In the Declaration of Rights the Congress took the ground that it was a violation of their rights to tax them without granting them a representation in the Parliament of Great Britain, and that as such representa- tion was impossible because of the distance between the two countries, no taxes could be legally imposed upon the colonies but by their own assemblies. The measures of the Congress were, as soon as possible, indorsed by all the colonial assemblies, and thus the colonies were drawn into that union which, in their own lanofuag'e, became " a bundle of sticks, which could neither be bent nor broken." At length the first of November arrived, the day on which the Stamp Act was to go into operation. Not a man could be found to execute the law, all the stamp officers hav- ing resigned through fear of popular vio- lence. Governor Colden, of New York, de- clared he was resolved to have the stamps distributed, but the people of the city warned him that he would do so at his peril, and burned him in Q^gy- Colden became alarmed at these demonstrations, and on the fifth of November delivered the stamps to the mayor and council of New York. A Day of Mourning. In all the colonies the first of November was observed as a day of mourning. Bells were tolled, flags hung at half-mast, and business suspended. The merchants of New York, Boston and Philadelphia united in an agreement to import no more goods from England, to countermand the orders already sent out, and to receive no goods on commission until the Stamp Act should be repealed. Their action was promptly sustained by the people, who pledged themselves to buy no articles of English manufacture, and to encourage home productions. Circulars were sent throughout the colonies urging the people to unite in such action, and were heartily responded to. Business went on without the use of stamps, and the courts ignored them in their proceedings. The news of these proceedings should have warned the English ministers of their folly ; it only made them more determined to persist in it. They resolved not to repeal the Stamp Act. To comply with the request of the colonists, now that they had resisted the law, would, they declared, be simply a surrender to rebellion. " Sooner than make our colonies our allies," said one of their number, " I would wish to see them re- turned to their primitive deserts." The friends of America, led by the aged and infirm William Pitt, made a determined ef- fort to procure the repeal of the Stamp Act, CAUSES OF THE STRUGGLE FOR INDEPENDENCE. 339 and they were now supported by all the in- fluence of the English merchants, who found their trade rapidly falling off in consequence of the non-intercourse resolves adopted by the Americans. Swathed in flannels, Pitt proceeded to the House of Commons, and in a speech of great vigor urged the House to repeal the obnox- ious and unconstitutional measure. In reply to Grenville, the prime minister, who accused him of exciting sedition in America, he said, "Sir, I have been charged with giving birth to sedition in America. Sorry I am to have the liberty of speech in this House imputed as a crime. But the imputa- tion will not deter me ; it is a liberty I mean to exercise. The gentleman tells us that America is obstinate ; that America is almost in rebellion. I rejoice that America has resisted." The House started at these words, but Pitt con- tinued firmly, " If they had submitted, they would have voluntarily become slaves. They have been driven to madness by injustice. My opinion is that the Stamp Act should be repealed, abso- lutely, totally, immediately." Edmund Burke, then a rising young man, eloquently sustained the appeal of the great commoner. The Commons had already begun to waver, but before yielding entirely they wished to ascertain from competent witnesses the exact temper and disposition of the Americans. For this purpose, Benjamin Franklin, who was residing in London at the time as the agent of several of the colo- nies, was summoned before the bar of the House to give the desired information. He appeared, in answer to the summons, on the thirteenth of February, 1766. He was questioned by Lord Grenville and Charles Townshend, and by several friends of the ministry, and delivered his answers with firmness and clearness. He told them that the colonists could not pay for the stamps, as there was not enough gold and silver in the colonies for that purpose; that they had STAMP ACT OFFICIAL BEATEN BY THE PEOPLE. incurred more than their share of the ex- pense of the last war, for which Great Britain had in no way reimbursed them ; that they were still burdened with heavy debts contracted in consequence of this war ; that they were well disposed towards Great Britain before 1763, and considered Parlia- ment as " the great bulwark and security of their liberties and privileges ; but that now their temper was much altered, and their 340 THE AMERICAN REVOLUTION. respect for it lessened ; and if the act is not repealed, the consequence would be a total loss of the respect and affection they bore to this country, and of all the commerce that depended on that respect and affection." Franklin Startles Parliament. He startled the House by declaring that in a few years America would be amply able to supply herself with all the necessities of life then furnished her by Great Britain. " I do not know," said he, "a single article im- ported into the northern colonies but what they can either do without or make them- selves. The people will spin and work for themselves, in their own houses. In three years there may be wool and manufactures enough." " If the legislature," he was asked, " should think fit to ascertain its right to lay taxes, by any act laying a small tax, contrary to their opinion, would they sub- mit to pay the tax ? " "An internal tax," he replied, " how small soever, laid by the legislature here, on the people there, will never be submitted to. They will oppose it to the last. The people will pay no internal tax by Parliament." " May they not," asked a friend of Grenville, " by the same interpretation of their common rights, as Englishmen, as declared by Magna Charta and the Petition of Right, object to the Par- liament's right of external taxation ? " * "They never have hitherto," answered Franklin, promptly. " Many arguments have been lately used here to show them that there is no difference, and that if you have no right to tax them internally, you have none to tax them externally, or make any other law to bind them. At pres- ent they do not reason so ; but in time they may be convinced by these arguments." * The levying of duties by Parliament on merchandise imported into the colonies. Franklin's testimony was conclusive. The Stamp Act was repealed on the eighteenth of March, 1766, not because it was acknowl- edged by England as a measure of injustice, but because it could not be enforced without a collision with the colonies, which the min- istry were not as yet prepared for. The people of London greeted the repeal with great joy. Bonfires were lighted, bells were rung, the city was illuminated, and the ship- ping in the Thames was decorated with flags. The news was sent by special mes- sengers to the nearest ports, in order that it might reach America with as little delay as possible. Rejoicings in America. In America the news of the repeal of the Stamp Act was received with the greatest joy. The bells were rung in the principal cities, the imprisoned debtors were released from captivity, the associations for non- intercourse with England were dissolved, and everywhere Pitt was hailed as the cham- pion of the liberties of America. New York, Virginia and Maryland each voted a statue to him. The rejoicings of the Americans were premature. Parliament in repealing the Stamp Act solemnly asserted, by a bill for that purpose, its right and power to " bind the colonies in all cases whatsoever." Eng- land was only baffled for the moment ; she had not relinquished her designs upon the liberties of America. The repeal of the Stamp Act brought with it the fall of Grenville's ministry. Another was appointed under the leadership of the Marquis of Rockingham ; but it was short- lived and soon gave way. The king then summoned William Pitt, who had in the meantime been created Earl of Chatham, to form an independent ministry, late in 1766. This act was regarded with great hope in CAUSES OF THE STRUGGLE FOR INDEPENDENCE. 341 America, as Pitt was universally considered the colonists' best friend. These hopes were doomed to disappointment. In January, 1767, Charles Townshend, the chancellor of the exchequer in Pitt's cabinet, taking ad- vantage of the absence of the prime minister, declared in the House of Commons that it was his intention, at all risks, to derive a revenue from America by laying taxes upon her, and that he knew how to raise this reve- nue from her. Pitt Withdraws from the Cabinet. Having thus thrown down the gauntlet to his official chief, it became evident that either the Earl of Chatham must relinquish the premiership, or Townshend must leave the cabinet. Chatham was anxious to dis- miss him from the chancellorship, but as it was known that Townshend was acting in accordance with the sympathies and wishes of the king, no one was willing to risk his prospects by accepting the chancellorship in Townshend's place ; and Chatham, unable to fill his place, was obliged to retain him. In utter disgust Chatham withdrew from active participation in the affairs of the cabinet, and Townshend remained supreme director of the colonial policy of England. In May, Townshend revealed his plan for raising a revenue in America. It was to levy a duty, to be collected in the colonies, on certain articles of commerce, such as wine, oil, paints, glass, paper, and lead colors, and especially upon tea^ which last commodity he declared the Americans obtained cheaper from the Dutch smugglers than the English themselves. He was told that if he would withdraw the army from America there would be no neces- sity for taxing the colonies. He replied, " I will hear nothing on the subject ; it is abso- lutely necessary to keep an army there." In June, 1767, an act was passed by Parlia- ment levying upon the colonies the duties proposed by Townshend ; and a board of commissioners of the customs for America was established, with its headquarters at Boston. Soon after their appointment the " Romney " frigate entered Boston Harbor, and the new commissioners, confident in her protection, treated the people of Boston with unbearable haughtiness. Her officers fre- quently stopped the New England vessels as they entered the harbor, and impressed seamen from their decks. The colonies were moved with the pro- foundest indignation upon the receipt of the newsof the imposition of the new taxes. The colonial newspapers, which now numbered twenty-five, were filled with appeals to the people to stand up for their liberties. The old associations for non-importation of Eng- lish goods were revived, and on every hand the declaration was unanimous that the Americans would neither eat, drink, nor wear anything imported from England. The gen- eral court of Massachusetts issued a circular letter to the other colonial assemblies in- viting them to unite with her in measures for obtaining redress. The Colonies Strike Back. The English ministers were greatly in- censed at the new resistance of the colonists, and in June, 1768, ordered the general court of Massachusetts to rescind its circular let- ter. Their demand was refused, and the general court, led by James Otis and Samuel Adams, expressed its conviction that Parlia- ment would better serve the cause of peace by repealing its obnoxious laws. The circu- lar had been favorably received by the other colonies, and Massachusetts was constantly receiving from them encouragement to persist in her resistance to the tyranny of the minis- try. As a punishment for the refusal of the general court to rescind its circular, that body 342 BRITISH TROOPS IN BOSTON. CAUSES OF THE STRUGGLE FOR INDEPENDENCE. 343 was dissolved by the royal governor of Mas- sachusetts. Some of the other colonial as- semblies that had shown sympathy with Massachusetts were also dissolved by their respective governors. Opposition in Boston. A very bitter feeling existed between the people and the royal officials, and, to make matters worse, at this crisis the revenue offi- cers at Boston seized a schooner belonging to John Hancock, one of the patriot leaders, on the pretext that her owner had made a false entry of her cargo, which consisted of wine. The schooner was towed under the guns of the " Romney " frigate, and a crowd collected in Boston and attacked the houses of the commissioners of customs, who were forced to fly to the fort on Castle Island for safety. The report of this outbreak was trans- mitted to England as proof that Massachu- setts was almost in a state of insurrection, and it was resolved by the ministry to send troops to overawe " the insolent town of Boston," and to hold Massachusetts as a conquered country. A regiment of regulars under General Gage reached Boston in Sep- tember, 1768, but the assembly refused to provide quarters or food, or the other neces- saries which were demanded by their com- mander in accordance with the " Quartering Act." General Gage was obliged to encamp a part of his men on Boston Common, while he lodged the rest temporarily in Faneuil Hall. With considerable difficulty he hired several houses in Boston and quartered his troops in them. The assembly of New York also refused to provide food or quarters for the royal troops, and was dissolved by the governor of the province. The wrath of the English officials was concentrated upon Boston, which was held as though it were a conquered city. Senti- nels were placed at the street corners, and the citizens were challenged by them as they went about their daily duties. The ill-feeling between the citizens and the troops gave rise to several encounters between them. On the evening of the second of March, 1770, a sentinel was attacked by the mob. A de- tachment of troops was sent to his aid, and was stoned by the mob. At length a soldier fired his musket at the crowd and his com- rades poured in a volley, killing three and wounding five citizens. The city was thrown into an uproar, the alarm bells were rung, and crowds poured into the streets. The danger of a general collision was very great, but the people were persuaded to disperse upon the promise of Hutchinson, the gov- ernor, that justice should be done. This outbreak was known at the time as " the, Boston Massacre." The Soldiers Driven Out. The next morning a meeting of the citi- zens was held at Faneuil Hall. Resolutions were passed, demanding the removal of the troops from the city to the fort on Castle Island, and the arraignment before the civil courts of Captain Preston, the officer who ordered the troops to fire. The soldiers were removed from the town as the only means of preserving the peace, and Captain Preston and six of his men were arraigned for mur- der. John Adams and Josiah Quincy, two leaders of the patriot party, undertook the defence of the accused officer and his men in order to make sure that they should have a fair trial. They were acquitted of murder, but two of the soldiers were convicted of manslaughter. The calmness and delibera- tion with which this trial was conducted had a happy effect in England, and exhibited the fairness and moderation of the colonists in the most favorable light. The British merchants now began to feel the effect of the non-importation associations 344 THE AMERICAN REVOLUTION. of the Americans, and their trade suffered even more than it had done in the times of the Stamp Act, in consequence of the cessa- tion of orders for goods from the colonies. They now began to sustain the demand of the colonists for the repeal of the unjust taxes. Lord North, who was now prime minister, was willing to grant their demand, and to remove all the taxes except the duty on tea, which he retained at the express command of the king, who had now recov- ered his reason, and was the real director of the policy of his government. George III. held on with the most stubborn- tenacity to the assertion of his right to tax the colonies, and insisted " that there should be always • one tax, at least, to keep up the right of tax- ing." This concession was made in May, J 770, and for nearly a year there was a lull in the excitement. The matter was not settled, however, for the Americans had not resisted the amount of the tax, but the impo- sition of any tax at all. They were contend- ing for a principle, not for the saving of a few dollars. Depredations and Quarrels. The bad feeling which was rapidly grow- ing up between the colonists and the mother country was greatly increased by the injus- tice and annoyance heaped upon the colonists by the royal officials. Almost every colony had to complain of these outrages, and the king's officers seemed to think they could not do their cause better service than by exasperating the Americans. In New York the people had erected a liberty pole in the fields, now the City Hall Park. One night in January, 1770, a party of soldiers from the fort cut down the pole. This act was bitterly resented by the citizens, and fre- quent quarrels occurred between them and the troops, though there was no actual bloodshed. Early in 1772 the armed schooner " Gaspe " was stationed in Narragansett Bay to enforce the revenue laws. Her com- mander, Lieutenant Dudingston, undertook to execute his orders in the most insultingf and arbitrary manner. Market boats and other vessels passing the " Gaspe " were compelled to lower their colors to her, and armed parties from the schooner were sent ashore on the neighboring islands, and car- ried off such provisions as they desired. Complaint was made by the citizens of Provi- dence to the governor of Rhode Island, who referred the matter to the chief justice, Hop- kins, for his opinion. The chief justice de- clared " that any person who should come into the colony and exercise any authority by force of arms, without showing his com- mission to the governor, and, if a custom- house officer, without being sworn into his office, was guilty of a trespass, if not piracy." It was clear from the opinion of the chief justice that Dudingston was exceeding his authority, and the governor sent a sheriff on board the " Gaspe " to ascertain by what orders the lieutenant acted. Dudingston referred the matter to the admiral at Boston, who replied : " The lieutenant, sir, has done his duty. I shall give the king's officers directions that they send every man taken in molesting them to me. As sure as the peo- ple of Newport attempt to rescue any vessel and any of them are taken, I will hang them as pirates." The Schooner Captured. The insolence of the admiral caused even more indignation than the outrages of Dud- ingston, and the citizens of Rhode Island resolved to take the matter into their own hands at the earliest opportunity. On the ninth of June, 1772, the Providence packet, a swift sailer, was passing up the bay when she was hailed by the " Gaspe." She paid CAUSES OF THE STRUGGLE FOR INDEPENDENCE. 345 no attention to the hail, and being of light draught, stood in near the shore. The " Gaspe " gave chase, and, attempting to follow her, ran aground on Naraquit, a short distance below Pautuxet. The tide falling soon, left her fast. The news of her disaster was conveyed to Providence by the packet, and a plan was at once matured for her destruction. On the following night a party of men in six or seven boats, led by John Brown, a leading merchant of Providence, Captain Abraham Whipple, of Providence, Simeon Potter, of Bristol, and others, left Providence and dropped down towards the position of the " Gaspe." They were discovered as they approached, and were hailed by Dud- ingston. One of the party in the boats fired and Dudingston fell wounded. The schooner was then boarded without opposition, her crew were set ashore, and the " Gaspe " was set on fire and burned to the water's edge. A large reward was offered for the perpetrat- ors of this bold act. All were known in Providence, but in spite of this, the royal officials were not able to secure the appre- hension of any of them. The secret was faithfully kept. Objections Are Useless. The non-importation associations had, upon the repeal of the duties we have men- tioned, limited their opposition to the use of tea, and the East India Company in England found itself burdened with an enormous stock of tea, which it could not dispose of as usual in consequence of the cessation of sales in America. The company therefore proposed to pay all the duties on the tea in England and ship it to America at its own risk, hoping that the fact of there being no duty to pay in America would induce the colonists to purchase it. This plan met the determined opposition of the king, who would not consent to re- linquish the assertion of his right to tax the Americans. Lord North could not under- stand that it was not the amount of the tax, but the principle involved in it, that was opposed by the Americans, and he proposed that the East India Company should pay three-fourths oi \hQ duty in England, leaving the other fourth — about three pence on a pound — to be collected in America. His lordship was told plainly that the Americans would not purchase the tea on these condi- tions, but he answered : " It is to no pur- pose the making objections, for the king will have it so. The king means to try the question with the Americans." Trouble About Tea. There were men in America who fully understood that the king meant " to try the question with the Americans," and were will- ing the trial should come. Samuel Adams was satisfied as to what would be the result, and was diligently working to prepare the people for it. He had the satisfaction of seeing public opinion in America daily assume a more enlightened and determined condition. A convention of all the colonies for taking action for a common resistance seemed to him a necessity, and he sent forth circulars to the various provinces urging them to assert their rights upon every pos- sible occasion, and to combine for mutual support and protection. The news of the agreement between the East India Company and the government for the exportation of tea increased the de- termination of the colonists to resist the tax. It was also resolved that the tea should neither be landed nor sold. A meeting was held in Philadelphia and resolutions were passed requesting those to whom the tea was consigned " to resign their appoint- ments." It was also resolved that whosoever should " aid or abet in unloading, receiving, 346 THE AMERICAN REVOLUTION. or vending the tea " should be regarded " as an enemy to his country." Meetings of a similar nature were held in New York and Charleston, and similar resolutions were adopted. A fast-sailing vessel reached Boston about the first of November, 1773, with the news that several ships laden with tea had sailed from England to America. On the third of November a meeting was held at Faneuil Hall, and, on motion of Samuel Adams, it was unanimously resolved to send the tea back upon its arrival. A man in the crowd cried out : " The only way to get rid of it is to throw it overboard." The meeting in- vited the consignees of the tea to resign their appointments. Two of these men were sons of Governor Hutchinson, who was intensely hated by the people of Massachusetts be- cause of his double-faced policy, which had been detected and exposed by Dr. Franklin. Until this discovery Hutchinson had induced the people of Massachusetts to believe that he was their best friend, when in reality he had suggested to the British government nearly all the unjust measures that had been directed against that colony. An Ominous Silence. The first of the tea ships reached Boston on the twenty-fifth of November, 1773. A meeting of the citizens was held at Faneuil Hall, and it was ordered that the vessel should be moored to the wharf, and a guard of twenty-five citizens was placed over her to see that no tea was removed. The owner of the vessel agreed to send the cargo back if the governor would give his permit for the vessel to leave Boston. This the governor withheld, and in the meantime two other ships arrived with cargoes of tea and were ordered to anchor beside the first The com- mittee appointed by the meeting of citizens waited on the consignees, but obtained no satisfaction from them. The law required that the tea must be' landed within twenty days after its arrival, or be seized for non-payment of duties. The consignees and the governor had determined to wait until the expiration of this time, when the royal authorities would seize the tea and remove it beyond the reach of the citizens. The duties could then be paid and the tea landed and sold. Their intentions were fully understood by the patriots. When the committee made its report to the meet- ing of citizens, it was received in a dead silence, and the meeting adjourned without taking any action upon it. This ominous silence alarmed the consignees. Hutchin- son's two sons fled to the fort and placed themselves under the protection of the troops, while the governor quietly left the city. Tea Thrown Overboard. On the sixteenth of December another meeting was held. The next day the time allowed by law would expire, and the tea would be placed under the protection of the fort and the armed ships in the harbor. The owner had gone to see the governor, at Milton, to obtain a pass for his vessels, with- out which they could not leave the harbor. This the governor refused, on the ground that he had not a proper clearance. He re- turned to Boston late in the evening and re- ported the result of his mission to the meet- ing. Then Samuel Adams arose and gave the signal for the action that had been de- termined upon by saying : " This meeting can do nothing more to save the country." Instantly a shout rang through the room, and a band of forty or fifty men "dressed like Mohawk Indians," with their faces blackened to prevent recognition, hastened from the meeting to the wharf where the ships were moored. A guard was posted to prevent the intrusion of spies, and the ships CAUSES OF THE STRUGGLE FOR INDEPENDENCE. 347 were at once seized. Three hundred and forty-two chests of tea were broken open and their contents poured into the water. The affair Avas witnessed in silence by a large crowd on the shore. When the destruction of the tea was completed, the " Indians " and the crowd dispersed to their homes. Paul Revere was despatched by the patriot lead- ers to carry the news to New York and Philadelphia. compel the Americans to submit to the au- thority of Great Britain. Boston, in particu- lar, was to be made a terrible example to the rest of the colonies. A bill was introduced into Parliament, and passed by a majority of four to one, closing the port of Boston to all commerce, and transferring the seat of gov- ernment to Salem. The British ministry boasted that with ten thousand regulars they could " march through the continent." and THROWING THE TEA OVERBOARD IN BOSTON HARBOR. At New York and Philadelphia the people would not allow the tea to be landed, and at Charleston it was stored in damp cellars, where the whole cargo was soon ruined. At Annapolis a ship and its cargo were burned ; the owner of the vessel himself setting fire to the ship. The British government was greatly in- censed at the refusal of the colonists to allow the tea to be landed, and determined to they were resolved to bring America to her knees and make her confess her fault in dust and humiliation. In addition to the Boston Port Bill, Parlia- ment passed other measures of equal severity. By one of these the royal officers were ordered to quarter the troops sent out from England on all the colonies at the people's expense ; another provided that if any officer, in the execution of the Quartering Act, should 348 THE AMERICAN REVOLUTION. commit an act of violence, he should be sent to England for trial. The deliberate pur- pose of this last act was to encourage the military and other officials to acts of violence and oppression by shielding them from pun- ishment in America. The liberties of the American people were thus placed at the mercy of every petty official bearing a royal commission. Another law, known as the " Quebec Act," granted unusual concessions to the Roman Catholics of Canada, in order to attach them to the royal cause in the event of a collision between England and her colo- nies. Help for the Patriots. Boston was largely dependent upon her commerce, and the closing of her harbor entirely destroyed her trade and brought great loss and suffering to her people. The outrage to which she was thus subjected was resented by the whole country, and evidences of sympathy poured in upon her from every quarter. Salem refused to allow the estab- lishment of the seat of government within her limits, and offered the use of her port to the merchants of Boston free of charge. Marblehead made a similar offer. Large numbers of the people of Boston were thrown out of employment by the closing of Boston harbor, and their families, left help- less, suffered considerably. The various colonies came forward promptly to their relief. The neighboring towns sent in provisions and other neces- saries of life, and money was subscribed in other parts of the country. South Carolina sent to Boston two hundred barrels of rice, and promised eight hundred more when they were wanted. North Carolina sent a contri- bution of two thousand pounds in money, and money and provisions were sent from Virginia and Maryland. In the former colo- ny, the farmers beyond the Blue Ridge raised a contribution of one hundred and thirty- seven barrels of flour and sent it to Boston. Even the city of London sent one hundred and fifty thousand dollars to the relief of Boston. Cheered by these evidences of sym- pathy, Boston resolved to hold out to the end. One of the first and most determined of the colonies in expressing her sympathy for Massachusetts was Virginia. Upon the re- ceipt of the news of the closing of the port of Boston, the assembly of this colony passed resolutions of sympathy with Massachusetts, and appointed the first of June, the day designated for the enforcement of the Port Bill, as a day of fasting and prayer. For this bold action the governor dissolved the assembly. General Gage Appointed Governor. It met the next day — May 25th — in spite of Governor Dunmore's prohibition, in the coffee-room of the Raleigh Tavern, and de- clared that an attack on Massachusetts was an attack on every other colony and ought to be opposed by the united wisdom of all. The assembly urged that a general congress of all the colonies should be held to take united action for the redress of grievances, and a committee was appointed to corres- pond with the other colonies for the purpose of bringing about this congress. The first of June was rigidly observed in Virginia as a fast day. George Mason charged his family to be careful to attend church on that day clad in mourning. In the meantime Hutchinson had been replaced as governor of Massachusetts by General Gage, the commander-in-chief of the British army in North America. He landed in Boston on the seventeenth of May, 1 774, and was well received by the people. He was a man of mild character and 'great good-nature, and utterly unfit for the task of CAUSES OF THE STRUGGLE FOR INDEPENDENCE. 349 coercing a free people. The determined at- titude of the patriots bewildered him. He brought with him instructions for " the seiz- and condign punishment of Samuel ure Adams, John Hancock, Joseph Warren and other leading patriots, but he stood in such dread of them that he never so much as attempted their arrest." He was greatly per- plexed to know how to manage the people of Boston. It was clear to him that they intended to resist the injustice of the mother country, but they kept so carefully within the law that he could not take hold of their acts. They held meetings and discussed their grievances, but vio- lated no law, and dis- countenanced violence of all kinds. He was authorized by the British government to fire upon the colonists whenever he should see fit; but their prudent and peace- ful course gave him no opportunity for so doing. The government at length undertook to put a stop to the town meet- ings of the Americans by forbidding them to hold such meetings after a cer- tain day. They evaded this law by convoking the meetings before the designated day, and " keeping them alive " by adjourning them from time to time. Faneuil Hall and the Old South Church were the favorite places of meeting, but many of these assemblies were held under the Liberty Tree. In the meantime the recommendation of Virginia for a general congress was accepted by the other colonies, and measures were set on foot to bring it about. The need of such an assembly, which should represent the whole country, was becoming more and more apparent every day. In the various JOHN HANCOCK.. colonies delegates were chosen, and it was agreed, at the instance of the legis- lature of Massachusetts, that the congress should meet in Philadelphia on the fifth of September, 1774. Martin, the royalist governor of Georgia, prevented that colony 350 THE AMERICAN REVOLUTION. from choosing delegates to the congress, and General Gage attempted a similar inter- ference with the general court of Massachu- setts. Samuel Adams, as usual, had antici- pated him, however. On the seventeenth of June, having privately ascertained the senti- ments of the members, he locked the door of the room in which the meeting of the assembly was held, and so kept out the governor's secretary, who came to dissolve the session, and who knocked in vain for admission. Thus, safe from executive inter- ference, the general court proceeded to ap- point its delegates to the congress and to make provision for their support. This ac- complished, the doors were opened and the members submitted to the dissolution pro- nounced by Governor Gage. Organized Opposition. The act of Parliament by which the British government undertook to prohibit the town meetings of Massachusetts was known as the " Regulation Act." It was introduced into Parliament by Lord North in April, and re- ceived the royal assent in May, 1754. It was an infamous measure. It annulled the <;harter of the colony, and " without previous notice to Massachusetts, and without a hear- ing, it arbitrarily took away rights and lib- erties which the people had enjoyed from the foundation of the colony, except in the evil days of James II." All the power of the colony was concentrated in the hands of the royal governor bv conferring upon him the appointment of all the courts of justice and every official connected with them. The courts were all to be remodelled in the in- terest of the king, and Gage at once set to work to appoint the new judges. The whole colony united in a determined resistance to them. In many of the towns the citizens would not allow the new courts to be opened, and in Boston no man could be found to serve as a juror in the courts ap- pointed for that city. A meeting of the citi- zens of Boston was held at Faneuil Hall on the twenty-sixth of August, 1774, and was attended by delegates from the counties of Worcester, Middlesex and Essex. It adopted a series of resolutions denying the authority of Parliament to change any of the laws of the province, and declared that the new govern- ment set up by Gage under the Regulating Act was unconstitutional, and that the new officers, should they attempt to act, would become the enemies of the province although they bore the commission of the king. The People Aroused. In order to provide for the safety of the colony a provincial congress with large ex- ecutive powers was advised by the conven- tion. Gage found himself unable to enforce the new laws. "The chief justice and his colleagues, repairing in a body to the gov- ernor, represented the impossibility of exer- cising their office in Boston or in any other part of the province ; the army was too small for their protection ; and besides, none would act as jurors. Thus the authority of the new government, as established by act of Parliament, perished in the presence of the governor, the judges and the army."* Thus defeated. Gage began to increase the number of troops at Boston. On the first of September Gage sent a de- tachment to Quarry Hill, near Charlestown, and seized the public magazine in which the province of Massachusetts kept its powder for its militia, and brought it to Boston. The news of this seizure roused the people of the surrounding counties to a high state of in- dignation. A body of several thousand of the best citizens of Middlesex, " leaving their guns in the rear," marched to Cambridge to *Baacroft. CAUSES OF THE STRUGGLE FOR INDEPENDENCE. 351 protest against the outrage. They com- pelled Danforth, a county judge and a mem- ber of Gage's council ; Phipps, the high sheriff; and Oliver, the lieutenant-governor, to resign their places. They attempted no violence, and inasmuch as Gage had acted within the letter of the law in removing the powder, dispersed quietly, satisfied for the time with their protest. Their demonstra- tion thoroughly alarmed Gage, who kept the troops in Boston under arms all night, posted cannon to command the approaches to the town, and doubled all the guards. At the same time he wrote to England for reinforce- ments. The news of the seiz- ure of the Massachusetts powder spread rapidly through the province and into the adjoining colo- nies. The seizure was made on Thursday morn- ing, and by Saturday morning twenty thou- sand men were under arms and advancing upon Boston. They were stopped by expresses from the patriots at Boston, but their prompt action showed the spirit of the When the news reached Israel written express to the foreman of this com- mittee when you have occasion of our martial assistance ; we shall attend your summons, and shall glory in having a share in the honor of ridding our country of the yoke of tyranny which our forefathers have not borne, neither will we. And we much desire you to keep a strict guard over the remainder of your powder, for that must be the great means, under God, of the salvation of our country." The excitement was not without its good results, however. It led every man to ex- CARPENTERS HALL, PHILADELPHIA. provmce. Putnam, in his home in Connecticut, the old hero at once called on the militia to go with him to the aid of Boston, where the report said the people had been fired on by the royal troops and shipping. His call was answered by thousands, but later advices from Boston put a stop to the march. " But for counter intelligence," wrote Put- nam to the patriots at Boston, " we should have had forty thousand men, well equipped and ready to march this morning. Send a amine the condition of his means of resist- ance, and to supply his deficiencies in arms and equipments. The royal authority was at an end outside of Boston, and active roy- alists found it best to seek safety within that city. The general congress, or, as it is better known, the Old Continental Congress, met in Carpenter's Hall, in Philadelphia, on the fifth of September, 1774. It numbered fifty- five members, consisting of delegates from every colony save Georgia, whose governor had prevented the election of delegates. 352 THE AMERICAN REVOLUTION. Among the members were many of the most eminent men in the land. From Virginia came George Washington, Patrick Henry and Richard Henry Lee; from Massachu- setts, Samuel Adams and John Adams ; from New York, PhiHp Livingston, John Jay and William Livingston; from Rhode Island, the venerable Stephen Hopkins ; from Con- necticut, Roger Sherman ; from South Caro- lina, Edward and John Rutledge and Chris- topher Gadsden ; and from New Jersey, the Rev. John Witherspoon, the president of Princeton College. The members of this illustrious body were not strangers to each other, though the majority of them met now for the first time. They had corresponded with each other and had discussed their wrongs so thoroughly that each was well acquainted with the sentiments of his col- leagues, and all were bound together by a common sympathy. Prayer and Patriotism. The congress was organized by the elec- tion of Peyton Randolph, of Virginia, as speaker. Charles Thomson, of Pennsylva- nia, an Irishman by birth, and the principal of the Quaker High School in Philadelphia, was then chosen secretary. It was proposed to open the sessions with prayer. Some of the members thought this might be inexpe- dient, as all the delegates might not be able to join in the same form of worship. Up rose Samuel Adams, in whose great soul there was not a grain of sham. He was a strict Congregationalist. " I am no bigot," he said. " I can hear a prayer from a man of piety and virtue, whatever may be his cloth, provided he is at the same time a friend to his country." On his motion, the Rev. Mr. Duche, an Episcopal clergyman of Philadelphia, was invited to act as chaplain. Mr. Duche accepted the invitation. When the congress assembled the next morning, all was anxiety and apprehension, for the rumor of the attack upon Boston, which had reached Putnam and aroused Connecticut, had gotten as far as Philadel- phia. The chaplain opened the session by reading the thirty-fifth Psalm, which seemed, as John Adams said, ordained by Heaven to be read that morning, and then broke forth into an extempore prayer of great fervor and eloquence. A Recital of "Wrongs. At the close of the prayer a deep silence prevailed in the hall. It was broken by Patrick Henry, who rose to open the day's proceedings. He began slowly and hesi- tatingly at first, " as if borne down by the weight of his subject," but as he proceeded he rose grandly to the duty of the occasion, and in a speech of masterly eloquence he re- cited the wrongs of the American colonies at the hands of Great Britain, and declared that all government in America was dissolved, and urged upon the congress the necessity of forming a new government for the colo- nies. Towards the close of his speech he struck a chord which answered in every heart. " British oppression," he exclaimed, " has effaced the boundaries of the several colonies ; the distinctions between Virgin- ians, Pennsylvanians, New Yorkers and New Englanders are no more. I am not a Vir- ginian, but an American." The deputies were astonished at his eloquence, as well 'as at the magnitude of the interests with which they were intrusted. The congress continued its sessions for seven weeks. It had no authority to bind the colonies to any course ; its powers were merely advisory, and it did not transcend its authority. It drew up a Declaration of Rights, in which it defined the latural rights of man to be the enjoyment of life, liberty and property. It claimed for the Ameri- cans, as British subjects, the right to partici- CAUSES OF THE STRUGGLE FOR INDEPENDENCE. 353 pate in the making of their laws, and the levying of taxes upon their own people. The right of trial by jury in the immediate vicinity of the scene of the alleged offence, and the right of holding public meetings and petitioning for the redress of grievances were solemnly asserted. A protest was entered against the maintaining of standing armies in America without the consent of the colonies, and against eleven specified acts passed since the opening of the reign of George III., as violative of the rights of the colonies. The declaration concluded with the solemn warning, " To these grievous acts and measures Americans cannot sub- mit." Prompt Measures. Congress then addressed itself to a plan for obtaining redress. It was agreed to form an "American Association," whose members were to pledge themselves not to trade with Great Britain or the West Indies, or with persons engaged in the slave trade ; not to use tea or any British goods ; and not to trade with any colony which should re- fuse to join the association. For the purpose of enforcing the objects of this association, committees were to be appointed in the vari- ous parts of the country to see that its provisions were carried into effect. Other papers were adopted by the con- gress, setting forth its views more clearly. A petition to the king was prepared by John Dickinson, of Pennsylvania, who also drafted an address to the people of Canada. A memorial to the people of the colonies was written by Richard Henry Lee, of Vir- ginia, and an address to the people of Great Britain by John Jay, of New York. These papers were forwarded to England to be laid before the British government, and on the twenty-sixth of October the congress ad- journed to meet on the tenth of May, 1775. " 23 In January, 1775, Lord North presented the papers adopted by congress to the House of Commons, and at the same time they were laid before the House of Lords by Lord Dartmouth. The venerable Earl of Chatham made this the occasion of a power- ful appeal to the majority in Parliament to reverse their arbitrary course towards the Americans before it should be too late. Referring to the papers laid before the House, he said : " When your lordships look at the papers transmitted us from America, when you consider their decency, firmness and wisdom, you cannot but respect their cause and wish to make it your own. For myself, I must avow, that in all my reading — and I have read Thucydides, and have studied and admired the master states of the world — for solidity of reason, force of sagacity, and wisdom of conclusion under a complication of difficult circumstances, no nation or body of men can stand in prefer- ence to the general congress at Philadelphia. The histories of Greece and Rome give us nothing equal to it, and all attempts to im- pose servitude upon such a mighty conti- nental nation must be in vain. We shall be forced ultimately to retract ; let us retract while we can, not when we must. These violent acts must be repealed ; you will repeal them ; I pledge myself for it, I stake my reputation on it, that you will in the end repeal them. Avoid, then, this humiliating necessity." The king was furious when the words of the greatest statesman of his kingdom were repeated to him. Neither the wisdom nor the eloquence of Chatham could turn the king or the ministers from their mad course. They had but one plan for Amer- ica now. She must submit humbly to their will ; if she should resist, she must be crushed into submission. The king meant to try the question with the Americans. CHAPTER XXVI Progress of the War Gage Fortifies Boston Neck — He Summons the General Court — Recalls his Proclamation — The Provincial Congress of Massachusetts — It takes Measures for Defence — The Militia Organized — The Minute Men — Friends of America in England — Gage Resolves to Seize the Stores at Concord — Midnight March of the British Troops — The Alarm Given — Skirmishes at Lexington and Concord — Retreat of the British — A Terrible March — Uprising of New England — Boston Invested — Dunmore Seizes the Virginia Powder — Is Made to Pay for It — Uprising of the Middle and Southern Colonies — The Mecklenburg Declaration of Independence — Capture of Ticonderoga and Crown Point — Meeting of the Second Continental Congress — Congress Resolves to Sustain Massachusetts — Renewed Efforts for Peace — Congress Assumes the General Government of the Colonies — A Federal Union Organized — Its Character — A Continental Army Formed — George Washington Appointed Commander-in-Chief — General Officers Appointed — Condition of the Army Before Boston — Inaction of Gage — Battle of Breed's Hill — A Glorious Defence — The Battle Equivalent to a Victory in its Effects upon the Country — Arrival of Washington at Cambridge — He Takes Command of the Army — He Reor- ganizes the Army — Difficulties of the Undertaking — The Invasion of Canada Resolved Upon — March of Montgomery and Arnold — Rapid Successes of Montgomery — He Captures Montreal — March of Arnold Through the Wilderness — Arrival Before Quebec — Forms a Junction with Montgomery — The Siege of Quebec — The Ice Forts — Failure of the Attack — Death of Montgomery — Retreat of the Americans from Canada — Lord Dunmore's War in Virginia — Destruc- tion of Norfolk — The Thirteen United Colonies — Burning of Falmouth — Naval Matters — Action of Great Britain — The War to be Carried On — The Hessians. WHILE the Continental Congress was in session, matters were in a most serious state in Massachusetts. General Gage, alarmed by the threatening aspect of the Americans, began to fortify Boston Neck, the narrow peninsula which united the city with the mainland. A regiment was stationed at these works to prevent communication between the citizens and the people in the country. The news of this action spread rapidly. At Portsmouth, New Hampshire, a company of volunteers seized the fort and carried off one hundred and fifty barrels of powder and several cannon. At Newport forty-four cannon were seized by the people and sent to Providence for safe-keeping. In the midst of this excitement, Gage, thinking such a step might conciliate the people, summoned the general court to meet at Salem ; but, alarmed at the growing spirit of liberty, countermanded the order. The members of the general court met, however. at Salem, on the fifth of October, 1774, but finding no one to organize them adjourned to Concord, where they resolved themselves into a provincial congress, of which John Hancock was elected president. This con- gress existed as the government of the people, and was independent of the authority of the king. They protested their loyalty to King George and their desire for peace, and endea- vored to induce Gage to desist from fortify- ing Boston Neck. Gage refused to comply with their demand, and warned them to desist from their unlawful course. The provincial congress paid no attention to his warning, but proceeded to call out the militia to the number of twelve thousand. They were allowed to remain at their homes, but were required to be ready for service at a minute's warning. Hence they were known as " Minute Men." Two committees of safety were appointed : one to call out the minute men when their services were needed ; the other to supply 354 PROGRESS OF THE WAR. 355 them with provisions and ammunition. Two general officers, Artemas Ward and Seth Pomeroy, were appointed. The other New England colonies were invited to increase the number of minute men to twenty thousand. The sum of twenty thousand pounds was voted for the military service, and Massa- chusetts prepared for the worst. In every colony military preparations were set on foot, and the whole of America began to prepare for the coming storm which all thinking men now saw was close at hand. The papers drawn up by the Continental Congress had been widely circulated in Eng- land, and had aroused a great deal of sym- pathy for America, and it was hoped by many that the new Parliament, which met in Janu- ary, 1775, would see the necessity of doing justice to the colonies. The cause of America was eloquently pleaded by the Earl of Chat- ham and others, but the King and the Minis- ters were resolved to compel the submission of the Americans, and the majority in Parlia- ment sustained them. A measure known as the "New England Restraining Bill" was introduced by Lord North, which deprived the people of New England of the privilege of fishing on the banks of Newfoundland. The Colonies Act Promptly. In March news arrived that all the colonies had endorsed the action of the Continental Congress and had pledged themselves to support it. To punish them the provisions of the Restraining Bill were extended to every colony save New York, Delaware and North Carolina. These colonies were exempted in the hope of inducing them to desert the American cause. The measure failed of its object, and the three favored colonies re- mained firm in the support of the Congress. General Gage now resolved to take a decisive step. He learned that the patriots had established a depot of provisions and military stores at Concord, eighteen miles from Boston, and resolved to seize these supplies at once. The military force under his com- mand at Boston numbered three thousand men, and he felt himself strong enough not only to seize these stores, but also to arrest John Hancock and Samuel Adams, who were lodging at Lexington. Accordingly, on the night of the eighteenth of April, 1775, he THE MINUTE MAN. detached a force of eight hundred men under Lieutenant-Colonel Smith, and shortly before midnight had them conveyed across Charles River to Cambridge, from which place they began their march to Concord. Gage had conducted the whole movement with the greatest secrecy, but, his preparations had been detected by the patriot leaders in Boston, and Hancock and Adams had been warned 356 THE AMERICAN REVOLUTION. of their danger. The British had hardly embarked in their boats when two lanterns were displayed from the tower of the Old North Church. Paul Revere, the chosen messenger, who had been awaiting this signal, at once set off from Charlestown and rode in haste to Lex- ington to warn the patriots of the approach of the British troops. At the same time not gone far when they heard in advance of them the firing of alarm guns and the tolling of bells. The British officers were astonished at the rapidity with which their movement had been discovered; but they could not doubt the meaning of these signals. The country was being aroused, and their situa- tion was becoming serious. Lieutenant- Colonel Smith sent a messenger to General THE BATTLE OF LEXINGTON, APRIL I9, I775. William Dawes left Boston by the road over the Neck, and rode at full speed towards Lexington, arousing the country as he went along with his stirring tidings. Other mes- sengers were sent forward by these men, and tlje alarm spread rapidly through the country. From Cambridge the British pushed for- ward rapidly towards Lexington. They had Gage for reinforcements, and ordered Major Pitcairn to push forward with a part of the force and seize the two bridges at Concord. Pitcairn obeyed his orders promptly, and arrested every one whom he met or over- took save a countryman, who escaped and reached Lexington in time to give the alarm. PROGRESS OF THE WAR. 357 Pitcairn's division reached Lexington at daybreak on the nineteenth of April. They found seventy or eighty minute men, and several other persons, assembled on the common. They were ignorant of the inten- tions of the British, and supposed they merely wished to arrest Adams and Hancock, who had left the village upon the first alarm. '• Disperse, ye Rebels !" As he saw the group Pitcairn ordered his men to halt and load their muskets, and called out to the Americans : " Disperse, ye villains, ye rebels, disperse ; lay down your arms ; why don't you lay down your arms and dis- perse ?" The Americans stood motionless and silent, " witnesses against agression ; too few to resist ; too brave to fly." Pitcairn, seeing that his order was not obeyed, dis- charged his pistol and ordered his men to fire. A few straggling shots followed this order, and then the regulars poured a close heavy volley into the Americans^ killing seven and wounding nine of them. Parker, the commander of the minute men, seeing that the affair was to be a massacre instead of a battle, ordered his men to disperse. The British then gave three cheers for their vic- tory. In a little while Colonel Smith arrived with the remainder of his command, and the whole party then pushed on towards Con- cord. The alarm had already reached Concord, and in a little while news was received of the massacre at Lexington. The minute men promptly assembled on the common, near the church, and awaited the approach of the enemy. The minute men from Lin- coln came in at an early hour, and a few from Acton. About seven o'clock the British were seen advancing in two divisions, and as it was evident that they were about four times as numerous as the Americans, the latter retreated to the summit of a hill on the opposite side of the Concord River, and there awaited the arrival of reinforcements, which were coming in from the surrounding country. The British occupied the town, and post- ing a force of one hundred men to hold the North Bridge, began their search for arms and stores. The greater part of these had been secreted, but the soldiers found a few that could not be removed, and gave the rest of their time to plundering the houses of the town. " This slight waste of stores," says Bancroft, " was all the advantage for which Gage precipitated a civil war." Arrival of the Minute Men. Between nine and ten o'clock the Ameri- can force had increased by the arrival of the minute men from Acton, Bedford, Westford, Carlisle, Littleton and Chelmsford, to about four hundred and fifty. Below them, in full view, were the regulars plundering their homes, and from the town rose the smoke of the fires the soldiers had kindled for the destruction of the few stores they had man- aged to secure. Not knowing whether they meant to burn the town or not, the officers of the minute men resolved to advance and enter Concord. Barret, the commanding officer, cautioned the men not to fire unless attacked. As their approach was discovered the British began to take up the planks of the North Bridge, and to prevent this the Americans quickened their pace. The regu- lars then fired a volley, which killed two of the minute men. The fire was returned, and two of the soldiers were killed and several wounded. These volleys were followed by some desultory skirmishing, and about noon Colonel Smith drew off his men and began to retreat by the way he had come. One of those killed at the bridge was Isaac Davis, the captain of the minute men of Acton. He had bidden his young wife a 358 THE AMERICAN REVOLUTION. touching good-bye, as he ran to lead his men to the fight. A Httle later his dead body was brought to her door. With the retreat of the British from Con- cord the real work of the day began. The country was thoroughly aroused, and men came pouring in from every direction, eager to get a shot at the regulars. The road by which the royal forces were retreating was narrow and crooked, and led through forests the strife as the regulars entered its limits. Far and wide the alarm was spreading through the country, and the people were getting under arms. By noon a messenger rode furiously into the distant town of Wor- cester and shouted the alarm. Instantly the minute men of the town got under arms, and after joining their minister in prayer, on the common, took up the march for Cambridge. The whole province was rising, and the DEATH OF ISAAC DAVIS. and thickets, and was bordered by the stone walls which enclosed the farms. At every step the militia and minute men hung upon the enemy, and kept up an irregular but fatal fire upon them from behind trees, fences and houses. Flanking parties were thrown out to clear the way, but without success. The number of the Americans increased at every step. Each town took up enemies of the fugitive regulars were increasing every moment. Smith hurried his command through Lex- ington at a rapid rate, and a short distance beyond the town met Lord Percy advancing to his assistance with twelve hundred infantry and two pieces of artillery. Percy formed his men into a square, enclosing the fugitives, who dropped helplessly on the PROGRESS OF THE WAR. 359^ ground, "their tongues hanging out of their mouths hke those of dogs after a chase,'' and with his cannon kept the Americans at bay. He could not think of holding his position, however, and after a halt of half an hour resumed the retreat, first setting fire to some houses in Lexington. The fighting now became more energetic than ever. From either side, from in front and the rear, the Americans kept up a constant fire upon the British, who revenged them- selves by murdering some helpless people along the road and burning houses. Below West Cambridge the British broke into a run, and at length, about sunset, succeeded in escaping across Charlestown Neck, where they were safe under the fire of their ship- ping. Had the militia from Marblehead and Salem, who were on the march, been more alert, the entire British force would have been captured, as they were in no condition to resist a determined attack in front. The loss of the Americans during the day was forty-nine killed, thirty-four wounded and five missing. The British lost in killed, wounded and missing two hundred and seventy-three men, or more than fell in Wolfe's army in the battle of the Heights of Abraham. Many of the officers, including Colonel Smith, were wounded. The News Spreads Like Wildfire. The news of the conflicts at Lexington and Concord spread rapidly through New Eng- land, and was sent by express messengers to New York and the colonies farther south. In New England it produced a general upris- ing of the people, and in ten days Boston was blockaded by an irregular army of twenty thousand provincial troops, whose encamp- ments extended from Roxbury to the Mystic River, above Charlestown, a distance of ten miles., John Stark, who had served with gallantry in the old French war, was on his way to Boston in ten minutes after he was informed of the fighting. Israel Putnam, a veteran soldier, and as true a hero as ever lived, was ploughing in his field when the courier rode by with the tidings of the battle. He left his plough, sprang on his horse, and after rousing his neighbors rode from his home, in Connecti- cut, to Cambridge, without even stopping to change his clothes. The Massachusetts Con- gress took energetic measures for the sup- port of the army before Boston, and in a few days this force began to assume a more regu- lar character. Arms and Ammunition Seized. Matters had also reached a crisis in Vir- ginia. On the night of the twentieth of April Lord Dunmore seized the powder in the magazine at Williamsburg, and sent it, under guard of a party of marines, on board an armed schooner in the James river. The inhabitants, on the morning of the twenty- first, took arms to compel the restoration of the powder, but were persuaded to refrain from violence. In a few days the news from Lexington and Concord was received, and it was the general belief that Dunmore's course was only a part of a general plan to disarm the colonies. On the second of May Patrick Henry summoned the independent companies ot Hanover to meet him at a certain place, and led them towards Williamsburg, determined to compel the governor to restore the powder or pay its full value in money. On the march they were met by a messenger from Dunmore, who paid them the full value of the powder in money. This money was soon after for- warded to Congress. The companies then disbanded and returned home. Dunmore, thoroughly frightened, fled with his family on board a man-of-war, and declared " Pat- rick Henry and his associates to be in rebel- 360 THE AMERICAN REVOLUTION. lion." Afraid to meet the Virginians in an open fight, he threatened to arm their slaves against them, and inaugurated a general massacre. The middle and southern colonies were prompt to follow the example of New Eng- land. The people of New York seized the provisions intended for the king's troops at Boston, shut up the custom-house, and for- bade any vessels to leave the harbor for ports or colonies acknowledging the authority of Great Britain. The arms and ammunition belonging to the city were seized by the CAPTURE OF TICONDEROGA BY ETHAN ALLEN. volunteers, and measures were set on foot for a general resistance to the authority of the king. New Jersey was equally determined, and in Pennsylvania enthusiastic meetings of citizens resolved "to associate for the pur- pose of defending, with arms, their lives, their property, and liberty." Military companies were formed and trained in the exercise of arms. The people of Mary- land compelled their royalist governor to surrender to them all the arms and ammuni- tion of the province. The militia officers of South Carolina at once resiofned their com- missions from the governor, and regiments of militia for the defence of the colony were raised and drilled. At Charleston the royal arsenal was seized, and its contents distributed among the people. Georgia also placed her- self in the ranks of her patriot sisters, and seizing the ammunition and arms within her limits prepared for resistance. North Carolina took a more decisive stand than any of the colonies. The spirit of resist- ance ran high within her borders. A con- vention of the people of Mecklenburg county was held at Charlotte on the twenty-ninth of May, and adopted a series of resolu- tions declaring themselves inde- f the control of Great Britain, and re- nouncing all alle- giance to her. This was the famous " Mecklenburg De- claration of Inde- pendence." The whole country, from New Hamp- shire to Georgia, was united in its determination t o resist the injustice of Great Britain with arms. Massachusetts had struck the first blow, but every colony was now prepared and determined to bear its part in the great struggle for freedom. The Massachusetts Committee of Safety were anxious to secure the important posts of Ticonderoga and Crown Point on Lake Champlain. The possession of these posts would not only enable the Americans to command the entrance to Canada, but would give them the large quantities of military supplies stored in these forts. The project PUTNAM'S ESCAPE AT HORSE NECK. PROGRESS OF THE WAR. 361 was entered into with great energy by Bene- dict Arnold, then commanding a company before Boston, and by Ethan Allen, of Ver- mont. Allen was the leader of the Green Mountain Boys, a military organization in Vermont, which had been formed to resist the authority of New York, which claimed Vermont as a part of its territory. The people of Vermont, however, preferred the authority of New Hampshire to that of New York. The dispute had become quite animated when the outbreak of the Revolution drew the attention of all parties to more stirring events. Arnold, upon hearing that Allen was preparing to seize the forts, set out at once for Vermont, and over- took the Green Mountain Boys near the head of Lake Champlain. Pro- ducing a colonel's commission he ordered Allen to surrender the com- mand to him, but the latter refused, and was sustained by his men, and Arnold at length agreed to serve as a volunteer. Securing a few boats Allen cros- sed the lake with his little force, about two hundred and seventy in number, and at daybreak, on the morning of May 10, surprised Fort Ticonderoga, and made prisoners of the garrison before they v/ere fairly awake. Not a blow was struck. The astounded commander of the fort asked Allen by whose authority he acted. " In the name of the Great Jehovah and the Continental Congress," was the instant reply, delivered in stentorian tones. The commandant instantly submitted. On the twelfth of May Seth Warner, Allen's lieutenant, surprised Crown Point, and secured the fort. Arnold secured a number of boats and, descending the lake, captured St. John's, in the " Sorel." Sixty prisoners were taken in this expedition, and besides two of the most important military posts in America the patriots secured two hundred cannon, and a large supply of ammuni- tion. On the tenth of May, the day of the cap- ture of Ticonderoga, the second Continental ^^.^ //0^/'UOl/}iCTtj ^A^l^J /U^^^^l SIGNERS OF THE MECKLENBURG DECLARATION. Congress met at Philadelphia. This time they assembled in the State House, a place more suited to the dignity of such a body ; and calculated to give more publicity to their proceedings. No change was at first made in the officers of the preceding session, but in a few days Peyton Randolph resigned his position to return home to attend the Vir- ginia legislature, which had been summoned 362 THE AMERICAN REVOLUTION. by the governor. Thomas Jefferson was appointed to fill his position as a delegate. John Hancock of Massachusetts, who had been .specially exempted by the king from all offers of amnesty, was chosen president of the Congress. Three new members of note now entered the Congress. They were Ben- jamin Franklin, a delegate from Pennsyl- vania, and George Clinton and Robert R. Livingston, delegates from New York. Franklin had just returned from England, where he had resided for several years as the agent for some of the colonies. He had been in constant official contact with the lead- ing men of Great Britain and was thoroughly informed as to the policy of the British gov- ernment respecting America. He was, there- fore, a most valuable acquisition to the Con- gress. Justice Demanded of Great Britain. The circumstances under which this Con- gress assembled were very different from those which had attended the meeting of its predecessor. Then there was hope that the remonstrances of the colonies would open the eyes of the British government to the folly of its course ; but those remonstances had been received with fresh outrages, their petitions had "been spurned with contempt from the foot of the throne," and the British army had begun the war at Lexington and Concord. Massachusetts, driven beyond the point of forbearance, had taken up arms, and had besieged the royal troops in Boston^ A state of war actually existed and Congress must either sustain Massachusetts, and so involve every colony in the struggle, or leave her to meet the power of Great Britain unaided. The whole country was in favor of stand- ing by Massachusetts, and the delegates in Congress reflected its feeling. It was, there- fore, resolved by Congress to place all the colonies in a state of defence, and to prepare for a vigorous prosecution of the war should it be found impossible to avert it. At the same time, as a last means of preserving peace, a new petition was addressed to the king stating the grievances of the colonies, and asking for justice at his majesty's hands. Addresses were also issued to the people of Great Britain, Ireland and Jamaica. To the people of Great Britain they declared, after relating their wrongs, and their failure to obtain redress : " We are reduced to the alternative of choosing an unconditional sub- mission to the tryanny of irritated ministers, or resistance by force. The latter is our choice. We have counted the cost of this contest, and we find nothing so dreadful as voluntary slavery." In the petition to the king Congress denied that it was the inten- tion of the colonies to cast off their allegi- ance ; but asserted their intention to main- tain their rights. When this petition was presented to the king in September, he refused to take any notice of it. The Federal Union. In view of the altered position of affairs Massachusetts consulted the Congress as to the propriety of establishing a regular sys- tem of government, and was advised to make such regulations for that purpose as were necessary, and to continue them as a temporary expedient until it should be known whether the king would allow the colony to resume the government guaran- teed to it by its charter. In order to avoid the trouble which would ensue from an inter- ruption of the regular postal communication between the colonies, Congress assumed the power of organizing a general system of mails for the whole country, and appointed Dr. Franklin postmaster-general. From these acts Congress advanced to others still more important. A " Federal PROGRESS OF THE WAR. 363 Union " of the colonies was organized, in which each colony retained the exclusive control of its internal affairs, but delegated to Congress authority to direct all matters pertaining to the general welfare of the col- onies, such as the power to declare war^ make peace, and negotiate treaties of alliance and friendship with foreign countries. In the exercise of these powers Congress assumed the general government of America. A day of fasting and prayer to God, for his assist- ance in the struggle for freedom, was enjoined upon all the colonies. All persons were for- bidden to furnish provisions under any cir- cumstances. W^ho shall Command the Army ? Measures were adopted for the organiza- tion and enlistment of an army, and for the purpose of erecting fortifications at suitable points, and procuring arms and ammunition. In order to raise the funds needed for carry- ing out these objects " Bills of Credit," to the amount of two millions of dollars, were issued, and for their redemption Congress pledged the faith of the " United Colonies." The provincial congress of Massachusetts requested the Congress at Philadelphia to adopt the New England forces before Boston as the "Continental Army," and this request was at once complied with. As General Ward, the commander of these troops, held his commission from Massachusetts, it was necessary for Congress to appoint a com- mander-in-chief commissioned by itself. With respect to this appointment the mem- bers were divided. Some thought that as the troops were all New England men, the commander should be chosen from the same section. Others favored the appointment of a commander who would inspire the confi- dence of, and be acceptable to, the entire country. The name of General Ward was suggested by the first party ; but a majority of the delegates favored the appointment of Colonel Washington, who was a member of Congress, and chairman of the committee on military affairs, in which capacity he had proposed the plan for the organization of the army, and had suggested the most important measures for defence. He had profoundly impressed the delegates with his great and commanding character, his military ability, and his wisdom as a statesman. Washington Appointed. Patrick Henry, on his return home from the first Congress, had been asked who was the greatest man in that body. His reply expressed the views of his colleagues respect- ing Washington. " If you speak of elo- quence," he said, " Mr. Rutledge, of South Carolina, is, by far, the greatest orator ; but if you speak of solid information and sound judgment Colonel Washington is unques- tionably the greatest man on that floor." Dr. Warren wrote from Massachusetts to Samuel Adams, in Congress, about this time,v that the appointment of Colonel Washing-* ton as commander-in-chief would give great satisfaction to many leading men in Massa- chusetts. John Adams was anxious for the appointment, and having satisfied himself of the wishes of the greater part of the delegates, ventured openly to allude to Washington as the proper person for the position, and spoke of him as a gentleman whose " skill and experience as an officer, whose independent fortune, great talents, and excellent universal character, would command the approbation of all America, and unite the cordial exer- tions of the colonies better than any other person in the Union." On the 14th of June M. Johnson, of Maryland, formally nominated Washington to the office of commander-in-chief, and he was unanimously chosen by ballot. The next day his election was communicated to 3^4 THE AMERICAN REVOLUTION. him by the President of Congress. Washing- rose in his place, and thanked the House for the unexpected honor conferred upon him, assured them of his devotion to the cause, and announced his acceptance of the great trust confided to him. He declared his intention to refuse the pay affixed to the office, which had been placed at five hundred dollars a month, and added : " I will keep an exact account of my expenses. These. I doubt not, they will discharge, and that is all Gates. GENERAL ISRAEL PUTNAM. I desire." Congress, on its part, pledged its hearty support to the new commander, and resolved " to maintain and assist, and adhere to him with their lives and fortunes in the defence of American liberty." Washington lost no time in proceeding to assume the command conferred upon him. After a few days spent in preparation in Philadelphia he left that city on the twenty- first of June for the headquarters of the army, accompanied by Generals Lee and Schuyler. A few days after the election of the com- mander-in-chief Congress appointed four major-generals, one adjutant-general, with the rank of brigadier, and eight brigadier- generals for the subordinate commands in the American army. Major-Generals. The major-generals were Artemas Ward, Charles Lee, Philip Schuyler and Israel Put- nam. The adjutant-general was Horatio The brigadiers were Seth Pomeroy, Richard Montgomery, David Woos- ter, William Heath, Joseph Spencer, John Thomas, John Sullivan and Nathaniel Greene. In the meantime the blockade of Boston had been continued by the provincial army under General Ward. These forces numbered about fifteen thousand men, and had come from their respective towns in independent companies, and were without any regular or- ganization. They had no uniform, but the majority wore their ordinary home-spun working clothes ; they were deficient in arms ; a few had muskets, but the majority had rifles and fowling-pieces. The artillery consisted of nine pieces of cannon, and was commanded by Colonel Gridley, who had directed the artil- lery at the siege of Louisburg. The Massa- chusetts troops were commanded by Gen- eral Ward ; those from New Hampshire by Colonel Stark ; the Connecticut troops by Putnam ; and the regiment from Rhode Island by Nathaniel Greene, a young black- smith. Save for the solemnity of the cause, and the earnestness and determination which animated the whole force, there, was little to save this quaint assemblage from the ridicule which the royal officers heaped upon it. It PROGRESS OF THE WAR. 365 did to ordinary view seem the height of folly to oppose such an ill-provided and unorganized mass to the splendidly equipped veterans who served King George. Yet this force " with calico frocks and fowling-pieces" hemmed in within the nar- row limits of Boston the splendid army of ten thousand men, commarided by such generals as Howe, Burgoyne and Sir Henry Clinton, which Gage had concen- trated in Boston. Bur- goyne could not repress his astonish- ment upon reaching Boston. "What!" he exclaimed, "ten thou- sand peasants keep five thousand kind's troops shut up ! Well, let us get in and we'll soon find elbow room." Inspite of his immense superiority, however, Gage did not venture to attack the Ameri- can lines. He con- tented himself with issuing a proclama- tion declaring the province under mar- tial law, and offering a free pardon to all rebels who should return to their allegi- ance, with the exception of Samuel Adams and John Hancock. These rebels were cut off from all hope of the king's mercy, and were given to understand that they could expect nothing but the most sum- mary punishment. General Gage now determined to extend his lines and to occupy Dorchester Heights, overlooking South Boston, and Bunker Hill, an eminence rising beyond Charlestown, on the north of Boston. The execution of this design was fixed for the eighteenth of June GENERAL BURGOYNE. and in the meantime Gage's intention became known in the American camp. To prevent it, it was resolved, at the instance of the Massachusetts Committee of Safety, to seize and fortify these eminences, beginning with Bunker Hill. The more prudent opposed 366 THE AMERICAN REVOLUTION. this undertaking as too rash ; it was certain to bring on a general engagement of the opposing forces, and the Americans were too poorly provided with arms and ammunition to hope for success. Others insisted that no time should be lost in securing the Heights. A Daring Enterprise. Putnam was confident they could be held with proper intrenchments, and that thus pro- tected the troops could be relied upon to hold their position. The great scarcity of ammunition rendered the undertaking one of peculiar daring and it was necessary to select for the command an officer whose firm- ness and discretion could be depended upon. The choice fell upon Colonel William Pres- cott, of Massachusetts, and a brigade was placed under his orders. Soon after the sunset on the sixteenth of June a force of about eleven hundred men, armed principally with fowling-pieces, and carrying their scanty stock of powder and ball in their old-fashioned powder horns and pouches, assembled on Cambridge Com- mon. Langdon, the President of Harvard College, one of the chaplains of the army, offered up an impressive prayer, and then the order was given to march, and the col- umn moved ofif in the darkness. No one knew the object of the expedition, but the presence of several wagons loaded with intrenching tools, made it evident that the movement was one of importance. Charles- town Neck was strongly guarded, but the detachment passed it in safety and reached the summit of Bunker Hill without being observed. The Committee of Safety had suggested that Bunker Hill should be secured, but Prescott's orders from General Ward were to fortify Breed's Hill, a lower eminence but nearer to Boston, and commanding the har- bor more perfectly. It was a more exposed position than the other, but Prescott decided to obey his orders. Colonel Gridley, who was an experienced engineer, marked out a redoubt about eight rods square, and in the clear June starlight the men set to work with a will to construct the fortification before the morning should reveal them to the British. It was midnight when the men began their labors. A strong guard was thrown out along the shore of the harbor to prevent a surprise, and Ihe men could distinctly hear the call of the senti- nels on the men-of-war in the harbor. During the night Putnam came over to the hill to encourage the Connecticut troops. Heavy Guns Open Fire. The early morning light revealed to the astonished royalists the half-finished redoubt on Breed's Hill and the Americans still bus- ily at work upon it. The sloop-of-war " Lively," lying off the present navy yard, without waiting for orders, opened a steady fire upon the redoubt, and her example was soon followed by the other war vessels and the floating batteries in the harbor, A battery of heavy guns was posted on Copp's Hill in Boston, and opened on the redoubt. This fire was well calculated to demoralize a raw force such as that within the redoubt, but it produced no effect upon the Ameri- cans, who went on with their task quietly and with energy. Gridley soon withdrew from the hill, and Prescott, thus deserted, and without an engineer, prepared to extend his line to the best of his ability. He pro- longed it from the east side of the redoubt northward for about twenty rods towards the bottom of the hill ; but the men were pre- vented from completing it by the heavy fire of the British artillery. One man ventured beyond the redoubt early in the day, and was killed by a shell. Prescott ordered him to be instantly buried, lest the sight of his PROGRESS OF THE WAR. 367 body might dishearten the men. To inspire the troops with confidence, Prescott sprang upon the parapet and walked slowly up and down the work examining it and issuing his orders. Boston Aroused by the Cannonading. In the meantime the firing had aroused the people of Boston, who crowded the house-tops, and every available point from which a view of the action could be obtained. General Gage reconnoitred the American position from Boston, through his glass, and observed Prescott, who was standing on the redoubt inspecting the work. " Who is that officer in command?" he asked of Councillor Willard.who was by his side. "Will he fight?" Willard had recognized Prescott, who was his brother-in-law, and replied : " He is an old soldier, and will fight to the last drop of his blood." Gage thereupon determined to dis- lodge the Americans from their position without lost of time, and summoned a coun- cil of his officers at his headquarters, in which it was decided to cross Charles River, effect a landing at Moulton's Point, and attack the works in front. Generals Clinton and Grant advocated an attack from the direction of Charlestown Neck, which would have resulted in the capture of the whole American force ; but Gage refused to place his attacking column between the American army at Cambridge and the detachment on the hill. The bustle in Boston as the British pre- pared for the attack could be distinctly seen by the Americans, and urgent messages were sent to General Ward for reinforcements and provisions. Putnam hurried to Ward's head- quarters to urge this demand; but Ward, who was greatly oppressed by the scarcity of powder in the camp, hesitated to weaken the main body, and it was not until eleven o'clock on the morning- of the seventeenth of June that he gave orders for the regi- ments of Stark and Reed to advance to Pre- scott's assistance. The arrival of these troops greatly cheered the little band under Prescott, who had been working all night, and were greatly in need of food. In the meantime Prescott had posted the Connecticut troops behind a rustic breast- work which he had constructed on the north of the redoubt. A stone fence ran down the side of the hill towards a swamp in this direction. Behind this the Ameri- cans placed a post and rail fence which they had torn up, and filled the interval between them with new-mown hay, thus forming a rude shelter. A part of the reinforcements joined Knowlton at this breastwork, and the remainder halted on Bunker Hill to enable Putnam to hold that point, the posses- sion of which he considered essential to the safety of the force on Breed's Hill. About two o'clock General Warren arrived. He held the commission of a major-general, and both Prescott and Putnam offered to relin- quish the command to him, but he refused it, saying he had come to serve as a volun- teer, and took his place in the ranks at the redoubt. Reinforcements for the British. At noon twenty- eight barges filled with regulars, under the command of Generals Howe and Pigott, left Boston, and crossing the harbor, landed at Moulton's Point, under the cover of a heavy fire from the shipping. General Howe now discovered that the American position was stronger than he had supposed, and sent over to General Gage for reinforcements. While awaiting their arrival he refreshed his men with provisions and grog. His reinforcements having arrived, General Howe found himself at the head of over two thousand veteran troops, splendidly equipped in every respect. Opposed to him 368 THE AMERICAN REVOLUTION. were about fifteen hundred imperfectly armed Americans. Gage had threatened that if Charlestown Heights were occupied by the provincials he would burn the town of Charlestown. He now proceeded to execute his barbarous threat, and fired the town by means of shells from the battery on Copp's Hill, hoping that the flames and smoke to storm the redoubt, while the other was led by General Howe in person against the rail fence, for the purpose of turning the American left flank and cutting off" the retreat of the force in the redoubt. Prescott passed along his line as he saw the advance of the enemy, and encouraged his men with his cheering words, " The red coats," he BATTLE OF BUNKER HILL. would screen the approach of his attacking party under General Howe. A change of wind prevented this, however, and carried the smoke in the opposite direction. About half-past two o'clock on the after- noon of the seventeenth of June General Howe gave the order to advance. One division, under General Pigott, was ordered said, " will never reach the redoubt if you will but withhold your fire till I give the order, and be careful not to shoot over their heads." Putnam had come down to the rail fence to encourage the men posted there, and as he saw the advance of the enemy, called out to the troops: "Wait till you see the white of their eyes; aim at their waistband ; pick off the handsome coats." The British advanced in splendid style up the side of the hill, firing rapidly as they moved on. The Americans awaited their advance in a deep silence. As Pigott's division came within forty yards of the redoubt, the defenders levelled their guns and took a steady aim. A minute or two later Prescott ^jave the command, "Fire!" A sheet of ilame broke from the rampart and tore great gaps in the English line, which reeled and staggered back down the hill. The officers exerted themselves gallantly to rally the men, and once more the line advanced. This time the Americans suffered them to come nearer, and again drove them back with a fatal fire before which whole ranks went down. They broke in such confusion that Pigott himself ordered a retreat. The division under General Howe was equally unfortu- nate. It was suffered to advance within thirty yards of the rail fence, and was then driven back by a fire which broke it in con- fusion. The British retired to the shore from which they had started. The Whole Line Driven Back. Greatly astonished, but not disheartened by his repulse. General Howe reformed his line, and after an interval of fifteen minutes moved off again against the works, his plan being the same as that of the first assault. This time the Americans reserved their fire as before, and once more sent the whole British line reeling and broken down the hill. Officers of experience on the experience on the English side subsequently declared that they had never seen such firing in any battle in which they had been engaged. A deafen- ing cheer from the patriot line greeted the repulse of the enemy. "If we can drive them back once more," cried Prescott, " they can- not rally again." A shout from the redoubt 24 PROGRESS OF THE WAR. 369 answered him. " We are ready for the red coats again ! " General Clinton had witnessed the repulse of the regulars from his position on Copp's Hill, and was filled with astonishment and indignation at the sight. Without waiting for orders he crossed over to Charlestown widi reinforcements, and offered his services to General Howe as a volunteer. Many of the English officers were opposed to another attack ; but as it was learned that the ammu- nition of the Americans was very low, Howe resolved to storm the works with the bayonet, and this time to break through the open space between the redoubt and the rail fence breastwork. His men were ordered to lay aside their knapsacks, and many of them threw off their coats also. A raking fire of artillery drove the Americans from the breastwork extending from the redoubt into that work for shelter, and the order was given to the regulars to advance with fixed bayonets. Hand-to-hand Struggle. The Americans- were nearly out of ammu- nition, and in the whole command there were not fifty men with bayonets to their guns. They met the advance of the enemy with a sharp fire, but their powder having given out, were not able to check them. Pressing on the British assailed the redoubt on three sides with the bayonet. A desperate hand- to-hand struggle followed ; the Americans fighting with clubbed guns and with stones. It was impossible to hold the work, how- ever, and Prescott gave the order to retreat- The men fell back in good order. The aged General Pomeroy, who was serving as a volunteer in the ranks, clubbed his gun and retreated with his face to the regulars, keep- ing them at bay by his determined action. The detachment at the rail fence, under Knowlton, Stark and Reed, held their posi- tion until their comrades had withdrawn DEATH OF MAJOR PITCAIRN PROGRESS OF THE WAR. 371 from the redoubt, and then retreated in good order down the hill, thus preventing the enemy from cutting off the retreat of Pres- cott's party. One of the last to leave the redoubt was General Warren, who had borne himself with great gallantry in the engagement. He had scarcely left the trenches when he fell shot through the head, thus consecrating the spot with his blood, and leaving to his country a noble memory which she has ever held in grateful honor. Putman had gone to the rear before the final attack of the enemy to collect men for a reinforcement. On his return he met the retreating provincials passing over Bunker Hill. Without orders from any one, he rallied such as would obey him, and for the first time during the day assumed the com- mand. With these forces, and a detachment which arrived too late to take part in the battle, he withdrew to Prospect Hill, where he began to fortify his position. The British made no effort to pursue him, but contented themselves with occupying Breed's and Bun- ker Hills. Heavy Losses on Both Sides. In this battle the Americans lost four hundred and fifty men, killed, wounded and prisoners. The British, out of a force of less than three thousand, lost one thousand and fifty-four, including eighty-three officers, thirteen of whom were killed. Among the killed was Major Pitcairn, who had ordered his men to fire on the patriots at Lexington. The victory was dearly bought by the British. In its moral effects the battle was worth as much to the Americans as a success. It taught them that undisciplined provincials could hold their ground against the king's regulars, and inspired them with a confidence in their own ability to maintain the struggle. They had held their ground against twice their number, and were driven from it only when their ammunition failed. General Gage was deeply impressed with this lesson, and made no attempt to assume the offensive. When the news of the battle reached Eng- land the ministers were greatly dissatisfied with their victory. Gage was recalled, and General Howe was appointed his successor. Preparations for the Conflict. Washington, who had started on his jour- ney to New England before the arrival of the news of the battle, was met on the way by the courier who bore the tidings to Congress. He hastened his journey, and reached Cam- bridge on the second of July. The next day he formally assumed the command of the army. He was received with enthusiasm which was most gratifying to him, and at once set to work to place the army in a proper condition for the service required of it. He was fully aware of the magnitude of the task he had undertaken, and his letters written at the time indicate a deep reliance upon God for assistance in discharging it. The army numbered about fourteen thous- and men, and was without organization, with- out uniforms, poorly armed, and imperfectly clothed. It must be disciplined, supplied with arms and clothing, and with ammuni- tion. At the same time the enemy in Bos- ton must be watched and kept in check. To make the army effective its force must be raised to twenty or twenty-five thousand men, and the petty jealousies which divided it must be removed. It was resolved to maintain the present position of the army before Boston, and to capture or drive out the British force in that city. Washington established his head- quarters at Cambridge, which was his centre,- and was under the immediate command of General Putnam. The right wing, under General Ward, held Roxbury, and the left, 372 THE AMERICAN REVOLUTION. under General Charles Lee, was at Prospect Hill. About this time the army was joined by a force of riflemen from Virginia, Mary- land, and Pennsylvania, under Daniel Mor- gan, who was destined to achieve distinction during the war. He was rough and unedu- cated, but was one of the truest sons of America. He was never found wanting in any position in which he was placed, and was a man upon whose devotion and integ- BUNKER HILL MONUMENT. rity absolute reliance could be placed by his commanders. The winter was passed in the organization of the army. The want of ammunition pre- vented Washington from assuming the offen- sive, though he greatly desired to do so. It was necessary to observe the greatest care to prevent this state of affairs from becoming known to the British, and at the same time every effort was made to supply the defi- ciency. These efforts were partially success- ful. It was proposed to attack Canada soon after the capture of the forts at Ticonderoga and Crown Point. This proposal met with little favor in Congress until it was known that the British were assembling a force of regulars and enlisting the Indians in Canada for the invasion of New York. Then, as a measure of self-defence, the proposed invasion of that country was sanctioned, and prepara- tions for it were actively begun. Two expe- ditions were deter- mined upon ; one by way of Lake Champlain, the other across the wilderness, by way of the Kennebec and Chaudiere Riv- ers. The first was intrusted to Gener- al Philip Schuyler, who had been ap- pointed by Wash- ington to the com- mand in New York, and the latter to Col- onel Arnold, who was in the camp at Cambridge, eager for some opportu- nity to distinguish himself A force of New York and New England troops was assembled on Lake Champlain under Schuyler, who was ably seconded by Brigadier General Richard Montgomery, who had served under Wolfe in the old French war. Schuyler moved down the lake to the Isle aux Noix, in the Sorel River, and occu- pied that island. In September he made an attempt to capture St. John's, but finding it much stronger than he had supposed, re- sumed his former position. Falling seriously ill soon after, he was obliged to withdraw to PROGRESS OF THE WAR. 373 Albany, and relinquished the command to Montgomery. Reaching Albany, he suc- ceeded in securing supplies, ammunition and reinforcements, and sent them to Mont- gomery. An Important Success. That energetic officer at once assumed the offensive, and captured St. John's, on the Sorel River, on the third of November, after a spirited resistance, and in spite of the efforts of Sir Guy Carleton to relieve it. On the thirteenth of November Montgomery arrived before Montreal, which surrendered upon his first summons. This capture enabled the American commander to supply his men with woolen clothes, of which they were very much in need. Although it was the begin- ning of the winter, and his force was reduced to three hundred men, poorly clad and lack- ing almost every kind of supplies, Montgom- ery set out without delay to join Arnold before Quebec. Arnold had left the camp at Cambridge in September with a force of eleven hundred men, including three companies of riflemen under Morgan. He was to ascend the Kennebec and march across the wilderness to Quebec, where he was to unite his force with the army from New York, The march across the unbroken wilderness of Maine and Canada is one of the most memorable in history. It consumed two months of time, and was marked by intense suffering and unceasing and severe labor. The troops had to cut their way through an unbroken wilderness ford icy streams, climb mountains and brave the rigors of the Canadian winter. Their provisions gave out, and they were reduced to the necessity of eating their dogs and chewing their moccasins. At length, on the ninth of November, Arnold, with about six hundred and fifty effective men, reached the St. Lawrence, at Point Levi. Could he have crossed over to Quebec at once, that city must have fallen into his hands ; but he was unable to do so, as he had no boats ; and in a few days Sir Guy Carleton arrived from Montreal, which he had abandoned to Montgomery, and put the city in a state of defence. Eluding the two armed vessels which held the river, Arnold crossed his command to the opposite side of the St. Lawrence, and climbing the cliffs by the path which Wolfe had ascended, occupied the Heights of Abra- ham, and endeavored to draw the garrison out of their works to meet him. They declined his challenge, and finding it impos- sible to besiege the city without artillery, he moved to a point twenty miles up the river, where he met Montgomery, from whom he obtained clothing for his men, who had lost nearly all their clothes in their march through the wilderness. A Difficult March. Montgomery now assumed the command of the united forces, which numbered less than a thousand men, and on the fifth of December laid siege to Quebec. Having no materials for the proper construction of a battery, a novel expedient was adopted. Gabions were filled with ice and snow, over which water was poured. The cold soon froze this to a solid mass ; but, as the ice was brittle, it afforded no protection against the fire of the enemy's guns. The Americans soon found their artillery too light to make any impression upon the walls of the city, and, as a last resort, it was determined to attempt the capture of the place by an assault, which was ordered for the thirty-first of December. The attack was made with spirit, but was unsuccessful. Montgomery was shot down while leading the attack on the lower town, and his column was driven back. Arnold was severely 374 THE AMERICAN REVOLUTION. wounded in the assault upon the upper town, and the command passed to Morgan, the next in rank. Morgan succeeded in carry- ing the two batteries which defended the entrance to Quebec, and in forcing his way into the town ; but, being overpowered by numbers, was compelled to surrender. He and his men were treated with especial kind- ness by Sir Guy Carleton in recognition of their bravery. The attack having proved a failure, Arnold, whose force had been reduced GENERAL RICHARD MONTGOMERY. to five hundred men, fell back to a position about three miles above Quebec, and held it all winter, hoping to receive such reinforce- ments as would enable him to take Quebec. In April, 1776, General Wooster joined Arnold with reinforcements, and, assuming the command, made another unsuccessful effort to capture Quebec. Wooster was soon recalled, and was succeeded by General Thomas. Sir Guy Carleton, governor of Canada, was heavily reinforced, and Thomas was obliged to abandon the attempt on Quebec and retreat. His movement was so hasty that he left his baggage, artillery and sick in Carleton's hands. The British com- mander, with a humanity rare among his countrymen during this struggle, treated the sick prisoners with great kindness. Thomas fell back as far as the Sorel, where he died of the small-pox, which was making great ravages among the troops. Sir Guy Carle- ton continued to advance, and defeated a portion of the army under General Thomp- son at Three Rivers. Thompson and a number of his officers and men were made prisoners. The remainder secured their retreat and joined General Sullivan on the Sorel. The wreck of the army now fell back from Canada to Crown Point in a most miserable and dis- heartened condition. Thus ended the inva- sion of Canada, the most disastrous expedi- tion attempted by the Americans during the war ; yet still one the failures of which were greatly offset by the heroic daring of the troops engaged. Carleton was able to occupy the entrances to Canada with a strong force and to make any future attempt at invasion impossible. Norfolk Bombarded. While these events were transpiring in Canada, Virginia was also the scene of war. Towards the close of the year 1775 Lord Dunmore, the royalist governor of Virginia, who had taken refuge on board a man-of- war, issued a proclamation offering freedom to the negro slaves and indentured white ser- vants of the patriots who would join him in the servile war he meant to iniugurate. With a force collected in this manner, he landed at Norfolk and took possession of the town. Fugitive slaves joined him in con- siderable numbers, and it seemed likely that he would be able to carry out his threat and I PROGRESS OF THE WAR. 375 scourge Virginia and North Carolina with a warfare of massacre and servile violence. Several regiments were raised in Virginia to drive him out of the province. The second of these, under Colonel Woodford, seized the narrow peninsula which connects Norfolk with the mainland, and on the ninth of December was attacked by Dunmore's forces, which were summarily defeated. In revenge. Dunmore returned in January, 1776, and bombarded and burned Norfolk, then the largest and richest town and the principal shipping port of Virginia. On the fifth of September, 1775, the Con- tinental Congress resumed its sessions. Delegates from Georgia appeared and were admitted to seats in the Congress, and the colonies assumed the style of the TJiirteeii . United Colonies. Matters were not very encouraging when Congress met. The army was in need of everything that could con- tribute to its efficiency, and the New England coast was harassed with the armed vessels of Great Britain, which laid its towns under exaction, or subjected them to bombard- ment, and committed other gross outrages upon the inhabitants. On the eighteenth of October the town of Falmouth, now Port- land, in Maine, was burned by Lieutenant Mowatt of the British navy. The other towns, warned by the fate of Falmouth, pro- ceeded to fortify themselves, and escaped with nothing worse than an occasional engagement with some royal cruiser. Naval matters very largely occupied the attention of the whole country at this period. The only way in which the needed supplies could be obtained was by purchase abroad or the capture of the enemy's ships. Maryland, Virginia and South Carolina promptly estab- . lished naval boards for the purpose of fitting out cruisers for this service ; and among the first acts of Washington, after assuming the command of the army, was to send out armed vessels to the St. Lawrence and the New England waters to seize the supply ships of the English on their way to Canada and Boston. A number of vessels were captured by these cruisers, and a considera- ble quantity of arms, ammunition and other stores thus accumulated. Securing War Supplies. Congress appointed a secret committee to import powder from the West Indies, and to erect mills in the interior for its manufac- ture ; and foundries for casting cannon. Licenses were issued to privateers, and a naval committee was appointed to superin- tend the formation of a marine force for the defence of the harbors, and was charged with the building of thirteen frigates. In Decem- ber a secret committee was appointed to open and conduct a correspondence with foreign nations, or with friends of the cause in Europe. Parliament, in the meantime, had not been idle, but had enacted stringent measures for the prosecution of the war and the punish- ment of the colonists. The measures adopted by the British government were cruel and barbarous. The Americans were to be treated as criminals and as deserving of death. They were made subject to the pains and penalties of treason if captured, and could in no case expect the treatment of prisoners of war. The crews of all vessels captured in trading to the colonies were con- demned beforehand to serve in the marine corps of the royal navy. It was decided to increase the British army in America to forty thousand men. Twenty-five thousand of these troops were to be raised,, and the effort to enlist men was begun in England, but without success. Recruits could not be found in sufficient numbers to repay the effort. The ministry could not hope for better success in Ireland, as they had been n^ THE AMERICAN REVOLUTION. warned by General Howe that the Irish were strong sympathizers with the Americans and could not be relied upon to fight against them. In this emergency the government resolved to employ German troops for the subjuga- tion of America, and negotions were opened with Brunswick and Hesse Cassel, two petty German States. The result was that Great Britain hired seventeen thousand troops from these states for the conquest of the English-speaking people of America. These mercenaries were generally known as Hes- sians, and became the objects of the bitter hatred of the Americans — a hatred which they fully earned by their subsequent cruel- ties towards the colonists. These measures were not adopted by the British government without opposition. There was a determined minority in Eng- land, consisting of such men as Burke, Barre and the Duke of Grafton, who manfully sought to obtain justice for the colonies up to the last moment at which a settlement was possible. The corporation of London and the mercantile interests of the country generally were opposed to the measures of the government, and sought to procure a just and peaceful settlement; but all ef- forts were in vain. The king and the ministry were resolved upon the subjuga- tion of America ; nothing else would satisfy them. CHAPTER XXVII The Declaration of Independence The Siege of Boeton — Difficulties of the American Army — Activity of the Privateers — Clinton's Expedition — Colonel Knox Arrives from Ticonderoga with Cannon — Seizure of Dorchester Heights by Washington — The British Evacuate Boston — Royalist Plots in New York — Paper Money Issued by Congress — Gates Sent to the North — The British Attack Charleston — Battle of Fort Moultrie — The Howes in New York Bay — Change in the Character of the War Growing Sentiment in Favor of Independence — Virginia Proposes that the Colonies Assert their Independence — Action of Congress — The Declaration of Independence — Articles of Confederation Adopted by Congress Lord Howe's Efforts at Conciliation — Addresses a Letter to Washington — Battle of Long Island — Defeat of the Americans — Retreat from Long Island — Evacuation of New York by the Americans — Loss of Fort Washington — Washington Retreats Through New Jersey — He Crosses the Delaware — Darkest Period of the War — Washington's Determination to Continue the War — Lord Howe's Proclamation— Its Effect — Congress at Baltimore — Carleton Invades New York — Defeats Arnold on Lake Champlain — Carleton Retires into Canada — Battle of Trenton — Happy Effects of the Victory — Congress Confers Dictatorial Powers upon Washington — Commissioners Sent to France. THE winter of 1775-76 was passed by the army before Boston in inaction. There was not ammunition enough in the camp to enable Washington to attack Boston, and the British were well content to remain within their lines without seeking to raise the siege. Washington lexerted himself to the utmost to obtain artil- lery and powder. Henry Knox, a bookseller of Boston, who had entered the military ser- vice of the colonies, had attracted the attention of the commander-in-chief by his skill in the use of artillery and in planning the works erected for the defence of the camp. Knox now proposed to go to Ticonderoga and bring away from that place and from Crown Point all the artillery and powder that could be spared, and his plan was at once approved by Washington, who urged Congress to com- mission him a colonel of artillery. At the same time he wrote to Schuyler, the commander in New York, to give Knox every assistance in his power in his effort to bring the artillery from Lake Champlain to Boston. Great difficulties were experienced during the winter in inducing the troops to renew their enlistments. It required all the ingenu- ity and tact of which Washington was master to remove the prejudices and jealousies which had grown up in the camp since the com- mencement of the blockade of Boston, and which threatened to disband the army. He succeeded in a greater degree than he had expected. At the opening of the year 1776 he had about ten thousand men in camp, many of whom were raw troops newly enlisted and without arms. Still they were a more harmonious and contented force than the first army. Towards the close of 1775 the priva- teers made extensive captures from the British. Captain Manly, of the schooner " Lee," captured a British brig off Cape Ann, laden with arms, artillery and military stores for the British army at Boston. These were sent at once to Washington, and proved of the greatest service. Among the captures was an immense mortar, which Putnam named the " Congress," and placed in position at Lechmere Point, on the north of Boston. Matters were gloomy indeed. The people people were anxious that Boston should be attacked, but such a course was impossible. As late as the tenth of February, 1776, Washington wrote : " Without men, without 177 378 THE AMERICAN REVOLUTION. arms, without ammunition, little is to be done." To increase the discouragement of the patriots news came of the defeat of the attempt to conquer Canada. The British were collecting a fleet for a demonstration against some point on the Atlantic coast, and as it was not certain where the blow would fall, a feeling of general uneasiness prevailed along the entire seaboard. This expedition sailed from Boston, under Sir Henry Clinton, about the first of Febru- ary. Washington, who had for some time GENERAL HENRY KNOX. suspected that it was designed to capture New York, had already sent General Charles Lee to raise troops to occupy that important city and hold it against the British. Lee executed his task with energy, and on the fourth of February entered New York and encamped in the suburbs, in what is now the City Hall Park. Governor Tryon, who had taken refuge on board a man-of-war, threatened to bombard the city if the Ameri- can forces should enter it ; but Lee informed him that the first shot fired at New York would be the signal for the execution of the leading friends of the royal cause in that city. This decisive answer induced Tryon to delay his barbarous purpose. That afternoon Sir Henry Clinton, with his fleet, entered the harbor. Finding that he had come too late to secure the city, Clinton declared that he had merely called at the harbor to pay a visit to his friend Tryon, and in a few days he sailed away for North Carolina, where the royalist Governor Martin, who, like Tryon, had taken refuge on board a man-of-war, had been endeavoring to stir up an insurrection of the Tories, as the royalists were called. The command of this movement was to be assumed by Clinton. Martin also expected a fleet under Sir Peter Parker from Ireland. Decisive Defeat of the Tories. To gain time, and stir up the Tories to prompt action, he commissioned two retired officers of the British army, Scotchmen, named McDonald and McLeod, who had recently settled in North Carolina, to raise troops among the friends of the king in the interior. They succeeded in raising about fifteen hundred men, and set off for the coast to join Martin. The patriots at once rallied in considerable force to oppose their march, and intercepted them at Moore's Creek Bridge, near Wilmington. On the twenty- fifth of February a sharp engagement was fought here, which resulted in the defeat of the Tories. McLeod was killed and McDonald was taken prisoner. Eighteen hundred stand of arms, one hundred and fifty swords, two medicine-chests, and the sum of fifteen thousand pounds sterling in gold fell into the hands of the victors, and went far toward supplying their deficiencies. The contem- plated rising of the Tories was put down in the interior counties, and Martin find- ing his hopes of raising troops in North Carolina destroyed, withdrew with Clinton THE DECLARATION OF INDEPENDENCE. 379 .o the Cape Fear to await the arrival of the fleet of Sir Peter Parker. In the meantime a Union flag had been provided for the army before Boston, and was formally displayed for the first time in the American camp on the first of January, 1776. It retained the English cross in the upper left-hand corner, in token of the rela- tions still existing between the colonies and England, and bore on its broad field thirteen stripes of alternate red and white, represent- ing the thirteen colonies united for the defence of their liberties. Towards the close of February the stock of powder was consider- ably increased, and a little later Colonel Knox arrived from Ticonderoga with the cannon and ammunition from that post. He had transported them on sledges across the long stretch of country between Lake Champlain and Boston, and had overcome difficulties in the accomplishment of this task which seemed at first insurmountable. The arrival of these guns gave Washington a fair supply of heavy ordnance and put an end to the long delay which had prevailed in the American camp. The regular army had been increased to fourteen thousand men, and had been reinforced by six thousand militia from Massachusetts. Ready for Decisive Action. All now was bustle and activity. The newly arrived cannon were mounted to com- mand the city, and Washington was at length able to attempt the long- desired demonstra- tion against the enemy in Boston. As early as December, 1775, Congress had urged him to undertake the capture of Boston, and had authorized him to destroy the city if he could expel the British in no other way, and John Hancock, who was a large property-owner, regardless of the fate of his possessions, had written to him : " Do it, and may God crown your attempt with success." All through the winter Washington had been held back from such an attempt by the advice of his council of war, which hesitated to assume the offensive with an insufficient supply of arnmunition and artillery. Putnam had suc- ceeded in fortifying the neighboring heights on the mainland, but had been obliged to do much of this work at night to avoid the fire of the enemy's shipping. The last obstacle to decisive action was now removed. Washington resolved to seize the eminence on the south of Boston, known as Dorchester Heights. It commanded the town from that quarter and also the shipping in the harbor. Its possession by the Americans would force Sir William Howe either to evacuate the city or risk a general engagement for its recovery. Heavy Fire of Shot and Shell. On the evening of the second of March a heavy fire was opened upon the British lines by the American batteries and also upon Boston. A number of houses were set on fire, and the attention of the British was fully occupied in extinguishing the flames. The bombardment was renewed the next night. At dark on the evening of the fourth of March the Americans renewed their fire with redoubled vigor, and were replied to with spirit by the British, and during the whole night the roar of cannon went on, covering the movements of the Americans from ob- servation by the enemy. The force assigned for the seizure of Dorchester Heights was placed under the command of General Thomas, and in case the movement should be discovered, and the enemy should seek to dis- lodge this detachment from the Heights, General Putnam was ordered to cross Charles River with a column of four thousand picked troops and attack the city from that quarter. Under the cover of the heavy cannonade the column of General Thomas passed the 38o THE AMERICAN REVOLUTION. narrow isthmus in safety, and reached the Heights by eight o'clock undiscovered by the enemy. They at once set to work, though the ground was frozen to a depth of more than eighteen inches, and by morning had thrown up a series of earthworks which entirely commanded both the city and the harbor. General Howe was greatly aston- ished as he examined these works through his glass when the mists of the morning cleared away. " The rebels," he said, " have done more work in a night than my whole army would have done in a month." The British MEDAL STRUCK BY CONGRESS IN HONOR OF THE RECAPTURE OF BOSTON admiral declared that his ships could not remain in the harbor, as the possession of the Heights by the Americans placed the fleet entirely at their mercy. It was evident to all the British commanders that the Heights must be recovered or the city abandoned and General Howe determined to storm the American works that night, and made prep- arations for an attack. This movement was prevented by a severe storm, which put a stop to the cooperation of the fleet, and when the storm had died away the works had been so greatly strengthened as to render an assault hopeless. A council of war was held, and it was resolved to abandon the town. As such a step required some time, Howe secured the safety of his army by declaring that he would burn the town if his troops were fired on during their embarkation. A deputation of the citizens proceeded to the American camp and informed General Washington of Howe's determination, and in order to save the city from further suffering the British were allowed to depart in peace. They consumed eleven days in their embarkation. They embarked about fifteen hundred Tories with them, and after plundering a num- ber of stores and private houses, and robbing the inhabitants of a consid- erable supply of pro- visions, they embarked on the seventeenth of March, and dropping down the bay anchored at Nantasket Roads. They had scarcely left the city when the Ameri- can army, under Wash- ington, marched in and occupied the place. The long siege often months was at an end, and Bos- ton was again free. The patriot army was received with enthusiasm, and matters soon began to resume their accustomed condition. By the capture of Boston the Americans obtained possession of two hundred and fifty pieces of artillery, four mortars, and a con- siderable quantity of ammunition, provisions and clothing, which the British could not carry away. After the departure of the British fleet from Nantasket Roads several transports with troops, not aware of the evacuation, entered the harbor, and were captured. Several storeships, laden with military supplies of all kinds, also arrived THE DECLARATION OF INDEPENDENCE. 381 from England, and were captured in the same way. These captures were of the highest importance to the patriots. Their supply of ammunition was in this way increased more than sevenfold. The capture of Boston was justly esteemed the most important success of the war. It freed New England from the presence of the English, and enabled her to contribute men and money to the defence of the middle colonies. On motion of John Adams, Con- gress adopted a unanimous vote of thanks to defence. He soon discovered that the Tories in the city were in constant communication with Governor Tryon and the British ships in the harbor. Severe measures were at once adopted to stop this intercourse. A con- spiracy for the recovery of the city by Tryon was discovered, and his agents were found tampering with the American soldiers. One Thomas Hickey, a deserter from the British army, was hanged " for mutiny, sedition and treachery," and this vigorous measure at once put a stop to the plots of the Tories. CONTINENTAL BILLS. Washington and the army, and ordered a gold medal to be struck in commemoration of the deliverance of Boston. The British fleet remained in Nantasket roads for several days after the evacuation of Boston, and then bore away for Halifax. Washington was fearful that its destination was New York, and leaving General Ward with five regiments to hold Boston, hastened southward with the main body of the army. He reached New York on the thirteenth of of April, and set to work with vigor to put the city and its approaches in a state of Congress, in February, 1776, found itself obliged to issue four millions of dollars of additional paper money in order to meet the expenses of the war, which were heavier than had been supposed. For the proper manage- ment of the finances, an auditor-general and assistants were appointed to act under the financial committee of Congress, and it was not long before this branch of the public service assumed the form of a treasury department. In April a war office was established by Congress under the super- vision of a committee of its members. John 382 THE AMERICAN REVOLUTION. Adams was made chairman of this committee, and resigned his post of chief-justice of Massachusetts to accept it. The retreat of SulHvan from Canada now became known, and the conduct of that officer was approved by Congress, which passed a vote of thanks to him. At the same time it appointed Major-General Horatio Gates to the command of the army in his place. Gates was an Englishman by birth, and had joined the colonial movement in the hope of winning honors and fame by his services. He had served in the British army during the colonial period, but had failed to receive the rewards he deemed himself entitled to, and had resigned his commission in disgust, and had come to America to reside a few years before the rupture with England. His experience and skill made him a valuable acquisition to the American army, but his ambition and jealousy were destined to cause it considerable trouble. Gates at once claimed that his command embraced not only the troops on Lake Champlain, but also the whole northern army under Schuyler. The matter was referred to Congress, and it was decided that Gates was independent of the control of Schuyler only while in Canada. Elsewhere he was subject to Schuyler's com- mand. Expedition Against Charleston. In the meantime Congress had sent Gen- eral Charles Lee to the south to take com- mand of the troops assembling to oppose Sir Henry Clinton, who was waiting off the mouth of the Cape Fear river for the arrival of the fleet of Sir Peter Parker from Ireland. This fleet joined Clinton in May, and a little later Congress learned by means of inter- cepted letters that Charleston, in South Carolina, was the object of attack. The command of the strong military force which the fleet brought was to be held by Sir Henry Clinton, to whom the general direction of the expedition was intrusted. Lee hastened at once to Charleston. He found there a force of about six thousand men, from the Carolinas and Virginia ; but the city was not defended by a single fortifi- cation. Had Clinton assailed it at once, it must have fallen into his hands, as he arrived in the harbor on the fourth of June, the very day that Lee reached the city ; but he delayed his attack until he could fortify his own position, and so gave Lee time to erect works for the defence of the city. Fort Moultrie Bombarded. The key to the American position was Fort Moultrie, a small work built of palmetto logs, and situated on the southwest point of Sullivan's Island. It was commanded by Colonel William Moultrie, whose name it bore. In front of it lay the British fleet under Sir Peter Parker. Sir Henry Clinton had taken position with two thousand men on Long Island, which was separated from Sul- livan's Island by only a narrow creek, and was building batteries to cover his passage of the creek. His plan was to allow the fleet to breach the walls of P'ort Moultrie and then to cross his troops to Sullivan's Island under the cover of his batteries, and carry the fort by storm. Lee, who was ignorant of the capacity of the soft, spongy palmetto wood for resisting the force of cannon shot, regarded the effort to hold Fort Moultrie as madness. He stationed a force under Colonel Thomp- son on Sullivan's Island opposite Clinton to dispute his passage of the creek, and took position on the mainland with the rest of his force where he could support either Moultrie or Thompson, as might be necessary. On the twenty-eighth of June the enemy's fleet opened fire on Fort Moultrie, which replied with spirit, and for ten hours the can- nonade was maintained with great vigor by THE DECLARATION OF INDEPENDENCE. 383 both sides. The enemy's balls buried them- selves in the soft, spongy wood of the pal- metto logs, and thus did little injury to the fort; but the well-directed fire of the Ameri- can guns inflicted great damage upon the fleet. The British were finally compelled to withdraw with heavy loss, and abandoned and set fire to one of their ships. During the engagement the flag of the fort was shot away, and fell out- side of the walls. Ser- geant Jasper, of the South Carolina forces, at once sprang over the wall and amidst a heavy fire secured the flag, tied it to a pole, and set it up again on the ramparts. This done, he rejoined his comrades at the guns. A few days later Gov- ernor Rutledge pre- sented Jasper with his own sword and offered him a lieutenant's com- mission. Jasper accepted the sword, but declined the commission on the ground that he could neither read nor write. Clinton made repeated efforts to cross the creek and storm the fort during the battle, but was as often driven back by the batteries under Thompson, fleet having withdrawn, he Washington was correct in supposing that New York was the true destination of Sir William Howe after leaving the Nantasket Roads. That commander sailed first to Hali- SERGEANT JASPER AT FORT MOULTRIE. At length, the embarked his men, and soon after sailed for New York to join the troops assembling near that city. fax, where he landed the civilians and other useless incumbrances he had been obliged to, carry away from Boston. Then, refitting his command, he awaited the arrival of his brother. Admiral Lord Howe, who was on 384 THE AMERICAN REVOLUTION. his way from England with reinforcements. In the latter part of June he sailed from Halifax for New York, and arrived within Sandy Hook on the twenty-eighth of June, the very day of the attack on Fort Moultrie, He landed his forces on Staten Island, where he was received with enthusiasm by the Tories. A little later he was joined by Sir Henry Clinton from Charleston, and about the mid- dle of July Lord Howe arrived with rein- forcements, a large part of whom were Hessians, hired, as we have stated, by the King of England from the Duke of Hesse Cassel, in Germany. Their arrival raised the strength of the British army in New York Bay to thirty thousand men. Their attack upon the city was merely a question of time, and under the most favorable circumstances it was scarcely to be hoped that Washington would succeed in maintaining his hold upon New York. In the meantime an event of the highest importance had changed the whole character of the war as regarded the Ameri- cans. England Will Not Relent. The colonists had taken up arms to resist the aggressions of the King and Government of Great Britain upon their liberties and to compel the mother country to respect the rights guaranteed to them by their charters and by the British Constitution. Thus far the war had been waged for these ends. At the outset of the struggle a few far-seeing persons, such as Samuel Adams and Patrick Henry, had been convinced that an appeal to arms would render the final separation of the colonies from England inevitable, and that such an issue was but the fulfilment of the destiny of their country, and as such to be desired. The great majority of the people, however, neither thought of nor wished for independ- ence. They would have been satisfied to secure their liberties and privileges as English subjects, and would gladly have continued loyal to the king. The events of the war had made it plain to the most skeptical that England did not intend to do justice to her colonies. Neither the king, the ministry, nor Parliament were disposed to swerve from their purpose of reducing America to absolute submission to their will. They were determined that the colonists should bear every burden of British citizenship, and enjoy none of its privileges save what they should see fit to allow them. Americans were not to enjoy either liberty or property as lawful rights. The Feeling Toward Great Britain. This determination was so clear that none could mistake it. Since the commencement of the struggle public opinion in America had undergone a great change, and the party in favor of a total and final separation from the mother country had increased so rapidly that it now embraced the great major- ity of the American people. Now that they had become convinced that they could main- tain their liberties only by a total and unqual- ified separation from Great Britain, they did not hesitate to choose that course. Their choice was made without regret. At the commencement of the war a very genuine attachment bound the people of the colonies to England ; but the course of the royal government and the severities of the British commanders in the Northern colonies, and the outrages of the royal governors in the South, had entirely alienated the people from their love for England. Still there were many Tories, or friends of the king, in America, and they were active and bitter in their opposition to the patriots. From the first the Americans regarded the Tories with a feeling of hatred which increased as the struggle went on, and this feeling was THE DECLARATION OF INDEPENDENCE. 385 soon extended to all who fought under the royal flag or sought to uphold its cause. Not only had the people been gradually coming to view independence as desirable and indispensable ; the exercise by Congress of the functions of a supreme government had accustomed them to it, and had shown them their capacity for conducting a gen- eral government for the whole country. Early in March, 1776, Congress granted let- ters of marque and re- prisal against British commerce, and some- what later sent Silas Deane as its commis- sioner to France to seek assistance from that country. In May it had formally recom- mended the colonies to disregard the royal governments and adopt systems suited to their needs, and in harmony with the changed state of affairs. To all men it was evi- dent that a formal re- nunciation of allegi- ance to Great Britain and the assertion of their independence by the colonies was mere- ly a question of time. It was, therefore, a surprise to no one when the first definite action looking towards inde- pendence was taken. On the fifteenth of M^y> ^71^, the general assembly of Virginia instructed the delegates of that colony in 25 Congress to offer a resolution in favor of the separation of the colonies from England, and the formal declaration of their independence. On the thirtieth of May Massachusetts instructed her delegates to support this reso- INDEPENDENCE HALL, PHILADELPHIA. lution. On the seventh of June Richard Henry Lee, of Virginia, offered a resolution in Congress, "that the united colonies are,, and ought to be, free and independent States, and that their political connectioni 386 THE AMERICAN REVOLUTION. with Great Britain is, and ought to be, dis- solved." The resolution was seconded by John Adams, of Massachusetts, and was debated with great earnestness. It was adopted by a bare majority of one — seven colonies voting for it, and six against it. In accordance with the resolution, a committee was appointed to draw up a declaration of independence, and, in order that the delegates might have an opportunity to ascertain the wishes of their constituents, the consideration of the subject was postponed until the first of July. Two with a few verbal alterations, was adopted by the committee as it came from his hand. It reviewed in a clear and comprehensive manner the cause which had impelled the colonies to take up arms for the defence of their liberties, and which now induced them to sever the ties that bound them to Great Britain. The declaration concluded in these mem- orable words : " We, therefore, the repre- sentatives of the United States of America, in general Congress assembled, appealing to the Supreme Judge of all the world for the . rectitude of our inten- tions, do, in the name and by the authority of the good people of these colonies, solemnly publish and declare that these united colonies are, and of right ought to be, free and independent states ; that they are absolved from all alle- giance to the British crown, and that all poli- tical connection between them and the state of Great Britain is, and ought to be, dissolved; HOUSE IN WHICH THE DECLARATION OF INDEPENDENCE WAS WRITTEN, PHILADELPHIA. ^^^ ^j^^^ ^^ ^^.^^ ^^^ other committees were also appointed. One of these was charged with the preparation of a plan for uniting the colonies in a single government ; the other was to report a plan for securing alliances with foreign nations. The committee charged with the preparation of a declaration of independence consisted of Benjamin Franklin, John Adams, Thomas Jefferson, Roger Sherman and Robert R. Livingston. On the twenty-eighth of June the com- mittee reported the declaration to Congress. It was written by Thomas Jefferson, and, independent states, they have full power to levy war, conclude peace contract alliances, establish commerce and to do all other acts and things which independent states may of right do. And for the support of this decla- ration, with a firm reliance on the protection of a Divine Providence, we mutually pledge to each other our lives, our fortunes, and our sacred honor." The declaration was debated in Congress, and a few passages, which it was feared might offend the friends of the colonies in Great Britain, were stricken out. The vote SIGNING THE DECLARATION OF INDEPENDENCE, 387 388 THE AMERICAN REVOLUTION. was then taken by colonies, and though some of the delegates voted against it, the declaration received the votes of all the colo- nies with the exception of New York, which accepted it a few days later. On the fourth day of July, 1776, the Declaration of Inde- pendence was formally adopted by Congress, and was ordered to be published to the world, and to be read at the head of the regiments of the army. Congress was in session in the hall of the state house in Philadelphia. In the spire of this venerable building hung a bell, inscribed OLD BELL OF INDEPENDENCE HALL. with the words of Scripture : " Proclaim liberty throughout all the land unto all the inhabitants thereof." On the morning of the fourth of July vast crowds assembled around the building, as it was known that Congress would on that day take definite action upon the declaration. The bell-ringer stationed himself in the tower, ready to proclaim the good news the moment it should be announced to him, and had posted his little son at the door of the hall to await the signal of the door-keeper. When the announcement of the vote was made, the door-keeper gave the signal and the boy ran quickly to the tower. The old man heard him coming, and clutched the bell-rope with a firm grasp. The next instant the glad cry of the boy's voice was heard. " Ring ! ring ! " he cried, and then the deep,, sonorous tones of the bell went rolling out of the tower, and were answered with a mighty- shout from the assembled throng without. The declaration was received by all the states and by the army with enthusiasm. Thus, the thirteen united colonies became the thir- teen United States. It should not be for- gotten that the declaration did not make the- colonies independent states, or states in any sense. It was simply their announcement to the world that they had, each for itself, by^ the exercise of its own sovereign power,, assumed the independence which rightfully^ belonged to it. The Declaration of Independence put an end to all the hopes that had been cherished of an accommodation with Great Britain, and caused those who were still wavering to embrace the cause of their country. It relieved Congress of the disadvantage under which it had hitherto acted, and enabled it to pursue a more vigorous and decisive policy in the prosecution of the war. There was no retreat now; 'nothing remained but to continue the struggle until Great Britain, should be compelled to acknowledge the independence of the states, or they should be reduced to the condition of conquered provinces. On the twelfth of July the committee appointed to prepare a plan for the union of the states reported one, which is thus summed up: " 1st. The style of the confederacy was to be 'The United States of America.' " 2d. Each state retained its sovereignty, freedom and independence and every power THE DECLARATION OF INDEPENDENCE. 389 and right which is not expressly delegated to the United States. " 3d. The object ot the confederation was for their mutual defence, the security of their liberties, and their mutual and general Avelfare, binding themselves to assist each other against all force offered to or attacks made upon them, or any of them, on account of religion, sovereignty, trade, or any other pretence whatever. " 4th. In determining all questions in Congress each State was to have one vote. " 5th. Each State was to maintain its own delegates. " 6th. The free inhabitants of each State, paupers, vagabonds and fugitives from jus- tice excepted, were to be entitled to all privileges and immunities of free citizens in the several States. " 7th. All fugitives from justice from one State into another were to be delivered up on demand. " 8th. Full faith and credit were to be given to the records of each State in all the others. " 9th. Congress was to grant no title of nobility. " loth. No person holding any office was to receive a present from a foreign power. "nth. No State was to form any agree- ment or alliance with a foreign power with- out the consent of the States in Congress assembled. " 1 2th. No two or more States were to form any alliance between themselves with- out the like consent of the States in Congress o assembled. " 13th. No State, without the like consent of Congress, was to keep war ships or an army in time of peace ; but each was to keep a well-organized and disciplined militia, with munitions of war. " 14th. No State was to lay any duty upon foreign imports which would interfere with any treaty made by Congress. " 15th. No State was to issue letters of marque, or to engage in war, without the consent of the Congress, unless actually invaded or menaced with invasion. " 1 6th. When Federal land forces were raised, each State was to raise the quota required by Congress, arm and equip them at the expense of all the States, and to appoint all officers of and under the rank of colonel. " 17th. Each State was to levy and raise the quota of tax required by Congress for Federal purposes. " 1 8th. The faith of all the States was pledged to pay all the bills of credit emitted, or money borrowed on their joint account, by the Congress. " 19th. It was agreed and covenanted that Canada might accede to the union so formed if she chose to do so. " 20th (and lastly). Each State was to abide by the determination of all the States in Congress assembled, on all questions which, by the confederation, were submitted to them. The Articles of Confederation were to be inviolably observed by every State, and the Union was to be perpetual. No article of the confederation was to be altered without the consent of every State. " The delegations of power by each of the States to all the States, in general Congress assembled, upon a like analysis, may be stated as follows : " 1st. The sole and exclusive power to determine on war and peace, except in case a State should be invaded or menaced with invasion. " 2d. To send and receive ambassadors. " 3d. To make treaties, with a proviso, etc. " 4th. To establish rules for captures. " 5th. To grant letters of marque and re- prisal. " 6th. To appoint courts for trial of piracies and other crimes specified. 390 THE AMERICAN REVOLUTION. "7th. To decide questions of dispute between two or more States in a prescribed manner. " 8th. The sole and exclusive power to " lOth. To regulate trade with the Indian tribes. " I ith. To establish post offices. Wc^^i^^^^^'^ ^' v/^^/^ -^ ±^JJ^M^^ ^ _^ -^:^^ (/l/^t^cC /Uri^/ ""^"^^ ^^ '-^-f' ^-- SIGNATURES OF THE SIGNERS OF THE DECLARATION OF INDEPENDENCE. coin money and regulate the value. "9th. To fix a standard of weights and measures. " 1 2th. To appoint all officers of the militia land forces, when called out by Congress, except regimental. THE DECLARATION OF INDEPENDENCE. 391^ " 13th. To appoint all officers of the Fede- ral naval forces. " 14th. To make rules and regulations for the government of land and naval forces. " 15th. To appropriate and apply public money for public expenses, the common defence and general welfare. " 1 6th. To borrow money and emit bills of credit. " 17th. To build and equip a navy. " 1 8th. To agree upon the number of land forces and make requisitions upon the States for their quotas in proportion to the value of all land within each State. " The foregoing powers were delegated with this limitation : The war power, the treaty power, the power to coin money, the power to regulate the value thereof, the power of fixing the quotas of money to be raised by the States, the power to emit bills of credit, the power to borrow money, the power to appropriate money, the power to regulate the number of land and naval forces, and the power to appoint a commander-in-chief of the army as well as the navy, were never to be exercised unless nine of the States were assenting to the same. " These articles form the original basis and first Constitution of the existing Federal Union of the United States of America." * The States Come Into Line. These Articles of Confederation were adopted, after discussion, by Congress, vot- ing by States, and were then submitted to the several States for ratification by them. In the meantime Congress continued to exer- cise the powers conferred by them. By the early part of 1777 all the States save Mary- land had ratified and adopted the articles. That State did not give her full assent to them until 1781. *Hon. Alexander H. Stephens. Lord Howe arrived in New York Bay about the middle of July, as has been stated. He was vested with full powers by the king to settle the quarrel between America and England if the Americans would agree to submit unconditionally to the king. Failing to accomplish a settlement, he and his brother, Sir William Howe, were charged with the supreme conduct of the war. Lord Howe was a man of amiable disposition, and really desired peace ; but as he was fully convinced of the justice of the royal preten- sions, he could not understand or appreciate the claims or grievances of the Americans. Moreover, he had come too late. The Ameri- can people meant that their separation from Great Britain should be final. Lord Howe was greatly deceived upon his arrival as to the actual state of feeling in America. He was received with loyal addresses by the Tories of Long and Staten Islands and the New Jersey shore, and was assured by Gov- ernor Tryon that the country was full of friends of the king who might be induced to join him if properly supported. ^ W^ashington Insulted. Lord Howe, therefore, resolved to attempt a peaceful settlement before proceeding to hostilities, and issued a circular addressed to the people of America, offering them the royal pardon if they would cease their rebel- lion, lay down their arms and trust to the clemency of the king. Congress gave to this circular the widest publicity by causing it to be published in every newspaper in the Union, in order that the people might see that the only settlement that would be accepted by England was their voluntary and absolute submission to her arbitrary will. " They must fight or be slaves." About the same time Lord Howe addressed a letter to the American commander-in-chief, styling him George Washington, Esquire. 392 THE AMERICAN REVOLUTION. No notice of this communication was taken by Washington, and Howe sent him another letter addressed to George Washington, etc., etc. Washington, rightly considering that the omission of his official title was an insult to his country, refused to receive the letter. Adjutant-General Patterson, of Lord Howe's staff, who bore the communication, expressed his regret that the letter could not be opened. Lord Howe, he said, came vested with great power, and was sincerely anxious for peace. Washington, who had received him with kindly courtesy, replied that he was aware that Lord Howe was intrusted with the power to grant pardons, but that as the Americans were engaged in the defence of their rights, and had committed no crime, they had no need of pardon, and his lordship's good inten- tions could not be of service to them. It was now plain to Lord Howe that he had been deceived by Tryon and his friends, and that nothing could be accomplished save by force of arms. His circular had produced no effect, and he could detect no sign of •wavering on the part of the Americans. Measures for Defence. It had been evident for some time that the next effort of the British would be to get possession of the city of New York. Their fleet already held the harbor, and should they succeed in securing the Hudson they would be able to establish a direct commu- nication with Canada, and to isolate New England and New York from the Middle States and the South. Reinforcements were sent to Washington from Pennsylvania, Maryland, Virginia and Delaware. These gave the American commander a force of about twenty-five thousand men ; but scarcely seventeen thousand were fit for duty ; the remainder being disabled by sickness. Washington erected two forts on Man- hattan island, one just above Kingsbridge, named Fort Washington, and the other just below it, named Fort Independence. Kings- bridge furnished the only communication between the island of Manhattan and the mainland, and these forts were erected for its defence, as well as to hold the enemy's vessels in check should they attempt to ascend the Hudson. On the New Jersey side of the river, opposite Fort Washington, a third work was erected, and named Fort Lee. Other forts were built higher up the Hudson to hold the river against the enemy and maintain the communication between the Northern and Southern States. One of these, called Fort Montgomery, was located at the entrance to the Highlands, opposite the promontory of Anthony's Nose ; another was built six miles higher up the river, and was known as Fort Constitution. Battle on Long Island. For the defence of the heights of Brooklyn, which commanded the city of New York, Washington caused a line of works to be erected on a range of hills a short distance south of Brooklyn, and established there an intrenched camp. General Nathaniel Greene was placed in command of this position, and exerted himself with vigor to strengthen it. When he had matured his plans he was sud- denly taken ill, and was obliged to relinquish the commend to General Sullivan. The British fleet lay in Gravesend Bay, just without the Narrows, and Washington was for a while uncertain whether they would make their first attempt against the force on Long Island, or attack the city of New York. It soon became evident that the capture of the lines on Long Island would be their first care, and Sullivan was reinforced with six battalions, all that could be spared form New York, and on the twenty-fourth of August General Putnam was placed in command of the forces on Lono- Island. THE DECLARATION OF INDEPENDENCE. 393 On the night of the twenty-sixth of August the British crossed over from Staten Island to Long Island, and prepared to give battle. Their plan was to engage the attention of the Americans by a direct attack with two divisions, while Sir Henry Clinton, with a third division, was to turn the left flank of the Americans and gain their rear. They hoped, if these movements were successful, to surround and capture the entire force under Putnam. Clinton began his march about nine o'clock on the night of the twenty-sixth, guided by a Long Island Tory. About daylight on the morning of the twenty-seventh of Au- gust, the enemy made their attack upon the front of the American posi- tion, and engaged their attention in this direction, while Clinton, by a rapid march, gained their rear. For a while the Americans fought well, but finding themselves almost surrounded, and in danger of being captured, they abandoned the field and retreated within the intrench- ments at Brooklyn. The Hessian troops behaved with great barbarity during the engagement, and a num- ber of the Americans were cruelly and wantonly bayoneted by them. A part of the engagement was fought in the beautiful region now occupied by Greenwood cemetery. Washington hastened to Brooklyn as soon as informed of the battle, and arrived just in time to witness the defeat of his troops. He was powerless to repair the disaster, and could only look on in helpless agony. " My God ! " he exclaimed, with tears : " What brave fellows I must lose this day!" The American loss was very severe in this battle. Out of a force of five thou- sand men engaged they lost two thousand men, a large number of whom were pri- soners. The British had sixteen thousand men engaged, and lost four hundred. Had they followed up their victory by an imme- diate assault upon the American intrench- ments they must have carried them ; but General Howe believed that Washington had a much stronger force for their defence than was the case, and encamped in front of the intrenchments, intending to begin GENERAL JOHN SULLIVAN. operations against them the next day. The twenty-eighth, however, was a day of drenching rain, and the enemy were unable to do more than break ground for a battery. On the twenty-ninth a dense fog hung over the island ; but it lifted for a moment, and enabled the Americans to . detect an unusual commotion among the British shipping. It seemed plain that the enemy were pre- paring to enter the East River with their 394 THE AMERICAN REVOLUTION. fleet, and so separate the force on Long Island from that in New York. Washing- ton at once summoned a council of war, and it was decided to retreat from Long Island without delay. It was a hazardous attempt, for the army under General Howe was so close to the American lines that the conver- sations of the men could be heard, and the British fleet might at any moment seize the East River. To withdraw a force of nine thousand men across a wide, deep river, in the face of such an army and fleet, was a task which required the greatest skill. It was successfully accomplished, however. Every boat in and around New York and Brooklyn was impressed, and though the orders for the retreat were not issued until noon on the twenty-ninth, everything was in readiness for the retreat by eight o'clock that evening. At midnight the troops took up their silent march from the intrenched line to the ferry, where the boats, manned by Glover's regiment, which was composed of fishermen from Marblehead, awaited them. By eight o'clock the next morning the entire army, with all its cattle, horses and wagons, was safe upon the New York side of the river, and beyond the reach of the enemy. Important Conference. Howe was greatly mortified at the escape of the American army, for he had regarded it as a sure prize, and prepared, with the aid of his ships, to seize the upper part of Man- hattan Island, and confine the Americans to the city of New York, where their surrender would be inevitable. Before proceeding to the execution of this plan he resolved to make another effort to induce the Americans to aban- don their cause, as he rightly believed their defeat on Long Island would be followed by a season of great depression. A few days after the retreat he released General Sullivan, who had been taken prisoner in the battle, on parole, and sent a letter by him to Congress, asking that body to send an informal com- mittee, whom he would receive as private gentlemen, to confer with him on some meas- ure of reconciliation. Interview with Lord Howe. Congress, willing to hear what he had to propose, sent Dr. Franklin, John Adams and Edward Rutledge to confer with him. They met Lord Howe at a house on Staten Island, opposite Amboy. Tne only terms his lordship had to propose were the uncon- ditional submission of the Americans to the royal mercy. He was informed that the Americans would consent to treat with Great Britain only as " a free and independ- ent nation," and that it was useless to propose any other basis for a settlement. Lord Howe thereupon expressed his regret that he should be obliged to distress the Ameri- cans. Dr. Franklin thanked him for his good feeling, and remarked : " The Ameri- cans will endeavor to lessen the pain you may feel by taking good care of themselves." The report of the interview was made pub- lic by Congress, and had a happy effect. It convinced all classes that England had no terms to offer them but such as embraced a shameful surrender of their liberties. Fearful that Howe would seek to shut him up in New York, Washington left a force within the city to hold it, and encamped with the rnain body of his army on Harlem Heights, at the northern end of the island,, from which he could secure his retreat intO' Westchester County. The army was reduced to less than twenty thousand men, and was disheartened by the defeat on Long Island. It was seriously debated whether New York should be defended or not ; and it was pro- posed to burn the city to the ground, in order to prevent the enemy from securing comfortable winter-quarters in it. Congress THE DECLARATION OF INDEPENDENCE. 395 ordered that the city should not be de- stroyed, but it was evident that it could not be held. Washington was anxious to learn the intentions of the enemy, who still remained on Long Island, and Captain Nathan Hale, a talented young officer of the Connecticut line, volunteered to enter their lines and pro- cure the desired information. He proceeded to the British camp, obtained the information wanted, and was returning in safety when he was arrested by a party of the enemy, among whom was a Tory relative, who re- cognised him. He was taken to Howe's headquarters, and the next morning, Sep- tember 22d, without any form of trial, was hanged as a spy. He met his death with firmness, saying : " I only regret that I have but one life to lose for my country." "Old Put " Saves His Command. In the meantime the British had seized the islands at the mouth of the Harlem River, and had erected a battery on one of them. On the fifteenth of September they crossed in force to Manhattan Island, at Kipp's Bay, about three miles above the city. They easily drove back the force sta- tioned there to resist their landing, and secured their position. Washington at once sent General Heath to hold the enemy in check, and ordered Putnam to evacuate the city of New York, and retire to Harlem Heights, without the loss of a moment. Putnam obeyed his orders promptly, and retreated from the city along the line of the Bloomingdale Road, now the upper part of Broadway. His march was retarded by a crowd of women and children fleeing from the city, and was exposed to the fire of the enemy's ships in the Hudson. By great exertions he managed to save his command, but was obliged to leave his heavy artillery and three hundred men in the hands of the enemy. The British at once took posses- sion of New York, and threw up a line of intrenchments above the city, from the Hud- son, at Bloomingdale, to the East River, at Kipp's Bay. The Americans now held the upper part of the island, and erected a double line of earthworks from river to river, about four miles below Kingsbridge. On the sixteenth of September the enemy made an attack upon the American advanced posts, but were handsomely repulsed by the Virginia and Connecticut troops. Major Leitch, the commander of the Virginians, and Colonel Knowlton, the commander of the Connecticut regiment, and one of the captains at Bunker Hill, were killed. In spite of these losses the spirit of the troops, which had been much depressed by the recent disasters, were greatly cheered. A lull of several weeks followed, during- which the Americans suffered greatly from sickness. They were without proper hospi- tal accommodations, " and they lay about in almost every barn, stable, shed, and even under the fences and bushes." ^A^ashington's Skillful Tactics. Howe now began to move his army to- wards Long Island Sound, for the purpose of marching across the mainland to the Hudson and cutting off the retreat of Washington from Manhattan Island, and at the same time sent his fleet up the Hudson. His intention was understood by Washington, who left three thousand men to defend Fort Washington,, and with the main body of his army fell back to the line of the Bronx, near the village of White Plains. Here he was attacked on the twenty-eighth of October by General Howe, who was advancing from the direction of New Rochelle, and who was still hopeful of gaining the American rear. A spirited en- counter ensued, in which each party lost about four hundred men ; and the British THE DECLARATION OF INDEPENDENCE READ TO THE ARMY THE DECLARATION OF INDEPENDENCE. 397 intrenched themselves in front of the Ameri- can position. Apprehensive of an effort on the part of the enemy-to storm his line, Washington caused the troops to spend the night in strengthen- ing the rude works which covered it. They labored with such diligence that the next morning the British commander decided that the line was too strong to be attacked, and determined to wait for reinforcements. That night Washington silently abandoned his lines at White Plains, and withdrew to the heights of North Castle, five miles dis- tant. Howe, unwilling to follow him further, marched to Dobb's Ferry, on the Hudson, and encamped. British Successes. This movement of the British commander caused Washington to fear that he meant to cross over into New Jersey. He accordingly made a new disposition of his forces to meet any emergency. General Charles Lee, who had recently returned from the South, was left at North Castle with a portion of the army to watch Howe ; Heath, with another portion, was ordered to occupy Peekskill to defend the passes of the Highlands ; and Putnam was stationed, with a third detach- ment, on the west side of the Hudson to hold that region. With the remainder of his troops Wash- ington crossed the Hudson and joined Gen- eral Greene at Fort Lee, arriving there on the thirteenth of November. A force of three thousand Pennsylvania troops had been left to hold Fort Washington, on Manhattan Island. Washington was in favor of with- drawing them at once, but left the matter to the decision of General Greene, and Colonel Magaw, the commander of the fort, who determined to hold it. The result proved their error. Fort Washington was attacked on the sixteenth of November by a force of five thousand Hessians and some English troops, under General Knyphausen, and was taken by storm. The enemy lost nearly one thousand men and took over two thousand prisoners. Washington witnessed the cap- ture from Fort Lee without the ability to aid the garrison. Fort Washington having fallen. Fort Lee was no longer of service, and the commander- in-chief resolved to abandon it before it was too late. The removal of the stores was at once begun, but before it could be completed Lord Cornwallis, with a force of six thousand men, crossed the Hudson below Dobb's Ferry, and by a rapid march across the coun- try endeavored to confine the Americans to the strip of land between the Hudson and the Hackensack. An immediate retreat from Fort Lee became necessary in order to secure the bridge over the Hackensack. All the heavy cannon at Fort Lee, a considerable quantity of provisions and military stores, and three hundred tents were abandoned, and fell into the hands of the British. The pas- sage of the Hackensack was secured, and the army began its memorable retreat across New Jersey, closely followed by the enemy under Cornwallis. Dark Days for the American Cause. From the Hackensack Washington fell back behind the Passaic at Newark. As his rear-guard passed out of the town the advance of Cornwallis entered Newark. The Raritan was crossed at New Brunswick, and Washington left a force of twelve hundred men at Princeton, under Lord Stirling, and pushed on to Trenton to secure the passage of the Delaware. The British hung closely upon him during the whole retreat, the opposing forces being often within cannon-shot of each other. On the eighth of December, with scarcely three thousand men, Washington crossed the 398 THE AMERICAN REVOLUTION. Delaware at Trenton, and went into camp in Pennsylvania. The enemy reached the river soon after, but, as all the boats had been secured by the Americans, were unable to cross over. Lord Cornwallis was very anxious to procure boats, cross the river and push on to Philadelphia, but Howe decided to wait until the river should be frozen, and to pass it on the ice. In the meantime the Hessians were stationed in Trenton, and guarded the river for some distance above and below the town. GENERAL CHARLES LEE. The American war had now entered its darkest period for the Americans. New York was lost to them, they had been driven from New Jersey, and their army seemed melting away. During the painful retreat across New Jersey, Washington had exerted himself to the utmost to call in the other detachments of his army. General Schuyler was directed to send him the Pennsylvania and New Jersey troops in his command ; but the enlistments of these troops were rapidly expiring, and they could not be induced to renew them. General Charles Lee was ordered to cross the Hudson and join the commander-in-chief with all speed, but he moved with a slowness and carelessness that were criminal. He remained about a fort- night on the east side of the Hudson, and then began his march with such slowness that he did not reach Morristown until the eighth of December. On the thirteenth, vv^hile lying carelessly apart from his troops, at a small inn at Bask- ingridge, he was captured by a troop of British cavalry. The command passed to General Sul- livan, and in a few days he had united his forces with those of the commander-in-chief General Lee had an abiding confidence in his own ability, and was reluctant to lose his independent command by joining Washington. His natural self-conceit had been greatly increased by his success at the South, and he was firmly convinced that he alone was capable of guiding the American cause through the difficulties which encompassed it. Influ- enced by this feeling, he disre- garded the authority of the com- mander-in-chief, and subjected him to great inconvenience. He was not untrue to the cause he had em- braced, but his patriotism was of a different type from that which animated Washington. The enlistments of a large part of the troops expired on the first of December, and nothing could induce them to remain in the army. Whole regiments abandoned the service, and the handful of reinforcements which was obtained from Philadelphia fell far short of supplying their place. The people were disheartened, and it seemed THE DECLARATION OF INDEPENDENCE. 399 that the cause was hopeless. A force of six militia was raised in Massachusetts and Con- necticut, and was on the point of marching to Washington's assistance, when the fleet of Sir Peter Parker entered Newport Harbor and landed a force on the island of Rhode Island, which took possession of Newport. In view of this invasion, it was deemed best to retain the New England militia at home. Taking the Oath of Allegiance. Washington was fully alive to the danger which threatened the cause ; but he was calm and cheerful. During the retreat through New Jersey he said to Colonel Reed : '' Should wc retreat to the back parts of Pennsylvania, will the Pennsylvanians sup- port us ? " " If the lower counties are sub- dued and give up," said the colonel, " the back counties will do the same." Washing- ton passed his hand over his throat, and said, with a smile : " My neck does not feel as though it was made for a halter. We must retire to Augusta County, in Virginia. Numbers will be obliged to repair to us for safety ; and we must try what we can do in carrying on a predatory war ; and if over- powered, we must cross the Allegheny Mountains." At this juncture of affairs Lord and Gen- eral Howe issued a proclamation, by virtue of their authority as commissioners appointed by the crown for the settlement of the war, in which all persons in America in arms against his majesty's government were ordered to disperse and return to their homes, and all civil officers were commanded to discontinue their treasonable practices, and relinquish their usurped authority. A full and free pardon was offered to every one who would, within sixty days, appear before certain designated officials, claim the pardon offered, and take an oath pledging him to obey the laws and submit to the authority of the king. Large numbers of persons, most of whom were possessed of property which they desired to save, at once came forward, made their submission and took the required oath. Some of these were men who had borne a prominent part in the patriot move- ment ; among them were two delegates from Pennsylvania to the Continental Congress, and the president of the New Jersey con- vention, which had ratified the Declaration of Independence. Within ten days after the proclamation was issued, between two and three thousand persons submitted and swore allegiance to the king. In Philadelphia great excitement prevailed, and General Putnam, who was in command there, feeling that there was danger that the royalists in the city might succeed in obtaining control of it, advised that, until matters were placed on a more certain footing. Congress should hold its sessions at some safer place. Accord- ingly it adjourned on the twelfth of Decem- ber to meet in Baltimore. A Gallant Fleet. The only quarter in which the Americans had been able to oppose anything of a suc- cessful resistance to the British was the region of Lake Champlain. We have related the retreat of Sullivan and Arnold from Canada, and the appointment of Gates to the command of their forces. The army halted at Forts Ticonderoga and Crown Point* which it strengthened, and awaited the development of the plans of Sir Guy Carle- ton, the British commander in Canada. That officer had determined to secure the control of Lakes Champlain and George, and then to push on to the Hudson, open communication with the Howes at New York, and spend the winter at Albany. He would thus entirely sever the communica- tion between New England and New York, and the Middle and Southern States. Sullivan 400 THE AMERICAN REVOLUTION. had wisely destroyed all the boats on Lake Champlain which he did not need for his own purposes, and as there was no road along the shore by which he could advance, Carleton was oblicred to construct a fleet before he could attempt to ascend the lake. He exerted himself with such energy that in three months he had a fleet of five large and twenty small vessels and a number of armed boats assembled at the foot of the lake. Gates was informed of Carleton's design, and ordered Arnold, who was possessed of some nautical knowledge, to construct a flotilla and take command of it for the pur- pose of contesting Carleton's effort to ascend the lake. Arnold set to work with enthu- siasm, and soon had a force of vessels afloat about half as strong as that of the enemy. He chose a favorable position and awaited Carleton's approach. A sharp encounter occurred between the opposing forces early in October near Valcour Island, but was indecisive, and at nightfall Carleton took possession to cut off Arnold's retreat. The night was dark and cloudy, and taking advantage of it, Arnold passed the enemy and sailed for Crown Point. His vessels were in bad condition, however, and two were sunk on the voyage. Only six suc- ceeded in coming within sight of Crown Point, near which they were overtaken by Carleton on the sixth of October. The Flag-ship Riddled. Arnold made a gallant fight with his remaining vessels. One was taken with her crew, and Arnold's flag-ship, the " Congress," was cut to pieces, and half of her crew were slain. Resolved not to surrender, Arnold ordered the vessels to be run aground, and set them on fire. He and his men then waded ashore, and by a sharp fire from their rifles kept the enemy from the burning gal- leys until they were entirely consumed. The Americans then hastened to Crown Point, where they set fire to the fort and the stores, and continued their retreat to Ticonderoga. Gates greatly strengthened the defences of this post, and when Carleton arrived before it, he found it too strong to be attacked. He therefore abandoned his attempt to reach the Hudson, and returned to Canada. A few weeks later, feeling that the lake country was safe for the winter, Gates, in obedience to orders from Washington, sent him part of his force, and shortly afterwards marched with the remainder of his troops to the assistance of the commander-in-chief. New Military Movements. Including these troops, Washington's force now numbered about six thousand men fit for duty. The enlistments of many of them would expire on the last day of December, and it was of the highest import- ance that something should be done to re- vive the confidence of the country before these men should be lost to the army. The circumstances in which Washington was placed required a blow to be struck in some quarter. A victory would be productive of the most important moral results ; a defeat could do no more than ruin the cause, and a policy of inaction was sure to accomplish that. An opportunity at once presented itself. The British had ceased their pursuit, and though they held New Jersey in strong force, had scattered their detachments through the state. General Howe was in New York, and Lord Cornwallis was at the same place, and was about to sail for Eng- land. Both commanders believed the Ame- rican army to be too seriously crippled to assume the offensive during the winter. The Hessians, who constituted the advance-guard of the royal forces, were stationed along the Delaware. Colonel Donop had his head- quarters at Burlington, and Colonel Rahl 26 40I 402 THE AMERICAN REVOLUTION. was at Trenton with a force of fifteen hun- dred men. Rahl was a brave and competent officer, but he entertained such a thorough contempt for the Americans that he neglected to protect his position by earthworks or other defences. The Hessians kept the country in terror ; they were inveterate thieves, and plundered both patriot and royalist without mercy. They had earned the deep and abiding hatred of the Ameri- can soldiers by bayoneting the wounded in the battles in which they had been engaged. Midnight Marches. Washington now determined to re-cross the Delaware and attack the Hessians at different points. A force of twenty-four hundred picked troops under his own com- mand was to cross the river a few miles above Trenton and attack the enemy at that place ; and the same time another detach- ment under Reed and Cadwallader were to cross over from Bristol and drive the Hes- sians under Colonel Donop out of Burling- ton. These attacks were to be simultaneous, and were ordered to be made at five o'clock on the morning of the twenty-sixth of De- cember. The division of Washington was accom- panied by a train of twenty-four field-pieces under Colonel Knox. The river was high and full of floating ice, and the weather was cold and stormy. A detachment of boats had been collected for the service, and was maimed by Colonel Glover's regiment of Marblehead fishermen, who had ferried the army over the East River in the retreat from Long Island. The march was begun just after dark on Christmas night, and Wash- ington hoped to reach the New Jersey shore by midnight ; but the passage of the river was difficult and tedious by reason of the floating ice and the high wind which re- peatedly swept the boats out of their course; and it was four o'clock before the artillery was landed. The march was at once re- sumed. Washington, with the main body, moved by a wide circuit to gain the north of the town, while a detachment under Sul- livan was ordered to advance by the river road and attack the enemy from the west and south sides. A blinding storm of hail and snow delayed the advance of the troops, but also concealed their movements from the enemy ; and it was eight o'clock before Trenton was reached. The attack was at once begun, and was pressed with vigor. The Hessians were completely taken by suprise ; they flew to arms promptly, but by this time the Ameri- cans had gained the main street, and were sweeping it with a battery of six pieces. Colonel Rahl was mortally wounded while leading his grenadiers to the charge, and his men, seized with a panic, endeavored to re- treat. Finding that they were surrounded, about one thousand of them threw down their arms and surrendered. The remainder succeeded in escaping and joining Colonel Donop at Burlington. The magnanimity of Washington was shown on this occasion by his paying a friendly visit to Colonel Rahl, who was lying at Trenton on his dying bed. Washington expressed his sympathy for the wounded officer, who, upon his death, is believed to have been buried in the graveyard of the First Presbyterian Church, where his sup- posed remains were found fifty years later. The Victory at Trenton. The Americans lost two men killed, and two were frozen to death on the march. Several were wounded. They took one thousand prisoners with their arms. Thirty- two of the captives were officers. Washington now learned that the ice was so thick in front of Bristol that Reed and THE DECLARATION OF INDEPENDENCE. 403 Cadwalladcr had not been able to get their cannon over the river, and had not attacked the enemy at Burlington. He therefore deemed it best to withdraw into Pennsylva- nia, as Donop's force was still intact at Bur- lington, and the enemy had another column detachments along the river, and had retreat- ed in haste to New Brunswick and Princeton. The news of the victory at Trenton was received with delight in all parts of the country, and men began to take hope. Sev- eral regiments, whose terms of enlistment WASHINGTON CALLS at Princeton, a few miles distant. On the evening of the twenty-sixth he returned to his camp beyond the Delaware. The next day he learned from Reed and Cadwallader, who had crossed the Delaware on the twen- ty-seventh, that Donop had called in all his ON COLONEL RAHL. expired on the last day of December, were induced to remain six weeks longer. Wash- ington resolved to make an effort to recover New Jersey, and men of influence were sent to rouse the militia of that State to take up arms for the defence of their homes. 404 THE AMERICAN REVOLUTION. Altogetner matters assumed a more promis- ing aspect than they had worn at any period of the war. On the thirtieth of December Washington recrossed the Delaware and took position at Trenton. Honors Conferred on Washington. About the same time Congress bestowed upon Washington the highest proof of their confidence in his wisdom and integrity that a free people can ever confer upon a leader. On the twenty-seventh of December Congress conferred upon General Washington, by a formal resolution, unlimited military power for six months. The committee, in their let- ter informing him of this act, wrote ; " Happy is it for this country that the general of their forces can safely be entrusted with the most unlimited power, and neither personal secu- rity, liberty, nor property be in the least endangered thereby." The confidence of the country was not misplaced. Never was dic- tatorial power used more wisely or unselfish- ly, and never did its exercise produce more beneficial results. It was resolved by Congress to secure assistance from abroad, and on the thirtieth of December Benjamin Franklin, Silas Deane and Arthur Lee — the last of whom was appointed in place of Mr. Jefferson who could not go — were sent as commissioners to France to secure the assistance of the government of that country. France was not yet prepared to go to war with England, and the commissioners could do no more than secure aid in money, which was expend- ed in the purchase of supplies and military stores, which were shipped to the United States. It was arranged that this money should be repaid by Congress in the produce of the country, especially in tobacco, which was to be shipped to France through a mer- cantile house. The assistance thus obtained was of the greatest service to the Americans.. CHAPTER XXVIII The Year 1777 Howe Attempts to Crush Washington — Battle of Princeton — The British Confined to the Seaboard — Recovery of New Jersey — The American Army in Winter Quarters at Morristown — Effects of the American Successes — Difficulty of Procuring Troops — Washington Refuses to Exchange Prisoners — His Course Approved by Congress — Measures of Congress — Naval Affairs — Tryon Burns Danbury — Gallantry of Arnold — Troubles in the Northern Department — Congress Adopts a National Flag — " The Stars and Stripes "^Course of France towards the United States — France Decides to Assist the Americans — Lafayette — His Arrival in America — Capture of the British General Prescott — Howe Threatens Philadelphia — Washington moves Southward — Battle of the Brandywine — Washington Retreats to the Schuylkill — Wayne's Defeat at Paoli — Philadelphia Evacuated by the Americans — It is Occupied by the British — Battle of Germantown — The British Attack the Forts on the Delaware — They are Abandoned by the Americans — Burgoyne's Army in Canada — Advance of Burgoyne into New York — Investment of Ticonderoga — It is Abandoned by the Americans — The Retreat to Fort Edward — Burgoyne reaches the Hudson — Murder of Miss McCrea — Siege of Fort Schuyler — Battle of Bennington — Critical Sitaution of Burgoyne — Gates in Command of the American Army — Battle of Behmus' Heights and Stillwater — Surrender of Burgoyne's Army — Clinton in the Highlands. GREAT was the atonishment of General Howe when he learned of the battle at Trenton. He could scarcely believe that a hand- ful of militia had captured a strong force of veteran troops led by such a commander as Colonel Rahl. He at once took prompt measures to repair the disaster. Lord Corn- wallis, who was on the eve of sailing to Eng- land, was ordered to resume his command in New Jersey, and a force of seven thousand men was rapidly collected and placed under his orders. These troops rendezvoused at Princeton. Washington was informed of these move- ments, and ordered Generals Mifflin and Cadwallader to join him without delay. They reached Trenton the first of January, with thirty-five hundred men. This increased the American force to about five thousand men fit for duty. Upon the approach of Cornwallis' army, Washington took position behind the Assunpink, and prepared to dis- pute the passage of that stream. The fords and bridge over the creek were carefully guarded, and were swept by the fire of the artillery placed to command them. A force under General Greene and Colonel Hand Avas thrown forward to hold the enemy in check, and so retarded their movements that the British army did not arrive before Trenton until four o'clock in the afternoon of January 2, 1777. Cornwallis made several deter- mined efforts to force a passage of the creek, but was each time driven back by the well- directed fire of the provincials. Thinking that he could accomplish more the next day, the British commander drew off his men, resolving to renew the attack in the morning when, he boasted, he would " bag the fox." Both armies encamped for the night in sight of each other, reddening the sky with the glow of their camp-fires. The situation of the American army was now critical in the extreme. A retreat into Pennsylvania was impossible, as the Dela- ware was full of floating ice, and could not be passed in the face of such an army as that of Cornwallis. The issue of the next day's conflict was, to say the least, doubtful, for the army of Cornwallis was composed mainly of veteran troops, and he was himself a leader 40s 4o6 THE AMERICAN REVOLUTION. of genuine ability. In this emergency Wash- ington determined upon one of the most brilliant and well-conceived operations of the war. It was known to him that the British AMERICAN MARKSMAN IN A TREE. had their main depot of supplies at New Brunswick, and he supposed from the pres- ence of so many troops with Cornwallis that this depot had been left unguarded. He therefore resolved to break up his camp, and march by an unfrequented road around the left flank of the enemy to Princeton, capture the force stationed there, and then hasten to New Brunswick and secure the stores at that place. Sending his heavy basreaere and stores down the river to Burlington, Washington silently withdrew his army from its position at midnight, leaving the camp-fires burning to deceive the enemy, and a small force to watch the British and destroy the bridges after the army had passed on. A forced march brought the Americans within three miles of Princeton by daybreak, on the morning of the third of January. The army was divided into two divisions, one under Washington and the other under General Mer- cer, which approached the town by different routes. Three British regiments on their way to Trenton had passed the previous night at Princeton, and had re- sumed their march at dawn. The first of these,, under Colonel Mawhood, was encountered by the division of General Mer- cer, about two miles from Princeton. As Mawhood supposed Mercer's force to be a party retreating from Trenton, he at once resolved to attack it. His attack was successful. The Americans were driven back, and General Mercer was THE YEAR 1777. 407 wounded, bayoneted, and left on the field apparently dead. Mercer's troops fell back in confusion, and a body of Pennsylvania militia, which had been sent by Washington to their assistance, was held in check by the fire of the British artillery. At this rr^Dment, Washington, who had been rendered anxious by the obstinate and continued firing, arrived on the field. A glance showed him the broken and shattered regiments of Mercer falling back in confusion, and the Pennsylvania militia wavering under the heavy cannonade directed against them. Not a moment was to be lost, and putting spurs to his horse, he dashed forward in the face of the fire of Mawhood's artillery, and waving his hat, called upon the troops to rally and follow him. The effect was elec- trical ; the fugitives rallied with a loud cheer and reformed their line, and at the same moment a Virginia regiment, which had just arrived, dashed out of a neighboring wood and opened a heavy fire upon the enemy. A little later the American artillery came up, and opened a shower of grape upon the British. Mawhood was driven back, and with great difficulty succeeded in regaining the main road, along which he retreated with all speed to Trenton. General Mercer Mortally Wounded. The second British regiment, advancing from Princeton to Mawhood's assistance was attacked by St. Clair's brigade, and was speedily driven across the country towards New Brunswick. The third regiment, seeing the fate of their comrades, became panic- stricken. A portion fled towards New Brunswick, and the remainder took refuge in the college building at Princeton. They surrendered after a few shots from the Ame- rican artillery. The Americans lost but a few men in this battle ; but General Mercer, a brave and efficient commander, was mortally wounded, and died a few days after the engagement. The British lost about one hundred killed and three hundred prisoners. Eager to secure the stores at New Bruns- wick, Washington pushed on with speed in that direction, but after passing a few miles beyond Princeton decided to abandon the attempt. He was sure that Cornwallis would pursue him as soon as his retreat from Tren- ton was discovered, and his men were too much exhausted to reach New Brunswick before the arrival of the enemy. They had been without rest for a night and a day, and some of them were barefooted. His gen- erals sustained him in the opinion that it was injudicious to continue the movement against New Brunswick, and he reluctantly abandoned it, and withdrew in the direction, of Morristown. New Jersey Saved from the Enemy. When Cornwallis discovered the with- drawal of the Americans on the morning of the third of January, he was greatly per- plexed to know in what direction they had gone. In a little while the sound of the cannonade at Princeton revealed to him the route taken by them, and he at once under- stood the design of Washington. He must save his stores at any risk, and he broke up his camp and set out for Princeton and New Brunswick. The Americans had obstructed the Princeton road and had broken down the bridge over Stony Creek, a few miles from the town. Without waiting to rebuild the bridge, the British commander forced his men through the icy waters, which were breast high, and hastened through Princeton with all speeds Believing that Washington had hurried on to New Brunswick, Cornwallis marched direct to that place, and did not notice the deflection of the American army from the 4o8 THE AMERICAN REVOLUTION. main route. Reaching- New Brunswick, he made arrangements to defend the town, which he supposed would be attacked. In the meantime the American army retreated to a strong position at Morristown, where the troops erected huts in which to pass the winter. Finding that the enemy did not attack him, Washington ventured to extend his line. His right was at Princeton, try beyond their lines, and rarely ventured without their camps. By the beginning of spring Cornwallis had abandoned every post in New Jersey save New Brunswick and Perth Amboy. From these points he could communicate with and draw his supplies fro|n New York by water. Thus was New Jersey almost entirely redeemed from the enemy. The WASHINGTON S QUARTERS AT MORRISTOWN. under General Putnam, and his left, under General Heath, was in the Highlands. His own headquarters were at Morristown. For six months neither party attempted any momement of importance. Washington was not idle, however. Though he had but the skeleton of an army at Morristown, he dis- played such activity in cutting off the forag- ing parties of the British that they were unable to draw any, supplies from the coun- militia of the state recovered from their former despondency and warmly seconded the efforts of Washington against the British. Confidence was returning to the country ; and though men felt that the struggle might yet be long and arduous, it was not as hope- less as they had feared. Washington passed the winter in endeav- oring to reorganize the army and fit it for THE YEAR 1777. 409 the work required of it in the spring. The policy of short enlistments adopted by Con- gress was the source of very great trouble, and the expiration of the enlistments of a large part of the army during this winter caused the commander-in-chief the greatest anxiety. He repeatedly condemned this policy, and endeavored to procure the sub- stitution of a longer term. Great efforts were made to procure recruits, but they came in very slowly. In order to check the ravages of the small-pox in the camp, the recruits were inoculated immediately upon their arrival. Efforts were now made to bring about an exchange of prisoners. The British objected to an exchange of man for man, on the ground that the Americans were rebels, and such an exchange would be an acknowledg- ment of their belligerent rights. Somewhat later General Howe, who had about five thousand prisoners in New York, renewed the negotiation. The British had treated the captured Americans with great severity and had confined them in warehouses in New York, and in foul hulks anchored in the bay. They were improperly fed, and were allowed to remain almost naked. Their sufferings were fearful, and they were reduced and emaciated in strength and body, until they were truly said to resemble " walk- ing corpses." British cruelty never exhibited itself in a more inhuman form than in the treatment of these unfortunate captives by the royal officials. More than ten thousand of them died in New York, during the war, from the effects of this treatment. When General Howe's proposal to ex- change these men for the Hessians taken by the Americans was received, it was declined by Washington. The Hessians had been well fed and well treated by the Americans, and were hale and hearty, and Washington was unwilling to liberate them for service in the British army, and to receive in exchange for them half-starved men, who were so weak that they could scarcely reach their homes. It was a stern necessity, but it was recognized by Congress, and Washington's view of the matter was sustained. The Army Reorganized. During the winter five more major-generals were commissioned by Congress. They were Stirling, St. Clair, Mifflin, Stephen and Lincoln. Arnold, who was the senior brig- adier in the service, justly conceived that his rank and services entitled him to promotion, and was indignant at having been passed over in the new appointments, and com- plained bitterly of the injustice done him. Eighteen brigadier-generals were also ap- pointed. Among them were George Clinton, of New York ; Glover, the commander of the Marblehead regiment ; Woodford and Muhlenberg, of Virginia; and Hand and Anthony Wayne, of Pennsylvania. Congress gave great attention to the reor- ganization of the army during this session. A quartermaster's department was organized, with General Mifflin at its head. Four regi- ments of cavalry were ordered to be enlisted. The hospital service was reorganized and placed under the control of Dr. Shippen, of Philadelphia ; and Dr. Rush, of Philadelphia, one of the signers of the Declaration of Inde- pendence, was appointed surgeon-general of the army. Efforts were also made to place the navy upon a better footing, Several of the frigates ordered by Congress to be built had been completed and equipped ; but the work on the rest was delayed by the want of funds. Efforts were made to complete them, as they were greatly needed, all the vessels constitut- ing the American fleet being at this time blockaded in the harbor of Providence, Rhode Island, by the enemy. 4IO THE AMERICAN REVOLUTION. Since the beginning of the struggle a destructive warfare had been carried on by the privateers of New England against the commerce of Great Britain, especially against the vessels of that country trading to the West Indies. During the first years of the war nearly three hundred of these were cap- tured by the privateers. The cargoes of the captured vessels were valued at the immense sum of five millions of dollars. The Ameri- can merchantmen also maintained a regular communication with France, Spain and Hol- land, and a profitable trade was carried on between the United States and those coun- tries. It was attended with great risk, how- ever, and many of the American vessels were captured by the British men-of-war. Military Stores Destroyed. Washington remained at Morristown some time after the spring opened, and exerted himself to the utmost to take the field as soon as the enemy should develop their plans. The first months of the season were employed by the British commander in a series of plun- dering expeditions. One of these was directed against Peekskill, where the Americans had collected a large quantity of stores. General McDougall, commanding the American force at that point, found it impossible to defend the stores, and set fire to them and retreated to the heights overlooking the town. The enemy made no attempt to follow him, and returned down the river. General Heath had been transferred to the command of the forces in Massachusetts, and was succeeded in the command of the Highlands by General Putnam. In the latter part of April General Tryon, the last royalist governor of New York, was sent by General Howe with a force of two thousand men, to destroy a large quantity of stores collected by the Americans at Dan- bury, in the western part of Connecticut, about twenty-three miles from the Sound. On the twenty-sixth of April Tryon landed near Norwalk, and marched to Danbury, where he burned the stores and set fire to the town. Thus far he had met with no opposition ; but the alarm had spread imme- diately after his landing, and the Conneticut militia, to the number of six hundred men, assembled under Generals Silliman and Wooster. Arnold chanced to be at New Haven, and collecting a small force of volun- teers, hurried to join Silliman and Wooster, and the whole command hastened after the marauders. Tryon Retreats to New York. Tryon began his retreat from Danbury before daylight on the morning of the twenty- seventh, and was soon after attacked by the militia. During the twenty-seventh and twenty-eighth the British were harrassed at every step by the little band of Americans, who, though too weak to defeat them in any single encounter, hung upon their march and inflicted upon them a loss of nearly three hundred men. The enemy at last came under the protection of the guns of their ships and the Americans were forced to withdraw. Tryon then re-embarked his exhausted troops and returned to New York. The American loss was slight. The brave old General Wooster, a veteran of sixty-eight years, was mortally wounded at the head of his men and died a few days later. Arnold behaved with such distinguished gallantry in this affair that Congress rewarded him with the rank of major-general and presented him with a horse handsomely equipped. Even this acknowledgment of his merit was min- gled with injustice, for the date of his com- mission still left him below the rank he was entiled to, and he felt the second slight as another undeserved injury. THE YEAR 1777. 411 The Connecticut militia were very indig- nant at the burning of Danbury, and resolved to avenge it. In the latter part of May a party of one hundred and seventy men, under Colonel Meigs, crossed the Sound in whale- boats to the east end of Long Island. They carried their boats during the night fifteen miles across the neck, and launching them again, proceeded to Sag Harbor, where they destroyed twelve vessels and a large quan- tity of stores collected there by the British, and made ninety prisoners. They then returned to Connecticut without the loss of a man. General Schuyler Vindicated. Recruits came into the American camp very slowly, and various expedients were adopted by Washington to hasten the enlist- ments. At his instance Congress declared that all indentured servants who enlisted in the army should receive their freedom at once. Bounties in land were offered to such Hessians as should desert the British service. This last measure did not accomplish much towards crippling the enemy. In the northern department, Schuyler was left with a mere skeleton of an army. He had but seven hundred men, at the most, at Ticonderoga, and he was fearful that Carle- ton would learn his weakness, pass Lake Champlain on the ice, capture Ticonderoga, and push on to Albany, He repeatedly urged the commander-in-chief to send him reinforcements and supplies, but his request could not be granted, as there were none to spared from Washington's army. During the winter a persistent effort was made to drive Schuyler from his command, in order that Gates might succeed to it. Charges were brought against him with such recklessness that he offered his resignation to Congress. That body refused to accept it ; but as the efforts of his enemies were not discontinued, Schuyler went to Phila- delphia, in April, 1777, and demanded an investigation into his conduct. Gates suc- ceeded him in his command. Schuyler was fully vindicated by the report of the investi- gating committee of Congress, and was ordered to resume his command. Gates was greatly surprised by the result, and reluct- antly relinquished the command of the northern department to his rival, and repaired to Philadelphia to seek redress at the hands of Congress for what he termed his wrongs. GENERAL PHILIP SCHUYLER. Until now the Americans had been with- out a national flag. Congress, in June, 1777, remedied this very serious want by adopting the old "Union Flag," with its thirteen stripes; but substituted, in place of St. George's Cross, a group of thirteen stars, one for each State. Thus the "Stars and Stripes " became the national ensign of the republic — a star having been added for each additional State that has since joined the original thirteen. One of the first things that occupied the attention of Congress after the proclamation of the Declaration of Independence was the 412 THE AMERICAN REVOLUTION. preparation of a device for a great seal of the confederation. This was assigned to a com- mittee consisting of Franklin, Jefferson and John Adams. The seal as finally adopted has never been changed. FLAG AND SHIELD. The war in America had been watched with the deepest interest in Europe, and especially by France. The French Govern- ment had been convinced long before the outbreak of the Revolution that the treat- ment which the colonies were receiving- from land was alienating the Americans by her treatment of them. Choiseul conceived the hope that, by offering the Americans free trade with France, they would be made to resent the course of England even more decidedly. When the Revolution began the French Government was fully prepared for it, and was ready to avenge the loss of Canada by aiding the new republic in its efforts to throw ofi the authority of Great Britain. It was merely waiting to see whether the Americans were able to maintain the stand they had taken. The news of the defeat on Long Island, the loss of New York, and the retreat through New Jersey, filled the friends of America with serious alarm, and it was gen- erally believed in Europe that the Americans would not be able to withstand the superior force of the mother country. In the early spring of 1777 it was known in Europe that the American army, which OBVERSE. SEAL OF THE UNITED STATES. REVERSE. Great Britain would ultimately cause their separation from her ; and ten years before the war began the Duke de Choiseul, the prime minister of Louis XV., had sent Baron De Kalb to examine and report the state of feelings of the colonists towards Great Britain. De Kalb was a shrewd observer, and furnished his government with ample proofs that Eng- it was supposed had been driven in hopeless disorder over the Delaware without the means of continuing the war, had suddenly rallied and beaten a force of veteran troops at Trenton, and again at Princeton, and had recovered New Jersey from the enemy. This intelligence produced the most profound astonishment in Europe, and was received in THE YEAR 1777. France with genuine satisfaction. The Americans were extolled as a race of heroes, and the prudence and good generalship of Washington were spoken of with the highest praise. The French Government now felt justified in aiding the patriots, but it proceeded with caution. American pri- vateers were secretly- fitted out, with the con- nivance of the govern- ment, and were permitted to sell their prizes in French ports, and the protests of the British ambassador against such acts were unheeded. The government made secret grants of arms and mili- tary stores to the Ame- ricans, and three ship- loads were sent out in the spring of 1777. Two of these vessels were captured by the English, but the third reached America in safety, and its cargo went to sup- ply the deficiencies of the army at Morristown. In the spring of this year the commissioners sent to France by Con- gress reached that coun- try. They had full pow- ers to enter into an alli- ance with the French King. They were granted several private interviews by the Count de Vergennes, the French Prime Minister, and were secretly encouraged to hope for the success of their mission. As yet, however, France was not prepared to declare war against Great Britain. 413 Though the government delayed its action, there were generous hearts in France who were determined to give all the aid and comfort in their power to the struggling patriots. One of these was the youthful Marquis dc Lafayette, the heir of a noble THE MARQUIS DE LAFAYETTE. name, the possessor of wealth and a high social position, and the husband of a beauti- ful and accomplished wife. He had heard at a dinner party given by the French offi- cials at Mayence to the Duke of Gloucester, a brother of the King of England, the story 414 THE AMERICAN REVOLUTION. of the war then going on in America, and its causes, related by the lips of the royal guest. His generous heart at once went out in sympathy to the patriots, and he resolved to leave his family and all his advantages at home and go to the aid of the Americans. He revealed his intention to the Count de Broglie, a Marshal of France, who regarded his enterprise as Quixotic and refused to aid him. Finding him determined, the count introduced his young friend to the Baron de Kalb, an officer of experience and merit, who had visited America as Choiseur's agent in the last reign. De Kalb introduced Lafayette to Silas Deane, then the only American Commissioner in France. A Young Major-GeneraL The news of the loss of New York and of New Jersey arrived about this time, but did not lessen the ardor of Lafayette ; and though the newly-arrived commissioners, Franklin and Lee, candidly told him that they could not encourage him to hope for a successful issue of their cause, he avowed his determination to proceed. He pur- chased a vessel, which was loaded with arms and supplies by the commissioners. The French government attempted to prevent him from sailing, but he succeeded in get- ting off, accompanied by De Kalb and several others. He reached Philadelphia, offered his services to Congress without pay and was commissioned as a major-general in the American army, though not yet twenty years old. Lafayette was not the only foreigner whose services were accepted by Congress. De Kalb, Count Pulaski and Thaddeus Kos- ciusko, natives of Poland, and Conway, an Irishman who had seen thirty years' service in the P'rench army, and who, in an evil hour for this country, came to America ; and later still Baron Steuben, one of Frederick the Great's veterans, and who did good ser- vice to the cause by introducing into the American ranks the drill and discipline of the Prussian army, were commissioned and assigned to duty by Congress. Capture of a British General. About the middle of May Washington broke up his camp at Morristown and occu- pied the heights of Middlebrook in order to watch the British to better advantage. Howe made repeated efforts to draw him from this strong position into the open field, where the superior discipline of the royal troops would give him an advantage, but Washing- ton out-generaled him completely, and Howe finding it impossible to bring on an engagement, withdrew his army to Staten Island. While these movements were in progress the British sustained a serious loss in the capture of General Prescott, one of their principal officers, who had earned the dislike of the Americans by his arbitrary and con- temptuous treatment of them. He was commanding the British forces at Newport, and had his headquarters on the outskirts of the town. On a dark night in July a com- pany of picked men, under Colonel Barton, crossed Narragansett Bay in whale boats, and passing silently through the British fleet landed near Prescott's quarters. The senti- nel at the door was secured and the as- tounded general was roused from his bed and hurried away without being allowed time to dress. He was conveyed within the American lines, and was afterwards ex- changed for General Charles Lee. Washington now learned of the invasion of New York by the army of General Bur- goyne, to which we shall refer further on. It was evident that Burgoyne was trying to reach the Hudson. Washington's spies in > w H O O W w 415 4i6 THE AMERICAN REVOLUTION. New York informed him that Howe was preparing to send off the larger part of his force by water, and the commander-in-chief was perplexed to know whether Howe intended ascending the Hudson to co-operate with Burgoyne, or to transport his army to Philadelphia by water. Toward the last of July Howe sailed with his fleet from New York and stood out to sea. Philadelphia Fortified. Ten days later his ships were reported off the mouth of the Delaware. Washington now felt confident that his design was to attack Philadelphia, and crossed the Dela- ware with his army and marched to German- town to await the development of the enemy's plans. About the same time the British fleet stood out to sea again. Its destination was uncertain, and Washington held his army in readiness to march at a minute's notice to the threatened point. While awaiting the movements of Sir Wil- liam Howe, Washington visited Philadelphia, where Arnold was in command and was en- gaged in fortifying the city, to consult with Congress and push forward the measures for the defence of the place. While there he met the newly arrived Lafayette. Washing- ton was an acute judge of men, and at his first interview with Lafayette was deeply im- pressed with the noble and earnest character of the young soldier, and conceived for him a warm regard, which ended only with his life. In the midst of the uncertainty attending Howe's movements Washington received urgent appeals from Schuyler for assistance. He sent him two brigades from the High- lands, and ordered Colonel Morgan to join him with his riflemen, who were regarded as more than a match for the Indians of Bur- goyne's army, Arnold was also sent to assume command of a division in the north- ern army, as he "^as familiar with the country.. Putnam was ordered to prevent Sir Henry Clinton, who had been left at New York, from ascending the Hudson and forming a junction with Burgoyne, and General Lincoln, commanding the militia of Massachusetts, was directed to march with a portion of his force to Schuyler's assistance. As nothing had been heard of the British fleet, Washington was about to move from Germantown into New Jersey once more, when news was received that the enemy had ascended the Chesapeake to its head, and had landed their forces at Elkton, in Maryland, about sixty miles from Philadelphia. The Delaware had been obstructed and fortified a short distance below Philadelphia, and Howe had ascended the Chesapeake in order to secure an undisputed landing. He intended to march his army across the country towards Philadelphia, while the fleet should return to the Delaware and aid the army in reducing the forts on that river. He had eighteen thousand men with him, and effected his landing in Elkton without opposition on *he twenty-fifth of August, and at once began his advance toward Philadelphia. Battle of the Brandywine. Washington had but eleven thousand effec- tive men with him, and was in no way pre- pared to undertake a campaign in the open country. Nevertheless, he advanced at once to dispute the progress of the enemy, and by forced marches succeeded in reaching the vicinity of Wilmington before the arrival of the British. Upon examining the country he decided to contest the passage of the Brandy- wine Creek, and stationed his army along its left bank. The British were advancing by the main road to Philadelphia, which crossed the Brandywine at Chadd's Ford, and as Wash- ington supposed their main effort would be made at this point, he stationed the greater part of his army to cover it. On the eleventh of September the British army reached the creek. Howe ordered General Knyphausen THE YEAR 1777. 417 Washington was deceived by the officer sent to ascertain if the enemy were threatening his right, and was left in ignorance of Cornwallis' movement until it was too late to prevent it. LAFAYETTE AND WASHINGTON. to make a feint at Chadd's Ford as if he were about to force a passage, while he sent Corn- wallis with a strong column to pass the creek higher up and turn the American right flank. This plan was successfully carried out 27 Being outflanked,the American army was com- pelled to fall back with a loss of twelve hundred men. The troops did not know they had suf- ered a reverse, but supposing they had merely experienced a check were in high spirits. 4i8 THE AMERICAN REVOLUTION. Lafayette was wounded in this battle, and Pulaski so greatly distinguished himself that he was subsequently rewarded by Congress with the rank of brigadier-general and the command of the cavalry. Sir William Howe did not push his advan- tage, but remained for two days near the battle-field. Washington in the meantime retreated to Chester, and then to the Schuyl- kill, which he crossed on the twelfth of Sep- tember, and proceeded to Germantown, where the army went into camp. The men were in ■excellent spirits, and a day or two later Washington recrossed the river and moved towards the enemy, whom he encountered about twenty-five miles from Philadelphia on the sixteenth. A violent rain storm pre- vented the two armies from engaging, and injured the arms and ammunition of the men so much that Washington deemed it best to withdraw to Pott's Grove, on the Schuylkill, about thirty miles from Philadelphia. At the same time he detached General Wayne, with a force of fifteen hundred men, to gain the enemy's rear and cut off their wagon train. A Tory carried information of this movement to the British commander, and Wayne was himself surprised at Paoli tavern, on the twentieth of September, and defeated with a loss of three hundred men. Philadelphia and the British. It being impossible to save the city of Philadelphia from capture the military stores were removed, and a contribution was levied upon the people to supply the army with clothing, shoes and other necessaries during the winter. Congress, in view of the great danger which threatened the country, con- ferred dictatorial powers upon Washington for sixty days, and then extended this time to a period of four months. Con- gress then adjourned to meet at Lancaster, from which, a few days later, it transferred its sessions to York, beyond the Susque- hanna. Howe crossed the Schuylkill by a night march, and on the twenty-sixth of Septem- ber entered Philadelphia. The bulk of his army was stationed at Germantown, and a small detachment was left to hold the city. The Americans, though they had lost Philadelphia, still held the forts on the Dela- ware, a short distance below the mouth of the Schuylkill. The work on the Pennsyl- vania side was called Fort Mifflin, and was built on a low mud island. Immediately opposite, at Red Bank, on the New Jersey shore, was Fort Mercer. Both works were armed with heavy guns, and commanded the river perfectly. The channel was obstructed with heavy logs fastened together and sunk in the stream so securely as to render their removal difficult. Above these obstructions were several floating batteries. A Victory Given Away. After landing the British army at Elkton, Lord Howe carried his fleet down the Chesa- peake, and entering the Delaware took posi- tion below the forts to await the co-operation of the army in the attack upon them. Washington having learned that Howe had withdrawn a part of his force from Ger- mantown to aid in the operations against the fort, resolved to surprise the remainder. A night march of fourteen miles brought the American army to Germantown at sunrise on the morning of the fourth of October. A heavy fog hung over the country and pre- vented the commander-in-chief from seeing either the position of the enemy or that of his own troops. The British were taken by surprise, and were driven in disorder. The victory seemed within the grasp of Washington, when the Americans abandoned the pursuit to attack a stone house in which a few of the enemy THE YEAR 1777. 419 had taken refuge. While thus engaged they were seized with an unaccountable panic, which threw them into confusion. The British rallied, and, assailing the Americans in their turn, drove them from the field with a loss of one thousand men. Washington was greatly mortified by this failure. He wrote to Congress : " Every account confirms the opinion I at first entertained, that our troops retreated at the instant when victory was declaring herself in our favor." Howe now drew in his army nearer to Philadelphia, and prepared for an immediate attack on the forts on the Delaware. These held that river so securely that the British fleet was not able to bring supplies up to the city. The provisions of the army were nearly exhausted, and if the forts could not be reduced it would be necessary to evacuate Philadelphia in order to obtain food. On the twenty-second of October, Count Donop was sent with a force of twelve hundred picked Hessians to storm Fort Mercer, at Red Bank, while the fleet reduced Fort Mif- flin. Donop's attack was repulsed with a loss of four hundred men, the Hessian com- mander himself being among the slain. In the attack on Fort Mifflin the British lost two ships, and the remainder were more or less injured by the fire of the American guns. Washington at Valley Forge. Shortly after this repulse, the British erected batteries on a small island in the Delaware, which commanded Fort Mifflin, and on the tenth of November opened a heavy bombardment of the fort from these works and from their fleet. The bombard- ment was continued until the night of the fifteeenth. The works being nearly des- troyed, Fort Mifflin was abandoned on the night of the sixteenth, and on the eighteenth the garrison was withdrawn from the fort at Red Bank. The British now removed the obstructions from the river, and their fleet ascended to Philadelphia. General Howe constructed a strongly fortified line from the Schuylkill to the Delaware, above Philadel- phia, and went into winter quarters with his army behind these defences. The season being loo late for active opera- tions, Washington withdrew his army to Valley Forge on the Schuylkill, about twenty miles from Philadelphia, and went into winter quarters. From this position he could protect Congress, sitting at York. Burgoyne's Great "War Feast." In the northern department the year had been marked by the most important events. Sir Guy Carleton was succeeded in the com- mand of the British forces in Canada by General Burgoyne, an officer of ability and integrity. He was strongly reinforced and soon had under his command a finely equipped army of ten thousand men. Bur- goyne gave a great " war feast " to the In- dians, who, in answer to his appeal on this occasion, promised to aid him, thinking that with his fine large army he would be able to whip the rebels in a short time. About eight thousand of Burgo}'ne's troops were British and Hessian regulars, the remainder Canadians and Indians. The army was plentifully supplied with artillery of the most improved pattern, which was under the immediate command of General Philips, a veteran who had served with great distinction in the seven years' war. The second in command of the army was General Frazer, an officer of acknowledged skill, who was greatly beloved by the troops. Baron Reidesel, the commander of the Hessians, was also an old soldier. Altogether, the force under Burgoyne was the most splendid body of troops Great Britain had yet assembled in America. With this army Burgoyne was to 420 THE AMERICAN REVOLUTION. advance by way of Lake Champlain to the Hudson, while a detachment under General St. Leger was to move eastward by way of Oswego and descend the Mohawk to the Hudson. Having secured the Hudson, Bur- goyne was to open communication with Sir Henry Clinton in New York, capture the forts in the Highlands and so cut off New England from the Middle and Southern States. To oppose his advance General Schuyler that post. Opposite Fort Ticonderoga, on the right-hand side of the outlet of Lake George, is a lofty hill known as Mount Defiance. The Americans had neglected to fortify this hill, thinking it inaccessible to artillery. General Philips was of a different opinion, and in three days of hard labor suc- ceeded in dragging his guns to the summit of Mount Defiance, from which they com- manded the forts on both sides of the lake GENERAL BURGOYNE ADDRESSING THE INDIANS. had a weak army between Albany and Lake Champlain. General St. Clair, with a detach- ment of three thousand men held Ticonde- roga, and though he seriously feared that his force was too weak to offer much resist- ance, trusted to the natural strength of his position and hoped to be able to hold Ticon- deroga until aid could reach him. On the second of July Burgoyne's army appeared before Ticonderoga and invested St. Clair now saw that the forts were unten- able and that he must evacuate them at once in order to save his army. Sending his baggage and stores in boats up the lake to Skenesborough, now Whitehall, he evacuated Fort Ticonderoga and crossed over to Fort Independence, on the opposite side of the lake. His withdrawal was discovered before it was completed, and the British at once THE YEAR 1777. 421 followed in pursuit. Burgoyne ordered Gen- eral Frazer to follow St. Clair's command, while he himself passed up the lake and des- troyed the stores at Skenesborough. Upon his approach, on the afternoon of the seventh, the American force at Skenesborough set fire to the stores and retreated rapidly to Fort Anne, which was reached the next morning. The British appeared before this fort the same day, but were held in check, and that night the Americans set fire to Fort Anne and re- treated to Fort Ed- ward, sixteen miles further. On the afternoon of the seventh General Frazer came up with St. Clair's rear guard at Hubbardton and defeated it with severe loss. St. Clair con- tinued his retreat through the woods, and a week later reached Fort Edward with his exhausted troops. General Schuyler liad advanced to Fort Edward with a force of five thousand men, nearly all of whom were militia. Many were without arms, and there was was a woful scarcity of ammunition and provisions in his camp, Schuyler was joined here by the rem- nant of Saint Clair's command, and as Bur- goyne had halted for a few days at the head of Lake Champlain, which was twenty-four miles distant from Fort Edward, Schuyler set his men to work to obstruct the road between those two points by felling trees across it and and destroying bridges. So thoroughly was this work done that Burgoyne's army con- sumed a fortnight in its advance from Skenes- borough to the Hudson. It reached the neigh- borhood of Fort Edward on the twenty-ninth of July. Schuyler at once abandoned the fort, and fell back to Saratoga, from which he moved to Stillwater, near the mouth of the Mohawk. The loss of Ticonderoga and the northern forts was regarded by Congress as an evidence RUINS OF FORT TICONDEROGA. of the incapacity of Schuyler and his subor- dinates, and so little allowance was made for the serious disadvantages under which those officers labored, that Congress ordered all the northern generals to be recalled and their conduct investigated. It was not until Wash- ington called the attention of Congress to the fact that a compliance with this order would leave the northern army without officers, that that body consented to suspend its unwise decree. 422 THE AMERICAN REVOLUTION. The prejudice against Schuyler, though unjust, was deep, and his removal from his command was resolved upon. Washington declined to deprive him of his command, as his confidence in Schuyler was unshaken, and Congress took the matter in its own hands. " The eastern influence prevailed," says Irv- ing, " and Gates received the appointment so long the object of his aspirations, if not in- trigues." Upon reaching Fort Edward, Burgoyne, confident that the game was in his own hands, issued a proclamation calling upon the people to send representatives to a convention to meet at Castleton to provide for the re-estab- lishment of the royal authority. This was met by a proclamation from Schuyler, who declared that he would punish as traitors all who should comply with Burgoyne's call, or in any way give aid and comfort to the enemy. There was not much need for this threat, for the militia of the northern district were rapidly rallying to Schuyler's aid. The people of the whole region were profoundly excited, and they were determined that the British army should never leave their country. Story of Jenny McCrea. Much of this feeling was caused by the outrages of the Indians in Burgoyne's army, who prowled about the country, murdering and plundering the people who were exposed to their fury. One of their crimes roused the whole northern region to action. A beau- tiful young girl, Jenny McCrea by name, was visiting a friend near Fort Edward. She was betrothed to a young Tory who had fled to Canada some time since, and was now serving as a lieutenant in Burgoyne's army. When her friends removed from Fort Edward to Albany, to avoid the danger which threat- ened them, she lingered behind in spite of their invitation to accompany them, hoping to meet her lover upon the advance of Bur- goyne's forces. The house in which she was staying was attacked by a party of Indians, and she was taken prisoner. , Anxious for her safety she promised her captors a liberal reward if they would conduct her to her lover in the Brit- ish camp. On the way they quarrelled over the promised reward, and in their rage mur- dered the poor girl and carried her scalp into the British camp. Burgoyne was horror- struck at the atrocious deed, and promptly disavowed it; but the news of the murder roused a stern desire for vengeance through- out the northern department. The terrible scenes of the old French war were not for- gotten, and the people were fearful they would now be revived under British influence unless Burgoyne's army were destroyed. Thousands flocked to the American camp, with such arms as they could procure, eager to crush the enemy. The Brave Herkimer. In the meantime St. Leger had moved from Oswego into the valley of the Mohawk, and had laid siege to Fort Schuyler or Stan- wix, on the site of the present city of Rome. The fort was commanded by Colonel Gan- sevoort. The siege was begun on the third of August, and a few days later news was received by the little garrison that General Herkimer, with eight hundred militia, was advancing to their assistance. On the sixth of August Herkimer reached a place called Oriskany, where, owing to the impatience of his men, he fell into an ambush of Tories and Indians. The fight which ensued was one of the most desperate of the war ; quar- ter was neither asked nor given by either party. Herkimer was mortally wounded, but con- tinued to cheer on his men, until a successful sally from the fort compelled St. Leger to THE YEAR 1777. 423 recall the force engaged with Herkimer to defend his own camp. The American militia then retreated, carrying with them their commander, who died a few days later. Fort Schuyler was left in a critical condition, and hastily abandoned his camp, and retreated into Canada with the remainder of his force. Burgoyne had now reached the Hudson, and had full command of Lakes George and Champlain ; but the people of the country HERKIMER MORTALLY WOUNDED. Arnold was sent at his own request to its relief. He caused the strength of his force to be greatly exaggerated, and spread a report that Burgoyne had been defeated. The Indians deserted St. Leger rapidly upon hearing these reports, and that commander were hostile to him, and he found it hard to procure either cattle or horses. Though his camp on the Hudson was but eighteen miles from Lake George, this lack of animals made it almost impossible to transport his supplies across the intervening country, and his 424 THE AMERICAN REVOLUTION. army was beginning to run short of provi- sions. To obtain horses and provisions, Bur- goyne, early in August, sent a force of five hundred Germans and a detachment of Indians and Tories, under Lieutenant- Colonel Baum, to seize the stores collected by the Americans at Bennington, Vermont, and to collect such horses and cattle as they could on the march. He was told that the people GKNERAL JOHN STARK. of the neighborhood were largely devoted to the king, and that the stores were unguarded. The news of the approach of this force spread rapidly through the country, and the Green Mountain Boys, as the Vermont militia were termed, flew to arms. Colonel Stark, who had retired from the Continental army on account of having been neglected in the recent promotions, was in the neighborhood, and was offered the command of the gather- ing forces. He accepted it promptly, and issued a warning to the people along the route of the British to drive off their horses and cattle, and to conceal their grain and wagons to prevent their capture by the enemy. A messenger was sent with all speed to Manchester to Colonel Seth Warner, urg- ing him to march at once with his regiment to Bennington, where he was needed. Battle of Bennington. Baum had advanced to within six miles of Bennington when he heard of the approach of the militia under Stark. He halted, in- trenched his position, and sent to Burgoyne for reinforcements. Colonel Breyman with five hundred Hessians and two pieces of artillery was despatched to his assistance. Stark was prevented from making an im- mediate attack upon Baum by a furious rain-storm, which also delayed the march of Breyman and Warner. During the night of the fifteenth of August Stark was joined by the militia from Berkshire, Massachusetts. They were anxious to engage the enemy at once, and were impatient at the delay caused by the storm. One of their number. Parson Allen, approached Stark. " General," said he, " the people of Berkshire have often been called out to no purpose ; if you don't give them a chance to fight now they will never turn out again." Stark remarked his earnestness, and said, with a smile, " You would not turn out now, while it is dark and raining, would you ?" " Not just now," answered the parson. " Well," said Stark, " if the Lord should once more give us sun- shine, and I don't give you fighting enough, I'll never ask you to turn out again." The morning of the sixteenth came bright and clear, and Stark at once began his advance upon the enemy. Arriving in sight of the British works, he pointed them out to his men. " There are the red coats ! We o Eh C5 pq o f^ Eh Eh <1 ffl THE YEAR 1777. 425 must beat them to-day or Molly Stark sleeps a widow to-night." A spirited attack was made upon the British lines, both in front and in the rear, and after two hours' hard fighting they were carried by storm. Baum fell mortally wounded and his men laid down their arms. The Indians and Tories had escaped to the woods at the opening of the battle. The fighting had scarcely ended when the force under Colonel Breyman appeared and at once engaged the Americans. At the same moment Warner's regiment, which had pushed forward all night in the rain, reached the field. The battle was continued until nightfall, when Breyman abandoned his artillery and made a hurried retreat to Bur- goyne's camp on the Hudson. The Ameri- cans had fourteen killed and forty wounded. They took six hundred prisoners, one thou- sand stand of arms and four pieces of cannon. Burgoyne in Straits. Burgoyne now found himself in a most critical condition. He had reached the Hudson, but his troops were short of pro- visions ; his efforts against Fort Schuyler and Bennington had failed, and his force was being reduced by the desertions of the Indians. Burgoyne, who was a man of humanity and true soldierly spirit, had no sympathy with the barbarous policy of his government in employing the savages against the Americans, and had sternly cut short their cruelties. The Indians had taken offence at his course and were leaving his army in great numbers. He made no effort to detain them, preferring to lose their ser- vices rather than allow them to continue their atrocities. On the other hand the American army was daily growing stronger. The militia were flocking to it in great numbers, and reinforcements were received from the Highlands. The militia of New Hanpshire and Massachusetts were threatening Ticon- deroga, the capture of which post would cut off his communications with Canada. The contrast between the present condition of the British army and that of a few weeks before was marked indeed. A Jealous General. Matters were in this state when General Gates arrived, late in August, and assumed the command of the army, which was now six thousand strong, and receiving reinforce- ments every day. Schuyler, superior to all sense of personal wrong, cheerfully rendered him all the assistance in his power in mastering the question before him"; but Gates repaid his generosity with charac- teristic jealousy. He did not even invite Schuyler to his first council of war held a few days later. He at once left the position at the mouth of the Mohawk, and on the twelfth of September advanced to Behmus' Heights, a spur of hills bordering the Hud- son. The army now numbered nine thou- sand effective men, indifferently armed, but resolved to conquer. "Gates had no fitness for command," says Bancroft, " and wanted personal courage." He intrenched his posi- tion, and for the defence of his right and left flanks erected strong batteries. Burgoyne by great exertion succeeded in bringing up a month's provisions from Lake George for his army, which was now reduced to about six thousand men. He resolved to adhere to his original plan, and endeavored to force his way to Albany, and on the thir- teenth of September crossed the Hudson at Schuylerville, and encamped on the plains of Saratoga, intending to decide the campaign by a general engagement. On the morning of the nineteenth of Sep- tember he advanced against the American position. Gates wished to await the attack 426 THE AMERICAN REVOLUTION. of the enemy in his intrenched position, but Arnold urged him to throw forward a force to hold them in check, and not permit them to turn the American left, as they evidently intended. After considerable solicitation he obtained the desired permission from Gates, GENERAL HORATIO GATES. and moved forward to check the advance of the British. A determined conflict immedi- ately ensued and continued until nightfall. It was one of the most stubbonly contested engagements of the war, and its result was mainly due to the skill and courage of Ar- nold, who held the enemy in check during the day, and prevented the success of their plan for turning Gates' left flank. The Brit- tish remained in possession of the field at night, and the Americans rejoined their main body. The latter regarded the battle as a victory, as they had accomplished all they had expected. Burgoyne's diffi- culties thickened rap- idly. On the seven- teenth a detachment of Massachusetts militia seized the posts at the outlet of Lake George and captured a fleet of three hundred boats loaded with supplies for Burgoyne's army, and took three hun- dred prisoners. This force then united with another and laid seige toTiconderoga. These successes completely destroyed Burgoyne's communication with Canada, and with it his means of supply- ing his army. In this emergency he was greatly encouraged by the receipt of a letter from Sir Henry Clinton at New York, informing him that he (Clinton) would in a few days make an effort to ascend the Hud- son and open communication with him. Burgoyne thereupon resolved to endeavor to hold his positon until the arrival of Clinton. Three weeks passed away in inaction, and though skirmishes between the advanced THE YEAR 1777. 427 parties were frequent, neither commander cared to attack the other; Burgoyne because he was anxious to defer a decisive engage- ment, Gates because he was scantily suppHed with ammunition. Arnold Agairr at the Front. The success of the battle of Behmus' Heights was generally attributed by the troops to Arnold, who was very popular with them. Gates' jealously was most probably aroused by this belief, and he unceremoni- ously deprived Arnold of his command. During this delay the American army was increased by the arrival of the Massachusetts militia and other reinforcements, to about eleven thousand men. Burgoyne's situation was now more critical than ever. His best officers favored a retreat to Fort Edward ; but the British commander decided before undertaking that movement to reconnoitre the American position in strong force. If it was found that it could not be attacked, he was willing to retreat to Fort Edward. A force of fifteen hundred picked men and ten pieces of cannon, com- manded by the most experienced officers in the army, was sent on the seventh of October to reconnoitre the American position. Gates, by the advice of Morgan, attacked this force on both flanks, and sent Morgan with his rifle- men to cut the enemy off from their camp. The sound of the firing roused Arnold, who was brooding over his wrongs. He mounted his horse and rode at full speed to the battle-field in spite of the efforts of Gates to stop him. He reached the scene of action and was reconized by the troops, who re- ceived him with cheers. Without orders or any definite command, he placed himself at the head of the troops and led them against the enemy. The British, led by General Frazer, held their ground manfully, but at length Frazer was mortally wounded by one of Morgan's riflemen, and his line gave way. Burgoyne fearlessly exposed himself in the efforts to rally his men, but was at length obliged to order a retreat to the camp. This was accomplished with extreme diffi- culty, and the Americans, following in close pursuit, made a determined attack upon the British intrenchments, which were stubborn- ly defended. In this attack Arnold displayed great heroism, and was wounded within the enemy's works. Though they failed to cap- ture the whole line, the Americans carried the camp of Colonel Breymen's regiment of Hessians, the key to Burgoyne's position, and took a number of prisoners. Success of the Federals. The Americans bivouaced on the field, in- tending to renew the battle the next day, but during the night Burgoyne abandoned his sick and wounded, and silently withdrew from his intrenchments. The roads being rendered bad by the rains, he halted and took posi- tion about two miles from the town of Sara- toga. On the night of the ninth, finding that the Americans held the Hudson in such heavy force as to render its passage impracti- cable, he retreated to Saratoga. He then sent out a detachment to rebuild the bridges on the road to Fort Edward, but found the road in the possession of the Americans, who also held Fort Edward, and had captured all the boats laden with provisions for his army. He was thus left with but three days rations for his men. On the twelfth the Amer- ican army, which had followed the British closely, invested their position, and opened a heavy fire on their camp. On the thir- teenth Burgoyne called a council of his offi- cers, and it was resolved to open negotiations with Gates. He proposed to Gates to surrender his army on condition that they should he allowed to sail for England from the port of 428 THE AMERICAN REVOLUTION. Boston, first pledging themselves not to serve again in North America during the war. Gates had heard of the successes of Clinton on the Hudson, and was fearful that he would reach Albany. He therefore weakly agreed to Burgoyne's proposal, and consented that the British army should march out its camp with the honors of war ; that the troops should be taken to Boston and sent to England, and that they should pledge themselves not to serve again in America during the war. These matters being arranged the British army surrendered on the seventeenth of October, and was fed by the Americans, for its provisions were •exhausted. About six thousand prisoners Avere surrendered, together with nearly five thousand muskets, forty-two brass field- pieces and a large quantity of military stores. Upon the surrender of Burgoyne the British garrison at Ticonderoga evacuated that place and retreated into Canada. Surrender of Burgoyne. Congress refused to ratify the terms granted to Burgoyne by Gates. It was plain that if they were sent to England they could release an equal number of troops there, who could be sent to the aid of Sir Henry Clinton in New York. This would deprive the United States of one of the most important results of the surrender. Burgoyne and two attendants were permitted to return to England, but the captive troops were held as prisoners of war, and the next year were marched to Charlottesville, Vir- ginia, and quartered in log huts, where the greater part of them remained until near the close of the war. Some time before Burgoyne's surrender Sir Henry Clinton, having received rein- forcements from England, resolved to under- take the capture of the forts in the High- lands of the Hudson, the garrisons of which had been greatly weakened by the detach- ments sent from them to Washington and Gates. On the sixth of October he attacked and captured Forts Montgomery and Clin- ton. General George Clinton, who com- manded at these forts, finding he could not hold them, sent to General Putnam for assistance, but his messenger deserted to the enemy and the forts were abandoned. General Tryon was sent to occupy Kingston, which he ordered to be burned. When the enemy heard of Burgoyne's surrender they retreated, setting fire to the house of every patriot along the river. Clinton then dis- mantled the captured forts and returned to New York, taking with him all the heavy cannon and stores. The capture of Burgoyne's army was hailed with delight throughout the country. It was the most important success of the war, and put an end to the danger of invasion from Canada. Gates was greatly puffed up by his triumph, and imagined himself the hero of the war. He sent his official report of the surrender to Congress direct, and not through the commander-in-chief, as his duty required, thus offering a grave insult to Washington. General Schuyler now demanded an inves- tigation of his conduct previons to his relinquishment of his command to Gates. He was thoroughly acquitted of the charges of mismanagement brought against him by his enemies, and was strongly urged by Congress to remain in the army. He declined to do so and resigned his commis- sion ; but was soon afterwards returned to Congress from the State of New York. CHAPTER XXIX Aid from Abroad Sufferings of the Army at Valley Forge — Appeals of Washington to Congress — The British in Philadelphia — The Con- way Cabal — Its Disgraceful Failure — Efforts to Improve the Army — Worthlessness of Continental Bills — General Lee Exchanged — Effect of Burgoyne's Surrender Upon England — The King is Forced to Agree to Measures of Concilia- tion — Action of France — Louis XVI. Recognizes the Independence of the United States — Alliance Between the United States and France — Failure of the British Measures of Conciliation — Clinton Evacuates Philadelphia — Battle of Monmouth — General Lee Dismissed from the Army — Attack Upon Newport — Its Failure — Withdrawal of the French Fleet to the West Indies — Outrages of the British on Long Island Sound — Massacre of Wyoming— The Winter of 1 779-80 — The Army in Winter Quarters — Robert Morris — Condition of Congress — Georgia Subdued by the British — Prevost attempts to Take Charleston — Siege of Savannah — Its Failure — Capture of Stony Point — Capture of Paulus Hook — The Indians Punished — Naval Affairs — Exploits of John Paul Jones — Evacuation of Newport — Settlement of Kentucky — Conquest of the Illinois Country by George Rogers Clarke — Settlement of Tennessee. THE sufferings of the American army during the long winter at Valley Forge were very great. Many were barefooted, and their marches through the frost and snow could be traced by the blood from their feet. They were without clothing, without food and were utterly unable to keep the field. Yet in spite of these sufferings many persons severely censured the commander-in-chief for going into winter quarters without attacking Philadelphia. In reply to one of these remonstrances from the Legislature of Pennsylvania, Wash- ington wrote to Congress on the twenty- third of December, 1777 : " Men are confined to hospitals or in farmers' houses for want of shoes. We have this day no less than two thousand eight hundred and ninety- eight men in camp unfit for duty because they are barefoot and otherwise naked. Our whole strength in Continental troops amounts to no more than eight thousand two hundred in camp fit for duty. Since the fourth instant our numbers fit for duty from hardships and exposures have decreased nearly two thousand men. Numbers still are obliged to sit all night by fires. Gen- tlemen reprobate the going into winter quar- ters as much as if they thought the soldiers were made of stocks and stones. I can assure those gentlemen that it is a much easier and less distressing thing to draw remonstrances in a comfortable room by a good fireside than to occupy a cold, bleak hill, and sleep under frost and snow without clothes or blankets. However, although they seem to have little feeling for the naked and distressed soldiers, I feel superabund- antly for them, and from my soul I pity those miseries which it is neither in my power to relieve nor prevent." Congress did little or nothing to relieve the sufferings of the army. It promised the troops one month's extra pay, but made na effort to provide food or clothing for them. It authorized Washington to impress what- ever articles he needed, but he remonstrated against this arbitrary use of power, as he was convinced that it would not supply the wants of the army, but would certainly anger the people of the country. Congress towards the close of the winter manifested so much hostility to the army because of its appeals for food and clothes, that Washing- ton earnestly remonstrated against this feeling^ 429 430 THE AMERICAN REVOLUTION. and reminded that body that the troops were " citizens, having all the ties and interests of citizens." It is not too much to say that the personal influence of Washington went further than anything else in keeping the army together during this trying winter. Under any other commander the troops would have dispersed. Encouraged by the calm and lofty patience of Washington, the troops remained faithful to their cause and bore their sufferings with a heroic fortitude which their descendants will ever bear in grateful honor. All this while the British army was com- fortably quartered in Philadelphia, and the officers were billeted upon the inhabitants. They were amply supplied with every com- fort, and their leisure time was given up to pleasure and dissipation on a scale the Quaker City had never dreamed of " By a proportionate tax on the pay and allowances of each officer a house was opened for daily resort and for weekly balls, with a gaming table which had assiduous votaries, and a room devoted to the game of chess. Thrice a week plays were enacted by amateur per- form.ers. . . . The officers, among whom all ranks of the British aristocracy were represented, lived in open licentiousness." The contrast between the pleasures and ease of these well-fed troops and the sufferings and privations of the ragged patriots at Valley Forge was marked indeed ; and when it is remembered that the comforts of the British could have been purchased by the patriots at the price of desertion their heroic constancy becomes more striking. The Conway Plot. The patriotism of Washington was not appreciated by all parties. A number of dis- contented members of Congress and officers of the army were anxious that he should be removed or forced to resign in order that their favorite General Gates might be pro- moted to the chief commander of the army. One of the prime movers of the intrigue was an Irish adventurer named Conway, who had been promoted to the rank of brigader-gen- enal, from which circumstance the plot is known as the " Conway Cabal." The entire truth concerning this plot will never be known for after its failure the actors in it were only too glad to disavow their connection with it. The conspirators did not dare to make an open attack upon the commander-in-chief, but undertook by mean of anonymous letters underhanded appeals to the officers and men of the army, and comparisons between Gates success and what they termed Washington's failure, to destroy the confidence of the troops in their leader, and to disgust him with his command and so drive him to resign it. A Conspiracy Thwarted. Generals Mifflin and Gates were very ac- tive in this conspiricy, and even Sullivan and Wayne were in favor of making Gates com- mander-in-chief. Dr. Benjamin Rush wrote a letter, to which he did not dare to sign his name, to Patrick Henry, then governor of Virginia, representing the army of Washing- ton as without a head, and disparaging Wash- ington as no general. " A Gates, a Lee or a Conway," he added. " would in a few weeks render them an irresistible body of men. Some of the contents of this letter ought to be made public in order to awaken, enlighten and alarm our country." Patrick Henry took no notice of this paper save to forward it to Washington. A similar anonymous docu- ment was forwarded to Henry Laurens, the president of Congress, who also sent it to Washington. Great efforts were made to win over Lafayette to the plot, but without the least success. Washington was to a great extent aware of the plot against him but took no public AID FROM ABROAD. 431 notice of it. He was deeply pained by the unjust censure to which he was subjected, but he never for a moment harbored the thought of laying down the great work he had assumed. He knew his course would bear the most rigid inspection. He knew that the capture of Burgoyne's army which had made Gates the hero of the hour, was due to no skill on the part of that officer but was the result of the plan of defence Washington had long before arranged with General Schuyler. In his efforts to contend against General Howe he was under many disadvantages, not the least of which was the fact that his army was encamped in a region abounding in Tories who refused him any sup- port and constantly aided the British. His army was imperfectly disciplined ; it was infer- ior in numbers and equipment to the enemy ; and was in no condition to meet Howe in the open field, still less to undertake the difficult task of driving him from his intrenchments at Philadelphia. Conway in Disgrace. "Had the same spirit pervaded the people of this and the neighboring States, as the States of New York and New England," said Wash- ington, " we might have had General Howe nearly in the same situation as General Bur- goyne." Washington knew that the salva- tion of the country demanded his presence at the head of the army. He trusted to time for his vindication, and was chiefly anxious that the enemy should not learn of the dissensions in the councils and camp of the Americans. He firmly opposed the appointment of Con- way to the post of " inspector of the armies of the United States," but Congress, under the influence of the cabal, appointed Canway to that place with the rank of major-general. In a little while the actions of the conspir- itors became known and aroused such a storm of indignation from the officers and men of the army, from the legislatures of the States, and from the great mass of the people that Gates and Conway and their associates cow- ered before it, and Congress became heartily AN AMERICAN RIFLEMAN. ashamed of having given the plot any en- couragement. The only effect of the con- spiricy was to raise Washington higher in the confidence and affection of his countrymen. The members of the conspiricy were ever 432 THE AMERICAN REVOLUTION. afterwards anxious to deny their share in it. The punishment of Gates came as soon as he was entrusted with an independent com- mand, as we shall see. As for Conway, he was despised by the better part of the officers of the army, and found his position so unenvia- ble that he addressed a note to Congress complaining that he had been badly treated, and intimated his intention to resign because he was not ordered to the northern depart- ment. Congress was by this time ashamed of having bestowed upon him such unde- served honors, and gladly interpreted his let- ter as an actual resignation of his rank, and at once ended the difficulty by accepting it. Challenged to a Duel. Conway was profoundly astonished. He was confident that Congress would be terri- fied by his threat to resign, and urge him to remain in the service, and was utterly unpre- pared for the action of that body. He hast- ened to explain his letter but was not listened to. Some time after he ventured to de- nounce the commander-in-chief, and was challenged to a duel by General Cadwallader \vho had already charged him with cowardice at the battle of Germantown. Conway was wounded ; and beleiving himself near death wrote to Washington, apologizing for his conduct towards him. " You are," he said, " in my eyes the great and good man. May you long enjoy the love, veneration and es- teem of these States whose liberties you have asserted by your virtues." His wound was not mortal as he had supposed, and he recov- ered, and soon left the country. The winter was passed by Washington in an effort to increase the army, and render it more efficient. Baron Steuben-, a Prussian officer, who had served under Frederick the Great, was appointed inspector, with the rank of major-general. He introduced into the army the drill and discipline of the Prussian service, and greatly increased its efficiency. The various States, save Georgia and South Carolina, were called upon by Ccngress to contribute their quota of troops to the army. In consideration of their large slave popula- tion, and the neccessity of retaining their troops for their own defence, those States were excused from compliance with this de- mand. Congress and the Army. Count Pulaski succeeded in raising an in- dependent body of cavalry, and Major Henry Lee organized a regiment of light horse, which under his command subsequently be- came noted as one of the most efficient corps of the army. Congress proposed to in- crease the force of the army to sixty thous- and men, but was never able to bring it to more than half that number. The inability of Congress to pay the troops- compelled many of the officers to leave the army, in order to provide for their families, who were suffering. Congress called upon the States to raise the money for the public expenses by taxing their people, but some of them neglected to respond to this appeal, and the remainder were too poor to render such as- sistance. Congress issued new bills of credit but the value of the " Continental Currency," as this money was called, had depreciated so greatly that a pair of shoes could not be bought for less than from five to six hundred dollars in these bills. The Tories and the British depreciated them still further by flood- ing the country with counterfeits. A great improvement was made in the supply of provisions furnished the army by the appointment of General Greene, at the request of Washington, to the post of quarter- master-general, which had been held by Gen- eral Mifflin, who had neglected its duties on all occaisons. At the urgent solicitation of the commander-in-chief, Greene assumed: AID FROM ABROAD. 433 the distasteful position for one year, and dis- charged its duties with a skill and precision which kept the army so well supplied with provisions and ammunition that it was never, during his administration, obliggd to aban- don a movement because of a lack of these necessities. A Traitor in the Camp. In April, 1778, General Prescott was exchanged for General Charles Lee, who at once returned to duty in the army. During his captivity Lee, who was willing to ruin the cause if he could benefit himself, pro- posed a plan to the British ministry by which they could, in his opinion, bring the war to a successful close. The ministers did not see fit to adopt Lee's plan, but filed it away among the British archives, and the traitor was exchanged and permitted to resume his command in the American army, to become again a source of trouble and loss to it. In the meantime the American cause had assumed a new phase abroad. The English government had confidently expected that Burgoyne's expedition would be successful, and the result of his operations was watched by France with the deepest anxiety. When news arrived of the defeat of Burgoyne the astonishment of King George and his min- isters was equalled only by their mortifica- tion. It was resolved to wipe out the humiliation by a more vigorous prosecution of the war. It was rumored that France was about to aid the Americans, and that Holland was on the point of loaning them money. These rumors aroused the English people to a heartier support of the governm.ent than they had yet given it, and many of the principal cities offered to raise troops to supply the places of those who had been surrendered by Burgoyne. At the same time the friends of America were greatly 28 encouraged and resolved to make a new effort to put a stop to the war by offering America such terms as would either induce her to renew her former connection with Great Britain or to become the ally and friend of that country. A considerable sum of money was subscribed by these for the relief of the American prisoners, who were left by the government without even the necessaries of life. Trouble in Parliament. When Parliament assembled a strong attack was made upon the policy of the king by the friends of America. The em- ployment of the Hessians, and, above all, of the barbarous Indians of North America, whose cruelties shocked the English people, was severely denounced. The mercantile class was seriously discontented. Its trade with America was destroyed, and the activity of the American cruisers was so great that six hundred English vessels had already been captured ; and it was necessary to con- voy merchantmen by vessels of war from one port of the kingdom to another. Thus far the war had caused an expenditure of twenty thousand lives and one hundred mil- lions of dollars, and the conquest of America was as far off as at the commencement of hostilities. Under this pressure the king was con- strained to yield, and, in February, 1778, Lord North presented to Parliment two bills by which his majesty hoped to maintain his authority in America, and conciliate his re- volted subjects. The first of these renounced all intention on the part of Great Britian to levy taxes in America ; the other appointed five commissioners to negotiate with the Americans for the restoration of the authority of England and the close of the war. The consent of the king to these measures was wrung from him by the complaints of a large 434 THE AMERICAN REVOLUTION. part of the English people, and by his fear that France would openly aid the United States. These bills involved a direct sur- render of the whole ground of the war; but indicated no change of opinion on the part of the king. This action on the part of Great Britian LOUIS XVI. aroused the French government to a more energetic course. Louis XVI. was opposed to treating with the United States ; but the French ministers were aware that a prompt recognition on their part of the independence of the republic would effectually neutralize the measures of Great Britain, and prevent a reconciliation. France was perfectly willing that America and England should weaken each other by their contest, but she was re- solved that Great Britain should never recover her colonies. The capture of Burgoyne's army had demonstrated the ability of Amer- ica to continue the war, and the French minis- ters resolved to lose no time in concluding an alliance with her. On the seventeenth of Decem- ber, 1777, the Count de Ver- gennes caused Franklin and Deane to be informed of the king's intention not only to acknowledge but to support the independence of America, and on the sixth of February a treaty of friendship and commerce, and a second treaty of defensive alli- ance, were concluded between the United States and France. The latter bound the United States to support France in case Great Britain should declare war against her. The King of France acknowledged the independence of the United States of America, and agreed to assist them with his fleet and army. No peace was to be made without mutual consent, and not until the inde- pendence of the United States should be acknowledged by Great Britain. These treaties were ratified by Congress, and were hailed with joy by the Americans, whose confidence was revived by the assurance of the assist- ance of one of the most powerful states of Europe. When the news of the treaties was received in England, the friends of America the government to abandon the war, and acknow- ledge the independence of the United States, AID FROM ABROAD as the only way of retaining the good feeling and trade of that country. The government would not even entertain the proprosition. The most it would do was to pass the concil- iatory bills of Lord North. If they failed to accomplish the desired end the war must go on. In March France formally communi- cated to England her treaties with America. This was regarded by England as a declara- tion of war, and the British ambassador was at once recalled from Paris. In June the Bri- tish commissioners, appointed to treat under Lord North's conciliatory measures, arrived in America and opened negotia- tions. Congress de- manded as a prelude to any negotiations, that the independence of the United States should be recognized by England, and her fleets and armies with- drawn from America. The commissioners having no authority to treat upon any such basis returned to Eng- land, having first made several ineffectual ef- forts to detach prominent Americans from the cause by bribery. The course of Sir William Howe had not pleased the British government, and he was removed from his command on the eleventh of May, 1788, and was replaced by Sir 435 Henry Clinton. About the same time Clin- ton was informed by his government that a large French fleet might be expected at any moment on the American coast, and was ordered to evacuate Philadelphia and concen- trate all his forces at New York. SIR HENRY CLINTON. He accordingly sent his sick and wounded and most of his stores, with his fleet around to New York by sea ; while, with his army, twelve thousand strong, he left Philadelphia on the eighteenth of June, and, crossing the Delaware, began his march through New 436 THE AMERICAN REVOLUTION. Jersey to New York. As soon as Washing- ton learned of his movement he broke up his camp, on the twenty-fourth of June, and crossed the Delaware in pursuit of the Brit- ish army. The intense heat of the weather, ► and the heavy train which the British carried with them, caused them to move very slowly, and Washington soon overtook them. A council of war was called, at which General Charles Lee, who held the second rank in the American army, urged that Washington should confine his efforts to harassing the British on the march. It was resolved, how- ever to attack the enemy and force them to a general engagement. Lee at first declined to take any part in the battle, but at the last moment changed his mind, and solicited a command. Retreat of Clinton. Upon the adjournment of the council of war, on the twenty-seventh of June, Wash- ington sent Lafayette, with two thousand men, to occupy the hills near Monmouth Court-house and confine the enemy to the plains. On the morning of the twenty-eight,h of June Lee, who had asked for a command, was sent forward by Washington with two brigades to attack the enemy. Upon coming up with Lafayette, who was his junior, Lee assumed the command of the whole advanced force and marched in the direction of the enemy, who had encamped on the previous night near Monmouth Court-house, and had resumed their march early on the morn- ing of the twenty-eighth. As soon as Clin- ton heard of Lee's advance he determined to drive him back, and for this purpose wheeled about with his whole rear division, and made a sharp attack upon Lee, who fell back to higher ground. A misunderstand- ing of his order caused one of his subordi- officers to abandon his position and Lee's whole force fell back in some confusion. In the excitement of the moment Lee forgot to send word to Washington of his movement, and the first the commander-in- chief, who was advancing with the main body, knew of it was the right of Lee's command falling back rapidly and in dis- order. Riding up to the fugitives he asked them why they were retreating, and was answered that they did not know, but had been ordered to do so. Suspecting that the retreat had been ordered for the purpose of ruining the plan of battle, Washington hastened forward until he met General Lee and sternly demanded of him : " What is the meaning of all this, sir? " Lee was dis- concerted for a moment, and then answered that the retreat was contrary to his orders ; and moreover, that he did not wish to en- counter the whole British army. " I am sorry," said Washington, " that you under- took the command unless you meant to fight the enemy." Lee answered that he did not think it prudent to bring on a general engagement. Washington replied, sternly : " Whatever your opinion may have been, I expect my orders to be obeyed." Fugitives Made to Halt. Washington at once reformed the men on a commanding eminence, and hurried the main body of the Americans forward to their support. The British soon appeared in force and endeavored to dislodge the Ameri- cans from their position, and failing in this, attempted, but without success, to turn their left flank. The battle lasted till nightfall, and the American army bivouaced on the field, expecting to renew the engagement the next morning ; but during the night Clinton skilfully withdrew from his lines and continued his retreat. The weather was so warm that Washington did not deem it prudent to continue the pursuit, and Clinton was allowed to regain New York without AID FROM ABROAD. 437 further molestation. The Americans lost about two hundred men in this engagement, a number of whom died from the effects of the extreme heat. The British lost three hundred men. During the retreat two thousand Hessians deserted from the British ranks. Lee Dismissed from the Army. As General Lee possessed a large share of the confidence of the commander-in-chief, he might have saved himself from the con- sequences of his fault, had he sought to ex- plain his conduct in a proper manner. On the day after the battle he addressed an insulting letter to Washington, and met the reply of the commander-in-chief with another letter still more disrespectful in tone, demanding a court of inquiry. The court found him guilty of disobedience of orders, and of disrespect to the commander-in-chief, and sentenced him to be suspended from his rank for one year. Towards the close of his term of punishment he addressed an insolent letter to Congress, in consequence of some fancied neglect, and was dismissed from the army, A few years later he died in Phila- delphia. After the battle of Monmouth Washington halted for a short time to refresh his men, and then marching to the Hudson crossed that stream and took position at White Plains, in New York, to be ready to co- operate with the French fleet, which was daily expected, in an attack upon the city of New York. The French fleet under Count D'Estaing, with four thousand troops on board, had arrived in the Delaware just after Lord Howe had sailed for New York, Fail- ing to find the enemy in the Delaware, D'Estaing sailed for New York, but Lord Howe withdrew his vessels into Raritan Bay, and as the larger French ships could not cross the bar, the contemplated attack upon New York was abandoned, to the great regret of Washington, The French fleet brought the American commissioners who had negotiated the treaty with France, and also Monsieur Gerard, the first ambassador from the French king to the United States. In place of the combined attack upon New York it was resolved by Washington, in con- cert with the French admiral, to attack Newport and drive the British out of Rhode Island. The British had established one of their principal depots of supplies at this point, and had there a force of six thousand men under General Pigot. It was arranged that a force of American troops under General Sullivan should attack the enemy by land, while the French fleet and army should cooperate with Sullivan from the sea. On the twenty-ninth of July D'Estaing reached Narragansett Bay with his fleet, and on the eighth of August entered Newport harbor, in spite of the fire of the British batteries. A whole week had been lost, however, by the failure of the American troops to reach the positions assigned them as promptly as the French fleet. The delay was unavoidable, but it ruined the enterprise. The Fleet Scattered. On the ninth Lord Howe arrived off New- port harbor with his fleet to the assistance of General Pigot. On the tenth D'Estaing sailed out to engage the British fleet, but before this could be effected a sudden and terrible storm scattered both fleets. Howe returned to New York, and D'Estaing made his way back to Narragansett bay in a crippled condition. Instead of landing the four thous- and French troops he had brought with him, the French admiral sailed to Boston with his whole force to refit. Sullivan in the meantime had crossed from the mainland to the island of Rhode Island 438 THE AMERICAN REVOLUTION. and had taken position before the British in- trenchments in front of Newport. Here he awaited the return of the French fleet, and in the meanwhile kept up a steady fire upon the British works. Upon D'Estaing's return he informed SulHvan of his intention to sail to Boston to refit his ships. Sullivan earnestly begged him to remain two or three days, as the British must certainly surrender by the end of that time. D'Estaing refused to do so. Sullivan then asked that the French troops might be left to cooperate with him and this also was refused. Left alone, Sulli- van was obliged to retreat to the mainland, as he learned that aid was on its way from New York to Pigot. He effected this move- ment with skill and success, on the night of the thirtieth of August. The next day Sir Henry Clinton reached Newport with a squadron of several ships and a reinforce- ment of four thousand men. Brutal Warfare. As he had arrived too late to attack the force under Sullivan, Clinton sent the troops he had brought with him, under Major-Gen- eral Grey,to ravage the coasts to the eastward. Grey destroyed a large number of vessels along the coasts, and stripped Fair Haven, New Bedford, and the island of Martha's Vineyard of everything that could be carried off, and returned to New York laden with plunder. Late in October a British fleet which had been dispatched from England under Ad- miral Byron in pursuit of D'Estaing, arrived off Boston harbor. Byron was unwilling to venture within the harbor, and the French would not leave their place of security, and the English remained off Boston until a storm arose and scattered their fleet. On the first of November the French, taking advantage of the enforced withdrawal of their enemy, stood out to sea and sailed for the West Indies, and on the same day Clinton des- patched a force of five thousand British troops from New York to the West Indies. Brutal as was the conduct of General Grey, it had been already surpassed by the British and their Indian allies in Pennyslvania. The inhabitants of Wyoming valley, a beautiful region on the Susquehanna, had driven away the Tories from that region, and these had resolved upon revenge. Early in July a force of about eleven hundred Tories and Indians, under Colonel John Butler and the Indian chief Brandt, entered the Wyoming valley. Nearly all the able-bodied settlers were ab- sent with the American army, and upon hearing of the approach of the enemy a small force had been despatched by Wash- ington under Colonel Zebulon Butler, to the assistance of the settlers. This force was defeated by the Tories and Indians, who then proceeded to lay waste the valley and murder the inhabitants. They performed their bloody work in the most barbarous manner, and the beautiful valley was made a desolation. In the following month Cherry Valley in New York was rav- aged with equal cruelty by a force of Tories and Indians, and the inhabitants were either murdered or carried into captivity. The entire region of the upper Susquehanna and Delaware and the valley of the Mohawk were at the mercy of the savage allies of Great Britain. Battle of Savannah. In the latter part of November, Sir Henry Clinton sent a force of two thousand men from New York under Colonel Campbell to attack Savannah, Georgia, which was held by a garrison of one thousand men under General Robert Howe. The British carried the American position after a sharp engage- ment, and on the twenty-ninth of December, Savannah surrendered to them. General AID FROM ABROAD. 439 Prevost, the English commander in Florida, now repaired to Savannah, and assumed the command. On his march across the country he captured Sunbury, a fort of considerable importance. Upon reaching Savannah he sent Colonel Campbell to seize Augusta, which was quickly secured and fortified. ton established his headquarters at Middle- brook, New Jersey, near the centre of his line. The winter passed away without any event of importance. The British held New York and Newport with too strong a force to make an attack upon either post success- fully, and the withdrawal of the French fleet INDIAN SCALP DANCE. Georgia was thus entirely subdued by the British by the middle of January, 1779. After the failure of the attack upon New- port the American Army went into winter quarters, occupying a series of cantonments extending from the eastern end of Long Island sound to the Delaware. This dispo- sition enabled them to oppose a force to the British at every important point. Washing- to the West Indies left Washington without any means of encountering the naval force of the enemy. The season was not without its trials, how- ever. Washington wrote at the beginning of the year 1779, " Our affairs are in a more distressed, ruinous, and deplorable condition than they have been since the commence- ment of the war." The currency of the 440 THE AMERICAN REVOLUTION. country grew more worthless every day. During the year 1779 the enormous sum of one hundred and thirty-one million of dol- lars was issued in continental bills. The magnitude of the volume of the currency only served to depreciate it more and more, and though supplies and articles of trade were plentiful, their owners refused to accept the depreciated bills of Congress, and would sell for gold and silver only. " A wagon load of money," Washington wrote to the president of Congress, '* will not purchase a wagon-load of provisions." During the year the currency depreciated from eight dollars foi one dollar to forty-one dollars and fifty cents for one dollar. Congress had so little specie that everything must have gone to ruin but for the exertions' of Robert Morris, a member of Congress from Pennsylvania, and a leading merchant of Philadelphia, who borrowed large sums of coin on his own credit, and loaned them to the government. This he continued to do throughout the war. Congress had long before this been de- prived of many of its ablest members, who had resigned their seats in order to accept appointments in their own States, or to enter the army. Their places were filled with weaker men, and many dissensions mark the deliberations of the Congress of this period. Many members of Congress and a large part of the people seemed to regard the alli- ance with France as decisive of the war, and were disposed to relax their efforts. France and Canada. During the winter it was proposed to join the French in an expedition for the recovery of Canada for France, and the scheme found favor with a majority of the delegates in Con- gress. Washington opposed it with firm- ness. He pointed out to Congress the diffi- culty of the undertaking, and declared his conviction that it was not to the interest of the United States that a power different in race, language and religion from the people of this republic should have a footing upon this continent. In addition to this he did not desire the people of the United States to increase their obligations to a foreign, even though a friendly, power. The American forces in the Southern States were commanded by General Benjamin Lincoln, The Tories were very numerous and very active in this region, and the feel- ing between them and the patriots was one of the bitterest hostility, and often manifested itself in bloody and relentless conflicts. Seven hundred Tories under Colonel Boyd set out in February, 1779, to join Colonel Campbell at Augusta. On the fourteenth they were attacked at Kettle Creek by a force of patriots under Colonel Pickens, and were defeated with heavy loss. Pickens hung five of his prisoners as traitors. Fighting at Charleston. General Lincoln now sent General Ashe with two thousand men to drive the British out of Augusta. Upon hearing of his approach Colonel Campbell evacuated Augusta and fell back to Brier Creek, a small stream about halfway to Savannah. Ashe followed him, but without observing proper caution, and on the third of March was surprised and routed by Campbell, with the loss of nearly his entire force. This defeat encouraged General Prevost to attempt the capture of Charleston. He marched rapidly across the country to Charleston, and demanded its surrender. Lincoln, who had been reinforced, no sooner heard of this movement than he hastened by forced marches to the relief of Charleston and compelled Prevost to retire to St. John's island, opposite the mainland. The British threw up a redoubt at Stone ferry to protect AID FROM ABROAD. 441 the crossing to this island. It was attacked on the twentieth of June by the forces of General Lincoln, who were repulsed with heavy loss, A little later Prevost withdrew to Savannah, The intense heat of the wea- ther suspended military operations in the south during the remainder of the summer. In September, 1779, the French fleet under Count D'Estaing arrived off the coast of Georgia from the West Indies, and the admi- ral agreed to join Lincoln in an effort to recapture Savannah. The American army began its investment of the city on the twenty-third of September, and every- thing promised favorably for success ; but D'Estaing became impatient of the delay of a regular siege, and declared that he must return to the West Indies to watch the British fleet in those waters. Savannah must either be taken by assault, or he would withdraw from the siege. To please him Lincoln consented to storm J the British works, and the assault was made on the ninth of October, but was repulsed with severe loss. D'Estaing himself was wounded, and the chivalrous Count Pulaski was killed. Lincoln now retreated to Charleston, and the French fleet sailed to the West Indies, having a second time failed to render any real assistance to the Americans. This dis- aster closed the campaign for the year in the south. In the meantime Sir Henry Clinton had been ordered by his government to harass the American coast, and in accordance with these instructions despatched a number of plundering expeditions from New York against exposed points. One of these was sent in May, under General Mathews, into the Chesapeake, Mathews entered the Eliza- beth river, plundered the towns of Norfolk and Portsmouth, and burned one hundred and thirty merchant vessels and several ships of war on the stocks at Gosport, near Ports- mouth. He then ascended the James for some distance and ravaged its shores. He destroyed in this expedition two millions of dollars worth of property, and carried off about three thousand hogsheads of tobacco. Upon the return of this expedition, Clinton ascended the Hudson for the purpose of destroying two forts which the Americans were constructing a short distance below West Point, for the protection of King's Ferry, an important crossing-place between GENERAL BENJAMIN LINCOLN, the Eastern and Middle States. One of these, which was being built at Stony Point, was abandoned. The work on Verplanck's Point, on the east side of the Hudson, immediately opposite, was compelled to surrender early in June. Returning to New York, Clinton sent General Try on with twenty-five hundred men to plunder the coast of Long Island Sound. He plundered New Haven, burned Fairfield and Norwalk, and committed other outrages at Sag Harbor, on Long Island. In 442 GALLANT CHARGE OF COUNT PULASKL AID FROM ABROAD the course of a few days this inhuman wretch burned two hundred and fifty dwelling- houses, five churches, and one hundred and twenty-five barns and stores. Many of the inhabitants were cruelly murdered, and a number of women were outraged by the British troops. Tryon would have carried his outrages further had he not been recalled to New York by Clinton, who feared that Washington was about to attack him. The loss of Stony Point was a serious blow to Washington, as it compelled him to establish a new line of communication between the opposite sides of the Hudson by a longer and more tedious route through the Highlands. He resolved, therefore, the recapture of the post from the British at all hazards. The British had greatly strengthened the fort, which the Americans had left unfinished, and the only way in which it could be captured was by a surprise. It was a desperate undertaking, and Washington proposed to General An- thony Wayne to attempt it. Wayne readily consented, and the two generals made a careful recon- noissance of the position. It was agreed to make the attempt at mid- night, and in order to guard against a betrayal of the movement every dog in the vicinity was put to death. A negro who visited the fort regularly to sell fruit, and who had been for some time acting as a spy for the Americans, agreed to guide them to the work. At midnight on the fifteenth of July the storming party, guided by the negro, ap- proached the fort in two divisions. Not a man was permitted to load his musket, lest the accidental discharge of a gun should ruin the movement. The negro, accompanied by two soldiers who were disguised as farmers, approached the first sentinel and 443 gave the countersign. The sentinel was at once seized and gagged, and the same was done with the second sentinel. The third, however, gave the alarm, and the garrison flew to arms and opened a sharp fire upon the Americans. The latter now dashed for- ward at a run, scaled the parapet, and in a few moments the two opposite divisions met in the centre of the fort. The Americans took more than five hun- dred prisoners and all the supplies and artillery of the fort fell into their hands. GENERAL ANTHONY WAYNE. Though they were justly exasperated by the brutal outrages of the British., which we have related, they conducted themselves towards their prisoners with a noble humanity. The British historian, Stedman, declares, " They (the Americans) would have been fully justified in putting the gar- rison to the sword ; not one man of which was put to death but in fair combat." It was one of the most brilliant expeditions of the war. Wayne now proceeded to prepare 444 THE AMERICAN REVOLUTION. for the reduction of the fort at Verplanck's Pohit, but while he was thus engaged a heavy British force ascended the ri.ver to its rehef, and he was obHged to forego his attack and also to abandon Stony Point. On the night of the eighteenth of June Major Henry Lee made a bold dash at the British fort at Paulus Hook, now Jersey City, and captured it, taking one hundred and fifty-nine prisoners. The British made great efforts to intercept him, but he effected his retreat in safety, bringing off his prisoners and losing only two men. For LIEUTENANT-COLONEL HENRY LEE. these galtant exploits both Wayne and Lee were each voted a gold medal by Congress. Towards the close of the summer of 1779 Washington resolved to inflict upon the Indians a severe punishment for their out- rages upon the whites, and especially for massacres of Wyoming and Cherry Valley in the previous year. Early in August General Sullivan was sent into Western New York with three thousand men, with orders to ravish the country of the Six Nations. He was joined by General James Clinton with two thousand men, and on the twenty-ninth of August attacked and de- feated a force of seventeen hundred Indians and Tories at Newtown, now Elmira. Sulli- van followed up his victory by pushing for- ward into the Indian country and laying it waste with fire and sword. In the course of a few weeks he destroyed more than forty Indian villages and burned all the cornfields and orchards. The beautiful valley of the Genesee was made a desert, and to avoid starvation the Indians and their Tory allies were obliged to emigrate to Canada. They were quieted but for a time by the terrible vengeance of the Americans, and soon re- newed their depredations, and continued them to the end of the war. Congress had made great efforts to increase the force of the navy, and the num- ber of American men-of-war had been materially enlarged. Many of them had been captured, however, by the enemy, and the navy was still weak and unable to render much service to the cause, American Cruisers. The privateers were unusually active, and were hunted with unremitting vigilance by the English war vessels. They managed to inflict great loss upon the commerce of Great Britain, however. A number of American cruisers were fitted out in France, and kept the English coast in terror. John Paul Jones, a native of Scotland, who had been brought to Virginia at an early age, was one of the first naval officers commissioned by Congress. He was given command of the " Ranger," a vessel of eighteen guns, and by his brilliant and daring exploits kept the English coast in a state of terror, and even ventured to attack exposed points on the coast of Scotland. In 1779 he was given command of a small squadron of three ships of war fitted out in France, and sailing from L'Orient, proceeded on a cruise aloncr the coast of Great Britain. PAUL JONES SEIZING THE SILVER PLATE OF LADY SELKIRK. 445 446 THE AMERICAN REVOLUTION. On the twenty-third of September he fell in with a fleet of merchantmen convoyed by two English frigates, and at once attacked them. The battle began at seven in the evening and was continned for three hours with great fury. Jones lashed his flagship, the "Bon Homme Richard," to the English JOHN PAUL JONES. frigate " Serapis," and the two vessels fought muzzle to muzzle until the Serapis sur- rendered. The other English vessel was also captured. The battle was one of the most desperate in the annals of naval war- fare, and Jones' flagship was so badly injured that it sunk in a few hours after the fighting was over. Jones was absent from home for about three years, during which time his exploits were numerous and of the most astonishing character. He was denounced as a pirate by the English, who became so alarmed by his achievements that many people did not feel safe even in London. Some of the timid ones looked out on the Thames, half-expecting to see the terrible fellow lay their city under tribute. At one time he landed on the coast of Scotland, and, appearing at the residence of the Earl of Selkirk, captured a large amount of silver plate and booty. But he treated the Earl's household with great courtesy, and the plate that was seized at the time is now in the possession of the members of the Selkirk family. Paul Jones returned to Phila-^ delphia February i8, 1781, and received a hearty welcome. Con- gress gave him an appropriate medal and a vote of thanks. [ In October Sir Henry Clinton, in obedience to orders from home, evacuated Newport and concen^ trated his forces at New York, which place he believed was in danger of an attack by the Ameri- cans and French. Until the close of the season Washington cher- ished the hope that the French fleet would return and assist him in an effort to regain New York, and had called out militia for this purpose. When he learned that D'Estaing had sailed to the West Indies after the failure of the attack upon Savannah he dismissed the militia to their homes and went into winter quarters in New Jersey, with his headquarters at Morristown. While these events had been transpiring upon the Atlantic seaboard the United States AID FROM ABROAD. 447 had been steadily pushing their way west- ward beyond the mountains. In 1769, before the commencement of the Revoki- tion, the beautiful region now known as Kentucky had been visited and explored by Daniel Boone, a famous Indian hunter. He was charmed with the beauty of the country and the excellence of the climate, and re- solved to make it his home. The reports of Boone and his companions aroused a great interest in the new country among the in- habitants of the older settlements in Vir- ginia and North Carolina, more especially as it was in this region that the lands given to the Virginia troops for their services in the French war were located. Surveyors were soon after sent out to lay off these lands, and in 1773 a party under Captain Bullit reached the falls of the Ohio and built a fortified camp there for the purpose of sur- veying the region. The Celebrated Daniel Boone. This was the commencement of the city of Louisville, but the actual settlement of the place was not begun until 1778. In 1774 Harrodsburg was founded by James Harrod, one of Boone's companions ; and in 1775 Daniel Boone built a fort on the site of the present town of Boonesborough. The sav- ages made repeated attacks upon his party, but failed to drive them away. The fort was finished by the middle of April, and soon after Boone was joined by his wife and daughters, the first white women in Ken- tucky. The region of Kentucky was claimed by Virginia, but the settlers submitted to the authority of that province with impatience. They sent a delegate to the Continental Congress in October, 1775, and claimed re- presentation in that body as an independent colony under the name of Transylvania; but the delegate of the fourteenth colony was not admitted by Congress, as Virginia claimed the territory as her own. In the spring of 1777 the general assembly of Virginia organized the Kentucky region as a county, and established a court of quarter sessions at Harrodsburg, In this condition Kentuckv remained durine the Revolution. MEDAL STRUCK IN HONOR OF PAUL JONES. The population increased rapidly in spite of the war and of the unremitting hostility of the Indians. During the revolution the Kentucky set- tlements suffered very much from the hos- tility of the Indians, who were urged on by the emissaries of Great Britain to a war of 448 THE AMERICAN REVOLUTION. DANIEL BOONE. extermination. The principal agent of the mother country in this barbarous warfare was Hamilton, the British commander at Detroit. In order to put a stop to his intrigues and deprive the Indians of his aid, Congress re- solved to despatch a force to attack Detroit. While this plan was in contemplation the State of Virginia in 1778, sent Colonel George Rogers Clarke with a force of two hundred men to conquer the ter- ritory northwest of the Ohio, which Virginia claimed as a part of her possessions. Clarke was a backwoodsman, but one of nature's heroes. He assembled his men at Pittsburg, and des- cended the Ohio to the falls in flat-boats. There he established a settle- ment of thirteen families, the germ of the present city of Louisville. Being joined by some Kentuck- ians he continued his descent of the river to a short distance below the mouth of the Tennessee. Landing and conceal- ing his boats, he struck across the country and surprised and captured the town of Kaskaskia, within the limits of the present State of Indiana. A detachment was sent to Kahokia, and re- ceived its submission. The people of these towns were of French origin, and were greatly averse to the English rule under AID FROM ABROAD. 449 which they had lived since the conquest of Canada. The alliance between the United States and France made them very willing to ac- knowledge the authority of the Union, to which they readily swore allegiance. The fort at Vincennes was in a weak condition and was held by a small garrison, and readily submitted to Clarke. Hamilton no sooner heard of the suc- cesses of Clarke than he set out from De- troit on the seventh of October, 1778, with a force of three hundred and fifty warriors, and on the seventeenth of December reoc- cupied Vincennes. He now prepared to drive the Americans out of the Illinois country, and spent the winter in trying to arouse the savages against them. He offered a significant reward for every American scalp brought in to him, but offered nothing for prisoners. At the same time he pro- posed to invade Virginia in the spring with with an overwhelming force of Indians. " To Their Armpits in "Water." Clarke and his party were in very great danger. They were entirely cut off from Virginia, and without hope of reinforements. In this emergency, Clarke, who had learned that Hamilton had greatly weakened the garrison at Vincennes, resolved to stake the fate of the west on a single issue, and attempt the capture of that post. On the seventh of February, 1 779, he left Kaskaskia with one hundred and thirty men, and marched across the country towards Vincennes. On the eighteenth they were within nine miles of Vincennes. The Wabash had overflowed the country along its banks, and in order to reach the object of their march, Clarke and his men were obliged to cross the submerged lands, up to their armpits in water. They were five days in crossing these " drowned lands," 29 and had the weather been less mild, must have perished. On the twenty-third Vin- cennes was reached, and the town was at once carried. Clarke then laid siege to the fort, assisted in this task by the inhabitants of the town, and in twenty-four hours com- pelled Hamilton and his men to surrender ^ themselves prisoners of war. A British Scheme Frustrated. Clarke was unable to advance against Detroit because of the insufficiency of his force. His successes, however, were among" the most important of the war. They not only put an end to the British scheme of a general Indian war along the western frontier of the United States, but established the authority of the Union over the country east of the Mississippi, and prevented Great Bri- tain from asserting a claim to that region at the conclusion of peace, a few years later^ Returning to the Ohio, Clarke built a block- house at the falls. The conquered territory was claimed by Virginia, and was erected by the legislature of that State into the county of Illinois. By order of Governor Jefferson of Virginia, Clarke established a fort on the Mississippi, about five miles below the mouth of the Ohio, which he named Fort Jefferson, and entered into friendly relations with the Spaniards at St. Louis. The Tennessee region, which formed a part of the province of North Carolina, had been settled previous to the outbreak of hos- tilities. Fort Loudon, about thirty miles southwest of Knoxville, was built in 1756,. and in 1770 the Cumberland Valley was settled, and Nashville was founded. By the commencement of the revolution the Ten- nessee country was quickly settled, and the population was increasing at an encouraging rate. In 1776 the Cherokees, incited by the British, waged a formidable war upon the settlers, but were defeated. CHAPTER XXX The Close of the War Severity of the Winter of 1779-80 — Sufferings of the American Army — Clinton Sails for the Carolinas — Colonel Tarle- ton — Capture of Charleston — Conquest of South Carolina — Gates in Command of the Southern Army — Battle of Camden — Exploits of Marion and Sumter — Advance of Cornwallis — Battle of King's Mountain — Gates Succeeded by General Greene — Knyphausen's Expedition into New Jersey — Arrival of the French Fleet and Army — Arnold's Treason — The Plot for the Betrayal of West Point — Arrest of Major Andre — Flight of Arnold — Execution of Andre — Mutiny of the Pennsylvania and New Jersey Troops — Measures of Congress — Arnold Captures Richmond, Virginia — Battle of Cowpens — Masterly Retreat of General Greene — Cornwallis Baffled — Battle of Guilford Court House — Corn- wallis at Wilmington — Battle of Hobkirk's Hill — Siege of Ninety-six — Execution of Colonel Hayne — Battle of Eutaw Springs — Washington Decides to Attack New York — The French Army on the Hudson — Financial Affairs — Re- sumption of Specie Payments — Message from the Count De Grasse — Cornwallis at Yorktown — The American Army Moves Southward — Siege of Yorktown — Surrender of Cornwallis — Effect of the News in England — Indian Troubles — Efforts in England for Peace — Negotiations Opened — Treaty of Paris — End of the War — The Army Disbanded — "Washington Resigns his Commission. THE winter of 1779-80 was passed by the American army in huts near Morristown. It was one of the severest seasons ever experienced in America. The harbor of New York was frozen over as far as the Narrows, and the ice was strong enough to bear the heaviest artillery. Communication between New York and the sea was entirely cut off and the British garrison and the citizens suffered from a scarcity of provisions. Knyphausen was afraid the Americans would seek to pass the Hudson on the ice and attack the city, and landed the crews of the shipping in the harbor and added them to the gar- rison. His precautions were useless, as the American army was too weak and too poorly supplied to undertake the capture of New York. The troops at Morristown suffered very greatly during the winter. They had scarcely clothing enough to protect them from the cold ; and provisions were so scarce that in order to keep his men from starvation Washington was compelled to impress sup- plies from the people of the surrounding country. The heavy snows made the army entirely dependent upon New Jersey for its subsistence, as transportation from a long distance could not be attempted. The people of New Jersey bore the sacrifices im- posed upon them with a noble cheerfulness, and though their state was drained almost to exhaustion, were untiring in their efforts to provide food and clothing for the troops. The Continental currency had fallen so low that one dollar in silver was worth thirty dollars in paper by the beginning of the year 1780; but neither officers nor men could obtain their pay in this depreciated cur- rency. It was almost impossible for the government to purchase anything with its notes. About the last of December, 1779, Sir Henry Clinton, leaving a strong garrison under General Knyphausen to hold New York, sailed south, with the greater part of his army, in the fleet of Admiral Arbuthnot. He proceeded first to Savannah, and then moved northward for the purpose of besieg- ing Charleston. General Lincoln exerted himself with energy to fortify that city. Four 450 THE CLOSE OF THE WAR. 451 thousand citizens enrolled themselves to assist the regular garrison in the defence, but only two hundred militia from the interior responded to Lincoln's call for aid. Rein- forcements were received from Virginia and North Carolina, and Lincoln was able to muster seven thousand men, of whom but two thousand were regular troops. In February, 1780, the British landed at St. John's island, about thirty miles below Charleston. Clinton advanced towards the city along the banks of the Ashley, while the fleet sailed around to force an entrance into the harbor. The advance of Clinton was very gradual, and Lincoln was enabled to strengthen his works and prepare for a siege. It was not until early in April that Clinton's army appeared before the Amer- ican works and began preparations to reduce them. A day or two later the British fleet passed Fort Moultrie with but little loss and took position off the city. British Successes. Clinton had lost nearly all his horses on the voyage from New York, and was anxious to replace them from the country north of Charleston. The Americans had stationed bodies of militia at different points north of the city to keep open the communications with Charleston, and to prevent the foraging parties of the British from reaching the inte- rior. Clirrton intrusted the task of breaking up these posts and obtaining fresh horses to Lieutenant-Colonel Banastre Tarleton, a young and energetic officer. Tarleton was short of stature, of a dark, swarthy com- plexion, and broad shouldered and muscular He was insensible to fatigue, unscrupulous as to the means by which he accomplished his objects, merciless in battle, and unflag- ging in pursuit. He was one of the most efficient officers in the English army, and one of the most cruel. By purchase from friends and seizures from foes, he soon supplied Clinton with all the horses he needed. He then began his at- tempt to break up the American posts north of Charleston. On the night of the 14th of April, he surprised a body of fourteen hun- dred cavalry under General Huger and Col- onel William Washington, at Monk's Corner, about thirty miles north of Charleston. The Americans were defeated with a loss of one hundred prisoners and four hundred wagons laden with stores. A little later Fort Moul- trie surrendered, and soon after Tarleton cut to pieces another detachment of American cavalry. Charleston was now completely invested, and the siege was pressed with vigor by Clin- ton. Lincoln's situation became every day more hopeless. The fire of the British artil- lery destroyed his defences and dismounted his cannon, and as he was entirely cut off from the country he had no hope of relief from without. On the ninth of May a terri- ble fire was opened upon the defences and the city of Charleston. The city was set on fire in five places, and the American works were reduced to a mass of ruins. Surrender of Charleston. On the twelfth Lincoln surrendered the town and his army to Sir Henry Clinton. The pri- soners, including every male adult in the city, numbered about six thousand men. The reg- ulars were held as prisoners of war, but the militia were dismissed to their homes on their promise not to serve again during the war. Clinton followed up his capture of the city by a series of vigorous measures. Tarleton was despatched into the interior to attack a Virginia regiment under Beaufort, which was advancing to the relief of Charleston. Beaufort began his retreat as soon as he heard of the surrender of Charleston, but was overtaken and surprised by Tarleton at 452 THE AMERICAN REVOLUTION. Waxhaw's, on the boundary of North Carolina. The British had made a forced march of one hundred and five miles in fifty-four hours. They gave no quarters to the Americans, and put to the sword all who were unable to escape. Their barbarous conduct on this occasion was termed by the American's '' Tarleton's quarters." A second column was sent by Clinton to Augusta, and a third towards Camden to reduce the country between Charleston and those points. They encountered but little resistance. Negroes Desert their Masters. Clinton issued a proclamation threatening to visit the severest punishments upon those who refused to submit to the royal authority, and this was followed a little later by another, offering pardon to all who would return to their allegiance and assist in restoring the authority of the king. The measures of the British commander were entirely successful, and South Carolina was so completely sub- jugated that early in June Sir Henry Clinton sailed for New York, leaving Lord Corn- wallis to complete the conquest of the State. The country abounded in Tories, who ex- erted themselves actively to assist the British commander in his efforts to hold the Carolinas in subjection. Large numbers of them joined the British army, and " loyal legions " were formed in various parts of the country. The only resistance kept up by the Ameri- cans was maintained by the partisan corps of patriots led by Marion, Sumter, and Pickens. The exploits of these daring bands caused the British commander to feel that he could not hold the Carolinas except by the aid of a strong force, and kept him in a state of con- stant uneasiness. On the sixteenth of August Sumter defeated a large body of British and Tories at Hanging Rock, east oftheWateree river. Large numbers of negroes deserted their masters and fled to the British. In order to offer a definite resistance to the British, and to collect a regular army to oppose them, the Baron De Kalb was sent to to take command of the troops in the south, and all the regulars south of Pennsylvania were ordered to join him. De Kalb man- aged to collect about two regiments, and with these moved slowly southward. A lack of provisions forced him to halt three weeks on Deep river, one of the upper tributaries of the Cape Fear. Matters were so bad in the south that Con- gress resolved to send General Gates, the conqueror of Burgoyne, to take command of the army in that quarter. General Charles Lee, who knew that Gates was not the man to retrieve such losses, predicted that " his northern laurels would soon be changed into southern willows." Gates hastened south- ward, and overtook De Kalb at Deep river,, and assumed the command. De Kalb ad- vised him to move into South Carolina by a circuitous route through the county of Meck- lenburg, which was true to the patriot cause, and where provisions could be easily ob- tained. Total Defeat of General Gates. Gates declined to take his advice, and marched towards Camden by the direct route, which led through a barren and almost uninhabited region. He was sure that his wagons from the north laden with provisions would overtake the troops in two days ; but he was mistaken ; the wagons never made their appearance, and the troops suffered greatly from hunger and disease. His army increased every day by reinforcements from Virginia and North Carolina. On the thir- teenth of August, he reached Clermont, about twelve miles from Camden. His force now amounted to nearly four thousand men, nearly two-thirds of whom were Con- tinentals. THE CLOSE OF THE WAR. 453 Upon the approach of Gates, Lord Raw- don, the British commander in this part of the State, fell back to Camden, where he was joined by Cornwallis, who had just arrived from Charleston, and who assumed the com- mand. On the night of the fifteenth, Gates moved nearer to Cam- den, and at the same time Cornwallis advanced to attack Gates, whom he hoped to surprise. The advanced guards en- countered each other in the woods, and the two arn:]ies halted until morn- ing. The battle began with dawn, on the six- teenth of August. The militia fled at the first charge of the British, but the Continentals, under the brave De Kalb, stood firm, though attacked in front and flank. At length De Kalb fell mor- tally wounded, and the Continentals gave way. The American army was completely routed, and was broken up into small parties and scattered through the country. These continued a dis- orderly retreat, closely followed for about thirty miles by Tarleton's cav- alry, who cut them down without mercy. The battle of Camden was the most disas- trous defeat incurred by the Americans during the whole war. They lost nearly eighteen hundred men in killed and prison- ers, and all their artillery and stores. A few days after the battle. Gates reached Char- lotte, North Carolina, with about two hun- dred men, the remains of the army which his incapacity had ruined. A few days previous to the battle, Sumter surprised a detachment convoying stores to the British army at Camden, and took two LORD CORNWALLIS. hundred prisoners. As soon as Cornwallis heard of this, he sent Tarleton in pursuit of the " Game Cock," as he styled Sumter. Tarleton pushed forward with such vigor that half of his men and horses were broken down. He overtook Sumter at Fishinsf 454 THE CLOSE OF THE WAR. 455 Creek, on the west bank of the Catawba, and routed him with the loss of the greater part of his partisan corps, and rescued the prisoners. Early in December afterwards, an engage- ment took place between the Whigs and Tories on Long Cane, near Ninety-Six, which resulted disastrously to the patriot cause, and which was of sufficient importance to be noticed. Colonel Benjamin Few, of Georgia, was the senior officer in com- mand of the Whigs, composed of Georgia and South Carolina militia. Colonel Cruger, the British officer in command at Ninety-Six, with a greatly superior force, determined to attack Few in his camp by surprise. His forces were within three miles of Few's camp before the latter was aware of their approach. Colonel Clarke, Lieu- tenant Colonel McCall,and Major John Lindsay, with one hundred men, were ordered out to meet and skirmish with the enemy until the main body of Few's forces could be brought to their assistance. In this skirmish, Clarke received a wound in the shoulder which was thought to be mortal, and was carried from the field. McCall was wounded in the arm, and his horse being killed under him, narrowly made his escape. Major Lindsay lost his sword-hand by a sabre cut just at the wrist-joint. The advance or skirmish- ing party were routed, with fourteen killed and seven, chiefly officers, wounded. Colonel Few, then acting as brigadier-general, re- treated with the balance of his forces with- out further loss. All united and organized resistance to the British in the Carolinas now ceased for a time. The true policy of Cornwallis was to conciliate the people by acts of clemency, but instead of this he exasperated them by his unneces- sary severity. Among the prisoners taken at the defeat of Sumter were a number who had given their parole not to serve during the war. Some of these were hanged on the spot ; the remainder were subjected to a severe impri- sonment. These severities aroused a desire for vengeance among the people, and gave many recruits to Marion, who from the swamps of the lower Pedee maintained a constant and severe partisan warfare against the British. GENERAL FRANCIS MARION. At the same time, Sumter by great exer- tion recruited his command, and resumed his operations in the upper country. These bands were deficient in arms at first, but sup- plied themselves from the enemy. They made their own gunpowder, cast their own bullets, and provided food for themselves and their horses. By their rapid and secret movements they kept the British in a state of constant alarm. They would make a sud- den and unexpected attack upon the enemy 456 THE AMERICAN REVOLUTION. at some exposed point, and before pursuit could be attempted would be miles away, or safe in the labyrinths of the swamps. Gates continued to retreat slowly to the northward after his defeat. He had now about a thousand men with him. Virginia and Maryland made great exertions to rein- force him, but without success. The Patriots Aroused. In September, CornwalHs advanced north- ward with the main body of his army. Upon reaching Charlotte he despatched Colonel Ferguson, one of his most trusted officers, to rally the Tories among the mountains in the interior. CornwalHs intended to advance from Charlotte by way of Salisbury and Hills- borough into Virginia, and form a junction with a force to be bent to the lower Chesa- peake by Sir Henry Clinton. The success of this movement would complete the subjuga- tion of the south. The patriots in the country through which his army passed were very active. His expresses were captured or shot, and his plans made known to the Americans. While Ferguson was on the march, Corn- walHs advanced to Salisbury. The movement of Ferguson roused the patriots of the interior counties to arms, and they assembled rapidly, with the intention of cutting him off from the army under Corn- walHs. They came from all directions, from as far as Kentucky and Tennessee. Their weapons were their rifles, to the use of which they had been trained from childhood ; they had no baggage ; and they moved forward as rapidly as their horses could carry them. These forces had been gathering for several days before the rumors of their march reached Colonel Ferguson. He regarded the reports with distrust at first, but upon receiving more accurate information began a rapid retreat. About the same time the various parties of the Americans effected a junction. They numbered three thousand men. A council of war was held, and it was resolved to send forward a detachment to bring Ferguson to a stand, and to follow with the main body as quickly as possible. Brilliant Exploits of Colonel Campbell. Nine hundred men, mounted on swift horses, were sent forward, under Colonel Campbell. They rode for thirty-six hours, a large part of the time through a drenching rain, and dismounted but once during this period. Ferguson, alarmed and astounded at this determination to crush him, fell back to a strong position on King's mountain, near the Catawba. He was attacked there on the seventh of October by the Americans, and defeated after a hotly contested fight. Fer- guson and about one hundred and fifty of his men were killed, the remainder were com- pelled to surrender. The prisoners num- bered about nine hundred and fifty, of whom about one hundred and fifty were wounded. The Americans lost twenty killed and a somewhat larger number wounded. The North Carolinians selected ten of the Tories who had earned their fate by their cruelties to the Americans, and hanged them on the spot. The Americans then separated and re- turned home, after seeing their prisoners safe in the hands of the proper authorities. Their victory raised the drooping spirits of their countrymen, and encouraged them to fresh exertions to resist the British. As soon as CornwalHs heard of it, he abandoned his for- ward movement, and, falling back into South Carolina, took position between the Broad and Saluda rivers. He remained there until the close of the year. Marion took advantage of the change of feeling caused by the victory of King's moun- tain to renew his operations on the Pedee, but Tarleton compelled him to withdraw to his THE CLOSE OF THE WAR. 457 fastness in the swamps. Sumter was more successful in the northern part of the State, and defeated a detchment sent in pursuit of him. Tarleton then went after him in person, but was defeated and forced to retreat. Sum- ter was wounded in this engagement, and was compelled to withdraw from the field for several months. During this period his com- mand, deprived of their leader, disbanded. The contest in the Carolinas de- generated into a savage civil war. The patriots and Tories fought each other wherever they met, and destroyed each other's property throughout the State. The country was thus kept in constant terror. Upon the retreat of Cornwallis from Salisbury, Gates advanced southward as far as Charlotte. Here he was relieved of his com- mand by General Nathaniel Greene, who had been appointed by Con- gress, at the urgent solicitation of Washington, to take charge of the southern department. Gates had given great disatisfaction by his failure in the south, and Congress ordered a court of inquiry to exa- mine into his conduct. Greene was placed in charge of the entire south "^ from Delaware to Georgia, "subject to the control of the commander-in- chief." Thus Washington was given the supreme direction of the war. Greene pos- sessed his entire confidence, and the most cordial and affectionate relations existed between them. Greene found the rem- nants of Gates' army in a half mutinous condition. The men were without pay, without clothing, and suffering for the necessaries of life. Reinforcements were sent him from the north, among which were Morgan's regiment of riflemen, Lee's legion of lighthorse, and several batteries of artil- lery. We must now return to the army under Washington. As the spring opened the sufferings of the troops at Morristown in- creased. Food was so scarce that the troops were driven to desperation. Two regiments of Connecticut troops declared their intention to abandon the army and march home, or wrest provisions from the people of the sur- GENERAL NATHANIEL GREENE. rounding country by force. Washington was compelled to exert all his influence and authority to restore order. It was with great difficulty that provisions were procured, and the wants of the troops supplied. The danger caused by this state of affairs was so great that Congress authorized Washington to declare martial law. The news of these troubles in the American camp induced Knyphausen to undertake an expedition into New Jersey. He landed at 4S8 THE AMERICAN REVOLUTION. EUzabethtown, with five thousand men, on the sixth of June, and marched towards Springfield. His advance was warmly con- tested by the militia of the region, but he penetrated as far as the village of Connecticut Farms. Being unable to advance farther he caused the village to be sacked and burned ; and Mrs. Caldwell, the wife of the minister most infamous deeds of the war, and g-ave rise to a fierce and general spirit of vengeance. Her bushand, an eloquent and highly es- teemed minister, animated his contrymen by his stirring sermons, and he soon had the satisfaction of seeing that his labors were not in vain. After the return of Sir Henry Clinton to " NOW PUT WATTS INTO THEM, BOYS. of the village, was murdered by some of the British troops. The militia of the region gathered in force, and Knyphausen was obliged to make a hasty retreat to EUza- bethtown. The murder of Mrs. Caldwell aroused the most intense excitement throughout New Jersey. It was denounced as one of the New York Washington moved a part of his troops towards the Highlands. Knyphausen again advanced from EUzabethtown towards Springfield, hoping to gain the passes beyond Morristown before his march sould be dis- covered. His advance was detected, however, and General Greene, who was in command of the American forces, prepared to resist THE CLOSE OF THE WAR. 459 him. A sharp fight ensued, in which Greene succeeded in checking the British advance. The New Jersey regiment, of which Caldwell was chaplain, was engaged in the battle. The wadding of the men gave out, and Caldwell, mounting his horse, galloped to the Presbyterian church, and returned with an armful of Dr. Watts' hymn books, which he distributed among the troops, with the pious injunction, " Now put Watts into them, boys ! " The militia came flocking in to the support of General Greene, and Knyphausen finding it impossible to advance farther, burned Springfield and fell back to Elizabeth- town. Return of Lafayette. The Americans were greatly encouraged in the spring by the return of Lafayette, who had spent the winter in France. He had been successful in his endeavors to induce the French court to send another fleet and army to the assistance of the patriots ; and he now brought the good news that a new expedition was on its way to America. In July a fleet under Count de Tiernay, with an army of seven thousand men, under Count de Rochambeau, reached Newport. The Count de Rochambeau was directed by his government to place himself under the orders of General Warhington in order to avoid disputes that might arise from military etiquette. This expedition was the first divi- sion of the army to be sent to America by France. The second division was to sail from Brest, but was unable to do so, as it was blockaded in that harbor by a British squadron. Thus the supplies of arms and clothing which were to have been sent to the American army were delayed, and the troops under Washington were unable to cooperate with the French in an attack upon New York. An English fleet had followed the French across the Atlantic, and Clinton was anxious to secure its cooperation in an attack upon the French at Newport. He could not agree with Admiral Arbuthnot upon a plan of attack, and the English admiral contented himself with blockading the French in New- port harbor. Washington called out the militia of New England to assist in the de- fence of Newport in case of an attack. The French fleet was shut up in this port, and to the great disappointment of Washington, was unable to take part in any combined operation. Some weeks later Washington, anxious to strike a decisive blow at the enemy, invited the French commanders, De Tiernay and Rochambeau, to meet him at Hartford, to arrange a plan for an attack upon New York. The meeting was held, but it was decided to ask the cooperation of the French admiral in the West Indies, as the fleet at Newport was not strong enough to cope with the British fleet at New York. Until the answer of the admiral was received nothing could be done. A Treasonable Plot. While absent at Hartford a plot was dis- covered which involved the fair fame of one of the most brilliant officers of the American army. General Benedict Arnold had been disabled by the wounds he had received at Quebec and Saratoga from undertaking active service, and through the influence of Wash- ington had been placed in command of Phila- delphia after its evacuation by Clinton in 1778. There he lived in a style far beyond his means, and became involved in debts, which he was unable to pay. To raise the funds to discharge them he engaged in pri- vateering and mercantile speculations. These were generally unsuccessful, and merely in- creased his difficulties. His haughty and overbearing manner involved him in a quar- 460 THE AMERICAN REVOLUTION. rel with the authorities of Pennsylvania who accused him before Congress of abusing his official position and misusing the public funds. He was tried by a court-martial and was sentenced to be reprimanded by the com- mander-in-chief. Washington performed this disagreeable task as delicately as possible, but did not lose his confidence in Arnold. BENEDICT ARNOLD. He knew him as an able officer, but, as his acquaintance with him was limited, was most likely ignorant of the faults of Arnold's char- acter, which were well known to the mem- bers of Congress from Connecticut, who had no confidence in him. To them he was known to be naturally dishonest, regardless of the rights of others, and cruel and tyran- nical in his dealings with those under his authority. Arnold never forgave the dis- grace inflicted upon him by the sentence of the court-martial, and cherished the deter- mination to be revenged upon Washington for the reprimand received from him. While in Philadelphia, Arnold had married a member of a Tory family, and was thus enabled to communicate readily with the British officers. He opened a correspond- ence with Sir Henry Clinton, signing himself Gustavus. He kept up this cor- respondence for several months, and then made himself known to the British commander. In the meantime, at his earnest soli- citation, he was appointed by Washington, in August, 1780, to the command of West Point, the strongest and most important fortress in America. He did this with the deliberate intention of betraying the post into the hands of the enemy. The correspondence had been conducted on the part of Sir Henry Clinton by Major John Andre of the British army, a young man of amiable character and more than ordinary accom- plishments. He wrote under the assumed name of John Ander- son. He was an especial favorite of Sir Henry Clinton, and was beloved by the whole army in which he served. Soon after the appointment of Arnold to the command of West Point, Andre volunteered to go up the Hudson and have an interview with him for the purpose of completing the arrangements for the betrayal of that fortress. His offer was accepted by Clinton, and he ascended the Hudson as far as Haverstraw in the sloop of war " Vulture." He was set ashore and was met near Haverstraw on the west bank of the Hudson by General Arnold, THE CLOSE OF THE WAR. 461 on the twenty-second of September. The meeting took place about dark, and the night had passed before the arrangements were completed. Much against his will, Andre was compelled to pass the next day within the American lines. During the twenty-third the " Vulture," having attracted the attention of the Americans, was fired upon and forced to drop down the river. Andre found the man who had set him ashore unwilling to row him back to the sloop, and he was compelled to return to New York by land. He changed his uniform for a citizen's dress, and, provided with a pass from Arnold, under the name of John Anderson, set out for New York along the east bank of the river, which he deemed safer than the opposite shore. All went well until Andre reached the vicinity of Tarry- town. There he was stopped by three young men, John Paulding, David Williams, and Isaac Van Wart. They asked him his name and destination, and he, suppos- ing them to be Tories, did not use the pass given him by Arnold, but frankly avowed himself a British officer travelling on important business. To his dismay he then learned that his captors were of the patriotic party, and he offered them his watch, purse, and any reward they might name if they would suffer him to pro- ceed. They refused to allow him to stir a step, and searched his person. They found concealed in his boots papers giving the plan of West Point, and an account of its garrison. Andre was taken by his captors before Colcnel Jamison, the commander of the nearest American post. Jamison recognized the handwriting as that of Arnold, but, un- willing to believe that his commander could be guilty of treason, he detained the prisoner, and wrote to Arnold informing him of the arrest of Andre and of the papers found upon his person. The papers themselves he for- warded by a special messenger to Washing- ton, who was on his return from Hartford. Arnold received Colonel Jamison's letter MAJOR ANDRE. as he sat at breakfast with some of his offi- cers. He concealed his emotion, and excus- ing himself to his guests, called his wife from the room, told her he must flee for his life, and hastening to his barge, escaped down the river to the " Vulture," and was received on board by the commander of that vessel. From his place of safety he wrote to Wash- ington, asking him to protect his wife, who, 462 THE AMERICAN REVOLUTION. lie declared, was innocent of any share in his plot. When he learned that Arnold was safe, Andre wrote to Washington, and confessed the whole plot. He was at once brought to trial upon the charge of being within the American lines as a spy; The court-martial was presided over by General Greene, and Lafayette and Steuben were among its mem- bers. Andre asserted that he had been induced to enter the American lines by the misrepresentations of Arnold. The Infamous Plot Confessed. He denied that he was a spy, and though cautioned not to say anything that might criminate himself, he frankly confessed the whole plot. He was sentenced, upon his own confession, to be hanged. Clinton made great exertions to save him, and Washing- ton, whose sympathy was won by the amiable character of Andre, was anxious to spare him. The circumstances of the case de- manded that the law should be executed, and Andre was was hanged at Tappan, near the Hudson, on the second of October, 1780. Congress voted to each of his three captors a pension of two hundred dollars for life and and a silver medal. The plot of Arnold had been discovered by the merest chance, and the American cause had narrowly escaped a crushing dis- aster. The loss of West Point would have given the British the entire control of the Hudson, and have enabled them to separate New England from the Middle and Southern States. It might have proved fatal to the cause, and certainly would have reduced Washington to great extremities. Arnold received for his treachery the sum of ten thousand pounds sterling and a commission as brigadier-general in the English service. He was regarded with general contempt by the English officers, who refused to associate with him, and were greatly averse to serving under him. In the summer of 1780 it seemed likely that England would be involved in war with the whole civilized world. The claim of Great Britain to the right to search the ves- sels of neutral nations for articles contraband of war was productive of great annoyance to the northern powers, whose commerce was subjected to serious loss by these arbi- trary measures. Catharine II. of Russia determined to resist it, and organized with Denmark and Sweden a league known as the " Armed Neutrality," for the purpose of enforcing the principle that neutral ships in time of war are entitled to carry merchan- dise without being liable to search or seizure by the belligerent powers. War in Europe. Holland joined this league, and concluded a secret commercial treaty with the United States. This treaty was discovered by Great Britain almost immediately, and in the fol- lowing manner : The American minister to Holland, Henry Laurens, was captured at sea by a British frigate. He threw his papers, the treaty among them, into the sea, but they were recovered by an English sailor, who sprang overboard and secured them. They were laid before the British government, which demanded that Holland should dis- avow the treaty and the correspondence with the United States. The Dutch government returned an evasive answer, and England immediately declared war against Holland. The English fleet at once proceeded to attack the Dutch possessions and commerce in all parts of the world. Holland declared war against Great Britain, and her fleet was added to that of France against England. Spain now made an alliance with France against England, and sent her fleet to co- operate with the French in the West Indies, ESCAPE OF BENEDICT ARNOLD. 463 464 THE AMERICAN REVOLUTION. and also laid siege to Gibraltar. The Irish about the same time demanded a reform of the many abuses from which that island had been suffering since the battle of the Boyne, and this demand was sustained by a force of eighty thousand armed Protestant volunteers which had been raised for the defence of Ire- land against a threatened attack of the French. They demanded an independent parliament, and even threatened a total separation from Great Britain. In the face of these difficul- ties the spirit of England rose higher than ever, and that country, with a vigor worthy of her ancient renown, put forth all her energies to find a way out of her difficulties. The whole world was arrayed against her, but in the face of it she held her own. The heroism manifested by England at this try- ing period is worthy of the highest admira- tion. Sufferings of the Patriots. The American army passed the winter of 1780-81 in cantonments east and west of the Hudson. The Pennsylvania troops were stationed near Morristown, and the New Jer- Jersey regiments at Pompton. Though the troops were better provided with food than during the previous winter their sufferings were still very severe. They were neglected by Congress, which was too much occupied with its dissensions to make any serious effort to relieve the wants of the soldiers. The Pennsylvania troops had an especial cause of complaint. Their enlistments were for three years or the war. The three years had expired, but the government refused to discharge them on the ground that the enlist- ments were for the period of the war no matter how long it should last. The troops on the other hand contended that the words, "for the war," meant that the enlistments should expire if the war closed in less than three years. On the first of January, 1781, thirteen hundred Pennsylvania troops left the camp at Morristown under arms and set off for Philadelphia to obtain redress from Con- gress. General Wayne, their commander, placed himself in front of them, and, pistol in hand, attempted to stop their march. In an instant their bayonets were at his breast. " We love, we respect you," they ex- claimed, " but you are a dead man if you fire. Do not mistake us ; we are not going to the enemy ; were they now to come out you would see us fight under your orders with as much resolution , and alacrity as ever." They halted at Princeton, where they were met by the agents of Sir Henry Clinton, who endeavored to induce them to join the British service. They promptly seized these men and delivered them up to General Wayne as spies. At a later period it was proposed to reward them for this action, but they refused to accept anything, saying : " We ask no reward for doing our duty to our country." Mutiny Promptly Quelled. Congress was greatly alarmed by the ap- proach of these troops, and a committee, accompanied by Reed, the President of Penn- sylvania, was sent to meet them. The com- mittee met the leaders of the mutineers and agreed to relieve their immediate wants and to secure them their back pay by means of certificates. Permission was given to all who had served three years to withdraw from the army. Upon these conditions the troops returned to duty. The disaffection was increased by the yielding of Congress. On the twentieth of January the New Jersey troops at Pompton mutinied, but this out- break was quelled by a detachment sent from West Point by Washington. The mutiny opened the eyes of the coun- try to the sufferings of the army, and aroused. THE CLOSE OF THE WAR. 465 all parties to the necessity of providing for the troops. It was clearly understood that a failure to sustain the army would result in the defeat of the cause. Urgent appeals were made by Congress to all the States, especially to those of New England, to sup- ply the wants of the army, and Congress endeavored to negotiate a loan abroad. Direct taxation was resorted to to provide money at once. The British in Virginia. The year 1781 opened with a military ex- pedition under the command of the traitor Arnold, now a brigadier-general in the British service. Early in January he was sent by Sir Henry Clinton, with sixteen hundred British and Tories, from New York to the Chesapeake to ravage the shores of Virginia, After plundering the plantations along the lower bay and the James, Arnold ascended the river, and landing his troops marched to Richmond. Thomas Jefferson, tnen Governor of Virginia, called out the militia, but only a handful responded. Arnold occupied Richmond, burned the public buildings and some private dwellings, and then re-embarked and dropped down the the river to Portsmouth. Washington was anxious to capture him, and sent Lafayette with a force of twelve hundred men south- ward by land to prevent Arnold from escaping overland to join Cornwallis in the Carolinas, and at the same time the French fleet sailed from Newport for the Chesapeake to prevent the escape of the traitor by water. The British Admiral Arbuthnot followed the French fleet and brought it to an en- gagement off the mouth of the Chesapeake. The French were worsted and obliged to return to Newport, and Admiral Arbuthnot entered the bay and reinforced Arnold with two thousand British troops under General Philips, who assumed the command at Ports- 30 mouth and fortified his position there. From his camp he sent out detachments to ravage the country in all directions. Lafayette, in the meantime, upon hearing of the failure of the plan, halted at Annapolis, in Maryland. Arnold, upon being superseded by Philips, returned to New York. Battle of the " Cowpens." Early in January Cornwallis, who was at Winns"borough, South Carolina, sent Colonel Tarleton, with a force of one thousand cavalry and light infantry, to cut off Mor- gan's division from the column under Gen- eral Greene. Morgan was between the Broad and Catawba Rivers at the time, and upon hearing of Tarleton's approach began to retreat towards the Catawba. Tarleton pushed on with such speed that Morgan saw he must be overtaken. He accordingly halted and took position at the '* Cowpens," about thirty miles west of King's Mountain, and rested his men. Tarleton arrived in front of this position on the seventeenth of January and made an impetuous attack upon the Americans. At first he drove the mili- tia before him, but Morgan keeping his Continentals well in hand, suddenly wheeled upon him and drove him from the field. The two forces were about equal. Morgan lost but eighty men, while the loss of the British was over six hundred. Tarleton escaped from the field with only a few of his cavalry. Cornwallis moved forward as soon as he learned of Tarleton's defeat. He supposed that Morgan would be encumbered with his wounded and prisoners, and would be slow in leaving the scene of his victory, and he hoped by a rapid march to come up with him, crush him, and rescue the prisoners before he could join General Greene. Mor- gan was much too wary to be caught in such a trap. He felt sure Cornwallis would 466 THE AMERICAN REVOLUTION. seek to avenge Tarleton's defeat, and leaving his wounded under a flag of truce, he re- sumed his retreat with all speed immediately after the battle, and hurrying towards the Catawba, crossed that river. Two hours after he had passed it the advance of Cornwallis' army reached the bank of the river, but owing to a sudden rise in the stream were unable to cross it. The British were detained in this manner for two days, during which Morgan rested his GENERAL DANIEL MORGAN. men and sent off his prisoners to a place of safety. Two days after the passage of the Catawba Morgan was joined by the troops under General Greene, who had heard of the vic- tory of the Cowpens, and was advancing to the assistance of his lieutenant. Greene was not yet strong enough to meet the British, and he continued the retreat toward the Yadkin. He moved slowly, and his rear guard was still engaged in the passage of the Yadkin when the advance suard of Corn- wallis reached that stream, on the third of February. Cornwallis had burned all his heavy baggage, and had reduced his army to the strictest light marching order, in the hope of being able to intercept Greene. A skirmish ensued on the banks of the Yadkin, and night coming on the British commander deferred the passage of the stream until the next day. During the night a heavy rain swelled the river so high that it could not be forded, and the Americans had secured all the boats on the other side. Greene, profiting by this delay, hurried on to cross the Dan into Virginia, where he could receive reinforcements and sup- plies. Morgan was left to cover the retreat of the army, but falling ill was obliged to relinquish the command of the rear guard to Colonel Otho H. Williams. _ Cornwallis passed the Yadkin as soon as possible and strained every nerve to prevent Greene from crossing the Dan. He supposed the Americans would not be able to cross at the lower ferries, but would be obliged to pass the river higher up, where it could be forded. He there- fore urged his army to its utmost exer- tions to secure these fords before the arrival of the Americans. Perceiving Cornwallis' error, Colonel Williams re- treated towards the upper fords and so confirmed the British commander in his delusion. Having led the British sufficiently out of the way, Williams wheeled about, and by a rapid march of forty miles in twenty-four hours down the river, rejoined Greene, who had moved with all speed to the lower ferries, where, in anticipation of his retreat, he had collected a supply of boats. The Dan was passed on the fifteenth of February, and the American army was safe from its pursuers. An hour or two later Cornwallis, who had discovered his mistake and had marched THE CLOSE OF THE WAR. 467 with speed from the upper fords, appeared on the opposite bank of the river, only to see his adversary safely beyond his reach. The river was too deep to be forded, and Greene had all the boats in his possession. Corn- wallis was deeply mortified at his failure to intercept Greene. He had pursued him for over two hundred miles, and had made great sacrifices to come up with him, but the American commander had managed to elude him and had successfully carried out one of the most brilliant retreats in history. The Americans regarded their escape as provi- dential, and not without cause. Their way across the Carolinas might be tracked by the blood from their feet ; and twice, when the enemy had come within gunshot of them, the rising of the waters of the Catawba and the Yadkin, which they had passed in safety, had held back the British and enabled them to escape. After resting his men for a few days on the banks of the Dan, Corn- wallis fell back to Hillsborough. Greene Compelled to Retreat. Having received reinforcements. General Greene recrossed the Dan, about the last of February, and advanced into the Carolinas to watch CornwalHs and encourage the patriots of that region. Cornwallis, being short of supplies, moved slowly southward. Greene followed him cautiously, too weak to risk a battle, but ready to take advantage of the first error on the part of his adversary. His movements were conducted with the atmost circumspection, and in order to guard against a surprise he never remained in the same place more than one day, and kept secret until the last moment the places he selected for his encampments. In the meantime he was gradually receiving rein- forcements from Virginia and Maryland, until his army numbered four thousand men. Feeling himself strong enough to attack the enemy, Greene left his baggage at a point of safety and advanced to Guilford Court-house, seventeen miles distant, with the intention of bringing Cornwallis to a decisive engagement. Here he was attacked by Cornwallis on the fifteenth of March, and after one of the hardest-fought battles of the war was compelled to retreat. Greene with- drew in good order, and Cornwallis, though victorious on the field, was so sorely crippled that he was unable to make any pursuit, and was obliged to fall back to Wilmington, near the mouth of Cape Fear River. By the time he reached that place his army had been so much weakened by desertions and losses in battle that it amounted to but four- teen hundred men. Operations in South Carolina. Greene had lost a thousand militia by desertion during his retreat, but was soon enabled to supply their places. He then moved into South Carolina for the purpose of attacking the British force under Lord Rawdon, which was posted at Camden. He advanced to Hobkirk's Hill, about two miles from Camden, where he was attacked on the twenty-fifth of April by Lord Rawdon. After a sharp engagement Greene was de- feated and obliged to retreat. He withdrew his army in good order, having inflicted upon his adversary a loss about equal to his own. Rawdon was unable to derive any advantage from his victory, as he could not bring Greene to another general engagement. The activity of the American partisan corps in his rear alarmed him for the safety of his communications with Charleston, and he abandoned Camden and fell back to Monk's Corner. In the meantime Lee, Marion, Pickens, and the other partisan leaders had broken up the fortified posts of the British with 468 THE AMERICAN REVOLUTION. such success that by the month of June, 1 78 1, only three positions of importance remained to the British in South Carolina Charleston, Nelson's Ferry and Fort Ninety- six, near the Saluda. The last-named posi- LORD RAWDON, AFTERWARD MARQUIS OF HASTINGS. sieee to it. Being; informed that Lord Raw- don was marching to relieve it, he deter- mined to carry the fort by assault before Rawdon could arrive. The assault was made on the eighteenth of June, but was repulsed with severe loss. Greene then raised the siege and retreated across the Saluda. Early in July the excessive heat put an end to active opera- tions on the part of the two armies. Greene withdrew to the high hills of the Santee, and the British went into camp on the Congaree. A bitter partisan war- fare now sprung up between the patriots and the tories, and continued during the summer. Houses were pillaged and burned, farms were laid waste and no quarter was given by either party. Even women and children were included in these dreadful mas- sacres. Lord Rawdon now resolved to add to the horrors of this war- fare by executing as traitors those who tion was of the greatest importance, and was held by a force of Carolina Tories. Lee and Pickens were sent against Augusta, Georgia, and captured it after a close invest- ment of seven days. General Greene him- self marched against Ninety-six and laid had given their parole not to engage in the war or had received a protection, if they should be taken in arms. Among the prisoners taken by the British at the capture of Charleston, was Colonel Isaac Hayne, a distinguished citizen of that place. His wife THE CLOSE OF THE WAR. 469 was dying and his children Avere helpless, and he gave his parole to remain neutral, in order to be able to take care of them, and was promised protection. At a later period, the British commander being in need of rein- forcements, Hayne was ordered to take up arms against his country in behalf of the king. He regarded himself as relieved from his parole by this command, and soon after escaped from Charleston and raised a partisan corps, at the head of which he was captured. He was condemned to die as a traitor ; and though the inhabitants of Charleston, both patriot and royalist, petitioned for his pardon, it was refused, and he was hanged, by order of Lord Rawdon, on the 5th of August. Life for Life. His execution was regarded by the Amer- icans as cruel and unjust, and as contrary to military law. General Greene felt himself obliged to retaliate by executing as deserters all those prisoners who had formerly served in his own army, and so bitter was the feeling of the American troops that they could scarcely be prevented from shooting the British officers who fell into their hands. Lord Rawdon now sailed for England, and left the command of his army to Colonel Stewart, an officer of ability and experience. At the close of the summer General Greene, whose army had been increased by the com- mands of Marion and Pickens to twenty-five hundred men, resumed the offensive. He attacked the British at Eutaw Springs on the eighth of September, and after a severely con- tested battle the left wing of the British was routed. In the moment of victory the Amer- ican army stopped to plunder the enemy's camp, and the British, taking advantage of the delay, rallied and made a stand in a large stone house, from which they could not be driven. Greene was forced to draw off his troops and leave the field to the British, who lost seven hundred men in the engagement. The American loss was five hundred men. Both sides claimed the victory ; but the ad- vantage certainly was not with the British, who lost more than a third of their men. Colonel Stewart, in view of this loss, fell back to the vicinity of Charleston, Greene followed him as far as Monk's Corner, and then returned to the hills of the Santee. The American commander had abundant reason to be satisfied with the result of his opera- tions in South Carolina. He had rescued the greater part of the State fi-om the British, and had confined them to the region between the Santee and the lower Savannah. He had repeatedly engaged the enemy with the most inadequate means and under the most unfa- vorable circumstances, and had never failed, even though defeated, to accomplish the object for which he fought. He had baffled the British commanders over again, and, like William of Orange, had managed to derive greater advantages from his reverses than his adversaries were able to draw from their victories. Plan to Recapture New York. Washington was well pleased with the achievements, in the South, of his most trusted lieutenant. He Avas very anxious to attempt something decisive with his own army, if he could secure the aid of a French army and fleet. Two enterprises offered themselves to him — an attack upon New York, which had been greatly weakened by detachments sent from its garrison to the south, and an expedition against Cornwallis. That commander had left Wilmington on the twentieth of April, and had advanced, without encountering any serious resistance, to Petersburg, Virginia. He arrived there on the twentieth of May, and was joined by the troops under General Philips, who had been plundering the country along the James river. 470 THE AMERICAN REVOLUTION. While Washington was hesitating which would be the best course to pursue, a French frigate arrived at Newport, with the Count de Barras on board, who had come to take command of the fleet at Newport. He brought the good news that a fleet of twenty ships-of-the-line, under the Count de Grasse, having; on board a considerable force of troops, had sailed for America, and might be expected to arrive in the course of a few months. Washington held a conference with the Count de Rochambeau, at Weathersfield, Connecticut, and it was resolved to attack New York. The French army was to march from Newport and form a junction with the Americans on the Hudson. A frigate was despatched to the West Indies to inform the Count de Grasse of this arrangement, and to ask his co-operation in the proposed attack. Cornwallis Strongly Intrenched. Sir Henry Clinton, who suspected the designs of Washington, now ordered Lord Cornwallis, who had crosssed the James river, and was at Williamsburg, to send him a reinforcement of troops. Cornwallis pre- pared to comply with this order, and for that purpose marched towards Portsmouth, followed cautiously by Lafayette and Steu- ben, who had with them about four thousand American troops. On the march a slight engagement occurred, near Westover, be- tween Lafayette and Cornwallis, in which the Americans narrowly escaped a defeat. The British army crossed to the south side of the James, and a detachment was embarked for New York. At this moment a second order was received from Sir Henry Clinton, who had received a reinforcement of Hessians from England, directing Cornwallis to retain all his force, choose some central position in Virginia, fortify himself in it, and await the development of the American plans. Corn- wallis should have taken position at Ports- mouth, from which place his line of retreat to the South would have remained intact. In an evil hour for himself he recrossed the James, and crossing the peninsula between that river and the York, took position at the towns of Gloucester and Yorktown, opposite each other, on the York River. He had with him an army of eight thousand effective troops, and proceeded to fortify his position with strong intrenchments. A number of vessels of war were anchored between Yorktown and Gloucester to main- tain the communication between those points and to assist in the defence of the place. During all this time the financial affairs of the republic were growing worse and more hopeless. The continental currency had become utterly worthless, one dollar in paper being worth only one cent in coin at the opening of the year 1781. In the spring of that year Congress sought to put an end to its financial troubles by taking the control of the finances from a board which had hitherto managed them, and intrusting them to Robert Morris, whose services in behalf of the cause have been mentioned before. Return to Specie Payments. Morris was an experienced financier, and had opposed with all his energy the system of making continental money a legal tender. He now made a return to specie payments the condition of his acceptance of the trust imposed upon him by Congress. On the twenty-second of May, 1781, Congress most unwillingly resolved : " That the whole debts already due by the United States be liqui- dated as soon as may be to their speeie value, and funded, if agreeable to the creditors, as a loan upon interest ; that the States be severally informed that the calcu- lations of the present campaign are made in solid coin, and, therefore, that the requisitions THE CLOSE OF THE WAR. 471 from them respectively being grounded on those calculations, must be complied with in such manner as effectually to answer the the purpose designed ; that experience having evinced the inefficacy of all attempts to support the credit of paper money by compulsory acts, it is recommended to such States where laws making paper bills a tender yet exist to repeal the same." On the thirty-first of May continental bills, being no longer a legal tender, ceased to cir- culate. Henceforth all _ - — - transactions were to be in hard money. The result amply vin- dicated Morris' views. He induced Congress \o establish the Bank of the United States at Philadelphia, with a capital of two millions of dollars and a char- ter for ten years. This bank was allowed the privilege of issuing its own notes, which it was required to re- deem in specie upon presentation. This re- quirement gained foi the bank the confi- dence of the people, and capitalists availed themselves of it for the investment of their money. Morris used the bank freely in his public operations, and at the same time used it so wisely that he was able to secure all the aid it was capable of bestowing without subject- ing it to too severe a strain. He raised the credit of the government higher than it had ever stood before, and was able to do much towards paying the soldiers and supplying them with food and clothing. As often as the public funds failed he pledged his own credit to supply the deficiency. No man did more to contribute to the success of the cause than Robert Morris ; and no man received more ingratitude from the govern- ment and people of the Union than he. In July Washington was joined in the Highlands by the French army under Count de Rochambeau, and preparations were made to attack New York. An intercepted letter informed Sir Henry Clinton of this design, and he exerted himself to put the \lfii\M£U-SU^DQ^ SCENE IN THE HIGHLANDS OF THE HUDSON. city in a state of defence. In the midst of his preparations Washington received a letter from the Count de Grasse, stating that he would sail for the Chesapeake instead of Newport. This decision of the French admiral compelled an entire change of plan on the part of the Americans. As De Grasse would not co-operate with them,, they must abandon the attack upon New York, and attempt the capture of Cornwallis at Yorktown. No time was to be lost in 472 THE AMERICAN REVOLUTION. making the attempt, for it was now the month of August. By a series of skilful movements Sir Henry Clinton was induced to believe that an attack upon New York would soon be made, and at the same time the American army was marched rapidly across New Jersey, followed by the French. Lafayette, who was in Virginia, was ordered to prevent at all hazards a retreat of Corn- wallis' army to North Carolina, and was directed to ask assistance of General Greene if necessary, Cornwallis Entrapped. The plan of Washington was to blockade Cornwallis in the York river by means of the French fleet, and at the same time to besiege him in Yorktown with the army. The troops were somewhat unwilling to undertake a southern campaign in August. but their good humor was restored at Phila- delphia, where they received a part of their pay in specie, and a supply of clothing, arms and ammunition, which had just arrived from France. From Philadelphia the combined armies proceeded to Elkton, at head of the the Chesapeake, where they found trans- ports, sent by the French admiral and by Lafayette, to convey them to the James river. The first intimation Sir Henry Clinton had of a change in the American plans was the sudden sailing of the French fleet from New- port on the twenty-eight of August. Sup- posing that De Barras's object was to unite with another fleet in the Chesapeake, Clinton sent Admiral Graves to prevent the junction. Upon reaching the capes the British admiral was astonished to find the fleet of the Count de Grasse, consisting of twenty ships-of-the line, anchored within the bay. De Grasse at once put to sea as if to engage the enemy, but in reality to draw them off and allow De Barras to enter the Chesapeake. For five days he amused the English by constant skirmishing. De Barras at length appeared and passed within the capes, and De Grasse at once followed him. Admiral Graves was unwilling to attack this combined force and returned to New York. The movement of the American army to the south was known to Clinton, but he sup- posed it was only a manoeuvre to draw him off of Manhattan Island into the open coun- try. When the Americans were beyond the Delaware and the French fleets had effected their junction in the Chesapeake, he recog- nized his mistake and saw that the object of Washington was the capture of Cornwallis. It was too late to prevent it ; but in the hope of compelling Washington to send back a part of his force to defend New England, Clinton sent the traitor Arnold with a large body of troops to attack New London in Connecticut. On the sixth of September Arnold captured that town and burned the shipping and a large part of the town. A Horrible Massacre. He then took Fort Griswold, on the oppo- site side of the Thames, by storm, and basely massacred Colonel Indyard, the commander, and sixty of the garrison after the surrender of the fort. The militia of the State were summoned to take up arms for its defence, and responded in such numbers that Arnold became alarmed for his safety and returned to New York. The object of his expedition failed most signally. Washington left New England to defend herself, and continued his movement against Cornwallis. Cornwallis was very slow to realize his danger. He believed the small force under Lafayette the only command opposed to him, and on the tenth of September wrote to Clinton that he could spare him twelve hundred men for the defence of New York. He did not perceive his error until the French fleet had THE CLOSE OF THE WAR. 473 anchored in the Chesapeake and cut off his escape by water. He then attempted to retreat to North CaroHna, as Washington had foreseen, but Lafayette, who had been reinforced by three thousand French troops under the Marquis de St. Simon, from the fleet of De Grasse, was too active for him, and finding his retreat impossible, CornwaUis the British, and on the ninth of October the cannonade was begun. It was continued for four days, and the British outworks were greatly damaged, and several of their vessels in the river were burned by means of red- hot shot thrown into them by the French vessels. On the fourteenth two of the ad- vanced redoubts of the enemy were stormed VIEW OF YORKTOWN. sent urgent appeals to Clinton for assistance, and strengthened his fortifications. In the meantime the American and French armies descended the Chesapeake, and took position before Yorktown, while the French fleet closed the mouth of York river. The siege was begun on the twenty-eight of Sep- tember. Sixteen thousand men were pre- sent under Washing-ton's orders. Works were erected completely enclosing those of and taken, one by the Americans, the other by the French. From the positions thus gained a very destructive fire was maintained upon the English lines, which were broken in many places, while many of their guns were dismounted and rendered useless. On the fifteenth CornwaUis found himself al- most out of ammunition, and unable to maintain his position but for a few days longer. 474 THE AMERICAN REVOLUTION. In this strait the British commander re- solved upon the desperate alternative of cross- ing the York to Gloucester, abandoning his sick and wounded and baggage, and endeavor- ing to force his way northward by extraor- dinary marches to New York. It was a hopeless undertaking, but Cornwallis resolved to make the trial. On the night of the six- teenth of October he crossed a part of his army from Yorktown to Gloucester, but a sudden storm delayed the passage of the He sent to Washington an offer to surren- der, and the terms were soon arranged. On the nineteenth of October Cornwallis sur- rendered his army of seven thousand men as prisoners of war to Washington, as com- mander of the allied army, and his shipping, seamen and naval stores to the Count de Grasse, as the representative of the king of France. Washington despatched one of his aids to Philadelphia to communicate the good news SURRENDER OF LORD CORNWALLIS. river by the second division until after day- light, when it was useless to make the attempt. 'The first division was with difficulty brought back to Yorktown, as the boats were exposed to the fire of the American batteries while crossing the river. Nothing was left to Cornwallis now but a capitulation, as his works were in no condition to with- stand an assault, and simple humanity to his men demanded that the contest should cease. to Congress. The officer pushed forward with all speed, and reached. Philadelphia at midnight, and delivered his message. Soon the peals of the State-house bell roused the citizens, and the watchmen took up the cry, " Cornwallis is taken ! Cornwallis is taken!" The people poured out into the streets in throngs, and no one slept in Philadelphia that night. The next day Congress proceeded in a body to a church and gave thanks for the great victory. A national thanksgiving THE CLOSE OF THE WAR. 475 was ordered, and throughout the whole land rejoicings went up to God for the success which all men felt was decisive of the war. On the nineteenth of October, the day of the surrender of Cornwallis, Sir Henry Clin- ton sailed from New York to his assistance with a force of seven thousand men. Off the capes he learned of the surrender of the British army at Yorktown, and as his fleet was not strong enough to meet that of the French he returned at once to New York. " It is All Over." The news of the surrender of Cornwallis was received in England with astonishment and mortification. It was the second time England had lost an entire army by capture, and her efforts to subdue the United States were no nearer success than they had been at the opening of the v/ar. The English people had never regarded the attempt to conquer America with favor, and they now became more open and energetic in their demands for peace. " Lord North, the prime minister," says an English writer, " received the intelligence of the capture of Cornwallis as he would have done a cannon ball in his breast; he paced the room, and throwing his arms wildly about, kept exclaiming, ' O God ! it is all over ! it is all over 1' " The king and the aristocracy, however, had no thought of yielding yet to the popular pressure, and were resolved to carry on the war. After the surrender at Yorktown, Wash- ington urged the Count de Grasse to coop- erate with General Greene in an attack upon Charleston. The French admiral dechned to comply with his request, alleging the necessity of his immediate return to the West Indies. The French troops were quar- tered for the winter at Williamsburg, Vir- ginia, and the American army returned northward and resumed its old position on the Hudson. Washington, though con- vinced that peace was close at hand, did not relax his vigilance, and urged upon Congress the necessity of preparing for a vigorous campaign the next year ; but so thoroughly was Congress carried away by the prospect of peace that his recommendations were unheeded. In the south the British and Tories were so disheartened by the surrender of Corn- wallis that they ceased active operations and evacuated all their posts but Savannah and Charleston. General Greene at once dis- posed his army in such a manner as to con- fine them closely to Charleston. In the Northern States the only place held by the British was New York. Indian and Tory Outrages. Though active operations had ceased on the part of- the two armies, a cruel and destructive warfare was continued by the Indian allies of the British against the border settlements of Pennsylvania and Virginia, and a similar warfare was maintained by the Tories and Indians along the frontier of New York. These outrages involved the Christ- ian Delaware Indians in the punishment of the guilty savages. The Delawares had become converted to Christianity under the influence of the Moravian missionaries, and had removed from the Susquehanna to the Muskingum. They were suspected by the Americans of the crimes of their heathen brethren, and in the spring and summer of 1782 their towns were destroyed and numbers of them were slain. The war was carried into the country of the Wyandottes by the whites, but with less success. On the sixth of June a force of Pennsylvanians under Colonel Crawford was defeated by the Wyandottes. In the same summer a band of northern Indians led by Simon Girty, a Tory of infamous 476 THE AMERICAN REVOLUTION. character, invaded Kentucky. They were met by the Kentuckians under Boone, Todd, and other leaders. A severe battle was fought at the Big Blue Lick, and the Ken- tuckians were defeated with the loss of nearly one-half their force. Story of Captain Huddy. Some of the staunchest patriots and some of the most ferocious Tories resided in Mon- mouth county, New Jersey. The patriots built a block-house of logs at Dover, which was a strongly fortified building. The only method of ingress or egress was by the use of a scaling ladder. Captain John Huddy was commander of this post, and was one of the bravest men who fought for the Amer- ican cause. His house was once surrounded by his foes, but esccping he jumped into the waters of the bay, and as he swam he shouted, "I am Huddy!" His escape on this occasion was remarkable. On March 20, 1782, a party of forty Tories and eighty seamen, all fully armed, left New York in whaleboats for the pur- pose of capturing Captain John Huddy. Their coming was announced by scouts, and preparations were made to receive them. The battle was one of the fiercest of the war. The powder in the fortress at length gave out, and Huddy, with sixteen men, four of whom were wounded, was taken prisoner. Huddy was a prisoner of war, and was entitled to treatment as such, but his enemies conspired to put him to death. He was executed on the morning of April 12, and his last words were, " I shall die innocent, and in a good cause." Captain Lippincott, who ordered Huddy's execution, cursed his men because they were unwilling to take the life of so brave a foe, and with his own hand helped to pull the rope. Returning to New York he reported to the board of loyalists that he had " ex- changed" Captain Huddy for Philip White. The pastor of the Presbyterian church at Freehold preached the funeral sermon from the front porch of the old Freehold hotel, and the body was buried with the honors of war. The desire of the English people for the close of the war had grown too strong to be resisted, and the king and his ministers were at length forced to yield. The impossi- bility of conquering America had become so apparent to the continental nations that in the spring of 1782 the Dutch republic recognized the independence of the United States, and received John Adams as envoy from that government. The king of Eng- land maintained his obstinate opposition to the wishes of his people to the last moment. On the twenty-second of February, 1782, a resolution was introduced into the House of Commons to put an end to the American war and was supported by the leaders of the Whig party. It was defeated by a majority of one, but on the twenty-seventh of February a similar resolution was introduced and was carried by a majority of nineteen. England Gives Up the Struggle. On the twentieth of March Lord North and his colleagues were forced to relinquish their ofifices, and a new ministry was formed under the Marquis of Rockingham. Sir Henry Clinton was removed from his com- mand in America, and was succeeded by Sir Guy Carleton, whose humane conduct of the war while governor of Canada we have related. Carleton arrived in New York in May, 1782, with full powers to open nego- tiations for peace. He at once put a stop to the savage warfare of the Tories and Indians on the borders of western New York, and opened a correspondence with Washington proposing a cessation of hostilities until a definite treaty of peace could be arranged. CAPTAIN HUDDY LED FROM PRISON TO BE HANGED. 477 478 THE AMERICAN REVOLUTION. Five commissioners were appointed by Congress to conclude a peace with Great Britain. They were John Adams, Benjamin Franklin, John Jay, Henry Laurens, who had just been released from the tower of London, where he had been kept a prisoner for about a year, and Thomas Jefferson. Mr. Jefferson was unable to leave America. Five commissioners were appointed by Great Britain to treat with " certain colonies " named in their instructions. A Treaty Formed. The commissioners from the two countries met at Paris, but the American commis- sioners refused to open negotiations except in the name of the " United States of America." This right was acknowledged by Great Britain, and on the thirtieth of November, 1782, a preliminary treaty was signed, which was ratified by Congress in April, 1783. This treaty could not be final because by the terms of the alliance between the United States and France neither party could make a separate treaty of peace with England. In January, 1783, France and Great Britain agreed upon terms of peace, and on the third of September, 1783, a final treaty of peace was signed by all the nations who had engaged in the war — by the United States, France, Spain and Holland on the one side, and Great Britain on the other. Great Britain acknowledged the independ- ence of the States of the Union in the fol- lowing words : " His Britannic Majesty acknowledges the said United States, viz.: New Hampshire, Massachusetts Bay, Rhode Island and Providence Plantations, Connecti- cut, New York, New Jersey, Pennsylvania, Delaware, Maryland, Virginia, North Caro- lina, South Carolina and Georgia, to be free, sovereign and independent States ; that he treats with them as such ; and for himself, his heirs and successors, relinquishes all claim to the government, propriety and ter- ritorial rights of the same, and every part thereof" It should be observed that the treaty acknowledged the independence and sovereignty of each of the thirteen States, and not of the United States as a single nation. The independence of the States had already been recognized by several of the European powers : by Sweden, on the fifth of February, 1783; by Denmark, on the twenty-fifth of February, 1783; by Spain, on the twenty-fourth of March ; and by Russia in July, 1783. Treaties of friendship and commerce were entered into between the United States and these powers. Washington and His Army. During the year 1782 the greater part of the American army was encamped at New- burg, on the Hudson. Washington made his headquarters in an old stone house, which was well adapted for defence and con- cealment, one of the rooms having seven doors leading to other parts of the house, and but one window. The troops were unpaid and were neglected by Congress and by the various States. Washington warned the government of the danger of further neglect of the army, but his warning was unheeded, and in March the patience of the army was so far exhausted that it was seriously proposed to march to Philadelphia and compel Congress to do justice to the troops. Washington appealed to the officers to remain patient a little longer, and pledged himself to, use his influence with Congress to fulfill its neglected promises to the army. His appeal quieted the trouble for a time. Congress shortly after agreed to advance full pay to the soldiers for four months, and to pay in one gross sum the full pay of the officers for five years. The condition of the country was a sub- ject of the gravest apprehension. It was WASHINGTON'S HEAD-QUARTER^ AT NEWBURGH, NEW YORK. THE ROOM WITH SEVEN DOORS AND ONE WINDOW. 479 48o THE AMERICAN REVOLUTION. plain that the articles of confederation were not capable of continuing the Union much longer, and many persons believed that the only hope of preserving a regular govern- ment, and a permanent union to the country, lay in the establishment of a monarchy. In May, 1782, Colonel Nicola, of the Pennsyl- vania line, at the instance of a number of officers, wrote a letter to Washington, pro- posing the creation of a monarchy, and offer- ing him the crown. Washington indignantly refused to entertain the proposition, and severely rebuked the writer of the letter. Peace at Liast. In the spring of 1783 the news of the signing of the preliminary treaty of peace was received in America, and was officially communicated to the nation in a proclama- tion by Congress. On the nineteenth of April, 1783, just eight years from the com- mencement of the war at Lexington, the close of hostilities was proclaimed, in general orders, to the army at Newburg. A general exchange of prisoners followed, and large numbers of Tories were obliged to leave the country, as they feared to remain after the protection of the British forces was with- drawn. They emigrated chiefly to Canada, Nova Scotia, and the West Indies. The final treaty having been signed, the army was dis- banded on the third of November, and the troops, with the exception of a small force, returned to their homes to enjoy their well- earned honors and the thanks of their grate- ful countrymen. On the twenty-fifth of November the British evacuated New York, which was at once occupied by a small force of Americans, under General Knox. In December Charleston was also evacuated by the British. On the second of December Washington issued a farewell address to the army, and on the fourth of that month took leave of the officers at New York. He then proceeded to Annapolis, where Congress was in ses- sion, and on the twenty-third of December, under circumstances of great solemnity, re- signed his commission to that body, and after receiving the thanks of Congress for the able and faithful manner in which he had dis- charged the task intrusted to him, retired to his home at Mount Vernon, which he had not visited for eight years, except for a few hours, while on his way to attack Cornwallis at York town. BOOK V From the Close of the Revolution to the ' Civil War CHAPTER XXXI The Adoption of the Constitution — Washington's Administration Unsettled Condition of the Country — Failure of the Articles of Confederation — Desire for Reform — Meeting of the Federal Convention at Philadelphia — The Constitution of the United States — Adoption of a Decimal Currency — The North- west Territory — Washington Elected President — His Journey to New York — Establishment of the New Government — The First Cabinet — Financial Measures — Removal of the Capital Agreed Upon — The Government at Philadelphia — The First Census — The Indians of the Northwest Conquered — Re-election of Washington — Division of Parties — The French Revolution — The United States Neutral — Citizen Genet — Efforts to Commit the United States to the French Alliance — Genet's Recall Demanded — The " Whiskey Insurrection " — Jay's Treaty with England — Opposition to It — Negotiations with Algiers — Political Disputes — Hostility to Washington — His Farewell Address — Its Effect Upon the Country — Election of John Adams to the Presidency — Admission of Vermont, Kentucky and Tennessee — Retirement of Washington — Results of His Administration. THE long war was over and inde- pendence had been achieved ; but the condition of the country was such as to excite the gravest ap- prehensions. The country was exhausted by the sacrifices and burdens of the war, and its debts amounted to the enormous sum of one hundred and seventy millions of dollars, a sum vastly out of proportion to its resources. Two-thirds of these debts had been contracted by Congress ; the re- mainder by the States. The articles of con- federation were found inadequate to the task of enforcing the authority of the general government, and the States treated the ordersof Congress with neglect. Commerce was sadly deranged for the want of a uniform system. The States entered into competition with each other for the trade of foreign nations, and articles which were required to pay 31 heavy duties in some of the States were admitted free of duty in others. Many of the States were unable to enforce the collec- tion of taxes within their own limits. The British merchants at the close of the war flooded the American markets with their manufactures at reduced prices. The result was that the domestic manufactures of the States were ruined ; the country was drained of its specie, and the merchants and people of the Union were involved in heavy debts. A general poverty ensued in the Eastern States, which gave rise to much discontent. In Massachusetts, in December, 1786, a body of a thousand men, under Daniel Shays, assembled at Worcester and com- pelled the Supreme Court to adjourn in order to prevent it from issuing writs for the collection of debts. The militia was called out and " Shay's Rebellion " was put down ; but it was evident that the sympathies of 481 482 FROM THE REVOLUTION TO THE CIVIL WAR. the people were largely with the insurgents. These troubles brought home to the whole country the necessity of a more perfect system of government, and measures were begun for bringing about the changes needed. In September, 1783, delegates from five of the States met at Annapolis to deliberate upon a plan for the improvement of com- merce and the revenue. They recommended the assembling of a convention to revise the articles of confederation ; and, accordingly, delegates from all the States met for this purpose at Philadelphia in May, 1787. Among the more prominent of these may be named Samuel Johnson, Roger Sherman and Oliver Ellsworth, of Connecticut ; Dun- ning Bedford and George Read, of Delaware; William Few, George Walton and Abraham Baldwin, of Georgia; Daniel Carroll, James McHenry and Luther Martin, of Maryland; Nathaniel Gorham, Caleb Strong, Elbridge Gerry and Rufus King, of Massachusetts; John Langdon and Nicholas Gilman, of New Hampshire ; Jonathan Dayton, William Livingston and William Patterson, of New Jersey ; John Lansing, Robert Yates and Alexander Hamilton, of New York ; Alex- ander Martin, Richard D. Spaight and Wil- liam R. Davie, of North Carolina ; Robert Morris, Gouverneur Morris, James Wilson and Benjamin Franklin, of Pennsylvania; John Rutledge, Pierce Butler, Charles Pinckney and Charles Cotesworth Pinckney, of South Carolina ; Edmund Randolph, George Mason, James Madison and George Washington, of Virginia. Patrick Henry was opposed to the general objects of the convention, and therefore declined any par- ticipation in its action. Mr. Jefferson was Minister to France, and not in the country at the time. Birth of the Constitution. George Washington, who was one of the delegates from Virginia, was unanimously chosen president of the convention. The sessions of this body lasted four months, and the convention, instead of revising the arti- cles of confederation, adopted an entirely new constitution.' Each article of this con- stitution was discussed with care and minute- ness, and with great feeling. The sessions of the convention were held with closed doors ; but its proceedings were so far from harmonious that there were several occa- sions when it seemed likely the convention would break up in confusion, and leave its work unfinished. At length, however, through the patriotism and forbearance of its members, the convention brought its work to a close, and presented the constitu- tion to Congress. It was submitted by that body to the several States for their approval. The State governments summoned con- ventions of their respective people, and sub- mitted the constitution to them for their acceptance or rejection. By the end of 1788 483 WASHINGTON'S RECEPTION AT TRENTON. 484 FROM THE REVOLUTION TO THE CIVIL WAR. that in apportioning their representation in it was ratified by eleven States, North Carolina did not ratify it until November, 1789; and Rhode Island held aloof from the Union until May, 1790. The right of these States to reject the constitution, and to continue their separate existence as inde- pendent States, was not questioned by any one. The new constitution was not entirely satisfactory to any party, and represented the sacrifices made by all to achieve the great end of a central government, strong enough to carry out the objects of the Union. It was a document of compromises, three of which were of especial importance. The first was a concession to the smaller States, which had feared the loss of their independence ; they were placed on the same footing as the larger States by being given an equal representation in the Senate. The second was a concession to the slave- holding States of the south, and guaranteed Congress three-fifths of the slaves were to be included with the white population. The third was a concession to Georgia and South Carolina, and granted them permission to continue the African slave-trade until 1808. The delegates from those States refused to sign the constitution except upon this con- dition. Decimal Currency. In the meantime Congress had taken a step of the highest importance in adopting the plan, presented by Mr. Jefferson, for a decimal currency. Until now the use of the English currency had been general in all the States. In August, 1786, our present sys- tem of dollars and cents was adopted by Congress, and a mint was established some- what later. The government was so poor, however, that it could only coin a small quantity of copper cents. The sessions of Congress were held at New York. In the session of 1787 a meas- ure was adopted, which had the most im- portant influence upon the subsequent his- tory of the country. The treaty of Paris fixed the Mississippi river as the western boundary of the United States. This river consequently became the western limit of Virginia, Connecticut, and Massachusetts. In 1784 Virginia ceded to the general gov- ernment of the United States her claim to the vast region owned by her beyond the Ohio. Massachusetts and Connecticut soon followed her example, and New York also ceded her western territory to the govern- ment. In July, 1787, Congress organized this vast region as the territory of the northwest. It was provided that slavery should never be permitted to exist in this territory, or in any of the States which might afterwards be formed out of it. This wise provision, which WASHINGTON'S ADMINISTRATION. 485 was the basis of the wonderful prosperity of this great region, was due to the foresight of Thomas Jefferson, The northwest being secured to freedom, emigration soon set in, and it began its great career of prosperity which has since known no slackening. Washington Elected President. It was provided by the constitution that when it should have been ratified by two- thirds of the States, it should go into opera- tion on the fourth of March, 1789. Eleven of the States having ratified the constitution, elections were held for President and Vice- President of the United States, and for mem- bers of Congress. New York was named as the seat of the new government. The fourth of March, 1789, was ushered in with a public demonstration at New York ; but a sufficient number of members of Congress to form a quorum for the transaction of busi- ness did not arrive until the thirtieth of March. On the sixth of April the electoral votes were counted, and it was found that George Washington had been unanimously chosen first President of the United States, and John Adams Vice-President. Charles Thompson, the oldest secretary of Congress, was sent to Mount Vernon to notify Washington of his election, and a mes- senger was despatched to Boston on a similar errand to Mr. Adams. Washington promptly signified his acceptance of the office, and, two days later, started for New York. It Avas his desire to travel as quietly and unos- tentatiously as possible, but the people of the States through which he passed would not permit him to do so. His journey was a constant ovation. Crowds greeted him at every town with the most enthusiastic demon- strations of affection and confidence ; trium- phal arches were erected ; his way was strewn with flowers by young girls ; and maidens and mothers greeted him with sonsfs com- posed in his honor. In consequence of these demonstrations his progress was so much retarded that he did not reach New York until the latter part of April. On the thirtieth of April Washington appeared on the balcony of Federal Hall, New York, on the site of which the United States Treasury now stands, and took the oath of office in the presence of the Senate and House of Representatives, and a large crowd of citizens assembled in the streets ^=€5. below. He then repaired to the Senate chamber, and there delivered an address to both houses of Congress. The organization of the government being now complete, Congress proceeded to arrange the executive department by the creation of the depart- ments of state, the treasury and war. Presi- dent Washington appointed Thomas Jeffer- son, secretary of state, Alexander Hamilton, secretary of the treasury, and General Henry Knox, secretary of war. John Jay was made 486 THE INAUGURATION OF WASHINGTON. WASHINGTON'S ADMINISTRATION. 487 chief justice of the United States, and Edmond Randolph, attorney-general. The new g-overnment found itself face to face with many difficulties, the principal of which was the payment of the national debt. This debt was in the form of notes of the government, or promises to pay for value received. These notes had been issued by the States as well as by Congress during the revolution, and had been given in payment for services rendered the general and State governments, and for supplies. In Janu- ary, 1790, Alexander Hamilton proposed to pay all these debts in full, and that the general government should assume the war debts of States. This plan met with considerable oppo- sition at first, but was at length adopted. It was also arranged that the revenue of the country should be divided as follows: As the control of commerce had passed into the hands of Congress the revenue S derived from the duties levied upon im- ported merchandise was to be applied to the uses of the general government. The proceeds of the direct taxes upon real estate and other property, which could be levied only by the respective States, were to be used for the expenses of those States. It had been for some time considered desirable to remove the seat of federal government to some point more central than New York, and which could be brought under the supreme control of Congress. In 1 790 it was resolved that the seat of govern- ment be fixed at Philadelphia for ten years, and at the end of that time be removed to a new city to be built on the banks of the Potomac. A federal district, ten miles square, was ob- tained by cession from Virginia and Mary- land, and was placed under the sole control of the United States. The foundations of a new city, named Washington, in honor of the " Father of his country," were laid on. the left bank of the Potomac, a short dis- tance below the falls of that river, and build- ings for the accommodation of the general government were begun and pushed forward as rapidly as possible. The general government was removed to Philadelphia in 179 1, and in December of that year the second Congress began its sessions in that city. The principal measure of this session was the establishment of the GEORGE WASHINGTON. Bank of the United States, in accordance with the recommendations of Alexander Hamilton. The bank was chartered for twenty years, and its capital was ten millions of dollars, of which the government took two millions and private individuals the re- mainder. The measure was carried in the face of considerable opposition in Congress, but was very beneficial to the government, as well as to the general business of the country. The notes of the bank were 488 FROM THE REVOLUTION TO THE CIVIL WAR. payable in gold and silver upon presentation at its counters. Commerce now began to show signs of a great revival from the stagnation and loss caused by the war. The duties levied upon foreign goods gave to domestic manufac- turers an opportunity to place themselves upon a firmer foundation. Very great im- provements were made in the character of American manufactures. In New England INDIAN CHILD IN CRADLE. the weaving of cotton and woolen goods was begun, in a feeble way it is true, but the foundation was laid of that great industry which has since been a constant and grow- ing source of wealth to that section. In 1790 the first census of the United States was taken, and showed the population to be 3,929,827 souls. The Indians of the northwest had been very troublesome for some time. The British agents in that region incited them to hostility against the United States, and urged them to claim the Ohio as their southern and eastern boundary. They com- mitted innumerable outrages along this river and almost put a stop to the trade upon its waters by attacking and plundering the flat- boats of the emigrants and traders which were constantly descending the river. The general government resolved to put a stop to their outrages, and General Harmer was sent against them in 1790, but was defeated with great loss. " Little Turtle " Defeats St. Clair. In 1 79 1 General St. Clair, the governor of the northwest territory, was placed in command of an expedition against the savages. He set out from Fort Washing- ton, now Cincinnati, about the middle of September, with a force of two thousand men, but near the headwaters of the Wabash was surprised and defeated by an Indian force under Little Turtle, a famous chief of the Miamis. The wreck of his army fled to Fort Washington, and the frontier was once more defenceless. President Washington now placed General Anthony Wayne in command of the forces destined to operate against the Indians. With his usual energy Wayne assembled his army at Fort Washington, and in the sum- mer of 1794 marched into the Indian country, laid it waste and defeated the Indian tribes in the battle of the Maumee on the twentieth of August. In the summer of 1795 the Indians, cowed by their defeat and alarmed by the withdrawal of the British from the frontier posts, met General Wayne at his camp on the Miami and entered into a treaty with the United States by which they ceded all the eastern and southern part of Ohio to the whites and withdrew farther westward. WASHINGTON'S ADMINISTRATION. 489 In the elections of 1792 Washington and Adams were chosen President and Vice- President of the United States for a second term of four years. The disputes which had been begun by the adoption of the constitu- tion had been continued during the first term of Washington's presidency, and had given rise to two political parties — the Federalists, or those who favor a strong national government, and who supported the administration, and the Anti-Federalists, who opposed the policy of the administration. Among the leaders of the Federalist party were Washington, Adams, Hamilton and Jay ; among the Anti-Federalist leaders were Jefferson, Madison and Monroe. Reign of Terror in France. The differences between Jefferson and Hamilton increased with time, and soon as- sumed the character of a personal hostility, a circumstance which was productive of great trouble to the president, since it prevented his cabinet from acting harmoniously. As the quarrel deepened, the Anti-Federalist party repudiated that title, and took the name of Republican, as it better expressed their principles. The political questions entered largely into the second election, and pre- vented Air. Adams from receiving the unani- mous vote which was given to Washington. Shortly after the commencement of Wash- ington's first term of office, the French revo- lution broke out, and drew upon France the attention of the whole world. The events of this great struggle were watched with the deepest interest in America, for the nation cherished the warmest sentiments of grati- tude to France for her aid in the revolution. The Republican party urgently favored an alliance with the French republic, but Washington and the greater part of his cabinet were resolved to maintain a strict neutrality as to all European quarrels. The excesses of the revolutionists shocked the public sentiment of America, and the events of the reign of terror cooled the zeal of many of the most ardent friends of the French republic. Still party feeling ran high upon the subject, and the disputes were yet very bitter when Mr. Edmond Charles Genet, or " Citizen Genet," as he was gen- erally styled, arrived in the United States, in 1793, as minister from the French republic. He brought the news that France had de- clared war with Great Britain. He was well ALEXANDER HAMILTON. received by the Republicans, who were anxious that the United States should become the ally of France, and thus engage in a new war with Great Britain. Washington and his cabinet were unmoved by this clamor, and a proclamation was issued declaring the neutrality of the United States in the war between Great Britain and France, and warning the American people to refrain from the commission of acts inconsistent W4th this neutrality. The firmness of the President in resistinsf the demand for an 490 FROM THE REVOLUTION TO THE CIVIL WAR. alliance with France saved the country from innumerable losses, perhaps from the des- truction of the work of the revolution. Genet, encouraged by the sympathy of the Republican party, was determined to embroil the United States with Great Britain to such an extent that they would be compelled to make common cause with France. He therefore began to fit out privateers from American ports against the commerce of England. He was warned by the govern- ment that he was transcending his privileges as a minister of a friendly power, but paid no attention to this rebuke. The Republican party now took a more active stand in favor of the French alliance, and its more ultra members assumed the name of Democrats, and others styled themselves Democratic Republicans. The determination of Presi- dent Washington not to interfere in the quarrels of Europe was vehemently assailed, and the newspapers of this party went so far as to denounce the President and his sup- porters as the enemies of France, and the friends and secret supporters of their old op- pressor, the king of England. Genet was greatly deceived by these clamors, which he mistook for the sentiment of the American people. He took a step fur- ther, and authorized the French consuls in the American ports to receive and sell ves- sels captured by French cruisers from the English, with whom the United States were at peace. He also contemplated raising a force in Georgia and the Carolinas for the purpose of seizing Florida, and another in Kentucky for the conquest of Louisiana, both of which regions were then held by Spain, a power friendly to the United States. The patience of the President having been exhausted by Genet's insolent conduct, W^ashington requested the French govern- ment to recall him, which it did in 1794, much to the astonishment of citizen Genet. M. Fauchet was appointed in his place* Genet did not return home, but became a citizen of the United States. Whiskey Tax Unpopular. The impunity with which Genet had braved the federal government gave rise to fears that it was not strong enough to enforce its authority. Advantage was taken of this feel- ing in an unexpected quarter. The fertile region of Western Pennsylvania, watered by by the Monongahela and its tributaries, had been settled by a hardy population, chiefly of Scotch- Irish Presbyterians, who had with great labor and amid constant exposure to the attacks of the Indians, redeemed the land from the wilderness, and covered it with thriving farms and orchards. Grain and apples and peaches were their staple products ; the grain was distilled into whiskey, and the fruits were made into brandies. WASHINGTON'S ADMINISTRATION. 491 One of Hamilton's favorite measures for the raising of a revenue was the imposition of an excise or duty upon whiskey. This tax was generally unpopular throughout the country, but especially so in the four western counties of Pennsylvania. The settlers of this region organized themselves in secret societies for the purpose of resisting this tax, and at length, in 1792, rose in rebellion against the government, refused to pay the tax, and drove off the excise officers. The best men in this section were engaged in the rebellion, and it was openly proposed to separate from Pennsylvania and form a new State. Nearly seven thousand armed men assembled, and declared their intention to resist the authority of the State and federal governments. England Threatens Our Commerce. Matters remained in this condition for about two years, and at length Washington, finding it necessary to employ force for the suppression of the revolt, sent a strong body of troops to compel the rebels to submit. Upon the appearance of the troops, the leaders of the movement fled, and the " Whiskey Insurrection " suddenly came to an end. This vigorous action of the federal govern- ment greatly added to its strength. The fidelity with which Washington sought to discharge his duty towards England, as a neutral, was but little appreciated by the government of that country, which con- ducted itself towards the United States in a manner that seemed likely to result in an. other war. By the treaty of Paris England had agreed to surrender the frontier posts held by her forces within the limits of the United States, These were still retained, and were made by the British agents so many centres for stirring up the Indians to acts of hostility against the Americans. Orders were issued to the British naval officers to seize and detain all vessels laden with French goods, or with provisions for any of the French colonies. As the Ameri- can ships were largely engaged in trade with France and her colonies, this order threat- ened the commerce of the States with ruin. The feeling of indignation against Eng- land, caused by these outrages, was increasing throughout the Union, and the country was rapidly drifting into a war with that king- dom. The interests of the United States M^Jc demanded peace with all the world, as the country was yet too weak and unsettled to endure another war with safety. This neces- sity was recognized by Washington and his advisers, and the constant aim of the Presi- dent was to avoid, as far as possible, all com- plications which might lead to war. The conduct of Great Britain could not be passed by, and if a settlement of the matter, con- sistent with the honor and interests of the republic could not be arranged, war was in- evitable. 492 FROM THE REVOLUTION TO THE CIVIL WAR. Anxious to exhaust all peaceful means of settlement, President Washington sent John Jay, the chief justice, to England to enter into negotiations with the British govern- ment for the settlement of all matters in dis- pute between the two countries. Mr. Jay was eminently qualified for the task, both by his remarkable abilities and his great and honorable services to the country since the outbreak of the revolution. He was received in England with great respect, and in the course of a few months concluded a treaty, which was submitted to the Senate of the United States for ratification. By the terms of this treaty Great Britain agreed to give up the western posts within two years, to grant to American vessels the privilege of trading with the West Indies upon certain condi- tions, and to admit American ships free of restrictions to the ports of Great Britain and the English East Indian possessions. On the other hand provision was made by the United States for the collection of debts due British merchants by American citizens. This treaty did not please any party entirely, not even Mr. Jay himself; but it was the best that could be obtained from Great Britain at the time, and as such was accepted by the administration, which threw all its influence in favor of its adoption. It met with very great opposition in the Senate and subjected the president to a great deal of adverse criticism throughout the country. One of the powerful advocates of the treaty was Fisher Ames, of Massachusetts, who did much by his resistless eloquence to insure the adoption of the measure. After a fortnight's debate in secret session the Senate advised the ratification of the treaty. The Treaty Secures Peace. The acceptance of this treaty, imperfect and unsatisfactory as it was, secured peace to the United States for a number of years at this most critical period of its history. In 1795 treaties were also negotiated with Spain, by which the boundaries between the United States and Louisiana and Florida were definitely settled. The navigation of the Mississippi was made free to both parties, and the Americans were granted the privi- lege of making New Orleans, for three years, the place of deposit for their trade. The commerce of the United States, which was increasing rapidly, was confined chiefly to the New England States. A lucra- tive trade with the countries of Europe bordering the Mediterranean had grown up, but was greatly interfered with by the Algerine pirates, who sallied out from their harbors on the African coast and captured many of the vessels engaged in this trade and sold the crews into slavery. The European powers had purchased exemption from these outrages by paying an annual tribute to the Dey of Algiers. The United WASHINGTON'S ADMINISTRATION. 493 States for the present thought it best to follow the universal custom, and ransomed the captive American sailors by the payment of nearly a million of dollars. At the same time the more sensible policy of establishinga navy for the protection of American com- merce was resolved upon, and in 1795 a bill was passed by Congress for the construction of six first-class frigates. This was the be- ginning of the United States navy. Mr. Jefferson had retired from the cabinet at the close of 1793, and after his with- drawal party quarrels ran higher than ever. The motives and con- duct of the President were denounced with great bitterness by his opponents, and he was subjected to consider- able annoyance by these attacks. He continued with firm- ness the course he had marked out for himself, trusting to time and the good sense of his country- men for his vindica- tion. In September, 1796, he issued a fare- well address to the people of the United States, in which he announced his purpose to retire from public hfe at the close of his second term, and delivered to his countrymen such counsels and admonitions as he deemed suited to their future guidance. It was the warn- ing of a father to his children engaged in a difficult and all-important undertak- ing. It had a most happy effect. It brought up the memory of the great and unselfish services of Washington, and enabled his countrymen to see him in his true light. The gratitude of the nation, which had been long obscured by party passions, burst forth in a mighty stream, and from every quarter came evidences of the affection and venera- tion of the American people for their great leader. Congress adopted a reply to the farewell address, expressing the highest con- fidence in the wisdom and integrity of Washington, and during the winter of SCENE IN THE MAMMOTH CAVE, KENTUCKY. 1796-97 nearly all the State legislatures adopted similar resolutions. At the elections held in the fall of 1796 the Federalists put forward John Adams as their candidate, while the Republicans sup- ported Thomas Jefferson. The contest was very bitter, and resulted in the election of Mr. Adams. Mr. Jefferson, receiving the next highest number of votes, was declared Vice President, in accordance with the law as it then stood. 494 FROM THE REVOLUTION TO THE CIVIL WAR. During the administration of President Washington three new States were admitted into the Union, making the whole number of States sixteen. They were Vermont, which was admitted on the fourth of March, 1 79 1, making the first new State under the constitution ; Kentucky, which was admitted of the presidency the government was new and untried, and its best friends doubted its abihty to exist long ; the finances were in confusion and the country was burdened with debt; the disputes with Great Britain threatened to involve the country in a new war ; and the authority of the general gov- WASHINGTON S HOME AT MOUNT VERNON. in 1792 ; and Tennessee, admitted on the first of June, 1796. At the close of his term of office, Wash- ington withdrew to his home at Mount Ver- non, to enjoy the repose he had so well earned, and which was so grateful to him. His administration had been eminently suc- cessful. When he entered upon the duties ernment was uncertain and scarcely recog- nized. When he left office the state of affairs was changed. The government had been severely tested and had been found equal to any demand made upon it ; the finances had been placed upon a safe and healthy footing, and the debt of the country had WASHINGTON'S ADMINISTRATION. 495 been adjusted to the satisfaction of all parties concerned in it. The disputes with England had been arranged, and the country, no longer threatened with war, was free to devote its energies to its improvement. Industry and commerce were growing rap- idly. The exports from the United States had risen from nineteen millions to over fifty- six millions of dollars, and the imports had increased in nearly the same proportion. The rule of non-interference in European quarrels, and of cultivating friendly relations with all the world, had become the settled policy of the republic, and its wisdom had been amply vindicated. The progress of the republic during the eight years of Wash- ington's administratioa was indeed gratify- ing, and gave promise of a brilliant future. CHAPTER XXXII The Administrations of John Adams and Thomas Jefferson Inauguration of John Adams — Aggressions of France Upon the United States — The American Commissioners Insulted by the French Government — The Alien and Sedition Laws — The United States Prepare for War with France — France Signifies Her Willingness to Treat — New Commissioners Appointed — Settlement of the Dispute — Hostilities at Sea — • Capture of the " Insurgente " and "Vengeance" — Death of Washington — Removal of the Capitol to Washington City — The Second Census — Inauguration of Thomas Jefferson — The President's Message — His First Measures — Ad- mission of Ohio — Louisiana Purchased by the United States — War with the Barbary Powers — Burning of the " Phila- delphia " — Re-election of Mr. Jefferson — Aaron Burr Kills Alexander Hamilton in a Duel — Burr's Subsequent Career — Fulton's Steamboat — Outrages of England and France Upon American Commerce — American Vessels Searched and American Seamen Impressed by England — Efforts to Settle These Questions — Affair of the " Chesa- peake" and "Leopard" — The Embargo — Results of This Measure — Losses of the Eastern States — Election of James Madison to the Presidency — Repeal of the Embargo — Retirement of Mr. Jefferson. ON the fourth of March, 1797, John Adams was inaugurated Presi- dent of the United States, and Thomas Jefferson took the oath of office as Vice President. Mr, Adams was in the sixty-second year of his age. and in the full vigor of health and intellect. He made no changes in the cabinet left by President Washington, and the policy of his adminis- tration corresponded throughout with that of his great predecessor. He came into office at a time when this policy was to be subjected to the severest test, and was to be triumph- antly vindicated by the trial. Mr. Adams began his official career with the declaration of his "determination to maintain peace and inviolate faith with all nations, and neutrality and impartiality with the belligerent powers of Europe." The relations of the United States with France had been of an unfriendly nature for some time. Jay's treaty had greatly offended the French government, and the insolent conduct of M. Adet, the French minister to the United States, had led to a suspension of diplomatic intercourse between the two 496 republics. The French Directory now pro- ceeded to manifest its disregard of the rights of America by ordering the seizure of all American vessels in its ports laden with English manufactured goods. At the same time the American minister to France, Charles C. Pinckney, was treated with such studied insult that he demanded his pass- ports and withdrew to Holland. Privateers were sent out from French ports, which cap- tured American merchantmen and treated their crews as prisoners of war. France also exerted her influence with Spain and Holland to induce them to treat the United States with hostility because of the alleged partiality of Jay's treaty with Great Britain. All this while there was a considerable party in the United States which was anxious for the conclusion of an alliance with France, and which either could not, or would not, see the deliberate purpose of that country to treat with the American republic only as a dependent. In May, 1797, President Adams called a special session of Congress and laid before it a statement of the relations with France. ADMINISTRATIONS OF ADAMS AND JEFFERSON. 497 The announcement of the insults received by the American minister at the hands of the Directory, and the increased aggressions upon American commerce, aroused a feeling of deep indignation throughout the country, and drew upon the partisans of France in America a considerable amount of deserved odium. In the hope that a peaceful and honorable settlement might yet be had, John Marshall and Eldridge Gerry, the former a federalist and the latter a republican, were appointed special commissioners, and were ordered to proceed to Paris and unite with Mr. Pinckney in the negotiation of a treaty which should not conflict with those existing with other nations, and which should place beyond question the right of the United States to maintain their neutrality. " Not One Cent for Tribute." Marshall and Gerry joined Pinckney in Paris in October, 1798, and made their busi- ness known to the French minister of foreign affairs, the famous Talleyrand. He at first refused to receive the American envoys in an official capacity, and afterwards employed unknown agents to communicate with them, in order that he might be free to disavow any engagement entered into with them. It soon transpired that the object of these secret in- terviews was to extort money from the com- missioners. They were given to understand that if they would pay Talleyrand a certain sum of money for the use of himself and his friends, and would pledge the United States to make a loan to France, negotiations would be begun without delay. The answer of the American commission- ers was well expressed in the indignant words of Pinckney : " Millions for defence, not one cent for tribute." Marshall and Pinckney were ordered to quit France at once, but Mr. Gerry was invited to remain and negotiate a 32 treaty. He was nevertheless unable to accom- plish anything. The correspondence between the commissioners and Talleyrand's agents was published in tha United States, and aroused such a storm of indignation that the French party disappeared. It never dared to make its appearance again. JOHN ADAMS. About thirty thousand French exiles were residing in the United States at this time, and it was believed by the government that some of these had acted as spies for the Directory, It was known that many had abused the hospitality extended to them by seeking to induce the people of the south and west to join them in an effort to wrest Louisiana and Florida from Spain, and by endeavoring to strengthen the opposition to the efforts of the government to discharge its duty of neutrality towards the European powers. In the spring of 1798, in order to remedy- this trouble. Congress passed the measures 498 FROM THE REVOLUTION TO THE CIVIL WAR. known as the " alien and sedition acts," by the first of which the President was em- powered to order out of the country " any foreigner whom he might beheve to be dan- gerous to the peace and safety of the United States." By the sedition act it was made a crime, with a very heavy penalty, for any one to " to write, utter, or publish " any " false, scandalous, and malicious writing " against "either House of the Congress of the United States or the President of the United States, JOHN MARSHALL. with intent to defame, or to bring them, or either of them, into contempt and disrepute." These acts met with great opposition through- out the country, and the latter especially was regarded as an effort on the part of the government to destroy the freedom of the press. The alien act was not executed, but a large number of foreigners left the country soon after its passage. Several pers*ons were pro- secuted under the sedition act for their severe criticisms of the government, and the result was invariably to increase the ranks of the Republican party, which steadfastly opposed the laws as unconstitutional and violative of the freedom of the people of the Union, In the summer of 1798 Mr. Marshall returned from France, and his report con- firmed the statements that had been made respecting the hostile intentions of the gov- ernment of that country. The President submitted to Congress a statement of the disputes between the two republics, and Congress, recognizing the danger of war, began to prepare for it. It was resolved to create a navy, and the three frigates just com- pleted were fitted for sea. A State of Defence. The President was authorized to have built, or to purchase or hire twelve ships of war of twenty guns each. An army was ordered to be raised, and the prominent points on the coast were to be placed in a state of defence. Washington was made commander-in-chief of the army, with the rank of Lieutenant-General. He accepted the position, and applied himself with energy to the task of preparing the country for defence. He gave a hearty support to the measures of the President, and used his great influence to secure for them a similar approval on the part of the people. In the winter of 1798-99 Congress appropriated a million of dollars to defray the expense of the military preparations, and authorized the construc- tion of six ships of war of seventy-four guns each, and six sloops of war of eighteen guns each. The energy and enthusiasm with which the Americans prepared for war opened the eyes of Talleyrand. He had not supposed they would fight, and now that he found they would, he was not willing to add to the difficulties of France by engaging in a new ADMINISTRATIONS OF ADAMS AND JEFFERSON. 499 war. He therefore signified in an informal manner to Mr. Van Murray, the United States minister in Holland, that the French government was willing to renew diplomatic intercourse with the United States. Mr. Adams, upon being informed of this, resolved to make one more effort to secure a peaceful settlement of the quarrel. A Council of Peace. He sent Oliver Ellsworth, Chief Justice of the United States ; William R. Davie and William Van Murray, minister to Holland, as commissioners to treat with the French republic for a settlement of all difficulties between the two countries. In taking this step he greatly offiended many of the leaders of his party, who insisted that overtures for peace should come from France. The most rational and probable solution of Mr. Adams' course, in the absence of direct proof, says the Hon. A. H. Stephens, " is that he acted under the urgent private advice of Washing- ton. Be that as it may, it proved to be one of the wisest and most beneficent deeds of his life." The commissioners were ordered by the president not to enter France unless they were assured they would be received in a " manner befitthig the commissioners of an independent nation." Upon reaching Paris the commissioners found that a great change had taken place in the affairs of France. A revolution had unseated the Directory, and Napoleon Bona- parte was at the head of the government as first consul. Commissioners were appointed to meet the American envoys, and negotia- tions were begun and carried forward with such success that on the thirtieth of Novem- ber, 1800, a treaty of peace was signed between the United States and France. In the meantime, though war was not actually declared, hostilities had begun. More than three hundred merchant vessels were licensed to carry arms for their defence. On the ninth of February, 1799, ^^^^ Ameri- can frigate " Constellation " captured the French frigate " LTnsurgcnte," of about equal force, after a severe engagement of an hour and a quarter, inflicting upon her a severe loss in killed and wounded. Somewhat later the "Constellation " encountered the French frigate "La Vengeance," of superior force, and in an engagement of about five hours' duration silenced her fire and inflicted upon her a loss of one hundred and fifty-six men in killed and wounded. The French vessel succeeded in making her escape. These successes were very gratifying to the Ameri- cans, as they showed what their navy could accomplish if given a fair trial. The news of the conclusion of peace put a stop to hostilities. The army was disbanded, but the navy was kept afloat and the coast defences were maintained. Before the arrival of the new treaty the country was called upon to mourn the loss of its most illustrious citizen, George Wash- ington. He took cold while riding over his estate at Mount Vernon, and was seized with a violent sore throat, from the effects of which he died on the fourteenth of Decem- ber, 1799, in the sixty-eighth year of his age. He was buried in his family vault at Mount Vernon, where his ashes still lie. Honors to the Dead Patriot. The highest honors were paid to his memory by Congress and by the various State governments, and in all parts of the Union a universal mourning was held for the Father of his Country. Not less sincere were the tributes paid in foreign lands to the memory of the illustrious dead. Upon the receipt of the sad news the flags of the Channel fleet of Great Britain were placed at half-mast by order of the Admiral Lord Bridport. Napoleon, then first consul of 500 FROM THE REVOLUTION TO THE CIVIL WAR. France, caused the standards of the French army to be draped in mourning for ten days and announced the news to the army in the orders of the day. The proudest tribute of all to the grandeur and purity of the charac- ter of Washington is the unceasing and ever increasing love and veneration with which session of Congress was opened in the un- finished capitol of Washington. The elections for President and Vice- President were held in the autumn of 1800. Mr. Adams was the Federalist candidate for the Presidency, and Charles Cotesworth Pinckney the candidate of that party for Washington's grave, mount vernon. his memory is cherished by his country- men. During the summer of the year 1800 the seat of the general government was removed from Philadelphia to the new federal city of Washington, in the District of Columbia. On the twenty-second of November the Vice-President. The Republican or Demo- cratic party nominated Thomas Jefferson for the Presidency, and Colonel Aaron Burr, of New York, for the Vice-Presidency. The alien and sedition laws had rendered the Federalist party so unpopular that the electors chosen at the polls failed to make a ADMINISTRATIONS OF ADAMS AND JEFFERSON. 501 choice, and the election was thrown upon the House of Representatives, according to the terms of the Constitution. On the seventeenth of February, 1801, after thirty-six ballots, the House elected Thomas Jefferson President, and Aaron Burr Vice-President, of the capitol, in the city of Washington, on the fourth of March, 180 1. He was in his fifty- eighth year, and had long been regarded as one of the most illustrious men in America. He was the author of the Declaration of In- dependence, had represented the country as THOMAS JEFFERSON. United States, for a term of four years, from and after the fourth of March, 1801. The second census of the United States, taken in 1800, showed the population of the country to be 5,319,762 souls. Thomas Jefferson, the third President of the United States, was inaugurated at the new minister to France, had served in the cabinet of General Washington as Secretary of State, and had filled the high office of Vice-Presi- dent during the administration of Mr. Adams. He was the founder of the Democratic party, and was regarded by it with an enthusiastic devotion which could see no flaw in his 502 FROM THE REVOLUTION TO THE CIVIL WAR. character. By the Federalists he was de- nounced with intense bitterness as a Jacobin, and an enemy of organized government. He was unquestionably a believer in the largest freedom possible to man, but he was too deeply versed in the lessons of statesman- ship, and was too pure a patriot to entertain for a moment the levelling principles with which his enemies charged him. Under him the government of the republic suffered no diminution of strength, but his administration was a gain to the country. Mr. Jefferson began his administration by seeking to undo as far as possible the evil AARON BURR. effects of the sedition act of 1798. A number of persons were in prison in consequence of sentences under this act at the time of his inauguration. These were at once pardoned by the President and released from prison. At the meeting of the seventh Congress, in December, 1801, President Jefferson, in pur- suance of an announcement made some time before, inaugurated the custom which has since prevailed of sending a written message to each House of Congress, giving his views on public affairs and the situation of the country. Previous to this the President had always met the two houses upon their assem- bling, and had addreseed them in person. A strong Democratic majority controlled this Congress, and gave a hearty support to the President. The obnoxious measures of the last admin- tration, such as the internal taxes, the taxes on stills, distilled spirits, refined sugars, car- riages, stamped paper, etc., were repealed. In accordance with a suggestion of the Presi- dent a period of naturalization was reduced from fourteen to five years. Measures were also set on foot for the redemption of the public debt, and it was provided that seven millions three hundred thousand dollars should be annually appropriated as a sinking fund for that purpose. Another act, of which the wisdom was not so apparent, was passed for the reduction of the army. Rapid Settlement of Ohio. During the interval which had elapsed since the orginzation of the Territory of the North- west, emigrants had b^en pouring into the southern and eastern part of it with great rapidity. In one year twenty thousand new settlers were added to the population of the Territory of Ohio. The population had now become so large that the eastern part of the northwest Territory applied for admission into the Union as a separate State. Its request was granted, and on the nineteenth of February it was admitted into the Union, as the State of Ohio, with a population of seventy thousand. In 1 80 1 France by a secret treaty received back from Spain the Territory of Louisiana. The French did not occupy the country, but left it under Spanish rule. In 1803 the Spanish governor of New Orleans, in viola- tion of the treaty of 1795, closed the port of New Orleans to American commerce. This act aroused the most intense indignation among the people along the tributaries of the Mississippi, who were thus cut of from ADMINISTRATIONS OF ADAMS AND JEFFERSON. 503 the sea, and it was with difficulty that they could be restrained from an attempt to take possession of Louisiana. Mr. Jefferson had long been anxious to obtain for the United States the country bordering the lower Mississippi, as he was convinced that the power holding the mouth of that river must of necessity control the great valley through which it flows. Accord- ingly, Robert R. Livingston, the American minister at Paris, was ordered to open nego- tiations with the French government for the purchase of Louisiana. Purchase of Louisiana. He found this an easier task than he had expected, for Napoleon, who was on the eve of a great European war, was much in need of money, and was by no means anxious to add to his troubles by being obliged to defend Louisiana. A bargain was soon con- cluded by which the United States became the possessors of the whole region of Louisiana, from the Mississippi to the Pacific, embracing over a million of square miles. The United States paid to France the sum of ^15,000,000 for this immense region, and guaranteed to the then inhabitants all the rights of American citizens. " This acces- sion of territory," said Napoleon, upon the completion of the purchase, " strengthens forever the power of the United States, and I havejust given to England a maritime rival that will sooner or later humble her pride." This purchase was of the highest import- ance. It about doubled the area of the United States, and placed the whole valley of the Mississippi within the territory of the republic. It was naturally a most popular act, and was approved by the entire nation, with the exception of a small number of the old Federalist leaders. Congress divided this great region into two territories — the Territory of Orleans, corresponding to the present State of Louisiana, and the District of Louisiana, comprising the remainder of the purchase. Mention has been made of the payment of tribute to the dey of Algiers by the United States during the administration of Wash- ington. Previous to 1801 the United States expended nearly two million dollars in pur- chasing exemption from capture for its mer- chant vessels in the Mediterranean. These payments were made to all the Barbary powers, Tunis, Tripoli, Algiers and Morocco. The tribute for 1800 was taken to Algiers by Captain William Bainbridge, in the frigate " George Washington." Nothing could be more distasteful to the gallant Bainbridge, but he had to obey orders. While thus engaged, the dey of Algiers told him to take the tribute of the dey to the Sultan at Con- stantinople, and to haul down his own flag 504 FROM THE REVOLUTION TO THE CIVIL WAR. and run up that of Algiers. This Bainbridge refused, whereupon the dey insolently said, castle guns in the harbor held Bainbridge at their mercy, he took the advice of the Amer- # NAPOLEON I. " You are my slaves ; for if you are not, why do you pay me tribute ? I have the ican consul and obeyed the orders of his master, the dey, but the captain expressed right to order you as I please." As the the hope that he might deliver the next 505 cers were held for ransom, but the seamen were reduced to slavery. On the fifth of February, 1804, Lieutenant Stephen Decatur, with a picked crew of seventy-six men, entered the harbor of Tripoli ADMINISTRATIONS OF ADAMS AND JEFFERSON tribute from the throats of his cannon. As the American republic lay at the other side of the Atlantic, and its ships of war were not often seen in the Mediterranean, the African pirates did not trouble themselves to comply with their agreements, and continued their outrages upon Amer- ican ships in spite of the tribute paid them. In 1 801 the bey of Tripoli, dissatisfied with the tribute paid him, declared war against the United States, and a number of American war ves- sels were sent to the Mediterranean to pro- tect the commerce of their country in that sea. In 1803 Com- modore Preble was sent to the Mediter- ranean with a fleet. The frigate "Philadel- phia" was stationed to blockade Tripoli, while Preble, with the remainder of the ves- sels, sought to punish the emperor of Mo- rocco by an attack on Tangiers. While thus engaged the " Phila- delphia " ran ashore in chasing an Algerine cruiser. In this help- less condition she was surrounded by Tripo- ^^^'^^^^ (afterward commodore) bainbridge and the dey of Algiers litan gunboats and captured after a fight which lasted the entire day. Captain Bain- bridge, her commander, and three hundred of her crew were made prisoners. The oflfi- m a small schooner named the " Intrepid." Placing his vessel alongside of the " Phila- delphia " by night, he boarded the frigate as she lay under the guns of the castle and the FROM THE REVOLUTION TO THE CIVIL WAR. 506 Tripolitan fleet, drove the Turkish crew into the sea, set fire to the frigate in every part, and retreated from the harbor without the loss of a man. During the year 1804 the American fleet repeatedly bombarded Tripoli, and did con- siderable damage to it. The war went on until the summer of 1805, when the bey of In the fall of 1804 Mr. Jefferson was elected president for a second term, but this time Colonel Burr was dropped by his party, who nominated and elected George Clinton, of New York, vice-president in his place. Burr had at last experienced the reward of his insincerity : both parties had come to distrust him. After his defeat for the vice- DUI.L BETWEEN BURR AND HAMILTON. Tripoli asked for peace, and a treaty was made by which the Tripolitan pirates sur- rendered their captives on payment of a ransom, and agreed to refrain from aggres- sions upon the commerce of the United States in future without payment of further tribute. For some years the American ves- sels were safe from the outrages of the Barbary pirates. presidency he had been nominated by his party as their candidate for governor of New York. He was warmly opposed by Alex- ander Hamilton, who was mainly instru- mental in bringing about his deteat. Burr never forgave Hamilton for his course in this election, and took advantage of the first opportunity to challenge him to a duel. They met at Weehawken, on the banks of ADMINISTRATIONS OF ADAMS AND JEFFERSON. 507 the Hudson, opposite New York, on the eleventh of July, 1804. Hamilton, who had accepted the challenge in opposition to his better judgment, and who had expressed his intention not to fire at Burr, was mortally wounded, and died within twenty-four hours. In him perished one of the brightest intellects and most ear- nest patriots of the republic. His loss was remaining years were passed in restless intrigue. In 1 805 he went west, and there undertook the organization of a military movement of some sort, which from the secrecy with which it was conducted, was generally regarded as treasonable and in- tended for his own aggrandizement. In 1806 he was arrested by the United States, and after a prolonged trial, during which he FULTON S FIRST STEAMBOAT. regarded as second only to that of Wash- ington, and the sad news of his death was received in all parts of the country with profound and unaffected sorrow. A feeling of deep and general indignation was aroused against Burr, who found it expedient to withdraw from New York and retire to Georgia until the excitement had subsided. The murder of Hamilton, for it was nothing else, closed Burr's political career. His defended himself with great ability, he was acquitted of the charge of treason. His sub- sequent career was obscure, and he died in 1836, friendless and alone. He was a man of great ability ; but he failed to put his great talents to an honest use. In the year 1807 a great change was made in the system of navigation by Robert Ful- ton, a native of Pennsylvania, who built and successfully navigated the first steamboat. 5o8 FROM THE REVOLUTION TO THE CIVIL WAR. He named it the " Clermont," and made the voyage from New York to Albany, a dis- tance of about one hundred and fifty miles, in thirty-six hours. From this time steam navigation rapidly superseded the old sys- tem of sailing vessels in the waters of the United states and exercised a powerful in- fluence in the development of the wealth and prosperity of the country. Since the beginning of the century France and England had been at war with each other, and their quarrels had drawn the whole European world into the struggle. The administration of Mr. Jefferson had continued the neutrality of its predecessors, but in a fit of mistaken economy it exhibited the greatest hostility to the navy, which had been reduced to the most inefficient state possible. The commerce of the Union had grown with remarkable rapidity, and the need of a navy for its protection was now greater than ever. The administration could not be brought to recognize this fact, however, and it regarded the navy as of no other use than to enforce the revenue laws in its home waters. Seizure of American Vessels. The general character of the European war had thrown the commerce of the old world into the hands of the few nations which were not engaged in the struggle. The United States obtained the largest share of this trade, but were not left long to enjoy it in peace. The efforts of Great Britain and France to injure each other had caused them to extend their attacks to neutral nations. The British government, by its " orders in council," declared all vessels engaged in conveying West India produce from the United States to Europe legal prizes. This measure was intended to cripple France, and at the same time to injure the United States, which had become too suc- cessful a commercial rival to England. A number of American vessels were seized and condemned upon this pretext. Great indig- nation was expressed throughout the United States, but the government did nothing to remedy the trouble. In May, 1806, Great Britain declared the European coast, from Brest to the mouth of the river Elbe, in a state of blockade, thus forbidding neutral vessels to trade with any port within these prescribed limits on pain of capture and con- fiscation. This high-handed measure was a " direct blow to the United States. Mutterings of V/ar, It was met on the part of France by an act equally unjustifiable. Napoleon issued his famous " Berlin decree," by which he declared the whole coast of Great Britain in a state of blockade, and forbade the intro- duction of English goods into France, and the admission into French ports of any neutral vessel that should first touch at an English port. In answer to this decree Great Britain forbade all trade with France by neutral nations. Napoleon thereupon issued his " Milan decree," confiscating not only the vessels and cargoes that should violate the " Berlin decree," but also such as submit to be searched by the English. Thus the commerce of the world was placed at the mercy of these two nations. The United States were the chief sufferers by these arbi- trary measures. Their ships were captured by both British and French cruisers, and their remonstrances produced no cessation of the outrages. It was not possible to do anything for the protection of the commerce of the country, as the mistaken policy of the administration had deprived it of an efficient navy. The whole Atlantic seaboard demanded a change in this respect, and petitions poured in upon Congress asking for the construction of more ADMINISTRATIONS OF ADAMS AND JEFFERSON. 509 vessels of war and for protection from the aggressions of the European powers. The only result of these petitions was a recom- mendation from the president to Congress to build more gunboats. It was not possi- ble to go to war with both England and France, and the American government was left to make a choice as to which power it would undertake to settle the question with. The popular feeling was stronger against England, which, being the most active power at sea, was the principal ag- gressor, and the events to be related finally turned the scale against England. Remonstrance Against British Outrages. The British government maintained the doctrine that no subject could expatriate himself or become a citizen of another coun- try. This was the opposite of the view held by the United States, which welcomed emi- grants from other countries, bestowed upon them the rights of citizenship, and in their new character of adopted citizens protected them. The commanders of the British men- of-war were accustomed to stop American vessels on the high seas and search them for deserters. Under this head they included all persons born within the dominions of Great Britain, whether naturalized American citizens or not. When found on American vessels these persons were removed by force and compelled to serve on board English ships of war. The British officers did not confine these impressments to " deserters," but seized and forced into their service great numbers of native-born Americans, who were thus torn from their homes and con- signed to a slavery which was bitter and cruel to them. The government of the United States addressed urgent remonstrances to that of Great Britain against these outrages, and finally, in the spring of 1806, sent William Pinckney as joint commissioner with James Monroe, then minister to England, for the purpose of negotiating a treaty which should put a stop to the acts complained of. The commissioners appointed by Great Britain expressed the desire of their country not to impress American seaman, and their willing- ness to redress as promptly as possible any mistake of the kind. They declined to relinquish the right to search for deserters. as it would be ruinous to the English navy. The truth is Great Britain treated her sea- men with such cruelty that they would have deserted by the thousand had they been assured of protection from arrest. The British commissioners declared that while their country would not relinquish the right of search and impressment, strict orders would be issued to their naval commanders to use the right with caution and moder- ation. The British government itself was sincerely desirous of conciliating the United Sio FROM THE REVOLUTION TO THE CIVIL WAR. States, but its naval commanders, tempted hy the weakness of the American navy, paid ■no attention to its orders and conducted themselves with haughty insolence towards American vessels, seizing and searching them, and forcing men from their decks with the same activity as before, and rarely miss- incr an occasion to insult the flag of the upon an act which threw the relations be- tween the two countries into a more hope- less state than ever. The United States frigate " Chesapeake," 38, under the com- mand of Commodore Barron, was about to sail for a European station. Strict orders were issued to her officers not to enlist any British subject, knowing him to be such ; but OFFICERS OF THE CHESAPEAKE SURRENDERING THEIR SWORDS. republic. Meanwhile the commissioners concluded a treaty for ten years between the United States and Great Britain. It was on the whole more advantageous than Jay's treaty, but the president was not satisfied with it, and assumed the responsibility of rejecting it, in the spring of 1807, without submitting it to the Senate. A British naval commander now ventured it was said that four of her crew were desert- ers from the British frigate " Melampus." Several British war vessels were lying in the Chesapeake Bay, and one of these, the " Leopard," a fifty-gun frigate, put to sea a few hours before the " Chesapeake " sailed. The latter vessel sailed before she was fully ready for sea, and the work of getting the ship in order was still in progress, when she ADMINISTRATIONS OF ADAMS AND JEFFERSON. 511 was hailed off the capes by the " Leopard," under the pretence of sending despatches to Europe. A lieutenant of the British frigate came on board and demanded the surrender of the four men we have mentioned. Commodore Barron refused the demand on the ground that there were no such men on board. The lieutenant then returned to his ship, and the ■" Leopard " opened fire upon the " Chesa- peake," and killed three of her men and wounded eighteen others. The " Chesa- peake " was utterly unprepared for resist- ance, and Barron struck his colors after a single gun had been fired. The four men were taken from the " Chesapeake," the " Leopard" sailed for Halifax,and the Amer- ican frigate returned to Norfolk. The Embargo Act. The news of this outrage excited the pro- foundest indignation throughout the coun- try. On the second of July, 1807, the presi- dent issued a proclamation ordering all British vessels of war to depart from Ameri- can waters, and the people were warned against holding any intercourse with them. A special session of Congress was called, and the American minister at Londan was ordered to demand satisfaction for the out- rage. The British government had received infor- mation of the affair before the arrival of the American demand. The action of the com- mander of the "Leopard" was disavowed, and a special messenger was sent to the United States to arrange the matter. Great Britain disclaimed the right to search vessels of war, and the excitement was quieted for a time. In Deceember, 1806, as the outrages upon American commerce were continued. Con- gress, at the recommendation of the presi- dent, passed the " Embargo Act," by which all merchant vessels of the United States were prevented from leaving the ports of this country. This measure entirely put an end to the intercourse between the United States and the European nations. James Madison Elected President. In the election of 1808 Mr. Jefferson fol- lowing the example of Washington, declined to be a candidate for the third term, and the Democratic or administration party support- ed James Madison for the Presidency, and George Clinton for the Vice-Presidency. They were elected by large majorities ; but the effect of the embargo was seen in the casting of the electoral votes of the five New England States against the administration. The disaffection of the New England States induced Mr. Jefferson, just before the expira- tion of his term of office, to recommend to Congress the repeal of the embargo act. His opinion was unchanged as to the propriety of the embargo, but he recommended its repeal as a measure of peace and concilia- tion. The law was repealed on the first of March, 1809, and in the same month Con- gress passed an act prohibiting trade with France and England. At the close of his term of office Mr. Jefferson withdrew from public life, and retired to his home at Montecello, in Virginia. The wisdom and success of the general policy of his administration had far outweighed his mistakes, and he retired from ofifice with undiminished popularity, and with the res- pect and confidence of the nation. Indeed his Dopularity was greater at the close of his administration than at the beginning — a rare and gratifying reward to a public servant. His great services in the revolution, his draft of the Declaration of Independence, his acquisition of Louisiana, and the purity and grandeur of his character, placed him, in the public estimation, next to Washington. CHAPTER XXXIII The Administration of James Madison — The Second War with England Inauguration of Mr. Madison — Negotiations witti Mr. Erskine — Their Failure — Seizure of American Vessels in France — Sufferings of American Ship-Owners — Great Britain Stations Her Ships of War Off American Ports — Affair of the " President " and " Little Belt " — Trouble with the Northwestern Indians — Tecumseh — Battle of Tippecanoe — Meet- ing of the Twelfth Congress — Measures for Defence — Admission of Louisiana Into the Union — Death of George Clinton — The British Ultimatum — War Declared Against Great Britain — Opposition to the War — The British Offer of Settlement Rejected — The War for " Free Trade and the Sailors' Rights" — Mr. Madison Re-elected — Campaign of 1812 — Preparations for the Invasion of Canada — General Hull Surrenders Detroit to the British — Loss or the North- western Frontier — Failure of the Attack on Queenstown — Exploits of the Navy — Capture of the " Guerri^re " by the "Constitution" — The Privateers — Russia Offers to Mediate Between the United States and England — Financial Affairs — Harrison's Campaign — Massacre at the River Raisin — Defence of Forts Meigs and Stephenson — Perry's Vic- tory on Lake Erie — Battle of the Thames — Death of Tecumseh — Recovery of the Northwest — Capture of York — British Attack on Sackett's Harbor Repulsed — Removal of General Dearborn — Failure of the Campaign on the Lower Lakes — The Creek War — Jackson's Victories — Naval Affairs — The British Outrages in Chesapeake Bay — Negoti- ations for Peace — Capture of Fort Erie — Battles of Chippewa and Lundy's Lane — Siege of Fort Erie — Successes of the Americans — Advance of Prevost — Battle of Plattsburg — Macdonough's Victory on Lake Champlain — Battle of Bladensbm-g — Capture of Washington — Destruction of the Public Buildings by the British — Attack on Baltimore — Death of General Ross — "The Star Spangled Banner" — The British Attack on the New England Coast — Oppo- sition of New England to the War — The Hartford Convention — The British in Florida — General Jackson Expels Them— Jackson at New Orleans — Arrival of the British Expedition Oft the Coast — Vigorous Measures of Jackson — Battle of New Orleans — Defeat of the British — Naval Affairs — The Treaty of Peace — The Barbary Powers Humbled — The Tariff — The Bank of the United States — Admission of Indiana — James Monroe Elected President. JAMES MADISON, the fourth presi- dent of the United States, was inaug- urated at Washington on the fourth of March, 1809. He was in the fifty- eighth year of his age, and had long been one of the most prominent men in the Union. He had borne a distinguished part in the convention of 1787, and was the author of the Virginia resolutions of 1786, which brought about the assembling of this convention. He had entered the convention as one of the most prominent leaders of the national party, which favored the consolida- tion of the States into one distinct and supreme nation, and had acted with Ran- dolph, Hamilton, Wilson, Morris, and King, in seeking to bring about such a result. When it was found impossible to carry out 512 this plan Mr. Madison gave his cordial sup- port to the system which was finally adopted by the convention ; and while the constitu- tion was under discussion by the States, he united with Hamilton and Jay in earnestly recommending the adoption of the constitu- tion by the States, in a series of able articles,, to which the general title of the " Federalist "^ was given. After the organization of the government Mr. Madison was a member of the House of Representatives, and was regarded as one of the leaders of the Federalist party, and gave to Hamilton his cordial support in the finance measures of that minister. Towards the close of Washington's administration, however, Mr. Madison's political views underwent a sreat change. He was a near ADMINISTRATION OF JAMES MADISON. neighbor and warm friend of Mr. Jefferson, and was greatly influenced by the opinions and the strong personal character of that great statesman. As the political contro- versies of the times deepened he became more and more inclined to- wards the Republican or " Strict Construc- tion " party, and in Mr. Adams' adminis- tration took his posi- tion as one of the leaders of that party. At the time of his election to the Presi- dency, Mr. Jefferson having withdrawn from public life, Mr. Madison was the re- cognized leader of the Democratic party, as the Republican party had come to be called. In 1799 his famous report upon the Vir- ginia resolutions of 1798 stamped him as one of the first states- men in America, and this report has always been regarded by suc- ceeding generations as the most masterly exposition of the true principles of the con- stitution ever penned. During the whole of Mr. Jefferson's admi- nistration Mr. Madison served as secretary of state, and not only added to his great fame by his eminent services in that capacity, but prepared himself for the difficult duties of the presidency. Mr. Madison had opposed the embaro-o 33 "^ ' 513 while sustaining the general foreign policy of Mr. Jefferson, but was in favor of the non- intercourse act, which forbade the tountry to trade with England and France. This act contained a clause which provided that JAMES MADISON. it should cease to apply to either or both of them as soon as they should repeal their " decrees," or " orders in council," affecting the commerce of the United States. Mr. Erskine, the British minister to the United States, a man of noble and generous 514 FROM THE REVOLUTION TO THE CIVIL WAR. character, was anxious that the differences between the two countries should be settled amicably, and he entered heartily into nego- tiations with the American government for this purpose. In accordance with the in- structions he had received from England, he believed himself authorized to inform the American government that the " orders in council " of Great Britain would be revoked by that government, as far as they applied to the commerce of the United States, and to offer " a suitable provision for the widows and orphans of those who were killed on board the ' Chesapeake.' " Upon these assurances the President, on the nineteenth of April, 1810, issued a proclamation sus- pending the non-intercourse act, as to Eng- land, after the tenth of June following. Seizure of American Ships. The news was received with joy all over the country, and in the course of a few weeks over one thousand vessels sailed from the United States, laden with American pro- ducts, for foreign ports. They had hardly gotten to sea when the President was in- formed by the British government that Mr. Erskine had exceeded his powers in promis- ing the withdrawal of the " orders in coun- cil." The President immediately issued a second proclamation, withdrawing his first, and matters resumed their old footing. Mr. Erskine was recalled, and a Mr. Jackson was appointed in his place. The failure of the negotiations with Erskine had greatly morti- fied not only the President and his cabinet, but the whole nation, and Mr. Jackson was coldly received. That gentleman adopted a tone and style in his correspondence with the secretary of state, which were so offensive that the President refused to hold communi- cation with him, and demanded his recall. All the diplomatic intercourse between the two countries thus came to an end. The outrages upon American commerce continued. Danish privateers almost drove the American merchantmen from the Baltic. The American ship-owners asked permission to arm their vessels for their own defence, as the government had not a navy sufficient to protect them ; but their petition was refused by Congress, on the ground that such a state of affairs would be equivalent to war. The sentiment of the people of the country was rapidly settling in favor of war, and they could see little difference between the exist- ing state of affairs and open hostilities. France was equally guilty with Great Britain. In the spring of 18 10 Napoleon issued a decree by which any American vessel enter- ing any port of France, or of any country under French control, was made liable to seizure and confiscation. The decree was held back for six weeks after its date, with the deliberate design of involving as many American ships as possible in the ruin intended for them. The first intimation given to the United States of its existence was the seizure of one hundred and thirty-two Amer- ican ships in the French ports. They were shortly afterwards sold with their cagoes, and added the sum of eight millions of dol- lars to the French treasury. The government of the United States remonstrated against this high-handed outrage, but to no purpose, until Napoleon's want of money induced him to adopt a more honest course. Great Britain's Unla^vful Acts. About the middle of the year 18 10 the American minister at Paris was informed that the Berlin and Milan decrees were re- voked, and would cease to have effect after the first of November of that year. In accord- ance with this information the President, on the first of November, 18 10, issued a procla- mation suspending the non-intercourse act with respect to France, and announcing that ADMINISTRATION OF JAMES MADISON. 515 the provisions of the act would be continued with respect to Great Britain unless her " orders in council " should be revoked •within three months from that date. The President also called the attention of the British government to the repeal of the French decrees, and as the " orders in council " were based upon these decrees, urged their repeal. Great Britain replied that the evidence of the revocation of the Berlin and Milan decrees was insufficient, and that the non-intercourse acts of Congress and the President's proclamation were partial and unjust. This answer was regarded in the United States as evidence of Great Britain's deliberate intention to continue her outrages upon this country, and very greatly increased the popular desire for war. England persisted in her determination to enforce her " orders in council," and even went to the inexcusable length of stationing her war vessels off the principal harbors of the United States for the purpose of intercepting our merchant- men,, and injuring our commerce. Trouble with the Indians. While matters were in this unsettled con- dition, the American frigate '* President," on the evening of the sixteenth of May, 181 1, encountered a strange vessel off the mouth of the Delaware. As the dusk of the evening was too deep for Commodore Rodgers to distinguish the stranger's nationality, he hailed her, and was insolently answered by a gun from her. He replied with a broad- side, and after an action of twenty minutes the stranger was disabled. Rodgers then hailed again, and was answered that the dis- abled vessel was the British sloop of war " Little Belt." She was greatly damaged, and had thirty-two of her crew killed and wound- ed. The " President " was scarcely injured, and had but one man slightly wounded. A different statement of the affair was ren- dered to his government by each of the com- manding officers, and was accepted by each government. In this conflict of testimony, the matter was suffered to pass by. The news of the prompt chastisement of the insolence of the British commander was received with delight in the United States, and the affair was generally regarded as, in some measure, an atonement for the disgrace of the sur- render of the " Chesapeake " to the " Leopard." Furious Attack by the Savages. The Indians of the northwest were becom- ing very troublesome, and their aggressions were attributed to the instigation of the British in Canada. Tecumseh, a Shawnee chief of unusual abilities, attempted to unite the Indians of the continent in a grand effort against the Americans, and for this purpose passed from tribe to tribe, from the great lakes to the Gulf of Mexico, and urged them to take up the hatchet. He was assisted by his twin brother, Elskwatawa, generally called " the Prophet," who appealed to the superstitious fears of the savages by his jugglery. The federal government determined to strike a blow at the savages before their plans for union could be brought to a suc- cessful issue. In the autumn of 18 1 1, Major- General William Henry Harrison, then gov- ernor of Indiana Territory, was sent to operate against the tribes on the Wabash. He took with him a body of Kentucky and Indiana militia, and one regiment of regular troops. On the sixth of November he arrived at the junction of the Tippecanoe and Wabash rivers near the town of the Prophet, the brother of Tecumseh. The Prophet sent several of the principal Indian chiefs to meet Harrison with offers of submission. They informed him that the Prophet would come into camp the next 5i6 FROM THE REVOLUTION TO THE CIVIL WAR. day, and make a treaty with him. Harrison suspected that the purpose of the Indians was simply to gain time, and that they would probably seek to surprise him during the night, and accordingly caused his men to bivouac on their arms that night. His pre- cautions were well taken. About four o'clock on the morning of November seventh the savages made a furious attack on the Ameri- can camp. They were promptly received, In view of the threate^iing condition of affairs the President, by his proclamation, convened the twelfth Congress in session a month earlier than usual, and that body met on the fourth of November, i8ii. It was remarkable, as was also its successor, the thirteenth Congress, for the number of its members who afterwards took their places among the great men of the republic. The public men of the revolutionary period were A PIONEER hero's FIGHT WITH THE SAVAGES. and after a severe conflict of several hours were put to flight. Tecumseh was not pres- ent in this engagement. General Harrison followed up his victory by destroying the Prophet's town, and building some forts for the protection of the country. The battle of Tippecanoe quieted the Indians of the northwest for a while, but greatly increased the desire of the people of that region for war with England. dropping out of political life, and new men, with new ideas, were taking their places in the councils of the nation. Among the new members of Congress were Henry Clay, a native of Virginia, but a representative from Kentucky ; John C. Cal- houn, of South Carolina ; John Randolph, of Virginia; Felix Grundy, of Tennessee; Josiah Quincy, of Massachusetts, and Lang- don Cheeves and William Lowndes, of South. ADMINISTRATION OF JAMES MADISON. 517 Carolina. There was a large administration majority in both Houses, and the prevailing sentiment of Congress was in favor of war with England. In this respect Congress fairly reflected the feeling of the country. Under the influence of this feeling, Con- l^ress during this session voted to increase the regular army to thirty-five thousand men, and authorized the President to accept the services of fifty thousand volunteers, and to call out the militia whenever occasion might require. The vessels of the navy were ordered to be fitted for sea, and new ships were to be constructed. There was need for these measures, as the army at the time consisted of but three thousand men, and the navy of less than twenty frigates and sloops of war in commission, and about one hundred and fifty gunboats for harbor defence. The third census, taken in 18 10, showed the population of the country to be 7,239,903. War Declared Against Great Britain. During this winter the government de- tected and laid before Congress an eflbrt of Great Britain to produce disaffection in the New England States, with a view to secure their withdrawal from the Union. The agent of this plot was one John Henry. The committee appointed by Congress to investigate the matter reported that " the transaction disclosed by the President's mes- sage presents to the mind of the committee conclusive evidence that the British govern- ment, at a period of peace, and during the most friendly professions, have been delib- erately and perfidiously pursuing measures to divide these States and to involve our citizens in all the guilt of treason and the horrors of civil war." Amid these troubles the State of Louisiana was admitted into the Union on the eighth of April, 1 81 2. Shortly afterwards the por- tion of the Louisiana purchase lying outside of the limits of the State of Louisiana was organized into the Territory of Missouri. On the twentieth of April, 1805, George Clinton, the Vice-President of the United States, died at Washington, at the age of seventy-three. His place was filled by William H. Crawford, of Georgia, the presi- dent /ri? tempore of the Senate. On the thirtieth of May, 181 2, the British minister at Washington delivered to the government of the United States the final reply of his government to the demands of this country in the questions at issue between them. This uldmaUim was submitted to Congress by the President on the first of June, accompanied by a message in which he recapitulated the wrongs inflicted by Great Britain upon this country, her violations of the rights of neutrals, her impressment of American seamen, her seizures of American ships and her refusal to enter into any equit- able arrangement for the settlement of these questions. The determination of Great 5i8 FROM THE REVOLUTION TO THE CIVIL WAR. Britain to drive American commerce from the seas was evident, and the question was submitted to Congress whether the United States should continue to submit to these outrages or should resort to war to protect their rights. Afer a debate of several days an act declaring war against Great Britain was passed by Congress and was approved by the President on the eighteenth of June, 1812. On the nineteenth the President issued a proclamation declaring that war existed between the United States and Great Britain and her dependencies. Congress authorized the President to enlist twenty-five thousand men for the regular army, to raise a force of fifty thousand volunteers, and to call out one hundred thousand militia for garrison duty. General Henry Dearborn, of Massachusetts, was appointed to the chief command of the army. Opposition to the War. The war measures of Congress were not passed without considerable opposition. A large party, composed of some of the ablest and best men in that party, was opposed to the war, and resented the effort to go to war with England alone. They claimed that France had given as good cause for war, but that nothing was said of punishing her. This was true, but this party lost sight of the fact that the United States could not go to war with both powers, and were compelled to direct their efforts against the principal offender, which was clearly England. The war was regarded as an administra- tion measure, and though it was sustained by a large majority of the American people, there was still a strong and respectable party especially in the New England States, which opposed it, and which claimed that all peaceful means of settlement had not yet been exhausted. John Randolph, of Vir- ginia, opposed the declaration of war in a speech in the House of Representatives re- markable for its boldness and vigor, and declared that he had no hesitation in saying that he should prefer a contest with France to one with England. Soon after the declaration of war England made an effort to settle the controversy with the United States by negotiation. In Sep- tember, 181 2, Admiral Warren, command- ing the British fleet at Halifax, addressed a letter to Mr. Monroe, the secretary of state, informing him that he was authorized by his government to enter into negotiations for a cessation of hostilities upon a basis of revo- cation of the " orders in council." The Cause of Hostilities. Mr. Monroe replied that the President was willing to enter into an armistice provided Admiral Warren had power and was willing to include in the negotiations measures for the discontinuance of the practices of seizing and searching American vessels and impress- ing American sailors from their decks, as experience had shown that no peace be- tween the two countries could be lasting which did not include a settlement of these questions. As Admiral Warren had na authority to enter into these questions, the President declined to proceed further, and the effort at negotiations came to an end. It has been held by many that the rejection by the President of the British overture was a grave error. John Randolph thought that all the ques- tions at issue, save the right of a British sub- ject to expatriate himself and receive Amer- ican protection, could be settled by negoti- ation. That point he did not believe Eng- land would ever concede. His opinion was to some extent vindicated by the uncondi- tional revocation of the French decrees, and the immediate repeal of the British " orders ADMINISTRATION OF JAMES MADISON. 519 in council " upon the receipt of the news of this revocation. These measures were repealed within a month after the declaration of war by the United States. The only cause of the war remaining unsettled was the im- pressment question. The war thus became a struggle for the personal freedom of Amer- ican sailors ; and in a better cause no nation ever drew the sword. Plan of Carrying On the War. The weakness of the American navy made it impossible for this country to attempt any distant enterprise against Great Britain, and it was not believed by even the most enthu- siastic Americans that we could contend with her upon terms of equality at sea. The only means by which she could be crippled by this country was by the invasion and conquest of Canada, and to this end the efforts of the United States were directed during the war. It was also believed that the commerce of England could be seriously injured by the efforts of American privateers, and from the commencement of hostilities great activity was displayed in getting vessels of this class to sea. In the autumn of 18 12 Mr. Madison was reelected to the presidency by a large ma- jority. Elbridge Gerry, of Connecticut, was chosen Vice-President. Mr. Madison entered upon his second term on the fourth of March, 1 813, some months after the war had begun. At the outset of the war the American forces were stationed along the Canadian frontier as follows : General Dearborn, the commander-in-chief, held the right, or east- ern part of the line ; the centre was com- manded by General Stephen Van Rens- selaer; and the left was held by General William Hull, then governor ot Michigan Territory. The forces under these com- manders were to cooperate with each other in their movements, and were to converge , upon Montreal as the objective point of the campaign. Early in July General Hull, who had seen service in the war of the revolution, col- lected a force of about two thousand men at Detroit. His position was very much exposed, Detroit being at that time sen arated from tiic other settlements by about two hundred miles of unbroken forest. He urged upon the government to increase his force to three thousand men, and to secure the command of Lake Erie before the British STEPHEN VAN RENSSELAER. should obtain possession of it. His requests could not be complied with, and he was obliged to depend upon the force at Detroit. Immediately upon the declaration of war the British commanders in Canada displayed great activity, seizing the most important points along the frontier. In less than a month Fort Mackinaw and other points were in their possession, and Hull's position at Detroit was surrounded and his communi- cations with the States cut off. Hull there- upon fortified his position, and endeavored, but without success, to opeii communication 520 FROM THE REVOLUTION TO THE CIVIL WAR. with the country in his rear. In the mean- time a strong British force assembled at Fort Maiden, in Canada, opposite Detroit, under the command of General Brock, the governor of Upper Canada ; and the British agents set to work to arouse the Indians of the northwest against the Americans. In these efforts they were successful. lines they were astounded to see a white flag flying from them. An officer rode up to inquire the cause. The flag was the signal for a parley. Negotiations were begun, and later in the day Detroit, with its garrison and stores, and the whole of Michigan ter- ritory, was surrendered to the British by General Hull. The American troops were MASSACRE BY INDIANS AT FORT DEARBORN. Brock erected batteries on the Canadian side of the river, in a position to command Detroit, and demanded of Hull the surrender of that place. The demand being refused. Brock crossed his forces to the American shore, about three miles below the position occupied by General Hull, on the sixteenth of August, and advanced to attack him. As the British army drew near the American overcome with astonishment and mortifica- tion at this shameful surrender; for the force of the enemy, to whom they were betrayed by their commander, consisted of but seven hundred British and Canadians, and six hundred Indians. By the surrender of Detroit the whole northwestern frontier was exposed to the British and their Indian allies. Great Britain, COMMODORE PERRY AT THE BATTLE ON LAKE ERIE. ADMINISTRATION OF JAMES MADISON. 521 unmindful of the shame she had incurred by her employment of the savages during the revolution, did not hesitate once more to devote the American frontier to the horrors of a savage war. The west was greatly alarmed, and ten thousand volunteers offered their services to the government for the defence of the frontier. They were accepted, and were placed under the command of Gen- eral Harrison, who was appointed to succeed Hull. General Hull Guilty of Cowardice. Two years later, after being exchanged, General Hull was brought to trial by a court- martial for the surrender of Detroit and his army. He was found guilty of cowardice and neglect of duty, and was sentenced to be shot. He was pardoned by the President in consideration of his services during the revolution. When Detroit surrendered, Fort Dearborn stood on the site of the city of Chicago, and was occupied by Captain Nathan Heald and fifty regulars. Receiving orders from Gen- Hull to evacuate the fort and join him at Detroit, he attempted to obey, though warned by several scouts and friendly Indians that it was certain death to make the attempt. Afraid of treachery on the part of the large number of Indians around the fort, Captain Heald destroyed during the night the gun- powder, firearms and liquor which he had promised them. The exasperated savages waited till he was well on his way with the fifty soldiers and several families, and then attacked him. The women fought as bravely as the men. Twenty-six of the regular troops, all the militia, and a number of the men and women were killed. One of the savages leaped into a wagon containing twelve little ones and tomahawked them all. The next day Fort Dearborn was burned to the "-round. This was a sorry beginning for the war, and was followed by another disaster. Gen- eral Van Rensselaer, the commander of the centre of the American line, had collected a force, principally New York militia, at Lewis- ton, on the Niagara river. At Queenstown, on the opposite side of the river, General Brock had stationed himself wuth a British force. On the thirteenth of October General Van Rensselaer crossed a force, under Col- onel Van Rensselaer, and attacked the British fort and captured it. General Brock now arrived with a force of six hundred men, and endeavored to regain the fort, but was defeated and killed. General Van "Rensselaer hastened back to the American side to bring over more troops, but his men refused to obey his orders, alleging that they could not be ordered out of their own State without their consent. The British were heavily reinforced, and the Americans were attacked and defeated ; all who had crossed to the Canada side being killed or captured. Brilliant Successes of the Navy. Among the prisoners was Lieutenant- Colonel Winfield Scott, afterwards com- mander-in-chief of the American army, then a young man, who had crossed over as a volunteer to aid the force on the Canada side. Utterly disgusted with the conduct of his troops, General Van Rensselaer resigned his command after the battle of Queenstown. General Smyth, of Virginia, was appointed to succeed him. He made one or two efforts to enter Canada, but being each time pre- vented by his council of war, resigned his command. Thus closed the year 1812, and the first campaign of the war. Its results were dis- astrous and disheartening. The attempts to invade Canada had ended with the surrender of Detroit and the defeat at Queenstown. A large part of the frontier was lost, and over 522 FROM THE REVOLUTION TO THE CIVIL WAR. twenty-five hundred men had been captured by the enemy. These failures had aroused the discontent of a considerable portion of the people of the Union, and the opposition of the New England States to the war was greatly increased. Matters would have seemed hopeless had not the navy, which had been the most neglected branch of the they would certainly be captured by the British cruisers. The officers of the navy were indignant at these insinuations, and as soon as the news of the declaration of war was received at New York, several of the vessels of war in that port put to sea at once to avoid the orders which their com- manders feared were on the way to detain CAPTURE OF THE public service, redeemed the national honor by a series of brilliant successes. It was the intention of the government at the outset of the war to retain the vessels of the navy in the ports of the country to assist in the defence of \\iq harbors of the United States. The fear was openly expressed that if the^e ve^s^^ls should venture to put to sea guerriere" by th]^ "constitution. them in port, and also for the purpose of making a dash at the Jamaica fleet, which was on its way to England. They followed this fleet to the entrance to the British chan- nel, but without overtaking it. A British squadron sailed from Halifax to cruise off the port of New York. The Amer- ican frigate "Constitution," Captain Hull, ADMINISTRATION OF JAMES MADISON. 523 while endeavoring to enter New York har- bor, fell ill with this squadron, and was chased by it for four days. Her escape was due entirely to the superior skill of her officers and the energy of her crew. The chase was one of the most remarkable in history, and the escape of the American frigate won great credit for Captain Hull. Failing to reach New York, Hull sailed for Boston, and reached that port in safety. Remaining there a few days, he put to sea again, just in time to avoid orders from Washington to remain in port, j In July the American frigate "Essex" captured a transport filled with British soldiers, and a few days later encountered the British sloop of war "Alert," which mistook her for a mer- chantman. The " Essex " suf- fered her to approach, and then opened a rapid fire upon her, which soon disabled her, and forced her to surrender. The " Constitution " sailed from Boston to the northeast. On the nineteenth of August, while cruising off the mouth of the St. Lawrence, she fell in with the British frigate " Guerriere," Captain Dacres, one of the ves- sels that had chased her during the previous month. The "Guerriere" immediately stood towards her, and both vessels prepared for action. The English commander opened his fire at long range, but Captain Hull refused to reply until he had gotten his ship into a favorable position, and for an hour and a half he manoeuvred in silence, under a heavy fire from the British frigate. At length, having got within pistol shot of her adversary, the " Constitution " opened a terrible fire upon her, and poured in her broadsides with such effect that the " Guer- riere " struck her colors in thirty minutes. The " Guerriere" lost seventy-nine men killed and wounded, while the loss of the " Constitution " was but seven men. The " Guerriere " was so much injured in the fight that she could not be carried into port, and Hull had her burned. The " Constitution " then returned to Bos- ton with her prisoners, and was received with an ovation. It was the first time in half a COMMODORE HULL. century that a British frigate had struck her flag in a fair fight, and the victory was hailed with delight in all parts of the country. On the eighteenth of October the Ameri- can sloop-of-war "Wasp," eighteen. Captain Jones, met the British brig " Frolic," twenty- two, convoying six merchantmen. In order to give her convoy a chance to escape, the "Frolic" shortened sail and awaited the approach of the "Wasp." The "Wasp" poured a raking fire into her antagonist and 524 FROM THE REVOLUTION TO THE CIVIL WAR. then boarded her. The boarders found the deck of the " FroHc" covered with the dead. Only one man remained unhurt, and he stood gallantly at his post at the wheel. Before the prize could be secured the British frigate " Poictiers, " 74, hove in sight and captured both vessels. The " Wasp " lost eight men in the engagement ; the "Frolic" eighty. On the twenty-fifth of October the fri- gate " United States," 44, Captain Decatur, Captain Bainbridge, captured the British frigate "JavsL," 38, off the coast of Brazil, after an action of three hours. The " Java " was reduced to a wreck, and as he was not able to get her into a friendly port, Captain Bainbridge caused her to be burned. The "Java" lost one hundred and sixty-one men out of a crew of four hundred ; the " Constitution " lost thirty-four in killed and wounded. Among the wounded was Cap- tain Bainbridge. THE "WASP' BOARDING THE "FROLIC. encountered the British frigate " Mace- donian," 49, off the Azores, and after a running fight of an hour and a half forced her to strike her colors. The "United States" lost seven killed and five wounded ; the " Macedonian," thirty-six killed and sixty-eighty wounded out of a crew of three hundred men. Decatur succeeded in bring- ing his prize into New York. On the twenty-ninth of December the ^' Constitution," now under the command of These victories aroused the greatest en- thusiasm in the United States. The great disparity in the losses sustained by the respective combatants made it evident to both nations that the American ships had been better handled in every engagement. The British endeavored to account for the American successes by declaring that the United States vessels were seventy-fours in disguise, or that they carried heavier guns than their adversaries ; but the thinking men ADMINISTRATION OF JAMES MADISON. 525 of both countries saw that they had been won by the superior skill of the American officers, and that they were the plain an- nouncement of the fact that England had found a rival capable of contesting her supremacy on the ocean. British Commerce Damaged. The American privateers inflicted great damage upon the commerce of Great Britain. During the year 18 12 these vessels captured about five hundred British merchantmen and made prisoners of three thousand British seamen. The cargoes of the captured vessels amounted to an enormous sum. On the eighth of March, 18 13, the Rus- sian minister at Washington communicated to President Madison an offer from the Em- peror Alexander of his mediation between the United States and Great Britain for the purpose of bringing about a peace between them. The President at once accepted the Russian offer, and sent Albert Gallatin and James A. Bayard to St. Petersburg to join John Quincy Adams, then Minister to Russia, as ministers to negotiate a treaty. The British government declined the Rus- sian mediation and the matter was drop- ped. The thirteenth Congress met on the twenty-fourth of May, 18 13, and entered upon the task of providing the means of carrying on the war. The principal measure resorted to was the imposition of direct taxes and internal duties. The financial situation of the government was disheartening. The expenses of the war had greatly exceeded the estimates, and a heavy deficit had to be provided for. To meet the necessities of the occasion new loans were authorized, but they were generally paid in the depreciated treasury notes which had been issued ac- cording to act of Congress, and did not yield much to the grovernment. The business of the country was in a state of confusion. Ail the banks, save a few in New England, had suspended specie pay- ments, and the war spirit was dying out in many parts of the Union. New England had entered into the war with great reluc- tance and was a heavy loser by it. Her opposition to it was increasing daily. Discontent and Disagreement. The government opened the campaign of 1813 with the determination to make another effort to conquer Canada. The army of the west, under General Harrison, was stationed at the upper end of Lake Erie ; that of the centre, under General Dearborn, the com- mander-in-chief, was posted along the Niagara river ; and that of the east, under General Wade Hampton, was at Lake Champlain. Simultaneous movements were to be made from these points against the British in Canada. To oppose these forces the British stationed their armies along their frontier as follows : General Proctor was stationed with a considerable force near Detroit ; General Sheaf with another force covered Montreal and the approaches from the United States by way of Lake Champlain and the Sorel river; and Sir George Prevost, the com- mander-in-chief, held the line of the Niagara river. General Harrison was charged with the duty of recovering the territory lost by General Hull. Volunteers flocked to him from all parts of the west, and especially from Kentucky. A part of his force, under General Winchester, held a fort on the Maumee. In January, 181 3, the British made a demonstration against Frenchtown, on the river Raisin, and Winchester sent a detachment to its relief, which compelled the British to retreat. A little later Win- chester followed with the rest of his troops and took position in the open country. His 526 FROM THE REVOLUTION TO THE CIVIL WAR. whole force amounted to scarcely one thou- sand men. Hearing of Winchester's exposed posi- tion, General Proctor marched from Fort Maiden, opposite Detroit, with fifteen hun- •dred British and Indians, and, crossing the lake on the ice, attacked Winchester on the twenty-second of January, and after a des- perate encounter forced him to surrender; Proctor promised Winchester that his men save his reputation by protecting his prison- ers, and his inhuman conduct in leaving them to the fury of the savages, in violation of his pledge, met, as it deserved, the un- qualified denunciation of every honorable man. It roused a fierce spirit of revenge througout the west. Harrison was' on his march to Winches- ter's assistance when he learned of his surrender. He halted at the rapids of INDIANS TORTURING PRISONERS. •should be treated as prisoners of war, but in violation of his pledge set out at once on his retreat to Maiden, leaving the wounded Americans behind. The Indians of Proc- tor's command fell upon the helpless wounded men, massacred the majority of them, and carried the remainder to Detroit. Some of these they offered to release on pay- ment of heavy ransoms ; the others they .•held for torture. Proctor made no effort to Maumee, and built a fort which he named Fort Meigs, in honor of the governor of Ohio. Proctor advanced in the spring to attack this fort, and on the first of May opened his batteries upon it. A force of twelve hundred Kentuckians, under Gen- eral Green Clay, of Kentucky, advanced to the relief of the fort, and the British and Indians were obliged to raise the siege and retreat. ADMINISTRATION OF JAMES MADISON. 527 General Clay was placed in command of Fort Meigs. In July Proctor again advanced and made siege to it, but was unable to cap- ture it. Hearing that Fort Stephenson, on the Sandusky, had a small garrison. Proctor withdrew from Fort Meigs and attacked Fort Stephenson. This fort had a garrison of one hundred and sixty men, and was commanded by Major George Croghan, a young man in his twenty-second year. He was summoned to surrender, but answered that he should hold the fort to the last man. On the second of August Proctor made a determined assault upon the fort, and his regulars gained the ditch, into which they crowded preparatory to attempting to scale the parapet. At this moment the only cannon in the fort, which had been doubly charged with musket-balls, opened upon them from a masked port-hole. The British were cut down by the score, and retreated in confusion. That night, fearing that Harrison would come to Croghan's relief, Proctor abandoned the siege, and re- treated towards Maiden. .V Battle of Lake Erie. It was clear that nothing of importance could be accomplished in this quarter as long as the British held Lake Erie. Oliver Hazard Perry, a young lieutenant of the United States navy, volunteered to win back the lake from the enemy, who held it with a small squadron under Captain Barclay. By -extraordinary exertions Perry built and equipped a fleet at Presque Isle, now Erie. It consisted of nine vessels of various sizes, from one which carried twenty-five guns down to one which carried one gun. Its total armament amounted to fifty-five guns. It was manned by a small force of sailors from the east, and by a large number ol volunteers from General Harrison's army. As soon as his fleet was in proper condition Perry stood out into the lake to seek the enemy. The British squadron consisted ot six vessels, carrying sixty-three guns. Each fleet carried about five hundred men. The two squadrons soon encountered each other, and on the tenth of September a severe battle was fought between them at the western end of the lake. Perry at the open- ing of the fight displayed a flag from his vessel bearing the words of the brave Law- rence, " Don't give up the ship." It was greeted with cheers from the men. During the battle the American flag-ship, the " Law- COMMODORE PERRY. rence," was disabled, and Perry passed in an open boat, under a heavy fire, to the " Nia- gara," the next largest ship, and tranferred his flag to her. The result was that the British fleet was defeated and forced to sur- render. Perry announced his victory to General Harrison in the following character- istic message : " We have met the enemy and they are ours. Two ships, one brig, a a schooner, and a sloop." This victory was of the highest importance to the Americans. It gave them the com- mand of Lake Eri^, and opened the way to 528 FROM THE REVOLUTION TO THE CIVIL WAR. PERRY S VICTORY ON LAKE ERIE. Canada. Harrison hastened to profit by it, and advanced rapidly towards Detroit and Maiden. Proctor aban- doned those places and retreated with his own forces and Tecumseh and his Indians into Canada. At Detroit Harrison was joined by thirty-five hundred mountedKentuckians, under the aged Gov- ernor Shelby, one of the heroes of King's Mountain, and Col- onel Richard M.John- son. He at once en- tered Canada in pur- suit of Proctor, and by a forced march of sixty miles came up with him on the banks of the Thames, on the fifth of October. A short but desperate battleensued, in which Tecumseh was killed and his Indians put to flight. The British were routed, and Proc- tor saved himself only by the speed of his horse. By these successes the Americans won back Michigan Terri- tory, and for the pres- sent gave peace and security to the north- western frontier. The Kentuckians returned home, and Colonel Lewis Cass, who was soon after appointed governor o. Michigan, was left to garrison Detroit with his brigade. With fifteen ADMINISTRATION OF JAMES MADISON. 529 hundred regulars Harrison embarked on Lake Erie and sailed for Buffalo to assist in the invasion of Canada from that quar- ter. A small fleet of armed vessels was main- tained in Lake Ontario by each of the com- batants. The American fleet was commanded by Commodore Chauncey. In April General Dearborn embarked a force of seventeen hundred picked men in these vessels and stores fell into the hands of the captors. They were transferred to Sackett's Harbor. As it was not part of the plan of General Dearborn to hold York, the place was eva- cuated. Just before the withdrawal of the Americans a small building, known as the Parliament House, was burned. The British attributed this act to the Americans, who disclaimed it. The American officers believed that the house was set on fire by BATTLE OF THE THAMES — DEATH OF TECUMSEH. sailed across Lake Ontario to attack York, now Toronto, the capital of Upper Canada. The Americans landed a short distance below the town, and advanced upon it. On the the twenty-seventh of April the place was carried by assault. The British fired the magazine of one of the works from which they were driven, and General Pike, the commander of the storming party, and one or two hundred of his troops were killed by the explosion. A large amount of military 34 the diafifected Canadians, who had threat- ened to burn it. The burning of this build- ing was made by the British the pretext for the destruction of the capitol and other public buildings at Washington, the next year. From York General Dearborn sailed to the Niagara to attack Fort George. The commander of this work, on the approach of the Americans, blew up his magazines and retreated to Burlington Heights, near the 530 FROM THE REVOLUTION TO THE CIVIL WAR. western end of the lake. Dearborn followed them in pursuit, but was attacked and driven back by the British on the night of the sixth of June. Two American generals, Winder and Chanler. were made prisoners in this engagement. Dearborn fell back in haste to Fort George. In the meantime General Prevost, having learned of Dearborn's absence from Sackett's Harbor, attacked that place, on the twenty- ninth of May, with one thousand men. He was repulsed with such vigor by the gar- rison, under General Brown, that he retreated to his ships, leaving his wounded behind. Failure of a Canadian Expedition. Soon after this General Dearborn suffered another reverse at Fort George, and allowed a detachment of six hundred men of his army to be cut off by the British. In con- sequence of these failures General Dearborn was removed by the President, who appointed General Wilkinson, the commander of the troops at New Orleans, as his successor. It was proposed that General Wilkinson should enter Canada with his troops and advance upon Montreal, and that General Hampton, commanding the forces on Lake Champlain, should join him on the St. Law- rence. Wilkinson and Hampton were not on friendly terms, and neither of them were possessed of sufficient patriotism to overlook their personal differences for the good of their country. Wilkinson advanced as far as the rapids of the St. Lawrence, and sent a body of troops, under General Brown, to cover the descent of the rapids by the army. An engagement occurred at Chrysler's Farm, on the eleventh of November ; the British were driven back ; bnt the Americans lost more than three hundred men. Wilk- inson now sent word to Hampton t ) move forward to his support, but the latter answered that he had abandoned the expe- dition, and was going into winter quarters. Under these circumstances Wilkinson fell back to French Mills, about nine miles from St. Regis, where he went into winter quar- ters. Hampton prepared to pass the winter at Plattsburg on Lake Champlain. Thus the expedition was ruined by the quarrels of its commanders. British Depredations. In December the Americans abandoned Fort George, and retreated across the Niagara river. Before doing so General McClure, the commanding officer, burned the village of Newark, in order to prevent enemy from using it as quarters for their troops during the winter. There was no necessity and no excuse for the destruction of this village, and it was speedily avenged by the enemy. About the middle of Decem- ber the British crossed the Niagara river, surprised Fort Niagara, and put the garrison to the sword. In retaliation for the burning of Newark they burned every town and house that could be reached on the Amer- ican side of the river, including Lewistown, Youngstown, Manchester, Black Rock, and Buffalo. The war was not confined to the northern frontier. In the spring of 1813 Tecumseh had visited the Creek tribes in the southwest and aroused their war spirit. In August seven hundred Creeks attacked and captured Fort Mims, on the west bank of the Alabama river, near the mouth of the Tombigbee. Between three and four hundred settlers, who had taken refuge in the fort, were mas- sacred. The south was soon aroused by the news of this massacre, and in a short while a force of seven thousand volunteers was marching into the Indian country in four divisions. One division, under General Andrew Jack- son, of Tennessee, moved southward from ADMINISTRATION OF JAMES MADISON. Nashville; another from East Tennessee, under General Cocke ; a third from Georgia, under General Floyd, and a fourth from Mis- sissippi Territory. In addition to these forces the lower Creeks took up arms against their brethren, and the Cherokees and Choc- taws joined the Amer- ricans. The principal villages of the hostile Creeks lay on and near the Coosa and Talla- poosa Rivers, and their hunting-grounds ex- tended much farther north. The Tennessee for- ces, under General Jackson, were the first to enter the Indian country, and a num- ber of unimportant encounters occurred. On the third of Nov- ember the Indians were defeated in a bloody battle at Tal- lasehatche, and on the eighth of the same month at Talladega. These were hard-won victories for the Amer- icans, and terrible blows to the savages. On the twenty-ninth of November the Georgia volunteers under General Floyd, attacked the Creek town of Autossee, and killed two hundred warriors. The Creeks were badly armed, but their spirit was unbroken by their reverses. Early in the year 1814 they assumed the offensive, and on the twenty-second of January attacked 531 General Jackson at Emucfau. Jackson suc- ceeded in repulsing them, but in spite of his victory deemed it best to fall back to Fort Strother. On the twenty-fifth the Indians again attacked him and were again defeated. Soon after this Jackson, being largely rein- CAPTAIN (afterward SIR PHILIP) BROKE. forced, advanced into the Indian country with an army of four thousand Tennes- seeans. At the Horse-Shoe Bend of the Tallaposa the Creeks had their principal settlement, an intrenched camp, in which they had collected 532 FROM THE REVOLUTION TO THE CIVIL WAR. their women and children, under the pro- tection of one thousand warriors. They were attacked here on the twenty-seventh of March, 1814, by Jackson's army, and their camp was carried, after a desperate fight, in which six hundred warriors were killed and two hundred and fifty women and children were made prisoners. This terrible blow put an end to the resistance of the Creeks. They sought peace, and were compelled to purchase it by the surrender of more than two-thirds of their hunting-grounds. Hot Naval Engagements. The year 18 13 was eventful and important in the naval history of the republic, and once more the navy sustained the spirits of the country, which had been cast down by the failure of the army. On the twenty-fifth of February the American sloop-of-war " Hornet," Captain Lawrence, captured the British brig " Peacock," ofif the mouth of Demerara River, after an action of fifteen minutes. The " Peacock " was so terribly cut up by her adversary's fire that she sank in a few minutes after she struck her flag. Captain Lewrence returned to the United States and was promoted to the command of the frigate " Chesapeake, which was lying in Boston harbor preparing for sea. While there Lawrence was challenged by Captain Broke, of the British frigate " Shan- non," which was cruising off Boston harbor. Although his ship was badly manned and his crew undisciplined, Lawrence accepted the challenge and put to sea on the first of June to meet the " Shannon." The action was begun about thirty miles east of Boston Light and lasted but fifteen minutes. The "Shannon" was in every way superior to the " Chesapeake," and the latter ship was forced to strike her flag, with a loss of one hundred and forty-six of her crew. Captain Lawrence was mortally wounded. As he was being carried below his last words were, "Don't give up the ship!" — words which have since become the watchword of the service of which he was one of the brightest ornaments. Two Commanders Fall. The rejoicings in England over the cap- ture of the " Chesapeake" were very great. They were highly gratifying to the Ameri- cans, and especially to the little navy of the Union, whose splendid services had won the respect of the " mistress of the seas." In the summer of 181 3 the "United States," " Macedonian " and "Hornet." while attempting to get to sea from New York through Long Island sound, were driven into the harbor of New London, and blockaded there by a British squadron. In August the American sloop of war " Argus " was cap- tured while cruising in the English channel by the " Pelican." In September the Ameri- can brig " Enterprise," twelve guns. Captain Burrows, captured the British brig " Boxer," Captain Blythe, off the coast of Maine. Both commanders fell in the engagement, and were buried with equal honors. During the summer of 18 13 the British fleet of Sir George Cockburn entered the Chesapeake repeatedly and ravaged its shores. All the shipping that could be reached by the enemy was destroyed, and the towns of Frenchtown, Georgetown, Havre de Grace and Fredericktown were plundered and burned. An attack was made on Norfolk, but was repulsed with heavy loss. Cockburn then plundered the town of Hampton, and sailed to the southward. The barbarities committed by this fleet along the Chesapeake and its tributaries were horrible. Neither age nor sex were spared by the British sailors and marines, and women were ravished, and old men and little children murdered, with the knowledge 53: 534 FROM THE REVOLUTION TO THE CIVIL WAR. of the admiral, who made no effort to stop the outrages. During the winter of i8 13-14 a communi- cation was received from the British govern- ment, stating that although Great Britain had declined the Russian mediation, she was willing to enter into direct negotiations with the United States, either at London or Got- tenburg, in Sweden. The President at once accepted the English offer, and Henry Clay alnd Jonathan Russell were added to the commissioners already in Europe. Gotten- burg was at first selected as the place of meeting, which was afterwards changed to Ghent. Great Britain Ready for Peace. At this time the opposition to the war was very great in many parts of the Union, The New England States continued bitterly hos- tile to it, and the legislature of Massachusetts, in a remonstrance addressed to Cong-ress, denounced the war as unreasonable, and urged the conclusion of a peace. Congress itself was more divided upon the support of the war than it had ever been. It contained many new men, some of them destined to play prominent parts in the future history of the country. Pre-eminent among those was Daniel Webster, of New Hampshire, who from the first took a high position as one of the most gifted men in Congress. Hostilities were resumed by the Americans on the Niagara frontier with the beginning of the spring of 18 14. Early in May General Brown, whose force had been increased to five thousand men, crossed the Niagara. Fort Erie surrendered to him without a blow on the third of July. On the fourth General Scott, with the advanced guard of the army, moved towards the British, who had taken position, under General Riall, at Chippewa, fifteen miles distant. Scott was joined by General Brown, with the rest of the army, on the night of the fourth, and the -next day^ a severe engagement occurred, in which the British were defeated, with the loss of five hundred men. The loss of the Americans was three hundred. Victory at Lundy's Lane. After his defeat at Chippewa General Riall fell back to Burlington Heights, and the Americans advanced to Queenstown, but soon after withdrew to Chippewa. Being strongly reinforced by a body of troops, under General Drummond, Riall advanced from Burlington Heights to attack the Amer- icans, followed by General Drummond's command ; and at the same time General Brown, who had heard of Drummond's arri- val, set out from Chippewa to attack the British. The advanced forces of the Amer- icans were commanded by General Scott. The two armies unexpectedly met at Bridge- water, or Lundy's Lane, immediately opposite Niagara Falls, at sunset, on the twenty-fifth of July. The British occupied a strong position, and notwithstanding the lateness of the hour, Scott resolved to attack them. The main body of the Americans, under General Brown, soon arrived, and the battle became general. The British had posted a battery on a hill which commanded the field, and were doing great execution in the Amer- ican ranks. It was captured by the regiment of Colonel James Miller, and General Drum- mond, who had arrived on the field and had taken command in place of General Riall, who had been wounded and captured by the Americans, advanced to recover it. Drummond made three determined efforts to retake the battery, but was driven back each time. It was now midnight, and about eight hundred men had fallen on each side. The Americans had exhausted their ammu- nition and were dependent now upon the cartridges they obtained from the boxes of ADMINISTRATION OF JAMES MADISON the fallen British. Finding all their efforts 535 vain the British sullenly withdrew and left the field to the Americans. The latter v/ere so exhausted by their hard march of fifteen miles and five hours of constant fighting^ that they made no effort at pursuit, and soon withdrew from the hill to their camp. As they had no means of hauling off the cap- tured guns they were obliged to leave them on the field. General's Brown and Scott were both wounded during the battle, as were nearly of all the field officers. Repulse at Fort Erie. The victory of Lundy's Lane was particu- larly gratifying to the Americans. It was won, not over Canadian militia, but over veteran troops who had served under Wel- lington in the wars with Napoleon. It broke the long series of defeats sustained by the Americans since the opening of the war, and showed what could be accomplished by American soldiers under competent and determined commanders and in anything like a fair fight. General Browne withdrew to Fort Erie after the battle, and being disabled by his wounds, relinquished the command to Gen- eral Gaines. General Drummond moved forward and on the fourth of August laid siege to Fort Erie. On the fifteenth he attempted to carry the fort by an assault at midnight, but was repulsed wiih a loss of one thousand men. In spite of this reverse he pressed the siege with vigor, and in the meantime General Brown recovered from his wounds and resumed the command of the fort. On the seventeenth of September the Americans made a sortie against the batteries of the Brittish, which were two miles in advance of their camp. By a sudden dash from the fort they stormed and carried the batteries, spiked the guns, set fire to the magazines, indicted a loss of six hundred in killed and wounded upon the enemy, and retreated into the fort, carrying with them four hundred prisoners. The American loss in this brilliant sally was three hundred men. Drummond immediately raised the siege and retreated across the Chippewa. Around Lake Champlain. In October a reinforcement of four thou- sand men arrived from Lake Champlain under General Izard, who assumed the com- mand of the American Army on the Niagara, He was one of the old-style commanders, and at once proceeded to neutralize the gallant achievements of Brown and Scott. He did nothing until November, when, fear- ing that Drummond would be reinforced, he blew up Fort Erie and retreated across the Niagara, leaving the entire Canadian shore in the possession of the British. General Izard had succeeded General Hampton in command of the army on Lake Champlain. Upon his withdrawal to the Niagara, General Macomb took command of the troops that remained on Lake Champlain, and held Plattsburg with a force of about three thousand men. Hearing that General Prevost was advancing to attack him, Macomb called on the militia of New York and Vermont to come to his aid, and about three thousand of them joined him, bringing his force to six thousand men. General Prevost having been reinforced from Eng- land, advanced against Plattsburg with a force of twelve thousand veteran troops, for the purpose of invading the State of New York. Upon the approach of this force Macomb fell back behind the Saranac, a deep and rapid stream which empties into the lake at Plattsburg, and the small American squadron, under Commodore Macdonough, was moored across the entrance of Plattsburg bay. This squadron carried eighty-six guns, and was FROM THE REVOLUTION TO THE CIVIL WAR. 536 manned by eight hundred and fifty-six men. The British army was accompanied by a squadron superior in strength to that of the Americans, and upon which they depended for the control of Lake Champlain. It was commanded by Captain Downie, mounted ninety-five guns, was manned by one thou- sand men, and had plenty of ammunition. SCENE OF THE BATTLE OF LAKE CHAMPLAIN Prevost arrived before Plattsburg on the seventh of September, and proceeded to erect batteries to cover his passage of the Saranac. On the eleventh of September he made a combined attack by land and water upon the American position. The British squadron advanced to force an entrance into Platts- burg bay, and the British army at the same time attempted to force a passage of the Saranac. As the enemy's fleet advanced, Macdonough called the crew of his flag-ship around him, and kneeling on the quarter- deck of his vessel, prayed God to crown the American arms with victory that day. After a severe engagement of two hours and a quarter, the British fleet was defeated and forced to surrender, with the exception of a few gunboats, which escaped. While this ^_ battle was going on, Prevost tried repeat- edly to cross the Sara- nac, but was each time driven back with heavy loss. During the night the British army re- treated in disorder, abandoning their sick and wounded and a large quantity of mili- tary stores, having lost twenty-five hundred men in the engage- ment The country had ample cause to regret the weakness of its navy during this war. The exploits of those vessels which had managed to get to sea had shown what could be accomplished by this branch of the public service, and our deficiency in this respect enabled the •nemy to blockade the ports of the Union, and to use the Chesapeake bay with as much freedom as if it were one of their own harbors. In the summer of 18 14 a fleet of sixty British ships under Admirals Cockburn and Cochrane, having on board a land-force of five thousand men under General Ross, assembled in the Chesa- peake. ADMINISTRATION OF JAMES MADISON. 537 Admiral Cochrane endeavored to induce the slaves of Virginia and Maryland to desert their masters, and offered them free transportation to the West Indies and Canada. As it was not known at what •point General Ross would land his troops, General Winder of Maryland was ordered to collect a force of fifteen thousand militia from the neighboring States. He proposed to occupy a central position from which he could cover Washington City, Annapolis, and Baltimore, and was anxious to call out the militia at once ; but General Armstrong, the secretary of war, decided that it would be time enough to call out the militia when the British had revealed their designs more plainly. He did not believe the British had any idea of advancing upon Washington, and thought Baltimore could defend itself. Mr. Madison submitted to the decision of the secretary of war, and the national capital was left defenceless. Attack on Washington. In the meantime, the British commanders, learning the exposed condition of the city of Washington, determined to attack it. They divided their fleet for this purpose, one por- tion ascending the Potomac, and another the Patuxent. The latter division conveyed the troops of General Ross, and landed them at Benedict, on the Patuxent, about fifty miles from Washington. General Ross at once set out for Washington, advancing slowly and meeting with no resistance. As he had no horses, his troops were obliged to drag their three or four cannon by hand, and the British made but about ten miles a day. A few determined troops might have driven them back, ana the roads might at least have been obstructed and the progress of the enemy impeded. General Winder gathered a small force of militia, and took position at Bladensburg, on the east branch of the Potomac, about three miles from Washington. He was joined here by Commodore Barney with five hundred sailors and marines from the gunboat flotilla in the Patuxent, which Barney, unable to offer any resistance, had burned upon the approach of the British fleet. On the twenty- fourth of August the British reached Blad- ensburg, and attacked the force under Gen- eral Winder. The militia fled at the first fire, but Barney and his sailors and marines stood their ground, and served their guns COMMODORE MACDONOUGH. with vigor until their position was turned on both flanks by the superior force of ihe enemy, when they retreated, leaving their guns and wounded in the hands ot che vic- tors. The so-called battle of Bladensburg was little more than a skirmish. General Ross halted to resi his men, \vho were worn out with the heat, and towards sunset resumed his march, and entered Wash- ington a little before dark. The government had abandoned the city some hours before, and had removed the greater part of its papers and archives, and such public property 538 FROM THE REVOLUTION TO THE CIVIL WAR. as could be carried away, and only a few frightened citizens remained in the town. Admiral Cochrane had some time before announced that the British forces were ordered " to destroy and lay waste all towns and districts of the United States found accessible to the attacks of British arma- ments," and the army of General Ross now proceeded to carry out these infamous in- structions. They burned the capitol, and with it the library of Congress, the buildings occupied by the treasury and state depart- ments, and plundered the President's mansion and set it on fire. A number of stores and private dwellings were also pillaged and set on fire. The navy yard, with all its contents and several vessels on the stocks, was entirely destroyed. Capture of American Vessels. The British afterwards attempted to excuse their shameful conduct in Washington by alleging that it was in retaliation for the burn- ing of the parliament house at York in Canada, an act which had been disclaimed by the Americans, and which the British had not been able to prove was their work. General Ross occupied Washington during the night of the twenty-fourth, and until dark on the twenty-fifth. Then, fearing lest the Americans would assemble in such force as to intercept him, he retreated stealthily from Washington on the night of the twenty- fifth, and on the twenty-ninth reached Bene- dict and re-embarked his troops. The Eng- lish vessels sent up the Potomac succeeded in passing Fort Washington, which made little or no effort to stop them, and on the twenth-eighth anchored off Alexandria. Twenty-one vessels were captured, and the town saved itself from bombardment by pay- ing a ransom of sixteen thousand barrels of flour and one thousand hogsheads of to- bacco. After resting his men, General Ross ascended the Chesapeake to the Patapseo, for the purpose of attacking Baltimore, which was defended by Fort McHenry at the mouth of the harbor, and a force of Maryland militia and some volunteers from Pennsylvania. A force of eight thousand men was landed at the mouth of the Patapseo, under General Ross, and on the twelfth of September ad- vanced towards the city, while the fleet ascended the river to capture Fort McHenry and force its way into the harbor. A small party of Americans contested the advance of the British army, and a skirmish ensued in which General Ross was killed. Gallant Defence of Fort McHenry. A sharp encounter followed, each side losing about two hundred and fifty men. The American militia retired in good order, and on the morning of the thirteenth the British resumed their march towards Balti- more. The Americans were discovered in considerable force, occupying a line of in- trenchments defended by artillery, and com- manded by General Samuel Smith, an officer of the revolution. The British commander now deemed it best to await the result of the engagement between the fleet and Fort McHenry, which was in progress at the time. The British fleet maintained a heavy fire upon the fort, which replied with vigor, and soon made it apparent to the enemy that they could not silence it or pass it. The attack on the fort proving a failure, the British withdrew to North Point on the nig-ht ot the thirteenth and reembarked on their ships. During this cannonade Francis S. Key, of Baltimore, who had visited the British fleet to obtain the release of certain prisoners, and who was detained by the admiral during the bombardment, wrote the famous song of "The Star -Spangled Banner," which has ADMINISTRATION OF JAMES MADISON. 539 since become the national song of Amer- ica. The Chesapeake was not the only part of the coast that suffered from the ravages of the British. The shores of Maine were ravaged with great barbarity. Stonington, Connecticut, was subjected to a four days' bombardment by a British fleet, but the militia repulsed every attempt of the enemy to land. The foreign commerce of the coun- try was completely destroyed. The superior naval strength of the British enabled them to blockade the Atlantic ports so thoroughly that the gov- ernment ordered the lights along the coasts to be des- troyed, as they only served as guides to British cruisers. The opposition of the New England States to the war, which had caused them such severe loss, increased daily, and at length the legislature of Massachusetts recommended a convention of delegates from the seaboard States to devise amendments to the Constitu- tion for the purpose of secur- ing them from a recurrence of such evils as they were suffering from. The conven- tion met at Hartford, Con- necticut, on the fourteenth of December, 1814, and was composed of delegates from the New England States. The convention was bitterly opposed by the advocates of the war, who charged it with the intention to make a separate peace with Great Britain, which would have been a practical secession from the Union. The convention continued in session for twenty days, and adopted an address to the country very moderate in its tone. It proposed to amend the Constitution by making the rep- resentation in the lower House of Congress equal by basing it upon the free population only by forbidding embargo and non-inter- course laws ; and by making the President ineligible for a second term. One of the strong opponents of the embargo was the '^•N A NEW ENGLAND FARM HOUSE. eminent jurist and scholar, Joseph Story, whose influence was widely felt at this time, The convention was for many years exposed to the bitterest denunciation of the great mass of the American people. One of the results of the opposition to the war was the complete destruction of the old Federalist party which had opposed the war. 540 FROM THE REVOLUTION TO THE CIVIL WAR. Previous to the assembling of the conven- tion the President, in hope of reHeving the embarrassments occasioned by the opposi- tion of New England to the war, advised the repeal of the embargo and non-intercourse acts, and the abandonment of the entire re- strictive system. His recommendations were carried out by Congress. In the meantime stirring events were transpiring in the south. At this time Florida was a possession of Spain, which was supposed to be a neutral power. Great Britain had laid Spain under heavy obliga- tions in her struggle against Napoleon, and the British had now no difficulty in entering Florida, and using it ^s a base of operations against the south. Their fleet entered Pen- sacola harbor and obtained possession of the forts. From this point they began to stir up the Creek Indians to make war on the Americans, and fitted out an expedition against Fort Bowyer, commanded by Major Lawrence, who defended the harbor of Mobile. On the fifteenth of September an attack was made upon this fort, and was repulsed with the loss to the enemy of a vessel and a number of men. Jackson and New Orleans. General Jackson, having collected a force of three thousand Tennesseeans, marched to Pensacola, entered the town on the seventh of November, demanded that the British should leave the place at once, and notified the Spanish Governor that he should hold him responsible for the occupation of the town or the forts by the British for purposes of hostility towards the United States, The British immediately blew up a fort which they had erected seven miles below the town and embarked in their ships. Confident that New Orleans would be the next object of attack by the British, and knowing that the city was poorly prepared to resist, General Jackson at once sent General Coffee with the mounted Tennessee- ans to that city, and followed with the rest of his troops as rapidly as possible. New Orleans was at this time a city of about twenty thousand inhabitants, less than one- half of whom were whites. The whites were principally of French birth or parentage, and cared little for the United States. They could not be relied upon to hold the city against the British. The defences were in a misera- ble state, and the people •were demoralized and insubordinate. Jackson set to work with vigor. He proclaimed martial law, and put down the opposition to his measures for the safety of the city with a firm hand. He called for volunteers to defend the city, and urged the free men of color to come forward and enroll themselves. They responded in considerable numbers. The prisons were emptied, and the prisoners enrolled in the ranks of the army. The services of Lafitte, a noted smuggler chief of Barataria bay, and ADMINISTRATION OF JAMES MADISON. 541 of his band, were accepted. The British had endeavored to secure the aid of this band as pilots, as they knew the coast thoroughly, but Lafitte and his men had re- fused to hold any communication with them. While Jackson was thus engaged, the British fleet arrived on the coast of Louisi- ana, and cast anchor off the mouth of Lake Borgne, the shortest passage by water to New Orleans. It had on board a force of twelve thousand vet- eran troops, just re- leased from the wars against Napoleon, and four thousand marines and sailors. The Bri- tish army was com- manded by Sir Ed- ward Pakenham, the brother-in-law of the Duke of Wellington, and an officer of tried ability, and under him were Generals Gibbs, Keene, and Lambert, veterans of the penin- sular war. The Americans had a small flotilla in Lake Borgne, and by ex- traordinary exertions, Jackson managed to collect a force of five thousand troops, only one thousand of whom were regulars. On the fourteenth of Decem- ber the British sent their boats into Lake Borgne, and after a severe engagement cap- tured the American flotilla, and opened the way to the city. On the twenty-second of December the British landed twenty-four hundred men under General Keene, who advanced to a point on the bank of the Mis- sissippi, about nine miles below New Orleans. Jackson attacked this party on the night of the twenty-third with the regulars and Coffee's Tennesseeans dismounted, and drove them to take shelter behind a levee. The success of the Americans in this engagement greatly encouraged them to hope for a similar issue to the final conflict. THE PLAIN OF CHALMETTE — SCENE OF THE BATTLE OF NEW ORLEANS. The next day Jackson took position on solid ground behind a broad and deep trench that extended across the plain of Chalmette from the Mississippi to an im- passable swamp, and covered his position with a line of intrenchments. The British, believing Jackson's force to be much stronger than it really was, made no attempt to interfere with him for several days, and. 542 FROM THE REVOLUTION TO THE CIVIL WAR. he employed this delay in strengthening his line with bales of cotton. The British on the twenty-eighth of December opened a heavy cannonade upon the American line. Jackson replied with energy with his five pieces of artillery, and the firing was con- tinued without accomplishing anything defi- nite for several hours. On the first of January, 1815, they attempted a second can- nonade, but the American guns soon silenced their fire. On the fourth of January a body of twenty-two hundred Kentucky riflemen, who had descended the Mississippi to his assistance, reached Jackson's camp. Only one-half of them were armed. Jackson could not supply the remainder with arms, but set them to work to construct a second line of intrenchments in the rear of his first. Brilliant American Victory. Having finished their preparations, the British erected a battery of six eighteen- pounders on the night of the seventh of January, and on the morning of the eighth advanced to carry the American line by storm. Their centre was led by General Pakenham in person, and other columns under Generals Gibbs and Keene moved against the right and left wings of the Americans. The open space over which the enemy were obliged to pass was nearly a mile in width, and was completely com- manded by Jackson's guns. The British advanced in splendid style, and were soon within range of the American artillery, which opened on them with terrible effect. They never wavered, but closing up their ranks firmly pressed on. As they came within musket shot the Kentucky and Ten- nessee riflemen opened a fatal fire upon them which literally mowed them down They wavered and broke. General Pakenham attempted to rally them, and was shot down. "Grenerals Gibbs and Keene were wounded while engaged in the same attempt, the latter mortally. The command devolved upon General Lambert, who made two more attempts to carry the line by storm. Each time the fatal fire of the American riflemen drove back the tried veterans of Wellington's campaigns, and at last they broke and fled in confusion. General Lambert continued the retreat to the shore of the gulf, where the British fleet lay, and about a fortnight later embarked his troops and withdrew. Close of the War. The American loss in the battle of New Orleans was seven killed and six wounded. The British lost two thousand in killed and wounded. The victory was of the highest importance. It saved not only New Orleans but the mouth of the Mississippi from British con- trol. Had the army of General Pakenham been successful, there is good reason to believe that England would have refused to relinquish the Mississippi, and the war would have gone on, or peace would have been made with the mouth of the great river under the control of England. The victory closed the war, and was won as we shall see three weeks after the treaty of peace was sio"ned. At sea the war was carried on by the few American cruisers that managed to elude the blockade of our coast. The frigate " Essex," Commodore Porter, went to sea in 181 3, and made a number of captures in the Atlantic. Learning that the British whalers, which had been armed for the pur- pose of capturing American vessels, engaged in the same trade, were doing considerable damage in the Pacific, Commodore Porter sailed around Cape Horn and entered that ocean. He captured twelve armed British whalers in the course of a few months, and then learning that the British frisrate 543 544 FROM THE REVOLUTION TO THE CIVIL WAR. " Phoebe " had been sent in pursuit of him, Porter sailed to Valparaiso to look for her. While he lay there the " Phoebe," accompa- nied by the English sloop of war " Cherub," arriv-ed off the harbor. The " Phoebe " was herself a full match for the " Essex," but Porter resolv^ed to fight both vessels. As he was leaving the harbor a sudden squall carried away his maintop- mast, and left him at the mercy of his ene- mies, which at once attacked him. His defence was one of the most srallant and COMMODORE DECATUR. desperate in history, but he was forced to surrender, but not until he had lost fifty- eight of his crew killed, and sixty-six wounded. In January, 1815, the frigate " President," Commodore Decatur, managed to elude the blockade of New York, and get to sea. She was chased by a British squadron of five vessels, and a running fight ensued. Being entirely disabled, the " President " was forced to surrender. In February, 181 5, while cruising off the port of Lisbon, one fine moonlight night, the " Constitution," Captain Stewart, encoun- tered two British sloops of war, the "Cyane," 24, and the " Levant," 18, and captured both of them after a short engagement. These vessels were captured after peace was signed, and were restored to the British. On the twenty-third of March, the " Hornet," Cap- tain Biddle, captured the British brig " Pen- guin" of the Cape of Good Hope. The " Penguin " was so much injured that Biddle was forced to destroy her. On the thirtieth of June the " Peacock," Captain Warrington, ignorant of the close of the war, captured the " Nau- tilus " in the East Indies. The latter vessel was res- tored to the British. Thus the war, which opened so gloomily for the Americans, closed with a series of bril- liant successes for them. In the meantime negotia- tions for peace had been conducted between the American and British com- missioners at Ghent, in Belgium. The American commissioners had been instructed to demand the settlement of the impress- ment question, and at the same time to give assurance that upon the relinquishment of that claim by England Congress would enact a law forbidding the enlistment of English sailors in either the navy or merchant service of the United States. On the fourteenth of December, 1 8 14, the labors of the commissioners were brought to a close, and a treaty of peace between the United States and Great Britain was signed. The treaty provided that all places cap- tured by either party during the war should be restored to their rightful possessors. ADMINISTRATION OF JAMES MADISON. Arrangements were made for determining the northwest boundary of the United States, and for settling matters of minor importance. The treaty was silent on the subject of 545 to revive it, so that the object of the war the protection of American sailors from impress- ment by England, was attained after all. The treaty was unanimously ratified by the DECATUR AND THE DEY OF ALGIERS. impressments, the cause of the war. Nev- ertheless Great Britain ceased to exercise her claim to this right as regarded the United States, and has not since attempted Senate, and on the eighteenth of February peace was proclaimed by the President. A few days later the President recommended to Congress the passage of a law forbidding K46 FROM THE RFVOLUTION TO THE CIVIL WAR. the enlistment of foreign seamen in American vessels. The proclamation of peace was hailed with delight in all parts of the country, especially in the Atlantic cities which had suffered heavily by the war, and the national rejoic- ings were intensified by the news which arrived a few days later of the brilliant victory of New Orleans. Soon after the conclusion of peace with Great Britain, the United States were called upon to punish the insolence of the dey WILLIAM C. C. CLAIBORNE. of Algiers. That ruler, thinking that the United States was too much crippled by their recent conflict with Great Britain to punish his insolence, suddenly made war upon them. He threatened to reduce Mr. Lear, the American consul, to slavery, and compelled him to purchase his liberty and that of his family by the payment of a large ransom. Several American merchantmen were captured by the Algerine pirates, and their crews reduced to slavery. The excuse offered by the dey for these outrages was that the presents of the American govern- ment were not satisfactory. The government of the United vStates determined to compel the Barbary powers to make a definite settlement of the questions at issue between them and this country, and in May, 1815, Commodore Decatur was despatched to the Mediterranean with a fleet ol ten vessels, three of which were frigates. He was ordered to compel the dey to make satisfaction for his past out- rages, and to give a guarantee for his future good conduct. On the voyage out Decatur fell in with the largest frigate in the Algerine service, near Gibraltar, on the seventeenth of June, and captured her after a fight of thirty minutes. On the nineteenth another Algerine cruiser was taken. Decatur Ordered to the Mediterranean. The fleet then proceeded to Algiers, but upon its arrival found the dey in a very humble frame of mind. The loss of his two best ships, and the determined aspect of the Americans, terrified him into submission, and he humbly sued for peace. He was required to come on board of Decatur's flag- ship, and there sign a humiliating treaty with the United States, by which he bound him- self to indemnify the Americans from whom had extorted ransoms, to surrender all his prisoners unconditionally, to renounce all claim to tribute from the American gevern- ment, and to cease from molesting American vessels in future. The difficulty with Algiers having been satisfactorily settled, Decatur sailed to Tunis and Tripoli, and demanded of the govern- ment of each of those countries in- demnity for some American vessels which had been captured by the British in their harbors with their connivance. The demand was coupled in each case with a threat of bombardment, and was complied with. ADMINISTRATION OF JAMES MADISON. 547 About the middle of the summer Commo- dore Bainbridge joined Decatur with the " Independence," seventy-four, the "Con- gress," and several other vessels^ but the energetic Decatur had settled all difficulties, and had so humbled the Barbary powers that they never again renewed their aggres- sions upon American commerce. The American fleet then visited the principal ports of the Mediterranean. The brilliant record made by the navy during the war with England secured it a flattering recep- tion everywhere. Indian Tribes at Peace. In the autumn of 1815 the Indian tribes, deprived of the support of Great Britain, made peace with each other and with the United States. The northwestern frontier was thus secured against the further hostility of the savages. The finances of the country were in a wretched condition at the close of the war. All the banks but those of New England had suspended specie payments, and none were now in a condition to return to a specie basis. The public debt was over ^100,000,000 and there was a general lack of confidence throughout the country. Mr. A. J. Dallas, the secretary of the treasury, in view of the general distress, proposed to abolish a num- ber of the internal taxes which had been levied for the support of the war. In their place he advised the imposition upon im- ports from foreign countries of duties suffi- ciently high not only to afford a revenue, but also to protect the manufactures which had sprung up during the war, and which were threatened with ruin by the competition of European goods. The President, in his annual message, warmly recommended such a course. Another important measure was also enacted. The charter of the first Bank of the United States expired in 181 1. Efforts had been made, without success, to obtain its renewal, and Mr. Madison in January, 1814, had vetoed a bill for this purpose which had passed both Houses of Congress. In the spring of i8i6abill was passed by Congress chartering a new Bank of the United States for twenty years, with a capital of 1^35,000,000, and received the President's signature on the tenth of April. It was located in Philadelphia, but had branches in other States. It gave the people a uniform currency, good in all parts of the country, and redeemable on demand in gold and silver, and thus did much to remedy the financial difficulties of the times. Somewhat later a law was passed requiring that all sums of money due the United States should be paid in gold or silver coin, " in treasury notes, in notes of the Bank of the United States, or in notes of banks payable and paid on demand in specie." On the nineteenth of April, 18 16, the Ter- ritory of Indiana was admitted into the Union as a State, making the nineteenth member of the Confederacy. William C. C. Claiborne, a distinguished lawyer and states- man and former governor of the Territory, was one of the senators-elect of the new State, and became a famous member of that body. The Presidential election took place in the fall of 1 8 16. Mr. Madison having declined to be a candidate for a third term, the Democratic party nominated James Monroe, of Virginia, for President, and Daniel D. Tompkins, of New York, for Vice-President, and elected them by large majorities over the Federal candidates, who were : For President, Rufus King, of New York ; for Vice-President, John Howard, of Maryland., CHAPTER XXXTV The Administrations of James Monroe and John Quincy Adams Inauguration of Mr. Monroe — His Tour through the Eastern States — Admission of Mississippi into the Union — Troubles with the Indians — General Jackson's Vigorous Measures against the Spaniards in Florida — Purchase of Florida by the United States — Illinois becomes a State — The First Steamship — Maine admitted into the Union — The Slavery Question — The Missouri Compromise — Admission of Missouri as a State — The Fourth Census — Re-election of Mr. Monroe — The Tariff — Protective Policy of the Government — Recognition of the Spanish Republics — The Monroe Doctrine — Visit of Lafayette to the United States — Retirement of Mr. Monroe — John Quincy Adams elected President — His Inauguration — Rapid Improvement of the Country — Increase of Wealth and Prosperity — Internal Improve- ments — The Creek Lands in Georgia Ceded to the United States — Death of Thomas Jefferson and John Adams — The Anti-Masons — The Tariff of i828^.\n(lre\v Jackson elected President of the United States. JAMES MONROE was inaugurated President of the United States, at Washington, on the fourth of March, 1817. He had served during the revolution in the army of the United States, and had entered Congress soon after the for- mation of the government as a representative from Virginia, and had won great credit by his services in that body. He had been secretary of state during the eight years of Mr. Madison's administration, and had greatly increased his fame by his discharge of the difficult and delicate duties of this posi- tion. He was a man of amiable and con- ciliatory character, and was popular with both parties. In his inaugural address he declared his intention to administer the government in ac- cordance with the principles of Washington, and the sentiments of this document were warmly applauded throughout the country by Federalists as well as Democrats. The administration of Mr. Monroe covered a period generally known in our political history as " the era of good feeling." Party lines were almost blotted out, and the people of the country were more united than at any 548 previous or subsequent period in the support of national measures. A few months after his inauguration Presi- dent Monroe made a tour through the Eastern States. He was received with marked attention everywhere, and the Fed- eralist city of Boston entertained him with the cordial hospitality which is one of her characteristics. On the tenth of December, 18 17, the western portion of the Territory of Mississ- ippi Avas admitted into the Union as the State of Mississippi. The eastern portion of the former Territory became the Territory of Alabama, for which a government was pro- vided by Congress. Towards the close of the year 18 17 the Seminole Indians, whose lands lay within the Spanish province of Florida, began to com- mit depredations along the borders of Geor- gia and Alabama Territory. They were joined by the Creeks, and their operations soon became so important as to demand the immediate action of the federal government. General Gaines, commanding the federal troops in Alabama, attempted to check the Indians, but his forces were inadequate to the: ADMINISTRATIONS OF MONROE AND J. Q. ADAMS. 549 task, and he was compelled to ask assistance of the government. General Jackson, com- manding the southern department, was ordered to call out the militia and take the field against the Indians. He collected a force of one thousand mounted Tennesseeans, and in March, 1818, invaded the Indian country, and in a few weeks laid it waste, the villages and cornfields were burned, and the cattle captured or killed. Being satisfied that the Spaniards in Florida had incited the Indians to make war on the United States, General Jackson, as soon as he had pun- ished the Indians, march- edinto Floridaandseized St. Marks, on Appalachee bay, the only fortified town of the Spaniards in that part of Florida. An armed American vessel, cruising off the Florida coast, hoisted the British colors, and two promin- ent hostile Creek chiefs were decoyed on board, and were summarily hanged by order of Jack- son. In one of his forays against the Indians Jack- son captured two Bri- tish traders, Robert C. Ambrister, or Ambuster, and Alexander Arbuthnot. Thevwere accused of aiding the Indians, were tried and found guilty by a court-martial, and were promptly hanged. The Spanish governor indignantly protested against the invasion of Florida, but Jackson, unmoved by this protest, advanced in May to Pensacola, the seat of the Spanish provincial government, which place was immediately surrendered to him. The Spanish governor fled to Fort Barrancas, below the town. Jackson attacked the fort and compelled it JAMES MONROE. to surrender after a brief resistance, where- upon the governor continued his flight to Havana. The invasion of Florida by Jackson drew forth an indignant protest from the Spanish government, but his conduct was sustained by a decisive majority in both 550 FROM THE REVOLUTION TO THE CIVIL WAR. Houses of Congress. The Spanish govern- ment did not press the matter, as negotiations were soon entered upon which brought about an amicable settlement of the difificulty. The Spanish kingdom was indebted to certain citizens of the United States in sums amounting in the aggregate to five million dollars. Spain instructed her minister at Washington to conclude a treaty with the United States ceding Florida to them as an equivalent for these claims. The treaty was arranged in 1819. Spain ceded to the United States all her claims to East and West Florida, and to the territory claimed by her on the Pacific coast north of forty-two degrees of north latitude, and the federal government assumed the Spanish debt to the citizens of this country. Two years later this treaty was ratified by Spain, and on the twenty- second of April, 1 82 1, the President formally announced the acquisition of Florida by the United States. Oregon and Illinois. This purchase also included the territory in Oregon claimed by Spain, and embraced an area of 367,320 square miles. Florida was at once organized as a Territory, and General Jackson was appointed its first gov- ernor. On the third of December, 18 18, the Ter- ritory of Illinois was admitted into the Union as a State. The year 18 19 was marked by an event o^ great importance in the history of the world^ Steam had been used for some time in the inland navigation of the Union, but it was not generally believed it could be applied to sea-going vessels. The steamship " Savan- nah," built in New York, but owned in the city from which she was named, made a suc- cessful voyage from New York to Savannah in the early part of 1819. In May of that year she sailed from Savannah for Liverpool, and reached that port in safety From Liver- pool she subsequently made a voyage to St. Petersburg. She was the first steam vessel that ever crossed the Atlantic, and, wherever she went, was an object of the greatest interest. The question of steam navigation on the ocean was thus satisfactorily settled by America. On the fourteenth of December, 18 19, Alabama was admitted into the Union as a State, making the total number of States twenty-two. North and South. On the fifteenth of March, 1820, Maine, which had formed a part of Massachusetts, but had been ceded by that State to the gen- eral government, was admitted into the Union as a State. The object of the erection of this new State was to offset the growing power of the Southern States by the creation of a new member of the Union in New Eng- land. The number of the New England States was thus increased to six. For some years past the question of African slavery in the States had been assuming an important and alarming position in the public mind. The States of the north and west had gotten rid of such negro slaves as they had originnlly possessed, and had forbidden their citizens to own or bring within their limits for purposes of labor any persons of this class. The Southern States, on the other hand, comprised a region in which slave labor was particularly profitable, and it was believed by the people of this region that the industry of many parts of the south could not be properly developed by white men, as the climate was more unsuited to them than the negroes. The production of cotton, rice, sugar, and tobacco depended on the labor of the negro, and in the States where those great staples were raised slavery was regarded as a necessity. ADMINISTRATIONS OF MONROE AND J. Q. ADAMS. 551 At the period we are now considering slavery existed in the States of Delaware, Maryland, Virginia, North and South Caro- lina, Georgia, Alabama, Louisiana, Missis- sippi, Tennessee, and Kentucky. Being regarded by these States as necessary to their prosperity, they considered any and all plans for its removal as attacks upon their chief source of wealth. In the non-slaveholding States the feeling that slavery was sinful had been gradually gaining ground, and there were many per- sons in the south who held the same views. Certain religious bo- dies in the country had distinctly expressed their belief that it Vv^as contrary to the teach- ings of Christianity to own slaves, and mem- orials had been pre- sented to the legisla- tures of some of the States, and to the Con- gress of the United States, praying for the abolition of slavery. The law for the organization of the Northwest Territory forbade the admis- sion of slavery into the States to be formed out of that Territory, and thus secured them for free labor. Though Congress did not hesitate to legislate upon the subject of slavery in this case, it steadily refused to comply with ' the demands of the petitions presented to it praying it to take measures for the abolition of slavery throughout the nation. The exist- ence of slavery within the individual States was recognized and protected by the Consti- tution, and Congress held that it had no right to interfere with the domestic relations of those States in which slavery, thus recog- nized and protected, was established. In February, 18 19, the Territory of Mis- souri, which was formed out of a part of the Louisiana purchase, asked permission to form a constitution preparatory to being admitted into the Union as a State. When OLD \VA\ Ot PICKING COTTON. the bill for this purpose was presented to the House of Representatives on the thirteenth of February, Mr. Tallmadge, of New York, proposed to insert a clause providing " that the further introduction of slavery, or invol- untary servitude, be prohibited, except for the punishment of crimes whereof the party shall have been duly convicted ; and that all children born in said State, after the admis- 552 FROM THE REVOLUTION TO THE CIVIL WAR. sion thereof into the Union, shall be free at the age of twenty-five years. The announcement of this amendment produced a great sensation in the House, and throughout the country. It was believed by the advocates of slavery that the resolu- tions of the House of Representatives of 1790, in reply to the first petition presented to it for the abolition of slavery, had settled the question of the powers of the federal government respecting slavery. No effort had been made to revive the subject in the admission of Kentucky, Tennessee, Louis- iana, Mississippi, or Alabama, in each of which States negro slavery existed. Many of the most determined opponents of slavery believed that, under the constitution and the Louisiana treaty with France, Congress had no right to adopt the proposed restriction upon the admission of Missouri as a State. Free and Slave Labor. Among these were Mr. Jefferson, then living in retirement at Monticello, and John Quincy Adams, the secretary of state in Mr. Monroe's cabinet. Both of these gentlemen were sincerely desirous of the abolition of slavery. Mr. Jefferson believed that the States alone had power to legislate upon the subject within their respective limits. The opponents of slavery, on the other hand, contended that while Congress had no power to interfere with slavery in the thirteen orig- inal States, it had full power to legislate concerning it in the Territories, which were the common property of the States north and south. The advocates of slavery con- tended that, as the treaty under which the Louisiana purchase was made contained a pledge to the inhabitants of that Territory that they should enjoy " all the privileges of citizens of the United States," such a restric- tion as that proposed by Mr. Tallmadge would be a violation of this pledge. They claimed also that as slaves were property, and the Territories the common possession of the States, the citizens of the slaveholding States had the right to carry their property into the Territories ; and that the probibition of slavery in the Territories would be to deprive the south of her share in their enjoyment. The anti-slavery advo- cates replied to this, that slave and free labor could not coexist on the same soil, and that to allow slavery in the Territories would be to drive free labor out of them ; and that it would be a great wrong to allow the intro- duction of a few hundred thousand slaves at the cost of driving millions of free men from the Territories. The National Controversy. The discussion of this question produced intense feeling between the Northern and Southern States, and the sectional division of the country was drawn too deep to be effaced while the cause of it remained. It was very clear to thinking men that the feelings aroused by this controversy could not be quieted until the institution of slavery should be abolished throughout the country, or should be introduced into every new State formed out of the Territories remaining to the republic. The excitement deepened daily, and at one time became so intense as to threaten the existence of the Union. Good men of all parties gave their best efforts to the task of effecting a settlement o( the difficulty, but amid the storm of passion which was aroused by the debate in Congress it was hard to accomplish anything. The bill allowing the people of Missouri to form a State constitution passed the House of Representatives with Mr. Tall- madge's amendment by a small majority. It was defeated in the Senate. When Con- gress met again in December, 18 19, the debate was renewed upon the Missouri ADMINISTRATIONS OF MONROE AND J. Q. ADAMS. 553 question. The Mouse again passed the bill for- bidding the existence of slavery in Missouri. The Senate struck out Mr. Tallmadge's amendment, and added to the House bill, as .a substitute for it, a proviso offered by Mr. Thomas, of Illinois, that slavery should not exist in any part of the Louisiana Territory north of thirty-six degrees and thirty minutes north latitude, and west of the proposed State of Missouri, or in any State to be formed out of this Territory. The House refused to accept the Senate's amend- ment, and in order to adjust their dif- erences a committee of conference was appointed by the two Houses. Maine, whose admission we have re- lated, was an applicant for admission into the Union at this time, and it was contended by the south that it was unjust to admit her without any restric- tion as to her domestic institutions, and yet to impose upon Missouri a restric- tion which would deprive a large part ■of her population of their property, and ■close the State against emigration from the south. The result of the committee on conference was that after long and exciting debates the amendment offered by Mr. Thomas, of Illinois, was accepted. Maine was admitted as a free State. It was enacted by Congress that slavery should never exist north of the line of thirty-six degrees thirty minutes north latitude; and that Missouri should be admit- ted into the Union as a slave State upon the adoption of a constitution by her people. This was regarded as an equitable settle- ment of the difficulty, and the measure is known as the Missouri Compromise. The act for the admission of Maine received the President's approval on the third of March, 1820, and the State was admitted into the Union under it on the fifteenth of March. The separate act in relation to Missouri was approved by the President on the eighth of March, 1820. Its title shows its object. It was " An act to authorize the people of Mis- souri Territory to form a constitution and State government, and for the admission of such State into the Union on an equal foot- ing with the original States, and to prohibit slavery in certain Territories." As we shall see, the State of Missouri was not admitted into the Union under the famous Missouri Comprom'sc. HENRV CLAV. When Congress met in December, 1820, the constitution adopted by Missouri was presented to that body. It contained a clause which prevented free people of color from settling in the State. " This clause," says Colonel Benton, " was adopted for the sake of peace — for the sake of internal tranquil- ity — and to prevent the agitation of the slave question."* It was objected to in Congress * Benton s Thiiiy Years' View, vol. i., p. 8. 554 FROM THE REVOLUTION TO THE CIVIL WAR. by the party that had previously opposed the admission of Missouri as a slave State. This party argued that the constitution required that the citizens of one State should be entitled to the privileges of citizens in the other States ; and that as some of the States recognized free people of color as citizens, this provision of the Missouri constitution was in open hostility to the constitution of the United States, since it deprived the citi- zens of some of the States of their rights. The friends of the compromise measure were astounded, as they had supposed that it had removed all obstacles to the admis- sion of Missouri, which had already exer- cised the privileges of a State in electing senators and representatives to Congress, and in taking part in the presidential election of 1820. The subject was reopened in Con- gress in all its bitterness, and the country again plunged into profound agitation. The Struggle Renewed. At this juncture Henry Clay exerted him- self with great energy to bring about a settle- ment of the dispute. He induced the House to commit the matter to a committee of thir- teen, of which he was made chairman. This committee advised the admission of Missouri upon the condition that the obnoxious clause in her constitution should be withdrawn and that her legislature should pass no law vio- lative of the rights of citizens of other States. Mr. Clay supposed that as this recommenda- tion amply met the objection to the admis- sion of Missouri, it would remove the last obstacle to the accomplishment of that object- To his astonishment it was defeated by a vote of eighty for it and eighty-three against it. The struggle now became more bitter than ever. The anti-slavery party, which had by this time obtained a definite existence, were determined that the right of the general government to control the slavery question should be acknowledged. The pro-slavery party were determined to resist the exercise of that claim. Threats were freely indulged to destroy the Union by the withdrawal of the States. Mr. Clay, undaunted by his failure, renewed his patriotic efforts to bring about a settlement of the dispute, and at length secured the passage of measures sub- stantially the same as those advised by his first committee. The act of Congress for this purpose was approved by the President on the second of March, 1821. The Missouri legislature on the twenty-sixth of June expunged the obnoxious article from the constitution of the State, and on the tenth of August the President issued his proclamation admitting Missouri into the Union.* The slavery question was quieted for a time by the admission of Missouri, but it was not settled. We shall encounter it again and again in the remaining chapters of this work. In 1820 the fourth census of the United States placed the population of the republic at 9,638,191 souls. In the fall of 1820 Mr. Monroe and Gov- ernor Tompkins were re-elected President and Vice-President of the United States. Mr. * " A general idea prevails very extensively that Missouri was admitted as a slave State in 1820, under an agree- ment with the Restrictionists, or Centralists, proposed by Mr. Clay, that she should be so admitted upon condition that negro slavery should be forever prohibited in the public domain' north of 36 degrees 30 minutes north latitude. No greater error in any important historical event ever existed. The truth is, Mr. Clay was not the author of the territorial line of 36 degrees 30 minutes, incorporated in the act of 1820, nor was Missouri admitted under the provisions of that act. On the contrary, she was admitted on the tenth of August, 1S21, by presidential proclamation, upon the ' Funda- mental Conditions,' in substance, that the State government, in all its departments, should be subject to the constitution of the United States, as all the State governments were, and are." — A Compendium of the History of the United States, By Hon. Alexander H. Stephens, p. 329. ADMINISTP.ATIONS OF MONROE AND J. Q. ADAMS. 555 Monroe received at the polls a majority of the votes of every State in the Union, and every electoral vote but one, which was one in the college of New Hampshire, and was cast for John Quincy Adams. Mr. Monroe entered upon his second term on the fourth of March, 1821. Next in importance to the slavery ques- world, and compelled the States to depend upon their own exertions for the supply of their wants. During this period numerous manufacturing enterprises had sprung up, especially in New England, where capital was idle and labor abundant. At the close of the war the country was flooded with European goods, which were UNIQUE COTTON HARVESTER. tion was that of the tariff, or the imposition of a protective duty in favor of home manu- factures. In his inaugural address the Presi- dent had recommended the imposition of such a system of duties. During the war the non-intercourse laws of Congress, and the rigid blockade maintained by the British fleet, entirely cut the United States off from commercial intercourse with the rest of the sold at reduced prices for the especial pur- pose of ruining American manufactures. In their weak and helpless condition the Ameri- can enterprises could not endure this com- petition, and the tariff was proposed as the only means of saving them from ruin. The first measure of this kind was passed by Congress in 18 16, and was opposed by the New England States, which were then largely 556 FROM THE REVOLUTION TO THE CIVIL WAR. engaged in commerce, and was supported by the south. In 1820 the tariff was revised. The New Jingland States, which had directed the chief efforts to manufactures since 18 16, had felt the beneficial effects of protective duties, and now became the warm supporters of the tariff. The south being an agricultural section had found that its interests demanded free trade, had changed its position and resolutely opposed the tariff. In spite of the ■opposition to the measure, however, the ■duties were increased in the tariff of 1820. Mexico and South America. For some years past Mexico and the States of South America formerly held by Spain as provinces had been struggling to achieve their independence of the mother country. Henry Clay had exerted himself with enthusiasm to obtain from Congress a recognition of their independence, but such a step had been considered premature. In March, 1822, however, his efforts were crowned with success, and a bill was passed by Congress in accordance with the recom- mendation of the President, recognizing the independence of Mexico and the South American republics, and providing for the establishment of diplomatic relations with them. The next year President Monroe declared in a message to Congress that, " as a princi- ple, the American continents, by the free and independent position they have assumed and maintained, are henceforth not to be considered as subjects for future colonization by any European power." This claim that America belongs to republicanism, and is not to be the scene of European schemes for territorial aggrandizement, has since been known as the " Monroe doctrine," and has regarded as one of the cardinal points of the policy of the government of the United States. The last year of Mr. Monroe's administra- tion was marked by an advent of the deepest interest to the whole country. In 1824 the venerable Marquis de Lafayette came to the United States at the express invitation of Congress to visit the nation whose freedom he had helped to achieve. He reached New York on the thirteenth of August, and was received with enthusiasm. He travelled through all the States, and was everywhere received with demonstrations of respect and affection, and he was given abundant evi- dence in all parts of the country that the nation cherished with love and pride the memory of the generous stranger who came to its aid in its darkest hour of trial. Re- turning to Washington during the session of Congress, Lafayette spent several weeks there. Congress, as a token of the gratitude of the nation for his services, voted him a a township of land and the sum of two hun- dred thousand dollars. The frigate " Brandy- wine," just finished, was appointed to convey him back to France, a delicate compliment, as the vessel was named after the stream on whose banks Lafayette fought his first battle and was wounded in the cause of American independence. At the time of his visit to the United States Lafayette was nearly seventy years old. Election of John Quincy Adams. In the fall of 1824 the Presidential election was held amid great political excitement. The " era of good feeling " was at an end, and party spirit ran high. There were four candidates in the field, Mr. Monroe having declined a third term : Andrew Jackson, John Quincy Adams, William H. Crawford and Henry Clay. None of these received a popular majority and the election was thrown into the House of Representatives in Congress, and resulted in the choice of John Quincy Adams, of ADMINISTRATIONS OF MONROE AND J. Q. ADAMS. 557 Massachusetts, as President of the United States. John C. Calhoun, of South Carolina, had been chosen Vice-President by the popular vote. On the fourth of March, 1825, John Quincy Adams was inaugurated President of the United States. He was the son of John Adams, the second President of the republic, and was in his fifty-eighth year. He was a man of great natural ability, of strong personal character, and of unbending integrity. He had been carefully educated, and was one of the most learned men in the Union. Apart from his general education he had received a special training in statesmanship. He had served as minister to the Nether- lands, and in the same capacity at the courts of Portugal, Prussia Russia and England, where he had maintained a high reputation. He had represented the State of Massachusetts in the Federal Senate, and had been secretary of state in the cabinet of Mr. Monroe during the last administration. He was therefore thoroughly qualified for the duties of the high office upon which he now entered. "King Cotton." He called to his cabinet men of marked ability, at the head of which was Henry Clay, who became secretary ot state. The administration of Mr. Adams was one of re- markable prosperity. The country was growing wealthier by the rapid increase of its agriculture, manufactures and commerce, and abroad it commanded the respect of the world. Still party spirit raged with great violence during the whole of this period. The invention of the cotton gin by Eli Whitney, in 1793, by which the seed was separated from the cotton, had so cheapened the cost of producing that great staple, that it had become the principal article of export from the United States, and a source of great and growing wealth to the whole country. Several important undertakings were prosecuted with vigor, or were completed during Mr. Adams' term of office. The National Road, a splendidly constructed highway, built by the general government, from Cumberland, Maryland, across the mountains, was completed to Wheeling, on the Ohio, in 1820, and was carried beyond that stream durin"; Mr. Adams' administra- JOHN QUINCY ADAMS. tion, the design being to extend it to the Mississippi. It furnished a broad and well- built thoroughfare between the seaboard and the west, and exerted a marked influence upon the internal trade of the country. The road from Cumberland to Wheeling cost ^1,700,000. The Erie canal, extending from Buffalo on Lake Erie on the Hudson at Albany, was projected by De Witt Clinton. The plan was at first pronounced impracticable, but Clinton succeeded in inducing the State of 558 FROM THE REVOLaXION TO THE CIVIL WAR. New York to undertake the scheme, and in 1825 the great work was completed and the waters of the lakes and the Hudson were united. The completion of this canal secured to the city of New York the control of the western trade, and added to its wealth and importance in a marked degree. Mauch Chunk railway, from the coal mines to the Lehigh river, in Pennsylvania, in 1827. These were merely local works, and of but little importance, except in so far as they helped to demonstrate to the public mind the possibility and the usefulness of such enter- prises upon a larger scale. STEAMBOAT LOADING WITH COTTON. Steam had been for some years in use as the motive power in the navigation of the rivers of the Union, and it now began to be applied to purposes of land transportation. The first railroad in this country was a mere tramway, for the transportation of granite from the quarries at Quincy to the Neponsett river, in Massachusetts, and was constructed in the year 1826. This was followed by the Charters for roads of more importance were soon obtained in several of the States. In 1828 work was begun on the Baltimore and Ohio railroad, and in 1829 on the South Carolina railroad, In the year 1827 there were three miles of railroad in operation in the United States. In 1875 the number of miles in operation is a little over seventy thousand. ADMINISTRATIONS OF MONROE AND J. Q. ADAMS. 559 For some time previous to the entrance of Mr. Adams upon office, Georgia had been involved in a dispute with the general gov- ernment and with the Creek Indians con- cerning the lands of the latter, which the United States had agreed to purchase for the benefit of Georgia. Twenty-five years passed after the promise was made, and the lands re- mained unpurchased be- cause the Indians would ,^ not sell them. A treaty ^ wasfinally made in 1825 x. ^ by which some of the chiefs ceded to the gen- •s^"*"-'^^ eral government the ^ '**'"^ lands in question, -*. The majority of the Indians declared the chiefs had no authority to enter into this treaty, and called upon the United States to repudi- ate it. It was cancelled by the general govern- ment, but the State of Georgia determined to enforce it. The general government took the side of the Indians, and for a while it seemed that an open conflict would ensue between the State and federal authorities. The matter was settled by the Creeks consent- ing to sell their lands and to accept new homes in the west. The Indian lands were purchased by the United States, and the Creeks emigrated beyond the Missis- sippi. On the fourth of July, 1826, died, within a few hours of each other, two ex-presidents of the republic — John Adams and Thomas Jef- ferson — the latter the author of the Declara- tion of Independence, and the former its most efficient supporter. Mr. Adams died at his home at Qainc\', Massachusetts, at the ripe old age of ninety years ; Mr. Jefferson, at STATUE OF JEFFERSON AT WASHINGTON. Monticello, his beautiful Virginian home, at the age of eighty-two. Both had filled the highest stations in the republic, and both had lived to see the country they loved take rank among the first nations of the globe. They died on the fiftieth anniversary of American independence. S6o FROM THE REVOLUTION TO THE CIVIL WAR. In the year 1826 a new party made its appearance in our politics. A man named William Morgan, residing in the western part of New York, published a book purport- ing to reveal the secrets of the order of Free- masons. He suddenly disappeared, and it was charged that he had been seized and murdered by the Freemasons in revenge for his exposures. The affair caused great ex- citement in the Northern and some of the Western States, and gave rise to a political DANIEL WEBSTER. party known as the Anti-Masons, whose avowed object was the exclusion of Masons from office. It acquired considerable strength in some of the States, but in a few years died out. The tariff question now engaged the atten- tion of the country once more. The manu- facturing interests were still struggling against foreign competition, and it was the opinion of the Eastern and Middle States that the gen- eral government should protect them by the imposition of high duties upon products of foreign countries imported into the Union. The south was almost a unit in its opposition to a high tariff. Being, as we have said, an agricultural section, its interests demanded a free market, and it wished to avail itself of the privilege of purchasing where it could buy cheapest. The south and the west were the markets of the east, and the interests of that section demanded the exclusion of for- eign competitio.n in supplying these markets. In July, 1827, a convention of manu- facturers was held at Harrisburg, Penn- sylvania, and a memorial was adopted praying Congress to increase the duties on foreign goods to an extent which would protect American industry. When Congress met in December, 1827, the protective policy was the most important topic of the day. It was warmly dis- cussed in Congress and throughout the country. The interests of New England were championed by the matchless elo- quence of Daniel Webster, who claimed that as the adoption of the protective policy by the government had forced New England to turn her energies to manufacturers, the government was bound to protect her against competi- tion. After a very able and exhaustive dis- cussion, the tariff bill was passed by the House on the fifteenth of April, 1828,, and was approved by the President a little later. It was termed by its opponents the " Bill of Abominations." In the midst of this excitement the Presi- dential election occurred. Mr. Adams was a candidate for re-election, but was over- whelmingly defeated by Andrew Jackson, of Tennessee. John C. Calhoun was chosen Vice-President. The election of Jackson was regarded as a popular condemnation of the protective policy of the government. CHAPTER XXXV The Administrations of Andrew Jaekson and Martin Van Buren Character of Andrew Jackson — Indian Policy of this Administration — The President Vetoes the Bill to Renew the Char- ter of the United States Bank — Debate Between Hayne and Webster — Jackson's Quarrel With Calhoun — Death of ex-President Monroe — The Cholera — Black Hawk's War — Re-election of President Jackson — The TarifT — Action of South Carolina — The Nullification Ordinance — Firmness of the President — The Matter Settled by Compromise — Pa- triotism of Henry Clay — The Removal of the Deposits — The Seminole War Begun — Great Fire at New York — Settle- ment of the French Claims — Arkansas Admitted Into the Union — The National Debt Paid — Death of ex- President Madison — Martin Van Buren Elected President — Michigan Admitted Into the Union — The Panic of 1837 — Causes of It — Suspension of Specie Payments — Great Distress Throughout the Union — The Sub-Treasury — Repudiation of State Debts — The Canadian Rebellion — The President's Course — The Seminole War Ended — The Anti-Slaver)' Party — ■ Resolutions of Congress Respecting Slavery — William Henry Harrison Elected President — The Sixth Census. ANDREW JACKSON, the seventh President of the United States, was inaugurated at Washington, on the fourth of March, 1829. President Jackson was in many respects one of the most remarkable men of his day. He was of Scotch-Irish descent, and was born in North Carohna during the contro- versy between the colonies and Great Britain, which preceded the revolution. He was left fatherless at an early age, and his youth was passed amid the stirring scenes of the war for independence. At the age of thirteen he began his career by taking part in the fight at Hanging Rock, under General Sumter, The home of the Jacksons was broken up and pillaged by the Tories, and the mother and her two sons became wan- derers. The sons were shortly after made prisoners by the Tories, and the day after his capture Andrew Jackson was ordered by a British officer to clean his boots. He indignantly refused, and the officer struck him with the flat of his sword. The boys were at length exchanged through the exer- tions of their mother. Both had contracted the small-pox during their captivity, and the elder son soon died of his disease. 36 Not long afterwards Mrs. Jackson, with some other ladies, went to Charleston to minister to the wants of the American pri- soners of war confined there by the British. A fever was raging among these unfortunates at the time, and Mrs. Jackson was soon num- bered among its victims. Thus, at the age of fifteen, Andrew Jackson was left alone in the world without a relative. Though young in years, he had been greatly matured in character by his trials. Even at this early age he was generous to a fault to his friends, and immovable in his resolutions when once formed. A few years later he removed to Tennes- see, then a Territory, and upon the admis- sion of the State into the Union was elected as her first representative in Congress. His services during the war of 18 12-15 have been related. His brilliant victory over the British at New Orleans made him one of the most noted men of the day, and his prompt and decisive measures against the Spaniards in Florida during Mr, Monroe's administration greatly added to his reputation. During the administration of John Adams- General Jackson occupied a seat in the United States Senate, and gave a cordial support to 561 562 FROM THE REVOLUTION TO THE CIVIL WAR. the principles of Mr. Jefferson. Resigning his seat in the Senate before the close of his term, he was elected one of the judges of the Supreme Court of Tennessee. The election of General Jackson to the ANDREW JACKSON. Presidency was regarded with some anxiety, for though his merits as a soldier were con- ceded, it was feared by many that his known imperiousness of will and his inflexibility of purpose would seriously disqualify him for the delicate duties of the Presidency. Nature had made him a ruler, however, and his adminis- tration w^as marked by the fearless energy that characterized every act of his life, and was on the whole successful and satisfactory to the great majority of his countrymen. General Jackson began his administra- tion by appointing a new cabinet, at the head of which he placed Martin Van Buren, of New York, as secretary of state. Until now the Post- master-General had not been regarded as a cabinet officer. Gen- eral Jackson now in- vited that officer to a seat in his cabinet and a share in its delibera- tions, and his course has since been pur- sued by each and all of his successors. The first important act of the new Presi- dent was to recom- mend to Congress the removal of all the In- dian tribes remaining east of the Mississippi to new homes west of that stream. Such a measure, he con- tended, would give to them a broader range, and one more suited to their wants, and would reliev^e the States east of the Mississippi from all further apprehension of Indian wars. This removal involved considerable loss and hard- ship to the Creeks in Georgia, who had made an encouracfinsf advance in civilization, A ADMINISTRATIONS OF JACKSON AND VAN BUREN. 56: bill was passed by the Twenty-first Congress in May, 1830, for the purpose of carrying this policy into effect ; but the removal of the Indians was not completed for some years afterwards. In his first annual message to Congress, in 1829, the President took strong ground against the renewal of the charter of the Bank of the United States, which was about to expire. This was a bold step, as the bank was the most powerful institution in the United States, and had warm friends in every part of the country. The stockholders of the bank applied to the Twenty-second Con- gress during its first session, which began in December, 1831, for a renewal of their char- ter, and in the late spring of 1832 a bill renewing this charter was passed by both Houses of Congress. The President refused to sign the bill, and returned it to Congress with his objections. He held that Congress had no constitutional power to charter such a bank, and regarded it as inexpedient to continue its existence. An effort was made by the friends of the bill to pass it over the President's veto, but it failed to obtain the necessary two-thirds vote, and consequently did not become a law. The bank was there- fore obliged to suspend its operations at the expiration of its charter in 1836. A Historic Debate. In 1830 Senator Foot, of Connecticut, sub- mitted a resolution of inquiry to the Senate concerning the disposal of the public lands. The debate upon the resolution extended far beyond the subject embraced in that docu- ment, and in the course of it Senator Robert Y. Hayne, of South Carolina, a brilliant orator, declared that any State had the right, in the exercise of its sovereign power, to declare null and void any act of Congress which it should consider unconstitutional. This was a plain statement of the doctrine that the Union was simply a compact between tiie States, from which any of the States could secede at pleasure, and it was the first time such a sentiment had been expressed on the floor of Congress. Mr. Webster, of Massa- chusetts, replied to Mr. Hayne, in an oration of superb eloquence. He denied the doc- trine that the Union was a compact of sover- eign, independent States, from which any one of them could withdraw at pleasure ; and argued that the constitution was the work of the people themselves, not as separate States, ROBERT Y. HAYNE. but as members of a great nation, and was designed to make the Union perpetual ; that the controversies between the States and the general government were to be decided by the supreme court, the tribunal created for that purpose by the constitution, and not by the States themselves ; and that any attempt on the part of the people of a State to with- draw from the Union was treason. The debate added greatly to the fame of both senators, and the sentiments of Mr. Webster were unanimously re-echoed by the 564 FROM THE REVOLUTION TO THE CIVIL WAR. north, and by a large majority at the south. The effect of the debate was to direct the' attention of the people to a study of the principles of the constitution. Different views were maintained. The Northern and Western States regarded the Union as indis- soluble, while the Southern States held that it was a compact of sovereign States, and A LUMBERMAN S CAMP IN THE WOODS OF MAINE. that any State could withdraw from the Union for just cause. During the session of the Twenty-first Congress a breach occurred between Presi- dent Jackson and Mr. Calhoun, the vice- president. The former was told for the first time that Mr. Calhoun, while a member of Mr. Monroe's cabinet, had endeavored to prevent the government from sustaining him in his invasion of Florida in 181 8. General Jackson deeply resented this, and the breach between himself and Mr. Calhoun widened daily. Shortly afterwards Mr. Calhoun re- signed the vice-presidency, and was elected to the Senate by the legislature of South Carolina in 1831. In the same year Mr. Clay was elected to the Senate from Ken- tucky, and Edward Livingston was made secretary of state. On the fourth of July, 1 83 1, ex-Presi- dent Monroe died in New York, in the se- venty-fourth year of his age. In June, 1832, the Asiatic cholera made its first appearance in the United States, and swept with fearful ra- pidity over the whole country. Thousands of persons of all ages and conditions died of it within a few months, and a feeling of general terror per- vaded the country. Its principal ravages occurred in the North- ern States and in the valley of the Missis- sippi. In the spring of 1832 the Sacs and Foxes, and some other tribes of Indians, inhabiting the region now known as Wisconsin, made incursions against the frontier settlements of Illinois. General Atkinson was sent by the general government with a force of troops to crush them, and, with the assistance of the militia, after a series of skirmishes, drove them beyond the Mississippi. Black Hawk, ADMINISTRATIONS OF JACKSON AND VAN BUREN. 565 a chief of the Sac nation, and the leader of the movement, was taken prisoner. He was kindly treated, and to impress him with the folly of attacking a great nation, he was taken to Washington, and then to the prin- cipal eastern cities, that he might see for himself the power of the whites. Jackson Re-elected. Early in 1831 General Jackson was nomi- nated for re-election to the Presidency by the legislature of Pennsylvania. The Presi- dential election took place in the fall of 1832. General Jackson was supported by the Democratic party, and Mr. Clay by the Whigs, for the Presidency. The contest was marked by intense bitterness, for Jack- son's veto of the charter of the Bank of the United States, his other vetoes of public improvement bills, and his attitude in the " Nullification " controversy between the United States and South Carolina had created a powerful opposition to him in all parts of the country. In spite of this op- position he was re-elected by a triumphant majority, and Martin Van Buren, of New York, the Democratic nominee, was chosen vice-president. In the meantime serious trouble had arisen between the general government and the State of South Carolina. During the year 1832 the tariff was revised by Congress, and that body, instead of diminishing the duties, increased many of them. This action gave great offence to the Southern States, which regarded the denial of free trade as a great wrong to them. They were willing to submit to a tariff sufficient for a revenue, but were utterly opposed to a protective tariff for the reasons we have already stated. The States of Virginia, Georgia and South Caro- lina were the most energetic in their opposi- tion to the measure, but the first two, upon its passage, submitted to it, hoping to carry out their w'shes by constitutional means at some future time. The State of South Carolina, holding the views advocated by Mr. Hayne in the Senate, in his debate with Mr. Webster, resolved to " nullify " the law within its own limits. A convention of the people of the State was held, which adopted a measure known as the " Nullification Ordinance." This ordinance declared that the tariff act of 1832, being based upon the principle of pro- JOHN C. CALHOON. tection, and not upon the principle of raising revenue, was unconstitutional, and was there- fore null and void. Provision was made by another clause for testing the constitutionality of the law before the courts of the State. The State assumed the right to forbid the collection of the duties imposed by the tariff within its limits ; and if the general govern- ment should resist the course of the State by force, the State of South Carolina was declared to be no longer a member of the 566 FROM THE REVOLUTION TO THE CIVIL WAR. Union. This ordinance was to take effect on the twelfth of February, 1833, unless in the meantime the general government should abandon its policy of protection and return to a tariff for revenue only. Matters had reached this state when the Presidential election occurred in the fall of 1832. The country at large was utterly opposed to the course of South Carolina, and denied its right to nullify a law of Con- gress or to withdraw from the Union in support of this right. Intense excitement EDWARD LIVINGSTON. prevailed, and the course of the President was watched with the gravest anxiety. He was known to be opposed to the protective policy ; but it was generally believed that he was firm in his intention to enforce the laws, however he might disapprove of them. Congress met in December, 1832, and in his annual message President Jackson urged upon that body a reduction of the tariff. The message gave great satisfaction to the opponents of the tariff. A few days later the President issued a proclamation against nullification, moderate in language, but firm in tone. He expressed his opinion that the course of South Carolina was unlawful and wrong, and intimated that he would exert the power intrusted to him to compel obedi- ence to the constitution and laws of the Union. He appealed to the people of South Carolina not to persist in the enforcement of their ordinance, as such a course on their part must inevitably bring them in collision with the forces of the federal government; and told them plainly that any citizen of any of the States who should take up arms against the United States in such a conflict would be guilty of treason against the United States. Referring to the action of the convention,, he said : " This ordinance is founded, not on the indefeasible right of resisting acts which are plainly unconstitutional, and too oppres- sive to be endured ; but on the strange posi- tion that any one State may not only declare- an act of Congress void, but prohibit its execution; that they may do this consist- ently with the constitution ; that the true construction of the instrument permits a State to retain its place in the Union, and yet be bound by no other of its laws than those it may choose to consider as constitu- tional." Trouble in South Carolina. The leaders of the South Carolina move- ment were Governor Hayne and John C. Calhoun, then a senator of the United States from South Carolina. Governor Hayne re- plied to the President with a counter procla- mation, in which he warned the people of the State against " the dangerous and perni- cious doctrines " of the President's procla- mation, and called upon them to disregard " those vain menaces " of military force, and " to be fully prepared to sustain the dignity and protect the liberties of the State, if need ADMINISTRATIONS OF JACKSON AND VAN BUREN. 567 be, with their hves and fortunes." The State prepared to maintain its position by force. Troops were organized and arms and mihtary stores were collected. The President, on his part, took measures promptly to enforce the law. He ordered a large body of troops to assemble at Charles- ton under General Scott, and a ship of war was sent to that port to assist the federal officers in collecting the duties on imports. Civil war seemed for a time inevitable. The ginia sent Benjamin Watkins Leigh, a dis- tinguished citizen, as commissioner to South Carolina, to urge her to suspend the execu- tion of her ordinance until March 4th, as there was a probability that a peaceful set- tlement of the difficulty would be arranged before that time. South Carolina consented to be guided by this appeal. Henry Clay, with his usual patriotic self- sacrifice, now came forward in the Senate with a compromise which he hoped would THE UNITED STATES TREASURY AT WASHINGTON, D. C. President was firmly resolved to compel the submission of South Carolina and to cause the arrest of Mr. Calhoun and the other leading nullifiers and bring them to trial for treason. The issue of such a conflict could not be doubtful. Fortunately a peaceful settlement of the trouble was effected. Mr. Verplanck, of New York, a supporter of the administra- tion, introduced a bill into Congress for a reduction of the tariff, and the State of Vir- put an end to the trouble. He was an ardent advocate of the protective system, but he was prepared to sacrifice it to the welfare of the country. He introduced a bill providing for the gradual reduction in ten years of all duties then above the revenue standard. " One-tenth of one-half of all the duties for protection above that standard was to be taken off annually for ten years, at the end of which period the whole of the other half was to be taken off, and thereafter all duties 568 FROM THE REVOLUTION TO THE CIVIL WAR. were to be levied mainly with a view to revenue and not for protection." This measure with some modifications was adopted by both Houses of Congress, and was approved by the President on the second of March, 1833. The people of South Caro- lina rescinded their " Nulhfication Ordi- nance," and the trouble was brought to an end.* It was generally believed that the Union had escaped from a grave peril. The firm- ness of the President received the approval of the nation, except in South Carolina. The action of that State was generally condemned, and the result was looked upon as a decided triumph of the national authority. Renewed Excitement. On the fourth of March, 1833, General Jackson entered upon his second term of office. The troubles which had disquieted the country had been satisfactorily settled, and the President took advantage of the peaceful condition of affairs to visit New York and the New England States. He was received everywhere with enthusiasm. Upon his return to the capital the Presi- dent took a step which plunged the country into great excitement once more. The charter of the Bank of the United States made that institution the legal depository of the funds of the United States. The secre- tary of the treasury, with the sanction of Congress, alone had authority to remove them. The President was of the opinion that the public funds were not safe in the keeping of the bank, and announced his in- tention to remove them from the Bank of the United States and deposit them with certain State banks. The majority of the cabinet were opposed to the measure, and the secretary of the treasury, William J. Duane, when ordered by the President to withdraw the funds, refused to obey him as he considered the President's course " un- necessary, unwise, arbitrary and unjust." He was at once removed from his position by President Jackson, who appointed Roger B. Taney, of Maryland, in his place. Mr. Taney issued an order to the collectors, for- bidding them to deposit the public moneys paid to them in the Bank of the United States. As for the funds already in the pos- session of the bank it was decided to with- draw them as they were needed for the pay- ment of the current expenses of the govern- ment. This measure was productive of great financial distress throughout the Union, which continued for some time. President Jackson Censured. The President's course also produced open war between himself and the Senate, in which body he was opposed by Clay, Cal- houn and Webster, its foremost members. He was defended by Benton, of Missouri, and Forsyth, of Georgia, but in spite of their efforts a resolution declaring the President's course unconstitutional and severely censur- ing him for it was adopted by the Senate. The President remained firm, however. He submitted an able protest against the action of the Senate, and by the help of the House of Representatives defeated the bank on every point. The Senate subsequently recognized the propriety of the President's * " Mr. Clay, on this occasion," says Hon. Alexander H. Stephens, " had to break with his old political friends, while he was offering up the darling system of his heart upon the altar of his country. Whatever else may be said of him, no one can deny that Henry Clay was a patriot— every inch of him— a patriot of the highest standard. It was said that when he was importuned not to take the course he had resolved upon, for the reason amongst others that it would lessen his chances for the presidency, his reply was, ' I would rather be right than be president.' This showed the material he was made of. It was worthy a Marcellus or CzXo:'— The War Between the States, vol. i.,p. 438. ADMINISTRATIONS OF JACKSON AND VAN BUREN. 569 action, and of its own motion expunged the resolution of censure from its journal. In pursuance of its policy towards the In- ship of their great chief, Osceola, opposed a determined resistance to the efforts of the general government. Major Dade, Avith one OSCEOr.A, CHIKF OF THE SEMINOLES. dians, the government attempted in 1835 to remove the Seminoles from Florida beyond the Mississippi. They were unwilling to relinquish their lands ; and under the leader- hundred and seventeen men, was sent from Tampa Bay to the assistance of General Clinch at Fort Drane, which was threatened by the Indians. He was attacked on the 570 FROM THE REVOLUTION TO THE CIVIL WAR. twenty-eighth of December, 1835, while on the march, and he and all but four of his men were massacred. On the same day another blow was struck at Fort King, many miles away from the scene of this massacre. Mr. Thompson, the Indian commissioner, and a party of his friends, while dining out- side of the walls of the fort, were attacked by a band of Seminoles led by Osceola in person, and killed and scalped. General Clinch at once took the field against the savages, and on the thirty-first of December defeated them at Withlacooche, ninety miles north of Tampa Bay. In February, 1836, General Gaines won an important victory over the savages near the same place. The Seminole "War. The Creeks joined the Seminoles in May, 1836, and the war spread into Georgia. The former were soon crushed by the United States troops, and were sent west of the Mississippi. The Seminoles continued the war, and as often as they were defeated in the open field would take refuge in the swamps and everglades, where it was diffi- cult for the whites to follow them, and from which they maintained a constant and effect- ive warfare upon their enemies. Osceola was always ready to make a treaty, and never hesitated to break it. At last he was con- quered by his own weapon of deceit. In October, 1837, he came into the American camp under a flag of truce. He was at once seized, with all his followers, by General Jessup, the American commander. Osceola was sent as a prisoner to Fort Moultrie, in South Carolina, where he died of a fever. The war went on for several years longer. The winter of 1834-5 was one of the coldest ever known in America. The Chesa- peake Bay was frozen from its head to the Capes, and on the eighth of February, 1835, the mercury stood at eight degrees below zero as far south as Charleston. On the fourth of January the mercury congealed at Lebanon, New York. On the night of De- cember 16, 1835, a fire broke out in the city of New York, and in fourteen hours con- sumed the greater part of the business por- tion of the city, and destroyed over seven- teen million dollars worth of property. Dispute with France Settled. In the last years of his administration Pres- ident Jackson brought to a successful close a vexatious dispute with France, which had long been a source of annoyance to the coun- try. American merchants held claims to the amount of five million dollars against France* for the " unlawful seizures, captures, and destruction of vessels and cargoes" during the wars of Napoleon. The government of Louis Philippe acknowledged the justice of these claims, and in 1831 a treaty was nego- tiated between the United States and France for their payment. The Chamber of Deputies refused three times during as many years to appropriate the money for the payment of these claims, and in 1834 President Jackson ordered the United States minister at Paris to demand his passports, and advised Congress to make reprisals on French vessels. This vigorous course brought France to her senses, and at this juncture Great Britain offered her media- tion for the settlement of the difficulty. The Chamber of Deputies appropriated the neces- sary sum, and the American claims were paid and the matter settled to the satisfaction of all parties. Claims for similar seizures were brought against Spain, Naples, and Denmark, and were satisfactorily settled through the firm- ness of the President. Treaties of friendship and commerce were negotiated with Russia and Turkey. ADMINISTRATIONS OF JACKSON AND VAN BUREN. 571 On the fifteenth of June, 1836, Arkansas was admitted into the Union as a State. One of the most important acts of General Jackson's administration was the payment of the national debt. He not only left the nation free from debt, but handed over to his successor a sur- plus of forty millions of dollars in the na- tional treasury. On the twenty- eighth of June, 1836, ex-President James Madison died at Montpelier, his home, in Virginia, in the eighty-sixth year of his age. The Presidential election was held in the fall of 1836. Gen- eral Jackson having declined to be a can- didate for a third term, the Democratic party supported Martin Van Buren for President and Richard M. John- son, of Kentucky, for Vice-President. Mr. Van Buren was elected by a large majority; but the electors hav- ing failed to make a choice of a candidate for Vice-President, that task devolved upon the Senate, which elected Colonel Richard M. Johnson by a majority of seventeen votes. On the twenty-sixth of January, 1837, Michigan was admitted into the Union as a State, making the twenty-sixth member of the Confederacy. The original thirteen States had been doubled in number, and the Union was strong at home, and respected abroad. At the close of his tenn General Jackson retired from public life, and passed the remainder of his days at bis beautiful home. MARTIN VAN BUREN. near Nashville, in Tennessee, which he had named the " Hermitage." He had conducted one of the most remarkable administrations in our history, and one of the most success- ful, and had shown himself to be an earnest, incorruptible, and self-sacrificing patriot, and 572 FROM THE REVOLUTION TO THE CIVIL WAR. a man of unbending honesty and of extra- ordinary energy and inflexibility of purpose. Martin Van Buren, the new President, entered upon the duties of his office on the fourth of March, 1837. He was in his fifty- fifth year, and had occupied many distin- guished positions in public life. He had represented the State of New York in the Senate of the United States, and had been governor of that State, He had been min- ister to England, had been made secretary of state at the commencement of General Jack- son's first term, and had been elected Vice- President of the United States at the period of Jackson's re-election. "Wild Speculation. The extraordinary prosperity which had prevailed throughout the nation during the last year of Jackson's term came to a sudden end almost immediately after the inaugura- tion of Mr, Van Buren. For some time past a reckless spirit of speculation had engrossed the nation, and had led to excessive banking and the issuing of paper money to an extent far beyond the necessities of the country. The State banks, with which the public funds had been deposited by President Jackson, supposed they would be able to control these funds for an indefinite period, as the revenue of the government was largely in excess of its expenses ; and they made loans freely, and upon not the best securities, in all cases. Few of the new banks which sprang into existence had enough gold and silver in their vaults to redeem the notes with which they flooded the country. Fictitious values pre- vailed in every department of trade, and the banks vied with each other in affording the means for the wildest speculations. In the midst of this excitement two acts of the general government brought matters to a crisis. The speculation mania had extended to the public lands, and in order to restrain it within manageable bounds President Jack- son caused the secretary of the treasury to issue an order to the collectors at the local offices to receive only gold and silver in pay- ments for land. This order was generally known as the " Specie Circular." In the summer of 1836 a law was passed by Con- gress requiring the President to distribute among the States the funds on deposit in the banks. This was an unexpected measure to the banks, and forced them to call in their loans to meet the withdrawal of the govern- ment funds. The operations of the " Specie Circular" at the same time sent large quan- tities of their notes back to them to be redeemed in coin. This complication of difficulties brought them at once to the end of their resources, and they were rendered powerless to extend their usual facilities to their customers. The result was that the business of the country was thrown into a state of hopeless confusion, and by the spring of 1837 the failures in New York alone amounted to one hundred million dollars. All parts of the country were affected by the financial troubles, and in New Orleans the failures amounted to twenty-seven million dollars. Suspension of Specie Payments. Petitions were addressed to the President from all parts of the Union, praying him to take some steps to relieve the general distress, and in May a deputation of merchants and bankers from New York waited upon Presi- dent Van Buren, and urged him to postpone the immediate collection of duties for which merchants had given bonds, to withdraw the treasury orders requiring sums due the United States to be paid in gold and silver, and to convene Congress in extra session for the purpose of devising measures of relief The President complied with their request to suspend the collection of duties for which ADMINISTRATIONS OF JACKSON AND VAN BUREN. 573 bonds had been given, but declined to take the other steps asked of him. Within a few days after his answer was known the banks of New York suspended specie payments, and their example was followed by the rest of the banks throughout the Union. The Country in Distress. The distress of the country was very great. Hundreds of thousands of laborers were thrown out of employment, and busi- ness of all kinds was at a standstill. The government, which a few months before had been out of debt and in possession of a sur- plus of forty millions, now found itself unable to provide funds for its ordinary ex- penses. The President was compelled to summon an extra session of Congress, which met on the fourth of September, 1837. The President in his message attributed the em- barrassed condition of the country to the excessive issues of bank notes, the great fire in New York in 1835, and the reckless speculations of the people for several years past. He suggested no special legislation for the relief of these troubles, as he regarded such a course as beyond the constitutional authority of the general government. Indeed, the government could do but little to restore public confidence ; that was the task of the people themselves, and it was not accomplished for several years. To meet the necessities of the government and pro- vide a legal currency Congress, at the re- commendation of the President, issued treasury notes to the amount of ten millions of dollars. Another recommendation of the President did not give such general satisfac- tion. The President advised the creation of an independent treasury for the public funds, as a means of avoiding the risks assumed by the government in depositing its funds in the banks. These treasuries were to be located at certain central points, and the sub- treasurers were to be appointed by the Presi- dent, and were to give bonds for the proper fulfilment of their duties. The President believed that the adoption of this measure would withdraw large sums of money from active circulation and so put a stop to specu- lation. The bill for the creation of the inde- pendent treasury was warmly opposed in and out of Congress, as it was feared by many that the withdrawal of so much gold and silver from circulation would seriously injure the business of the country. Mr. Calhoun supported the measure with all his great abilities, and IMr. Clay and Mr. Web- ster opposed it. The measure failed at the extra session, but became a law in 1840. In 1 84 1 it was repealed, and in 1846 it was re- enacted. It is still in force, and its wisdom and usefulness are now generally admitted. Great Increase of Debt. The spirit of speculation had extended to the State governments as well as to private individuals, and State bonds had been issued to the amount of one hundred million dol- lars. The pretext for this excessive increase of debt was the necessity of raising funds to carry out their system of internal improve- ments. The panic involved the States in its effects, and eight of them found themselves unable in 1838 to pay the interest on their bonds. In course of time they made good their obligations, but the State of Mississippi and the Territory of Florida not only refused to pay the interest on their bonds, but repu- diated their debts. The sale of their bonds had been made principally in Europe, and their repudiation of their debts aroused great indignation on the other side of the Atlantic, and brought disgrace upon the whole nation. The effects of this were seen a kw years later, when the United States sought to negotiate a national loan in Europe. Not a 574 FROM THE REVOLUTION TO THE CIVIL WAR. bond could be sold or a dollar obtained there. In 1837 a movement was made by the people of Canada to throw off their connec- tion with Great Britain and to establish their independence. It aroused the sympathies of a large number of the people of the United States, and in northern New York associa- tions called "Huntei-s' Lodges" were formed for the purpose of aiding the Canadian of Schlosser on the American shore to the island. The British authorities in Canada determined to destroy the boat. One dark night in December, 1837, a detachment from Canada was sent to Navy Island for this purpose. Not finding the " Caroline " they went over to Schlosser, where she was moored at her dock. The boat was captured after a short struggle, in which one American was CANADIAN TRAPPERS. patriots. The President of the United States and the Governor of New York endeavored to suppress these illegal associations, but without success. A body of seven hundred Canadians and American sympathizers took possession of Navy Island in the Niagara River. The island is a part of Canada, and lies near the shore of that country. The force on the island employed the steamboat " Caroline " to convey men and provisions from the town killed, and was carried out into the stream and set on fire. She drifted down to the falls and plunged over them in a blaze. The British minister at Washington at once de- clared the responsibility of his government for the capture of the boat, and justified it on the ground of self-defence. In the meantime the President had sent General Wool with a strong force to the Canadian border with orders to prevent any expedition from leaving this country to aid ADMINISTRATIONS OF JACKSON AND VAN BUREN. 575 the Canadians. He compelled the force on Navy Island to surrender, but the border war continued until the close of 1838, when it was put down. On the first of September of this year (1838) the United States, by their agent, received the liberal donation which was be- queathed to them in trust for the " general diffusion of knowledge among men," by James Smithson,an Englishman, which con- stitutes the endowment of the Institute in Washington city that bears his name. The amount of the legacy received, in American coin, was $S7S<^^9' In 1840 the question was to some extent re- vived. Alexander Mc- Leod, a British subject residing in Canada, boasted that he had been engaged in the capture of the " Caroline," and had killed the American who fell in the conflict. Shortly afterwards he visited the New York side of the river and was at once arrested upon a charge of murder by the authorities of that State. the attack, he was acquitted. This conflict between the Federal and State authority led to the passage by Congress of a law requir- ing similar offences to be tried before the United States courts. In the midst of the Canadian controversy a quarrel sprang up between the State of Maine and the British provinces of New Brunswick, concerning the northeast bound- ary of the United States. Both parties pre- pared for a conflict, but the President sent THE SMITHSONIAN INSTITUTION, WASHINGTON, D. C. The British government demanded his unconditional release on the ground that he had simply obeyed the orders of his government, which was alone respon- sible for his act. The general government of the United States also demanded the surrender of McLeod to the Federal authorities. The State of New York, however,'held that the offence with which McLeod was charged had been committed on her soil, and brought the prisoner to trial. As he succeeded in prov- ing that he was not engaged in or present at General Scott to the scene of danger, and he, by his moderation and firmness, suc- ceeded in maintaining peace until the matter could be settled by treaty. The war with the Seminole Indians in Florida continued through the whole of this administration. The capture and death of Osceola, which wq have related, though a severe blow to his followers, did not dis- hearten them. On the twenty-fifth of December, 1838, Colonel Zachary Taylor 576 FROM THE REVOLUTION TO THE CIVIL WAR. inflicted a severe defeat upon the Indians at Lake Okeechobee. The war was at length brought to an end in 1842, but not until it had lasted seven years and had cost many valuable lives and the enormous sum of nearly forty million dollars. The Seminoles were subdued and were removed from Florida to new homes beyond the Mississipi. The Missouri Compromise did not quiet the agitation of the slavery question. It gave to the country only a momentary respite. The Anti-slavery or Abolition party had now become one of the recognized politi- cal organizations of the country. Its avowed object was the abolition of slavery in every State in which it existed. It was argued in opposition to their principles that the consti- tution recognized and protected slavery in the States in which it existed ; but they met this assertion by the bold declaration that they would continue their agitation until they had destroyed either slavery or the Union. They did not wish to live under a constitution which protected slavery, and which one of their principal leaders de- nounced as " a covenant with death and an agreement with hell." The body embraced the extreme Anti-slavery men of the north. Opposition to the Abolitionists. Among its adversaries were some of the sincerest opponents of slavery, who hoped to accomplish their ends by constitutional means and by the influences of a better and more enlightened public opinion, and who deprecated and opposed the violence of the extreme Abolitionists. The leader of the ultra party in Congress was John Quincy Adams, who had been returned to the House of Representatives from Massachusetts in 1 83 1. Memorials were presented to Con- gress praying the abolition of slavery in the District of Columbia, and gave rise to excit- ing debates in that body, which affected the whole country profoundly, and did much to widen the breach between the Northern and Southern States. This agitation continued through the whole of Mr. Van Buren's term of office. Congress Must Not Interfere. Early in the session of 1838-39, Mr. Ath- erton, of New Hampshire, offered a series of resolutions expressing the relations of the general government towards the States, and declaring the inability of Congress to inter- fere with slavery in those States in which it already existed, or in the District of Colum- bia, or the Territories. These resolutions were adopted by the House by decisive majorities, and were regarded by Mr. Clay and by the leading public men of the country as effectually disposing of the troublesome question as far as the general government was concerned. The resolutions were as follows : " Resolved, That this government is a govern- ment of limited powers, and that by the constitution of the United States Congress has no jurisdiction whatever over the institution of slavery in the sev- eral States of the confederacy." The vote upon this resolution stood : 196 for it, and 6 against it. The second resolution was in these words : " Resolved, That petitions for the abolition of slavery in the District of Columbia and the Terri- tories of the United States, and against the removal of slaves from one State to another, are a part of a plan of operations set on foot to affect the institu- tion of slavery in the Southern States, and thus indi- rectly to destroy that institution within their limits." On this resolution the vote stood : 136 for it, and 65 against it. The third resolution was in these words : " Resolved, That Congress has no right to do that indirectly which it cannot do directly ; and that the agitation of the subject of slavery in the District of Columbia, or the Territories, as a means, and with a view, of disturbing or overthrowing that institution in the several States, is against the true spirit and 37 VIEW OF THE NATIONAL CAPITOL AT WASHINGTON. 577 578 FROM THE REVOLUTION TO THE CIVIL WAR. meaning of the constitution, an infringement of the rights of the States affected, and a breach of the public faith upon which they entered into the con- federacy." The vote on this resolution was : 164 in favor of it, and 40 against it. The fourth of this series was in these words : " Resolved, The constitution rests on the broad principle of equality among the members of this confederacy, and that Congress, in the exercise of its acknowledged powers, has no right to discrimi- nate between the institutions of one portion of the States and another, with a view of abolishing the one and promoting the other." The vote on this resolution was: 174 in favor of it, and 24 against it. Resolution Against Slavery Agitation. The fifth and last of Mr. Atherton's reso- lutions was in these words : " Resolved, That all attempts on the part of Congress to abolish slavery in the District of Columbia, or the Territories, or to prohibit the removal of slaves from State to State, or to discriminate between the insti- tutions of one portion of the confederacy and another, with the view aforesaid, are in violation of the con- stitution, destructive of the fundamental principle on which the union of these States rests, and beyond the jurisdiction of Congress ; and that every peti- tion, memorial, resolution, proposition, or paper, touching or relating in any way, or to any extent whatever to slavery, as aforesaid, or the abolition? thereof, shall on the presentation thereof, without any further action thereon, be laid upon the table, without being debated, printed, or referred." The vote on the first branch of this reso- lution was, 146 in favor, and 52 against it ;: on the second branch of the resolution the vote stood, 126 for it, and 78 against it. As we shall see, this declaration of Con- gress was far from quieting the agitation. upon this troublesome question. The slavery conflict had in reality just begun. In the fall of 1840 the Presidential election was held. Mr. Van Buren and Vice-Presi- dent Johnson were nominated for re-election by the Democratic party, and the Whigs supported General William Henry Harrison, of Ohio, for President, and John Tyler, of Virginia, for Vice-President. The financial distress of the country had been but slightly relieved, and was generally attributed by the people to the interference of the government with the currency. This feeling made the Democratic nominees exceedingly unpop- ular, and the political campaign, which was one of the most exciting ever conducted in this country, resulted in the election ot Har- rison and Tyler by overwhelming majorities. In 1840 the sixth census showed the popu- lation of the United States to be 17,069,45 3 ► CHAPTER XXXVI The Administrations of William Henry Harrison and John Tyler An Extra Session of Congress Summoned — Death of President Harrison — ^John Tyler becomes President of the United States — Meeting of Congress — The Bankrupt Law — President Tyler Vetoes the Bills to Revive the United States Bank— His Quarrel with His Party— The " Tyler Whigs"— The Tariff of 1842— The Treaty of Washington— The United States will not Tolerate the Exercise of the Right of Search — Dorr's Rebellion — The Mormons — Invention of the Electric Telegraph — Explosion on the " Princeton " — Efforts to Secure the Annexation of Texas — Early History ot Texas — The Texan War of Independence — Battle of San Jacinto — Texan Independence Established — Texas Ap- plies for Admission into the Union — Opposition to the Measure — Significance of the Vote at the Presidential Election — James K. Polk Elected President — Texas Admitted into the Union — Iowa and Florida become States. ON THE fourth of March, 1841, William Henry Harrison was inaugurated President of the United States at Washington in the presence of an immense concourse of citizens from all parts of the Union. He was in his sixty-ninth year, and had spent forty years of his life in the public service. His services during the Indian hostilities which preceded the war of 1 812-15, ^'^^ ^^^ exploits during that war, have been related. He had served as governor of Indiana Ter- ritory, and had been both a member of Con- gress and a senator of the United States. He was a man of pure life and earnest character, and the certainty of a change of policy in the measures of the federal govern- ment had caused the people of the country to look forward to his administration with hope and confidence. He began by calling to seats in his cabinet men of prominence and ability. At the head of the cabinet he placed Daniel Webster, as secretary of state. The President issued a proclamation con- vening Congress in special session on the thirty-first of May, 1841. He was not destined to fulfil the hopes of his friends, I however. He was suddenly seized with pneumonia, and died on the fourth of April, 1 841 — just one month after his inaugura- tion. It was the first time that a president of the United States had died in office, and a gloom was cast over the nation by the sad event. The mourning of the people was sincere, for in General Harrison the nation lost a faith- ful, upright and able citizen. He had spent forty years in prominent public positions, and had discharged every duty confided to him with ability and integrity, and went to his grave a poor man. " Brave old Cincinnatus ! he left but his plow." Upon the assembling of Congress, that body, "out of consideration of his expenses in removing to the seat of government, and the limited means he had left behind," appro- priated the equivalent of one year's presi- dential salary — twenty-five thousand dollars — to Mrs. Harrison, According to the terms of the constitution, upon the death of General Harrison, the office of president of the United States devolved upon the vice-president, John Tyler, of Vir- ginia. *Mr. Tyler was not in the city of Washington at the time of the death of his predecessor, but repaired to that city without 579 58o FROM THE REVOLUTION TO THE CIVIL WAR. loss of time, upon being notified of the need of his presence, and on the sixth of April took the oath of office before Judge Cranch, chief justice of the District of Columbia. Mr, Tyler was in his fifty-second year, and had served as governor of Virginia, and as representative and senator in Congress from that State. On the ninth of April President Tyler issued an address to the people of the United States, in which there was no indica- tion of a departure from the policy announced in the inaugural of General Harrison. He WILLIAM HENRY HARRISON. retained the cabinet ministers of his prede- cessor in their respective positions. On the thirty-first of May the Twenty- seventh Congress convened in extra session. It was known as the " Whig Congress," as a large majority of its members were of that party. Had this party remained united they could have controlled the action of Congress to suit themselves, but as we shall see, the policy of the executive soon divided them. The first act of this Congress was to^ repeal the sub-treasury bill which had been passed in 1840. The effects of the commercial crisis had involved thousands of merchants in hopeless bankruptcy, and under the old laws they had no means of recovering their lost position, as they were crushed down by their debts. Neither their creditors nor the country at large derived any benefit from this state of affairs, and Congress at once passed a general bankrupt law for the relief of persons thus situated. It was highly beneficial to the country, and was repealed in 1843, when the necessity for it had ceased to exist. Important Veto by President Tyler. Efforts were made to revive the Bank of the United States, and a bill was passed establishing an institution known as the " Fiscal Bank of the United States." Mr. Tyler, who was a member of the strict con- structionist school, now found himself at variance with a majority of his party in both Houses of Congress. As he did not believe that Congress could constitutionally charter such an institution, he vetoed this bill. The advocates of the measure could not com- mand the requisite two-thirds majority for the passage of the bill over the president's veto, and his action was sustained. Another bill was passed by Congress of a similar character, establishing " The Fiscal Corpora- tion of the United States," but this also was vetoed by the president for the same reasons. His veto was sustained by Congress in this instance also. The vetoes of these measures were generally approved by the strict con- structionists throughout the Union, without regard to party; but they were bitterly de- nounced by the majority of the Whigs, who charged the president with having violated the implied pledges upon which he was elected, and with having betrayed his party. The Whigs were for the time forgetful of the fact that at the time of his nomination to the vice-presidency Mr. Tyler was known ADMINISTRATIONS OF HARRISON AND TYLER. S8i to be opposed to the Bank of the United States. The members of the cabinet, with the single exception of the secretary of state, resigned their positions in consequence of Mr. Tyler's course. Mr. Webster retained his position in order to complete the important negotiations he was at the time conducting with England. The places of the other members of the cabi- net were filled by the President with pro- minent members of the strict construc- tionist school of the Whig party, who sus- tained the President. The second session of the Twenty-seventh Congress met in De- cember, 1 84 1, and con- tinued its sittings until August, 1842. It was noted as the longest session ever held up to this tim.e. It found the Whig party divid- ed, and the opposing factions bitterly hostile to each other. The majority, led by Mr. Clay, opposed the administration. The minority, because of their support of the President, received the name of " Tyler Whigs." The principal question agitated during this session was the tariff. Accord- ing to the compromise act of 1833, the duties this year were to be regulated accord- ing to a revenue standard. The majority in Congress, however, paid no regard to the pledge given in this com- promise, and a new tariff bill was passed by both Houses of Congress, regulating the duties on a strongly protective basis, and with the avowed object of reviving the pro- tective policy. It was vetoed by the Presi- JOHN TYLER. dent. Another measure of a similar though slightly modified character was passed, and this was vetoed also. Congress then passed the tariff of 1842, in which the principles of the compromise of 1833 were altogether set aside, and the duties made strictly protective. 582 FROM THE REVOLUTION TO THE CIVIL WAR. It required a sharp struggle in Congress to secure the passage of this bill, which received the executive signature on the thirtieth of August. Settlement of Disputes. In the meantime Mr. Webster succeeded in bringing the negotiations with Great Bri- tain to a successful close. These negotia- tions had grown out of the revolutionary disturbances in Canada, and the controversy respecting the northeast boundary of the United States during the administration of Mr. Van Buren, which we have related. The boundary question was of older origin than the former controversy, and had been pending between the United States and Eng- land for fifty years. Mr. Webster, imme- diately upon his entrance upon the office of secretary of state, had, with the approval of the President, signified the desire of this country to terminate the controversy, and Lord Ashburton had been sent by the British government as special minister to the United States, with full power to settle all the con- troversies between the two countries. The treaty of Washington was concluded in 1842, and was accepted by both countries as a settlement of the questions at issue between them. By the terms of this treaty the northeastern boundary was arranged as it exists at present ; the United States obtained the free naviga- tion of the St. John's river to the sea ; and gained possession of the important military position of Rouse's Point, at the outlet of Lake Champlain. The two countries mutually agreed to surrender upon proper demand all fugitives from justice escaping from the territory of one into that of the other ; and to maintain a certain number of ships of war on the African coast to aid in suppressing the slave trade. When the treaty was completed two sub- jects presented themselves to the negotiators. One of these was the right claimed by Great Britain for her cruisers to stop and if neces- sary to search merchant vessels belonging to other nations on the high seas ; the other was the impressment of seamen from Amer- ican merchant vessels by British cruisers. Mr. Webster, in a paper of great ability, ad- dressed to the American minister at London, but intended for the British foreign minister, denied the right of search, and sustained his position by arguments that were simply irre- futable. In a letter to Lord Ashburton Mr. Web- ster refused to consider the impressment question, as the United States could in no case admit such a claim on the part of Great Britain, and declared that every case of im- pressment would be considered an act of hostility and would be repelled as such. He declared as the unalterable policy of this country the doctrine that " Every merchant vessel on the high seas is rightfully con- sidered as a part of the territory to which it belongs ; " that " in every regularly docu- mented American merchant vessel the crew who navigate it will find their protection in the flag which is over them ; " and that " the American government, then, is prepared to say that the practice of impressing seamen from American vessels cannot hereafter be allowed to take place." The tone of the secretary of state, though firm, was courteous and conciliatory, and the negotiations were conducted in the same spirit of conciliation by the British minister. Insurrection in Rhode Island. With this treaty the United States for- mally took their position as one of the great powers of the world. The negotiations being completed, Mr. Webster resigned his place in the cabinet in May, 1843, and was suc- ceeded by Abel P. Upshur, of Virginia. ADMINISTRATIONS OF HARRISON AND TYLER. 583 In 1842 an insurrection broke out in the State of Rhode Island, which required the intervention of the United States for its sup- pression. It is known as the Dorr rebelHon. The old charter of the colony, granted by Charles II., in 1663, had up to this time served as the constitution of the State. It was found to be unsuited to the requirements of the people in their more prosperous condi- tion, and an effort was made to change it. Two parties were formed, one in favor of the proposed changes, the other opposed to them. Each party nominated its candidate for the office of governor and elected him. The " suffi-age party," which favored the changes, elected Thomas W. Dorr governor, took up arms, and attacked the State arsenal for the purpose of arming their followers. They were repulsed by the State militia assisted by the United States troops. Dorr was arrested, tried for treason, and sentenced to imprison- ment for life. He was released in 1845. The opponents of the " suffrage party " deemed it best to yield to the popular wish, however, and in November, 1842, a new constitution, embracing the desired changes, was adopted by the legislature. Mormons Found a City. About the same time a series of disturb- ances occurred in the State of Illinois, which were but the forerunners of a more serious embarrassment to the general government at a later period. A new religious sect had sprung up some years before in the western part of New York. They called themselves Mormons, and were founded by a cunning imposter named Joseph Smith, who professed to have received a new revelation from God, written on plates of gold. Among the arti- cles of the Mormon faith is one which teaches the doctrine of a plurality of wives. Feeling that the east was not favorable to their growth, the Mormons at an early day removed to the west. They settled at first in Missouri, but so exasperated the people So of that State by their conduct, at they were soon driven out of Missouri. ri;"'-*'% ADMINISTRATIONS OF HARRISON AND TYLER. 585 Crossing the Mississippi, they settled in IlHnois, and founded a city which they called Nauvoo, and built a temple. Their numbers increased rapidly from emigration from nearly every country in Europe. The new- comers were mainly persons of low position and without education. Conscious of their strength they raised troops, and set the authority of the State of Illinois at defiance. The State endeavored to reduce them to obedience, and their conduct, as in Missouri, westward, and after a long and painful jour- ney across the plains, reached the valley of Salt Lake, and established a settlement there. Out of this settlement grew the Ter- ritory of Utah. In 1844 occurred one of the most im- portant events in the history of the world. In 1832 Samuel F. B. Morse, a native of Massachusetts, invented the electric tele- graph. He spent some years in perfecting his invention, and in 1 838 applied to Congress THE MORMON HAND-CART COMPANY CROSSING THE PLAINS. turned the people against them. Several conflicts ensued between the Mormons and the authorities. In one of these Joe Smith, the prophet, and his brother were seized and put in jail, and while lying there were murdered by the mob in July, 1844. This brought matters to a crisis, and the people of Illinois determined to drive the Mormons across the Mississippi. Nauvoo was attacked in 1845, and the AFormons were compelled to leave the State. In 1846 they bent their steps for a small appropriation to assist him in building a line of wire to demonstrate the usefulness of his discovery. He was obliged to wait five years for a favorable answer, and it was not until he had given up all hope of receiving aid from Congress that that body, on the last day of the session of 1843, appro- priated the sum of thirty thousand dollars to construct a telegraph line between Washing- ton City and Baltimore, a distance of forty miles. The line v/as completed in 1844, and 586 FROM THE REVOLUTION TO THE CIVIL WAR. was successfully operated by Professor Morse. This was the first line established in the world. In the thirty-one years which have elapsed since then the use of the telegraph has become general throughout the civilized world, and in the United States alone over sixty thousand miles of telegraph lines are in operation at the present time. On the twenty-eighth of February, 1 844, the President, accompanied by the members spectators. This sad event was greatly lamented throughout the country. Judge Upshur was succeeded as secretary of state by John C Calhoun, then a senator from South Carolina. The last years of Mr. Tyler's administra- tion were devoted to the effort to secure the annexation of the republic of Texas to the United States. The territory embraced within the limits of Texas constituted a part MORMON TABERNACLE AT SALT LAKE, UTAH. of his cabinet and a number of distinguished •citizens, officers of the army and navy, and ladies, went on board the new steam frigate ■" Princeton," lying in the Potomac, to wit- ness the experimental firings of a new cannon ■of unusual size on board that ship, to which the name of " The Peacemaker " had been given. At one of the discharges the gun exploded, causing the instant death of Messrs. Upshur and Gilmer, the secretaries • of state and of the navy, and several other of the Spanish-American possessions, and was generally regarded as a part of Mexico. During the last century a number of forts had been erected in Texas by the Spaniards as a means of holding the province against the French, and each fort was made a mis- sionary station, from which efforts were made to convert the Indians, but without success. The United States were, in the early part of the present century, inclined to regard Texas as rightfully a part of the ADMINISTRATIONS OF HARRISON AND TYLER. 587 "Louisiana purchase, but this claim was waived when Florida was purchased. Early in the present century pioneers from the United States began to find their way to Texas which was then a wild country, in- habited only by roving Indians and the gar- risons of the few Spanish forts within its limits. One of these emigrants, Moses Austin, of Durham, Connecticut, conceived the plan of colonizing Texas with settlers from the United States. For this purpose he obtained from the Spanish government, in 1820, the grant of an extensive tract of land ; but before he could put his plans in execution he died. His son, Stephen F. Austin, inherited the rights of his father under this grant, and went to Texas with a number of emigrants from this country, and explored that region for the purpose of locating his grant. He selected as the most desirable site for his colony the country between the Brazos and Colorado rivers, and founded a city, which he named Austin, in honor of the originator of the colony, to whom Texas owes its existence as an American commonwealth. Having seen the settlers established in their new homes, Mr. Austin returned to the United States to collect other emigrants for his colony. During his absence Mexico and the other Spanish provinces rose in revolt against Spain, and succeeded in establishing their in- dependence. Texas, being regarded as a part of the Mexican territory, shared the fortunes of that country. Upon his return to Texas, Austin, in consideration of the altered state of affairs, went to the city of Mexico and obtained from the Mexican government a confirma- tion of the grant made to his father. Such a confirmation was necessary in order to enable him to give the settlers valid titles to the lands of his colony. Mexico at first exercised but a nominal authority over the new settlements, and the colonists were allowed to live under their own laws, subject to the rules drawn up by Austin. In order to encourage settlements in Texas, the Mexi- can Congress on the second of May, 1824, enacted the following law, declaring, " That Texas is to be annexed to the Mexican prov- ince of Cohahuila, until it is of sufficient importance to form a separate State, when it is to become an independent State of the Mexican republic, equal to the other States of which the same is composed, free, sover- PROFESSOR MORSE. eign, and independent in whatever exclu- sively relates to its internal government and administration." Encouraged by this decree, large num- bers of Americans emigrated to Texas, and to these were added emigrants from all the countries of Europe. The population grew rapidly, new towns sprang up, and Austin's colony prospered in a marked degree, until 1830, when Bustamente having made himself by violence and intrigue president of the so-called Mexican republic, prohibited the 588 FROM THE REVOLUTION TO THE CIVIL WAR. emigration of foreigners to the Mexican territory, and issued a number of decrees very oppressive to the people, and in viola- tion of the constitution of 1824. In order to enforce these measures in Texas, he occu- pied that province with his troops, and placed Texas under military rule. The Texans resented this interference with their rights, and finally compelled the Mexican troops to withdraw from the province. In 1832 A VILLAGE IN TEXAS. another revolution in Mexico drove Busta- mente from power, and placed Santa Anna at the head of affairs as president or dictator. Texas took no part in the disturbances of Mexico, but after the accession of Santa Anna to power, formed a constitution, and applied for admission into the Mexican republic as a State, in accordance with the constitution of 1824, and the act of the Mexican Congress which we have quoted. Stephen F. Austin was sent to the city of Mexico to present the petition of Texas for this purpose. He was refused an answer to this petition for over a year, and at last wrote to the authorities of Texas, advising them to organize a State government without waiting for the action of the Mexican Con- gress. For this recommendation, which the Mexi- can government regarded as treasonable, Santa Anna caused the arrest of Austin, and kept him in prison for over a year. Texas now began to manifest the most determined opposition to the usurpation of Santa Anna, and measures were taken to maintain the rights of the province under the constitution of 1824. Troops were organized, and prepara- tions made to resist the force which it was certain Mexico' would send against them. Santa Anna did not allow them to remain long in sus- pense, but at once despatched a force under General Cos, tO' disarm the Texans. On the second of October, 1835, Cos attacked the town of Gon- zalez, which was held by a Texan force, but was repulsed with heavy loss. A week later,, on the ninth of October, the Texans captured the town of Goliad, and a little later gained possession of the mission house of the Alamo. Both places were garrisoned, and the Texan army, which was under the com- mand of Austin, in the course of a few months succeeded in driving the Mexicans out of Texas. On the twelfth of November, 1835, a con- vention of the people of Texas met at the ADMINISTRATIONS OF HARRISON AND TYLER. 589 city of Austin, and organized a regular State government. Prominent among the members was General Sam Houston, a settler from the United States. Soon after the meeting of the convention General Austin resigned the com- mand of the army, and was sent to the United States as the commissioner of that State to this government, and was succeeded as commander-in-chief by General Sam Houston. Henry Smith was elected gov- ernor of Texas by the people. Orders to Shoot Prisoners. As soon as Santa Anna learned that his troops had been driven out of Texas, and that the Texans had set up a State govern- ment, he set out for that country with an army of seventy-five hundred men. He issued orders to his troops to shoot every prisoner taken, and intended to make the struggle a war of extermination. He arrived before the Alamo late in February, 1836. This fort was very strong, and was held by a force of one hundred and forty Texans under Colonel Travis. It was besieged by the whole Mexican army, and was subjected to a bombardment of eleven days. At last, on the sixth of March, the garrison being worn out with fatigue, the fort was carried by assault, and the whole garrison was put to the sword. Among the heroes who fell at the Texan Thermopylae was the eccentric but chivalrous Colonel Davy Crockett of Tennessee, who had generously come to aid the Texans in their struggle for liberty. The capture of the Alamo cost the Mexicans a loss of sixteen hundred men, or over eleven men for every one of its defenders. On the 17th of March, 1836, the conven- tion adopted a constitution for an independ- ent republic, and formally proclaimed the independence of Texas. David G, Burnett was elected president of the republic. The fort at Goliad was held by a force of three hundred and thirty Texans, under Colonel Fanning, a native of Georgia. On the twenty-seventh of March it was attacked by the Mexican army. The garrison main- tained a gallant defence, but their resources being exhausted, and the Mexicans being reinforced during the night, Fanning decided to surrender his force, if he could obtain honorable terms. He proposed to Santa SANTA ANNA. Anna to lay down his arms and surrender the post on condition that he and his men should be allowed and assisted to return to the United States. The proposition was accepted by Santa Anna, and the terms of the surrender were formally drawn up and were signed by each commander. As soon as the surrender was made, however, and the arms of the Texans were delivered, Santa 590 FROM THE REVOLUTION TO THE CIVIL WAR. Anna, in base violation of his pledge, caused Fanning and the survivors of the garrison, to the number of three hundred men, to be put to death. The massacres of the Alamo and Goliad, and the steady advance of the Mexican army under Santa Anna caused a feeling of pro- found alarm throughout the new republic. The government was removed temporarily to Galveston, and General Houston retreated GENERAL HOUSTON. behind the San Jacinto. Santa Anna pur- sued the Texan forces, and at length came up with them on the banks of that stream. Houston had but seven hundred and fifty men with him, and these were imperfectly armed and without discipline. With this force he surprised the Mexican camp, on the twenty-first of April, and routed the Mexican army, inflicting upon it a loss of over six hundred killed, and taking more than eight hundred prisoners. Santa Anna himself was among the prisoners. Houston at once entered into negotiations with him for the withdrawal of the Mexican forces from Texas. This was done at once, and the independence of Texas was achieved. Santa Anna also recognized the independ- ence of the new republic, but the Mexican Congress refused to confirm this act. Houston was now the idol of the Texan people as the deliverer of their country from the hated Mexicans. At the next gen- eral election he was chosen President of the republic, and was inaugurated on the twenty-second of October, 1 836. General Mirabeau B. Lamar was the third Presi- dent of the republic of Texas, and entered upon his office in 1838. He was suc- ceeded in 1844 by Anson Jones, the fourth President. The territory of the republic was sufficiently large to make five States the size of New York, and its climate and soil were among the most delightful and fertile in the world. It contained a population of about twO' hundred thousand, and was increasing rapidly in inhabitants and in prosperity. On the third of March, 1837, the inde- pendence of the republic of Texas was acknowledged by the United States, and in 1839 by France and England. Being^ young and feeble, and being settled al- most entirely by Americans, the people of Texas at an early day came to the conclusion that their best interests required them to seek a union with the United States, and as early as August, 1837, a proposition was submitted to Mr. Van Buren looking to such a union. It was declined by him, but the question was taken up by the press and people of the Union, and was discussed with the greatest interest and activity. The south was unanimously in favor of the annexation of Texas, as it was a region in which slave labor would be particularly ADMINISTRATIONS OF HARRISON AND TYLER. 59^^ profitable ; and a strong party in the north opposed the annexation for the reason that it would inevitably extend the area of slavery. An additional argument against annexation was that it would involve a war with Mexico, which had never acknowledged the inde- pendence of Texas. In April, 1844, Texas formally applied for admission into the United States, and a ing issues of the campaign. Its candidates were James K. Polk, of Tennessee, and George M. Dallas, of Pennsylvania. The Whig party supported Henry Clay, of Ken- tucky, and Theodore Frelinghuysen, of New Jersey, and opposed the annexation of Texas. During this campaign, which was one of unusual excitement, the Anti-slavery party GENERAL POST OFFICE, WASHINGTON. treaty for that purpose was negotiated with her by the government of this country. It was rejected by the Senate. In the fall of 1844 the Presidential election took place. The leading political question of the day was the annexation of Texas. It was advocated by the administration of President Tyler and by the Democratic party. This party also made the claim of the United States to Oresron one of the lead- made its appearance for the first time as a distinct political organization, and nominated James G. Birney as its candidate for the Presidency. The result of the campaign was a decisive victory for the Democrats. This success was generally regarded as an emphatic expression of the popular will respecting the Texas and Oregon questions. Mr. Birney did not receive a single electoral 592 FROM THE REVOLUTION TO THE CIVIL WAR. vote, and of the popular vote only sixty-four thousand six hundred and fifty-three ballots were cast for him. When Congress met in December, 1844, the efforts for the annexation of Texas were renewed. A proposition was made to receive Texas into the Union by a joint resolution of Congress. A bill for this purpose passed the House of Representatives, but the Senate added an amendment appointing commis- sioners to negotiate with Mexico for the annexation of Texas, which she still claimed as a part of her territory. The President was authorized by a clause in these resolu- tions to adopt either the House or the Senate plan of annexation, and on the second of March, 1845, the resolutions were adopted. Senator Benton, of Missouri, the author of the Senate plan, was of the opinion that the matter would be left to Mr. Polk, the Presi- dent-elect, to be conducted by him ; and that gentleman had expressed his intention to carry out the Senate plan, as he hoped an amicable arrangement could be made with Mexico. Mr. Tyler, however, determined not to leave the annexation of Texas to his successor, and at once adopted the plan proposed in the House resolutions, and on the night of Sunday, March 3d, a messenger was despatched with all speed to Texas to lay the proposition before the authorities of that State. It was accepted by them, and on the fourth of July, 1845, Texas became one of the United States. The area thus added to the territory of the Union comprised two hundred and thirty-seven thousand five hundred and four square miles. It was provided by the act of admission that four additional States might be formed out of the territory of Texas, when the population should increase to an extent which should make such a step desir- able. Those States lying north of the Mis- souri Compromise line — 36° 30' north lati- tude — were to be free States ; those south of that line were to be free or slaveholding, " as the people of each State asking admission may desire." To Texas was reserved the right to refuse to allow the division of her territory. On the third of March, 1845, the President approved an act of Congress admitting the Territories of Iowa and Florida into the Union as States. No President has ever been more unpop- ular during his administration than Mr. Tyler. His administration speaks for itself however, and bears out the truth of his mem- orable words : " I appeal from the vituper- ation of the present day to the pen of impar- tial history, in the full confidence that neither my motives nor my acts will bear the inter- pretation which has, for sinister purposes, been placed upon them." CHAPTER XXXVII The Administration of James K. Polk — The War With Mexico. The Oregon Question — Position of President Polk respecting it — The Question Settled — Treaty for Settlement of Claims against Mexico — Mexico Resents the Annexation of Texas — General Taylor Ordered to Texas — He Advances to the Rio Grande — Battles of Palo Alto and Resaca de la Palma — The War with Mexico Begun — Invasion of Mexico — Occupation of Matamoras — Action of the United States Government — Taylor Advances into the Interior — The Storm- ing and Capture of Monterey — The Armistice — Return of Santa Anna to Mexico — President Polk Duped — Santa Anna Seizes the Mexican Government — General Wool Joins General Taylor — Troops Taken from Taylor's Army — Advance of the Mexicans — Battle of Buena Vista — Conquest of California by Fremont and Stockton — Occupation of Santa Fe — New Mexico Conquered — Doniphan's March — Occupation of Chihuahua — Sailing of Scott's Expedition — Reduction of Vera Cruz — Santa Anna Collects a New Array — Battle of Cerro Gordo — Occupation of Puebla by Scott — Trouble with Mr. Trist — Vigorous Measures of Santa Anna — Scott Advances upon the City of Mexico — EI Penon Turned — Battles of Contreras and Churubusco — Capture of Molino del Rey — Storming of Chapultepec — Capture of the City of Mexico — Siege of Puebla Raised — Flight of Santa Anna — Treaty of Peace Negotiated — Close of the War — Acquisition of California and New Mexico — Discovery of Gold in California — Rapid Emigration to the Pacific — Death of John Quincy Adams — The Wilmot Proviso — Revival of the Slavery Question — General Taylor Elected President. THE inauguration of James K. Polk, as President of the United States, took place on the fourth of March, 1845. He had served the country as governor of the State of Tennessee, and for fourteen years had been a member of the House of Representatives in Congress from that State, and had been several times chosen speaker of that body. His cabinet was selected from the first men of his party. James Buchanan was secretary of state ; Robert J. Walker was secretary of the treas- ury ; William L. Marcy, secretary of war, and George Bancroft, the historian, secretary of the navy. Two important questions presented them- selves to the new administration for settle- ment: the troubles with Mexico growing out of the annexation of Texas, and the arrange- ment of the northwestern boundary of the United States. The question of the northwestern bound- ary had been left unsettled by the treaty of 38 Washington in 1842. Great Britain was anxious to arrange the matter, and late in the year 1842 Mr. Fox, the British minister at Washington, proposed to Mr. Webster, then secretary of state, to open negotiations. The British proposition was accepted, but nothing further was done until February, 1844, when Sir Richard Packenham, the British minister at Washington, proposed to take up the question of the Oregon boundary and settle it. Mr. Upshur, the secretary of state, accepted the offer, but was killed a few days later by the explosion on board tne " Prince- ton." Six months later, Sir Richard Pack- enham renewed the proposal to Mr. Calhoun, who had become secretary of state, and nego- tiations were entered upon in earnest. The territory of Oregon lay between the forty-second and fifty-fourth parallels of north latitude, and extended from the Rocky moun- tains on the east to the Pacific ocean on the west. This region was originally claimed by Spain, by whose subjects it was first 593 FROM THE REVOLUTION TO THE CIVIL WAR. 594 discovered. At the cession of Florida, Spain ceded to the United States all her territory- north of the forty-second parallel of north latitude, from the headwaters of the Arkan- sas to the Pacific. Mexico, upon achieving her independence, had acknowledged by a treaty with the United States the validity of this boundary. The line of fifty-four degrees forty minutes north latitude was established by treaty between the United States, Great Britain and Russia as the southern boundary of the Russian possessions in America. JAMES K. POLK. The United States claimed the entire re- gion of Oregon in virtue of the cession of Spain in the Florida treaty ; the discoveries of Captain Gray of Boston, who circumnavi- gated the globe, and in 1792 discovered to a certain extent and explored the Columbia river ; the explorations of Lewis and Clarke in 1805 and 1806 of the southern main branch of the Columbia, and of the river itself from the mouth of that branch to the sea ; and the settlement of Astoria, planted at the mouth of the Columbia in 181 1 by John Jacob Astor of New York. Oregon was also claimed by England, who also rested her pretensions on discovery, and on the set- tlement made by the Northwest Company on Eraser's river in 1806, and on another near the head waters of the north branch of the Columbia. ** All of Oregon, or None." In 18 1 8 the United States and Great Britain had agreed upon the forty-ninth degree of north latitude, as the boundary between the United States and British Amer- ica from the Lake of the Woods to the sum- mit of the Rocky mountains. Mr. Calhoun now opened the negotiations by proposing to continue this line to the Pacific. The British minister would not consent to this, but proposed to extend the forty-ninth paral- lel from the mountains to the north branch of the Columbia, and then to make the boun- dary follow that stream from this point of intersection to the sea. Mr. Calhoun at once declined to accept this boundary, and the further consideration of the subject was post- poned until Packenham could receive addi- tional instructions from his government. During the Presidential campaign of 1844 the Democratic party adopted as its watch- word, " all of Oregon or none," and the ex- citement upon the question ran high. The election of Mr. Polk showed that the Ameri- can people were resolved to insist upon their claim to Oregon, and when the new President in his inaugural address took the bold ground that the American title to " Oregon terri- tory " " was dear and indisputable," and declared his intention to maintain it at the cost of war with England, the matter assumed a serious aspect, and for a while it seemed that party passion would involve the two countries in hostilities. President Polk, upon a calmer consideration of the subject, caused the secretary of state to reopen the negotia- tions by proposing to Great Britain the forty- ADMINISTRATION OF JAMES K. POLK. 595 ninth parallel of latitude as a boundary. The British minister declined the proposition, and the matter was dropped. According to the treaties of l8i8 and 1828, the joint occupation of Oregon could be terminated by either party by giving the other twelve months' notice. The President now proposed to give the required notice, which was done by a resolution of Congress. British ministry decided at length to reopen negotiations, and Sir Richard Packenham shortly after communicated to Mr. Buchanan the willingness of his government to accept the forty-ninth parallel as a boundary. The time at which the joint occupation would terminate was rapidly drawing to a close, and the President was anxious to settle the mat- ter, but at the same time was not willing to A BASIN ON THE COLUMBIA RIVER, OREGON AND MOUNTAIN-PEAK IN THE DISTANCE. This put an end to the old arrangement, and compelled the two countries to make a new settlement of the difficulty ; and this was the object of the President in terminating the joint occupation. The subject was brought to the notice of the British Parliament by Sir Robert Peel who expressed his regret that the last offer of the United States had been declined. The assume the responsibility of accepting a boundary which fell so far short of the popular expectations. At the suggestion of Senator Benton, of Missouri, he asked the advice of the Senate as to the propriety of accepting the British offer, and pledged him- self to be guided by its decision. The Senate advised him to accept it, and when the treaty was sent to it, ratified it after a warm debate 596 FROM THE REVOLUTION TO THE CIVIL WAR. extending over two days. Thus the matter was brought to a close. By the treaty, which was concluded in 1846, the forty-ninth parallel of north lati- tude was made the boundary between the United States and the British possessions, from the summit of the Rocky Mountains to the middle of the channel between Van- couver's Island and the mainland, and thence southerly through the middle of the Straits of San Juan de Fuca to the Pacific. The navigation of the Columbia river and its main northern branch was made free to both parties. Trouble with Mexico. In the meantime the Mexican difficulty had been found much harder of settlement. Mexico had never acknowledged the inde- pendence of Texas, and since the defeat at San Jacinto had repeatedly threatened to restore her authority over the Texans by force of arms. She warmly resented the annexa- tion of Texas by the United States, and a few days after that event was completed, General Almonte, the Mexican minister at Washing- ton, entered a formal protest against the course of the United States, demanded his passports and left the country. Some years before this a number of American ships trading with Mexican ports had been seized and plundered by the Mex- ican authorities, who also confiscated the property of a number of American residents in that country. The sufferers by these outrages appealed for redress to the govern- ment of the United States, which had repeat- edly tried to negotiate with Mexico for the collection of these claims, which amounted to six millions of dollars. Mexico made several promises of settlement, but failed to comply with them. In 1840, however, a new treaty was made between that country and the United States, and Mexico pledged her- self to pay the American claims in twenty annual instalments of three hundred thousand dollars each. Three of these instalments had been paid at the time of the annexation of Texas ; but Mexico now refused to make any further payment. Troops Sent to Texas. Mexico claimed that the limits of Texas properly ended at the Neuces river, while the Texans insisted that their boundary was the Rio Grande. Thus the region between these two rivers became a debatable land, claimed by both parties, and a source of great and immediate danger. It was evident that Mexico was about to occupy this region with her troops, and the legislature of Texas, alarmed by the threatening attitude of that country, called upon the United States gov- ernment to protect its territory. The Presi- dent at once sent General Zachary Taylor^ with a force of fifteen hundred regular troops, called the "army of occupation," to "take position in the country between the Neuces and the Rio Grande, and to repel any inva- sion of the Texan territory." General Taylor accordingly took position at Corpus Christi, at the mouth of the Neuces, in September, 1845, and remained there until the spring of 1846. At the same time a squadron of war vessels under Com- modore Conner was despatched to the Gulf to cooperate with General Taylor. Both of these officers " were ordered to commit no act of hostility against Mexico unless she declared war, or was herself the aggressor by striking the first blow." At the commencement of the dispute between the two countries, Herrera was President of Mexico. Although diplomatic communications had ceased between the United States and Mexico, he was anxious to settle the quarrel by negotiation, but at the Presidential election held about this time ADMINISTRATION Herrera was defeated, and Paredes, who was bitterly hostile to the United States, was chosen President of the Mexican republic. Paredes openly avowed his determination to drive the Americans beyond the Neuces. In February, 1846, General Taylor was ordered by President Polk to advance from the Neuces to a point on the Rio Grande, opposite the Mexican town of Matamoras, and establish there a fortified post, in order to check the Mexican forces which were assembling there in large numbers for the purpose of invading Texas. Taylor at once set out, and leaving the greater part of his stores at Point Isabel, on the Gulf, advanced to the Rio Grande, and built a fort and established a camp opposite and within cannon shot of Matamoras. General Am- pudia, commanding the Mexican forces at Matamoras, immediately notified General Taylor that this was an act of war upon Mexican soil, and demanded that he should "break up his camp and retire beyond the Neuces " within twenty-four hours. First Blood Shed. Taylor replied that he was acting in accordance with the orders of his govern- ment, which was alone responsible for his conduct, and that he should maintain the position he had chosen. He pushed forward the work on his fortificafions with energy, and kept a close watch upon the Mexicans. Neither commander was willing to take the responsibility of beginning the war, and Am- pudia, notwithstanding his threat, remained inactive. His course did not satisfy his gov- ment, and he was removed and General Arista appointed in his place. Arista at once began hostilities by interposing detach- ments of his arniv between Taylor's iorce and his depot of supplies at Point Isabel. On the twenty-sixth of April Taylor sent a party of si.xty dragoons under Captain OF JAMES K. POLK. 597 Thornton to reconnoitre the Mexican lines. The dragoons were surprised with a loss of sixteen killed. The remainder were made prisoners, and Thornton alone escaped. This was the first blood shed in the war with Mexico, the beginning of the struggle. Gallant Major Brown. A day or two later, being informed by Captain Walker, who, with his Texan Rangers was guarding the line of communi- cation with Point Isabel, that the Mexicans were threatening the latter place in heavy force. General Taylor left Major Brown with three hundred men to hold the fort, and marched to Point Isabel to relieve that place. He agreed with Major Brown that if the fort should be attacked or hard pressed, the latter should notify him of his danger by firing heavy signal guns at certain intervals. He reached Point Isabel, twenty miles dis- tant, on the second of May without meeting any opposition on the march. General Arista, attributing Taylor's with- drawal to fear, determined to capture the fortification on the opposite side of the river. On the third of May he opened fire upon it from a heavy battery at Matamoras, and sent a large force across the Rio Grande, which took position in the rear of the fort and intrenched themselves there. In the face of this double attack the little garrison defended themselves bravely, but at length Major Brown fell mortally wounded. The command devolved upon Captain Hawkins, who now felt himself justified in warning Taylor of his danger, and began to fire the signal guns agreed upon. Taylor was joined at Point Isabel by a small detachment, and his force was increased to twenty-three hundred men. He listened anxiously for the booming of the signal guns from the fort on the Rio Grande, and at length they were heard. He knew that the 598 FROM THE REVOLUTION TO THE CIVIL WAR. need of assistance must be great, as the little band in the fort had held out so long with- out calling for help, and he at once set out to join them. He left Point Isabel on the seventh of May, taking with him a heavy- supply train. The steady firing of the sig- nal guns from Fort Brown (for so the work was afterwards named in honor of its gallant commander) urged the army to its greatest exertions. Ringgold's light battery on the right, Dun- can's battery on the left, and a battery of eighteen-pounders in the centre. The artillery was thrown well in front of the infantry, and the order was given to advance. The Mexicans at once opened fire with their batteries, but the distance was too great to accomplish anything. The American bat- teries did not reply until they had gotten within easy range, when they opened a fire BATTLE OF PALO ALTO. On the eighth of May the Mexican army, six thousand strong, was discovered holding a strong position in front of a chaparral, near the small stream called the Palo Alto, in- tending to dispute the advance of the Ameri- cans, Taylor promptly mad^^ his disposi- tions to attack them. His troops were ordered to drink from the little stream and to fill their canteens. The train was closed up, and the line was formed with Major the accuracy and rapidity of which astonished the Mexicans. Their lines were broken and they fell back, and the Americans advanced steadily through the chaparral, which had been set on fire by the discharge of cannon, until a new position within close range was reached. Paying no attention to the Mexican artillery, the American guns directed their fire upon the enemy's infantry and cavalry, and broke ADMINISTRATION OF JAMES K. POLK. 599 them again and again. The battle lasted five hours and ceased at nightfall. It was fought entirely by the artillery of the two armies, and was won by the superior hand- ling and precision of the American guns. The loss of the Mexicans was four hun- dred killed and wounded ; that of the Americans nine killed and forty-four wounded. Early in the battle Major Ring- gold was mortally wounded and died a little occupying a much stronger position than they had held at Palo Alto. Their line was formed behind a ravine, called Resaca de la Palma, or the Dry River of Palms. Their flanks were protected by the thick chaparral, and their artillery was thrown forward beyond the ravine and protected by an intrenchment, and swept the road by which the Americans must advance. During the night fresh troops had joined the Mexican army, and had MAJOR RINGGOLD MORTALLY WOUNDED. later. He was regarded as one of the most gifted officers of the army, and to him was chiefly due the precision and rapidity of movement acquired by the " flying artil- lery" of the American army, which were so successfully tested during this war. The American army encamped on the battle-field, and the next morning, May 9th, as the Mexicans had retreated, leaving their dead unburied, resumed its advance. In the afternoon the Mexicans were discovered increased their force to seven thousand men. Taylor formed his line with his artillery in the centre. The artillery was ordered to advance along the road commanded by the Mexican battery, and the infantry were directed to move as rapidly as possible through the chaparral, and drive out the Mexican sharpshooters. The infantry execut- ed this order in handsome style, but the chaparral was so dense that each man was 6oo FROM THE REVOLUTION TO THE CIVIL WAR. obliged to act for himself as he forced his way throught it. The Mexican battery was handled with great skill and coolness, and held the centre in check until some time after the infantry had forced their way close to the edge of the ravine. At this juncture Captain May was ordered to charge the Mexican guns, and started down the road at a trot. As he reached the position of the American artillery, Lieutenant guns. Leaving the battery to the American infantry which now hurried forward to secure it, the dragoons charged the Mexican centre and broke it. The whole American line then advanced rapidly ; the Mexicans gave way, and were soon flying in utter confusion towards the Rio Grande, which they crossed in such haste that many of them w^ere drowned in the attempt to reach the Mexican shore. CHARGE OF THE DRAGOONS. Ridgely suggested that May should halt and allow him to draw the Mexican fire. Ridgely opened a rapid fire on the Mexican guns, which answered immediately. At the same moment May dashed at the Mexican battery with his dragoons, and reached it before the cannoneers could reload their pieces. They were sabred at their guns, and the battery was carried. Captain May himself made a prisoner of General La Vega, as the latter was in the act of discharfjinc: one of the General Arista, the Mexican commander, fled alone from the field, leaving all his pri- vate and official papers behind him. The Americans lost one hundred and twenty-two men killed and wounded; the Mexicans- twelve hundred. All the Mexican artillery, two thousand stand of arms, and six hundred mules were captured by the Americans. General Taylor advanced from the battle- field to Fort Brown, the garrison of which had heard the distant roar of the battle, and a Q O o D O h^ Eh pq <1 Eh E^ O O 03 ^ c!3 ADMINISTRATION OF JAMES K. POLK. 60 r had seen the flight of the Mexicans across the Rio Grande. The defeat of the Mexicans at Palo Alto and Resaca de la Palma had greatly disheart- ened them. They not only abandoned their intention to invade Texas, but gave up all hope of holding the Rio Grande frontier. On the night of the seventeenth of May their army evacuated Matamoras, and retreated upon ]\Ionterey. On the eighteenth the American army crossed the Rio Grande, and occupied Matamoras. General Taylor scrupulously respected the municipal laws of the town, and protected the citizens in the exercise of their civil and religious privileges. All supplies needed by the troop*; were purchased at a liberal price, and no plundering or disorder was allowed or attempted. In the meantime the news of the attack upon the dragoons under Captain Thorn- ton had reached the United States, ^nd with it the rumor that the American army was confronted on the Texan side of the Rio Grande by a vastly superior force of Mexicans, and that its destruc- tion was almost certain. The President sent a special message to Congress on the eleventh of May, in which he informed that body that " war existed by the act of Mexico," and called upon Congress to recognize the state of war, and to provide for its support by appropriating the necessary funds, and to authorize him to call for vol- unteers. Under the impression that the perilous bituation of Taylor's army made instant action necessary. Congress appropriated ten millions of dollars for the prosecution of the war, and authorized the President to accept the services of fift} thousand volunteers. One-half of this force was to be mustered into the service ; the remainder held as a re- serve. The President's call was responded to with enthusiasm all over the land, and in the course of a few weeks two hundred thousand volunteers offered their services. General Wool was ordered to muster the volunteers accepted by the President into the service. Preparations were made by the American government to prosecute the war with vigor At the suggestion of General Scott a com- prehensive plan of operations was adopted- Two separate expeditions were to be organ- GENERAL WIXFIELD SCOTT. ized. One, called the " Army of the West,"" was to assemble at Fort Leavenworth, on the Missouri, to cross the plains and the Rocky mountains, and to invade and con- quer the northern provinces of Mexico. A powerful fleet was to be sent around Cape Horn to attack the Mexican ports on the Pacific and cooperate with the Army of the West. A second force, called the "Army of the Centre," was to advance from Texas to the city of Mexico, and, if it was thought best, was to cooperate with the " Army of <6o2 FROM THE REVOLUTION TO THE CIVIL WAR. 'Occupation " under General Taylor. As we shall see, the plan was afterwards modified, and the advance upon the Mexican capital •was made from Vera Cruz on the Gulf of Mexico. Towards the last of May the news of the brilliant victories on the Rio Grande was re- ceived at Washington, and was hailed with rejoicings throughout the Union. On the thirtieth of May Congress conferred upon General Taylor the rank of major-general by .brevet as a reward for his victories. On the twenty-third of May the Mexican Congress formally declared war against the United States, and the call of the Mexican government for volunteers for the defence of that country was responded to with enthu- siasm. Thanks to the energy of General Wool, twelve thousand volunteers were mustered into the service of the United States in six weeks. Nine thousand of these were sent forward rapidly to reinforce General Taylor, and with the remainder Wool marched to San Antonio, in Texas, to await further orders, and be ready for action. Strong Intrenchments. General Taylor had been delayed at Mata- ■moras for three months by the weakness of Ms force; but, as soon as reinforcements reached him, he prepared to advance into "the interior. His first movement was directed against the city of Monterey, the capital of the State of New Leon, where the Mexicans had collected an army. His army numbered about nine thousand men of all arms, and of these a little over twenty-three hundred men were detached for garrisons, leaving an active force of six thousand six hundred and seventy men. On the twentieth of August General Worth's division marched from Matamoras, .and a fortnight later General Taylor set out tfrom the Rio Grande with the main army. On the ninth of September the American forces encamped within three miles of Mon- terey. Monterey is an old Spanish city, nearly three hundred years old. It lies in a beauti- ful valley, and is about two miles in length, by one mile in breadth. The mountains approach close to it, and protect it on all sides but two. On one of these sides it is approached from the northeast by the road from Matamoras, and on the other by a rocky gorge through which rung the road connect- ing the city with Saltillo. The city has three large plazas or public squares, and is built like the towns of old Spain, with narrow streets, and houses of stone one story in height, with strong walls of masonry rising about three feet above the flat roofs. The city itself is enclosed with strong walls, in- tended for artillery. Battle of Monterey. Every means of defence had been ex- hausted by the Mexicans. Forty-two heavy cannon were mounted on the city walls, the streets were barricaded, and the flat roofs and stone walls of the houses were arranged for infantry. Each house was a separate for- tress. A strongly fortified building of heavy stone, called the Bishop's palace, stood on the side of a hill without the city walls, and on the opposite side of the city were redoubts held by infantry and artillery. The com- mand of Monterey and its defences was held by General Ampudia, and the garrison con- sisted often thousand veteran troops. Ten days were passed by the American army in reconnoitering the town, its peculiar situation rendering such movements very difficult. On the afternoon of the twentieth of September General Worth was ordered to turn the hill on which stood the Bishop's palace, gain the Saltillo road, and carry the works in that direction. This movement was ADMINISTRATION OF JAMES K. POLK. 603 •successfully accomplished ; but in order to gain the desired position Worth was obliged to cut a new road across the mountain. His troops bivouacked for the night just out of range of the enemy's guns. During the 'night the Americans built a battery to com- mand the Mexican citadel. On the morning of the twenty-first of Sep- tember the American artillery opened fire on Monterey, and the infantry advanced to carry During the night of the twenty-first the Mexicans evacuated the lower part of the city, but kept their hold upon the citadel and the upper town, from which they maintained a vigorous fire upon the American positions. At daybreak, on the twenty-second, Worth's division, advancing in the midst of a fog and rain, carried the crest commanding the Bishop's palace, and by noon had captured the palace itself The guns of the captured CAPTURE OF A BATTERY AT MONTEREY. the Mexican works. The brigade of General •Quitman carried a strong work in the lower part of the town, and at the same time -General Butler, with a part of his division, forced his way into the town on the right. While these operations were in progress -General Worth's division seized the Saltillo road, and secured the enemy's line of retreat. Several fortified positions along the heights were also carried, and their guns turned ;upon the Bishop's palace. works were now directed upon the enemy in the city below. The enemy had fortified the city so thor- oughly that the Americans were not only forced to carry the various barricades in suc- cession, but were compelled to break through the walls of the fortified houses, and advance from house to house in this way. One or two field pieces were drawn up to the flat roofs, and the Mexicans were driven from point to point during the twenty -second and 6o4 FROM THE REVOLUTION TO THE CIVIL WAR. twenty-third, until they were confined to the citadel and plaza. On the night of the twenty-third General Ainpudia opened nego- tiations, and on the morning of the twenty- fourth surrendered the town and garrison to General Taylor. The Mexican soldiers were allowed to march out with the honors of war. General Taylor was induced to grant this concession by his generous desire to spare the people of the city the sufferings days' rations — Taylor agreed to a cessation of hostilities for eight weeks, subject to the consent of his government. The Mexican, army withdrew from Monterey, and an American garrison, under General Worth, as governor, occupied the city. The main body of Taylor's army then went into camp' at Walnut Springs, three miles distant from Monterey. The Americans lost four hundred and eighty-eight men, killed and wounded,. LIEUTENANT GRANT GOING FJK AMMUNITION AT MO.NTEKEV. which would have been caused by a pro- longed defence. The Mexican commander represt-nted to General Taylor that the Mexican government was sincerely anxious for peace, and that it would respond favorably to any fair propo- sitions upon this subject that might be laid before it. In order to afford an opportunity for such an arrangement of the war, and influ- enced by the scarcity of provisions — the American army having at the time but ten in the storming of Monterey. The Mexican loss was much greater. General Grant, then an unknownyounglieu- tenant, was in the battle of Monterey, and- distinguished himself on account of "gallant and meritorious services." Several times during the battle he demonstrated his supe- rior judgment and courage, net more in the fierce charge than in volunteering to make a dangerous ride under fire, in search of ammu- i nition. ADMINISTRATION OF JAMES K. POLK. 605 In the meantime the government of the "United States had been led into a terrible blunder by its desire to bring the war to a speedy close. Santa Anna, who had been driven out of Mexico by one of the numerous revolutions in that country, was living in exile at Havana. He declared that if he were allowed to return to Mexico ne would use his influence in favor of peace, and would secure a treaty for the accomplishment of that end. He was sure he could carry out this scheme, .and only needed to be sustained by the United States government with the sum of three or four millions of dollars to enable him to get control of the Mexican govern- ment. President Polk was completely duped by the " illustrious exile," and not only urged •Congress to appropriate the sum of two millions of dollars to assist Santa Anna, but issued an order to Commodore Conner, com- manding the American fleet in the Gulf, to permit Santa Anna to pass through his lines and return to Mexico. Santa Anna at once .availed himself of this order, and landing at Vera Cruz hastened into the interior. Manifesto by Santa Anna. Once in Mexico, Santa Anna thought no more of his promises to President Polk. He set to work to gain possession of the gov- ernment, but not with a view to making peace. He issued a manifesto, in which he called on his countrymen to rally under his banner for the defence of their homes and country. He assured them of his undying hatred of the " perfidious Yankees," pointed to the reverses of the government of Paredes, and declared that he alone could save the country. His appeals were successful. The Mexican people rose at his call, deposed Paredes, and elected Santa Anna President. The repeated defeats of their armies were forgotten in the new enthusiasm which Santa Anna's presence and proclamations aroused, and in the course of a few months that leader found himself at the head of a well-equipped army of twenty thousand men, which was being steadily increased by the arrival of fresh recruits. Justice to the Enemy. In the meantime General Wool, with a reinfDrcement of three thousand troops, had marched from San Antonio to join General Taylor. He had reached Monclova, about seventy miles from Monterey, when he heard of the capture of the latter place by Taylor. His route had lain across an uninhabited and desert region, in which the troops suf- fered greatly for want of water. He was directed by General Taylor to take position in a fertile district in the province of Durango, where he could obtain supplies for his own command as well as for the army at Monterey. General Wool concili- ated the people of the region occupied by him by protecting them in their liberties and property, and paying fair prices for all the supplies furnished by them. The Mexicans v/ere far better treated by the conquering army than they had been by their own rulers. In accordance with orders received from Washington General Taylor put an end to the armistice on the thirteenth of November. On the fifteenth General Worth, with seven hundred men, occupied Saltillo, the capital of the State of Coahuila. Leaving a garrison in Monterey, under General Butler, Taylor moved towards the coast to attack Tampico. Upon reaching Victoria, the capital of the State of Tamaulipas,he learned that Tampico had surrendered to the United States squad- ron, under Commodore Conner, on the four- teenth of November. Victoria was occupied on the twenty-ninth of December. The troops under General Wool were now ordered to join General Worth at Saltillo, 6o6 FROM THE REVOLUTION TO THE CIVIL WAR. and General Taylor prepared to resume his forward movement into the heart of Mexico. At this juncture his offensive operations were suddenly brought to a close. Massing the Forces. The plan of the invasion adopted by the government of the United States had been so far modified that the " Army of the Centre," under General Winfield Scott, was ordered to capture Vera Cruz, the principal Mexican port on the Gulf, and advance upon the city of Mexico from that point. Troops in suffi- cient numbers could not be drawn from the United States, and General Scott, as com- mander-in-chief, decided to draw the desired number of men from Taylor's army. The order for the withdrawal of these troops reached General Taylor just as he was about to resume active operations. Taylor was keenly dis- appointed at being thus condemned to inactivity, but like the true soldier that he was, at once obeyed the orders sent him. Generals Worth and Quitman, with their divisions, and the greater portion of the volunteers who had come out with General Wool, were at once despatched to the Gulf coast to join the expedition against Vera Cruz. The withdrawal of these troops left General Taylor with a very small force. During the month of January and the early part of February, 1847, reinforcements from the United States increased his army to about six thousand men. A portion of these was placed in garrison at Monterey and Sal- tillo, leaving General Taylor about forty- seven hundred effective troops, of whom but six hundred were regulars. Early in January, 1847, General Scott sent Lieutenant Richey with an escort of cavalry to convey a despatch to General Taylor. Lieutenant Richey was killed by the Mex- icans on the way, and his despatches were forwarded to Santa Anna, who learned from them the American plan for the invasion of Mexico. He at once resolved upon his own course. Relying upon the strength of Vera Cruz to hold Scott's army in check, he de- termined to attack General Taylor at once,, and crush him. By the most energetic and despotic measures he silenced the opposition which prevailed in the city of Mexico, and obtained both men and money for his attempt. On the twenty-sixth of January he began his march upon Saltillo with twenty-three thou- sand well-armed and equipped men, and twenty pieces of artillery. Rapid Marches. The Mexican army had reached San Louis Potosi, about sixty miles south of Saltillo^ when General Wool, commanding at the latter place, learned of their approach. He at once notified General Taylor, who ad- vanced with his whole effective force from Monterey to Saltillo. As the enemy con- tinued to approach, Taylor left his stores at Saltillo, and moved rapidly to Agua Nueva,. eighteen miles beyond Saltillo, on the road to San Louis Potosi. Hisdesign was to secure the southern end of the pass through the Sierra Nevada. With this pass in possession of the Americans the Mexican army would be com- pelled to fight at once, as the country in their rear was incapable of supplying them with provisions. The reports of the reconnoitering parties made it evident that the Mexican force was vastly superior to that of the Americans, and General Taylor also learned that a strong body of Mexican cavalry, under General Minon, was some distance to the left of his position, which could be turned. A daring reconnoissance was made by Major M'CuUoch, of the Texan Rangers. He entered the Mexican camp, passed through it, and obtained accurate information of their numbers, and regained his own lines ia safety. ADMINISTRATION OF JAMES K. POLK. 607^ Upon receipt of M'Culloch's intelligence, and the report of the effort of the Mexican cavalry to turn his left, General Taylor fell back from Agua Nueva to a new position, eleven miles higher up the valley on the twenty-first of February. The withdrawal of the American army was made in good time. Santa Anna had sent Minon with the cavalry to gain the rear of Taylor's army, and at the same time en- deavored, by a forced march of fifty miles, to surprise General Taylor at Agua Nueva. Upon ar- riving in front of that place he found to his astonish- ment and disappointment that Taylor had abandoned his position. Interpreting this movement as a flight, the Mexican commander pushed on in pursuit of his adversary, and came up with him on the morning of the twenty-second of February. The position chosen by General Taylor was at the north end of the valley known as Las Angosturas, or the Narrows, and near the hacienda or plantation known as Buena Vista, from which latter place the battle took its name. It was one of great strength. Its flanks were protected by the mountains which arose abruptly from the defile, and the ground in front was broken by numerous ravines and gullies. The American forces were disposed so as to secure every advantage afforded by the nature of the ground and the road through the pass — the key to the whole position — was swept by the fire of the artillery. The troops were in high spirits. It was Washington's birthday, and this incident was generally commented upon as a good omen. About noon a Mexican oflicer brought a. note to General Taylor, in which Santa Anna demanded the surrender of the Ameri- can army. This demand was refused, and skirmishing at once began. During the afternoon Santa Anna sent a force under General Ampudia to ascend the mountains and turn the American left. This brought on severe skirmishing in this quarter, but nothing definite was accomplished during MEXICAN CART AND OXEN. the afternoon. Late in the afternoon the- Mexican cavalry under General Minon,. which had passed the mountains, appeared in the plains north of Saltillo. Minon was^ ordered to halt in the position he had gained and await the result of the battle of the next day at Buena Vista. His appearance caused great anxiety to General Taylor, who- hastened to Saltillo with reinforcements- after nightfall, as he feared Minon would, seek to capture that place. 6o8 FROM THE REVOLUTION TO THE CIVIL WAR. During the night of the twenty-second Santa Anna reinforced the column under Ampudia, and opened the battle at daybreak on the twenty-third of February, by endeav- oring to turn the American left, A little later he opened fire from his artillery, and moved forward three powerful columns of attack against the American centre. The movement of the column of Ampudia was successful, the left of the American line was completely turned, but the attack upon the centre was repulsed by the splendid fire of the American batteries. A Blast of Deadly Fire. At this moment General Taylor arrived ■upon the field from Saltillo, bringing with him May's dragoons, several companies of Mississippi riflemen, and a portion of the Arkansas cavalry, embracing every man that could be spared from Saltillo. He had come at a critical moment, for the turning of his left flank by Ampudia had neutralized the natural advantage of the position. Many of the troops were in full retreat upon Buena Vista, and nothing but the courage and con- stancy of those who yet remained firm could save the day. By great exertions Colonel Jefferson Davis rallied the greater part of his own regiment — the Mississippi rifles — and a part of the Second Indiana, and by a rapid advance drove back a strong Mexican col- umn in his front. He had scarcely accom- plished this when he was assailed by a body of one thousand splendid Mexican lancers. Davis quickly formed his own men and the Second and Third Indiana in the shape of the letter V, with the opening towards the enemy, and posted Sherman's battery on his left. The line thus formed awaited in silence the approach of the Mexican cavalry, which came on at a gallop. As they drew near the opening of this ■.terrible V the Mexicans, who had expected the Americans to fire, when they intended to dash in upon them before the men could reload, were astonished at the silence with which they were received, and slackened their pace until they came to a walk within eighty yards of the opening of the angle. In an instant Davis gave the command, and his men took deliberate aim. Then a volley flashed from the rifles and swept away the head of the Mexican column. The next moment Sherman's guns opened upon the cavalry with grape and canister. Under this combined fire horses and lancers fell in great numbers, forming a barricade over which the enemy could not pass, and the Mexicans, seized with a panic, wheeled about and fled in confusion. While this attack was in progress the Mexicans sent a body of cavalry under Tor- rejon to seize the plantation of Buena Vista. Torrejon made his attack with vigor, but was driven back by the Kentucky and Ar- kansas volunteers, assisted by Colonel May's dragoons. Colonel Yell, of the Arkansas regiment, was killed and Torrejon was wounded in this part of the engagement. Splendid Valor of the Americans. During all this while a steady cannonade had been in progress along the centre of the American line. The Mexicans endeavored to silence the American batteries, but with- out success. Santa Anna now sent a strong force to pass around the American left and gain the rear of Taylor's line, and this force was joined by a part of Torrejon's command, which was retreating from Buena Vista. The movement was detected by Colonel May, who met it with his cavalry and several companies of Illinois and Indiana volunteers. General Taylor sent to his assistance all the cavalry he could spare and Bragg's battery. ADMINISTRATION OF JAMES K. POLK. 609 The retreat of the Mexicans, who had | the panic which had set in among them. It passed beyond the American left, was cut | seemed that the whole Mexican column, BATTLE OF BUENA VISTA off, and they were driven in confusion to the base of the mountain, while Bragg's guns showered canister upon them and increased 39 numbering five thousand men, must sur- render or be exterminated. In this emer- gency the Mexican commander raised the 6io FROM THE REVOLUTION TO THE CIVIL WAR. white flag and asked for a parley, professing to have a message from Santa Anna to General Taylor, and the American guns ceased firing. Before the trick was dis- covered the Mexican right escaped under the cover of the flag of truce by passing along the base of the mountain to a point from which they rejoined their main army. Bragg' s Flying Artillery. Santa Anna now brought up his reserves, and late in the afternoon made a determined attack upon the American right, which had been greatly weakened to assist the troops engaged in repelling the attack on the left. The Mexican column, twelve thousand strong, easily drove back the few scattered volunteers that disputed their advance, and captured O'Brien's battery, which was with- out infantry support, but not until every man had been killed or wounded. Washington's guns now opened upon the enemy, and suc- ceeded in holding their cavalry in check for a moment. The Mexican infantry pushed on, firing as they advanced, and it was evident that the crisis of the battle was at hand. The battle had been going on for eight hours, and the American troops were greatly exhausted by the unusual exertions they had been subjected to ; while the Mexican col- umn, consisting mainly of their reserves, was fresh, and four times as strong as the whole American army. Keenly alive to his dan- ger, Taylor exerted himself in every possible way to bring up his scattered regiments in time to save the position. The flying artil- lery of Captain Bragg was the first to reach the field. There was not an infantry soldier near to support him, and the salvation of the army depended upon Bragg's efforts. He unlimbered his guns within a few yards of the rapidly advancing Mexicans, and poured in discharge after discharge with a rapidity which seemed wonderful. The Mexican advance was checked, and Sherman now came up and opened fire from his guns upon them. Washington's battery a little later joined in the fire. The Mississippi and In- diana volunteers now reached the field, and made a spirited attack upon the enemy's right flank. Under this terrible fire the Mexicans wavered for a few moments, and then broke in confusion and fled from the field. The Mexicans made no further attack dur- ing the day, and that night Santa Anna, abandoning his wounded, and leaving his dead unburied, retreated rapidly towards Agua Nueva. The American loss in the battle of Buena Vista was two hundred and sixty-seven killed and four hundred and fifty- six wounded. That of the Mexicans was over two thousand killed and wounded, in- cluding many officers of high rank. Taylor followed the Mexican army on the twenty- fourth, as far as Agua Nueva, and collecting their wounded, removed them to Saltillo, where they were attended by the American surgeons. Honors to General Taylor. The victory of Buena Vista was decisive of the war. It saved the valley of the Rio Grande from invasion by a victorious Mexi- can army, and enabled the expedition of General Scott against Vera Cruz to proceed without delay to the accomplishment of its objects. It also greatly disheartened the Mexican people, and during the remainder of the year Taylor's army had nothing to do but to hold the country it occupied. General Taylor remained at Agua Nueva until he was satisfied that no further trouble was to be apprehended from the Mexican army, and then returned by easy stages to his camp at Walnut Springs, near Monterey, which he reached by the last of March. In ADMINISTRATION OF JAMES K. POLK. 6ii the summer of 1847, leaving General Wool in command of the army, General Taylor returned to the United States, where he was received with distinguished honor. While these events were going on in Mexico Captain John C. Fremont, of the United States army, had been engaged in prosecuting the discoveries in the Rocky mountain region, which he had begun in that Territory, and to conciliate the good- will of the inhabitants toward the United States. Fremont had but sixty men with him, but he at once moved into the valley of the Sacramento. The Mexican inhabitants were seriously considering at tiiis time whether they should massacre the American settlers, or whether, in the event of a war between Mexico and GENERAL VIEW OF THE Y05EMITE VALLEV. 1843, in which year he had explored the val- ley known as the Great Basin, the region of the Great Salt Lake, and the valleys of the Sacramento and San Joaquin, on the Pacific coast. In May, 1845, Fremont set out on his third expedition, and passed the winter in the valley of the San Joaquin, then Mexican terri- tory. In May, 1846, he received orders from Washington to move into California and counteract any foreign scheme for securing the United States, they should place Cali- fornia under the protection of Great Britain. Fremont was informed of these plots, and, though no war existed as yet between the two republics, he also learned that the Mex- ican General De Castro was advancing to drive him out of California. The American settlers flocked to Fremont's camp, with their arms and horses, and he soon found himself at the head of a considerable force. 6l2 FROM THE REVOLUTION TO THE CIVIL WAR. He was thus enabled to repulse De Castro's attack, and, after a few conflicts, to drive him from Upper California. By July, 1846, the Mexican authority was entirely overthrown in upper California, and the flag of independ- ence was raised by the settlers. Pursued by a British Squadron. The American squadron in the Pacific was commanded by Commodore Sloat, who was ordered by the secretary of the navy to seize the port of San Francisco as soon as he was reliably informed of the existence of war between the two countries, and to occupy or blockade such other Mexican ports as his force would permit. In the early summer of 1846 the American squadron was lying at Mazatlan. A British squadron under Admiral Seymour also lay in the harbor, and the American commodore became convinced that the British admiral was watching him for the purpose of interfering with his designs upon California. He therefore resolved to get rid of him and put to sea and sailed to the westward, as if making for the Sandwich islands. The British fleet followed him promptly, but in the night the commodore tacked and sailed up the coast to Monterey, while the British continued their course to the islands. Sloat was coldly received at Monterey by the authorities. Hearing of the action of Fre- mont and the American settlers, the com- modore a few days later took possession of the town, and sent a courier to Fremont, who at once joined him with his mounted men. California was now taken possession of in the name of the United States. About the middle of July Commodore Stockton arrived in the harbor, and suc- ceeded Commodore Sloat, who returned home, in the command of the squadron. The next day Admiral Seymour arrived at Monterey. He saw he was too late, and quietly submitted to what he could not pre- vent, though he was greatly astonished to find the town in possession of the American forces. On the seventeenth of August Fre- mont and Stockton occupied Los Angeles, the capital of Upper California. In June, 1846, General Kearney, with the " Army of the West," numbering eighteen hundred men, marched from Fort Leaven- worth, on the Missouri, across the plains to Santa Fe, the capital of the Mexican prov- ince of New Mexico. After a march of nearly one thousand miles, he occupied Santa Fe on the eighteenth of August. Leaving a garrison at Santa Fe, Kearney pushed on towards California, intending to conquer that province also ; but upon reach- ing the Gila river, he was met by the famous hunter. Kit Carson, who informed him of the conquest of California by Fremont and Stockton. Kearney thereupon sent two companies of dragoons under Major Sumner back to Santa Fe, and with the remainder continued his march to the Pacific coast. Revolt in New Mexico. Upon leaving Santa Fe, Kearney had instructed Colonel Doniphan to invade the country of the Navajoe Indians and compel them to make peace with the Americans. Doniphan set out in Noverp.ber, 1846, and crossing the mountains, succeeded in mak- ing a treaty with the Navajoes, by which they agreed to refrain from hostilities against the people of New Mexico. He then marched to the southeast to meet General Wool at Chihuahua. The inhabitants of New Mexico, encouraged by the absence of Doniphan v/ith so large a force, rose in revolt against the American forces, and murdered the American governor of the territory and several other ofiicials on the fourteenth of January, 1847. Colonel Sterling Price, commanding the troops at ADMINISTRATION OF JAMES K. POLK. 613 Santa Fe, at once marched against the insur- gents, defeated them in two engagements, though they greatly outnumbered his force, and suppressed the rebellion. The insur- gents obtained peace only by surrendering their leaders, several of whom were hanged by the Americans. Colonel Doniphan, in the meantime, had continued his march. His route lay through a barren region destitute of water or grass, the twenty-eighth he occupied El Paso, and there waited until his artillery could join him from Santa Fe. It arrived in the course of a month, and on the eighth of February he resumed his march to Chihuahua. On the twenty-eighth he encountered and defeated a Mexican force of over fifteen hun- dred men with ten pieces of artillery, at a pass of the Sacramento river, a tributary of the Rio Grande. The Mexicans lost over three hun- THE GREAT CANON AND LOWER FALLS, YELLOWSTONE. called the Jornado del Muerto — " The Jour- ney of Death." He pressed forward with firmness through this terrible region, his men and animals suffering greatly on the march, and in the latter part of December entered the valley of the Rio Grande. With a force of eight hundred and fifty-six men he defeated over twelve hundred Mexicans atBrazito, on the twenty-sixth of December, 1846, and inflicted upon them a loss of nearly two hun- dred men, losing only seven men himself On dred killed and a number wounded. The Americans lost two killed and several wounded. The Mexicans were completely routed, and left their artillery and all their train in the hands of the Americans. On the first of March, 1847, Doniphan entered Chihuahua, and raising the American flag on the citadel, took possession of the province in the name of the United States. Chihuahua was one of the largest cities in Mexico, and contained nearly thirty thousand 6i4 FROM THE REVOLUTION TO THE CIVIL WAR. inhabitants. Doniphan's force was less than one thousand men. He had expected to find General Wool here, and failing to meet him was in utter ignorance of the posi- tions of the American forces. His own position, in the midst of a hostile population, was perilous indeed, but by his firm and just measures he conciliated the inhabitants. He remained at Chihuahua for six weeks, vainly expecting the arrival of General Wool, and on the twenty-seventh of April evacuated EAST SIDE OF PLAZA — SANTA FE. that place, and set out for Saltillo, three hundred and fifty miles distant. He reached that place on the twenty-second of May. Remaining there but three days, he continued his march to Monterey, from which he pro- ceeded to Matamoras. The enlistments of his men being over, they were transported to New Orleans, and there mustered out of the service. Thus ended the most remarkable expedi- tion on record. In less than one year a corps of volunteers, unused to the hardships of war, had marched over snow-covered mountains and across burning deserts, a dis- tance of over five thousand miles, over three thousand of which lay through an unknown and hostile country, abounding in enemies who might have crushed them at any moment had they rallied in sufficient force. In the meantime there had been new troubles in California. In August, 1847, Commodore Stockton appointed Captain Fremont military commandant of California, and soon after sailed from San Francisco to Monterey, from which place he con- tinued his voyage to San Diego. Soon after the de- parture of the fleet Fremont learned of a conspiracy to overthrow his government. By a forced march of one hundred and fifty miles he surprised and captured the nisurgent leader, Don J. Pico. A court-martial sen- tenced him to death, but Fremont wisely spared his life, and Pico, in gratitude for this clemency, gave him his powerful aid in his efforts to tranquilize the country. General Kearney had con- tinued his march from New Mexico, encount- ering great difficulties along the route, and suf- fering considerably from the repeated attacks of superior parties of the enemy. In Decem- ber, 1 847, he reached San Pasqual, where he was obliged to halt. His situation was des- perate indeed; his provisions were exhausted; his horses had died on the march ; his mules were disabled ; a large number of his men were sick ; and his camp was surrounded by the enemy, who held every road by which he could .escape. In this situation three ADMINISTRATION OF JAMES K. POLK. 615 ■men — Kit Carson, Lieutenant Beales of the navy, and an Indian, whose name is unfor- tunately unknown — volunteered to make their way through the enemy's lines to San Dieg6, thirty miles distant, and inform Com- modore Stockton of Kearney's need of assistance. They succeeded in reaching San Diego, and the commodore promptly sent reinforcements to Kearney, which ena- bled him to drive off the enemy and reach San Diego in safety. General Scott's Expedition. Commodore Stockton now directed his a.tention to suppressing the insurrection of the Mexican inhabitants of California, who had gotten possession of Los Angeles. Driven to extremities, they surrendered the town on the condition that the Americans should respect the rights and property of the citizens. Commodore Stockton having been re- lieved of his civil functions by orders from Washington, General Kearney claimed the governorship of the territory by virtue of his rank. Fremont refused to recognize his authority, and was brought to trial before a court-martial, which found him guilty of disobedience of orders and mutiny, and sen- tenced him to be dismissed from the service. The sentence was remitted by the President on account of Fremont's meritorious and valuable services, but Fremont refused to accept the clemency of the President and thus admit the justice of the sentence of the court, and resigned his commission. General Kearney remained in California as governor of that territory. The expedition under General Scott sailed from New Orleans late in November, 1846, and rendezvoused at the island of Lobos, about one hundred and twenty-five miles north of Vera Cruz. The plan of operations for this army was very simple — to capture Vera Cruz and march to the city of Mexico by the most direct route. At length every- thing being in readiness, the expedition sailed from Lobos Island, and on the morn- ing of the ninth of March, 1847, the army, thirteen thousand strong, landed without opposition at a point selected by General Scott and Commodore Conner a few days before. The city and vicinity had been thoroughly reconnoitred, and the troops were at once marched to the positions assigned them by the commander-in-chief. Vera Cruz is the principal seaport of Mexico, and contained at the time of the siege about fifteen thousand inhabitants. It was strongly fortified on the land side, and towards the Gulf was defended by the Castle of San Juan de Ulloa, the strongest fortress in America, with the exception of Quebec. Attack Upon Vera Cruz. On the tenth of March the investment of the city was begun by General Worth, and the American lines were definitely estab- lished around the city for a distance of six miles. During the day, and for several days thereafter, bodies of Mexicans attempted to harass the besiegers, and a steady fire was maintained upon them by the guns of the castle and the city as they worked at their batteries. The American works being com- pleted, and their guns in position, General Scott summoned the city of Vera Cruz to surrender, stipulating that no batteries should be placed in the city to attack the castle unless the city should be fired upon by that work. The demand was refused by General Mor- ales, who commanded both the city and the castle, and at 4 o'clock on the afternoon of the twenty-second of March, the American batteries opened fire upon the town. The bombardment was continued for five days, and the fleet joined in the attack upon the 6i6 FROM THE REVOLUTION TO THE CIVIL WAR. castle. The city suffered terribly ; a number of the inhabitants were killed, and many buildings were set on fire by the shells. On the twenty-seventh the city and castle surrendered, and were promptly occupied by the Americans. Over five thousand prison- ers and five hundred pieces of artillery fell into the hands of the victors. The c^arrison BOMBARDMENT OF VERA CRUZ. were required to march out, lay down their arms, and were then dismissed upon their parole. The inhabitants were protected in their civil and religious rights. The sur- render was completed on the morning of the twenty-ninth. Having secured the city and the castle, General Scott placed a strong garrison in each, and appointed General Worth governor of Vera Cruz. He then prepared to march upon the city of Mexico, and on the eighth of April the advance division, under General Twiggs, set out from Vera Cruz towards Jalapa. Deducting the force left to gafrison Vera Cruz, Scott's whole army amounted to but eighty-five hundred men. Santa Anna had not found the consequen- ees to himself of the battle of Buena Vista as bad as he had expected. He had succeeded in pursuading his country- men that he had not been defeated in that battle, but had simply retreated for want of provisions, and they had agreed to give him an- other trial. He had pledged himself to pre- vent the advance of the Americans to the capital, in the event of the fall of Vera Cruz, and with the aid of those of his countrymen who were willing to support him had quelled an insurrec- tion at the capital, and had strengthened his power to a greater de- gree than ever. With a force of twelve thou- sand men he had taken position at Cerro Gordo, a mountain pass at the eastern edge of the Cordilleras, to hold the American army in check, and had fortified his position with great skill and care. General Twiggs halted before the Mexican position to await the arrival of General Scott, who soon joined him with the main army. The Mexican lines were carefully reconnoi- tered, and on the eighteenth of April General ADMINISTRATION OF JAMES K. POLK. 617- Scott, avoiding a direct attack, turned the eneniy's left, seized the heights commanding their position, and drove them from their works with a loss of three thousand prisoners and forty-three pieces of artillery. Santa Anna mounted a mule, taken from his car- riage, and fled, leaving the carriage and his private papers in the hands of the Americans. Besides their prisoners, the Mexicans lost over one thousand men in killed andvvounded. the second city of Mexico, containing eighty thousand inhabitants, was occupied. Gen- eral Scott established his headquarters at Puebla, and awaited, reinforcements. The terms of the volunteers would expire in June, and they refused to re-enlist, as they were afraid to encounter the yellow fever,, the scourge of the Mexican climate, the season for which was close at hand. They were returned to the United States and Gen- BATTLE OF CERRO GORDO. Scott's loss was four hundred and thirty-one killed and wounded. Thebrilliant victory of Cerro Gordo opened the way for the American army to Jalapa, which was occupied on the nineteenth of April. Continuing his advance. General Scott captured the strong fortress of Perote, situated on a peak of the Eastern Cordille- ras, which was abandoned almost without a blow by its defenders, on the twenty-second of April. On the fifteenth of May, Puebla, eral Scott was forced to spend three months at Puebla in inactivity. The force he had with him was greatly weakened by sickness,, and eighteen hundred men were in the hos- pitals of Puebla alone. While at Puebla General Scott was ordered by the secretary of war to collect duties on merchandise entering the Mexican ports,, and to apply the money thus obtained to the needs of the army. He was also ordered to levy contributions upon the Mexican people 6i8 FROM THE REVOLUTION TO THE CIVIL WAR. for the use of the troops. He refused to obey this order, declaring that the eountry through which he was moving was too poor to warrant impressments, and that such a ;measure would exasperate the Mexicans and cause them to refuse to supply the army at all. " Not a ration for man or horse," he said, "would be brought in except by the bayonet, which would oblige the troops to spread themselves out many leagues to the right and left in search of subsistence, and stop all military operations." He continued to buy ■provisions for his army at the regular prices ■of the country, and by so doing greatly allayed the bitterness of feeling with which .the Mexicans regarded the Americans. Attempt to Suspend Hostilities. Another annoyance to which the com- mander-in-chief was subjected arose from the ill-advised action of Mr. N. P. Trist, who had been sent out to Mexico in the quality of peace commissioner. Soon after the cap- ture ot Vera Cruz, General Scott had sug- gested to the President the propriety of sending out commissioners to his headquar- ters, who should be empowered to treat for peace when a suitable occasion should offer itself. The President selected for this pur- pose Mr. N. P. Trist, who had been United States consul at Havana, and who was acquainted with the Spanish language — a singular selection. Mr. Trist was furnished with the draft of -a treaty carefully prepared in the state de- partment at Washington, and was intrusted with a despatch from Mr. Buchanan, the secretary of state, to the Mexican minister 'of foreign relations. He was instructed to communicate confidentially to General Scott and Commodore Perry both the treaty and his instructions. General Scott was informed of Trist's mission by the secretary of war, and was directed to suspend military opera- tions until further orders, unless attacked. Mr. Trist reached Vera Cruz in due time, but instead of explaining his mission, as directed, to General Scott, he sent a note to the commander-in-chief from Vera Cruz, enclosing the letter of the secretary of war, and the sealed despatch to the Mexican minister, which he requested the general to forward to its destination. The letter of the secretary of war could not be understood by General Scott without the explanations Mr. Trist was directed to give, but failed to make. General Scott very properly resented the conduct of Trist as an attempt to degrade him by making him subordinate to that per- sonage, and in his reply to him declared that the suspension of hostilities belonged to the commander in the field and not to the secretary of war a thousand miles away. Trist thereupon wrote to General Scott, giving a full explanation of his mission, but did so in disrespectful terms. In conclusion he claimed to be the aid-de-camp of the President, and as such to possess the right to issue orders to the commander-in-chief Scott referred the matter to the government at Washington, maintaining in the meantime his independence of action as commanding general. In due time explanations came from Washington satisfactory to the general, and Mr. Trist was sharply reprimanded by the secretary of state " for his presuming to command the general-in-chief." Santa Anna in Disgrace. Aftei his defeat at Cerro Gordo, Santa Anna repaired to Orizaba, where he organ- ized a number of guerrilla bands to attack the American trains on the road between Vera Cruz and Scott's army. He then returned to the city of Mexico, where he was coldly received by the people. The affairs of the Mexican nation were in the ADMINISTRATION OF JAMES K. POLK. 6i(> most hopeless confusion, and the people were utterly disheartened. Their army on which they had depended for the defence of the road to the capital had been routed at Cerro Gordo, and there was no force in exist- ence with which to stay the advance of the victorious Americans, Had General Scott been able to advance upon Mexico immedi- ately after his occupation of Puebla, the city would have fallen at once, and the war have been brought to an immediate close. A number of leaders contested the supremacy at the capital, and the quarrels of these fac- tions paralyzed the efforts of the govern- jTient. The most capable of these leaders was Santa Anna, and his strong qualities natur- ally attracted to him the largest following By his extraordinary energy he suppressed the opposition to him, secured the money he needed by forced loans from the people, and raised an army of twenty-five thousand men .and sixty pieces of artillery, and fortified the city of Mexico. The three months' enforced delay of General Scott's army at Puebla gave him time to carry out these measures, and he endeavored to gain still further advantages by opening negotiations secretly with Mr. Trist, and pretending to be anxious for peace. He declared that he needed money to enable him to act with freedom in arranging a treaty, and succeeded in getting about ten thousand dollars from the secret service fund at the disposal of General Scott ; but his designs were soon detected by the Amer- ican commander, and the supply of money was discontinued. The American Army Advances. Reinforcements from the United States arrived at Puebla in July, and on the seventh of August General Scott resumed his advance on the city of Mexico, with a force increased to ten thousand men. The route lay through a beautiful upland country, abounding in water, and rich in the most picturesque scenery. The troops pressed on with enthusiasm, and on the tenth of August the summit of the Cordilleras was passed, and then almost from the very spot from which, more than three centuries before, the follow- ers of Cortez looked down upon the halls of the Montezumas, the American army beheld the beautiful valley of Mexico stretching out for miles before them, with the city of Mexico lying in the midst, encircled by the strong works that had been erected for its defence. Another Important Conquest. The passes on the direct road to the city had been well fortified and garrisoned by the Mexicans, but the country upon the flanks had been left unprotected, because Santa Anna deemed it utterly impossible for any troops to pass over it, and turn his position. El Penon, the most formidable of these defences, was reconnoitered by the engi- neers, who reported that it would cost at least three thousand lives to carry it. Scott thereupon determined to turn El Penon, instead of attacking it. The city and its defences were carefully reconnoitered, and it was discovered that the works on the south and west were weaker than those at any other points. General Scott now moved to the left, passed El Pefion on the south, and by the aid of a corps of skillful engineers moved his army across ravines and chasms which the Mexican commander had pro- nounced impassable, and had left unguarded. General Twiggs led the advance, and halted and encamped at Chalco, on the lake of the same name. Worth followed, and passing Twiggs, encamped at the town of San Augustin, eight miles from the capital. As soon as Santa Anna found that the Americans had turned El Penon, and had advanced to the south side of the city, he left 620 FROM THE REVOLUTION TO THE CIVIL WAR. that fortress and took position in the strong fort of San Antonio, which lay directly in front of Worth's new position. Northwest of San Antonio, and four miles from the city, lay the little village of Churubusco, which had been strongly fortified by the Mexicans. A little to the west of San Augustin was the fortified camp of Contreras, with a garrison of about six thousand men. In the rear, between the camp and the city, was a reserve force of twelve thousand men. The whole number of Mexicans manning these defences was about thirty-five thousand, with at least one hundred pieces of artillery of various sizes. Driven Like Chaff. General Scott lost no time in movine against the enemy's works. General Persifer F. Smith was ordered to attack the en- trenched camp at Contreras, while Shields and Pierce should move between the camp and Santa Anna at San Antonio, and prevent him from going to the assistance of the force at Contreras. At three o'clock on the morn- ing of August 20th, in the midst of a cold rain. Smith began his march, his men hold- ing on to each other, to avoid being sepa- rated in the darkness. He made his attack at sunrise, and in fifteen minutes had posses- sion of the camp. He took three thousand prisoners and thirty three pieces of cannon. The camp at Contreras having fallen. Gen- eral Scott attacked the fortified village of Churubusco an hour or two later, and car- ried it after a desperate struggle of several hours. General Worth's division stormed and carried the strong fort of San Antonio, and General Twiggs captured another im- portant work. The Mexicans outnumbered their assailants three to one, and fought bravely. Their efforts were in vain, how- ever, and late in the afternoon they were driven from their defences, and pursued by the American cavalry to the gates of the city. These two victories had been won over a force of thirty thousand Mexicans by less than ten thousand Americans, and a loss of four thousand killed and wounded and three thousand prisoners had been inflicted upon the Mexican army. The American loss was eleven hundred men. Santa Anna retreated within the city, and on the twenty-first of August the American army advanced to within three miles of the city of Mexico. On the same day Santa Anna sent a flag of truce to General Scott, asking for a suspension of hostilities, in order to arrange the terms of a peace. The request was granted, and Mr. Trist was despatched to the city, and began negotiations with the Mexican commissioners. After protracted delays, designed to gain time, the Mexican, commissioners declined the American con- ditions, and proposed others which they knew would not be accepted. Thoroughly disgusted, Mr. Trist returned to the Amer- ican camp, and brought with him the in- telligence that Santa Anna had violated the armistice by using the time accorded him by it in strengthening his defences. Indignant at such treachery, General vScott at once re- sumed his advance upon the city. A Hard-fought Battle. The Mexican capital was still defended by two powerful works. One of these was Molino del Rey, " The King's Mill," a foun- dry, where it was said the church bells were being cast into cannon ; the other was the strong castle of Chapultepec. General Scott resolved to make his first attack upon Molino del Rey, which was held by fourteen thou- sand Mexicans. It was stormed and carried on the eighth of September, after a severe contest by Worth's division, four thousand stronsf. This was reerarded as the hardest ADMINISTRATION OF JAMES K. POLK. won victory of the war. The Mexicans were nearly four times as numerous as the Americans, and their position was one of very great strength. The Americans fought principally with their rifles and muskets, their artillery being of but little use to them, owing to the nature of the position. Their loss was seven hundred and eighty-seven killed and wounded — nearly one-fourth of the force engaged. 621 to the city by the causeway leading to the Belen gate, closely followed by Quitman's division. Worth's division was moved for- ward to attack the San Cosmo gate, while Quitman assailed the Belen gate. The defences of the causeways were taken in succession, and by nightfall the Belen and San Cosmo gates w^ere in possession of the Americans after a hard fight for them. The troops slept on the ground they had won. STORMING OF CHAPULTEPEC. The castle of Chapultepec stood on a steep and lofty hill, and could not be turned. If won at all, it must be by a direct assault. On the twelfth of September the American artillery opened fire upon it, and reduced it almost to ruins. On the morning of the thirteenth a determined assault was made by the Americans, and the castle was carried after a sharp struggle. The fugitives from Chapultepec retreated During the night of the thirteenth Santa Anna, with the remains of his army, retreated from the city, leaving the authorities to make the best terms they could with the conquer- ors. The city officials presented themselves before General Scott before daybreak, and proposed terms of capitulation. The general replied that the city was already in his power, and that he would enter it on his own terms. The next day, September 14, 1847, the FRO:\I THE REVOLUTION TO THE CIVIL WAR. 622 American army entered the city of Mexico, oc- cupied the grand square, and hoisted the stars GENERAL SCOTT ENTERING THE CITY OF MEXICO. and stripes over the government buildings. Santa Anna retreated with four or five thousand men from the capital to the vicinity of Puebla, which was besieged by a Mexican force. The city contained eiefhteen hundred sick Americans, and was held by a garrison of five hun- dred men under Colonel Childs. This little force held out bravely until the arrival of a brigade from Vera Cruz, under Gen- eral Lane, on its way tO' reinforce General Scott. Lane drove off Santa Anna's army, and re- lieved Puebla on the eighth of October. Ten days later Santa Anna was reported to be col- lecting another force at Alixo. Lane set out im- mediately for that place, reached it by a forced match, and dispersed the Mexicans beyond all hope of reunion. Immediately after the capture of the city of Mexico Santa Anna re- signed the presidency of the republic in favor of Senor Pena y Pena, pre- sident of the Supreme Court of Justice, but re- tained his position as commander-in-chief of the army. The fall of the city was followed by the inauguration of a new government, one of the first acts of which was to dismiss Santa Anna from the command of the army. He at once left the country, and fled to the West Indies. ADMINISTRATION OF JAMES K. POLK. 625. The Mexican government was removed to the city of Queretaro, and a new congress was elected, which began its sessions in that city. Negotiations for peace had been opened in the meantime, and the meetings of the Mexican commissioners and Mr. Trist were held at the town of Guadaloupe Hidalgo, where, on the second of February, 1848, a treaty of peace was signed by Nicholas P. Trist, on the part of the United States, and Senors Couto, Atristain and Cuevas, on the part of Mexico. Though Mr. Trist's powers had been withdrawn by President Polk some time before, he ventured to continue his authority on the ground that the opportunity for bringing the war to a close was too favorable to be lost. The commissioners appointed by the President to super- sede him reached Mexico a little later, but found the treaty signed and sealed. It was forwarded to Wash- ington, and was laid by the President before the Senate, which body after a brief discussion ratified it. On the Fourth of July, 1848, President Polk issued a proclamation an- nouncing the return of peace. By the terms of the treaty the Rio Grande was accepted by Mexico as the western boundary of the United States and of Texas, and that republic ceded to the United States the provinces of New Mexico and Upper California. For this immense territory the government of the United States agreed to pay to Mexico the sum of fifteen millions of dollars, and to assume the debts due by Mexico to citizens of the United States, amounting to the sum of three and a half millions of dollars. The treaty having been ratified, the Ameri- can forces were promptly withdrawn from Mexico. By the cession of California and New Mexico, regions as yet unknown, a territory four times as large as France, was added to the dominions of the United States. Califor- nia bordered the Pacific coast for about six hundred and fifty miles, and extended inland for about the same distance. It embraced an area of about four hundred and fifty thousand square miles, compi-ising what is now known, as California, Nevada, Arizona, Utah, and A MEXICAN CATHEDRAL. parts of Colorado and New Mexico. At the close of the war it contained about fifteen thousand inhabitants. In February, 1848, occurred an event des- tined to change the whole history of the Pacific coast. A laborer on the plantation of Captain Sutter, situated in Coloma county, California, on a branch of the Sacramento river, while working on a mill-race, discov- ered gold in the sands of the little stream. The precious metal was soon found to be in abundance in the neighborhood, and the news spread rapidly. It reached the United States about the time of the ratification of 624 FROM THE REVOLUTION TO THE CIVIL WAR. the treaty, and produced the most intense excitement. In the course of a few months thousands of emigrants were on their way to California to dig gold. Some went in steamers and -sailing vessels around Cape Horn ; some crossed the Isthmus of Panama, and worked their way up the Pacific coast ; and others, and by far the greater number, undertook the long and dangerous journey across the plains and the Rocky Mountains, traveling HYDRAULIC MINING. generally in caravans. In a short time mul- titudes came flocking from every country in Eu'-ope to join the throng in search of the precious metal. San Francisco was the cen- tral point cS this vast emigration, and that place soon grew from a village of a few miserable huts to a city of over fifteen thou- sand inhabitants. Within two years after the discovery of gold the population of California had increased to nearly a hundred thousand ; two years later, in 1852, it numbered two hundred and sixty-four thousand. The influence of the discovery of gold in California was not limited to this country. It gave an impetus to the commerce and in- dustry of the whole world. On the twenty-first of February, 1848, ex- President John Quincy Adams, then a mem- ber of the House of Representatives in Congress, was stricken with paralysis in his seat in the House. He was carried into the speaker's room, where he died two days later, at the age of eighty, _ On the twenty-ninth of May, %^ 1848, Wisconsin was admitted - ' into the Union as a State, mak- m ing the thirtieth member of the ^ confederacy. ^ Before the return of peace ^5 with Mexico the slavery ques- ^ tion had been revived in the United States, and had been the cause of an agitation full of trouble to both sections. On the eighth of August, 1846, President Polk sent a message to Congress asking an appropriation of three millions of dollars to enable him to negotiate a treaty of peace with Mexico, based upon the policy of obtain- ing a cession of territory outside the existing limits of Texas. During the debate upon a bill to grant this appropriation, Mr. David Wilmot, a representative from Pennsyl- vania, made the following amendment, known as the "Wilmot Proviso:" ''Provided, That there shall be neither slavery nor in- voluntary servitude in any territory which shall hereafter be acquired, or be annexed to the United States, otherwise than in the punishment of crimes, whereof the party shall have been duly convicted ; Provided ahvays, That any person escaping into the ADMINISTRATION OF JAMES K. POLK. 625 same, from whom labor or service is lawfully claimed in any one of the United States, such fugitive may be lawfully reclaimed and conveyed out of said territory to the person claiming his or her labor or service." The Country Profoundly Excited. This amendment took no notice of the Missouri Compromise line, and was opposed with great warmth by the southern members, who declared it an attempt to rob the Southern States in advance of their fair share of the territory that might be won by the joint efforts of the States. The bill failed in the Senate ; but the announcement of the Wilmot Proviso re-opened the slavery question in all its bitterness, and plunged the country into a state of profound excitement. The agitation was renewed in January, 1 847, when a bill for the organization of a ter- ritorial government for Oregon was reported to the House with the Wilmot Proviso incorporated in it. Mr. Burt, of South Carolina, moved to amend the bill by inserting before the restrictive clause the words : " Inasmuch as the whole of said territory lies north of 36° 30' north latitude." This was an effort to apply to the Oregon bill the principles of the Missouri Com- promise; but the friends of the restriction rejected the amendment. The bill passed the House, but was defeated in the Senate. During the next session the measure was revived, and a territorial government was organized for Oregon with an unqualified restriction upon slavery. In the fall of 1 848 the Presidential election occurred. The Democratic party supported Senator Lewis Cass, of Michigan, for the Presidency, and General William O. Butler, of Kentucky, for the Vice-Presidency. The Whig party nominated General Zachary Taylor, of Louisiana, for the Presidency, and Millard Fillmore, of New York, for the Vice Presidency. The Anti-slavery or Free Soil party put in nomination for the Presi- dency Martin Van Buren, of New York, and for the Vice-Presidency Charles Francis Adams, of Massachusetts. In the election which followed the political campaign, the candidates of the Whig party were elected by decisive majorities. The Free Soil party failed to receive a single electoral vote, but out of the popular vote of nearly three mil- lions, nearly three hundred thousand ballots were cast for its candidates, showing a remarkable gain in strength in the past four years. 40 CHAPTER XXXVIII The Administrations of Zachary Taylor and Millard Fillmore Character of General Taylor — Department of the Interior — Death of ex-President Polk — The Slavery Agitation — Views of Clay and Webster — California Asks Admission Into the Union — Message of President Taylor — The Omnibus Bill — Efforts of Henry Clay — A Memorable Debate — Webster's " Great Union Speech " — Death of John C. Calhoun — Death of President Taylor — Millard Fillmore Becomes President — Passage of the Compromise Measures of 1850 — Death of Henry Clay — Dissatisfaction With the Compromise — The Fugitive Slave Law Nullified by the Northern States — The Nashville Convention — Organization of Utah Territory — The Seventh Census — The Expedition of Lopez Against Cuba — The Search for Sir John Franklin — The Grinnel Expedition — Dr. Kane's Voyages — Inauguration of Cheap Postage — Laying the Corner-stone of the New Capitol — Death of Daniel Webster — Arrival of Kossuth — The President Rejects the Tripartite Treaty — Franklin Pierce Elected President — Death of William R. King. THE fourth of March, 1849, fell on Sunday, and the inauguration of General Taylor as President of the United States took place on Mon- day, March fifth. The new President was a native of Vir- ginia, but had removed with his parents to Kentucky at an early age, and had grown up to manhood on the frontiers of that State. In 1808, at the age of twenty-four, he was commissioned a lieutenant in the army by President Jefferson, and had spent forty years in the military service of the coimtry. His exploits in the Florida war and the war with Mexico have been related. His brillant vic- tories in Mexico had made him the most popular man in the United States, and had won him the high office of the presidency at the hands of his gratefiil fellow-citizens. He was without political experience, but he was a man of pure and stainless integrity, of great firmness, a sincere patriot, and pos- sessed of strong good sense. He had received a majority of the electoral votes of both the Northern and Southern States, and was free from party or sectional ties of any kind. His inaugural address was brief, and was confined to a statement of general principles, 626 His cabinet was composed of the leaders of the Whig party, with John M. Clayton, of Delaware, as secretary of state. The last Congress had created a new executive de- partment — that of the interior — to relieve the secretary of the treasury of a part of his duties, and President Taylor was called upon to appoint the first secretary of the interior, which he did in the person of Thomas Ewing, of Ohio. The new department was charged with the management of the public lands, the Indian tribes, and the issuing of patents to inventors. A few months after the opening of Pre- sident Taylor's administration, ex-President Polk died at his home in Nashville, Tennessee,, on the fifteenth of June, 1849, in the fifty- fourth year of his age. Since the announcement of the Wilmot Proviso, the agitation of the slavery question- had been incessant, and had increased instead of diminishing with each succeeding year.. It was one of the chief topics of discussion in the newspaper press of the country, and entered largely into every political contro- versy, however local or insignificant in its nature. The opponents of slavery regarded the annexation of Texas and the Mexicaa ADMINISTRATIONS OF TAYLOR AND FILLMORE. 627 war as efforts to extend that institution, and were resolved to put an end to its existence at any cost. The advocates of slavery claimed that the Southern States had an equal ri^ht to the common property of the States, and were entitled to protec- tion for their slaves in any of the Territories then owned by the States or that might af- terwards be acquired by them. The Missouri Com promise forbade the ex- istence of slavery north of the line of 36° 30' north latitude, and left the inhabitants south of that line free to decide upon their own institu- tions. The Anti-slavery party was resolved that slavery should be ex- cluded from the territory acquired from Mexico, and in the Wilmot Pro- viso struck their first blow for the accomplish- ment of this purpose. We have seen that they succeded in prohibiting slavery, by a special act of Congress, in Oregon, although the terms of the Missouri Compro- mise would have ex- cluded the institution from that Territory. Their object was fully understood by the southern people, and was bitterly resented by them. The agitation of the subject aroused a storm of passion throughout the country, and produced a very bitter feeling between the Northern and Southern States. In his last message to Congress, President Polk had recommended that the line of 36° 30' north latitude be extended to the Pacific, and thus leave it to the people south of that line to decide whether they would have slavery or ZACHARY TAYLOR. not. This proposition was acceptable to the South ; but it was rejected by the Anti-slavery party. The Missouri Compromise line had been limited to the Louisiana purchase, which was entirely slaveholding, and had made more than one-half of it free. To FROM THE REVOLUTION TO THE CIVIL WAR. 628 extend the line to the Pacific would be to give the South a chance to establish slavery in territory which was free at the time of its acquisition by the United States. The North Avould not listen to such a proposition. During the last session of Congress in Mr. Polk's administration, an effort had been made to establish territorial governments for Utah and New Mexico, but had failed in the supreme law of the land, it was superior to any territorial law or act of Congress abol- ishing slavery; and that the constitution clearly and unequivocally established and protected slavery in the Territories. Mr. Webster, speaking for the north, de- clared that the constitution was designed for the government of the States, and not for the Territories. Congress, he said, had the right THE WHITE HOUSE, WASHINGTON, D. C. consequence of the inability of Congress to agree upon the question of slavery in these Territories. In the debate in the Senate upon these measures, Mr. Calhoun and Mr. Webster took an active part, and each presented in a masterly manner the views of the section he represented upon this great question. Mr. Cal- houn, speaking for the south, argued that the constitution recognized slavery; that as it was to govern the Territories independently of the constitution, and he maintained that it often exercised this right contrary to the constitution, as it did things in the Territories which it could not do in the States. He added : " When new territory has been ac- quired it has always been subject to the laws of Congress — to such laws as Congress thought proper to pass for its immediate ADMINISTRATIONS OF TAYLOR AND FILLMORE. 629 government and preparatory state in which it was to remain until it was ready to come into the Union as one of the family of States." He quoted in support of his position the clause of the constitution which declares that the " constitution and the laws of the United States which shall be made in pur- suance thereof, .... shall be the supreme law of the land." Congress having failed to make any pro- vision for territorial governments for Utah and New Mexico, those Territories were left in a condition of anarchy. One of the first duties devolving upon the new administration was the alleviation of this evil until it could be definitely settled by Congress. President Taylor instructed the federal officers in those Territories to encourage the people to organize temporary governments for them- selves. A New Accession to the Union. California in the meantime had grown with such rapidity, and had experienced so much trouble from its sudden increase of popula- tion and the lack of a definite government, that its leading citizens determined to seek admission into the Union. In the autumn of 1849 a convention of the people was held, a constitution formed, and a State govern- ment organized. The action of the conven- tion was promptly ratified by the people. Upon the assembly of the Thirty-first Con- gress in the winter of 1849, California applied for admission into the Union as a State, with a constitution forbidding slavery within her limits. The organization of the Thirty-first Con- gress was delayed for three weeks. Parties were about evenly divided, and sixty ballots were taken before a speaker could be chosen. One of the leaders on the Democratic side was Robert Toombs, of Georgia. The choice at last fell upon Howell Cobb, of Georgia, who was elected by a plurality. Partisan bitterness ran high during this struggle. Upon the organization of the House, Presi- dent Taylor sent in his first and only mes- sage. He recognized the danger with which the sectional controversy threatened the country, expressed his views of the situation in moderate terms, and intimated that he should faithfully discharge his duties to the whole country. He recommended the admis- sion of California with the constitution she had chosen ; and advised that Utah and New ROBERT TOOMBS. Mexico should be organized as Territories, with liberty to decide the question of slavery for themselves when they were ready to enter the Union as States. A dispute having arisen between Texas and New Mexico concerning the proper boundary between them, the Pre- sident recommended that it should be settled by the courts of the United States. The other questions which demanded im- mediate settlement were slavery in the Dis- trict of Columbia, and the demand of the Southern States for a more faithful execution 630 FROM THE REVOLUTION TO THE CIVIL WAR. of the provision of the constitution which required the arrest and return of fugitive slaves. The South opposed the admission of Cali- fornia with a free constitution, and the North demanded the abolition of the slave trade in the District of Columbia, and the Northern States were unwilling to allow their officers to execute the Fugitive Slave Law within their limits. The excitement became intense, and threats to dissolve the Union of the States were freely indulged in by the extrem- ists of both the North and the South. Opposing Views in the Senate. On the twenty-ninth of January, 1850, Henry Clay introduced into the Senate a series of resolutions designed to settle all the points in dispute by a general compromise. The resolutions were referred to a commitee of thirteen, of which Mr. Clay was made chairman. In due time the committee re- ported a bill known as the " Omnibus Bill " from its embracing in one measure all Mr. Clay's propositions. It provided for the admis- sion of California as a free State ; the organi- zation of the Territories of Utah and New Mexico, without reference to slavery ; the adjustment of the boundary between Texas and New Mexico by paying to the former ten millions of dollars ; the abolition of the slave trade in the District of Columbia ; and the enactment by Congress of a more string- ent and effective law for the rendition of fugitive slaves. The Omnibus bill was warmly opposed in Congress and in the country at large. The debate in the Senate brought out the views of the leading statesmen of the country. Senator Jefferson Davis declared the bill in no sense a compromise, because it was un- equal in its provisions. The South, he de- clared, gained nothing by the measure, as the constitution already required the rendi- tion of fugitive slaves. He proposed, there- fore, that the Missouri Compromise line should be extended to the Pacific, " with the specific recognition of the right to hold slaves in the territory below that line." Mr. Clay replied to this that " no earthly power could induce him to vote for a specific measure for the introduction of slavery where it had not existed, either north or south of that line. I am unwilling that the posterity of the present inhabitants of Cali- fornia and of New Mexico should reproach us for doing just what we reproach Great Britain for doing to us. If the citizens of those Territories come here with constitu- tions establishing slavery, I am for admitting them into the Union ; but then it will be their own work and not ours, and their pos- terity will have to reproach them and not us." Webster's Union Speech. Mr. Calhoun was too ill to take part in the debate in person, but he prepared a speech of great ability, which was read for him in the Senate by Senator Mason of Vir- ginia. He declared that the Union could be preserved only by maintaining an equal num- ber of free and slave States, in order that the representation of the two sections of the country might be equal in the Senate. Mr. Webster also took part in the debate, and on this occasion delivered what is known as his " great Union speech of the seventh of March," which occupied three days in its delivery. He expressed substantially the same views as those advocated by Mr. Clay. He opposed restriction of slavery in the Ter- ritories, and declared he would vote against the Wilmot Proviso. His speech created a profound sensation throughout the country, and did much to secure the final acceptance of the compromise measures. In the midst of this discussion John C. Calhoun died, on the thirty-first of March, ADMINISTRATIONS OF TAYLOR AND FILLMORE. 631 1850. He had entered Congress in 181 1, and had been in public life from that time until the day of his death. He had filled many high offices, both State and national, and had discharged the duties of each and all with disinterested fidelity and admitted ability. He was one of the first statesmen this country has ever pro- duced, and was the ac- knowledged leader of the South in the sectional controversy with the North. His character was above reproach, and he was a sincere and dis- interested patriot. His death was generally la- mented throughout the country, and his political adversaries joined heart- ily in the tributes of the nation to his many vir- tues and great abilities. A few months later President Taylor was suddenly stricken down with a fever, which in a few days terminated fatally. He died on the ninth of July, 1850, amid the grief of the whole country, which felt that it had lost a faithful and upright chief magistrate. Though the successful candidate of one poli- tical party, his administration had received the earnest support of the best men of the country without regard to party, and his death was a national calamity. He had held office only sixteen months, but had shown himself equal to his difficult and delicate position. He was sixty-six years old at the time of his death. By the terms of the constitution the office of President devolved upon Millard Fillmore, Vice-President of the United States. On MILLARD FILLMORE. the tenth of July he took the oath of office before Chief Justice Cranch of the District of Columbia, and at once entered upon the duties of his new position. Mr. Fillmore was a native of New York, and was born in that State in the year 1800. 632 FROM THE REVOLUTION TO THE CIVIL WAR. He had served his State in Congress, and as governor, and was personally one of the most popular of the Presidents. The cabinet of General Taylor resigned their offices imme- PORTRAITS LEADING MORMONS. diately after his death, and the new President filled their places by appointing a new cabi- net with Daniel Webster at its head as secre- tary of state. Mr. Fillmore was in active sym- pathy with Mr. Clay in his efforts to secure the passage of the compromise measures, as he deemed them the best adjustment of the trouble possible under the circumstances. The compromise measures were warmly debated in Con- gress, the sessions of which ex- tended through the summer into the latter part of September. The bill was then taken up and passed, article by article, by the House of Representatives, it hav- ing previously passed the Senate. The bill at once received the ex- ecutive approval, and became a law. The clause admitting Califor- nia into the Union as a State was adopted on the ninth of September, 1850. The course of Mr. Clay in securing the passage of the com- promise measures of 1850 was justly regarded as the crowning glory of his life. It won for him the love and confidence of the whole country without regard to party, and the man who " had rather be right than be Presi- dent" had the proud satisfaction of seeing all the faults and mis- takes of his earlier years for- gotten in the confidence and gra- titude with which his country- men regarded him. He ceased now to take an active part in the questions of the day, for it was fitting that his life should close with this great service to nis country. His health failed ra- pidly, but he continued to hold his seat in the Senate until the twenty-ninth of June, 1852, when he died at the age of seventy-five years. Honors were showered upon his memory in ADMINISTRATIONS OF TAYLOR AND FILLMORE. 633 all parts of the Union, and he was laid to his rest amid a nation's unaffected mournine:. measures failed to give satisfaction. The Fugitive Slave Law was bitterly denounced CUBAN FILLIBUSTERS ON THE MARCH. There were still many extremists both North and South, to whom the compromise by the Anti-slavery party in the North. As the Supreme Court of the United States had 634 FROM THE REVOLUTION TO THE CIVIL WAR. decided that the justices of the peace in the respective States could not be called upon to execute the law for the rendition of fugi- tive slaves, a clause was inserted in the Fugi- tive Slave Law of 1850, providing for the appointment of United States commission- ers, before whom such cases could be tried. The Fugitive Slave Law. The Northern States successively enacted laws for the nullification of the provisions of this law. All their jails and other State buildings were refused to the federal officers for the securing of fugitive slaves, and all State, county, and city officers were forbid- den to arrest or assist in arresting or detain- ing any fugitive slave. In many of the States severe punishments were denounced against masters coming within their limits to claim their slaves, and such fugitives entering these States were declared free. These laws were denounced by the slave- holdinglStates as violative of the constitu- tion of the United States, and gave rise to great bitterness of feeling toward the North It was maintained that these laws were direct evidence of the intention of the northern people to rob the South of its property in negro slaves. The extremists of the South were equally dissatisfied with the compromise. They declared that the South had sacrificed everything and gained nothing by it, and boldly avowed their intention to bring about the secession of the Southern States from the Union. In the summer of 1850 a south- ern convention was held at Nashville, Ten- nessee. Its real end was the dissolution of the Union, and for that purpose it urged the Southern States to appoint delegates to a " Southern Congress." The legislatures of South Carolina and Mississippi alone responded to this invitation, but the great mass of the southern people turned a deaf ear to the appeals of the disunionists, and the convention failed to accomplish its object. In the inauguration of a territorial govern- ment for Utah, the Mormons, whose settle- ment in that Territory while it was yet a possession of Mexico we have related, endeavored to frame their own government, and gave to the Territory the name of Des- eret, which they declared was a word of their peculiar language meaning " The Land of the Honey Bee." President Fillmore set aside this name and carried out the act of Congress by which the Territory received its present name. Brigham Young, the Mormon leader or prophet, was appointed governor of the Territory. In 1850 the seventh census showed the population of the United States to be 23,- 191,876 souls. Capture of General Lopez. In the early part of President Taylor's administration. General Lopez, a Spaniard, began to enlist men in the United States ostensibly for the purpose of aiding the people of the island of Cuba to throw off their allegiance to Spain and establish their independence, but really for the purpose of driving out the Spaniards and securing the annexation of Cuba to the United States. He succeeded in inducing a number of adventurous persons to join him. President Taylor, upon learning of the movement, issued a proclamation forbidding citizens of the United States to engage in it. In spite of this warning, Lopez collected a force of six hundred men, and eluding the vigilance of the United States officers, sailed for Cuba. He landed at Cardenas, but received so little encouragement that the party sailed for Key West. In 1851, Lopez again entered. Cuba, this time at the head of four hundred and fifty men. His party was ADMINISTRATIONS OF TAYLOR AND FILLMORE. 635 captured almost immediately, and he and a number of his men were put to death by the Spanish authorities at Havana. In May, 1850, an expedition of a different character sailed from the United States. The fate of Sir John Franklin, who sailed from England in 184.5, in search of the northwest passage, had long enlisted the sym- pathies of humane and gen- erous souls. It was thought that the daring navigator might be confined to the Arctic regions by the loss ■of his ships, and that a well-executed search might either result in the dis- covery and relief of Frank- lin or settle the question as to his fate. Mr. Henry Grinnell, a wealthy mer- chant of New York, fitted out an expedition at his own expense, and placing it under the command of Lieutenant De Haven, of the United States navy, ■despatched it to the Arctic ■regions to search for Frank- lin and his men, in May, 1850. De Haven was ac- companied by Dr. E. K. Kane, in the capacity of surgeon and naturalist. After a year's absence the vessels returned, the search having been unsuccessful. The general government .despatched another expedition in 1 85 i , on the .same errand, and placed it under command of Dr. Kane. This expedition was absent four years, and the government, becoming appre- hensive of its fate, sent two vessels to search for Kane and his companions. They were found at the isle of Disco, in Greenland, having been forced to abandon their vessel in the ice. Nothing was learned by Dr. Kane concerning the fate of Sir John Franklin ; but the expedition resulted in the discovery of the open Polar sea. Nothing SIR JOHN FRANKLIN. definite was learned of the fate of Sir John Franklin until 1859, when the steamer " Fox," despatched by Lady Franklin, made the melancholy discovery that Sir John Franklin died on the eleventh of June, 1847, and in 1848 the " Erebus " and " Terror " 636 FROM THE REVOLUTION TO THE CIVIL WAR. were abandoned in the ice. The survi- vors of these disasters, one hundred and five in number, died one by one from cold and exhaustion on King William's Island. In the early part of 185 i Congress reduced the postage on prepaid letters to three cents to all parts of the United States, prepayment being made by means of stamps provided by under great disadvantages. His health had been failing for some time past, and his weakness was so great that he could speak only with difficulty. This oration was one of the last public acts of the great statesman. On the twenty-fourth of October, 1852, he died at his home at Marshfield, Massachusetts, aged seventy years, and in him perished the first statesman RELICS OF FRANKLIN S POLAR VOYAGE. the government. The result was a rapid and immense increase of the postal revenue of the country. On the fourth of July, 185 i, the corner- stone of the extension of the capitol at Washington was laid by President Fillmore with appropriate ceremonies. The orator of the day was Daniel Webster. His address was one of his best efforts, but was delivered of America. He was large and stout in frame, of swarthy complexion, and slow and heavy in movement — a man of noble and commanding appearance. His intellect was cast in the same gigantic mould as his body. His language was simple and chaste, and his arguments irresistible. His patriotism knew no sectional limits. " I am as ready," he once said, " to fight and to fall for the ADMINISTRATIONS OF TAYLOR AND FILLMORE. 637 constitutional rights of Virginia as I am for those of Massachusetts." Alexander H. Stephens has said of him : " He was too great a man and had too great an intellect not to see the truth when it was presented, and he was too honest and too patriotic a man not to proclaim the truth when he saw it, even to an unwilling people. ordeal, and that he passed it with unflinch- ing firmness is one of the grandest features in the general grandeur of his character. Even his detractors have been constrained to render him unwilling homage in this re- spect." * His memory was honc^red by appro- priate demonstrations in all parts of the country, and it is said that the popular DR. E. K KANE AND HIS COMPANIONS. In this quality ol moral greatness I often thought Mr. Webster had the advantage of his great contemporaries, Messrs. Clay and Calhoun. Not that I would be understood as saying that they were not men of great moral courage, for both of them showed this high quality in many instances, but they never gave the world such striking exhibitions of it as he did. Webster often passed this tributes on this occasion were equalled only by those of the nation at the death of Washington. In December, 185 1, Louis Kossuth, the chief of the Hungarian insurrection of 1848, visited the United States. His avowed object was to promote the cause of his * The War Between the States, vol. i., pp. 405, 406. 6sS FROM THE REVOLUTION TO THE CIVIL WAR. countrymen, and he made frequent addresses in various parts of the Union, which were hstened to by vast multitudes who were charmed with his eloquence. He visited Washington, and was granted a public recep- tion by Congress. The Austrian minister at Washington, the Chevalier Hulseman, pro- tested against this reception, and his protest being unheeded, he withdrew from Washing- ton for a while. Protection for Cuba. The attempt of Lopez upon Cuba had greatly alarmed Spain for the safety of that island. England and France, sympathizing with her, and anxious to render the acquisi- tion of Cuba by the United States impossible, proposed to the American government to join them in a " tripartite treaty," in which each should disclaim any intention to seize that island, and should guarantee Spain in her possession of it. In December, 1852, Edward Everett, who had succeeded Mr. Webster as secretary of state, by direction of the President, replied to the proposition of England and France, declining to accept it. " The President," he said, " does not covet the acquisition of Cuba for the United States," but " could not see with indifference that island fall into the possession of any Euro- pean government than Spain." He stated that the situation of the island rendered it peculiarly interesting to this country by reason of its proximity to our coast, and its commanding the approach to the Gulf of Mexico and the mouth of the Mississippi. The European powers were thus given to understand that the United States would not tolerate their interference in a question purely American. The year 1852 was marked by intense ex- citement consequent on the political cam- paign which terminated in the fall in the Presidential election. The Democratic party made a strong and successful effort to recover its lost power, and nominated Franklin Pierce, of New Hampshire, for President, and William R. King, of Alabama, for Vice- President. The Whig party nominated Gen- eral Winfield Scott for President, and Wil- liam A. Graham, of North Carolina, for Vice- President. The Anti-slavery party put ia nomination John P. Hale, of New Hamp- shire, and George W. Julian, of Indiana. The election resulted in the choice of the candidates of the Democratic party by an overwhelming majority. The Anti-slavery party on this occasion polled but 155,825 votes, or a little more than half of the strength it had shown at the previous election. Mr. King, the Vice- President-elect, did not long survive his triumph. His health had been delicate for many years, and he was obliged to pass the winter succeeding the election in Cuba. Being unable to return home, he took the oath of office before the American consul, at Havana, on the fourth of March, 1853. He then returned to the United States, and died at his home in Ala- bama on the eighteenth of April, 1853. ' CHAPTER XXXIX The Administration of Franklin Pierce. Dispute with Mexico — The Gadsden Purchase — Surveys for a Pacific Railway — The Japan Expedition — Treaty with Japan — The Koszta Affair — The " Black Warrior " Seized by the Cuban Officials — The " Ostend Conference " — Dis- missal of the British Minister — The Kansas-Nebraska Bill — History of the Bill — Its Passage by Congress — History of the Struggle in Kansas — Conflict Between the Pro-Slavery and Free-Soil Settlers — Lawrence Sacked — Civil War — The Presidential Campaign of 1856 — James Buchanan Elected President of the United States — Rapid Increase of the Republican Party. PRESIDENT PIERCE took the oath of office at the capitol at Washington on the fourth of March, 1853, in the presence of an immense throng. He was in his forty- ninth year, and had won an enviable name by his previous services to the country. He was a native of New Hampshire, and had represented that State for four years in th^ lower House of Congress, and for nearly a full term in the Senate of the United States. He had also served with distinction during the Mexican war as brigadier-gen- eral. He placed William L. Marcy, of New York, at the head of his cabinet as secretary of state. The first question of importance the new President was called upon to settle grew out of a dispute with Mexico concerning the boundary between that country and the Territory of New Mexico. At the time of the treaty of Guadaloupe Hidalgo the maps were so imperfect that the boundary line had not been drawn with sufficient exact- ness. Both countries claimed the Mesilla valley, which was said to be very fertile, but which was more important to the United States as affording what was generally regarded as the most practicable route to California. Santa Anna was now President of the Mexican republic again, and sent a force of Mexican troops to occupy the region in dis- pute. The matter was settled by negotia- tion, however, and the United States obtained the Mesilla valley and the free navigation of the Gulf of California and of the Colorado to the American frontier. For these concessions the federal government paid Mexico the sum of ten millions of dol- lars. The district thus acquired was known as the " Gadsden Purchase," and was subse- quently erected into the Territory of Ari- zona. The necessity of more rapid and certain communication with California had brought the nation to regard a railway between the Mississippi and the Pacific as a necessity, and as such an undertaking was considered beyond the resources of a private corpora- tion, it was believed that it should be built by the general government, or at least that the general government should bear a part of the expense. The year 1853 witnessed the first steps towards the construction of this great work. Two expeditions were de- spatched under the orders of the war depart- ment to explore the best routes for a Pacific railway. The acquisition of California brought the United States into new relations with the nations of the eastern world, as it secured for them a base upon the Pacific from which a direct trade could be conducted with China 639 640 FROM THE REVOLUTION TO THE CIVIL WAR. and Japan. The empire of Japan, however, was closed to foreigners, and it was very de- sirable to open commercial relations with it. Towards the close of Mr. Fillmore's term of office, Commodore Perry, a brother of the hero of Lake Erie, was despatched to China with a fleet of seven war steamers to nego- tiate a treaty with the Japanese government. He arrived in the bay of Jeddo in the sum- mer of 1853. The natives were greatly astonished at the appearance of his steamers, the first that had ever been seen in those FRANKLIN PIERCE. waters, and at his boldness in venturing into their harbors. The Japanese officials ordered him to depart, but he refused, and insisted on seeing the emperor, and making known to him the object of his friendly visit. They at length decided to lay the matter before the emperor, who consented to grant an interview to the commodore, and named the fourteenth of July for that purpose. On the day appointed the commodore landed, accompanied by a strong body of marines. He was received with great ceremony by the Japanese, and delivered the President's let- ter, to which an answer was promised. The answer of the emperor was submitted to him several months later, and was favorable. A treaty was concluded between the United States and Japan, by which the former were allowed to trade in two specified ports — Simodi and Hokadadi. American citizens were permitted to reside at these ports, and consuls were accepted for them. Thus the United States had the honor of being the first to open the rich markets of the island empire to the commerce of the civilized world. Since then the relations between the two countries have steadily grown more cor- dial, and Japan has shown a remarkable rapidity and facility for adopting the civiliza- tion of the west. In July, 1853, occurred an event which did much to increase the respect for our navy among the powers of the world. Martin Koszta, a Hungarian, who had taken the preliminary steps to be naturalized in the United States, happening to be in Smyrna, in Asia Minor, on business, was seized as a rebel and a refugee by order of the Austrian consul-general, and taken on board an Aus> trian brig. The United States sloop-of-wai "St. Louis," Captain Ingraham, was lying in the harbor at the time, and Ingraham was appealed to for protection for Koszta. Ingraham Threatens to Fire. He at once demanded his release as an American citizen. The demand was refused by the authorities, and Ingraham at once called his crew to quarters and threatened to fire upon the Austrian ship if Koszta was not immediately released. The Austrians at once surrendered their prisoner, and he was placed in custody of the French consul to await the action of the government of the United States. The matter was settled by negotiation between this country and Austria, and Koszta was released. Austria addresseil ADMINISTRATION OF FRANKLIN PIERCE. 641 to the government at Washington a remon- strance against the conduct of Captain Ingra- ham, but his course was warmly applauded by his countrymen and by disinterested per- sons in Europe. In February, 1854, the American merchant steamer " Black Warrior" was seized by the Spanish authorities at Havana, on the pre- text that she had evaded or violated some uncertain revenue law, and the ship and her cargo were declared confiscated. This action of the Havana officials was regarded in the United States as unjust, and aroused a great deal of feeling against the Spaniards, and gave a sudden impetus to the national senti- ment in favor of the acquisition of Cuba. The affair of the " Black Warrior" was satis- factorily settled by the Spanish government. While the feeling aroused by the affair was at its height a conference of some of the American ministers in Europe, including Mr. Buchanan, minister to England, Mr. Mason, minister to France, and Mr. Soule, minister to Spain, and some others, was held (at Ostend, in Belgium, and a circular was 'adopted recommending the acquisition of Cuba by the United States. This measure attracted much attention, and elicited con- siderable European criticism of the alleged ambitious designs of the United States. Mr. Soule, on his return to Madrid, was stopped at Calais by order of the emperor of the French, who had personal reasons for dis- liking him. The emperor, however, recon- sidered his action, and allowed Soule to pass through France to the Spanish frontier. British Minister Dismissed. In 1855 Great Britain, France, Sardinia and Turkey, being engaged in a war with Russia, the agents of the British government undertook to enlist recruits for their army within the limits of the United States in de- fiance of the neutrality laws of this country. 41 The matter being brought to the attention of the United States government, it was found that the British minister at Washing- ton and the British consuls in some of the principal cities of the Union had encouraged, if they had not authorized, these enlistments. The government of the United States there- upon called the attention of Great Britain to the conduct of her minister, and requested her to recall him. The queen declined to comply with this request, and the minister and the consuls were promptly dismissed by the President. The matter caused consider- able irritation in England for a while, but the good sense of the English people at length perceived the propriety of the course of the American government, and cordial relations were re-established between the two countries. Territory of Nebraska. The most important measure of Mr. Pierce's administration was the bill to organize the Territories of Kansas and Nebraska, The region embraced in these Territories formed a part of the Louisiana purchase, and extended from the borders of Missouri, Iowa and Minnesota to the sum- mit of the Rocky mountains, and from the parallel of 36° 30^ north latitude to the border of British America. The whole region by the terms of the Missouri Com- promise had been secured to free labor by the exclusion of slavery. Until the year 1850 this vast area was called by the general and somewhat indefi- nite name of the " Platte Country," from the Platte river, which flows through it. Little was known concerning it save that it was a region of great fertility. It was mainly occupied by the reservations of the Indian tribes, which had been removed frorn the other States to make way for the whites. Across it swept the grand trails of the oven 642 FROM THE REVOLUTION TO THE CIVIL WAR. land route to Utah and the Pacific. The people of the New England States were very anxious that the Indian reservations which covered the eastern part should be bought up by the general government and the coun- try thrown open to emigration. Petitions to this effect were presented to the Thirty- second Congress, but no action was taken upon them until December, 1852, when Mr. Hall, of Missouri, introduced a bill into the House to organize the " Territory of Platte." STEPHEN A. DOUGLAS. It was referred to the Committee on Ter- ritories, which in February, 1853, reported a bill organizing the " Territory of Nebraska." The bill was opposed in the House of Rep- resentatives by the full strength of the South, and in the Senate the only southern sena- tors who voted for it were those from Mis- souri. The Missouri Compromise, as has been stated, secured the entire Nebraska region to free labor ; but notwithstanding this the southern members of Congress were resolved to oppose the organization of a new free Territory, and to endeavor to obtain a footing for slavery, in at least a part of it. The matter was revived in the Senate on the sixteenth of January, 1854, by Senator Dixon, of Kentucky, who gave notice that whenever the Nebraska bill should be called up he would move the following amend- ment : " That so much of the eighth section of an act approved March 6, 1820, entitled ' An act to authorize the people of the Mis- souri Territory to form a constitution and State government, for the admission of such State into the Union on an equal footing with the original States, ~and to prohibit slavery in certain Territories,' as declares ' That, in all the territory ceded by France to the United States, under the name of Louisiana, which, lies north of 36° 3o' north latitude, slavery and involuntary servitude, otherwise than in- the punishment of crimes whereof the party shall have been duly convicted, shall be for ever prohibited,' shall not be so construed as to apply to the Territory contemplated by this, act, or to any other Territory of the United States ; but that the citizens of the several States or Territories shall be at liberty to take and hold their slaves within any of the Terri- tories or States to be formed therefrom, as if the said act, entitled as aforesaid, had never been passed." More Slavery Agitation. The announcement of this amendment startled the country as much as the Wilmot Proviso had done years before, and produced much angry excitement. It was a clear repudiation of the Missouri Compromise, which it did not even seek to repeal. Senator Douglas, of Illinois, chairman of the Committee on Territories, on the twenty- third of January, 1854, reported a bill which provided for the organization of the Platte country into two Territories. The ADMINISTRATION OF FRANKLIN PIERCE. 643 southern portion, which lay directly west of Missouri, stretching to the Rock Mountains on the west, and extending from the thirty- seventh to the fortieth parallel of north lati- tude, was to be organized into a distinct Territory, to be called Kansas. The remain- der was to be called Nebraska, having the line of 43° 30' for its northern boundary- Senator Douglas, in an evil hour for the country, incorporated in the bill the main features of Mr. Dixon's amendment. The bill contained the following provisions : " Sfxtion 21. And be it further enacted, That, in order to avoid misconstruction, it is hereby declared to be the true intent and meaning of this act, so far as the question of slavery is concerned, to carry into practical operation the following propositions and principles, established by the compromise measures of 1850, to wit: " First. — That all questions pertaining to slavery in the Territories, and in the new States to be formed therefrom, are to be left to the decision of the people residing therein, through their appropriate representatives. " Second. — That all cases involving title to slaves, and questions of personal freedom, are referred to the adjudication of the local tribunals, with the right of appeal to the Supreme Court of the United States. " Third. — That the provisions of the consti- tution and laws of the United States, in respect to fugitives from service, are to be carried into faithful execution in all the ' organized Territories,' the same as in the States." A Blow at the Missouri Compromise. The section of the bill which prescribed the qualifications and mode of election of a delegate from each of the Territories was as follows : " The constitution, and all laws of the United States which are not locally inap- plicable, shall have the same force and effect within the said Territory as elsewhere in the United States, except the section of the act preparatory to the admission of Missouri into the Union, approved March 6, 1820, which was superseded by the priiciples of the leg- islation of 1850, commonly called the com- promise measures, and is declared inoper- ative." Mr. Dixon declared that the bill, as reported by Senator Douglas, met with his hearty approval, and that he would support it with all his ability. The debate on the bill began in the Senate on the twenty-fourth of January, and continued through several weeks. It was conducted with great ability on both sides, and engaged the earnest atten- tion of the whole country. The Free Soil senators unanimously opposed the bill, which they denounced as a violation of the Missouri Compromise, by which the faith of the nation was pledged to the settlement then effected. The southern senators supported it with equal unanimity, as they held that the Missouri Compromise had been super- seded by the compromise of 1850. Motion to Strike Out. On the sixth of February Mr. Chase, of Ohio, moved to strike out so much of the bill as declared the Missouri Compromise •'superseded" by the compromise of 1850, but the motion was defeated. Whereupon Mr. Douglas, on the fifteenth of February, moved to strike out the clause objected to by Mr. Chase, and insert the following : " Which being inconsistent with the prin- ciple of non-intervention by Congress with slavery in the States and Territories, as recognized by the legislation of 1850 (com- monly called the compromise measures), is hereby declared inoperative and void ; it being the true intent and meaning of this act not to legislate slavery into any Territory or State, nor to exclude it therefrom, but to '644 FROM THE REVOLUTION TO THE CIVIL WAR. leave the people thereof perfectly free to form and regulate their domestic institutions in their own way, subject only to the constitu- tion of the United States." Mr. Douglas' amendment was at once adopted, and seemed fair enough on its face. Mr. Chase exposed the hollowness of it by proposing to add to it the following clause, which was promptly voted down : " Under which the people of the Territories, through their appropriate representatives, may, if they SALMON p. CHASE. see fit, prohibit the existence of slavery therein." The bill was adopted by the Senate by a vote of thirty-seven yeas to fourteen nays, and by the House by a vote of one hundred and thirteen yeas to one hundred nays, and on the thirty-first of May, 1854, received the approval of the President and became a law. The whole country engaged warmly in the discussion aroused by the re-opening of the question of slavery in the Territories. The North resented the repeal of the Missouri Compromise and in the South a large and respectable party sincerely regretted the re- peal of that settlement. By the passage of the Kansas-Nebraska bill the Thirty-third Congress assumed a grave responsibility, and opened the door to a bloody and bitter con- flict in the Territories between slavery and free labor. The events now to be related were the logical consequences of the repeal of the Missouri Compromise. A few months before the final vote upon the Kansas-Nebraska bill the gen- eral government succeeded in purchas- ing the Indian reservations in those Ter- ritories, and removed the Indian tribes to new homes farther west. This action at once threw Kansas and Nebraska open to white settlers, and measures were set on foot in the New England States to encourage emigration thither. Kansas 6eing a more fertile country than Nebraska naturally attracted the greater number of settlers. Before anything could be done by the Free Soil men, the people living on the border of Missouri passed over into Kansas, and selecting the best lands, put their mark upon them, hoping in this way to establish a pre-emption claim to them. Their object was to organize and hold the Territory in the interest of slavery, but very few of them removed to Kansas, or had any wish to do so. In the meantime societies had been formed in the New England States for the promo- tion of emigration to Kansas. As the Pro- slavery settlers had come into the Territory so slowly, and in such small numbers, it seemed certain that the northern people could secure Kansas to free labor by sending out settlers to occupy the Territory in good faith. The Pro-slavery party in Missouri determined to prevent this. In July, 1854, a meeting was ADMINISTRATION OF FRANKLIN PIERCE. 645 held at Westport in that State, at which it was resolved that the persons taking part in the meeting would, " whenever called upon by any of the citizens of Kansas Territory, hold ' themselves ' in readiness together to resist and remove any and all emigrants who go there under the auspices of the Northern Emigrant Aid Societies." The first party sent out by the New England Aid Societies reached a point on the Kaw river, in Kan- sas, about the middle of July. There they pitched their tents and began the building of a town, which they named Lawrence, in honor of Amos A. Law- rence, of Boston. By the last of the month they were joined by seventy more emigrants and the work of founding their town was pushed forward with en- ergy. There was not a drone in the little commun- ity. They were all honest, intelligent, God-fearing men and women, and they meant to succeed in the undertak- ing they had begun. They were in legal and peaceable possession of their settle- ment, and thus far had mo- lested or wronged no one. / . They were not to live in peace, however. Before they had finished building their houses, they were startled by the announcement that two hundred and fifty armed Missourians had encamped within a short distance of them for the purpose of driving them out of the Terri- tory. The next morning the Missourians sent them a formal notice that " the Aboli- tionists must leave the Territory, never more to return to it." They declared their desire to avoid bloodshed ; but notified the settlers /'A I'/V ^v1^^ SCENE ON THE ALLEGHENY RIVER. that they must be ready to leave the Terri- tory, with all their effects, at one o'clock that day. This the settlers refused to do, and prepared to defend their homes. The messengers of the Missourians found them 646 FROM THE REVOLUTION TO THE CIVIL WAR. drilling behind their tents and reported this fact to their leaders. The firm but quiet attitude of the people of Lawrence had a happy effect. The Mis- sourians made no effort to carry out their threat, but broke up their camp that night, and withdrew across the border, leaving the settlers in peace. Meanwhile the town of Lawrence grew and prospered, and the New England Societies continuing to send other emigrants into the Territory, other towns were founded. Settlers from the Southern States came into the Territory very slowly. The general government threw its influ- ence as far as possible in favor of the Pro- slavery party, in the organization of the Territory, by appointing a majority of the territorial officers from the slaveholding States. A. H. Reeder was appointed governor by President Pierce. He endeavored to execute the laws faithfully, and ordered an election for members of a territorial legisla- ture, to be held on the thirtieth of March, 1855. On that day large numbers of armed Missourians crossed the border, and, taking possession of the polling-places in Kansas, succeeded in returning a Pro-slavery legisla- ture. Oppressive Laws. Six districts at once forwarded protests to the governor against the elections, showing beyond all reasonable doubt that they had been controlled by citizens of Missouri. The governor, who was anxious to do justice to all parties, ordered a new election in these districts, each of which, with the exception of Lecompton, returned a Free Soil delegate. The new delegates, however, were refused their seats upon the assembling of the legis- lature, and the successful candidates at the original election were admitted. The governor had summoned the legisla- ture to meet at Pawnee City, on the Kansas river, a town nearly one hundred miles dis- tant from the border, and supposed to be far enough away to be free from intimidation by the Missourians ; but the legislature, immedi- ately upon assembling, adjourned to Shawnee Mission, on the Missouri border. The reso- lution for this purpose was vetoed by the governor, but was passed over his veto, and was at once carried into effect. Upon reassembling at Shawnee Mission, the Legis- lature proceeded to adopt the laws of Mis- souri as the laws of Kansas, and to frame a series of statutes designedly cruel and oppres- sive. These laws were vetoed by Governor Reeder, who was removed by the President. Wilson Shannon, of Ohio, was then appoint- ed governor of Kansas. Bold Acts of Pro-Slavery Men. In the meantime the Free Soil settlers had increased so rapidly that they at length largely outnumbered the Pro-slavery settlers. They now felt themselves strong enough to resist the outrages of the Missourians, and accordingly, on the fifth of September, 1855, held a convention, in which they distinctly repudiated the government that had been forced upon them by men who were not residents of the Territory. They announced their intention not to take part in the election of a delegate to Congress, which the territo- rial authorities had ordered to be held on the first of October, and called upon the actual residents of the Territory to send delegates to a convention to meet at Topeka on the nineteenth of September. This convention organized an executive committee for the Territory, and ordered an election to be held for the purpose of choosing a delegate to Congress. Governor Reeder was nominated and elected to Congress. On the twenty- third of October the convention adopted a Free State constitution, and forwarded it to Congress with a petition for the admission of Kansas into the Union as a State. ADMINISTRATION OF FRANKLIN PIERCE. 647 The struggle for the possession of the Territory now passed out of the area of politics. As we have said, the repeal of the Missouri Compromise opened the way for, and was the direct cause of, the conflict between the Free and Pro-slavery settlers of Kansas. The outrages of the Pro-slavery men had forced the Free-Soilers into an atti- tude of direct and uncompromising resist- ance ; and after the action of the latter, at Topeka, the struggle which had hitherto been comparatively bloodless changed its character and became an open and sangui- nary war between the two parties. In this struggle the Pro-slavery men were the aggressors. Bands of young men, armed and regularly organized into companies and regiments, came into the Territory from South Carolina, Georgia and the extreme Southern States, with the avowed design of making Kansas a slaveholding State at all hazards. On the morning of May 21st, 1856, under the pretext of aiding the United States marshal to serve certain processes upon citizens of Lawrence, they captured that town, sacked it, burned several houses and inflicted a loss upon it amounting to ;^ 1 50,000. From this time the war went on m a series of desultory but bloody encoun- ters, some of which assumed the propor- tions of battles. During this month an event occurred which aroused universal indignation throughout the Northern States. Senator Charles Sumner, of Massachusetts, made an eloquent speech in the Senate at Wash- ington on the Kansas question, some parts of which excited the anger of Preston S. Brooks, a southern member of Congress. On the twenty-second of May Brooks assaulted Mr. Sumner while he was sitting in the Senate chamber, and beat him on the head with a cane until he became insensible. Mr. Sumner was disabled for the public ser- vice for several years, but afterward was re-elected almost unanimously and resumed his seat. This cowardly assault was uni- versally condemned. In the summer of 1856 Governor Shan- non, of Kansas, was removed, and John \V. Geary, of Pennsylvania, was appointed in his place. He exerted himself honestly to restore peace and execute the laws, and ordered " all bodies of men combined, armed and equipped with munitions of war, with- CHARLES SUMNER. out authority of the government, instantly to disband and quit the Territory." In obedience to this order the Free Soil com- panies nearly all disbanded, but the Pro- slavery party paid scarcely any attention to it. They concentrated a force of two thou- sand men and advanced upon Lawrence to attack it. Governor Geary at once placed himself at the head of the United States dragoons stationed in the Territory, and by a rapid march threw himself with these 648 FROM THE REVOLUTION TO THE CIVIL WAR. troops between the town of Lawrence and the hostile force and prevented another con- flict. Matters had reached this stage when the Presidential campaign opened in 1856. The struggle in the Territories had greatly weak- ened the Democratic party, and had given rise to a new party which called itself Republican, and which was based upon an avowed hostility to the extension of slavery. A third party, called the American, or Know Nothing, also took part in the campaign, and was based upon the doctrine that the political offices of the country should be held only by persons of American birth. The Democratic party nominated James Buchanan, of Pennsylvania, for the Presi- dency, and John C. Breckenridge, of Ken- tucky, for the Vice-Presidency. The Repub- lican nominee for the Presidency was John C. Fremont, of California ; for the Vice- Presidency William L. Dayton, of New Jersey. The American party supported Millard Fillmore, of New York, for the Presidency, and Andrew J. Donelson, of Tennessee, for the Vice-Presidency. The Whig party had been broken to pieces by its defeat in 1852, and had now entirely dis- appeared. The canvass was unusually excited. Slavery was the principal question in dis- pute. Party ties had little influence upon men. The sentiment of the nation at large had been outraged by the repeal of the Mis- souri Compromise, and thousands of Demo- crats, desiring to rebuke their party for its course in bringing about this repeal, united with the Republican party, which declared as its leading principle that it was " both the right and the duty of Congress to prohibit in the Territories those twin relics of barbar- ism — polygamy and slavery." The elections resulted in the triumph of James Buchanan, the candidate of the Dem- ocratic party. Mr. Buchanan received 174 electoral votes to 1 14 cast for Fremont. Though a majority of the American people sustained the action of the Democratic party, the significant fict remained that 1,341,264 of the voters of the country had recorded their condemnation of it by casting their votes for Fremont and Dayton. (^^1^ CHAPTER XL The Administration of James Buchanan. Inauguration of Mr. Buchanan — The Mormon Rebellion — The Financial Crisis of 1S57 — Laying of the Atlantic Tele- graphic Cable — Minnesota Admitted Into the Union — The San Juan Affair — Admission of Oregon Into the Union — The Kansas Question — The Lecompton Constitution — Its Defeat — The Wyandotte Constitution — Admission of Kan- sas Into the Union — The John Brown Raid — Prompt Action of the Government — Brown and His Companions Sur- rendered to the State of Virginia — Their Trial and Execution — Presidential Campaign of 1S60 — Rupture of the Demo- cratic Party — Abraham Lincoln Elected President of the United States — Secession of South Carolina — Reasons for this Act — Secession of the Other Cotton States — Major Anderson Occupies Fort Sumter— Trying Position of the Gen- eral Government — Course of Mr. Buchanan — The " Star of the West " Fired Upon by the South Carolina Batteries — Organization of the Confederate States of America — Jefferson Davis Elected President of the Southern Republic — The Peace Congress — Its Failure. JAMES BUCHANAN, the fifteenth President of the United States, was inaugurated at Washington on the fourth of March, 1857. He was in his sixty-sixth year, and was a statesman of great accomplishments and ripe experience. He was born in Pennsylvania in 1791, and was by profession a lawyer. He had served his State in Congress as a representative and a senator, had been minister to Russia under President Jackson, and had been a member of the cabinet of President Polk as secretary of state. During the four years previous to his election to the Presidency he had resided abroad as the minister of the United States to Great Britain, and in that capacity had greatly added to his reputation as a states- man. He avowed the object of his administra- tion to be " to destroy any sectional party, whether North or South, and to restore, if possible, that national fraternal feeling between the different States that had existed during the early days of the republic." The intense sectional feeling which the discussion of the slavery question had aroused had alarmed patriotic men in all parts of the Union, and it was earnestly hoped that Mr. Buchanan's administration would be able to effect a peaceful settlement of the quarrel. Mr. Buchanan selected his cabinet from the leading men of the Democratic party, and placed at its head as secretary of state Lewis Cass, of Michigan. We have in a previous portion of this work noticed the rise and growth of the Mormon sect, and their settlement in the region of the Great Salt lake, then a part of the Mexican] republic. They were not at all pleased with their transfer to the United States by the cession of the territory occupied by them by the treaty of Guadaloupe Hidalgo. Their object in emigrating to Utah had been to place themselves beyond the limits of the United States, where they could enjoy with- out molestation their religious practices, and especially the gross and immoral institution of polygamy, to which they were attached as the foundation of their faith. They were not disturbed by the Mexican government,, which was indeed scarcely aware of their existence, and thus unnoticed devoted their energies to building up the country they had occupied. Their missionaries were sent into the va- rious countries of Europe, and converts were made with extraordinary success and rapid- ity. They built up a thriving town on the 649 FROM THE REVOLUTION TO THE CIVIL WAR. 650 borders of the great lake, to which they gave the name of Salt Lake City, and founded other towns in various parts of the Territory. By the year 1850 the population of the Ter- ritory had increased to 11,380. Being on the highway to California, the greater part JAMES BUCHANAN. of the overland traffic and travel to the Pacific passed through Salt Lake City, and was a source of considerable profit to the Mormons. In 1850 the Territory of Utah was organ- ized, and Brigham Young, who had suc- ceeded Joe Smith as the prophet or leader of the Mormons, was appointed by President Fillmore governor of the Territory. His appointment was renewed by President. Pierce, and the Mormons were left during these two administrations to manage their affairs very much in their own way. Rely- ing upon the immense distance which sepa- rated them from the States, they paid but little regard to the au- thority of the United States, and finally ven- tured openly to resist the officers of the gen- eral government, and expelled ;he federal judge from the Ter- ritory. President Buchanan thereupon removed Brigham Young from his office of governor, and appointed a Mr. Cumming his succes- sor. The Mormons having declared that the new governor should not enter the Territory, General Harney was ordered to accompany him with a large body of troops and compel the submission of the peo- ple of Utah to the au- thority of the federal government. Under the leadership of Brigham Young the Mormons took up arms and prepared to dispute the entrance of the troops into the Territory. They declared that their settle- ment and civilization of Utah had given them ADMINISTRATION OF JAMES BUCHANAN. 651 the sole right to the Territory, and that they owed no allegiance to the United States. Their resistance was so formidable that the force under General Harney was largely increased, and the command was conferred upon Brigadier- General Albert Sid- ney Johnston, who was considered the most efficient offi- cer in the service. General Johnston joined his troops at Fort Bridger, about one hundred miles from Salt Lake City, in Sep- ^ tember, 1857. The Mormons in heavy force occupied the passes leading to the valley of the Great Salt lake. The season was so far advanced at the time of his arrival that General Johns- ton concluded to pass the winter at Fort Bridger. The Mormons were very active during the winter in cut- - ting off the trains of % the federal troops. It was General Johnston's inten- tion to move upon Salt Lake City im- mediately upon the opening of the spring, but before that season arrived the matter was settled through the efforts of a Mr. Kane, of Philadelphia. He was sent out to Salt Lake City by the government, and succeeded in inducing the Mormons to lay down their arms and submit. Governor Gumming and the fed- eral officers then entered Salt Lake City and assumed the offices to which they had been appointed, and a force of federal troops was THE MORMON TEMPLE, SALT LAKE CITY, UTAH. encamped near the city to render them such assistance as should be found necessary. President Buchanan then issued a proclama- tion granting a free pardon "to all, for the seditions and treasons by them committed." 652 FROM THE REVOLUTION TO THE CIVIL WAR. Subsequently it transpired that a Mormon atrocity of the most cruel and bloody descrip- tion had been committed. On the eighteenth of September, 1857, one hundred and thirty- six emigrants, who were said to have offended the Mormons, were massacred in cold blood at Mountain Meadow, Utah. Many years later Bishops Lee and Philip K. Smith were accused of having ordered this wholesale murder. Brigham Young was exonerated in 1875. Bishop Lee was convicted, sen- New York on the thirteenth of October, and by those of Boston on the fourteenth. The failures inthe United States for the year ending December 6, 1857, are said to have reached the enormous aggregate of ;$29i, 750,000. The Western States suffered in a marked degree from the effects of this " crisis ;" but the South was comparatively unharmed by it. Various causes wereassigned for the panic, the principal of which were the large speculations in western lands and a heavy fall in the value MOUNTAIN MEADOW MASSACRE. tenced to death, and shot March 23, 1877, nearly twenty years after the dastardly crime was committed. In the fall of 1857 the general business of the country was thrown into confusion by a sudden financial panic, whigh seriously embarrassed all commercial and industrial enterprises and caused general distress. On the twenty-sixth of September the banks of Philadelphia suspended specie payments ; and their example was followed by the banks of of railway stocks. The New York banks re- sumed specie payments on the twelith of December, 1857; the Boston banks on the fourteenth of December of that year; and those of Philadelphia in April, 1858. Specie payments were gradually resumed in other parts of the country, but the depression of business continued until during the course of the year 1859. In 1858 occurred an event second only in importance to the invention of the ADMINISTRATION OF JAMES BUCHANAN. 653 •electric telegraph. For some years it had been believed possible to connect the shores of Europe with those of America by means of a submarine telegraphic cable across the Atlantic. In 1857 an unsuc- cessful effort was made by a company of American and English capitalists to accom- plish this object. The attempt was renewed in 1858. Two war steamers were furnished for the work of laying the cable — the " Niagara " by the United States, and the "Agamemnon " by Great Britain. The two vessels met in mid ocean, and sailed each to its own country, paying out the cable as they pro- ceeded on their way. On the fifth of August, 1858, the " Niagara " entered Trinity bay, in Newfoundland, and made fast her end of the cable to the shore, and on the same day the ^'Agamemnon" reached Valentia bay, in Ireland, having successfully accomplished her part of the work. The First Ocean Cable. The great work was thus ended, and on the sixteenth of August a message was received through the wires from the Queen of Great Britain and Ireland, addressed to the Presi- dent of the United States, who at once returned a suitable reply. Other messages were exchanged between the two continents, and the practicability of the scheme was fully demonstrated. On the first of September the laying of the cable was celebrated with impos- ing ceremonies in New York, and rejoicings were held in other cities. The hopes aroused by the successful accomplishment of the great enterprise w^ere soon disappointed, for after a short time the wires ceased to work, and no effort could re-establish the communication be- tween the two ends of the line. The feasi- bility of the undertaking had been practi- cally demonstrated, however, and the deter- mined men who had carried it through to success were convinced that a new effort would be attended with more satisfactory results. On the eleventh of May, 1 85 8, the Territory of Minnesota was admitted into the Union as a State. In the autumn of 1859 a dispute arose between the United States and Great Britain as to the ownership of the large island of San Juan, lying in the strait which separates Vancouver's island from the territory of the United States. General Harney, commanding the American troops in the northwest, took possession of the island. Governor Douglas, of British Columbia, protested against this occupation, and for a while there was danger that the two parties would come to blows. The general government despatched General Scott to the scene of the controversy, and he succeeded in bringing about an adjustment of the quarrel. On the fourteenth of February, 1859, Oregon was admitted into the Union as a State, the Territory of Washington being separated from it. A New Governor for Kansas. During the whole of Mr. Buchanan's ad- ministration the question of slavery in the Territories continued to engross the atten- tion of the people. The struggle in Kansas went on with increased bitterness. In the summer of 1857 an election was ordered by the legislature of Kansas for delegates to a convention for the purpose of framing a con- stitution, and care was taken to arrange the matter so that a majority of Pro-slavery dele- gates should be chosen. For this reason, and others of equal force, the Free Soil men refused to take any part in the election, which consequently resulted in the choice of a Pro- slavery convention. The Free Soil party thereupon issued an address to the people of the United States, relating the wrongs they had suffered and were still enduring. 654 FROM THE REVOLUTION TO THE CIVIL WAR. Governor Geary now resigned his position and President Buchanan appointed, as gov- ernor of Kansas, Robert J. Walker, a man of great eminence and ability, who was in sen- timent opposed to slavery. Mr. Walker sin- cerely desired to effect a settlement of the quarrel, and succeeded in inducing the Free Soil party to vote at the coming election for members of the territorial legislature and a delegate to Congress. They did so, and a fair election was held, which resulted in the choice of the Free Soil candidates by over- whelming majorities. Intense Feeling in Congress. In the autumn of 1857 the convention elected, as we have seen, assembled at Le- compton, and framed a State constitution. This instrument contained a clause adopting slavery, and the convention submitted this clause only to the people of the Territory for ratification or rejection at the polls. The remainder of the constitution was withheld from the popular vote. The convention also ordered that all whose votes were challenged at the polls should be required " to take an oath to support the constitution if adopted," before being allowed to deposit their ballot. The Free State men refused to take part in the vote on the ratification of this constitu- tion, and consequently all the votes cast were in favor of it. It was declared adopted, and was sent to Congress for the approval of that body. The discussion of the Lecompton consti- tution in Congress was marked by great bit- terness. It was supported by the Democratic party and the administration, and was opposed with determination by the Republicans. The latter took the strong ground that the Le- compton constitution was not the work of the people of Kansas, but of a mere faction, and was distasteful to the majority of the citizens of that Territory, who were opposed to slavery. Finally, on the thirtieth of April, 1858, a bill was passed to submit the Lecompton constitution to the people of Kansas. This bill declared that if they ratified the consti- tution, they should be given certain public lands for State purposes; but that if they failed to ratify it, Kansas should not be per- mitted to enter the Union until it had a population of ninety-three thousand. With these strange conditions, the constitution was submitted to the people of Kansas on the second of August, 1858, and was rejected by them by a vote of eleven thousand three hundred against it, to seventeen hundred and eighty-eight votes in its favor. In January, 1859, the civil strife having subsided in the Territory, and the Free Soil men having a majority in the legislature, a convention was summoned at Wyandotte. It met in July, and adopted a free State con- stitution, which was submitted to the people and ratified by a large majority. The "Wyandotte Constitution" was then laid before Congress, and a bill admitting Kansas into the Union as a State was passed by the lower House early in i860. Kansas Admitted Into the Union. The Senate, however, failed to act upon the bill. At the next session the measure was revived, and on the thirtieth of January^ 1 86 1, the opposition of the South having ceased by reason of the withdrawal of a large number of the southern representatives and senators from Congress, Kansas was admitted into the Union as a free State. Two notable events of this year should not escape special mention. They are, however, of a very different character. One was the death of the great American writer and author, Washington Irving, who may be considered as the father of American liter- ature. He was bred a lawyer, but his tastes and aptitudes led him into other fields for the ADMINISTRATION OF JAMES BUCHANAN. 655 acquisition of both fame and wealth. He commenced writing for the press at the early age of nineteen. His first sketches were under the noui dc phniie of Jonathan Oldstyle ; then came his "Knickerbocker's History of New York ;" but it was the "Sketch Book " which " laid the foundation of the fortune, and the permanent fame of Irving ; the legends of ' Sleepy Hollow ' and ' Rip Van Winkle ' at once took rank as modern classics, while the pictures of Eng- lish life and customs were so genial, artistic, and withal so faithful, that they fairly took the reading world by storm." This work was brought out in England in good style by the publisher, Murray, in 1820, upon the recommendation of Sir Walter Scott. A writer in " Johnson's Cyclopaedia " says, that after this publication, " a new phe- nomenon had appeared in the world of let- ters — the first American author had gained an honorable name in Albemarle street and Paternoster Row. Henceforth the path of Irving was smooth, and his subsequent writ- ings appeared with rapidity." This great author was born in New York City, on the third of April, 1783, and died at his resi- dence, Sunnyside, Tarrytown, on the Hud- son, on the twenty-eighth of November, 1859, in the seventy-seventh year of his age. The house in which he lived is a quaint old edifice. It has become one of the shrines of American pilgrimage. The other notable event of this year which made a deep impression on the popular mind, North and South, and which was attended with political results of the great- est importance, was the raid of John Brown upon Harper's Ferry. On the night of the sixteenth of October, 1859, John Brown, who had acquired a con- siderable notoriety as the leader of a Free Soil company during the war in Kansas, entered the State of Virginia, at Harper's Ferry, with a party of twenty-one compan- ions, and seized the United States arsenal at that place. He then sent out parties to arrest the leading citizens of the vicinity, as hostages, and to induce the negro slaves to join him, his avowed object being to put an end to slavery in Virginia by exciting an insurrection of the slaves. Several citizens were kidnapped by these parties, but the slaves refused to join Brown, or to take any part in the insurrection. At daylight on the WASHINGTON IRVING. seventeenth of October the alarm was given, and during the morning the militia of the surrounding country was ordered under arms to put down the outbreak. Brown's force was unknown, and was greatly exag- gerated. The news of the seizure of the arsenal was telegraphed to Washington, and the govern- ment decided to recover it at once and con- fine the trouble to the spot on which it had originated. General Scott was absent from the capital at the time, and the President and 656 FROM THE REVOLUTION TO THE CIVIL WAR. •secretary of war summoned Colonel Robert E. Lee, a distinguished officer of the army, to consult with them as to the best course to pursue. The interview resulted in the despatching of a battalion of marines to Harper's Ferry, under the command of Colonel Lee. Orders were telegraphed to that poiut to suspend all operations there until Colonel Lee's arrival. He reached Harper's Ferry on the night of the seven- teenth. In the meantime, upon the appearance of the militia, Brown and his companions re- treated to the fire-engine house in the arsenal yard. This was a strong stone building, and they barricaded the doors, and during the ■day maintained a desultory fire upon the town. They had taken Colonel Washington, Mr. Dangerfield, and the other citizens kid- napped by them, into the engine-house with them, where they held them, in the hope tha- the presence of these gentlemen would pret vent the troops from firing upon them. Capture of the Insurrectionists. As soon as Colonel Lee arrived at Har- per's Ferry, he proceeded to surround the engine-house with the marines to prevent the escape of Brown and his men, and deferred his attack upon them until the next morning, lest in a night assault some of the captive citizens might be injured. At daylight on , the eighteenth, wishing, if possible, to accom- plish the object in view without bloodshed, Colonel Lee sent his aid, Lieutenant J. E. B. Stuart, to demand the surrender of the insur- gents, promising to protect them from vio- lence at the hands of the citizens, and to hold them subject to the orders of the President- Brown refused the terms offered, and demanded to be permitted to march out with his men and prisoners, with the arms of the former, to be allowed to proceed, without being followed, to a point at a certain distance from Harper's Ferry, where he would free his prisoners. He was then willing that the troops should pursue him, and to fight if he could not escape. This proposition was inadmissible, but as a last resort, Colonel Lee directed Lieutenant Stuart to remonstrate with the insurgents upon the folly of their course. This duty Stuart performed, re- maining before the engine-house until his personal danger compelled him to withdraw. Finding that nothing but force would avail, Colonel Lee gave the order for the assault, and the marines made a dash at the engine- house, broke in the doors, and captured its inmates. Several of the insurgents were killed and wounded. Brown himself being desperately hurt. The marines lost one man killed and one wounded. Fortunately none of the citizens captured by Brown were injured. Execution of John Brown. Colonel Lee took care to protect his prisoners, and there is little doubt that but for his precautions in their behalf they would have been shot down by the excited civil- ians. He telegraphed to Washington for in- structions, and was directed to deliver the prisoners to Mr. Ould, the attorney for the District of Columbia, who was ordered by the government to take charge of them and bring them to trial. As soon as Mr. Ould arrived Colonel Lee turned over the prisoners to him, and being satisfied that the danger was over, went back to W^ashington. As Brown and his companions had com- mitted their chief crime against the United States, by seizing the federal arsenal and re- sisting the troops sent to reduce them to submission, it seemed proper that they should be tried for their offences by the general gov- ernment. The attempt to incite an insurrec- tion of the slaves, however, was a crime against the laws of the State of Virginia, and ADMINISTRATION OF JAMES BUCHANAN. 657 the governor of that State demanded of the federal authorities the surrender of Brown and his fellow prisoners for trial by the State courts. The demand was complied with, and the prisoners were arraigned in the court of the county of Jefferson, the county in which their offence was committed. They were given a fair trial, and were defended by able counsel from the free States, who came to Charlestown for that purpose. Brown frankly confessed that his object was to produce an insurrection among the slaves, and then carry them off to the free States. The prisoners were found guilty of treason, murder, and an attempt to incite insurrection, and were sen- tenced to be hanged. Brown was executed at Charlestown on the second of December, 1859, and six of his companions met the same fate a few weeks later. Proofs of a Conspiracy. During his trial Brown steadily denied that he had been aided or encouraged by any persons in the North. His denial was gen- erally doubted at the time, and it is now known that he was assisted with money and advice by some of the most respectable leaders of the extreme Anti-slavery party, and that several persons high in position knew of the designs of Brown, but failed to warn either the general government or the State of Virginia of the intended attack.* The execution of Brown and his compan- ions drew upon the South a storm of furious denunciation from the Anti-slavery men. Brown was regarded as a martyr to the cause of freedom, and the day of his execution was observed in many of the towns of the Northern States by the tolling of bells. prayer in the churches, the firing of minute- guns, and other public demonstrations of sor- row and respect. The conservative class in the North, however, and in this number were included some of the firmest opponents of slavery, sincerely deplored Brown's course, and acknowledged his punishment as merited. " The Irrepressible Conflict." Brown was a man of many good qualities, but the undertaking in which he met his fate was criminal in the extreme. Not even the intention of rescuing the slaves of Virginia from their bondage can excuse him for seek- ing to excite a servile war, in which murder and violence would have been inevitable, and in which the aged and the helpless, the defenceless women and children, would have been the chief sufferers. The effect of Brown's attempt upon the southern people was most unfortunate. They regarded it as unanswerable evidence of the intention of the people of the North to make war upon them under the cover of the Union. Regarding this view of the case as true, they came to listen with more favor to the arguments of the extreme class which openly favored a dissolution of the Union, and which asserted that the only safety of the South lay in pursuing such a course. The John Brown raid was the most power- ful argument that had ever been placed in the hands of the disunionists, and in the alarm and excitement produced by that event the southern people lost sight of the fact that the great mass of the northern people sincerely deplored and condemned the action of Brown and his supporters. The voice of reason was drowned in the storm of passionate excitement which swept * Mr. F. B. Sanborn, one of Brown's confederates, in a series of papers published in The Atlantic Monthly (vol. XXXV.) gives the details of this conspiracy, together with many interesting incidents connected with it, which sus- tain the view of the case presented above. 42 658 FROM THE REVOLUTION TO THE CIVIL WAR. over the land, and the extremists on both sides were able to prosecute theirunpatriotic work to great advantage. While the excitement was at its height the Presidential campaign opened in the Spring of i860. The slavery question was the chief issue in this struggle. The convention of the Democratic party met at Charleston, in April, but being unable to effect an organi- EDWARD EVERETT. zation adjourned to Baltimore, and reassem- bled in that city in June. The extreme south- ern delegates were resolved that the conven- tion should be committed to the protection of slavery in the Territories by Congress, and failing to control it withdrew from it in a body, and organized a separate convention, which they declared represented the Demo- cratic party, but which, in reality, as the vote subsequently proved, represented but a minority of that party. The new conven- tion was joined by a number of delegates from the Northern and Western States. The convention, after the withdrawal of these delegates, nominated for the Presi- dency Stephen A. Douglas, of Illinois, and for the Vice-Presidency Herschell V. John- son, of Georgia. It then proceeded to adopt the platform put forward by the entire party four years before at Cincinnati, upon the nomination of Mr. Buchanan, with this additional declaration : " That as differences of opinion exist in the Democratic party as to the nature and extent of the powers of a territorial legislature, and as to the powers and duties of Congress under the constitution of the United States over the institution of slavery within the Territories . . . the party will abide by the decisions of the Supreme Court of the United States on the questions of constitu- tional law." The "Seceders' Convention," as it was commonly called, also adopted the Cincinnati platform, and pledged themselves to non-interference by Congress with slavery in the Terri- tories or the District of Columbia. This party held to the doctrine that the constitution recognized slavery as existing in the Territories, and sanctioned and protected it there, and that neither Congress nor the peo- ple of the Territories could frame any law against slavery until the admission of such Territories into the Union as States. The regular convention held that Congress had no right to interfere with slavery in the Ter- ritories, to legislate either for or against it; that the regulation of that question belonged entirely to the people of the respective Ter- ritories acting through their Legislatures^ ADMINISTRATION OF JAMES BUCHANAN. Tennessee, and for the 659 This doctrine was popularly known as "Squat- ter Sovereignty," and was credited to Mr. Douglas. The " Seceders' Convention " put forward as its candidate for the Presidency John C. Breckenridge, of Kentucky, and for the Vice-Presidency Joseph Lane, of Oregon. Republican Nominations. The Republican party took issue with both wings of the Democratic party. Its conven- tion was held at Chicago, Illinois, and its can- didates were, for President Abraham Lincoln, of Illinois, and for Vice-President Hannibal Hamlin, of Maine. The platform of principles adopted by the Chicago Convention declared that " the maintenance of the principles pro- mulgated in the Declaration of Independence and embodied in the Federal Constitution is essential to the preservation of our republican institutions. . . . That all men are created equal; that they are endowed by their Crea- tor with certain inalienable rights. . . . That the Federal Constitution, the rights of the States and the union of the States must and shall be preserved." The platform also declared that the rights of the States should be maintained inviolate, " especially the right of each State to order and control its own domestic institutions according to its own judgment exclusively." It asserted " that the normal condition of all the territory of the United States is that of freedom," and denied the right or " authority of Congress, of a Territorial Legislature, or of individuals, to give legal existence to slavery in any Territory of the United States." A fourth party, known as the " Constitu- tional Union Party," proclaimed as its plat- form the following vague sentence: "The con- stitution of the country, the union of the States and the enforcement of the laws." The convention of this party met at Baltimore, and nominated for the Presidency John Bell, of Vice-Presidency Edward Everett, of Massachusetts. The contest between these parties was bit- ter beyond all precedent. When the elec- tion took place in November, the result was as follows : Popular vote for Lincoln, 1,866,452 " " Douglas, 1,375,157 " Breckenridge, 847,953 " Bell, 590,631 The electoral vote stood as follows : For Lincoln, 180; for Breckenridge, 72; for Bell, 39; lor Douglas, 12. Election of Abraham Lincoln. Mr. Lincoln was thus elected by a plurality of the popular vote, which secured for him the electoral votes of eighteen States. These States were entirely north of the sectional line, and he received not a single electoral vote from a Southern State. The States, which cast their electoral votes for Brecken- ridge, Bell and Douglas, were entirely slave- holding. The division thus made was alarm- ing. It was the first time in the history of the Republic that a President had been elected by the votes of a single section of the Union. The state in which the Presidential election left the country, was alarming. The excite- ment was higher than it had been before the struggle at the polls. The Gulf States had declared at an early period of the political campaign that they would withdraw from the Union in the event of the election of a Re- publican President. The people of the South generally regarded the result of the election as an evidence of the determination of the Northern States to use the power of the fed- eral government to destroy the institution of slavery. The disunion leaders exerted them- selves to deepen this conviction, and to arouse the fears of the South. 66o FROM THE REVOLUTION TO THE CIVIL WAR. On the other hand, the Republican leaders took little pains to allay the excitement by declaring their intentions to execute faith- fully the constitution and laws of the Union. Their declarations of fidelity to the Union were abundant, and were generally accom- panied by equally plain assertions of their country's history as he had never been needed before ; but, alas ! statesmanship of any kind was painfully wanting. As soon as the election of Mr. Lincoln was definitely ascertained, the legislature of South Carolina summoned a sovereicfn con- vention of the people of that State, which BRIDGE CROSSING THE SUSQUEHANNA RIVER AT HARRISBURG. determination to oppose by force the with- drawal of the Southern States — declarations which were ill-suited to calm the fears of the South, or to encourage the party in that sec- tion, which desired a perpetuation of the Union. A statesman of the Henry Clay school was needed at this crisis of our met on the seventeenth of December, i860 This convention adopted an ordinance of secession on the twentieth of December, and declared the State no longer a mem- ber of the Union. The reasons assigned for this action were thus stated by the conven- tion : ADMINISTRATION OF JAMES BUCHANAN. 66 1 "An increasing hostility on the part of the non-slaveholding States to the institution of slavery has led to a disregard of their obli- gations, and the laws of the general govern- ment have ceased to effect the objects of the constitution. The States of Maine, New Hampshire, Vermont, Massachusetts, Con- necticut, Rhode Island, New York, Penn- sylvania, Illinois, Indiana, Michigan, Wis- consin, and Iowa, have enacted laws which cither nullify the acts of Congress or render useless any attempt to execute them. Strong Affirmations. " In many of these States the fugitive is discharged from the service or labor claimed, and in none of them has the State govern- ment complied with the stipulations made in the constitution. . . . Thus the consti- tutional compact has been deliberately broken and disregarded by these non-slaveholding States, and the consequence follows that South Carolina is released from her obli- gation. " We affirm that these ends for which this government was instituted have been defeated, and the government itself has been made destructive of them by the action of non- slaveholding States. Those States have assumed the right of deciding upon the pro- priety of our domestic institutions ; and have denied the rights of property established in fifteen of the States and recognized by the constitution ; they have denounced as sinful the institution of slavery ; they have per- mitted the open establishment among them of societies whose avowed object is to disturb the peace and to eloigne the property of citizens of other States. They have encour- aged and assisted thousands of our slaves to leave their homes ; and those who remain have been incited by emissaries, books, and pictures to servile insurrection. " For twenty-five years this agitation has been steadily increasing, until it has now secured to its aid the power of the common government. Observing the forms of the constitution, a sectional party has found within that article establishing the executive department the means of subverting the con- stitution itself. A geographical line has been drawn across the Union, and all the States north of that line have united in the election of a man to the high office of Presi- dent of the United States whose opinions and purposes are hostile to slavery. Charges Against Certain States. " He is to be intrusted with the admin- istration of the common government because he has declared that that ' government cannot endure permanently half slave, half free,' and that the public mind must rest in the belief that slavery is in the course of ultimate extinction. " This sectional combination for the sub- version of the constitution has been aided in some of the States by elevating to citizen- ship persons who, by the supreme law of the land, are incapable of becoming citizens ; and their votes have been used to inaugurate a new policy, hostile to the South, and destruc- tive of its peace and safety. " On the fourth of March next this party will take possession of the government. It has announced that the South shall be excluded from the common territory ; that the judicial tribunals shall be made sectional, and that a war must be waged against slavery until it shall cease throughout the United States. " The guarantees of the constitution will then no longer exist ; the equal rights of the States will be lost. The slaveholding States will no longer have the power of self-govern- ment or self-protection, and the federal government will become their enemy." 662 FROM THE REVOLUTION TO THE CIVIL WAR. These reasons were substantially the same as those avowed by the other Southern States in support of their action, and therefore we have quoted them at length. The example of South Carolina was fol- lowed by the other States of the far South, which summoned conventions and adopted ordinances of secession. Mississippi with- drew from the Union on the ninth of January, 1861 ; Florida on the tenth of January; Alabama on the eleventh of January ; Geor- gia on the nineteenth of January ; Louisiana on the twenty-sixth of January, and Texas on the first of February. The forts, arsenals and other public property of the United States within the limits of these States were seized by the authorities of the States in which they were situated, and were held by their troops, with the exception of Forts Moultrie and Sumter, in Charleston harbor, and Fort Pick- ens, at Pensacola. Critical State of Affairs. Fort Moultrie was occupied by Major Robert Anderson, of the United States army, with a garrison of eighty men. Becoming alarmed at the rapid concentration of troops in Charleston, Major Anderson evacuated the fort on the night of December 25, i860, and threw himself with his command into Fort Sumter, which was built in the bay at some distance from either shore. The State troops at once occupied Fort Moultrie, and began to erect batteries of heavy guns at ^different points along the harbor for the reduction of Fort Sumter. Fort Pickens was held by a garrison under Lieutenant Slemmer. The State of Florida occupied the navy yard at Pensacola and the other forts in that harbor with her troops. The property of the general government seized by the seceded States amounted to over twenty millions of dollars in value. The position of the general government was one of great difficulty. The President was called upon either to recognize the law- fulness of the acts of the seceded States, and thus to join in the work of dissolving the Union, or to maintain the authority of the federal government, and compel the submis- sion of the Southern States to the constitu- tion and laws of the land. The govern- ment was almost powerless to enforce its authority. The army, but sixteen thou- sand strong, was stationed upon the re- mote frontier, and the available vessels of the navy were nearly all absent on foreign service. Many of the most prominent federal officials, including several of the cabinet ministers, were in open sympathy with the seceded States. The President's position was unquestionably embarrassing, but he made no use of the means at his command. General Scott, the veteran commander of the army, believed that prompt action on the part of the general government would confine the evil to the six cotton States, and urged the Presi- dent to act with vigor. Mr. Buchanan was sorely perplexed, and seemed chiefly anxious to postpone all defi- nite action until the inauguration of,his suc- cessor. He was in favor of conceding every- thing but separate independence to the South, failing to perceive that the leaders of the secession movement would accept nothing but separation ; and by his timidity lost the advantages which the government would have gained by a bold, firm course. Attempt to Aid Major Anderson. As Major Anderson was short of supplies and needed reinforcements, the steamship "Star of the West " was despatched by the government to Charleston with provisions and a detachment of two hundred and fifty men to his assistance. She reached Charles- ton on the ninth of January, 1861, and ADMINISTRATION OF JAMES BUCHANAN. 663 attempted to enter the harbor, but was fired upon by the South Carolina batteries, and turned back. The President was urged by the friends of the South to order Major Anderson to evac- uate Fort Sumter and return to Fort Moul- trie, but refused to do so. South CaroHna then offered to purchase Fort Sumter from the general government, for its full value, but the President refused to make the sale. Immediately upon their withdrawal from the Union the six seceded States began to concert measures for their common protec- tion. Delegates were elected to a convention which met at Montgomery, Alabama, on the fourth of February, 1 861, to devise a plan for this purpose. The convention at once pro- ceeded to organize a new republic, for which they adopted the name of Tlie Confederate States of America. On the eighth of Febru- ary, a provisional constitution having been adopted, the convention elected Jefferson Davis, of Mississippi, President, and Alexan- der H. Stephens, of Georgia, Vice-president of the Confederate States. The action of the convention was sustained by all the States comprising the new confederacy, and the provisional government at once entered upon its duties. Mr. Davis was inaugurated Presi- dent of the Confederate States at Montgom- ery, Alabama, February 18, 1861. Sketch of Jefferson Davis. Jefferson Davis was a native of Kentucky, and was born on the third of June, 1808. His father had removed to Mississippi during his early childhood, and he had grown up to manhood in that State. He was educated at the West Point Military Academy, from which he was graduated in 1828, and passed the next seven years of his life in the army. He served with distinction during the Black Hawk war and against the Indian tribes on the frontier. Entering into politics after his withdrawal from the army, he was soon sent to represent his State in Congress, in which body he served until the commencement of the Mexican war. During that struggle he commanded the Mississippi Rifles, and dis- tinguished himself greatly in the battles of General Taylor's army, and especially at Buena Vista. Upon his return home he was chosen to represent Mississippi in the Senate of the United States. Upon the inauguration of JEFFERSON DAVIS. President Pierce, he accepted a seat in the cabinet as secretary of war. Returning to the Senate after the close of Mr. Pierce's administration, he remained in that body until the secession of Mississippi, when he resigned his seat and returned home. He was now in his fifty-third year, and was regarded as one of the most brilliant public men in America. His election was generally looked upon in the South as a concession to the more conservative portion of the south- ern people, for he had not been considered 664 INAUGURATION OF JEFFERSON DAVIS ADMINISTRATION OF JAMES BUCHANAN. 66^ as one of the original or most ultra secession leaders. The conservative elements of both sections made great efforts to bring about a recon- ciliation. The State of Virginia called upon all the States to send delegates to an informal peace congress to meet in Washington. This body assembled in February. Twenty States were represented in it — thirteen northern and seven southern — and the venerable ex- President Tyler was chosen to preside over its deliberations. Various plans of settle- ment were proposed, and a committee, con- sisting of one member from each State, was appointed to prepare a plan upon which the congress could unite. In due time it made its report to the congress, and after a careful and elaborate discussion the resolutions were adopted, and were ordered to be laid before the rival governments. The congress then adjourned. The plan proposed by this body pleased neither side. The Southern States were not satisfied with the guarantees it offered for the protection of their rights in the matter of slavery ; and the Northern States were unwilling to sanction a more rigid enforcement of the constitu- tional provision for the rendition of fugitive slaves. The effort to close the breach be- tween the States only served to widen it. Matters were in this unhappy and excited condition when the administration of Mr. Buchanan came to a close. After the inau- guration of his successor, he retired to his home at Wheatland, near Lancaster, Penn- sylvania, where he died in June, 1868. BOOK VI The Civil War CHAPTER XLI The Administration of Abraham Lincoln Inauguration of President Lincoln — His History — The Confederate Commissioners at Washington — Attack upon Fort Sumter by the Confederates— The President Calls for Troops — Response of the North and West — Secession of the Border States — Opening Events of the War in Virginia — Withdrawal of West Virginia — Admitted into the Union as a Separate State — Meeting of Congress— The West Virginia Campaign — Battle of Bull Run — The War in Missouri — Kentucky Occupied — The Blockade — Capture of Port Royal — The "Trent" Affair — Insurrection in East Tennessee — State of Affairs at the Opening of the Year 1862 — Edwin M. Stanton made Secretary of War— Capture of Forts Henry and Donelson — The Confederates Fall Back from Kentucky — Battle ot Shiloh — Capture of Island No. 10 — Evacuation of Corinth — Capture of Memphis — Bragg's Kentucky Campaign — His Retreat into Tennessee — Battles of luka and Corinth — Battle of Murfreesboro', or Stone River — Grant's Campaign against Vicksburg — Its Failure — The War Beyond the Mississippi — Battle of Pea Ridge — Capture of Roanoke Island — Capture of New Orleans— Surrender of Fort Pulaski The War in Virginia — Johnston's Retreat from Centreville — Battle between the " Monitor " and "Virginia" The Move to the Peninsula — Johnston Retreats to the Chickahominy — Battle of Seven Pines — Jackson's Successes in the Valley of Virginia — The Seven Days' Battles Before Richmond — Battle of Cedar Mountain — Defeat of General Pope's Army— Lee Invades Maryland— Capture of Harper's Ferry— Battles of South Mountain and Antietam — Retreat of Lee into Virginia— McClellan Removed— Battle of Fredericksburg. ABRAHAM LINCOLN, the six- teenth President of the United States, was inaugurated at Wash- ington on the fourth of March, 1861. As it was feared that an attempt would be made to prevent the inauguration, the city- was held by a strong body of regular troops under General Scott, and the President-elect was escorted from his hotel to the Capitol by a military force. No effort was made to inter- fere with the ceremonies, and the inaugura- tion passed off quietly. The new President was in his fifty-third year, and was a native of Kentucky. When he was but eight years old his father removed to Indiana, and the boyhood of the future President was spent in hard labor upon the farm. Until he reached manhood he con- tinued to lead this life, and during this entire period attended school for only a year. At the age of twenty-one he removed to Illinois, 666 ABRAHAM LINCOLN. ADMINISTRATION OF ABRAHAM LINCOLN. 667 where he began hfe as a storekeeper. Being anxious to rise above his humble position, he determined to study law. He was too poor to buy the-necessary books, and so borrowed them from a neighboring lawyer, read them at night and returned them in the morning. His genial character, great good nature and love of humor won him the friendship of the people among whom he resided, and they elected him to the lower house of the Legis- lature of Illinois. He now abandoned his mercantile pursuits, and began the practice of the law, and was subsequently elected a representative to Con- gress from the Springfield District. He took an active part in the politics of his State, and in 1858 was the candidate of the Republican Party for United States Senator. In this capacity he engaged in a series of de- bates in various parts of the State with Sena- tor Douglas, the Democratic candidate for re-election to the same position. This de- bate was remarkable for its brilliancy and in- tellectual vigor, and brought him promi- nently before the whole country, and opened the way to his nomination for the Presi- dency. The Inaugural Address. In person he was tall and ungainly, and in manner he was rough and awkward, little versed in the refinements of society. He was a man, however, of great natural vigor of intellect, and was possessed of a fund of strong common sense, which enabled him to see at a glance through the shams by which he was surrounded, and to pursue his own aims with singleness of heart and directness of purpose. He had sprung from the ranks of the people, and he was never false to them. He was a simple, unaffected, kind-hearted man ; anxious to do his duty to the whole country ; domestic in his tastes and habits ; and incorruptible in every relation of life. He was fond of humor, and overflowed with it ; finding in his " little stories " the only relaxation he ever sought from the heavy cares of the trying position upon which he was now entering. He selected his cabinet from the leading men of the Republican party, and placed William H. Seward, of New York, at its head as Secretary of State. Mr. Lincoln was sincerely anxious to avoid everything which might precipitate the civil strife ; but at the same time was deter- WILLIAM mined to maintain the authority of the gen- eral government over the seceded States. In his inaugural address he declared his pur- pose to collect the public revenues at the ports of the seceded States, and to " hold, occupy and possess " the forts, arsenals and other public property seized by those States. At the time of his entrance upon the duties of his office Fort Sumter and Fort Pickens were still held by the Federal forces. 668 THE CIVIL WAR. The Confederate government was con- vinced that war was inevitable ; and since its inauguration, had been preparing for the coming struggle. Nearly all the officers of the army and navy of the United States, who were natives of the seceded States, resigned their commissions in the old service, and were given similar positions in the army of the ARRIVAL OF PRESIDENT LINCOLN AT THE CAPITOL. Confederate States. The forces collected at Charleston and Pensacola were reinforced by troops from other States, and the command at the former place was conferred upon Gen- eral Pierre G. T. Beauregard, and at the latter upon General Braxton Bragg, both of whom had been distinguished officers of the old army. Just before the close of Mr. Buchanan's term of office, the Confederate government despatched John Forsyth, of Alabama, Mar- tin J, Crawford, of Georgia, and A. B. Roman, of Louisiana, to Washington as commission- ers to endeavor to effect a peaceable adjust- ment of the matters at issue between the two governments, and to treat for an equitable division of the public property of the United States. Mr. Buchanan refused to receive the commis- sioners in their official capacity, and after the inauguration of the new administration they ad- dressed a note to Mr. Seward, the new Secretary of State, set- ting forth the objects of their mission, and soliciting an official interview with the President. Mr. Seward declined to receive them in their official capacity, but answered them verbally through Mr. Justice John A. Campbell, of the Supreme Court of the United States, that he was in favor of a peaceful settlement of the diffi- culty, and that the troops would be withdrawn from Fort Sumter in less than ten days. Mr. Sew- ard's object appears to have been to deceive the commissioners, and lull their suspicions, in order to gain time for the preparations which had been determined upon for the relief of Fort Sumter. In the meantime, the govern- ment having resolved to rein- force and provision Fort Sumter at all hazards, every nerve was strained to carry out this design before it should become known to the Confederates. An expedition consisting of seven ships, carrying two hun- dred and eighty-five guns and twenty-four hundred men, was prepared at New York ADMINISTRATION OF ABRAHAM LINCOLN. 669 and Norfolk. The southern commissioners, whose suspicions had been allayed by Mr. Seward's message, were alarmed by the ru- mors of these preparations, which they sus- pected were for the relief of Fort Sumter. They waited upon Judge Campbell to ask an explanation, and that gentleman, on the sev- enth of April, addressed a note to Mr. Sew- ard asking if the assurances he had given were well or ill founded. Mr. Seward replied as follows: " Faith as to Sumter fully kept; wait and see." In the meantime the expedition had sailed f r o m N e w Y o r k and Norfolk, and was on its way to Charleston harbor. On the 'eighth of April, 1 861, Gov- ernor Pickens, of South Carolina, was notified by the general govern- ment of its inten- tion to relieve Fort Sumter at all haz- ards, and of the sailing of the fleet for that purpose. Governor Pickens ^ at once informed •General Beauregard of this notification, and the news was telegraphed by him to the •Confederate government at Montgomery. The Confederate Secretary of War there- upon ordered General Beauregard to demand the immediate surrender of Fort Sumter; " and if this should be refused to proceed to reduce it." On the eleventh of April General Beauregard demanded of Major Anderson the surrender of the fort. The demand was refused in writing ; but Major Anderson added verbally to the mes- senger, " I will await the first shot, and if you do not batter us to pieces, we will be starved out in a few days." Beauregard telegraphed this remark with Anderson's reply to his government, and was answered, " Do not desire needlessly to bom- bard Fort Sumter. If Major Anderson will state the time at which, as indicated by him- self, he will evacuate, and agree that, in the meantime, he will not use his guns against us unless ours should be employed against P'ort Sumter, you are authorized thus to avoid the eff"usion of blood. If this or its equivalent be refused, reduce the fort, as ^^s^ rORP PICKENS. your judgment decides most practicable." The Federal fleet was on its way to Charles- ton, and if the attack of the Confederates was to be made at all, no time was to be lost. General Beauregard, therefore, gave Major Anderson warning that he should open fire upon P'ort Sumter at half-past four o'clock the next morning.. At the designated hour on the morning of April 1 2th, the Confederate batteries opened fire upon Fort Sumter, which replied to them with spirit. The bombardment lasted over thirty-two hours, and the fort was greatly 670 THE CIVIL WAR. damaged, and many of the guns were dis- mounted. The fleet arrived off the harbor during the bombardment, but remained in the offing, and took no part in the engage- ment. Not a single hTe was lost in this memorable battle. Late in the afternoon of the thirteenth, Major Anderson agreed to capitulate, and the firing ceased. The MAJOR ANDERSON. victors granted liberal terms to Anderson and his men, whose heroism had aroused their warmest admiration ; and on the morn- ing of Sunday, April 14th, the fort was sur- rendered to the Confederate forces, and Major Anderson and the garrison embarked in one of the vessels of the fleet, which at once sailed for New York. The attack upon Fort Sumter put an end to the last hope of peace, and aroused the most intense excitement in both sections of the country. On the fifteenth of April, Presi- dent Lincoln issued a proclamation calling upon the States to furnish seventy-five thousand troops for the suppression of the rebellion, and convening Congress in extra session on the Fourth of July. The Northern and Western States re- sponded with enthu- siasm to the President's call for troops, and at once began to forward their quotas to the points designated by the war department. The enthusiasm in the South was fully equal to that of the North. The Confederate government issued a call for volun- teers to repel the threat- ened invasion of the fed- eral forces, and it was responded to with ala- crity. Until now the States of Maryland, Virginia, North Carolina, Tennes- see, Kentucky, Arkansas and Missouri, generally known as the Border States, had remained in the Union, hoping to be' able to effect a peaceable settlement of the quarrel. Their sympathies were with the Southern States, and it was gen- erally believed that in the event of war they would cast their lots with those States. Each of these States was included in the call of President Lincoln for troops. The governors of most of them replied by refusing to furnish the quotas required of them, and by denouncing the President's demand as illesral- ADMINISTRATION OF ABRAHAM LINCOLN. 671 Conventions of the people were held, and all but Maryland, Kentucky and Missouri withdrew from the Union. The secession of Virginia took place on the seventeenth of April ; that of Arkansas on the sixth of May ; that of North Carolina on the twentieth of May ; and that of Tennessee on the eighth of June. These States subsequently ratified the constitution of the Confederate States, and became members of the new republic. Kentucky and Missouri remained neutral. The passage of the act of secession by the Virsfinia convention was kept secret for a day or two in order to give the authorities of that State an oppor- tunity to seize the United States arsenal at Harper's Ferry, and the navy yard at Ports- mouth. The officer in command of the arsenal, upon hearing of the approach of a force of Virginia troops, destroyed a number of the mus- kets stored tlicre, set fire to the buildings, and retreated into Pennsylvania. The Virginians extinguished the flames and secured a large quantity of arms and equipments and the valuable ma- chinery for the manufacture of arms. The commandant of the navy yard at Portsmouth, upon the approach of the Virginians, made no attempt to defend his post, but spiked the cannon, burned or sunk the war vessels lying in the harbor, set fire to the buildings, and retreated with two war steamers. The navy yard was at once occupied by the Virginians, who secured nearly two thousand pieces of cannon, and an immense quantity of stores and munitions of all kinds. The governors of the seceded Border States issued calls for volunteers immediately upon the withdrawal of their States. Men came for- ward in such large numbers that arms could not be provided for all of them. The prominent points of danger in Virginia were occupied and fortified by the State troops ; but the control of the military af- fairs in all the Border States soon passed FORT SUMTER IN 1 86 1. into the hands of the Confederate govern- ment. As it was certain that the first operations of the war would take place upon the bor- ders of Virginia, the city of Richmond was made the capital of the Confederate States,, and on the twenty-first of May the Confed- erate government was removed to that city. The western part of the State of Virginia refused to join the remainder of the State in its withdrawal from the Union. On the eleventh of June, 1861, the people of the 6^2 THE CIVIL WAR. western counties met in convention at Wheel- ing, declared their independence of the old State, organized a State government, and proclaimed their intention to remain faithful to the Union. The action of this convention was sustained by the Federal government, and on the twenty-sixth of November, i86i, another convention met at Wheeling, and FORTS SUMTER AND MOULTRIE. In the meantime the Federal government set to work with energy to prepare for the struggle before it. The call of President Lincoln for troops had been answered by three hundred thousand volunteers. On the seventeenth of April, two days after the Pres- ident's proclamation, the Sixth Massachu- setts regiment left Boston for Washington. In passing through Baltimore it was at- tacked by a crowd of citizens who sympa- thized with the South, and three soldiers were killed and eight wounded. Several citizens were killed and wounded. The reg- iment reached Wash- ington the same day. In a short time the force at the capital was sufficient to put an end to all fears for its safety. Alexandria and the Virginia shore opposite Washington were seized and for- tified. Baltimore was occupied by a force under General Butler, and the communica- tions of Washington with the North and West were made sure. On the nineteenth of A^RCGARD Hum I - ^^^^ adopted a constitution for the new State of West Virginia. This constitution was rati- fied by the people at the polls on the third of May, 1862, and application was made for the admission of West Virginia into the Union as a State, which was accomplished by act of Congress on the twentieth of June, 1863. April the President issued a proclamation declaring all the southern ports in a state of blockade ; and on the third of May he put forth another proclamation ordering the regu- lar army of the United States to be increased to sixty-four thousand seven hundred and forty-eight men, and the navy to eighteen thousand seamen. On the tenth of May he ADMINISTRATION OF ABRAHAM LINCOLN. 673 issued a fourth proclamation, suspending the writ oi Jiabeas corpus in certain localities, and authority to suspend this privilege was con- ferred upon the commanders of military de- partments soon afterward. Under the instructions of the government these commanders now proceeded to arrest great numbers of persons in various parts of .the country who were suspected of sympa- governmcnt paid no attention to this deci- sion, and held the prisoner in confinement. A little later the Legislature of Maryland, which was strongly Southern in its sympa- thies, was prevented from meeting by the sudden arrest and imprisonment of a large number of its members by order of the secretary of war. On the fourth of July, 1861, Congress FORT MOULTRIE, CHARLESTON HARBOR. thizing with the South. They were impris- oned at the military posts, and were denied trial by the civil courts. John Merryman, a citizen of Maryland, was one of the persons so arrested. His friends applied for redress to the Chief Justice of the United States, who held the suspension of the habeas corpus act by the President to be unconstitutional, and ordered the discharge of the prisoner. The 43 convened in extra session at Washington, in accordance with the President's proclama- tion. This body proceeded to give to the government a prompt and effectual support. Resolutions were introduced to legalize the extraordinary acts of the President in setting aside the writ of habeas corpus, in ordering the arbitrary arrest and confinement of citi- zens, and in assuming certain other powers 074 THE CIVIL WAR. which belonged to Congress. Congress refused to throw over these acts, however necessary, the sanction of the law ; but in view of the necessity of prompt and vigorous action on the part of the President, excused his acts on the distinct ground of the " necessities of war." Measures were adopted without delay for putting in the field an army of five hundred and twenty-five thousand men, and for equipping a powerful navy ; and the sum of five hundred millions of dollars was appro- priated for the prosecution of the war. During this session Congress also adopted a solemn resolution declaring " that this war is not prosecuted on our part in any spirit of THE CONFEDERATE FLAG. oppression, nor for any purpose of conquest or subjugation, nor for the purpose of over- throwing or interfering with the rights or established institutions of those [the seceded] States ; but to defend and maintain the supremacy of the constitution and all laws made in pursuance thereof, and to preserve the Union with all the dignity, equality and rights of the several States unimpaired ; that as soon as these objects are accomplished the war ought to cease." In the meantime the Confederates had collected troops at important points to resist the advance of the Federal troops into Virginia. A force under Brigadier-General Garnett was stationed in West Virginia to cover the approaches from that direction ; Harper's Ferry, which commanded the entrance into the valley of Virginia, was held by an army of seven thousand or eight thousand men, under General Joseph E. Johnston ; a much larger force, under General Beauregard, took position near Manassas Junction, about thirty miles from Washington, and a column of several thousand men, under General John B. Magruder, was stationed at Yorktown, on the peninsula between the York and James rivers, to cover Richmond from the direction of Fortress Monroe at the mouth of Hamp- ton Roads, which was still held by the Federal troops. Norfolk was also held by a strong force. With the exception of that occupied by General Garnett's command, all these positions were carefully fortified. Bethel Church and Rich Mountain. The Union army at Fortress Monroe num- bered about twelve thousand men, and was commanded by General B. F. Butler. Early in June, Magruder moved a force of eighteen hundred men and several pieces of artillery from Yorktown, and took position at Bethel Church, about half way between Yorktown and Hampton. On the tenth of June he was attacked by a force of four thousand troops under General Pierce, of Massachusetts, but succeeded in repulsing the attack and main- taining his position. In the opposite quarter of the State, the Union forces were more successful. In order to prevent the Confederates from overrun- ning West Virginia, a strong body of Ohio and Indiana troops, under General George B. McClellan, was sent into that region. McClellan set to work at once to drive the Confederates out of West Virginia, and on the third of June a portion of his command, under General Kelly, defeated General Garnett at Philippi. McClellan now advanced ADMINISTRATION OF ABRAHAM LINCOLN. 675 against the main body of Garnett's forces. On the eleventh of July, he attacked the com- mand of Colonel Pegram at Rich Mountain, and defeated it. This defeat compelled Gen- eral Garnett to fall back towards the valley of Virginia, He was pursued by McClellan and overtaken at Carrick's ford, on the Cheat river. In the battle which ensued here, Gar- mander, Colonel Ellsworth, was killed by a citizen. Strong defences were erected on the Virginia shore between Washington and Alexandria, and the army was encamped within these lines. Two months were passed in organizing and disciplining this force, and in the meantime the people of the Northern and Western States became impatient of the THE SIXTH MASSACHUSETTS REGIMENT PASSING THROUGH BALTIMORE. nett was killed, and the remnant of his com- mand was driven beyond the mountains. The United States had assembled a con- siderable army of volunteers and regulars at Washington under Major-General Irwin Mc- Dowell. On the twenty-fourth of May, Alex- andria, on the Virginia side of the Potomac, nine miles below Washington, was seized by a detachment from this army. Its com- delay, and demanded an immediate advance upon the southern army and Richmond. Preparatory to his own advance. General McDowell sent General Patterson with twenty thousand men to cross the Potomac at Wil- liamsport, and prevent General Johnston from leavmg the valley and joining Beauregard at Manassas. Upon the arrival of Patterson on the upper Potomac, General Johnston 6/6 THE CIVIL WAR. evacuated Harper's Ferry and took position at Winchester. Patterson made a considerable show of force in the valley, but refrained from attacking Johnston, although the latter sought to induce him to do so. He took position about nine miles from Winchester, and remained inactive there. In the meantime the preparations for the FORTIFICATIONS IN AND AROUND WASHINGTON. advance of McDowell's army were completed, and on the seventeenth of July he began his march from the Potomac towards Bull Run, on the banks of which the Confederates were posted. His army numbered over fifty thou- sand men, and forty-nine pieces of artilleiy. As soon as the advance of this army was known to him, General Beauregard informed .General Johnston of it, and begged him to come to his assistance. Johnston skilfully eluded Patterson's army, and hastened to Bull Run, arriving there with a part of his command in time to take part in the battle. The Confederate army had taken position behind Bull Run, and in advance of Manassas Junction. Including the force brought by General Johnston, who assumed the chief command by virtue of his rank, it con- sisted of thirty-one thousand four hun- dred and thirty-one men and fifty-five guns. On the eighteenth of July General Mc- Dowell attempted to force a passage of Bull Run at Blackburn's ford, but was repulsed. On the morning ot ,, ^^^j_ ■= Ir-rr. WAGNER " ps.v;^5°p : — ■- / the twenty-first, the ^^ "" / Union army advanced in force, and y endeavored to turn the leit oi the Southern line. An obstinately- contested battle ensued, which lasted from sunrise until nearly sunset. It resulted in the total defeat of the Federal army, which was driven back in utter rout upon Alexandria and Washington, with a loss of between four and five thou- sand men in killed, wounded and prison- ers, and twenty-eight pieces of artillery. For a while the effects of this disaster upon the Federal army were so great that Washington was almost defenceless ; but the Confederates made no effort to follow up their victory. They were almost as badly de- moralized by their success as the Union army by its defeat. Recovering from the dismay of its first great reverse, the government went to work PORTRAITS OF PROMINENT FEDERAL GENERALS. 6/8 THE CIVIL WAR. with vigor to repair the disaster. The levy of five hundred thousand men ordered by MAP SHOWING THE SHENANDOAH VALLEY. Congress was raised promptly and without difficulty, so eager was the desire of the people to wipe out the disgrace of Bull Run. At his own request General Scott, whose bodily infirmities were so great as to render him unable to dis- charge the duties of his position, was re- lieved of the com- mand of the army. Major-General Geo. B. McClellan was given the chief com- mand of the armies of the Union, and or- dered to take charge of the force assem- bling before Wash- ington, which was named the Army of the Potomac. He devoted himself with success to the task of organizing and dis- ciplining the recruits, which came pouring in during the fall and winter. The remainder of the year 1861 passed away quietly on the Potomac, with the single exception of the battle of Lees- burg. Colonel Baker, with a force of two thousand men, was sent by General Stone to cross the Potomac at Edward's ferry, and drive back the Con- federate force under General Evans from its position near Leesburg. He made his attack on the twenty-first of October, but was ADMINISTRATION OF ABRAHAM LINCOLN. 679 repulsed with the loss of eight hundred killed and wounded, being himself among the slain. The Confederate army held its position at Centreville through the fall and winter, and at one time its outposts were pushed forward within view of the city of Washington. In the fall of 1861 an army of ten thou- sand men was sent by the Confederate gov- ernment into the valley of Virginia to pre- vent its occupation by the federal forces. The command of these troops was conferred upon General T. J. Jackson, whose conspicuous gallantry at Bull Run had won him the so- briquet of " Stonewall Jackson," by which he was afterwards known by both armies. He established his headquarters at Winchester. Prompt Action in Missouri. In the meantime the war had been going on in Western Virginia. After the transfer of General McClellan to Washington, the com- mand of the Union forces passed to Briga- dier-General Rosecranz, an able officer. He liad several indecisive encounters with the commands of Generals Floyd and Wise, in the region of the Gauley and New rivers. General Robert E. Lee was sent by the Con- federate government to assume the chief command in the west. He attacked the brigade of General Reynolds at Cheat moun- tain on the fourteenth of September, but was repulsed and obliged to retreat. On the fourth of October, General Reynolds attacked a Confederate force under General Henry R. Jackson on the Greenbrier river, but was re- pulsed. The State of Missouri took no part in the secession movements of the spring of 1861. Her people were divided; a large party sympathized with the South ; but still a larger party was determined that the State should remain in the Union. These parties soon came in conflict. The governor and leading officials of the State were in favor of seces- sion, and used all their influence to bring about the withdrawal of Missouri from the Union. A camp of the State militia was formed near St. Louis, and was called Camp Jackson in honor of the governor. It was known that the force assembled at this camp was intended to serve as a nucleus around which an army hostile to the federal govern- ment might assemble. By extraordinary exertions Colonel Frances P. Blair. Jr., a member of Congress from St. Louis, and Captain Nathaniel Lyon, commanding the troops at the Jefferson barracks, near St. Louis, succeeded in collecting a force of five regiments of Union volunteers. On the tenth of May, 1861, Lyon with these five regiments suddenly surrounded Camp Jackson, and compelled General Frost, the commanding officer, to surrender his whole force, camp and equipments. By this prompt action the State forces were prevented from carrying out their plan for seizing the United States arsenal at St. Louis, which contained sixty thousand stand of arms of the latest patterns, and a number of cannon, and a large quantity of ammunition. For this decisive action Captain Lyon was commis- sioned a brigadier-general by the President. Movements of General Lyon's Army. Satisfied that the desire of the southern party is Missouri to remain neutral was but a pretext to gain time to arm the State for a union with the Confederates, President Lin- coln determined to compel all the State forces not in the federal service to disband. An in- terview was held at St. Louis on the eleventh of June between Governor Jackson and Gen- eral Lyon, now commanding the federal troops in Missouri. Governor Jackson de- manded that no United States forces should be quartered in or marched through Mis- souri. General Lyon refused to comply with this demand, and insisted that the State forces p » O c/f' < en 680 Pi Ei u: CO f—* aJ m *? y .s f^ 1 y oS* p '^ H .^ ADMINISTRATION OF ABRAHAM LINCOLN. 68 1 should be disbanded, pledging himself to respect the rights and privileges of the State. At the close of the interview the Governor returned to Jefferson City, the capital of the State, and the next day, the twelfth, issued his proclamation calling 50,000 of the State militia into active service for the purpose of driving the Federal troops from the State, and protecting the " lives, liberty and property of the citizens." General Lyon at once marched upon Jefferson City, and occupied it on the fifteenth, the Governor and his supporters having retired to the interior of the State. On the seventeenth Lyon proceeded to Booneville and defeated the State troops stationed there under General Price. The southwestern part of Missouri is rich in deposits of lead, and valuable mines of this mineral are worked there. The State authorities were anxious to hold this region, as it was of the highest importance to them to obtain the use of these mines to supply their army with lead. A column of Federal troops under General Sigel was sent by Gen- eral Lyon to intercept the retreat of the State troops. On the fifth of July, Sigel attacked the State troops under Governor Jackson at Carthage, but was repulsed. Battle of Wilson's Creek. The next day, July 6th, Governor Jackson was joined at Carthage by General Sterling Price, of the Missouri State Guard, and Gen- eral Ben McCulloch, of the Confederate army, with several thousand men. The command of the whole force was conferred upon Gen- eral McCulloch, who had been ordered by his government to advance into Missouri. The Southern army, according to General McCulloch's statement, numbered 5,300 infantry, 6,000 mounted men and fifteen pieces of artillery. It advanced rapidly into the in- terior of the State, and on the ninth of August reached Wilson's Creek, near Springfield. General Lyon had taken position there with a force somewhat smaller than that of the Confederates. On the morning of the tenth he attacked the Southern army. The battle lasted six hours, and was hotly con- tested. General Lyon was killed at the head of his troops while endeavoring to turn the left flank of the Confederates, and his army was forced back. His body was left in the haryds of the Confederates, who treated it with becoming respect. Springfield was occupied by the Confeder- ates the day after the battle ; but McCulloch and Price being unable to agree upon the plan of the campaign, they soon withdrew CAPITOL AT RICHMOND, VIRGINIA. to the Arkansas border. The Union army after the battle withdrew to Rolla, near the centre of the State. A few weeks later General Price with a force of over five thousand Confederates laid siege to Lexington, on the Missouri river, which was held by about three thousand men under Colonel Mulligan. After a gallant defence Mulligan was forced to surrender on the twentieth of September. Major-General John C. Fremont was now appointed by President Lincoln to take com.- mand of the western army. He forced Price's command back into the southwestern part of the State. Arriving near Springfield^ 682 PORTRAITS OF PROMINENT FEDERAL GENERALS. ADMINISTRATION OF ABRAHAM LINCOLN. 683 Fremont prepared to bring the Confederates to a decisive engagement, but on the second of November was removed from his com- mand. He was succeeded by General Hunter, who abandoned the pursuit, and fell back to St. Louis. On the eighteenth of November Hunter was superseded by Major- General Halleck, who by a rapid advance drove Price once more towards the Arkansas border. This movement closed the campaign of 1861 in Missouri. The Union army had not only saved the State to the Union, but had con- fined the Confederates to the Arkansas border. Southern Party in Kentucky. In the meantime Governor Jackson had summoned the legislature of Missouri to meet at Neosho. It assembled at that place in October, passed an ordinance of secession, and elected delegates and senators to the Con- federate Congress. Though this action was merely formal, and received the support of but a small part of the people of Missouri, it was recognized as valid by the Confederate government, and Missouri was proclaimed one of the Confederate States. The governor and State authorities of Kentucky attempted at the outset of the war to hold the position of armed neutrality between the parties to the contest ; but as in the case of Missouri, this effort failed. Neither the Federal government nor that of the Southern Confederacy could, in the nature of things, respect this neutrality. The Federal troops were poured into Ken- tucky, and the Confederates seized Columbus, on the Mississippi, Bowling Green, in the centre of the State, and other positions in the western part. The Southern party in Kentucky, within the protection of the Con- federate lines, organized a provisional govern- ment for the State, sent senators and repre- sentatives to the Congress at Richmond, which formally recognized Kentucky as one of the Confederate States. The force at Columbus was commanded by General Polk of the Confederate army. At Belmont, on the Missouri shore of the river, immediately opposite Columbus, a body of Confederate troops v»^as stationed. On the seventh of November, General U. S. Grant having descended the Mississippi from Cairo, attacked the force at Belmont with his command of three thousand men. After a sharp struggle he was repulsed, and forced to retreat to Cairo. On October iith, the privateer "Nash- ville," which had been fitted out by the Con- federates to capture Federal vessels, escaped from Charleston harbor and began to com- mit depredations upon the commerce of the North. The bold operations of the " Nash- ville" and other privateers produced a reign of terror on the high seas. Naval and Military Expedition. At the outset of the war the Confederates occupied the principal ports of the South, and a number of prominent points on the Atlantic coast. These were fortified by them as well as the means at hand would permit. The general government resolved to capture these as rapidly as possible, as their reduction was necessary in order to render the blockade of the southern coast effectual. The first expe- dition was despatched from Fortress Monroe in August, 1 861, under Commodore String- ham aud General Butler, and was directed against the Confederate works at Hatteras Inlet, which commanded the entrance to Albemarle and Pamlico sounds. These works were captured on the twenty-ninth of August. The great extent of the coast to be block- aded by the navy made it necessary that a good harbor at some central point should be secured, where supplies could be stored for 684 ADMINISTRATION OF ABRAHAM LINCOLN. 685 the fleet, and where vessels could refill with- out returning to the northern ports. Port Royal harbor, in South Carolina, was selected as the best place for this purpose. It was defended by Fort Walker on Hilton Head and Fort Beauregard on the opposite side of the harbor. A powerful naval and military expedition under Commodore Dupont and General Thomas W. Sherman attacked these works on the seventh of November, and reduced them after terrible bombardment by the fleet. Port Royal was at once occupied by the expedition, and during the war was the principal depot on the southern coast for the fleets and armies of the Union. It was not possible, however, to render the blockade effective. Great efforts were made to increase the number of vessels employed in this duty, but the Confederates succeeded in eluding the Union cruisers almost at plea- sure, and a steady communication was main- tained between the southern ports and Eng- land by way of the West Indies. A number of armed vessels in the service of the Con- federacy succeeded in getting to sea. By the close of the year they had inflicted severe damage upon the commerce of the Northern States, and had almost driven the foreign trade of the United States from the ocean. Affair of the "Trent." During the early part of the war the South- ern government was encouraged to hope that the governments of England and France would recognize the independence of the Confederate States, and in the fall of 1 86 1, James M. Mason, of Virginia, and John Slidell, of Louisiana, were ordered to proceed to Europe, as commissioners from the Confederate States, to secure this recog- nition. They sailed from Charleston on the twelfth of October, and reached Cuba in safety. There they took passage for England on board the British mail-steamer " Trent." Hearing of this, Captain Wilkes, of the United States war-steamer " San Jacinto," overhauled the " Trent " upon the high seas boarded her, and seized the two commission- ers and their secretaries and sailed with them to Boston harbor, where they were im- prisoned in one of the forts. The "Trent" in the meantime proceeded on her voyage, and upon reaching England hercommander informed the British govern- ment of the outrage that had been commit- ted upon its flag. The English government at once demanded of President Lincoln the immediate and unconditional release of the LIEUTENANT-GENERAL POLK. Confederate commissioners and satisfac- tion for the insult to its flag. It was under- stood that France was prepared to sustain England in her demands. The Federal gov- ernment disavowed the action of Captain Wilkes in seizing the commissioners, and those gentlemen were released and allowed to continue their voyage. They reached England in due time. Mr. Mason proceeded to London and Mr. Slidell to France. Neither the English nor the French govern- ments would receive the commissioners offic- ially. It was understood that the United States would regard the interference of either in the American quarrel as a cause of war, and neither power cared to join in the struggle. Tennessee seceded from the Union, as we have related, in the spring of 1861. The 6S6 THE CIVIL WAR. western and central portions of the State were unanimously in favor of joining the Southern States and gave a hearty support to the Confederacy during the war, but East Tennessee, inhabited by a race of hardy mountaineers, was devoted to the Union, and was unwilling to leave it. In the autumn of 1 86 1, the East Tennesseans took up arms against the Confederate Government, and began to destroy the railway bridges in that part of the State. This movement was full of danger to the Confederacy, as the principal line of commu- nication between Virginia and the Mississippi passed through East Tennessee. A consid- erable force of Confederate troops was sent JAMES M. MASON. into East Tennessee to hold the people in subjection and protect the railroads, but throughout the war, the hostility of the peo- ple of this region was a constant source of danger and weakness to the Confederates. When the year 1862 opened, the war had assumed colossal proportions. The military operations extended almost across the conti- nent, and engaged a number of powerful armies, and a formidable navy. The call of President Lincoln for troops had been cheer- fully responded to, and the opening of the year found the United States provided with a force of over half a million of men, splendidly armed and equipped, and supplied with every- thing necessary for the successful prosecution of the war. The North had profited by its first reverses, and was resolved that its next effort, which was to be made at the opening of the season for active operations, should find it thoroughly prepared for the task it had undertaken. A cordial support was given to the meas- ures of the government by the people. Its wants were supplied by means of a heavy loan which was readily negotiated with the capitalists of the Eastern States. From the moment that the despondency caused by the reverse at Bull Run had subsided sufficiently to enable the people of the loyal States to face the situation calmly, everyone saw that the work of preparation must all be done over JOHN SLIDELL. from the beginning, and it was done bravely and thoroughly. During the fall and winter the army was rapidly increased ; vessels were purchased and built for the navy. The Southern armies, on the other hand,, had grown steadily weaker. The first suc- cesses of the Confederate troops had greatly demoralized the Southern people. Volun- teering soon -ceased almost entirely. Even the heaviest bounties failed to bring recruits. There was a widespread delusion throughout the South that the war was practically ended. The measures of the Confederate Congress steadily thinned, instead of filling up the ranks of the Southern armies, and when the new year dawned there was grave reason to- THE ARREST OF MASON AND SEIDELL ON THE BRITISH STEAMER "TRENT." 68r THE CIVIL WAR. fear that the spring- campaign would find the South without an adequate army unless more vigorous measures were resorted to. It was exceedingly doubtful whether the troops already in the service would renew their en- listments, which expired in the spring of 1 862. During the winter the Southern Congress adopted a law granting a furlough and a heavy bounty to every soldier who would re-enlist for the war. The furlough was to be granted during the winter ; the bounty to be paid at a later period. Many of those who went home on these furloughs did so with the intention of remaining there; and the practi- GRANT S HEAD-QUARTERS NEAR FORT cal effect of the measure was to diminish the strength of the Confederate armies. At length the Confederate Congress was driven by the necessities of the situation to adopt a most stringent and sweeping measure. On the sixteenth of April, 1862, a conscription act was passed, giving to the President of the Confederacy the power to call into the mili- tary service the entire male population of the various States between the ages of eighteen and thirty- five years. In September, 1862, a second act was passed extending the con- script age to forty-five years. The measure was acquiesced in by the Southern people, but was never popular with them. It served the purpose for which it was intended, however, and enabled the Confed- erate Government to collect a force of several hundred thousand men in the spring of 1862, and thus to fill up the ranks of its armies in the field, and to retain the regiments already in the service. When the spring opened, General Halleck, whose headquarters were at St. Louis, held Missouri against the Confederates with a powerful army. General Buell, with a con- siderable force, was stationed in Central Ken- tucky. In his front an inferior force of Con- federates, under General Albert Sidney John- ^ ston, held Bowling Green and covered Nashville and the Tennessee and the Cumberland Rivers. They also held Colum- bus and other prominent points on the Mississippi. The Army of the Poto- mac, under General Mc- Clellan, lay along the Potomac, confronting the Confederate army of Northern Virginia, which held Centreville. A con- DONELSON. siderable force was col- lected at Fortress Monroe, and an army of about 10,000 Confederates, under Magruder, held a strongly fortified line, extending from Yorktown across the Peninsula to the James River. In addition to these forces, the Federal Government had collected a powerful flotilla of steamers and gunboats at Cairo, the junc- tion of the Ohio and Mississippi rivers, to assist in the operations of the Western armies. The capture of New Orleans had been resolved upon, and a combined naval and military expedition under Commodore Farragut and General Butler was assembled for that purpose; and another expedition ADMINISTRATION OF ABRAHAM LINCOLN. 689 was organized in the Chesapeake for the reduction of Roanoke Island and the forts on the North Carohna coast. Soon after the opening of the new year, Mr. Cameron, whose administration of the war department had failed to give satisfac- tion to the country, was removed by Presi- dent Lincoln, and sent to Russia as minister from the United States. The President on the thirteenth of January appointed Edwin M. Stanton, of Ohio, Secretary of War. The new secretary was _ confessedly one of the ablest men in America, and his accession to the control of the war department infused newlife into the mil- itary preparations of the government. During the remain- der of the war he occupied this posi- tion, and it is nottoo much to say that his vigorous adminis- tration of his de- partment was one of the chief causes of the final success of the Union arms. Active operations were resumed earlier in the west than in the east. On the nineteenth of January, General George H. Thomas drove the Confederates under General Zol- licoffer from Mill Spring in Kentucky. The defeated force had held the right of the Con- federate line in Kentucky, the centre of which was at Bowling Green, and the left at Columbus, and its reverse was a serious disaster to the Confederates. The department of General Halleck em- braced Kentucky in addition to the country I 44 west of the Mississippi. In order to hold the Cumberland and Tennessee rivers, which afforded water communication far back into the country in the rear of their line, the Con- federates had built a work, known as Fort Henry, on the Tennessee, a little south of the Kentucky border, and another and a stronger work, known as Fort Donelson, on the Cumberland and a little below Nashville. At the solicitation of Brigadier-General U. S. Grant, commanding at Cairo, General 'i WSjt,^,[,tA" A VIEW OF THE COUNTRY, SHOWING FORT DONELSON IN THE DISTANCE. Halleck determined to capture these forts, and so break the Confederate line, and com- pel their army to fall back from Kentucky. Fort Henry was to be first attacked. The fleet of gunboats under Commodore Foote and Grant's troops from Cairo were sent against Fort Henry, which was captured on the sixth of February after a severe bombard- ment by the gunboats which had ascended the Tennessee. The garrison escaped to Fort Donelson, twelve miles distant across the country. 690 THE CIVIL WAR. The loss of Fort Henry compelled the Confederates to evacuate all their positions MAP SHOWING PITTSBURG LANDING AND CORINTH. in Kentucky. General Beauregard fell back General Sidney Johnston slowly retired from Bowling Green upon Nashville, followed by General Buell. After the capture of Fort Henry the gunboats returned to Cairo, and, taking on board sup- plies and reinforce- ments for the army, ascended the Ohio and entered the Cumber- land, up which they passed to Fort Donel- son. Grant, in the meantime, marched across the country from Fort Henry to Fort Donelson.and in- vested the latter work. The roads were so dif- ficult that although the distance between the two forts was but twelve miles, Grant spent six days in marching it. This delay gave General Johnston an oppor- tunity to reinforce Fort Donelson. He halted at Nashville with his main army to await the result of Grant's attack on the fort. The gunboats did not joinGrant until the fourteenth of Febru- ary, and the invest- ment was not begun until their arrival. The f o 1 1 o w i n g graphic description of from Columbus to Corinth, Mississippi, and the capture of Fort Henry is from the pen of the historian, John Laird Wilson : 692 THE CIVIL WAR. "Immediately on receiving permission from Halleck to proceed with his proposed plan, Grant made arrangements for the attack on Fort Henry. He had at his disposal some seventeen thousand men. It was arranged that Commodore Foote, with a flotilla of seven gunboats, should move along the Ohio, steer up the Tennessee, and open the attack, while Grant, on the land side, should to move slowly and shell the woods, in order to discover whether there were any concealed batteries. "On the morning of the sixth it was under- stood that everything was in readiness for the attack, which was to be made simultaneously on land and water. A heavy thunder-storm had raged the previous night ; and, as a con- sequence, the roads were heavy and the IRON-CLAD GUNBOAT. render what assistance was necessary and cut off all retreat. On Monday, the second of February, Foote left Cairo, and on the .morning of Tuesday he was a few miles below Fort Henry. Grant, in the meantime, with the divisions of McClernand and C. F. Smith, had embarked in transports which were convoyed by the flotilla. These landed a few miles below the fort ; and Foote pro- ceeded up the river, having orders from Grant streams so swollen that bridges had to be built for the passage of artillery. The land forces, thus encountering unlooked-for obsta- cles, were considerably delayed. Shortly after twelve o'clock Foote opened fire upon the fort. Beginning at a thousand yards distance, he gradually ran his vessels to within six hundred yards of the enemy. The firing for a time was vigorously returned; but Foote pressed forth with irresistible ADMINISTRATION OF ABRAHAM LINCOLN. 693 bravery, and his men worked with a will and as if they meant to win. It was evident to Tilghman from the first that it was next to impossible for him to hold the fort. He nevertheless exerted himself to the utmost, encouraging his men alike by word and example, going so far as to work one of the guns himself. Serious Accidents. "A series of accidents meanwhile occurred inside the fort. A rifled twenty-four pounder burst, killing and wounding a number of the men. A forty-two pounder burst prematurely and killed three of the gunners. In a short time the well-directed fire from the gunboats had dismounted seven of the guns and made them useless ; the flagstaff also was shot away. The garrison became completely demoralized. It was in vain that Tilghman attempted to re- place the exhausted gunners. The troops in the camp outside the fort made good their escape, some by the Dover road, leading to Fort Donelson, others on board a steamer which was lying a little above Fort Henry. "Foote had promised to reduce the fort within an hour. When he made that promise he counted on assistance from the forces on the land side. Without any such aid — for the land forces had not yet arrived on the scene — he made good his word ; for the hour had scarcely expired when the white flag was raised. There was no unnecessary delay. The main body of his troops having made good their escape, Tilghman, with his staff and some sixty artillerists, surrendered to the victorious Foote, In killed and wounded the Confederate loss was twenty- one men. The only serious damage sus- tained by the fleet in the river was on board the ironclad Essex. A shot from the enemy had penetrated her boiler ; and some twenty- nine officers and men, including Commander Porter, were seriously scalded." The capture of Fort Henry was felt by the South to be a damaging blow ; and it led to bitter murmuring and even loud complaints against the authorities at Richmond. It was justly regarded by the North as a victory of great importance. It was full of instruction,, inasmnch as it proved the value of gunboats on the narrow rivers of the West, especially ' when acting in conjunction with land forces. It inspired hope, inasmuch as it reclaimed lost territory, and restored the old flag. "Fort Henry is ours !" said Halleck in his despatch to McClellan. " The flag of the Union is re-established on the soil of Ten- nessee. It will never be removed." Foote was formally thanked by the Secretary of the Navy. " The country," he was told, " appre- ciates your gallant deeds, and this Depart- ment desires to convey to you and your brave associates its profound thanks for the service you have rendered." Important Union Success. Fort Donelson was a stronger work than Fort Henry, and was held by a force of about thirteen thousand men, commanded by Gen- eral John B. Floyd. On the fourteenth of February the gunboats opened fire upon the fort, and at the same time the army of Gen- eral Grant, reinforced to about thirty thou- sand men, began to occupy the positions as- signed it in the investment. The operations of the fourteenth ended with the repulse of the fleet, Commodore Foote being severely wounded in the engagement. Satisfied of his inability to hold the fort against the over- whelming force of the Federal army,General Floyd resolved to cut his way through, and retreat upon Nashville. On the fifteenth he made a gallant attempt to break Grant's lines, but was driven back, and a portion of the Southern intrenchments remained in the hands of the Union army. On the night of the fifteenth a council of ■694 THE CIVIL WAR. war was held by the Confederate comman- ders. It was evident that escape was impos- sible and a surrender inevitable. General Floyd refused to surrender, and retreated from the fort with a considerable force of infantry and cavalry, with which he suc- ceeded in reaching Nashville. General Pil- low, who was left by Floyd in command, turned over the command to General Buck- ner, the next in rank, and joined Floyd in his flight. Being unable to offer further re- sistance, General Buckner, on the morning of the sixteenth, surrendered the fort and his troops unconditionally to the Federal army. ISLAND NO. lo. The capture at Fort Donelson was by far the most important success that had yet been won by the Union armies, and was hailed with rejoicings throughout the north and west. By this capture over five thousand prisoners, besides the Confederate wounded, fell into the hands of the Union forces. The Federals also lost heavily in killed and wounded. General Johnston, upon learning of the fall of Fort Donelson, fell back from Nashville to Murfreesboro', from which place he subse- quently continued his retreat across the State, and eventually joined General Beaure- gard, who had taken position at Corinth, at the junction of two important railway lines on the northern border of Mississippi. Beau- regard, in falling back from Columbus, had left a force at Island No. lo, which had been strongly fortified, to hold the Mississippi against the efforts of the Federal fleet and army to obtain the control of the river. Nashville was occupied by the army of General Buell, and Grant's army was moved up the Tennessee as far as Pittsburgh Land- ing. General Buell was ordered to march across the country from Nashville to the Tennessee, to unite his forces with Grant's and attack the Confederates at Corinth. General Johnston, the Confederate com- mander, had feared this concentration, which would make the ~==" _ _ Federal power in this quarter irresis- tible, and had de- termined to attack Grant's army and crush it before Buell could arrive, after which he would be free to engage Buell. His plan was ably con- ceived but his march was delayed by the fearful state of the roads, and he did not arrive opposite the Federal position until two days after the time fixed for his attack. Grant was encamped at Shiloh Church, near Pittsburgh Landing, with the Tennessee river in his rear. On the morning of Sunday, April sixth, his army was suddenly attacked by Johnston, and was driven steadily from its original position to the banks of the Tennessee, where it was sheltered by the fire of the gunboats. The battle was stubbornly contested, and the losses on both sides were very heavy. Late in the afternoon General Johnston was mortally wounded, and died soon after- wards. The command passed to General ADMINISTRATION OF ABRAHAM LINCOLN. 695 Beauregard, who failed to follow up his advantage. During the night the army of General Buell arrived, and reinforced Grant. On the morning of the seventh Grant attacked the Confederates, and after a sharp fight drove them back. They retreated slowly and returned to Corinth. While these operations were in progress, the gunboats under Commodore Foote and a strong force of Western troops under Pope laid siege to Island No. 10, on the Mis- sissippi. After a bombardment of twenty- three days, the Confederate works were cap- tured, together with five thousand prisoners, on the seventh of April, the day on which Beauregard was driven back from Shiloh. The Confederates still held Fort Pillow, a strong work a short distance above Mem- phis. If this could be captured, the Federal forces would obtain the control of the river as far south as Vicksburg. General Pope was anxious to move against it at once, but his army was ordered to join General Hal- leck. Commodore Foot being disabled by bis wound received at Fort Donelson, was succeeded by Captain Davis, who descended the river and took position above Fort Pil- low. General Halleck now repaired to the Ten- nessee, and took command of the Union armies there, amounting to more than one hundred thousand men. He moved forward leisurely towards Corinth, and laid siege to that place. Beauregard, seeing that it was impossible to hold Corinth against this greatly superior force, evacuated it on the night of the twenty-ninth of May, and retreated to Tupelo, Mississippi. The next day General Halleck occupied Corinth. The loss of Corinth compelled the evacuation of Fort Pillow, which was abandoned by the Confederates on the fourth ot June. On the sixth the Union gunboats descended the river to Memphis, and defeated the Confederate flotilla above that city. Memphis at once surrendered, and was occupied by the Union forces. All West Kentucky and West Ten- nessee were now under the control of the Union armies, which now occupied a line extending from Memphis, through Corinth, almost to Chattanooga. Early in July news came to the East of another massacre in the Mormon territory. A fanatic by the name of Morris, who claimed to be the true successor of Joseph Smith, and had gathered several hundred followers, was accused of having committed various depredations, and a small force was sent by order of the chief Mormons to arresf BURNING HORSES AT SHILOH. him. The force was under command of one Burton, sheriff of Salt Lake county. Morris refused to surrender, a conflict ensued, the camp of the Morrisites was riddled with cannon balls, and Morris was shot by Burton. Two Brighamites and ten Morrisites were killed, and a large number were wounded. The attacking party appears to have prac- ticed unnecessary cruelty. Returning to the story of the war, the Confederates still held East Tennessee in heavy force. Shortly after the evacuation of Corinth General Beauregard was removed from his command, and was succeeded by General Braxton Bragg. Bragg was strongly 696 THE CIVIL WAR. reinforced, and it was determined to make a bold effort to drive back the Federal advance and regain West Tennessee and, if possible, Kentucky. Bragg's army was concentrated at Chattanooga, and Geneneral Kirby Smith at Knoxville was strongly reinforced. Smith was to move from Knoxville, while Bragg was to advance from Chattanooga, and the two armies were to unite in the centre of the State of Kentucky. Their combined forces amounted to over fifty thousand men, and it Smith then occupied Lexington and Frank- fort, and advanced towards Cincinnati ; but ascertaining that a strong force was assem- bling at that city, under General Lewis Wal- lace, he fell back to Frankfort, where he joined General Bragg on the fourth of October. Bragg had begun his march as soon as Kirby Smith had gotten fairly started. His objective point was Louisville, and he hoped to be able to elude the army of General Buell, which was at Nashville, and by a rapid ad- MASSACRE OF THE MORRISITES. was hoped that this movement would compel the Federal army to abandon its advance, and fall back into Kentucky to protect that State and Ohio from the Confederates. Then, by a decisive victory, Bragg expected to be able to overrun and hold Kentucky and even to invade Ohio. The division of General Smith moved for- ward about the middle of August, and on the thirtieth of August defeated a Union force under General Manson at Richmond, Ken- tucky, inflicting upon it a loss of 6,000 men. vance seize Louisville before Buell's arrival. By the seventeenth of September he was at Munfordsville, Kentucky, which he captured after several slight encounters, taking forty- five hundred prisoners. Buell in the mean- time had divined Bragg's purpose, and had set out from Nashville for the Ohio by forced marches. He reached Louisville before the arrival of the Confederates, and being heavily reinforced advanced to attack Bragg, who had turned aside and occupied Frankfort on the fourth of October. 1 1 1 1 — 1 •y n a, 1 3 cu s [^ CO CO 1 ^ CO ^ CO oj s i ^ >^ in pq to S g o N p of EH , ^ TO nd"^ PORTRAITS OF PROMINENT CONFEDERATE GENERALS. 697 698 THE CIVIL WAR. Bragg fell back slowly, ravaging the coun- try along his route, and was followed by Buell with equal deliberation. On the eighth of October an indecisive battle was fought be- tween the two armies at Perryville. After this conflict, in which both sides lost heavily, Buell refrained from attacking Bragg again, and the latter continued his retreat leisurely into Tennessee, taking with him a wagon train forty miles in length, loaded with plunder captured in Kentucky. Grant Strikes Decisive Blows. During this campaign the Federal army under General Grant had held its line in West Tennessee, extending from Corinth to Mem- phis. A Confederate army under Generals Price and Van Dorn was assembled in Mis- sissippi in front of the Union position. Grant, who was now in command of the Federal forces in West Tennessee (Halleck having been summond to Washington as Com- manding General), ordered General Rosecrans to his assistance. Upon the arrival of this commander with his troops, Grant advanced upon Price at luka, and defeated him on the nineteenth of September. He then repaired to Jackson, Tennessee, leaving Rosecrans with nineteen thousand men to hold Corinth against the Confederates. After his defeat at luka Price was joined by Van Dorn, whose troops brought the strength of the Confederate army to eighteen thousand men. They at once advanced upon Corinth, and on the fourth of October attacked that place. The battle which ensued was noted for the obstinacy with which it was contested by both sides. The Confederates were defeated with a loss of about three thou- sand killed and wounded, and were pursued for about thirty miles southward. The Union loss was about five hundred and eighteen killed, wounded and missing. The Federal Government was greatly dis- satisfied with Buell's failure to intercept Bragg, and upon his arrival at Nashville he was removed from the command of his army, which was conferred upon General Rose- crans, as a reward for his victory at Corinth. Bragg had taken position near Murfreesboro', about thirty miles distant from Nashville, and Rosecrans, towards the last of December, moved upon that place to attack him. Bragg had at the same time completed his prepara- tions to resume the offensive, and had begun his advance upon Nashville, and the two armies encountered each other at Stone River, near Murfreesboro', on the thirty-first of December. They were about equal in strength, each numbering about forty thou- sand men. Bragg Repulsed by Rosecrans. The battle was fiercely disputed, but at nightfall Rosecrans was driven back with heavy loss, and Bragg telegraphed to Rich- mond news of a great victory. Rosecrans, however, had merely fallen back to a new and stronger position. On the second o) January, 1863, Bragg renewed his attack, but was repulsed with terrible slaughter. On the third a heavy rain fell and prevented all military operations, and that night Bragg retreated from the field. He retired in good order to Tullahoma, about thirty miles from Murfreesboro'. The losses on both sides in this battle were heavy, ranging from ten thousand to twelve thousand men in each army. The Confederates, having lost the uppei and lower Mississippi, had fortified Vicksburg and Port Hudson, in order to maintain their hold upon that stream, and to keep open theii communications with the country west of the Mississippi. Vicksburg had been made a post of extraordinary strength, and was gan risoned by a considerable force of Confed^ erate troops. Towards the last of the yeai ADMINISTRATION OF ABRAHAM LINCOLN. 699 General Grant determined to undertake an expedition against it. He sent General Sher- man with forty thousand men, and a fleet of gunboats, under Commodore Porter, to de- scend the Mississippi and attack the southern works above the city ; and advanced south- ward from Corinth with the main army by land. Grant had accomplished fully half the distance when a strong body of Con- federate cavalry, under General Van Dorn, made a dash into his rear, and on the twen- tieth of December cap- tured Holly Springs, Grant's principal de- pot of supplies. This movement compelled Grant to abandon his advance upon Vicksburg, and to fall back and re- establish his com- munications with his base. Sherman, ignor- ant of this disaster, left Memphis on the twentieth of Decem- ber, and a few days later landed his troops on the banks of the Yazoo, from which he advanced upon the Confederate works at Chickasaw bayou, on the north of Vicksburg. On the twenty-hinth of December he made a spirited attack upon them, but was repulsed. He withdrew his troops to the boats, and retired to Young's Point, on the Louisiana shore, a short distance above Vicksburg. The Confederates were driven out of Mis- souri at the close of 1861, and retired into Arkansas. General Van Dorn was now sent by the Confederate government to take command of the forces of Price and McCul- GENERAL SHERMAN AT THE OUTBREAK OF THE WAR. loch, which numbered about sixteen thousand men. He reached the head-quarters of this force on the third of March, 1862. The Federal army, under General Curtis, with General Sigel as his second in command, had taken position on the heights of Pea o i^ n o tn (—1 > H H W > td > 5« 700 ADMINISTRATION OF ABRAHAM LINCOLN. 701 Ridge, around Sugar creek, in the north- western part of Arkansas. It numbered about eleven thousand rnen. On the seventh of March Van Dorn attacked the Union army in this position, and after a bloody fight, which lasted for about seven or eight hours, drove it back. Curtis took up a new position during the night, and the next morning the Confederates renewed the attack, and were repulsed. After the battle of Shiloh, the troops of Price and Van Dorn were withdrawn across the Mississippi to reinforce General Beau- regard at Corinth. We have seen them bearing the brunt of the campaign in northern Mississippi against Grant's army. Towards the close of the summer, it being necessary to make a vigorous effort to hold the trans- Mississippi region against the efforts of the Union forces, the Confederate government sent Lieutenant-General Holmes to take command of it. The operations in this region during the remainder of the year were of an unimportant character. General Burnside's Expedition. The plan of the Federal government for seizing the prominent points on the coast was carried forward with great energy during the year 1862. Between Albemarle and Pamlico Sounds, on the coast of North Caro- lina, lies Roanoke Island, famous as the scene of Sir Walter Raleigh's unfortunate attempts to colonize America, and com- manding the entrance to Albemarle Sound. The possession of this island by the Federal forces would give them the command of the rivers entering into the sounds, place the rear defences of Norfolk at their mercy, and afford them a safe base from which to attack the towns on the North Carolina coast. The Federal government having determined to obtain possession of Roanoke Island, a powerful expedition against it was fitted out early in the year, under the command of Major-General Ambrose E. Burnside. The expedition sailed from Hampton Koads on the eleventh of January, 1862, and after narrowly escaping being scattered by a severe storm, passed through Hatteras inlet, and anchored in Pamlico Sound on the twenty-eighth. On the sixth of February the fleet took position off Roanoke Island, and on the seventh opened fire upon the Confederate works. Under the cover of this fire a force of over ten thousand troops was landed upon the island. On the eighth, Gen- eral Burnside attacked the Confederate in- trenchments and carried them after a sharp contest. The entire Confederate force, num- bering about twenty-five hundred men, fell into his hands as prisoners of war. On the tenth, the Confederate squadron in Albemarle Sound was attacked and destroyed, or cap- tured. Having established himself firmly on Ro- anoke Island, General Burnside prepared to reduce the towns along the coast of North Carolina. On the fourteenth of March, New- berne surrendered to him, and on the twenty- fifth of April, Fort Macon, at the entrance of Beaufort Harbor, one of the strongest works on the coast, capitulated. Successes on the Florida Coast. Some important successes were won on the Coast of Florida during the spring of this year. An expedition from Port Royal cap- tured Fernandina and Fort Clinch, on the twenty-eightb. of February, and a little later Jacksonville, on the St. John's River, and St. Augustine passed into the hands of the Fed- eral troops. Brunswick and Darien, import- ant places on the coast of Georgia, were cap- tured about the same time. The most important naval expedition of the year was that which resulted in the capture of New Orleans. The Federal 707 PORTRAITS OF THE PRINCIPAL NAVAL COMMANDERS DURING THE WAR. ADMINISTRATION OF ABRAHAM LINCOLN. 703 Government had recognized from the first the importance of regaining possession of the Mississippi, and, as we have seen, a large fleet of gunboats had been prepared on the upper waters of that stream to co-operate with the army in its efforts to capture the fortified posts along the river. All these efforts, how- ever, were useless as long as the Confederates retained possession of the lower river or of the important city of New Orleans, the com- mercial metropolis of the South. It was resolved at an early period of the struggle to wrest New Orleans from the Confederates, and a fleet of forty-five vessels of war and mortar-boats was assembled for this purpose, and placed under command of Commodore Farragut, an able and experienced officer. To the fleet was added a force of fifteen thousand troops, under General B. F. Butler. The expedition rendezvoused at Ship Island, near the mouth of the Mississippi, in the «arly part of March. Tactics of Admiral Farragut. About twenty miles above the head of the passes of the Mississippi, and about seventy miles below New Orleans, the entrance to the river is defended by two strong works — Fort Jackson on the right bank of the stream, and Fort St. Philip on the left — both built before the war. The Confederates had further strengthened their position by stretching six heavy chains, supported on a series of dismasted schooners, across the river, from shore to shore, to prevent the passage of ships. Early in April the fleet sailed from Ship Island, leaving the troops there to await the result of its operations, and entering the Mississippi took position below the forts. On the eighteenth the bombardment of the forts was begun by the ships and the mortar-boats, and was continued with great vigor until the twenty-fourth. The results of this bombardment was most discouraging, and Farragut became convinced that the forts could not be reduced by the fire of the fleet. He therefore determined to pass them with his vessels and so neutralize them. The chain and raft barricade across the river had been broken by a severe storm, and Farragut sent a party to enlarge the gap made in it, so as to admit the passage of the fleet. This task was accomplished with great gallantry. At three o'clock, on the morning of the twenty-fourth of April, the fleet got under headway and began to ascend the river, the commodore in his flag-ship, the " Hartford," leading the way. The fleet consisted of seventeen vessels, carrying two hundred and ninety-four guns. Desperate Naval Battle. As the vessels came abreast of the forts the Confederates opened a heavy fire upon them, to which they responded with vigor. The forts were passed in safety at length and a short distance above them Farragut encountered the Confederate fleet, consisting of sixteen vessels, but eight of which were armed. Two of these were iron-clads, how- ever. A desperate battle ensued, which resulted in the total destruction of the south- ern fleet. When the sun rose on the morn- ing of the twenty-fourth the forts had been passed, and the resistance of the Confederate vessels had been overcome. There was nothing now between the Federal fleet and New Orleans, and Farragut, ascending the river slowly and cautiously, anchored in the stream, in front of the city, on the morning of the twenty-fifth. He at once demanded the capitulation of New Orleans, which had been evacuated by the Confederate troops on the previous day, and the city was surrendered to him by the municipal authorities. On the twenty-eighth Forts Jackson and St. Philip surrendered to 704 ADMINISTRATION OF ABRAHAM LINCOLN. 705 Captain Porter, the commander of the mor- tar fleet. New Orleans being taken, word was sent to General Butler, at Ship Island, to hasten forward with his troops to occupy it. He arrived on the first of May, and at once took possession of the city. Baton Rouge, the capital of Louisiana, was occupied by the Federal forces, and Farragut pushed on up the river, and, passing the Confederate bat- teries at Grand Gulf and Vicksburg, joined the fleet of Commodore Davis at Memphis. The capture of New Orleans was a terrible blow to the South. It deprived the Con- federacy of the largest and wealthiest city within its limits, and wrested from it the whole of the lower Mississippi. Fort Pulaski Surrenders. Another success was gained by the Union arms on the Southern coast. An expedition from Port Royal, under General Hunter, laid siege to Fort Pulaski, near the mouth of the Savannah River. This fort was constructed by the Federal government previous to the war, and constituted one of the principal defences of the city of Savannah. On the eleventh of April, after a bombardment of fifteen days, it surrendered to General Hunter. Its capture closed the Savannah River to the entrance of the class of vessels known as blockade runners, and deprived the South of the use of one of its principal ports. The events of this year in Virginia were of the highest importance. The Army of the Potomac, nearly two hundred thousand strong, was ready for active operations with the early spring. General McClellan was anxious to avail himself of the superior naval strength of the United States to transport his army to a point on the Chesapeake Bay, from which it could easily interpose between the Confederate army, under General John- ston, and Richmond. Suspecting such a design on the part of 45 McClellan, Johnston abandoned his position at Centreville, on the eighth of March, and fell back to the Rappahannock, and a little later moved back still farther to the line of the Rapidan. McClellan advanced to Cen- treville as soon as informed of Johnston's withdrawal, but was too late to interfere with the movements of the Confederate army. Exploits of the *' Merrimac." Simultaneous with Johnston's withdrawal from Centreville occurred an incident which forms one of the most striking episodes of the war, and led to results of world-wide importance. Upon the evacuation of the Norfolk navy yard by the Federal forces, at the outset of the war, the splendid steam frigate " Merrimac " was scuttled and sunk This vessel was subsequently raised by the Confederates, and rebuilt by them. Her upper deck was removed, and she was covered with a slanting roof. Both the roof and her sides were heavily plated with iron, and a long, stout bow was fitted to her to enable her to act as a ram. She was then armed with ten heavy guns, and named the " Vir- ginia." Thus prepared, she was the most powerful vessel afloat. As soon as the " Virginia " was ready for service the Confederate authorities deter- mined to test her efficiency by attempting to destroy the Federal fleet to Hampton Roads. On the eighth of March the " Virginia," ac- companied by two small vessels, left Norfolk and steamed down the Elizabeth River into Hampton Roads. Her appearance took the Federal fleet by surprise, and a heavy fire was concentrated upon her from the fleet and the batteries on shore at Newport News, at the mouth of the James River. Shot and shell flew harmlessly from her iron sides, and, firing slowly as she advanced, she aimed straight for the sloop of war "Cumberland" — the most formidable vessel of her class in 7o6 THE CIVIL WAR. the navy — and sunk her with a blow of her iron prow. The frigate " Congress," lying near by, was chased into shoal water and compelled to surrender, after which she was set on fire. GENERAL GEORGE B. M CLELLAN The ram then endeavored to inflict a similar fate upon the frigate " Minnesota," but that vessel escaped into water too shallow for the iron-clad to venture into. At sunset the "Virginia" drew oft, and returned to the EHzabeth River. She had destroyed two of the finest vessels in the Federal navy, and inflicted upon her adversaries a loss of two hundred and fifty officers and men. She was herself uninjured, and had but two men killed and eight wounded. The success of the "Virginia" struck terror to the fleet in Hampton Roads, and it was by no means certain that the vic- torious vessel would not the next day either attack Fort Monroe, or pass by it and as- cend the Chesapeake, in which case both Washington and Bal- timore would be at her mercy. During the night, however, a most unlooked-for assist- ance arrived. The " Monitor," an iron- clad vessel of a new plan, invented by Cap- tain John Ericsson, entered Hampton Roads on her trial trip from New York. Upon learning the state of affairs her commander, Lieuten- ant Worden, deter- mined to engage the " Virginia " the next day. On the morning ofthe ninth the "Vir- p-inia " ag-ain steamed out of the EHzabeth River into Hampton Roads. The "Monitor," though her inferior in size, and carrying but a single gun, at once moved forward to meet her. An engagement of several hours' duration ensued, in which both vessels were fought ADMINISTRATION OF ABRAHAM LINCOLN. 707 with great gallantry ; and at the end of this time the " Virginia " drew off, and returned to Norfolk severely injured. The arrival of the " Monitor" was most fortunate. It saved the Federal fleet in Hampton Roads from total destruction, and prevented the " Vir- ginia " from extending her ravages to the ports of the Union. The battle between the " Monitor" and the " Virginia " will ever be famous as the first engagement between iron- clad vessels. It inaugurated a new era in naval warfare. In spite of the result of the battle, however, the presence of the " Vir- ginia" at Norfolk deterred the Federal forces from risking an attack on that place, and prevented them from mak- ing any effort to ascend the James River with their fleet. In the meantime the army of Gen- eral McClellan had returned to its position near Alexandria, after the retreat of the Confederates to the Rapidan. General McClellan now proposed to move the bulk of his army to Fortress Monroe, and to advance from that point upon Rich- mond by way of the peninsula between the York and James Rivers. About seventy-five thousand men were left on the Potomac to cover Washington, and the remainder, about one hundred and twenty thousand in number, were trans- ported by water to Fortress Monroe. This movement was accomplished by the second of April. Johnston's Successful Retreat. On the fourth the Army of the Potomac began its march' towards the lines of York- town, which were held by about eleven thousand five hundred men, under General Magruder. The Confederate commander had passed the first year of the war in forti- fying his position, and had constructed a series of powerful works which enabled him, with his small force, to hold McClellan's whole army in check. On he fifth and sixth of April McClellan made repeated attempts to force the southern lines, and failing in these decided to lay siege to them. The time thus gained by Magruder enabled General Johnston to move his army from the Rapidan to the peninsula. It was in position on the lines of Yorktown by the seventeenth of April, making the force opposed to McClellan about fifty-eight thousand strong. The Confederates did not expect to hold VIEW OF THE CHICKAHOMINY NEAR MECHANICSVILLE. their position on the peninsula, but from the first intended to move back nearer to Richmond, and occupy the line of the Chick- ahominy. When their preparations were completed they fell back from the lines of Yorktown, on the night of the third of May, just as McClellan was about to begin his bombardment of their position. The Federal army discovered the retreat on the morning of the fourth of May, and moved forward promptly in the hope of inter- cepting the Southern army. On the morning of the fifth the advanced forces attacked the 7o8 THE CIVIL WAR. rear-guard of Johnston's army at Williams- burg. The Confederate commander held his MAP OF NORTHERN VIRGINIA. reached the Chickahominy about the tenth of May without further molestation from the Union forces. General McClellan, following leisurely, took posi- tion on the left bank of the Chickahominy, with the river between the two armies. In accordance with General McClellan's urgent request, Presi- dent Lincoln decided to order the force left to cover Washington to join the Army of the Potomac, before Richmond, by the way of Fredericks- burg. With his force thus augmented the Union commander had no doubt of his ability to capture Richmond. Alive to this danger General Johnston directed General Jackson, who had been left to hold the valley of Vir- ginia,to manoeuvre his army so as to threaten Washington, and com- pel the Federal gov- ernment to retain the force intended for Mc- Clellan for the defence of Washington. While awaiting the arrival of this force McClellan threw his left wing across the Chicka- ground until his trains had gotten off in safety, and then resumed his retreat, and hominy, and lodged it in a position nearer to Richmond. The Federal lines now extended ADMINISTRATION OF ABRAHAM LINCOLN. 709 from Bottom's Bridge, on the Chickahominy, to Mechanicsville, north of that stream. The evacuation of the peninsula compelled the Confederates to abandon Norfolk also. They withdrew their troops from that city on the ninth of May, and sent them to rein- force General Johns- ton. On the tenth Nor- folk and Portsmouth were occupied by the Federal forces under General Wool. Before leaving the Confeder- ates had set fire to the navy yard, which was destroyed. The iron- clad steamer " Vir- ginia" was taken into the James River, and on the eleventh was abandoned and blown up. The loss of this 1 steamer, which could have held the James against the whole Union fleet, left the river open to within eight miles of Rich- mond. The gunboats, in- cluding the " Moni- tor," were sent up to try to force their way to Richmond, but on the fifteenth of May were driven back by a battery of heavy guns located on the heights at Drewry's bluff, eight miles below Richmond. They were badly injured by the plunging fire of the Confederates. The river was securely obstructed at this point to prevent a pas- sage of the batteries bv the Federal fleet. Having been heavily reinforced, General Johnston determined to attack McClellan's exposed left wing, and on the thirty-first of May fell upon it at Seven Pines, and drove it back with heavy loss. General Johnston LIEUTENANT-GENERAL T. J. JACKSON. was severely wounded towards the close of the day, and was unable to carry out the plan upon which he had begun the battle. The next day there was heavy skir- mishing until about ten o'clock in the morn- ing, but nothing of a more serious nature was lo THE CIVIL WAR. attempted by either side. General McClel- lan, warned by the narrow escape of his left wing, now proceeded to fortify his position on the south bank of the Chickahominy. While these events were in progress on the Chickahominy, General Jackson carried out with brilliant success the movements assigned him in the valley of Virginia, His task required the exercise of the greatest skill and determination. He was to neu- tralize the forces of Fremont, Banks and McDowell, and prevent them from render- ing any assistance to McClellan. Jackson's army fell back from Winchester on the elev- enth of March, and retired as far as Mount Jackson. Then rapidly retracing its steps it attacked Banks' forces at Kernstown, near Winchester. Though repulsed in this engagement, it succeeded in alarming the Federal government for the safety of Wash- ington. Banks' command was therefore retained in the valley to watch Jackson, and the force under McDowell was not allowed to go to McClellan's assistance on the peninsula, lest by so doing it should uncover Washington. After the battle of Kernstown Jackson retired up the valley, and a season of comparative quietude ensued. The Federal government even believed that his troops had been sent to Richmond. Jackson's Brilliant Achievements. Fremont's army was ordered to move from western Virginia into the valley ; Banks was directed to march to Manassas and cover Washington ; while McDowell, with forty thousand men, was ordered to move from Fredericksburg, from which he was to march across the country and unite with McClel- lan's left wing, which was thrown out far to the north of Richmond to meet him. These orders were in process of execution when Jackson, who had been reinforced by a divis- ion under General Ewell, destroyed the whole Federal plan of campaign. Knowing that he could not possibly resist the combined forces of Fremont and Banks, Jackson determined to beat them in detail. Marching rapidly westward, he crossed the mountains, fell upon the advance guard of Fremont's army at McDowell, on the eighth of May, defeated it, and drove it back into western Virginia. Then retracing his steps with remarkable speed, he returned to the valley, and on the twenty-third of May attacked Banks' outlying force at Front Royal, and drove it in upon the main body at Strasburg. Banks at once broke up his camp and fell back down the valley, pursued by Jackson, who dealt him a terrible blow at Winchester on the twenty-fifth. By extraordinary exer- tions Banks succeeded in escaping across the Potomac, but left about three thousand prisoners, several pieces of artillery, nine thousand stand of arms, and the greater part of his stores in the hands of the Confederates. Richmond Saved from Capture. This bold advance greatly alarmed the government at Washington, and the Presi- dent ordered Fremont to move with speed into the valley, and directed General Mc- Dowell to suspend his movement to the assistance of McClellan, and send a force of twenty thousand men to gain Jackson's rear and prevent his return up the valley. Mc- Dowell sent the required force under General Shields, and Fremont hurried on to gain the upper valley in advance of Jackson. These movements entirely prevented McClellan from receiving the assistance of McDowell's corps, and saved Richmond from capture. Jackson was too good a general to be caught in a trap so skillfully laid for him. He retired up the valley with the greatest speed, and having interposed his army PORTRAITS OF PROMINENT CONFEDERATE GENERALS. 711 712 THE CIVIL WAR. between Fremont and Shields, turned upon the former, and with a part of his force attacked him at Cross Keys on the eighth of June, and checked his advance. Then re- uniting his forces he fell upon Shields at Port Republic on the ninth of June, and drove him back with heavy loss after one of the hardest fought battles of the war. Hav- ing thus put an end to the pursuit of his antagonists, Jackson withdrew to a safe posi- tion, from which he could hold them in check or go to the aid of the army defend- ing Richmond. The latter move being decided upon, he eluded the Federal forces in the valley, and marched rapidly to the Chickahominy. Be- fore his absence from the valley was sus- pected, he had joined General Lee. His campaign in the valley is justly regarded as one of the most brilliant of the war. With less than twenty thousand men he had neu- tralized a force of sixty thousand Union troops, and prevented the execution of Mc- Clellan's carefully laid plans for the capture of Richmond. General Lee Takes Command. Upon the fall of General Johnston the command of the Confederate army before Richmond was conferred upon General Robert E. Lee, whom subsequent events proved to be the ablest of the Southern leaders. Troops were drawn from every pos- sible point to reinforce General Lee's army, and by the middle of June his forces, includ- ing Jackson's army, amounted to ninety thousand men. The Federal army was one hundred and fifteen thousand strong. Both armies were in fine condition. General Mc- Clellan, finding it impossible to obtain the assistance of McDowell's corps, and fearing for the safety of his communications with his base of supplies, Avhich was at West Point, at the head of the York River, prepared to move his army to the south side of the Chickahominy, and establish a new and more secure base upon the James River. Before he could put this design in opera- tion he was attacked by General Lee, who,, on the twenty-fifth of June, fell upon the right of the Union line at Mechanicsville, and forced it back upon the centre at Cold Harbor. On the twenty-sixth the position at Cold Harbor was attacked and carried by the Confederates after a desperate struggle. With great difficulty McClellan secured his retreat to the south side of the Chickahom- iny, and destroyed the bridges in his rear. Having decided to retreat to the James- River rather than attempt to retain his com- munication with West Point, McClellan destroyed his stores, and on the twenty-* eighth began his retreat from the Chicka- hominy by way of White Oak Swamp. As soon as his movement was discovered pur- suit was made by the Confederates, who attacked his rear guard under General Sum- ner at Savage Station late in the afternoon of the twenty-ninth. Sumner held his ground until the darkness put an end to the action,, and during the night of the twenty-ninth withdrew across White Oak Swamp, destroy- ing all the bridges after him. End of the " Seven Days' Battles." On the thirtieth General Lee made a last effort to prevent McClellan from reaching the James, and towards the close of the afternoon the bloody battle of Frazier's Farni was fought. It was continued until nine o'clock. The Federal force at Frazier's Farm held its ground until the remainder of McClellan's army had safely traversed White Oak Swamp. The object of the battle hav- ing been accomplished, McClellan resumed his retreat to the James River, and took posi- tion upon Malvern Hill, within a short dis- tance of that stream. Here he massed his ADMINISTRATION OF ABRAHAM LINCOLN. 713 artillery, and the gunboats in the James River moved up to a point from which they could throw their shells into the Confederate lines. On the afternoon of the first of July the Confederates made a gallant attempt to carry Malvern Hill, but were repulsed with severe loss. The next morning the Federal army withdrew to Harrison's Landing on the James River. Thus ended the " Seven Days' Battles," during which the Federal army lost about twenty thousand men in killed, wounded and prisoners, fifty-two pieces of artillery, thirty-five thousand stand of arms, and an enormous quantity of stores of all kinds. The Confederate loss was nineteen thousand five hundred and thirty-three killed, wounded and missing. The retreat of McClellan'sarm.y threw the North into the deepest despondency. On the second of July President Lincoln issued a call for three hundred thousand fresh troops. The necessities of the struggle, however, made this force insufficient, and on the fourth of August the President ordered that a draft of three hundred thousand militia should be made and placed in the service of the United States for a period of nine months unless sooner discharged. The States complied with the requisitions upon them, and in the brief period of three months the enormous mass of six hundred thousand fresh troops was raised, armed and placed in the field. Battle of Cedar Mountain. For the protection of Washington the Federal government now collected the com- mands of Banks, Fremont and McDowell in one army, and placed it under command of Major-General John Pope, whose capture of Island No. 10 and other points in the west had given him a fair reputation. He assumed his new command with a profiision of boasts, and promised to succeed where McClellan had failed. According to General Pope the capture of Richmond was the easiest under- taking in the world. His army towards the latter part of July advanced to the Rapidan. To watch this force General. Lee, late in July, sent General Jackson's corps to the Rapidan. On the ninth of August Jackson attacked the advanced corps of Pope's army at Cedar Mountain, and defeated it. This defeat suspended General Pope's forward movement. General McClellan now received orders from Washington to evacuate Harri- son's Landing and to reinforce General Pope with his army. He at once put this order in execution. The withdrawal of his troops was detected by General Lee, who rapidly reinforced Jackson, and finally moved with his whole army to the Rapidan. Daring Flank Movement. About the same time Burnside's corps, which had been withdrawn from the southern coast, and was awaiting orders in Hampton Roads, was directed to move into the Potomac and reinforce Pope. General Pope had now under his command a force of over one hundred thousand men. The Confed- erate army, which was concentrated upon the Rapidan by the eighteenth of August, num- bered about seventy thousand men. Its strength was greatly overestimated by Gen- eral Pope, who deemed it most prudent to retire behind the Rappahannock, which he did on the eighteenth and nineteenth of August. His new position was well chosen. His right was at Rappahannock Station, and his left at Kelley's ford, some distance lower down the river. General Lee now resolved to attack Pope before he could be joined by McClellan's troops. He divided his army into two columns, and sent Jackson's corps by a cir- cuitous route, by way of Thoroughfare Gap, to gain the rear of the Federal army This 714 THE CIVIL WAR. daring flank march was accomplished by Jackson, and on the twenty-sixth of August trains loaded with supplies. Upon learning of this movement Pope at once fell back H QCKlR ~>KL\;'cMVi^s_0 (^ 'CD -ORD PORTRAITS OF PROMINENT FEDERAL GENERALS. he captured Manassas Junction, Pope's main depotof supplies, with an enormous quantity of stores of all kinds, and several railroad from the Rappahannock, intending to crush the isolated corps of Jackson, and at the same time Lee set off rapidly by way o( ADMINISTRATION OF ABRAHAM LINCOLN. 715 Thoroughfare Gap to join his endangered lieutenant. Pope's army had been reinforced by the corps of Porter and Heintzelman, and Rey- nolds' division of McClellan's army, and was at least one hundred and twenty thousand strong. He moved back rapidly to attack Jackson, and encountered Evvell's division near Manassas Junction on the twenty- seventh. Ewell held his ground, and at night rejoined Jackson, who moved swiftly from Manassas to a new position near the old Bull Run battle-field. This brought him nearer to Lee, and secured his retreat in case of a defeat. Ewell's resistance deceived General Pope, who had posted McDowell's and Porter's corps to hold the road from Thoroughfare Gap, by which Lee must advance to Jackson's assistance. Supposing that Jackson meant to make a stand at Manassas, Pope ordered these troops to mo\e from the positions they had taken and to adv^ance upon Manassas Junction. Manassas was reached at noon on the twenty- eighth, and then General Pope saw for the first time how he had been deceived by Jackson, and how he had blundered in leaving the road from Thoroughfare Gap open to Lee. His command was in a critical position, and he was so situated that he could not make the best use of the forces which were at his disposal. Repulse of the Union Forces. He endeavored to repair his error by at- tacking Jackson at once. He did attack that general in his new position late in the afternoon of the twenty-eighth, but was re- pulsed with severe loss. On the same after- noon General Lee with Longstreet's corps forced the passage of Thoroughfare Gap, and bivouacked that night in the open country beyond it. On the morning of the twenty- ninth he pushed forward with speed, and by noon his advanced division reached Jack- son's position. By four o'clock in the after- noon the Confederate army was reunited under the command of General Lee. About three o'clock in the afternoon General Pope determined to attack upon Lee's 'position, but was repulsed. On the thirtieth, having reunited all the corps of his army, General Pope determined to risk the fate of the campaign upon a de- cisive engagement. The Confederates held a large part of the old battlefield of Bull Run, and the conflict which ensued is usually MAJOR-GENERAL PHILIP KEARNEY. known as the second battle of Bull Run. It resulted in the defeat of General Pope, who was driven back to the heights of Centre- ville with heavy loss. On the thirty-first Jackson attacked the Federal rear-guard at Chantilly. A spirited encounter took place, and the Federal troops were slowly forced back, losing General Phil Kearney, one of the most accomplished officers in the service. General Pope now withdrew his army within the lines of Washington. He had lost since the opening of the campaign over thirty thousand men, includ- ing eight generals killed, thirty pieces of artillery, over twenty thousand stand of 7i6 THE CIVIL WAR. arms, and an enormous quantity of stores. The Confederate loss was nine thousand one hundred and twelve, including five generals. The defeat of the Union army and the presence of the Confederates on the Poto- mac placed the city of Washington in great danger. The government acted with vigor and decision in this emergency. The losses of Pope's army were made up by reinforce- ments. General Pope was relieved of com- mand, and General McClellan was restored to the command of the army of the Potomac. He set to work with energy to reorganize the broken masses of Pope's army into an effective force. McClellan at South Mountain. General Lee now crossed the Potomac and invaded Maryland, hoping to be able not only to remove the war from the soil of Vir- ginia, but also to obtain large reinforcements from the southern sympathizers in Maryland. In this he was disappointed, as scarcely any one joined him. On the fifth of September he crossed the Potomac, and on the sixth occupied Frederick City. Harper's Ferry was held by a force of eleven thousand men under Colonel Miles, and it was necessary to reduce this post in order to preserve the com- munications of the Confederate army with its own country. General Jackson was despatched with his corps to capture Harp- er's Ferry. He promptly carried the heights overlooking the town, and on the fifteenth of September the town and garrison surren- dered to him after a feeble resistance. General Lee in the meantime had taken position at South Mountain to await the issue of Jackson's attack upon Harper's Ferry. McClellan, advancing slowly from Washington, reached Frederick on the twelfth of September. There he found a copy of General Lee's confidential order to his corps commanders, which had been lost by some one. This document gave the Con- federate plan of operations, and enabled McClellan to act with certainty in directing his own movements. Hastening forward he attacked General Lee at South Mountain on the fourteenth of September, and after a stubborn fight Lee fell back behind Antietam Creek, and on the morning of the seven- teenth was joined there by the troops of Jackson, who had made a forced march from Harper's Ferry. The Confederate army numbered about forty thousand men, having been terribly reduced by the straggling of the men on the march through Virginia. The Federal army numbered over eighty thousand men, and was eager for a contest. The prolonged resistance of Harper's Ferry, and the losses of his army by straggling, had defeated Lee's plan of campaign. He was now compelled to retire across the Potomac, and he halted on the Antietam only to secure the reunion of Jackson's corps with his army and a safe passage of the Potomac. Battle of Antietam. On the morningof the seventeenth of Sep- tember General McClellan attacked the Con- federate army in force, but it held its ground during the day, both armies at nightfall occu- pying about the same positions they had held in the morning. The Federal loss was twelve' thousand four hundred and sixty-nine, includ- ing thirteen generals wounded, one mortally ; that of the Confederates eight thousand seven hundred and ninety, including three generals killed, five wounded. The eighteenth passed' quietly away, and that night Lee silently withdrew from his position and retreated across the Potomac. He retired up the valley to Winchester. The Federal army moved to the vicinity of Harper's Ferry, and did not cross the Potomac until the second of November. 7i8 THE CIVIL WAR. Upon entering Virginia General McClel!an moved towards the Rappahannock, with the design of interposing his army between Lee and Richmond. General Lee at once left the valley where he had been detained by the necessity of watching McClellan, and by a rapid march to Warrenton, placed his army between Richmond and McClellan. The Federal army continuing to advance, he fell back to Culpepper Court-house, and McClel- lan moved forward to the vicinity of Warren- VIEW OF ANTIETAM BATTLE GROUND. ton. On the seventh of November, when about to resume his advance, McClellan, whose conduct of the campaign had not pleased either President Lincoln or the people of the North, was removed from the com- mand of the Army of the Potomac, which was conferred upon General Ambrose E. Burnside. Burnside at once advanced to the banks of the Rappahannock opposite Fredericksburg, intending to pass the river at that place and move upon Richmond. Upon his arrival at Falmouth, opposite Fredericksburg, he found the Confederate army strongly posted on the heights in the rear of the latter place, pre- pared to dispute his advance. He crossed the Rappahannock on the eleventh and twelfth of December, and on the thirteenth attacked the Confederate posi- tion, which had been strongly entrenched. He was repulsed with a loss of eleven thou- sand men, and compelled to retreat across the Rappahannock. This terrible reverse _ _ greatly disheart- ened the Army of the Potomac, and destroyed its faith in its commander; and so the year closed gloomily for the Union cause in the east. In the fall of 1862 President Lincoln took the bold step of issu- ing a proclamation announcing that if the .seceded States did not return to their allegiance to the Union, he would declare all the negro slaves within their limits free from the first of January next. This proclamation was issued on the twenty-second of September, imme- diately after the battle of Antietam. The army and navy of the United States were to enforce the terms of this proclamation, and from the new year there was to be no more slavery within the limits of the Union. The proclamation was avowedly a war meas- ure, buc it was sustained by Congress by appropriate legislation during the ensuing winter. CHAPTER XLII The Administration of Abraham Lincoln — The Civil War — Concluded. The Emancipation Proclamation — Battle of Chancellorsville — Death of Stonewall Jackson — Invasion of the North by- Lee's Army — Battle of Gettysburg — Retreat of Lee into Virginia — Grant's Army Crosses the Mississippi — Battle of Champion Hills — Investment of Vicksburg — Surrender of Vicksburg and Port Hudson — Battle of Chickamauga — Rosecrans Shut Up in Chattanooga — Grant in Command of the Western Armies — Battles of Lookout Mountain and Missionary Ridge — Defeat of Bragg's Army — The Campaign in East Tennessee — Retreat of Longstreet — Capture of Galveston — Attack on Charleston — Capture of Fort Wagner — Charleston Bombarded — State of Affairs in the Spring of 1864 — The Red River Expedition — Grant Made Lieutenant-General — Advance of the Army of the Potomac — Battle of the Wilderness, Spottsylvania and Cold Harbor — Sheridan's Raid — Death of General J. E. B. Stuart — Battle of New Market — Early Sent into the Valley of Virginia — Butler's Army at Bermuda Hundreds — Grant Crosses the James River — The Siege of Petersburg Begun — Early's Raid upon Washington — Sheridan Defeats Early at Winchester and Fisher'sIIill — Battle of Cedar Creek — The Final Defeat of Early's Army — Sherman's Advance to Atlanta — Johns- ton Removed — Defeat of Hood Before Atlanta — Evacuation of Atlanta — Hood's Invasion of Tennessee — Battle of Franklin — Siege of Nashville — Hood Defeated at Nashville — His Retreat — Sherman's " March to Sea " — Capture of Savannah — Battle of Mobile Bay — Attack on Fort Fisher — The Confederate Cruisers — Sinking of the " Alabama " by the" Kearsarge " — Re-election of President Lincoln — Admission of Nevada into the Union — The Hampton Roads Peace Conference — Capture of Fort Fisher — Occupation of Wilmington — Sherman Advances through South Carolina — Evacuation of Charleston — Battles of Averasboro' and Bentonville — Sherman at Goldsboro' — Critical Situation of Lee's Army — Attack on Fort Steadman — Sheridan Joins Grant — Advance of Grant's Army — Battle of Five Forks — Attack on Petersburg — Evacuation of Richmond and Petersburg — Retreat of Lee's Army — Richmond Occupied — Surrender of General Lee's Army — Rejoicings in the North — Assassination of President Lincoln — Death of Booth — Execution of the Conspirators — Johnston Surrenders — Surrender of the Other Confederate Forces — Capture of Jeffer- son Davis — Close of the War. IN accordance with his proclamation of September 22, 1862, President Lincohi, on the first of January, 1863, issued his proclamation of emancipation, in which he declared all the slaves within the limits of the Confederate States free from that day. The plan of campaign adopted by the Federal government for 1863 was very much like that of the previous year. In the east the Army of the Potomac was to push for- ward towards Richmond ; and in the west the army of General Grant was to capture Vicksburg, and thus open the Mississippi, after which it was to march eastward, unite with the forces of General Rosecrans and occupy East Tennessee, thus cutting the communication between the Border and the Gulf States. In addition to these operations an expedition against Charleston, South Ca- rolina, was to be attempted. The Army of the Potomac was greatly disheartened by its defeat at Fredericksburg, and had lost confidence in General Burnside. That commander, at his own request, was removed from the command, and was suc- ceeded by General Joseph Hooker on the twenty-fifth of January. Hooker at once began the reorganization of his army, and soon brought it to a splendid state of effi- ciency. By the opening of the spring it numbered one hundred and twenty thousand men and four hundred pieces of artillery. General Lee had remained in his position back of Fredericksburg all winter, and his 719 mi'iiiiicE/v-iJUfff^ 720 PORTRAITS OF SOME OF THE GENERALS OF THE ARMY OF THE POTOMAC. ADMINISTRATION OF ABRAHAM LINCOLN. 721 army had been weakened by the withdrawal of General Longstreet's corps, twenty-four thousand strong, by the Confederate govern- ment, leaving him about fifty thousand men. General Hooker, upon learning of Lee's weakened condition, determined to attack him. He divided his army into two columns, One of these, consisting of the Second, Fifth, Eleventh, and Twelfth army corps, under his own command, was to cross the Rap- pahannock above Fredericksburg and turn the Confederate position. The other column, consisting of the First, Third, and Sixth corps, under General Sedg- wick, was to cross the river at Fred- ericksburg and attack the heights. Be- tween these forces it was believed that Lee's army would be crushed. On the twenty-seventh of April Hooker moved off with the first column, crossed the river on the twenty-eighth and twenty- ninth at Kelley's Ford, and on the thir- tieth took position at Chancellorsville, on the left and in the rear of Lee's forti- fied line. On the twenty-ninth General Sedgwick crossed his column about three miles below Fredericksburg, and during that day and the thirtieth made demon- strations as though he intended to assault the southern position in the rear of the town. General Lee's situation was now cri- tical, and demanded the most extra- ordinary exertions of him. Leaving a small force to hold the heights in the rear of Fredericksburg, he moved with his main body towards Chancellorsville, where Hooker had intrenched himself with about eighty thousand men. His only hope of safety lay in defeating this force before Sedgwick's column could arrive to its assist- ance. On the second of May he sent Jack- son's corps to turn the Federal right, and with the remainder of his force, deceived 46 Hooker into the belief that he meant to storm the intrenched position of the Federal army. Jackson performed his flank march with success, and on the afternoon of the second of May made a fierce attack upon the Federal right, and drove it in upon its centre. In this attack he received a mortal wound, of which he died on the tenth of May. GENERAL JOHN SEDGWICK. The next day, the third, having reunited Jackson's corps with his main force, Lee attacked Hooker at Chancellorsville, and drove him back to the junction of the Rap- pahannock and Rapidan rivers. He was preparing to storm this new position when he learned that Sedgwick had defeated the force left to hold the heights of Fredericks- burg on the third of May, and was marching against him. His danger was now greater 722 THE CIVIL WAR. than ever. Leaving a part of his army to hold Hooker in check, he marched rapidly to meet Sedgwick. He encountered him at Salem Heights on the fourth of May, and compelled him to recross the Rappahannock GENERAL GEORGE G. MEADE at Banks' Ford. Then moving back towards Hooker's position Lee prapared to storm it. General Hooker, however, disheartened by Sedgwick's defeat, withdrew his army across the Rappahannock on the night of the fifth, and returned to his old position on the north side of that stream, having lost twelve thou- sand men and fourteen pieces of artillery in the battle of Chancellorsville. The Confederate loss was also heavy. Out of an army of about fifty thousand men, ten thou- sand two hundred and eighty-one were killed, wounded and captured. The victory was dearly bought by the Confed- erates by the death of Stonewall Jackson, who was worth fully fifty thousand men to their cause. At the moment of his success against the Federal right, he was shot down by his own men, who mistook his escort for a party of Federal cavalry. The success of the Confederates in Virginia was more than counter- balanced by their re- verses in the West and Southwest. The South- ern government, anxious to change the course of the war by a bold stroke, decided to fol- low up the victory at Chancellorsville by an invasion of the North by Lee's army. This army was reinforced heavily and by the last of May numbered seventy thou- sand infantry and artillery, and ten thou- sand cavalry. General Hooker's army, on the other hand, had been reduced by deser- tions and expirations of enlistments, to about eighty thousand men, making the two forces about equal. ADMINISTRATION OF ABRAHAM LINCOLN. 7^1 On the third of June, 1863, Lee began his forward movement, and marching through the valley of Virginia, captured Winchester, which was held by General Milroy's com- mand, on the fourteenth, taking four thou- sand prisoners and twenty-nine pieces of cannon. On the twenty-second of June the Potomac was crossed at Williamsport, and the Confederate army moved towards Hagers- town, Maryland. General Hooker had fol- lowed Lee from the Rappahannock, and had manoeuvred his army so as to interpose it between the Confederates and Washington. Invasion of the North. On the twenty-third the advanced corps of Lee's army, under General Ewell, occupied Chambersburg, Pennsylvania, and on the twenty-fifth and twenty-sixth. General Hooker crossed the Potomac at Edward's Ferry, and marched to Frederick, Maryland. He was anxious to withdraw the garrison of Harper's Ferry, which had retired from that place to the Maryland heights, opposite the town, but the war department refused to allow him to do so. Hooker thereupon relin- quished the command of the army, and was succeeded by Major-General George G. Meade, the senior corps commander, and a soldier of genuine ability. General Lee now moved his army east of the mountains, and directed his advance towards Gettysburg. In ignorance of his adversary's design. Gen- eral Meade hastened forward to occupy the same point. The invasion of Pennsylvania by the Con- federate army aroused the most intense ex- citement in the North. President Lincoln called out one hundred thousand militia to serve for six months, unless sooner dis- charged, and as far north as New York, preparations were made to receive the Con- federate army with a stubborn resistance should it succeed in penetrating so far. Every effort was made to raise troops and forward them to General Meade in time to be of service to him. On the morning of the first of July, the left wing of the army of the Potomac, under General Reynolds, and the advanced corps of Lee's army, under Generals A. P. Hill and Ewell, encountered each other at Gettysburg. General Reynolds was forced back and killed. General Hancock was at once sent by Gen- eral Meade to assume the command of the left wing, and upon his arrival he at once recognized the importance of the position at Gettysburg, and occupied it. He was promptly reinforced by General Meade, and by the afternoon of the second of July, the army of the Potomac was securely posted on the heights known as Cemetery Ridge. The Confederate army took position on the opposite hills known as Seminary Ridge. Between the two armies lay the battle-field on which the engagement of the first of July was fought. Heavy skirmishing prevailed throughout the day on the second, the advan- tage being with the Confederates. Great Battle at Gettysburg. On the third of July General Lee made a general attack upon the Federal position on Cemetery Ridge, which, very strong by nature, had been rendered impregnable by entrenchments. His attack was made with determination, and was a splendid exhi- bition of American courage, which won for his troops the generous admiration of their adversaries ; but it was unsuccessful. The grand charge of the Confederates was made in the afternoon, and was repulsed with ter- rible slaughter. Still Lee's position was so strong, and the morale of his army so unim- paired, that General Meade deemed it best to remain satisfied with his victory, and not to risk its fruits by an attack upon the Con- federate lines. 724 THE CIVIL WAR. The stirring events on the third and last day of the battle are vividly described by John Laird Wilson, the eminent war corres- pondent and historian, Mr. Wilson's account is as follows : " As early as three o'clock on the morn- ing of the third, there were signs of activity attack by discharging his pistol. The battle at once became general. A fearful struggle ensued. A heavy artillery fire was opened at once on the enemy's position. But, as the ground was rugged and broken and also covered with trees, and as every advantage was taken of places of shelter and conceal- BATTLE OF GETTYSBURG. in the enemy's front. It was evident that an attack was intended ; and Geary, having been informed by General Kane, who commanded his first brigade, of what was going on, resolved to seize whatever advantage might be gained by opening the battle himself His men were aroused ; and at twenty minutes before four o'clock, he gave the signal for ment, the fight partook very much of the character of sharpshooting on a grand scale. " As the battle progressed the contestants got intermingled, and it became more and more difficult to use the artillery. The Con- federates not only held their position, but charged again and again, in heavy masses, on the National lines, only, however, to be ADMINISTRATION OF ABRAHAM LINCOLN. 725 repulsed with tremendous loss. The slaugh- ter was terrible. The sun arose ; the day advanced ; the air became clouded with dust and smoke ; the heat became almost intoler- able ; but still the battle raged. At last there is a lull in the long-continued tempest. Then, suddenly, there is a fierce yell from thousands of throats ; and Ewell'smen, hav- ing gathered up their strength for a final effort, are seen rushing forward with tremen- dous fury. They are allowed to come within easy musket range, when the men in blue, springing to their feet, pour in upon them a deliberate volley. It was the last charge on this part of the line. Discomfited and dis- couraged, torn and bleeding, their dead and wounded companions piled in heaps on the ground "where they fell, the survivors drew back through the woods towards Rock Creek, fighting as they retired, with a courage which commanded the admiration of their foes. The Victors Exultant. " Shouts of victory now filled the air. * Men,' says one who was present and shared in the triumph, ' cheered themselves hoarse, laughed, rolled themselves on the ground, and threw their caps high in the air, while others shook hands with comrades, and thanked God that the Star Corps had again triumphed.' Geary, not disposed to allow the Confederates to re-fonu, as soon as this charge was repelled, made a vigorous coun- ter-charge ; and the enemy, yielding easily, the breastworks were reoccupied, and the right flank secured. Thus ended the fighting on the right. " Ewell had been completely baffled in his plan. He had flung away his opportunity the night before; and to reclaim it he had now done his best, and failed. He could not find fault with his men , for never, even under Jackson, had they fought more bravely. ' It cannot be denied,' says General Kane, who, with his glorious first brigade, of Geary's division, bore the burden of that morning's fight, ' that they fought most courageously.' But they were pitted against men of equal bravery, of equal determination with them- selves — men who were now on their own soil, and fighting for the sanctity of their own homes. " Never, perhaps, before, since the war com- menced, had the fighting been more deter- mined and severe than it was during those long, dreary morning hours. The ground, after the battle, red with gore, and thickly covered with the bodies of the slain, gave evidence of the terrible character of the struggle. The grey and the blue uniforms were sometimes found in one common heap. Some poor fellows, after hours of suflTering^ and having almost bled to death, were found writhing in mortal agony. The wood in which the battle raged was ' torn and rent with shells and solid shot, and pierced with innumerable minie balls.' In the following summer, the trees were leafless, as if the mute but stalwart giants of the forest had yielded up their lives with those who fell beneath their shade. An Ominous Silence. *' It was now shortly after ten o'clock. The last sounds of battle had died away. There was silence over the whole battle field. It was evident, however, that preparations were being made inside the Confederate lines for another gigantic and possibly crowning effort. The morning sky had been obscured by broken clouds. As the forenoon advan- ced, the clouds dispersed ; and a hot July sun poured down his rays with a tropical intensity. Pickett's division, of Longstreet's , corps, which had not come up on the pre- vious day, had now arrived on the field. Stuart, also, after his long detour, had joined 726 THE CIVIL WAR. Lee with his cavalry. It soon began to be manifest that the point of attack was to be the National left centre — the depressed part of the ridge immediately north of Little Round Top. B}' noon, the guns were got into position on the ridge occupied by Long- street and Hill. Meade had an abundant supply of the same instruments of war; but owing to the peculiarity of the ground, he could only, out of the three hundred guns, make use of eighty, against those of the enemy. Loud Thunder of Guns. " About one o'clock, the report of a Whit- worth gun was heard. It was the signal for attack. Seminary Hill seemed as if swept with a tongue of flame. Then came the loud, thundering roar of artillery; and one hundred and forty five guns, from their angry mouths, poured death and destruction on the National lines. The National commanders ordered their men to lie flat on the earth, and to take every advantage of objects of pro- tection. All this was done ; but, notwith- standing every precaution, the destruction of life and property was terrible. Solid shot, chain-shot, shrapnel, shells, fell with deadly effect inside the National lines. Men and horses were dreadfully cut up; caissons filled with ammunition were exploded ; and gun- carriages and other pieces of war material were shattered to pieces. The shot and shell and canister fell thick and fast in and around General Meade's headquarters, killing men and horses, ripping up the roof and knocking away the pillars of the cottage. "General Hunt, Meade's chief of artillery, v/as in no haste to reply. Waiting until the first hostile outbreak spent itself, he then ordered the batteries to open fire. Instantly, the whole ridge, from Cemetery Hill to the Round Tops, seemed ablaze. The din was terrific, the thunder of artillery rivalling, in fierce grandeur, the most magnificent displays of nature. For two hours this artillery duel lasted ; and, during that time, war was ex- hibited in its sublimer and more imposing aspects. " At the expiration of two hours, there v/as a lull in the cannonade. Hunt, dreading the possible exhaustion of his ammunitions and not willing to bring up loads of it from the rear, lest it should be exploded, had ordered a gradual slackening of the fire. The Confederates were deceived. It was Lee's belief that he had silenced all the enemy's guns, except a few which still kept firing from a clump of woods. Now came the more serious business of war. The fire of the Confederate guns also slackened ; and the columns of attack were seen forming on the edge of the woods which crown the summit of Seminary Ridge. It was just three o'clock. When formed, the front was about a mile in extent ; and, as it emerged from the woods, and began to move steadily and firmly down the slope of Seminary Ridge, a thrill of admiration passed through the National ranks. It was a splendid sight, and well fitted to call forth admiration, even in the breast of an enemy. The fresh division of Pickett, composed mostly of veteran Vir- ginians, was singled out and appointed to lead the van. Pickett's men were formed and arranged in double line of battle. The attacking force numbered about eighteen thousand men. Ammunition Exhausted. " The distance between the two lines of battle was about a mile. For the attacking party there was a hill to descend and a hill to climb, and a valley between. It was matter of observation that, as the columns advanced, the Confederate guns were silent. 'Why?' was the question put by the men who were rushing into the jaws of death. 'Why?' POSITIONS DURING THE FIRST DAY S FIGHT AT GETTYSBURG. POSITIONS DURING THE SECOND AND THIRD DAYS AT GETTYSBURG. 728 THE CIVIL WAR. said the men on the heights behind. ' Why ?' said the Nationals on the heights in front. The reason was not known till afterwards. It was not then known to Lee himself His ammunition was already exhausted. The silence of the guns in their rear did not affect the firm and steady step of the advancing columns. It did not encourage the Nationals to slacken their artillery fire. On came Longstreet's men, in face of the withering tempest of bullet and canister and shell which, at each successive step, decimated their front. On, on they came; and it was already a question in the National ranks whether their own thin line of defense could resist the fierce onset of those firm and com- pact battalions who seemed to fear no fire, to dread no foe. The Green Mountain Troops. " The Nationals, however, were not ill pre- pared for the attack. Doubleday was on the left, with Stannard's brigade of Vermont troops well advanced in a little grove on his own right, and at an angle with the main line. Hancock was more to the right with his two divisions of Gibbon and Hays in front. From the direction in which the assaulting columns were moving, it seemed for a time as if the first heavy blow would fall upon Doubleday. Such, however, was the severity of the artil- lery fire from Little Round Top that they were forced to bend more to their own left. Still they moved on, their line of march now bringing them more directly in front of Han- cock's position. " Now came the opportunity for Stannard's brave Vermonters. They were in no haste to waste their ammunition. The Confederate columns were allowed to come so well for- ward that their right flank was fully exposed. Then, at the signal given, the Vermont men pour forth a well-directed and most destruc- tive fire. Volley succeeds volley in rapid succession ; and the now trembling lines-,, already torn and tattered, are under the oblique fire of eight batteries in charge of Major McGilvray, Not a few of Pickett's men, unable to endure this terrific fire, were compelled to surrender. The main body, how- ever, presses on, and, inclining still more to his own left, Pickett is moving straight on the divisions of Gibbon and Hays. ' Hold your fire, boys ! they are not near enough yet,' was Gibbon's injunction as he moved calmly and composedly along the ranks. The rifled guns of the National artillery, having fired away all their canister, were now withdrawn to await the issue of the struggle between the opposing infantry. The hostile lines are now within two and three hundred yards of the National front. Gibbon and Hays simul- taneously open upon the advancing columns; a most destructive fire. The response is swift and well directed, the Confederates using their muskets for the first time since they began to face this terrific storm of artil- lery and musketry. All at once the battle becomes general. Terror and Confusion. " The swing made by the advancing col- umns to their own left, after the terrific blow received by them from Stannard, had the effect of flinging Pettigrew, who commanded Heth's division, of Hill's corps, well towards Hays' right. Pettigrew's men were, for the most part. North Carolina troops, and were comparatively raw and unused to battle. They had been deceived into the belief that they would meet only the Pennsylvania mili- tia. They were quickly undeceived. Hays' men were admirably posted. His right was well advanced ; and the nature of the ground was such as to enable him to open a simul- taneous fire on Pettigrew's troops, not only with his right and front, but also with sev- eral lines in his rear. Woodruff's battery c5 pq CO >^ &^ Eh O h^ Eh Eh <1 PQ ADMINISTRATION OF ABRAHAM LINCOLN. 729 was also in position; and the destructive effects of a very tempest of bullets were to be aggravated by showers of grape and canister. "All at once, this tremendous fire fell upon the already torn and decimated lin s on Pickett's left; and they knew they were in the presence of the Army of the Potomac. There was no more fight in them. Terror- stricken, Pettigrew's men broke in utter con- fusion, large numbers of them flinging down their arms, and accepting mercy at the hands of their antagonists. General Pettigrew him- self was wounded ; but, being able to retain command, he vainly strove to rally his men. Fifteen colors, and two thousand prisoners rewarded the skill and activity with which Hays met the threatened attack. " While disaster was thus befalling the Confederate columns on the right and left Pickett's brave Virginians were pressing forward vigorously towards Gibbon's front, and were about to fall with all their weight on Owen's brigade, now temporarily com- manded by General Webb. The Final Struggle. " In spite of the dreadful fire of artillery and musketry which was mowing down their ranks, Pickett's men rush bravely on. They are now close to the stone wall. The two National regiments in front, yield and fall back to the regiment in the rear. Webb and his officers are at hand ; the retreating regi- ments are quickly rallied and re-formed; and the second line is held. But the Confederates have pushed themselves over the breast- works, and planted their battle flags on the wall. The struggle now becomes fierce and terrific in the extreme. It is a hand-to-hand conflict, man facing man, and fighting with the energy of despair. The clothes of the men are actually being burned by the powder of the exploding cartridges; and the National cannoneers, refusing to retire, are clubbed and bayoneted at their guns. " Pickett, however, is now left entirely alone. The forces which were intended to cover his left have been defeated, captured or driven from the field. Wilcox, whose duty it was to come up and cover his right, has failed to advance. The right of his own division has been badly cut up and destroyed. Hancock, who this day revealed all the qualities of a great commander in actual conflict, now massed his men on the point which was in danger. Hall and Harrow, who had now no longer an enemy in their front, were brought over with their brigades to reinforce the centre. The Nineteenth Massachusetts, Col- onel Devereux, and Mallou's Forty-Second New York, both of Gate's brigade, of Double- day's division, of the First corps, were moved in the same direction. " Stannard, at the same time, moved for- ward two of his Vermont regiments to strike the enemy on the right flank. The situation, Hancock tells us, 'had now become very pecu- liar. The men of all the brigades had, in some measure, lost their regimental organiza- tion, but individually, they were firm. The ambition of individual commanders to cover the point penetrated by the enemy, the smoke of the battle and the intensity of the engage- ment caused this confusion. The point, how- ever, was covered. In regular formation, our line would have stood four ranks deep.' Pickett's men were now pressed on all sides. " The colors of the different National regi- ments were well advanced. Cheered by the words, and fired by the example of their officers, the men pressed bravely forward. It is the climax of the fight ; but the end is at hand. Pickett's men had done their best and their utmost — they had fought like true heroes ; but now, utterly overpowered, and reduced to the last stage of desperation, they give up the fight. Flinging their arms from 730 THE CIVIL WAR. them, many of them raise their hands in token of surrender; others upon the MAP SHOWING VICKSBURG AND ITS APPROACHES " In this last struggle, Gibbon's division took twelve colors and two thousand five hundred prisoners. So far, Hancock had captured twenty- seven battle flags and four thousand five hundred pris- oners. It was a magnificent trophy. The losses on both sides were very heavy. The face of the hill and the low ground was literally covered with the dead and wounded. In no previous battle had the officers suffered so severely. On the National side large numbers had been struck down, Generals Gibbon and Hancock being among the wounded. The Confederates left on the field fourteen of their field-officers, only one of that rank escaping unhurt; and, of the three brigade com- manders, of Pickett's division, Garnett was killed, Armitage fell within the National lines, fatally wounded, and Kemper was carried off the field, dan- gei'ously hurt." The victory was decisive. It put an end to the Confed- erate invasion. On the night of the fourth of July General Lee withdrew from Seminary Ridge and retreated to the Potomac, which he crossed on the thirteenth and four- teenth without serious opposi- tion from the Federal army. On the fifteenth Lee moved back to Winchester, The Fed- eral loss at Gettysburg was ground to escape the destructive fire ; the I twenty-three thousand, and that of the Con- remainder seek safety in precipitate flight. j federates about the same. ADMINISTRATION OF ABRAHAM LINCOLN. 731 On the seventeenth and eighteenth of July General Meade crossed the Potomac below Harper's Ferry, and moving east of the Blue Ridge, endeavored to place his army between Lee and Richmond. The Confederate com- mander by rapid marches reached Culpepper Court-house in advance of him, however, and about the first of August occupied the line of the Rappahannock. The remainder of the year witnessed but one important oper- the Federal arms. At the opening of the year the army of General Grant lay on the Mississippi above Vicksburg, assisted by the fleet of gunboats under Admiral Porter. The first three months of the year were passed by the Federal army in a series of movements along the Yazoo River, the result of which was to convince General Grant that Vicks- burg could not be taken from that quarter. He therefore determined upon a new and VICKSBURG, ation by the armies in Virginia. In October General Lee made a sudden forward move- ment for the purpose of throwing his army between Meade and Washington, but the latter eluded him and reached Centreville in safety. Lee then withdrew to the Rapidan, and the army of the Potomac took position on the north side of that stream. Both armies passed the winter there. In the west and southwest success crowned MISSISSIPPI. more daring plan of operations. He decided to march his army across the Louisiana shore from Milliken's bend, above Vicksburg, to New Carthage, below that city, and to run his gunboats and transports by the bat- teries. Should the boats succeed in passing, he meant to cross his command to the Missis- sippi shore, and attack Vicksburg from the rear. By investing the city from the land 732 ADMINISTRATION OF ABRAHAM LINCOLN. 733 side his flanks would rest upon and be cov- ered by the Mississippi, and he could re-estab- lish communication between his right wing and his base of supplies at Milliken's Bend. The plan was daring in the highest degree, and required the greatest skill and resolution in its execution. In order to retain their hold upon the Mis- sissippi the Confederates had fortified Vicks- burg with great care. Port Hudson, about two hundred and forty miles lower down the river, had also been fortified, but not so strongly as Vicksburg. As long as the Con- federates held these points they were able to keep a considerable extent of the river open to themselves and closed to the Union gun- boats. Preparing for the Struggle. Thus they were enabled to cross in safety the enormous herds of beef cattle which they drew from the rich pastures of Texas for their armies east of the Mississippi. A strong force held the works at Port Hudson. Vicks- burg was occupied by a large garrison, and was under the command of Lieutenant-Gen- eral John C. Pemberton, who, with an army of about thirty thousand men, independent of the garrison of Vicksburg, held the country in the rear of that city. Appreciating the importance of defeating the Federal army in this quarter, the Confederate Government, in the spring of 1863, sent General Joseph E. Johnston to take command of all the forces in Mississippi. It failed to supply him with a proper force of troops, and General Pem- berton treated his orders with open defiance. Grant having comple*-ed his preparations moved his army from Milliken's Bend to a point on the Louisiana shore opposite Grand Gulf. On the night of the sixteenth of April a division of gunboats and transports ran by the Vicksburg batteries, suffering severely from .the heavy fire to which they were exposed for a distance of eight miles. On the night of the twenty-second a second division passed the batteries with similar loss. Once below Vicksburg, however, the boats were safe. They then proceeded to Grant's position on the river below. On the twenty-ninth of April the gunboats attacked the batteries at Grand Gulf, but were repulsed. The troops were then marched to a point opposite Bruins- burg, Mississippi, and the gunboats and transports were run by the Grand Gulf bat- teries. On the first of May the Federal army was ferried across to the Mississippi shore, and at GENERAL JOHN C. PEMBERTON. once began its march into the interior. Near Port Gibson a part of Pemberton's army was encountered and defeated on the same day. This success compelled the evacuation of Grand Gulf by the Confederates. Grant now boldly threw his army between Johnston's forces at Jackson and Pemberton's army, intending to hold the former in check, and drive the latter within the defences of Vicks- burg. On the fourteenth of May he attacked Johnston at Jackson, the capital of Missis- sippi, and forced him to retreat northward towards Canton. Then turning upon Pem- berton he attacked him at Champion Hills, or Baker's Creek, on the sixteenth, and 734 THE CIVIL WAR. inflicted a severe defeat upon him. Peni- berton withdrew towards the Big Black River, and the next day met a second defeat there. He now retreated within the defences of Vicksburg, which place was promptly invested by Grant's army. On the nineteenth of May Grant attempted to carry the Confederate position by assault, but was repulsed with heavy loss. The assault was repeated with a like result on the twenty-second. There remained then nothing but a regular siege. This was GRANTS HEADQUARTERS NEAR VICKSBURG pressed with vigor, and the city was sub- jected to a terrible bombardment, which caused great suffering to the people. While the siege was carried on Johnston's army was held back, and prevented from under- taking any movement for the relief of Vicks- burg. At length, reduced to despair by the steady approach of the Union trenches, Pem- berton surrendered the city and his army to General Grant on the fourth of July. By this surrender thirty thousand prisoners, two hundred and fifty cannon, and sixty thousand stand of arms, together with a large quan- tity of military stores, fell into the hands of the Union forces. It was justly esteemed the greatest victory of the war. While the siege of Vicksburg was in pro- gress. General Banks ascended the Mis- sissippi from New Orleans and laid siege to Port Hudson. Upon hearing of the fall of Vicksburg, the Confederate commander sur- rendered the post and his army of sixty-two hundred and thirty-three men to General Banks, on the eighth of July. These victories wrested from the Confederates their last hold upon the Mississippi. They cre- ated the most intense rejoicing in the Northern and Western States, and a corresponding depres- sion in the South. Being simultaneous with the defeat of the Southern army at Gettysburg, they were regarded as deci- sive of the war : as indeed they were. From this time we shall trace the declining fortunes of the Southern Confederacy and the gradual but steady re-establishment of the authority of the Union over the Southern States. After the battle of Murfreesboro', or Stone River, the army of General Rosecrans remained quietly in winter quarters at Nash- ville and Murfreesboro'. Bragg's army passed the winter at Chattanooga. Towards the last of June Rosecrans moved forward from Nashville, and advancing slowly threat- ened Bragg's communications with Rich- mond. The Confederate commander had no wish to emulate the example of Pembertoa ADMINISTRATION OF ABRAHAM LINCOLN. 735 at Vicksburg, and at once evacuated Chatta- nooga, on the eighth of September, and retired towards Dal- ton, Georgia, This movement, which was interpreted by Rose- crans as a retreat, was desisfned to secure the union with Bragg's army of Longstreet's corps, which had been detached from Lee's army and sent to join Bragg. This junc- tion was effected on the eighteenth, and other reinforcements arrived from Missis- sippi. Thus strength- ened Bragg suddenly wheeled upon Rose- crans, and on the nine- teenth of September attacked him at Chick- amauga. The battle was severe, but inde- cisive, and was re- newed the next day. Towards noon, on the twentieth, Rose- crans having greatly weakened the other parts of his line to help the left, which was hard pressed, Longstreet made a fu- rious dash at the weak- ened part, and in an ir- resistible attack swept the Federal right and centre from the field. Rosecrans endeavored to stop the retreat, but was borne along in the dense crowd of fugitives. Only the left wing, under the command of General George H. Thomas, remained firm. Had that given MAP OF THE CHICKAMAUGA AND CHATTANOOGA CAMPAIGNS. way the rout would have been complete; but all through the long afternoon, Thomas THE CIVIL WAR. POSITIONS OF THE ARMIES AT THE BATTLE OF MISSIONARY RIDGE. held on to his position with a grim resolution which nothing could shake. After nightfall three thousand men his assistance, and he withdrew his corps in good order and re- tired upon Chatta- nooga. The Union loss at Chickamauga was sixteen thousand men and fifty-one guns; Bragg's about eighteen thousand men. Bragg advanced at once upon the defeated army of Rosecrans, which had taken re- fuge in Chattanooga, occupied the heights commanding the city, and seized the com- munications of the Federal army with Nashville. Thus close- ly besieged, the Union forces suffered consid- erably from a scarcity of provisions. General Rosecrans was now removed from the command of the Army of the Cum- berland, and General Grant was appointed to the chief command of all the western ar- mies. He at once set to work to extricate the Army of the Cum- berland, to the com- mand of which Gen- eral Thomas had suc- ceeded, from its peril- ous situation. Hooker was sent with twenty- from Meade's army to Sherman was ordered ADMINISTRATION OF ABRAHAM LINCOLN. 737 ito march with the force which had taken "Vicksburg along the line of the railway from Memphis to Chattanooga. The arrival of these reinforcements soon changed the .aspect of affairs. On the twenty-third of November the Army of the Cumberland made a vigorous sortie and drove the Confederates from the important position of Orchard Knob. On the twenty- fourth, Hooker stormed Lookout Mountain, the left of the Confederate line, and carried it after a hard fight. The invest- ment was now thoroughly broken, and the Confederates were confined to Missionary Ridge, which had formerly constituted the right of their line. On the twenty-fifth, this posi- tion was assaulted by the whole strength of the Federal army, and was carried after a stubborn fight. Bragg, beaten at all points, with heavy loss, retreated into Geor- gia, where he was soon after removed from his command and immedi- ately succeeded by Gen- eral Joseph E. Johnston. During the progress of this campaign General Burnside had moved from Kentucky with a force of about twenty-five thousand men, about the time that Rosecrans began his advance from Nashville in June. The strong position of Cumberland Gap was sur- rendered to him with scarcely an effort for its defence by the Confederates, and he moved into East Tennessee. Driving back the Confederate forces, which sought to stop his march, he occupied Knoxville. The object of his expedition was to afford a ral- lying point for the Union men of East Ten- nessee. After the battle of Chickamauga, and the investment of Chattanooga, President 47 Jefferson Davis visited Bragg's army, and being convinced that the capture of Rose- crans' force was inevitable, decided to with- draw General Longstreet's corps from Bragg, and to send it to drive Burnside out of East Tennessee. Longstreet's men were in no condition to undertake such a campaign, but under their energetic commander, succeeded in confining Burnside's army to the defences of Knoxville. The siege of that place was formed, and several assaults were made upon the Union works, but were each repulsed with heavy loss. Burnside's men were reduced almost to starvation, but held out with unshaken grant's headquarters near CHATTANOOGA. resolution. After the defeat of Bragg at Mis sionary Ridge, Grant ordered Sherman to march with his corps to the relief of Knox- ville. Upon the approach of this force Long- street, on the fourth of December, raised the siege and retreated into Virginia. Beyond the Mississippi the war was car- ried on with varying success throughout the year 1863, but to the general advantage of the Federal forces. On the third of July the Confederates, under General Holmes, attacked Helena, Arkansas, but were re- pulsed. By the close of the year the Con- federate forces had been pressed back as far as the Red River. 738 THE CIVIL WAR. On the first of January, 1863, Galveston, Texas, which had surrendered to the Federal forces in the fall of 1862, was recaptured by of land troops, under General Gilmore, effected a lodgment on the south end of Morris' Island, and secured their position by intrench- the Confederates, under General Magruder. j ments. By the capture of this place, the Confederates The Union parallels were pushed forward obtained one more port from which they could maintain communications with and receive supplies from Europe. steadily towards Fort Wagner, at the north end of the island, and a final assault of that work was ordered. Before the order could ^'^^^r^"^:'"'^^-^'^^/ --^W ^^^^^y CAPTURE OF LOOKOUT MOUNTAIN. . In the spring of 1863, a powerful naval expedition, under Admiral Dupont, was des- patched against Charleston. On the seventh of April, Dupont attempted to force his way into the harbor, but was driven back by the forts and batteries, and nine of his iron-clads were severely injured. Early in July, a force be executed. Fort Wagner was evacuated on the night of the sixth of September. The Federal batteries on Morris' Island now maintained a heavy and constant fire upon Fort Sumter, and reduced it to a shapeless mass of rubbish on the land side. Yet, m this condition it was stronger than at first,. ADMINISTRATION OF ABRAHAM LINCOLN. 739 the mass of rubbish offering a more effectual resistance to shot and shell than the walls. The long-range guns on Morris' Island threw shells into the city of Charleston, which was regularly bombarded from this time until its fall, in 1865. The capture of Fort Wagner enabled the Federal forces to close the har- bor of Charleston effectually against blockade runners. In spite of the victories of Chancellorsville and Chickamauga, and the invasion of the North, the close of the year found the South fairly on the downward road to final failure. Missouri was freed from the presence of the Confederate army, and the greater part of Arkansas was held by the Federal troops. The Mis- sissippi was lost to the South, and the immense supplies from the trans-Mis- sissippi region were no longer available to the Confederate forces east of the great river. Tennes- see was occupied by the Federal forces, and the invasion of the North had ended in disaster. The resources of the South were gradually becoming exhausted, and the supply of men was falling off. The North, on the other hand, was increasing in determination. The war had opened new channels of industry, and these had more than repaid the losses of the first period of the struggle. The North was growing richer in spite of the war, while the South was growing poorer because of it. At the end of 1863 the Federal debt had reached the enormous total of ^1,300,000,000, with the certainty of a heavy increase during the coming year. Still the people of the loyal States responded with heartiness to the heavy demands of the Federal government for men and money. Specie had long since disappeared from circulation, but a system of Treasury notes, which were made a legal tender, had replaced coin as a circulating medium. The new paper money was abun- dant, and the North gave few outward signs of distress. Everything spoke of prosperity. The contrast between the condition of the Union and the Confederacy was striking and most suggestive. Early in the spring of 1864 an expedition was sent into that part of Louisiana known as the Red River country. It consisted of a force of ten thousand troops, under General MISSIONARY RIDGE FROM THE CEMETERY AT CHATTANOOGA. Smith, from Vicksburg, and a fleet of gun- boats, under Admiral Porter. On the four- teenth of March Fort de Russy was captured by the troops, and on the twenty-first Natch- itoches was occupied General Banks now arrived with a strong reinforcement of troops from New Orleans, and took command of the expedition. About the first of April he set out for Shreveport, at the head of navigation on the Red River, his army marching along the shore, and the gunboats ascending the stream. The Confederates gathered in heavy force, under the command of General Kirby Smith, to oppose his advance. On the eighth of April the Confederate army attacked Banks at Sabine Cross-Roads, 740 THE CIVIL WAR. near Mansfield, and inflicted a stinging defeat upon him. The Union forces were raUied at Pleasant Hill, where they were attacked by the Confederates on the ninth. The Confed- erates were repulsed, but Banks continued his retreat, and reached Alexandria on the twenty-fifth of April. The expedition then returned to the Mississippi. Banks was The Red River expedition was thus a total failure, and was a source of great mortifica- tion, as well as serious loss, to the Federal government. Early in March General Grant was raised to the grade of Lieutenant-General, that rank having been revived by act of Congress to reward him for his great services during THE ATTACK ON FORT SUMTER BY THE MONITOR FLEET. relieved of the command at New Orleans, and was succeeded by General Canby. General Steele, commanding the Union forces in Arkanses, had moved from Little Rock, on the twenty-third of March, towards Shreveport, to co-operate with General Banks. He was attacked by the Confed- erates and driven back to Little Rock, which he reached on the second of May. the war. It had been held only by Wash- ington. General Scott having been given only the brevet rank. He was also appomted commander of all the armies of the United States. He decided to assume the immedi- ate direction of the campaign in Virginia, and established his headquarters with the Army of the Potomac. At the same time General W. T. Sherman was appointed to PORTRAITS OF PROMINENT FEDERAL GENERALS. 742 THE CIVIL WAR. the command of the military division of the Mississippi, in which were included the Armies of the Cumberland, of the Ohio, and of the Tennessee. The supreme control of the military oper- ations both east and west was vested in Gen- eral Grant — a great gain, inasmuch as the oper- ations in the two quarters of the Union could now be made to assist each other. The plan of the campaign embraced a simultaneous advance of both armies ; the Army of the Potomac was charged with the task of defeat- ing Lee and capturing Richmond ; the west- ern army, under Sherman, was to force John- ston back into Georgia. FORT DE RUSSY. The Army of the Potomac numbered one hundred and forty thousand men on the first of May, 1864; the Confederate army, under General Lee, about fifty thousand. General Meade retained the immediate command of the Army of the Potomac, but General Grant accompanied it, and directed its movements. On the morning of May 4th — just three days before Sherman moved from Chattanooga — the Federal army crossed the Rapidan, and, turning the right of Lee's position, entered the region known as the Wilderness. Gen- eral Lee determined to attack this force and prevent it from reaching the open country beyond the Wilderness. On the fifth of May he encountered the Army of the Potomac in the Wilderness, near the old battle-field of Chancellorsville. The attack was made by the Federal forces, which endeavored to drive off Lee's army, which blocked the route by which they were advancing. Lee held his ground during the day, and that night both armies bivouacked upon the field. The battle was renewed on the sixth, but Grant failed to force the Confederate position. The fighting during these two days was carried on in a thickly-wooded region, in which the artillery of the two armies could not be used to advan- tage. On the sixth the Confederates suf- fered a serious loss in the person of General Longstreet, who was severely wounded, " and was incapacitated from continuing in command. The losses in killed and wounded were very heavy on both sides, as the fight- ing was of a desperate character. Six Days' Fighting in Virginia. On the seventh General Grant moved his army around Lee's right, and marched rapidly to seize the strong position of Spottsylvania Court-house, which would have placed him between the Confederates and Richmond. Lee at once divined his purpose, and fell back rapidly to the heights around Spottsylvania Court-house, which he occupied on the eighth. Upon arriving before this position Grant found his enemy strongly entrenched in it, and at once re- solved to drive him from it. On the tenth of May he made a determined attack upon the Confederate line, but failed to carry it. On the morning of the eleventh, General Grant sent a characteristic dispatch to the Secretary of War. " We have now," he wrote, " ended the sixth day of very hard fighting. The result to this time is much in our favor. Our losses have been heavy, as well as those of the enemy. I think the ADMINISTRATION OF ABRAHAM LINCOLN. 743 loss of the enemy must be greater. We have taken over five thousand prisoners in battle, while he has taken from us but few, except stragglers. I propose to fight it out on this line, if it takes all summer." The eleventh was Wednesday. The morning rose bright and clear. The two opposing armies lay in close proximity to each other. As the day advanced there was some skirmishing ; but on neither side was any attempt made to provoke a general engagement. Both commanders, it was evi- dent, were preparing for battle; nor could doubt remain in any mind that, whatever might be the result, another and even more fearful encounter at Spottsylvania was imminent. Grant was still bent on carrying out his policy of ^ extend his left, and to concentrate on that wing. Warren was to make a diversionary movement on the Confederate left, in his own front, the object being to give the enemy sufficient employment in that direction, and so prevent the withdrawal of his troops for the relief of the menaced point. Burnside, for a similar reason, was to make a vigorous assault on the extreme left. Rain fell heavily in the afternoon. When night came the rain-storm had not abated ; and, as the moon was in its first quarter, the night was dark and dismal. Soon after midnight, under cover of the darkness and the storm, Hancock moved out from his intrenchments. continuous ham- mering. His sue- ^S^y cess, however, on the Tuesday, in his repeated attacks on the enemy's left and left centre, had not been encouraging. There was no rea- son to hope that another attack, made in the same direction, would be attended with any better results. It was resolved, there- fore, to strike a bold and effective blow on the enemy's right centre. At that point, and near the Landrum House, Lee's lines formed a salient. It was Grant's conviction that the point was vulnerable. Arrangements for the attack were made forthwith. Hancock, who was chosen to strike the blow, was ordered to leave his entrenchments in front of A. P. Hill, and, by moving to the left, to take position between the Sixth and Ninth corps. The movement was to have the sup- port of the entire army. Wright was to BAILEY S RED RIVER DAM. and, guided by the compass, passed in rear of Warren and Wright, and took position within 1,200 yards of the enemy's front, at the point to be attacked. Barlow's division, in two lines of masses, was placed on the left ; Birney's division, in two deployed lines, was placed on the right ; Mott's division, Hancock's Fourth, supported Birney, and Gibbon's division was held in reserve. Of the actual strength of the position about to be attacked, the Nationalists knew nothing. It might be weak and defenceless. It might be well fortified and proof against any attack. It mattered not. Hancock was ready, wait- ing for the first streak of early dawn to launch forth his brave battalions to victory or to death. 744 THE CIVIL WAR. It is now half-past four o'clock on the morning of Thursday, May twelfth. A heavy fog is resting on the entire surrounding country, and the feeble light of the rising sun struggles hard to penetrate the gloom. Hancock's divisions are already in motion. Steadily and silently they move towards the salient — Barlow over open ground, which extends up to the Confederate lines, Birney through the thickly wooded ground more to the right. Not a shot has yet been fired — not a word uttered. More than half of the intervening distance has already been crossed. GRANT WRITING DISPATCHES BEFORE CROSSING THE RAPIDAN Suddenly there is a loud-resoundincr cheer, which rings along the whole line. Spontan- eously the men take the double-quick. On they roll like a resistless wave. Nothing can now restrain their fierce impetuosity. They have reached the abatis, torn it up and tossed it aside. With wild cries, they rush bounding over the entrenchments, Barlow and Birney's men entering almost simultaneously. Inside the intrenchmects there is a terrible hand-to- hand struggle, the bayonet and the clubbed- musket being freely used. Nothing, how- ever, can save the doomed Confederates.. Some four thousand men, including General Johnson, of Ewell's corps, and General George H. Stewart are surrounded and cap- tured ; and with them thirty pieces of artil- lery and as many colors. Meanwhile, the remainder of the Confederate force, stricken with terror and thrown into the wildest con- fusion, have fallen back, seeking safety in the rear. This attack of Hancock's was justly regarded as the most brilliant feat of arms yet accomplished in the campaign. Never was surprise more com- plete or more successful. The officers were taken at their breakfast. The captured generals were greatly mortified. An hour only had elapsed since the column of at- tack was formed. Along with the prisoners, which he sent to Grant, Han- cock sent a note hastily written in pencil, saying: "I have finished up John- son, and am now going into Early." This second task, as we shall soon see,. he found to be less easy of accomplishment than the former. Early, like Johnson, commanded a divis- ion of Ewell's corps. At the point pene- trated, Lee's army, as we have seen, formed a salient. Hancock had, therefore, by his first success, thrust a wedge between the Confederate right and centre. It was his hope that he would be able to cut Lee's army in two ; and there can be no doubt that if sufficient provision had been made, promptly and in force, to follow up the advantage Hancock had won by his first brilliant assault, the desired end would have ADMINISTRATION OF ABRAHAM LINCOLN. 74S been accomplished. As it was, Hancock's troops, flushed with success, and incapable of being restrained after the capture of the intrenchments, pressed on through the forest in the direction of Spottsylvania driving the flying enemy before them. At the distance of half a mile, they were suddenly brought to a halt in their triumph- ant career. They had reached a fresh line of breast-works. Behind these works, Ewell had taken shelter ; and reinforcements had reached him from the corps of Anderson and Hill. The Na- tional advance was now effectually check- ed. It was not only impossible to make headway — it was im- possible to remain in the position in which they found them- selves. The tide of battle was now turned. Gathering themselves up for a supreme ef- fort, the Confederates, in overwhelming numbers and in mag- nificent array, rushed from the breast- works, and, falling with crush- the right and left of the angle of the works, he stoutly resisted the fierce and repeated onsets of the enemy, and firmly held his position. His situation, however, was becom- ing every moment more critical. Lee was ing weight on Hancock's men, now slightly disordered by their fearless rush through the woods, drove them back to the line which they had captured in the early morning. Here, however, Hancock managed to rally his troops ; and, getting them into line on GENERAL JAMES LONGSTREET. resolved, if possible, to recover the lost line of works ; and, with this end in view, he was putting forth the most Herculean efforts, and bringing his entire strength to bear on the one point. It was now si.x o'clock — one hour and a half since the first onset. Hancock 746 THE CIVIL WAR. was still holding his position ; but relief was sorely needed. At this opportune moment, when most needed, relief came. Wright, who had been hurried forward with his Sixth corps, arrived on the ground, and took position on the right of the salient. Hancock, thus relieved, concentrated his troops on the left of the angle. A little later, about eight o'clock, and with a view to relieve the pressure on Hancock and Wright, Burnside and Warren were ordered to attack along their whole fronts. The battle now raged furiously at every point. No evidence was given that Lee had changed his purpose. The last line THE PLACE WHERE SEDGWICK WAS KILLED, at the salient was still the object of his ambi- tion. On Hancock and Wright he dealt his heaviest and most terrific blows. Again and again, and in rapid succession, he rolled against them his heavy masses. He seemed resolved to dislodge them. Seeing this, and becoming convinced that Burnside and Warren were producing no impression on their respective fronts, Grant detached two divisions from the Fifth corps — those of Cutler and Griffin — and sent them to the aid of the Second and Sixth corps at the angle which was still regarded as the prize of battle, and where was the focus of (the fight. Five times did Lee hurl his heavy columns against the National lines entrusted with the defense of this position. Five times, after severe hand-to-hand fighting, in which the slaughter on both sides was dreadful, were the attacking columns repulsed. It was not until after midnight that Lee with- drew his shattered and bleeding lines and re-formed them in his interior position. Hancock held the works he had captured in the morning. The battle had lasted twenty hours. The losses on either side were about 10,000 men. Such was the great battle of Spottsylvania Court House. Although not a decisive vic- tory it was a positive gain to the National cause. Its moral effect was great. It was , _ one of the bloodiest battles of the war. The sight presented at the angle where the tide of battle surged and roared from earliest dawn till past midnight of that summer day, as described by eye-witnesses, was something shocking to wit- ness. The bodies of the dead and wounded were piled in heaps and mingled together in wild confusion. It was, as one has said, " an angle of death — one hideous Golgotha." The severity of the musketry fire was evidenced by the condition of the forest after the battle. The trees were not only pierced by the bullets, but literally cut down. At Washington, as a relic of this fight, there is preserved the trunk of an oak tree which was cut through and through by bullets. The trunk is about twenty inches in diameter. It was evident that the Confederates could not be dislodged from their position without a still heavier loss to the Union army, and ADMINISTRATION OF ABRAHAM LINCOLN. 747 General Grant determined to draw them from the heights of Spottsylvania by another march to the right. On the twenty-first of May the Army of the Potomac moved from Spottsylvania to the banks of the North Anna River, and reached that stream on the twenty-third. Lee had marched rapidly by a shorter route, and his army was in position on the south side of the river when Grant reached the northern shore. Lee had chosen a posi- tion of very great strength in front of Hanover Junction, and had covered it with earthworks. On the twenty-fifth Grant crossed a large part of his force to the south side of the North Anna, and endeavored to force the Confederate line, but discover- ing its remarkable strength, withdrew his troops to the north shore, and on the twenty-sixth moved around Lee's right in the direction of the Chickahominy. Lee followed him promptly and took position at Cold Harbor, on the north side of the Chickahominy, and within nine miles of Richmond, occupying very much the same position held by McClel- lan's army in the battle of Cold Harbor, on the twenty-seventh of June, 1862. He covered his entire line with strong earthworks. On the first of June a sharp encounter occurred between the Federal right and the Confederate left wings, and on the morning of the third of June, Grant made a general assault upon the Confederate works. The attack was made with great gallantry, but was repulsed with a loss to the Federal army of thirteen thousand men. The losses of the Army of the Potomac since the passage of the Rapidan had reached the enormous total of over sixty thousand men. The Con- federate loss during the same period was about twenty thousand. Failing to force the Confederate line at Cold Harbor, General Grant drew off leisurely towards the James River at Wilcox's Landing, intending to cross that river and attack Richmond from the south side of the James. In the meantime, upon reaching Spottsyl- vania Court-house, General Grant had sent General Sheridan, with ten thousand cavalry, to destroy the railroads connecting Rich- GENERAL FITZHUGH LEE. mond with Lee's army and the valley of Vir- ginia. Sheridan executed his orders with complete success, and went within seven miles of Richmond. On the tenth of May he reached Ashland. He was attacked there by the Confederate cavarly under General Stuart, and moved off towards Richmond. Stuart, marching by a shorter route, threw his cavalry between Sheridan and Richmond, and aeain encountered him at the Yellow 748 THE CIVIL WAR. Tavern, on the Brook turnpike, seven miles from the city. Stuart was mortally wounded, and Sheri- dan secured his retreat across the Chicka- hominy and down the peninsula. In General Stuart the Confederates lost their only great cavalry leader. Had Sheridan, instead of halting at Ashland, pushed straight on to Richmond, the Confederate capital must have fallen into his hands. On the twenty- fifth of June he rejoined General Grant. a force of about eighteen thousand men,, under General Beauregard, and posted them in a fortified line, extending from the James to the Appomattox, in front of the Richmond' and Petersburg railroad. On the sixteenth of May, Butler's army, having advanced' within a short distance of this line, was attacked by the Confederates and driven back to Bermuda Hundreds. The Confederates then formed their lines across the narrow peninsula, and kept Butler's force enclosed BATTLE OF COLD HARBOR. At the opening of the campaign, General Butler, with a force of about thirty thousand men, known as the Army of the James, was sent up the James River to attack the defen- ces of Richmond, on the south side of that river. He occupied City Point and Bermuda Hundreds on the fifth of May, and a kw days later, advanced up the neck of land lying between the James and the Appomattox Rivers. To oppose him, the Confederates collected between their works and the two rivers until the crossing of the James River by the Army of the Potomac. The Federal plan of campaign also included the seizure of the valley of Virginia, and of the railway connecting Virginia with East Tennessee and Georgia. On the first of May, General Sigel, with an army of ten thousand men, adv^anced up the valley towards Staun- ton. On the fifteenth, he was defeated with considerable loss by the Confederates, under ADMINISTRATION OF ABRAHAM LINCOLN. 749 General Breckenridge, at New Market, and was driven back down the valley. General Hunter was appointed in Sigel's place, and succeeded in forcing his way to the vicinity of Lynchburg. Lee, becoming alarmed for the safety of that place, sent General Early, with twelve thousand men, to its assistance. advanced upon Petersburg. At the same time General Butler moved forward with the Army of the James against the southern works between the James and Appomattox. On the sixteenth, seventeenth and eighteenth. Grant made repeated attempts to storm the Con- federate works before Petersburg and south BATTLE OF SPOTTSYLVANIA COURT-HOUSE. Early, at once attacked Hunter, and forced him to retreat by a circuitous route into West Virginia. In the meantime, General Grant had reached the James River, where his army was reinforced to one hundred and fifty thousand men. On the fifteenth and sixteenth of June he crossed his troops near City Point, and of the James, but was repulsed with a total loss of nine thousand six hundred and sixty- five men. Being unable to carry the southern works by storm, he began the siege of Petersburg. His right rested on the James above Ber- muda Hundreds, and from this point his line extended across the Appomattox, with his 750 THE CIVIL WAR. left thrown out towards the Weldon railroad. During the summer and fall he continued to extend his left until he had seized the Weldon road. From this point he sought to extend his left still further, and to seize the South GENERAL J. E. B. STUART Side railroad, Lee's only remaining line of communication with the South and South- west. Frequent encounters occurred between the two armies during the summer and fall, a number of which attained the proportions of battles, but we have not space to relate them all. On the thirtieth of July a mine was sprung under one of the principal works of Lee's line, and the explosion was followed by an assault by Burnside's corps. The attack was repulsed with a loss of over five thou- sand men to the Union troops. During the early autumn General Grant extended his lines across the James river, and established a force on the north side of that river to lay siege to the de- fences of Richmond. The right of this force was extended as far as the Williamsburg road. This was the situation of the two armies at the close of the year. In the meantime Early had advanced into the valley of Vir- ginia after the defeat of Hunter. The retreat of that commander in- to West Virginia had left the Potomac un- guarded, and Wash- ington City exposed to attack. General Lee at once reinforced Early to fifteen thou- sand men, and ordered him to cross the Potomac and to threaten Washington, hoping by this bold movement to compel Grant to weaken his army for the protection of the capital, if not to raise the siege of Petersburg. Early moved rapidly, crossed the Potomac near Martinsburs: on ADMINISTRATION OF ABRAHAM LINCOLN. 751 the fifth of July, and on the seventh occupied Frederick City in Maryland. On the ninth he defeated a small force under General Lewis Wallace at Manocacy Bridge, and advanced upon Washington. The Nine- teenth army corps of the Federal army was at Fortress Monroe, where it had just arrived from New Orleans, en route to join Grant's army. It was at once or- dered to Washington, which, until its arrival, was held by a small gar- rison, and Grant at the same time embarked the Sixth corps, and sent it with all speed around to the Potomac. These troops reached Washington before the arrival of Early, who appeared before the de- fences of that city on the eleventh of July. He found the works too strongly manned to be attacked by his force. After skirmishing for several days before them, he withdrew across the Potomac on the four- teenth, and retreated to the neighborhood of Winchester. Early's movement so alarmed the Federal gov- ernment for the safety of Washington that a force of forty thousand men, ten thousand of which were the splen- did cavalry of Sheridan, was stationed in the valley, and Major-General Sheridan was ap- pointed to the command of this army. Had Grant been able to retain these troops with his own army, it is safe to say that Lee would have been forced to abandon his position at Petersburg in the autumn of 1864. Their absence in the valley enabled the Con- federate leader to prolong his defence through the winter. As soon as he had gotten his forces well in hand, Sheridan advanced upon Early, and GENERAL WINFIELD S. HANCOCK. on the nineteenth defeated him at Win- chester, and drove him back to Fisher's Hill, where on the twenty-second, he again defeated him and drove him out of the valley, pursuing him as far as Staunton, By the orders of General Grant, General Sheri- dan now laid waste the entire valley of the 752 STUART'S CAVALRY CUTTING TELEGRAPH WIRES ADMINISTRATION OF ABRAHAM LINCOLN. 753 Shenandoah, destroying all the crops, mills, barns, and farming implements, and driving off the cattle with his army as he moved back. Early was reinforced after his retreat to the upper valley, and about the middle of October advanced down the valley towards the Federal position with a force of nine thousand men and forty pieces of cannon. The Union army lay at Cedar Creek, and was under the temporary command of Gen- eral Wright during the absence of General Sheridan. On the nineteenth of Oc- tober Early attack- ed this force, and drove it back for several miles. In- stead of continuing the pursuit, his troops stopped to plunder the Federal camp,whichhad fal- len into theirhands. General Wright rallied his men and reformed them in a new position, and at this moment General Sheridan .arrived on the field. He had heard the firing at Winchester, "twenty miles away," and had ridden at full speed from that place to rejoin his army. He ,at once ordered it to advance upon Early, whose men, laden with the plunder of the captured camp, were driven back with terrible force and pursued up the valley for thirty miles. This success cleared the valley of the Confederate forces, for Early was not able after this to collect more than a handful of men, and Lee had no troops to spare him. Sheridan's brilliant victories cost him a total loss of seventeen thousand men. 48 A more extended account of General Sheridan's operations, by the historian, John I^ird Wilson, will be of interest to the reader : *'As Sheridan returned down the valley towards Cedar Creek, he was closely followed by the Confederate cavalry under Rosser, supported by the main body of Early's army. On October ninth, the head of Sheridan's infantry column having entered Strasburg by the east road, while the rear was still some miles further south, the enemy following the PONTOON BRIDGE AT DEEP BOTTOM. cavalry on the west road, had advanced so far as to get on the left flank of the infantry column. Custer and Merritt then turned and attacked with their cavalry, when a report having spread among Rosser's men that the National infantry were at the same time flanking them, they immediately gave way and broke into a stampede. The pursuit was continued seven miles. The loss of the enemy was not great, being only about three hundred men, including prisoners ; but he abandoned eleven guns, four caissons, and an ammunition train. 754 THE CIVIL WAR. " Things remained quiet for several days after this affair ; but on the twelfth, the Con- federates again appeared in the neighborhood of Strasburg and opened an artillery fire on Emory's and Crook's corps. These troops were then partially withdrawn and Crook pushed out a reconnoissance, which brought GENERAL PHILIP H. SHERIDAN on a smart engagement of three hours' dura- tion. Night, however, closed upon the scene without any advantage and with little loss to either side. " On the fifteenth, Sheridan went to Wash- ington on important business, leaving the army under the command of General Wright, whose corps was, in the meantime intrusted* to General Ricketts. Fisher's Hill had been abandoned as not affording any good defens- ible line on its southern slope, on which side Early would be likely to approach, and the army had now lain for several days in front of Strasburg, behind breast-works throwm up on rising and rolling ground, mostly along the east side of Cedar Creek — Crook, with the Eighth corps on the left, the Nine- teenth corps in the centre,, the Sixth on the right. On the right of the Sixth, a little in the rear and in reserve, were the two ca- valry divisions of Custer and Merritt. The line was four or five miles long, and following the course of the creek, nearly north and south. "Crook's corps rested its left flank on the North Fork of Shenandoah and its right on the Winchester -: and Strasburg turnpike, the . principal highway in that region. Behind Crook's left and at right angles to it, with a view to guard against any turning move- ment on that flank, lay a force about equivalent to a brigade, known as Kitch- ing's provisional division. North of the turnpike came the Nineteenth corps, Grover's division holding its left and resting on the turnpike, where it joined Thorburn's division of Crook's command. The Sixth corps on the right, and the second cavalry division, were not strongly protected with works, as was all the rest of PORTRAITS OF FEDERAL CAVALRY COMMANDERS. 755 756 THE CIVIL WAR. the line, but were well posted on high ridges, and held firmly the Middle road, or that which runs next north of the turnpike. A small stream called Meadow Run, flows into the creek between the two roads mentioned. was picketed by Powell's cavalry division from Cedar Creek all the way to Front Royal. Weir's battery commanded the fords, supported by cavalry which were so posted as to prevent surprise from the direction of Sheridan's cavalry charge at cedar creek. " In front the National position was consid- ered impregnable, except by surprise, and to turn it would be, it was believed, an under- taking of extreme temerity. To guard against surprise on the left, the North Fork the Luray Valley. Artillery was posted in front of the positions of Crook and Emory, so as to command the ford and the bridge over Cedar Creek, as well as the rising ground on the west side. The wagon trains and ADMINISTRATION OF ABRAHAM LINCOLN. reserve artillery lay in the rear on the turn pike. On the seventeenth, the cavalry on the right, under Custer, was attacked by Con- federate cavalry and infantry, and a severe skirmish ensued, re- sulting in the repulse of the enemy. Next day a careful recon- noissance was made from the left towards Strasburg and Fish er's Hill; but no sign of movement on the part of the enemy v/as discovered. Dis- patches, however.were captured; and it was thus ascertained that reinforcements had been sent to Early, for the purpose of enabling him to attack and defeat Sheridan. "Early, in fact, had just received a rein- forcement of some twelve thousand men. His actual strength was thus increased to twenty-seven thou- sand. His army was still smaller than that of Sheridan. Encour- aged, however, by so large an accession of strength, Early pre- pared to put in execu- tion one of the most audacious movements of the war. " Before break of day on the nineteenth, he arranged his troops at Fisher's Hill and 757 began to move against Sheridan's lines. His cavalry and light artillery were directed to COUNTRY BETWEEN CHATTANOOGA AND ATLANTA. advance against the National right, so as to occupy the attention of Torbert and the 758 THE CIVIL WAR. Sixth corps. His infantry marched in five columns, of which Gordon's, Ramseur's, and Pegram's were ordered to place themselves by daybreak on the left rear of the whole National position, while Kershaw's and Wharton's were to endeavor to get, about the same time, close under the entrenched rising ground on which lay Crook's com- mand. To turn the National left, it was GENERAL JOSEPH E. JOHNSTON. necessary that Early's columns should descend into the gorge at the base of the Massanutten Mountain, ford the North Fork of the Shenandoah, and skirt Crook's en- campment for some distance, in some places within four hundred yards of his pickets. " It was a hazardous as well as audacious experiment; but it was executed with won- derful skill, and, as the result proved, with complete success. The movement was con- ducted quietly, and with great caution. The result was that before daybreak the Con- federate infantry, formed and ready for battle, lay within six hundred yards of the National camps. Gordon's column was diagonally in the rear of the Nineteenth corps ; on the left of Crook, facing Kitching's provisional division, was Ramseur supported by Pegram ; in front of Crook was Kershaw supported by Wharton. Under cover of the morning mist, Kershaw's column moved rapidly through Crook's picket line, and with tremendous fury rushed upon the entrenchments. The onslaught was fearful. The surprise was complete. " In a quarter of an hour Crook's gallant army of Western Virginia became a dis- organized mass of fugitives in rapid rout towards the position of the Nineteenth corps. Crook lost several batteries, some seven hundred men made prisoners, and about one hundred in killed and wounded. The Sixth corps was at the same time menaced; and its attention occupied by the enemy's cavalry and light artillery. It fell to the lot of the Nineteenth corps to resist unaided the shock of Gordon's col- umn, now advancing solidly massed up the slope of a broad, bare hill which com- manded Emory's camp. The Confederate force, including the divisions of Ramseur and Pegram, was as strong as Emory's, and was supported by another column coming up through the woods on the left, and along the turnpike in front. " The Nineteenth corps was thus not only taken in the rear, but outnumbered. Still it held out for about an hour ; and then its left gave way, leaving a part of the artillery in the enemy's hands. The left and centre of the National army had now fallen into com- plete confusion ; and all the trains that could be got away were sent off in haste along the turnpike towards Winchester. The sun was ADMINISTRATION OF ABRAHAM LINCOLN. 759 now high in the heavens, and the extent of the disaster was rendered visible. The Con- federates had succeeded in rolling up the left of the line, and in severing Powell's cavalry division on the extreme left from the rest of the army; and they were now forcing back the entire centre, and occupying the entrench- ments of the Nineteenth corps as they had those of Crook's command. They had also captured eighteen pieces of artillery, thus not only lessening the National power for defense, but increasing their own power for attack. The captured cannon were turned with terrible effect on their late possessors. The Sixth corps was now ordered over from the right ; and these troops, executing quickly a change of front which brought them at right angles to their former line, were soon engaged in desperate battle. A Desperate Struggle. " The resistance made by the Sixth corps in covering the retreat afforded opportunity for re-enforcing the fugitives to some extent ; but the Confederates increased their artillery ♦ and musketry fire to the utmost, and still pressed the National left flank, with the view, apparently, of getting full possession of the turnpike, that they might seize the trains and get between the National army and Winchester. The enemy pressed the left much more vigorously than the right. Merritt's and Custer's cavalry were trans- ferred from the right to the left ; and a severe contest took place in the thickly-wooded country near Middletown, in which the left had been placed by its rapid retreat. " About nine o'clock Sheridan's army had got into line of battle again, and made des- perate efforts to check the enemy. Both sides used artillery ; but the Confederates had greatly the advantage in this arm, having not only their own batteries, but the cap- tured guns of their antagonists besides. The Sixth corps held its ground well ; but Crook's corps on the left was forced back, and the whole line gradually gave way, the enemy again getting past the National left flank, and finally gaining the village of Mid- dletown, about three miles northeast of the position from which Sheridan's army had been driven. The principal aim of the National commanders now was to cover the trains and draw off the army with as little loss as possible to Newton, where they hoped to be able to re-form and offer an effective resistance. The battle had been completely lost. Camps, earth- works, some twenty-four guns and one thousand eight hundred pris- oners — all were left in the hands of the enemy. The routed Nationals were flying in all directions, large numbers of them making their way to Winchester. •' Face the Other Way, Boys ! " " The National army fell back, as we have seen, first towards Middletown, and after- wards in the direction of Newton. About a mile or so in the rear of Middletown,Wright succeeded in restoring something like order. Sheridan was still absent. He had been, as we have mentioned, on a visit to Washing- ton. On his return, he spent the night at Winchester. It was not until his army had been defeated that he was made aware of Early's attack. He was in his saddle in a minute. He had scarcely left Winchester when he beheld sad evidences of the disaster which had befallen his army. The road was covered with wagon trains and crowds of weary fugitives. " As he rode along on his splendid charger, the air was rent with cheers. The fugitives felt abashed and halted; and the wounded by the wayside feebly waved a joyful salute. He did not slacken his pace to rebuke or encourage. Waving his hat to the cheering crowds, his horse still at full 760 THE CIVIL WAR. gallop, he shouted, ' Face the other way, boys ! Face the other way ! We are going back to our camps. We are going to lick them out of their boots.' The words were electric. The tide of fugitives began to turn. As he neared the main body, the enthusiasm became unbounded. Officers and men tossed their hats and cheered to the echo. He repeated his fiery words, ' Boys, if I had been here this would never have happened. We are going back. We'll have all these camps and cannon back again.' What Sheridan said he meant; and the men believed him. He was in the field shortly after ten o'clock. General Early Repulsed. "There was a lull in the fight, which lasted several hours. Wright, as has been mentioned, had already restored order, and made dispositions, if not for attack, at least for effective resistance. Sheridan approved of the arrangements; and mid the most enthusiastic cheers, he rode along the lines, studying the ground and encouraging the men. About one o'clock Early made a charge, which was vigorously repulsed by Emory. About three o'clock Sheridan gave the order, 'The entire line will advance. The Nineteenth corps will move in con- nection with the Sixth. The right of the Nineteenth will swing to the left, so as to drive the enemy upon the pike.' "The order was promptly obeyed. The entire line moved forward — Getty's divis- ion leading the charge. Merritt's cav- alry covered the left flank ; and Custer's cavalry was thrown out on the right. As the Nationals advanced they were checked for a moment by a tremendous fire of artillery and musketry. The check, however, was but momentary ; for Emory swung around upon the foe, and by two gallant charges greatly disordered his lines. Almost at the same moment, the National cavalry fell upon Early's flank. The tide of battle had already turned. " The Confederates fought with bravery and determination ; but Sheridan's men now fighting in the presence of their favorite chief, were not to be resisted. The battle, in fact, was already won; and what was so recently a retreat, was now changed into a pursuit. It was a perfect rout. On his arri- val, Sheridan said, ' We'll have all those camps and cannon back again.' His word was made good. That night, the National infantry halted within their old camps ; but the cavalry pursued, hanging upon the flanks and rear of the retreating foe, until he was beyond Strasburg, and night fell upon the scene. Early halted for the night at Fisher's Hill, and in the morning resumed his retreat southward. In the pursuit, all the captured guns were recovered. The Nationals cap- tured hot only their own guns, but twenty- three of those of the enemy, together with one thousand five hundred prisoners, and any quantity of horses, mules, ambulances,, wagons and stores of various kinds." Sharp Struggle at Resaca. The Western army under General Sherman was increased to one hundred thousand men, and was concentrated in and around Chatta- nooga about the last of April. Opposed to this force. General Joseph E. Johnston had collected an army of fifty thousand men at Dalton, Georgia. The objective point of Sherman was Atlanta, Georgia, the key to the railroad system of the South. On the seventh of May the Federal army began its advance. The position at Dalton being too strong to be assaulted, Sherman turned it by a flank movement upon Resaca, to which place Johnston fell back. On the fourteenth and fifteenth of May Sherman endeavored to force the Confederate lines near ADMINISTRATION OF ABRAHAM LINCOLN. 761 Resaca, but without success. He therefore moved around Johnston's left again, and com- pelled him to fall back to Dallas. Severe fighting occurred on the twenty fifth at New Hope Church, but Johnston maintained his position. Heavy skirmishing ensued until the twenty-eighth, when Sherman hav- ing turned Allatoona Pass, Johnston oc- cupied a new position, embracing Pine, Lost and Kenesaw Moun- tains. Between the fifteenth of June and the second of July Sherman made several attempts to force this position, which was one of the strongest yet occupied by tht Confederates, and fail ing to carry it, again moved to the left and turned it. Johnston at once fell back across the Chat- tahoochee and within the lines of Atlanta. He had prepared this city for a siege, and strongly fortified it. He had his army well in hand, and he was determined as soon as the Federal army had passed the Chat- tahoochee to attack in its ruin, and at all events would be de- cisive of the campaign. At this juncture, however, he was removed from his command on the seventeenth of July by the Confeder- ate President, who was greatly dissatisfied with the results of the campaign, and who^ MAJOR- Sherman and force him to a decisive en- counter. He hoped to defeat him, and had purposely avoided a general battle until now. Should he succeed in his attempt the defeat of the Federal army at such a ereat distance from its base might result GENERAL JAMES B. m'pHERSON. it was generally believed, was influenced by his personal hostility to Johnston, General John B. Hood, a gallant soldier, but unfit for the great task imposed upon' him, was appointed to succeed General Johnston. In Johnston General Sherman 762 THE CIVIL WAR. had recognized an antagonist of the first rank, and had conducted the campaign accordingly. He regarded the appoint- ment of General Hood as greatly simplify- ing the task before him. The Federal army had already paid the heavy price of over thirty thousand men for its advance to Atlanta, while Johnston had lost less than eight thousand men now to be reversed. GENERAL GEORGE H. THOMAS. On the seventeenth of July the Union army crossed the Chattahoochee, and advanced towards Atlanta. On the twen- tieth and twenty-second Hood attacked the Federai lines on Peach Tree Creek, but only to be beaten back with a loss of over eight jthousand men, without inflicting any serious injury upon the Union army, which, how- ever, lost General McPherson, one of its ablest commanders. Sherman now drew in his lines closer to Atlanta, and by a skilful movement thrust his army between the two wings of Hood's forces, thus exposing them to the danger of being beaten in detail. This movement sealed the fate of Atlanta, which was evacuated by the Confederates on the thirty-first of August. On the second of The conditions were 1 September Sherman occupied the city. Hood retreated towards Macon. The loss of Atlanta was a serious blow to the South. It placed the Federal army in the heart of Georgia, and destroyed the principal source from which the Con- federate armies were supplied with mili- tary stores, which had been manufactured in great quantities at Atlanta. Rome, Georgia, which was captured by Sher- man's army during the campaign, was also largely engaged in the manufacture of arms and ammunition. General Sherman was now anxious to march his army through Georgia, and unite with the Union forces on the coast, but he was unable as yet to undertake this movement, as Hood, with an army of thirty-five thousand men lay in his front, and his communications with Chat- tanooga and Knoxville were exposed to the raids of the Confederate cavalry. He now learned that the Confederate government had ordered General Hood to invade Tennessee for the purpose of drawing his army out of Georgia, and concluded to make no effort to prevent this movement. The task of watching Hood was confided to the Army of the Tennessee, under General George H. Thomas, who was given a sufficient force to hold Tennessee, and Sherman set about preparing his army for his march to the sea. Thomas was heavily reinforced from the North. Hood began his forward movement towards the last of October, and on the thirty-first of PORTRAITS OF SHERMAN AND SOME OF HIS COMMANDERS. 763 764 THE CIVIL WAR. that month, crossed the Tennessee, near Florence. He remained on this river until command of General Schofield, and effecting a passage of Duck River, on the twenty- ninth. Schofield fell back to Franklin, eighteen miles south of Nashville. He was attacked on the thir- tieth, by the Confed- erates and forced back to Nashville, within the defences of which city, General Thomas had collected an army of about forty thou- sand men. Hood in- vested the city, and hastened forward his preparations to assault the Federal works. General Thomas, how- ever, anticipated him, and on the fifteenth of December, attacked the Confederate army and forced it back at all points. The next day, the sixteenth, the battle was renewed, and Hood was com- pletely routed. On the seventeenth the Union army set out in pursuit of Hood's broken col- umns, and followed them for over fifty miles. But for the gallantry of a small rear guard, which pre- served its discipline and covered the re- THE COUNTRY TRAVERSED BY SHERMAN IN HIS MARCH THROUGH GEORGIA. ^^^^^ ^^ ^-^^ j^g^.^ ^hg the middle of November, and on the nine- teenth, marched northward, forcing back the Confederate army would have been scattered beyond all hope of reunion. Hood recrossed ADMINISTRATION OF ABRAHAM LINCOLN. 765 the Tennessee with barely twenty thousand men out of the thirty-five thousand with which he had begun the campaign. He had lost half of his generals and nearly all of his artillery. He fell back to Tupelo, Mississippi, andon the twenty-third of Jan- uary, 1865, was, at his own request, relieved of his command. In the meantime Gen- eral Sherman, leaving Thomas to deal with Hood, had begun his march through the State of Georgia. Sat- isfied that the war was practically de- cided in the South- west, he proposed to march to the sea near Savannah, and thence through the Confed- eracy to the position of General Grant's army. This move- ment would compel the Confederates to mass their forces in his front, and would confine the decisive operations of the war to the country be- tween his own and Grant's armies, be- tween which it was believed the Southern forces could be crush- ed. Everything being in readiness, Sherman fire to Atlanta. On the fourteenth of No- vember he set out on his " March to the Sea," MAP SHOWING THE CITY OF MOBILE AND ITS DEFENCES. cut loose from his communications with Chattanooga and set at the head of a splendid army of sixty- thousand men. He ravaged the country as 766 THE CIVIL WAR. he went, leaving behind him a broad belt of desolation, sixty miles in width and three hundred in length. The Confederates had not sufficient force to offer serious opposition to his march, and COMMODORE DAVID G. FARRAGUT in about four weeks he reached the coast near the mouth of the Savannah River. On the thirteenth of December he stormed and captured Fort McAllister, which commanded that river. The city of Savannah was thus left at Sherman's mercy, and was occupied by his army on the twenty-second of Decem- ber. By this successful march to the sea, General Sherman had not only gotten his army in a position to co-operate with Grant in the final struggle of the war, but had struck terror to the South. The most hopeful Confeder- ate now saw that the triumph of the Union cause was inevitable and close at hand. During the year important opera- tions had been un- dertaken by the Federal forces on- the coast. In July,, a powerful fleet un- der Admiral Far- ragut, accompanied by a strong force of troops under Gen- eral Granger, was sent against Mo- bile. This city was one of the principal ports of the Con- federacy and was- strongly fortified. The entrance to the bay was command- ed by Forts Mor- gan and Gaines, two powerful works built before the war, and a number of batteries and a Confederate fleet under Admiral Buchanan — who had commanded the "Virginia" in her fight with the "Monitor" — lay beyond the forts ready to contest the possession of the bay. ADMINISTRATION OF ABRAHAM LINCOLN. 7^7 On the fifthof August Farragut passed the I employed during the war was assembled in forts with his fleet with the loss of but one | Hampton Roads under Admiral Porter. A iron-clad, and entered Mobile Bay. He im- mediately attacked the Confederate fleet, the flag-ship of which was a powerful iron-clad ram — the " Tennes- see." After one of the most desperate fights in naval annals, the entire fleet was destroyed or captured by the Union vessels. Fort Powell was evac- uated and blown up by its garrison on the same day. On the seventh of August Fort Gaines surren- dered to General Granger, and on the twenty-third Fort Morgan also capitul- ated. These successes made the Federal forces masters of Mo- bile Bay, and closed the port to blockade- runners ; but the city, which was strongly fortified, was not taken until the next year. Wilmington, on the Cape Fear River, was now the only port in the Confederacy re- maining open to block- ade runners. It was defended by Fort Fisher, an unusually CAPE FEAR RIVER AND APPROACHES TO WILMINGTON, N. C. formidable work near the mouth of the Cape Fear. A larger fleet than had yet been force of eight thousand troops under General Butler was embarked, and the expeditioa 768 BOAi Ui' iilL •• L'LLkHOUND " RESCUING CAPTAIN SEMMES. ADMINISTRATION OF ABRAHAM LINCOLN. 769 sailed to the Cape Fear. Fort Fisher was subjected to a vigorous bombardment, which was begun on the twenty-fourth of Decem- ber, and the troops were landed ; but at the last moment General Buder decided that the fort was too strong to be assaulted, and the expedition returned to Hampton Roads. Mobile in August of that year. In January, 1863, she ran the blockade, and in three months captured and destroyed fifteen mer- chant vessels. She was at length seized in the harbor of Bahia, in Brazil, by a Federal man-of-war, and taken to Hampton Roads. The Brazilian Government, resenting this SINKING OF THE " ALABAMA " BY THE " KEARSARGE Since the opening of the war the Confed- erate cruisers had nearly driven the commerce of the Northern States from the ocean. These vessels were built in England, and were usually manned by crews of English seamen under Confederate naval officers. One of these, the " Florida," put to sea in the summer of 1862, and succeeded in reaching 49 breach of its neutrality, demanded the release of the " Florida," but while the negotiations were in progress, she was sunk in Hampton Roads by a collision with another vessel. The most famous of all the Confederate cruisers, was the "Alabama." She was built at Liverpool, and was suffered to go to sea in spite of the protest of the American 770 THE CIVIL WAR. minister at London. She was commanded by- Captain Raphael Semmes, and during her long career, captured sixty-five merchant vessels, and destroyed over ten millions of dollars worth of property. During her entire career, she never entered a Confederate port. In the summer of 1864, she put into the harbor of Cherbourg, in France, and was blockaded there by the United States war steamer, " Kearsarge," Captain Winslow. The French government ordered the "Ala- bama " to leave Cherbourg, and she went to sea on the nineteenth of June. She was at once attacked by the " Kearsarge," and was sunk by the guns of that steamer, after an RAPHAEL SEMMES. engagement of an hour and a quarter. Semmes was saved from drowning by the English yacht; " Deerhound," that had wit- nessed the battle and was set ashore. Tiie destruction of the "Alabama" was hailed with delight throughout the North. In the fall of 1864, the presidential election was held in the States remaining faithful to the Union. The Republican party nominated President Lincoln for re-election, and Andrew Johnson, of Tennessee for the vice-presidency. The Democratic party supported General George B. McClellan for the presidency, and George H. Pendleton, of Ohio, for the vice- presidency. Mr. Lincoln received at the polls, 2,213,665 votes to 1,802,237 cast for McClellan ; and the electoral votes of every State, save those of New Jersey, Delaware, and Kentucky, were cast for him. On the thirty-first of October, 1864, Nevada was admitted into the Union as a separate State. The year 1864 closed brilliantly for the Union cause. Though the Confederates had gained a number of important victories dur- ing the year, they had, on the whole, steadily lost ground. Virginia, Tennessee, Georgia, Alabama, Mississippi and Florida, were over- run by the Federal armies, and on the coast there was not a single port remaining open to the Confederacy save that of Wilmington, which was blockaded by a powerful fleet. A Million Union Troops. It was evident that the coming spring cam- paign would end the war. The Federal forces had been increased to the enormous total of one million of men. The Confederates could bring into the field scarcely two hundred thousand men, and for these it was difficult to find subsistence. The vicious financial system adopted by the Confederate Govern- ment had run its appointed course, and the notes of the Confederate Treasury were worth scarcely three or four cents on the dollar. The year 1865 opened with an effort to secure the return of peace without further bloodshed. In January Mr. F. P. Blair, Sr., came from Washington to Richmond, and on his own responsibility proposed to the Con- federate Government the appointment of commissioners to negotiate with the Federal Government for the close of the war. The following commissioners were appointed by the Confederate Government : Alexander H. Stephens, Vice-President of the Confederate States; R. M. T. Hunter, Senator from Vir- ginia in the Confederate Congress, and John A. Campbell, Assistant Secretary of War. PORTRAITS OF PROMINENT FEDERAL GENERALS. 771 772 THE CIVIL WAR. They proceeded to City Point under a safe conduct from General Grant, and were con- veyed from that place to Hampton Roads in a Government steamer. On the third of February President Lincoln and Secretary Seward having reached Hampton Roads, an MAJOR-GENERAL J. M. SCHOFIELD informal conference was held between the President and the commissioners. The Presi- dent refused to entertain any propositions which were not based upon the unconditional submission of the Southern States to the authority of the Union, and as the commis- sioners had no authority from their govern- ment to enter into any such arrangement the conference accomplished nothing. In the meantime, however, Admiral Porter, undaunted by the failure of Butler to take Fort Fisher, had remained off the fort with his fleet and had asked for troops to renew the attempt. The same force that Butler had commanded, with fifteen hundred additional men, was placed under Gen- eral Terry's command and ordered to join Por- ter. This force arrived off Fort Fisher on the twelfth of January, and on the morning of the thirteenth accomplished its landing with success. A terrible fire was rained upon the fort by the fleet during the thirteenth and fourteenth, and on the fourteenth a daring re- tonnoissance of the Union force revealed the fact that the fort had been severely damaged by this bombardment. The trenches of the Union army were pushed rapidly through the sand to within two hundred yards of Fort Fisher in order to attract the atten- tion of the garrison, and on the fifteenth a feint was made by a force of sailors and marines from the fleet in this direction. At the same time the troops under General Terry stormed the fort from the land side, and after a hard hand- to-hand struggle of about five hours, during which each traverse was carried in succession by a separate fight, Fort Fisher was captured* PORTRAITS OF FEDERAL CAVALRY COMMANDERS. 773 774 THE CIVIL WAR. On the sixteenth and seventeenth the Con- federates blew up their other works at the mouth of the Cape Fear and retreated towards Wilmington. The mouth of the river was now in the possession of the Fed- eral forces, and the last port of the South was closed. A number of blockade runners, igno- rant of the capture, ran into the river andfell into the hands of the victors. Later in the month, General J. M. Schofield was placed in command of the department of North Carolina, and on the twenty-second of Feb- ruary occupied the city of Wilmington, North Carolina, with his troops. INTERIOR OF FORT STEADMAN. Sherman, after the capture of Savannah, allowed his army a month's rest on the coast, and towards the end of January moved northward through South Carolina towards Virginia. His force was sixty thousand strong and moved in four columns, covering a front of fifty miles. His route was marked by the same desolation he had spread through Georgia. The roads were in a horrible con- dition, and in many places the men were forced to wade through the icy waters up to the armpits. Still he pressed on right into the heart of the Confederacy. On the seven- teenth of February he reached Columbia, South Carolina, having destroyed the rail- road leading north from Charleston. General Hardee, commanding the Con- federate forces at Charleston, apprehensive of being shut up in that city, which was utterly unprepared for a siege, evacuated Charleston and its defences on the seven- teenth of February and retreated northward to join General Johnston in North Carolina. The next day Charleston was occupied by the Federal forces. Fort Sumter was also taken possession of at the same time. The fort was a mass of ruins; the city was not much better off It had suffered severely from the bombardment to which it had been subjected since the fall of Fort Wagner, and the Confederates upon their withdrawal had set fire to a considerable part of it. From Columbia, Sherman moved to- wards Fayetteville, North Carolina, driv- incr back the Confederate forces that resisted his progress, and entered that place on the twelfth of March. From Fayetteville he moved towards Golds- borough. ' The Confederate government, in the emergency to which it was reduced, was obliged to reappoint General Joseph E. Johnston to the command of the force assembling in Sherman's front. Johns- ton succeeded in collecting about thirty-five thousand troops,with which he attacked Sher- man at Averasborough on the sixteenth of March, and again at Bentonville on the nine- teenth. The Confederates fought with their old enthusiasm in these encounters, but were unable to stay the progress of the Federal army, and on the twenty-third of March Sherman occupied Goldsborough. Johnston withdrew towards Raleigh. At Goldsborough Sherman was joined by the forces of Gen- erals Schofield and Terry, which had come up from the coast. The armies of Grant and Lee had lain con- fronting each other during the winter. General Lee had little hope of maintaining ADMINISTRATION OF ABRAHAM LINCOLN. 775 his position after the opening of hostilities. His army was growing weaker from sickness and desertion, and no more men could be obtained. The Con- federate Congress made a feeble effort during the winter to enlist negro troops in its service, but with singular recklessness refused to offer the boon of freedom to such of the blacks as would take up arms. That body believed that the negroes would fight for their own enslavement. Early having been driven out of the val- ley, General Sheridan was ordered to start from Winchester with a column often thou- sand cavalry, and cut the communications of Lee's army by rail- road and telegraph north and east of Rich- mond. He left Win- chester on the twenty- seventh of February, and defeating Early's force at Waynesbor- ough, broke the Vir- ginia Central Railroad at that point and moved to Charlottes- ville, which surrend- ered to him. He then divided his force into destroyed the railroad between Charlottes- ville and Lynchburg for about forty miles, POSITIONS OF THE ARMIES NEAR PETERSBURG, VA. two columns and resumed his "ride" on the sixth of March. He most thoroughly and the canal between Richmond and Lynchburg shared the same fate for a 77^ THE CIVIL WAR. considerable distance. Being unable to cross the James above Richmond on account of the high water, he moved around the north of Richmond, crossed the river at Deep Bottom and joined Grant before Petersburg on the twenty-sixth of March. He had utterly laid waste the country along his route. The arrival of this splendid force of cavalry was of the greatest service to Grant, as we shall see. The situation of General Lee's army was GENERAL ROBERT E. LEE. growmg more critical every day. He had less than forty thousand troops. He was fully convinced of the necessity of abandon- ing Richmond and Petersburg, and was anx- ious to do so at once, and unite his army with that of General Johnston and occupy a new position in the interior of the South. In order to secure the withdrawal of his army, he determined to make a vigorous attack upon Grant's right, hoping to compel him, in order to help his right, to draw back his left wing, which was in dangerous proximity to the road by which Lee wished to retreat- Could he succeed in this effort, he meant to evacuate his position at Petersburg andretire towards Danville, where he hoped to unite with General Johnston. On the twenty-fifth of March, he made a heavy attack upon Fort Steadman, on the right of Grant's line, and captured it. The Federal forces rallied, however, and drove the Confederates from the captured works back to their own line, inflicting upon them. a loss of three thousand men. Lee had now no alternative but to await the move- ments of General Grant, as he could not afford to make the sacrifice of men which a renewal of his efforts would require of him. General Grant lost no time in taking the field. By the last of March, his army, numbering about one hundred and seventy thousand men, including Sheridan's mag- nificent cavalry division, was in readiness- to begin the campaign. On the twenty- ninth of March, the advance of the Federal army was begun. Leaving the bulk of his army before Petersburg, Grant sent a col- umn of twenty-five thousand men to turn the Confederate right and seize the South- side railroad, Lee's only means of com- munication with Johnston's army and the country in his rear. By the morning of the thirtieth, the Federal left had gotten fairly to the right of the Confederates. On the thirtieth, a heavy storm prevented a further advance, and Lee took advantage of the delay to reinforce his right wing with all the troops he could spare. On the thirty- first, he attempted to drive back the Federal left, but without success. While this battle was going on, Sheridan swung around the Confederate right and seized the important position of Five Forks. Lee then sent Pick- ett's and Johnston's divisions to recover this point, and they drove off the cavalry, and. m G3 ^^ ADMINISTRATION OF ABRAHAM LINCOLN. 177 occupied Five Forks at night-fall on the thirty-first. Being joined by the Fifth corps, Sheridan attacked the Confederates on the morning of the first of April, and defeated them after a determined encounter, taking over five thousand prisoners. As soon as Sheridan had secured Five Forks, Grant opened a heavy artillery fire upon the lines of Petersburg along his whole front, and continued the bombardment through the night. On the morning of the second of April he made a determined attack upon Lee's line and broke it at several points. Gen- eral Lee was now forced to assume a new and shorter line immediately around Petersburg. The Federal army made a vigorous effort to force its way into the city, but was unsuccessful. The fate of Petersburg was now decided. It was impossible to hold it longer. On the night of the second of April Gen- eral Lee withdrew his army from Richmond and Petersburg and re- treated in the direction of Amelia Court-house. His intention was to move towards Danville and endeavor to join Johnston. His retreat was discovered on the morning of the third of April, and the Federal army, leaving a small force to occupy Petersburg, set off in pursuit, following the line qf the Southside Railroad. On the morning of the third the withdrawal of the Confederates from the lines of Rich- mond was discovered by General Weitzel commanding the Federal forces on the north side of the James. He at once advanced and occupied the city of Richmond, a large part of which was in flames as he entered it, hav- ing been set on fire by the Confederates upon their evacuation of it. Thus fell the Confed- erate capital after four long years of bloody war for its possession. Upon reaching Amelia Court-house Gen- eral Lee found that the supplies he had ordered to be sent there from Danville were not to be had. The trains sent from Danville by his instructions had been ordered to Rich- mond to remove the property of the Confed- erate government, and had not been allowed THE LAST CAVALRY CHARGE OF THE WAR. to unload their stores at Amelia Court-house. This was a terrible blow to Lee, who was now unable to furnish food to his troops, who had eaten nothing since the coinmencement of the retreat. Parties were sent into the sur- rounding country to obtain supplies, and this consumed the whole of the fourth and fifth of April, which Lee had hoped to spend in pushing on beyond his pursuers. The delay enabled Sheridan, with eighteen thousand mounted men, to seize the Confed- erate line of retreat at Jetersville. This yyZ THE CIVIL WAR. movement put an end to Lee's hope of reach- ing Danville and joining Johnston. A battle was impossible, for Sheridan had a force nearly equal to his own, and Grant was hurrying on with the rest of the Federal army. General Lee therefore turned off and retreated towards Farmville, hoping to be able to reach Lynch- burg, but Sheridan, after passing Farmville, pushed forward again, and by a forced march reached Appomattox Station, on the South- side Railroad, on the night of the eighth, and planted his force squarely across the Confed- erate line of retreat. Surrender of General Lee. The next morning Lee, when near Appo- mattox Court-house, discovered this obstacle in his way, and about the same time Sheridan was joined by the Army of the James, under General Ord, while the Army of the Poto- mac, under General Meade, was closing in fast upon Lee's rear. General Lee had now but eight thousand men with arms in their hands. The bulk of his forces, being too much broken down by fatigue and hunger to keep their places in their ranks, accompa- nied the regiments in a disorganized mass. As soon as he discovered Sheridan in his front, Lee attempted to cut his way through his lines, but failing in this effort, and being convinced that further resistance would merely be a useless sacrifice of his men, he asked for a suspension of hostilities, and went to meet General Grant. The two commanders met at a house near Appomattox Court-house, and after a brief interview arranged the terms of the surren- der. General Grant treated the beaten army with great liberality. The hungry Confed- erates were fed by the victors, and after laying down their arms were permitted to return to their homes. In order that the men might betake themselves as soon as possible to the cultivation of the soil, and so avoid the suffering which the failure of the harvest would entail upon the South, Gen- eral Grant released all captured horses which were identified as the property of the sol- diers surrendering them. The terms of the surrender were arranged on the ninth of April, On the twelfth the Army of Northern Virginia formed in divis- ions for the last time, and marching to a des- ignated spot near Appomattox Court-house, laid down its arms, and disbanded. About seventy-five hundred men with arms, and about eighteen thousand unarmed strag- glers, took part in the surrender. The Fed- eral troops treated their vanquished oppo- nents with true soldierly kindness, and care- fully refrained from everything which might seem to insult the valor that had won their earnest admiration. Terms of Surrender. The following is a detailed account of the correspondence which passed between Gen- erals Grant and Lee, and a full statement of the terms upon which the Confederate Gen- eral surrendered his army. On the evening of April 7th Lee received Grant's first letter. " April 7th, 1865. " General : The result of the last week must con- vince you of the hopelessness of further resistance on the part of the Army of Northern Virginia in this struggle. I feel that it is so, and regard it as my duty to shift from myself the responsibility of any further effusion of blood, by asking of you the sur- render of that portion of the Confederate States army known as the Army of Northern Virginia. " U. S. GRANT, Lieut.-General. " General R. E. Lee." To this letter Lee wrote answer ; but it was not until an immediate the following morning that it reached Grant at Farmville. It was couched in these words : " April 7th, 1865. "General: I have received your note of this" date. Though not entertaining the opinion you ex- press of the hopelessness of further resistance on the ADMINISTRATION OF ABRAHAM LINCOLN. 779 part of the Army of Northern Virginia, I reciprocate your desire*to avoid useless effusion of blood, and, therefore, before considering your proposition, ask the terms you will offer, on condition of its surren- der. " R. E. LEE, General. " Lieut.-General U. S. Grant." On the instant Grant replied as follows : '•April 8th, 1865. ' ' General : Your note of last evening, in reply to mine of the same date, asking the condition on which I will accept the surrender of the Army of Northern Virginia, is just received. In reply, I would say that peace being my first desire, there is but one condition that I insist upon, viz. : That the men surrendered shall be disqualified for taking up arms against the government of the United States until properly exchanged. I will meet you, or des- ignate officers to meet any officers you may name for the same purpose, at any point agreeable to you, for the purpose of arranging definitely, the terms upon which the surrender of the Army of Northern Virginia will be received. " U. S. GRANT, Lieut.- General. " General R. E. Lee." Lee was in a strongly intrenched position, a few miles to the north of the Appomattox. As soon as he indited his reply to Grant's first message he resumed his retreat under cover of the darkness ; and so quietly was it conducted that Humphreys was ignorant of the fact until morning, when he was prepared to renew the attack. Lee's skillful general- ship was again conspicuously revealed. Ever vigilant, ever fertile in resource, and ever active, he had again put miles between him- self and his pursuers. Lee's Hurried Retreat. The fact that Lee had retreated durmgthe night was at once made known to Grant, who immediately gave orders for the renewal of the pursuit. The Second and Sixth corps, under the immediate direction of Meade, who was accompanied by the General-in-chief, were pushed forward with all possible haste along the north bank of the Appomattox. Sheridan meanwhile had made excellent use both of his troopers and of his time. Lee was pressing along that gradually narrowing neck of land which lies between the head- waters of the Appomattox and the affluents of the James. It was of the utmost importance that Sheri- dan should be able to interpose his troops between Lee's army and Lynchburg. If he could close the outlet in the direction of that city it would be all over with Lee, pursued closely as he was by the Second and Sixth corps, under the direction of Meade and the General-in-chief. This was precisely what Sheridan was aiming at, and what, within a few hours, he actually did accomplish. Hav- ing learned from one of his scouts early on the morning of the eighth that four trains of cars with supplies for Lee's army were at Appomattox Station, he at once notified Mer- ritt and Crook, and briskly pushed the whole command towards that point. Desperate Attempt to Escape. Lee was not ignorant of the extreme peril of his situation; but he kept pressing eagerly forward, still clinging to the skirts of hope, and, in spite of almost irresistible evidence to the contrary, indulging the thought that he might yet find refuge among the ranges of the Blue Ridge, beyond Lynchburg. In these circumstances he received Grant's second let- ter, and replied as follows : " April 8th, 1865. "General: I received at a late hour your note of to-day. In mine of yesterday, I did not intend to propose the surrender of the Army of Northern Vir- ginia, but to ask the terms of your proposition. To be frank, I do not think the emergency has arisen to call for the surrender of this army ; but as the res- toration of peace should be the sole object of all, I desire to know whether your proposals would tend to that end. I cannot, therefore, meet you with a view to surrender the Army of Northern Virginia; but so far as your proposition may affect the Confed- erate States forces under my command, and tend to the restoration of peace, I should be pleased to meet 78o THE CIVIL WAR. you at ten A. m., to-morrow, on the old stage-road to Richmond, between the picket-lines of the two armies. " R. E. LEE, General. " Lieut.-General U. S. Grant." This note was received by Grant about midnight ; and he replied next morning in the following terms : "April 8th, 1865. " General : Your note of yesterday is received. GENERAL JOHN GORDON. As I have no authority to treat on the subject of peace, the meeting proposed for ten A. M., to-day, could lead to no good. I will state, however. Gen- eral, that I am equally anxious for peace with your- self; and the whole North entertain the same feel- ing. 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 destroyed. Sincerely hoping that all our difficulties may be settled with- out the loss of another life, I subscribe «iyself, " U. S. GRANT, Lieutenatit-General. " General R. E. Lee." As soon as he had finished this letter Grant left Meade in charge of the Second and Sixth corps and hurried on to join Sheridan and Griffin. While the letter was on its way, and before the General-in-chief had joined the one or the other, further parley had become unnecessary. Sheridan had already settled the question. On the morning of the eighth, after a forced march of about thirty miles, his advance, under Custer, had reached Appomattox Station,, about four miles to the south of Appomat- tox Court House. Lee's vanguard had just arrived with four trains of cars, laden with supplies. Custer Makes a Dash. Custer, with lightning-like rapidity,, dashed upon the rear of the trains, and cap- tured them. Supported by Devin, who had come up, he then rushed with fierce energy on the vanguard, and drove it back to Ap- pomattox Court House, near which was the main body of Lee's army. Twenty-five guns, a hospital train, a large number of ad- ditional wagons, with many prisoners, were captured by the National cavalry. Sheridan, hurrying forward with the remainder of his command, flung himself across the line of Lee's retreat, with the determination of hold- ing his ground at any and every risk until the morning, when, he knew, he would be joined by Ord, and the Army of the James, and by Griffin Avith the Fifth corps. He knew also that by that time, Meade, with the Second and Sixth corps, would be well forward and able to fall with effect on the Confederate rear. Such was the situation of affairs on the night of the eighth. Lee was completely cut off from his own line of retreat. Brave and resolute to the last, and believing that he had nothing but cavalry in front of him, he ADMINISTRATION OF ABRAHAM LINCOLN. 781 decided to make an attempt, at least, to cut through Sheridan's lines. Early on the morning of the ninth Lee was ready to carry out his purpose. His heart, however, must have bled within him, when he looked around him, and beheld the wretched remnant of what was once the proud and invincible army of Northern Vir- ginia. It consisted of two thin lines — the one composed of what was left of Hill's, now Gordon's command, the other of the wreck of Longstreet's corps. Between these lines were the debris of the wagon-train, and some thousands of miserable creatures who were too weak to ,=^_ carry arms. Lee gave orders to Gordon to cut his way through, at all hazards. The charge was made with tremendous energy. Such, in truth, was the violence of the shock, and so persistent was the pressure, that Sheridan's men who had dismounted to resist the attack, were forced back. At this critical moment, Sher- idan, who had been to Appomat- tox Station for the purpose of hurrying forward Ord, arrived on the scene of action. Knowing well the purpose of the enemy, and keenly alive to the value of time, he directed his troopers to fall back gradually, but to continue to offer a firm and steady resistance, so as to allow Ord, with his infantry, to come up and form his lines. This done, they were to move to the right and mount. Sheridan's orders were admirably executed. As soon as the cavalry moved towards their own right, the Confed- erates beheld to their amazement, the glit- tering arms and serried ranks of the in- fantry. The unlooked-for vision had all the effect of a stunning and unexpected blow. The Confederates immediately discontinued their pressure, and began to give way. The Na- tional infantry were now pressing upon the confused and bewildered multitude. Sheridan had ridden round to the Confederate left flank ; his bugles had sounded the order to remount, and he was just about to fall with all his weight on the already disordered mass, when a flag of truce was presented to Custer who led the advance. Sheridan rode to Appomattox Court House, where he was met by General Gordon and General Wilcox. Gordon asked for a suspension of hostilities. THE McLEAN HOUSE. and informed Sheridan that Grant and Lee were, even now, making arrangements for the surrender of the Army of Northern Virginia. There was no more fighting between the two great rival armies — the Army of the Potomac and the Army of Northern Virginia. On the morning of the ninth, a heavy fog enveloped the entire country around Appo- mattox Court House. Long before that fog dispersed, Lee, clad in a new gray uniform, might have been seen at a camp-fire with Mahone and Longstreet. Care and anxiety were written on each of their countenances. Longstreet, his arm in a sling, and a cigar in 782 THE CIVIL WAR. his mouth, sat on the trunk of a felled tree. Gordon had been sent on his mission. It SURRENDER OF GENERAL LEE. was agreed that if success were denied him there was no longer any chance of escape. Of Gordon's failure to penetrate the National lines, they were soon made aware. Lee mounted his horse. "General Longstreet," he said, "I leave you in charge ; I am going to hold a conference with Gen- eral Grant." He then rode off. On his way he received Grant's letter, before quoted. He replied immedi- ately : "April 9, 1865. "General: I received your note of this morning, on the picket-line, whither I had come to meet you, and ascertain definitely what terms were embrac- ed in your proposition of yesterday, with reference to the surrender of this army. I now ask an in- terview, in accordance with the offer contained in your letter of yesterday for that purpose. " R. E. LEE, General. " Lieut.-General U. S. Grant." To this Grant re- plied as follows : "April 9th, 1865. " General : Your note of this date is but this moment (i 1.50 A. M.) re- ceived. In consequence of my having passed from the Richmondand Lynch- burg road to the Farmville y and Lynchburg road, I am at this writing about four miles west of Walter's Church, and will push forward to the front for the purpose of meeting you. Notice sent to me on this 784 THE CIVIL WAR. road, where you wish the interview to take place, will meet me. " U. S. GRANT, Lieutenant-General. '• General R. E. Lee." The scene and the main features of the interview have been preserved for us by an eye-witness. It took place at the house of Mr. Wilmer McLean — a square brick build- ing surrounded with roses, violets and daffo- dils. Grant — with his slouched hat, dark blue frock-coat unbuttoned and covered with mud, gray pantaloons tucked in his soiled boots, and a dark waistcoat, and with nothing to indicate his rank, except the double row of brass buttons and the three silver stars — walked up to the house, accompanied by Ord, Sheridan and their respective staffs. Lee had already arrived ; and his blooded iron-gray horse, in charge of an orderly, was nibbling at the grass. Grant and two aids entered the house; the others who accom- panied him, sat down on the porch. Lee was standing beside a table, wearing a bright bluish-gray uniform, a military hat, with a gold cord, buckskin gauntlets, high riding boots, and the splendid dress-sword which had been presented to him by the State of Virginia. Tall and erect, he had a fine soldierly bearing. It was noticed that his hair was long and gray. He was attended only by Colonel Marshall, his chief of staff. On Grant's entrance the two shook hands, sat down and proceeded to business. Grant Delivers His Terms. As Lee made no special request. Grant at once wrote out his terms : " Appomattox Court House, \ April 9, 1865. ) "General: In accordance with the substance of my letter to you of the eighth instant, I propose to receive the surrender of the Army of Northern Vir- ginia on the following terms, to wit : Rolls of all the officers and men to be made in duplicate, one copy to be given to an officer designated by me, the other to be retained by such officers as you may designate. The officers to give their individual paroles not to take up arms against the Government of the United States until properly exchanged, and each company or regimental commander to sign a like parole for the men of his command. The arms, artillery and public property to be parked and stacked and turned over to the officers appointed by me to receivethem. This will not embrace the side-arms of the officers, nor their private horses or baggage. This done, each officer and man will be allowed to return to his home, not to be disturbed by United States authority so long as they observe their paroles and the laws in force where they may reside. " U. S. GRANT, Lieutenant- General. "General R. E. Lee." The following is Lee's letter of acceptance : " Headquarters Army of Northern ) Virginia, April 9, 1865. j "General: I have received your letter of this date, containing the terms of the surrender of the Army of Northern Virginia, as proposed by you. As they are substantially the same as those expressed in your letter of the eighth instant, they are accepted. I will proceed to designate the proper officers to carry the stipulations into effect. " R. E. LEE, General. " Lieut.-General U. S. Grant." The signatures had just been attached, when Lee, after a moment's reflection, said that he had forgotten one thing. Many of the cavalry and artillery horses belonged to the men who had charge of them. It was too late, however, to speak of that now. Grant replied, " I will instruct my paroling officers that all the enlisted men of your cavalry and artillery, who own horses, are to retain them, just as the officers do theirs. They will need them for their spring plough- ing, and other farm work." Lee seemed greatly pleased with Grant's prompt com- pliance with his only half-expressed wish. "General," he said earnestly, "there is nothing which you could have accomplished more for the good of the people or of the govern- ment." Grant's terms were in the last degree magnanimous and liberal. 5° 7as 786 THE CIVIL WAR. The news of the capture of Richmond and Petersburg and the surrender of Lee's army was received in the North with the greatest rejoicing. Bells were rung, cannon fired, and illuminations flashed from every town and village, fof it was understood that these great successes were decisive of the war. In the midst of these rejoicings occurred /^V, o-^\. "-^^^^^^^''^^^^^/^ THE GRAVE OF PRESIDENT LINCOLN. a terrible tragedy which plunged the country into mourning. President Lincoln, whose re-election we have related, entered upon his second term on the fourth of March, 1865, amid the congratulations of the country. On the evening of the fourteenth of April he attended a performance at Ford's Theatre, in the city of Washington. During the midst of the performance the report of a pistol rang through the house, and the next moment a man leaped from the President's box upon the stage, and waving a pistol over his head, shouted " Sic semper tyrannis'' (Thus always with tyrants), and disappeared behind the scenes. The cry was raised that the Presi- dent had been killed, and in the commotion' which ensued the assassin escaped. The murderer had en- tered the lobby of the theatre, and had fired from the door of the private box ^ upon the unsuspic- ious President, who was sitting with his back to him. Mr. Lincoln fell heavily forward and never spoke again. He was conveyed to a house on the opposite side of the street, and the high- est skill was exert- ed to save him, but all in vain. He died on the morning of the fifteenth, sur- rounded by his fa- mily and the lead- ing men of the na- tion. Appropriate funeral services were held on the nineteenth, and the body of the martyred President was conveyed through the principal cities of the North and West to Springfield, Illinois, where it was buried. Along the entire route it was received with the evidences of the nation's grief. Cities were draped in mourning, and dense crowds poured out to greet the fun- eral cortege, and testify their love and sorrow ADMINISTRATION OF ABRAHAM LINCOLN. 787 for the dead man. Even in the South, which had made the election of Abraham Lincoln the occasion of the dissolution of the Union, the unaffected and manly virtues of this simply great man had conquered the people, who had come to regard him as their best and truest friend. His death was sincerely lamented there, and in the lamentation of the South, Abra- ham Lincoln had his proudest triumph. His death was a crushing misfortune to the whole country. He was the only man capable of carrying out a policy of generous concilia- tion towards the South, and he had resolved upon buch a course. He was sincerely desirous to heal the wounds of the war as soon as possible, and was strong enough to put down all opposition to his policy. His untimely death, as well as the manner of it, threw back the settlement of our national troubles fully five years. The Assassin Escapes. As he leaped from the President's box to the stage, the assassin's foot caught in an American flag with which the box was draped, and he fell heavily, breaking his leg. He managed to escape, however. It was immediately ascertained that the assassin was John Wilkes Booth, a younger son of the famous actor Junius Brutus Booth. Almost at the same time that the President was shot, another assassin, one Payne, alias Powell, entered the residence of Secretary Seward. Proceeding to the chamber where the Secre- tary was confined to a sick bed, he attacked the two attendants of the invalid and his son, Frederick W. Seward, and injured them severely, and then attempted to cut Mr. Seward's throat. He succeeded in gashing the face of his intended victim, but fled before further harm could be done. Booth, who was most probably insane, had drawn quite a number of persons into a con- spiracy, which had for its object the murder of the President and Vice-President, Secre- taries Seward and Stanton, and Chief Justice Chase. The plot failed through unexpected movements of some of the intended victims and the cowardice of some of the conspirators. Booth and a young man named Harold fled into lower Maryland, from which they crossed the Potomac into Virginia. They were pursued by the government detectives and a squadron of cavalry, and were tracked to a barn in Caroline County, Virginia, between Bowling Green and Port Royal. Booth Shot by Sergeant Corbett. Here they were surrounded on the twenty- sixth of April. Harold surrendered himself, but Booth, refusing to yield, was shot by Sergeant Boston Corbett, and died a few hours later, after suffering intensely. His accomplices were arrested, and were brought to trial before a military commission at Washington. Payne or Powell, Atzerot, Harold, and Mrs. Surratt were condemned to death, and were hanged on the seventh of July, 1865, for complicity in the plot. Dr. Mudd, O'Laughlin and Arnold were im- prisoned in the Dry Tortugas for life, and Spangler for six years. What Booth expected to accomplish by his horrible deed yet remains a mystery. It is now generally believed that he was insane ; rendered so perhaps by his dissipated habits — and in this state of mind had conceived the idea that Mr. Lincoln was a tyrant, and as such ought to be put to death. He had no accomplices in the South, and his bloody deed was regarded with horror by the southern people. We must now return to Sherman's army, which we left resting at Goldsboro'. John- ston's army was in the vicinity of Raleigh, and after the fall of Richmond was joined by Mr. Davis and the various officers of the Confederate government. On the tenth of 788 THE CIVIL WAR. April Sherman advanced from Goldsboro' towards Johnston's position, and steadily pressed the Confederate army back. On the thirteenth Sherman entered Raleigh. Being convinced that further resistance was hope- less, and having learned of the surrender of General Lee's army, General Johnston now States of the Confederacy to their lost places in the Union, it was disapproved by the Federal government, and . Sherman was ordered to resume hostilities. General John- ston was at once notified by General Sherman of this order, and on the twenty-sixth of April entered into an agreement with him by INTERVIEW BETWEEN GENERALS SHERMAN AND JOHNSTON. opened negotiations with General Sherman for the surrender of his army to the Federal commander. The result of these negotiations was an agreement signed by the two commanders on the eighteenth of April. As this agree- ment provided for the restoration of the which he surrendered to General Sherman all the Confederate forces under his command, on terms similar to those granted to General Lee by General Grant. The example of Generals Lee and John- ston was followed by the other Confederate commanders throughout the South. The ADMINISTRATION OF ABRAHAM LINCOLN. 789 last to surrender was General E. Kirby Smith, in Texas, on the twenty-sixth of May. On the twenry-ninth of May Presi- dent Johnson issued a proclamation announc- ing the close of the war, and offering amnesty to all who had participated in it on the Con- federate side, with the exception of fourteen specified classes. Upon the surrender of Johnston's army, Mr, Davis and the members of his former cabinet endeavored to make their way to the coast of Florida, from which they hoped to be able to reach the West Indies. Some of them succeeded in doing so, but Mr. Davis was captured at Irwinsville, Georgia, on the tenth of May, and was sent as a prisoner to Fortress Monroe, where he was held in con- finement until May, 1867. The civil war was over. It had cost the country one million men in the killed and crippled for life of the two armies. In money the North and South had expended proba- bly the enormous sum of ;$ 5, 000 ,000,000. The exact amount will never be known as the Confederate debt perished with the gov- ernment which created it. CHAPTER XLIII The Administration of Andrew Johnson The New President — Return of the Army to Civil Life — The Public Debt — The Reconstruction Question — Action of the President — He Declares the Southern States Readmitted into the Union — The Fifteenth Amendment — Meeting of Congress — The President's Acts Annulled — Reconstruction Policy of Congress — The Fourteenth Amendment — The Freedman's Bureau and Civil Rights Bills — The Tenure of Office Act — Admission of Nebraska into the Union — The Southern States Organized as Military Districts — Admission of Southern States into the Union — The Fourteenth Amendment Ratified — President Johnson's Quarrel with Secretary Stanton — Impeachment of the President — His Acquital — Release of Jefferson Davis — Indian War — The French in Mexico — Fall of the Mexican Empire — Laying of the Atlantic Telegraph — Purchase of Alaska — Naturalization Treaty with Germany — Treaty with China — Death of General Scott — Death of ex-President Buchanan — General Grant Elected President — The Fifteenth Amendment. UPON the death of Mr. Lincoln, Andrew Johnson, the vice-Pres- ident, by the terms of the Consti- tution, became President of the United States. He took the oath of office on the fifteenth of April, and at once entered upon the discharge of his duties. His first act was to retain all the members of the cabinet appointed by Mr. Lincoln. Mr. Johnson was a native of North Caro- lina, having been born in Raleigh on the twenty-ninth of December, 1808. At the age of ten he was bound as an apprentice to a tailor of that city. He was at this time unable to read or write. Some years later, being determined to acquire an education, he learned the alphabet from a fellow- workman, and a friend taught him spelling. He was soon able to read, and pursued his studies steadily, working ten or twelve hours a day at his trade, and studying two or three more. In 1826 he removed to Greenville, Tennes- see, carrying with him his mother, who was dependent upon him for support. Upon attaining manhood he married, and continued his studies under the direction of his wife, supporting his family in the mean- time by his trade. He was subsequently chosen alderman of his town, and with this ■election entered upon his political career. 790 Studing law he abandoned tailoring, and devoted himself to legal pursuits and politics. He was succesively chosen mayor, member of the legislature, presidential elector, and State senator. He was twice elected gover- nor of Tennessee, and three times a senator of the United States from that State. Upon the seccession of Tennessee from the Union he refused to relinquish his seat in the Senate, and remained faithful. to the cause of the Union throughout the war, wining consider- able reputation during the struggle by his services in behalf of the national cause. He was an earnest, honest-hearted man, who sincerely desired to do his duty to the country. His mistakes were due to his tem- perament, and proceeded from no desire to serve his own interests or those of any party. In his public life he was incorruptible. A man of ardent nature, strong convictions, and indomitable will, it was not possible that he should avoid errors, or fail to stir up a warm and determined opposition to his policy. The first duty devolving upon the new administration was the disbanding of the army, which at the close of the war numbered over a million of men. It was prophesied by foreign nations, and feared by many per- sons at home, that the sudden return of such a large body of men to the pursuits of civil ADMINISTRATION OF ANDREW JOHNSON. 791 life would be attended with serious evils, but both the Union and the Confederate soldiers went back quietly and readily to their old avocations. Thus did these citizen-soldiers give to the world a splendid exhibition of the triumph of law and order in a free country, and a proof of the stability of our institutions. Two questions — both difficult and de- licate — presented themselves for settle- ment by the govern- ment. In June, 1865, the war debt amount- ed to ;g2,7oo,ooo,ooo. The interest on this sum was ^133 ,000,000, and was nearly all pay- able in gold. The gov- ernment was called upon to raise the latter amount to pay the interest on its bonds, and at the same time to take measures to strengthen the confi- dence of the bond- holders in the security of their investments. The latter object was accomplished by a solemn resolution of the House of Repre- sentatives, adopted with but one dissent- ing voice on the fifth of December, 1865, pledging the faith of the nation to the payment of the public debt, "principal and interest." In order to provide for the immediate wants of the government Congress levied additional duties on imported articles, and imposed taxes upon manufactured articles, incomes, etc. These burdensome imposts were cheerfully submitted to by the people, and a revenue of over ;^300,ooo,ooo was raised, providing not only for the payment of the interest on the debt, and of the current ANDREW JOHNSON. expenses of the government, but also leaving a large surplus, which was applied to the reduction of the national debt. In the year 1866, "before all the extra troops called out by the war had been discharged, the debt had been diminished more than thirty-one 792 THE CIVIL WAR. millions of dollars " — a striking proof of the ability as well as the willingness of the nation to discharge its financial obligations. During the remainder of Mr. Johnson's term this policy was faithfully adhered to under the able guidance of Hugh McCulloch, secretary of the treasury. which he claimed they had no power to renounce. Now that they had submit- ted to the authority they had formerly endea- vored to reject, he claimed that they were entitled to immediate restoration to their old places in the Union. In support of his position he quoted the RUINS OF RICHMOND AFTER THE WAR. The other question demanding immediate attention was the adjustment of the relations of the States of the South to the Union. The President held that they had never been out of the Union but had simply been in insur- rection, and had been brought back to the acknowledgment of their allegiance to the constitution and laws of the United States, solemn declaration of Congress in the sum- mer of 1 86 1, and the assurances of Mr. Lincoln's administration that the war was fought for the restoration of the Union, and not for purposes of conquest. In accordance with these declarations, provisional govern- ments had been formed in some of the South- ern States and their representatives had been. ADMINISTRATION OF ANDREW JOHNSON. 793 admited to Congress during the progress of the war. A considerable party in the North supported President Johnson in this position ; but the Republican i)arty, now the dominant political organization of the United States, opposed his views with great determination. The Republicans insisted that the results of the war should be secured by stringent laws, and that the Southern States, before their admission into the Union, should be President Johnson, however, proceeded alone and without delay to the work of restoring the Southern States to their places in the Union. On the twenty-ninth of May, 1865, he issued a proclamation appointing a provisional governor for the State of North Carolina, and providing for the assembling of a convention in that State for the purpose of forming a new constitution, under which the State would be recognized by him as a FORT WARREN, BOSTON HARBOR. compelled to give guarantees for the perpet- uation of these results. The Republican party, moreover, claimed that the work of reconstructing the Union properly belonged to the legislative branch of the government and not to the President. Had the President summoned Congress in extra session and sought the aid of that body in the task before him, a conciliatory policy might have been agreed upon, and the work of recon- struction have been completed without delay. member of the Federal Union. In the mean- time North Carolina was kept under military rule. A similar course was pursued by the President towards the States of Virginia^ South Carolina, Georgia, Florida, Alabama^ Mississipi, Arkan.sas, Louisiana and Texas. The people of the ten Southern States held conventions in accordance with the President's requirements, annulled their or- dinances of secession, renewed their obliga- tions to the Federal Union, adopted new 794 THE CIVIL WAR. State constitutions, and ratified the thirteenth amendement to the constitution of the United States prohibiting slavery forever in all the States of the Union. They also elected sen- ators and representatives to Congress, and were recognized by the President as formally restored to their places in the Federal Union. On the first of February, 1865, Congress passed a resolution submitting to the legisla- tures of the various States the following amendement to the constitution : " Article XIII. Section i. Neither slavery nor involuntary servitude, except as a punishment for crime, whereof the party shall have been duly con- victed, shall exist within the United States, or any place subject to their jurisdiction. " Section 2. Congress shall have power to enforce this article by appropriate legislation." On the eighteenth of December, William H. Seward, Secretary of State, formally an- nounced that this, the thirteenth amendment, had been duly ratified by the States, and had become a part of the constitution of the United States. The ratification of this amend" ment had been required of the Southern States by the President as a condition of their readimission into the Union. The Thirty-ninth Congress met in Decem- bre, 1865, and at once took measures to neutralize the reconstruction policy of the President, The Republican party had a large majority in each house, and was thor- oughly united in its opposition to the Presi- dent. The senators and representatives of the Southern States were refused admission to seats in Congress, and the reconstruction measures of the President were treated as null and void. Congress insisted that the Union should not be " restored " as it was before the war, but " reconstructed " upon an entirely new basis. The measures of the President had made no change in the political status of the black population of the South. The negroes were secured in their freedom by the thirteenth amendment. Congress now proceeded to make the negro a citizen of the United States, and to reconstruct the Union upon this basis. The following, known as the fourteenth amendment to the constitution, was adopted by Congress and proposed to the States for ratification : " Article XIV. 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 States 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 law, nor deny to any person within its jurisdiction the equal protection of the laws. "Section 2. Representatives shall be apportioned among the several States according to their respec- tive numbers, counting the whole number of persons in each State, excluding 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 Congress, the executive and judicial officers of a State or the members of the legislature thereof, is denied to any of the male inhabitants of such State (being twenty-one years of age, and citizens of the United States), or in any way abridged except for participa- tion in rebellion or other crime, the basis of repre- sentation therein shall be reduced in the proportion which the number of such male citizens shall bear to the whole number of male citizens twenty-one years of age, in said State. "Section j. No person shall be a senator or repre- sentative 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 previously taken an oath as a member of Congress, or as an officer of the United States or as a member of any State legislature, or as an execu- tive or judicial officer of any State, to support the constitution of the United States, shall have en- gaged in insurrection 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. "Section 4. The vahdity of the public debt of the United States authorized by law, including debts ADMINISTRATION OF ANDREW JOHNSON. 795 incurred for payment of pensions and bounties for services in suppressing insurrection or rebellion, shall not be questioned ; but neither the United States nor any State shall assume or pay any debt or obligation incurred in aid of insurrection or rebel- lion against the United States, or any claim for the loss or emancipation of any slave ; but all such debts, obligations and claims shall be held illegal and void. ''Section j. The Congress shall have power to enforce, by appropriate legislation, the provisions of this article." This amendement was rejected by all the Southern States except Tennessee, and by several of the North- ern States. Tennessee ratified the amend- ment, and was admit- ted by Congress into the Union. Congress at this session enacted what is known as the " Freedman's Bureau Bill," creating a de- partment under the Federal Government for the care and pro- tection of the newly emancipated negroes and the destitute whites of the South. This measure was ve- toed by the President as unconstitutional, and was passed over As the quarrel between the President and Congress deepened, various efforts were made by the latter to hamper the executive and impair his powers. The Thirty-ninth Con- gress adopted for this purpose a measure known as the " Tenure of Office Act," by the terms of which the President was forbid- den to remove any person from a civil office under the government without the consent of the Senate. This bill was promptly vetoed by the President, but was passed over his veto by the Congress. LINCOLN MONUMENT IN FAIRMOUNT PARK. PHILADELPHIA. his veto. It was immediately put in operation throughout the South. While the Freed- man's Bureau did much to assist the negro in adapting himself to the duties of his new position, it was productive of an immense amount of corruption and fraud. Another measure of Congress which was vetoed by the President upon constitutional grounds, and was passed over his veto, was the " Civil Rights Bill," which secured to the negro the rights of a citizen. On the first of March, 1867, a new State was added to the Union by the admission of Nebraska on an equality with the original thirteen States — four of which were at that time undergoing the process of reconstruc- tion. In February, 1867, Congress proceeded to take extreme measures wiih the Southern States that had refused to ratify the four- teenth amendment. The State governments were abolished, the State officers removed, 796 THE CIVIL WAR. and the Southern States were organized as military districts, and placed under absolute martial law. The writ of habeas corpus was suspended, and the civil law was made to give place to the will of a military com- mander. This was done with the avowed intention of compelling the Southern States to ratify the fourteenth amendment and seek admission into the Union upon the terms prescribed by Congress. Bitter Hostility in the South. The effect of the measures of Congress was to disfranchise the better class of the South- ern people, and to confer the unrestricted right of suffrage upon the negroes. The intelligence of the Southern States was denied any voice in their government, which was intrusted to the most ignorant and degraded part of their population. The measures of Congress were regarded with bitter hostility by the South, and there were very many of the more thoughtful Republicans of the North who seriously doubted the wisdom of this method of reconstruction. The mea- sures of Congress were vetoed by the Presi- dent, but were passed over his veto, March 2, 1867. Upon the organization of the military dis- tricts, the commanding generals, who, as a rule, exercised their power with moderation and forbearance, caused a registry of voters to be made, and ordered elections to be held for conventions to form State governments. The conventions so elected could not in any case be said to represent the white people of the South. After a bitter and protracted struggle, some of the conventions ratified the fourteenth amendment, and organized State governments. On the twenty-fourth of June, 1867, Congress passed a bill over the President's veto admiting the States of Arkansas, Alabama, Florida, Georgia, Louis- iana, North Carolina, and South Carolina into the Union, Virginia, Mississippi, and Texas, having refused to ratify the amend- ment, were denied admission into the Union. The fourteenth amendment having been adopted by the requisite number of States, was formally declared a part of the constitu- tion on the twenty-eighth of July, 1868. Attempt to Impeach the President. In the meantime the quarrel between the President and Congress came to a decisive issue. The extreme or radical wing of the Republican party, comprising the majority in Congress, was anxious to remove Mr. Johnson from his position. Could it succeed in doing so, Benjamin Wade, of Ohio, the President of the Senate, would, by virtue of his office, become President of the United States. As Mr. Wade was one of the ex- treme radical leaders, this would place the whole power of the government in the hands of that party. A quarrel be- tween the President and Mr. Stanton, the Secretary of War, furnished the occasion for this effort. On the twelfth of August, 1867, Secretary Stanton was removed from the war department by President Johnson, who ap- pointed General Grant Secretary of War ad interim. Upon the meeting of Congress, in December, 1867, the President's course was denounced as a violation of the tenure of office act, and on the twelfth of January, 1 868, the Senate refused to sanction the removal of Mr. Stanton. Mr. Stanton thereupon de- manded of General Grant the surrender of the war department, and the latter at once complied with the demand. On the twenty-first of February, President Johnson again removed Mr. Stanton, and appointed General Lorenzo Thomas, adjutant- general of the United States, Secretary of War ad interim. He held the tenure of office act to be unconstitutional, and an invasion of his lawful powers as chief magistrate of ADMINISTRATION OF ANDREW JOHNSON. 797 the Republic. This second removal of Mr. Stanton brought matters to a crisis, and on the twenty-fourth of February, 1868,' the House of Representatives, by a strict party vote, ordered the President to be impeached of high crimes and misdemeanors.* The Senate, siting as a high court of impeach- ment, met on the fifth of March, 1868, under the presidency of Chief-Justice Chase. The impeachment was conducted by managers appointed by the House, and the President was defended by able counsel. On the twenty-sixth of May, the case being closed, the vote was taken, with the following result : For conviction, thirty-four; for acquittal, nineteen. There not being the requisite two-thirds vote for conviction, the President was acquitted. Jefferson Davis Releasd on Bail. Jefferson Davis had been confined in For- tress Monroe since his capture by the Federal forces, in May, 1865. All the Confederate officials taken by the Union forces had been released within a year after their capture on giving their parole to answer any prosecution that might be brought against them by the Federal authorities. Mr. Davis was ex- cepted from this clemency, and remained in prison for two years. A prosecution for treason was instituted against him in the district court of Virginia, but he was not brought to trial. A number of prominent citizens of the North who had been so active in their support of the war that their motives could not be suspected, ex- erted, themselves to procure his release on bail, and became his sureties. He was ac- cordingly released on bail on the thirteenth of May, 1867. During the following year the indictment against him was quashed by the government. During the latter part of the civil war a vexatious and bloody warfare with the Indians broke out on the frontier. It began in 1864, and extended through 1865 and 1866, and until the fall of 1868 its ravages were spread along the frontier through Southern Colorado into the Indian Territory, causing severe suffering to the settlers of this region. By the winter of iS6^-66 the war had assumed such formidable proportions that General Sheridan was sent with a con- siderable force against the savages. The vigorous measures of Sheridan, and General Custer's victory over the band of Black Kettle at Wacheta, brought the war to a close in the fall of 1868. * The charges against the President may be summed up as follows : l. Unlawfully ordering the removal of Mr. Stanton from the office of Secretary of War, in violation of the provisions of the tenure of office act. 2. The unlawful appointment of General Lorenzo Thomas as Secretary of War at/ hiterim. 3. Conspiring with General Thomas and other persons to prevent Edwin M. Stanton, the lawfully appointed Secretaiy of War, from holding that office. 5. Conspiring with General Thomas and other persons to hinder the operation of the tenure of office act ; and in pusuance of this conspiracy attempting to prevent Mr. Stanton from acting as Secretary of War. 6. Conspiring with General Thomas and others to take forcible possession of the property in the war department. 7. The President was charged with having called before him the commander of the troops in the department of Washington, and declaring to him that a law passed on the thirtieth of June, 1867, directing that " all orders and instructions relating to military operations, issued by the President or Secretary of War, shall be issued through the general of the army, and in case of his inability, through the next in rank," was unconstitutional, and not binding upon the commander of the department of Washington, the design being to induce that commander to violate the law, and obey orders issued directly from the President. 8. That in a number of public speeches the President had attempted to set aside the authority of Congress, to bring it into disgrace, and to excite the hatred and resentment of the people against Congress and the laws enacted by it. 9. That in August, 1866, in a public speech in Washington, the President hatl declared that Congress was not a body authorized by the constitution to exercise legislative powers. Then followed a specification of alleged attempts on the part of the President to prevent the execution of the laws of Congress. The impeachment articles were eleven in number. The other two were simply repetitions of .some of the above charges. 798 THE CIVIL WAR. While the civil war was at its height, France, England and Spain became involved in a quarrel with Mexico concerning the non- payment of certain claims due citizens of those countries by the Mexican republic, the fourth of March, 1862, and withdrew their forces. The French, however, continued the war, and after a hard struggle, during which the Mexicans fought gallantly for their country,. EMPEROR MAXIMILIAN. and a joint expedition was despatched to Mexico in the fall of 1861. Discovering that France was seeking to use the expe- dition to destroythe independence of Mexico, England and Spain settled their claims with the republic by the convention of SoHdad, on Mexico was conquered, and early in June,. 1863, the French army entered the capital. The emperor of the French now proceeded to overthrow the republic, it being his intention to replace it with an empire which should be dependent upon France. An ADMINISTRATION OF ANDREW JOHNSON. 799 election was held, and under the intimidation of the French, resulted in a majority in favor of the abolition of the republic and the erection of the empire. Through the same influence, the Mexicans chose Maximilian, archduke of Austria, emporer of Mexico, and in an evil hour for himself, that amiable and high-souled prince accepted the crown. The government of the United States had viewed the interference of France in Mexican affairs with marked displeasure, but being too much engaged in its efforts to bring the civil war to a successful close to undertake any new difficulty, simply entered its protest against the action of France. The civil war having been brought to a close, however, it took a bolder stand, and demanded of the French emporer the withdrawal cf his troops from Mexico. The action of the cfov- ernment was sustained by the great mass of the American people, and it was believed by many that a foreign war would be a sure and speedy way of bringing about the res- toration of the Union. The Emperor Napoleon hesitated for a while, but finally acceded to the American demand. The French troops were recalled at the close of the year 1 866, and the Emperor Maximilian was left to face the Mexican people alone. They at once rose against him, defeated hisforces and took him prisoner. On the nineteenth of June, 1867, he was shot by order of the Mexican government, in spite of the efforts of the United States to save him. Thus ended the hope of reviving the dominion of France on the American continent. The efforts of the gentlemen interested in the laying of a telegraphic cable across the Atlantic did not end with their failures in 1858. In 1865 the same company succeeded in laying a cable for about fourteen hundred miles from the Irish coast, when it suddenly parted and sank into the sea. The expe- dition then returned to England. Undis- mayed by this failure, Mr. Cyrus W. Field, of New York, to whose courage and deter- mination the final success of the scheme was NATIVES OF ALASKA BUILDING HOUSES. due, succeeded in persuading capitalists to make one more effort, and in July, 1866, a cable was laid from Valentia Bay, in Ireland, to Heart's Content, in Newfoundland, a dis- tance of eighteen hundred and sixty-four miles. It was found to work to the entire satisfaction of all parties, and the great enter- prise was now an accomplished fact. The fleet then sailed from Newfoundland to the spot w^here the cable of 1865 had parted in mid-ocean, and proceeded to grap- ple for it. It was recovered and raised from a depth of over two miles, and was then 8oo THE CIVIL WAR. splicea to the coil on board the " Great Eastern," the ship employed in the under- taking. The huge steamer then put about, and completed the laying of the cable to Heart's Content, thus giving the company two working lines. The completion of the work was hailed with rejoicings in both America and Europe. Purchase of Russian America. On the twenty-ninth of March, 1 867, atreaty was concluded between the United States and Russia, by which the latter power sold to the United States for the sum of seven mil- lion two hundred thousand dollars, all of the region in the extreme northwestern part of the American continent known as Russian America. The treaty was ratified by the Senate on the ninth of April. The new territory added to the area of the United States a district of about five hundred and seventy-seven thousand three hundred and ninety square miles. In the same year a treaty was negotiated "with China, through an embassy from that "country, which visited the United States under the charge of Anson Burlingame, for- merly the American Minister to China. It was the first instance in which that exclusive nation had ever sought to negotiate a treaty of commerce and friendship with a foreign nation. Liberty of conscience to Americans residing in China, protection of their property and persons and important commercial privi- leges were secured by this treaty. In 1 866 the Fenians, a secret society, organ- ized for the purpose of delivering Ireland from British rule, invaded Canada in large numbers from Buffalo, New York, and St. Albans, Vermont. President Johnson at once issued his proclamation declaring the Fenian movement a violation of the neutrality of the United States, and sent General Meade with a sufficient force to the border to execute the laws. This decisive action put an end to the hopes of the Fenians of embroiling this coun- try in hostilities with Great Britain, and after some slight encounters with the British troops in Canada they abandoned the expedition. During President Johnson's administration, two distinguished public servants passed away. On the twenty-ninth of May, 1866, Lieutenant-General Winfield Scott, the vet- eran conqueror of Mexico, died at the age of eighty years. On the first of June, 1868, ex-President James Buchanan died at his home at Wheatland, near Lancaster, Penn- sylvania, in the seventy-eighth year of his age. In the fall of 1868, the presidential election was held. The Republican party nominated General Ulysses S. Grant, the commanding- general of the army, for the presidency, and Schuyler Colfax, of Indiana, for the vice- presidency. The Democratic party nomin- ated Horatio Seymour, of New York, for the presidency, and Frank P. Blair, of Missouri, for the vice-presidency. The election resulted in the choice of General Grant by a popular vote of 2,985,031 to 2,648,830 votes cast for Mr, Seymour. In the electoral college. Grant received two hundred and seventeen votes and Seymour, seventy-seven. The States of Virginia, Mississippi and Texas were not allowed to take part in this election, being still out of the Union. In February, 1869, the two houses of Con- gress adopted the fifteenth amendment to the constitution of the United States, and sub- mitted it to the various States for ratification by them. It was in the following words: " The right of the citizens of the United States to vote shall not be denied or abridged by the United States, or any State, on account of race, color, or previous condition of servi- tude." CHAPTER XLIV. The Administration of Ulysses S. Grant. "Early Life of President Grant — Completion of the Pacific Railway — Death of ex-President Pierce — The Fifteenth Amendment Ratified — Prosperity of the Country — The Enforcement Act — The Test-oath Abolished — The Constitu- tionality of the Legal Tender Act Affirmed — Death of Admiral Farragut — Death of General Lee — The Income Tax Repealed — The Alabama Claims — Treaty of Washington — The Geneva Conference — Award in favor of the United States — The San Juan Boundary Question settled — Efforts to annex St. Domingo — Burning of Chicago — Forest Fires — The Civil Disabilities removed from the Southern People — Re-election of General Grant — Death of Horace Greeley — Great fire at Boston — The Modoc War — Murder of General Canby and the Peace Commissioners — Execution of the Modoc Chiefs — The Cuban Revolution — Capture of the " Virginius " — Execution of the Prisoners — Action of the Federal Government — The Panic of 1873 — Bill for the Resumption of Specie Payments — The Centennial Exhibition — The Sioux War — Death of General Custer — Presidential Election — Controversy over it — The Electoral Commission — The Count of the Vote — Hayes declared elected. ULYSSES S. GRANT, the eigh- teenth president of the United States, was inaugurated at Wash- ington with imposing ceremonies, on the fourth of March, 1869. He was born at Mount Pleasant, Ohio, on the twenty- seventh of April, 1822. His father was a tanner, and wished him to follow his trade, but the boy had more ambitious hopes, and at the age of seventeen, a friend secured for him an appointment as a cadet at West Point, where he was educated. Upon graduating, he entered the army. Two years later he was sent to Mexico, and served through the war with that country with distinction. He was specially noticed by his commanders, aiid was promoted for gallant conduct. Soon after the close of the war he resigned his commission, and remained in civil life and obscurity until the breaking out of the civil war, when he volunteered his services, and was commissioned by Governor Yates, col- ^onel of the twenty-first Illinois regiment. He was soon made a brigadier-general, and fought his first battle at Belmont. His sub- sequent career has already been related in these pages. He selected the members of his cabinet more because of his personal 51 friendship for them, than for their weight and influence in the party that had elected him. Hamilton Fish, of New York, was made sec- retary of state. The most important event of the year 1869, was the opening of the Pacific rail- way from the Missouri River to the Pacific Ocean. The eastern division of this road is known as the Union Pacific railway, and was begun at Omaha, Nebraska, in December, 1863, and carried we::tward. But little prog- ress was made in the work until 1865, when it was pushed rapidly forward. The western division, known as the Central Pacific rail- way, was begun at San Francisco, near about the same time, and carried eastward across the Sierra Nevada. The two roads unite at Ogden, near Salt Lake City, in Utah, and the union was accomplished on the tenth of May, 1869, on which day the last rail was laid. The Union Pacific railway, from Omaha to Ogden, is one thousand and thirty-two miles in length ; the Central Pacific, from Ogden to San Francisco, eight hundred and eighty-two miles ; making a total line of nineteen hundred and fourteen miles, and constituting by far the most important rail- way enterprise in the world. 801 802 ADMINISTRATION OF ULYSSES S. GRANT. By the completion of this great road, to the construction of which the general gov- ernment contributed liberally in money and lands, Portland, Maine, and San Francisco, the extremes of the continent, are brought within a week's travel. The long and difficult journey across the plains has been dispensed with, and the traveler may now pass over this once terrible and dangerous route with speed and safety, enjoying all the while the hisfhest comforts of the most advanced civil- ization. ULYSSES S. GRANT. The east and the west are no longer separ- j ated, and the rapid development of the resources of the rich Pacific slope has more than repaid the enormous cost of the road. A direct trade with China and Japan has been opened, and the wealth of the Orient is beginning to pour into America through the portals of the Golden Gate. The shortest route to India — the dream of Columbus and the old mariners — has indeed been found. On the eighth of October, 1869, ex-Presi- dent Franklin Pierce died, at the age of sixty- five years. The fifteenth amendment, having been ratified by the necessary number of States, was formally proclaimed by Hamilton Fish, secretary of state, a part of the constitution of the United States, on the thirtieth of March, 1870. In the year 1870 the ninth census of the United States was taken, and showed the population of the country to be 38,558,371 souls. The country had now attained a marked degree of prosperity. Gold fell to one hundred and ten, and during the first two years of President Grant's administration, ^204,000,000 of the national debt were paid. The effects of the war were being rapidly overcome, and the bitter feelings engendered by the struggle were giving way to a more friendly intercourse between the North and the South. The manufacturing industries of the country had nearly doubled since i860, and the five years that had elapsed since the war had witnessed a marked improvement in the condition of the South, which was gradually adjusting her industry upon the basis of free labor, and entering upon new and profitable enterprises of manufacture and commerce. The work of reconstruction was concluded in the year 1870. On the eighth of October 1869, the State of Virginia ratified the four- teenth and fifteenth amendments, and on the twenty-sixth of January, 1870, was read- mitted into the Union. On the eleventh of January, 1870, Mississippi ratified these amendments, and was readmitted into the Union on the seventeenth of February, 1870, Texas was the last to return to the Union, but came in during the year, having ratified the amendments to the constitution. The political troubles in the South, how- ever, did not end with the return of the States ADMINISTRATION OF ULYSSES S. GRANT. So- to the Union. A great deal of lawlessly pre- vailed in many of the Southern States, and con- siderable suffering was experienced by tlie negroes, whose sudden endowment with the rights and privileges of citizenship was re- sented by a lawless class of white men. The Federal goverment undertook to remedy these troubles rather than leave them to be dealt with by the States. ber issued a proclamation suspending the writ of habeas corpus in nine counties in South Carolina, in order that the law might be enforced witliout the interference of the Courts of the State. The evils which these severe measures were intended to remedy were unquestionably very great, but the enforcement bill was nevertheless a danger- ous departure from the principles of free VIEW ON THE GREENE RIVER AT THE CROSSING OF THE U. P. R. R., WYOMING. In the spring of 1871 Congress passed a measure known as the " Enforcement Act," or the "KukluxAct of 1871," which gave to the Federal officials absolute power over the liberties of the citizens of the States in which these troubles occurred. The Presi- dent carried out the terms of the act with promptness, and on the seventeenth of Octo- government as understood in this country. A free people cannot too jealously guard their liberties. On the thirty-first of January, 1871, Con- gress repealed the test oath law, which required all applicants for civil offices to swear that they had not participated in the secession movement. As few Southern men 8o4 ADMINISTRATION OF ULYSSES S. GRANT. could take this oath, this law excluded the genuine inhabitants of the Southern States from office under the general government, and threw the political power of those States into the hands of a class of adventurers, who had been drawn to the South since the war by the hope of obtaining office. The repeal PRESIDENT GRANT ON HIS WAY TO THE INAUGURATION of this law by Congress restored the control of the Southern States to the legitimate citizens and tax-payers thereof In 1870 the Supreme Court of the United States decided that the act of Congress making " greenbacks," or the notes of the Pederal treasury, a legal tender, was uncon- stitutional as regarded the payment of debts contracted prior to the passage of that act. As this decision had been given by a majority of but one justice, Mr. Hoar, the Attorney- General, moved to reconsider it. The case was heard again, and the decision of the court was reversed by a vote of five to four, on the eighteenth of January, 1871. Thus the constitutionality of the legal- tender act was affirmed. In 1870 died Admiral David G. Farragut, on the fourteenth of August, aged sixty-nine; General George H. Thomas, " the Rock of Chickamauga," and the defender of Nashville, on the twenty-eighth of December, aged fifty-three, and General Robert E. Lee, the com- mander of the Confederate army of Northern Virginia during the civil war, on the twelfth of October, aged sixty-three. On the twenty-sixth of January, 1 87 1, Congress repealed the income tax. It had been retained long after the necessity for it had passed away and had become odious to the na- tion, which had only submitted to it at first because of the urgency of the need for it. Immediately upon the opening of President Lincoln's second term of office,Mr. Charles Francis Adams, the American minister at the court of St. James, was instructed to call the attention of the British Govern- ment to the depredations committed upon American commerce by Confederate cruisers, built, equipped and manned in Eng- land, and to insist upon the responsibility of Great Britain for the losses thus incurred by American ship-owners. Mr. Adams dis- charged this duty in a communication addressed to the British Government, on the seventh of April, 1865. This led to a ADMINISTRATION OF ULYSSES S. GRANT. 805 correspondence which continued through the summer of that year. Great Britain refused to admit the validity of the American claim, or to submit the question to the arbitration of any foreign government. The " Alabama question " remained unset- tled for several years, and occasioned a con- siderable amount of ill-feeling between the two countries. Both governments regarded it as full of danger, but to Great Britain it was especially so, as in the event of a war between that country and any foreign power, the United States, fol- lowing the example of England, might and doubtless would allow cruisers to be sent out from their ports which would seriously crip pie, if they did no' destroy, the British commerce. After Mr Adams' return fron England, his succes- sor, Reverdy Johnson, was directed by the President to reopen the matter. He nego- tiated a treaty with the Earl of Clarendon on behalf of the Brit- ish Government in 1869, but this arrange- ment was unsatisfactory to the Senate, which body refused to ratify it. Two years later the matter was revived, and in 1871 a joint high commission, com- posed of a number of distinguished public men, appointed by the American and British Governments, met at Washington, and arranged a settlement known as the treaty of Washington, which was ratified by both Governments. This treaty was ratified by the Senate on the twenty-fourth of May, and provided for the settlement not only of the Alabama claims, but of all other questions at issue between the United States and Great Britain. The Alabama claims were referred by the treaty of Washington to a board of arbitra- tion composed of five commissioners selected from the neutral nations. This board met at Geneva, in Switzerland, on the fifteenth of April, 1872, and the American and English representatives presented to it their respective cases, which had been prepared by the most learned counsel in both countries. On the HUMBOLDT PALISADES, PACIFIC RAILWAY. twenty-seventh of June the board announced its decision. The claims of the United States were admitted, and the damages awarded to that Government were ^16,250,000. These were paid in due time. In our account of the administration of Mr. Buchanan we have related the dispute between the United States and Great Britain concerning the possession of the Island of San Juan, growing out of the uncertainty as to the true course of the northwestern bound- ary of the Union. This had been an open question all through the civil war. By the 8o6 ADMINISTRATION OF ULYSSES S. GRANT. thirty-fourth article of the treaty of Washing- ton the two countries agreed to refer this dispute to the friendly arbitration of the Emperor of Germany. Soon after the award of the Geneva conference was made the boundary question was decided by the Emper- or William in favor of the United States, into the possession of which the island of San Juan accordingly passed. Thus were these delicate and dangerous questions satisfactor- Measures were introduced into Congress for the purpose of securing this union, but were warmly opposed. A commission of eminent gentlemen was appointed by the President to visit the island and examine into its condi- tion. They reported favorably, but after a warm debate in Congress the measures for the annexation of the Dominican republic were defeated by a decisive majority. On the night of Sunday, October 8, 1871, CHEYENNE INDIANS RECONNOITERING THE FIRST TRAIN ON THE PACIFIC RAILROAD. ily adjusted by peaceful methods, and not by the sword. In 1870 the republic of St. Domingo, com- prising a large part of the island of Hayti, applied for annexation to the United States. President Grant was very anxious to secure the annexation of this island, and to accom- plish it went to the very verge of his consti- tutional powers — going farther, indeed, than many of his friends believed he had the right. a fire broke out in the city of Chicago, and raged with tremendous violence for two days, laying the greater part of the city in ashes. It was the most destructive conflagration of modern times. The total area of the city burned over was two thousand one hundred and twenty-four acres, or very nearly three and one-third square miles. The number of buildings destroyed was seventeen thousand four hundred and fifty. About two hundred 8o7 8o8 ADMINISTRATION OF ULYSSES S. GRANT. and fifty persons died from various causes during the conflagration, and ninety-eight thousand persons were rendered homeless by it. The entire business quarter was destroyed. The actual loss will never be known. As far as it can be ascertained, it was about one hundred and ninety-six millions of dollars. Almost simultaneous with this disaster extensive forest fires swept over the woods of sities of life was liberally extended! to the- sufferers in Chicago and the other afflicted communities. The telegraph flashed the news across the Atlantic, and in an almost incredibly short time liberal contributions in money came pouring in from England and continental Europe, and even from the far-off cities of India. On the twenty-ninth of May, 1872, Con- THE BURNING OF CHICAGO. Wisconsin, Minnesota and Michigan. Whole villages were destroyed by the flames, which traveled with such speed that it was often impossible for the fleetest horse to escape from them. Over fifteen hundred people perished in Wisconsin alone. These terrible calamities aroused the een- erous spmpathy of the rest of the country, and aid in money, clothing, and the neces- gress passed an act removing the disabilities imposed upon the Southern people by the- third section of the fourteenth amendment to- the constitution. From this general exemption, were excepted all persons who had been, members of Congress, officers of the army or navy, heads of departments under the general government, or ministers to foreign countries, who had resigned their positions. ADMINISTRATION OF ULYSSES S. GRANT. 809 and joined the secession movement. By this act at least one hundred and fifty thousand men of capacity and experience, whose services were greatly needed by the South, were restored to political life. In the fall of 1872 the presidential elecnon occurred. The canvass was marked by the most intense partisan bitterness. The Repub- lican party renominated General Grant for the Presidency, and supported Henry Wilson for the Vice-Presidency. The mea- sures of the administration had arrayed a large numbir of Republicans against it. These now organized themselves as the Liberal Republican party, and nominated Horace Greeley of New York for the Presidency, and B. Gratz Brown of Missouri for the Vice-Presi- dency. The Democratic party made no nominations, and its convention endorsed the candidates of the Liberal Republican party. The election re- sulted in the triumph of the Republican candidates by overwhelming majorities. The elections were scarcely over when the country was saddened by the death of Horace Greeley. He had been one of the founders of the Republican i party, and had been closely identified with the political history of the coun- try for over thirty years. He was the " Founder of the New York Tribune" and had done good service with his journal in behalf of the cause he believed to be founded in right. He was a man of simple and childlike .character, utterly unaffected, and generous to a fault. In his manner and dress he was eccentric, but nature had made him a true gentleman at heart. His intellectual ability was conceded by all. His experience in public life and his natural disposition induced him to favor a policy of conciliation in the settlement of the reconstruction I question, and, influenced by these convictions, he signed the bail-bond of Jefferson Davis and secured the release of the fallen leader of the South from his imprisonment. This act cost him a large part of his popu- larity in the North. He accepted the presi- dential nomination of the Liberal party in the belief that his election would aid in bringing^ about a better state of feeling between the North and the South. He was attacked by HORACE GREELEY. his political opponents with a bitterness which caused him much suffering, and many of his old friends deserted hiii and joined in the warfare upon him. Just before the close of the canvass, his wife, to whom he was ten- derly attached, died, and his grief for her and the excitement and sorrow caused him by the political contest, broke down his firmness and unsettled his mind. He was conveyed by his friends to a private asylum, where he died on 8io ADMINISTRATION OF ULYSSES S. GRANT. the twenty-ninth of November, 1872, in the sixy-second year of his age. The country could ill afford to spare him. On the ninth of November, 1872, a fire occurred in Boston, and burned until late on the tenth, sweeping over an area of sixty-five Grant was inaugurated a second time, at Washington, with great pomp. Twelve thou- sand troops took part in the procession which escorted him to the capitol. Early in 1873, a troublesome war began with the Modoc Indian tribe, on the Pacific PRESIDENT GRANT PASSING THROUGH THE ROTUNDA TO TAKE THE OATH OF OFFICE. acres in the centre of the wholesale trade of the city, and destroying property to the amount of seventy-eight million dollars. As this fire was confined to the business quarter of the city, compartively few persons were deprived of their homes. On the fourth of March, 1873, President coast. These Indians had been removed by the government from their old homes in Cal- ifornia to reservations in the northern part of Oregon. They at length became dissatisfied with their new location, which they declared was unable to afford them a support, and began a series of depredations upon the ADMINISTRATION OF ULYSSES S. GRANT. 8ii settlements of the whites, which soon drew upon them the vengence of the Federal gov- ernment. Troops were sent against them, but they retreated to their fastnesses in the lava beds, where they maintained a successful resistance for several months. The govern- ment at length reinforced the troops operating against them, and General Canby, command- ing the department of the Pacific, assumed the immediate command of the troops in the field. At the same time, a commission was appointed by the government to endeavor to settle the quarrel with the Indians peace- ably. This commission held several con- ferences with Captain Jack, the head chief of the Modocs, and the other Indian leaders, but accomplished nothing. At length the commissioners and General Canby agreed to meet the Indians in the lava beds, a short distance in advance of the lines of the troops. They went unarmed and without an escort. While the conference was in progress, the Indians suddenly rose upon the commis- sioners, and killed all but one, who managed to escape with severe wounds. General Canby was shot down at the same time, and died instantly. The Indians at once fled to their strong- holds amid the rocks. The troops, infu- riated by the murder of their commander, closed in upon them from all sides, and shut them in the lava beds. Their position was one which a handful of men might defend against an army, and they held it with a desperate determination. They were dis- lodged finally by the shells of the American guns, and such as were not killed were cap- tured. Captain Jack and his associates in the murder of General Canby and the com- missioners were tried by a court-martial and sentenced to death. They were hanged in the presence of their countrymen and of the troops ,on the third of October, 1873. For many years Cuba had been growing dissatisfied with the rule of Spain. In 1868 a revolution broke out in that island, having for its object the expulsion of the Spaniards and the establishment of the independence of Cuba. The patriot army was able to win numerous successes over the Spanish troops, and for several years maintained its position against every effort to dislodge it. Very great sympathy was manifested for the Cuban patriots by the people of the United MRS. GRANT. States, and repeated efforts were made to induce the government of this country to recognize the independence of Cuba and assist the patriots, or at least to acknowledge their rights as belligerents. The govern- ment, however, faithfully observed its obli- gations as a neutral power, and forbade the organization or djparture of all expeditions from this country for the assistance of the Cubans. The Cuban agents were prevented ft om shipping arms or military supplies to 8l2 ADMINISTRATION OF ULYSSES S GRANT. their forces, and several vessels intended to serve as cruisers against the Spanish com merce were seized and detained by the Federal authorities. In spite of the precautions of the govern- ment, however, several expeditions did suc- ceed in getting to sea and reaching Cuba. One of these embarked on the steamer the next day. Captain Fry, the com- mander of the " Virginias," and the crew and passengers of the vessel were thrown into prison. After a mock trial, in which the simplest forms of decency were disregarded, Captain Fry and a number of the crew and passengers of the " Virginius," about thirty-five or fortv THE LAVA BEDS — SCENE OF THE MODOC WAR. "Virginius," in the fall of 1873. When off the coast of Jamaica the Spanish war steamer " Tornado " was sighted. She at once gave chase, and though the "Virginius" was on the high seas and was flying the American flag, overhauled her and took possession of her on the thirty-first of October. The " Tornado " then carried her prize into the port of Santiago de Cuba, which was reached in all, were shot by order of the military authorities. The other prisoners were held in a most cruel captivity to await the pleasure of the Spanish officials at Havana. The con- sul of the United States at Santiago de Cuba made great exertions to save Fry and those condemned to die with him. He was treated with great indignity by the Spanish officials, and was not allowed to communicate with ADMINISTRATION OF ULYSSES S. GRANT. 813 Havana, from which point he could consult his government by telegraph. When the news of the seizure of the " Vir- ginius " at sea under the American flag reached the United States it aroused a storm of indio-nation. Meetings were held in all the principal cities, and the press unanimously- sustained the popular demand that the gov- ernment should require satisfaction for the outrage upon its flag. The general senti- ment of the people was in favor of instant war, and it was openly declared that a better opportunity would never arise to drive the Spaniards out of Cuba and obtain possession of the island. Prompt Demands of the United States. The government acted with firmness and prudence. Several vessels of war were sent to Santiago de Cuba to prevent the execution of the surviving prisoners taken with the ^' Virginius;" the fleet in the West Indies was reinforced as rapidly as possible, and the navy was at once put on a war footing in order to be ready for any emergency. The President was urged to convene Congress in extra session, but he declined to do so, know- ing that that body would be most likely to yield to the popular demand for war, and he was anxious to settle the difficulty by peace- ful means if possible. General Sickels, the American minister at Madrid, was ordered to demand of the Spanish government the arrest and punish- ment of the officials implicated in the mas- sacre of Captain Fry and his associates, a suitable indemnity in money for the families of the murdered men, an apology to the United States for the outrage upon their flag, and the surrender of the " Virginius " to the naval authorities of the United States. These demands were at once submitted to Sefior Castellar, the President of the Spanish repub- lic. In the critical situation in which Spain was then placed by her internal dissensions, Castellar had no choice but to submit to the American demands. Orders were at once transmitted to Cuba to surrender the " Vir- ginius " and all the prisoners to the Ameri- can naval forces. The orders of the Spanish government were at first disregarded by the officials at Havana, who blustered a great deal, and declared their willingness to go to war with the United States. They were brought to their senses, however, by the warning of Captain General Jovellar, who told them that their refusal to obey the orders of the Madrid government would certainly involve them in a war with the United States, in which Spain would leave them to fight that power without aid from her. The Havana officials, there- fore, yielded an ungracious obedience to the orders of the home government. The survivors of the " Virginius " expe- dition, who were in a most pitiable condition in consequence of the cruelty with which they had been treated during their imprison- ment, were released, and delivered on board of an American man-of-war in the harbor of Havana. On the twelfth of December the " Virginius" which had been taken to Havana by her captors some time before, was towed out that harbor and delivered to an American vessel sent to receive her. She was carried to Key West, from which port she was ordered to New York. On the voyage she foundered at sea in a gale off Cape Fear, on the twenty-sixth of December. At a later period the Spanish government paid the indemnity demanded by the United States. Financial Crisis. In the fall of 1873 a severe commercial crisis, known as the " Railroad Panic," burst upno the country. It was caused by excessive speculation in railway stocks and the reckless construction of railways in portions of the 8i4 ADMINISTRATION OF ULYSSES S. GRANT. country where they were not yet needed and which could not support them. The excite- ment began op the seventeenth of September, and on the eighteenth, nineteenth and twen- tieth several of the principal banking firms of New York and Philadelphia suspended payment. The failure of these houses in- volved hundreds of other firms in all parts of the country in their ruin. The excitement measures to be taken for the relief of the business of the country. Various measures were urged upon them. A strong appeal was made to the President to lend the whole or the greater part of the treasury reserve of forty-four million dollars of greenbacks to the banks to furnish the Wall street brokers with funds to settle their losses and resume busi- ness. He at once declined to take so grave SCENE IN THE NEW YORK STOCK EXCHANGE DURING THE PANIC OF I 873. became so intense that on the twentieth the New York Stock Exchange closed its doors and put a stop to all sales of stocks in order to prevent a general destruction of the values of all securities. The banks Avere obliged to resort to the most stringent measures to avoid being drawn into the common ruin. President Grant and the Secretary of the Treasury hastened to New York to consult the capitalists of that city as to the proper a step, and, thanks to his firmness, the cred't of the United States was not placed at the mercy of the reckless men who had caused the trouble. The government as a measure of relief con- sented to purchase a number of its bonds of a certain class at a fair price, and thus enable the holders who were in need of money to obtain it without sacrificing their securities. On the twenty-second the excitement in New ADMINISTRATION OF ULYSSES S. GRANT. 815 York and the Eastern cities began to subside. The trouble was not over, however. The stringency of the money market which fol- lowed the first excitement prevailed for fully a year, and affected all branches of the industry of the country, and caused severe suffering from loss of employment and lowering of wages to the working classes. The panic showed the extent to which railroad gambling had demoralized the busi- ness and the people of the country. It showed that some of the strongest and most trusted firms in the Union had lent themselves to the task of inducing people to invest their money in the secur- ities of enterprises the suc- cess of which was, to say the least, doubtful. It showed that the banks, the deposi- tories of the people's money, had to an alarming extent crippled themselves by neg- lecting their legitimate business and making ad- vances on securities which in the hour of trial proved worthless in many cases, uncertain in most. The money needed for the use of the legitimate business of the country had been placed at the mercy of the railroad gamblers and had been used by them. The funds of helpless and dependent persons, of widows and orphan children, had been used to pay fictitious dividends and advance schemes which had been stamped with the disapproval of the public. An amount of recklessness and demoral- ization was revealed in the management of the financial interests of the country that startled even the most hardened. The lesson was severe, but it was needed. The panic was followed by a better and more healthful state of affairs. The business of the country slowly settled down within proper channels. Recklessness was succeeded by prudence ; extravagance by economy in all quarters. The American people took their severe les- son to heart, and resolutely set to work to secure the good results that came to them from this harvest of misfortune. During the year 1874, sixty persons were SCENE ON THE COLORADO RIVER. murdered at different times in Texas by raider Indians from the Fort Sill reservation, where they were fed by the government and treated as friends. In addition to these atroc- ities, they also ran off with a large number of horses and mules belonging to settlers on the frontier and to freighters. In July, the Commissioner of Indian Affairs, in turning over the savages to the military, directed that " friendly Indians, not partici- pating in late outrages, coming into agencies. 8i6 ADMINISTRATION OF ULYSSES S. GRANT. will be protected. All professing to be loyal must enter immediately and be enrolled, and each one capable of bearing arms must answer to daily roll-call. No additional Indians must be received amongst them with- out permission." The result of this announce- ment was the enrollment of one hundred and seventy-three Kiowas, present at the time of the receipt of the commissioner's dispatch, and who, the agent was positive, had not been at war; one hundred and eight Apaches, likewise present; and eighty-three Caman- ches, either there at the time or arriving by August third, the day appointed by Lieuten- ant-Colonel Davidson as the last upon which the enrollment could take place. Some time after August third, the follow- ing Camanche chiefs asked permission to •come in : Big Red Food, Tobermanca, Assan- onica. Little Crow and Black Duck. Word was sent to Assanonica that he would be admitted on condition of yielding up his .arms. The rest were forbidden to come, since it was well known that they had been •engaged in several massacres. Big Red Food, however, defied the prohibition, and drawing near to the Wichita agency with his band, formed a point around which the dis- affected began to gather. The Kiowas Open Fire. On the twenty-first of August, Lieutenant- Colonel Davidson received word from the officer commanding at the agency that trouble was anticipated there. He at once marched with four companies of cavalry, and imme- diately upon his arrival effected the arrest of Red Food, chief of the Nocanees, and told him that he and his band must submit. He appeared to consent, but presently escaped from his guard. At the same time the troops were fired upon from the rear by Kiowas, many of whom liad just been enrolled at Fort Sill as friendly. The troops were much perplexed in the endeavor to distinguish the amicable from the hostile Indians ; but by the aid of inter- preters this was accomplished; the inimical band was scattered and its lodges and prop- erty were destroyed. It had undoubtedly been their design to implicate those of their band who were disposed to peace, but their purpose was entirely frustrated, and the affil- iated tribes belonging to the agency were set- tled in their allegiance more firmly than ever. In April, 1875, an engagement occurred at the north fork of Sappa Creek. On the morning of the nineteenth of April Lieuten- ant Austin Henely, of Fort Wallace, Kansas, started to find the trail of a party of Indians reported to be at Punished Woman's Fork. With him were forty men of Company H, Sixth Cavalry, Lieutenant C. C. Hewitt, Sur- geon F. H. Atkins, and Mr. Homer Wheeler, post-trader of Fort Wallace, as guide. He also had fifteen days' rations, ten days' forage and two six-mule teams. On the Trail. On the second day he directed that his wagons, with a guard under the command of Sergeant Kitchin, should proceed directly to Hackberry Creek while he scouted Twin Butte and Hackberry to find a trail. About noon Corporal Morris, commanding the ad- vance, discovered traces of twelve lodges. Lieutenant Henely at once collected his wagons, abandoned one of them, as well as half his forage, rations and camp equipage, notified the commanding officer at Fort Wal- lace of the fact, in order that they might be recovered, and started on the trail at the rate of nearly five miles an hour, reaching Smoky Hill River that night. A heavy rain during the night rendered it difficult to fol- low the tracks the next day. At the Kansas Pacific Railroad the trail was scattered and lost. ADMINISTRATION OF ULYSSES S. GRANT. 817 After considerable deliberation it was de- cided to take a northeast course to the North Beaver and follow it to its source, upon the supposition that the Indians would collect there and pass down for the purpose of hunt- ing. Shortly after daylight a party of hunt- ers was met, who informed Lieutenant Henely that the Indians he was in search of were on the north fork of Sappa Creek, and had robbed their camp during their absence the day before. Three of the hunters volunteered to guide the party to the Indian encamp- ment. In the gray dawn of the morning the squad arrived at the creek, about three-quarters of a mile above the camp, being attracted to the spot by the sight of a number of ponies graz- ing. Presently Mr. Wheeler came back, galloping with furious speed, swinging his hat and shouting in a loud voice. As the force came up with him the Indian camp was displayed to view. Plan of Attack. The plan for the attack had been arranged as follows : Sergeant Kitchin was detailed to kill the herders, round up the herd as near as possible to the main command and take charge of it with half of his men. Corporal Sharpies, with five men, was left with the wagon and instructed to keep as near as pos- sible to Lieutenant Henely, the rest of the command were to attack the savages. The north fork of Sappa Creek at this point is very crooked, is bordered by high and precipitous bluffs, and flows sluggishly through a marshy bottom, making it ex- tremely difficult to cross. As the men charged down the sides ten or twelve of the Indians ran rapidly up the bluff to a small herd of ponies ; others escaped down the creek to another herd ; while the remainder, the last to be awakened, probably seeing that flight was impossible, prepared for a des- 52 perate defence. By this time the men had reached the creek, which looked alarmingly deep and marshy. Lieutenant Henely, realizing that no time was to be lost in searching for a crossing, plunged in with his horse, followed by Mr. Wheeler. By extraordinary efforts their horses struggled through. A corporal who followed became mired ; but at length, by strenuous endeavors, all succeeded in cross- ing just as a number of dusky figures with long rifles confronted them, their heads ap- pearing over a bank made by the creek in highwater. The Battle-ground. This bank, with the portion of the creek and bluffs in the immediate vicinity, possessed the rather remarkable feature of a large num- ber of curious holes or pits, for what purpose constructed did not appear. Some of the Indians took refuge in these hollows ; others lined the bank, with their rifles resting on the crest. Lieutenant Henely rapidly formed his men in line and signalled to the savages to surrender, as did likewise Mr. Wheeler. One, who appeared to be a chief, made some rapid gesticulations which seemed to be motions for a parley ; but it was soon obvious that they were meant for Indians in the rear. The lieutenant now ordered his men to dismount and fight on foot, and as they did so the enemy fired, but in so excited a manner that no one was hurt. The troops, posted around in a skirmish-line, were com- manded to fire. If the reader will imagine the dress circle of a theatre lowered to within about five feet of the pit, the men to be deployed about the edge, and the Indians down among the orchestra-chairs, they will have some idea of the relative positions of the parties. The most exposed portion was near the centre of the arc. Here Sergeant Theodore Papier and Private Robert Theims, 8i8 ADMINISTRATION OF ULYSSES S. GRANT. of Company H, Sixth Cavalry, were instantly killed while fighting with great valor. After some twenty minutes of firing the VIEW IN TH"E GRAND CANYON OF THE COLORADO RIVER. Indians ceased to return the attack, and the lieutenant prepared to draw off his men in pursuit of those who had fled. Scarcely had they mounted when two savages ran up to the two bodies in the endeavor to gain pos- session of them; but three or four men ^ charged them at a gal- lop and rendered their efforts useless. At this moment an In- dian, gaudily dressed, jumped from a hole and,with peculiar side- long leaps, attempted to escape, but was shot down. Lieutenant Henely then posted his men at the ends of the crest and resumed the attack, the savages returning it from their pits, but without doing any damage. The firing having ceased, it was inferred thatall were killed, and the command moved in the direction of the ponies, driving off the Indian guard and bringing in a herd of the animals. As they returned a solitary shot was fired from the holes, piercing the horse of one of the officers entirely through the body. Lieutenant Henely then determined to make a termination, and ordered the men to advance on all sides, keeping up a steady fire. The only response was a few shots from the pits, which did no damage. Nineteen dead warriors were counted, in ADMINISTRATION OF ULYSSES S. GRANT. 819 addition to eight squaws and children acci- dentally killed. From the war-bonnets and rich ornaments, two were judged to be chiefs, and one whose bonnet was sur- mounted by two horns was thought to be a medicine-man. The Indian camp was burned and the cap- tured stock, amounting to one hundred and thirty-four animals, driven off. On the re- turn march to Fort Wallace the command was overtaken by a terrible snow-storm and forced to encamp under a bank. It was im- possible to herd the captured stock, the en- tire attention of the men being required to save themselves and their horses from freez- ing to death. Having no tents and but one blanket each, the men passed a night of in- tense suffering. Some of them were frozen ; others, who had dug holes in the banks for shelter, had to be extricated in the morning by their comrades. On the following day the men disbanded into small squads to search for the captured stock, and succeeded in recapturing about one hundred head. In January, 1875, Congress passed an act providing for the resumption of specie pay- ments, and requiring that on and after Janu- ary I, 1879, the legal tender notes of the Government shall be redeemed in specie. In the meantime silver coin is to be substituted for the fractional paper currency. On the fourth of March, 1875, the Terri- tory of Colorado was admitted into the Union as a State, making the thirty-eighth member of the confederacy. Centennial Celebration. The political troubles in Louisiana and Arkansas assumed a most serious character during the year 1873, amounting to civil war in both States. The President, in view of the serious nature of the disturbances, inter- vened with force in each State, and compelled the rival parties to refrain from additional hostilities, and the quarrels were settled in the course of the year without further blood- shed. The year 1875 completed the period of one hundred years from the opening of the revolution, and the events of 1775 were cele- brated with appropriate commemorative cere- monies in the places where they occurred. The centennial anniversary of the battles at Lexington and Concord was celebrated at those places on the nineteenth of April with great rejoicings. On the seventeenth 01 June the centennial of Bunker Hill was cele- brated at Charlestown. Vast crowds were present from all parts of the country. One of the most gratifying features of the cele- bration was the presence and hearty partici- pation in the ceremonies of a large number of troops from the Southern States. Nearly all of these had served in the Confederate army, and their presence in the metropolis of New England was an emphatic proof that the Union has indeed been restored. The memory of the common glory won by the fathers of the republic has already done much to heal the wounds and obliterate the scars of the civil war. May the good work go on. Imposing Ceremonies. As early as 1872 measures were set on foot for the proper observance of the one hundredth anniversary of the independence of the United States. It was resolved to commemorate the close of the first century of the republic by an International Exhibi- tion, to be held at Philadelphia in 1876, in which all the nations of the world were in- vited to participate. Preparations were at once set on foot for the great celebration. The European governments with great cordiality responded to the invitations ex- tended to them by the government of the United States, and on the tenth of May, 820 ADMINISTRATION OF ULYSSES S. GRANT. 1876, the International Centennial Exhibi- tion was opened with the most imposing ceremonies, in the presence of an immense concourse of citizens from all parts of the Union, and of the President of the United States and the Emperor of Brazil. The ex- hibition remained open from May loth to November loth, 1876, and was visited by several million people from the various States of the Union, from Canada, South America and Europe. It was one of the grandest and most notable events of the cen- tury, and illustrated our country's progress. MEMORIAL HALL, FAIRMOUNT PARK, On the fourth day of July, 1876, the United States of America completed the one hun- dredth year of their existence as an inde- pendent nation. The day was celebrated with imposing ceremonies and with the most patriotic enthusiasm in all parts of the Union. The celebrations began on the night of the third of July, and were kept up until near rrudnight on the fourth. Each of the great cities of the Union vied with the others in the splendor and completeness of its rejoic- ings; but the most interesting of all the celebrations was naturally that which was held at Philadelphia, in which city the De- claration of Independence was adopted. The arrangements for the proper observ- ance of the day were confided to the United States Centennial Commission, and extensive preparations were made to conduct them on a scale of splendor worthy of the glorious occasion. The city of Philadelphia and the State of Pennsylvania lent their cordial co- operation to the effort to have all things in readiness for the Fourth, and the work went forward with a heartiness and vigor that could not fail of complete success. It was wisely re- solved by the Com- mission that as the Declaration of In- dependence was signed in Independ- ence Hall and pro- claimed to the peo- ple in Independence Square, the com- memorative cere- monies should be so conducted as to make the venerable building the grand central figure of all the demonstrations. The city authorities caused the building to be handsomely draped in the national colors, and enormous stands, covered with canvas awnings and orna- mented with flags and streamers, were erected in Independence Square for the accommodation of the singers and invited guests who were to take part in the rejoic- ings. A new bell of vast proportions — the gift of a patriotic and public-spirited citizen — was hung in the State House tower, ready to join its deep tones to the shouts of the multitude when the moment of rejoic- ing" should arrive. PHILADELPHIA. ADMINISTRATION OF ULYSSES S. GRANT. 821 Being anxious that the Centennial celebra- tion should do its share in cementing the reunion of the Northern and Southern States, the Commission began, at least a year before the occasion, the formation of a " Centen- nial Legion," consisting of a detachment of troops from each of the thirteen original States. The command of this splendid body of picked troops was conferred upon General Ambrose E. Burnside, of Rhode Island, and General Henry Heth, of Virginia, was chosen Lieutenant-Colonel. Both were veterans of the late civil war. The Legion was readily made up, the best volunteer commands of the original States being eager to serve in it. For a week previous to the fourth of July crowds of people began to pour steadily into Philadelphia. Volunteer organizations from the variou s States were constantly arriving and were either encamped at various points in and around the Exhibition grounds or were quartered at the various hotels. Gay Decorations. The city was gayly decorated with flags and streamers, and the view down any of the principal streets w^as brilliant by reason of the clouds of bunting with which it was decorated. The principal buildings were almost hidden by the flags which adorned them, or were ornamented with patriotic inscriptions, and at various points on Chestnut street triumphal arches were erected. By the night of the third of July it was estimated that at least two hundred and fifty thousand strangers were assembled in Philadelphia. The Centennial ceremonies were begun on the morning of Saturday, the first of July. The leading writers of the Union had been invited to prepare memoirs of the great men of our revolutionary period, which were to be deposited among the archives of the State House, and all who were able to accept the invitation assembled in Independence Hall at eleven o'clock on the morning of July i, 1876, where they were joined by a number of invited guests. The ceremonies were opened by an address from Colonel Frank M, Etting, the Chairman of the Committee on the Restoration of Independence Hall, and a prayer by the Rev. William White Bronson. Whittier's Centennial Hymn was then sung by a chorus of fifty voices. The names of the authors were then called, to which each responded in person or by proxy, and laid his memoir on the table in the hall. The exercises were then brought to a close, and the company repaired to the stand in Inde- pendence Square, where a large crowd had assembled. Odes, Speeches and Orations. The ceremonies in the square were begun at half-past twelve o'clock with Helfrich's Centennial Triumphal March, performed by the Centennial Musical Association. Mr. John William Wallace, the president of the day, then delivered a short address, after which Whittier's Centennial Hymn was sung by a chorus of one hundred and fifty voices, and Mr. William V. McKean reviewed at some length the great historical event in commemoration of which the ceremonies were held. After the band had played " God Save America," the Hon. Leverett Saltonstall, of Massachusetts, delivered an address, which elicited warm applause. " The Voice of the Old Bell," a Centennial ode, was then sunfr, and Governor Henry Lippitt, of Rhode Island, made a short speech. The band followed with a number of patriotic airs, and Mr. Wallace announced the unavoidable absence of General John A. Dix, and intro- duced in his place Frederick De Peyster, President of the New York Historical Society, who made a few remarks. After a Cen- tennial Ode, by S. C. Upham, had been sung 822 ADMINISTRATION OF ULYSSES S. GRANT. 823 by the chorus, the Hon. Benjamin Harris Brewster delivered an eloquent address, at the close of which another Centennial Hymn, by William Fennimore, was sung. Senator Frank P. Stevens, of Maryland, then said a few words, after which the " Star Spangled Banner" was sung, and the exercises were brought to a close by a prayer from Bishop Stevens. All through Sunday , the second, the crowds continued to pour into the city, and on Mon- day, third, the streets were almost impassable. Business was generally suspended from the iirst to the fifth of July. Brilliant Illuminations. The celebration ushering in the F'ourth of July was begun on the night of the third. A grand civic and torchlight procession paraded the streets, which were brilliantly illuminated along the whole line of march. The proces- sion began to move about half-past 8 o'clock at night, and consisted of deputations repre- sentative of the various trades of the city, the Centennial Commissioners from the various foreign countries taking part in the Exhibi- tion, the Governors of a number of the States of the Union, officers of the army and navy of the United States, civic and political asso- ciations and officers of foreign men-of-war visiting the city. Some of the deputations bore torches, and these added to the bril- liancy of the scene. All along the line fire- works were ascending into the air, and cheer after cheer went up from the dense masses of enthusiastic spectators which filled the side- walks. The illumination of the streets along the route of the procession was superb. Chest- nut and Broad streets flashed resplendently in lines of fire and colored lanterns. The dense masses which thronged these streets stood out boldly in the clear light of the illu- mination, and the long, slow-moving line of the procession flowed through them like a vast river. Crowds had collected around Independence Hall, filling the street before it and the square in the rear of it. An orchestra and chorus were stationed on the stands in the square to hail the opening of the Fourth with music. The movements of the procession were so timed that the head of the column arrived in front of Independence Hall precisely at mid- night. Grand Military Parade. The crowd, which had been noisy but good natured, was hushed into silence as the hands of the clock in the tower approached the midnight hour, and one hundred thousand people waited in breathless eagerness the strokes which were to usher in the glorious day. As the minute-hand swept slowly past the hour there was a profound silence, and then came rolling out of the lofty steeple the deep, liquid tones of the new liberty bell, sounding wonderfully solemn and sweet as they floated down to the crowd below. Thir- teen peals were struck, and the first tone had hardly died away when there went up from the crowd such a shout as had never been heard in Philadelphia before. It was caught up and re-echoed all over the city, and at the same time the musicians and singers in the square broke into the grand strains of the " Star Spangled Banner." All the bells and steam whistles in the city joined in the sounds of rejoicing, and fireworks and firearms made the noise tenfold louder. When the " Star Spangled Banner " was ended the chorus in Independence Square sang the " Doxology," in which the crowd joined heartily, and the band then played national airs. The festivities were kept up until after two o'clock, and it was not until the first streaks of the dawn began to tinge the sky that the streets of the city resumed their wonted appearance. 824 ADMINISTRATION OF ULYSSES S. GRANT. The lull in the festivities was not of long duration. The day was at hand, and it threat- ened to be mercilessly hot, as indeed it was. As the sun arose in his full-orbed splendor, the thunder of cannon from the Navy Yard, from the heights of Fairmount Park, and from the Swedish, Brazilian, and American war vessels in the Delaware, and the clanging of bells from every steeple in the city, roused the few who had managed to snatch an hour or two of sleep after the fatigues of the night. GENERAL J. R. HAWLEY. and by six o'clock the streets were again thronged. In view of the extreme heat of the weather, the military parade had been ordered for an early hour of the day. The troops numbered about ten thousand men, rank and file, and the whole column was under the chief com- mand of General Hartranft, Governor of Penn- sylvania, and a gallant veteran of the civil war. The command was made up of troops, who during that bloody struggle had fought each other gallantly, and who had now come to testify their devotion to their common country, and to show to the world that in trusting its defence to its well-regulated mil- itia, the American republic is stronger than the most powerful monarchies of the old world. At half-past eight, the column began to move down Chestnut street towards Indepen- dence Hall, in front of which the troops were reviewed by General W. T. Sherman, the Commanding General of the armies of the United States; the Secretary of War; Prince Oscar of Sweden ; Lieutenant-General Saigo, of the Imperial army of Japan ; the officers of the Swedish men-of-war in the harbor; the governors of several of the States ; and Gen- eral Hawley, the President of the Centennial Commission. As the troops passed along they were greeted with enthusiastic cheers by the crowds on the street. The Centennial Legion and the troops from the Southern States were the objects of an especially hearty demon- stration. The route chosen was a short one, the extreme heat forbidding an extended parade, and by ten o'clock, the military cere- *monies were over. Huzzahs in Independence Square. As soon as the parade was ended the crowd turned into Independence Square, which was soon hlled. The approaches to the building by way of Chestnut and Sansom streets were kept clear by the police, in order that those who were entitled to seats on the stand might reach their places. Four thousand persons were given seats on the stand, and a vast crowd filled the square. As the invited guests appeared and took their seats on the platform, the prominent personages were cheered by the crowd. The Emporer of Brazil received a welcome that was especially noticeable for its heartiness. It was hoped that the President of the United States would be present and preside. ADMINISTRATION OF ULYSSES S. GRANT. 825 over the ceremonies ; but General Grant declined the invitation to do so, which it was at once his privilege and his duty to accept, and remained in Washington, preferring his selfish ease to a little patriotic exertion and exposure to the heat on this grandest of his country's festivals. His absence was gen- erally remarked and severely condemned by his countrymen. At a few minutes after ten o'clock, Gen- eral Hawley, the President of the United States Centennial Commission, appeared at the speaker's stand and signalled to the orchestra to begin. The opening piece, which was an overture entitled " The Great Republic," based on the national air, " Hail Columbia," and arranged for the occasion by Professor George F. Bristow, of New York, was rendered in fine style by the orchestra under the leadership of Mr. P. Gilmore. As the music ceased General Hawley again came forward and introduced as the presiding officer of the day the Hon. Thomas W. Ferry, Vice-President of the United States, who was received with loud cheers. Great Enthusiasm Over the Declaration. After a few remarks appropriate to the occasion Vice President Ferry presented to the audience Right Reverend William Bacon Stevens, D. D., the Protestant Episcopal Bishop of Pennsylvania, whom he introduced as the ecclesiastical successor of the first chaplain of the Continental Congress. The bishop was in his canonical robes, with prayer book in hand. He delivered a solemn and impressive prayer, during the utterance of which the whole audience stood v.ith un- covered heads, silent and attentive, unmind- ful of the blazing sun which poured down upon them. When the prayer was ended the " Hymn, * Welcome to All Nations,' words by Oliver Wendell Holmes, music, ' Keller's Hymn,' " was sung. The Vice-President then an- nounced that Richard Henry Lee, of Vir- ginia, a grandson of the patriot of the Revolution who offered the resolution in Congress that " these United Colonies are and of right ought to be free and independ- ent States," would read the Declaration of Independence from the original manuscript, which the President had entrusted to the Mayor of Philadelphia. The faded and crumbling manuscript, held together by a simple frame, was then exhibited to the crowd and was greeted with cheer after cheer. Richard Henry Lee, a soldierly-looking Vir- ginian, then came forward and read the Declaration ; but the enthusiasm of the crowd was too great to permit them to listen to it quietly. At the close of the reading the orchestra performed a musical composition entitled "A Greeting from Brazil," a hymn for the first Centennial of American Independence, composed by A. Carlos Gomez, of Brazil, at the request of His Majesty Dom Pedro II, Emperor of Brazil. It was received with cheers by the crowd, which were repeated for the Brazilian Emperor, whose hearty interest in the Centennial celebrations and the Exhibition had made him a favorite in Philadelphia. The Hallelujah Chorus Mr. John Welsh, Chairman of the Centen- nial Board of Finance, then, at the sugges- tion of Vice-President Ferry, introduced Bayard Taylor, the poet of the day, who recited a noble ode, which was listened to with deep attention, the audience occasionally breaking out into applause. When the poem was ended, the chorus sang "Our National Banner," the words by Dexter Smith, of Massachusetts, the music by Sir Julius Bene- dict, of England- S26 INTERSECTION OF NINTH AND CHESTNUT STS., PHILADELPHIA. ADMINISTRATION OF ULYSSES S. GRANT. 827 As the music died away the Vice-Presi- dent introduced the Hon. William ]\I. Evarts, of New York, the orator of the day. Mr. Evarts was greeted with hearty cheers, after which he proceeded to deliver an eloquent and able address, reviewing the lessons of the past century, and dwelling upon the great work America had performed for the world. When Mr. Evarts retired from the speak- er's stand. General Hawley gave the signal to the leader of the orchestra, and the " Hal- lelujah Chorus," from " The Messiah," was sung ; after which the vast audience, at the request of the Vice-President, joined in the One Hundredth Psalm, with which the memorable ceremonies came to an end. At night the city was brilliantly illumin- ated, and a magnificent display of fireworks was given by the municipal authorities at old Fairmount. "War with the Sioux. The year 1876, however, was not destined to be entirely a period of peace. In 1867 the Government of the United States made a treaty with the Sioux Indians, by which the latter agreed to relinquish to the United States all the territory south of the Niobrara River, west of the one hundred and fourth meridian of longitude and north of the forty- sixth parallel of latitude. This treaty secured to the Sioux a large reservation in the south- western part of Dakota, and they agreed to withdraw to this reservation by the first of January, 1876. A few years later gold was discovered in the Black Hills country, a very desirable region situated in southwestern Dakota, and lying within the Sioux reser- vation. The announcement of this discovery pro- duced great excitement among the mining class. In the summer of 1874 an expedition under General Custer was sent by the War Department to explore the Black Hills region, partly for the purpose of ascertaining the character of the country, and partly to discover practicable military routes between Fort Lincoln, in the Department of Dakota, opposite the terminus of the Union Pacific Railway, and Fort Laramie, in the Depart- ment of the Platte. The report of this expe- OBVERSE OF CENTENNIAL MEDAL. REVERSE OF CENTENNIAL MEDAL. dition confirmed the stories of the discovery of gold, and immediate preparations were made by parties of miners to proceed to the favored lands for the purpose of working the gold mines. These expeditions being re- ported to the Government, measures were taken by the W^ar Department to prevent 828 ADMINISTRATION OF ULYSSES S. GRANT. any intrusion into the Indian reservation. Notwithstanding this prohibition, private expeditions were fitted out and started for the Black Hills. Some of these were driven back by the Indians, with loss of life and property, but others succeeded in reaching the Black Hills. It was now evident that a systematic and determined effort would be made to settle the Black Hills, in. spite of the opposition of to retire to the reservation to which the treaty of 1867 confirmed them, and now took advantage of the intrusions of the whites into their territory to gratify their long-cherished wish for war. They broke away from their reservation, and made repeated forays into Wyoming and Montana, laid the country waste, carried off the horses and cattle, and murdered such settlers as ventured to oppose them. SHOSHONEE FALLS, IDAHO. the army; and the government decided to endeavor to purchase the region from the Sioux and throw it open to emigration Efforts were made during the year 1875 to induce the Sioux to sell their lands, but the weak and vacillating course pursued by the government simply disgusted the Indians, and they refused to make the desired ar- rangement. The Sioux had never been really willing This brought matters to a crisis, and early in 1876 the government resolved to drive the Sioux back upon their reservation. A force of regular troops, under Generals Terry and Crook, was sent into the difficult moun- tainous region of the Upper Yellowstone, and an active campaign was begun against the Indians. The force Avas too small, how- ever, for the work required of it. In spite of the smallness of its numbers, ADMINISTRATION OF ULYSSES S. GRANT. 829 the army on the frontier succeeded in forc- ing the savages, who were led by Sitting Bull, their most famous chief, and who num- bered several thousand fighting men, back to the Big Horn mountains. The Indians now took up a strong position in the mountains, and on the twenty-fifth of June, 1876, the Seventh Cavalry, under Generals Custer and Reno, were sent forward to ascertain the whereabouts of the enemy. They found the savages encamped on the left bank of the Little Horn River, and occupying a large village some three miles in length. General Custer, with his little command, at once made a gallant attack upon the Indian vil- lage, hoping that General Reno would be able to come up in time to support him. Reno was unable to advance, however, Cus- ter's little band was soon surrounded by sev- eral thousand of the bravest Sioux warriors. The conflict which ensued was one of the most heroic in the annals of the American army, and one of the most disastrous. Cus- ter was slain, together with every man who accompanied him into the fight, but not until they had exacted a fearful price for their lives at the hands of the savages. The Indians Defeated. General Reno, in the meantime, had be- come engaged at the opposite end of the town, and was so hard pressed by the Indians that he was unable to go to Custer's assist- ance. He succeeded in drawing off his men and in retiring to the bluffs of the Little Horn, where he held his position until the arrival of General Gibbon with reinforcements com- pelled the savages to retreat, and saved the remnant of the Seventh Cavalry from destruc- tion. The disaster of the Little Horn was the most terrible defeat ever inflicted upon the United States army by the savages, and was directly due to the criminal folly of the administration in sending- a mere handful of troops to meet a strong body of the bravest Indian warriors on the continent. The disaster aroused such a storm of indig- nation throughout the country that the Gov- ernment hastily forwarded reinforcements to the frontier, and Generals Terry and Crook were able to conduct their campaign with more vigor. The Indians were beaten in a number of engagements, and on the twenty- fourth of November suffered a decisive defeat in a battle with the Fourth Cavalry, under Colonel McKenzie, at one of the passes of GENERAL GEORGE CROOK. the Big Horn Mountains. Negotiations were in progress during the summer and autumn for the removal of the Sioux to the Indian Territory, and by the beginning of the winter the greater part of the savages had surren- dered. A few bands under Sitting Bull and Crazy- Horse continued in the field. They were not allowed to remain in security during the win- ter, and on the eighth of January, 1877, a decisive victory was won over the band of Crazy Horse at Wolfe Mountains, in Mon- tana Territory, by General Miles, with a force 830 ADMINISTRATION OF ULYSSES S. GRANT. of infantry and artillery. This victory led to the surrender of other bands of Indians, and INDIANS SURPRISED AND DEFEATED early in 1877 the operations against Sitting Bull obliged that chief to take refuge in the territory of British America. By the spring of 1877 the war had been practically brought to a close. The question of the re- construction of the South- ern States was one of the legacies which President Grant received at the hands of his predecessor. It was fondly hoped by the coun- try at large that under the new administration " the work of reconstruction would be accomplished and the wounds of civil war healed." The utterances of President Grant upon en- tering upon his new duties justified these expectations, as it was not believed that he cherished extreme views, or that he harbored vindict- ive feelings. " Nor is it probable," says a distinguished Northern writer,* "that those who relied upon the President's disposition to deal fairly and even liberally with the Southern States, were at all mistaken in that regard;, but his ignorance in civil affairs, which in some cases was conspicuous and mor- tifying, seems very early to have thrown him into the hands of managing politi- cians, and these were mainly of the extreme type, who made up in bitterness what they lacked in breadth. The politicians from the South who were most about him were generally * Charles Francis Adams, Jr. ADMINISTRATION OF ULYSSES S. GRANT. 835 adventurers, who found the power of the government a convenient instrument for the furtherance of personal schemes, and who did not scruple to make use of their influence with the President to that end. Among these was one of the President's brothers-in-law, who amazed the country by his daring disregard of the rights of the judicial fairness ? Republican leaders who' were disposed to amnesty and a real oblivion for past offences, were elbowed out of place, and at last driven to the rear." The labors of reconstruction were nomi- nally completed in 1S70. " Had the course of the managing men of the party r been wise and conciliatory, had it been actu- HORSESHOE BEND ON THE PENNSYLVANIA NEAR ALTOONA. State which he had chosen as the scene of his operations. The Northern politicians who surrounded the President were largely of a similar stripe Was it to be expected of such men that they would deal generously with a fallen foe, or was it within the compass of partisanship like theirs that their opponents should be treated with ated by high motives and statesmanlike views, and had the men who represented the party in the Southern States been men who were laboring for the good of their section, rather than for the advancement of their own personal interests, it is not to be doubted that the administration would have been able to attach to itself th-e support of a majority of 832 ADMINISTRATION OF ULYSSES S. GRANT. the Southern people. The colored people were naturally its friends. " The patronage of the administration was CANYON OF THE LODORE AND GREENE large, and it would have drawn a strong support to the party had it been distributed Avisely and from an evident desire to accom- plish only the purposes for which offices are created. Moreover, the Southern people needed peace and quiet to recuperate their exhausted interests; and while many hot-heads were sup- posed to be violent and troublesome, the best and most influential of them, of whom the late Vice-President of the Confederacy was an example, were disposed to accept with grati- tude such advances oftheir late enemies as promised to render peace pos- sible and perma- nent. But as, un- fortunately, all were not of this class, the persons who had the Presi- dent's ear, and who assumed to speak for the party in Congress, found it convenient for their purpose to present the impracticable and violent as the proper representa- tives of Southern sentiment, and to speak of and deal with the Southern people as unrepent- RIVERS, WYOMING. *. u i u ' ant rebels,who were to be held down by the strong hand. " That the white people of the South were alienated from the Republican party was not ADMINISTRATION OF ULYSSES S. GRANT. 833 surprising. It was almost a matter of course that the control of the Southern States should pass to the Democratic party, for it was quite impossible to retain all the freedmen in one party, while their late masters, the persons upon whom they now relied for employment, were mainly to be found in the other. The 'color line' was drawn when the narrow pol- icy of extreme partisans among the Repub- lican leaders arrayed against them Southern whites ; the drawing of it indeed left some white leaders among the freedmen, but it did not prevent a still greater number of the lat- ter following the political fortunes of those with whose material interests their own were so closely identified ; and the political ascen- dency of the Republican party in the South- ern States was lost permanently."* Trouble in Louisiana. This interference of the President in the affairs of a State was brought to a crisis in the winter of 1874-75, in the State of Louisi- ana. At the election for members of the Legislature, held during the fall of 1874, both the Republican and Conservative parties claimed the victory. The Legislature met in New Orleans, on the fourth of January, 1875, and a struggle ensued for the control of the organization of the lower House. By their superior strategy the Democrats, or Conservatives, were successful, and proceeded to organize the House and seat five members of their own party, who had contested as many Republican seats in the House. The Democratic triumph was of short duration, however, for in a few moments. General De Trobriand, of the United States army, entered the hall and announced that he had orders to remove the five members sworn in. The Democratic Speaker, and the five members themselves, protested against this * Charles Francis Adams, Jr. 53 interference on the part of the Federal troops, and declared that they would not leave their seats until forced from them. General De Trobriand immediately summoned a file of soldiers, and the five members were removed from their seats and expelled from the hall, the Democratic Speaker and members at once withdrew from the hall, and the House was organized by the Republicans. This strange and inexcusable spectacle of the interference of the Federal troops in the domestic affairs of a State had no parallel in American history. It aroused a feeling of SAMUEL J IILDEN. general indignation throughout the North and the President was sharply denounced, even by men of his own party, for his inter- ference with the organization of a State Legislature. Several Governors addressed special messages on the subject to the Legis- latures of their respective States, and legisla- lative resolutions were passed denouncing the course pursued by the Federal govern- ment. The indignation which thus expressed itself was greatly increased by a dispatch from General Sheridan, commanding at New 834 ADMINISTRATION OF ULYSSES S. GRANT. Orleans, to the War Department, dated fifth of January, 1875, advising the general govern- ment to declare the people of Louisiana banditti, and to turn them over to him and to his troops for punishment. This savage sug- gestion was deeply resented by the people of the whole country, who had by this time good cause to deplore any interference of the military in civil affairs. There is reason to believe that the public indignation was felt by even the President, for, in a message to Congress upon the sub- ject, he made this admission, while defending THOMAS A. HENDRICKS. the course of the administration : " I am well aware that any military interference by the officers or troops of the United States with the organization of a State Legislature or any of its proceedings, or with any civil department of the government, is repugnant to our ideas of government. I can conceive of no case not involving rebellion or insur- rection where such interference by authority of the general government ought to be per- mitted, or can be justified.'' In the summer of 1876 the various poiliti- cal parties of the Union met in their respective conventions to the nominate candidates for the Presidency and Vice-Presidency of the United States, which officers were to be chosen at the general election in November. The Republican Convention assembled at Cincinnati, Ohio, on the fourteenth of June, and resulted in the nomination of Governor Rutherford B. Hayes, of Ohio, for Presideiit of the United States, and of William A. Wheeler, of New York, for Vice-President. The Democratic Convention was held at St. Louis on the twenty-seventh of June, and nomi- nated Governor Samuel J. Tilden, of New* York, for the Presidency, and Governor Thomas A. Hendricks, of Indiana, for the Vice-Presidency. A third convention, repre- senting the Independent Greenback party, met at Indianapolis, on the eighteenth of May, and nominated Peter Cooper, of New York, for President, and Samuel F. Cary, of Ohio, for Vice-President. Result of the Campaign. The campaign which followed these nomi- nations was one of intense bitterness, and was in many respects the most remarkable the country has ever witnessed. A most dis- creditable feature of it was the appearance of Mr. Chandler, the Secretary of the Interior, as the chief manager of the Republican party. It was the first time in the history of the country that a member of the President's Cabinet had ever held so questionable a position ; the first time that the patronage of the government had ever been used so openly in behalf of a political party. Under the leadership of Secretary Chandler, the manly and conciliatory letter of accept- ance of Governor Hayes was ignored, and a campaign of great bitterness was inaugur- ated. The election was held on the seventh of/ November. The popular vote was as follows : ADMINISTRATION OF ULYSSES S. GRANT. 835 For Samuel J. Tilden, 4,284,265 " Rutherford B. Hayes, 4,033,295 " Peter Cooper, 81, 737 Tilden thus received a popular majority of 250,970 votes over Hayes, and a majority of 169,233 votes over both Hayes and Cooper. In the Electoral Colleges, one hundred and eighty-five votes were necessary to a choice. Carolina to Governor Hayes, Mr. Tilden had fairly carried both Florida and Louisiana, and was entitled to one hundred and ninety-six electoral votes. The revision of the vote in Florida and Louisiana had been confided, since the reorganization of those States, to Returning Boards. It was evident from the first that each of POINT PLEASANT, OHIO, THE BIRTHPLACE OF PRESIDENT GRANT. Of this number. Governor Tilden received one hundred and eighty-four, and Governor Hayes one hundred and sixty-three undis- puted votes. The votes of the States of Florida, Louisiana, Oregon and South Car- olina, twenty-two in number, were claimed by both parties for their respective candidates. It was declared by the Democrats that, even concedincr the votes of Oregon and South these boards would return the vote of its respective State for the Republican candidate, and it was feared that this would be produc- tive of trouble, as the Democrats claimed a majority in these States. Immediately after the election, therefore, President Grant appointed a number of prominent Republi- cans to proceed to F'lorida and Louisiana to watch the countinof of the votes of those 836 ADMINISTRATION OF ULYSSES S. GRx\NT. States; and a number of prominent Dem- ocrats repaired to Tallahassee and New Orleans for the same purpose. These gen- tlemen had no official character, and were without power to interfere in any way with the counting of the vote. It was hoped, how- ever, that their presence as witnesses would act as a check upon the boards, and thus a fair count be secured. Both States were returned for Hayes. Investigations showed that the electoral vote of South Carolina had been fairly cast for Hayes, and it was generally conceded to SAMUEL J. RANDALL him by both parties. The Democratic Gov- ernor of Oregon attempted by a transparent fraud to give the electoral vote of that State to Tilden, and thus elect him ; but it came to be the general sentiment of the country that the electoral vote of Oregon should right- fully be cast for Hayes. This confined the real struggle to the votes of Florida and Louisiana. It was the general conviction of the country that both of those States had been fairly carried by the Demo- cratic party, and many earnest Republicans gave open expression to this belief. The action of the Return Boards, however, was still within the letter of the laws under which they had acted. The Republican party, there- fore, claimed that as such action was not con- trary to the laws of Florida and Louisiana it must stand ; that neither Congress nor any other body had power to go behind the cer- tificate of the electoral vote of a State, prop- erly signed and authenticated by the State officials ; and that when such certificates were presented to the two Houses of Congress, at the counting of the electoral votes of the States, they must be accepted without ques- tion, and the electoral votes of Florida and Louisiana be counted for Hayes. They declared that the States had power to make any laws they might see fit for the counting of their popular vote, and that for Congress to seek to interfere with such laws would be to illegally trespass upon the reserved rights of the States. They held, therefore, that as the action of the Return Boards was within the letter of the laws of their respective States, Florida and Louisiana must be counted for Hayes. The Country Agitated. The Democrats, on the other hand, main- tained that the popular majority for Tilden in Florida and Louisiana was too evident to be doubted, being simply overwhelming in the latter State, and that the Return Boards had overcome these majorities only by a fraudu- lent use of their powers in throwing out Democratic votes to an extent sufficient to give Florida and Louisiana to the Republi- cans. They declared, moreover, that, as the Louisiana Board had refused to appoint a Democratic member to the vacancy in that body, as required by the law under which they acted, their action was necessarily ille- gal. They held that, as both Florida and Louisiana had been wrongfully and fraudu- lently given to the Republicans by the Return ADMINISTRATION OF ULYSSES S. GRANT. 837 Boards in defiance of the will of the people of those States as expressed at the polls, the electoral votes of both of those States should not be counted by Congress, Such action on the part of Congress would have resulted in a declaration by that body that there had been no popular choice of a President and Vice-President, and the elec- Boards; and the Republicans announced their decision to insist upon the counting of the votes of those States as certified by the State officials. Each party denounced the other with great bitterness ; the country was deeply agitated, and threats of armed resist- ance were freely indulged in by both parties. The crisis was the most alarming that had THE NEW DEPARTMENT OF STATE, WASHINGTON, D. C. tion of the President would have devolved upon the House of Representatives, and the choice of the Vice-President upon the Senate, in accordance with the provisions of the Con- stitution. The Democrats, therefore, declared that they would insist upon the rejection of the votes of Florida and Louisiana upon the ground of fraud on the part of the Return threatened the country since the outbreak of the civil war, A feeling of general uneasiness prevailed throughout the Union, which showed itself in the depression of business in all sections. Congress met on the fourth of December, 1876. The House of Representatives was organized by the Democratic majority by the 838 ADMINISTRATION OF ULYSSES S. GRANT. election of Samuel J. Randall, of Pennsyl- vania, as Speaker. Immediately upon the organization of Congress the question of the manner of counting the electoral votes of the States came up in that body. The Repub- lican majority in the Senate claimed that, by the terms of the Constitution, the Vice-Pre- sident was compelled to open the certificates of the States in the presence of the two Houses of Congress, in joint convention, and declare the result, the two Houses being present merely as witnesses of the GEORGE F. EDMUNDS. count by the Vice-President. With this view the Republicans in the lower House agreed. The Democrats in both Houses maintained that while the Constitution required the Vice- President to open the certificates and count the electoral votes, the two Houses of Con- gress were made the judges of the legality of those certificates, and that, in the case of the presentation of two certificates from the same State, the two Houses were the rightful judges of which was the proper one; and that, in the event of a faillue of the two Houses to agree in such a decision, the vote of such State must be rejected. In support of this view, they brought for- ward the Twenty-second Joint Rule of Con- gress, adopted February sixth, 1865, by a Republican Congress, and under which the counting of the electoral vote in 1865, 1869 and T873 had been conducted. In January, 1876, the Senate, still Republican, passed a concurrent resolution adopting the joint rules of the previous session of Congress, as the joint rules for that session, " excepting the Twenty-second Joint Rule." The House failed to act upon the resolutions. At the opening of the session in December, 1876, the President of the Senate ruled that there were no joint rules in operation. The Speaker of the House, on the other hand, ruled that the joint rules previously existing, still existed. Angry Speeches and Threats. Thus the issue between the two Houses was distinctly made. The House declared its intention of insisting upon the right secured to it by the Twenty-second Joint Rule of objecting to the vote of a State, and that it would vi'ithdraw from the joint convention if this right were denied it by the Senate. The Senate declared that, in case of such with- drawal by the House, the count would be continued by the Senate, and the result pro- claimed by the Vice-President. The House, on the other hand, announced its intention of acting in such a case if there had been no choice by the electoral vote; it would at once proceed to elect the President as re- quired by the Constitution. Each House was firm in its resolution, and the breach between them widened daily. Angry speeches and threats were made by members of Congress, and the general alarm and uneasiness deepened throughout the country. The time appointed by the Con- stitution for counting the electoral vottf was ADMINISTRATION OF ULYSSES S. GRANT. 839 rapidly drawing nigh, and it seemed likely that an era of anarchy was about to ensue. Each House would act for itself; two Presi- dents would be declared elected. There was no doubt that President Grant would sustain the choice of the Senate with the army. In such an event civil war was inevi- table. The danger was so great that patriotic men of both parties in Congress set to work to devise some means of settlement. It was plain that this could be accomplished only by a compromise. A conference committee was appointed by each House, which com- mittee, after a long deliberation, reported to the two Houses of Congress a bill providing for the appointment of a commission, to consist of fifteen members. Five of these were to be appointed by the Senate, and five by the House of Representatives. The re- maining five were to be chosen from the Justices of the Supreme Court. Four of the justices were designated by the bill ; the fifth was to be chosen by the justices named in the bill. The Joint Convention. The bill provided for the meeting of the two Houses of Congress in joint convention on the first Thursday in February. The votes were to be opened by the Vice-Presi- dent, and counted by tellers appointed for the purpose. Each House was to have the right to object to the vote of a State, but in cases where only one certificate was pre- sented the objection must be sustained by the affirmative vote of both Houses. If not so sustained, the objection must fall and the vote be counted. Section II. of the bill pro- vided : " That, if more than one return, or paper purporting to be a return from a State, shall have been received by the President of the Senate, purporting to be the certificates of electoral votes given at the last preceding election for President and Vice-President in such State (unless they shall be duplicates of the same return), all such returns and papers shall be opened by him in the pre- sence of the two Houses when met as afore- said, and read by the tellers, and all such returns and papers shall thereupon be submit- ted to the judgment and decision as to which is the true and lawful electoral vote of such State," of the commission appointed by the bill. The decision of the commission, with the THOMAS F. BAYARD. reasons therefor, was to be submitted to the two Houses of Congress. Should objection be made by five senators and five representa- tives to the report of the commission, the two Houses were to separate and discuss the said objections, the time allowed for debate being limited by the bill ; but unless both Houses should agree to sustain the objections, the decision of the commission should stand. This plan met with considerable favor from the conservative element of both Houses, but was strongly opposed by the more ultra of both parties. It was debated at length and 84C ADMINISTRATION OF ULYSSES S. GRANT. with great victor. It passed the Senate on the twenty-fifth of January, 1877, by a vote of forty-seven yeas and seventeen nays ; ten senators not voting. The vote in the House was taken the next day, and stood, yeas, one hundred and ninety-one ; nays, eighty-six ; fourteen representatives not voting. The vote in the Senate was divided as follows '■ Yeas — Republicans, twenty-one; Democrats' forty-six. Nays — Republicans, sixteen; Dem- ocrats, one. In the House it stood : Yeas — Democrats, one hundred and fifty-nine : Republicans, thirty-two. Nays — Democrats, eighteen; Republicans, sixty-eight. The bill was immediately signed by President Grant, who had from the first given it his warm encouragement. Counting the Electoral Vote. The members of the commission were promptly appointed. They were as follows ; Justices Clifford, Strong, Miller, Field and Bradley, of the Supreme Court ; Senators Edmunds, Morton, Frelinghuysen, Thurman and Bayard ; and Representatives Payne, Hunton, Abbott, Garfield and Hoar. The two Houses of Congress met in joint convention on the first of February, 1877, and began the counting of the electoral vote. When the vote of Florida was reached, three certificates were presented and were referred to the Electoral Commission. This body, upon hearing the arguments of the counsel of the Democratic and Republican parties decided that it had no power to go behind the action of the Return Board, and that the certificate of that body giving the vote of that State to Hayes, must be accepted by the two Houses of Congress. The vote by which- this decision was reached stood eight all Republicans) in favor of it, and seven (all Democrats) against it. The party line appear- ing thus so sharply in the commission mor- tified and disgusted the whole country, which had looked to the commission for a decision that should be beyond question. A similar conclusion was come to in the case of Louisiana. Objections were made to the reception of the votes of Oregon and South Carolina. In the Oregon case the decision was unanimously in favor of counting the votes of the Hayes electors. In the South Carolina case the commission decided that the Democratic electors were not law- fully chosen ; but on the motion to give the State to Hayes, the vote stood eight yeas to seven nays. So South Carolina was counted for Hayes. Objection was made, on the ground of ineligibility, to certain electors from Michigan, Nevada, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, Vermont and Wisconsin, but the objections were not sustained by the two Houses. The final result was reached at ten' minutes after four o'clock on the morning of the second of March, 1877. The counting of the votes of the States having been con- cluded, Mr. Allison, one of the tellers on the part of the Senate, announced the result of the footings ; whereupon the presiding officer of the two Houses declared Rutherford B, Hayes, of Ohio, the duly elected President, and William A. Wheeler, of New York, the duly elected Vice-President, for the term of four years, commencing on the fourth of March, 1877. CHAPTER XLV The Administration of Rutherford B. Hayes Inauguration of President Hayes— Slcetch of the New President— Civil Service Reform— Troops in South Carolina- Two Legislatures in Session— Investigation by President Hayes— Prompt Action— Settlement of the Troubles in South Carolina and Louisiana— General Grant's Tour Around the World— Enthusiastic Reception by the Crowned Heads of other Nations— Tenth Census of the United States— Election of General Garfield as President— Artie Expedition of Lieutenant De Long — Hardy Adventurers- Two Winters in the Ice-Pack — Destruction of the " Jeannette" — Rehef Expeditions — Death from Starvation. RUTHERFORD B. HAYES, the nineteenth President of the United States, was pubHcly inaugurated at Washington on Monday, March 5, 1877. As the fourth of March fell on Sun- day, the President-elect simply took the oath of office on that day. The inaugural cere- monies were carried out on the fifth at the Capitol with the usual pomp and parade, and in the presence of an enormous multitude of citizens and visiting military organizations from all parts of the country. After the cus- tomary reception by the Senate, the new President was escorted ta the eastern portico of the Capitol, where he delivered his inaug- ural address to the assembled multitude, after which the oath of office was publicly admin- istered to him by Chief Justice Waite. The new President was a native of Ohio, having been born at Delaware, in that State, on the fourth of October, 1822. He graduated at Kenyon College, Gambier, Ohio, and obtained his professional education at the Cambridge Law School. He began the prac- tice of the law at Cincinnati in 1856. He was shortly afterwards made Cit^ Solicitor, which office he held until the beginning of the civil war in 1861. Soon after the opening of the war he enlisted in the Twenty-third Ohio Volunteers, with which regiment he served as major, lieutenant-colonel and colonel. He led his regiment, which formed a part of General Reno's division, at the battle of South Mountain, in September, 1862, and was severely wounded in the arm in that engagement. In the fall of 1862 he was made colonel of the regiment, and in 1864 was promoted to the rank of brigadier-general of volunteers " for gallant and meritorious services in the battles of Winchester, Fisher's Hill and Cedar Creek," and was brevetted major-general " for gallant and distinguished services during the campaigns of 1864 in West Virginia, and par- ticularly in the battles of Fisher's Hill and Cedar Cre'?k." At the time of this last pro- motion he was in command of a division. He served until the close of the war, receiv- ing four wounds and having five horses shot under him during his military career. In the fall of 1864 he was elected to Congress, and was returned a second time in 1 866. In 1 867, before the expiration of his Congressional term, he was elected Governor of Ohio, and was re-elected to that office in 1869, being each time the candidate of the Republican party. In 1870 General Hayes was again elected to Congress, and in 1874 was nomi- nated for a third term as Governor of Ohio. His opponent was Governor William Allen, one of the most popular of the Democratic leaders of Ohio. General Hayes was elected by a handsome majority. He resigned this office in March, 1877, to enter upon his 841 842 ADMINISTRATION OF RUTHERFORD B. HAYES. new duties as President of the United States. President Hayes, in his letter accepting the nomination of his party for the Presi- dency, declared that if elected he would RUTHERFORD B. HAYES. earnestly and faithfully seek to do justice to the States of the South, and reform the civil service of the country by ridding it of cor- rupt men, and requiring a faithful discharge of duty at the hands of every public officer. Immediately upon his inauguration he set to work to make good his promises. He selected his Cabinet from among the ablest men in the country, making ability, and not •partisan service, the test of the fitness of the persons selected. William M. Evarts, of New York, was made Secretary of State, and the existence of the Southern States as members of the Union was recognized by the appointment, as Post- master-General, of Mr. Key, of Tennessee, who had sustained the Democratic ticket in the canvass of 1876. Except to the extreme partisans who had done the country so much harm under the last administration, the appointments of the new President gave great satisfaction to the entire nation. Measures were promptly set on foot for the inauguration of a better civil service system. The most im- portant matter which presented itself to the new President for set- « tlement was the con- dition of the States of Louisiana and South Carolina. In the fall of 1876 an election for Governor and other State officers was held in each of these States. The result at the polls appeared to be in favor of the Democratic or Conservative ADMINISTRATION OF RUTHERFORD B. HAYES. 843 candidates. In each State the revision of the vote was controlled by Republicans, some of whom were candidates for re-elec- tion. The Returning Boards announced the triumph of the Republican tickets in Louis- iana and South Carolina. Lower House, which they found guarded also by troops. The doorkeeper, backed by the military force, refused to admit certain of the delegates whose credentials he declared were nvill and void. The entire body of Demo- cratic members then withdrew, after protest- In South Carolina the Conservatives re- ! ing against the interference of the military solved to inaugurate General Wade Hamp- ton, their candidate, as Governor. The Governor of the State was Mr. Daniel H. Chamberlain, who had been th'e Republican candidate for re-election. Upon learning the intention of the De- mocrats to inaugurate their Gov- ernor, Mr. Chamberlain applied to President Grant for military aid. His application to President Grant was promptly responded to, and General Ruger, commanding the Department of the South, was or- dered to place the troops stationed in Columbia at Governor Chamber- lain's disposal. Having secured the aid of the troops, Governor Cham- berlain now proceeded to take the first step in his plan. On the night of the twenty-seventh of November the State House was occupied by a detachment of troops, which was posted so as to command all the approaches to the halls of the Legislature. The twenty-eighth of November, i876,was the day appointed for the meeting of the Legislature. The Democratic members met in caucus at ten o'clock in the morning, and proceeded in a body to the State House. Arriving there, they found the building occu- pied by the troops, and were compelled to submit their credentials to the officers of the guard, who admitted such as had papers which he pronounced satisfactory. Passing through the troops the members of the Legis- lature reached the door of the hall of the Under the protection of the troops the Republicans organized the Legislature. The interference of the troops aroused the most intense excitement in Columbia, and it WILLIAM A. WHEELER. was with difficulty that an outbreak was pre- vented, mainly through the influence of General Hampton. The Democrats, on the twenty-ninth of November, succeeded in gaining admission to the State House, where they organized the House of Representatives. After a struggle of a week with the Repub- licans, they withdrew to South Carolina Hall, and conducted the sessions of the Legisla- ture there, gaining members by degrees from Chamberlain's Leorislature at the State House. 844 ADMINISTRATION OF RUTHERFORD B. HAYES. The Republican Legislature declared the election of Governor Chamberlain, and on the seventh of December he was sworn into office, under the protection of the Federal troops. The Conservative Legislature continued its sessions at South Carolina Hall, and on the fourteenth of December Governor Hampton tion of the taxes to enable him to carry on the government were cordially and promptly responded to. The authority of Governor Chamberlain was not recognized beyond the limits of the State House in which the Federal troops were quartered ; the people refused to pay their taxes to his government, and his governorship was a mere name. In ARRIVAL OF GENERAL GRANT AT SAN FRANCISCO IN THE STEAMER CITY OF TOKIO was publicly inaugurated amid the greatest enthusiasm. He at once set to work, with his associates, to administer the government of the State. He was recognized by the vast majority of the people of South Carolina, by many even who had voted against him. His authority was everywhere respected ; and his calls upon the people to advance a por- view of this state of affairs President Grant was repeatedly urged to withdraw the troops from the State buildings to their barracks, but persistently refused to do so. Such was the state of affairs in South Car- olina at the inauguration of President Hayes.. The new President, with characteristic cau- tion, proceeded to investigate the matter.. ADMINISTRATION OF RUTHERFORD B. HAYES. 845 After a patient and thorough inquiry he found that the Federal troops were quartered in the State House of South Carolina in an unlawful manner ; that the Constitution gave to the Federal government no authority to interfere in the domestic concerns of a State, leaving the decision of disputed elections to the State courts for settlement ; and that no such state of lawlessness or insurrection as would justify Federal interference existed in South Carolina. In view of these facts, his duty in the case was plain. It was to restore the proper rela- tions between the Federal government and the State of South Carolina, and to put an end to the unlawful and unjustifiable interfer- ence with the affairs of that State. The mat- ter was laid before the Cabinet, and on the second of April, 1877, it was resolved to order the troops to withdraw from the State House to their barracks at Columbia. The order was at once issued, and was carried into effect on the sixth of April. The troops were withdrawn, and South Carolina was left to settle her own affairs. This step was fol- lowed by the speedy withdrawal of Governor Chamberlain from the contest. The Hamp- ton government was soon installed in the State House, and its authority was firmly established in all parts of the State, to the great joy of its people. The Trouble in Louisiana. The State buildings of Louisiana had been held by the Federal troops ever since the expulsion of the members of the Legislature by General De Trobriand, in 1873. At the election, in 1876, Mr. Stephen B. Packard was the Republican candidate for Governor, and Mr. H. T. Nicholls was the candidate of the Democratic party for the same office. The Republicans claimed that there was intimidation of Republican voters through- out the State, and the Returning Board declared that Mr. Packard had been chosen Governor. The substitution of Mr. Packard for Mr. Kellogg as Governor of Louisiana did not touch the evils from which the people of that State had been suffering for so many years. Their patience was exhausted, and they resolved to sustain the government which they claimed had been chosen. The Conser- vative Legislature was accordingly organized, and on the eighth of January, 1877, Governor Nicholls was publicly inaugurated. On the same day Mr. Packard was sworn into office under the protection of the troops. WILLIAM H. ENGLISH, The Nicholls government got to work as soon as possible ; its authority was recognized throughout the State by the courts and peo- ple; taxes were paid to it and it was indorsed and supported by a vast majority of the peo- ple of Louisiana. President Grant was urged to remove the troops from the State House and other buildings belonging to Louisiana, and was assured that the Packard govern- ment would fall to pieces for lack of support as soon as he should take the troops away. He refused to do so, however. President Hayes found Louisiana in this condition when he entered upon his duties as 846 ADMINISTRATION OF RUTHERFORD B. HAYES. S47 Chief Magistrate. He selected a commission consisting of four Republicans and one Dem- ocrat, and these gentlemen, at his request, proceeded to New Orleans to investigate and report to him the real state of affairs in Louis- iana. They made an investigation of the affairs of the State, and found Packard a gov- reported to the President on the nineteenth of April, and the next day he issued the order to withdraw the United States troops in New Orleans from the State buildings to their barracks. The troops were withdrawn at noon on the twent\'-fourth of April, amid the rejoicings of the people, (jovernor Packard THE MIRAGE AS SEEN IN THE ARCTIC REGION. ernor in name only, while the authority of the Nicholls government extended through- out the State. They found also that the con- dition of affairs in Louisiana was not such as to justify the further interference of the Fed- eral government in the domestic concerns of the State. The conclusions of the commission were at once abandoned the contest. The members of his Legislature joined the Nicholls Legis- lature, and the affairs of the State were once more placed in her own hands. The action of the President in withdraw- ing the troops from South Carolina and Louisiana gave great satisfaction to the country at large. A small class of extreme .-848 ADMINISTRATION OF RUTHERFORD B. HAYES. politicians were disposed to denounce it, but their partisan outcries were silenced by the general voice of approval which came from all parts of the Union, The nation was sick ■of civil war and partisan strife, and hailed the action of the President as the beginning of the long-hoped-for, long-delayed era of peace and good will. General Grant's Tour Around the World. On May 17, 1878, ex-President Grant sailed from Philadelphia in the steamer Indiana for a tour around the world. He had achieved the highest distinction in his native land, and was welcomed with every demonstration of respect by all the nations he visited. The rulers and nobility of Europe and Asia accorded him an enthusiastic recep- tion. On his return trip he arrived at San Francisco September 20, 1879, and was warmly greeted by his fellow-countrymen in every place where he made his appearance. His tour called out the friendly feeling of other countries toward America, and was not without political significance. In the year 1880 the tenth census of the United States was taken, and showed the population of the country to be 50,152,- 559- In the summer of 1880 the various politi- cal parties of the country met in convention to nominate candidates for the Presidency and Vice-Presidency of the United States. The Republican Convention met at Chicago on the second of June, and nominnted James A. Garfield, of Ohio, for President, and Chester A. Arthur, of New York, for Vice-President. The Democratic Convention met at Cincin- nati, on the twenty-second of June, and nomi- nated Winfield Scott Hancock, of Pennsyl- vania, for President, and William H. English, of Indiana, for Vice-President. The Green- back Convention met at Chicago, on the ninth of June, and nominated James A. Weaver, of Iowa, for President, and B. J. Chambers, of Texas, for Vice-President. The election was held on the second of November, and resulted in the choice of General James A. Garfield, who received 214 electoral votes to 155 electoral votes cast for General Hancock. The popular vote was as follows : Garfield, 4,437,345 ; Hancock, 4,435,015 ; Weaver, 305,931. The year 1879 was memorable in Arctic exploration by the expedition of Lieutenant George W. DeLong, of the United States Navy. The expedition was projected by James Gordon Bennett, proprietor of the New York Hcj^ald, with the object of reach- ing the North Pole, if possible, by way of Behring Straits. Lieutenant DeLong sailed in the steamship " Jeannette" from San Fran- cisco, July 8, 1879. All of the crew were volunteers, selected with great care from many applicants. The outcome of the expedition was disas- trous, and it shared the unhappy fate which has attended many other heroic attempts to explore the polar world. After spending two winters in the ice-pack the hardy adventurers lost their ship and attempted to make their way southward in the hope of reaching a place of safety in the three boats belonging to the ship. The boats were separated during a strong gale ; the provisions were at length exhausted, and in the heroic effort to save their lives Lieutenant DeLong and the men in his boat perished of starvation. Several relief expe- ditions were sent out in search of the "Jean- nette," but these were too late to rescue all the party. The last records of DeLong were found, and also sufficient evidence of the hardships and perils through which he and his men had passed in their endeavor to escape from their perilous situation. CHAPTER XLVI The Administration of James A. Garfield. General Garfield Declared President — Inaugural Ceremonies — Sketch of the New President — Contest with the Stal- warts — The Star Route Cases — Assassination of President Garfield — His Illness — Removal to Long Branch — Death of President Garfield — Removal of the Remains to Washington and Cleveland — Interment at Cleveland — Inauguration of President Arthur — Indictment of Guiteau for Murder — Trial and Execution of Garfield's Assassin — Remarkable Scene upon the Scaffold — The Greeley Artie Expedition — Reaching a point beyond the Eighty-first Parallel — Lieutenant Lockwood's Heroic Exploit — Return of the Exploring Party — Valuable Records — Three Relief Expedi- tions — Terrible Sufferings and Privations — A Crew Charged with Cannibalism — Celebration of the Landing of William Penn — Great Suspension Bridge between New York and Brooklyn — Dimensions of the Bridge and Cost. ON the second Wednesday in Feb- ruary, 1 88 1, the two Houses of Congress met in joint-session in the hall of the House of Re- presentatives, for the purpose of counting the electoral vote. The certificates of the electoral colleges of the various States hav- ing been opened and read, with the result mentioned above, the Vice-President an- nounced that James A. Garfield had been duly elected President of the United States, and Chester A. Arthur Vice-President, for the term of four years, from the fourth of March, 1881. The result of the election was cordially ac- cepted by the country, and the nation began to look forward to a new era of prosperity and happiness. On Friday, March 4, 1S81, the inaugura- tion ceremonies took place upon a scale of unusual magnificence, and were participated in by numerous military and civic organiza- tions, and by thousands of citizens from all parts of the country. After the new Vice- President had taken the oath of office, Presi- dent-elect Garfield was formally received by the Senate, and escorted to the eastern portico of the capitol, where, in the presence of an immense multitude of citizens and soldiery, he delivered an able and eloquent inaugural 54 address, and took the oath of office at the hands of Chief-Justice Waite. The new President had been long and favorably known to his countrymen. He was in his fiftieth year, and in vigorous health. A man of commanding presence, he was dignified and courteous in his de- meanor, accessible to the humblest citizen, and deservedly popular with men of all parties. Born a poor boy, without influen- tial friends, he had by his own efforts secured a thorough collegiate education, and had carefully fitted himself for the arduous duties he was now called upon to discharge. En- tering the army at the outbreak of the civil war, he had won a brilliant reputation as a soldier, and had been promoted to the rank of major-general of volunteers. Elected to Congress from Ohio, in 1862, he had entered the House of Representatives in December, 1863, and had seen almost eighteen years of constant service in that body, in which he had long ranked as one of the most brilliant and trusted leaders of the Republican party. Early in 1880 he had been chosen a United States Senator from Ohio, but had been prevented from taking his seat in the Senate by his election to the Presidency. Imme- diately after his inauguration he sent to the Senate for confirmation the names of the 849 8so ADMINISTRATION OF JAMES A. GARFIELD. members of his Cabinet. They were chosen from among the leading members of the conservative portion of the Republican party, and were headed by James G. Blaine, of Maine, as Secretary of State. They were at once confirmed by the Senate, and the new administration embarked upon its short-lived career. Very soon after entering upon his duties, President Garfield found that the Executive JAMES A. GARFIELD. chair was by no means a bed of roses. The Republican party soon divided into two sec- tions, one, known as the " Conservative," supporting the administration, and the other, known as the " Stalwarts," opposing it. A bitter partisan quarrel sprang up between these two wings of the party, and prolonged the Executive session of the Senate until late in June. The quarrel was the fiercest over the appointment of a new collector for the port of New York, and culminated in the resignation of their seats in the Senate by Senators Conkling and Piatt of New York, on the sixteenth of May. The resignation of these gentlemen was based upon the ground that the President had nominated Judge Robertson to be col- lector of the port of New York, without con- sulting or yielding to the wishes of the senators from that State, the said senators in. effect claiming the right to determine what appointments should or should not be made by the President in their State. The President, on his part, insisted upon his right to nominate to office any man whom he should deem worthy of the trust. The struggle was in reality a contest for the independence of the Executive in the matter of public appointments^ and President Garfield was warmly supported by the great mass of the nation without regard to party. He, therefore, pursued with unshaken firm- ness the policy he had determined „ upon. After the resignation of Sen- ators Conkling and Piatt, the nomina- tion of Judge Robertson was con- firmed by the Senate. As the time wore on. President Garfield gained steadily in the esteem of his countrymen. His purpose to give to the nation a fair and just administration of the government was every day more apparent, and his high and noble qualities became more conspicu- ous. Men began to feel that the Exec- utive chair was occupied by a President capable of conceiving a pure and noble stand- ard of duty, and possessed of the firmness and strength of will necessary to carry it into execution. The country was prosperous, and there was every reason to expect a con- tinuance of the general happiness. ADMINISTRATION OF JAMES A. GARFIELD. 851 Soon after the opening of President Gar- field's administration, the Postmaster-General discovered that certain contracts for carrying the mails on what are known as " The Star Routes," were fraudulent, and that the per- sons interested in them were defrauding the government of large sums of money. The President, Postmaster-General and At- torney-General, sustained by the other members of the Cabinet, without exception, thereupon re- solved to bring the guilty parties to justice. The latter being men of wealth and position, bitterly resented the course of the government, and violently denounced it. Never- theless the President caused mea- sures looking to the punishment of the accused parties to be begun, and only the unexpected ., ■ adjournment of the grand jury j^^ and court prevented a formal indictment from being brought against them. Before other mea- sures could be taken, the atten- tion of the entire nation was occupied by an event of graver importance. While these matters were still in progress, President Garfield began preparations for a brief pleasure trip to Long Branch, where Mrs. Garfield was recover- ing from a severe illness; in- tending from that point to visit New England, and be present at the com- mencement exercises of his aluia mater, Williams' College, in Massachusetts. He was to be accompanied by a distinguished party, including several members of the Cabinet. On the morning of the second of July, the party proceeded to the Baltimore and Potomac depot, where they were to take the cars, in advance of the President, who arrived soon after in company with Secretary Blaine, who came simply to see him off and say good-bye. They left the President's car- riafje tofrether, and sauntered arm-in-arm through the depot towards the cars. In passing through the ladies' waiting- room, the President was fired at twice by a MRS. LUCRETIA R. GARFIELD, man named Charles J. Guiteau. The first shot inflicted a slight wound in the President's right arm, and the second a terrible wound in the right side of his back, between the hip and the kidney. The President fell heavily to the floor, and the assassin was secured as he was seeking to make his escape from the building and was conveyed to a police ADMINISTRATION OF JAMES A. GARFIELD. 852 station, from which he was subsequently taken to prison. The President lay helpless upon the floor of the waiting-room, the blood flowing copiously from both his wounds. As soon as JAMES G. BLAINE. those near him recovered from the dismay into which the tragedy had thrown them, he was placed upon a mattrass, physicians were summoned and he was conveyed to an upper room in the depot. He bore his sufferings with great firmness, and from the first dis- played a cool courage that won the warm admiration of the country. The surgeons summoned were soon at hand, and found that the President's injuries were very critical. It was decided to remove him to the Executive Man- sion, and he was carried down the stairs, placed in an army ambulance and driven rapid- ly to the White House. Arriving there he was con- veyed to his wife's chamber, overlook- ing the Potomac, and placed in bed. Two attempts were made by the sur- geons to find the ball — one at the depot, and one at the White House after his arrival there — but both were unsuccessful. Grave fears were entertained by the surgeons for the President's life, and Mrs. Garfield was summoned by tele- graph from Long Branch. She ar- rived during the evening. The news of the attempt upon the Presi- dent's life spread rapidly throughout the Union, and was everywhere received with horror and indignation. During the after- noon his condition became more alarming, ADMINISTRATION OF JAMES A. GARFIELD. 853 and bulletins were issued by the surgeons in charge at frequent intervals, giving the latest news of the state of the illustrious sufferer. These were telegraphed to all parts of the country, and were watched with eager impatience by vast crowds of citizens wherever they were posted. The sympathy of the whole nation went out warmly towards the wounded President and his afflicted family, and from the governments and nations of fulness that astonished his attendants, and encouraged them to hope for a favorable result. The afternoon of the second of July wore anxiously away, no signs of a reaction being manifested, but after the arrival of Mrs. Gar- field, in the evening, the President began to rally slightly. The night was passed in anxious suspense. On the morning of the third, the President was calm and cheerful, THE ASSASSINATION OF JAMES A. GARFIELD. Europe messages of inquiry and sympathy were constantly received through the Atlantic cable. During the entire period of the Presi- dent's illness the official bulletins were issued three times each day, and the nation was thus kept informed of his condition. The best medical and surgical skill of the country was employed in the effort to save the President's life, and throughout the whole period of his illness he never lost his calm courage, but displayed a firmness and cheer- though he fully realized the gravity ot his situation. He told Dr. Bliss, the surgeon in charge of his case, that he wished to know exactly what his chances for life were ; that while he desired to live, he was prepared to die, and did not fear to learn the worst. Dr. Bliss replied that though his injuries were formidable, he had, in his judgment, a chance for his life. "Well, Doctor," ex- claimed the sufferer, with a cheerful smile, " we'll take that chance." 854 ADMINISTRATION OF JAMES A. GARFIELD. The day passed away without any event of importance, and the anxious nation, as well as the President's attendants, drew some hope from the fact he continued " to hold his own." The popular anxiety and sympathy were strikingly manifested on the Fourth of July, the anniversary of the National Independ- ence, in the listless and careless manner in was kept all the while in a most painful suspense. The surgeons in charge, however, recognized the true character of the wound from the first, and while they hoped for a recovery, could not conceal from themselves the fact that such a result would be almost miraculous. The President's sufferings were very great DEATH-BED OF JAMES A. GARFIELD, which the day was celebrated. The people were too much engrossed with their anxiety to take part in any demonstration of joy. The two months following the wounding of President Garfield dragged wearily away, the patient at times showing symptoms of marked improvement, and at others expe- riencing dangerous relapses. The nation alternated between hope and despair, and during this period, and were increased by the intense heat of the season and the unhealthy suroundings of the White House. Yet he bore them all with unshaken firmness and unalterable cheerfulness. Dr. Bliss, his chief surgeon, writes of him during this period ; — " The time which passed until the twenty-third of July, when the first rigor occurred, was chiefly remarkable for the ADMINISTRATION OF JAMES A. GARFIELD. 855 ■quiet, cool determination of the sufferer. 'Quite ready for, and evidently expecting the worst, his demeanor was that of the man whose great intellect and wonderful will enabled liim to give the most intelligent aid to the physician. Apparently indifferent as to result, so far as it should affect him alone, he still watched every symptom, even making inquiry after each examination as to the temperature, pulse and respiration, and every measure of relief adopted, with evidently firm determination to live for others if pos- sible." Towards the last of August, the surgeons in attendance upon the President resolved to remove him from the White House to a more healthful locality. The removal was a risk, but not so great a risk as to permit him to remain in the malarious atmos- phere which surrounded the Executive Mansion, and which was rapidly destroying the little strength left him. It was decided to convey him to Long Branch, in the hope that the pure and bracing air of the sea would enable him to regain some of his lost vitality. Accordingly, on the sixth of September, the President, accompanied by his family, his surgeons and attendants, was conveyed to Long Branch in a train specially prepared THE CATAFALQUE AT CLEVELAND, OHIO. for the purpose. The journey was made quickly and successfully, and after reaching Long Branch the President seemed to rally. 856 ADMINISTRATION OF JAMES A. GARFIELD. For the first few days after his arrival at the seashore, his symptoms were so much better that renewed hope sprang up in the hearts of his countrymen. It was only for a brief period, however. On the sixteenth of Sep- tember there was a marked change for the worse, with unmistakable evidences of in- creasing weakness in mind and body. On passed away appeared more comfortable, and' his attendants were hopeful of a quiet night for him. Towards nine o'clock in the evening he fell into a quiet sleep, from which he awak- ened, shortly after ten o'clock, in great pain. General Swaim, who was watching by him, alarmed by the President's symptoms, hastily JAMES A. GARFIELD LYING IN STATE IN THE ROTUNDA OF THE CAPITOL AT WASHINGTON. the seventeenth the President sank still lower, and in the forenoon was seized with a severe rigor. On the evening of the eighteenth another alarming rigor occurred, followed by other grave symptoms. From this time the President continued to grow worse. On the morning of the nineteenth he was attacked with another severe rigor, but after that had summoned the family and the surgeons. The President was unconscious when they arrived, and continued to sink rapidly. Efforts were made to revive him with stimulants, but in vain, and at thirty-five minutes after ten o'clock, the brave struggle was brought to an end, and the soul of James A. Garfield passed into eternity. ADMINISTRATION OF CHESTER A. ARTHUR. 857 The sad news of the death of President Garfield was at once telegraphed to New York, and by eleven o'clock the whole coun- try was aware that its Chief Magistrate was dead. Bells were tolled in every city, town and village of the Union, and everywhere citizens draped their houses in mourning. Such a display of national sorrow had never been witnessed before. The news of the death of Presi- dent Garfield was at once trans- mitted by telegraph to Vice-Presi- dent Arthur by the members of the Cabinet present at Long Branch, and he was advised by them to take the oath of office as President with- out delay. Accordingly, Justices Brady and Donahoe of the Supreme Court of New York were at once summoned by the Vice-President, and at a little after two o'clock on the morning of the twentieth of September, he took the oath of office as President of the United States before them at his private residence in New York. On the twentieth of September, arrangements were made for remov- ing the body of the late President to Washington City, and on the same day an autopsy was held upon the body by the surgeons who had been in attendance upon the President, assisted by several others. The autopsy revealed the fact that the wound had been fatal from the first. On the morning of the twenty-first, funeral ceremonies were held in the cottage at Long Branch in which the President died, and at ten o'clock the remains were placed on board of a special train, and conveyed to Washington, and accompanied by the family and friends of the dead President, and by President Arthur and a number of distin- guished personages. Washington was reached at 4.35 in the afternoon, and the body was escorted by a detachment of mil- itary and Knights Templar to the Capitol, where it was laid in state until the twenty- third. During the twenty-second and twenty- third it was visited by over one hundred thousand persons. On the afternoon of the CHESTER A. ARTHUR. twenty-third, the public funeral services were held in the rotunda of the Capitol, after which the body was escorted to the Baltimore and Potomac depot, and conveyed to Cleveland, Ohio, by a special train. Cleveland was reached the next day, and the remains were laid in state in a structure especially prepared for them, until the morning of the twenty- sixth, when they were buried with the most imposing ceremonies in Lake View Cemetery ■858 ADMINISTRATION OF CHESTER A. ARTHUR. in the suburbs of that city. Business was suspended and memorial services were held during the day in all parts of the United States. On the twenty-second of September, Pres- ident Arthur again took the oath of office, this time at the hands of the Chief-Justice of the United States, and was quietly inaugura- ted in the- Vice-President's room, in the Cap- itol, delivering upon this occasion, a brief inaugural address. Soon after the attempt upon the life of President Garfield, a popular subscription was .set on foot to provide a fund for the support JOHN A. LOGAN. of his family in the event of his death. The movement was successful, and over ^330,000 were raised, and invested in United States bonds for the benefit of the widow and chil- dren of the " Martyred President." President Arthur entered quietly upon the duties of his administration, and his first acts were satisfactory to a majority of his country- men. As he had been the leader of " the Stalwart," section of the P^epublican party, it was felt by the members of the Cabinet of the late President that he should be free to choose his own advisers. Therefore, imme- diately upon his accession to the Executive chair, Mr. Blaine and his colleagues ten> dered him their resignations. They were requested, however, by the new President to retain their offices until he could find suitable successors to them. To this they agreed, but before the year was out several import- ant changes had been made in the Cabinet. The principal of these were the substitution of Frederick T. Frelinghuysen, of New Jer- sey, for Mr. Blaine, as Secretary of State, and the appointment of Judge Charles J. Folger to the Treasury Department. Indictment of Garfield's Assassin. One of the first acts of the new adminis- tration was to causethe indictment of Charles J. Guiteau for the murder of President Gar- field. The grand jury of the District of Columbia met on the third of October, 1881, and promptly found a true bill against Guiteau, who was arraigned in the Criminal Court of the District on the fourteenth of October. After some delay the trial of the assassin began on the fourteenth of Novem- ber. The first three days were consumed in selecting a jury, and then the trial began in earnest. It ended on the twenty-fifth of January, 1882, in the conviction of Guiteau for the murder of the late President. The prisoner was defended by able counsel, and was allowed many privileges never before granted to persons on trial for so grave an offence. The plea upon which the defence was based was insanity, but the evidence entirely destroyed this assumption, and the verdict of the jury was received throughout the country as just and proper. An effort was made by Guiteau's counsel to obtain a new trial for him, but this was denied by the court, and on the fourth of February Guiteau was sen- tenced to be hanged on the thirtieth of June, 1882. The counsel for the prisoner still continued his efforts to secure a new trial. ADMINISTRATION OF CHESTER A. ARTHUR. 859 but these being unsuccessful in each and every instance, his only resource was an appeal to the clemency of the Executive. The President declined, however, to interfere with the sentence. Execution of Guiteau. During the interval between his sentence and his execution, Guiteau was confined in the jail of the District of Columbia, at Wash- ington. His conduct during this interval was in keeping with that which had marked his trial — vain, egotistical, and blasphemous. To the last the prisoner was confident that President Arthur would interfere in his behalf, but the result proved this to be a vain hope. • The execution took place in the District jail on the thirtieth of June, 1882, and was witnessed by about two hundred people, nearly all representatives of the press. Guiteau displayed more firmness than had been expected of him. He walked to the gallows without making the violent scene which had been anticipated by many, and ascended it with a firm step. Upon the scaffold, how- ever, he displayed considerable emotion, which he quickly subdued. His religious adviser. Rev. Dr. Hicks, offered a short prayer, and Guiteau read a selection from the Holy Scriptures. Then he read a prayer, strangely at vari- ance with his religious professions, in which he called down the curse of the Almighty upon all who had been engaged in his trial and execution, and upon the nation at large, and denounced President Arthur as a coward and an ingrate. Finally he chanted a poem which he had written during the morning. At the close of this singular recital the trap fell, precisely at forty-three minutes past twelve o'clock, and the great crime against the American people was avenged. Guiteau' s neck was broken by the fall, and his death was painless. He died without a struggle, and with scarce a tremor. At the opening of Congress in 1883, John G. Carlisle, of Kentucky, was chosen speaker of the House. In 1 88 1 an attempt was made to establish a signal station at a point north of the eighty- first parallel, and Lieutenant A. W. Greeley, of the United States Navy, was selected as the officer to take charge of the expedition. He received his instructions from the chief JOHN G. CARLISLE. signal officer, General Hazen. The steamer " Proteus," which was to convey the party to its destination sailed from St. John's, New- foundland, on the seventh of July, and imme- diately encountered rough weather. The adventurers pressed forward and, notwithstanding almost insurmountable ob- stacles succeeded in reaching a point beyond the eighty-first parallel, where they estab- lished a post and named it Fort Conger. After landing the party the " Proteus " had returned. 86o ADMINISTRATION OF CHESTER A ARTHUR. As is usual with all polar expeditions anxiety began to be felt for the safety of the party, and attempts were made in 1882 and 1883 to send relief. The colonists were not found, and at length, on accouilt of their provisions being exhausted, they were reduced to terrible straits. The expedition of Greeley is especially memorable for having reached the highest the northern sky; the Arctic moon wore a strange appearance ; the air was sharp with penetrating frost ; and the long night of the Arctic winter was attended with a loneliness impossible to describe. The brave company at length retreated from their post. Few pages in the history of polar exploration record such terrible hardships and sufferings as fell to the lot of PH Sanderson's hope, upernavik, Baffin bay. point ever gained in Arctic exploration. This achievement was due to Lieutenant Lockwood, who approached nearer the North Pole than any other explorer either before or since. The records of the expedi- tion are replete with valuable information concerning the meteorology of that latitude, and with descriptions of very remarkable natural phenomena. Brilliant auroras lighted the Greeley expedition. Three relief ships, the " Thetis," " Bear " and " Alert," were sent to Lady Franklin Bay. The survivors were at last found when they were in dire distress and must soon have perished from starvation, except for the timely relief which reached them. The officers of the expedition were charged with cannibalism and inhuman cruelty. One ADMINISTRATION OF CHESTER A. ARTHUR. 86i of their number who was accMsed of steaHng rations was shot, and if half suppressed reports are to be credited, his body furnished food for his famishing comrades. All who were left of Greeley's command were found on the twenty-second of June, 1884, three years after the party started on its perilous voyage. The heroism of the brave explorers excited the admiration of the world, and uni- trating events in the early history of Penn- sylvania. It was estimated that upwards of four hundred thousand persons attended the celebration. One of the notable events of 1883, was the opening of the great Suspension Bridge over the East River, between New York City and Brooklyn. Work commenced January 3, 1870, and the bridge was opened to the ARCTIC REGION — BEECHEY HEAD. versal interest was felt in the thrilling story of their sufferings. On the twenty-seventh of October, 1882, the two-hundredth anniversary of the landing of William Penn was celebrated at Phila- delphia. The exercises included public addresses, a military display, and an indus- trial parade. In addition to these there were (various historic devices and tableaux, illus- public May 24, 1883. The total cost was ;^i 5,500,000 The total length from New York to Brooklyn is 5,989 feet, and the length of the main span is 1,595^ feet. The height of the towers is 2767^ feet. The height of the floor of the bridge at the cen- tre, above high water mark is 135 feet. The height of the floor of the bridge at the piers is II 8 feet. ^■* 862 SCENE IN THE ARCTIC REGIONS— AMONG THE ICEBERGS. ADMINISTRATION OF CHESTER A. ARTHUR. The caisson for the New York pier was sunk yS feet, and that for the Brooklyn pier 45 >^ feet below the bed of the river. Each cable is 15^ inches in diameter and is made up of 5,000 wires, each % inch in diam- 863 In the campaign of 1884, James G. Blaine^ of Maine, and John A. Logan, of Illinois, were the nominees of the Republican party for the offices of President and Vice-Pres ident. Grover Cleveland, of New York, and THE BROOKLYN SUSPENSION BRIDGE. eter. The anchorages are 930 feet from the towers and weigh 120,000,000 pounds each. The cables are capable of sustaining 49,200 tons. The weight of the central span is 6,742 tons. Thomas A. Hendricks, of Indiana, were the nominees of the Democratic party. The campaign resulted in the election of Cleve- land and Hendricks, the vote in the Elec- toral College being 219 to 182. CHAPTER XLVII The Administration of Grover Cleveland. Mr. Cleveland's Early Life — Governor of New York — Elected President — Inauguration Ceremonies — Civil Service and Revenue Reform — The New Cabinet — Death of General Grant — Imposing Obsequies — Honors to the Illustrious Dead — Death of General George B. McClellan — Free Trade Conference at Chicago — Death of Vice-President Thomas B. Hendricks — Pension Granted to the Widow of President Grant — President Cleveland's Message — Bill Regulating the Presidential Succession — Labor Agitations — Riot at Chicago Instigated by " Anarchists" — Statue of Liberty En- lightening the World — President Cleveland's Marriage — Soldiers' Pensions — Capital and Labor — Centennial Anni- versary of the Adoption of the Constitution — Nomination of President Cleveland — Nomination of Benjamin Harrison — Harrison's Election. THE twenty-second President of the United States was Hon. Grover Cleveland. Mr, Cleveland was a native of New Jersey, and was born in Caldwell, Essex County, March i8, 1837, He came from sturdy New England stock, many of his ancestors having held honor- able positions in their respective localties. President Cleveland, after teaching two or three years, studied law in Buffalo, was admitted to the bar, became sheriff of the county, mayor of the city, and, having received the nomination for governor of New York, was elected by a large majority. This was followed by his nomination in the Democratic Convention of 1884, and his election in the following November to the Presidency. Naturally the departure of the Republican administration and the return of the Demo- cratic party to power after twenty-four years of exile from the highest seats in the coun- cils of the Republic awakened a profound interest. As the fourth of March, 1885, approached, eyes were turned toward Wash- ington, and multitudes went up to the Capital as to a Mecca. Washington itself, accus- tomed to civic displays, exciting events and magnificent parades, was more than usually awakened, and an interest was exhibited in 864 the inauguration which overshadowed all other concerns. The representatives of the press throughout the country were there in full force to record the event and depict the scene in its imposing aspects. The ceremonies incident upon the inaugu- ration presented a pageant exceeding in civic and military display any such preceding occasion in the history of the government. There were in attendance more than one hundred thousand visitors, and the city in its profuse decorations was a bewildering maze of bright colors. Among the significant allegorical designs was a great floral ladder reaching to the roof of a business house on Pennsylvania Avenue, which bore upon its rungs the words, "Sheriff," "Mayor," "Gov- ernor," " President," thus graphically sym- bolizing the life-work of the President elect. The inaugural of President Cleveland began as follows: "In the presence of this vast assemblage of my countrymen I am about to supplement and seal by the oath which I shall take the manifestation of the will of a great and free people. In the exercise of their power and right of self-government they have committed to one of their fellow-citizens a supreme and sacred trust, and he here consecrates himself to their service. ADMINISTRATION OF GROVER CLEVELAND. 865 " This impressive ceremony adds little to the solemn sense of responsibility with which I contemplate the duty I owe to all the people of the land. Nothing can relieve me from -anxiety lest by any act of mine their in- terests may suffer, and nothing is needed to purpose by which he would be guided in the administration of the affairs of the government: " In the discharge of my official duty I shall endeavor to be guided by a just and unstrained construction of the Constitution, a careful observance of the distinction between GROVER CLEVELAND. strengthen my resolution to engage every faculty and effort in the promotion of their welfare." Having stated his sense of the importance and sacredness of the trust confided in him, President Cleveland gave expiession to the 55 the powers granted to the Federal govern- ment and those reserved to the States or to the people, and by a cautious appreciation of those functions which, by the Constitution and laws, have been especially assigned to the executive branch of the government." 866 ADMINISTRATION OF GROVER CLEVELAND. Upon the question of civil service reform President Cleveland expressed himself in accordance with the sentiments enunciated in the platform of his party, adopted at the con- vention of 1884: " The people demand reform in the administration of the government and the influence of those who promise and the vicious methods of those who expect such rewards. And those who worthily seek public employment have the right to insist that merit and competency shall be recog- nized instead of party subserviency, or the surrender of honest political belief" CHIEF-JUSTICE WAITE ADMINISTERING THE OATH OF OFFICE TO PRESIDENT CLEVELAND. application of business principles to public affairs. As a means to this end civil service reform should be in good faith enforced. Our citizens have the right to protection from the incompetency of public employees who hold their places solely as the reward of partisan service, and from the corrupting Revenue reform was another topic referred to in President Cleveland's inaugural address. Thus early in his administration he presented a matter which was very fully discussed in his subsequent messages to Congress, and became the subject of contention between the two great parties. ADMINISTRATION OF GROVER CLEVELAND. 867 "A due regard," he says, " for the interests and prosperity of all the people demand that our finances shall be established upon such a sound and sensible basis as shall secure the safety and confidence of business interests and make the wage of labor sure and steady, and that our system of re venue shall be so adjusted as to relieve the people from unnecessary taxation, having a due regard to the interests Interior; Augustus H. Garland, of Arkansas, Attorney-General ; William Crowninshield Endicott, of Massachusetts, Secretary of War; William F. Vilas, of Wisconsin, Post- master-General ; William Collins Whitney, of New York, Secretary of the Navy. On the fourth of March, the day of Presi- dent Cleveland's inauguration, ex-President Grant was placed on the retired list of the DEATH OF GENERAL GRANT. of capital invested and vvorkingmen employed in American industries, and preventing the accumulation of a surplus in the treasury to tempt extravagance and waste." The new cabinet was composed as follows : Thomas Francis Bayard, of Delaware, Secre- tary of State; Daniel Manning, of New York, Secretary of the Treasury ; Lucius Q. C. Lamar, of Mississippi, Secretary of the army. For some months previous to this there were ominous rumors respecting the state of his health. The great general who had led the Federal forces in the last part of the civil war, and who had gained a military reputation second to that of no commander of modern times ; who had also been lifted to the highest position in the gift of a grate- ful people, and had served eight years in the 868 ADMINISTRATION OF GROVER CLEVELAND. White House as our chief executive, was reported to be in his last illness. The sympathy of the entire country was profoundly stirred by this announcement. Medical skill of the highest order was sum- moned ; daily bulletins of the condition of the illustrious patient were issued ; hope was expressed that his life might be spared for many years, a hope which soon proved to be unfounded ; and although his labors in the preparation of his " Memoirs " continued, it became evident that he was sustained more by will-power than by any increasing THE COTTAGE IN WHICH GRANT DIED AT MT. McGREGOR. strength, and that very soon he would be compelled to lay down his pen as he had already laid down his sword. In the summer of 1865 he was removed to Mount McGregor, in the northern part of the State of New York, in the hope that he would be invigorated by the mountain air. Disease, however, had progressed so far that his death became inevitable, and this occurred on the twenty-third of July, at 8 o'clock A. M. Demonstrations of sorrow attended his obsequies. A special train bore his remains from Mount McGregor to the city of New York, where the funeral services and the interment were to take place. On the sixth of August he was laid in state in the City Hall, and vast crowds of people came to take their last look. On August eighth the funeral took place, which was an extraordi- nary pageantry. It was attended by celeb- rities from all parts of the land. All that statesmen, members of Congress, Governors of States, Judges of Supreme Courts and per- sons in the highest walks of professional and mercantile life could do to give honor to the illustrious dead was rendered on this ocasion. The Grand Army, of which General Grant had been the leader, was fully represented. A procession num- bering from fifty to sixty thou- sand men followed the hearse from the City Hall to the mau- soleum erected on the banks of the Hudson, which was to con- tain the remains of the illustrious dead. The closing scenes of the life of General Grant were as im- pressive as his previous illness had been painful, and fitted to awaken public sympathy. Thus was laid in the tomb another of the renowned sons of the Re- public who had done much to add to her fame and brighten her glory. It was not long after this that another death occurred which added to the affliction caused by that of ex-President Grant. On the 29th of October General George B. McClellan died at his residence at Orange Mountain, N. J. General McClellan's name comes out conspicuously in the history of our country since i860. In the early part of the war he was commander of the Army of the Potomac. Having been displaced, the part that he occupied in the war was not afterward prominent. He was widely known, however, in political life, and was invested ADMINISTRATION OF GROVER CLEVELAND. 869 with several offices, one of which was the governorship of New Jersey. His funeral took place in the city of New York on the second of November. The public agitation of the question of free trade and revenue reform took definite shape in the latter part of this year. At Chicago on the eleventh of November there more and more prominent, entering more largely into public discussion, and was des- tined to be the leading issue in the next presi- dential campaign. On the twenty-fifth of November Vice- President Thomas B. Hendricks died sud- denly at Indianapolis, and his obsequies were attended December first. Thus passed GENERAL GRANT'S TEMPORARY TOMB, RIVERSIDE PARK, NEW YORK. was a national conference of free-traders and revenue reformers. This was preliminary to political action which, it was understood, wouldbe taken afterward. The conference was attended by representative men, views were freely exchanged, and it was thought that by this action the cause of free trade would be materially promoted. Thus it may be seen that the tariff question was becoming away another of the prominent figures whose removal made the year 1885 conspicuous as a year of death in high places. In December both houses of Congress passed a bill granting a pension to President Grant's widow. This was thought to be an act of justice in consideration of the services rendered to the nation by her distinguished husband — a measure which was heartily 370 ADMINISTRATION OF GROVER CLEVELAND. approved by the people at large, and which was another evidence of the fact that, not- withstanding the old saying that " Repub- lics are ungrateful," ours is not to be classed in that number. In the early part of December, Congress reassembled at Washington, and President Cleveland submitted his annual message. In this message the matter of silver coinage was given a prominent place, and in connection with it the existing condition of the laboring classes throughout the country was dis- cussed. The president expressed the gravest anxiety for the prosperity of the country, unless measures should be taken by Con- gress to remedy the existing evils. Another important recommendation had reference to the Indians. It was maintained that the pres- ent laws and regulations for their control should be prudently administered, while at the same time it was stated that there was a lack of fixed purpose or policy on this subject. The Presidential Succession. The president took the ground that the Indians were within the care of the govern- ment, and their rights should be protected from invasion by the most solemn obliga- tions. It was stated that there was a general concurrence in the proposition that the ulti- mate object of their treatment should be their civilization and citizenship, and it was urged that measures to this end should be pressed forward as speedily as possible. The pass- age of a law was recommended which should authorize the appointment of six commis- sicners to carry out the preceding recom- mendations. These were the most important matters which were submitted by President Cleveland in this message, A bill stating the terms of the presidential succession was passed by Congress on the fifteenth of January, 1886. The opinion had long been held by members of Congress, and had been discussed by the journals through- out the country, that the statutes regulating the succession in the office of president were not sufficiently adequate. The intention was, by this bill, to set up such safeguards as would prevent any revolutionary act in the event of the death of the chief executive, the vice-president, or both, during a single pres- idential term. Agitations upon the labor question con- tinued throughout the country; organiza- tions were rapidly formed, conventions were held, leading agitators inflamed the laboring classes, and the subject assumed such grave proportions that on the twenty-second of April, 1886, President Cleveland sent a spec- ial message to Congress. The object was to recommend such measures as would tend to quiet the labor agitation, and at the same time guard the interests of capital. Anarchists Sentenced to be Executed. The next event of importance, although occurring in Chicago, very soon assumed a national aspect. On the fourth of May a riot occurred in that city, instigated by a company of revolutionary spirits who have been denominated " Anarchists." After having held secret and public meetings for a long time, which were promoted and reported by one or two journals edited by the leaders in the movement, an open outbreak occur- red on the above date. While a public meet- ing was being held and speeches were being made of a revolutionary description, the police attempted to disperse the crowd. At that instant dynamite bombs were thrown, and seven policemen were killed, and eighty- three officers and citizens were wounded. A number of arrests followed, and on the twentieth of August, after a protracted trial, seven anarchists were convicted of murder and sentenced to be executed. Able coun- sel defended them, and managed their trial ADMINISTRATION OF GROVER CLEVELAND. 871 in such a way as to indicate that they were as much in sympathy with the measures proposed by the anarchists as they were with the maintenance of law and order. On the seventh of October a new trial was refused, and on the ninth formal sentence of execution w^as pronounced. Four were exe- cuted on November 11, 1887, one committed suicide in prison, two were sentenced to imprisonment for lile and one to fifteen years in the penitentiary. Earthquake at Charleston. On the thirty-first of August, 1886, the city of Charleston, South Carolina, was visited by a severe earthquake. Nearly seven thousand buildings were totally destroyed or seriously injured. About one hundred lives were lost, and so great was the work of destruction that more than one-half of the city had to be rebuilt. This calamity threw a gloom over the entire country ; prompt aid was offered the sufferers, and the people of the stricken city began at once to repair their .desolated homes. On Thursday, October 28, 1886, the great statue of Liberty Enlightening the World was unveiled on Bedlow's Island, in New York Harbor. This massive work was con- ceived and executed by M. Auguste F. Bar- tholdi, of Paris, France, and was presented by the French nation to the people of the United States. The first steps toward its construction were taken in I874, when the French-American Union was established, a banquet given, and an appeal made to the people of France. In 1876 M. Bartholdi had begun his great work, and with extended right arm of the statue — the first part that was completed — came to America and placed it with the torch in the Centennial Exhibition at Philadelphia, whence it was subsequently removed to Madison Square, New York. In February, 1877, Congress set apart Bedloe's Island for the statue, and a committee was chosen, with William M. Evarts at its head, to make preparations for receiving the great work. The statue weighs 450,000 pounds, or 225 tons. The bronze alone weighs 200,000 pounds. Forty persons can stand comfort- ably in the head, and the torch will hold twelve people. The total number of steps in the tempor- ary staircase, which leads from the base of the foundation to the top of the torch is 403. From the ground to the top of the pedestal, 195 steps. The number of steps in thestatue from the pedestal to the head is 154, and the ladder leading up through the extended right arm to the torch has 54 rounds. The cost of the statue was estimated at $250,000; the cost of the pedestal and the erection of the statue, $350,000. Total cost of the work completed and in place, $600,000. President Cleveland's Marriage. A social event of great interest during the administration of President Cleveland was his marriage at the White House, on the second of June, 1886, to Miss Frances Fol- som, of Buffalo, New York, who was educated at Well's College, and who, just previously to her marriage, had made the tour of Europe. At seven o'clock in the evening the wedding guests assembled in the Blue Room. Owing to the President's desire that the affair should be as private as possible, the Diplomatic Corps had not been invited. The guests placed themselves in the form of a semicircle, Mr. Bayard being at the extreme left and Rev. Mr. Cleveland at the extreme right. The Marine Band, which was stationed in the ante-room, gave forth the dulcet strains of the perennial wedding-march of Men- delssohn as the Rev. Dr. Sunderland took his position at the south end of the room, 8/2 ADMINISTRATION OF GROVER CLEVELAND. and immediately after the bridal party entered. The bearing of the couple was dignified and impressive. They were fol- lowed by the few guests who were closely related to the contracting parties. The reverend doctor then performed the marriage ceremony in a manner at once MRS. FRANCES FOLSOM-CLEVELAND. solemn and impressive, the bride and groom making their responses in clear tones. The ring was then passed and placed upon bride's finger, and the two were pronounced man and wife. The following benediction was spoken by the Rev. Mr. Cleveland, brother of the President : " God the Father, God the Son, and God' the Holy Ghost, bless, preserve and keep- you; the Lord mercifully fill you with all temporal and all spiritual blessings, and grant that you may so live together in this world that in the world to come you may have life everlasting. Amen." Ex-President Chester A. Ar- thur died November i8, 1886, aged fifty-six years. In his message of December, 1886, President Cleveland made special reference to the statutes granting and regulating pensions. This was done, doubtless, in part to answer criticisms upon his many vetoes of bills passed which granted pensions to disabled sol- diers and their families. He says : "The usefulness and the jus- tice of any system for the distri- bution of pensions depend upon the equality and uniformity of its operation. It will be seen from the report of the Commissioner that there are now paid by the government one hundred and thirty-one different rates of pen- sion. " He estimates from the best information he can obtain that nine thousand of those who have served in the army and navy of the United States are now sup- ported, in whole or in part, from public funds or by organized charities, exclusive of those in soldiers' homes under the direction and con- trol of the government. Only thirteen per cent, of these are pensioners, while of the entire number of men furnished for the late war something like twenty per cent, includ- ing their widows and relatives, have been or are now in the receipt of pensions. ADMINISTRATION OF GROVER CLEVELAND. 873 " The American people, with a patriotic and grateful regard for our ex-soldiers — too broad and too sacred to be monopolized by any special advocates — are not only willing but anxious that equal and exact justice should be done to all honest claimants for pensions. In their sight the friendless and destitute soldier, dependent on public charity, if otherwise entitled, has precisely the same work an injustice to the brave and crippled, but poor and friendless soldier, who is entirely neglected or who must be content with the smallest sum allowed under general laws." In the same message occurred a further discussion of the labor question as fol- lows : " The relations of labor to capital and of laboring men to their employers, are of the THE NEW POST OFFICE BUILDING, PHILADELPHIA. right to share in the provision made for those who fought their country's battles as those better able, through friends and influence, to push their claims. " Every pension that is granted under our present plan upon any other grounds than actual service and injury or disease incurred in such service, and every instance of the many in which pensions are increased on other grounds than the merits of the claim, utmost concern to every patriotic citizen. When these are strained and distorted, unjus- tifiable claims are apt to be insisted upon by both interests, and in the controversy which results, the welfare of all and the prosperity of the country are jeopardized. Any inter- vention of the General Government, within the limits of its constitutional authority, to avert such a condition, should be willingly accorded. 874 ADMINISTRATION OF GROVER CLEVELAND. " In a special message transmitted to the Congress at its last session, 1 suggested the enlargement of our present Labor Bureau, and adding to its present functions the power of arbitration in cases where differences arise between employer and employed. When these differences reach such a stage as to result in the interruption of commerce be- tween the States, the application of this remedy by the General Government might be regarded as entirely within its constitu- tional powers. THE NEW CITY HALL, PHILADELPHIA " And I think we might reasonably hope that such arbitrators, if carefully selected and if entitled to the confidence of the parties to be affected, would be voluntarily called to the settlement of controversies of less extent and not necessarily within the domain of Federal regulation. "I am of the opinion that this suggestion is worthy the attention of the Congress. " But after all has been done by the pas- sage of laws either Federal or State to relieve a situation full of solicitude, much more remains to be accomplished by the reinstate- ment and cultivation of a true American sen- timent which recognizes the equality of •American citizenship. This, in the light of our traditions and in loyalty to the spirit of our institutions, would teach that a hearty co-operation on the part of all interests is the surest path to national greatness and the happiness of all our people, that capital should, in recognition of the brotherhood of our citizenship and in a spirit of American fairness, generously accord to labor its just compensation and consideration, and that contented labor is capital's best protection and faithful ally. It would teach, too, that the diverse situations of our people are insepar- able from our civilization, that every citizen should, in his sphere, be a contrib- utor to the general good, that capital does not neces- sarily tend to the oppression of labor, and that violent disturbances and disorders alienate from their pro- moters true American sym- pathy and kindly feeling." In September, of 1887, the centennial anniversary of the adoption and promul- gation of the United States Constitution was celebrated in Philadelphia. The celebration occupied the three days — Thursday, Friday and Saturday, September fifteenth, sixteenth and seventeenth. On the fifteenth there was a grand industrial display under the general direction of Colonel A. Louden Snowden, which was seven hours in passing a given point, and was by far the largest exhibition of the sort ever made in America. On Friday, the sixteenth, there was a mili- tary parade, composed of United States regular troops, United States marines, Girard ADMINISTRATION OF GROVER CLEVELAND. 875 College cadets and companies of State militia from over half the States in the Union. Fif- teen thousand men were in line, the gov- ernors of States riding at the head of their several State troops, the whole under the command of Lieutenant-General Phillip H. Sheridan. It was reviewed by the President in Independence Square, at which President Cleveland presided, the opening and closing prayers being made by Bishop Potter of New York and Cardinal Gibbons of Baltimore, respectively. There were addresses by Presi- dent Cleveland and President Kasson, of the Constitutional Celebration Committee, and STEAMSHIP DOCKS ON THE DELAWARE RIVER. PHILADELPHIA. of the United States. Stands had been erect d along Broad street from Wharton to Daunhin streets, and on Market and Chestnut streets from Broad to Fifth streets, and they were filled with tier upon tier of enthusiastic thousands, the whole forming one of the grandest military spectacles of the century. On Saturday there were public exercises the oration was given by Associate Justice Samuel F. Miller, of the United States Supreme Court. Hon. Roscoe ConkHng, ex-United States Senator of New York, died April 1 8, 1 888, aged fifty-nine. Hon. Morrison R. Waite, Chief Justice of the United States Supreme Court, died March 23, 1888, aged seventy-two years. Zjd ADMINISTRATION OF GROVER CLEVELAND. At St. Louis, June 5, 1888, the Democratic National Convention was held for the pur- pose of nominating candidates for the offices of President and Vice-President. When the convention was called to order the scene was an inspiring one. Back of the delegates rose tier after tier of spectators, a vast, undulating sea of heads and faces. In the galleries the bright ribbons of the ladies and the highly- colored fans fluttered among the red, white and blue, the silver stars and the graceful folds of bunting. The morning was close and muggy and threatened rain, but when ALLEN G. THURMAN. Chairman Barnum, of the Democratic Na- tional Committee, and Secretary Frederick O. Prince came upon the platform the sun burst through the clouds, and through the windows of the convention hall as well. President Grover Cleveland, of New York, was unanimously nominated for the office of President of the United States, and Allen G. Thurman, of Ohio, for the office of Vice- President; after which the convention ad- journed on June 7. The meetings of the convention were attended by scenes of excite- ment and enthusiasm, which indicated com- plete harmony in the Democratic party, resolute determination to make the ap- proching campaign one of great vigor, and hope of success at the general election to be held in November. The Republican National Convention, held at Chicago from the nineteenth to the twenty-fifth of June, 1888, nominated the Hon. Benjamin Harrison, of Indiana, for the office of President. Previous to the assembling of the con- vention, and even during its early sessions, Mr. Harrison was not so prominently named for the nomination as several others. Sher- man, of Ohio; Gresham, of Illinois; Alger, of Michigan, and that distinguished leader of the Republican party, James G. Blaine, had their respective enthusiactic following. The nomination was given to Mr. Harrison after a long and patient effort to secure the best man for the high honor of leading the Repub- lican hosts. Nomination of Benjamin Harrison. When the convention, on the eighth ballot, declared in favor of Harrison, the decision was hailed with universal delight. Although the friends of other candidates had worked with great zeal to secure the prize for their favorites, there was a hearty acquiesence in the final decision, the choice was made unanimous, the building shook with hearty plaudits, great waves of excitement swept over the vast audience, and the scene was one never to be forgotten by those who wit- nessed it. At once all differences among the delegates were harmonized, and they pre- pared to push the canvass with vigor up to the day of decision in November. Hon. Levi P. Morton, of New York, was nominated for the office of Vice President. On the twentieth of July, 1888, the nomi- nation of Melville W. Fuller, of Illinois, as Chief Justice of the United States Supreme Court, was confirmed by the Senate, and on ADMINISTRATION OF GROVER CLEVELAND. 877 the fourteenth of August General John M. Scofield was appointed to command the army of the United States. General Philip H. Sheridan, the distin- guished cavalry commander, died August 5, 1888, aged fifty-seven years. In October occurred an incident which resulted in the recall by the British Govern- ment of its Minister at Washington. On the thirtieth Lord Sackville-West was notified by Secretary Bayard that his presence in this country in adiplomatic capacity was nolonger desired by the United States. This action was taken because of the publication of a letter from Minister West to a mythical per- sonage named Murchison, in which he advised support of Cleveland for President because he was favorable to British interests. Result of the Election. On the sixth of November the election was held, which resulted in a victory for the Republican party, the States voting as they did at the election four years before, with the exception of New York and Indiana, which gave their votes to Benjamin Harrison. The first session of the Fiftieth Congress was the longest continuous session ever held, having lasted 321 days, ending October twen- tieth. In the Senate 3,641 bills and 1 16 joint resolutions were introduced ; in the House, 11,598 bills and 230 joint resolutions — a grand total of 15,585 measures. President Cleveland's message calling attention to the surplus and recommending a revision of the tariff forced a discussion of that economic question which extended through and pro- longed the session. What became known as the Mills bill was reported to the House, and passed July twenty-first. A substitute measure known as the Senate bill was report d to the Senate LEVI p. MORTON. October fourth and debated, but no action was taken thereon. So much time was occu- pied by the tariff debate and other discus- sions brought about for effect on the Presi- dential election that there was very little important legislation. About 1,200 bills were passed, of which 800 were private pen- sion bills. CHAPTER XLVIII The Administration of Benjamin Harrison Inauguration of Pi'esident Harrison — Imposing Scene at Washington — Vast Assembly — Civic and Military Parade — President Harrison's Inaugural Address — Celebration of the Centennial Anniversary of Washington's Inauguration — Fine Naval Parade — Religious and Literary Exercises — Military Display — President Harrison at the Banquet — The President's Address — The New Cabinet — Terrible Calamity at Johnstown — Admission of New States — President's Message to the Fifty-first Congress — Legislation of the First Session of the Fifty-first Congress — The New Tariff Law — Indian War in the Northwest — Death of Sitting Bull — Restriction of Immigration — Mob Law in New Orleans — Trouble with Chile — Political Conventions of i8q2 — Labor Contest at Homestead — Defeat of the Bland Silver Bill. THERE was an imposing demonstra- tion at Washington on the occasion of President Harrison's inaugura- tion, March 4, 1889. A vast con- course of people assembled from all parts of the country, and the civic and military dis- play surpassed all pageantries ever before witnessed at the capital. President Harrison's inaugural address, while recommending some important meas- ures, was regarded as conservative in its tone, and served to inspire confidence in the new administration. The address traced the necessary growth of tariff legislation. This legislation was adopted in the early history of the nation. " Societies for the promotion of home manufactures and for encouraging the use of domestics in the dress of the people were organized in many of the States. The revival at the end of the century of the same patriotic interest in the preserva- tion and development of domestic industries, and the defence of our working people against injurious foreign competition, is an incident worthy of attention. It is not a departure, but a return that we have wit- nessed. The protective policy had then its opponents. The argument was made, as now, that its benefits inured to particular classes or sections." 878 Continuing, the President said : " I look hopefully to the continuance of our protec- tive system and to the consequent develop- ment of manufacturing and mining enter- prises in the States hitherto wholly given to agriculture, as a potent influence in the per- fect unification of our people. The men who have invested their capital in these enterprises, the farmers who have felt the benefit of their neighborhood, and the men who work in shop or field will not fail to find and to defend a community of interest." The President gave some timely sug- gestions respecting the formation of trusts and the evils which are likely to attend them. Among other things he said< " The evil example of permitting individuals, corpora- tions or communities to nullify the laws because they cross some selfish or local interest or prejudices is full of danger, not only to the nation at large, but much more to those who use this pernicious expedient to escape their just obligations or to obtain an unjust advantage over others. They will presently themselves be compelled to appeal to the law for protection and those who would use the law as a defense must not deny that use of it to others. " If our great corporations would more scrupulously observe their legal limitations and duties, they would have less cause to ADMINISTRATION OF BENJAMIN HARRISON. 879 complain of the unlawful limitations of their rights or of violent interference with their operations. The community that by concert, open or secret, among its citizens denies to a portion of its members their plain rights under the law, has severed the only safe bond of social order and prosperity. The evil works, from a bad centre, both ways. It demoralizes those who prac- tice it, and destroys the faith of those who suffer by it in the efficiency of the law as a safe protector. The man in whose breast that faith has been darkened is natur- ally the subject of danger- ous uncanny suggestions. Those who use unlawful methods, if moved by no higher motive than the selfishness that prompted them, may well stop to in- quire what is to be the end of this." The President also recom- mended that our naturaliza- tion laws be so amended as to exclude the worst class of immigrants. "We should not cease to be hospitable to immigration, but we should cease to be careless as to the character of it." The address recommend- ed that care be exercised to maintain friendly relations with the other nations of the globe, but not at the expense of our own interests. A strong navy for the protection of the United States was urged as a prime consid- eration, with such appropriations as would be needed to build and equip a fleet of war vessels capable of defending our coasts and upholding the dignity of our flag. The reform of the civil service, the admis- sion of new States, the freedom of the ballot and the safeguards needed to give efficacy to our election laws, were topics discussed by the address in a timely, patriotic manner. The new cabinet was constituted as fol- lows : Secretary of State, James G. Blaine, Maine (resigned), succeeded by John W. BENJAMIN HARRISON. Foster, Indiana ; Secretary of the Treasury, William Windom, Minnesota (deceased), suc- ceeded by (3harles Foster, Ohio ; Secretary of War, Redfield Proctor, Vermont (resigned), succeeded by Stephen B. Elkins, West Vir- ginia ; Secretary of the Navy, Benjamin F. Tracy, New York ; Secretary of the Interior, John W. Noble, Missouri ; Post-master- General, John Wanamaker, Pennsylvania; ^8o ADMINISTRATION OF BENJAMIN HARRISON. Secretary of Agriculture, Jeremiah M. Rusk, Wisconsin ; Attorney-General, William H. H. Miller, Indiana. On the thirtieth of April, 1889, the Cen- tennial Anniversary of Washington's Inaug- uration was celebrated in New York city. On the morning of the twenty-ninth, Presi- dent Harrison was received in New York harbor with a naval parade, which comprised The religious exercises comprised a prayer by Rev. R. S. Storrs, D. D., LL. D., and a sermon by Bishop Potter, of New York. The literary exercises comprised a poem written for the occasion by John Greenleaf Whittier, and an oration by Hon. Chauncey Depew. At a banquet in the evening, President Harrison spoke as follows : BIRD S-EYE VIEW OF NEW YORK CITY ships of the navy, steamboats, and a large number of vessels belonging to the merchant marine. On the thirtieth, religious and liter- ary exercises were held, and these were fol- lowed by a fine military parade, comprising regiments from the regular army and militia from a number of States. On a stand erected at Madison Square, President Harrison and several cabinet officers reviewed the parade. " The occasion and all its incidents will be memorable, not only in the history of your city, but in the history of our country. New York did not succeed in retaining the seat of national government here, though she made liberal provision for the assembling of the first Congress in the expectation that Con- gress might find its permanent home here. But though you lost that which you coveted. ADMINISTRATION OF BENJAMIN HARRISON. I think the representatives here of all the States will agree that it was fortunate that the first inauguration of Washington took place in the State and city of New York. " For where in our country could the cen- tennial of the event have been so worthily celebrated as here ? What seaboard offered so magnificent a bay, on which to display our merchant and naval marine ? What city your great exchanges have closed and your citizens given themselves up to the observ- ance of the celebration in which we are par- ticipating. " I believe that patriotism has been inten- sified in many hearts by what we have wit- nessed to-day. I believe that patriotism has been placed into a higher and holier fane in many hearts. The bunting with which you THE POST OFFICE, NEW YORK. offered thoroughfares so magnificent or a people so great or so generous as New York has poured out to-day to celebrate that event ? " I congratulate you to-day, as one of the instructive and interesting features of this occasion, that these great thoroughfares dedi- cated to trade have closed their doors and .covered up the insignia of commerce ; that 56 have covered your walls, these patriotic inscriptions, must go down, and the wage and trade be resumed agfain. " Here may I not ask you to carry those inscriptions that now hang on the walls into you homes, into the schools of your city, into all your great institutions where children are gathered, and teach them that the eye cf the young and old should look upon that 882 ADMINISTRATION OF BENJAMIN HARRISON. flag as one of the familiar glories of every American. " Have we not learned that no stocks and bonds nor land is our country? It is a spiritual thought that is in our minds ; it is the fireside and the home ; it is the flag and what it stands for ; it is the thoughts that are in our hearts ; born of the inspiration which comes with the story of the flag of martyrs the inhabitants of Johnstown, Pennsylvania,, and the neighboring villages on the preced- ing day. Instantly the whole land was stirred by the startling news of this great disaster. Its appalling magnitude, its dread- ful suddenness, its scenes of terror and agony, the fate of thousands swept to instant death by a flood as frightful as that of the cataract of Niagara, awakened the profoundest horror. THE BATTERY AND CASTLE GARDEN, NEW YORK. to liberty ; it is the graveyard into which a common country has gathered the uncon- scious deeds of those who died that the thing might live which we love and call our coun- try, rather than anything that can be touched or seen." On the advent of summer, June first, the country was horror-stricken by the announce- ment that a terrible calamity had overtaken No calamity in the history of modern times so appalled the civilized world. The South Forks dam, situated a few miles above the city of Johnstown, suddenly gave way, precipitating an immense body of water into the valley below. The impetuous tor- rent swept downward with frightful velocity, overturning trees, carrying with it barns, houses, fences and vast accumulations of ADMINISTRATION OF BENJAMIN HARRISON. 883 debris. People fled in terror to save their lives, but were overtaken by the rushing tor- rent. The destruction to hfe and property was appalling. The greatest damage occurred at Johns- town, a large part of the dwellings being swept away, transforming a flourishing manu- facturing town of twelve thousand persons into a scene of utter desolation. The story of this great disaster is replete with thrilling incidents, narrow escapes from death, the rending asunder of families, the loss of husbands, wives and chil- dren, and in many instances the obliteration of entire households. It was esti- mated that upwards of four thousand persons perished. Profound sympathy throughout the world was awakened for the surviving sufferers, and immense sums of money and contributions of clothing were sent to the scene of the disaster. On the twenty-second of February, 1 889, an act was passed by Congress admit- ting the following Terri- tories into the Union as States: North Dakota, South Dakota, Montana, and Washington. President Harrison issued his proclamations by which the admission of these Territories took effect during the same year, that of the two Dakotas on November 2, that of Montana on No- vember 8, and that of Washington on No- vember 1 1. The addition of so many States in one year was styled by the President " an event as unexampled as it is interesting." The message of the President, sent to the Fifty-first Congress at the beginning of its first session, made reference to the conference held during the year of the representatives of all the independent States of North and South America for the purpose of per- petuating and expanding the relations of mutual interest and friendliness existing among them. While it was hoped com- mercial results would follow, the crowning benefit would be found in the better secu- rities that would be devised for the mainten- HARBOR OF NEW YORK. ance of peace among all American nations, and the settlement of all contentions by the methods of Christian civilization. The message also called attention to the international conference at Washington to adopt a uniform system of marine signals and to amend the rules and regulations governing vessels at sea. The foregoing conferences brought together the accredited representa- tives of thirty-three nations. 884 ADMINISTRATION OF BENJAMIN HARRISON". The President then discussed the question of Chinese immigration. After calling attention to the fact that previous legislation had failed, he continued : " While our supreme interests demand the exclusion of a laboring element, which experience has shown to be incompatible with our social life, all steps to compass this imperative need should be accompanied with a recognition of the claim of those strangers now lawfully among us to humane and just treatment." cities against foreign attack, the improvement of rivers and harbors, how far " trusts " should be brought under Federal jurisdiction, the revision of our naturalization laws, the allotment of lands to the Indians and such legislation as was required for the protection of these wards of the nation in their lawful rights and of the white settlers on our fron- tiers. The message dealt largely with the subject of pensions for our ex-soldiers, and urged that, with due regard to the public THE BREAK IN THE SOUTH FORKS DAM, JOHNSTOWN, PA. The message took strong ground upon the question of protection to American industries. A new schedule of customs duties was recommended. " The inequalities of the law should be adjusted, but the pro- tective principle should be maintained and fairly applied to the products of our farms as well as of our shops." Other subjects discussed in the message were silver coinage, provision for our coast treasury, Congress should meet every just claim on the part of those who made heroic sacrifices in the hour of the nation's peril. The foregoing were the most important subjects treated by the President, all of which were discussed with marked ability and with a breadth of view which impressed the country with his statesmanlike sagacity. For many years the Louisiana State Lot- tery carried on its operations in defiance of ADMINISTRATION OF BENJAMIN HARRISON. 885 the moral sentiment of the country. Both Houses of Congress finally passed, without a division, an act forbidding the use of the United States mails by any person or com- pany engaged in conducting any lottery, gift enterprise, or any scheme for obtaining money by false and fraudulent pretenses. The passage of this act resulted in the sup- pression of the Louisiana Lottery. An act was also passed declaring to be illegal every contract, combination in the form of trust or conspiracy in restraint of trade or commerce among the several States, or with foreicfn nations. This act passed both Houses of Congress without a division. Its aim was to check the growing evils of trusts and all combinations of capital whereby a restriction is put upon the manufacture and sale of commodities which constitute the necessaries of life. Increasing the Navy. President Harrison's administration was also signalized by important legislation affect- ing the Navy. Provision was made for the construction of three sea-going coast-line battle ships, to carry the heaviest armor and ordnance, the cost not to exceed ^4,000,000 each ; one protected cruiser, to have a maxi- mum speed of 2 1 knots, and to cost not more than ;^2,750,ooo; one swift torpedo cruiser, to have a maximum speed of not less than 23 knots ; and one torpedo boat. Acts were passed admitting the Territories of Idaho and Wyoming as States into the Union, the act admitting Idaho being ap- proved July 3, and that admitting Wyoming July 10, 1890. By a vote of 29 to 5 in the Senate, and a vote of 1 19 to 93 in the House of Represen- tatives, Congress passed an act providing that " All fermented, distilled or other intoxi- cating liquors or liquids transported into any State or Territory remaining therein for use, consumption, sale or storage therein, shall, upon arrival in such State or Territory, be subject to the operation and effect of the laws of such State or Territory enacted in the exercise of its police powers, to the same extent and in the same manner as though such liquids or liquors had been produced in such State or Territory, and shall not be ex- empt therefrom by reason of being introduced therein in original packages or otherwise." The act was approved August 8, 1890, WILLIAM Mckinley. and was occasioned by a decision of the United States Supreme Court (three judges dissenting) that brewers in Illinois had the right to import into Iowa beer, and to sell it in original packages without regard to the law of Iowa. Congress took up the matter promptly and provided ample legislation for the enforcement by the various States of their laws relating to the traffic in liquors. On the twenty fifth of April, 1890, Con- gress passed an act relating to the Colum- bian Exposition at Chicago. The act provides for an exhibition of arts, indus- tries, manufactures, products of the soil, mine S86 ADMINISTRATION OF BENJAMIN HARRISON. and sea, in 1893, in Chicago, Illinois, in cele- bration of the four hundredth anniversary of the discovery of America by Christopher Columbus. A commission of two persons from each State and Territory to be appointed by the President on the nomination of the Governors, and of eight commissioners at large and two from the District of Columbia, to be appointed by the President, in all which there shall be one from each of the two lead- ing political parties — with alternates — shall be the World's Columbian Commission, with CHARLES F. CRISP. power to accept the site, etc., on condition of their being satisfied that ;^ 10,000,000 are secured for the complete preparation for said Exposition. The Commission is required to appoint a board of lady managers, who may appoint one or more members of all com- mittees authorized to award prizes for exhibits which may be produced in whole or in part by female labor. A naval review is directed to be held in New York harbor in April. 1893, and the President is authorized to extend to foreign nations an invitation to send ships of war to join the United States navy in rendevous at Hampton Roads and proceed thence to said review. The buildings shall be dedicated October 12, 1892, and the Exposition open not later than May i, 1893, and closed not later than October 30, 1893. The Commis- sion shall exist no longer than January i, 1898. A government building for ^400,000 shall be erected, to contain the government exhibits. The United States shall not in any manner, nor under any circumstances, be liable for any of the acts, doings, proceedings or repre- sentations of the said corporation organized under the laws of the State of Illinois, its officers, agents, servants or employees, or any of them, or for the service, salaries, labor or wages of said officers, agents, servants, or employees, or any of them, or for any sub- scriptions to the capital stock, or for any cer- tificates of stock, bonds, mortgages, or obli- gations of any kind issued by said corpora- tion, or for any debts, liabilities or expenses of any kind whatever attending such cor- poration or accruing by reason of the same. The foregoing were the main provisions of the act. On December 24, 1890, Presi- dent Harrison issued a proclamation inviting the nations of the earth to take part in the Chicago Exposition of 1893. The New Tariff Law. One of the most important measures en- acted during President Harrison's admin- istration was the McKinley Tariff Bill. After a lengthy discussion the bill was passed by a party vote, the Republican party being pledged to the principle of protection. The act went into effect October i, 1890, and in its practical workings was closely watched and universally discussed. A remarkable political revolution swept over the country in the autumn of 1890, ADMINISTRATION OF BENJAMIN HARRISON. which was considered largely due to the enactment of the McKinley Tariff Bill. In the Fifty-first Congress the House of Represen- tatives contained one hundred and seventy-six Republicans and one hundred and fifty-five Democrats. In the Fifty- second Congress there were eighty-eight Re- publicans and two hun- dred and thirty-five De- mocrats. The House was organized by elect- ing Charles F. Crisp, of Georgia, as Speaker. In the autumn of 1 890 troubles broke out afresh at the Indian agencies. The several tribes were seized with a peculiar craze, and began to per- form the "ghost dance," which was supposed to •indicate their belief in a coming Messiah who was about to appear. It seems impossible to trace the exact origin of the Indian faith. An Indian from the upper Columbia River, named Smohalla, preached the doctrine of an Indian Messiah about the year 1880. This Indian taught that there would be an upheaval of nature,which would destroy the white man and restore to the Indian his ancestral re- mains, and that the dust of countless dead In- dians would spring to life, and would surround 887 without one word of warning each pale face, who would be swept from the face of the SITTING-BULL IN HIS WAR-DRESS. earth. None of the deadly weapons of civilization or skill in their use would avail. 888 ADMINISTRATION OF BENJAMIN HARRISON. and the blood of eighty millions of whites would atone for the wrongs done to the red race. Within a few months the belief in this new religion spread from tribe to tribe with marvellous rapidity. Runners traversed thousands of miles to reach distant tribes and bear the glad tidings. The Arrapahoes, CHIEF AMERICAN HORSE. the Shoshones, the great Sioux tribes, the Cheyennes, both north and south, and many other tribes, were taught the faith ; and the " ghost-dance," the religious ceremony of the creed, was danced by all these tribes. Possessed by these superstitious notions, these extraordinary beliefs, the powerful tribe of Sioux began and continued to perform their fantastic ghost-dances. Sitting-Bull, the old deadly foe of the white men, took advantage of the craze to inflame the anger of his people and prepare for deeds of blood. The disquietude among the Sioux Indians- resulting from Sitting-Bull's prophecy that a new Messiah was soon to appear to restore to the Indians the land taken from them by the pale-faces, and to bring back the buffalo, assumed such proportions that on the fourteenth of Novem- ber the Interior Department transferred the control of the Indians of North Dakota, un- der orders of the President, to the War Department, and General Miles, commanding the Department of the Mis- souri, was placed in control. Troops were ordered to be sent forward, and it was ex- pected that within a short time there would be three thousand regulars massed in North Da- kota. Sitting-Bull had about three thousand warriors, and it was the intention of the War Department to overawe the Indians by bringing against them an equal force of United States soldiers. The Indian hostility to those of their number who were friendly to the United States Government showed itself in the attempted assas- sination of American Horse. This In- dian was a prominent Sioux chief, and a friend of the United States. He was so regarded for years, and was always inclined to be peaceable and loyal. To nothing but the turbulent, hostile and disaffected spirit of the Indians can be attributed the attempt to murder him. They were seemingly angry because American Horse opposed ADMINISTRATION OF BENJAMIN HARRISON. 889 the turbulent spirit manifested by the In- dians. On the seventh of December some of the hostile chiefs from the Bad Lands appeared at the Pine Ridge agency to hold a confer- ence with General Brooke. They came bear- ing a flag of truce and armed with Winchester and Springfield rifles. The entrance of the novel procession cre- ated great excitement. First came the chiefs, who were Turning Bear, Big Turkey, High Pine, Big Bad Horse and Bull Dog, who was one of the leaders in the Custer massacre. Next came Two Strike, the head chief, seated in a bug- gy with Father Jule, a priest who induced the chiefs to take this step. Surrounding these was a body guard of four young warriors. All the Indians were decorated with war paint and feathers, while many wore ghost-dance leggings and the ghost-dance shirt dangling at their saddles. The warlike cavalcade proceeded at once to General Brooke's spacious head- quarters in the agency residence. At a given signal all leaped to the ground, hitched their ponies and, guided by Father Jule, entered the General's apartments, where the council was held, lasting two hours. At the beginning of the pow-wow General Brooke explained that the Great Father, through him, asked them to come in and have a talk regarding the situation. A great deal of misunderstanding and trouble had arisen by the reports taken to and fro between the camps by irresponsible parties, and it was therefore considered very necessary that they have a talk face to face. Through him, he said, the Great Father wanted to tell them if GENERAL NELSON A. MILES. they would come in near the agency, where he (General Brooke) could see them often, and not be compelled to depend on hearsay, that he would give them plenty to eat and would employ many of their young men as scouts, etc. The soldiers did not come there to fight but to protect the settlers and keep peace. 590 ADMINISTRATION OF BENJAMIN HARRISON. He hoped they, the Indians, were all in favor of peace, as the Great Father did not want war. As to the feeling over the change in the boundary line between Pine Ridge and Rosebud Agency, he said that and many other things would be settled satisfactorily after they had shown a disposition to come in, as asked by the Great Father. Wounded Knee was suggested as a place that would It would be a bad thing for them to come nearer the agency, because there was no water or grass for their horses here. He could not understand how their young men could be employed as scouts if there was no enemy to be watched. They would be glad to be employed and get paid for it. They might come in, but as the old men and old women have no horses, and as their people have CAPTAIN WALLACE FOUND AFTER THE WOUNDED KNEE FIGHT. prove satisfactory to the Great Father to have them live. The representatives of the hostiles listened with contracted brows, sidelong glances at one another and low grunts. When the General had concluded his remarks, Turning Bear came forward and spoke in reply. He proved a most entertaining person. Sim- mered down to a few words. Turning Bear gave expression to the following ideas : nothing generally to pull their wagons, it would take them a long time to come. If they should come they would want the Great Father to send horses and wagons to the Bad Lands camp and bring in great quanti- ties of beef, etc., they had there, and take it anywhere to a new camp that might be agreed on. In conclusion, the speaker hoped that they would be given something to eat before they started back. ADMINISTRATION OF BENJAMIN HARRISON. 891 To this the general replied that they should be given food. As for horses and wagons being sent after the beef, the general said that and other things would be considered after they had acceded to the Great Father's request to move into the agency. Any reference whatever to the wholesale devasta- tion and depredation, thieving and burning of buildings, etc., was scudiously avoided on both sides. After the pow-wow was over the band was conducted to the quarter- master's department and there given a big feast. The squaws living at the agency came out in gala-day feathers and gave a squaw dance. The conference amounted to nothing, and the trouble was no nearer a settlement than before. Bloody Engagement with the Sioux. The next news received was of a startling character. It was known that General Miles considered Sitting-Bull the chief instigator of the hostilities on the part of the Indians, yet no public notice had been given of his inten- tion to have the crafty old warrior arrested. The Indian police, however, employed on the Pine Ridge reservation, were ordered to make the arrest. The chief was taken, and in the melee which followed an attempt to rescue him he was shot, together with his son and six braves, while four of his captors were slain. The following is the dispatch announcing the capture : Fort Yates, N, D., December 15, 1890. "At daybreak this morning there was a desperate fight at the camp of the hostile Indians, forty miles northwest of Standing-Rock Agency, and before it could be quelled Sitting-Bull, his son, Crow Foot, and six other Indians were killed, besides four of the Indian police, while quite a number on both sides were wounded. The fight was the result of an attempt to arrest Sitting-Bull in order to prevent his departure for the Bad Lands. " The Indian police were ordered early this morn- ing to proceed to the camp and arrest the wily old chief, who it was known had arranged to make an early start for the Bad Lands, where he would be almost absolutely safe from arrest. The police were followed by a troop of cavalry in command of Cap- tain Fechet and a company of infantry under Col- onel Drum. When the police reached Sitting-Bull's camp on the Grand River, they found arrangements being made for the departure of the band, and with- out waiting for the soldiers to come up, at once placed the old chief under arrest and started back with him to the agency. Efforts to Rescue the Chief. " Scarcely had the officers gotten under way when the friends of the old Indian rallied to his rescue. They announced their determination to retake him, and a terrible fight ensued. The police were sur- rounded, and, though greatly outnumbered, they fought like demons and succeeded in holding their own against the redskins until the cavalry, attracted by the firing, came up on a quick run and succeeded in compelling the Indians either to fly or surrender. "The fighting was of the hand-to-hand description, aud is said to have been exceedingly savage. One of the Indian police jumped on Sitting-Bull's horse as soon as he saw the old man fall and rode back for the infantry, which arrived on the scene shortly after the cavalry had relieved the overmatched police. Then the Indians began to break away, and probably one hundred of the braves deserted their families and fled west, up the Grand River. The Killed and Wounded. " When the smoke of battle had cleared away it was found that Sitting-Bull was dead, as also was his son, Crow Foot, and six braves. Four of the police- men, whose names could not be learned, were also dead, and three of them badly wounded. A num- ber of the Indians were badly injured, but managed to escape on their ponies. Captain Wallace, com- manding Troop K, of the Seventh Cavalry, was killed, and Lieutenant Garlington of the same regi- ment was shot in the arm." After the death of Sitting-Bull his warriors saw the hopelessness of continuing the strife and surrendered, December twenty-second, to the United States troops. General William Tecumseh Sherman died at New York City, February 14, 1891, 892 ADMINISTRATION OF BENJAMIN HARRISON. aged seventy-one years. The interment took place at St. Louis, with mihtary honors. Important action was taken by the fifty- SCENE ON THE YELLOWSTONE RIVER. first Congress on the question of immigra- tion. The act of March 3, 1891, provides that the following, besides Chinese laborers, shall be excluded from admission into the United States, in accordance with the existing acts regulating immigration : "All idiots, insane persons, paupers, or persons likely to become a public charge, persons suf- fering from a loath- some disease or a dangerous conta- gious disease, those who have been con- victed of a felony or other infamous crime or misde- meanor involving moral turpitude, polygamists, and also any person whose ticket or passage is paid for with the money of another or who is assisted by others to come, unless it is affirmatively and satisfactorily shown on special inquiry that such person does not belong to one of the fore- going excluded classes, or to the class of contract la- borers excluded by the act of February 26, 1885, but this section shall not be held to exclude persons living in the United States from sending for a relative or friend who is not of the excluded classes under such regulations as the Secretary of the Treasury may prescribe : Provided, that ADMINISTRATION OF BENJAMIN HARRISON. 89: nothing in this act shall be construed to apply to or exclude persons convicted of a political offense, notwithstanding said polit- ical offense may be designated as a felony, crime, infamous crime, or misdemeanor, involving moral turpitude, by the laws of the land whence he came or by the court convicting." Mob Law in New Orleans. • On March 14, 1891, elev^en Italians, v/ho had been accused of conspiracy and the murder of Chief of Police Hennessy, were lynched in New Orleans by an enormous mob, who broke open the jail. The Italian Government made a pro- test and demanded satisfaction from the United States. Dissatisfied with Mr. Blaine's reply, the Italian Minister to the United States was recalled. Our government finally paid indemnity for the lives lost at New Orleans, and referred all judicial action to the State Courts of Louisiana, thereby restoring peaceful relations with Italy. The steamer " Itata," loading at San Diego, California, with arms and ammunition for the Chilean insurgents, was seized on May 6, 1 89 1 , by the United States Government. She sailed the following day with the United States deputy marshal on board. The war- ship " Charleston " was sent in pursuit, and the " Itata " was finally turned over to the United States officers in the harbor of Iquique, June fourth. An International Copyright Law went into effect July i, 1891, according to proclamation by President Harrison. The Governments of the United States, Great Britain, France, Bel- gium and Switzerland are parties to the same. The Hon. James Russell Lowell, the dis- tinguished author and plenipotentiary, died at Cambridge, Massachusetts, August 12, 1 89 1 , aged seventy-two years. The necrology of the year also included the deaths of the two eminent historians, George Bancroft, who died at Washington, January seventeenth, aged ninety, and John Benson Lossing, who died at Chestnut Ridge, New York, June third, aged seventy-eight. The Chilean Affair. On October 26, 1891, the United States demanded of Chile an explanation and repara- tion for the attacks in the streets of Valpa- raiso on American seamen on the sixteenth instant, and the subsequent action of the Chilean police. The affair caused much excitement throughout the country, and also indignation at what was considered a wanton act of cruelty and an insult to the American flag. President Harrison and his Cabinet took prompt action, a special message detail- ing the outrage was sent to Congress, and soon a satisfactory explanation and apology by Chile ended the unfortunate affair. On July nineteenth the Secretary of State an- nounced that an entirely cordial and mutually satisfactory settlement had been reached between the government of the United States and Chile, respecting the indemnity to be paid by the latter on account of the assault upon the crew of the Baltimore. Seventy- five thousand dollars in gold were to be dis- tributed among families of the two men who lost their lives and to the surviving members of the crew who were wounded. On the seventh of June, 1892, the Repub- lican Convention met at Minneapolis. The nomination of President Harrison had been considered a foregone conclusion up to June fourth, when the country was startled by the news that Secretary Blaine had resigned from President Harrison's Cabinet. A letter writ- ten by Mr. Blaine in the preceding February announced that under no consideration would he consent to be a candidate for the Presi- dency. This letter was very generally ac- cepted in good faith, and there was a general 894 ADMINISTRATION OF BENJAMIN HARRISON. conviction that Mr. Blaine was entirely out of the race. It was known, however, that for some time before the Convention assembled, persistent efforts had been made by enemies of the administration to induce Mr. Blaine to reconsider his letter of Feb- ruary, and allow his name to be used at Min- neapolis ; and when he suddenly resigned from the Cabinet by a curt letter, and his resignation was accepted by President Har- rison in a letter equally brief and barren of all complimentary expressions, it was com- monly believed that the " Plumed Knight " had decided to seek the nomination. President Harrison Renominated. There was consequently great excitement preceding the organization of the Conven- tion and during its progress. It became evi- dent at once that there would be a hard contest between the two leading candidates. The States at their Conventions had strongly indorsed the administration of Presid nt Harrison, and many of the delegates had been instructed to vote for his renomination in the National Convention. His friends, after they recovered from the first shock which followed the announcement of Mr. Blaine's resignation, rallied bravely, and remained firm to the end. Minneapolis was the scene of ^animated discussions and unique popular demonstra- tions. The loud huzzahs for Blaine showed that he had a strong hold upon the popular heart ; but the thoughtful mass of delegates who were to decide the question remained true to the President, and worked diligently and wisely to secure his nomination. The brilliant eloquence of Chauncey M. Depew, of New York, awakened an unpar- alleled scene of enthusiasm as he placed Mr. Harrison in nomination before the Conven- tion. Mr. Blaine was nominated by Senator Wolcott, of Colorado. When the vote was taken it was found to be as follows : Harrison, 5 35 J; Blaine, 182^; McKinley, 182; Reed, of Maine, 4; Robert Lincoln, of Illinois, i. On motion of Gov- ernor McKinley, of Ohio, who was chairman of the Convention, the nomination was made unanimous. The Hon. Whitelaw Reid, of New York, was nominated for the Vice- Presidency. The platform which was adopted by the Convention was highly commended as a sound exposition of the great principles of the Republican party. Ex-President Cleveland Nominated. The National Democratic Convention of 1892 was held in Chicago June twenty-first to June twenty-third. It was conceded before the Convention assembled that ex-President Cleveland would again receive the nomina- tion for the Presidency, and the result on the first ballot proved the prediction to have been correct. The vote was as follows : For Mr. Cleve- land, 6161^ ; for Senator Hill, of New York, 112; for Governor Boies, of Iowa, 103; for Senator Gorman, of Maryland, 36^ ; for Hon. A. E. Stevenson, of Illinois, 16^ ; for Senator Carlisle, of Kentucky, 15 ; for Wil- liam R. Morrison, of Illinois, 5 ; for ex-Gov- ernor Campbell, of Ohio, 2; f)r Governor Robert E. Pattison, of Pennylvania, i ; for Hon. William C. Whitney, of New York, i ; for Governor Russell, of Massachusetts, i. Ohio moved the rules be suspended and Mr. Cleveland made the nominee by acclama- tion. Governor Plower, of New York, sec- onded the motion to make the nomination unanimous. The motion to suspend rules and declare Mr. Cleveland nominee by accla- mation was carried. Hon. Adlai E. Stevenson, of Illinois, was nominated unanimously for the office of Vice- President. ADMINISTRATION OF BENJAMIN HARRISON. 89: " The People's Party of the United States" was formed at a convention at Cincinnati, May 4, 1 89 1. The first National Convention was held in Omaha, Nebraska, July i, 1892. On July fourth the nominations were made, resulting in the choice of General James B Weaver as the nominee for Presi- dent, and George Field, of Virginia, for Vice- President. The platform adopted demanded the free and unlimited coinage of silver, a graduated income tax, the establishment of postal savings banks, the operation of the railroads, the telegraph and telephone by the government, and the election of senators by direct vote of the people. The convention also approved of the Sub-Treasury plan of the Farmers' Alliance, and adopted other resolutions demanding a free and fair ballot, and opposing the granting of subsides to any private corporation for any purpose. Prohibition Party. The National Convention of the Pro- hibition Party opened in Cincinnati, on the morning of June 29, 1892, and continued in session until July first. The platform declared that the liquor traffic is a foe of civilization, and the manufacture and sale of alcoholic liquors as a beverage should be suppressed; favored female suffrage ; declared that an increase of the volume of money is needed, and its volume should be fixed at a definite sum per capita, and made to increase with population ; favored the free and unlimited coinage of silver and gold ; declared that tariff should be levied only as a defence against foreign governments which levy tariff upon or bar out our products from their markets, revenue being incidental ; favored government control of railroads and tele- graphs, and stricter immigration laws; con- denmned alien ownership of land ; favored arbitration for settling national disputes, while speculation in margins, the cornering of grain, and the promotion of trusts and pools should be suppressed. The party pledged itself to grant just pensions, and affirmed that it was opposed to any appro- priation of public money for sectarian schools. Lockout at Homestead. On June 29, 1892, the managers of Car- negie & Co.'s steel works at Homestead, Pennsylvania, closed their establishment, and five thousand employes ceased work. An attempt was made by the company to intro- duce non-union laborers, and in order to protect them, as well as to retain possession of the plant, a Pihkerton force of three hun- dred armed men was sent by boat to Home- stead. They attempted to land on the morn- ing of July 6, when a sanguinary contest took place, resulting in the death of several men on each side and the wounding of many more. The next day the Pinkerton force was withdrawn, and the sheriff of Allegheny county telegraphed to Governor Pattison for a force of State militia sufficient to enable him to hold the company's property. After some delay the Governor ordered out the entire militia of the State, under com- mand of General Snowden. The troops arrived on the twelfth, and were quartered in and around the town, their presence having a restraining effect upon the strikers. On the fourteenth General Snowden placed the borough of Homestead under martial law. On July twenty-third an Anarchist named Berkman attempted to assassinate Mr. H. C. Frick, chairman of the Carnegie Steel Com- pany. Mr. Frick was shot twice, but not fatally. His assailant was captured and lodged in jail. Subsequent developments revealed a plot of the Anarchists to take the lives of leading capitalists. What was designated as the Bland Silver Bill was defeated in the House of Representa- tives at Washington on the thirteenth of July, 896 ADMINISTRATION OF BENJAMIN HARRISON. 1892, by a vote of 154 to 136. The bill, which provided for the free coinage of silver, had previously passed the Senate by a small majority. Cyrus W. Field, the projector of the first Atlantic cable, died July 12, 1892, at the age of seventy-three. The monster United States cruiser " Co- lumbia," one of the largest and swiftest war- vessels afloat, was launched at the shipyards of William Cramp & Sons, on the Delaware, July 26, 1892. Canadian Tolls. On the twentieth of August President Harrison issued a proclamation intended to secure just commercial relations between the United States and Canada. The govern- ment of the Dominion had made a practice of discriminating against the citizens of the United States in the use of the Welland Canal, in violation of the treaty of Washing- ton, concluded May 8, 1871. The President maintained that this discriminating system was unjust and unreasonable. He therefore directed that from, and after September i, 1892, until further notice, a toll of 20 cents per ton be levied, collected, and paid on all freight of whatever kind or description pass- ing through the St. Mary's Falls Canal in transit to any port of the Dominion of Canada, whether carried in vessels of the United States or of other nations ; and to that extent he suspended from and after said date the right of free passage through said St. Mary's Falls Canal of any and all cargoes or portions of cargoes in transit to Canadian ports. During August, 1892, alarming reports of the spread of cholera in Europe caused our government to take action intended to prevent the introduction of the pestilence into the United States. On September ist, President Harrison issued a proclamation subjecting all vessels from infected ports to a quarantine of twenty days. George W. Curtis, the eminent author, journalist, and orator, died August 31, 1892, aged sixty-eight years. The poet John G. Whittier died on Sep- tember 7, 1892, aged eighty-four years. The arrival of the steamer " Kite " at St. John, Newfoundland, September 12, 1892, ended one of the most successful Arctic expeditions ever made. The commander was Lieutenant Peary, of the United States Navy. On his arrival he telegraphed to the Navy Department at Washington as fol- lows : " United States Navy claims highest dis- coveries on Greenland, east coast, Independ- ence Bay, 82 degrees north latitude, 34 degrees west longitude, discovered July 4, 1892. Greenland ice cape ends south of Victoria Inlet. " The highest point heretofore attained on the east coast is about 75 or 'j'j degrees, and was made by Holdenby, a German. The highest point on the west coast was 83, made by Lockwood and Brainard, of the Greely expedition." Lieutenant Peary's expedition was rich in scientific treasures and geographical discov- eries. o CO o XI < pq o o m Q o M o (—1 > I >^ I CO Q I— I -arsf*^'*!!'-?'- i*«*««rfr»«t:c,: Eh 1=) E^ I — I Eh CO Eh <1 M EH' ]VI A.P JAeKSO/N . PA-RK, SHOWING SITB OP World's Columbian Exposition, HICAGO. MASONIC TEMPLE, CHICAGO. CHAPTER XLIX The World's Columbian Exposition ^Preparations for the Telebration — Rivalry Between Cities to Furnish the Site — Action of Congress— Chicago Fixed Upon as the Location — Organization of the Exposition Company — State and National Appropriations— Jackson Park — Government Exhibit Building — Administration Building— Mines and Mining Building— Electrical Building — Department of Agriculture— Machinery Hall— Fisheries Building — Magnificent Aquaria— Manufactures and Liberal Arts — Building for Fine Arts — Transportation Building — Horticultural Hall — Palace of Mechanic Arts. EARLY in 1891 active preparations were commenced for the appro- priate celebration of the four hun- dredth anniversary of the discovery of America by Columbus. As the centennial anniversary of American independence in' 1876 had been commemorated by an Inter- national Exposition at Philadelphia, in which nearly all the civilized nations of the earth participated, it was resolved to celebrate the discovery of the New World by an exhibi- tion of grander proportions as the only suitable method of giving dignity to the great occasion. The whole country became interested in the project, and it was advo- cated with unanimity by the newspaper press. A hot rivalry at once sprang up between a number of cities, each of which was eager to obtain the honor of furnishing a site for the World's Fair. The friendly strife finally narrowed itself down to New York and Chicago, but the difficulty of obtaining a convenient site for the exhibition operated strongly as a barrier against the former city. The act of Congress, which definitely selected Chicago as the city in which the Exposition should be held and which fixed the dates of the celebration to be held in 1892 and the formal opening and closing of ■-the Exposition in 1893, was approved by the President of the United States April 25, 1890. The act provides that : Whereas, It is fit and appropriate that the four hundredth anniversary of the discovery of America be commemorated by an exhibition of the resources of the United States of America, their development, and of the progress of civilization in the New World; and Whereas, Such an exhibition should be of a national and international character, so that not only the people of our Union and this continent, but those of all nations as well, can participate, and should therefore have the sanction of the Congress of the United States : Therefore Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Repre- sentatives of the United States of America in Con- gress assembled. That an exhibition of arts, indus> tries, manufactures, and products of the soil, mine, and sea shall be inaugurated in the year eighteen hundred and ninety-two, in the city of Chicago, in the State of Illinois, as hereinafter provided. The act provided : That the President is hereby empowered and directed to hold a naval review in New York har- bor, in April, eighteen hundred and ninety-three, and to extend to foreign nations an invitation to send ships of war to join the United States Navy in rendezvous at Hampton Roads and proceed thence to said review : That said commission shall provide for the dedi- cation of the buildings of the World's Columbia^ Exposition in said city of Chicago on the twelfth da) of October, eighteen hundred and ninety-two, with appropriate ceremonies, and said exposition shall b« 897 898 THE WORLD'S COLUMBIAN EXPOSITION. open to visitors not later than the first day of May, eighteen hundred and ninety-three, and shall be closed at such a time as the commission may deter- mine, but not later than the thirtieth day of October thereafter : That whenever the President of the United States shall be notified by the commission that provision has been made for the grounds and buildings for the uses herein provided for, and there has also been filed with him by the said corporation, known as "The World's Exposition of eighteen hun- dred and ninety-two," satisfactory proof that a sum not less than ten million dollars, to be used and expended for the purposes of the exposition herein authorized, has in fact been raised or provided for by subscription or other legally binding means, he shall be authorized, through the Department of State, to make proclamation of the same, setting forth the time at which the exposition will open and close, and the place at which it will be held ; and he shall communicate to the diplomatic representatives of foreign nations copies of the same, together with such regulations as may be adopted by the commis- sion, for publication in their respective countries, and he shall, on behalf of the government and people, invite foreign nations to take part in the said exposition and appoint representatives thereto : That all articles which shall be imported from foreign countries for the sole purpose of exhibition at said exposition, upon which there shall be a tariff or customs duty, shall be admitted free of payment of duty, customs fees, or charges under such regula- tions as the Secretary of the Treasury shall pre- scribe ; but it shall be lawful at any time during the exhibition to sell for delivery at the close of the exposition any goods or property imported for and actually on exhibition in the exposition buildings or on its grounds, subject to such regulations for the security of the revenue and the collection of the import duties as the Secretary of the Treasury shall prescribe : Provided, That all such articles when sold or withdrawn for consumption in the United States shall be subject to the duty, if any, imposed upon such articles by the revenue laws in force at the date of importation, and all penalties prescribed by law shall be applied and enforced against such articles, and against the persons who may be guilty of any illegal sale or withdrawal. In accordance with the provisions of the act, the task of raising the required |l5,ooo,- OCX) was proceeded with. Pending the action of Congress prominent citizens of Chicago had formed the Exposition Company and invited subscriptions at the rate of ^10 per share. The responses were quick and gen- erous, and 29,374 shareholders subscribed 1^5.467,350. The Legislature of the State authorized the city of Chicago to bond itself for ;$5, 000,000 in aid of the Fair, the bonds to be available as soon as ^3,000,000 of the capital stock had been paid in. A Proclamation. In view of these facts the President of the United States issued the following procla- mation, December 24, 1890: By the President of the United States of Arnerica : Whereas, satisfactory proof has been presented to me that provision has been made for adequate grounds and buildings for the uses of the World's Columbian Exposition, and that a sum not less than $10,000,000, to be used and expended for the purposes of said Exposition, has been provided in accordance with the conditions and requirements of Section 10 of an Act entitled "An Act to provide for celebrating the four hundredth anniversary of the discovery of America by Christopher Columbus by holding an International, Exhibition of arts, industries, manufactures, and the products of the soil, mine, and sea, in the city of Chicago, in the State of Illinois," approved April 25, 1890 ; Now, Therefore, I, Benjamin Harrison, Presi- dent of the United States, by virtue of the authority vested in me by said Act, do hereby declare and proclaim that such International Exhibition will be opened on the first day of May, in the year eighteen, hundred and ninety-three, in the city of Chicago, in the State of Illinois, and will not be closed before the last Thursday in October of the same year. And in the name of the Government and of the People of the United States, I do hereby invite all the nations of the earth to take part in the com- memoration of an event that is pre-eminent in human history and of lasting interest to mankind by ap- pointing representatives thereto, and sending such exhibits to the World's Columbian Exposition as will most fitly and fully illustrate their resources, their industries, and their progress in civilization. THE WORLD'S COLUMBIAN EXPOSITION. 899 In testimony whereof I have hereunto set my hand and caused the seal of the United States to be affixed. Done at the city of Washington this twenty-fourth day of December, in the year of our Lord one thousand eight hundred and ninety, and the Inde- pendence of the United States the one hundred and fifteenth. By the President : Benj. Harrison. James G. Blaine, Secretary of State. The Organization. The management of the World's Colum- bian Exposition was divided as follows : I. National Commission (authorized by Act of Congress). 2. World's Columbian Exposition ( or- ganized under laws of the State of Illinois). 3. Board of Lady Managers ( authorized by Act of Congress). 4. World's Congress Auxiliary. The Director-General was made the chief executive officer of the exposition, and the work was divided into the following great departments : A — Agriculture, Food, and Food Products, Farm- ing Machinery and Appliances. B — Viticulture, Horticulture, and Floriculture. C — Live Stock, Domestic and Wild Animals. D — Fish, Fisheries, Fish Products, and Apparatus of Fishing. E — Mines, Mining, and Metallurgy. F — Machinery. G — Transportation Exhibits — Railways, Vessels, Vehicles. H — Manufactures. J — Electricity and Electrical Appliances. K — Fine Arts — Pictorial, Plastic, and Decorative. L — Liberal Arts, Education, Engineering, Public Works, Architecture, Music, and the Drama. M — Ethnology, Archaeology, Progress of Labor and Invention — Isolated and Collective Exhibits. N — Forestry and Forest Products. O — Publicity and Promotion. P — Foreign Affairs. Lyman J. Gage, of the First National Bank of Chicago, was president of the Exposition Company during its first year. In his report, made April i, 1891, he estimated the resources of the company at $21,000,000, and the expenditures at $17,- 625,453. It was impossible at this time, however, to form an accurate estimate, as the various State appropriations had not been made, nor the national appropriation by Congress of $2,500,000. Site of the Exposition. Jackson and Washington parks were chosen as the location of the Fair, embracing an area of over a thousand acres. Jackson Park, where nearly all of the exposition buildings are located, is beauti- fully situated on Lake Michigan, having a lake frontage of two miles, and embraces 586 acres. Washington Park has 371 acres and Midway Plaisance, connecting the parks, has 80 acres. Upon these parks, previous to their selection as the World's Fair site, $4,000,000 was spent in laying out the grounds and beautifying them by lawns, flower-beds, etc. The contract for grading and for excavating lagoons alone was let for $397,000. These parks are connected with the center of the city and with the general park and boulevard system by more than thirty-five miles of boulevards from 100 to 300 feet in width. The ground was prepared for a system of lagoons and canals from 100 to 300 feet wide, which, with the broad, grassy terraces leading down to them, pass the principal buildings, enclose a wooded island 1,800 feet long, and form a circuit of three miles, navigable by pleasure boats. These canals, which are crossed hy many bridges, connect with the lake at two points : one at the southern limit of the improved portion of the park and the other more than half a mile farther south, at the great main court of the exposition. At this point, extending eastward into the lake 1,200 feet, are piers which afford a landing-place for the 900 THE WORLD'S COLUMBIAN EXPOSITION. lake steamers, and enclose a harbor for the picturesque little pleasure boats of all epochs and nations. This harbor is bounded on the east, far out in the lake, by the long columned fagade of object in this vista is the colossa. statue of Liberty rising out of the lagoon at the point where it enters the land, protected by moles, which carry sculptured columns emblematic of the thirteen oriijinal States of our Union. MAP OF JACKSON PARK SHOWING THE SITE OF THE WORLD S FAIR. the Casino, in whose free spaces crowds of men and women, protected by its ceiling of gay awnings, can look east to the lake and west to the long vista between the main edifices as far as the gilded dome of the Administration Building. The first notable Beyond this, beyond the first of many bridges, lies a broad basin from which grassy terraces and broad walks lead, on the north, to the south elevation of the enormous Main Building, and on the south to the structure dedicated to agriculture. THE WORLD'S COLUMBIAN EXPOSITION. 901 The Main Building, extending northwest- ward a third of a mile, is devoted to manufactures and liberal arts, and receiving from all nations the rich products of modern workmanship. Recalling architecturally the period of the classic revival, it has the vivacity, the emphatic joyousness of that awakening epoch. The long, low lines of its sloping roof, supported by rows of arches, are relieved by a central dome over the great main entrance, and emblematic statuary and floating banners add to its festive character. A Classic Structure. The north elevation of the classic edifice devoted to agriculture shows a long arcade behind Corinthian columns supporting a series of triple arches and three low, graceful domes. Liberally adorned with sculpture and enriched with color, this building, by its simplicity, refinement, and grace, is idyllically expressive of pastoral serenity and peace. At its noble entrance a statue of Ceres offers hospitality to the fruits of the earth. Behind it, at the south, sixty-three acres of land are reserved for the live-stock exhibit. The lofty octagonal dome of the Adminis- tration Building forms the central point of the architectural scheme. Rising from the columned stories of its square base 250 feet into the air, it stands in the center of a spacious open plaza, adorned with statuary and fountains, with flower-beds and terraces, sloping at the east down to the main lagoon. North of the plaza are the two buildings devoted to mines and electricity, the latter bristling with points and pinnacles as if to entrap from the air the intangible element whose achievements it will display. South of the plaza is Machinery Hall, with its power-house at the southeast corner. A subway at the west passes under the terminal railway loop of the Illinois Central , road to the circular machinery annex within. The United States Government Exhibit Building was the first exposition structure to be planned. It occupies a delightful sight near the Lake Shore, south of the main lagoon and of the area reserved for foreign nations and the several States, and east of the Women's Building and of Midway Plaisance. Mexico's Building .stands just north ofthat of the United States, across the lagoon. The Government Building was designed by Architect Windrim, who was succeeded by W. J. Edbrooke. It is classical in style, and bears a strong resemblance to the National Museum and other government buildings at Washington. It covers an area of 350 by 420 feet; is constructed of iron, brick, and glass, and cost ^400,000. Its leading architectural feature is a central octagonal dome, 120 feet in diameter and 150 feet high, the floor of which is kept free from exhibits. The building fronts to the west and connects on the north, by a bridge over the lagoon, with the building of the Fisheries Ex- hibit. The Government Exhibit Building. The south half of the Government Build- ing is devoted to the exhibits of the Post-Office Department, Treasury Depart- ment, War Department, and Department of Agriculture. The north half is devoted to the exhibits of the Fisheries Commission, Smithsonian Institute, and Interior Depart- ment. The State Department exhibit extends from the rotunda to the east end, and the Department of Justice from the rotunda to the west end of the building. The allotment of space for the several department exhibits is : War Department, 23,000 square feet ; Treas- ury, 10,500 square feet; Agriculture, 23,250 square feet; Interior, 24,000 square feet; Post-Office, 9,000 square feet; Fishery, 20,000 square feet, and Smithsonian Institu- tion, amount of space unsettled. 902 THE WORLD'S COLUMBIAN EXPOSITION. The gem and crown of the Exposition Buildings is the Administration Building. It is located at the west end of the great court, in the southern part of the site, looking eastward, at the rear of which is the railroad loop and the great passenger depot. The first object which attracts visitors on reaching the grounds is the gilded dome of this great building. To the south of the Administra- tion Building is the Machinery Hall, and across the great court in front is the Agricultural Building to the south and the Manufacturers' Building to the northeast. The Administration Building. This great building, the Administration Building, is the only one beside the Electrical Building that cost as much as ;^650,ooo. The architect was Richard M. Hunt, of New York, president of the American Institute of Architects, to whose established reputation it will be a memorable addition. It covers an area of 250 square feet, and consists of four pavilions, 84 feet square, one at each end of the four angles of the square of the plan and connected by a great central dome 120 feet in diameter and 220 feet in height, leaving at the center of each faqade a recess 82 feet wide, within which is one of the grand entrances to the building. The general design is in the style of the French renais- sance, and it is a dignified and beautiful specimen of architecture, as befits its position and purpose among the various structures by which it is surrounded. At each angle of the octagonal base are large sculptured eagles, and among the springing lines are panels with rich garlands. This great dome is gilded, and, asserting itself grandly at the end of the long vistas which open up in every direction, across the lagoons and between the neighboring palatial buildings, forms a fitting crown to the first and second stag-es. The four great entrances, one on each side of the building, are 50 feet wide and 50 feet high, deeply recessed and covered by semi- circular arched vaults, richly covered. In the rear of these arches are the entrance doors, and above them great screens of glass, giving light to the central rotunda. Across the face of the screens, at the level of the office door, are galleries of communi- cation between the different pavilions. On each side of these entrances, and in the en- trant angles of the corner pavilions, groups of statuary, of an appropriate and emblematic character, are placed. The interior features of the building even exceed in beauty and splendor those of the exterior. Between every two of the grand entrances, and connecting the intervening pavilion with the great rotunda, is a hall, or loggia, 30 feet square, giving access to the offices and provided with broad, circular stairways and swift running elevators. Inter- nally, the rotunda is octagonal in form, the first story being composed of eight enormous arched openings corresponding in size to the arches of the great entrances. Above these arches is a frieze 27 feet in width, the panels of which are filled with tablets borne by figures carved in low relief and covered with commemorative inscriptions. The principal story of the rotunda is crowned with a richly decorated cornice, on the shelving top of which is a continuous balcony on the same level as the colonnade outside, and from which can be viewed the vast interior. Above the balcony is the second story, 50 feet in height. The walls are embellished with plasters, between which a frieze of win- dows is placed, giving light to the rotunda from the rear wall of the surrounding colon- nade. From the top of the cornice of this story rises the interior dome, 200 feet from the floor, and in the center is an opening 50 feet in diameter, transmitting light from the THE WORLD'S COLUMBIAN EXPOSITION. 903 exterior dome overhead. The under side of the dome is enriched with deep panehngs, rich molded, and the panels are filled with sculpture, in low relief, and immense paint- ings, representing the arts and sciences. In size this rotunda rivals, if not surpasses, the celebrated domes of a similar character in J:he world. As to the uses of the Administration Build- ing, each of the corner pavilions, which are four stories in height, are divided into large and small offices for the various departments of the administration and lobbies and toilet- rooms. The ground floor contains, in one pavilion, the fire and police departments, with cells for the detention of prisoners; in a second pavilion the offices of ambulance service, the physician and pharmacy, the foreign department and the information bureau ; in the third pavilion the post-office and a bank, and in the fourth the offices of public comfort and a restaurant. The second, third, and fourth stories contain the Board rooms, the rooms of the Director-General, of the Department of Publicity and Promotion, and of the World's Columbian Commis- sion. The Mines and Mining Building. This building is French renaissance in design and cost 1^350,000. It was designed by S. S. Beman, the architect who built the celebrated town of Pullman. The building is northwest of the Administration and flanked on the east by the Electrical Building and on the west by the Transportation Build- ing. In many respects it is one of the handsomest of the central group. It is unquestionably the most ornamental. It is 350 by 700 feet, its greatest length being north and south. For a single-story build- ing it is regarded as a model. From grade to the cornice line is 65 feet. Each of the four entrances is as elaborate as it could well be made. The main features of the north and south entrances are 88 feet wide, with openings 32 feet wide and 56 feet high. On either side great pillars 32 feet and 162 feet high give the building a massive and excep- tionally solid appearance. Great shields are wrought upon these pillars. Pavilions 68 feet square and surmounted by domes and conservatories are on either corner of the building. All the openings are spanned by arches, which are filled with ornaments showing the different ways of mining and all of the pro- cesses of smelting and stamping. On the east and west sides minor entrances are arranged, the main features of which are 72 by 90 feet. Here, as on the other side, the panels are filled with suggestions of the mining indus- tries. The roof is entirely of glass. All of the ground floor, excepting a few rooms for offices and retiring rooms, is devoted to a display of mine products. Eight sets of stair- ways lead up to a balcony, 60 feet wide, that extends around the building and opens out to numerous loggias, from which a fine view of the exposition grounds c^n be had, The Electrical Building cost about ^0,000 and covers about five acres. The architects were Van Brunt & Howe, of Boston and Kansas City. The building has its major axis running north and south. The south front is on the great quadrangle or court ; the north faces the lagoon. The general scheme of the plan is based on a longitudinal nave of 1 15 feet wide and 1 14 feet high, crossed in the middle by a transept of the same width and height. The nave and transept have a pitched roof, with a range of skylights at the bottom of the pitch and clear story windows. The rest of the building is covered with a flat roof averaging 62 feet in height and provided with skylights. 904 THE WORLD'S COLUMBIAN EXPOSITION. The second story is composed of a series of galleries connected across the nave by- two bridges, with access by four grand stair- cases. There are subordinate staircases in the four corners of the building. The area of the galleries in the second story is 118,543 feet, or 2.7 acres, but there is capacity for an extension of this area if necessary. The exterior walls of this building are composed of a continuous Corinthian order of pilasters, 3 feet 6 inches wide and 42 feet high, supporting a full entablature and rest- ing upon a stylobate 8 feet and 6 inches high. Above is an attic story 8 feet high, the total height of the walls from the grade outside being 68 feet 6 inches. This order is divided into bays 23 feet wide, this dimension serving as the module of proportion for the plan of the whole building. In the center of each of the four sides is an entrance pavilion, against which the higher roof of the nave or transept abuts. The north pavilion is placed between the two great apsidal or semi-circular projections of the building. It is flanked by two towers 195 feet high. The central feature is a great semi-circular window, above which, 102 feet from the grade, is a colonnade forming an open loggia or gallery, commanding a view over the lagoon and all the north parts of the grounds. Access to the loggia is ostained by elevators. At each of the four corners of the building there is a pavilion, above which rises a light, open spire or tower, 169 feet high. Inter- mediate between these corner pavilions and the central pavilion on the east and west sides, there is a subordinate pavilion bearing a low, square dome upon an open lantern. There are thus ten spires and four domes, which combine to give to the otherwise rigid horizontal lines of the building an effect of lightness and animation in accord with the purposes of the building. All these towers are composed of one or more orders of archi- tecture, with open arches, interior domes, and balustrades. The entablature of the great Corinthian order breaks around each of the pilasters of the four fronts, and above each pilaster in the Attic order is a pedestal bearing a lofty mast for the display of ban- ners by day and electric lights by night. Of these masts there are in all fifty-four. According to agreement among the archi- tects of the buildings around the quadrangle, the Electricity Building, like the rest, has an open portico extending along the whole of the south facade, the lower or Ionic order forming an open screen in front of it. The various subordinate pavilions are treated with windows and balconies. The details of the exterior orders are richly decorated, and the pediments, friezes, panels, and spandrils receive a decoration of figures in relief, with architectural motifs, the general tendency of which is to illustrate the purposes of the building. The friezes of the Ionic order bear in each bay the name of a discoverer or in- ventor associated with the development of the science of electricity, thus setting forth a biographical history of the science. The color of the exterior is marble, but the walls of the hemicycle and of the various porticoes and loggias are highly enriched with color, the pilasters in these places being decorated with scagliola and the capitals with metallic effects in bronze. The Agricultural Building. In the design of this building it was pro- posed by the architects to so devise its de- tails and general outlines that they might be capable of providing an electric illumination by night on a scale hitherto unknown, the flagstaffs, the open porticoes, and the towers, especially, being arranged with this in view. This is one of the most magnificent struct- ures raised for the exposition. The style of e <; CO p o PQ O O c5 I— I P 1—1 PQ o THE WORLD'S COLUMBIAN EXPOSITION. 905 architecture is classic renaissance. This building is put up very near the shore of Lake Michigan, and is almost surrounded by the lagoons that lead into the park from the lake. The building is 500 by 800 feet, its longest dimensions being north and south. The north line of the building is almost on a line with the south pier leading out into the lake, on which heroic columns emblem- atic of the thirteen original States are raised. A lagoon stretches out along this entire front of the building. The east front looks out into a harbor which sweeps around and ex- tends half-way down the south front of the building. The entire west exposure of the trance is had to the rotunda, 100 feet in diameter. This is surmounted by a mam- moth glass dome, 130 feet high. Under the center of the dome is a collos- sal statue of Ceres surrounded by other alle- goric groups of statuary. AH through the main vestibule is statuary illustrative of the agricultural industry. Similar designs are grouped about all of the grand entrances in the most elaborate manner. The corner pavilions are surmounted by domes 96 feet high, and above these tower groups of statu- ary. The design for these domes is that of three women of herculean proportions sup- porting a mammoth globe. At stated inter- THE ELECTRICAL BUILDING. building faces a continuation of the lagoon that extends along the north side. For a single-story building the design is bold and heroic. The general cornice line is 65 feet above grade. On either side of the main entrance are mammoth Corinthian pillars, 50 feet high and five feet in diameter. On each corner and from the center of the building pavilions are reared, the center one being 144 feet square, and those at the ends 64 feet square. The corner pavilions are connected by curtains, forming a continuous arcade around the top of the building. The main entrance leads through an opening 64 feet wide into a vestibule, from which en- vals other groups of statuary have been arranged around the building, principally near the eight minor entrances, each of which is 20 feet wide. The roof of the building is of glass, and the entire cornice is highly ornate. A broad colonnade connects this building and the Palace of Mechanic Arts. Machinery Hall has been pronounced by many architects second only to the Admin- istration Building in the magnificence of its proportions. This building is 850 by 500 feet, and cost ^450,000. It is located at the extreme south end of the park, midway be- tween the shore of Lake Michigan and the west line of the park. It is just south of the 9o6 THE WORLD'S COLUMBIAN EXPOSITION. Administration Building, and its northwest corner approaches within a few rods of the big transportation loop. The building is spanned by three arched trusses, and the interior presents the appear- ance of three railroad train-houses side by side, surrounded on all of the four exterior sides by a fifty-foot gallery. The trusses are to be built separately, so that they can be taken down and sold for use as railroad train-houses. In each of these long naves there is an elevated traveling crane running from end to end of the building for the pur- pose of moving machinery. From these platforms visitors may view the exhibitions beneath. Steam power for this building is supplied from a power-house adjoining the south side of the building. The two exte- rior sides adjoining the grand court are rich and palatial in appearance. The V^oman's Building. This building is 200 by 400 feet in its general dimensions, and is two stories high, with an attic containing committee rooms and general offices. It is located on the westerly side of Jackson Park, directly oppo- site to the ^lidway Plaisance. On the east and west fronts are spacious loggias 200 feet long and 20 feet wide, surmounted by open balconies, accessible from the second floor. In the center is the great hall, 80 by 200 feet, and the full height of the building surrounded by corridors which open upon the central hall by a series of arches or colonnades, and giving access to the various exhibition-, committee-, and reception-rooms, ladies' parlors, etc. On the first floor are the general reception- rooms, kindergarten and halls of general exhibit for woman's work. On the second floor are the ladies' parlors and reception rooms en suite, and a large hall for con- gresses that will accommodate 1,500 people. On the opposite end from the hall is a meeting-room for the Executive Com- mittee of the Board of Lady Managers, with necessary offices for the president, secretary, and other officers. There are large toilet- and dressing-rooms, well lighted and venti- lated, and on the landing of the four prin- cipal staircases which lead to the second floor are four lounging-rooms, made com- fortable with spacious divans and walls hung with tapestries, embroideries, and other specimens of women's handiwork. The great hall is brilliantly lighted from the top, and furnishes ample opportunity for the display of works of art on its walls. The style of the exterior design is Italian renais- sance of a fine and delicate type of orna- mentation, and the friezes and spandrels of the arches are decorated with sculptured festoons and garlands. The pediments which crown the entrances of the east and west fronts will be filled with figures in relief, and the angles of the pavilions above the main corners are to be crowned with groups of female figures. The Fisheries Building. This building is i,ioo feet long and 200 feet wide. It is built upon a curved island, and conforms in shape to this. The general design of the building is Spanish Roman- esque, and its general effect is exquisitely light and pleasing. The two polygonal wings serve as aquaria. The three domes of this building are of the same color and general effect as that of the Administration Building ; and the artists in charge of the color scheme of the whole exposition have planned to use these two widely separated domes as the color accents of the whole scheme. While the extreme dimensions of the building are very large, yet the structure is so laid out that the general effect is rather of THE WORLD'S COLUMBIAN ICX POSITION. 907 delicacy than of the grandeur to be expected from the mere statement of dimensions. It is composed of three parts, — a main building 365 feet long and 165 feet wide, and two polygonal buildings each 133 feet 6 inches in diameter, connected with the main struct- ure by two curved arcades. The main building is provided with two great entrances in the centers of the long sides. These entrances are by pavilions 102 feet long, projecting 41 feet beyond the line of the main building, and flanked at each corner with circular towers. The great pediment over the south or chief entrance is filled v^'ith sculpture, the subject being a scene of whale-fishing. The angles are sur- mounted by statues representing fishers cast- ing the spear, throwing the hand-line, and holding the finny prey. The quadrangular first story is surmounted by a great circular story capped by a conical roof A graceful open turret crowns this roof and four smaller towers spring from and -surround the base. The general design of the whole structure is Roman in masses, with all the details worked out in a realistic manner after various fish and marine forms. Thus the double row of engaged columns which form the ex- terior face of the building have capitals which are formed of a thousand varied groupings of marine forms, while the deli- cate open-work of the gallery railings dis- plays as many different fishes. In the center is a circular basin thirty feet in diameter, in the middle of which rises a towering mass of rock-work. From clefts and crevices in this rock-work miniature cascades ripple down to the masses of reeds, rushes, and ornamental semi-aquatic plants in the basin, amid which are seen gorgeously brilliant fishes disporting. Around this basin is a circular walk sixteen feet wide, reached by two broad entrances. These entrances pass through the inner series of tanks. The larger section of these tanks is devoted to fresh-water fishes, the smaller to those from salt water. This series contains the tanks of greatest capacity. They have vertical sides, and the bottom is rounded. They vary in capacity from 7,000 to 17,000 gallons each. The sea water for the marine fishes is secured by evaporating the necessary quantity at the United States Fish Commis- sion Station at Wood's Holl, Mass., to one-fifth its bulk, thus reducing both quantity and weight for transportation about 80 per cent. The fresh water required to restore it to its proper density is supplied from Lake Michigan. From this same source is drawn all the fresh water needed. In transporting the marine specimens from the coast to Chicago, about 3,000 gallons of pure sea water are brought on each trip. The entire length of the glass fronts of the aquaria is about 575 feet, or over 3,000 square feet of surface. The panorama presented is one of surpassing interest and beauty, and the whole exhibit rivals the greatest permanent aquaria of the world, not only in size but in the number and character of specimens displayed. It is the intention of the State Fish Com- mission of the different States to make provision for a comprehensive exhibit of native and cultivated live fish, with hatcheries, appliances and equipments for transportation, models of fishways in use, etc. Each State has its special exhibit, and in addition to this there is a large government display of shell and sea fish. The coast States send espe- cially large displays. Of all the exhibits to be made by the United States Government, the most inter- esting is that of the Fish Commission. Up to the present time no comprehensive display has ever been made of the fauna belonging to this country. Such an exhibition made 9o8 THE WORLD'S COLUMBIAN EXPOSITION. in Chicago the Commission exhibits alive in aquaria the principal forms of fishes and invertebrates of both oceans, the Gulf of Mexico, the Great Lakes and the inland rivers, with particular reference to those which have commercial value. Not only are marine creatures of all sorts shown, but the finny denizens of the streams also, and likewise the whitefish, the catfish, the big pickerel, and the huge sturgeons of the interior waters. Such a task is neces- sarily of great magnitude, inasmuch as the labor and skill required to fetch the fishes in good condition from points so remote, over thousands of miles of railway, is enormous and of the very highest order. The main structure contains a full and complete exhibit af all the various appliances used in the fishing industry in all countries and in all times, while the special department of angling will have the whole of the west wing for its exhibit. Captain Joseph W. Collins, chief of the department, was appointed to that position on February 13, 1891, having been selected for his eminent fitness for the work to be performed. He has had wide experience in exposition matters, and is probably the best informed man regarding fishery expositions and their conduct to be found in the country. Manufactures and Liberal Arts — The Main Building. The biggest structure on the World's Fair grounds is the Manufactures and Liberal Arts' Building, designed by George B. Post, of New York. Its dimensions are 788 by 1,688 feet. Its location is on the eastern side of the park near the lake shore. It has the lake on the east and a waterway on the south and west sides. It is so designed that it resembles four long buildings joined together in the form of a rectangle about an interior court and forming one continuous exhibition hall. This hall receives light from both sides and the top, and each section is composed of a central arch 100 feet wide open to the roof, and 80 feet high, with galleries on either side 50 feet wide. The four buildings are under one roof, which make an unbroken span through the center of the building 388 feet wide and 1,400 feet long. In the center of the span, running north and south, there is an avenue 50 feet wide, called Columbia Avenue. Another walk, 50 feet wide, crosses this at right angles running from one side to the other of the building. The arched roof is 1 50 feet high. The galleries are approached upon the main floor by thirty staircases, the flights of which are twelve feet wide each. There are four great entrances, one in the center of each faQade. These are designed in the manner of triumphal arches, the central arch- way of each being forty feet wide and eighty feet high. Surmounting these portals is the attic story, ornamented with immense sculp- tured eagles eighteen feet high, and on each side above the side arches are large panels with inscription, and the spandrils are filled with sculptured figures in bas-relief The long fagades of the hall surrounding the building are composed of a series of arches filled with immense glass windows. The lower portion of these arches up to the level of the gallery floor and twenty-five feet in depth is open to the outside, thus form- ing a covered loggia, which forms an open promenade for the public and provides an interesting feature, particularly on the east side, where it faces the lake. Running about the center is a corridor, opening into the span, and a series of eight}-- six projecting balconies elliptical in plan have been constructed. By walking out on these the visitor is enabled to look down on the vast crowds of people and exhibits below. THE WORLD'S COLUMBIAN EXPOSITION. 909 The north and south corridors at the ends of the building are left open, so that visitors there find shelter from sun and rain. From the north corridor a view is had of the Government Building and the maneuvers of troops. From the south corridor there is a view of the Administration Building, the Grand Plaza, and the big basin with its numerous boats flying to and fro. In this building is the Departments of Manufactures and Liberal Arts, and the view down the long span is magnificent. The corresponding building at the Paris Exposition was 1,378 feet long and 374 feet wide, so that it could have been conveniently- built inside this structure. Fine Arts. The building is of pure Grecian, Ionic style, and a type of the most refined classic archi- tecture. It is oblong, 500 by 320 feet, inter- sected, north, east, south, and west by a great nave and transept 100 feet wide and 70 feet high, at the intersection of which is a dome 60 feet in diameter. It is 125 feet to the top of the dome, which is surmounted by a colos- sal statue of the type of famous figures of winged victory. The transept has a clear space through the center of 60 feet, being lighted entirely from above. On either side are galleries 20 feet wide and 24 feet above the floor. The collections of sculpture are displayed on the main floor of the nave and transept, and on the walls of both the ground floors of the galleries are ample wall spaces for displaying the paintings and sculptured panels in relief. The corners made by the crossing of the nave and transept are filled with small picture-galleries. Around the entire building are galleries 40 feet wide, forming a continual promenade around the entire structure. Between the promenade and the naves are the smaller rooms devoted to private collections of paintings and the collections of the various art schools. On either side of the main building are one-storied annexes, divided into large and small galleries capable of expansion. These annexes are 120 by 200 feet wide. The main building is entered by four portals ornamented with architectural sculpture and approached by broad flights of steps. The walls of the loggia of the colonnades are decorated with mural paintings illustrating the history and progress of the arts. The frieze of the exterior walls and the pediments of the principal entrances are ornamented with sculptures and portraits in bas-relief of the masters of ancient art. The general tone or color is light-gray stone. The construc- tion, although of a temporary character, is necessarily fire-proof The main walls are of solid brick covered with staff architect- urally ornamented, while the roof, floors, and galleries are of iron. All light is supplied through glass skylights in iron frames. The immediate neighborhood of the build- ing is ornamented with groups of statues, replicas, and ornaments of classic art, such as Choriagic monument, the " Cave of the Winds." The ornamentation also includes single statues of heroic and life-size propor- tions. The cost of the building was between ;g 5 00,000 and ^600,000. Transportation Building. The great feature of this building, which is 960 by 250 feet, is the superb main entrance. This consists of an immense single arch, enriched to an extraordinary degree by carv- ings, bas-reliefs, and mural paintings. The entire scheme forms a rich and beautiful yet quiet color climax, for it is treated entirely in gold leaf. It is known as the golden door. The general style of the building is on the Romanesque order. From the cupola of this building many of the most striking 9io THE WORLD'S COLUMBIAN EXPOSITION. groupings of the great buildings are most perfectly seen. Everything in the way of transportation from a baby-wagon to a loco- motive is exhibited in this building. The Horticultural Building is i,oooby 280 feet. The main feature of this building, which is almost entirely constructed of glass, is the great crystal dome, 1 87 feet in diameter and 113 feet high, in front of which two smaller domes, resting upon richly sculptured bases, flank the highly ornate arched main entrance. A broad flower-terrace surrounds the whole building, interrupted by tanks in which the Victoria Regia and other superb lilies and water-plants are seen in blossom. Horticultural Hall is almost translucent. Its crystal dome and roofs of glass admit, while it softens, the sunshine which is every- where present in the building. From its northern windows is seen the Women's Building, 200 by 400 feet, with its delicate Italian architectural center, flanked by end and center pavilions connected by an open arcade. The Casino and Pier. One of the novel buildings of the exposi- tion is the Casino and Pier. The Casino, which stands out in the lake 1,000 feet from the shore, is intended to reproduce Venice on a small scale in Lake Michigan. The Casino is built on piles and connected with the shore by a pier 80 feet wide. The base dimensions of the Casino are 180 by 400 feet. The building consists of nine pavilions, two stories in height, and, with the exception of the central one, 80 feet above the surface of the water. The center pavilion is 180 feet high. There is communication between the nine pavilions both by gondolas and bridges. Completely surrounded by water this structure with its fleet of boats and numerous waterways has a decidedly Venetian flavor. Surrounding the central pavilion runs a gallery 56 feet wide. The pier connecting the Casino with the shore forms a broad promenade. At the west end of the pier stand the thirteen columns de- signed by Sculptor St. Gaudens to represent the thirteen original States. In front of the Casino is a harbor for small pleasure crafts. At night this harbor is lighted by incandes- cent lamps sunk beneath the surface of the water on floats. The material of the Casino is of wood and the walls are covered with staff". A striking combination of high color- ings is exhibited. The Forestry Building. The Forestry Building is 208 by 520 feet with a colonnade all about it, the pillars of which are tree trunks 18 inches in diameter and 24 feet high, while the roof is covered with bark and flag-masts tied to the timbers. It cost ;^ 100,000, and is one of the most unique things on the entire grounds. The plan of the Forestry Building admits of a more systematic and attractive arrange- ment of exhibits than has been possible at previous expositions. All the woods of the world are exhibited, the purpose being to show the quantity and geographical location of timber in all countries. . At the Centennial Exhibition in 1876 exhibits of forest pro- ducts were made by 124 nations, states, and municipalities. The State of Washington has sent one log that is four-and-a-half feet in diameter and 1 1 1 feet in length. The microscope indicates that this magnificent specimen of the fir is nearly 450 years old. They have named this log " Seattle." A number of trees are shown that attained an age of 500 to 700 years. The exhibit includes vegetable ivory, dye- woods and barks, and an interesting exhibit of the wood-pulp industry. The agricultural colleges of this country are asked to furnish information and illustra- tions of the forests of their States. THE WORLDS COLUMBIAN EXPOSITION. 911 As the four hundredth anniversary of the discovery of America by Columbus approached, preparations were made in all parts of the country for the celebration of the great event. In every city, town and hamlet, flags floated, public festivities were held, and upon all sides there was an evident recognition of the day. Dedication Ceremonies. The celebration in New York extended over several days, ending on the twelfth of October, and consisted of a magnificent military and naval parade. Vast numbers of people flocked to the metropolis from surrounding towns and even distant local- ities, and participated in the festivities. The greatest celebration, however, was in Chicago, occupying several days and attended by multitudes of people. The Vice-President of the United States was present, also the governors of a number of the States, to- gether with distinguished persons from all parts of the country, including President Harrison's Cabinet, army and navy officers, and Members of Congress. The public exercises began on the nine- teenth of October with the celebration of "Columbus Day" by the children of the public schools. The rooms in the various school-buildings throughout the city where the exercises took place were all decorated in a way appropriate to the occasion. The first exercise was the reading of President Harrison's Proclamation. This was followed by a flag raising, and the pupils saluted the colors. They also pledged their allegiance to the flag in concert and sang " America." The next feature of the programme was reading of the Scriptures or some acknowledgment of the Divine Being, The school then joined in singing " Colum- bus Day," after which the programme was varied according to the grade. In primary grades the little ones recited patriotic verses and sang little songs, while in the grammar and high school grades historical cssavs were read, declamations delivered, and there was also singing. Reception and Ball. The reception and ball, given in the great hall of the Auditorium in the evening, was. a brilliant affair. Four thousand prominent citizens of various States were invited to participate in a reception tendered to the President, Vice-President and ex-Presidents of the United States, the representatives of foreign Governments, Governors of States and Territories, and other distinguished guests. Thousands of electric lamps glowed brightly from the facade of the towering building on the lake front. Along the broad pavements of Michigan Avenue dense crowds of people were content to stand closely packed for hours, viewing the nota bilities as they arrived to attend the recep- tion. About nine o'clock the rumble and flash of glistening equipages began, which announced the arrival of lady managers and patronesses. The invited guests followed in rapid suc- cession. Once within the great auditorium the first impression was that resulting from a flood of light diffused, almost dazzling to the unaccustomed eye, and yet it was the soft, aggregated glowing of myriads of incandescent lamps. There seemed no lack of light in any quarter of the great hall, so equally were the lamps distributed. The great steel fire curtain of the stage had been lifted and the stage flooring had been extended over the entire orchestra pit. Behind the proscenium arch, the lower tier of boxes had been extended in a circle around the rear of the stage. Above this temporary circle of boxes at the centre were 912 THE WORLD'S COLUMBIAN EXPOSITION. four other boxes, which were occupied by an orchestra, discoursing patriotic airs. Decorations. A silken banner of the Spanish royalty was suspended directly over the centre of the stage. On each side, and directly over the boxes, there were ten banners in bunting, each containing the initials of the King and Queen of Spain in the time of Columbus. The panel in front of the organ and between the boxes and the proscenium arch was decorated with a large United States shield, surrounded by a stand of colors, the Stars and Stripes in the middle, flanked on each side by the flags of all the American Repub- lics. The corresponding panel on the south side bore the shield of Spain, also surmounted by the Spanish colors. In this was shown the flags of every nation in the Old World, the colors of Spain and Italy being given prefer- ence in the arrangements. From Alabama smilax had been brought, a carload in all, to festoon the faces of bal- cony and gallery. Wild smilax was hung in graceful festoons in front of all the boxes and along the balcony and gallery front. This was caught up with alternate rosettes of red and yellow ribbon and extended around the improvised boxes on the stage. Above the panels on each side of the proscenium arch were banks of palms and ferns within the centre section of the main balcony, entirely hidden from the view of the guests by ferns and other potted plants. Civic Parade. On the twentieth the celebration was con- tinued, and the demonstrations of enthusiasm were in keeping with the great event, which was commemorated. Chicago, bedecked in bunting and evergreens, abandoned the cares of business for the monster civic parade, which was participated in and witnessed by the Vice-President of the United States, members of the Cabinet, governors and members of their staffs from over a score of states and distinguished visitors from all over the country. Every building, from the one story on the outskirts to the sky-scraping structures in the city proper, observed the event by the display of colors and the portraits of Col- umbus and famous Americans. Along the main streets the decorations were on a grand scale, some of the buildings being literally covered with flags and streamers artistically arranged. Scenes along the Route. Several times at the junction of streets the crowds were so great that they broke through the cordons of patrolmen, but the break was only temporary, for the people, screaming and fighting, were forced back again and kept there during the passage of the parade. Stands had been erected along the route, which was not over three miles, and these were occupied to their limit. The main reviewing stand was outside the post office building. Here Vice-President Mor- ton, ex-President Hayes, members of the Cabinet and other distinguished guests viewed the procession. At the main reviewing stand, on Jackson Street, were over two hundred school girls, dressed in red, white and blue, and arranged in their seats to form a monster American flag. It was a beautiful sight, and was exceedingly picturesque, when the girls waved smaller flags in unison, while they sang patriotic songs. At the head of the parade, to hold in check the dense crowd which thronged the sidewalk and forced itself into the streets, came police mounted. These were followed by a detachment of police on foot. THE WORLD'S COLUMBIAN EXPOSITION. 913 The Chicago Hussars, in black, with white trimmings, headed by their bugle corps, which filled the air with stirring martial notes, was the escort to the Mayor of Chi- cago. The City Council, in carriages, fol- lowed, and then came the Governors of the different States, each of whom was sur- rounded by a brilliant staff. As Governor after Governor went by, each was greeted with cheers. The second grand division was led by the Independent Order of Foresters, twelve thou- sand strong, who made a fine appearance as they swept down the street. The dark green of Italy flowed behind the crimson regalia of the Foresters, and the numerous Italian societies were cheered to the echo as they went by. In their rear was a gigantic float, representing " Columbus discovering Amer- ica," showing the Santa Maria approaching ing a rock-bound coast, upon which a num- ber of Indians stood, eagerly scanning the approaching vessel. Behind the float tramped three hundred Grecians, wearing the decorations of their nation's flag — blue and white. Eight thousand men of the Patriotic Order Sons of America were over an hour in going past, their ranks being broken at frequent intervals by bands, which worked industri- ously at America's national music. Then came the descendants of the men who had won the battle of the Boyne, their persons and banners bearing knots of their favorite orange ribbons. The Chicago Badge. Three thousand five hundred men of the Chicago Turners' Society, headed by the National Commission of their Order, looked exceedingly well in their neat uniforms of gray shirts, trousers and hats. Each man bore upon his left breast the white and terra cotta Chicago badge. They were followed by 700 men of the Bohemian Turners' So- cieties, and these by five hundred German veterans, who marched proudly beneath the red, white and blue of their adoption, and the red, white and black under which they had marched in less peaceful times. There was a strong reminder of the heather as 1,200 bonnie Scots hove in sight. Every man wore the tartan. The bagpipes, which were many throughout the column, shrieked shrilly as the Scots marhed on. Two hun- dred and fifty men of the Royal Scots' Regi- ment, clad in the royal Stuart plaid, called forth loud cheers of approv^al. The black and bold of the sons of St. George followed the Highlanders. Then came rank after rank of Crotian and Polish societies, con- sisting in all about two thousand men. After them came ten times as many ranks, and with the proportionate number of men, and every man a Swede. In four carriages were sixteen pretty girls, representing in their attire the various national female costumes of Sweden and Norway. The Boys in Line. The next division was made up of two thousand boys from the grammar and high schools of Chicago, who were clad in various styles of uniform, and gave vent every now and then to lusty lunged expres- sions of their yells. Then tramped eight representatives of every Grand Army post in Chicago and Cook County, reinforced by numerous delegations from neighboring cities. The veterans were not abov^e eight hundred strong, and in their rear was a float representing the famous old Monitor as she appeared before fighting the Merrimac. The Sons of Veterans, Modern Woodmen of America, Uniformed Rank of the Royal Arcanum and Knights of Pythias, two thousand men in all, closed the divi- sion. THE WORLD'S COLUMBIAN EXPOSITION. of his eloquent address, 914 In the rear of the CathoHc Order of For- esters was a magnificent float Columbus, drawn by eight handsome dapple gray liorses. The lower platform was embellished with the coat of arms of the Order, and on the main platform stood forty-four columns, each surmounted by a gilt star representing the States of the Union. In the centre was a huge globe, above which rested a bust of Columbus. Three young ladies, represent- ing friendship, love and truth, were on the same platform. Probably no display was as keenly appre- ciated as that of the Indian boys from the Industrial School of Carlisle, Pa. There were three hundred in line, dressed in light cadet uniforms, headed by their own brass band. Each boy carried on a stick a tool or article manufactured by them in their school. The first line showed the educational feat- ures, and those in that line carried slates, books, globes, etc. Oration by Hon. Chauncey M. Depew. The climax of the preliminary fete days of the Columbian Fair was reached in the exer- cises attending the dedication of the Exposi- tion buildings. The day was faultless. A parade of fifteen thousand Federal and State soldiers escorted Vice-president Morton, and the officials of the Fair, the Supreme Court Judges, Senators and Representatives and diplomats to the great Machinery Hall, at Jackson Park, where one hundred and twenty- five thousand people were assembled. The features of the occasion here were the ora- tions of Henry Watterson and Chauncey M. Depew. At night, Archbishop Ireland inaugurated the World's Fair Congress Auxiliary, and a pyrotechnic display, wit- nessed by nearly one million people, closed the scene. The orations could be heard by only a small part of the throng, yet their patriotic sentiments awakened enthusiasm. In the course Mr. Depew said : " The grandeur and beauty of this spec- tacle are the eloquent witnesses of peace and progress. The Parthenon and the cathedral exhausted the genius of the ancient and the skill of the medacval architects in housing the statute or spirit of Deity. In their ruins or antiquity they are mute protests against the merciless enmity of nations, which forced art to flee to the altar for protection. The United States welcome the sister republics of the southern and northern continents and the nations and peoples of Europe and Asia, of Africa and Australia, with the products of their lands, of their skill and of their industry to this city of yesterday, yet clothed with royal splendor as the Queen of the Great Lakes. "The artists and architects of the country have been bidden to design and erect the buildings which shall fitly illustrate the height of our civilization and the breadth of our hospitality. The peace of the world permits and protects their efforts in utilizing their powers for man's temporal welfare. The result is this Park of Palaces. The originality and boldness of their conceptions, and the magnitude and harmony of their creations, are the contributions of America to the oldest of the arts and the cordial bidding of America to the peoples of the earth to come and bring the fruitage of their age to the boundless opportunities of this unparal- leled exhibition. " If interest in the affairs of this world are vouchsafed to those who have gone before, the spirit of Columbus hovers over us to-day. Only by celestial intelligence can it grasp the full significance of this spectacle and ceremonies. The Blessings of To-day. " Prom the first century to the fifteenth counts for little in the history of progress. THE WORLDS COLUMBIAN EXPOSITION. 915 but in the period between the fifteenth and the twentieth is crowded the romance and reality of human development. Life has been prolonged and its enjoyment intensified. The powers of the air and the water, the resistless forces of the elements, which in the time of the discoverer were the visible terrors of the wrath of God, have been subdued to the service of man. Art and luxuries, which could be possessed and enjoyed only by the rich and noble, the works of genius which were read and understood only by the learned kw^ domestic comforts and sur- roundings beyond the reach of lords or bishops, now adorn and illumine the homes of our citizens. Serfs are sovereigns and the people are kings. The trophies and splendors of their reign are Commonwealths, rich in every attribute of great States and united in a Republic whose power and pros- perity and liberty and enlightenment are the wonder and admiration of the world. " All hail, Columbus, discoverer, dreamer, hero and apostle. We, here, of every race and country, recognize the horizon which bounded his vision and the infinite scope of his genius. The voice of gratitude and praise for all the blessings which have been showered upon mankind by his adventure is limited to no language, but is uttered in every tongue. Neither marble nor brass can fitly form his statue. Continents are his monu- ment and unnumbered millions, past, present and to come, who enjoy in their liberties and their happiness the fruits of his faith, will reverently guard and preserve from century to century his name and fame." Oration of Hon. Henry Wattersor Mr. Watterson closed his highly patriotic address as follows : " We have come here, not so much to recall bygone sorrows and glories, as to bask in the sunshine of present prosperity and happiness, to interchange patriotic greetings and indulge good auguries, and, above all, to meet upon the threshold the stranger within our gate, not as a foreigner, but as a guest and friend, for whom nothing that we have is too good. " From wheresoever he cometh we wel- come him with all our hearts ; the son of the Rhone and the Garonne; our God-mother, France, to whom we owe so much, he shall be our Lafayette; the son of the Rhine and the Moselle, he shall be our Goethe and our Wagner; the son of the Campagnaand the Vesuvian Bay, he shall be our Michael Angelo and our Garibaldi ; the son of Ar- ragon and the Indes, he shall be our Christopher Columbus, fitly honored at last throughout the world. " Our good Cousin, of England, needs no words of special civility and courtsy from us. For him, the latch-string is ever on the outer side ; though whether it be or not, we are sure that he will enter and make himself at home. A common language enables us to do full justice to one another, at the fes- tive board, or in the arena of debate ; warn- ing both of us in equal tones against further parley on the field of arms. All nations and all creeds be welcome here ; from the Bos- phorus and the Black Sea, the Viennese woods and the Danubian plains; from Hol- land dyke to Alpine crag ; from Belgrade and Calcutta, and round to China seas and the busy marts of Japan, the isles of the Pacific and the far-away Capes of Africa — Armenian, Christian and Jew — the Ameri- can, loving no country except his own, but loving all mankind as his brother, bids you enter and fear not ; bids you partake with us of these fruits of four hundred years of American civilization and development, and behold these trophies of one hundred years of American independence and free- dom ! gi6 THE WORLD'S COLUMBIAN EXPOSITION. "At this moment, in every part of the American Union, the children are taking up the wondrous tale of the discovery, ^nd from Boston to Galveston, from the little logf school-house in the wilderness to the towering academy in the city and the town, may be witnessed the unprecedented spec- tacle of a powerful nation captured by an army of Lilliputians, of embryo men and women, of topling boys and girls, and tiny elves scarce big enough to lisp the numbers of the national anthem ; scarce strong enough to lift the miniature flags that make of arid street and autumn wood an emblematic garden, to gladden the sight and to glorify the red, white and blue. See ' Our young barbarians all at play,' ' for better than these we have nothing to exhibit. They, indeed, are our crown jewels ; the truest, though the inevitable, offsprings of our civilization and development; the representatives of a manhood vitalized and invigorated by toil and care, of a woman- hood elevated and inspired by liberty and education. God bless the children and their mothers ! God bless our country's flag ! And God be with us now and ever, God in the roof-tree's shade, and God on the high- way, God in the winds and waves, and God in all our hearts ! " Commemoration Ode. The commemoration ode read and sung at the dedicatory services of the World's Fair buildings at Chicago was from the pen of Miss Harriet F. Monroe, a young lady of Chicago. The ode was written by her to order, the commission being given to her by the World's Fair Directory. Certain lyrical passages of the ode were set to music, and these passages were sung by a well-trained chorus of five thousand voices. The re- mainder of the ode was read before the assembled multitude. The apostrophe, with which it is con- cluded, and which was a part of the portion set to music and sung, was as follows : Columbia ! Men beheld thee rise A goddess from the misty seas. Lady of joy, sent from the skies, The nations worshipped thee. Thy brows were flushed with dawn's first light ; By foamy waves with stars bedight Thy blue robe floated free. Now let the sun ride high o'erhead. Driving the day from shore to shore ; His burning tread we do not dread. For thou art evermoi'e. Lady of love, whose smile shall bless, Whorn brave deeds win to tenderness, Whose tears the lost restore. Lady of hope thou art. We wait With courage thy serene command, Through unknown seas, toward undreamed fate, We ask thy guiding hand. On ! though sails quiver in the gale ! — Though at the helm, -^e cannot fail. On to God's time-veiled strand ! Lady of beauty ! thou shalt win Glory and power and length of days ; The sun and moon shall be thy kin, The stars shall sing thy praise. All hail ! we bring thee vows most sweet To strew before thy winged feet. Now onward be thy ways !